Author: baltimorebibliophile

Title: Act Your Age, Eve Brown (The Brown Sister’s #3)

Author: Talia Hibbert

Publisher: Avon

Publication date: March 9th, 2021

400 pages

5/5 stars

Goodreads Synopsis

In Act Your Age, Eve Brown the flightiest Brown sister crashes into the life of an uptight B&B owner and has him falling hard—literally.

Eve Brown is a certified hot mess. No matter how hard she strives to do right, her life always goes horribly wrong—so she’s given up trying. But when her personal brand of chaos ruins an expensive wedding (someone had to liberate those poor doves), her parents draw the line. It’s time for Eve to grow up and prove herself—even though she’s not entirely sure how…

Jacob Wayne is in control. Always. The bed and breakfast owner’s on a mission to dominate the hospitality industry—and he expects nothing less than perfection. So when a purple-haired tornado of a woman turns up out of the blue to interview for his open chef position, he tells her the brutal truth: not a chance in hell. Then she hits him with her car—supposedly by accident. Yeah, right.

Now his arm is broken, his B&B is understaffed, and the dangerously unpredictable Eve is fluttering around, trying to help. Before long, she’s infiltrated his work, his kitchen—and his spare bedroom. Jacob hates everything about it. Or rather, he should. Sunny, chaotic Eve is his natural-born nemesis, but the longer these two enemies spend in close quarters, the more their animosity turns into something else. Like Eve, the heat between them is impossible to ignore—and it’s melting Jacob’s frosty exterior. 

Review

The best Brown Sisters book, hands down. Eve is my favorite sister, and Talia Hibbert pulled out all the stops for her story. This is a book that I immediately wanted to reread after finished. I was laughing hysterically from the very beginning, from the banter to the antics of Eve and Jacob – two humans so perfectly matched for each other (to their chagrin).

I’m always here for an enemies to lovers book, if you know me you know this. When Eve is tossed out of her parent’s house, told she needed to find a job and grow up, she drives off in a huff and stops at the first interesting place she sees – Castell Cottage, a B&B in a small town. To her luck, there’s a hiring sign for a chef, and Eve needs a job. What she doesn’t expect to find is Jacob, who seems to hate her immediately for no reason, and then hates her even more after she runs him over with her car.

Jacob has autism, and prefers everything to be in it’s place. Eve is a whirlwind who threatens his way of life. But, she burrows under his skin with every smile and playful flirting. I adored Jacob’s character and appreciated his friendships and understanding of who he is and what he is passionate about. As a neurotypical person, I cannot speak to the accuracy of the autistic rep in this book – I always appreciate representation.

I cannot even find one thing I did not like about this book. I read parts out loud to my fiance and he found the story equally as funny. If you’ve loved the previous Brown Sister’s book you’ll definitely love this one, but you don’t have to read the others first to enjoy it!

Thank you to Avon and Netgalley for an early copy in exchange for an honest review.

Happy reading, folks!

Title: Tower of Dawn (Throne of Glass #6)

Author: Sarah J. Maas

Publisher: Bloomsbury USA Children’s

Publication date: September 5th, 2017

660 pages

4/5 stars

Goodreads Synopsis

Chaol Westfall and Nesryn Faliq have arrived in the shining city of Antica to forge an alliance with the Khagan of the Southern Continent, whose vast armies are Erilea’s last hope. But they have also come to Antica for another purpose: to seek healing at the famed Torre Cesme for the wounds Chaol received in Rifthold.

After enduring unspeakable horrors as a child, Yrene Towers has no desire to help the young lord from Adarlan, let alone heal him. Yet she has sworn an oath to assist those in need—and will honor it. But Lord Westfall carries shadows from his own past, and Yrene soon comes to realize they could engulf them both.

In this sweeping parallel novel to the New York Times bestselling Empire of Storms, Chaol, Nesryn, and Yrene will have to draw on every scrap of their resilience if they wish to save their friends. But while they become entangled in the political webs of the khaganate, deep in the shadows of mighty mountains where warriors soar on legendary ruks, long-awaited answers slumber. Answers that might offer their world a chance at survival—or doom them all . . . 

