en-US Tue, 15 Apr 2025 13:21:52 -0700 60 144 41 /images/layout/goodreads_logo_144.jpg 60042507 As the son of the Morrigan and heir to the vacant Unseelie throne, Valroy itches to shed the mantle of prince and take his place as King. To his great regret one ancient tradition stands in his way, demanding he first take a bride. With all the members of the Unseelie court proving to be insufferable, what is a prince to do?

Steal a human, of course.

Abigail often wonders if the townsfolk aren’t right in calling her cursed. Abandoned by her husband and with no family to call her own, everything in her life hangs by a thread. Never did she expect her downfall would come by taking pity on an old hermit. Abducted into the dangerous world of Tir n’Aill, Abigail is thrust into a terrifying Maze that defies all logic. There, she finds herself at the mercy of an Unseelie prince with a strange offer—solve his Maze and he'll grant her deepest wish…

If she can live that long.

From author Kathryn Ann Kingsley comes this tantalizing, slow burn dark fantasy that proves sometimes the line between love and hate is razor thin.

Please note: This is a dark fantasy horror series with a love story. This series contains scenes of graphic violence. It is a slow-burn romance between the monstrous villain and the main character over the course of four books. My fae do not pull punches, and my Unseelie are not kind.]]> 338 Kathryn Ann Kingsley Bea 3 3.56 2021
author: Kathryn Ann Kingsley
name: Bea
average rating: 3.56
book published: 2021
rating: 3
read at: 2025/04/15
date added: 2025/04/15
shelves:
review:

]]> 195934852
Locked away for twelve years, Sabine Darrow’s only friends are animals she communicates with using magic. Now, sold as a bride to a villainous high lord, her greatest fear is trading one prison for another. But a potential escape lies in the form of her gruff yet achingly handsome guard, whose loyalty she is determined to break.

A huntsman with heightened senses, Basten “Wolf” Bowborn has more important things to do than transport his master’s new bride. With ancient creatures reawakening along the kingdom's border wall, he is torn between his duty and his desire to investigate—until a forbidden attraction becomes an unyielding obsession.

Welcome to Astagnon—a kingdom of cruel games and corrupted courts, where the only thing more dangerous than the secrets slumbering underground is falling for the one person you can’t have.

Drawing inspiration from Snow White and the Lady Godiva legend, WHITE HORSE BLACK NIGHTS is a dark enemies-to-lovers fantasy romance that will take you on a journey you’ll never forget. This captivating story of a girl with a special gift is perfect for fans of Sarah J. Maas and Jennifer Armentrout!]]> 416 Evie Marceau Bea 2 dnf DNF at 50% 3.79 2023
author: Evie Marceau
name: Bea
average rating: 3.79
book published: 2023
rating: 2
read at: 2025/04/02
date added: 2025/04/02
shelves: dnf
review:
DNF at 50%
]]> 227780227
Now, on the threshold of a new age, people whisper about the true cause of the emperor's death, as loyal knights dance with powerbrokers, a prince torn between love and duty, and a slave cook's secret devotion collides with forbidden passions. These entangled souls must decide whether to rekindle the dream of a golden age or let the empire burn to ashes.]]> 632 John Kerry Bea 4
The story is told from several POV, each chapter tells you which character narrates it. The story pulls no punches and gets gritty right from the beginning. It starts in the past with Sariel leading an army and destroying and looting Soren City.
Chapter Two onwards is set many years later with Sariel dead and a war of succession starting.

A lot of setup is happening in this volume so don't go in expecting a lot of fights and constant action.

This is a really strong debut with lots of intrigue and lots of political tension. I had a lot of fun reading and I'm looking forward to the next installment.

Thanks to Netgalley and BooksgoSocial for this review copy. My opinions are my own!]]> 4.27
author: John Kerry
name: Bea
average rating: 4.27
book published:
rating: 4
read at: 2025/03/29
date added: 2025/03/30
shelves:
review:
The Conquerer's Legacy is the first volume in the The Dust of the Throne series. It's also John Kerry's debut novel.

The story is told from several POV, each chapter tells you which character narrates it. The story pulls no punches and gets gritty right from the beginning. It starts in the past with Sariel leading an army and destroying and looting Soren City.
Chapter Two onwards is set many years later with Sariel dead and a war of succession starting.

A lot of setup is happening in this volume so don't go in expecting a lot of fights and constant action.

This is a really strong debut with lots of intrigue and lots of political tension. I had a lot of fun reading and I'm looking forward to the next installment.

Thanks to Netgalley and BooksgoSocial for this review copy. My opinions are my own!
]]> 227985195 She only wants a moment to rule all moments. He only wants whatever light she is willing to shine . . .

Lady Leonora Heart is clever, flirtatious, and always ready to seize a moment—especially when that moment involves a rake. And particularly if that rake is the Earl of Dare. It’s all harmless fun—after all, she has no intention of reforming any man. The only problem? She is drawn to Dare in a way that defies logic. He is dangerous—and not just in the usual rakehell way. No, he is dangerous in a way that makes her pulse race, her breath hitch, and her common sense abandon her entirely.

Rake Sloane, the Earl of Dare, is handsome, hardened, and infamous. He is a rake through and through—one who will never be reformed. The only thing he loathes more than pain is entanglements. Love? Marriage? Never. He refuses to make the same mistakes as his father. But he has one glaring weakness, and her name is Lady Leonora Heart. She is temptation incarnate. A living, breathing complication.

All of this would be well and good, but what happens when you add a scandalous secret, an opinionated parrot, and a mysterious figure returning to London with the power to upend Leonora’s entire world? Why, mayhem, of course.

As secrets unravel and their attraction grows impossible to resist, will history repeat itself, or will love be enough to forge a new future? Read Free in Kindle Unlimited!


Ladies Who Dare
Book 1: Almost A Scoundrel
Book 2: By No Means A Gentleman
Book 3: A Knave By Any Other Nam
Book 4: A Little Bit Of Hellion
Book 5: Just About A Rake
Book 6: Only A Duke]]> 280 Tanya Wilde Bea 3
Our Heroine, Lady Leonora Heart, is trying to uncover an old family secret. She keeps flirting and bantering with Rake Sloane, the Earl of Dare, who's an infamous rake. The two strike up an unexpected friendship and enjoy teasing each other.

The encounter with the alligator was fun. All in all the overall story didn't work for me. It was pretty predictable and there wasn't a lot of meaningful character development.

This book wasn't for me. It's an OK, quick read though if you're looking for something light.

Thanks to Netgalley and Dragonblade Publishing for this review copy. My opinions are my own!]]> 4.40
author: Tanya Wilde
name: Bea
average rating: 4.40
book published:
rating: 3
read at: 2025/03/30
date added: 2025/03/30
shelves:
review:
Just About a Rake is the fifth novel in the Ladies Who Dare series by Tanya Wild. The book can be read as a standalone though.

Our Heroine, Lady Leonora Heart, is trying to uncover an old family secret. She keeps flirting and bantering with Rake Sloane, the Earl of Dare, who's an infamous rake. The two strike up an unexpected friendship and enjoy teasing each other.

The encounter with the alligator was fun. All in all the overall story didn't work for me. It was pretty predictable and there wasn't a lot of meaningful character development.

This book wasn't for me. It's an OK, quick read though if you're looking for something light.

Thanks to Netgalley and Dragonblade Publishing for this review copy. My opinions are my own!
]]> 228246573 Driven by duty, he rushes to help her.

Elizabeth von Rittenburg—Liesel, as she is known—is a princess with a plan. She’ll save her sisters and young brother from the French who would abduct and ransom them to get her renegade older brother, Crown Prince Rainer to turn himself in to the French.

Liesel has always made her own rules, disrupting London society and refusing to marry her betrothed, a dyspeptic British prince. She ignores those who would dampen her exuberant nature. Now to save her family, she will do anything, even barge into a stranger’s bathing room and upbraid him for his failures, while the poor fellow stands before her naked.

Torn by desire, he must save her, then leave her…if he can bear to let her go.

Dirk, Lord Fournier is heaven to look at. A charming devil to be near. But he agrees to help her. After all, rescuing dispossessed European royalty from the clutches of the French is his specialty.

He’s failed at so much else, but he’ll do her bidding. He’ll save her family. He’ll even save her reputation, damn his righteous soul…but must never touch her.

Her fire is enchanting. Her kisses, an ineluctable lure. Still, a crown princess is not for him. He’s a mere baron, English at that, and a spy in Scarlett Hawthorne’s network.

He’s unworthy of Liesel, his reputation tarnished by a lie he ruined a woman, denied her claim and left her alone to bear the shame.

Read in Kindle Unlimited!

Scarlett Affairs
Book 1 - Lord Ashley’s Beautiful Alibi
Book 2 - Lord Ramsey’s Red-headed Ruin
Book 3 - Lord Appleby’s Gorgeous Imposter
Book 4 - Lord Fournier’s Shameless Princess
Book 5 - Lord Carlisle’s Enticing Bait
Book 6 - Lord Halsey’s Tempestuous Minx
Book 7 - Sir Durham’s Disarming Asset
Book 8 - The Dowager’s Irresistible Rogue
Book 9 - His Highness’s Tender Trap
Book 10 - The Duke’s Tamed Hellion
Book 11 - The Marquis’s Dangerous Enchantress
Book 12 - The Smuggler’s Precious Cargo
Book 13 - The Baron’s Brazen Confidante
Book 14 - His Grace’s Guilty Pleasure
Book 15 - Lord Fox’s Rebellious Vixen
Book 16 - Scarlett’s Best Agent]]> 234 Cerise DeLand Bea 4
This is a bit of an unusual setting for a Regency novel as we follow the through protagonists through Europe. The heroine, Elisabeth, and the hero, Dirk, are trying to save Elisabeth's family from the French. Elisabeth is princess and refuses the marriage arranged for her. Dirk, on the other hand, is an English baron who had to leave England five years ago because of a scandal.

Their banter was highly enjoyable and the tension is kept throughout the story. It's a fun, quick and entertaining read. The author's writing style is captivating. I'm looking forward to the next installment in the series.

Thanks to Netgalley and Dragonblade Publishing for this review copy. My opinions are my own! ]]> 4.67
author: Cerise DeLand
name: Bea
average rating: 4.67
book published:
rating: 4
read at: 2025/03/28
date added: 2025/03/28
shelves:
review:
This is the fourth book in the Scarlett Affair series by Cerise DeLand. Each book can be read as a standalone.

This is a bit of an unusual setting for a Regency novel as we follow the through protagonists through Europe. The heroine, Elisabeth, and the hero, Dirk, are trying to save Elisabeth's family from the French. Elisabeth is princess and refuses the marriage arranged for her. Dirk, on the other hand, is an English baron who had to leave England five years ago because of a scandal.

Their banter was highly enjoyable and the tension is kept throughout the story. It's a fun, quick and entertaining read. The author's writing style is captivating. I'm looking forward to the next installment in the series.

Thanks to Netgalley and Dragonblade Publishing for this review copy. My opinions are my own!
]]> 84944828
Damien and Amma have landed themselves in the midst of Yvlcon, the preeminent congregation of the vilest and most unscrupulous villains in existence. Once again amongst his peers, Damien’s moral growth is threatened just when he’s learning to be slightly less evil. Consequently, Amma finds her own virtue in peril when faced with so much temptation, namely in the form of a domineering blood mage she can’t—or doesn’t want—to say no to.

But a burgeoning romance is doused in the coldest of baths when the Grand Order of Dread commands Damien to once again face the swirling vortex of entropy that’s been hunting them all over the realm. The coming eclipse points to devastation and destruction, and there seems to be no avoiding annihilation, prophecy being, well, prophecy, after all.

But there’s an entire fortnight before the world is supposed to end, and surely that’s enough time to find some way around it, or to at least confess one’s devotion to the other before it all burns down around them.]]> 464 A.K. Caggiano Bea 3 The relationship between Amma and Damien was fun but they trying to kiss etc and always getting interrupted lost its appeal very fast.
All in all I'm a bit disappointed in the ending as well. Still an ok read, but I wanted more plot. ]]> 4.37 2023
author: A.K. Caggiano
name: Bea
average rating: 4.37
book published: 2023
rating: 3
read at: 2025/03/27
date added: 2025/03/27
shelves:
review:
The 3rd book of the series wasn't as good as the 2nd. The pacing felt totally off here with the plot barely moving forward.
The relationship between Amma and Damien was fun but they trying to kiss etc and always getting interrupted lost its appeal very fast.
All in all I'm a bit disappointed in the ending as well. Still an ok read, but I wanted more plot.
]]> 63852823
Lady Ammalie Avington, Baroness of Faebarrow, has discovered the truth, and it should not come as a surprise: the blood mage who threatened, spellbound, and abducted her intends to bring ruin to the realm--the very one she is sworn to serve. It's just a terribly inconvenient fact to learn because, well...he's rather cute.

But it's not safe to pine after the son of a demon, especially not whilst locked up in a tower surrounded by infernal beings and a rival for your affection, nor trapped below ground in a den of beguiling vampires, nor even in the heart of a wild jungle under the tutelage of esoteric witches. Amma just can't help herself around Damien Maleficus Bloodthorne, danger be damned, but, truly, what danger is there? Damien's heart, the one he swears to not have, has been softening right before her eyes. Nevermind the weird smoke that sometimes unwittingly emanates from his hands or that faraway look he gets to his eyes, and a voice she can't hear telling him that he's meant to be a vessel? Surely it's all just a bad dream.

After finally tasting freedom and learning that Amma may have ancient, innate magical powers of her own, why not use them to do exactly as she pleases?]]> 428 A.K. Caggiano Bea 4
Fun follow up read!]]> 4.30
author: A.K. Caggiano
name: Bea
average rating: 4.30
book published:
rating: 4
read at: 2025/03/27
date added: 2025/03/27
shelves:
review:
A solid second book for the series. The pacing is a lot smoother than in the first, which made it a much more fun read. Amma and Damien’s banter is as entertaining as ever, and the story pulls you in with its stronger world-building and higher stakes.

Fun follow up read!
]]> 211160090 Ein dunkler Prinz und ein unwiderstehlicher Graf, doch nur einer sagt die Wahrheit

?Das gestohlene Herz? ist der zweite Band der ?Empire of Sins and Souls?-Trilogie, eine spicy Enemies-to-Lovers-Romantasy in einer viktorianischen Welt. Mit emotional scars, zwei broken heroes und einer Protagonistin, die nicht wei?, für wen von beiden ihr totes Herz schl?gt.?

Zurück in der Welt der Lebenden muss Zoé Durand das gestohlene Relikt finden und nach Xanthia zu Graf Alexei bringen. Doch als w?re die Suche nicht schon nervenaufreibend genug, wird sie nun auch noch von einem mysteri?sen Unbekannten gejagt. So bleibt Zoé nichts anderes übrig, als die Hilfe des arroganten Prinzen Kaspar anzunehmen, der mehr über die geheime Organisation rund um die ?glise des Saints wei?, die es auf die beiden Xanthia-Flüchtigen abgesehen hat. Auf der Suche nach dem Relikt kommen Zoé und Kas sich n?her, und schon bald muss Zoé sich eingestehen, dass sie mehr in dem Prinzen sieht als ihren Feind. Geplagt von ihrem schlechten Gewissen gegenüber Alexei, versucht sie mit aller Macht, die aufkeimenden Gefühle für Kas zu unterdrücken. Sie ahnt noch nicht, dass einer der beiden einen furchtbaren Verrat plant, der ihr Leben für immer ver?ndert …

Diese Tropes sind enthalten (Auswahl):

enemies to loversforced proximityonly one bedhe falls firsthe hates everyone but herBeril Kehribar ist die?Bestseller-Autorin der düsteren Jugendbuch-Reihe ?Schattenthron?. Mit ?Empire of Sins and Souls? hat sie eine spicy gothic Fantasy geschrieben, die sich an eine erwachsene Zielgruppe richtet – sexy, düster und unwiderstehlich.

Die Geschichte geht weiter in ?Empire of Sins and Souls 3: Das zerrissene Herz?.

Diese Trilogie beinhaltet Themen, die bei manchen Menschen ungewollte Reaktionen ausl?sen k?nnen. Bitte achtet daher auf die Liste mit sensiblen Inhalten, die wir im Buch zur Verfügung stellen.]]> 392 Beril Kehribar 3426468506 Bea 3
Zoé konnte mich dieses Mal zwar etwas mehr fesseln, aber ihre Handlungen und die Art, wie sie schnell und ohne gro?e Reflexion auf Kaspar eingeht, sind oft schwer nachzuvollziehen.

Das Liebesdreieck sorgt für zus?tzliche Spannung, doch leider fühlt sich auch das viel zu abrupt und wenig glaubwürdig an. Kaspar ist als Love Interest zwar interessanter als Alexei, aber trotzdem bleibt die emotionale Tiefe auf der Strecke. Die vielen Konflikte und die Jagd nach dem Relikt bieten durchaus Potenzial, doch das Tempo und die wiederkehrenden, vorhersehbaren Konflikte machen die Geschichte teils langatmig.

Der Schreibstil ist wie im ersten Band angenehm flüssig, aber die wiederholten Themen und die wenig überraschenden Wendungen haben mich etwas entt?uscht. Insgesamt war der zweite Band aber besser zu lesen als der erste und so werde ich auch den dritten Teil der Trilogie noch lesen.
]]> 3.95 2024
author: Beril Kehribar
name: Bea
average rating: 3.95
book published: 2024
rating: 3
read at: 2025/01/19
date added: 2025/03/25
shelves:
review:
Eine interessante, wenn auch teils z?he Fortsetzung. Auch in Band 2 fehlen mir Details zur Welt.

