en-US Wed, 05 Mar 2025 16:33:55 -0800 60 144 41 /images/layout/goodreads_logo_144.jpg 56706062
What’s worse? She’s a freshman.��

I may be the youngest NCAA head coach in history, but I’m still too old for her. Too big too, I played in the league as an offensive lineman. She’s tiny compared to me. Innocent, naïve, and completely off-limits—Willow tempts me even when she isn’t trying to.��

I should walk away from her. But I can’t. She calls me her bear, and I’ve never wanted anyone the way I do her. If I have to fight off half my team to keep her to myself, I will. For her, I’ll risk my career and my reputation. Because winning her is the only game I can’t afford to lose.]]> 99 Lucy Darling vani 0 4.13
author: Lucy Darling
name: vani
average rating: 4.13
book published:
rating: 0
read at: 2021/02/01
date added: 2025/03/05
shelves:
review:

]]> 60581370
The lost Heir of Jasad, Sylvia never wants to be found. She can’t think about how Nizahl’s armies laid waste to her kingdom and continue to hunt its people—not if she wants to stay alive. But when Arin, the Nizahl Heir, tracks a group of Jasadi rebels to her village, staying one step ahead of death gets trickier.

In a moment of anger Sylvia’s magic is exposed, capturing Arin’s attention. Now, to save her life, Sylvia will have to make a deal with her greatest enemy. If she helps him lure the rebels, she’ll escape persecution.

A deadly game begins. Sylvia can’t let Arin discover her identity even as hatred shifts into something more. Soon, Sylvia will have to choose between the life she wants and the one she left behind. The scorched kingdom is rising, and it needs a queen.

In this Egyptian-inspired debut fantasy, a fugitive queen strikes a deadly bargain with her greatest enemy and finds herself embroiled in a complex game that could resurrect her scorched kingdom or leave it in ashes forever. ]]> 523 Sara Hashem 0316477869 vani 0 to-read 3.95 2023
author: Sara Hashem
name: vani
average rating: 3.95
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/31
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 37642300
The last time she did, it was an accident, but The Reestablishment locked her up for murder. No one knows why Juliette’s touch is fatal. As long as she doesn’t hurt anyone else, no one really cares. The world is too busy crumbling to pieces to pay attention to a 17-year-old girl. Diseases are destroying the population, food is hard to find, birds don’t fly anymore, and the clouds are the wrong color.

The Reestablishment said their way was the only way to fix things, so they threw Juliette in a cell. Now so many people are dead that the survivors are whispering war �� and The Reestablishment has changed its mind. Maybe Juliette is more than a tortured soul stuffed into a poisonous body. Maybe she’s exactly what they need right now.

Juliette has to make a choice: Be a weapon. Or be a warrior.]]> 339 Tahereh Mafi vani 0 1-star adamjuliette booo 3.74 2011
author: Tahereh Mafi
name: vani
average rating: 3.74
book published: 2011
rating: 0
read at: 2025/01/27
date added: 2025/01/27
shelves: 1-star
review:
adamjuliette booo
]]> 62080187
But when they visit the remote manor that once belonged to Dr. Adrienne Hale, a renowned psychiatrist who vanished without a trace four years earlier, a violent winter storm traps them at the estate�� with no chance of escape until the blizzard comes to an end.

In search of a book to keep her entertained until the snow abates, Tricia happens upon a secret room. One that contains audio transcripts from every single patient Dr. Hale has ever interviewed. As Tricia listens to the cassette tapes, she learns about the terrifying chain of events leading up to Dr. Hale’s mysterious disappearance.

Tricia plays the tapes one by one, late into the night. With each one, another shocking piece of the puzzle falls into place, and Dr. Adrienne Hale’s web of lies slowly unravels.

And then Tricia reaches the final cassette.

The one that reveals the entire horrifying truth.]]> 286 Freida McFadden vani 0 to-read 4.09 2022
author: Freida McFadden
name: vani
average rating: 4.09
book published: 2022
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/12/28
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 54197718
A night spent sleeping on dirt and leaves is not how Claire Matchett expected to spend her vacation.

She thought this would be a break from the stresses of work and raising her young children. A chance to repair her damaged marriage. A week of hiking and hot tubs with two other couple friends. It sounded like heaven.

Then Claire’s minivan breaks down on a lonely dirt road. With no cell reception, the group has no choice but to hike the rest of the way to their hotel. But it turns out the woods aren’t as easy to navigate as they thought.

Hours later, they are lost. Hopelessly lost.

And as they navigate deeper into the woods, the members of their party are struck down mysteriously one by one. Has a wild animal been hunting them? Or is the hunter one of them?

But as more time passes, one thing becomes clear:

Only one of them will return home alive.]]> 295 Freida McFadden vani 0 to-read 3.87 2020
author: Freida McFadden
name: vani
average rating: 3.87
book published: 2020
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/12/28
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 43263291 desperate wallflower. To save her family, she’ll do anything. Luckily, she has the perfect plan...

She’ll impress the ton by simply announcing she is engaged to the reclusive and mysterious Duke of Thornton, Alexander Masters, and secure strong matches for her sisters. No one has heard from the duke in years. Surely he’ll never find out before her sisters�� weddings, and she can go back to her own quiet life.

Soon, though, everything is out of control. At first, it’s just a few new ball gowns on the duke’s accounts. Then, it’s interviews with reporters eager for gossip. Before she knows it, Katherine has transformed herself into Kitty Danvers, charming and clever belle of the ton―with everyone eager to meet her thankfully absent fiancé.

But when the enigmatic Alexander Masters suddenly arrives in the city, dashing and oh so angry, he demands retribution. Except not in the way Katherine expected…]]> 377 Stacy Reid 1640637451 vani 0 to-read 3.92 2019
author: Stacy Reid
name: vani
average rating: 3.92
book published: 2019
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/12/20
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 60556912
Every day I clean the Winchesters�� beautiful house top to bottom. I collect their daughter from school. And I cook a delicious meal for the whole family before heading up to eat alone in my tiny room on the top floor.

I try to ignore how Nina makes a mess just to watch me clean it up. How she tells strange lies about her own daughter. And how her husband Andrew seems more broken every day. But as I look into Andrew’s handsome brown eyes, so full of pain, it’s hard not to imagine what it would be like to live Nina’s life. The walk-in closet, the fancy car, the perfect husband.

I only try on one of Nina’s pristine white dresses once. Just to see what it’s like. But she soon finds out�� and by the time I realize my attic bedroom door only locks from the outside, it’s far too late.

But I reassure myself: the Winchesters don’t know who I really am.

They don’t know what I’m capable of��

An unbelievably twisty read that will have you glued to the pages late into the night. Anyone who loves The Woman in the Window, The Wife Between Us and The Girl on the Train won’t be able to put this down!]]> 329 Freida McFadden 1803144378 vani 0 to-read 4.31 2022
author: Freida McFadden
name: vani
average rating: 4.31
book published: 2022
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/12/17
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 13489919 Sometimes love is an accident.

This time, it’s a strategy.

Miss Minerva Lane is a quiet, bespectacled wallflower, and she wants to keep it that way. After all, the last time she was the center of attention, it ended badly—so badly that she changed her name to escape her scandalous past. Wallflowers may not be the prettiest of blooms, but at least they don't get trampled. So when a handsome duke comes to town, the last thing she wants is his attention.

But that is precisely what she gets.

Because Robert Blaisdell, the Duke of Clermont, is not fooled. When Minnie figures out what he’s up to, he realizes there is more to her than her spectacles and her quiet ways. And he’s determined to lay her every secret bare before she can discover his. But this time, one shy miss may prove to be more than his match...]]> 270 Courtney Milan 1937248097 vani 0 to-read 3.80 2012
author: Courtney Milan
name: vani
average rating: 3.80
book published: 2012
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/12/13
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 216470283 My new boss—Alexander Bane
Aptly named since he’s the bane of my existence.
Please isn’t in his vocabulary.
He grunts, growls, and demands.
If only he didn’t look so sexy when doing so.
If only his mouth weren’t so addictive when kissing mine.
He’s quickly becoming my favorite boss.
Which is wrong.

My new assistant is an unwelcomed distraction.
Snarky, witty, always smiling.
Constantly putting me in my place.
Making me second-guess my decisions.
I dislike it. Intensely.
Unless I’m kissing her.
Then Magnolia Myers becomes my favorite person.
Which I hate.

Two people working together, disliking each other.
Until they don’t.
Then the fun begins.

HR has never been so entertained.

Author's note: For those on the lookout for a hero who's so charming when he's bossy that it makes you want to follow his orders just to keep him talking.]]> 343 Melanie Moreland 1642634301 vani 0 to-read 3.91 2024
author: Melanie Moreland
name: vani
average rating: 3.91
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/10/13
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 36578750 New York Times bestselling author and National Book Award finalist Jason Reynolds’s rallying cry to the dreamers of the world.

For Every One is just that: for every one. For every one person. For every one dream. But especially for every one kid. The kids who dream of being better than they are. Kids who dream of doing more than they almost dare to dream. Kids who are like Jason Reynolds, a self-professed dreamer. Jason does not claim to know how to make dreams come true; he has, in fact, been fighting on the front line of his own battle to make his own dreams a reality. He expected to make it when he was sixteen. Then eighteen. Then twenty-five. Now, some of those expectations have been realized. But others, the most important ones, lay ahead, and a lot of them involve kids, how to inspire them. All the kids who are scared to dream, or don’t know how to dream, or don’t dare to dream because they’ve NEVER seen a dream come true. Jason wants kids to know that dreams take time. They involve countless struggles. But no matter how many times a dreamer gets beat down, the drive and the passion and the hope never fully extinguish—because just having the dream is the start you need, or you won’t get anywhere anyway, and that is when you have to take a leap of faith.

A pitch perfect graduation, baby, or love my kid gift.]]> 110 Jason Reynolds 1481486268 vani 0 4.35 2018
author: Jason Reynolds
name: vani
average rating: 4.35
book published: 2018
rating: 0
read at: 2019/08/06
date added: 2024/09/28
shelves:
review:

]]> 11180068
Stolen is her gripping story of survival, of how she has to come to terms with her living nightmare - or die trying to fight it.]]> 306 Lucy Christopher 0545361117 vani 1 1-star yawn next 3.82 2009
author: Lucy Christopher
name: vani
average rating: 3.82
book published: 2009
rating: 1
read at: 2019/04/26
date added: 2024/09/26
shelves: 1-star
review:
yawn next
]]> 33401730
Eighteen-year-old Eliza Mirk is the anonymous creator of the wildly popular webcomic Monstrous Sea, but when a new boy at school tempts her to live a life offline, everything she’s worked for begins to crumble.

Rainbow Rowell’s Fangirl meets Noelle Stevenson’s Nimona in this acclaimed novel about art, fandom, and finding the courage to be yourself. “A must-have.”—School Library Journal

In the real world, Eliza Mirk is shy, weird, and friendless. Online, Eliza is LadyConstellation, anonymous creator of a popular webcomic called Monstrous Sea. With millions of followers and fans throughout the world, Eliza’s persona is popular. Eliza can’t imagine enjoying the real world as much as she loves her digital community.

Then Wallace Warland transfers to her school and Eliza begins to wonder if a life offline might be worthwhile. But when Eliza’s secret is accidentally shared with the world, everything she’s built—her story, her relationship with Wallace, and even her sanity—begins to fall apart.

With pages from Eliza’s webcomic, as well as screenshots from Eliza’s online forums, this book will appeal to fans of Noelle Stevenson’s Nimona and Rainbow Rowell’s Fangirl.

Young Adult Library Services Association Best Book

Best Fiction for Young Adults Top Ten

Kirkus Best Book

Texas Tayshas Pick]]> 405 Francesca Zappia vani 2 2-stars
let's start with the characters:

eliza, a high school senior who is the anonymous creator of the most popular web comic on the internet, monstrous sea and works under the name LadyConstellation. holy shit, this girl is a brat. anytime her parents try to reach her, she screams at them. and they didn't even do anything wrong? she's the one with communication problems, but in stereotypical teenage fashion, she just rolls her eyes, blames them for trying to parent, and stays locked in her room all day on her laptop and/or her phone. like it's your fucking family, and they're actually great people???? it's like the author watched a bunch of teenagers on dr. phil and made them less violent. ugh.

eliza's two internet (and only) friends, whose names i don't remember because they play no actual important role, are dull, underdeveloped people who know eliza because of monstrous sea. their characterizations are laughable. one is a 14 year old girl who is in college and the other is a twenty-something guy from canada. the 14 year old was just fucking annoying as shit but whatever. and honestly i almost laughed out loud when the guy said his girlfriend dumped him because he spent too much time online. like,, you did that to yourself- get the fuck off the computer and spend some time with her. it's not as if she's clingy bro,, i'd dump your ass too.

wallace, the fanfic-writing love interest drove me fucking crazy. when he told eliza that he was angry at her for not telling her she was the creater of monstrous sea, which is what he writes fanfic for, i was ready to fight him. bitch, she has no obligation to tell you about it. she's known you for half a year (i think) and she's done her comic thing for years. and he keeps saying he's angry with her repeatedly even when she apologizes. give me a fucking break.

eliza's family aka her mom, her dad, and her two younger brothers, church and sully. honestly the only people i liked in this story. her parents actually tried to build a relationship with her and let her know they were proud of her. and church and sully are great, talking for their sister and helping their parents understand eliza better because she can't grow the fuck up.

and, finally, we get to wallace's friends, who, like eliza's, don't really play a big role. i didn't care about them at first. they were just typical monstrous sea fanboys/ fangirls, but the one thing that irked me was that they were mad at eliza for not telling them she was LadyConstellation. y'all hung out like three times and she said they didn't really feel that much like her friends. she doesn't need to tell them shit.

