Teased by Fire by Molly O'Hare

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After reading Magic Triumphs, I knew I needed to change pace a little bit to avoid a book hangover. I decided to pick up a contemporary that would help cover my remaining prompts for the 2nd board of Winter's Kiss. I ended up reading Teased by Fire by Molly O'Hare. This is the first book in her Teased by Love series. I used it to cover the Winter's Kiss prompt cursive and print lettering on the cover.

Olive is a romance author that is also an introvert. When her childhood friend and roommate suddenly moves out after getting a job across the country, she sets up Olive with a new roommate. He's her older brother Hank, and the person that has teased Olive relentlessly throughout the years. Hank has been teasing Olive mostly because he has a crush on her and is taking this chance to finally push for more. As Hank and Olive juggle becoming roommates while being attracted to each other, things quickly heat up. When Hank proposes sleeping together for "research" for Olive's books, they both realize that it might just mean more.

I really enjoyed this. Olive was so relatable. I don't mind the teasing trope, but sometimes I do think that the person doing the teasing takes it too far and isn't always made aware of how their teasing is coming across. This is quickly addressed when Hank takes it a step too far. I also really liked that Hank had been pining for Olive since they basically both hit puberty, but didn't know absolutely everything about her. When he realized that she was a writer he immediately bought all of her books and read them right away. He had gotten through their backlist before Olive even knew that Hank knew. I just really liked that it didn't fall into any of the expected tropes or "twists."

There is a big car crash after they have a fight and Olive is very badly hurt. Of course Hank's crew (he's a firefighter) is called to the scene and he ends up going to the hospital with her. It's bad, like really bad. Olive needs to be resuscitated on the way to the hospital and we are told flatlines several times while in surgery. With how much she was injured, I was expecting some sort of amnesia or memory loss on top of her injuries but we didn't go that route. I loved how everything turned out and just really enjoyed the story overall. The only thing is Olive is a little too quirky at times, but I do have to admit that she stays at the same level of quirky all the way through. There's now fading in or out or something silly. The only reason it didn't quite hit the 5-stars for me is I wanted to see more of them falling in love when not in the physical situations. Oh, and I can't believe I forgot to mention one of the best characters, Dog. Dog is a Maine Coon kitty rescued and was the fire house mascot. She was such a fun addition!

I really enjoyed trying another new author and will definitely be looking into Molly's backlist. There are hints here about a future book between Hank's sister and his best friend, so I'm looking forward to that. It hasn't been published yet from what I could tell, but color me intrigued! The comedy hit me well and it was just a sweet and cute contemporary with decent steam. I'm looking forward to more of Molly's works!

Have you read Teased by Fire?

Bookishly Yours,

Stasi🍎

STATISTICS: Teased by Fire, Molly O'Hare, 4.5-stars, 0 days, eBook, 214 pages, published in 2018, indie published

Magic Triumphs by Ilona Andrews

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We have reached the final book in the Kate Daniels series, Magic Triumphs. I've been reading the series in part of a readalong hosted by Stef, Heather, and Megan. The readalong will be continuing with the spin-off and I think they are talking about doing their other series as well, but I'm sure they announce it at one of the next couple live shows. I was able to use Magic Triumphs for the FaRoFeb prompt favorite trope and Winter's Kiss 2nd board prompt want to read before the New Year.

Kate and Curran are anxiously awaiting the next call to war from her father Roland. It's been a couple years since the end of Magic Binds. Since then, Curran and Kate have given birth to their boy, Conlan. He is 18 months old and they are constantly aware of Roland wanting to take him from them. When small villages of people start going mysteriously missing, Kate starts investigating. When it turns out to be at the hands of her father's oldest enemy, Kate and Curran struggle to keep Atlanta safe from two old powers.

Guys.... oh my gosh. I was so torn on starting this book. I was ready to dive in and read how it would end, but at the same time I didn't want it to end. It did help knowing that there would be more entries in the Kate Daniels Universe, but it was bittersweet for me. Now, this took some turns I wasn't expecting and I tried really hard not to do too much speculating. I don't really want to talk too much about this as usual, because anything would be a spoiler. I will say that there were moments I was crying, moments I was cheering and moments I was on edge. I do have to say, I'm a little disappointed that we lost two of the characters that we had grown close too. One I was more okay with the passing, but the other I wish it was just left open-ended. I also wanted more of an HEA for Kate and Curran. The last chapter was a couple weeks after the big battle and I just wanted more than a few pages with them finally being able to take a breath and enjoy being a family.

The epilogue was also great and very much led into Aurelia Ryder. I really wanted to pick up the next book right away, but I also wanted to pace myself. I also didn't want to read it too early. I usually try to read a required book closer to when the meeting/live show is so I still have my thoughts and feelings fresh. Otherwise, this was such a fantastic ending and I loved the way that things were wrapped up, but you can also just see the world continuing. It wasn't the closing of a book, but more of a zoom out into darkness. I don't know if that makes sense, but really that's the best way to put into words how I felt when I finished Magic Triumphs. If you are interested in Kate Daniels, please pick it up. It really was such a great series and I can't wait to get through the rest of Ilona Andrews's backlist!

Have you read Magic Triumphs?

Bookishly Yours,

Stasi🍎

STATISTICS: Magic Triumphs, Ilona Andrews, 5-stars, 3 days, paperback, 439 pages, published in 2019, traditionally published

Iron and Magic by Ilona Andrews

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The next books I needed to pick up were for the Kate Daniels readalong! I've been having a lot of fun participating and it's been hosted by Heather, Megan and Stef! For the month of February, we had two books to read. The first is Iron and Magic by Ilona Andrews. This is book 9.5 in Kate Daniels, but also the first of the The Iron Convenant. I was able to use this for the prompts recently acquired for the 2nd board of Winter's Kiss and indie author for FaRoFeb.

