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Book: “The Sleepless” by Jen Williams

Publishing Info: Wednesday Books, September 2025

Where Did I Get this Book: Netgalley!

Where Can You Get this Book: WorldCat.org | Amazon | IndieBound

Book Description: Elver is the guardian of the wild and dangerous monster forest. Saved from the brink of death by a god, her skin will poison anyone she touches.

Artair is on a mission—one that takes him face-to-face with Elver at her most ruthless. But her defenses are useless when she discovers he’s the only human impervious to her deadly gift. For Artair isn’t human: he’s one of the Sleepless, cursed to share his body with an evil spirit.

Lucian inhabits their body while Artair sleeps, and he is hell-bent on manipulating Elver for his dark purposes. But Elver is harbouring secrets too, and she has her own reasons for feigning an alliance with these two souls.

Caught in the crossfire of gods, monsters, and a dangerous magic they can barely understand, it is only a matter of time before the paths the three of them choose to take will set alight the very foundations of their world.

Review: I’ve had to take some time to really sit and think about how I feel about this book due to one very important factor: I didn’t plan ahead and see that I was going to be reading two love triangle books in a row. As my least favorite romance trope, it was easy to anticipate this affecting my reading experience here.

So, to get it out of the way, I still didn’t love the love triangle, but it was much better done than in “Never Ever After.” The concept of both “romantic interests” being in one body, while not completely new (ahem..“Belladona”), was interesting enough and added some interesting dynamics to the love story. Secondly, the romance was definitely a subplot to the main story, so it didn’t feel like it was overtaking the plot. Indeed, readers who go in with a “romantasy” title in mind may find themselves disappointed, as the characters only begin to head in this direction towards the end of the book. And even there, several twists are thrown in that put a wrench in affairs.

All of that said, I really enjoyed the world that was set up here. Jen Williams doesn’t skimp on the fantasy elements; there are gods, monsters, curses, magical powers, etc. All that classic fantasy goodness. Because there was so much, I will say that none of these features were particularly deep, but I think they set an interesting stage upon which the story takes place. Throughout the book, the reader is constantly being fed new little pieces of lore and information.

As for the main character, she was fine. I appreciate that her POV was written in a way that read as true to her age (seventeen). As an adult, increasingly I’ve struggled to connect with younger characters, but I think Williams is a strong enough writer overall to pull it off. The male POV character felt a bit older in some ways, though I believe he is supposed to be around the same age. Of course, both characters have experienced life in very different ways, so these differences were important.

I enjoyed the plot overall, and I was definitely invested in the story throughout. In particular, I think the end opened up some really interesting doors for the second book. So, while I was blown away by anything here, I did enjoy myself (and I think YA fantasy readers will likely love it!) and I’m intrigued enough that I plan on checking out the next book in the series.

Rating 8: Luckily for me, the love triangle was understated and played out in a unique manner. Other than that, I enjoyed the world-building and am intrigued by the twists and turns introduced at the very end!

Reader’s Advisory:

“The Sleepless” can be found on this Goodreads list: Romantasy TBR 2025 (though I’m not sure it really belongs here…)

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Book: “A Marriage of Undead Inconvenience” by Stephanie Burgis

Publishing Info: August 5, 2024

Where Did I Get this Book: from the author!

Where Can You Get this Book: WorldCat.org | Amazon | IndieBound

Book Description: Margaret Dunhaven may have been forced into marriage with the sinister vampire lord of Shadowcroft Manor in order to fulfill a family obligation, but she’s not about to stay trapped there for long. The beastly man doesn’t even have any decent tea leaves in his kitchen!

However, when she realizes that she’s not the only one who’s been forced into this marital union, it’s time to join forces with her unwanted new husband. If they can combine her scholarly skills with his ancient history, then, working together, they might just manage to reclaim her inheritance, break his curse, and find their freedom.

…Just so long as they don’t fall in love along the way.

A witty and sparkling 17,000-word gothic fantasy novella that puts a new twist on Beauty and the Beast in an alternate-history version of late 19th century England.