essentially, the plot:

eliza mirk writes web comics and one day meets new boy wallace something. wallace is the most popular fanfic writer of said comic. they talk through notes after an encounter with two bullies. then nothing fucking happens. eliza goes to school. eliza yells at her parents at home. eliza goes to one (1) party. eliza draws for her comic. eliza stays online all day. eliza falls in love with wallace because he makes her want to go outside even through their dynamic feels more platonic. then eliza's parents reveal that she is LadyConstellation (gasp!) because she didn't let them know anything about her life online and they don't know that other people don't know that their daughter is really popular on the internet. but it could have been avoided if she put down her phone and talked to them. but who does that??? wallace gets angry at her for not telling him. wallace tells her he got a book deal, and the book he's writing is the transcript of eliza's web comic. wallace gets more angry when eliza says that she's burned out and out of ideas and doesn't know if she can finish it. wallace stays mad when eliza apologizes. eliza drives over to a part of town that is notorious for talking lives, whether the person intends for it to or not. she contemplates suicide, but doesn't do it because wallace saves the day!!! and then they live happily ever after. the end.

two stars for the anxiety rep and for eliza’s brothers, the real mvps.]]> 4.17 2017
author: Francesca Zappia
name: vani
average rating: 4.17
book published: 2017
rating: 2
read at: 2019/08/16
date added: 2024/09/24
shelves: 2-stars
review:
unpopular opinion: this sucked so freaking bad. the writing, the characters, the (barely there) plot, the romance, etc. were. all. fucking. terrible.

let's start with the characters:

eliza, a high school senior who is the anonymous creator of the most popular web comic on the internet, monstrous sea and works under the name LadyConstellation. holy shit, this girl is a brat. anytime her parents try to reach her, she screams at them. and they didn't even do anything wrong? she's the one with communication problems, but in stereotypical teenage fashion, she just rolls her eyes, blames them for trying to parent, and stays locked in her room all day on her laptop and/or her phone. like it's your fucking family, and they're actually great people???? it's like the author watched a bunch of teenagers on dr. phil and made them less violent. ugh.

eliza's two internet (and only) friends, whose names i don't remember because they play no actual important role, are dull, underdeveloped people who know eliza because of monstrous sea. their characterizations are laughable. one is a 14 year old girl who is in college and the other is a twenty-something guy from canada. the 14 year old was just fucking annoying as shit but whatever. and honestly i almost laughed out loud when the guy said his girlfriend dumped him because he spent too much time online. like,, you did that to yourself- get the fuck off the computer and spend some time with her. it's not as if she's clingy bro,, i'd dump your ass too.

wallace, the fanfic-writing love interest drove me fucking crazy. when he told eliza that he was angry at her for not telling her she was the creater of monstrous sea, which is what he writes fanfic for, i was ready to fight him. bitch, she has no obligation to tell you about it. she's known you for half a year (i think) and she's done her comic thing for years. and he keeps saying he's angry with her repeatedly even when she apologizes. give me a fucking break.

eliza's family aka her mom, her dad, and her two younger brothers, church and sully. honestly the only people i liked in this story. her parents actually tried to build a relationship with her and let her know they were proud of her. and church and sully are great, talking for their sister and helping their parents understand eliza better because she can't grow the fuck up.

and, finally, we get to wallace's friends, who, like eliza's, don't really play a big role. i didn't care about them at first. they were just typical monstrous sea fanboys/ fangirls, but the one thing that irked me was that they were mad at eliza for not telling them she was LadyConstellation. y'all hung out like three times and she said they didn't really feel that much like her friends. she doesn't need to tell them shit.

essentially, the plot:

eliza mirk writes web comics and one day meets new boy wallace something. wallace is the most popular fanfic writer of said comic. they talk through notes after an encounter with two bullies. then nothing fucking happens. eliza goes to school. eliza yells at her parents at home. eliza goes to one (1) party. eliza draws for her comic. eliza stays online all day. eliza falls in love with wallace because he makes her want to go outside even through their dynamic feels more platonic. then eliza's parents reveal that she is LadyConstellation (gasp!) because she didn't let them know anything about her life online and they don't know that other people don't know that their daughter is really popular on the internet. but it could have been avoided if she put down her phone and talked to them. but who does that??? wallace gets angry at her for not telling him. wallace tells her he got a book deal, and the book he's writing is the transcript of eliza's web comic. wallace gets more angry when eliza says that she's burned out and out of ideas and doesn't know if she can finish it. wallace stays mad when eliza apologizes. eliza drives over to a part of town that is notorious for talking lives, whether the person intends for it to or not. she contemplates suicide, but doesn't do it because wallace saves the day!!! and then they live happily ever after. the end.

two stars for the anxiety rep and for eliza’s brothers, the real mvps.
]]> 42092260 From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of In a Dark, Dark Wood, The Woman in Cabin 10, The Lying Game, and The Death of Mrs. Westaway comes Ruth Ware’s highly anticipated fifth novel.

When she stumbles across the ad, she’s looking for something else completely. But it seems like too good an opportunity to miss—a live-in nannying post, with a staggeringly generous salary. And when Rowan Caine arrives at Heatherbrae House, she is smitten—by the luxurious “smart�� home fitted out with all modern conveniences, by the beautiful Scottish Highlands, and by this picture-perfect family.

What she doesn’t know is that she’s stepping into a nightmare—one that will end with a child dead and herself in prison awaiting trial for murder.

Writing to her lawyer from prison, she struggles to explain the unravelling events that led to her incarceration. It wasn’t just the constant surveillance from the cameras installed around the house, or the malfunctioning technology that woke the household with booming music, or turned the lights off at the worst possible time. It wasn’t just the girls, who turned out to be a far cry from the immaculately behaved model children she met at her interview. It wasn’t even the way she was left alone for weeks at a time, with no adults around apart from the enigmatic handyman, Jack Grant.

It was everything.

She knows she’s made mistakes. She admits that she lied to obtain the post, and that her behavior toward the children wasn’t always ideal. She’s not innocent, by any means. But, she maintains, she’s not guilty—at least not of murder. Which means someone else is.

Full of spellbinding menace and told in Ruth Ware’s signature suspenseful style, The Turn of the Key is an unputdownable thriller from the Agatha Christie of our time.]]> 356 Ruth Ware 1501188798 vani 2 2-stars 3.98 2019
author: Ruth Ware
name: vani
average rating: 3.98
book published: 2019
rating: 2
read at: 2019/10/15
date added: 2024/09/23
shelves: 2-stars
review:

]]> 52082279 A marriage built on a lie��

Until her pregnancy test confirms the truth!

Claudia Buscetta is swept off her feet by Ciro Trapani. Their wedding night is everything she dreamed of—but then she overhears Ciro’s confession: the marriage was his way of avenging his father. Heartbroken Claudia prepares to walk away from him forever…only to discover she’s pregnant!

Driven Ciro is suddenly bound irrevocably to his enemy’s daughter! Claudia is far from the pampered “princess�� he imagined. And living with her sparks a fierce battle…between his quest for revenge and his burning desire for his wife!]]> 224 Michelle Smart 1488059659 vani 0 3.72 2020
author: Michelle Smart
name: vani
average rating: 3.72
book published: 2020
rating: 0
read at: 2021/02/05
date added: 2024/09/18
shelves:
review:

]]> 40104346 From the critically acclaimed author of The Kiss Quotient comes a romantic novel about love that crosses international borders and all boundaries of the heart...

Khai Diep has no feelings. Well, he feels irritation when people move his things or contentment when ledgers balance down to the penny, but not big, important emotions �� like grief. And love. He thinks he's defective. His family knows better�� that his autism means he just processes emotions differently. When he steadfastly avoids relationships, his mother takes matters into her own hands and returns to Vietnam to find him the perfect bride.

As a mixed-race girl living in the slums of Ho Chi Minh City, Esme Tran has always felt out of place. When the opportunity arises to come to America and meet a potential husband, she can't turn it down, thinking this could be the break her family needs. Seducing Khai, however, doesn't go as planned. Esme's lessons in love seem to be working... but only on herself. She's hopelessly smitten with a man who's convinced he can never return her affection.

With Esme's time in the United States dwindling, Khai is forced to understand he's been wrong all along. And there's more than one way to love.]]> 320 Helen Hoang 0451490835 vani 4 4-stars i love themmmm 3.93 2019
author: Helen Hoang
name: vani
average rating: 3.93
book published: 2019
rating: 4
read at: 2019/07/16
date added: 2024/09/12
shelves: 4-stars
review:
i love themmmm
]]> 25852828 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER �� A stunning “portrait of the enduring grace of friendship�� (NPR) about the families we are born into, and those that we make for ourselves. A masterful depiction of love in the twenty-first century.

NATIONAL BOOK AWARD FINALIST �� MAN BOOKER PRIZE FINALIST �� WINNER OF THE KIRKUS PRIZE ��

A Little Life follows four college classmates—broke, adrift, and buoyed only by their friendship and ambition—as they move to New York in search of fame and fortune. While their relationships, which are tinged by addiction, success, and pride, deepen over the decades, the men are held together by their devotion to the brilliant, enigmatic Jude, a man scarred by an unspeakable childhood trauma. A hymn to brotherly bonds and a masterful depiction of love in the twenty-first century, Hanya Yanagihara’s stunning novel is about the families we are born into, and those that we make for ourselves.]]> 816 Hanya Yanagihara 0804172706 vani 5 5-stars, favorites 0 stars 4.36 2015
author: Hanya Yanagihara
name: vani
average rating: 4.36
book published: 2015
rating: 5
read at: 2023/06/25
date added: 2024/08/16
shelves: 5-stars, favorites
review:
0 stars
]]> 40853115 Alisha Rai returns with a sizzling new novel, in which two rival dating app creators find themselves at odds in the boardroom but in sync in the bedroom.

Rhiannon Hunter may have revolutionized romance in the digital world, but in real life she only swipes right on her career—and the occasional hookup. The cynical dating app creator controls her love life with a few key

- Nude pics are by invitation only

- If someone stands you up, block them with extreme prejudice

- Protect your heart

Only there aren't any rules to govern her attraction to her newest match, former pro-football player Samson Lima. The sexy and seemingly sweet hunk woos her one magical night... and disappears.

Rhi thought she'd buried her hurt over Samson ghosting her, until he suddenly surfaces months later, still big, still beautiful—and in league with a business rival. He says he won't fumble their second chance, but she's wary. A temporary physical partnership is one thing, but a merger of hearts? Surely that’s too high a risk…]]> 394 Alisha Rai 0062877860 vani 1 1-star 3.77 2019
author: Alisha Rai
name: vani
average rating: 3.77
book published: 2019
rating: 1
read at: 2019/08/28
date added: 2024/07/22
shelves: 1-star
review:
when i picked up the right swipe, i was expecting a funny and smart story, but i only got disappointment. i deeply appreciated the feminism and diversity. i hated how there was barely any character growth, how sex was a priority over communication, and how much the fun, witty dialogue lacked. i need to have a good time reading, not be bored out of my mind.
]]> 209955115
Grant Bergeron is Orleans University’s playboy first baseman.
He’s charming, kind�� and a tad arrogant.
But underneath his party guy demeanor, he’s more than anyone sees.

I needed a husband, and he strode in like prince charming, taking me up on the marriage pact from our past. One that I never imagined actually happening.
Our I do’s were meant to be temporary, a walk-off wedding that benefited us both.
But when he takes our vows more seriously than I expect, old feelings begin to resurface.
Now we’re sharing a too small apartment and he’s everywhere.
In my room, in my bed, and�� in my heart.

Our marriage is supposed to be fake, but I think I’m falling for my husband.

Tropes:
Marriage of convenience
College baseball
Secret Identities/Penpal
"Teach Me"
Boy Obsessed
Only one bed

Walkoff Wedding is book 3 in the Orleans University series and can be read as a complete standalone.]]> 428 Maren Moore vani 0 to-read 3.96
author: Maren Moore
name: vani
average rating: 3.96
book published:
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/07/03
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 200769681
All I wanted was a harmless kiss from the handsome stranger at my eighteenth birthday party. But when he said �� with a cruel twist of his cigarette smoking lips �� that he doesn’t kiss ‘annoying little girls,�� I stupidly decided to flirt with a random guy to make him jealous.

I never wanted that random guy to fall in love with me. Or worse, accidentally start a relationship with him. But now I have a new boyfriend while I can’t stop thinking about the guy who doesn’t care that I exist.

So it’s time to move on and focus on my new relationship.

Only the moment I make that decision, he decides to notice me.

He decides to stare at me a little too hard and in a way that makes me blush. Oh and one day when my boyfriend isn’t looking, he decides to corner me in a lonely hallway and put his rough and heated hands on me that feels equal parts forbidden and familiar.

But I’m not stupid.

I’m not going to ruin my new relationship for someone that people call Stellan ‘The Cold�� Thorne. Especially not when the random guy I’m dating isn’t random at all.

No, my new boyfriend happens to be the brother of the guy I’m inappropriately obsessed with.

And I’m not the kind of girl who comes between two brothers.

Twin brothers��

Or am I?

NOTE: This book is a complete STANDALONE set in the world of St. Mary's and Bardstown.]]> 442 Saffron A. Kent vani 0 girl what r u writing 3.85 2024
author: Saffron A. Kent
name: vani
average rating: 3.85
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2024/07/02
date added: 2024/07/02
shelves:
review:
girl what r u writing
]]> 31076583 229 Sarah J. Maas 168119631X vani 4 4-stars 3.77 2019
author: Sarah J. Maas
name: vani
average rating: 3.77
book published: 2019
rating: 4
read at: 2019/03/18
date added: 2024/07/02
shelves: 4-stars
review:

]]> 57213579
ACOMAF Part 1: The House of Beasts (Rhys POV) by illyriantremors

The first 13 chapters of ACOMAF told from Rhys's POV. Includes some brief details of his three months without her after he comes home from UtM and some improvised scenes, but most of it concerns his time with Feyre.
~~~~~~~~~~~

ACOMAF Part 2.1: The House of Wind (Rhys POV) by illyriantremors

Chapters 14-27 of ACOMAF from Rhysand's POV.

Starting with Chapter 14: Rhys brings Feyre to Velaris after saving her from Tamlin's prison in the Spring Court. His inner circle crashes their brief landing in Rhys's townhouse, sending Feyre upstairs. Downstairs, Rhys chats with his family and learns about another temple raid from Azriel.
~~~~~~~~~~~

ACOMAF Part 2.2: The House of Wind Cont'd (Rhys POV) by illyriantremors

Chapters 28-40 of ACOMAF from Rhys's POV.

