We Won't All Survive by Kate Alice Marshall

Synopsis (via Goodreads): From the bestselling author of I Am Still Alive comes a new nail-biter that's part survival story, part murder mystery, and all thriller—perfect for fans of Karen McManus and Holly Jackson!

Two years ago Mercy Gray was hailed as a hero for saving lives during a mall shooting. She still carries souvenirs from that incident: the fragment of a bullet lodged in her back, a mountain of medical debt, and guilt for ignoring her sister’s warnings that the sweet boy next door was anything but.

When billionaire-turned-TV-host Damien Dare recruits Mercy to compete on his new survivalist reality show, she can’t turn down a chance at the whopping cash prize that could send her sister to college—but when she and the other contestants arrive at the off-grid location, something isn’t right. The set is empty. The gates close without warning, trapping them inside. Then one of them turns up dead. What appeared at first to be a tragic accident quickly transforms as more contestants start dying. With time and resources running low, surviving this show takes on a new meaning.

We Won’t All Survive is my first book by Marshall, and I ended up really enjoying it. Initially, I gave it four stars, but changed it to three and a half after I had time to reflect on the story. There are a lot of characters, but we really only get to know them on a surface level, and I wish the author had taken more time to flesh them out so we could feel more connected to them and their situation. I think it also would have prevented me from confusing some of the boys and forgetting who was who. I kept getting them mixed up, which interrupted the flow of the story.

I also would have liked it if they’d been forced to play the game longer. I thought that aspect of the book was really interesting, and I think seeing them work through different challenges when it was truly life or death would have added more to the story. As it stands, once they realize things aren’t what they seem, they abandon the game and just try to figure out how to escape. While that may have been a realistic decision on their part, it wasn’t what I was expecting after reading the synopsis. I thought they'd have to navigate the game while trying to stay alive, but it ends up not being a focal point.

I wasn’t completely surprised by the whodunnit, but I do think the author did a good job of making us doubt several of the characters. No one wants to talk about the tragic thing in their past that brought them there, but understanding their pasts is what helped them realize why they’d been chosen to participate in the first place.

The ending felt a little rushed, but it was still satisfying. Mercy had a role to play, and I think she played it well. She managed to face her demons and come out on top, which is more than some of the others can say. Her motives were honorable and self-sacrificing, and I was happy when she figured out what was going on and remained level-headed until an opportunity presented itself.

If you want a quick story with awesome audio, We Won’t All Survive checks both boxes. I think Jess Nahikian nailed the narration, and I’m looking forward to listening to more books narrated by her in the future. (★★★⭑☆)

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. My thoughts and opinions are my own. Any quotes I use are from an unpublished copy and may not reflect the finished product.

The Faraway Inn by Sarah Beth Durst

Synopsis (via Goodreads): After a devastating heartbreak, a teen girl decides to spend her summer helping her eccentric great aunt manage her quaint Vermont inn--but this fixer-upper is hiding a magical secret--in this cozy and irresistable new fantasy from the New York Times bestselling author of The Spellshop.

Sixteen-year-old Calisa is desperate for a change of scenery after her lying ex ruins her perfect Brooklyn summer. When her parents suggest she head to rural Vermont to help her great-aunt run her cozy bed and breakfast for a few months, she jumps at the chance.

But when Calisa arrives at the B&B, she's shocked to find a rundown inn with only a handful of guests. And to make matters worse, upon meeting with her great-aunt it quickly becomes clear that Calisa was not invited. Auntie Zee is determined to keep anyone from messing with her beloved inn…even if it is clear she needs the help.

To earn her keep, Calisa sets to work fixing up the inn, enlisting extra help from the groundskeeper's (handsome) son. But the longer she stays, the more it becomes evident that there is something strange about the B&B—and its residents. Something almost…otherworldly.

The inn is keeping a magical secret—but to protect the place she's come to love, Calisa must unravel the truth of it, and her aunt, before it's too late.

I went into this one expecting a cozy fantasy, and that’s mostly what I got. I really enjoyed the B&B setting and the wide variety of guests who passed through. They were all unique, and I liked Calisa's interactions with them. I also think The Faraway Inn still has a lot of potential, especially when it comes to expanding on the magic of the world and teaching us more about how it works. I'm curious if this will remain a standalone, or if Durst plans to write more books that connect to this one. Personally, I'm hoping for the latter.

It felt like the author only scratched the surface of both the worldbuilding and the character development. Because of that, Calisa came across as a bit immature for her age. The way she would think or feel about something occasionally felt off. She was also really quick to accept the wild explanations Jack gave her whenever something weird happened at the inn, and I kept expecting her to push back or at least freak out a little more. She never really seemed to react to how strange everything was, and her lack of awareness was alarming. She tried to rationalize everything, when it was clear from the start that the B&B was anything but normal. Her thoughts about Jack also felt a little rushed, especially considering her reasoning for being at the inn in the first place. 