After being exiled and cast aside by Roland, Hugh is struggling. Roland had taken Hugh in as a boy and has spent decades, if not centuries, molding him to be his perfect weapon. Now that Hugh is left adrift, he feels like he has lost all purpose in life. When the leaders of the Iron Dogs come to Hugh to help pull him out of his depression, he finds the motivation to move forward in life. The Iron Dogs need a place to protect and give them housing and they end up in agreement with a settlement in the midwest. To help firm up the alliance agreement, Hugh marries the White Warlock, the lady of the manor Elara. When an army and strange creatures start magically appearing and taking settlements of people without a fight, Hugh and Elara step up to protect themselves and the surrounding area.

Oh my gosh. I can't say this enough, but I love Ilona Andrews. I wanted to read most of their books before, but I am firmly on the Ilona Andrews can do no wrong (writing wise) train. If you've been following along with my Kate Daniels reviews, I was really intrigued and liked Hugh, but after the events in Magic Rises I wasn't quite on board. Here I am firmly back on the Hugh train and can't wait for more of this series. I also wasn't expecting the arranged marriage/marriage of convenience trope for Hugh and loved how his and Elara's relationship really started to evolve. There is a not in the beginning of the book that it will be a trilogy, but the other books haven't been published yet.

I loved learning more about Elara and what kind of magic she has. We still are a little in the dark about what exactly it is that gives her her power, but I'm certainly intrigued. It seems like it might a little more on the evil side of the spectrum, but Elara herself is good in her core so I love the dichotomy. I also loved how even though Elara and Hugh were at odds with each other at times, they were both just trying to to the right thing by their people. I really just enjoyed how Hugh came to think of all of the villagers as his people and Elara started to really care for the Iron Dogs.

I could continue, but honestly, if you like Ilona Andrews and/or the Kate Daniels series, this is another great addition to the Universe. I can't wait to read more both in this setting and more of their backlist. Ilona Andrews is quickly becoming a favorite author (duo) of mine and honestly I'll pick up anything by them at this point. I can't wait to see what else they publish!

Have you read Iron and Magic?

Bookishly Yours,

Stasi🍎

STATISTICS: Iron and Magic, Ilona Andrews, 5-stars, 0 days, eBook, 394 pages, published in 2018, indie published

Love Has Sprung TBR

Update: Wrap Up for the 1st board is posted! 
Update: My wrap up is posted for the 2nd board!

As we approach the end of February, it's time to start looking forward and into Spring! Shelby is once again hosting her Spring reading challenge Love Has Sprung. The reading challenge runs from March 1st, 2022 through May 31st, 2022. She once again made three bingo boards. I will have all three below, but for more specific tbr ideas I'll be focusing on the first board's more unique prompts. If you would like to join, Shelby has everything on her instagram and said she will also be doing some recommendation posts.

 

If you are looking for more recommendations that could fit these prompts, feel free to check out my previous tbrs and wrap ups for the other reading challenges I've done by Shelby. I've participated in her Summer of Swoon, Fall in Love and Winter's Kiss challenges. Well, let's get into the ideas that I have!

🌷  For quite a few of the prompts, they require looking at what Shelby has read and loved. You can check out her instagram (linked above) or check out her goodreads. I know that they could cover a lot of the various prompts, but some authors I know she enjoys are Vi Keeland, Penelope Ward, Meghan Quinn and Melanie Harlow.

🌷 There's also going to be some prompts that will be easily met by new releases coming out, specifically in March. I did a quarterly anticipated reads that you can check out. For books that were announced or I discovered after writing that post, I'm also looking forward to The Savage by Sophie Lark, Her Favorite Rebound by Jackie Lau and Rewriting the Stars by Claire Kingsley.

🌷 For my book clubs, I know I will be picking up The Proposal by Mary Balogh and Burn by Suzanne Wright at the very least. These could work for several prompts, including new to you author, two-word title, 1st book in a series, updated or redone cover and backlist romance. I'll also be starting the spin off of the Kate Daniels series by Ilona Andrews, Aurelia Ryder.

🌷 For slow burn immediately Marian Zapata comes to mind. She's known as the queen of slow burn. I've only read one of her books, but I have been wanting to pick up From Lukov with Love since it's about two figure skaters.

🌷 Another specific prompt is foodie romance. I have quite a few options on my tbr, but I'm thinking of picking up The Opposite of You by Rachel Higginson. I first heard about it when Smart Women Read Romance did a podcast episode on it and still haven't gotten around to it.

🌷 When I was going through some trope lists on goodreads, I had a few books that kept popping up that I might try picking up as well. The couple that stood out the most to me are Bet Me by Jennifer Crusie and Faking Ms. Right by Claire Kingsley.

🌷 The last prompt I want to chat about is books that start with R. I do have quite a few (a lot) that start with Rake or Rogue on my kindle. When I looked at what I had physically to read still, I saw Rules of Engagement by Kathryn Caskie. I might go for that one so I can get another physical book off my tbr!

I can't wait to see what I end up reading for the prompts. Since starting Shelby's challenges my reading taste has widened quite a bit and I've picked up a lot more contemporary romance. If you are participating as well, let me know! If you don't follow me on instagram, please do so and let me know so I can follow you back! I'll be posting updates as I read each book and saving it in my stories like always, so feel free to check them out at any time.

Bookishly Yours,

Stasi🍎

Enthralling the Orc by Tracy Lauren

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After reading Broken Chains, I needed something I could count on to keep me from getting slumpy. I went back through my FaRoFeb tbr and decided to pick up Tracy Lauren again! I went with the second book in her Perished Wood series, Enthralling the Orc. I used this to cover the prompt epic fantasy for FaRoFeb. I was also able to use it for the prompt forbidden romance for Winter's Kiss board 2.

Ellyn is desperate to find her niece Adelaide (from Tamed by the Troll) after learning about the Orc attack on her village. She teams up with tracker and half-orc Ash to escort her into the Perished Woods. At first mistaken as human, when Ellyn learns of Ash's true genetics, she turns against him. As they travel together they both learn more about the other and can't deny the attraction between them. When they run into the Orc army, things quickly change and it's everything Ellyn and Ash can do to escape alive and together.