Zoé konnte mich dieses Mal zwar etwas mehr fesseln, aber ihre Handlungen und die Art, wie sie schnell und ohne gro?e Reflexion auf Kaspar eingeht, sind oft schwer nachzuvollziehen.

Das Liebesdreieck sorgt für zus?tzliche Spannung, doch leider fühlt sich auch das viel zu abrupt und wenig glaubwürdig an. Kaspar ist als Love Interest zwar interessanter als Alexei, aber trotzdem bleibt die emotionale Tiefe auf der Strecke. Die vielen Konflikte und die Jagd nach dem Relikt bieten durchaus Potenzial, doch das Tempo und die wiederkehrenden, vorhersehbaren Konflikte machen die Geschichte teils langatmig.

Der Schreibstil ist wie im ersten Band angenehm flüssig, aber die wiederholten Themen und die wenig überraschenden Wendungen haben mich etwas entt?uscht. Insgesamt war der zweite Band aber besser zu lesen als der erste und so werde ich auch den dritten Teil der Trilogie noch lesen.

]]> 211112826 Wenn dein Tod erst der Anfang ist und im Vorhof zur H?lle die Liebe lauert

?Das verratene Herz? ist der Auftakt der Pageturner-Trilogie ?Empire of Sins and Souls? von Bestseller-Autorin Beril Dark Romantasy mit einem morally gray cast und einer Heldin, für die der Tod nicht das Ende ist.

Zoé Durand ist eine Sünderin. Eine Lügnerin, eine Prostituierte und eine berüchtigte Diebin. Nach einer schicksalhaften Nacht muss sie sich einen weiteren Titel auf ihre Liste M?rderin. Kein Wunder, dass sie sich nach ihrer Hinrichtung in Xanthia wiederfindet, der letzten Station vor den Toren der H?lle. Pl?tzlich sieht Zoé sich hungrigen Xathyr ausgesetzt, die nach den Sünden in ihrem Blut gieren. Da kommt es gerade recht, dass der attraktive Xathyr-Graf Alexei ihr einen Pakt Sie soll drei Relikte für ihn stehlen – im Gegenzug für ihre Freiheit. Doch gerade, als Zoé denkt, sie h?tte Xanthias gef?hrlichste D?monen schon kennengelernt, taucht der dunkle Prinz Kaspar auf – Alexeis gr??ter Feind und jener Xathyr, vor dem der ganze Hof in Angst lebt. Zoé ist von Kaspars Schatten gleicherma?en abgesto?en und fasziniert. Noch ahnt sie nicht, dass sie weder Kas noch Alexei vertrauen sollte …

Diese Tropes sind enthalten (Auswahl):

strangers to loversemotional scarsTouch her and die / Touch her and I kill you!Who did this to you?Spicy Fantasy mit?Gothic-Touch für eine?erwachsene Zielgruppe

Beril Kehribar ist die Bestseller-Autorin der düsteren New-Adult-Dilogie ?Schattenthron?. Mit ?Empire of Sins and Souls? hat sie eine Fantasy-Liebesroman-Trilogie voller Intrigen, Geheimnisse, blutrünstiger D?monen und sexy H?llenfürsten geschrieben.

Die Geschichte geht weiter in ?Empire of Sins and Souls 2: Das gestohlene Herz? und wird abgeschlossen in ?Empire of Sins and Souls 3: Das zerrissene Herz?.

Diese Trilogie beinhaltet Themen, die bei manchen Menschen ungewollte Reaktionen ausl?sen k?nnen. Bitte achtet daher auf die Liste mit sensiblen Inhalten, die wir im Buch zur Verfügung stellen.]]> 407 Beril Kehribar 3426468492 Bea 3
Besonders die Charaktere, vor allem Zoé, bleiben blass und entwickeln sich nur schleppend. Die Liebesgeschichte zwischen ihr und Alexei fühlt sich viel zu schnell und wenig authentisch an.

Der Plot zieht sich an vielen Stellen, und obwohl es gegen Ende etwas spannender wird, bleibt die Handlung insgesamt recht vorhersehbar. Der Schreibstil ist zwar angenehm, aber die Geschichte kommt nicht richtig in Fahrt, weil einfach zu wenig passiert.

Für mich ein entt?uschender Auftakt, der weder mit interessanten Charakteren noch mit einer fesselnden Handlung punkten konnte.

]]> 3.21 2024
author: Beril Kehribar
name: Bea
average rating: 3.21
book published: 2024
rating: 3
read at: 2025/01/11
date added: 2025/03/25
shelves:
review:
Das Buch hat mich leider gar nicht überzeugt. So bietet die Grundidee zwar einiges an Potenzial, es mangelt jedoch an der Umsetzung.

Besonders die Charaktere, vor allem Zoé, bleiben blass und entwickeln sich nur schleppend. Die Liebesgeschichte zwischen ihr und Alexei fühlt sich viel zu schnell und wenig authentisch an.

Der Plot zieht sich an vielen Stellen, und obwohl es gegen Ende etwas spannender wird, bleibt die Handlung insgesamt recht vorhersehbar. Der Schreibstil ist zwar angenehm, aber die Geschichte kommt nicht richtig in Fahrt, weil einfach zu wenig passiert.

Für mich ein entt?uschender Auftakt, der weder mit interessanten Charakteren noch mit einer fesselnden Handlung punkten konnte.


]]> 217045892 A mage who was petrified for twenty years is restored only to find her adoring former pupil all grown up in this steamy fantasy romance. (Also a hit manga!)Lara Bradley, a renowned mage, sets off to defeat a low-risk monster with her young apprentice Alistair, who never stops proposing to her. But instead of a minor threat, they encounter the world's most dangerous creature--a dragon! In a desperate bid to save Alistair, Lara faces the dragon alone and casts a spell that turns herself to stone.
Twenty years later, the petrification spell breaks, and Lara awakens in a world that has moved on--except for Alistair, who never forgot her. The boy she once knew has grown into a powerful, determined man who's eager to make up for lost time with his beloved master. As they reconnect, will sparks fly, or are they doomed to repeat past mistakes?]]> 232 Crane Bea 3
Like most light novels, this one isn’t too heavy on character development or world-building. The pacing is definitely on the rushed side, and some plot points feel a little underexplored, but it’s not really trying to be anything deeper than a fun escape. The quirky premise and fast-moving plot make it the kind of story you can finish in one sitting.

It's super easy to read and a nice way to be entertained for a few hours. ]]> 3.40
author: Crane
name: Bea
average rating: 3.40
book published:
rating: 3
read at: 2025/03/08
date added: 2025/03/24
shelves:
review:
This was a fun and super quick read! The premise is as over-the-top as the title, and honestly, it leans right into that drama. Lara Bradley, a legendary mage, wakes up after being petrified for twenty years, only to find her former apprentice, Alistair, is now a powerful mage completely obsessed with her. Their dynamic is intense, full of tension, drama, and just enough steamy moments to keep things entertaining.

Like most light novels, this one isn’t too heavy on character development or world-building. The pacing is definitely on the rushed side, and some plot points feel a little underexplored, but it’s not really trying to be anything deeper than a fun escape. The quirky premise and fast-moving plot make it the kind of story you can finish in one sitting.

It's super easy to read and a nice way to be entertained for a few hours.
]]> 60461898
Forced to flee her home once more, Xingyin and her companions venture to unexplored lands of the Immortal Realm, encountering legendary creatures and shrewd monarchs, beloved friends and bitter adversaries. With alliances shifting quicker than the tides, Xingyin has to overcome past grudges and enmities to forge a new path forward, seeking aid where she never imagined she would. As an unspeakable terror sweeps across the realm, Xingyin must uncover the truth of her heart and claw her way through devastation--to rise against this evil before it destroys everything she holds dear, and the worlds she has grown to love... even if doing so demands the greatest price of all.

The stunning sequel to Daughter of the Moon Goddess delves deeper into beloved Chinese mythology, concluding the epic story of Xingyin--the daughter of Chang'e and the mortal archer, Houyi--as she battles a grave new threat to the realm, in this powerful tale of love, sacrifice, and hope.]]> 466 Sue Lynn Tan 0063031361 Bea 3
The love triangle between Xingyin, Liwei, and Wenzhi added some tension, but it didn’t fully deliver the emotional impact I was hoping for. While the dynamics had their moments, they felt underdeveloped, and the romance lacked the spark that made it so memorable in Daughter of the Moon Goddess. The pacing was also uneven—some parts dragged, and others felt rushed, which made it harder to stay immersed.

All in all it's a solid enough sequel that didn't quite work for me. ]]> 4.00 2022
author: Sue Lynn Tan
name: Bea
average rating: 4.00
book published: 2022
rating: 3
read at: 2025/01/20
date added: 2025/03/24
shelves:
review:
This sequel was a mixed bag for me. Xingyin’s journey continues with plenty of action, emotional moments, and beautiful world-building. The celestial realm is just as enchanting as in the first book, and there are some standout moments that really capture the magic of the series. Watching Xingyin grow as she faces difficult choices and challenges kept me invested.

The love triangle between Xingyin, Liwei, and Wenzhi added some tension, but it didn’t fully deliver the emotional impact I was hoping for. While the dynamics had their moments, they felt underdeveloped, and the romance lacked the spark that made it so memorable in Daughter of the Moon Goddess. The pacing was also uneven—some parts dragged, and others felt rushed, which made it harder to stay immersed.

All in all it's a solid enough sequel that didn't quite work for me.
]]> 57789637
“Epic, romantic, and enthralling from start to finish.”—Stephanie Garber, #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Caraval series

“An all-consuming work of literary fantasy that is breathtaking both for its beauty and its suspense."—BookPage, starred review

A captivating and romantic debut epic fantasy inspired by the legend of the Chinese moon goddess, Chang’e, in which a young woman’s quest to free her mother pits her against the most powerful immortal in the realm.

Growing up on the moon, Xingyin is accustomed to solitude, unaware that she is being hidden from the feared Celestial Emperor who exiled her mother for stealing his elixir of immortality. But when Xingyin’s magic flares and her existence is discovered, she is forced to flee her home, leaving her mother behind.

Alone, powerless, and afraid, she makes her way to the Celestial Kingdom, a land of wonder and secrets. Disguising her identity, she seizes an opportunity to learn alongside the emperor’s son, mastering archery and magic, even as passion flames between her and the prince.

To save her mother, Xingyin embarks on a perilous quest, confronting legendary creatures and vicious enemies. But when treachery looms and forbidden magic threatens the kingdom, she must challenge the ruthless Celestial Emperor for her dream—striking a dangerous bargain in which she is torn between losing all she loves or plunging the realm into chaos.

Daughter of the Moon Goddess begins an enchanting duology which weaves ancient Chinese mythology into a sweeping adventure of immortals and magic, of loss and sacrifice—where love vies with honor, dreams are fraught with betrayal, and hope emerges triumphant.]]> 503 Sue Lynn Tan 0063031302 Bea 5
The writing is stunning, with beautiful descriptions that bring the celestial world to life. From dazzling palaces to mythical creatures and epic battles, everything felt so vivid and immersive. The relationships, especially the romance, were handled beautifully, with a perfect balance of sweet and tense moments that really added to the story.

What stood out most to me was how themes like love, sacrifice, and loyalty were woven so seamlessly into the narrative.]]> 4.08 2022
author: Sue Lynn Tan
name: Bea
average rating: 4.08
book published: 2022
rating: 5
read at: 2025/01/17
date added: 2025/03/24
shelves:
review:
I loved Daughter of the Moon Goddess! The story, inspired by the legend of Chang’e, is full of magic, adventure, and heart. Xingyin is such a fantastic protagonist—her courage and determination made her journey so compelling. Watching her navigate danger, heartbreak, and moments of self-discovery while fighting to save her mother kept me hooked from start to finish.

The writing is stunning, with beautiful descriptions that bring the celestial world to life. From dazzling palaces to mythical creatures and epic battles, everything felt so vivid and immersive. The relationships, especially the romance, were handled beautifully, with a perfect balance of sweet and tense moments that really added to the story.

What stood out most to me was how themes like love, sacrifice, and loyalty were woven so seamlessly into the narrative.
]]> 209997824 From the author of the nationally bestselling Dungeons and Drama comes another gaming romance that's sure to win you over!

Quinn Norton is starting over at a new high school and hopes that joining a D&D game will be the trick to making friends. The plan sounds even better when she’s invited into a group that includes Logan Weber, the cute and charming guy she met on her first day of class. But this isn’t your average D&D campaign— this group livestreams their games and enforces strict rules: no phones allowed, and no dating other group members.

Quinn is willing to accept the rules, even if it makes Logan off-limits. And she quickly learns that doing so won’t be a problem, since Logan goes from charismatic to insufferable as soon as she agrees to join. As their bickering—and bantering—intensifies inside and outside the game, Quinn can’t help wondering: Is Logan’s infuriating behavior a smokescreen for hidden feelings? Quinn is risking it all, and the twenty-sided dice are rolling!]]> Kristy Boyce Bea 4
What I loved most was how naturally Quinn and Logan’s relationship developed. It’s a slow build with just the right mix of awkward and sweet moments that felt really real. The focus on friendship and fitting in made the story feel relatable, while the D&D element added an extra layer of charm and fun.

Some of the side characters could have used a bit more depth, but overall, this was such an enjoyable read!]]> 4.02 2024
author: Kristy Boyce
name: Bea
average rating: 4.02
book published: 2024
rating: 4
read at: 2025/02/22
date added: 2025/03/24
shelves:
review:
I really enjoyed Dating and Dragons! It’s such a fun and lighthearted YA romance with a unique twist thanks to the Dungeons & Dragons setting. The story follows Quinn Norton, who joins a D&D group to make new friends after moving to a new town. That’s where she meets Logan Weber, the group’s charismatic (and sometimes annoying) member. Their dynamic is so cute—the playful banter between them had me smiling, and the group’s “no dating” rule added some fun tension to their relationship.

What I loved most was how naturally Quinn and Logan’s relationship developed. It’s a slow build with just the right mix of awkward and sweet moments that felt really real. The focus on friendship and fitting in made the story feel relatable, while the D&D element added an extra layer of charm and fun.

Some of the side characters could have used a bit more depth, but overall, this was such an enjoyable read!
]]> 221412096
Kommissarin Lena Funk nimmt sich eine Auszeit auf einer abgeschiedenen Insel. Fernab der Erinnerungen, fernab des Schmerzes. Doch in einer stürmischen Nacht wird in den Dünen ein Toter freigespült. Offenbar brutal ermordet. In seiner Jackentasche findet Lena eine Handvoll Schmuckstücke. Und nicht Es sind die Troph?en des Gezeitenm?rders – jenes Mannes, dem auch ihre Schwester zum Opfer fiel. Endlich gibt es eine Spur, endlich eine Chance auf Gerechtigkeit. Aber je tiefer Lena in den Fall eintaucht, desto gef?hrlicher wird er. Jemand beobachtet sie. Jemand spielt mit ihr. Und die Wahrheit, die sie enthüllt, ist weitaus grausamer, als sie je befürchtet hatte.]]> 454 Tim Pieper 3987072318 Bea 4
Die Geschichte folgt Kommissarin Lena Funk, die sich auf einer abgelegenen Hallig nahe der Elbmündung eine Auszeit nehmen m?chte, nur um sich pl?tzlich in einem packenden Mordfall wiederzufinden.

Lena entdeckt die Leiche eines Seglers, der brutal ermordet wurde, und findet in seiner Jackentasche Schmuckstücke, die mit dem berüchtigten Gezeitenm?rder in Verbindung stehen – dem Mann, der auch ihre Schwester vor zwei Jahren get?tet hat. Die pers?nliche Verbindung zu dem Fall verleiht der Handlung eine emotionale Tiefe, und Lenas Entschlossenheit, die Wahrheit aufzudecken, ist bewundernswert. Der Spannungsbogen wird durch die Wendungen und Enthüllungen aufrecht gehalten, auch wenn einige Entwicklungen vorhersehbar sind.

Die Charaktere sind gut ausgearbeitet, und besonders Lena überzeugt mit ihrer St?rke und Verletzlichkeit. Der Schreibstil ist durchgehend flüssig und fesselnd. Die Mischung aus psychologischer Spannung und klassischem Krimi macht das Buch zu einem echten Pageturner, das ich die letzten Tage kaum aus der Hand legen konnte.

Besonders gut gefallen hat mir der Glossar am Ende des Buches, in dem Segelbegriffe u.?. erkl?rt werden. ]]> 4.50
author: Tim Pieper
name: Bea
average rating: 4.50
book published:
rating: 4
read at: 2025/03/24
date added: 2025/03/24
shelves:
review:
Es handelt sich hier um den ersten Thriller aus der Feder von Tom Pieper und er konnte mich von Beginn an fesseln.

Die Geschichte folgt Kommissarin Lena Funk, die sich auf einer abgelegenen Hallig nahe der Elbmündung eine Auszeit nehmen m?chte, nur um sich pl?tzlich in einem packenden Mordfall wiederzufinden.

Lena entdeckt die Leiche eines Seglers, der brutal ermordet wurde, und findet in seiner Jackentasche Schmuckstücke, die mit dem berüchtigten Gezeitenm?rder in Verbindung stehen – dem Mann, der auch ihre Schwester vor zwei Jahren get?tet hat. Die pers?nliche Verbindung zu dem Fall verleiht der Handlung eine emotionale Tiefe, und Lenas Entschlossenheit, die Wahrheit aufzudecken, ist bewundernswert. Der Spannungsbogen wird durch die Wendungen und Enthüllungen aufrecht gehalten, auch wenn einige Entwicklungen vorhersehbar sind.