The concept of the B&B as a place that connects worlds—a space where others can come to rest and reset—is honestly such an amazing idea. I loved it, but found myself wishing it had been explored a bit more. We’re introduced to so many cool characters, but we don’t get to spend enough time with them or really learn about the worlds they come from. Calisa helps solve some of their major problems, and then they kind of just fade into the background.

A few other thoughts: 

1) I found the story to be a bit predictable at times and wished it had surprised me more. 

2) Auntie Zee wasn't the nicest person, despite everyone saying how wonderful she was, and her treatment of Calisa felt a little unfair and not fully addressed beyond a somewhat grumpy apology. 

3) The B&B is full of magical trinkets that definitely deserved more page time and explanations. PS: Where can I get a magical teapot?

Overall, I did enjoy The Faraway Inn and the story it told, but I think there was room for a little more depth to really make it stand out. (★★★⋆☆)

I received an ARC from Booktrovert in exchange for an honest review. My thoughts and opinions are my own. Any quotes I use are from an unpublished copy and may not reflect the finished product.

Broken Country by Clare Leslie Hall

 Synopsis (via Goodreads): “The farmer is dead. He is dead, and all anyone wants to know is who killed him.”

Beth and her gentle, kind husband Frank are happily married, but their relationship relies on the past staying buried. But when Beth’s brother-in-law shoots a dog going after their sheep, Beth doesn’t realize that the gunshot will alter the course of their lives. For the dog belonged to none other than Gabriel Wolfe, the man Beth loved as a teenager—the man who broke her heart years ago. Gabriel has returned to the village with his young son Leo, a boy who reminds Beth very much of her own son, who died in a tragic accident.

As Beth is pulled back into Gabriel’s life, tensions around the village rise and dangerous secrets and jealousies from the past resurface, this time with deadly consequences. Beth is forced to make a choice between the woman she once was, and the woman she has become.

A sweeping love story with the pace and twists of a thriller, Broken Country is a novel of simmering passion, impossible choices, and explosive consequences that toggles between the past and present to explore the far-reaching legacy of first love.

I had a feeling Broken Country would break my heart, and it didn’t disappoint. I was worried about how the author would tell Beth’s story, especially with two men involved (a past love and a current one), but I thought it was wonderfully written and explained in a way I could absolutely believe and get on board with. Hall expertly navigates the gray area of Beth’s love for two men, creating compelling, flawed characters who are all too easy to relate to.

I really enjoyed the dual timelines—before, when Beth met and loved Gabriel, and the present, when she’s married to and loves Frank. A lot happens in Beth’s life, and I’m sure it would have broken a weaker person. She has been repeatedly knocked down by life, yet still manages to push forward. She hopes when most would have become hopeless. I loved her relationships with both men and could totally see why she felt the way she did. She admits to loving them both, and her loss of a child, along with her current circumstances, definitely played a large role in the decisions she made.

In addition to the dual timelines, we see Beth in a courtroom with an unknown person accused of murder. We don’t learn until much later who is sitting there, or which man Beth is talking about when she discusses the case and the events leading up to it. I thought this was really well done, and the author kept me on my toes throughout the entire story. The twists and turns were unexpected, yet felt inevitable. I could wholeheartedly believe in how things played out and even understand the things I didn’t like.

Beth, Frank, and Gabriel had to make impossible choices for the people they loved. The feelings of loss and love go hand in hand in this one, and it was almost impossible to separate one from the other. Gabriel and Beth felt as though they’d lost each other, Frank and Beth lost a child and it broke something in their marriage, Beth lost her dreams and new beginnings, but there was also joy and happiness. Beth found a new love in her child, on the farm, and even with Gabriel’s son. She loved Frank and the life they had built together. She loved her brother-in-law, Jimmy, who was there for her in a crisis. Some things were bittersweet, but I never stopped hoping all three of them would get a happy ending.

Broken Country will put your emotions through the ringer, but it’s a compelling story that I absolutely loved and would definitely read again. I can’t wait to see how I view things the second time around, knowing what I know now. (★★★★★)

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. My thoughts and opinions are my own. Any quotes I use are from an unpublished copy and may not reflect the finished product.

The Somewhat Wicked Witch of Brigandale by C.M. Waggoner

Synopsis (via Goodreads): A practical witch must sabotage her beloved son's ascension to the throne in order to keep the kingdom from ruin, in this delightful cozy fantasy from the author of The Ruthless Lady’s Guide to Wizardry.