I really enjoyed this book. I loved the first one as well, but I was more invested a little bit here. I do want to do a little warning though, it gets darker towards the end. Now I can handle the dark, but it was just unexpected. I just wanted to warn those that might be more sensitive about kidnapping and emotional manipulation. Outside of that, I really, really loved this book. I connected a lot easier with Ellyn in the beginning and loved how the progression of her and Ash's relationship progressed. She thinks he's human and they have such good banter. When she finds out he's actually part Orc, her mannerisms completely shift towards him. I loved that Ash made a point to call her out and point out her prejudice. While Ellyn fights against it since he's the monster, I love the way that when they get back to friendly terms it quickly becomes more.

I loved also getting to see a lot more of the perished woods and seeing different creatures and situations that you can find yourself in. There's a portion where Ash and Ellyn run into a grandfather and his two children trying to escape the Orc raids and I love how Ash becomes a short-term mentor to the young girl with tracking and hunting. I would love to see a book featuring her set in the future. I also loved how while Ash identified more with his human side, Ellyn brought out the Orc in him. I was also really intrigued to learn more about his brother. I don't really want to spoil it too much, but we do meet him in this book.

It seems like the third book in the series is going to be about Ash's brother, and I'm nervously anticipating. I've love what I've read so far from Tracy Lauren and am totally looking forward to digging into her backlist. It seems like it's mostly sci-fi romance, which is right up my alley! I definitely want to read more from her by the end of the year!

Have you read Enthralling the Orc?

Bookishly Yours,

Stasi🍎

STATISTICS: Enthralling the Orc, Tracy Lauren, 5-stars, 1 day, eBook, 343 pages, published in 2019, indie published

Broken Chains by Demelza Carlton

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Wanting a newer fantasy release for FaRoFeb, I picked up Broken Chains by Demelza Carlton. This is the first book in her Heart of Stone series. I used this to cover the prompt new release for both FaRoFeb and the 2nd board of Winter's Kiss. I also was able to use this for the prompt bonkers romance for the Heaving Bosom's 2022 Reading Embrace.

Catena is struggling to pick a project for the archaeology PhD degree. When she is accosted on the way home one night, she is saved by Tor. He's a gargoyle shifter that has been tasked with Catena's protection. When Tor's missing memories and history starts to come back, things start to get a little darker for Catena. As they struggle to come to terms about their relationship and Tor starts to find himself, the attraction between them sparks.

Oh my gosh, that is the lamest summary. I just, I just couldn't really think of much that happened in the book. Is that weird, yeah a little. I just gotta be honest though, and this book bored me. I kept wanting more development in the plot, the relationship and just everything. It is set in Australia. So I do want to warn that there is more Australian slang used than expected. I have read other Australian authors, and while they don't shy away from using slang, I feel like it was used better or more sparingly. I think that was part of my disconnect. It also felt a little too kitschy for me. Catena, our heroine, is a romance reader. While this leads her to accept things easier about Tor than the typical person, it still felt a little too overboard for me. Would I accept a gargoyle shifter (but is he really a shifter?), probably. Would I completely jump all in physically and trustingly with him? Probably not. I just needed a little bit more skepticism. I do read alien/shifter/monster romances, but something here just didn't click right.

I did keep reading because I was intrigued on how her project was going to come into play (if ever) and there were some good elements that kept me intrigued. I liked how Tor was a stone mason and enjoyed some of his flashbacks and learning some historical events about Australia. I have to say though, about 65% in I started skimming. I just didn't want to read it anymore. I kept hoping that something more would happen, but it just felt dragged out. Imagine my surprise when I saw this book was less than 200 pages.

There were some good parts of the book though, so I might try another of Demelza's works. I don't know though. This was one of her more recent releases, so I might wait until there's something that really intrigues me plot wise. Should I have DNFed? I don't know. I hate doing that and I wanted to give Demelza a shot to put it all together. It just missed the mark for me.

Have you read Broken Chains?

Bookishly Yours,

Stasi🍎

STATISTICS: Broken Chains, Demelza Carlton, 3-stars, 2 days, eBook, 195 pages, published in 2022, indie published

Annie's Song by Catherine Anderson

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Taking a little break from FaRoFeb, I needed to get in the book for the February meeting of Rake Appreciation Society. The club is hosted by Crystal and Jenn and they chose Annie's Song by Catherine Anderson for this month! I was able to use this to cover the prompts billionaire, CEO or businessman hero for the 2nd board of Winter's Kiss and the jazz bagpipes prompt for the Heaving Bosom's 2022 Reading Embrace.

Annie became deaf at the young age of 6. Her parents didn't realize that she had become deaf and instead took her disability as becoming mentally disabled. She has been raised as such a person and never really got proper schooling or socialization. After Annie gets raped and becomes pregnant, the agressor's brother Alex steps up and offers to marry Annie to help keep the child. When he takes her into his home, he realizes her true disability and goes about trying to give her the life she always deserved and more.

Now, there is a trigger for rape right off the bat. There's also what we would call insensitive words now used to refer to Annie. Despite that rough start, this really is a beautiful love story between two people. I loved Alex and he was such a great hero. He really made the book for me and saved it from being rated lower. The way that Alex was so willing to do everything to help Annie learn to write and use sign language and just do normal things as she could was so heartwarming. There were also some great moments of humor that really brought some lightheartedness to the situation.

I can see how the way that Annie's character was portrayed would be very off-putting for some. Yes she was deaf and turned mute, but she was also very childlike in her mental state. There were some things she would understand, but others not. For me, I was able to reconcile that with the fact that she never got any schooling past the old timey version of kindergarten. Once she started learning and being spoken too as someone with the capability to learn, you could see her really start to mature. She was still able to keep that spark though. For me the dock in rating was really that I just struggled to connect emotionally. A lot of other readers mention crying and tearing up during this book, but I never felt it. That's weird for me since I am such an emotional reader. I'm still not sure if it was writing style or what it exactly was that didn't speak to me, but it just didn't hit me in "the feels."