Die Charaktere sind gut ausgearbeitet, und besonders Lena überzeugt mit ihrer St?rke und Verletzlichkeit. Der Schreibstil ist durchgehend flüssig und fesselnd. Die Mischung aus psychologischer Spannung und klassischem Krimi macht das Buch zu einem echten Pageturner, das ich die letzten Tage kaum aus der Hand legen konnte.

Besonders gut gefallen hat mir der Glossar am Ende des Buches, in dem Segelbegriffe u.?. erkl?rt werden.
]]> 62232755
Dark lord
Demon spawn
Prophesied realm destroyer

With a demon for a father, Damien Maleficus Bloodthorne’s destiny could be nothing but nefarious, and with the completion of his most vicious spell, Damien is on the cusp of fulfilling the evil inevitability all of his dark machinations have led to.

And then, her.

Bubbly
Obnoxious
Blonde

Harboring secrets of her own, a tiny yet troublesome thief calling herself Amma completely upsets Damien’s malevolent plans when she mistakenly gets chained to his side through magic, forcing him to drag her across the realm. Killing her would fix things, of course, but the nauseatingly sweet Amma proves herself useful on Damien's unholy crusade and then proves herself the source of something even more sinister: feelings.

Will Damien be forced to abandon his villainous birthright to help the tender thorn in his side? Or will he manage to overcome the virtue Amma insists on inspiring and instead cut it out at the heart?]]> 459 A.K. Caggiano Bea 3
The plot kicks off when Amma unexpectedly steals an ancient artifact from Damien’s castle, triggering a chain of events that forces them into an unlikely partnership. Together, they face treacherous enemies, unravel secrets about their world, and uncover hidden truths about themselves. While the premise is engaging, the pacing felt inconsistent; some key moments were rushed, leaving me wanting more depth in certain parts of the narrative. Additionally, a few twists were predictable, which slightly dulled the tension.

Despite its flaws, the chemistry between Damien and Amma carries the story forward, giving fans of slow-burn romances plenty to savor. The world-building has potential, and the grumpy x sunshine trope brings humor and heart to the tale. While it didn’t fully win me over, Throne in the Dark might still appeal to readers who enjoy opposites-attract dynamics and light fantasy adventure.


]]> 4.10 2022
author: A.K. Caggiano
name: Bea
average rating: 4.10
book published: 2022
rating: 3
read at: 2025/03/24
date added: 2025/03/24
shelves:
review:
The story revolves around Damien Maleficus Bloodthorne, the half-demon dark lord who rules with an iron fist, and Amma, a spirited thief whose optimism shines even in the bleakest circumstances. The grumpy x sunshine dynamic between these two leads is undeniably delightful. Damien’s brooding nature contrasts sharply with Amma’s cheerful defiance, creating plenty of sparks as they navigate their intertwined destinies.

The plot kicks off when Amma unexpectedly steals an ancient artifact from Damien’s castle, triggering a chain of events that forces them into an unlikely partnership. Together, they face treacherous enemies, unravel secrets about their world, and uncover hidden truths about themselves. While the premise is engaging, the pacing felt inconsistent; some key moments were rushed, leaving me wanting more depth in certain parts of the narrative. Additionally, a few twists were predictable, which slightly dulled the tension.

Despite its flaws, the chemistry between Damien and Amma carries the story forward, giving fans of slow-burn romances plenty to savor. The world-building has potential, and the grumpy x sunshine trope brings humor and heart to the tale. While it didn’t fully win me over, Throne in the Dark might still appeal to readers who enjoy opposites-attract dynamics and light fantasy adventure.



]]> 220458595 The hunt for a stealthy predator takes a damaged J-Psy to the heart of falcon territory in this new Psy-Changeling Trinity novel from New York Times bestselling author Nalini Singh...

Justice-Psy Eleri Dias knows the end is near for her, her mind one step away from fatal psychic exposure. In the short time that remains, she is determined to atone for an act of omission that has haunted her for a long, cruel decade. But that decision not only means facing a powerful changeling wing leader, but also putting herself in the path of a serial killer.

Falcon wing leader Adam Garrett is fiercely protective of his family and his clan. After losing his parents as a teenager in a shocking act of malice, Adam has no forgiveness in him for the J-Psy who betrayed him, betrayed them, at the most painful moment of his life. But the evil that stalks his territory will allow him no respite, forcing him once more into contact with the J he has never been able to forget.

Everything that could've been between Eleri and Adam was lost years ago, a shimmering promise crushed. As they work to uncover a monster, the moment of reckoning looms ever closer. Soon, there may be no more time left for either atonement...or love...]]> 400 Nalini Singh 0593819527 Bea 0 to-read 4.54 2025
author: Nalini Singh
name: Bea
average rating: 4.54
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/23
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 211004908 Practical Magic meets Gone Girl in Ava Morgyn's next dark, spellbinding novel about a woman who is more than a witch - she's a hunter. Piers Corbin has always had an affinity for poisonous things - plants and men. From the pokeweed berries she consumed at age five that led to the accidental death of a stranger, to the husband whose dark proclivities have become… concerning, poison has been at the heart of her story. But when she fakes her own death in an attempt to escape her volatile marriage and goes to stay with her estranged great aunt in the mountains, she realizes her predilection is more than a hunger - it’s a birthright. Piers comes from a long line of poison eaters - Bane Witches – women who ingest deadly plants and use their magic to rid the world of evil men. Piers sets out to earn her place in her family’s gritty but distinguished legacy, all while working at her Aunt Myrtle’s cafe and perpetuating a flirtation with the local, well-meaning sheriff to allay his suspicions on the body count she’s been leaving in her wake. But soon she catches the attention of someone else, a serial killer operating in the area. And that only means one thing - it’s time to feed. In Ava Morgyn’s dark, thrilling novel, The Bane Witch, a very little poison can do a world of good.]]> 384 Ava Morgyn 1250835453 Bea 0 to-read 4.06 2025
author: Ava Morgyn
name: Bea
average rating: 4.06
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/23
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 210470980 519 Jennifer Benkau 364132128X Bea 3 Bisher habe ich ihre Bücher doch mit Begeisterung gelesen und fand die Stories spannend.

Mit dieser Story bin ich von Anfang an nicht warm geworden. Die Grundidee ist spannend, die Umsetzung war's leider nicht. So wird viel erz?hlt, aber es passiert über lange Zeit nichts. Irritiert hat mich auch, dass aus 5 verschiedenen Sichtweisen erz?hlt wird. Das ist für den Lesefluss einfach eine zu hohe Zahl von Perspektiven. Erg?nzend dazu muss ich noch sagen, dass ich nur die POV von Bria und Kayleigh einigerma?en interessant fand.

Auch wenn dieses Buch mit einem Cliffhanger endet, werde ich den zweiten Teil nicht lesen. Vielleicht klappt's bei der n?chsten Reihe der Autorin wieder.]]> 3.64 2025
author: Jennifer Benkau
name: Bea
average rating: 3.64
book published: 2025
rating: 3
read at: 2025/03/23
date added: 2025/03/23
shelves:
review:
Es handelt sich hier um das erste Buch einer neuen Fantasy-Dilogie von Jennifer Benkau.
Bisher habe ich ihre Bücher doch mit Begeisterung gelesen und fand die Stories spannend.

Mit dieser Story bin ich von Anfang an nicht warm geworden. Die Grundidee ist spannend, die Umsetzung war's leider nicht. So wird viel erz?hlt, aber es passiert über lange Zeit nichts. Irritiert hat mich auch, dass aus 5 verschiedenen Sichtweisen erz?hlt wird. Das ist für den Lesefluss einfach eine zu hohe Zahl von Perspektiven. Erg?nzend dazu muss ich noch sagen, dass ich nur die POV von Bria und Kayleigh einigerma?en interessant fand.

Auch wenn dieses Buch mit einem Cliffhanger endet, werde ich den zweiten Teil nicht lesen. Vielleicht klappt's bei der n?chsten Reihe der Autorin wieder.
]]> 223470013 In the shadowy depths of Northumberland’s moors, secrets refuse to stay buried...

Twenty years after a fateful night that shattered her family, Geneva Wimbley discovers a truth hidden in the floors of her childhood a half-written letter from her mother to a man Geneva only remembers as the great, swirling greatcoat, evidence of a betrayal that sends her to the crumbling estate of the Earl of Pender.

But the earl is dead, and the man who greets her in his stead is the enigmatic Noah Oshea, the late earl’s second son, who now holds the keys to the parts of her past still locked away.

Drawn to Miss Wimbley’s fiery resolve, Noah is determined to unravel her connection to his family’s dark history. Yet with her arrival comes a chilling string of murders—and whispers of a truth that refuses to be silenced.

As danger creeps closer, Geneva and Noah must untangle a web of lies and long-buried sins. But in the wilds of Northumberland, where passions burn as fiercely as the secrets they uncover, the most significant peril might be the surrendering their hearts.

Note: This series is part of Dragonblade's Flame line, so this is a scorching-hot read with open-door steam.

Read in Kindle Unlimited!

The Clandestine Sapphire Society
Book 1 - A Silent Accord
Book 2 - A Daring Pursuit
Book 3 - An Earl’s Sacrifice]]> 294 Kathy L Wheeler Bea 0 to-read 4.29
author: Kathy L Wheeler
name: Bea
average rating: 4.29
book published:
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/22
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 62100430
W?hrenddessen lernt seine Tochter Fatisha auf der Weltenbrücke – die zwei Mal im Jahr für fünf Tage zum Handel zwischen Terra und Gravit offen ist – den Terraner Torahn kennen. Schon bald wei? sie, dass sie ihn liebt. Einem Zusammensein stehen allerdings gewaltige Hindernisse im Weg, denn kein Elb würde einem Bündnis zwischen ihnen zustimmen. Also muss sie mit ihm nach Terra fliehen, am besten auf einem Drachen – und zuf?llig wei? der Zwerg Regatus aus der Bibliothek, wo sie einen finden kann …

Der Auftakt eines High-Fantasyromans für Erwachsene mit 3 B?nden.]]> 520 Sarah Vaalen 3756526011 Bea 4
Erz?hlt wird abwechelnd aus der Sicht von Arondura und dessen Tochter Fatisha. Arondura wird zusammen mit einem anderen Elben vom ?ltestenrat dazu beauftragt eine m?gliche Gefahr zu verhindern und umgehend von den Geschehnissen zu berichten. Er macht sich auf, die seltsamen Ereignisse zu erkunden.
Seine Tochter Fatisha ist anfangs noch sehr naiv und unbedarft, entwickelt sich aber im Laufe des Buches. Sie kommt beim Handeln mit Menschen in Kontakt und verliebt sich in Torahn. Da dieser aber wieder nach Terra zurückkehren muss, sucht sie nach einer M?glichkeit ebenfalls in die Menschenwelt zu gelangen.

Mir hat gut gefallen wie die Charaktere und einzelne Rassen beschrieben sind. Sowohl Arondura als auch Fatisha wachsen im Laufe der Geschichte.
Ich hatte trotzdem an manchen Stellen Probleme der Story zu folgen. So gibt's einige Teile, die sich unn?tig in die L?nge ziehen und so den Lesefluss hemmen. Hier h?tte ich mir eine Straffung gewünscht auch um den Spannungsbogen konsequent aufrecht zu erhalten.
Ein weiterer Punkt, der mir nicht so gut gefallen hat, ist die Karte. Da fehlen mir einfach zu viele Details.

Insgesamt hat mir das Buch aber gut gefallen und ich bin gespannt auf den zweiten Teil. Die Story hat Potenzial und ich bin gespannt wie es weitergeht. ]]> 4.25
author: Sarah Vaalen
name: Bea
average rating: 4.25
book published:
rating: 4
read at: 2025/03/22
date added: 2025/03/22
shelves:
review:
Die Geschichte spielt auf dem Planeten Gravit und beheimatet die Elben und andere fantastischere V?lker. Zweimal im Jahr wird eine Weltenbrücke zur Menschenwelt Terra gespannt und die V?lker handeln miteinander.

Erz?hlt wird abwechelnd aus der Sicht von Arondura und dessen Tochter Fatisha. Arondura wird zusammen mit einem anderen Elben vom ?ltestenrat dazu beauftragt eine m?gliche Gefahr zu verhindern und umgehend von den Geschehnissen zu berichten. Er macht sich auf, die seltsamen Ereignisse zu erkunden.
Seine Tochter Fatisha ist anfangs noch sehr naiv und unbedarft, entwickelt sich aber im Laufe des Buches. Sie kommt beim Handeln mit Menschen in Kontakt und verliebt sich in Torahn. Da dieser aber wieder nach Terra zurückkehren muss, sucht sie nach einer M?glichkeit ebenfalls in die Menschenwelt zu gelangen.

Mir hat gut gefallen wie die Charaktere und einzelne Rassen beschrieben sind. Sowohl Arondura als auch Fatisha wachsen im Laufe der Geschichte.
Ich hatte trotzdem an manchen Stellen Probleme der Story zu folgen. So gibt's einige Teile, die sich unn?tig in die L?nge ziehen und so den Lesefluss hemmen. Hier h?tte ich mir eine Straffung gewünscht auch um den Spannungsbogen konsequent aufrecht zu erhalten.
Ein weiterer Punkt, der mir nicht so gut gefallen hat, ist die Karte. Da fehlen mir einfach zu viele Details.

Insgesamt hat mir das Buch aber gut gefallen und ich bin gespannt auf den zweiten Teil. Die Story hat Potenzial und ich bin gespannt wie es weitergeht.
]]> 218067292 Wenn ich denke, es k?nnte in meinem Leben nicht schlimmer kommen, erscheint ein verrückter Kerl, der sich für einen nordischen Gott h?lt und mich nach Asgard bringt.
Jedenfalls in die N?he der sagenumwobenen G?tterwelt. Den Weg dorthin muss ich selbst finden, um meinen Wert zu beweisen. Denn ich soll die n?chste Frau Holle werden, die nicht nur eine M?rchenfigur ist, sondern eine m?chtige G?ttin und Gef?hrtin Odins. Als ich allerdings erfahre, dass ich dazu in wenigen Wochen einen der drei Prinzen des Reichs heiraten soll, habe ich nur einen Flucht.
Mein Entschluss ger?t jedoch ins Wanken, als das Schloss von gef?hrlichen Kreaturen angegriffen wird und ich erkenne, dass alle neun Welten auf mich angewiesen sind. Au?erdem fühle ich eine seltsame Verbindung zu Fero, einem der Prinzen. Ich würde ihm gern vertrauen, doch Fero hütet unz?hlige Geheimnisse. Und ich habe das Gefühl, dass einige davon nicht nur Asgard, sondern auch mein Herz in Gefahr bringen k?nnten …

Auftakt der neuen Trilogie aus der Feder der Queen of Romantasy. Tauche ein in eine m?rchenhafte Welt und erlebe die nordische Mythologie, wie Du sie noch nie erlebt hast.
]]> B.E. Pfeiffer Bea 3 dnf 4.13
author: B.E. Pfeiffer
name: Bea
average rating: 4.13
book published:
rating: 3
read at: 2025/03/18
date added: 2025/03/18
shelves: dnf
review:

]]> 222791993 An investigative reporter returns to the scene of a decades-old crime to put her own unsettled past to rest in this chilling suspense novel by New York Times bestselling author Mary Burton.

Cold case reporter Sloane Grayson has come to a small mountain town in Virginia to solve a mystery.

Thirty years ago, her mother was one of four women who vanished during a music festival. The event’s promoter was eventually convicted of their murders, and Sheriff CJ Taggart closed the case. But for Sloane, it’s still open. Because the bodies were never found.

With Taggart now long dead, Sloane must make do with questioning the victims’ families and the few remaining witnesses once again. If they’re still willing to dredge up memories of a crime that made their town notorious. As for the incarcerated killer, he has always maintained his innocence. Sloane isn’t entirely convinced he’s lying.

Somewhere nearby, unmarked graves conceal the bones and secrets of the dead. Sloane will do anything to find them and unearth the truth, even if that means playing a dangerous game of cat and mouse with someone determined to stop her…]]> 351 Mary Burton 1662516045 Bea 0 to-read 4.25 2025
author: Mary Burton
name: Bea
average rating: 4.25
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/18
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 220282871 In ihrem neuen Roman gibt der japanische Shootingstar Rin Usami einen Einblick in die Psyche einer jungen Frau, die die Anforderungen der Gesellschaft und ihrer Familie bew?ltigen muss.?

Die siebzehnj?hrige Kanko ist ü Sowohl in der Schule als auch zu Hause kommt sie nicht hinterher und hat kaum Freunde. Sie leidet an Depressionen und muss sich zudem um ihre Mutter kümmern, die alkoholkrank ist und mit den Sp?tfolgen eines Schlaganfalls zu k?mpfen hat. Ihre beiden Brüder sind von zu Hause ausgezogen und übrig bleibt nur der gewaltt?tige Vater, der ihr auch keine Hilfe bieten kann.

Als seine Mutter verstirbt, unternimmt die Familie einen Roadtrip zur Beerdigung. Auf dieser Fahrt werden nicht nur die Familiendynamiken sichtbar, sondern auch die Tatsache, dass jedes Familienmitglied sein eigenes P?ckchen zu tragen hat. Obwohl die Situation mehrmals zu eskalieren droht, kann sich die Familie zusammenrei?en, und für Kanko besteht am Ende sogar die Aussicht auf Besserung.]]> 162 Rin Usami 3462312294 Bea 4
TW: Kankos Reise spricht Depressionen, Traumata und Gewalt sehr deutlich an.
Kanko ist 17 Jahre alt, leidet unter Depressionen und m?chte nicht mehr zu Schule gehen. Als ihre Gro?mutter v?terlicherseits verstirbt, begibt sie sich zusammen mit ihren Eltern auf den Weg zur Beerdigung. Dort treffen sie dann auf Kankos Brüder, welche beide nicht mehr daheim wohnen.