Review

“Every step. Every curve into darkness. Every moment of despair and rage and pain. It had led him to precisely where he needed to be. Where he wanted to be.”

Sarah J. Maas, Tower of Dawn

I love this series. Whereas I definitely needed some time to get into this series, at this point I am beyond hooked. However, going into this book I didn’t realize it was the same timeline as Empire of Storm. I suggest to everyone who hasn’t read this series yet to A. read it and B. read Empire and Tower simultaneously. A bunch of bloggers put together different reading guides for it and I really wish I had done that. If you don’t want to do this, I suggest reading Tower before Empire. Just my personal preference.

Now, Chaol is not my favorite character from the first few books. I loved him with Celaena, but his growth left much to be desired. He was whiny, ungrateful, and inflexible and I wasn’t here for it. I didn’t expect to like this book, but I did end up liking it – but it wasn’t really because of Chaol. It was more for just how amazing Yrene is – I love her so much. I also like her for Chaol (even if I could leave him behind in a heartbeat). I loved the look into the Empire and how the royal there run their territories, it was an interesting look into another area than what we’ve read about in other books. I also seriously loved reading Nesryn and Sartaq’s journey – I’m so glad she ended up happy.

I do agree this book is important to the overall story line, and here are very important plot points discovered in this book that matter for the final book, Kingdom of Ash. However, I’m not sure I’ll include it in rereads unless I attempt the simultaneous read with Empire. It just doesn’t hold the same power for me as the other books as none of my favorite characters are in it.

Happy reading, folks!

Title: Perfect on Paper

Author: Sophie Gonzales

Publisher: Wednesday Books

Publication date: March 9th, 2021

304 pages

4/5 stars

Goodreads Synopsis

In Sophie Gonzales’ Perfect on Paper, Leah on the Offbeat meets To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before: a bisexual girl who gives anonymous love advice to her classmates is hired by the hot guy to help him get his ex back

Her advice, spot on. Her love life, way off.

Darcy Phillips:
• Can give you the solution to any of your relationship woes―for a fee.
• Uses her power for good. Most of the time.
• Really cannot stand Alexander Brougham.
• Has maybe not the best judgement when it comes to her best friend, Brooke…who is in love with someone else.
• Does not appreciate being blackmailed.

However, when Brougham catches her in the act of collecting letters from locker 89―out of which she’s been running her questionably legal, anonymous relationship advice service―that’s exactly what happens. In exchange for keeping her secret, Darcy begrudgingly agrees to become his personal dating coach―at a generous hourly rate, at least. The goal? To help him win his ex-girlfriend back.

Darcy has a good reason to keep her identity secret. If word gets out that she’s behind the locker, some things she’s not proud of will come to light, and there’s a good chance Brooke will never speak to her again.

Okay, so all she has to do is help an entitled, bratty, (annoyingly hot) guy win over a girl who’s already fallen for him once? What could go wrong?

Review

Perfect on Paper is a queer contemporary romance novel following Darcy, a junior in high school who runs a dating advice locker in her school. It’s completely anonymous, you slip $10 and what you need into an empty locker and you receive dating advice from the relationship genie, aka Darcy. But, when Darcy is caught by Alexander Brougham, her anonymity is threatened. He hires her to help him get back together with his ex-girlfriend. Darcy needs to save her anonymity, otherwise her best friend (and the girl she loves) Brooke will be lost to her forever…

I really need more of this book because phew boy was it so good!! Honestly I could’ve used Darcy’s romance advice during high school, girlfriend really did her research for her answers. I always love a good high school romance and this book brought up some amazing commentary on biphobia and what it means to be queer in high school. Their Queer and Questioning club was mentioned often in the book and I love reading more and more queer content.

Brougham was my absolute favorite character and I just want to give him a hug. I need him in my life to be quite frank. I found Darcy went too far in her issues with Brooke and it hurt her as a character in my eyes. It seemed to cross just a bit over the line, which is why the point lost a star for me.

If you read Glimpsed, another recent release, and loved it then you will really enjoy this one!

Thank you to Wednesday Books and Netgalley for an early copy in exchange for an honest review.

Happy reading, folks!