Beginning with Rhys and Feyre's return from visiting her sisters, and following through the trip to the Summer Court and the first visit from the mortal queens.
~~~~~~~~~~~

ACOMAF Part 2.3: The House of Wind Cont'd (Rhys POV) by illyriantremors

Chapters 41-51 of ACOMAF from Rhysand's POV.

Kicking off with Rhys's decision to steal the Veritas and subsequent hesitation over the role Feyre will play if she goes with him to the Court of Nightmares.
~~~~~~~~~~~

ACOMAF Part 3.1: The House of Mist (Rhys POV) by illyriantremors

Chapters 52-56 of ACOMAF from Rhys's POV.

Starting with his recovery after being shot down by Hybern while Feyre takes time away.]]> 483 IllyrianTremors vani 0 to-read 4.38
author: IllyrianTremors
name: vani
average rating: 4.38
book published:
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/01/25
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 198264008 I accidentally hooked up with the guy I despise. A mistake I’d love to forget…except now he’s my new roommate.
Reese Landry is Orleans University’s arrogant, All-Star catcher.
And I’m the one girl he can’t seem to catch.
If anything, it only makes him want me more.

He’s disgustingly rich, stupidly charming, and everyone loves him.
Except me.

But then life throws me the ultimate curveball: He’s my new temporary roomie.
I thought it was going to be easy, keeping him at a distance.
Turns out, I was wrong.

He’s nothing like the cocky, rich playboy that I thought he was.
I told myself one more time wouldn’t hurt.
We promised to keep things casual, no strings attached.
But soon lines blur, and he somehow becomes my only safe space to land.

And now, we’re catching feelings.


Catching Feelings is book 2 in the Orleans University series and can be read as a complete standalone.]]> 370 Maren Moore vani 0 to-read 4.09 2024
author: Maren Moore
name: vani
average rating: 4.09
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/01/23
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 127305713
Spending her days pretending to be nothing more than a vapid young socialite, Rune spends her nights as the Crimson Moth, a witch vigilante who rescues her kind from being purged. When a rescue goes wrong, she decides to throw the witch hunters off her scent and gain the intel she desperately needs by courting the handsome Gideon Sharpe �� a notorious and unforgiving witch hunter loyal to the revolution �� who she can't help but find herself falling for.

Gideon loathes the decadence and superficiality Rune represents, but when he learns the Crimson Moth has been using Rune’s merchant ships to smuggle renegade witches out of the republic, he inserts himself into her social circles by pretending to court her right back. He soon realizes that beneath her beauty and shallow façade, is someone fiercely intelligent and tender who feels like his perfect match. Except, what if she’s the very villain he’s been hunting?

Kristen Ciccarelli’s The Crimson Moth is the thrilling start to a romantic fantasy duology where the only thing more treacherous than being a witch�� is falling in love.]]> 406 Kristen Ciccarelli 1250866901 vani 0 to-read 4.16 2024
author: Kristen Ciccarelli
name: vani
average rating: 4.16
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/01/22
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 31451174 New York Times bestselling A Court of Thorns and Roses series.

Feyre has returned to the Spring Court, determined to gather information on Tamlin's manoeuvrings and the invading king threatening to bring Prythian to its knees. But to do so she must play a deadly game of deceit �� and one slip may spell doom not only for Feyre, but for her world as well.

As war bears down upon them all, Feyre must decide who to trust amongst the dazzling and lethal High Lords �� and hunt for allies in unexpected places.

In this thrilling third book in the #1 New York Times bestselling series from Sarah J. Maas, the earth will be painted red as mighty armies grapple for power over the one thing that could destroy them all.]]> 705 Sarah J. Maas 1619634481 vani 5 5-stars, favorites literally my favorite book 4.39 2017
author: Sarah J. Maas
name: vani
average rating: 4.39
book published: 2017
rating: 5
read at: 2024/01/19
date added: 2024/01/22
shelves: 5-stars, favorites
review:
literally my favorite book
]]> 34019110 Wealth. Power. Murder. Magic. Alex Stern is back and the Ivy League is going straight to hell.

Find a gateway to the underworld. Steal a soul out of hell. A simple plan, except people who make this particular journey rarely come back. But Galaxy “Alex�� Stern is determined to break Darlington out of purgatory―even if it costs her a future at Lethe and at Yale.

Forbidden from attempting a rescue, Alex and Dawes can’t call on the Ninth House for help, so they assemble a team of dubious allies to save the gentleman of Lethe. Together, they will have to navigate a maze of arcane texts and bizarre artifacts to uncover the societies�� most closely guarded secrets, and break every rule doing it. But when faculty members begin to die off, Alex knows these aren’t just accidents. Something deadly is at work in New Haven, and if she is going to survive, she’ll have to reckon with the monsters of her past and a darkness built into the university’s very walls.

Thick with history and packed with Bardugo’s signature twists, Hell Bent brings to life an intricate world full of magic, violence, and all too real monsters.]]> 484 Leigh Bardugo 1250313112 vani 0 to-read 4.20 2023
author: Leigh Bardugo
name: vani
average rating: 4.20
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/01/20
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 75710137
Throughout Laven's search for alliance, he discovers The Realm of the Fae may be their only hope at surviving not just the mutations but the coming war. As a now separated world, the nations of Voschantai Universe must put their differences to rest and live as the Orviantes of their world once did ages before to stop the darkness looming over them all.

In Vaigon, Maivena, a captive servant, and Prince Laven become a contracted pair. As they grow closer Maivena discovers powers within herself that provide her with the strength she once thought lost.

During this age of war, sacrifices are made, love is tested, families are broken, and lives are to be taken. Even those who are known as the strongest of their world falter in the wake of disaster, all but one.]]> Unknown vani 0 to-read 3.32
author: Unknown
name: vani
average rating: 3.32
book published:
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/01/20
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 63894709 "Chokshi's tale is as sweet as a piece of fairy fruit, and just as wicked. Every bite is velvet, every swallow is gold, and the taste lingers like a fever dream." �� V. E. Schwab, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue

"Gorgeous and ornate, this sensual fairy tale illuminates the corrosive and redemptive power of both love and lies." �� Holly Black, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Book of Night

A sumptuous, gothic-infused story about a marriage that is unraveled by dark secrets, a friendship cursed to end in tragedy, and the danger of believing in fairy tales--the breathtaking adult debut from New York Times bestselling author Roshani Chokshi.

Once upon a time, a man who believed in fairy tales married a beautiful, mysterious woman named Indigo Maxwell-Casteñada. He was a scholar of myths. She was heiress to a fortune. They exchanged gifts and stories and believed they would live happily ever after--and in exchange for her love, Indigo extracted a promise: that her bridegroom would never pry into her past.

But when Indigo learns that her estranged aunt is dying and the couple is forced to return to her childhood home, the House of Dreams, the bridegroom will soon find himself unable to resist. For within the crumbling manor's extravagant rooms and musty halls, there lurks the shadow of another girl: Azure, Indigo's dearest childhood friend who suddenly disappeared. As the house slowly reveals his wife's secrets, the bridegroom will be forced to choose between reality and fantasy, even if doing so threatens to destroy their marriage . . . or their lives.

Combining the lush, haunting atmosphere of Mexican Gothic with the dreamy enchantment of The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue, The Last Tale of the Flower Bride is a spellbinding and darkly romantic page-turner about love and lies, secrets and betrayal, and the stories we tell ourselves to survive.

"A fairy tale in the oldest and truest sense: a haunting dream full of blood and love, vicious truths and beautiful lies. It swallowed me whole, and I went willingly." �� Alix E. Harrow, New York Times bestselling author of The Once and Future Witches]]> 304 Roshani Chokshi 0063206528 vani 0 to-read 3.62 2023
author: Roshani Chokshi
name: vani
average rating: 3.62
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/01/19
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 133286777 From the New York Times bestselling author of Ninth House, Hell Bent, and creator of the Grishaverse series comes a highly anticipated historical fantasy set during the Spanish Golden Age

In a shabby house, on a shabby street, in the new capital of Madrid, Luzia Cotado uses scraps of magic to get through her days of endless toil as a scullion. But when her scheming mistress discovers the lump of a servant cowering in the kitchen is actually hiding a talent for little miracles, she demands Luzia use those gifts to better the family's social position.

What begins as simple amusement for the bored nobility takes a perilous turn when Luzia garners the notice of Antonio Pérez, the disgraced secretary to Spain's king. Still reeling from the defeat of his armada, the king is desperate for any advantage in the war against England's heretic queen—and Pérez will stop at nothing to regain the king's favor.

Determined to seize this one chance to better her fortunes, Luzia plunges into a world of seers and alchemists, holy men and hucksters, where the line between magic, science, and fraud is never certain. But as her notoriety grows, so does the danger that her Jewish blood will doom her to the Inquisition's wrath. She will have to use every bit of her wit and will to survive—even if that means enlisting the help of Guillén Santangel, an embittered immortal familiar whose own secrets could prove deadly for them both.]]> 387 Leigh Bardugo 125088425X vani 0 to-read 3.74 2024
author: Leigh Bardugo
name: vani
average rating: 3.74
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/01/12
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 199252912 Two opposites decide to test their chemistry with one steamy night together. But will once be enough?

Nova Porter isn’t looking for love, and she certainly has no explanation for her attraction to buttoned-up, three-piece-suit-wearing investment banker Charlie Milford. Maybe it’s his charm? Or maybe it’s his determination to help her fledgling business however he can. Either way, she’s distracted every time he’s around. With her new tattoo studio set to open in her hometown of Inglewild, she doesn’t have time for frivolous flirtations. 

In an effort to get Charlie out of her system once and for all, Nova offers a proposition. One night. No strings. They’ll kick their uncomfortable attraction to the curb and return to their respective responsibilities. But their explosive night together scatters their expectations like fallen leaves. And with Charlie in town as the temporary head of Lovelight Farms, Nova can’t quite avoid him. 

And Charlie? Well, Charlie knows a good investment when he sees one. He’s hoping he can convince Nova he’s worth some of her time.]]> 384 B.K. Borison 0593641175 vani 0 to-read 4.10 2024
author: B.K. Borison
name: vani
average rating: 4.10
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/01/12
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 26073150
Nor has Feyre forgotten her bargain with Rhysand, High Lord of the feared Night Court. As Feyre navigates its dark web of politics, passion, and dazzling power, a greater evil looms—and she might be key to stopping it. But only if she can harness her harrowing gifts, heal her fractured soul, and decide how she wishes to shape her future—and the future of a world torn apart.]]> 624 Sarah J. Maas 1619634465 vani 5 5-stars, favorites 4.59 2016
author: Sarah J. Maas
name: vani
average rating: 4.59
book published: 2016
rating: 5
read at: 2024/01/08
date added: 2024/01/08
shelves: 5-stars, favorites
review:

]]> 199719283
When a chance encounter sparks an unlikely bond between rival murderers Sloane and Rowan, they find something elusive―the friendship of two like-minded, pitch-black souls who just happen to enjoy killing other serial killers.

From small-town West Virginia to upscale California, and from downtown Boston to rural Texas, the two hunters collide in an annual game of blood and suffering, one that pits them against the most dangerous monsters in the country.

But as their friendship develops into something more, the restless ghosts left in their wake are only a few steps behind, ready to claim more than just their newfound love.

Can Rowan and Sloane dig themselves out of a game of graves?
Or have they finally met their match?

Tropes:
Golden retriever x black cat
He falls first
Touch him/her and die
Friends to lovers
Forced proximity
One bed]]> 351 Brynne Weaver 1638931739 vani 0 to-read 4.15 2023
author: Brynne Weaver
name: vani
average rating: 4.15
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/01/07
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 203896380
I don’t know where I went wrong. Whether it was letting a man convince me that suddenly, the things I’ve never wanted are right for me, or if simply believing the best in the person who I wasted three years of my life on was what lead me here.

To Cherry Peak. A small town nestled in the heart of Alberta, Canada.

The hometown of rising country star, Brody Steele.

It only takes one brief encounter to mark him as a broody jerk. An all-knowing, arrogant celebrity with a complex I don’t have the energy for.

But if I truly dislike him the way I’ve convinced myself I do, then why am I always looking for him in crowded rooms? Why are his surprisingly thoughtful gestures melting the wall of ice I’ve stuck between us?

Cherry Peak was supposed to be my fresh start, a place to heal and rebuild. Yet, just as I begin piecing my life back together, Brody’s preparing to leave, as if he hasn’t become a vital part of that journey.

The thought of losing him keeps me up at night. I don’t know if we’ll ever be able to find our footing, or if we were just stringing each other along the whole time.]]> Hannah Cowan vani 0 to-read 3.62 2024
author: Hannah Cowan
name: vani
average rating: 3.62
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/01/06
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 16096824
Dragged to a magical kingdom for the murder of a faerie, Feyre discovers that her captor, his face obscured by a jewelled mask, is hiding far more than his piercing green eyes would suggest. Feyre's presence at the court is closely guarded, and as she begins to learn why, her feelings for him turn from hostility to passion and the faerie lands become an even more dangerous place. Feyre must fight to break an ancient curse, or she will lose him forever.]]> 419 Sarah J. Maas 1619634449 vani 0 4-stars fetus feyre and rhysbae 4.17 2015
author: Sarah J. Maas
name: vani
average rating: 4.17
book published: 2015
rating: 0
read at: 2024/01/05
date added: 2024/01/05
shelves: 4-stars
review:
fetus feyre and rhysbae
]]> 6514 294 Sylvia Plath 0571268862 vani 0 to-read 4.05 1963
author: Sylvia Plath
name: vani
average rating: 4.05
book published: 1963
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/01/05
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 165940202
Bound in an unwanted marriage, Freya spends her days gutting fish, but dreams of becoming a warrior. And of putting an axe in her boorish husband’s back.