Im Laufe der Geschichte kristalliert sich heraus, dass ihre Mutter einen Schlaganfall hatte, von dem sie sich nie richtig erholt hat und zudem Alkoholikerin ist. Der Vater führt ein strenges Regiment und drillt seine Kinder auf Erfolg. Geschieht etwas nicht nach seinem Willen, schl?gt er seine Kinder und erniedrigt sie au?erdem psychisch. Die Familie ist komplett dysfunktional und die beiden Brüder zogen daher von daheim aus und wollen m?glichst wenig mit den Eltern zu tun haben. Bei einer gemeinsamen Autofahrt kommt es dann zum Eklat.

Kankos Reise ist keine leichte Kost. Deutlich geht die Autorin auf die Themen Depressionen, Traumata, auch generationsübergreifend, und Gewalt ein. Ein Happy End gibt es nicht, es l?sst jedoch eine leise Hoffnung zurück. Mir hat das Buch gefallen, es l?sst sich erahnen, weshalb die 25j?hrige Autorin Rin Usami schon Preise gewonnen hat. Ich h?tte mir ein anderes, weniger offenes Ende gewünscht.]]> 3.94
author: Rin Usami
name: Bea
average rating: 3.94
book published:
rating: 4
read at: 2025/03/18
date added: 2025/03/18
shelves:
review:
Das Buch erschien 2022 in Japan und wurde von Luise Steggewentz aus dem Japanischen ins Deutsche übersetzt.

TW: Kankos Reise spricht Depressionen, Traumata und Gewalt sehr deutlich an.
Kanko ist 17 Jahre alt, leidet unter Depressionen und m?chte nicht mehr zu Schule gehen. Als ihre Gro?mutter v?terlicherseits verstirbt, begibt sie sich zusammen mit ihren Eltern auf den Weg zur Beerdigung. Dort treffen sie dann auf Kankos Brüder, welche beide nicht mehr daheim wohnen.

Im Laufe der Geschichte kristalliert sich heraus, dass ihre Mutter einen Schlaganfall hatte, von dem sie sich nie richtig erholt hat und zudem Alkoholikerin ist. Der Vater führt ein strenges Regiment und drillt seine Kinder auf Erfolg. Geschieht etwas nicht nach seinem Willen, schl?gt er seine Kinder und erniedrigt sie au?erdem psychisch. Die Familie ist komplett dysfunktional und die beiden Brüder zogen daher von daheim aus und wollen m?glichst wenig mit den Eltern zu tun haben. Bei einer gemeinsamen Autofahrt kommt es dann zum Eklat.

Kankos Reise ist keine leichte Kost. Deutlich geht die Autorin auf die Themen Depressionen, Traumata, auch generationsübergreifend, und Gewalt ein. Ein Happy End gibt es nicht, es l?sst jedoch eine leise Hoffnung zurück. Mir hat das Buch gefallen, es l?sst sich erahnen, weshalb die 25j?hrige Autorin Rin Usami schon Preise gewonnen hat. Ich h?tte mir ein anderes, weniger offenes Ende gewünscht.
]]> 56894064
Cora Glass’s humdrum existence as a bank teller flips upside down when a long-abandoned circus mysteriously returns to life. But the entry fee to this big top show is far more than Cora bargained for.

A deal struck.
A soul...stuck.

As Harrow Faire shines a spotlight on Cora, she discovers there are far more secrets in that three-ring nightmare than she could possibly imagine. Trapped in the world of the fiendish and alluring man known as the Puppeteer, Cora finds herself caught in a war between him and the reclusive Mr. Harrow. Both parties will stop at nothing—even murder—to get what they want.

And what they want…is her.


Read the entire series together, start to finish, including "The Astonishing Strande Brothers," a short story covering the tale of two brothers separated by death and magic...who beat the odds to reunite.]]> 1391 Kathryn Ann Kingsley Bea 0 dnf 4.57 2021
author: Kathryn Ann Kingsley
name: Bea
average rating: 4.57
book published: 2021
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/16
shelves: dnf
review:

]]> 172979755 Judy I. Lin, #1 New York Times bestselling author of A Magic Steeped in Poison, weaves a dreamy gothic romance worthy of the heavens in Song of the Six Realms.

Xue, a talented young musician, has no past and probably no future. Orphaned at a young age, her kindly poet uncle took her in and arranged for an apprenticeship at one of the most esteemed entertainment houses in the kingdom. She doesn’t remember much from before entering the House of Flowing Water, and when her uncle is suddenly killed in a bandit attack, she is devastated to lose her last connection to a life outside of her indenture contract.

With no family and no patron, Xue is facing the possibility of a lifetime of servitude playing the qin for nobles that praise her talent with one breath and sneer at her lowly social status with the next. Then one night she is unexpectedly called to the garden to put on a private performance for the enigmatic Duke Meng. The young man is strangely kind and awkward for nobility, and surprises Xue further with an irresistible offer: serve as a musician in residence at his manor for one year, and he’ll set her free of her indenture.

But the Duke’s motives become increasingly more suspect when he and Xue barely survive an attack by a nightmarish monster, and when he whisks her away to his estate, she discovers he’s not just some country noble: He’s the Duke of Dreams, one of the divine rulers of the Celestial Realm. There she learns the Six Realms are on the brink of disaster, and incursions by demonic beasts are growing more frequent.

The Duke needs Xue’s help to unlock memories from her past that could hold the answers to how to stop the impending war… but first Xue will need to survive being the target of every monster and deity in the Six Realms.]]> 376 Judy I. Lin 1250871611 Bea 2 dnf 3.53 2024
author: Judy I. Lin
name: Bea
average rating: 3.53
book published: 2024
rating: 2
read at: 2025/03/16
date added: 2025/03/16
shelves: dnf
review:

]]> 222018594 Der von wahren Begebenheiten inspirierte Weltbestseller zeigt das Schicksal einer jungen Frau, die sich zwischen ihrer Familie und ihrer Liebe entscheiden muss

Japan, 1957. Um ihre Familie vor dem finanziellen Ruin zu retten, soll die 17-j?hrige Naoko Nakamura eine arrangierte Ehe eingehen. Naoko liebt jedoch einen Soldaten der US-Marine, obwohl Amerikaner und ihre ganz andere Lebensweise von vielen Japanern verabscheut werden. Als ihre Familie erf?hrt, dass Naoko schwanger ist, wird sie versto?en. Naoko muss eine Entscheidung treffen – deren Nachwehen noch Generationen sp?ter zu spüren sein werden.

USA, heute. W?hrend ihr Vater im Sterben liegt, findet Tori Kovac einen mysteri?sen Brief mit einer schockierenden Enthüllung, die alles infrage stellt, was sie über sich und ihre Familie zu wissen glaubte. Ihre Suche nach der Wahrheit bringt sie in ein abgelegenes Küstendorf in Japan. Doch um herauszufinden, was damals wirklich geschah, muss sie sich den D?monen der Vergangenheit stellen …]]> 411 Ana Johns 2496717709 Bea 4
Ursprünglich erschien das Buch 2019 auf Englisch, wurde aber jetzt von Katja Rudnik ins Deutsche übersetzt.
Erz?hlt wird in zwei Zeitebenen. Einmal sehen wir die Ereignisse aus Naokos Sicht im Jahr 1957. Sie verliebt sich in den amerikanische Matrosen Hajime (Jim), der verspricht sie zu heiraten. Naoko muss sich zwischen ihrer gro?en Liebe und der Ehre ihrer Familie entscheiden. Die Beziehung der beiden steht allerdings unter keinem guten Stern. Ehen zwischen Amerikanern und Japanern waren ungewollt.

Die andere Zeitebene ist die Gegenwart und wird aus der Sicht von Tori, einer amerikanischen Reporterin erz?hlt. Als ihr Vater stirbt, findet sie eine alte japanische Heiratsurkunde und st??t so auf ein verborgenes Familiengeheimnis. Neugierig geworden, macht sie sich auf den Weg nach Japan, um die Wahrheit herauszufinden.

Ana Johns erz?hlt einfühlsam und poetisch und bringt die Emotionen von Naoko und Tori gut zum Ausdruck. Der Spannungsbogen wird durch den Wechsel der Zeiten konsequent aufrecht erhalten. Das Ende des Buches regt zum Nachdenken an und wird mich auch noch eine Zeit lang begleiten. Im Nachwort stellt die Autorin auch klar, dass das Buch von realen historischen Ereignissen inspiriert wurde. ]]> 4.52 2019
author: Ana Johns
name: Bea
average rating: 4.52
book published: 2019
rating: 4
read at: 2025/03/14
date added: 2025/03/14
shelves:
review:
Ein spannendes Buch über hierzulande wenig bekannte Ereignisse.

Ursprünglich erschien das Buch 2019 auf Englisch, wurde aber jetzt von Katja Rudnik ins Deutsche übersetzt.
Erz?hlt wird in zwei Zeitebenen. Einmal sehen wir die Ereignisse aus Naokos Sicht im Jahr 1957. Sie verliebt sich in den amerikanische Matrosen Hajime (Jim), der verspricht sie zu heiraten. Naoko muss sich zwischen ihrer gro?en Liebe und der Ehre ihrer Familie entscheiden. Die Beziehung der beiden steht allerdings unter keinem guten Stern. Ehen zwischen Amerikanern und Japanern waren ungewollt.

Die andere Zeitebene ist die Gegenwart und wird aus der Sicht von Tori, einer amerikanischen Reporterin erz?hlt. Als ihr Vater stirbt, findet sie eine alte japanische Heiratsurkunde und st??t so auf ein verborgenes Familiengeheimnis. Neugierig geworden, macht sie sich auf den Weg nach Japan, um die Wahrheit herauszufinden.

Ana Johns erz?hlt einfühlsam und poetisch und bringt die Emotionen von Naoko und Tori gut zum Ausdruck. Der Spannungsbogen wird durch den Wechsel der Zeiten konsequent aufrecht erhalten. Das Ende des Buches regt zum Nachdenken an und wird mich auch noch eine Zeit lang begleiten. Im Nachwort stellt die Autorin auch klar, dass das Buch von realen historischen Ereignissen inspiriert wurde.
]]> 210526511 A daughter willing to risk everything to save her Father’s life.
A handsome Fae King willing to do anything to win her heart.

Emilia leads a simple life with her half-brother and adoptive father. Until one day, a neighbouring Orc clan invades her peaceful life and kidnaps her father. They give her two either spy for them in exchange for her father's life, or they kill him on the spot. Afraid and hesitant, she chooses to become a spy for them.

But what she doesn't expect is a distraction from her task. One trip and one chance meeting with the Day Court King changes it all. It makes her question if returning to her humble life in the village is all she wants or if there is something more out there. The question is, will Emilia trust the King - who offers her everything- or will her fear of losing her family in the process make her give up on a dream she never knew she had?]]> 233 T.M. Goodkey 173836660X Bea 3 3.78
author: T.M. Goodkey
name: Bea
average rating: 3.78
book published:
rating: 3
read at: 2025/03/13
date added: 2025/03/13
shelves:
review:

]]> 198174516 A young woman learns to embrace all the messy imperfections of life and love with some help from her magical family in this next novel by New York Times bestselling author J.C. Cervantes.

Lilian Estrada seemingly has it all: an ob-gyn star on the rise, a master at balancing work with whirlwind romances and part of a family of fiercely loyal and exceptional women, all bound together by an extraordinary secret. The Estrada women each possess a unique power, and Lily shines with the rare gift to manipulate memories. Yet not even her mystical abilities can shield her from a harrowing event at the hospital, one that sends her powers—and her confidence—spiraling out of control.

Seeking solace, Lily retreats to her family's ancestral home in Mexico, only to find herself face-to-face with a ghost from her past—Sam, the first love she never forgot. Nearly a decade since she last saw him, Sam is hardly the boy she once knew, and as old flames spark to life, Lily must navigate the mysteries of their shared history and the depths of her own heart if she hopes to control her unpredictable magic.]]> 300 J.C. Cervantes Bea 0 to-read 3.93 2025
author: J.C. Cervantes
name: Bea
average rating: 3.93
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/11
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 208840779 Inspired by an ominous Prague legend, What Wakes the Bells is a lavish gothic fantasy by debut author Elle Tesch.

Built by long-gone Saints, the city of Vaiwyn lives and breathes and bleeds. As a Keeper, Mina knows better than most what her care of Vaiwyn’s bells means for the sentient city. It’s the Strauss family’s thousand-year legacy―prevent the Vespers from ringing, or they will awake a slumbering evil.

One afternoon, to Mina's horror, her bell peals thirteen times, shattering the city’s tenuous peace. With so much of the city's history and lore lost in a long-ago disaster, no one knows the danger that has been unleashed―until the city begins to fight back. As the sun sets, stone gargoyles and bronze statues tear away from their buildings and plinths to hunt people through the streets. Trapped in Mina’s bell, the soul of a twisted and power-hungry Saint festered. Now free of his prison, he hides behind the face of one of Vaiwyn’s citizens, corrupting the city and turning it on itself.

Time is running out, and the only chance Mina has to stop the destruction and horrific killings is finding and destroying the Saint’s host. Everyone is a suspect, including Mina's closest loved ones. She will have to decide how far she’ll go to save her city―and who she’s willing to kill to do it.]]> 336 Elle Tesch 1250322804 Bea 0 to-read 3.52 2025
author: Elle Tesch
name: Bea
average rating: 3.52
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/11
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 214537772 In this Civil War love story, inspired by a real-life friendship across enemy lines, the wife of a missing Confederate soldier discovers a wounded Yankee officer and must decide what she’s willing to risk for the life of a stranger, from the New York Times bestselling author of such acclaimed historical fiction as Hour of the Witch and The Sandcastle Girls.

????Virginia, 1864—Libby Steadman’s husband has been away for so long that she can barely conjure his voice in her dreams. While she longs for him in the night, fearing him dead in a Union prison camp, her days are spent running a gristmill with her teenage niece, a hired hand, and his wife, all the grain they can produce requisitioned by the Confederate Army. It’s an uneasy life in the Shenandoah Valley, the territory frequently changing hands, control swinging back and forth like a pendulum between North and South, and Libby awakens every morning expecting to see her land a battlefield.?
????And then she finds a gravely injured Union officer left for dead in a neighbor’s house, the bones of his hand and leg shattered. Captain Jonathan Weybridge of the Vermont Brigade is her enemy – but he’s also a human being, and Libby must make a terrible Does she leave him to die alone? Or does she risk treason and try to nurse him back to health? And if she succeeds, does she try to secretly bring him across Union lines, where she might negotiate a trade for news of her own husband??
????A vivid and sweeping story of two people navigating the boundaries of love and humanity in a landscape of brutal violence, The Jackal’s Mistress is a heart-stopping new novel, based on a largely unknown piece of American history, from one of our greatest storytellers.]]> 336 Chris Bohjalian 0385547641 Bea 0 to-read 4.11 2025
author: Chris Bohjalian
name: Bea
average rating: 4.11
book published: 2025
rating: 0
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date added: 2025/03/11
shelves: to-read
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]]> 219719362


It’s critical. If anyone finds out about the books in my hidden library, or the spells I’ve learned, it’s death.

Or worse, a stay in a reeducation camp.



I know how to be careful. I cast the legal spells. I alter my hair and create clothing. I race only in the legal races.



Unfortunately, none of it was enough to protect my family. Honestly, everything was already falling apart when I met the aliens.

The mage who unlocked the magic I can’t control.

The telepath who gave me hope we could find other planets.

The insane oracle I probably shouldn’t trust.

The oracle’s brother, a necromancer I have no business falling in love with.]]> 215 Chloe Knight Bea 0 dnf 2.00
author: Chloe Knight
name: Bea
average rating: 2.00
book published:
rating: 0
read at: 2025/03/09
date added: 2025/03/09
shelves: dnf
review:

]]> 222915172 Princess Kaguya's Lunar Leap, a beloved Japanese folktale gets the Princess Bride treatment—retold as a whimsical bedtime story, rich with educational insights into Japanese culture and folklore. A mother's telling of Princess Kaguya's miraculous discovery within a bamboo shoot becomes a vibrant adventure thanks to her son Ethan's interjections and imaginative leaps. Through his eyes, we experience Kaguya's captivating beauty, the trials of her many suitors, and the bittersweet reality of her celestial duty. Blending humor with the story's deeper themes of love, sacrifice, and identity, this heartwarming narrative reveals how even the most fantastical tales can resonate with timeless truths.]]> 23 Mel Tong Bea 0 3.82
author: Mel Tong
name: Bea
average rating: 3.82
book published:
rating: 0
read at: 2025/03/09
date added: 2025/03/09
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]]> 216773408
Under siege and sure to lose, the king has only one card left to play and one son who he is willing to risk it on. Despite being largely estranged since a teen, when crown and country demand Captain Niall’s return home, duty compels him to answer.

Niall expects to be enlisted to fight, but when his father hastily commands him to take a pendant and sail through the impenetrable Divide and plead for mercy from the unknown, he begins to realise how unique his calling is—and wonders if he is truly the man for the job.

