I really regret I don’t have more time or energy to read, but I’m trying. So hard to do with a fast paced full time job plus a part time job as well. But I’m trying. Also, I tried to post this in July, but apparently it never posted, so I had to throw August in here too. Oops. Here’s what I read in July and August:
1. A Curse So Dark and Lonely by Brigid Kemmerer- in a Beauty and the Beast retelling, Rhen is the prince cursed by a magesmith to find a woman to fall in love with him or he turns into a beast. Harper is the girl brought from her world into his in order to fall in love with him.
Listen, we all know I love Brigid’s work, and this is no different. I really enjoyed reading this book. Fantasy just does it for me, I guess? Even when it’s somewhat predictable. Although I have to say my favourite character was neither Rhen nor Harper, but a side character named Grey. Not going to give too much away, but this is a trilogy and much more is to come. 4/5 stars.
2. A Heart So Fierce and Broken- after the events of the last book, Rhen’s kingdom is hanging on to a thread, Harper is…doing whatever Harper does, and Grey is keeping a secret for the good of the kingdom. Plus, there’s a new princess from a neighbouring rival kingdom that threatens to shake things up.
I like that this book was mainly about Grey and Lia Mara, from their point of view. Rhen is an awful human being in this book and Harper has no spine, but the main story was good, and I’m anxious to see how it ends. 5/5 stars for me.
3. A Vow So Bold and Deadly- Harper and Rhen in one kingdom, Lia Mara and Grey in another. Who gets to claim the throne of Emberfall? Whose relationships will stand the test of time?
This ending was pretty much exactly how I thought it was going to end. I liked Harper and Rhen’s story a little more in this one. Still not wild about them as characters (I just love Grey, okay?) but it was a decent ending to the series. As usual, Brigid Kemmerer is amazing. 4/5 stars.
4. I’m Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy- this memoir details Jennette growing up as a child actor and all the abuse she was dealt by her mother.
My gods I have never wanted to hug someone more after finishing this book. Every time I read something this mother did, I would go, surely that’s the worst of it, it can’t get any worse than this, can it? And it does. And I am shocked and angry every single time. And it sucks her mom died, but girl…I’m also glad she did. Because she got the help she so desperately needed and a control over her life that had been lacking forever, so kudos. Love the title, 5/5 stars.
5. It Ends With Us by Colleen Hoover- Lily Bloom spent most of her life saying she was not going to be in an abusive relationship like her mother while also never getting closure on that epic teenage romance with a boy named Atlas. Enter Rayle, a hot neurosurgeon, who may be the best or worst thing that ever happened to Lily.
Okay, it’s a good book. I get it, I get the hype, yall. Like, I could have done without the gratuitous sex scenes, but man were those depictions of an abusive relationship and the thought process that goes on so riveting and stifling. It really makes you think that these kind of situations aren’t black and white and it is hard to leave a situation like that, and we should not be judging people for it. 4/5 stars, do I dare read whatever the hell It Starts With Us is?
6. Verity by Colleen Hoover- Lowen is contracted to finish a series of books by author Verity, who is too sick to finish them, but discovers a manuscript that she really shouldn’t have.
Gotta say, the memoir Verity writes is super gripping and kept me on the edge wanting to learn more. Some parts of the story, again, not a huge fan of CoHo’S sex scenes, didn’t grip me, but overall it was a good story with a ambiguous ending, and I love those. 3.5 stars/5 for me.
7. The Girls by Emma Cline- Evie becomes fascinated with a girl named Suzanne, who leads her into a cult that becomes embroiled in murder.
Look, we all know the author ripped off the Manson Family Cult with this book. It wasn’t hard to see where the inspiration lied. The story happening in the present tense felt useless and didn’t add anything to the story, to be honest? And the rest of the book set in the past was actually kind of boring and uneventful. I don’t know, it wasn’t my cup of tea, I suppose. 2/5 stars.
Rowan Does Reviews 