Freya’s dreams abruptly become reality when her husband betrays her to the region’s jarl, landing her in a fight to the death against his son, Bjorn. To survive, Freya is forced to reveal her deepest secret: She possesses a drop of a goddess’s blood, which makes her a shield maiden with magic capable of repelling any attack. It was foretold such a magic would unite the fractured nation of Skaland beneath the one who controls the shield maiden’s fate.

Believing he’s destined to rule Skaland as king, the fanatical jarl binds Freya with a blood oath and orders Bjorn to protect her from their enemies. Desperate to prove her strength, Freya must train to fight and learn to control her magic, all while facing perilous tests set by the gods. The greatest test of all, however, may be resisting her forbidden attraction to Bjorn. If Freya succumbs to her lust for the charming and fierce warrior, she risks not only her own destiny but the fate of all the people she swore to protect.]]> 419 Danielle L. Jensen 0593599837 vani 0 to-read 3.91 2024
author: Danielle L. Jensen
name: vani
average rating: 3.91
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/01/05
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 150343880 #1 New York Times bestselling author Tessa Bailey launches a super sexy sports romance series with a rom-com about a bad boy professional athlete who falls for his biggest fan...

Wells Whitaker was once golf’s hottest rising star, but lately, all he has to show for his “promising�� career is a killer hangover, a collection of broken clubs, and one remaining supporter. No matter how bad he plays, the beautiful, sunny redhead is always on the sidelines. He curses, she cheers. He scowls, she smiles. But when Wells quits in a blaze of glory and his fangirl finally goes home, he knows he made the greatest mistake of his life.

Josephine Doyle believed in the gorgeous, grumpy golfer, even when he didn’t believe in himself. Yet after he throws in the towel, she begins to wonder if her faith was misplaced. Then a determined Wells shows up at her door with a wild proposal: be his new caddy, help him turn his game around, and split the prize money. And considering Josephine’s professional and personal life is in shambles, she could really use the cash��

As they travel together, spending days on the green and nights in neighboring hotel rooms, sparks fly. Before long, they’re inseparable, Wells starts winning again, and Josephine is surprised to find a sweet, thoughtful guy underneath his gruff, growly exterior. This hot man wants to brush her hair, feed her snacks, and take bubble baths together? Is this real life? But Wells is technically her boss and an athlete falling for his fangirl would be ridiculous�� right?]]> 380 Tessa Bailey vani 0 3.82 2024
author: Tessa Bailey
name: vani
average rating: 3.82
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2023/10/01
date added: 2023/12/27
shelves:
review:

]]> 59948520 A haunting, virtuosic debut novel about two young men who fall in love during a time of war.

It's 1914, and World War I is ceaselessly churning through thousands of young men on both sides of the fight. The violence of the front feels far away to Henry Gaunt, Sidney Ellwood and the rest of their classmates, safely ensconced in their idyllic boarding school in the English countryside. News of the heroic deaths of their friends only makes the war more exciting.

Gaunt, half German, is busy fighting his own private battle--an all-consuming infatuation with his best friend, the glamorous, charming Ellwood--without a clue that Ellwood is pining for him in return. When Gaunt's family asks him to enlist to forestall the anti-German sentiment they face, Gaunt does so immediately, relieved to escape his overwhelming feelings for Ellwood. To Gaunt's horror, Ellwood rushes to join him at the front, and the rest of their classmates soon follow. Now death surrounds them in all its grim reality, often inches away, and no one knows who will be next.

An epic tale of both the devastating tragedies of war and the forbidden romance that blooms in its grip, In Memoriam is a breathtaking debut.]]> 382 Alice Winn 0593534565 vani 0 to-read 4.51 2023
author: Alice Winn
name: vani
average rating: 4.51
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2023/12/25
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 199037117
Roman Riviera was my everything once upon a time. I found my knight in shining armor in the form of a fellow foster kid. He protected me and promised to stand by my side forever.

But Roman Riviera is a liar.

He left me with monsters. 

Three years later, I found him in the middle of the night, soaked in my family’s blood and carving his initials into my foster brother’s skin. He tied me up and dragged me away from the life I had made without him.

I tried to run, but he chased me. I wanted to scream, but the sound never came out.

He says that I’m never getting away from him. He says he’s back for good. I don’t believe him.]]> 391 Avina St. Graves vani 0 3.61 2023
author: Avina St. Graves
name: vani
average rating: 3.61
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at: 2023/12/24
date added: 2023/12/24
shelves:
review:

]]> 41880609 On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous is a letter from a son to a mother who cannot read. Written when the speaker, Little Dog, is in his late twenties, the letter unearths a family's history that began before he was born �� a history whose epicenter is rooted in Vietnam �� and serves as a doorway into parts of his life his mother has never known, all of it leading to an unforgettable revelation. At once a witness to the fraught yet undeniable love between a single mother and her son, it is also a brutally honest exploration of race, class, and masculinity. Asking questions central to our American moment, immersed as we are in addiction, violence, and trauma, but undergirded by compassion and tenderness, On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous is as much about the power of telling one's own story as it is about the obliterating silence of not being heard.

With stunning urgency and grace, Ocean Vuong writes of people caught between disparate worlds, and asks how we heal and rescue one another without forsaking who we are. The question of how to survive, and how to make of it a kind of joy, powers the most important debut novel of many years.]]> 246 Ocean Vuong 0525562028 vani 0 to-read 4.05 2019
author: Ocean Vuong
name: vani
average rating: 4.05
book published: 2019
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2023/12/12
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 197769061 From USA Today bestselling author Rina Kent comes a new STANDALONE MM college romance.

I’m not attracted to men.
Or so I thought before I slammed into Nikolai Sokolov.
A mafia heir, a notorious bastard, and a violent monster.
An ill-fated meeting puts me in his path.
And just like that, he has his sights set on me.
A quiet artist, a golden boy, and his enemy’s twin brother.
He doesn’t seem to care that the odds are stacked against us.
In fact, he sets out to break my steel-like control and blur my limits.
I thought my biggest worry was being noticed by Nikolai.
I’m learning the hard way that being wanted by this beautiful nightmare is much worse.

This book can be read on its own, but for a better understanding of the world, you might want to start with God of Malice.]]> 522 Rina Kent vani 0 4.54 2023
author: Rina Kent
name: vani
average rating: 4.54
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at: 2023/12/05
date added: 2023/12/05
shelves:
review:

]]> 124950295 397 Hannah Bonam-Young 1778027784 vani 0 to-read 4.25 2023
author: Hannah Bonam-Young
name: vani
average rating: 4.25
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2023/12/04
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 61748988 SORRELL

He’s going to pay for what he’s done��

Theo Merchant was born into a kind of privilege I’ve never known.

He has everything I don’t: Money. A private school education. Popularity. A bright and shiny future, full of success to look forward to. He took the only thing I had going for me—my best friend, Rachel. Now that she’s gone, I have nothing left to lose.

I will infiltrate his world.

I will cradle his worthless heart in my hands.

I will burn down his entire life and destroy everything he holds dear.

I haven’t enrolled at Toussaint Academy to learn.

I’ve come to destroy a monster��

…and I won’t leave until he’s dead.

THEO

She has no idea what she’s getting herself into��

Sorrell Voss is intelligent, caustic as hell, and quite possibly the most beautiful thing I have ever seen. She’s also going to get herself f#cking killed.

She’s a fool if she thinks I’ll go easy on her just because she’s broken.

You don’t venture into the lion’s den and walk away unscathed.

She has her secrets. That’s fine.

*My* secrets will unravel her until she comes apart at the seams.

She will bow to me, and she will break.

Then, and only then, will I make her mine.

REQUIEM is a 110,000-word, full-length enemies-to-lovers dark high school romance standalone. Some scenes within this book may be considered triggering to some readers, and it is therefore recommended for an audience 17+.]]> 399 Callie Hart vani 0 4.31 2022
author: Callie Hart
name: vani
average rating: 4.31
book published: 2022
rating: 0
read at: 2023/12/03
date added: 2023/12/03
shelves:
review:

]]> 199290050 From #1 Amazon Bestselling Author Ilsa Madden-Mills comes a brand new enemies to lovers holiday novella (40,000 words) about finding love in unexpected places.

Dear Sneaky Santa,

I’d like to have a word about your sense of humor. Was it really necessary to stick me, a professional hockey player nursing an injury and avoiding the media, in an isolated cabin with a bratty, boot-designing princess who seems to have made it her mission to despise me? I mean, come on, what did I ever do to you?

And let’s talk about our first encounter. Was it your intention for her to barge in on me while I was enjoying a soak in the tub? It wasn’t exactly my finest moment, and I’m sure she didn’t appreciate the view of my massive body floundering around as I tried to grab a towel.

Now, I’m stuck with her, thanks to a mutual acquaintance, in the middle of a snow blizzard, navigating through bear attacks, sketchy neighbors, and whole lot of tension. I had plans, Santa, plans to escape to Cabo and forget about the world, not to be trapped with a woman who thinks I’m unworthy of her time just because she can’t stand hockey players.
Oh, and speaking of our delightful Iris, she’s stingier with her food than Scrooge was with his pennies! I’m not asking for a feast, but a guy’s got to eat! And could you possibly turn her yippy dog into a reindeer or something? It would certainly add to the Christmas spirit and save my eardrums.

I’m trying to rediscover the meaning of Christmas, and you throw me into this chaos? Is this some kind of test, or are you just having a jolly laugh up there in the North Pole?

So here’s my Christmas wish, Santa: sprinkle a bit of your magic and either get me out of here or be a Cupid and ignite a fiery, undeniable passion between us, because right now, this scenario is frostier than a snowman.

Slapshotting Through the Snow, Kyler Blanchette]]> 182 Ilsa Madden-Mills vani 0 3.61
author: Ilsa Madden-Mills
name: vani
average rating: 3.61
book published:
rating: 0
read at: 2023/12/03
date added: 2023/12/03
shelves:
review:

]]> 150062296 She was his first love, his first heartbreak, and his only regret.

Zane Windsor always loved the way Celeste Harrison’s eyes light up when he infuriates her. It just took him years to realize that what he felt for his childhood rival wasn’t hatred.

When they begin working for their family businesses, competing on a larger scale than ever before, he decides he wants it all with her �� and what Zane Windsor wants, he gets.

Zane and Celeste discover just how thin the line between love and hate truly is, falling harder than either of them thought possible...

…until an unexpected tragedy leaves them wondering if any of it was ever real at all.

Led by a desire for revenge, Zane brings Celeste’s company to the brink of bankruptcy, leaving both of their grandparents no choice but to intervene.

The Windsors and Harrisons agree to a merger �� on one condition: Zane and Celeste must marry each other.]]> 557 Catharina Maura vani 0 to-read 4.05
author: Catharina Maura
name: vani
average rating: 4.05
book published:
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2023/12/02
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 202953253
They say be careful what you wish for. But on December 5, Alex Fox makes a wish in the midst of a devastating tragedy. Little does he know that his wish will come true.

Six years after that fateful day, a little girl wanders into Alex’s studio. With her quirky personality, endless questions, and adorable smile, Penny Rose becomes an enchanting yet bittersweet distraction.

Penny Rose is an odd girl—at least, that’s what her parents say. Penny herself doesn’t feel particularly odd; she simply feels misplaced. As if somehow, in some way, she is living in the wrong place... in the wrong life.

As the years pass, Alex and Penny develop a friendship. But it becomes harder and harder for them to ignore their undeniable chemistry, no matter how off limits it is. Alex believes he’ll never find love again, let alone fall for a girl half his age. But Penny is everything he could ever want or need. Not only is she caring, witty, and beautiful, but she accepts the past that haunts him.

Penny couldn’t be happier. She’s been head over heels for sexy, brooding artist Alex Fox for as far back as she can remember. But when her childhood dreams and visions start resurfacing again—dreams of a life with Alex way before they ever met—she starts to think they’re not dreams at all.

They’re memories.

Penny’s revelation to Alex threatens to tear them apart, making them question the impossible and unbelievable. Can love truly transcend time and death, giving them a second chance at their happily ever after? Or is Penny battling a broken mind that has led her down a path of heartbreaking delusion?]]> 524 Carian Cole vani 0 4.36 2023
author: Carian Cole
name: vani
average rating: 4.36
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at: 2023/11/30
date added: 2023/11/30
shelves:
review:

]]> 58572211 He was darkness personified.
I had little to call my own.
He was filthy rich, powerful, and dangerous.
The assignment was simple, and my goal was too.
Take care of his son. Keep my head down. When he least expects it, destroy him.
It should have been easy. I thought it would be until I looked into his stark blue eyes.
Kissing the enemy is a bad idea, but so is falling in love with him.
He doesn’t know my crumbling foundation is built on lies.
When he discovers the truth, I’ll find out if he’s as brutal as I believe.
I came here to steal his life.
I didn’t count on him stealing my heart.]]> A. Zavarelli vani 0 to-read 4.02 2021
author: A. Zavarelli
name: vani
average rating: 4.02
book published: 2021
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2023/11/28
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 171498175 Underneath the goody two-shoes persona is damaged goods…but can the bad boy across the street save her?

Bailey Followhill is the perfect daughter. Sweet. Charitable. Pretty. Control freak. Not a hair out of place, not an inch out of line, she is everything her troublemaking sister Daria isn't. But when her A game turns out to be a lukewarm C- at Juilliard, Bailey's picture-ready life starts fraying faster than the worn satin ribbons of her pointe shoes. She's becoming a piece of gossip. The Troubled Child. A drug abuser. No longer the girl her best friend once knew.

Lev Cole is so golden, he's got the Midas Touch. Prized quarterback. Football captain. Hottest guy in SoCal. A textbook cliché. But with a girlfriend he doesn't love and a career path he doesn't value, Lev is coasting.
The only two things he cares about, Bailey and becoming a pilot, are out of reach.

But Lev is done being satisfied with the life others have chosen for him. He wants to pick his own cards. To demolish the seamless kingdom of lies his family stitched together on the ruins his mother left behind.