WOW, happy March!! I cannot believe we are almost one whole year into the COVID pandemic. This time last year I was in San Antonio watching my brother graduate from the Air Force Basic Training, the last class that was able to have family attend. I also happened to be contracting COVID at the same time! I really can’t believe it.

The third month of 2021 is starting and we’re officially less than three months out from my wedding. There is still so much to do, but I’m still hoping to balance it with all the reading I have planned! Check out the below for the books I plan to read this month!

PHYSICAL

1. The Grace Year, Kim Liggett
2. Boyfriend Material (Boyfriend Material #1), Alexis Hall
3. The Queen and the Cure (The Bird and the Sword Chronicles #2), Amy Harmon
4. A Curse So Dark and Lonely (Cursebreakers #1), Brigid Kemmerer (REREAD)
5. A Heart So Fierce and Broken (Cursebreakers #2), Brigid Kemmerer
6. A Vow So Bold and Deadly (Cursebreakers #3), Brigid Kemmerer
7. Namesake (Fable #2), Adrienne Young
8. Chain of Iron (The Last Hours #2), Cassandra Clare
9. Capturing the Devil (Stalking Jack the Ripper #4), Kerri Maniscalco
10. Dark Shores (Dark Shores #1), Danielle L. Jensen
11. Dark Skies (Dark Shores #2), Danielle L. Jensen (REREAD)

EBOOKS

1. First Comes Like (Modern Love #3), Alisha Rai

ARCS

1. The Prison Healer (The Prison Healer #1), Lynette Noni
2. The Good Sister, Sally Hepworth
3. These Feathered Flames (These Feathered Flames #1), Alexandra Overy
4. Dustborn, Erin Bowman
5. Slingshot, Mercedes Helnwein
6. Gilded Serpent (Dark Shores #3), Danielle L. Jensen
7. Cool for the Summer, Dahlia Adler
8. It Happened One Summer, Tessa Bailey
9. Prom Theory, Ann LaBar

Are we reading any of the same??

Happy reading, folks!

And it’s the last day of February! In the shortest month of the year I still managed to read a bunch of fun books so I’m here to share my February wrap up! A lot of my reading success this month was due to a bout of deep depression that kept me reading constantly to avoid feelings, responsibility, etc. It wasn’t the best solution, but I’m on some medication now which helped to slow down my reading by the end of the month There is such a thing as too much of a good thing and that’s where I was.

I read some amazing books this month, so check out below for the books I read and what my ratings were!

PHYSICAL

1. Ashlords (Ashlords #1), Scott Reintgen – 4/5 stars
2. Empire of Storms (Throne of Glass #5), Sarah J. Maas (REREAD) – 5/5 stars (REREAD)
3. Kingdom of Ash (Throne of Glass #7), Sarah J. Maas – 5/5 stars
4. All the Tides of Fate (All the Stars and Teeth #2), Adalyn Grace – 4/5 stars
5. A Court of Silver Flames (A Court of Thorns and Roses #4), Sarah J. Maas – 5/5 stars
6. Reign of the Fallen (Reign of the Fallen #1), Sarah Glenn Marsh – 4/5 stars (REREAD)
7. Witchy, Ariel Slamet Ries – 4/5 stars
8. Song of the Dead (Reign of the Fallen #2), Sarah Glenn Marsh – 4/5 stars
9. To Have and to Hoax (The Regency Vows #1), Martha Waters – 4.5/5 stars

EBOOKS

1. Get a Life, Chloe Brown (The Brown Sisters #1), Talia Hibbert – 4/5 stars (REREAD)
2. Beautiful Bastard (Beautiful Bastard #1), Christina Lauren – 3/5 stars
3. Beautiful Bitch (Beautiful Bitch #1.5), Christina Lauren – 3/5 stars
4. Fat Chance, Charlie Vega, Crystal Maldonado – 4.5/5 stars
5. The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, Taylor Jenkins Reid – 4/5 stars
6. The Hating Game, Sally Thorne – 5/5 stars (REREAD)