Once upon a time, a somewhat wicked witch named Gretsella lived in a cozy little cottage in the Dark Forest of Brigandale. She dispensed herbs and tinctures at reasonable prices, met with her slightly oddball coven on a regular basis, and had absolutely no need of any further company whatsoever, thank you very much. But then one afternoon, Gretsella came home to find a screaming infant on her doorstep.

Against all her better judgement, she took the baby in. She named him Bradley.

Eighteen years later, Bradley has grown into a bafflingly likable young man under Gretsella’s extremely tolerant—one might even say doting—eye. But the witch’s hopes for an unremarkable yet fulfilling life for her son are shattered when small woodland animals start prophesying that he is the lost prince and should ascend to the throne. Bradley ignores Gretsella’s advice that prophecies and talking chipmunks are to be avoided at all costs, and sets off for the capital. But soon confusion and chaos are reigning, and scheming courtiers are using Bradley for their own ends. Sometimes a witch has to roll up her sleeves and take matters into her own cauldron. So Gretsella sets off to bring about the downfall of her darling son…

The Somewhat Wicked Witch of Brigandale was utterly absurd. I really struggled with this one and couldn’t connect with the characters at all. The author has them jumping from one ludicrous situation to the next, and I never felt like there was a good reason for anything they were doing. Gretsella also doesn’t sabotage her son’s kingdom or his ascension to the throne—she actually goes there and fixes what he’s broken.

Bradley is a few slices short of a full loaf and can barely function on his own. I have no idea why a character would be written to be so dull and dimwitted, especially when he was raised by a crafty witch who’s supposed to think several steps ahead. The book also doesn’t mention its LGBTQ+ themes anywhere, but as Gretsella herself puts it, Bradley is easily distracted by anything in trousers. It’s a semi-prevalent part of the story, and I wish it had been advertised—or at least mentioned—somewhere in the book's marketing.

The story would have been far more interesting if Gretsella had actually tried to undermine her son’s authority and sabotage his kingdom to bring him back. Instead, she’s soft-hearted and would never do anything that might truly harm him. I also would have liked to see more of her coven. Other than Gretsella, none of the characters are particularly fleshed out.

The curses were ridiculous—a stain on someone’s shirt? Really?—and the characters left a lot to be desired. There’s very little worldbuilding, and hardly anything makes much sense. I think this was meant to be humorous and a little cheeky, but I went into it expecting a cozy fantasy with witches. 

Overall, it was a very quick read, but the whole thing was incredibly frustrating. I wish I’d stopped reading when I first had an inkling it wasn’t going to work for me, but I kept going to see if it got better. It didn’t. (★★⭑☆☆)

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. My thoughts and opinions are my own. Any quotes I use are from an unpublished copy and may not reflect the finished product.

Once and Again by Rebecca Serle

Synopsis (via Goodreads): The women of the Novak family were each born with a gift: they can, just once, turn back time.

Lauren has known since she was fifteen that her mother Marcella saved Lauren’s father from a deadly car accident. Dave is alive and happy, and out on the Malibu waves. But ever since, Marcella, her power spent, has lived in fear of what she won’t be able to reverse. Her own mother, Sylvia, is her polar opposite: a free-spirited iconoclast with a glamorous past she only hints at. Lauren has spent her life between these two role models—and waiting for her own catastrophe to strike.

Then one summer, Lauren’s husband takes a job in New York and she moves back to Broad Beach Road, back into her childhood home on the shores of Malibu. Lauren looks forward to surfing with her dad again and perhaps repairing an unspoken fracture in her relationship with her mother. What she doesn’t expect is for the boy next to door to return home as well: Stone, Lauren’s first love, who broke her heart nearly a decade before.

As Lauren falls into familiar patterns, with her family and, more dangerously, Stone, she finds herself thinking about all the choices, large and small, that have brought her to this moment. And wondering, finally, if one of them should be undone.

I think it’s time I admit to myself that Rebecca Serle’s books just aren’t a good fit for me. I really enjoyed In Five Years, but One Italian Summer was a DNF, and I barely got through Once and Again. I found all three women to be incredibly selfish, which made it hard for me to connect with them as characters. Sylvia was easily my favorite of the three, but I still didn’t agree with many of her choices.

All three women are very different. Sylvia is aloof and fiercely independent, traveling often and preferring to be on her own. She cooks incredible meals and is extremely secretive about her past. She also wasn't a very present parent, frequently leaving her daughter with others while she went off to do whatever she wanted. 

Marcella, on the other hand, longs for a family. She doesn’t know who her father is (Sylvia is her mother), and she’s certain that she wants to be a mother herself. Unfortunately, she struggles to connect with her own daughter, though she does find love with Dave. She blames her mother for a lot of things, but mostly for their lack of a relationship.