I loved chatting with everyone during the live show! There were a lot of good contrasting opinions on the book that were able to lend to some really great conversations. If you've read the book or want to learn more before picking it up, definitely check it out! I am intrigued to read more from Catherine Anderson, but I do have to say she's not at the top of my historical authors backlist list. She is on there though!

Have you read Annie's Song?

Bookishly Yours,

Stasi🍎

STATISTICS: Annie's Song, Catherine Anderson, 4-stars, 0 days, eBook, 410 pages, published in 1996, traditionally published

Warsworn by Elizabeth Vaughan

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After finishing Warprize, I immediately picked up the second book in the Chronicles of Warlands series, Warsworn. This series is by Elizabeth Vaughan and was my second read for FaRoFeb. I used it for the prompt love the cover. I was also able to use this for the Heaving Bosom's 2022 Reading Embrace prompt stay horny golden girl and Winter's Kiss second board prompt underhyped.

We pick up right after Warprize ends and move forward. Keir, Lara and a portion of the army are headed back to the homelands of Keir and the "barbarians." While traveling, they come across a small town that has been beset by a plague. Lara pushes to stay behind so she can possibly help. When they approach and there is only a couple survivors, a baby the only one not sick, Lara tries to figure out what happened to notify the other cities. When the army gets sick and they are stuck for 40 days to keep from transferring the sickness to anyone else, things start to get political in the group. Since this is the first time the barbarians have dealt with any type of illness, they aren't sure how to handle the "invisible enemy."

So, while I still enjoyed this book, it didn't really improve on the first. With Lara fighting the plague and illness, that was pretty much what most of this book was centered around. Once again we got the abrupt ending, but it didn't bother me as much this time. I think partly because it was the same in the first, but I just didn't see the end coming. It wasn't really wrapped up, even with leaving the overarching storyline open. I liked getting to see Lara and Keir get closer together and to see their relationship strengthen. I read it pretty quickly again, but was once again just left wanting more; and not in a good way.

Warning, there are characters that you have come to love that die in here. I understood why we had to loose someone to help point out that illness doesn't know any bounds, but we lost several people we were close with. It just made the book have such a "downer" type of feeling that didn't go away. I can also see this triggering those that are sensitive with the current pandemic. While this is more plague and not pandemic, I can see how someone might be triggered, especially with the caretaking and high number of deaths due to illness. It didn't really bother me in that way other than just the overall mood of the book being a lot more somber.

I will definitely continue the series. At the very least I want to read the third book since it'll wrap up Lara and Keir's story. I'm not sure how quickly I'll get to it, but I definitely want to get through at least it before the end of the year. I just wish going in I knew that there was going to be sudden endings and that the first three books were a trilogy and not stand-alone. I am having fun with a new fantasy romance author though and hope that the next books will take care of everything that's outstanding. We shall see.

Have you read Warsworn?

Bookishly Yours,

Stasi🍎

STATISTICS: Warsworn, Elizabeth Vaughan, 4-stars, 1 day, eBook, 340 pages, published in 2006, traditionally published

Warprize by Elizabeth Vaughan

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The first book I picked up for FaRoFeb was Warprize by Elizabeth Vaughan. This is the first book of her Chronicles of the Warlands series. I found this book thanks to a Instagram post for a trope Tuesday post, so was able to use it for the prompt recommendation from booksta for the 2nd board of Winter's Kiss. It also works for the Heaving Bosom's 2022 Reading Embrace prompt Ancient Egyptian glory hole. For FaRoFeb, I used this for the prompt something you love to hate.

Xylara is the half-sister of the current King of Xy, but as the second child was allowed a little more freedom. She has taken it upon herself to learn the art of healing. When Xy ends up in the being able to skirt the rules, she starts offering help after hours to the barbarians that are coming to takeover Xy. When Lara saves one of the generals, the Warlord Keir is drawn to Lara and her care for everyone equally. He decides to broker a deal with the King to leave him in seat (under Keir of course) but also wants Lara as his Warprize.

Okay, so first things first. When I found this book I didn't see anything mentioned, but this ends in a cliffhanger and the first three books are about Keir and Lara. I hadn't realized since the covers were different enough, so I don't want anyone else to go in not realizing the same thing. Now, this is also a slow burn and not very steamy. I did really enjoy the world building and the way that things evolved. I did want a bit more romance between them, but now knowing that there's three books about them I wasn't quite as strict with my rating. It is a very abrupt ending though, so just be aware.

Where I did have issue was the misunderstandings that went on so long. I do wish that Keir and his people were more open to having conversations with Lara and actually teaching about their culture and what is actually happening. There were also a few moments where it was pretty obvious that Lara didn't know what was going on or how to act, but they just wrote her off or got frustrated with her. It's like because she quickly learned the language everyone forgot that she was from a different culture.

I did speed through the books and immediately continued the in the series. While not perfect, it sucked me in so quickly and kept me so occupied that I had to give it as close to a 5-star as possible. It just had those few little nitpicks that didn't push it over the hump for me. I'll definitely be reading more in the series; at least finishing the first three books. I'm intrigued to read Elizabeth's other series Epic of Palins since it supposedly intersects.

Have you read Warprize?

Bookishly Yours,

Stasi🍎

STATISTICS: Warprize, Elizabeth Vaughan, 4.5-stars, 0-days, eBook, 340 pages, published in 2005, traditionally published

One Hot Italian Summer by Karina Halle

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With February approaching I really was feeling some Fantasy Romance. I had a little time before the beginning of FaRoFeb, so I went back to contemporary. I decided to pick up the standalone One Hot Italian Summer by Karina Halle. This first came onto my radar when the Smart Women Read Romance podcast did an episode on it. I saw that Shelby also posted about it on her instagram so was able to use it for the Winter's Kiss board 2 prompt Shelby made a post about. I also used it for the prompt pool floaty fart sounds for the Heaving Bosom's 2022 Reading Embrace.