ARCS

1. Blood Sworn (Ashlords #2), Scott Reintgen – 4/5 stars
2. Down Comes the Night, Allison Saft – 4/5 stars
3. Perfect on Paper, Sophie Gonzales – 4/5 stars
4. Act Your Age, Eve Brown (The Brown Sisters #3), Talia Hibbert – 5/5 stars
5. Just Like in the Movies, Heidi Rice – 3/5 stars
6. Five Ways to Fall Out of Love, Emily Martin – 4/5 stars
7. She’s Too Pretty to Burn, Wendy Heard – 4/5 stars
8. To Love and to Loathe (The Regency Vows #2), Martha Waters – 4.5/5 stars
9. The Flipside of Perfect, Liz Reinhardt – 4/5 stars
10. The Prom Theory, Ann LaBar – 4/5 stars

Did we read any of the same books? Let me know in the comments!

Happy reading, folks!

Happy end of February! I did haul some more books this month, but still nowhere near the amount I used to. One of them is even a giveaway win so I didn’t spend any money on it! I’m still trying to utilize the library more so I can cut down on my book costs but – where is the fun in that?

So, read below for the books I procured this month!

AMAZON

1. A Vow So Bold and Deadly (A Curse So Dark and Lonely #3), Brigid Kemmerer

SUBSCRIPTION BOXES

1. Honey Girl, Morgan Rogers – Book of the Month
2. All the Tides of Fate (All the Stars and Teeth #2), Adalyn Grace – Owlcrate Special Edition

GIVEAWAY

1. The Proposal (The Wedding Date #2), Jasmine Guillory

BARNES AND NOBLE

1. A Court of Silver Flames (A Court of Thorns and Roses #4), Sarah J Maas – B&N Special Edition

What books did you get this month?

Happy reading, folks!

Title: Down Comes the Night

Author: Allison Saft

Publisher: Wednesday Books

Publication date: March 2nd, 2021

400 pages

4/5 stars

Goodreads Synopsis

He saw the darkness in her magic. She saw the magic in his darkness.

Wren Southerland’s reckless use of magic has cost her everything: she’s been dismissed from the Queen’s Guard and separated from her best friend—the girl she loves. So when a letter arrives from a reclusive lord, asking Wren to come to his estate, Colwick Hall, to cure his servant from a mysterious illness, she seizes her chance to redeem herself.

The mansion is crumbling, icy winds haunt the caved-in halls, and her eccentric host forbids her from leaving her room after dark. Worse, Wren’s patient isn’t a servant at all but Hal Cavendish, the infamous Reaper of Vesria and her kingdom’s sworn enemy. Hal also came to Colwick Hall for redemption, but the secrets in the estate may lead to both of their deaths.

With sinister forces at work, Wren and Hal realize they’ll have to join together if they have any hope of saving their kingdoms. But as Wren circles closer to the nefarious truth behind Hal’s illness, they realize they have no escape from the monsters within the mansion. All they have is each other, and a startling desire that could be their downfall.

Allison Saft’s Down Comes the Night is a snow-drenched romantic fantasy that keeps you racing through the pages long into the night.

Love makes monsters of us all.

Review

Down Comes the Night is Allison Saft’s standalone YA fantasy debut. Wren is a member of the Queen’s Guard, and one of the most powerful healers in her nation. When she disobeys a direct order and heals an enemy scout, she is suspended from the guard and send back to the abbey she learned in she looks for any way out. her escape comes in the form of tending to the eccentric lord’s servant in another kingdom. When she arrives, she learns the injured party is none other than Hal Cavendish, the notorious political figure from Vesria, enemy of Wren’s queendom.

I am a huge fan of this book of read the whole thing in one night. The story quickly drew me in with Wren’s character and her friendship with Una, and the action started quickly. There is also a thriller/mystery feel to this book mixed in with the fantastical elements of magic. Hal’s character is also so well developed and his arc is so interesting with Wren’s. The antagonist is suitably creepy for the setting and I enjoyed how everything went with that plot line.

I would have loved more information about the magic systems. Basically two kingdoms have magic but not all of them, but it doesn’t really explain how the magic works outside of Wren’s healing ability. I would have liked more information on that front.

I am a huge fan of this one and would love to read even more within this world if it were to be done in the future.

Thank you to Wednesday Books and Netgalley for an early copy in exchange for an honest review.

Happy reading, folks!