Lauren is the daughter of Marcella and Dave, and Sylvia’s granddaughter. She doesn’t have the best relationship with her mother, but she’s very close to her father—and even her grandmother. She and her husband, Leo, are trying to have a baby, but fertility treatments haven’t been successful.

My heart broke for all three women. It felt like each of them was searching for something they never quite found, even though they could have found it with each other. Instead, they drift apart and only seem to come together when a ticket is used—or when one of them truly needs the others. Only then do they seem able to find comfort in one another.

I actually agreed with Sylvia’s reasoning about the tickets. She only told her daughter about the magical ticket when she believed it was really necessary. Marcella, however, chose to tell Lauren at a young age, and Lauren ultimately used hers for something that felt small by comparison. It might have seemed huge in the moment—most mistakes do—but it also felt like something she could have moved forward from without using the ticket.

I absolutely hated the ending. I hated the choices Lauren made. I hated the secrets all three women kept from each other. And I hated how the final ticket was used. After everything these women went through, it felt like the story threw away the chance for growth, honesty, and real connection. I had such high hopes for this one, but the ending left me feeling frustrated and disappointed. (★★⭑☆☆)

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. My thoughts and opinions are my own. Any quotes I use are from an unpublished copy and may not reflect the finished product.

The Notorious Virtues (The Notorious Virtues, #1) by Alwyn Hamilton 🎧 Max Meyers, Colin White, Karissa Vacker, and EJ Lavery

Synopsis (via Goodreads): A glittering fantasy thriller about a glamorous media darling, a surprise heiress, and the magical competition of a lifetime.

At sixteen, Honora "Nora" Holtzfall is the daughter of the most powerful heiress in all of Walstad. Her family controls all the money—and all the magic—in the entire country. But despite being the center of attention, Nora has always felt like an outsider. When her mother is found dead in an alley, the family throne and fortune are suddenly up for grabs, and Nora will be pitted against her cousins in the Veritaz, the ultimate magical competition for power that determines the one family heir.

But there's a surprise contestant this time: Lotte, the illegitimate daughter of Nora's aunt. When Lotte's absent mother retrieves her from the rural convent she'd abandoned her to, Lotte goes from being an orphan to surrounded by family. Unfortunately, most of them want her dead.

And soon, Nora discovers that her mother's death wasn't random—it was murder. And the only person she can trust to uncover the truth of what happened is a rakish young reporter who despises everything Nora and her family stand for.

While the dangers of the Veritaz competition threaten each of the Holtzfall girls, and the stark class differences turns political outrage to terrifing violence—the new cousins must fight to stay alive, no matter what.

Incredible tests, impossible choices, and deadly odds await both girls. But there can only be one winner.

The Notorious Virtues was a really interesting story with a unique concept, but I definitely think it was longer than it needed to be. The pacing dragged in places, which was a bit of a bummer since we didn’t get as much worldbuilding or character development as I would have liked. The story alternates between several POVs — Lotte, Nora, August, Theo, and even a few secondary characters — but unfortunately none of them felt especially fleshed out, and I think that hurt the overall story a bit.

I still ended up giving this one 4 stars, although if I’m being completely honest it probably lands closer to a 3.5 for me. I’m not sure I would have made it as far if I’d been reading a physical copy, but the narrators did a fantastic job bringing the story to life and giving the characters more personality.

The ending does set up the next book really well, even though it leaves us with quite a few unanswered questions. I have a feeling the regular folk are about to learn what the Holtzfall family’s protection really meant when it came to their safety and wellbeing. I think people forgot the original story and only saw the Holtzfalls as power-hungry elites who refused to share their wealth.

Things definitely needed to change, and even Lotte and Nora seemed ready to see what that might look like — but I don’t think they anticipated some of the events that transpired. It will be interesting to see how they come back from everything that's happened, and what their new world will look like when they do. (★★★★☆)

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. My thoughts and opinions are my own. Any quotes I use are from an unpublished copy and may not reflect the finished product.

Reckless Girls by Rachel Hawkins

Synopsis (via Goodreads): From the New York Times bestselling author of The Wife Upstairs comes a deliciously wicked gothic suspense, set on an isolated Pacific island with a dark history, for fans of Lucy Foley and Ruth Ware.

When Lux McAllister and her boyfriend, Nico, are hired to sail two women to a remote island in the South Pacific, it seems like the opportunity of a lifetime. Stuck in a dead-end job in Hawaii, and longing to travel the world after a family tragedy, Lux is eager to climb on board The Susannah and set out on an adventure. She’s also quick to bond with their passengers, college best friends Brittany and Amma. The two women say they want to travel off the beaten path. But like Lux, they may have other reasons to be seeking an escape.

