A melodramatic blond man has a mobile home and adopts strays, including but not limited to orphans and bewitched crabby young women. There’s a lot of A melodramatic blond man has a mobile home and adopts strays, including but not limited to orphans and bewitched crabby young women. There’s a lot of hobbling and wailing and throwing oneself onto a settee in despair, but Howl’s gonna Howl. Reading this was not unlike settling into an overstuffed chair with a warm bowl of your favorite soup, comfort-wise, and all the shouting really starts to feel more boisterous than angry pretty quickly. Foppish heroes, exasperated heroines, and an overworked fire demon - this club has it all....more
The daddy of all simps hates his life so he spends most of his time trying to figure out if killing his father is plausible. His father absolutely shoThe daddy of all simps hates his life so he spends most of his time trying to figure out if killing his father is plausible. His father absolutely should be killed, as this is the third book in a row of him being a major douche to everyone. Prince Simp meets a hottie who works for the opposing side of the war and things go bow chicka bow wow. This is all further complicated by his sister, the star of the two previous books, changing her mind about wanting to kill her husband, who will be very angry with her when everything settles down. This may be a good time to mention that this book and The Traitor Queen happen concurrently so if you like seeing Aren in distress, you’re in for a double treat. Keris is the epitome of “I didn’t ask for all this” and Zarrah just wants him to die until she really, really doesn’t. Annoyed when your enemies-to-lovers aren’t very enemy-y? Have I got great news for you! ...more
This one’s on me. I don’t hate children — I’m not a Grimm villain who gleefully turns toddlers into porridge — but I don’t really like kids and I findThis one’s on me. I don’t hate children — I’m not a Grimm villain who gleefully turns toddlers into porridge — but I don’t really like kids and I find reading about pregnancy to be tedious and boring. I was the one who chose to pick up this book, and I’ll cop to it not being a good idea. I wondered throughout this experience if I was reading the same book as everyone else, in that I expected a sweet, wholesome story about two people trying to figure it all out and instead got 350 pages of Win being irresponsible and whiny while the people around her try to make low-effort, unfunny sex jokes their entire personality. Let’s not let Bo off the hook, as he was also a dumbass and banged someone with no protection. Here’s a dime, Bo, buy yourself a clue. Actually, I’ll make it easy and just say everyone in the book is insufferable and their maturity seems to tap out around 7th grade. At one point I just started skipping pages to see if I could still follow the plot and I could, because nothing happens in this book, and I mean nothing. Apparently the next book is about Caleb and Sarah, so… Godspeed, I guess....more
A pissy laundress murders one little tyrannical king and all hell breaks loose. She’s immediately caught by a grumpy bounty hunter who spits, like, a A pissy laundress murders one little tyrannical king and all hell breaks loose. She’s immediately caught by a grumpy bounty hunter who spits, like, a lot, and they make their way across a frozen tundra while fighting off cultists, endless bugs, fantasy-meth, and being cold literally all the time. The plot dips and weaves but doesn’t leave any holes, just a lot of “oh my god”s from all the trauma strewn around like so much confetti. Should Anji have killed the king? I’m not really sure (and neither is she) but we got this book out of it, so probably....more
All good things must end, and Gleam is where my 5 star ratings for the series curled up to die alone. Chief among the reasons was Auren going from relAll good things must end, and Gleam is where my 5 star ratings for the series curled up to die alone. Chief among the reasons was Auren going from reliance on one man to reliance on a different, ostensibly nicer man with no real independence or autonomy in sight. Does she like the various nicknames everyone uses instead of her actual name? Who knows? No one’s asked her. I think Slade is supposed to be mysterious but he really just doesn’t tell people anything to seem more interesting, a tactic employed by many boring people. The ending is sort of satisfying, if you ever reach it, which reminds me: this book is about four hundred pages too long. If people stopped smirking (43 uses), smiling (108 uses) or talking about auras (45 uses), maybe it could be trimmed down to a more reasonable length. I would talk about the smut but I’m actively working on trying to forget it....more
With the exception of like, three chapters, this entire book — and I am not exaggerating — is Auren wandering around an encampment, being bullied or tWith the exception of like, three chapters, this entire book — and I am not exaggerating — is Auren wandering around an encampment, being bullied or trying to scheme (trying to figure out how to scheme?) while being cold and muddy. That’s it. 450 pages of a golden woman being uncomfortable and grouchy while a hot hedgehog man sleeps on a pallet a respectful distance away from her. And I read it in a day and then started book 3. Even I’m baffled by the bewitchery going on here. This series is an illegal substance....more
Ali Hazelwood once again plumbs the depths of fictional academia to find immature, incoherent disasters of people who are somehow also outrageously suAli Hazelwood once again plumbs the depths of fictional academia to find immature, incoherent disasters of people who are somehow also outrageously successful in their professional field. This time she reminds us of her millennial-ism by naming the novella after a Taylor Swift lyric, a puzzling trend in romance that alerts us to the author’s girl’s girl attitude while also relying on pop culture references that will eventually render the pun obsolete once people move on. This book is about what every other Ali Hazelwood book is about, and at this point I’m wondering if she’s ever met an average-height man or if they’ve all been the size of a particularly willowy Uruk-Hai. She isn’t afraid to try a few new things, though, including the FMC imprinting on a newborn when she’s two and a half. Art is all about growth....more
A young woman whose moral compass is as unpredictable as a weather vane in a storm joins a secret club for cool people. The purpose of this club may oA young woman whose moral compass is as unpredictable as a weather vane in a storm joins a secret club for cool people. The purpose of this club may or may not be to commit mass genocide - I’m not sure because I had no idea what the hell was going on throughout the book except that Diem was able to stab people and no one really tried to stop her. If you’re concerned that this is straying too far from every other romantasy novel ever, fear not: there is a simpy mysterious man with a facial scar. Diem, while stunningly stupid, is somehow both obnoxious and bland. I didn’t know that was possible, and frankly I’m kind of impressed. If this book became interesting or sensical in the last sixty pages, I didn’t notice because I was skimming it like a flat stone skipping over the water. Will Diem harness the beast within? Will her mother be found? Will she pick her poor sap lifelong friend or Scar Guy? Who cares. I just hope she makes one good decision at some point before she dies. ...more