Grace is struggling after loosing her best friend and writing partner Robyn to a hit and run accident. They had published a popular cozy mystery series together as a writing due and Grace is struggling moving on with her writing career. She know has a new agent, Jana, and her next book is going to be in women's fiction. When Jana touches base with Grace as she approaches her deadline, Grace hasn't written a word. Going for something different, she offers for Grace to stay at a vacation house in Italy for about a month. Hoping that a change in location and vibe from Edinburgh, she takes Jana up on the offer. Shortly after getting set up, Grace learns that the house isn't Jana's vacation spot, but actually her ex-husband Claudio's. He and their son Vanni have come home from their yearly vacation early and are stunned to find Grace staying in their house. When Grace and Claudio start to connect over their muses and the struggles of an artist, their relationship turns more serious.

This was just what I was wanting, and even more. I loved the talk about art and the different forms it can take, but yet all artists struggle with similar feelings. While for the longest time I didn't consider myself an artist, when I crochet and do my craft projects it is a form of art. While it's not my livelihood, I could still connect with the base of what Grace and Claudio were feeling. Also, this book really made me want to visit Italy even more. I loved that we really got to experience the everyday and small parts of Italy that aren't tourist traps (not that those places are bad). When I studied abroad in Japan, I made it a point to visit the more hometown areas as well as the touristy areas. I feel like it's a better way to really immerse yourself and better understand the culture.

But we are here for the romance and it was very well done. I loved how they just couldn't stay away from each other were constantly staring at each other. They did take a little longer than I expected to crack the seal of tension, but it made sense with the complications of Vanni being around as well as Claudio being Jana's ex-husband. I loved how all in Claudio was from the start and really watched and understood when to push and when to back-off. There was also great conversations about if he was being used as a crutch or replacing Robyn for Grace and how she was writing. Claudio saw it differently and I just loved how he really helped and allowed her to go through her grief in her own time to be able to write again.

I am so glad I finally picked up a Karina Halle and definitely want to read more. I know that she's getting into the more paranormal and fantasy realm recently so I might look at those next, but we'll see what happens. I will be picking up more of her books for sure. This book really lived up to the great reviews I've heard and if you are looking for a summer/holiday escape, this is absolutely perfect!

Have you read One Hot Italian Summer?

Bookishly Yours,

Stasi🍎

    STATISTICS: One Hot Italian Summer, Karina Halle, 5-stars, 2 days, eBook, 384 pages, published in 2020, indie published

Never Seduce a Scot by Maya Banks

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Still feeling in the historical mood, I picked up a hyped Maya Banks, Never Seduce a Scot. This is the first in her Montgomerys and Armstrongs series. I was able to use this for the prompts disability/chronic illness rep for the 2nd board of Winter's Kiss and doing 1920s laundry for the Heaving Bosom's 2022 Reading Embrace.

Evaline is being forced into an arranged marriage with Graeme, the laird of the Montgomerys, by the King of Scotland. The Armstrongs and Montgomerys have been fighting for generations and the King needs his countrymen to stop in-fighting. Evaline is known as being less than whole after her negotiated marriage with Ian, the son of Laird McHugh, is cancelled. Evaline had gone riding, fell off her horse into a ravine and was found several days later. After coming out of her fever induced sleep, Evaline was deaf. She masquerades as being more addled though to keep from marrying Ian. Evaline is excited for the marriage to Graeme because she's looking forward to having an adventure and being able to start fresh without the lies keeping her back. Graeme is frustrated though because with the rumors he sees the marriage as a death sentence for his line; how can he expect to have a child with someone that has significant mental deficiencies. When they both open up and Graeme learns the truth about what's actually wrong with Evaline, they quickly move into being a true couple.

Oh my gosh. This book was absolute magic and lived up to the rave reviews that I've been hearing the past couple years on booktube and bookstagram. I loved the way that Evaline and Graeme connected and how much Evaline really fought to be seen as a full person despite her deafness. When Graeme figures it out and starts "talking" to her by just mouthing the words, he is completely mind-blown. What made it even better though was instead of getting angry for the misunderstanding, he is immediately in awe of Evaline for teaching herself how to read lips. That was one of my favorite parts of the books and the entire scene of them talking about becoming true husband and wife was so heartwarming. I really can't say enough good things about this book.

What I found interesting, was in the author's note at the end Maya Banks said that her husband has a similar issue to Evaline. I guess nobody really realized that he was deaf or partially deaf until he was in school for his Master's degree. I feel like that's what helped pushed this overboard for her books. I liked the other books I've read by her, but I feel like having that extra connection is part of what really pushed this book to a full 5-stars for me. I just really loved how the relationship progressed for Evaline and Graeme throughout and just fell in love with both characters whole-heartedly.

I can't wait to read more by Maya Banks, and definitely want to finish this series. I do know that the third book has been on hold for several years at this point and is something that a lot of people are upset over. If I remember correctly, I think I saw something about there being health issues or family issues on top of the 3rd book moving to being published by Avon instead of Ballantine. I definitely need to read the rest of her historical books, but I'm also intrigue by her more romantic suspense series as well.

Have you read Never Seduce a Scot?

Bookishly Yours,

Stasi🍎

STATISTICS: Never Seduce a Scot, Maya Banks, 5-stars, 0 days, paperback, 373 pages, published in 2012, traditionally published

West End Earl by Bethany Bennett

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Wanting a little bit of a change of pace before getting to February, I wanted to pick up a historical romance. I had a few historicals on my headboard that I wanted to read soon and knew immediately I wanted to pick up West End Earl by Bethany Bennett. This is the second book in her Misfits of Mayfair series. I applied this to the Winter's Kiss 2nd board prompt starts with the letter W and the Heaving Bosom's 2022 Reading Embrace prompt St. Vincent would always.

