This is what I mean when I say I enjoy cozy fantasy. The stakes were medium, the humor was endless, a5猸愶笍 | |
That was a phenomenally good time!
This is what I mean when I say I enjoy cozy fantasy. The stakes were medium, the humor was endless, and the fairy tale vibes were perfection. I鈥檇 give it a million stars if I could.
While This Princess Kills Monsters is a retelling of the Grimm Brothers鈥� The Twelve Huntsmen, it鈥檚 also full of so many other fairy tale references. It鈥檚 wildly unserious (and I mean that as the highest praise) and laugh out loud funny.
I finished this book with sore cheeks from all the smiling and laughing it provoked.
I desperately need an artist to create the hair filling the tower scene! STAT!
What I loved鈥� - every single character, even the villains were totally fun to read - speaking of characters they were relatable and flawed - dragons, and various other totally crazy magical creatures - feminist af - perfectly queer (princesses get to marry princesses, a transgender love interest, and tons of queer joy and acceptance - I want to live inside this book!) - family forward story that will have you calling your sister to tell her how much you love her! - honestly if I wrote everything I loved about this book in list format the list would be about a 100 pages long - and I really think some of this is better experienced with no prior knowledge.
I really just need you to go read this book now, it鈥檚 phenomenal and fun and you won鈥檛 regret it!
Thank you NetGalley and The Dial for sending this book (eARC) for review consideration. All opinions are my own....more
Talk about starting off with a BANG! I loved that this book griped me from the start with action-packed scenes, lush imagery and4.75猸愶笍 | | |
Talk about starting off with a BANG! I loved that this book griped me from the start with action-packed scenes, lush imagery and beautiful prose. I am a HUGE fan of books that don鈥檛 give you all the details up front so it was a lot of fun to have that mystery/unknown aspect, as our FMC learns more about herself and her world. This was such an epic start to a new trilogy and I cannot wait to see where it goes from here.
ps This is the start of something great鈥�
What I loved鈥� - action-packed, fast-paced, and great overall pacing - lush imagery that made you feel like you were right there in the thick of it with the characters - mystery/intrigue, single POV so you learn about the world as the FMC does - the plot REVEALS and twists were heart pounding and epic! - crazy beasts and magical creatures - thorough world building with minimal info-dumps - the romantic sub-plot was top notch, SLOW burn & high tension 10/10 - Found family, the side characters were A++ - Grade A++ banter (not just with the MMC, but with the side characters too!) - elemental magic, chosen one, and an ancient prophecy
What I didn鈥檛 love鈥� - longer chapters (look I鈥檓 just not a fan ok) - at times the romance veered a tiny itty bitty bit into the cheesy lane - but most will probably love it - while the overall pacing was excellent there was a bit of a lull around the 60-80% mark - the longer chapters combined with the super fast paced beginning made the slow down (to do important things like finish fleshing out the world and character development) a bit more noticeable.
I fear if I do not get my hands on a physical arc I will die, and then come back as a hungry ghost5猸愶笍 | | |
Kylie Lee Baker鈥檚 best work yet!
I fear if I do not get my hands on a physical arc I will die, and then come back as a hungry ghost.
I don鈥檛 even know what to write for this review, I鈥檓 still speechless days after reading. This was utter perfection. How do you describe perfection?
This was EVERYTHING!
I fear so many of the 5猸愶笍 reviewers before me have done such an amazing job detailing the merits and nuances of this book, that anything I have to say with pale in comparison. Please go check out a few of my favorites if you need additional information to help convince you to pick up this book鈥� Mai's Review | Esta's Review | AM's Review
Here goes nothing鈥�
If you read this book and feel nothing, I must assume you have no soul.
KLB writes absolutely stunning prose that is full of so much emotion and imagery. The juxtaposition of aforementioned beautiful prose combined with detailed gore elicits visceral reactions to both body and mind.
The paranormal aspects (ghosts) and murder mystery had my heart pounding and my mind questioning the sanity of the narrator - often I found myself wondering if the ghosts were real. The portrayal of the Asian experience was raw and heart-breaking. Grief, family, friendships, and self-discovery are just some of the themes KLB tackles with unmatched skill.
This book is dark, yet there is light at the end. Bat Eater and Other Names for Cora Zeng is like nothing I have ever read - I feel privileged to have experienced it.
Audiobook Narration: Natalie Naudus might be my new favorite audiobook narrator! She brought this book to life! I read this via ebook on 12/31/24 - as soon as I got the audiobook I started it again and devoured it in a day! I was obsessed with this book before and now, on audio, I'm full FERAL for this book. 10/10 would recommend!
Thank you NetGalley and HTP for sending this book (eARC & ALC) for review consideration. All opinions are my own....more
Cara Bastone is officially an auto buy author. Ready or Not was pure perfection and now this one?! Amazing. I would like to formal5猸愶笍 | | |
Cara Bastone is officially an auto buy author. Ready or Not was pure perfection and now this one?! Amazing. I would like to formally request that the next book be about Ethan and Reese, PLEASEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!
This book is so much more than a romance, it鈥檚 an exploration of grief and a journey of healing - that just so happens to feature a perfect man who helps her along the way. I cried so much and my heart felt so full when I finished.
And I laughed out loud a LOT. The banter is perfect. The side characters are ones I wish I could make my BFFs. the found family is pure gold. and the MC鈥檚 feel real and relatable.
The MMC has one flaw and it鈥檚 that he uses 2 in 1 shampoo - seriously, that鈥檚 it, he is otherwise perfect. BUT the man has LAYERS, like an onion, a blooming onion - he鈥檚 just self-aware and that makes me love him even more.
but...after all that talk about movie scene recreation and waiting (view spoiler)[the first kiss was actually kind of lackluster - I was more excited about the almost kiss than whatever that was on the ferry (hide spoiler)]. It felt like a missed opportunity, but I鈥檓 a fan of grand gestures.