But if Niall cannot be the prince he has spent his life trying to ignore and find a way to mend aeons of division in a world where all bow to a deity of fire, everything will burn...]]> Alexia Muelle-Rushbrook Bea 0 dnf 4.57
author: Alexia Muelle-Rushbrook
name: Bea
average rating: 4.57
book published:
rating: 0
read at: 2025/03/09
date added: 2025/03/09
shelves: dnf
review:

]]> 222515250 A Relentless Pursuit…

Fleeing the shadow of the Deep Wood, Valeria and Marat navigate the harsh wilderness and the fractured lands of Yeztok, each carrying scars that time cannot heal. Hunted by a merciless army led by General Johannes, a man whose past intertwines with Marat’s in ways that cut deeper than swords, the pair must fight to stay ahead of their enemies. Yet their path is fraught with more than mortal dangers, as Valeria begins to sense a growing power within her - a presence tied to the forbidden Wound and a destiny she does not yet understand.

An Unlikely Ally…

Haunted by visions of her past and the growing weight of her connection to the Nothing, Valeria’s bond with Marat is tested at every turn. As tensions rise and survival becomes a daily struggle, their shared burdens reveal the depths of their humanity and the fragility of trust. Marat, a hunter torn by guilt and honor, must face both his inner demons and the relentless force of Johannes’ army - while Valeria, armed with fragments of forbidden knowledge, struggles to reconcile the power awakening inside her with the growing fear it may consume her.

A Tenuous Fate…

Cornered and outnumbered, Valeria and Marat are forced to confront the relentless pursuit of their enemies amidst a maelstrom of fire and shadow. As Johannes' forces press closer, the hunter and his companion must navigate a harrowing ordeal where survival feels as fragile as the embers around them. In the aftermath of bloodshed and betrayal, Valeria is left to face the echoes of choices made and the power stirring within her. The path forward is treacherous, and her strength will be tested in ways she never imagined.

Dive into Book Two of the Slow-Burn Fantasy Romance Series, Into the Deep The Hunter]]> 545 Polina Volkova Bea 3 4.45
author: Polina Volkova
name: Bea
average rating: 4.45
book published:
rating: 3
read at: 2025/03/08
date added: 2025/03/08
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]]> 221167883 A Forbidden Forest…

When Valeria stumbles into the shadows of the Deep Wood, she crosses a line no mortal dares to tread. Captured by the Hag - a figure from nightmares who rules the forest with ancient magic - Valeria is forced into a life of dark servitude. Here, the very trees whisper secrets, creatures of shadow roam freely, and every breath feels like it might be her last.

A Reluctant Servant…

Bound to the Hag’s will, Valeria’s days blur into strange rituals and harrowing tasks that push her to the edge of endurance. The forest is both prison and puzzle, filled with spirits and chorts, beings that are neither entirely friend nor foe. In this bleak existence, she crosses paths with Marat, a hardened hunter whose own secrets run as deep as the forest’s roots. Though his motives remain unclear, his presence stirs something within Valeria - a reminder that survival, and perhaps even escape, may lie in unexpected alliances.

A Desperate Gamble…

The deeper Valeria sinks into the forest’s mysteries, the more she awakens a power within herself - one that could offer a path to freedom or lead her further into darkness. Breaking free of the Hag’s hold could unleash forces beyond her control, risking her life and the very soul of the Deep Wood. Caught between survival and a thirst for answers, Valeria must will she remain a pawn in the Hag’s twisted game, or dare to defy her fate and become something the forest itself has never seen?

( This is part one of a 4 book story. There is no romance in this book -as it is focused on building the world and the characters.)
Book Two is coming soon!]]> 393 Polina Volkova Bea 4 4.16
author: Polina Volkova
name: Bea
average rating: 4.16
book published:
rating: 4
read at: 2025/03/08
date added: 2025/03/07
shelves:
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]]> 214042090
Corelle’s simple life becomes indistinguishable from her nightmares after a chance meeting with a woman who becomes her lover. A dark, violent history casts a shadow over their relationship, and Corelle is drawn down a path of death and self-loathing. Betrayed to the authorities, she makes a choice that will haunt her for the rest of her days.

Corelle flees south, pursued by men who wish her dead, but fate does not release her from its grip. A rainy night brings a woman with a sinister connection to Corelle’s past, one from whom unpalatable truths must be hidden. Inevitably, the two women’s histories collide, portentous decisions are made, and Corelle’s pursuers draw ever nearer.

The Vermilion Ribbon is book one of The Vermilion Saga, a secondary-world sapphic low fantasy series with sprinklings of other genres such as romance, mystery, and adventure that add to its complexity.

Content advisory – Non-consensual sex (SA), Violence, Mild sex, Suicide ideation]]> Hayley Price 0975623850 Bea 0 dnf 4.00
author: Hayley Price
name: Bea
average rating: 4.00
book published:
rating: 0
read at: 2025/03/06
date added: 2025/03/06
shelves: dnf
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]]> 221323810
As Lucy Westenra falls prey to Dracula’s deadly attacks, Carrie desperately tries to change the course of events, only to be met with resistance from forces she can't control. Torn between wanting to return to her life and the deepening emotions she feels for one of the characters, Carrie is faced with a gut-wrenching will she fight to find her way home, or is she destined to stay in a world where fiction and reality collide?

Time is running out. And if she’s not careful, she might lose herself—and her heart—forever.]]> 286 Courtney Lee Bea 0 dnf 3.00
author: Courtney Lee
name: Bea
average rating: 3.00
book published:
rating: 0
read at: 2025/03/06
date added: 2025/03/06
shelves: dnf
review:

]]> 221423381 The high seas, a heading, and a hangover.When infamous royal sea-elf captain, Bellona Glenon, proves to be a menace at a ceremony for her baby niece, she is sent on her way—to the nearest tavern—where her plans to drown her sorrows are interrupted by a better an easy wager. The prize? A treasure map—and a chance for one last adventure with her brother, Eevan.
But that ship has sailed for King Eevan, and instead he counters with an ultimatum.
Take their sensible older brother, Peverell, along instead and, most importantly, sober up—or be left out of her niece’s life.

Determined to prove she’s more than just a loose cannon, Bellona puts down the drink and takes up the challenge. It’s only after meeting the scholarly dark-elf, Helio Lothar, she realizes she might just be in over her head.

As Bellona and Helio work together to uncover the ancient secret, dodging coast guards, booby traps, and death at every turn, they draw nearer to the treasure and to each other. The closer they become though, the clearer it is that Helio is thirsting for more than knowledge, and the act first, think later Captain Bellona must decide if she’ll trust her gut, or her heart …]]> 212 E. A. Olivieri Bea 0 dnf 4.60
author: E. A. Olivieri
name: Bea
average rating: 4.60
book published:
rating: 0
read at: 2025/03/06
date added: 2025/03/06
shelves: dnf
review:

]]> 35064549 779 Alana Falk 9963535461 Bea 0 to-read 4.27
author: Alana Falk
name: Bea
average rating: 4.27
book published:
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/03
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 25053320 508 Alana Falk 9963529208 Bea 0 to-read 4.22 2015
author: Alana Falk
name: Bea
average rating: 4.22
book published: 2015
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/03
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 31375430 416 Alana Falk 9963534791 Bea 0 to-read 4.31
author: Alana Falk
name: Bea
average rating: 4.31
book published:
rating: 0
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date added: 2025/03/03
shelves: to-read
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]]> 20526069 Cay fasziniert sie, doch Lena darf ihren Gefühlen niemals nachgeben. Eine Beziehung würde all ihre Chancen auf das Stipendium zerst?ren, und damit jede Hoffnung, ihr altes Leben hinter sich zu lassen.
Verzweifelt wehrt sich Lena gegen ihre Gefühle, doch Cay l?sst keine Gelegenheit aus, ihr seine Zuneigung zu zeigen. Lena ahnt nicht, warum er so hartn?ckig um sie k?mpft, und dass ihre Liebe zu ihm sie so viel mehr kosten k?nnte als das Stipendium. Denn Cay ist kein einfacher Student, und ihre Begegnung war kein Zufall.]]> 459 Alana Falk 996352379X Bea 4
Lena ist sehr ehrgeizig und zielstrebig und nimmt an einem Extrakurs in Chemie teil, bei dem es ein Stipendium zu gewinnen gibt. Relativ schnell verliebt sie sich in den mysteri?sen Cay, der den Kurs leitet. Hieraus entspinnt sich dann eine Lovestory mit einigen Geheimnissen.

Das Buch war spannend und so habe ich es in einem Rutsch durchgelesen. Vieles wurde im Laufe der Geschichte gel?st, aber es blieben noch genug Fragen für die weiteren Bücher. Es handelt sich hier um den Auftakt einer vierteiligen Bücherserie. Mich konnte das Buch überzeugen und ich werde auch die weiteren Teile lesen. ]]> 3.95 2014
author: Alana Falk
name: Bea
average rating: 3.95
book published: 2014
rating: 4
read at: 2025/03/02
date added: 2025/03/03
shelves:
review:
?ber das Buch bin ich eher zuf?llig gestolpert und der Klappentext las sich spannend. Von der Autorin hatte ich bisher noch nichts gelesen, war aber positiv überrascht.

Lena ist sehr ehrgeizig und zielstrebig und nimmt an einem Extrakurs in Chemie teil, bei dem es ein Stipendium zu gewinnen gibt. Relativ schnell verliebt sie sich in den mysteri?sen Cay, der den Kurs leitet. Hieraus entspinnt sich dann eine Lovestory mit einigen Geheimnissen.

Das Buch war spannend und so habe ich es in einem Rutsch durchgelesen. Vieles wurde im Laufe der Geschichte gel?st, aber es blieben noch genug Fragen für die weiteren Bücher. Es handelt sich hier um den Auftakt einer vierteiligen Bücherserie. Mich konnte das Buch überzeugen und ich werde auch die weiteren Teile lesen.
]]> 214565614 A chilling historical horror novel set in the American west in 1912 following a Lutheran priest who transcribes the life of a vampire who haunts the fields of the Blackfeet reservation looking for justice.

A diary, written in 1912 by a Lutheran pastor is discovered within a wall. What it unveils is a slow massacre, a chain of events that go back to 217 Blackfeet dead in the snow. Told in transcribed interviews by a Blackfeet named Good Stab, who shares the narrative of his peculiar life over a series of confessional visits. This is an American Indian revenge story written by one of the new masters of horror, Stephen Graham Jones.]]> 448 Stephen Graham Jones 1668075083 Bea 0 to-read 4.25 2025
author: Stephen Graham Jones
name: Bea
average rating: 4.25
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/03
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 59060468
Best of #Booktok

#1 in Historical Fantasy

#1 Greek and Roman Myth and Legend

Barnes and Noble Blog Top Five Indie Fave

Lady Lyriana Batavia is third in line to the Seat of Power in a position of wealth and privilege, but not safety. Bamaria falls under the rule of the Lumerian Empire, survivors of a celestial war whose island sank in the Drowning. Now all Lumerians submit to the Emperor and his strict laws about magic. He decides what magic can be practiced and what powers remain forbidden. He decides who will die for possession of forbidden magic.

Lyr's own cousin was executed for wielding the wrong kind. And for years, Lyr has sworn to protect her older sisters, helping them conceal their own illicit magic.

But when Lyr must participate in the ceremony that reveals her power, she uncovers something else entirely. Something that means banishment from the Empire.

Faced with death in exile, and leaving her sisters behind, Lyr has no choice but to accept a deadly contract. She has seven months to train as a warrior and pass the Emperor's brutal test of strength, without magic.

But when she's forced to train with Lord Rhyan Hart, the man she's secretly loved since she was a girl—a feared warrior in exile himself, forbidden to her in every way—she's in danger of losing far more than her family, life, and country.

Rebel forces, and an invading army, are destabilizing Bamaria, just as her family's secrets threaten to reveal themselves.

Surviving the training, and saving her sisters may mean sacrificing her own heart.]]> 454 Frankie Diane Mallis 1957014016 Bea 2 3.81
author: Frankie Diane Mallis
name: Bea
average rating: 3.81
book published:
rating: 2
read at: 2025/03/03
date added: 2025/03/03
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]]> 8694389
Deathless, however, is no dry, historical tome: it lights up like fire as the young Marya Morevna transforms from a clever child of the revolution, to Koschei’s beautiful bride, to his eventual undoing. Along the way there are Stalinist house elves, magical quests, secrecy and bureaucracy, and games of lust and power. All told, Deathless is a collision of magical history and actual history, of revolution and mythology, of love and death, which will bring Russian myth back to life in a stunning new incarnation.]]> 352 Catherynne M. Valente 0765326302 Bea 0 to-read 3.97 2011
author: Catherynne M. Valente
name: Bea
average rating: 3.97
book published: 2011
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/01
shelves: to-read
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]]> 210234399 In a world at war with demons, one girl will face the ultimate test when she is forced to enter into an ancient, deadly competition for the chance to save her mother's soul… before she loses her forever. From the New York Times bestselling author of Song of Silver, Flame Like Night comes the beginning of a dark and opulent fantasy duology, perfect for fans of Throne of Glass.

Nine years ago, the war between the Kingdom of Night and the Kingdom of Rivers tore ?n’yīng’s family apart, leaving her mother barely alive and a baby sister to fend for. Now the mortal realm is falling into eternal night, and mó—beautiful, ravenous demons—roam the land, feasting on the flesh of humans and drinking their souls.

?n’yīng is no longer a helpless child, though. Armed with her crescent blades and trained in the ancient art of practitioning, she has decided to enter the Immortality Trials, which are open to any mortal who can survive the journey to the immortal realm. Those who complete the Trials are granted a pill of eternal life—the one thing ?n’yīng knows can heal her dying mother. But to attain the prize, she must survive the competition.

Death is common in the Trials. Yet oddly, ?n’yīng finds that someone is helping her stay alive. A rival contestant. Powerful and handsome, Yù’chén is as secretive about his past as he is about his motives for protecting ?n’yīng.

The longer she survives the Trials, the clearer it becomes that all is not right in the immortal realm. To save her mother and herself, ?n’yīng will need to figure out whether she can truly trust the stranger she’s falling for or if he’s the most dangerous player of all . . . for herself and for all the realms.]]> 400 Amélie Wen Zhao Bea 0 to-read 3.79 2025
author: Amélie Wen Zhao
name: Bea
average rating: 3.79
book published: 2025
rating: 0
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date added: 2025/03/01
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]]> 213395480 From the acclaimed author of Mrs. March comes the riveting tale of a bloodthirsty governess who learns the true meaning of vengeance.

Grim Wolds, England: Winifred Notty arrives at Ensor House prepared to play the perfect governess—she’ll dutifully tutor her charges, Drusilla and Andrew, tell them bedtime stories, and only joke about eating children. But long, listless days spent within the estate’s dreary confines come with an intimate knowledge of the perversions and pathetic preoccupations of the Pounds family—Mr. Pounds can’t keep his eyes off Winifred’s chest, and Mrs. Pounds takes a sickly pleasure in punishing Winifred for her husband’s wandering gaze. Compounded with her disdain for the entitled Pounds children, Winifred finds herself struggling at every turn to stifle the violent compulsions of her past. French tutoring and needlework are one way to pass the time, as is admiring the ugly portraits in the gallery . . . and creeping across the moonlit lawns. . . .

Patience. Winifred must have patience, for Christmas is coming, and she has very special gifts planned for the dear souls of Ensor House. Brimming with sardonic wit and culminating in a shocking conclusion, Victorian Psycho plunges readers into the chilling mind of an iconic new literary psychopath.]]> 208 Virginia Feito 1631498630 Bea 2 3.63 2025
author: Virginia Feito
name: Bea
average rating: 3.63
book published: 2025
rating: 2
read at: 2025/02/24
date added: 2025/02/23
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]]> 52535769 The spellbinding conclusion to the New York Times and IndieBound bestselling trilogy Serpent & Dove. This stunning fantasy take on French witches and forbidden love is perfect for fans of Sarah J. Maas.

Evil always seeks a foothold. We must not give it one.

After a heartbreaking loss, Lou, Reid, Beau, and Coco are bent on vengeance more than ever before—and none more so than Lou.

But this is no longer the Lou they thought they knew. No longer the Lou that captured a chasseur’s heart. A darkness has settled over her, and this time it will take more than love to drive it out.]]> 624 Shelby Mahurin 0063038951 Bea 0 to-read 3.93 2021
author: Shelby Mahurin
name: Bea
average rating: 3.93
book published: 2021
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/02/23
shelves: to-read
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]]> 40550366 536 Shelby Mahurin 0062878050 Bea 0 to-read 3.50 2020
author: Shelby Mahurin
name: Bea
average rating: 3.50
book published: 2020
rating: 0
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date added: 2025/02/23
shelves: to-read
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]]> 39863237
Far from living the dream, Kihrin finds himself practically a prisoner, at the mercy of his new family's power plays and ambitions. He also discovers that the storybooks have lied about a lot of other things too: dragons, demons, gods, prophecies, true love, and how the hero always wins.

Then again, maybe he's not the hero, for Kihrin is not destined to save the empire.

He's destined to destroy it.]]> 560 Jenn Lyons 1250175488 Bea 0 to-read 3.80 2019
author: Jenn Lyons
name: Bea
average rating: 3.80
book published: 2019
rating: 0
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date added: 2025/02/23
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]]> 211004131 A dark and enchanting fairy tale-inspired historical fantasy combining elements of "The Little Mermaid" and "Cinderella" into a wholly original tale of love, power, and betrayal.

Saint-Malo, Brittany, 1758.
For Lucinde Leon, the youngest daughter of one of Saint-Malo's wealthiest ship-owners, the high walls of the city are more hindrance than haven. While her sisters are interested in securing advantageous marriages, Luce dreams of escaping her elegant but stifling home and joining a ship's crew. Only Samuel—Luce's best friend and an English smuggler—understands her longing for the sea, secretly teaching her to sail whenever she can sneak away. For Luce, the stolen time on the water with Samuel is precious.