Ophelia has been living as her twin brother Adam for the past 11 years. After their parents passed and they were sent to a distant uncle, Ophelia and Adam planned to run away. When they were leaving, Adam falls into a pond on the estate, cracks his head on a rock and passes away. To escape their Uncle, Fi takes her brother's place at school. Now, she is currently working with the Earl of Carlisle, Calvin. Not only does he employ her, but they have become great friends. In several months she will reach majority and have access to her inheritance. When Ophelia is attacked on the way home, Cal finally learns the truth about "Adam." When the attack turns out to be orchestrated by her uncle after taking out an insurance policy on Adam, things quickly escalate. Now that Cal knows Fi is a woman, he can't unsee her and the attraction between them quickly builds.

This was so good! I absolutely loved it, eve more than the first book Any Rogue Will Do. I was nervous how long Cal was going to think that Adam was a man, but even though it's been two years of friendship, we quickly see him figure out that Adam is actually Ophelia. The tension between them and way that Cal just wanted to take care of her in all ways was so great. I mean we've seen in both books that he really takes care of his friends, but when things turn romantic it just intensifies. This book also took some crazy turns that I wasn't expecting and I absolutely loved it. I love getting surprised by where Bethany took us and loved the way it played out.

We meet and see a lot of Emma, Cal's younger sister. While she was frustrating to me a lot of the book, we did get some good growth from her and I loved the way that she connected with Fi. Honestly, that's really the only thing that really bothered me, but seeing where it lead made it worth it. I just really loved the twists and turns. It just really made my reading experience even better and I can't wait for more.

I can't believe that this is only Bethany Bennett's second book and I am so hyped for her future career. The third book in the series is Emma's and comes out this May. I already have it preordered and am so ready to see what happens. I am loving that I have a new historical author to follow and that it's early enough in her career I can stay caught up on her backlist. If you are looking for a newer historical release, I can't recommend Bethany Bennett more. She's definitely a stand out of the new generation for me!

Have you read West End Earl?

Bookishly Yours,

Stasi🍎

STATISTICS: West End Earl, Bethany Bennett, 5-stars, 0 days, paperback, 377 pages, published in 2021, traditionally published

Taming Hollywood's Baddest Boy by Max Monroe

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Continuing with my contemporary binge before February, I wanted something a little more romcom feeling. After reading Max Monroe last year and loving their books, I decided to pick up another one of their series. I went with Taming Hollywood's Baddest Boy, the first in their Hollywood series. I was able to use this for the prompt Shelby gave 5-stars for the 2nd board of Winter's Kiss. I also used this for the prompt forest bed for the Heaving Bosom's 2022 Reading Embrace.

Billie is a PA, producer assistant in Hollywood and is hoping to be chosen as her boss's only mentee moving forward. When she suggests Luca, a actor that has been off the grid for the last 8-years, for the lead role in their new film, Billie overpromises that she can get him to come back. When Billie tracks him down to the middle of Alaska and forces herself to join him on a multi-day hike through the wilderness, they start to connect. When it's time for Billie to go back to Hollywood and bring Luca with her, he's reluctant. Luca stepped away after those that were supposed to be his support system helped keep him in situations that were harmful to him. He doesn't want to go back to Hollywood and be put in the same situation. He does come back though, but mostly to make Billie his girl.

This was fun and a different take on a celebrity romance. I liked that we came into the situation where Luca didn't want to be the "bad boy" and got himself out. He's now been able to process and move on. Now, I know that some people sometimes struggle with Max Monroe's humor style, and I think this book would be one that might bother the same people. It wasn't too much for me, but sometimes Billie did toe the line to being a little too over the top for me at times. I still did really enjoy the story overall, but I have to be honest, the first half of the book when they were in Alaska really made it for me. I loved the way they became close and how Luca kept trying to be antagonistic but really couldn't keep it up. Plus his dog Bailey love Billie too.

Now, there is a really big reason why I gave this 4-stars and not 5. When Billie is getting ready to leave Alaska, she pushes Luca to do the movie and they get into an argument. It quickly escalates and they both end up saying some pretty drastic things. Billie goes back to Hollywood and eventually Luca chases after her. Now, Luca does a lot of groveling and tries to make it up to Billie. He wants so badly for them to make up and for Billie to give him a second chance. My issue comes with that, he is the only one that apologizes. Immediately after the argument Billie thinks to herself that maybe she shouldn't have pushed so hard so quickly, but that's it. There's no acknowledgment to Luca that she was also in the wrong. It just really bothered me that wasn't even discussed.

I will definitely read more of Max Monroe, but I don't think the rest of this series will be what I pick up next. I will read them eventually, but I'm just not quite as intrigued compared to some of their other works. I will get through their backlist at some point though.

Have you read Taming Hollywood's Baddest Boy?

Bookishly Yours,

Stasi🍎

STATISTICS: Taming Hollywood's Baddest Boy, Max Monroe, 4-stars, 2 days, eBook, 336 pages, published in 2020, indie published

Pairing Off by Elizabeth Harmon

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

With some time to mood read before the start of FaRoFeb, I was in the mood for contemporary. When I check out the 2nd board prompts for Winter's Kiss that would be harder to meet with fantasy romance. One of the prompts that stuck out to me was atypical sports romance. I knew immediately I wanted to pick up one of the figure skating romances I had on my kindle and chose Pairing Off by Elizabeth Harmon. This is the first in her Red Hot Russians series. I also used this to cover the prompt Chekov's Grandma for the Heaving Bosom's 2022 Reading Embrace.

Carrie is a pairs champion for the United States. At a the World Championships her partner is found sleeping with a judge. They both get stripped of their US championship and become outcasts in the figure skating world. Anton is a Russian figure skater and just lost his partner due to her switching for another top skater's final Olympics. When Anton has his coach reach out to Carrie, they become a new pair duo skating for Russia. As Carrie struggles with gaining dual citizenship and fighting against the scandal caused by her former partner, she becomes close with Anton in more than just a skating partner. Anton and Carrie had actually met while they were on the youth figure skating circuit and when they both realize their previous connection, it feels meant to be. Carrie is also still dealing with her mother's suicide and a strained relationship with her politician father and it makes it difficult for her to open up to Anton.

