Ok, but in all seriousness, holy shit. Holy fucking shit. That wa”Hi, Shannon.�
“Hi, Johnny.�
“Stay with me.�
“Aɲ.�
Mom come pick me up, ’m not well�
Ok, but in all seriousness, holy shit. Holy fucking shit. That was one of the wildest most beautiful most romantic fucking books I’ve read in my entire life. ’m actually shocked. Honestly, flabbergasted. I’ve seen this book around book internet for years now, and it’s something I was convinced I wasn’t going to like. Especially because super popular books, especially ones from Booktok never work for me. But I caved. I decided I’d try it. And ’m so glad that I decided to read this book.
This is a perfect mix of coming of age x new adult, intentional cringe, growing up, and also dealing with serious topics and discussions. Shannon and Johnny are both going through a lot when they meet each other. Johnny is trying to hide a worsening injury he got playing rugby—the sport that he eats, sleeps, and breathes—and Shannon is dealing with the aftermath of lifelong bullying, and a strenuously abusive and toxic home life. They quickly become ensnared in each others worlds, and can’t stay away.
I think what makes this book so good is the characters, because, honestly it’s not Chloe Walsh’s writing. Walsh isn’t the strongest writer, and often reuses phrases and sometimes recycles scenes. She also desperately needs an editor, and some of the stuff in here is problematic as hell. But her strength lies in the way she crafts characters and their relationships with each other; which I think is why this series is so popular. Not only are Shannon and Johnny characters that immediately imprint on you, but the side characters are also fantastic and really add so much depth to the story. All the side relationships are well built upon for future books, and made me excited to continue on.
And let’s not forget about the stars of the show, Johnny and Shannon. I adored these two. I truly couldn’t get enough. Johnny is so sweet to Shannon, and is so soft with her compared to with everyone else. And Shannon is just such a sweetheart, who’s really a victim of her circumstances. She has so much going on, and she finds a safe space in Johnny.
Ugh, I can’t. This book was so emotional and hit me right in the heart. I cried quite a few times lol. That cliff hanger was also crazy, I really need to get to book 2 soon....more
”When everyone else leaves, when they never come back, Khiran does. He flits in and out of her life like the seasons, but when he fades away from her ”When everyone else leaves, when they never come back, Khiran does. He flits in and out of her life like the seasons, but when he fades away from her life, it’s with the unwavering faith that she’ll see him again. Next spring, next fall. He’ll find her when she is falling to pieces or when she’s whole. There’s comfort in that. Comfort in knowing he’ll be there when no one else can be.�
”Alexa, play cowboy like me by Taylor Swift�
What a book. What a freaking book. If you liked The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by VE Schwab, or even the concept of that book, Peaches & Honey is Addie LaRue’s more interesting, shorter, and slightly better written younger cousin (coming from someone who loved the book mentioned).
This story follow Anna, a girl born in the 11th century cast out of society due to her vitiligo. She lives in the woods, hiding in fear. One day, Anna finds a woman in need of saving in the woods and Anna brings her to her home home. The strange woman gives her a fruit, and when Anna and is found and captured for hiding the mysterious woman, she’s burned at the stake. Anna however doesn’t die, and discovers that the strange woman is actually a god who granted her the gift—or curse—of immortality. Over centuries, Anna learns from other people, living among them and trying to save as many mortals as she can. The one constant in her life is the shapeshifting god who saved her all the years ago, Kieran.
This book is effortless in its ability to blend sweeping writing with historical fiction and light fantasy. The writing is both poignant and has a haunting purple prose that makes a great story as amazing as it is. ’m honestly so surprised this author is self published, especially on kindle unlimited because their writing is just incredible. The writing is definitely the highest high about Peaches & Honey.