Shimmering on the horizon after days at sea, Meroe Island is every bit the paradise the foursome expects, despite a mysterious history of shipwrecks, cannibalism, and even rumors of murder. But what they don’t expect is to discover another boat already anchored off Meroe’s sandy beaches. The owners of the Azure Sky, Jake and Eliza, are a true golden couple: gorgeous, laidback, and if their sleek catamaran and well-stocked bar are any indication, rich. Now a party of six, the new friends settle in to experience life on an exotic island, and the serenity of being completely off the grid. Lux hasn’t felt like she truly belonged anywhere in years, yet here on Meroe, with these fellow free spirits, she finally has a sense of peace.

But with the arrival of a skeevy stranger sailing alone in pursuit of a darker kind of good time, the balance of the group is disrupted. Soon, cracks begin to emerge: it seems that Brittany and Amma haven’t been completely honest with Lux about their pasts––and perhaps not even with each other. And though Jake and Eliza seem like the perfect pair, the rocky history of their relationship begins to resurface, and their reasons for sailing to Meroe might not be as innocent as they first appeared.

When it becomes clear that the group is even more cut off from civilization than they initially thought, it starts to feel like the island itself is closing in on them. And when one person goes missing, and another turns up dead, Lux begins to wonder if any of them are going to make it off the island alive.

Reckless Girls was an okay read for me. I found the murder mystery aspect a bit confusing at times, though the alternating timelines between past and present — and between different characters — did help me better understand who they were and why they made certain choices. Still, the overall plot felt convoluted and not as well executed as it could have been. Some of the deaths were poorly explained, and the motivations behind them weren’t entirely believable.

I did enjoy the remote island setting and the tension of trying to figure out who was behind the killings, but the characters do very little exploring while they’re there. They make a few trips onto the island, but mostly stay on their boats or in the water. I felt like everyone should have been more suspicious of strangers, but no one seemed to care that they were isolated with people they barely knew.

Unfortunately, the ending left a lot to be desired. It felt like it ended without truly ending, leaving too much up to the reader’s imagination. Lux’s choices also seemed out of character, even considering everything she had been through. After such a promising start, I was expecting more. (★★★☆☆)

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. My thoughts and opinions are my own. Any quotes I use are from an unpublished copy and may not reflect the finished product.

Heartless Hunter (The Crimson Moth, #1) by Kristen Ciccarelli 🎧 Grace Gray

Synopsis (via Goodreads):  On the night Rune’s life changed forever, blood ran in the streets. Now, in the aftermath of a devastating revolution, witches have been diminished from powerful rulers to outcasts ruthlessly hunted due to their waning magic, and Rune must hide what she is.

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.

I definitely think The Crimson Moth is a much better title for this book than Heartless Hunter. I’m assuming they changed the title at the last minute, since the original title is still mentioned in the book’s synopsis. Heartless Hunter doesn’t feel accurate, because both Rune and Gideon are fighting for causes they believe in based on personal experience. Rune was raised and loved by a witch, while Gideon’s life was completely destroyed by them. Just like with humans, there are good and bad witches—but that doesn’t mean people are quick to forgive or accept those who have wronged them.

Grace Gray did an absolutely amazing job narrating Heartless Hunter. She doesn’t use a dramatically distinct “male” voice, but she handled the different POVs really well. I was able to follow the story and each perspective without any trouble at all. I’ve already borrowed the second book from the library so I can continue listening to Rune and Gideon’s story.

I thought the romance between Rune and Gideon was good, though complicated. They clearly have feelings for each other, but neither of them trusts the other’s intentions. Rune knows Gideon is showing interest in her because he’s trying to determine whether she’s the Crimson Moth or connected to the witch who’s rescuing others from execution. Despite knowing this, she still develops feelings for her best friend’s brother, which complicates everything. Gideon, on the other hand, isn’t sure of Rune’s true identity and knows she should be off-limits because of his brother — yet he can’t help letting her in and growing closer to her.

I found myself wishing they knew what we did as readers, because they both feel manipulated and betrayed by the other. They don’t realize that real feelings were shared, which makes the fallout even more painful. After everything that’s happened, it will take a lot for them to truly trust each other again. I’m really hoping they get another chance in the second book because I am 100% rooting for them. I loved the slow burn of their relationship and the way the author developed their feelings against the backdrop of everything happening around them.

I gave this one four stars instead of five because some of the twists were predictable — and I absolutely hated the one that wasn’t. I’m still not sure I can forgive Ciccarelli for the emotional damage she caused, but apparently I’m a glutton for punishment, because I’m diving into Rebel Witch anyway. My friend has already started it and said she’s cried multiple times, so at this point I’m bracing for impact. Wish me luck! (★★★★☆)

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. My thoughts and opinions are my own. Any quotes I use are from an unpublished copy and may not reflect the finished product.