I loved this book. This was heavier than I expected, so there is triggers for suicide, death of a parent and a strained relationship/neglective parent. First off, the figure skating aspects of this were on point. I've read a couple figure skating romances before, but you could easily find terminologies used wrong. Since I am a figure skating fan, that always bothered me. I had none of that here and I kept thinking that Elizabeth might have been a figure skater herself since it all felt so real. I did see in her author's note or blurb at the end that she did compete as a youth in figure skating. Now I picked this up because it was blurbed as a Russian take of the movie Cutting Edge (which is one of my favorite figure skating movies). While it didn't really give me the same feeling as cutting edge, I still enjoyed it just as much.

I really just can't say enough good things about this book. It completely swept me away. If I were to get a bit nitpicky, it would have to be with Carrie. I did wish that Carrie opened up to Anton earlier. She would start, but then second guess her trust in him and clam up. I loved how patient Anton was with her though and it really made up for it. I also really liked that when it came to the 3rd act conflict, Anton and Carrie both trusted and believed in each other when kept apart. I just loved that it subverted what usually occurs and really ended the book so well.

I definitely want to read more of the series, although it does look the second book does get away from the figure skating setting. The hero is a figure skater though, so I'm still intrigued. I'm happy to find a another new contemporary author, especially since she has a figure skating sports romance series! We need more figure skating romances for sure. I can't wait to continue on and see what else in her backlist.

Have you read Pairing Off?

Bookishly Yours,

Stasi🍎

STATISTICS: Pairing Off, Elizabeth Harmon, 5-stars, 1 day, eBook, 384 pages, published in 2015, small publisher

Dancing with the Duke by Suzanna Medeiros

⭐⭐⭐💫

The last prompt I had to fill for the first board of the Winter's Kiss reading challenge board 1 was a book with cursive writing on the cover. I didn't have too much time, so I went through the novellas I had on my kindle and stumbled across Dancing with the Duke by Suzanna Medeiros. This is the prequel novella (0.5) in her Landing a Lord series.

Alex, the Duke of Clarington, is tasked with dancing with his younger sister's  best friend during her debut at Almack's. Since Charlotte is debuting at an older age of 22, they are hoping that dancing with him as her first foray will help garner interest from other members of the ton. It's been several years since Alex has seen Charlotte and is surprised at how much she's grown. When the dance works and Charlotte garners a lot of attention from eligible men around town, he starts getting jealous. When Charlotte's father heads back to the country and Charlotte moves into the Clarington house, they start to run into each other a lot more often.

This was a simple, cute and straightforward novella. I haven't read Suzanna Medeiros before and thought that the writing style was fine. I know that it's hard to really develop a fleshed out story when it comes to short novellas like this, but it did feel a little too rushed. That said I am intrigued to try a full length novel by Suzanna. While rushed, I thought it was well written and I liked how quickly established the characters felt. I don't really have much to say about this. It's a sweet, quick, tropey read. I'm not sure how it leads into the series as a whole since we really only see Alex's sister, but from what I could tell the first book isn't about her.

I enjoyed my time, it just didn't completely blow me away. I feel like that's harder to do with novellas like this that lead into a series. Like I mentioned before, I would try another of Suzanna's full length novels to see what she does with more pages. If you are looking for a quick historical novella that gives you exactly what it is, then pick this up. The only really bad thing I want to mention, the cover is spicier than the novella; just a little bit of false advertisement.

Have you read Dancing with the Duke?

Bookishly Yours,

Stasi🍎

STATISTICS: Dancing with the Duke, Suzanna Medeiros, 3.5-stars, 0 days, eBook, 110 pages, published in 2012, indie published

Nice Werewolves Don't Bite Vampires by Molly Harper

⭐⭐⭐⭐

With two prompts left to fill the first bingo board of the Winter's Kiss reading challenge, one was starts with the letter N. When I went through my kindle and goodreads tbr, I found Nice Werewolves Don't Bite Vampires by Molly Harper. This is the 8th book in her Half-Moon Hollow series. This series is a favorite of mine (with the Jane Jameson series this spun-off of) and I was so happy to find there was another book released. I knew as soon as I saw this that it was the book I wanted to use to fill the prompt. Plus it gave a bit of variety during another contemporary binge.

Tylene is the cousin to Jolene and the outcast in the local werewolf pack. While the pack is very old school, she escapes to work her day job as a social media marketer. When she's working late at the library one night, she runs into new vampire in town Alexandre. He has recently moved to town (thanks to his two best friends settling down with their wives) and has become the new music teacher. As Tylene struggles to come to terms with separating from the pack and be upfront with her family about falling for Alex, he and his friends get targeted by a rogue vampire thought dead decades ago.

It was so nice returning to Half-Moon Hollow. I loved how much time we got with our previous characters like Jane and Dick. They just accepted Tylene into their makeshift family without question and I loved the found family aspect. There's something that's just so cozy about Molly Harper's writing to me and I loved just checking in with all of our friends from before. I loved the connection between Tylene and Alex. It was heartbreaking to read how Tylene's mother and father treated her. Even worse since she still loved them and was having a hard time reconciling their treatment with what would be best for her. It took longer than I would've liked, but I loved that once she fully made the decision to move from the pack, she was all in.

This got four stars just because it didn't completely blow me away. This was nice and cozy and I loved it, but it didn't push the envelope or hit me fully emotionally; especially compared to earlier books in the series. It also was a little bit predictable, but it didn't curb my enjoyment at all. I really need to work on getting through Molly's backlist and get caught up in the rest of her series. She's one of my favorite paranormal authors and I can't recommend her enough. Please check her out, even more so if you're looking for a lighter and less gritty paranormal series.

Have you read Nice Werewolves Don't Bite Vampires?

Bookishly Yours,

Stasi🍎

STATISTICS: Nice Werewolves Don't Bite Vampires, Molly Harper, 4-stars, 1 day, eBook, 242 pages, published in 2020, indie published

January 2022 Wrap Up

 Happy February!

I can't believe we're already to February. How quickly time flies. To start off the year my reading was a little slower, but I feel like the books I picked up were a little higher rated, so I was able to start the years with some great books! I went on another contemporary binge and also had the Romance Takeover Readathon over a weekend and managed to finish the first board of Winter's Kiss. I didn't get too many, but let's get going on my stats!