But the characters are also the other highlight of this story. Watching Anna’s journey and her development was beautiful. She travels to many different places, learns new languages, integrates herself with different cultures, meets new people, tries new things. She goes from a naive and young girl who tries to hide herself in the shadows, to a woman unafraid to stand up for what she believes in and be herself. Kieran is also such a great love interest, and helps Anna in her endeavors to make the world better. Her protects her, consoles her, and loves her through every century their together, and keeps it all to himself until he knows Anna is ready to love him too. I’ve seen other reviews say their relationship wasn’t something they cared for, but I adored them together. They way they lean on each other, and Anna slowly realizing what it’s like to live forever brought them together in so many ways. I just find them to be so beautifully written (and also very poignant).
The only thing I will complain about is I wish this was longer. We do a lot of time jumps, which make sense for the story, but I just wish we got more. I loved Anna so much and I wouldn’t have minded 100 to even 500 more pages of Anna going through the centuries and growing. I just adore her character.
Don’t be fooled by the marketing for this book though. It’s tagged on here as fantasy romance, and I’ve seen it discussed as such in fantasy romance/romantasy spaces, but it’s really not one. It’s a historical fiction book with fantasy/magical realism elements and a romance on the side. Don’t let that deter you from this book though. I pretty much immediately realized this wasn’t fantasy romance as it was marketed, but I adored it all the same.
This was such a fantastic book, ’m so excited to continue on with book 2....more
So good! Alpha, domineering, and toxic hero with a sweet, shy, and proper heroine. Fantastic dynamics, and often times super cute (in a very toxic waySo good! Alpha, domineering, and toxic hero with a sweet, shy, and proper heroine. Fantastic dynamics, and often times super cute (in a very toxic way lol). It would have been a 5 star, but the middle was really slow. It also ended in a weird place. If you love slice of life and/or Alice Coldbreath, read this!!
There is some major dub con and a marital rape scene between the MC’s in the beginning though so if that bothers you, don’t read!
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OMG I was OBSESSED with the this during 2020 or 2021. ’m so happy this author is getting traditionally published, I can’t wait to read this version!...more
I was that one girl that read “rejected mates� stories on Wattpad in middle school, which is probably why ’m so obsessed with groveling stories. ThisI was that one girl that read “rejected mates� stories on Wattpad in middle school, which is probably why ’m so obsessed with groveling stories. This was very reminiscent of those stories, but in a much cozier and way better written fashion. I’ve read one other book by this author before, and I definitely wasn’t a fan of that one. It surprised me how much I truly loved this book. The pack politics were very interesting, and all the characters were great. The romance was so freaking angsty and filled with drama; I adored every single second of it. I loved the groveling so so much, and how strong in the FMC’s resolve she was to not forgive the MMC. The sex was super hot as well, and the caretaking was so sweet. This had everything for me to be a 5 star, and oh my god did it deliver! I adored this so much, I can’t wait for book 2....more
“You broke me. And in the process I broke you. And now I fear the only way we will ever be whole again is together, all your jagged edges ne� 4 stars
“You broke me. And in the process I broke you. And now I fear the only way we will ever be whole again is together, all your jagged edges nestled against mine. I hate that I want that. But I do. I want to be whole with you.�
Tropes: � Post-Apocalyptic Romance � Fantasy/Paranormal Romance � Dark Romance � Mostly Singular POV; First Person � Enemies to Lovers � Captor/Captive � Forced Allies to Lovers � Life Debts � Strong Sexual Tension
’m really surprised that I’ve managed to almost complete an entire book series in a decent time frame. After book 2, War, I was super ready to hop right into book 3, which very rarely ever happens. I decided to go with the instinct though and I really ended up enjoying this one. There’s not much I can really say since this is pretty deeply connected to the last 2 books, but I will say I quite enjoyed this installment.
Ana was such a fearless and fun heroine. I feel like all the girls are very similar at this point, as are the overall plots (’m not really going to fault Thalassa because how much different can you really make each book in a series about the apocalypse?) but I thought Ana was badass regardless. She’s a sex worker when the book starts, and is very unashamed about it. I thought it was a breath of fresh air to read about a heroine who does do sex work and doesn’t look down upon it (even thought it was forced on Ana at first unfortunately).