Past Due Reviews [13] January Link-Up Post

 

Past Due Reviews exists to help me make peace with my ever-growing backlog—books I received for review that I either read and never reviewed, or read well after their publication date (the struggle is very real). These posts are my way of catching up, one overdue review at a time, and finally giving those books the attention they deserve.

If you have a few reviews lingering on your backlist that you’ve been meaning to get to, I’d love for you to join me. At the end of each month I’ll host a link-up where you can share your own past-due reviews and catch up right alongside me. No stress, no deadlines, and absolutely no judgment—just a cozy little space to celebrate “better late than never” and give those books the love they’ve been waiting for.

The Daughters' War (Blacktongue, #0) by Christopher Buehlman

Synopsis (via Goodreads): Enter the fray in this luminous new adventure from Christopher Buehlman, set during the war-torn, goblin-infested years just before The Blacktongue Thief .

The goblins have killed all of our horses and most of our men.

They have enslaved our cities, burned our fields, and still they wage war.

Now, our daughters take up arms.

Galva ― Galvicha to her three brothers, two of whom the goblins will kill ― has defied her family’s wishes and joined the army’s untested new unit, the Raven Knights. They march toward a once-beautiful city overrun by the goblin horde, accompanied by scores of giant war corvids. Made with the darkest magics, these fearsome black birds may hold the key to stopping the goblins in their war to make cattle of mankind.

The road to victory is bloody, and goblins are clever and merciless. The Raven Knights can take nothing for granted ― not the bonds of family, nor the wisdom of their leaders, nor their own safety against the dangerous war birds at their side. But some hopes are worth any risk.

I was so excited to get a copy of The Daughters’ War after really enjoying The Blacktongue Thief. The only downside to receiving an ARC was not being able to listen to the audiobook. The author narrated the first book, and it was simply phenomenal—he knows the story, the characters, how they’re feeling, and it truly comes through in his narration. That said, The Daughters’ War was still an amazing read, and I loved seeing how Galva’s story began. This book takes us all the way up to her meeting characters from The Blacktongue Thief.

You should know going in that this is not a lighthearted fantasy where the stakes are small and everyone makes it out unscathed. The Daughters’ War is BRUTAL. Goblins aren’t kind. They aren’t forgiving. They play dirty. Humans do not have the advantage, and they’re forced to do unspeakable things just to survive. There were several scenes where I covered my mouth, my brain desperately trying to keep up with what my eyes were reading.

That said, the Corvids are humanity’s greatest weapon—and easily one of my favorite elements of the story. They’ve been bred specifically to fight goblins and withstand their attacks, but they’re still deeply independent creatures who think for themselves and don’t always follow orders. That independence creates real problems when they’re meant to function as obedient weapons. Buehlman did a wonderful job with them—and honestly, with this story as a whole.

If you like darker fantasy, blurred moral lines, and cool creatures, this series is absolutely for you. If you’re squeamish, need romance, or require a HEA… you might want to pass on this one. (★★★★★)

I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. My thoughts and opinions are my own. Any quotes I use are from an unpublished copy and may not reflect the finished product.

The Plentiful Darkness by Heather Kassner

Synopsis (via Goodreads): In Heather Kassner's spine-chilling fantasy novel, reminiscent of Serafina and the Black Cloak, an orphaned girl chases a thieving boy into a magician's land of starless, moonless gloom where other children have gone missing before her.

Though the darkness is indeed plentiful, this book gleams with an eerie magic, its characters burning bright and fierce. A visual treat of a tale. --Stefan Bachmann, international bestselling author of Cinders and Sparrows

In order to survive on her own, twelve-year-old Rooney de Barra collects precious moonlight, which she draws from the evening sky with her (very rare and most magical) lunar mirror. All the while she tries to avoid the rival roughhouse boys, and yet another, more terrifying danger: the dreaded thing that's been disappearing children in the night.

When Trick Aidan, the worst of the roughhouse boys, steals her lunar mirror, Rooney will do whatever it takes to get it back. Even if it means leaping into a pool of darkness after it swallows Trick and her mirror. Or braving the Plentiful Darkness, a bewitching world devoid of sky and stars. Or begrudgingly teaming up with Trick to confront the magician and unravel the magic that has trapped Warybone's children.

I read this one with my children, and we all loved it! It has such a unique premise, and the author absolutely delivers. It’s a little on the spookier side, so I’d classify this as upper middle grade, but the creativity of the story paired with the author’s beautiful writing is—chef’s kiss.

Rooney is an orphan desperately trying to survive in a world that doesn’t care about her. Her parents are gone, she’s at odds with a rival group of orphans, and she’s competing to collect and sell moonlight—a task that’s difficult and dangerous all on its own. Thankfully, Rooney has a rat that sticks by her side and comes to the rescue more than once. 