Review: There are some books where I can read the first page and know I will love a book, and this was one of them. For this sort of story (historical fantasy fiction), the story really lives and dies on the basis of the author’s ability to successfully capture a certain…historical??…style of writing. I’m sure there’s a better word for it, but we all know it when we see it: the verbose, often witty style best established by Jane Austen. And here, Burgis nails it right from the start!

The other factor necessary for the success of this sort of story is the narrator. And here, Margaret Dunhaven would sit comfortably next to Amelia Peabody and Emily Wilde: smart, witty, and a bit condescending (in the most endearing way) to those around her. And, like those other famous heroines, Margaret is perfectly balanced by the more steady, reserved love interest, in this case, a reclusive vampire.

The main plot is not particularly note worthy, and that’s kind of the point. Instead, the focus of this short novella is on the lovely relationship between Margaret and Lord Riven. It was sweet, romantic, and incredibly well done considering the restricted page count. That’s not to say that the action portion of the plot was not interesting, just that of all the elements this was the section that was touched on least and wrapped up fairly quickly at the very end.

I immediately picked up the second book when finishing this one, so let’s just straight on to that one below!

Rating 8: Proof that great things can be found in small packages: a lovely romance, a fantastic historical setting, and a powerhouse of a leading lady!

Book: “A Honeymoon of Grave Consequence” by Stephanie Burgis

Publishing Info: Five Fathoms Press, September 2025

Where Did I Get this Book: from the author!

Where Can You Get this Book: WorldCat.org | Amazon | IndieBound

Book Description: Margaret, Lady Riven, never expected to find herself married, much less enjoying a honeymoon with her vampiric husband. Obviously, they’ve only agreed to stay married for logical, practical reasons, but Lord Riven has kept his promise to supply her with excellent tea and even better company as they travel together across the continent. Unfortunately, her newfound notoriety has traveled along with them – so she’s delighted when they arrive at a secluded inn deep within the Black Forest, far from high society.

However, the inn is full of lethal supernatural creatures who find Margaret’s arrival anything but welcome—and for all of Margaret’s academic prowess, she’s infamously inept at making friends. When a new threat appears in her own mirror, she realizes that the greatest danger is to her heart…and she’ll have to rely on a remarkable assortment of newfound allies to help her save the immortal vampire who holds it.

This book is a little longer than the first, and those extra pages were put to perfect use! The romance and main characters continued to shine, but I appreciated the added depth brought to the world, the main story, and some of the themes explored.

To start with the world, our main couple goes on their honeymoon (surprise, surprise) and pretty much end up in the middle of a deep, dark woods in a run down hotel full of found family monsters. It’s just as lovely as it sounds. But what could have turned into an excessively quirky or aggressively cozy story was instead focused on the deep struggles of being a “monster” in a world mostly made up of humans. I was so happy that we were going to explore this more, since in the first book it was fairly simply explained that monsters existed, humans know about them, and that’s it. But the entire plot of this story is centered around the tensions that still exist between populations so diametrically at odds.

This theme extends from the broader conflict of the main story down to the personal arc of a new side character who is introduced (a newly changed monster struggling to accept her new self). But I was surprised and gratified to see the exploration of this theme expand to Margaret herself, a human who is now living primarily in a world of monsters. While Margaret has already been established as a strong-willed, confident woman (rightfully so), this story looked at some of the hidden depths, the insecurities and misunderstandings that would arise. I particularly enjoyed the way Margaret’s views of her own marriage changed over the course of the book.

I’ll also add that, as compared to the first book, this one had a much stronger main storyline, complete with a grand confrontation and rescue at the end. Of course, this doesn’t play out the way one would typically expect, and was all the better for it!

I very much enjoyed the first book, and I think this one took the strengths from that one and built it into something even better! These are short, lovely stories that I highly recommend to fans of “Emily Wilde” in particular!

Rating 9: Make room at the table, Emily Wilde and Amelia Peabody! A new historical fantasy heroine has arrived on the scene! This series is a perfect blend of historical fantasy and swoon worthy romance; a joy to read!