One stormy morning, Luce's plans are blown off course when she rescues Morgan de Chatelaine, the youngest son of the most powerful ship-owner in Saint-Malo, from the sea. Immediately drawn to his charm and sense of adventure, she longs to attend the glittering ball held in honor of his safe return and begins to contemplate a different kind of future for herself.

But it is not only Luce's hopes at stake—the local fae are leaving Brittany and taking their magic with them, while the long-standing war with the English means Saint-Malo is always at risk of attack. As Luce is plunged into a world of magic, brutality, and seduction, secrets that have long been lost in the shadowy depths of the ocean begin to rise to the surface. The truth of her own power is growing brighter and brighter, shining like a sea-glass slipper.

Or the scales of a sea-maid's tail.]]> 419 Kell Woods 125085251X Bea 0 to-read 4.30 2025
author: Kell Woods
name: Bea
average rating: 4.30
book published: 2025
rating: 0
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date added: 2025/02/23
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]]> 228203497
They all look at me and see a boy. A prince.

Their kind purchase humans like me for their lustful desires.

And, when they storm into our kingdom to buy my sister, I intervene to protect her. I make them take me too.

The plan is to escape with my sister whenever we find a chance.

How am I to know our prison will be the most fortified place in their kingdom?

I’m supposed to stay on the sidelines. The one they have no real use for. The one they never mean to buy.

But then, the most important person in their savage land—their ruthless beast king—takes an interest in the “pretty little prince.”

How do we survive in this brutal kingdom, where everyone hates our kind and shows us no mercy?

And how does someone, with a secret like mine, become a lust slave?

AUTHOR'S

This is a very dark read, and it's highly rated 18+.

Expect triggers. Expect hardcore.]]> 460 Kiss Leilani Bea 1 4.14
author: Kiss Leilani
name: Bea
average rating: 4.14
book published:
rating: 1
read at: 2025/02/23
date added: 2025/02/23
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]]> 32735037
In New York City, magic controls everything. But the power of magic is fading. No one knows what is happening, except for Sydney—a new, rare magician with incredible power that has been unmatched in decades, and she may be the only person who is able to stop the darkness that is weakening the magic. But Sydney doesn’t want to help the system, she wants to destroy it.

Sydney comes from the House of Shadows, which controls the magic with the help of sacrifices from magicians.]]> 352 Kat Howard 1481451219 Bea 0 to-read 3.69 2017
author: Kat Howard
name: Bea
average rating: 3.69
book published: 2017
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/02/21
shelves: to-read
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]]> 122756967 The Pomegranate Gate is the lyrical first installment of the Mirror Realm Cycle, a vibrant and heartfelt Inquisition-era Jewish epic fantasy in the vein of Naomi Novik, Katherine Arden, and Tasha Suri.

Toba Peres can speak, but not shout; she can walk, but not run. She can write with both hands, in different languages, but has not had a formal education. The only treasure Toba has dared to keep is a precious star sapphire, set in a necklace she must never take off.

Naftaly Cresques sees things that aren’t real, and dreams things that are. He is a well-trained tailor, but a middling one, and he is risking his life to smuggle a strange family heirloom: a centuries-old book he must never read, and must never lose.

The Queen of the Sefarad has ordered all Jews to convert, or be exiled with nothing. Toba, Naftaly, and thousands of others are forced to flee their homes. Toba, accidentally separated from their caravan of refugees, stumbles through a strange pomegranate grove into the magical realm of the Maziks: mythical, terrible beings with immense power. There, she discovers latent abilities that put her in the crosshairs of bloodthirsty immortals, but may be key to her survival. On the other side of the gate, Naftaly, intent on rescuing Toba, finds his new companions harbor dangerous secrets of their own.

Now, hunted by an Inquisition in both worlds, Toba and Naftaly must unravel ancient histories and ancient magics in order to understand the link between the two realms. More than their own lives might be at stake.

Brimming with folkloric wonder, The Pomegranate Gate weaves history, myth, and magic into an exquisite tale of fate, legacy, and friendship that will leave readers spellbound.]]> 545 Ariel Kaplan 1645660575 Bea 0 to-read 3.93 2023
author: Ariel Kaplan
name: Bea
average rating: 3.93
book published: 2023
rating: 0
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date added: 2025/02/21
shelves: to-read
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]]> 223846779
Cenric needs a wife—but not just any wife—a sorceress. Having recently reclaimed his inheritance after a youth spent across the sea, a sorceress will bring security and legitimacy in his estranged homeland.

A marriage gives both Brynn and Cenric what they want—for now.

In the far northern reaches lies a land ruled by pride and strict codes of honor. As Brynn and Cenric struggle to navigate the aftermath of their hasty union, they soon realize that rival factions within the kingdom are on the verge of war once again.

Alone, they will be destroyed by the coming storm. Together, they might stand a chance.]]> 316 Elisabeth Wheatley Bea 0 to-read 4.43 2025
author: Elisabeth Wheatley
name: Bea
average rating: 4.43
book published: 2025
rating: 0
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date added: 2025/02/20
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]]> 60133348 The first book in a breathtaking new fantasy series, A Legacy of Storms and Starlight is a captivating and addictive read, perfect for fans of Sarah J. Maas and Danielle L. Jensen.

Zylah Renfall is certain of two things: she will forever be on the run for the murder of a prince, and she somehow used magic to escape her own hanging.

Aided by a mysterious and infuriating Fae, Zylah dreams of a fresh start and a chance to explore her newly discovered Fae heritage. But her dreams are short-lived as the king's men still hunt for her head. When she learns of a Fae uprising uniting to overthrow the same king who wants her dead, Zylah seizes her opportunity.

Take down the king, secure her freedom.

With just three months to prepare, Zylah's future hangs in the balance. Despite the allure of her Fae trainer and the ruthless attempts on their lives, failure is not an option. For as long as the king lives, the Fae remain in the shadows and Zylah will never be free.]]> 459 Victoria J. Price 1916354033 Bea 3 3.73
author: Victoria J. Price
name: Bea
average rating: 3.73
book published:
rating: 3
read at: 2025/02/19
date added: 2025/02/18
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]]> 213656341 This stunning debut novel set in the fascinating world of Cold War Soviet ballet follows the fates of twin sisters whose bond is competitive, complicated, but never broken.

Maya and Natasha are twin sisters born in the midst of the Siege of Leningrad in 1941 and immediately abandoned by their mother, a prima ballerina at the Kirov Ballet who would rather die than not dance. Taken in by their mother’s best friend at the Kirov, the girls are raised to be dancers themselves. The Vaganova Ballet Academy—and the totalitarian Soviet regime—is the only world they know.

In 1958, now seniors at the Vaganova at the height of the Cold War, all Maya and Natasha and their classmates want is to dance with the Kirov, and to join the company on its tour to America next year. But a new law from the Kremlin upends Maya and Natasha’s due to fears of defection, family members may no longer travel abroad together. The Kirov can only accept one of them.

Maya, long accustomed to living in her sister’s shadow, accepts her bitter fate, until a new dance partner inspires her to dream bigger and practice harder. For the first time—and at the cruelest possible moment—the sisters are equally matched. And then one sister betrays the other, altering their lives forever and splitting them in two, though neither will stray far from the other’s orbit.

As one of the twins pursues her ballet career and experiences a world outside Russia for the first time, the other is cast in an epic film adaptation of?War and Peace, produced and financed by the Soviet State. As the Cold War heats up, Maya and Natasha must confront their to East versus West; to the government that saved them versus their dreams of freedom; and, always, to each other.


]]> 384 Elyse Durham 0063393611 Bea 0 to-read 3.95 2025
author: Elyse Durham
name: Bea
average rating: 3.95
book published: 2025
rating: 0
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date added: 2025/02/18
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]]> 222056837 Sie würde ihn am liebsten verfluchen – wenn sie ihn nicht brauchen würde
Ava ist keine Hexe – sie hat keinerlei magische Kr?fte, kein ungew?hnliches Talent. Trotzdem wird sie eines Abends pl?tzlich von einem Hexenj?ger angegriffen. Nur mit Hilfe des düsteren Schattenhexers Shay kann sie entkommen. Doch sein Schutz hat einen Shay ist überheblich, zwielichtig und sieht zu allem ?berfluss auch noch besser aus, als es ihm guttut. Und schon bald stellt Ava fest, dass die Reise an seiner Seite alles andere als sicher ist. Denn nicht nur die gemeinsame Flucht ins magische Mystica k?nnte t?dlich enden, auch ihr Herz ger?t durch Shay in Gefahr. Bl?d nur, dass der gutaussehende arrogante Hexer weit und breit der Einzige ist, der sie vor B?sem bewahren kann.

?The Spell of a Witch? ist eine knisternde Romantasy voller dunkler Geheimnisse. Haters to Lovers meets Fated Mates und Who did this to you???]]> 338 Sandra Werning 3646611510 Bea 3 3.50 2025
author: Sandra Werning
name: Bea
average rating: 3.50
book published: 2025
rating: 3
read at: 2025/02/18
date added: 2025/02/17
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]]> 146068065
The Scarlet Ziggurat is an exciting prequel adventure to the highly acclaimed Seven Swords series from New York Times bestselling author Anthony Ryan.]]> 48 Anthony Ryan 164524170X Bea 3 3.91 2023
author: Anthony Ryan
name: Bea
average rating: 3.91
book published: 2023
rating: 3
read at: 2025/02/15
date added: 2025/02/14
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]]> 52268299
Landless one-time king Guyime, once called Pilgrim but known to history as the Ravager, has survived the fall of the Execration — an event that set him on a path to find the legendary Seven Swords. Guided by sorcery, Guyime journeys to Carthula in the centre of the First Sea to claim the mythical blade known as the Kraken's Tooth.

Aided by three companions — the beast charmer Seeker, a powerful sorceress and a scholarly slave — Guyime ventures into Carthula's perilous underbelly to secure a prize guarded by ancient magics, cursed spirits, and lethal traps.

But can he survive an ultimate ordeal crafted from his worst nightmares?

Continuing the epic story begun in A Pilgrimage of Swords, The Kraken's Tooth is a fast-paced tale of low intrigue and grand adventure from the New York Times bestselling author of the Raven's Shadow and Draconis Memoria trilogies.]]> 136 Anthony Ryan Bea 3 4.00 2020
author: Anthony Ryan
name: Bea
average rating: 4.00
book published: 2020
rating: 3
read at: 2025/02/13
date added: 2025/02/13
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]]> 43923515
Now a veteran warrior known only as Pilgrim, armed with a fabled blade inhabited by the soul of a taunting demon, must join with six others to make the last journey to the heart of the Execration. Allied with a youthful priest, a beast-charmer, a duplicitous scholar, an effete actor and two exiled lovers, Pilgrim must survive madness, malevolent spirits, unnatural monsters and the ever-present risk of treachery, all so that the Mad God might hear his prayer and, perhaps, grant redemption. But can sins such as his ever be forgiven?]]> 128 Anthony Ryan Bea 3 3.85 2019
author: Anthony Ryan
name: Bea
average rating: 3.85
book published: 2019
rating: 3
read at: 2025/02/13
date added: 2025/02/13
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]]> 61294830
Thirty years ago, Grace’s mom left her hometown of Hermitage, Florida and never looked back—which is exactly why Grace thinks it’s the safest place to spend her summer now. Since her mom died in a car crash, Grace has been desperate to get away from the memories and reminders of her loss. Spending the summer transcribing cassette tapes for the Hermitage Historical Society might be boring, but boring is just what Grace needs.

Until she hears the voice of Jake Underwood—the boy who first recorded the cassette tapes back in 1992. When Grace realizes he can hear anything she records, despite thirty years of time between them, she strikes up an impossible conversation with Jake through the tapes.

But the past isn’t any simpler than the present, and a mystery has haunted Hermitage through the generations. In the 1970’s, a hurricane made landfall and resulted in the tragic death of Jake’s uncle Charley. In a town as suffocatingly small as Hermitage, it’s impossible not to notice how no one talks about that storm, or Charley, and as the mystery unfurls, Grace can’t help but realize a worse truth: No one talks about Jake either.

A beautifully written exploration of grief and what happens when untreated wounds bleed into future generations, The Underwood Tapes is the perfect read for anyone in need of a good, cathartic cry.]]> Amanda DeWitt Bea 0 to-read 4.28 2025
author: Amanda DeWitt
name: Bea
average rating: 4.28
book published: 2025
rating: 0
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date added: 2025/02/12
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]]> 127616032 Discover the serial killer romance series everyone is talking about!From the no.1 New York Times bestselling author of the genre-breaking international TikTok sensation Butcher & Blackbird and Leather & Lark comes the final book in the Ruinous Love Trilogy - a friends-with-benefits dark romantic comedy.

Murder.

Mayhem.

And spice.

Doctor Fionn Kane is running from a broken heart, one he hopes to mend in small-town Nebraska, far away from his almost-fiance and his derailed surgical career. It's a simpler head down, hard work, and absolutely no romantic relationships. He wants none of the circus he left behind in Boston.

But then the real circus finds him.

Motorcycle performer Rose Evans has spent a decade on the road with the Silveria Circus, and it suits her just fine, especially when she has the urge to indulge in a little murder when she's not in the spotlight. But when a kill goes awry and she ends up with an injured leg, Rose finds herself stuck in Nebraska, at the home of the adorably nerdy town doctor.

The problem is, not every broken heart can be sewn back together.

. . . And the longer you stay in one place, the more likely your ghosts are to catch up.

***


Friends with benefits
Small town romance
Fish out of water
Forced proximity
Hurt/care
Touch her and die]]> 416 Brynne Weaver Bea 0 to-read 4.10 2025
author: Brynne Weaver
name: Bea
average rating: 4.10
book published: 2025
rating: 0
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date added: 2025/02/12
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]]> 213243908 A hopeless romantic meets a jaded radio host in this cozy, Sleepless in Seattle-inspired love story from beloved author B.K. Borison.

Aiden Valentine has a secret: he's fallen out of love with love. And as the host of Baltimore's romance hotline, that's a bit of a problem. But when a young girl calls in to the station asking for dating advice for her mom, the interview goes viral, thrusting Aiden and Heartstrings into the limelight.

Lucie Stone thought she was doing just fine. She has a good job; an incredible family; and a smart, slightly devious kid. But when all of Baltimore is suddenly scrutinizing her love life-or lack thereof—she begins to question if she's as happy as she thought. Maybe a little more romance wouldn't be such a bad thing.

Everyone wants Lucie to find her happy ending... even the handsome, temperamental man calling the shots. But when sparks start to fly behind the scenes, Lucie must make the final call between the radio-sponsored happily ever after or the man in the headphones next to her.]]> 448 B.K. Borison 0593641191 Bea 0 to-read 4.06 2025
author: B.K. Borison
name: Bea
average rating: 4.06
book published: 2025
rating: 0
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date added: 2025/02/12
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]]> 213243915 The #1 New York Times bestselling author, whose books so many love, brings us a fresh, contemporary story of a woman and her unruly blended family

Lila Kennedy has a lot on her plate. A broken marriage, two wayward daughters, a house that is falling apart, and an elderly stepfather who seems to have quietly moved in. Her career is in freefall and her love life is... complicated. So when her real dad—a man she has barely seen since he ran off to Hollywood thirty-five years ago—suddenly appears on her doorstep, it feels like the final straw. But it turns out even the family you thought you could never forgive might have something to teach about love, and what it actually means to be family.]]> 450 Jojo Moyes 1984879324 Bea 0 to-read 3.87 2025
author: Jojo Moyes
name: Bea
average rating: 3.87
book published: 2025
rating: 0
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date added: 2025/02/12
shelves: to-read
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]]> 25972196
A drake of unimaginable power has risen, and it commands an army of both beasts and men. Rogue Blood-blessed Claydon Torcreek, Syndicate agent Lizanne Lethridge, and Ironship captain Corrick Hilemore, spread to disparate corners of the world, must rely upon the new powers and knowledge they have gained at great price to halt its forces–or face the end of all they know.]]> 560 Anthony Ryan 0356506444 Bea 0 to-read 4.13 2018
author: Anthony Ryan
name: Bea
average rating: 4.13
book published: 2018
rating: 0
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date added: 2025/02/10
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]]> 32573186 Survival is the only currency...

For centuries, the vast Ironship Trading Syndicate relied on drake blood--and the extraordinary powers it confers to those known as the Blood-blessed--to fuel and protect its empire. But when the drake blood lines began to fail, a perilous expedition was mounted to secure them.

Claydon Torcreek survived the fraught mission through uncharted lands in pursuit of a myth that might have secured his people's future. Instead he found a nightmare. The legendary White Drake was awoken from a millennia-long slumber, with a thirst to reduce the world of men to ashes, and the power to compel an army of Spoiled slaves to do it.

Spurred on by a vision he desperately hopes he can trust, Clay and rebel naval officer Corrick Hilemore hijack a warship and head towards the icy southern seas, searching for an ancient secret that may give them and their allies a fighting chance.

They are aided on another front by Blood-blessed agent Lizanne Lethridge. The spy and assassin will use her diplomatic status to infiltrate deep into enemy territory on a quest for a device to save them all.

As the world burns around them, and the fires of revolution are ignited, these few Blood-blessed are the last hope for all of civilisation.]]> 592 Anthony Ryan 1101987898 Bea 0 to-read 4.11 2017
author: Anthony Ryan
name: Bea
average rating: 4.11
book published: 2017
rating: 0
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date added: 2025/02/10
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]]> 25972177 The New York Times bestselling Raven’s Shadow Trilogy was a perfect read for “fans of broadscale epic fantasy along the lines of Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time series and George R. R. Martin’s Song of Ice and Fire novels.”* Now, Anthony Ryan begins a new saga, The Draconis Memoria...