The question is, can he save his best friend and his dream before too much damage is done?]]> 418 L.J. Shen vani 1 3.99 2024
author: L.J. Shen
name: vani
average rating: 3.99
book published: 2024
rating: 1
read at:
date added: 2023/11/19
shelves:
review:
WHAT IS SHE THINKING IS SHE INSANE
]]> 125488280
Talasyn was left on the steps of a Sardovian orphanage as a baby. All she has ever known are the Hurricane Wars, as her people fight for freedom from the tyranny of the Night Emperor Gaheris. But are they her people? Talasyn dreams of one day finding where she comes from �� her true place, family, and the source of the Lightweave magic that flows through her veins like sunlight.

Alaric of House Ossinast, Master of the Shadowforged Legion and Gaheris’s only son and heir has been forged into a weapon by his father. Tasked with obliterating the Sardovian Allford alliance with the strength of his armies and mighty Shadow magic, all Alaric can see is their extinguish all threats to the empire. That is until he sees Talasyn burning brightly on the battlefield with the magic that killed his grandfather, turned his father into a monster, and ignited the Hurricane Wars. He tries and fails to kill her, his now greatest enemy slipping through his fingers. But a greater threat is coming. One that will overshadow the Hurricane Wars. Will these mortal enemies be able to come together to confront it or is everything that has been fought over for so long about to be destroyed?]]> 472 Thea Guanzon vani 0 to-read 3.75 2023
author: Thea Guanzon
name: vani
average rating: 3.75
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2023/11/19
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 25899336
At the age of thirty-six, on the verge of completing a decade's worth of training as a neurosurgeon, Paul Kalanithi was diagnosed with stage IV lung cancer. One day he was a doctor treating the dying, and the next he was a patient struggling to live. And just like that, the future he and his wife had imagined evaporated. When Breath Becomes Air chronicles Kalanithi's transformation from a naïve medical student "possessed," as he wrote, "by the question of what, given that all organisms die, makes a virtuous and meaningful life" into a neurosurgeon at Stanford working in the brain, the most critical place for human identity, and finally into a patient and new father confronting his own mortality.

What makes life worth living in the face of death? What do you do when the future, no longer a ladder toward your goals in life, flattens out into a perpetual present? What does it mean to have a child, to nurture a new life as another fades away? These are some of the questions Kalanithi wrestles with in this profoundly moving, exquisitely observed memoir.

Paul Kalanithi died in March 2015, while working on this book, yet his words live on as a guide and a gift to us all. "I began to realize that coming face to face with my own mortality, in a sense, had changed nothing and everything," he wrote. "Seven words from Samuel Beckett began to repeat in my head: 'I can't go on. I'll go on.'" When Breath Becomes Air is an unforgettable, life-affirming reflection on the challenge of facing death and on the relationship between doctor and patient, from a brilliant writer who became both.]]> 208 Paul Kalanithi 0812988418 vani 0 to-read 4.41 2016
author: Paul Kalanithi
name: vani
average rating: 4.41
book published: 2016
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2023/11/15
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 62816044 Two villains, one girl, and a deadly battle for happily ever after.

Evangeline Fox ventured to the Magnificent North in search of her happy ending, and it seems as if she has it. She’s married to a handsome prince and lives in a legendary castle. But Evangeline has no idea of the devastating price she’s paid for this fairytale. She doesn’t know what she has lost, and her husband is determined to make sure she never finds out . . . but first he must kill Jacks, the Prince of Hearts.

Blood will be shed, hearts will be stolen, and true love will be put to the test in A Curse for True Love, the breathlessly anticipated conclusion to the Once Upon A Broken Heart trilogy.]]> 386 Stephanie Garber 1250851203 vani 0
howeverrrrr i still love eva and jacks ]]> 4.14 2023
author: Stephanie Garber
name: vani
average rating: 4.14
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at: 2023/11/13
date added: 2023/11/13
shelves:
review:
stephanie garber was given the task to write the couple of the year only for them to have the most rushed ending?? this is not the same woman who wrote the ballad of never after

howeverrrrr i still love eva and jacks
]]> 75302266 Angharad—Emrys Myrddin’s epic about a mortal girl who falls in love with the Fairy King, then destroys him—is the only thing keeping her afloat. So when Myrddin’s family announces a contest to redesign the late author’s estate, Effy feels certain it’s her destiny.

But musty, decrepit Hiraeth Manor is an impossible task, and its residents are far from welcoming. Including Preston Héloury, a stodgy young literature scholar determined to expose Myrddin as a fraud. As the two rivals piece together clues about Myrddin’s legacy, dark forces, both mortal and magical, conspire against them—and the truth may bring them both to ruin.]]> 378 Ava Reid 0063211505 vani 0 to-read 3.73 2023
author: Ava Reid
name: vani
average rating: 3.73
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2023/11/12
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 199334767 From New York Times bestselling author Tessa Bailey comes a steamy novella full of hope and humor tracking a couple’s fake marriage for a year after the wild New Year’s Eve when they first say “I do.��

Adored by all, Britta is an ambitious waitress working at Sluggers. The popular bar holds a special place in her heart and is a regular hangout for the Bridgeport Bandits, the local hockey club. With a half brother on the team, Britta has a strict no-dating policy for hockey boys. But she does have a soft spot for one particular player.

A beast on the ice, Sumner Mayfield is on the brink of breaking into the NHL. But time’s running out. With his work visa about to expire, Sumner’s only chance to stay in Bridgeport is to marry an American—and get a green card. Otherwise, it’s back to Canada for the defenseman.

On New Year’s Eve, the team begs Britta to marry Sumner that very night. Sum is embarrassed yet hopeful—he’s desperately in love. But Britta balks at first. Until something about Sumner’s soulful brown eyes and ripped physique makes her reconsider…]]> 144 Tessa Bailey 1662517912 vani 0 3.40 2023
author: Tessa Bailey
name: vani
average rating: 3.40
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at: 2023/11/04
date added: 2023/11/04
shelves:
review:

]]> 61329105
No, her biological clock isn’t ticking, but she’s desperate for unconditional love. Rejected by all except her brother and soon to be married off by her father for financial gain, she aches for someone to hold close and call hers.

Enter Ledger Thorne. Soccer god, devastatingly handsome and her brother’s rival.

Once upon a time they had a thing. A beautiful thing. But while Tempest thought she was madly in love, Ledger was only using her for petty revenge.

So Tempest has a plan: seduce the sexy jerk who broke her heart, use him to get pregnant and then leave him in the dust like he left her, to marry a stranger.

Only the problem with making babies is that it doesn’t feel like revenge. It feels a lot like that thing they used to have: Hot and stormy, and intense and intimate.

But Tempest isn’t a fool. She’ll stick to the plan.

Because wasn’t it Ledger who turned their beautiful thing into something ugly?
Now it’s her turn��

NOTE: This is a STANDALONE set in the world of Bardstown, a St. Mary’s Rebels spin-off.]]> 0 Saffron A. Kent vani 0 3.28 2023
author: Saffron A. Kent
name: vani
average rating: 3.28
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at: 2023/10/28
date added: 2023/11/04
shelves:
review:
only saffron could write a baby trapping teenager and fatherless lionel messi
]]> 77203 371 Khaled Hosseini 159463193X vani 0 to-read 4.34 2003
author: Khaled Hosseini
name: vani
average rating: 4.34
book published: 2003
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2023/11/04
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 199531938
Tallulah is smart, vivacious, and studying to be a marine biologist. She’s also twenty-six and broke. So when Burgess, a battle-scarred hockey veteran and newly single dad, offers her a job as his live-in nanny, she jumps at the opportunity to get paid while living in a super fancy neighborhood and being around Lissa, his cool but introverted tween.

Her tween charge isn’t the only one who could use some help fitting in, though. According to…well, everyone except Burgess, he needs to get back on the dating scene, and adventurous Tallulah is just the girl to show him how. But as boundaries are slowly crossed and Burgess finds himself pulled between his daughter, who wants her parents back together, and his insane chemistry with Tallulah, a huge rift is formed, and Tallulah does the “right�� thing—breaks her own heart and walks away.

Though Burgess knows it’s for the best—he’s too jaded, with too much baggage—a chance meeting, and a new push from his daughter, forces him to put everything on the line and fight to prove he learned his lessons well and is worthy of a happily ever after with Tallulah. ]]> 384 Tessa Bailey 0063308436 vani 0 to-read 3.57 2024
author: Tessa Bailey
name: vani
average rating: 3.57
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2023/11/03
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 33590260
With Aelin captured, friends and allies are scattered to different fates. Some bonds will grow even deeper, while others will be severed forever. As destinies weave together at last, all must fight if Erilea is to have any hope of salvation.

Years in the making, Sarah J. Maas's New York Times bestselling Throne of Glass series draws to an explosive conclusion as Aelin fights to save herself―and the promise of a better world.]]> 980 Sarah J. Maas 1619636107 vani 0 4.63 2018
author: Sarah J. Maas
name: vani
average rating: 4.63
book published: 2018
rating: 0
read at: 2023/10/25
date added: 2023/10/25
shelves:
review:

]]> 198028176
Gwen Roman has spent most of her life being overlooked. It never really bothered her all that much. Until she sees Ash Waylen, the guy she’s had a crush on since the tenth grade. The moment he acknowledges her presence and says her name, that damn crush weaves its way back into her heart. So much for a stellar GPA this semester.

After his girlfriend shattered his trust and broke his heart, Ash Waylen plans to spend his junior year of college nursing his wounds and avoiding the opposite sex. The last thing he expects is to run into Gwen Roman and have her tugging on heartstrings he thought his ex-girlfriend took when he broke up with her.

Gwen was always the shy girl who followed Chrissy and Zack Willows around in high school, her head always buried in a book. She never caught his attention before, but this time, it’s different.

In an act of self-preservation, Ash averts his gaze knowing only trouble will follow him if he pursues the one thing he wants.

While Ash tries to resist temptation, Gwen might just throw caution to the wind and go after what she wants for the first time in her life.]]> 448 Amber Paige vani 0 to-read 3.95 2023
author: Amber Paige
name: vani
average rating: 3.95
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2023/10/18
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 174753697
I’m the outcast bartender, a shy girl from the wrong side of the tracks.

He’s thirty-five and all man, and I’m twenty-two and all�� virgin.

He’s also my fiancé. Correction: my fake fiancé.

We start out as a bet. He doesn’t believe that anyone holds my last name against me. So he offers me his to prove a point.

It’s win-win. He gets a break from his concerned family’s prying, and I get a chance to shed my family’s reputation while I save up to ditch this small town.

He says all I have to do is wear his ring, follow his lead, and pretend I can’t keep my hands off of him in public.

But it’s what happens between us in private that blurs all those carefully drawn lines.

It’s what transpires behind closed doors that doesn’t feel like pretending at all.

This engagement was supposed to be for show. This agreement? It has an end date.

He once told me he’d never fall in love.

And yet here I am, head over heels for my fake fiancé.]]> 486 Elsie Silver vani 0 AHSJ EXCITED 4.12 2023
author: Elsie Silver
name: vani
average rating: 4.12
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at: 2023/10/14
date added: 2023/10/14
shelves:
review:
AHSJ EXCITED
]]> 23514316 In New York Times Bestselling author Nalini Singh’s newest contemporary romance, passion ignites between a gorgeous, sinfully sexy man who built himself up from nothing and a shy woman who has a terrible secret in her past��

Wealthy businessman Gabriel Bishop rules the boardroom with the same determination and ruthlessness that made him a rock star on the rugby field. He knows what he wants, and he’ll go after it no-holds-barred.

And what he wants is Charlotte Baird.

Charlotte knows she’s a mouse. Emotionally scarred and painfully shy, she just wants to do her job and remain as invisible as possible. But the new CEO—a brilliant, broad-shouldered T-Rex of a man who growls and storms through the office, leaving carnage in his wake—clearly has other plans. Plans that may be equal parts business and bedroom.

If Charlotte intends to survive this battle of wits and hearts, the mouse will have to learn to wrangle the T-Rex. Game on.]]> 387 Nalini Singh vani 0 to-read 3.97 2015
author: Nalini Singh
name: vani
average rating: 3.97
book published: 2015
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2023/10/07
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 88151671
I’m a single dad and starting pitcher for Chicago’s MLB team.
I’m stretched too thin, but I don’t want help raising my son.

Each of his previous nannies only lasted a few weeks before I let them go.
Now, my coach is putting his foot down by hiring the one person I can’t fire—his daughter.

Miller Montgomery is the last woman I should fall for. Too wild, too young, and too unattached.

Chicago is just a quick stop for her. I thought I’d be counting down the days until she left, but summer feels too short when I start thinking about forever.


Miller

As a high-end pastry chef who recently won the most prestigious award in my industry, I’m desperate to prove I deserve it. But with a new title comes new pressure, and I can’t create a fresh and inspiring dessert to save my life.

With only two months to get back on track, I should be focusing in the kitchen, but instead, I let my dad talk me into using my time off to nanny for his star player’s kid.

Kai Rhodes forgot how to have fun, and I’m eager to jog his memory. But when he and his son start to feel like home, I have to remind us both that my time in Chicago ends with the summer.

Besides, I’ve always been a runner, and the last thing I want is to get caught.]]> 393 Liz Tomforde vani 0 to-read 4.41 2023
author: Liz Tomforde
name: vani
average rating: 4.41
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2023/10/02
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 141309941 A laugh out loud, unconventional opposites attract love story from New York Times bestselling author Melanie Moreland
I touched her confectionary creation, and she told me off.
Slapping my hands and cursing in her own unique fashion.
No one talked to me that way.
I liked it.
I liked her cake even more.
So, I took her to Italy to bake for me.
I should have asked her first, but I had a feeling she’d say no.
I brought her cat, though—that should count for something.
Now, I just need to convince her to stay.
And forget that little word.
𝙆𝙞��𝙣𝙖𝙥𝙥𝙚𝙧.
I’d prefer lover.
But we’ll wait until she doesn’t want to kill me in my sleep.]]> 522 Melanie Moreland 1990803598 vani 0 3.97 2023
author: Melanie Moreland
name: vani
average rating: 3.97
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at: 2023/10/02
date added: 2023/10/02
shelves:
review:

]]> 196062705 She’s his sweetest desire...and his darkest secret.