I really enjoyed watching this story unfold and seeing Rooney find her courage—and her place in the world. People and places aren’t always what they seem, and she’ll have to work with her enemies to unravel the mystery and survive the circumstances she’s thrown into. The Plentiful Darkness truly is a wonderful book, and one I highly recommend. (★★★★☆)

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. My thoughts and opinions are my own. Any quotes I use are from an unpublished copy and may not reflect the finished product.

January Past Due Reviews Posts

• Past Due Reviews [10]
• Past Due Reviews [11]
• Past Due Reviews [12]

If you did your own Past Due Reviews Post, be sure to leave a link in the comments so I can check it out!

Graceless Heart (The Spellbound History, #1) by Isabel Ibañez

Synopsis (via Goodreads): A lush, atmospheric and achingly magical standalone adult fantasy romance set in Renaissance Italy from a #1 New York Times bestselling author.

In 15th-century Volterra, sculptress Ravenna Maffei enters a competition hosted by a secretive, immortal family who offer an invaluable boon to the victor. Desperate to win so she can save her brother, Ravenna reveals a rare magical talent--a dangerous act in a city where magic is forbidden. Her revelation makes her a target, and she is kidnapped by the Luni family and taken to Florence, a city of breathtaking beauty and cutthroat ambition.

There, Ravenna is forced into an impossible task where failure means certain death at the hands of Saturnino dei Luni, the family's enigmatic and merciless heir. But under his cold reserve hides a vulnerability that draws her closer than she ever intended.

Meanwhile, Ravenna's forbidden magic does not go unnoticed. The Pope, waging war against Florence, the Medici, and magic itself, has his own interest in her abilities, seeing her as a potential weapon in his ruthless campaign.

As alliances shift and war brews on the horizon, Ravenna must navigate the treacherous line between survival and betrayal, between love and duty. With time running out and her every move watched, the choices she makes will determine the fate of not just her own life, but the fragile balance of magic and power that could unravel Florence itself.

"A strange feeling unsettled him, like hearing a single haunting note in a quiet room, its resonance hinting at a symphony far richer and more complex than expected. Ravenna Maffei was no simple tune; she lingered, an echo in his mind he couldn't quiet, not matter how much he wished to."

First off, I’m confused about whether this is meant to be a standalone or part of a series. The synopsis calls it an “achingly magical standalone,” but Goodreads lists it as book one in The Spellbound History series. That distinction matters, because the story doesn’t actually wrap up by the end. Instead, it stops mid-moment. Ravenna starts to say something, Saturnino tells her to come with him—and that’s it.

After such a drawn-out story, the abrupt ending was incredibly frustrating and left the conclusion feeling unfinished. The beginning also drags, and the world-building left a lot to be desired. I understand that the author intended this to be historical fiction, but I wasn’t thrilled with her depiction of religious leaders in the Catholic faith or the way she chose to weave real historical events into the fantasy elements.

The secondary characters also fell flat, as most of them were either nonexistent or felt like plot devices meant to further the MC’s storyline. It was a missed opportunity to develop friendships and give us more reasons to like—or dislike—the other people Ravenna interacts with. Instead, it’s Ravenna doing almost everything on her own, and Saturnino undergoes a noticeable personality change about halfway through the book. Yes, he starts to admit feelings for Ravenna, but I didn’t think it meant he also had to change so drastically.

There’s also a hole in the story that doesn’t make sense. A prominent character is the child of two other important characters, but they’re also said to have a brother. How does that work? The main focus is on this one child, and it’s clear that the two weren’t conceived by the same parents.

In the end, Graceless Heart didn’t wow me the way I was expecting. All the ingredients for an amazing story are there, but I think the author botched the recipe. The book could have benefited from more emphasis on world-building and character development. While I liked Ravenna, it would’ve been nice to spend time with other characters as well. Saturnino had the makings of a good morally gray love interest, but the switch from bad guy to lover didn’t feel natural or smooth. I’ll be curious to see whether this stays a standalone or turns into a series, but either way, it’s probably not one I’ll continue. (★★★☆☆)

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. My thoughts and opinions are my own. Any quotes I use are from an unpublished copy and may not reflect the finished product.

When the Bones Sing by Ginny Myers Sain 🎧 Amanda Stribling

Synopsis (via Goodreads): From New York Times bestselling author of Dark and Shallow Lies comes a new southern gothic supernatural thriller about a teen girl in a small Ozark town who can hear the bones of the dead.

The past three years have been tough for Lucifer’s Creek, Arkansas, a small town quietly tucked away in the Ozark mountains. More than two dozen people have disappeared on the local hiking trails; there one moment, gone the next, not a trace left behind, until their buried bodies are discovered.