Throughout the vast lands controlled by the Ironship Syndicate, nothing is more prized than the blood of drakes. Harvested from the veins of captive or hunted Reds, Green, Blues and Blacks, it can be distilled into elixirs that give fearsome powers to the rare men and women who have the ability harness them—known as the blood-blessed.

But not many know the truth: that the lines of drakes are weakening. If they fail, war with the neighboring Corvantine Empire will follow swiftly. The Syndicate's last hope resides in whispers of the existence of another breed of drake, far more powerful than the rest, and the few who have been chosen by fate to seek it.

Claydon Torcreek is a petty thief and an unregistered blood-blessed, who finds himself pressed into service by the protectorate and sent to wild, uncharted territories in search of a creature he believes is little more than legend. Lizanne Lethridge is a formidable spy and assassin, facing gravest danger on an espionage mission deep into the heart of enemy territory. And Corrick Hilemore is the second lieutenant of an ironship, whose pursuit of ruthless brigands leads him to a far greater threat at the edge of the world.

As lives and empires clash and intertwine, as the unknown and the known collide, all three must fight to turn the tide of a coming war, or drown in its wake.

*Library Journal]]> 592 Anthony Ryan 0356506398 Bea 0 to-read 4.03 2016
author: Anthony Ryan
name: Bea
average rating: 4.03
book published: 2016
rating: 0
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date added: 2025/02/10
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]]> 18405221 In the thrilling conclusion to the "deftly and originally executed" (Booklist) New York Times bestselling trilogy, Vaelin Al Sorna must help his Queen reclaim her Realm. Only his enemy has a dangerous new collaborator, one with powers darker than Vaelin has ever encountered...

"The Ally is there, but only ever as a shadow, unexplained catastrophe or murder committed at the behest of a dark vengeful spirit. Sorting truth from myth is often a fruitless task."

After fighting back from the brink of death, Queen Lyrna is determined to repel the invading Volarian army and regain the independence of the Unified Realm. Except, to accomplish her goals, she must do more than rally her loyal supporters. She must align herself with forces she once found repugnant—those who possess the strange and varied gifts of the Dark—and take the war to her enemy's doorstep.

Victory rests on the shoulders of Vaelin Al Sorna, now named Battle Lord of the...]]> 643 Anthony Ryan 1101612983 Bea 0 to-read 3.70 2015
author: Anthony Ryan
name: Bea
average rating: 3.70
book published: 2015
rating: 0
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date added: 2025/02/10
shelves: to-read
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]]> 18138189
Vaelin Al Sorna, warrior of the Sixth Order, called Darkblade, called Hope Killer. The greatest warrior of his day, and witness to the greatest defeat of his nation: King Janus’s vision of a Greater Unified Realm drowned in the blood of brave men fighting for a cause Vaelin alone knows was forged from a lie. Sick at heart, he comes home, determined to kill no more.

Named Tower Lord of the Northern Reaches by King Janus’s grateful heir, he can perhaps find peace in a colder, more remote land far from the intrigues of a troubled Realm. But those gifted with the blood-song are never destined to live a quiet life. Many died in King Janus’s wars, but many survived, and Vaelin is a target, not just for those seeking revenge but for those who know what he can do.

The Faith has been sundered, and many have no doubt who their leader should be. The new King is weak, but his sister is strong. The blood-song is powerful, rich in warning and guidance in times of trouble, but is only a fraction of the power available to others who understand more of its mysteries. Something moves against the Realm, something that commands mighty forces, and Vaelin will find to his great regret that when faced with annihilation, even the most reluctant hand must eventually draw a sword.]]> 608 Anthony Ryan 0425265625 Bea 0 to-read 4.14 2014
author: Anthony Ryan
name: Bea
average rating: 4.14
book published: 2014
rating: 0
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date added: 2025/02/10
shelves: to-read
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]]> 41021418
PEACE NEVER LASTS

Vaelin Al Sorna is a living legend, his name known across the Realm. It was his leadership that overthrew empires, his blade that won hard-fought battles - and his sacrifice that defeated an evil more terrifying than anything the world had ever seen. Yet he cast aside his earned glory for a quiet life in the Realm's northern reaches.

Now whispers have come from across the sea of an army called the Steel Horde, led by a man who believes himself a god. Vaelin has no wish to fight another war, but when he learns that Sherin, the woman he lost long ago, has fallen into the Horde's grasp, he resolves to confront this powerful new threat.

To this end, Vaelin travels to the realms of the Merchant Kings, a land ruled by honour and intrigue. There, as the drums of war thunder across kingdoms riven by conflict, Vaelin learns a terrible truth: that there are some battles that even he cannot hope to win]]> 432 Anthony Ryan 0451492536 Bea 0 to-read 4.26 2019
author: Anthony Ryan
name: Bea
average rating: 4.26
book published: 2019
rating: 0
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date added: 2025/02/10
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]]> 51573764 The Black Song is the action-packed conclusion to the Raven's Blade series by Anthony Ryan, which began with The Wolf's Call.

The Steel Horde has laid waste to the Venerable Kingdom, unleashing a storm of fire and blood. Now the leader of this mighty host - Kehlbrand, the warlord who thinks himself a god - turns his eyes to the other merchant kingdoms. No one can stop his divine conquest.

No one, perhaps, except Vaelin Al Sorna.

Yet Vaelin is on the run, his own army in disarray. Worse, the new blood song he has acquired is as much a curse as a blessing, and seeks to guide him down a path far darker than he could have imagined...]]> 498 Anthony Ryan 0356511324 Bea 0 to-read 4.19 2020
author: Anthony Ryan
name: Bea
average rating: 4.19
book published: 2020
rating: 0
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]]> 13569581 “The Sixth Order wields the sword of justice and smites the enemies of the Faith and the Realm.”

Vaelin Al Sorna was only a child of ten when his father left him at the iron gate of the Sixth Order. The Brothers of the Sixth Order are devoted to battle, and Vaelin will be trained and hardened to the austere, celibate, and dangerous life of a Warrior of the Faith. He has no family now save the Order.

Vaelin’s father was Battle Lord to King Janus, ruler of the unified realm. Vaelin’s rage at being deprived of his birthright and dropped at the doorstep of the Sixth Order like a foundling knows no bounds. He cherishes the memory of his mother, and what he will come to learn of her at the Order will confound him. His father, too, has motives that Vaelin will come to understand. But one truth overpowers all the rest: Vaelin Al Sorna is destined for a future he has yet to comprehend. A future that will alter not only the realm, but the world.]]> 591 Anthony Ryan 1466085665 Bea 5 4.42 2011
author: Anthony Ryan
name: Bea
average rating: 4.42
book published: 2011
rating: 5
read at: 2025/02/10
date added: 2025/02/10
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]]> 211413621 After 50 years, his revenge is complete and his purpose fulfilled. When a teenager steals the Hunter's sword,??his wolf companion Greer sees a way to help them in convincing Strider to escort the girl home safely, there's hope his friend might find the will to keep on living - to keep on fighting.
But this is no ordinary job. His young employer is deeply entangled in a dark plot that threatens her and her fiefdom. Strider must employ his magic and battle training to ensure their survival against soldiers and mercenaries out to claim their bounty.
Can these unlikely allies find a way to survive, or will their differences and secrets destroy them all?

?

Approximately 624 pages in length.]]> 634 K. Aagard Bea 0 to-read 4.39 2024
author: K. Aagard
name: Bea
average rating: 4.39
book published: 2024
rating: 0
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date added: 2025/02/08
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]]> 61903046
She expected to feel trapped, but he somehow makes her feel unbelievably... safe.

Rurik’s only goal is to kill the Dark Witch, Strolguil the Vast. He never expected to find himself in a White Witch’s home in need of healing, or that she would be completely oblivious about his kind, or her own. He intends to abandon her, a lowly Witch, to her fiery fate, but he can’t ignore his blood-debt after she saves him.

Nor can he ignore the fierce desire that she grows in him when she roams free inside his lair.

However, there are Dark Witches afoot, and Rurik isn’t sure if he can shed years of hatred to trust the enchanting woman he has in his keeping.

*Author This book contains a trigger that may be unsettling for some readers. Please read the warning at the beginning of the book.*]]> 550 Opal Reyne Bea 3 3.96 2022
author: Opal Reyne
name: Bea
average rating: 3.96
book published: 2022
rating: 3
read at: 2025/02/08
date added: 2025/02/07
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]]> 32862986 yokai spirits were bloodthirsty and evil. But with a traitorous deity poised to destroy her world, and the yokai standing as humanity's only defense, the lies of her upbringing have toppled to reveal a far more terrifying reality. Despite the looming threat, Emi can't escape her greatest distraction: Shiro, the fox yokai who has so deftly claimed her heart for his own. Soon--too soon--she will have to break the curse that binds his magic and memories. And once the ancient power inside him awakens, the yokai she loves will be changed forever. As the earthly gods gather to wage war against the heavens, Emi and Shiro must gamble everything to turn the tide against their immortal, all-powerful foes. Together, they will find a way to save her world--even if it means losing each other.]]> 367 Annette Marie 1988153115 Bea 4 4.58 2017
author: Annette Marie
name: Bea
average rating: 4.58
book published: 2017
rating: 4
read at: 2025/02/06
date added: 2025/02/06
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]]> 32605659
At her side is Shiro, the mysterious fox spirit. When she first saved his life, she could never have imagined that behind his cunning and confidence, he was lost—his power bound by a devastating curse and his memories obscured. His veiled history is somehow tied to the missing gods, but he can't remember how or why.

As their search leads them into the murky depths of the spirit realm, the shadows of Shiro's past begin to emerge. With each brief awakening of his true self, she loses a little more of him. The fate of the heavens and earth rest in her mortal hands, and she must find the missing gods before time runs out for her world—and for Shiro.

DARK TEMPEST includes 10 full-page illustrations by award-winning artist Brittany Jackson.]]> 350 Annette Marie 1988153107 Bea 3 4.51 2017
author: Annette Marie
name: Bea
average rating: 4.51
book published: 2017
rating: 3
read at: 2025/02/06
date added: 2025/02/06
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]]> 31829155
Shiro isn't the harmless fox spirit she thought he was. He's mysterious, cunning, unpredictable...and now hers to command. He's sworn to pay his debt to her, but he doesn't know who she is. If he finds out, he'll kill her.

But she can't send him away—not yet. Her future isn't what she thought. The lies surrounding her fate have begun to unravel, and she needs answers before time runs out—answers that lie in the spirit realm. Shiro can take her there...if she dares to trust him.

And only then will she find out how deep the gods' treachery runs.]]> 346 Annette Marie 1988153085 Bea 4 4.27 2016
author: Annette Marie
name: Bea
average rating: 4.27
book published: 2016
rating: 4
read at: 2025/02/05
date added: 2025/02/06
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]]> 216190434
Rachel and Jaime: their story isn’t simple. It might not even be their story.

Augustus Fate, a once-lauded novelist and now renowned recluse, is struggling with his latest creation. But when Jaime and Rachel stumble into his remote cottage, he spies opportunity, imprisoning them inside his novel-in-progress. Now, the fledgling couple must try to find their way back home through a labyrinthine network of novels.

And as they move from Victorian Oxford to a utopian Manchester, a harsh Russian winter to an AI-dominated near-future, so too does the narrative of their relationship change time and again.

Together, they must figure out if this relationship of so many presents can have any future at all.

The Watermark is a heart-stopping exploration of the narratives we cling to in the course of a life, and the tendency of the world to unravel them. Kaleidoscopic and wildly imaginative, it how can we truly be ourselves, when Fate is pulling the strings?]]> 538 Sam Mills 1685891926 Bea 0 to-read 3.38 2025
author: Sam Mills
name: Bea
average rating: 3.38
book published: 2025
rating: 0
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date added: 2025/02/06
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]]> 213870090 A thrilling reimagining of the world of Dickens, as seen through the eyes of the infamous Jacob Fagin, London’s most gifted pickpocket, liar, and rogue.

Long before Oliver Twist stumbled onto the scene, Jacob Fagin was scratching out a life for himself in the dark alleys of nineteenth-century London. Born in the Jewish enclave of Stepney shortly after his father was executed as a thief, Jacob and his open-minded mother, Leah, are each other’s whole world. But Jacob’s prospects are forever altered when a light-fingered pickpocket takes Jacob under his wing and teaches him a trade that pays far better than the neighborhood boys could possibly dream.

Striking out on his own, Jacob familiarizes himself with London’s highest value neighborhoods while forging his own path in the shadows. But everything changes when he adopts an aspiring teenage thief named Bill Sikes, whose mercurial temper poses a danger to himself and anyone foolish enough to cross him. Along the way, Jacob’s found family expands to include his closest friend, Nancy, and his greatest protege, the Artful Dodger. But as Bill’s ambition soars and a major robbery goes awry, Jacob is forced to decide what he really stands for—and what a life is worth.

Colorfully written and wickedly funny, Allison Epstein breathes fresh life into the teeming streets of Dickensian London–reclaiming one of Victorian literature’s most notorious villains in an unforgettable new adventure.]]> 336 Allison Epstein 0385550707 Bea 0 to-read 4.16 2025
author: Allison Epstein
name: Bea
average rating: 4.16
book published: 2025
rating: 0
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]]> 213870082 When Sarah’s only friend in her graduate program is found dead of an alleged heroin overdose, she is forced back into the orbit of the man in their department who assaulted her. A hurtling ride of a novel—darkly funny and propulsive.

At a PhD program in southern California, Sarah and her best friend Nathan spend their time working on their theses, getting high, and keeping track of the poor air quality due to nearby forest fires. No one believes Sarah when she reports a fellow student for raping her at a party—“he’s such a good guy!”—and the Title IX office simply files away the information, just like the police. Nathan is the only person who cares.

When Sarah finds him dead of an overdose from a drug he’s always avoided, she knows something isn’t right. She starts investigating his death as a murder, and as the pieces fall into place, she notices a disturbing pattern in the other student deaths on campus.

As a girl, Sarah grew up in the forests of Maine, following her father on hunts, learning how to stalk prey and kill but only when necessary. Now, she must confront a different type of killing—and decide if it can be justified.?

Notes on Surviving the Fire is a story about vengeance, the insidious nature of rape culture and ultimately, a woman's journey to come back to herself.]]> 288 Christine Murphy 0593801490 Bea 0 to-read 3.81 2025
author: Christine Murphy
name: Bea
average rating: 3.81
book published: 2025
rating: 0
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date added: 2025/02/06
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]]> 215003781
In 1943, when a frail old white woman shows up in Red Clay, Alabama, at the home of a Black former slave—on the morning following his funeral—his family hardly knows what to expect after she utters the words “… a lifetime ago, my family owned yours.” Adelaide Parker has a story to tell—one of ambition, betrayal, violence, and redemption—that shaped both the fate of her family and that of the late Felix H. Parker.

But there are gaps in her knowledge, and she’s come to Red Clay seeking answers from a family with whom she shares a name and a history that neither knows in full. In an epic saga that takes us from Red Clay to Paris, to the C?te d’Azur and New Orleans, human frailties are pushed to their limits as secrets are exposed and the line between good and evil becomes ever more difficult to discern. Red Clay is a tale that deftly lays bare the ugliness of slavery, the uncertainty of the final months of the Civil War, the optimism of Reconstruction, and the pain and frustration of Jim Crow.

With a vivid sense of place and a cast of memorable characters, Charles B. Fancher draws upon his own family history to weave a riveting tale of triumph over adversity, set against a backdrop of societal change and racial animus that reverberates in contemporary America. Through seasons of joy and unspeakable pain, Fancher delivers rich moments as allies become enemies, and enemies—to their great surprise—find new respect for each other.]]> 336 Charles B. Fancher Bea 0 to-read 4.45
author: Charles B. Fancher
name: Bea
average rating: 4.45
book published:
rating: 0
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date added: 2025/02/06
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]]> 213344051 From the acclaimed author of?The Kindest Lie, a propulsive novel about a mother and daughter each seeking justice and following their dreams during moments of social reckoning—1960s Nashville and 1992 Chicago—perfect for readers of Brit Bennett and Tayari Jones.

Two women. Two pivotal moments. One dream for justice and equality.

It’s 1959, and Freda Gilroy has just arrived at Nashville’s Fisk University, eager to begin her studies and uphold the tradition of Black Excellence instilled in her by her parents back home in Chicago. Coming from an upper-middle-class lifestyle where Black and white people lived together in relative harmony, Freda is surprised to discover the menace of racism down South. When a chance encounter with an intriguing young man draws her into the burgeoning Civil Rights Movement, Freda finds herself caught between two worlds, and two loves, and must decide how much she’s willing to sacrifice in the name of justice, equality, and the advancement of her people.

In 1992 Chicago, Freda’s daughter Tulip is an ambitious PR professional on track for a big promotion, if workplace politics and racial microaggressions don’t get in her way. With the ruling in the Rodney King trial weighing heavily on her, Tulip feels increasingly agitated and decides she can no longer stay quiet. Called to action by a series of glaring injustices, Tulip makes an irreversible professional misstep as she seeks to uplift her community. Will she find the courage to veer off the “safe” path and follow her heart, just as her mother had three decades prior?