Famine was a great addition from his brothers and stood out the most as different. He has a very dry sense of humor, takes no bullshit, and is the most ruthless brother yet. His and Ana’s banter was delightful, especially when Ana kept trying to rile him up. The power play dynamics were a great addition too, and felt different from the other scenarios form books 1 and 2. And as always these books always tend to have a good ‘ol captor/captive situation, which is unabashedly one of my favorite fantasy couple tropes. This book was no different, and while it does follow the same type of formula’s from books 1 and 2, ’m trash so it still was worth the read.
Overall I really enjoyed this and ’m so excited for the finale of this series! I believe we’ll finally get the team up of all the brothers and the girls I’ve desperately been waiting for, and I can’t wait to see all the couples back together. This was a great addition to an already super fun series and I’ll be picking up the final book soon!
He breaks away from the kiss. “What have you done to me?� He whispers. “What have you done? Wife, wife, wife,� he murmurs against my skin.
Tro� 5 stars
He breaks away from the kiss. “What have you done to me?� He whispers. “What have you done? Wife, wife, wife,� he murmurs against my skin.
Tropes: � Post-Apocalyptic Romance � Fantasy/Paranormal Romance � Dark Romance � Singular POV; First Person � One Sided Enemies to Lovers � Captor/Captive � Forced Marriage � Strong Sexual Tension
It was really unexpected how much I loved War! The first book in this series, Pestilence I read and enjoyed, back in March. I gave it a high 3 or low 4, but I didn’t feel like it was amazing. Still, it was a fun read, with some really interesting concepts on religion, a pretty kickass heroine, a surprisingly sweet hero (after he finishes the torturing and threats of course), and very readable writing that managed to get me out a reading slump. Lately I’ve been feeling a little slumpy. I read a lot of 5 star books, and then the well seemed to dry with some really mediocre 3 stars. War was the perfect remedy for my incoming slump, and a 5 star itself!
This book has quite a different tone from book 1, which I was surprised by. The first book is more of an adventure/travel book with a much nicer hero, while this one has themes of rape, forced marriage between the main couple, and the MMC actually being acclimated in our world unlike Pestilence was. This one also had an even more badass heroine than book 1. Sara in book 1 is definitely a whiner (I love her, but we have to admit she was) while Miriam refuses to take any shit from anyone.
Miriam is taken as a hostage to War’s after she tries to kill him. He realizes she’s his fated wife, and Miriam is absolutely having none of it. She defies him at every turn, even when she’s starting to fall in love with him. She’s not as strong as some of the people at the camp, so she uses her words to manipulate people into doing what she wants. Miriam is also a badass with a sword, and even makes weapons. Like, how fucking cool is that? She doesn’t care people don’t like her, she’s a fighter and pretty much what you’d call “mother�.
The scorching hot sexual tension between Miriam and War was also perfect, and made the conflict between them so believable. Their banter was so intense, and their chemistry was leaping off the pages. War was so desperately irritated and equaling in love with Miriam and he would quite literally burn the world down for her (as he threatened to do more than once). His possessiveness over her, and the way she quite literally changed his entire world view, similarly to how Sara helped Pestilence learn mercy. The pussy was so good War learned kindness and empathy…I loved how Miriam also wouldn’t let go of her morals to be with War. She really gave him an ultimatum about being together, and War was so in love he just let it happen.
Anyways, this was so entertaining, and a delight to read. The main couple was equal parts amusing, hot, and nerve inducing. There was a lot of twists, turns, and unexpected drama that wasn’t at all present in book 1, and something I really hope will continue with book 3. It was really hard to believe Miriam and War would have a happy ending with all their back and forth and all the challenges they faced, but ’m so glad we got there and I can’t wait to read book 3.