Title: The Kingdom of Back

Author: Marie Lu

Publisher: G.P. Putnam & Sons

Publication date: March 3rd, 2020

313 pages

3/5 stars

Goodreads Synopsis

Born with a gift for music, Nannerl Mozart has just one wish: to be remembered forever. But even as she delights audiences with her masterful playing, she has little hope she’ll ever become the acclaimed composer she longs to be. She is a young woman in eighteenth-century Europe, and that means composing is forbidden to her. She will perform only until she reaches a marriageable age—her tyrannical father has made that much clear.

As Nannerl’s hope grows dimmer with each passing year, the talents of her beloved younger brother, Wolfgang, only seem to shine brighter. His brilliance begins to eclipse her own, until one day a mysterious stranger from a magical land appears with an irresistible offer. He has the power to make her wish come true—but his help may cost her everything.

In her first work of historical fiction, #1 New York Times bestselling author Marie Lu spins a lush, lyrically told story of music, magic, and the unbreakable bond between a brother and sister.

Review

“Wishes have a habit of surprising their makers.”

Marie Lu, The Kingdom of Back

The Kingdom of Back is my first Marie Lu read. I know she has some huge series, however this is a historical fantasy stand alone novel. It details an alternate history of the Mozart family from the POV of Nannerl, Wolfgang’s older sister. Nannerl meets a boy from a magical land, Hyacinth, that offers her the fame and acclaim she is looking for in exchange for her assistance in his home world. The story follows the siblings as they perform and compose throughout adolescence.

This book totally fell flat for me. The writing is beautiful, first off. No one is challenging Marie’s talent with writing and imagery. But, the plot wasn’t it for me. Historical isn’t normally my jam to begin with, so I’m not too surprised by this information. I found the book interesting and I have no regrets about reading it, but I lef the book feeling very blah about it. I felt for Nannerl’s conflicts with her father around her role and duty as a woman – but it also just served to piss me off. Even though historically accurate, I just don’t enjoy reading about the disparity between men and women when we’re still living in an unequal world.

This book just wasn’t for me – but fans of historical fantasy and magical realism will enjoy this book, especially if you also have an interest in music and composition, or the Mozart family.

Happy reading, folks!

Title: The Crow Rider (The Storm Crow #2)

Author: Kalyn Josephson

Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire

Publication date: July 9th, 2020

368 pages

4/5 stars

Goodreads Synopsis

The thrilling conclusion to the epic Storm Crow duology that follows a fallen princess as she tries to bring back the magical elemental crows taken from her people.

Thia, her allies, and her crow, Res, are planning a rebellion to defeat Queen Razel and Illucia once and for all. Thia must convince the neighboring kingdoms to come to her aid, and Res’ show of strength is the only thing that can help her.

But so many obstacles stand in her way. Res excels at his training, until he loses control of his magic, harming Thia in the process. She is also pursued by Prince Ericen, heir to the Illucian throne and the one person she can’t trust but can’t seem to stay away from.

As the rebel group prepares for war, Res’ magic grows more unstable. Thia has to decide if she can rely on herself and their bond enough to lead the rebellion and become the crow rider she was meant to be. 

Review

Sequel to The Storm Crow (review linked if you missed it), The Crow Rider continues Thia’s journey to save Rhodaire from the invading Illucians. In this book we learn a lot more about the magic system and history of Rhodaire and the surrounding kingdoms, which was exactly what I was hoping for out of this book.

Without going into spoilers, I will say this book went about the way I expected it to. Of course there were curveballs, but it was mostly predictable within a typical YA fantasy novel. I was still really interesting in the world-building, though it’s weird it was mostly done in the conclusion novel not the beginning. I imagine Kalyn could return to this world pretty easily in the future and write more stories, and I would likely read them. As much as it is fairly predictable YA, I still love it – hence I read YA fantasies all the time! If this isn’t your jam, this might not be the duology for you.

I respect the way the romance went, again without saying anymore than that. I do feel like there were some strings that were not tied up by the end with supporting characters – but that’s where I again feel the author could use that to return to this world in the future.

Overall, I’m glad I continued on to read this one after feeling somewhat meh on the first book. If you do check this one out, I hope you enjoy it!

Happy reading, folks!