A girl blessed with the magic to open any lock agrees to help a prince steal a magic scroll that will end the war - in exchange fo5猸愶笍 | | |
A girl blessed with the magic to open any lock agrees to help a prince steal a magic scroll that will end the war - in exchange for a marriage of convenience that will save her family. Their quest turns deadly when the scroll unlocks a curse - forcing her to brave the dark to rescue the prince!
Unlock the Dark is a high stakes family forward story with an incredibly lush fantastical world that will have you craving more.
I鈥檝e had such a hard time writing this review because there is so very much to love about this book! I can鈥檛 stop thinking about it and I absolutely plan to re-read this, I am in love.
Because I鈥檓 at a loss for articulate words to describe how fantastic this book is I鈥檒l default to list style for now.
What I love鈥� - There has never been a book that I wanted so desperately to be able to be magically transported into. - The world building feels rich and it鈥檚 done in a way that鈥檚 not forced or info dumpy. We get little tidbits as they become relevant in a natural way. - The world and magic is unique and so f-ing cool - I felt emotionally attached to these characters within the first 20% - the connection between the FMC and MMC is not lusty - their relationship and attraction is built on shared trauma, and mutual respect. - did I mention the magic was so freaking cool???!!?!? - The FMC is strong, smart, and makes difficult decisions - This feels like a book that can be loved by the masses - the themes are appropriate for middle YA, but feel mature enough to grab and keep the attention of adults. - The CREATURES, are you kidding me with this? Unique and interesting and I want more. - the family dynamics are so well done and I love the emphasis on family.
What I did not love鈥� - This could have easily been a duology and I think it would have done better as one (see below) - I wanted more of their relationship development, had we spent a little more time prepping for their adventure/quest we could have seen their feelings develop more and turn into a deeper stronger relationship. I saw another reviewer mention that the romance was the least strongest aspect and I agree, but it didn鈥檛 have to be! It was set up to be an amazing romance but got rushed bc of the standalone book imo - I did not like the split plot line, it felt like two different conflicts were fighting to happen and I would have strongly preferred the book stick with the main FMC and MMC conflict and plot.
I will be reading anything Sara Hawk writes from this point on.
More things of note鈥�
I need a prequel of the FMCs time in the floating world. I need a sequel. I need more, please, now.
P.S. While this was not a perfect book, I am still giving it 5猸愶笍 because all the things RIGHT with this book greatly outweigh the mild plotting/pacing issue.
The world the author creates is absolutely intoxicating. I will cry my heart out if this is the only book set in this world that Sasa Hawk writes. I am literally begging for more of this world.
Thank you NetGalley and HarperCollins for sending this book (eARC) for review consideration. All opinions are my own....more
Yes No Maybe is an onion, there are many layers to this story and its characters, and just like an onion, this novel is likely to m5猸愶笍 | | |
Yes No Maybe is an onion, there are many layers to this story and its characters, and just like an onion, this novel is likely to make you cry.
Short version
Heartwarming, swoon-worthy, gut wrenching, break you down and build you back together again story, with found family, dual POV, flawed characters, and an epic love. Run don鈥檛 walk to read this now.
Official cry count = 17.
Yes, thats right, this book made me cry no less than 17 times. Including 1 cry during the author鈥檚 note and 2 cries hours after I finished (I call those aftershocks).
Before you let the number of potential tears scare you away you should know that while I expect everyone to enjoy and connect with this book, my tear count is probably outside of the bell curve. I connected deeply with these characters and their lives - I especially related to Rowan. If you feel connections with any of the following topics you might find your tear count also falls outside the norm, and can expect increased volume. - assault - foster care - emotional abuse - physical scars - military parent - housing instability (moving a lot) - familial death - cancer-
But please do not let any of that shy you away either, Jessica Sherry does an absolutely phenomenal job of handling hard topics in a way that will leave your heart full by the end of the book.
鈥斺赌�
I expected to have fun with this book, there is a cat on the cover and a tattooed grumpy romance writer for an MMC, what鈥檚 not to love? What I didn鈥檛 expect was to be absolutely blown away by this story. It feels like nothing I could write or say about this book would really do it justice, but alas, I shall try.
The main characters feel real, fully fleshed out, like I might bump into Rowan and Jack on my walk down Front Street (that鈥檚 a Wilmington reference ...more
I originally had this rated 4.5猸愶笍 - but I think about this series ALL THE TIME. It is so good and one I will reread again and again5猸愶笍 | | |
I originally had this rated 4.5猸愶笍 - but I think about this series ALL THE TIME. It is so good and one I will reread again and again!
This was a blast to read! I laughed so much during this book!
I鈥檓 obsessed with our main character/narrator Vanja, I think she鈥檚 cheeky, fun, and relatable. Our side characters are also loads of fun.
This is a YA fairytale retelling of the German (Grimm?) fairytale The Goose Girl, from the maid鈥檚 perspective. I鈥檝e never heard of the Goose Girl so I can鈥檛 speak to how it does as a retelling, but as a YA fantasy novel this is top notch!
If you鈥檙e looking for a cozy fantasy, with relatable themes and imperfect characters, this is for you!...more
This is one of my favorite reads ever. I will never not think about the way Lauren Oliver was able to capture the emotions of falling in love in word This is one of my favorite reads ever. I will never not think about the way Lauren Oliver was able to capture the emotions of falling in love in word form. The prose is why I love this. The plot is good too, but its the prose and the emotions it can evoke. 10000000/10 would recommend....more
jenny reads a lot
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