The task was simple.
Sneak into Potomac’s most heavily guarded manor.
Steal back my pendant. Slip out.

Problem number one?
America’s most unattainable bachelor caught me.

Problem number two?
He decided to keep me. As the help.

Zachary Sun’s winter may be the coldest I’ve ever felt,
but he makes my skin burn.

Reserved, calculated, and savagely cruel,
he thrives on the weaknesses of others.

Little does he know, he just met his match.

He may be American royalty.
But this peasant will rise to become Queen.]]> 428 L.J. Shen vani 0 to-read 4.38 2024
author: L.J. Shen
name: vani
average rating: 4.38
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2023/09/20
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 61431922 Enter the brutal and elite world of a war college for dragon riders...

Twenty-year-old Violet Sorrengail was supposed to enter the Scribe Quadrant, living a quiet life among books and history. Now, the commanding general—also known as her tough-as-talons mother—has ordered Violet to join the hundreds of candidates striving to become the elite of Navarre: dragon riders.

But when you’re smaller than everyone else and your body is brittle, death is only a heartbeat away...because dragons don’t bond to “fragile�� humans. They incinerate them.

With fewer dragons willing to bond than cadets, most would kill Violet to better their own chances of success. The rest would kill her just for being her mother’s daughter—like Xaden Riorson, the most powerful and ruthless wingleader in the Riders Quadrant.

She’ll need every edge her wits can give her just to see the next sunrise.

Yet, with every day that passes, the war outside grows more deadly, the kingdom's protective wards are failing, and the death toll continues to rise. Even worse, Violet begins to suspect leadership is hiding a terrible secret.

Friends, enemies, lovers. Everyone at Basgiath War College has an agenda—because once you enter, there are only two ways out: graduate or die]]> 528 Rebecca Yarros 1649374046 vani 0 4.56 2023
author: Rebecca Yarros
name: vani
average rating: 4.56
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at: 2023/08/30
date added: 2023/09/04
shelves:
review:
the slutty divergent rewrite tbh
]]> 123257687
ASSISTANT WANTED: Notorious, high-ranking villain seeks loyal, levelheaded assistant for unspecified office duties, supporting staff for random mayhem and terror, and other Dark Things In General. Discretion a must. Excellent benefits.

With ailing family to support, Evie Sage's employment status isn't just important, it's vital. So when a mishap with Rennedawn’s most infamous Villain results in a job offer―naturally, she says yes. No job is perfect, of course, but even less so when you develop a teeny crush on your terrifying, temperamental, and undeniably hot boss. Don’t find evil so attractive, Evie.

But just when she’s getting used to severed heads suspended from the ceiling and the odd squish of an errant eyeball beneath her heel, Evie suspects this dungeon has a huge rat…and not just the literal kind. Because something rotten is growing in the kingdom of Rennedawn, and someone wants to take the Villain―and his entire nefarious empire―out.

Now Evie must not only resist drooling over her boss but also figure out exactly who is sabotaging his work…and ensure he makes them pay.

After all, a good job is hard to find.]]> 342 Hannah Nicole Maehrer 1649375808 vani 0 to-read 3.88 2023
author: Hannah Nicole Maehrer
name: vani
average rating: 3.88
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2023/09/02
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 63346945 After careful planning, I gave the man who messed with my family a taste of his own medicine.
I thought it’d end there.
It didn’t.
Landon King is a genius artist, a posh rich boy, and my worst nightmare.
He’s decided that I’m the new addition to his chess game.
Too bad for him, I’m no pawn.
If he hits, I hit back, twice as hard and with the same hostility.
He says he’ll ruin me.
Little does he know that ruination goes both ways.

This book is a dark unconventional romance and contains themes that aren't to everyone's liking. Please check the author's note for content warnings before reading.]]> 430 Rina Kent vani 2 4.18 2023
author: Rina Kent
name: vani
average rating: 4.18
book published: 2023
rating: 2
read at: 2023/09/01
date added: 2023/09/01
shelves:
review:
two stars for two creighton mentions
]]> 90202302 “The first year is when some of us lose our lives. The second year is when the rest of us lose our humanity.�� —Xaden Riorson

Everyone expected Violet Sorrengail to die during her first year at Basgiath War College—Violet included. But Threshing was only the first impossible test meant to weed out the weak-willed, the unworthy, and the unlucky.

Now the real training begins, and Violet’s already wondering how she’ll get through. It’s not just that it’s grueling and maliciously brutal, or even that it’s designed to stretch the riders�� capacity for pain beyond endurance. It’s the new vice commandant, who’s made it his personal mission to teach Violet exactly how powerless she is–unless she betrays the man she loves.

Although Violet’s body might be weaker and frailer than everyone else’s, she still has her wits—and a will of iron. And leadership is forgetting the most important lesson Basgiath has taught her: Dragon riders make their own rules.

But a determination to survive won’t be enough this year.

Because Violet knows the real secret hidden for centuries at Basgiath War College—and nothing, not even dragon fire, may be enough to save them in the end.]]> 623 Rebecca Yarros 1649374178 vani 0 to-read 4.33 2023
author: Rebecca Yarros
name: vani
average rating: 4.33
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2023/08/30
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 195227305
So when my dog decides to play matchmaker, taking down a sweet little thing with rose gold waves, brilliant green eyes, and a smile for days, I can’t believe my luck that she doesn’t have a clue who I am. I know I should tell her, but for once in my life someone sees the man behind the goalie mask. Rosie gives me all of her–her heartache, her laughter, and her son. But me? I’m holding on a little too tightly to the pieces I’m scared to give up, the pieces she might not like. One small lie becomes a secret hanging above my head, but what if there’s another one hiding right around the corner? Suddenly, my deepest desire becomes my biggest fear. I’m terrified she’s going to unravel me.

Unravel Me is book #3 in the Playing For Keeps series, a series of interconnected standalone mature hockey romance stories that contain relatable characters, lots of heat, swoon, laughs, and a ride on an emotional rollercoaster!

Unravel Me contains emotional references to the past death of parents and its surrounding grief, as well as brief discussions of foster care, depictions of child neglect (not by the main character), and the death of an animal (minimal descriptions and as it pertains to the FMC’s training as a veterinarian student; not main character’s pet). If you are sensitive to these subjects, please use this information to make an informed decision about whether to proceed with this story.]]> 436 Becka Mack vani 0 4.41 2023
author: Becka Mack
name: vani
average rating: 4.41
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at: 2023/08/26
date added: 2023/08/26
shelves:
review:
it was cute and sappy but if rosie could stop with the insecurities for 2 seconds that would be nice
]]> 60062931
Ben—Stealer of Clients, Evicter of Homeless Women, Nemesis. Sitting across from me every damn Monday with his lovely, smug smile and his too-perfect teeth, the living symbol of everything I hate.

It’s been my policy to avoid him, but when a case comes into the firm—one that could change his career and mine—I make an exception. It means weekends and evenings by his side. It means enduring his smirk and his smart mouth and never taking the bait.

Until the night Ben says, “Beg.��
And that devil on my shoulder decides to make a few demands of her own.]]> 296 Elizabeth O'Roark vani 0 to-read 4.15 2022
author: Elizabeth O'Roark
name: vani
average rating: 4.15
book published: 2022
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2023/08/19
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 60531459
He’s the best tutor on campus, and if Penny wants to keep up her grades and her sanity, she needs him. After all, no one wants a repeat of what happened the last time her grades were at stake. Least of all Penny.

The only problem is that Atlas is extremely distracting.

His green eyes and his rumpled dark hair make her forget everything and daydream. It doesn’t even matter that Atlas can be a rude and arrogant jackass who pushes all her buttons.

But it’s okay.

For the sake of her grades and her fragile mind, Penny can learn to focus. And she’s well on her way to doing that, until Atlas makes a proposition �� dinner in exchange for tutoring her��


A standalone novella.]]> NOT A BOOK vani 0 4.08
author: NOT A BOOK
name: vani
average rating: 4.08
book published:
rating: 0
read at: 2023/08/11
date added: 2023/08/11
shelves:
review:
read this for willow crumbs <3
]]> 78090892
My husband didn’t want me, he had married me out of obligation rather than love, and I thought nothing could hurt worse than that.

But my solution, marriage counseling, was only the beginning.

The first time I saw Shane, I knew I was boarding an express bus to hell because my husband never made me feel a flicker of that spark, and that was before we shook hands.

He doesn’t just want me; he wants all my firsts, my very soul, and damn it. I think he’s going to get them all.

***Mind to Bend is a standalone dark romance and book 1 in a series of interconnected standalone. There is graphic adult content that may be disturbing to some readers. Please check content warnings.]]> 278 Aurelia Knight vani 1 1-star she tried!!! and she failed 3.53
author: Aurelia Knight
name: vani
average rating: 3.53
book published:
rating: 1
read at: 2023/08/11
date added: 2023/08/11
shelves: 1-star
review:
she tried!!! and she failed
]]> 195510429 What if love is the best magic of all?

An enchanting novel about a witch who has a second chance to get her magic - and her life - back on track, from the author of The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches.

Sera Swan was once one of the most powerful witches in Britain. Then she resurrected her great-aunt, lost most of her magic, befriended a semi-villainous talking fox, and was exiled from her magical Guild.

Now she runs an inn in Lancashire, where she deals with her quirky guests' shenanigans, tries to keep the fox in check, and longs for the magical future she lost.

Then she discovers a book that could hold the secret to restoring her power. Trouble is, the only person who can help her is Luke Larsen, the gorgeous historian she had a one-night stand with years ago - and hasn't spoken to since.

As Luke and Sera work together to reclaim her lost power, Sera starts to realise that love - and the family she's made - could be the best magic of all . . .]]> 320 Sangu Mandanna 1399709933 vani 0 to-read 4.60 2025
author: Sangu Mandanna
name: vani
average rating: 4.60
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2023/08/09
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 78540521
The only life Tress has known on her island home in an emerald-green ocean has been a simple one, with the simple pleasures of collecting cups brought by sailors from faraway lands and listening to stories told by her friend Charlie. But when his father takes him on a voyage to find a bride and disaster strikes, Tress must stow away on a ship and seek the Sorceress of the deadly Midnight Sea. Amid the spore oceans where pirates abound, can Tress leave her simple life behind and make her own place sailing a sea where a single drop of water can mean instant death?

Other Tor books by Brandon Sanderson

The Cosmere

The Stormlight Archive
The Way of Kings
Words of Radiance
Edgedancer (Novella)
Oathbringer
Dawnshard (Novella)
Rhythm of War

The Original Trilogy
Mistborn
The Well of Ascension
The Hero of Ages

The Wax and Wayne series
Alloy of Law
Shadows of Self
Bands of Mourning
The Lost Metal

Collection
Arcanum Unbounded

Other Cosmere novels
Elantris
Warbreaker
Tress and the Emerald Sea
Yumi and the Nightmare Painter
The Sunlit Man

The Alcatraz vs. the Evil Librarians series
Alcatraz vs. the Evil Librarians
The Scrivener's Bones
The Knights of Crystallia
The Shattered Lens
The Dark Talent
Bastille vs. the Evil Librarians (co-authored with Janci Patterson)

The Rithmatist series
The Rithmatist

Other novels
The Many Lives of Stephen Leeds
The Frugal Wizard’s Handbook for Surviving Medieval England

Other books by Brandon Sanderson

The Reckoners
Steelheart
Firefight
Calamity

Skyward
Skyward
Starsight
Cytonic]]> 384 Brandon Sanderson vani 0 to-read 4.39 2023
author: Brandon Sanderson
name: vani
average rating: 4.39
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2023/08/08
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 28213188
One shy lost soul.
One silent lonely heart.
One love to save them both.

Life has never been easy for twenty-year-old Levi Carillo. The youngest of the Carillo boys, Levi is nothing like his older brothers. He isn’t dark in looks or intimidating to everyone he meets. In fact, he’s quite the opposite. Haunted by a crippling shyness and the tragic events of his past, Levi spends his days with his head buried in his books, or training hard for his college football team. Too timid to talk to girls, Levi stays as far away as possible and completely on his own�� until he saves the life of a troubled pretty blonde, a troubled pretty blonde that might just be the exception to his rule.

Elsie Hall is homeless. Or at least that’s all anyone ever sees. Every day is a fight for survival on the cold streets of Seattle, everyday a struggle to find food and keep warm. Alone in life—a life that’s dangerous and cruel—her will to keep going is an ever-losing battle. In her world of silence, Elsie has given up hope that her life will contain anything but constant heartache and pain�� until the beautiful boy she has severely wronged comes to her rescue at precisely the right time.

New Adult novel—contains sexual situations and mature topics. Suited for ages 18 and up.
]]> 444 Tillie Cole vani 0 4.48 2015
author: Tillie Cole
name: vani
average rating: 4.48
book published: 2015
rating: 0
read at: 2023/08/06
date added: 2023/08/06
shelves:
review:

]]> 62654031

First, Shay has to move home to the small town of Friendship, Rhode Island. Second—and most problematic since her fiancé just called off the wedding—Shay must be married within one year. 

Marriage is the last thing in the world Shay wants but she’ll do anything to save the only real home she’s ever known.


Noah Barden loved Shay Zucconi back in high school. Not that he ever told her. He was too shy, too awkward, too painfully uncool to ask out the beautiful, popular girl. 

A lifetime later, Noah is a single dad to his niece and has his hands full running the family business. That old crush is the farthest thing from his mind.

Until Shay returns to their hometown and turns his life upside down. 





CW/ absentee parent(s), brief mention of parent death, brief mention of parent chronic illness, mention of incarceration, mention of temporary foster care placement, reference to teenage teasing/bullying (not detailed, not explicit), brief incidence of fat-shaming, living with a neurodivergent child.]]> 474 Kate Canterbary vani 0 to-read 4.14 2022
author: Kate Canterbary
name: vani
average rating: 4.14
book published: 2022
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2023/08/06
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 61373532 Working as a nanny for the world’s grumpiest single dad should have been simple. Except I can’t keep my eyes off him. And he can’t keep his hands off of me.