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OH MY GOD??? I was not expecting this to be as good as it was, RTC...more
Ugh, I loved this! It’s been so long since I’ve read YA/NA fantasy, and this book reminded me why I used to love it so much! This reminded m*4.25/4.5?
Ugh, I loved this! It’s been so long since I’ve read YA/NA fantasy, and this book reminded me why I used to love it so much! This reminded me a lot of Serpent and Dove by Shelby Mahurin. Witches are hunted and killed. The FMC is a secret witch, hiding under guise of a shallow socialite by day, and under the alias, The Secret Moth by night. The MMC is a commander for the new regime that purges witches. He’s trying to find the elusive Crimson Moth, a witch that frees other witches and kills soldiers viciously.
I loved pretty much everything about this book! The tension between the MC’s was so intense, and the constant back-and-forth, cat and mouse was so entertaining. These two are playing each other so hard, that you genuinely don’t know what’s going to happen next! That was the only part of this one I did find unpredictable; I saw everything else coming. I also really liked our two MC’s. Rune is so strong and such a badass. And Gideon felt very unique to some other recent MMC’s in fantasy romance. He actually has feelings, and he’s a little awkward. I enjoyed his character a lot, and found him a breathe of fresh air.
Overall, super fun! I’ve been meaning to get to this one for about a year now, and ’m so stoked I’ve finally gotten to it! ’m excited to read book 2 in the Duology when I manage to get the audio in from the library....more
Tortured and depressed edge lord kidnaps, blackmails, and then coerces a woman into marrying him. Edge lord is repressed and thinks his kink for mild Tortured and depressed edge lord kidnaps, blackmails, and then coerces a woman into marrying him. Edge lord is repressed and thinks his kink for mild bdsm and bondage is too much for his sweet wife to handle. Said edge lord then makes it everyone else’s problem.
Ok, but in all seriousness, this was fantastic, and you all weren’t lying. I loved these characters so deeply. I found Dorian so compelling. He’s an angsty antihero, who totally takes what he wants without a care in the world. I loved how he comes to care for Farrah. Farrah is such a sweetheart, and I found her such a gentle and strong lead. I also just genuinely believed these two were soulmates by the end of this book. They have that slight toxicity, and deep, undying love for each other that was so achingly beautiful and romantic. These two go through so much together, and I truly shed a few tears for them. I adored them so much.
Honestly, this reads like an old bodice ripper, but with a modern writing style. The book is mildly dark, has some hot banging scenes, and the main romance involves a slightly toxic, and coercive, yet enduring romance that you find often in those types of books. I loved the darkness with the background of Byrnes writing style! This was pretty great. ’m really excited to read more from this series because I loved this one so much....more
I may be basic asf, but this was literally so good. The tension, the light angst, the grump/sunshine dynamic, the domesticity!!!! Was it a little cheeI may be basic asf, but this was literally so good. The tension, the light angst, the grump/sunshine dynamic, the domesticity!!!! Was it a little cheesy and a little predictable? Yes. But I still loved every second of this, and omg Mason. I love that man so much. This is easily one of my fave medieval historical romances (and honestly probably historicals in general) that I’ve ever read. Thank you to the Historical Romance subreddit for recommending the shit out of Alice Coldbreath, because this was fantastic. I can absolutely see her becoming a fave author of mine....more
FINALLY SOME GOOD FUCKING SOUP!!! I’ve read Brynne Weaver two other times (both books being her serial killer romances) and loved both of them as wellFINALLY SOME GOOD FUCKING SOUP!!! I’ve read Brynne Weaver two other times (both books being her serial killer romances) and loved both of them as well. Butcher and the Blackbird is Weaver’s first traditionally published book, and man did it deliver. Everything about this book was just perfect! The banter was hilarious and so damn solid, the characters were perfection, both on their own and together, and the plot was so fun and engaging. I truly believe Weaver made a new genre with this book, dark romcom. This book definitely had its gross and gory moments, and turned around and made it hilarious the next minute. Sloane and Rowan were also just made for each other, and had the perfect combination of snark, obsessive love, and killing people together. This book was so fucking good, I can definitely see it being in my top 10 of the year!...more
I feel like every time I write a review for these books I just say the same things. ”Kate is so amazing!!!”“Kate and Curran are so cute!!�, “I love JuI feel like every time I write a review for these books I just say the same things. ”Kate is so amazing!!!”“Kate and Curran are so cute!!�, “I love Julie and Kate’s relationship!!!!�, “I don’t care about the mystery, that much�. That’s all still very true with this book, so ’m just going to say the things I loved most in a little list.