Insightful, evocative, and richly imagined with stories of hidden history,?People of Means?is an emotional tour de force that offers a glimpse into the quest for racial equality, the pursuit of personal and communal success, and the power of love and family ties.]]> 368 Nancy Johnson 0063157519 Bea 0 to-read 4.01 2025
author: Nancy Johnson
name: Bea
average rating: 4.01
book published: 2025
rating: 0
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date added: 2025/02/06
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]]> 204906176
Paris, 1889

Physician Aurora Montalban Wright takes risks in her career, but never with her heart. Running an underground women’s clinic exposes her to certain dangers, but help arrives in the unexpected form of the infuriating Duke of Annan. Aurora begrudgingly accepts his protection, then promptly finds herself in his bed.

New to his role as a duke, Apollo César Sinclair Robles struggles to embrace his position. With half of society waiting for him to misstep and the other half looking to discredit him, Apollo never imagined that his enthralling bedmate would become his most trusted adviser. Soon, he realizes the rebellious doctor could be the perfect duchess. But Aurora won’t give up her independence, and her secrets make her unsuitable for the aristocracy.

When a dangerous figure from their past returns to threaten them, Apollo whisks Aurora away to his villa in the French Riviera. Far from the reproachful eye of Parisian society, can Apollo convince Aurora that their bond is stronger than the forces keeping them apart?

Can't get enough of the Las Leonas?
Book 1: A Caribbean Heiress in Paris
Book 2: An Island Princess Starts a Scandal
Book 3: A Tropical Rebel Gets the Duke]]> 432 Adriana Herrera 1335476962 Bea 0 to-read 4.24 2025
author: Adriana Herrera
name: Bea
average rating: 4.24
book published: 2025
rating: 0
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date added: 2025/02/06
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]]> 203164415 From a literary master, a moving and genre-bending story about our era-spanning search for meaning and knowing.

An uncertain near-future. A story of new boundaries drawn between people daily. A not-very brave new world.

Add two children. And a horse.

From a Scottish word meaning a transient moment, a shock, a faint glimpse, Gliff explores how and why we endeavour to make a mark on the world. In a time when western industry wants to reduce us to algorithms and data—something easily categorizable and predictable—Smith shows us why our humanity, our individual complexities, matter more than ever.]]> 288 Ali Smith 0593701569 Bea 0 to-read 3.95 2024
author: Ali Smith
name: Bea
average rating: 3.95
book published: 2024
rating: 0
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date added: 2025/02/06
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]]> 211143113
But Mama’s want is stronger than her hunger sometimes, and when a beautiful, white-toothed stray named Eden turns up in the heart of a snowstorm, Margot must confront the shifting dynamics of her family, untangle her own desires, and make her own bid for freedom.

With this gothic coming-of-age tale, novelist Lucy Rose explores how women swallow their anger, desire, and animal instincts—and wrings the relationship between mother and daughter until blood drips from it.]]> 336 Lucy Rose 0063374609 Bea 0 to-read 3.91 2025
author: Lucy Rose
name: Bea
average rating: 3.91
book published: 2025
rating: 0
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]]> 213243955 An unforgettable dark fairy tale that asks, Can love save us from ourselves?

Birdie’s keeping it together; of course she is. So she’s a little hungover sometimes, and she has to bring her daughter, Emaleen, to her job waiting tables at an Alaskan roadside lodge, but she’s getting by as a single mother in a tough town. Still, Birdie can remember happier times from her youth, when she was free in the wilds of nature.

Arthur Neilsen, a soft-spoken and scarred recluse who appears in town only at the change of seasons, brings Emaleen back to safety when she gets lost in the woods. Most people avoid him, but to Birdie he represents everything she’s ever longed for. She finds herself falling for Arthur and the land he knows so well. Against the warnings of those who care about them, Birdie and Emaleen move to his isolated cabin in the mountains on the far side of the Wolverine River.

It’s just the three of them in the vast black woods, far from roads, telephones, electricity, and outside contact, but Birdie believes she has come prepared. At first, it’s idyllic, but soon Birdie discovers that Arthur is something much more mysterious and dangerous than she could have imagined, and that like the Alaska wilderness, a fairy tale can be as dark as it is beautiful.]]> 306 Eowyn Ivey 0593231023 Bea 0 dnf 3.70 2025
author: Eowyn Ivey
name: Bea
average rating: 3.70
book published: 2025
rating: 0
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date added: 2025/02/05
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]]> 125588313 Being forced to marry into a sicko cult wasn’t even the weirdest part of my day…

I thought my fiancé was a good guy. Not the greatest in the sack, but decent marriage material.

Too bad it took finding him in a compromising position—with his mother—to figure out how wrong I’d been.

When they told me they’d kill me if I ran away, I believed them. I didn’t, however, believe them when they said the magical Ash tree in the woods would eat me alive.

Wrong again.

Lucky for me, Ash didn’t kill me. Turns out he likes my stories. And my, um, sap. So, I’m sure I can convince him to let me go once he’s been properly…satiated.

I never thought the killer tree holding me captive would turn out to be a better man (and lover) than the idiot I married.

But he is.

Now I’m starting to wonder if a girl with roots in the city and a tree with roots in the woods (literally) can find their happily ever after together…]]> 248 Siggy Shade Bea 3 3.59
author: Siggy Shade
name: Bea
average rating: 3.59
book published:
rating: 3
read at: 2025/02/03
date added: 2025/02/03
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]]> 211003749 In a Gaslamp-lit world where hags and ogres lurk in thick pine forests, three magical queens form an uneasy alliance to protect their lands from invasion…and love turns their world upside down.

Queen Saskia is the wicked sorceress everyone fears. After successfully wrestling the throne from her evil uncle, she only wants one thing: to keep her people safe from the empire next door. For that, she needs to spend more time in her laboratory experimenting with her spells. She definitely doesn’t have time to bring order to her chaotic library of magic.

When a mysterious dark wizard arrives at her castle, Saskia hires him as her new librarian on the spot. “Fabian” is sweet and a little nerdy, and his requests seem a little strange – what in the name of Divine Elva is a fountain pen? – but he’s getting the job done. And if he writes her flirtatious poetry and his innocent touch makes her skin singe, well…

Little does Saskia know that the "wizard" she’s falling for is actually an Imperial archduke in disguise, with no magical training whatsoever. On the run, with perilous secrets on his trail and a fast growing yearning for the wicked sorceress, he's in danger from her enemies and her newfound allies, too. When his identity is finally revealed, will their love save or doom each other?]]> 304 Stephanie Burgis 1250359597 Bea 0 to-read 3.81 2025
author: Stephanie Burgis
name: Bea
average rating: 3.81
book published: 2025
rating: 0
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date added: 2025/01/31
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]]> 207611566 There’s power in a book…

They call them wayward girls. Loose girls. Girls who grew up too fast. And they’re sent to the Wellwood Home in St. Augustine, Florida, where unwed mothers are hidden by their families to have their babies in secret, give them up for adoption, and most important of all, to forget any of it ever happened.

Fifteen-year-old Fern arrives at the home in the sweltering summer of 1970, pregnant, terrified and alone. Under the watchful eye of the stern Miss Wellwood, she meets a dozen other girls in the same predicament. There’s Rose, a hippie who insists she’s going to find a way to keep her baby and escape to a commune. And Zinnia, a budding musician who knows she’s going to go home and marry her baby’s father. And Holly, a wisp of a girl, barely fourteen, mute and pregnant by no-one-knows-who.

Everything the girls eat, every moment of their waking day, and everything they’re allowed to talk about is strictly controlled by adults who claim they know what’s best for them. Then Fern meets a librarian who gives her an occult book about witchcraft, and power is in the hands of the girls for the first time in their lives. But power can destroy as easily as it creates, and it’s never given freely. There’s always a price to be paid…and it’s usually paid in blood.

In Witchcraft for Wayward Girls, the author of How to Sell a Haunted House and The Final Girl Support Group delivers another searing, completely original novel and further cements his status as a “horror master” (NPR).]]> 482 Grady Hendrix 0593548981 Bea 4 4.00 2025
author: Grady Hendrix
name: Bea
average rating: 4.00
book published: 2025
rating: 4
read at: 2025/01/31
date added: 2025/01/30
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]]> 60582067 F#@K FATE

A shy, lonely girl meets an orphan wolf boy in the woods. But falling in love with a wolf who is fated to another can only bring heartache. Can they make their own fate?

A sweet taboo fated mates / rejected mates trope twist on a coming-of-age shifter / werewolf romance.

EXCERPT

"What are you up to?"?

Innocent eyes stared back at her, and he opened his door, stepping out and starting to pull off his clothes.

Nat eyed him suspiciously as she exited the vehicle, crossing her arms on the top and trying to keep from looking at him. It was always such torture seeing his gorgeous muscled body, aching to run her hands all over him, only to have him need to shift almost immediately if she did.?

But he didn't shift after undressing, and she watched warily as he walked around to her. Her breath caught at the sight, her eyes helplessly running down his body.

?"Nat..." He slid his arms around her waist, looking at her with heavy eyes. "Will you do something for me?"?

She frowned up at him.

?"I swear, Caleb, if you brought me all the way up here just to try to mount me, I will lock myself in the car until you're ready to leave!"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Book 1 of the Unfated Mates tales, a contemporary world where wolves cannot normally feel sexual desire for anyone except their fated mates - but fall in love with the 'wrong' person. Each book focuses on a different couple but should be read in order for overall story progression and reveals.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

WARNING

This story includes strong language, some graphic violence, and scenes that might just have you reaching for a few pearls...]]> 300 Lexie Talionis 1737800357 Bea 3 3.13 2022
author: Lexie Talionis
name: Bea
average rating: 3.13
book published: 2022
rating: 3
read at: 2025/01/30
date added: 2025/01/29
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]]> 32905343 1990. The teen detectives once known as the Blyton Summer Detective Club (of Blyton Hills, a small mining town in the Zoinx River Valley in Oregon) are all grown up and haven't seen each other since their fateful, final case in 1977. Andy, the tomboy, is twenty-five and on the run, wanted in at least two states. Kerri, one-time kid genius and budding biologist, is bartending in New York, working on a serious drinking problem. At least she's got Tim, an excitable Weimaraner descended from the original canine member of the team. Nate, the horror nerd, has spent the last thirteen years in and out of mental health institutions, and currently resides in an asylum in Arkham, Massachusetts. The only friend he still sees is Peter, the handsome jock turned movie star. The problem is, Peter's been dead for years.

The time has come to uncover the source of their nightmares and return to where it all began in 1977. This time, it better not be a man in a mask. The real monsters are waiting.]]> 322 Edgar Cantero 0385541996 Bea 2 3.51 2017
author: Edgar Cantero
name: Bea
average rating: 3.51
book published: 2017
rating: 2
read at: 2025/01/28
date added: 2025/01/28
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]]> 63094957
Rachel is a student working at a bookstore when she meets James, and it’s love at first sight. Effervescent and insistently heterosexual, James soon invites Rachel to be his roommate and the two begin a friendship that changes the course of both their lives forever. Together, they run riot through the streets of Cork city, trying to maintain a bohemian existence while the threat of the financial crash looms before them.

When Rachel falls in love with her married professor, Dr. Fred Byrne, James helps her devise a reading at their local bookstore, with the goal that she might seduce him afterwards. But Fred has other desires. So begins a series of secrets and compromises that intertwine the fates of James, Rachel, Fred, and Fred’s glamorous, well-connected, bourgeois wife. Aching with unrequited love, shot through with delicious, sparkling humor, The Rachel Incident is a triumph.]]> 304 Caroline O'Donoghue 0593535707 Bea 0 to-read 4.06 2023
author: Caroline O'Donoghue
name: Bea
average rating: 4.06
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/23
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 122993657
With script pages full of stolen dialogue, random musical numbers, and a whole cast of supernatural weirdoes, there’s no denying that Jane and Slade are stuck in a swords-and-sorcery film. Even worse, Jane is starting to think that the handsome vampire who’s wrecked her practical life might just be her Prince Charming.

M/F
Happily Ever After
Fated Mates, Isekai trope, medieval world romance, himbo romance
97,000 + words
Standalone romance, but Slade also appears in Not Another Vampire Book]]> 374 Cassandra Gannon Bea 4 3.77 2014
author: Cassandra Gannon
name: Bea
average rating: 3.77
book published: 2014
rating: 4
read at: 2025/01/23
date added: 2025/01/23
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]]> 61150773
On the island of Charmant, magic flows like bootlegged champagne, and fantasies can be bought for the price of a gemstone.

Luxe Revelle, star of her family’s fantastical show, knows the splendor is just an illusion. With Prohibition threatening their livelihood, her family struggles to make a living, watering down champagne and patching holes in their sequined costumes. So when the son of Charmant’s wealthiest family makes her an offer—everything the Revelles need to stay in business, in exchange for posing as his girl and helping him become mayor—she can’t refuse.

The moment Jamison Port sets foot in Charmant, he can’t shake the feeling of familiarity. An orphan with as few memories as gemstones, he’s desperate to learn what happened to his parents. But as he delves into the island’s secrets, he risks angering the wrong person and discovering a truth that just might break his heart.

When Luxe and Jamison accidentally meet, the sparks that fly are more than her magical enchantments. But keeping secrets from powerful people is a dangerous game . . . one that could destroy them both.]]> 464 Lyssa Mia Smith 0063239264 Bea 0 to-read 3.96 2023
author: Lyssa Mia Smith
name: Bea
average rating: 3.96
book published: 2023
rating: 0
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date added: 2025/01/22
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]]> 211096516 EVERY ACT OF TRANSLATION REQUIRES SACRIFICE

Welcome to Bletchley Park… with dragons.

London, 1923. Dragons soar through the skies and protests erupt on the streets, but Vivian Featherswallow isn’t worried. She’s going to follow the rules, get an internship studying dragon languages, and make sure her little sister never has to risk growing up Third Class. By midnight, Viv has started a civil war.

With her parents arrested and her sister missing, all the safety Viv has worked for is collapsing around her. So when a lifeline is offered in the form of a mysterious ‘job’, she grabs it. Arriving at Bletchley Park, Viv discovers that she has been recruited as a codebreaker helping the war effort – if she succeeds, she and her family can all go home again. If she doesn’t, they’ll all die.

At first Viv believes that her challenge, of discovering the secrets of a hidden dragon language, is doable. But the more she learns, the more she realises that the bubble she’s grown up in isn’t as safe as she thought, and eventually Viv must What war is she really fighting?

An epic, sweeping fantasy with an incredible Dark Academia setting, a clandestine, slow-burn enemies-to-lovers romance, and an unputdownable story, filled with twists and turns, betrayals and secret identities, A Language of Dragons is the unmissable debut of 2025, from an extraordinary new voice.]]> 432 S.F. Williamson 0063353849 Bea 4 3.83 2025
author: S.F. Williamson
name: Bea
average rating: 3.83
book published: 2025
rating: 4
read at: 2025/01/22
date added: 2025/01/22
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]]> 211003924 The first novel in a sweeping YA fantasy duology based on characters and teachings created by Bruce Lee!

Sixteen-year-old Jun dreams of proving his worth as a warrior in the elite Guardian’s Tournament, held every six years to entrust the magical Scroll of Earth to a new protector. Eager to prove his skills, Jun hopes that a win will restore his father’s honor—righting a horrible mistake that caused their banishment from his home, mother, and twin brother.

But Jun’s father strictly forbids him from participating. There is no future in honing his skills as a warrior, especially considering Jun is not breathmarked, born with a patch of dragon scales and blessed with special abilities like his twin. Determined to be the next Guardian, Jun stows away in the wagon of Chang and his daughter, Ren, performers on their way to the capital where the tournament will take place.

As Jun competes, he quickly realizes he may be fighting for not just a better life, but the fate of the country itself.]]> 341 Shannon Lee 1250902673 Bea 0 to-read 3.98 2025
author: Shannon Lee
name: Bea
average rating: 3.98
book published: 2025
rating: 0
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date added: 2025/01/22
shelves: to-read
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]]> 13478538 Chie Shinohara 4091362516 Bea 3 3.73 1994
author: Chie Shinohara
name: Bea
average rating: 3.73
book published: 1994
rating: 3
read at: 2025/01/21
date added: 2025/01/21
shelves:
review:

]]> 211003729 In Alexandra Vasti’s newest Regency rom-com, a reclusive earl’s life is turned upside down when a stranger shows up on his doorstep with an astonishing proposal—and an inconvenient connection to espionage.

For three years, wallflower heiress Lydia Hope-Wallace has anonymously penned seditious pamphlets. And for almost as long, she’s corresponded with the Earl of Strathrannoch, whose political ambition is matched only by his charm. When Arthur’s latest letter reveals his dire financial straits, Lydia sets out for Scotland to offer him the only salvation she can think of—a marriage of convenience. To, um, herself.

Unfortunately, the Earl of Strathrannoch has no idea who she is.

When a bewitching redheaded stranger offers him her hand in marriage, Arthur Baird is stunned—but when he learns that his traitorous brother has been writing to her under Arthur’s name, he’s bloody furious. He’s content to live alone in his moldering castle, and he has no desire for a provocative, radical wife. (Or at least, he shouldn’t.)

But Arthur is desperate to track down his brother, who’s become dangerously entangled in British espionage, and he needs Lydia’s help. What he doesn’t need? The attraction that burns hotter each moment they spend together. As Lydia slips past his defenses and his brother’s mysterious past becomes a very present threat, Arthur will have to risk everything to keep her safe—even his heart.]]> 329 Alexandra Vasti 125091096X Bea 0 to-read 4.09 2025
author: Alexandra Vasti
name: Bea
average rating: 4.09
book published: 2025
rating: 0
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date added: 2025/01/21
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 13478481 Chie Shinohara 4091343309 Bea 3 3.69 1994
author: Chie Shinohara
name: Bea
average rating: 3.69
book published: 1994
rating: 3
read at: 2025/01/20
date added: 2025/01/20
shelves:
review:

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