January 2022

💗 15 books read for 4,568 pages

💗 I averaged 0.667 days per book
💗 The average page count was 304.53
💗 I read 1 book less than 100 pages, 1 in the 100s, 2 in the 200s and 11 in the 300s

💗 I read 3 books for clubs and/or readathons
💗 5 of my books had diversity
💗 I picked up 5 new authors
💗 I didn't reread any books

💗 I previously owned 2 of the books and added 9 to my wish-list
💗 I read 2 books in paperback and 13 in eBook
💗 5 books were published traditionally, 2 were with small publishers and 8 were indie published
💗 10 books were published in the 2010s and 5 were in the 2020s

💗 My average rating was 4.63
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ - 10 books
⭐⭐⭐⭐💫 - 1 book
⭐⭐⭐⭐ - 2 books
⭐⭐⭐💫 - 2 books

💗 I read 3 urban fantasies. I also read 4 historical, 1 paranormal, 1 sci-fi and 6 contemporary romances.
💗 Of the contemporaries, 1 was rom-com, 2 were small town, 2 were sports and 1 was straight contemporary.

1. Forbidden Miles by Claire Kingsley ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

2. Reckless Miles by Claire Kingsley ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

3. Magic Shifts by Ilona Andrews ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

4. Magic Stars by Ilona Andrews ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

5. Magic Binds by Ilona Andrews ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

6. Ravishing the Heiress by Sherry Thomas ⭐⭐⭐💫

7. Using Fejo by Victoria Aveline ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

8. Calling It by Jen Doyle ⭐⭐⭐⭐💫

9. Falling Like Stars by Eve Kasey ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

10. Nice Werewolves Don't Bite Vampires by Molly Harper ⭐⭐⭐⭐

11. Dancing with the Duke by Suzanna Medeiros ⭐⭐⭐💫

12. Pairing Off by Elizabeth Harmon ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

13. Taming Hollywood's Baddest Boy by Max Monroe ⭐⭐⭐⭐

14. West End Earl by Bethany Bennett ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

15. Never Seduce a Scot by Maya Banks ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

💗 I had a lot of really great books this month and absolutely loved most of the books I read. It's hard to pick a favorite and already I know that there will be some tough choices when it comes to my favorites of the year! I think the most disappointing was Ravishing the Heiress by Sherry Thomas. I had another 3.5-star rating this month as well, but I wasn't expecting as much from it. Not that there weren't parts I adored about Ravishing the Heiress. It just didn't give me the happy payoff I needed for how angsty it was.

I can't wait to really start digging into my February reads, particularly my fantasy romance picks for FaRoFeb. I think I'm not going to do charts for my monthly wrap ups this year, but let me know if you miss them and I can put together some monthly spreads!

How was your reading for the start of 2022?

Bookishly Yours,

Stasi🍎

Falling Like Stars by Eve Kasey

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

The first theme for the Smart Women Read Romance exclusive patreon review was whatever you wanted to recommend. Since I always feel nervous recommending a book or author I love, I wanted to find something new. Since I didn't really have a direction, I decided to go through my goodreads tbr and organize via ratings. I started at the highest and went through until I found something that sounded good at the time and that I saw Juliette and Jessen hadn't marked as read. I came across Falling Like Stars by Eve Kasey. This is the first book in her All In series and I added it to my tbr when I saw Shelby post about it on her instagram. This ended up being tied with another book and Jessen said she did a coin flip to decide. I was happy to see that the book I recommended won! I was also able to use this for the Winter's Kiss prompt published in 2021 and for the Heaving Bosom's 2022 Reading Embrace prompt Scientists in 2022.

Chen is an aerospace engineer (a.k.a. Astronaut) and is looking for a new job after being dismissed from the Chinese military's service after his last mission. When he's approached to be the pilot for Orbit All, a company set to provide commercial space flights, he jumps at the opportunity. Elle is an experiential planner and also gets poached to help plan and set up the entire experience for Orbit All patrons. Chen and Elle are from two different worlds but find themselves drawn together not only because they're neighbors, but Chen's input is integral in Elle planning the best space travel experience. Chen struggles with the expectations expected of him from both his family and culture back in China, on top of worrying about his disable sister.

Oh my gosh. I absolutely adored this book and there were so many great things. First off I loved the STEM representation and how there was a lot of the science of going to space, but it wasn't so overdone that those that don't know much about it couldn't catch on. There was a lot of great representation here, but what made it better was that it seemed so naturalized. Chen's younger sister had a heart defect and ended up dying for a small chunk of time. When she was resurrected she suffered from brain damage and hasn't the mind of a child. I loved how it was handled here and just a fact of his life. It didn't feel overdone or like it was pandering to there being disability representation. Like I said, it just felt so normal and how it would be in real life. There were a lot of instances like that throughout the book that just made it overall seem so real. Another representation here is that Chen is Chinese and Elle is Caucasian. Not only do we get an interracial relationship, but Elle's father and step-mother are in an interracial marriage as well. I love seeing mixed race couples represented more. I also felt like the way that Chen was portrayed was so well done. I had similar conversations with friends when I studied abroad (mostly from the female perspective) that really hit home for me. I did see in the author's note that she thanked her husband, so I think that her husband must be Asian or even Chinese.

I also loved how they weren't quite enemies, but more like Chen instantly started teasing Elle and she was annoyed and super attracted to him. I loved their banter and they way that their relationship progressed. I just can't say enough good things about this book and I will be picking up the rest of the series for sure. I also am intrigued by her Her Hands series as well. I am so happy to find another new contemporary author. I had a lot of fun gushing about this book with everyone during the live show and can't wait to see what we read next!

Have you read Falling Like Stars?

Bookishly Yours,

Stasi🍎

STATISTICS: Falling Like Stars, Eve Kasey, 5-stars, 0 days, eBook, 264 pages, published in 2021, indie published