Cade Eaton is thirteen years older than I am and barely looks my way. Until I get him into the hot tub one night for a game of truth or dare. Then all bets are off—and so are our clothes.

He’s gruff, a little rough around the edges. But broad-shouldered ranchers with calloused hands and filthy mouths are this city girl’s kryptonite. So who am I to resist?

But it’s in our quiet moments together that he softens. It’s when he takes care of me that I realize his hardened exterior is just a façade. It’s when I watch him go all sweet with his little boy that I really fall for him.

Someone convinced him once that his best wasn’t good enough. But I’ve never felt more cherished than I do in his arms.

My contract may say this arrangement is only for two months.

But my heart says this is forever.
]]> 476 Elsie Silver vani 4 4-stars so cute!! 4.39 2022
author: Elsie Silver
name: vani
average rating: 4.39
book published: 2022
rating: 4
read at: 2023/08/02
date added: 2023/08/03
shelves: 4-stars
review:
so cute!!
]]> 58443018 Brayden Kendricks might be God’s gift to the female species at Western University, but I want nothing to do with the dark-haired football player. The guy is an attention seeking you-know-what who soaks up fan adoration like it’s his due in life for being hot and talented.
Damn. Did I just say that?
All right, fine...I’ll grudgingly admit that Brayden is decent looking. I suppose if you’re into guys who resemble Greek gods with abs of steel and chiseled pecs, then sure, one could consider him attractive.
Am I guilty of having a tiny, practically non-existent crush on him freshman year?
I’d prefer not to answer that question.
Thankfully, I quickly came to my senses and have made a concerted effort to steer clear of Brayden ever since. It hasn’t been easy, considering that my bestie is now dating his roommate and we’ve been thrown together for an accounting project. You’d think after years of baring my teeth at him like a rabid dog, the guy would have gotten the memo that I’m not interested.
Apparently not, since he’s spreading word around campus that we’re going out.
I mean, can you even imagine?
Me?
Dating Brayden Kendricks?
I have four words for him...
No.
Way.
In.
Hell.]]> 290 Jennifer Sucevic vani 0 to-read 4.05
author: Jennifer Sucevic
name: vani
average rating: 4.05
book published:
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2023/08/01
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 33385229
Mateo and Rufus are total strangers, but, for different reasons, they’re both looking to make a new friend on their End Day. The good news: There’s an app for that. It’s called the Last Friend, and through it, Rufus and Mateo are about to meet up for one last great adventure—to live a lifetime in a single day.

Adam Silvera reminds us that there’s no life without death and no love without loss in this devastating yet uplifting story about two people whose lives change over the course of one unforgettable day.]]> 389 Adam Silvera 0062457799 vani 3 3-stars 3.76 2017
author: Adam Silvera
name: vani
average rating: 3.76
book published: 2017
rating: 3
read at: 2019/01/20
date added: 2023/07/31
shelves: 3-stars
review:

]]> 123179008
For the first time in her life, Clementine “Emmy�� Ryder has no idea what she’s doing. She’s accomplished everything on her to-do list. She left her small hometown of Meadowlark, Wyoming; went to college; and made a career for herself by doing her favorite thing: riding horses. But after an accident makes it impossible for her to get back into the saddle, she has no choice but to return to the hometown she always wanted to escape.

Luke Brooks is Meadowlark’s most notorious bad boy, bar owner, and bachelor. He’s also the unofficial fifth member of the Ryder family. As Emmy’s older brother’s best friend, Luke spent most of his childhood antagonizing her. It’s been years since he’s seen her, but when she walks into his bar and back into his life, he can’t take his eyes off her. Despite his better judgment, he wants to do a whole lot more than just look at her.

Emmy’s got too much on her mind to think about romance. And Luke knows he should stay away from his best friend’s younger sister. But what if Luke is just what Emmy needs to get her spark back? Or will they both go up in flames?]]> 356 Lyla Sage vani 0 dnf
so boring]]> 3.82 2023
author: Lyla Sage
name: vani
average rating: 3.82
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2023/07/31
shelves: dnf
review:
dnf at 11%

so boring
]]> 61433048
She was supposed to be one of them.

I was the boy who never had a chance, an orphan recruited by the devil himself, until the family I never knew gave me something to live for.

Then my brother brought her home—the rich politician’s daughter, a real-life fairytale princess who had no place in our world. We were oil and water, and making her leave became my mission, ’til the little tag-along ended up in my passenger’s seat driving cross-country. That’s when we discovered a common thread�� something that ran soul deep. Something hard to resist.

But no one I cared about was safe, and when she left, I made her promise never to come back.

Turns out, she lied.

Now the devil who claimed my future wants her, as well, and when I’m faced with a choice, who will come out alive?

The demons who own me?

The family who loves me?

Or the girl I wasn’t supposed to fall for?

Only the bayou knows��

And its secrets die here.]]> 532 Chelley St. Clair vani 0 to-read 4.27 2022
author: Chelley St. Clair
name: vani
average rating: 4.27
book published: 2022
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2023/07/26
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 62982917
Within the tangled roots of grief, we stand to lose so much. But no one ever acknowledges what we stand to gain.
Strength. Perspective. Appreciation. Resilience.
And sometimes, every once in a while, if you’re truly lucky��
There is love.

After an emotional cliffhanger, we finally get inside Cal's head and discover his secrets, along with more details of his tragic past, that have been keeping him from Lucy.

A Pessimist's Guide to Love is the final installment of the Heartsong duet, ending in a guaranteed HEA.]]> 311 Jennifer Hartmann vani 0 4.02 2023
author: Jennifer Hartmann
name: vani
average rating: 4.02
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at: 2023/07/25
date added: 2023/07/25
shelves:
review:

]]> 62982904
There once was a girl with fireflies in her eyes and music in her soul.

(Remember her... she's important.)

She's the reason I panic-bought the little brick house on Maple Street; the one I lived next door to for eight magical years. Now that I'm back digging up floorboards and lost journals, I can’t stop thinking about the two people who grew up here.

You see, that girl was my best friend, and this house was once hers. She also had a big brother who was my everything before circumstance turned us into nothing more than memories.

That’s why I applied for a job at his auto shop—unprepared to discover that my new boss, Cal Bishop, is now gruff, built, and covered in tattoos.

I'm the sun to his overcast sky. The smile to his surly solitude.

A reminder of everything he longs to forget.

But my heart has a secret, and we’re running out of time to fix our torn pages.

Maybe the same girl who used to be the glue still holds the key to putting our pieces back together.

(See? I told you she was important.)

Toodles,
Lucy

***
Book 1/2
Book Two: A Pessimist's Guide to Love]]> 294 Jennifer Hartmann vani 0 4.19 2023
author: Jennifer Hartmann
name: vani
average rating: 4.19
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at: 2023/07/22
date added: 2023/07/22
shelves:
review:

]]> 33413128
People say Beartown is finished. A tiny community nestled deep in the forest, it is slowly losing ground to the ever encroaching trees. But down by the lake stands an old ice rink, built generations ago by the working men who founded this town. And in that ice rink is the reason people in Beartown believe tomorrow will be better than today. Their junior ice hockey team is about to compete in the national semi-finals, and they actually have a shot at winning. All the hopes and dreams of this place now rest on the shoulders of a handful of teenage boys.

Being responsible for the hopes of an entire town is a heavy burden, and the semi-final match is the catalyst for a violent act that will leave a young girl traumatized and a town in turmoil. Accusations are made and, like ripples on a pond, they travel through all of Beartown, leaving no resident unaffected.

Beartown explores the hopes that bring a small community together, the secrets that tear it apart, and the courage it takes for an individual to go against the grain. In this story of a small forest town, Fredrik Backman has found the entire world.]]> 432 Fredrik Backman vani 0 to-read 4.27 2016
author: Fredrik Backman
name: vani
average rating: 4.27
book published: 2016
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2023/07/12
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 123414004
* Lincoln Daniels is a morally grey antihero who is obsessed with his girl and will do anything to keep her.

This is a darker hockey romance. The Pucking Wrong Number is a hockey romance standalone from USA Today and International Bestselling Author C.R. Jane.]]> 390 C.R. Jane vani 1 1-star 3.56 2023
author: C.R. Jane
name: vani
average rating: 3.56
book published: 2023
rating: 1
read at: 2023/07/04
date added: 2023/07/04
shelves: 1-star
review:

]]> 161176794
Maybe some would consider her crush on Mateo Eden wasted time. Maybe some would call her a fool for loving a man who hasn’t once dropped a crumb of interest her way. Still, to Vera, it’s Mateo or nothing.

He’s handsome. Charming. Witty. And he loves his family the way Vera loves—with her whole heart.

Maybe he’ll never notice her. Maybe she’s too damaged, too broken, to find that normal life she craves. Maybe her secrets will always keep them apart. But Vera will love him anyway. Whether Mateo realizes it or not.

An unrequited love, small town romance.]]> 343 Devney Perry 1957376422 vani 0 to-read 4.20 2023
author: Devney Perry
name: vani
average rating: 4.20
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2023/06/28
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 25564446
“Stay away from him,�� people said.
“He’s cruel.��
“He’s cold.��
“He’s damaged.��

It’s easy to judge a man because of his past. To look at Tristan and see a monster.

But I couldn’t do that. I had to accept the wreckage that lived inside of him because it also lived inside of me.

We were both empty.
We were both looking for something else. Something more.
We both wanted to put together the shattered pieces of our yesterdays.

Then perhaps we could finally remember how to breathe.]]> 308 Brittainy C. Cherry vani 2 2-stars 4.12 2015
author: Brittainy C. Cherry
name: vani
average rating: 4.12
book published: 2015
rating: 2
read at: 2023/06/26
date added: 2023/06/27
shelves: 2-stars
review:
maybe i set this book up for failure by reading it right after finishing a little life, but it lacked the depth and development that is usually present in brittainy’s books. the characters were boring, the building of the romance was nonexistent, and the conflict was pretty stupid. a child kidnapping plot has no place in this book wtf. and them imagining to be each others dead exes when hooking up.. girl get outta here
]]> 27883214 A legendary competition.
A mesmerizing romance.
An unbreakable bond
between two sisters.

Scarlett Dragna has never left the tiny island where she and her sister, Tella, live with their powerful, and cruel, father. Now Scarlett’s father has arranged a marriage for her, and Scarlett thinks her dreams of seeing Caraval—the faraway, once-a-year performance where the audience participates in the show—are over.

But this year, Scarlett’s long-dreamt-of invitation finally arrives. With the help of a mysterious sailor, Tella whisks Scarlett away to the show. Only, as soon as they arrive, Tella is kidnapped by Caraval’s mastermind organizer, Legend. It turns out that this season’s Caraval revolves around Tella, and whoever finds her first is the winner.

Scarlett has been told that everything that happens during Caraval is only an elaborate performance. Nevertheless she becomes enmeshed in a game of love, heartbreak, and magic. And whether Caraval is real or not, Scarlett must find Tella before the five nights of the game are over or a dangerous domino effect of consequences will be set off, and her beloved sister will disappear forever.

Welcome, welcome to Caraval . . . beware of getting swept too far away.]]> 407 Stephanie Garber 1250095255 vani 0 3.97 2016
author: Stephanie Garber
name: vani
average rating: 3.97
book published: 2016
rating: 0
read at: 2023/06/20
date added: 2023/06/20
shelves:
review:

]]> 127280062 Torn apart by war. Reunited by love?

Two weeks have passed since Iris returned home bruised and heartbroken from the front, but the war is far from over.

Roman is missing, lost behind enemy lines, with no memory of his past, or Iris. Hoping his memories return, he begins to write again �� but this time for the enemy.

When a strange letter arrives through his wardrobe door, he strikes up a correspondence with a penpal who seems at once mysterious�� and strangely familiar.

As their connection deepens, the two of them will risk their very hearts and futures to change the tides of the war.]]> 420 Rebecca Ross 1250857457 vani 0 to-read 3.99 2023
author: Rebecca Ross
name: vani
average rating: 3.99
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2023/06/17
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 60784546 After centuries of sleep, the gods are warring again��

All eighteen-year-old Iris Winnow wants to do is hold her family together. With a brother on the frontline forced to fight on behalf of the Gods now missing from the frontline and a mother drowning her sorrows, Iris’s best bet is winning the columnist promotion at the Oath Gazette.

But when Iris’s letters to her brother fall into the wrong hands �� that of the handsome but cold Roman Kitt, her rival at the paper �� an unlikely magical connection forms.

Expelled into the middle of a mystical war, magical typewriters in tow, can their bond withstand the fight for the fate of mankind and, most importantly, love?

An epic enemies-to-lovers fantasy novel filled with hope and heartbreak, and the unparalleled power of love.]]> 357 Rebecca Ross 1250857430 vani 0 arc 4.14 2023
author: Rebecca Ross
name: vani
average rating: 4.14
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at: 2022/12/31
date added: 2023/06/17
shelves: arc
review:

]]> 63031640
But hockey heartthrob Jasper Gervais isn’t looking at me like a friend anymore. And he isn’t touching me like one either.

To his fans, he’s the handsome, talented athlete on TV. But to me he’s still the lost boy with sad eyes and a heart of gold.

The man I’ve loved in secret for years.

So when my life falls apart on my wedding day, it only makes sense that he’s the one to swoop in and save me. And when his world comes crashing down around him, I’m there to return the favor.

But the more time we spend alone, the more Jasper doesn’t feel like a friend at all. He feels like everything I’ve ever wanted and thought I could never have.

Our feelings aren’t straight forward though. They twist and turn around the pain of his past and the reality of my present.

Jasper Gervais acts like he wants me.

But after years of turning me away, he’s going to need to prove it.]]> 504 Elsie Silver vani 0 to-read 4.08 2023
author: Elsie Silver
name: vani
average rating: 4.08
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2023/06/17
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 108518990 Theo Silva. Rowdy bull rider. Notorious ladies�� man. Scorching hot trouble wrapped up in a drool-worthy package.

And he’s looking at me like I might be his next meal.