� Kate x Curran established relationship with actual communication, and yet still having amazing banter!! I hate how authors take everything great away from a couple once their romance gets established. That doesn’t happen with these two.
� Kate’s family history growing, and more lore on Kate’s magic. I loved the plot line with the witches! � Julie’s little hitchhiking journey, and Curran kind of also becoming her parent now. I loved Kate just saying that walking home was her punishment lol.
� Kate being the absolute badass mother we know she is, and taking on her role as alpha. She really proved herself this book, to the pack, to Curran, and especially to herself. It was so great.
� Kate setting up her own buisness was probably the highlight of this book! I loved Andrea and Derek working for her, as well, her attack poodle, and the new 15 year old bodyguard she gains along the way.
� THE PARENTAL RAGE BETWEEN KATE AND CURRAN!!! The way they were just absolutely pissed in the last 30% because someone hurt their baby girl ...more
I adore this series sm!!! The expansion on Kate’s family legacy was just so cool, and I loved seeing our girl become even more badass than she is!*4.5
I adore this series sm!!! The expansion on Kate’s family legacy was just so cool, and I loved seeing our girl become even more badass than she is!! As I always say, I adore Kate and Curran so much, as well. Each book really proves to me that they are absolutely meant for each other in every way possible. Of course we have the rest of the gang including the best girl Julie, our boy wonder Derek, the lovely mangy attack poodle who’s just so perfect, and Kate’s best girl Andrea. I just adore all these characters, and although I don’t always love the mystery that much, these characters just mean everything to me.
I know I always say the same shit, so I’ll probably do a list of some sort for the next book. But, ugh this was the best Kate Daniels yet, I can’t wait to read the next one very soon!...more
”You came for me,� I whispered. “Always,� he told me.
This series is honestly so fun, and super well written. All my love for this book is pretty much t”You came for me,� I whispered. “Always,� he told me.
This series is honestly so fun, and super well written. All my love for this book is pretty much the same things I’ve said in my other reviews. I adore our heroine, Kate, who’s both equal amounts funny and badass. I especially love the romance between Kate and Curran. Their dynamic is very much frenemies vibes, and it’s an absolute delight to read. If you’re looking for a book couple with hilarious, snarky, and downright petty banter, then Kate and Curran are absolutely the slowburn couple for you.
Now despite these books being so focus on the mystery aspects, ’m not too focused on them. I just think there’s too many characters for me to really care. And you’re probably like, “But, Abi these are mystery books first?� Ok? ’m only reading for the characters and the relationships and ’m not ashamed to admit it. Anyways, even though idrc about the mysteries. we got a really big reveal in this one that I didn’t see coming—but definitely should have lol. It actually made the mystery aspect really entertaining, and ’m very intrigued to see what the authors will do with the reveal in the coming books.
This series really is fantastically written. It’s quite impressive how expansive, detailed, and utterly complex this world has become in just 3 books out of 9? 10? 11? Kate is already such a deep dynamic character, as are all of the new and reoccurring side characters. ’m so excited to continue this series; it’s really becoming a new favorite for me and I can’t wait to see whats coming next.
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