But I’m almost free of my toxic marriage and have sworn off men entirely. So all I see when I look back is temptation served up with a heaping side of heartbreak.

The man is hard to trust—and even harder to resist.

Make that impossible. Because Theo is persistent. And no matter how hard I try to freeze him out, he melts my icy exterior and pulls apart all my defenses.

Over a drink in a small town bar, I blurt out my deepest, darkest secrets. Then I spend the singular hottest night of my life with him.

He worships my body. He makes me blush. I come alive beneath his hands.

Then I tell him to forget it ever happened. I want simple, and with him it all feels complicated.

It was supposed to be a one-time thing.

A secret.

But that little plus sign is going to make this secret impossible to keep.]]> 466 Elsie Silver vani 4 4-stars new adult nessian 4.38 2023
author: Elsie Silver
name: vani
average rating: 4.38
book published: 2023
rating: 4
read at: 2023/06/16
date added: 2023/06/16
shelves: 4-stars
review:
new adult nessian
]]> 45450189
A small advice from me to you: if you haven’t dated, touched *or* kissed a guy in years and *years*…do not try to crawl away or hide from the-one-who-got-away. It’s not a good look.

William Carter, the stranger I’d met six years ago was the last person I’d imagine ever seeing at my dad’s firm where I work. While I panic and fight off the butterflies in my stomach and in general struggle to act normal, I realize he doesn’t even remember me. I’m not sure if I should feel relieved or heartbroken. Things get worse when I learn we’ll need to work in close quarters to each other, but at least I let him know that I don’t have a crush on him anymore right away. Just in case he gets any ideas.

While I’m in the process of writing lists and making serious changes in my life, because I decide I’m ready to be the heroine in my own story; having William just a breath away is not helping things. Especially when things shift between us and we start to make eye contact in meetings. Then he shows up in places I least expect him to…as in blind dates and sex clubs. He also gives me cheese because he knows how much I like it and there are secret notes he leaves in my office. If you were wondering, I still don’t have a crush on him though. Nope.

Even though I’d promised myself I’d never wait around for another guy and postpone my own life, I’m afraid William Carter who looks at me as if I’m his and was always supposed to be his might ruin my hopeful plans. And quite possibly me for any other guy since I’m craving his touch like I’ve never craved anything in my life before. But we both know we’re a losing game so we keep admitting that neither one of us has a crush on the other.
Not anymore. Not at all. Not even a little bit.]]> 429 Ella Maise vani 0 to-read 3.59 2023
author: Ella Maise
name: vani
average rating: 3.59
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2023/06/01
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 55445756 At seventeen, my family exiled me to a convent.

Pregnant and alone—a stain on the family name. For ten years, I did my best with the hand I was dealt. But a tragic event forced me to flee, looking for protection.

I found him. Marcello Lastra. A cold and brooding man.
Oddly appealing. Unnaturally tempting.
It was supposed to be a marriage in name only.

A simple arrangement to suit both of us. But sinister things keep happening around us, driving us closer than ever. Until the truth comes out—too late.

Marcello Lastra isn't what he seems.

I fell in love with a monster.]]> 440 Veronica Lancet vani 0 3.86
author: Veronica Lancet
name: vani
average rating: 3.86
book published:
rating: 0
read at: 2023/05/31
date added: 2023/05/31
shelves:
review:

]]> 85164835
Running away from home at 17 wasn’t easy. Let’s face it though, nothing before, or in the ten years since, has ever been easy for me.
And I’m doing okay. Sorta. I just need to keep scraping by, living under the radar. Staying out of people’s way, off people’s minds.
So when a man walks through my open patio door, stepping boldly into my home, and my life, I should be scared. Frightened. Terrified.
But I must be more broken than I realized, because I’m none of those things.
I’m intrigued.
And I’m wondering if the way to take control of my life is by giving in to him.

Nero

The first time I took a man’s life, I knew there’d be no going back. No normal existence in the cards for me.
So instead of walking away, I climbed a mountain of bodies, and created my own destiny. By forming The Alliance.
And I was fine with that. Content enough to carry on.
Until I stepped through those open doors, and into her life.
I should’ve walked away. Should’ve gone right back out the door I came through. But I didn’t.
And now her life is in danger.
But that’s the thing about being a bad man. I’ll happily paint the streets red to protect what’s mine.
And Payton is mine. Whether she knows it or not.]]> 368 S.J. Tilly vani 0 3.86 2023
author: S.J. Tilly
name: vani
average rating: 3.86
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at: 2023/05/30
date added: 2023/05/30
shelves:
review:

]]> 52019496
Proceeds for the month of release go to College Track (501c3), providing college scholarships and resources for vulnerable / limited resource populations. At collegetrack.org


What do you do when your freakishly smart and wickedly sarcastic Research Methods professor sees you mostly naked? You befriend him, of course.


‘Kissing Galileo�� is the second book in the Dear Professor series, is 60k words, and can be read as a standalone. A shorter version of this story (40k words) was entitled ‘Nobody Looks Good Naked�� and was available via Penny Reid’s newsletter for free over the course of 2018-19.]]> 292 Penny Reid vani 0 4.20 2018
author: Penny Reid
name: vani
average rating: 4.20
book published: 2018
rating: 0
read at: 2023/05/29
date added: 2023/05/29
shelves:
review:

]]> 58604190 This new and updated version contains over 100 pages of additional content!

My bodyguard. My enemy.
When my father hires Sebastian Bailey to protect me, I vow to make him quit within a week.
He's rude, overbearing, bossy and oh, too attractive for his own good.
Our hate is as explosive as our chemistry.
But my plans backfire.
Soon, he becomes my confidante, my friend—my lover.
Until the truth comes to light—too late.
Sebastian Bailey is not who he says he is.
He's here only for one reason.
To ruin me.
And he goes straight for the kill.

Frivolous is an enemies to lovers mafia romance standalone. Please be advised that it contains a lot of sensitive themes. Read the triggers before proceeding.]]> 468 Veronica Lancet vani 0 3.59
author: Veronica Lancet
name: vani
average rating: 3.59
book published:
rating: 0
read at: 2023/05/28
date added: 2023/05/28
shelves:
review:

]]> 60742352 Want to know what happens to a man who barely claws his way out of a tragedy, only to fall right into the arms of the one girl in the world he can never have?Another tragedy, that's what.When I was six years old, my father made a choice that altered the course of my entire life.Because of what he did, the only girl I ever loved became the only girl I couldn’t have.In a lot of ways, I did have her…I had her first steps, her first words, her first smile. I had her milestones, her heartbreaks, her dreams. I had her heart so woven in with mine, I didn’t know where she ended, and I began.Only, as the years pressed on, lines became blurred—and the blurrier the line, the easier it is to cross.They say tragedy comes in threes.For me, that was true.The first one changed me, the second one broke me, and the third one healed me.But at the center of all that tragedy�� there is a love story.And at the center of that love story,There is June.REVIEWS ★★★★��"Jennifer Hartmann penned an exceptionally unique story with every emotion digging its claws into your heart. June First is an unforgettable masterpiece!" - Jewel E. Ann, USA Today and Wall Street Journal Bestselling Author"A touching coming of age story that oh-so-slowly kindles, and when it ignites, hold on tight because oh baby, this forbidden love burns. The angst and steam alone will overfill your taboo-loving heart. Such a beautiful, unforgettable book." - Pam Godwin, New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and USA Today Bestselling Author"The writing was heartfelt, vivid, and infused with harrowing passion. It was entwined with visions of love, hope, and dreams. It's no surprise that Jennifer Hartmann finds herself in our top 'must read' authors." - Totally Booked Blog"Poignant, profound and poetic, this masterfully crafted, exquisitely beautiful story outshines all the other stars in the contemporary romance sky." - BookAddict Reviews"This book took my tears, bated my breath, and owned my heart. A unicorn dancing among the rainbows, June First is a top 2022 romance worth all the stars." - Karen McVino, Bookalicious Babes Blog"This is the type of masterpiece you cry buckets of both sad and happy tears over, then you tuck the memories beneath your pillow to keep forever." - Chelley St Clair, Romance Author "With June First, Jennifer Hartmann has taken a trope that is all too common these days and she has turned it into something that is truly original and heartbreakingly beautiful." - But First Let's Read"June First is simply exquisite. Forbidden love, delicious chemistry, and characters to love and root for, makes this book a true 5 star read!" - Jessica Ruben, International Bestselling Author"Hartmann excels at writing stories steeped in anguish and heartache like none other. This book is pure affliction from page one to the last. A standing ovation for this brilliant author who's destined to be the next B-I-G thing. - Shabby, BookBistroBlog"Brant and June will live with me for a very long time. This is easily my favorite standalone book I have ever read. My heart two days later is still living in this book. I’m rereading chapters because I can not get over just how amazing it is.]]> 562 Jennifer Hartmann vani 0 to-read 4.28 2022
author: Jennifer Hartmann
name: vani
average rating: 4.28
book published: 2022
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2023/05/06
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 60657589
Cambridge professor Emily Wilde is good at many things: She is the foremost expert on the study of faeries. She is a genius scholar and a meticulous researcher who is writing the world's first encyclopaedia of faerie lore. But Emily Wilde is not good at people. She could never make small talk at a party--or even get invited to one. And she prefers the company of her books, her dog, and the Fair Folk.

So when she arrives in the hardscrabble village of Hrafnsvik, Emily has no intention of befriending the gruff townsfolk. Nor does she care to spend time with another new arrival: her dashing and insufferably handsome academic rival Wendell Bambleby, who manages to charm the townsfolk, get in the middle of Emily's research, and utterly confound and frustrate her.

But as Emily gets closer and closer to uncovering the secrets of the Hidden Ones--the most elusive of all faeries--lurking in the shadowy forest outside the town, she also finds herself on the trail of another mystery: Who is Wendell Bambleby, and what does he really want? To find the answer, she'll have to unlock the greatest mystery of all--her own heart.]]> 336 Heather Fawcett 059350013X vani 0 to-read 3.99 2023
author: Heather Fawcett
name: vani
average rating: 3.99
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2023/05/01
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 136470356 A dark, atmospheric tale of deadly secrets and forbidden love.

Mortui vivos docent.
The dead teach the living.

After watching my mother succumb to a mysterious illness, I promised myself two things. I’d find the cure for what ravaged her. And leave the godforsaken city where she abandoned me.

Four years later, I receive an acceptance letter from Dracadia University, one of the oldest, most prestigious schools in the country. Nestled on a secluded island off the coast of Maine, it’s rumored to be haunted by the souls of the mental patients exiled there centuries before. Those whose bones are said to make up the island’s white sandy shores.

And restless ghosts aren’t even its most daunting peculiarity.

Devryck Bramwell, known on campus as Doctor Death, is a brilliant pathologist in charge of the midnight lab. He’s also my devastatingly handsome professor, who seems to loathe tenacious first-years, like me. Except, his dark and enigmatic gaze tells me all the ways he’d devour me if given the chance, and his stolen kisses burn my lips with forbidden jealousy.

I crave his authority.
He aches for redemption.
Together, we’re toxic. Delicious fodder for the prying eyes hellbent on exhuming the rotted skeletons of our pasts.

For the dead have much to teach, and it’s only a matter of time before Dracadia’s most depraved secret is resurrected.

Nocticadia is a standalone dark academia gothic romance.]]> 682 Keri Lake vani 0 to-read 4.22 2023
author: Keri Lake
name: vani
average rating: 4.22
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2023/05/01
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 63874606 HIS LADY

A Lord is to marry after he graduates from Barrington University, an elite college for the rich. A Lady’s job is to help him fit into a world unaware of his secret society. The Lord does not get to choose who he spends the rest of his life with. But there is always an exception to the rule. And I just so happen to be his.

I VOW. YOU VOW. WE VOW.

I was to wed a Lord of my parents�� choosing. Wealth can’t buy you everything, or I would have had freedom years ago. Instead, my strict parents made sure I lived a dull life in a mansion resembling a prison.

But on my wedding day, I was handed over to another man—an even more ruthless Lord that my family hated.

Tyson Riley Crawford only wanted me for his revenge. I’m nothing more than a debt to be paid. I didn’t have a say in the matter. So when I said my vows before the congregation, I knew I’d break them. Consequences be damned.

Too bad I underestimated my husband and didn’t realize he was more determined to punish me than I was to succeed at escaping. He’ll make me choke on those words I used to bind myself to him.

Yet even he couldn’t have seen what our future held. Ultimately, we’re all just pawns in a game that none of us can win unless you’re willing to pay the ultimate sacrifice �� and even that may not be enough.]]> 644 Shantel Tessier vani 0 he gave her an enema so 4.32 2023
author: Shantel Tessier
name: vani
average rating: 4.32
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at: 2023/05/01
date added: 2023/05/01
shelves:
review:
he gave her an enema so
]]> 59479184 A love so forbidden, it would shake the heavens.

My father called them messengers.
He once told me they walked among us, and that somewhere in this dark and godless city, there shined a faint sliver of hope. I had only to look for the signs.

Well, I’ve spent my whole life investigating the inexplicable, and all I've found are the unsettling vestiges of iniquity - the evidence of another world shrouded by the obscure. Purgatory to some, where depravity hides in shadows, and girls like me are little more than delicious bites of temptation.

Others call it Nightshade.

This peculiar place is where I first met the cold and callous recluse living in a decaying cliffside cathedral. Jericho Van Croix is the epitome of everything I’ve been told to fear. A raven-winged harbinger who wears intrigue like a warm black cloak. An enigma that I’m determined to unravel �� even if it means getting closer than I should.

One touch is forbidden. Even so much as a kiss would be my demise. But the sin on his lips burns me up like a wild flame, and his growing infatuation weakens my resolve.

Giving him what he wants, though, will mean no chance for redemption, or escape. What's worse is, the signs I’ve followed yet failed to see all these years begin to unmask a terrifying reality:

That falling may be my only saving grace.]]> 676 Keri Lake vani 0 to-read 3.92 2021
author: Keri Lake
name: vani
average rating: 3.92
book published: 2021
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2023/04/25
shelves: to-read
review:

]]>