17-year-old Dovie doesn’t believe in magic even though she comes from a long line of women who can hear the bones of the dead sing, and for the past few years the bones have been crooning nonstop, calling out to Dovie to dig them up.

Some of the old-timers believe that it’s the monstrous Ozarks howler snatching people off the Aux Arc Trail. Well Dovie doesn’t believe in the howler, and she doesn’t believe her best friend Lo when he tells her he is being haunted by dark shadows. All she believes in is her talent that guides the local sheriff to the bones when they begin their song, then reuniting the dead with their families to give them some peace.

Lo doesn’t know peace, though. The shadows follow him everywhere. He soon learns they’re the murdered hikers and they want answers. But the truth of their deaths isn’t buried with their bones; it’s hidden somewhere deep in the hills. And Lo and Dovie must unearth it before anyone else is killed.

When the Bones Sing was such an amazing thriller with a really wonderful mystery to unravel. There were so many possible suspects—seriously, everyone said or did something at some point that made them seem guilty—and I loved how many red herrings the author threw in to keep me guessing. I honestly suspected everyone except the MC at one point, and even Dovie wasn’t always the most reliable. She definitely had her own biases, but I liked that she still tried to be fair and objective, even when the truth was hard to face.

My one small complaint would be the romance. I didn’t really think it was necessary, and it honestly pulled me out of the story a bit. Dovie and Lo’s history and long-standing friendship made complete sense, especially given everything they’d been through together, but adding another person into the mix felt unnecessary. It didn’t add anything to the overall story, never quite felt right—and his timing was pretty terrible, too. I kept rolling my eyes and texting my friend group to complain (they finished before me and had similar feelings about it).

There were several twists I didn’t see coming, and the conclusion was absolutely ovation-worthy. The author wrapped everything up beautifully and left me feeling hopeful for the characters’ future. I’ll admit I teared up toward the end—enough to make my kids briefly question my mental stability—but it all paid off with a satisfying ending that made the anxiety and heartache totally worth it. Definitely keep this one in mind if you're in the mood for a good mystery/thriller! 

PS: The narrator did an amazing job with this one. Her male and female voices were believable and really well done, which made the story even more enjoyable to listen to. (★★★★☆)

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. My thoughts and opinions are my own. Any quotes I use are from an unpublished copy and may not reflect the finished product.

Past Due Reviews [12]

Past Due Reviews exists to help me make peace with my ever-growing backlog—books I received for review that I either read and never reviewed, or read well after their publication date (the struggle is very real). These posts are my way of catching up, one overdue review at a time, and finally giving those books the attention they deserve.

If you have a few reviews lingering on your backlist that you’ve been meaning to get to, I’d love for you to join me. At the end of each month I’ll host a link-up where you can share your own past-due reviews and catch up right alongside me. No stress, no deadlines, and absolutely no judgment—just a cozy little space to celebrate “better late than never” and give those books the love they’ve been waiting for.

Beach Read by Emily Henry

🎧 Julia Whelan

Synopsis (via Goodreads): A romance writer who no longer believes in love and a literary writer stuck in a rut engage in a summer-long challenge that may just upend everything they believe about happily ever afters.

Augustus Everett is an acclaimed author of literary fiction. January Andrews writes bestselling romance. When she pens a happily ever after, he kills off his entire cast.

They’re polar opposites.

In fact, the only thing they have in common is that for the next three months, they’re living in neighboring beach houses, broke, and bogged down with writer’s block.

Until, one hazy evening, one thing leads to another and they strike a deal designed to force them out of their creative ruts: Augustus will spend the summer writing something happy, and January will pen the next Great American Novel. She’ll take him on field trips worthy of any rom-com montage, and he’ll take her to interview surviving members of a backwoods death cult (obviously). Everyone will finish a book and no-one will fall in love. Really.

I really wanted to like Beach Read, but it ended up being a three-star read for me. I keep hearing how good Emily Henry’s books are, so I was excited to try my first one—now I’m a little hesitant to pick up another. I thought the book started off strong, puttered out in the middle, and then wrapped up with an okay resolution. I wasn’t fully sold on the relationship between January and Gus, which made it hard to really feel the feels. I also didn’t love how Gus treated January in certain parts of the book.

I was much more invested in January’s relationship with her deceased father. That aspect of the story was really well done, and I appreciated seeing her come to terms with the choices of someone she could no longer speak to. She had so many unanswered questions and had to rely on others to fill in the gaps about the kind of person he truly was.

Overall, it was a somewhat enjoyable story—the banter and the race to finish a book in the other person’s preferred genre were fun—but the execution of the romance fell short for me. Honestly, I wish they’d just remained competitive friends that challenged each other to go outside of their comfort zones. (★★★☆☆)

When the Stars Go Dark by Paula McLain

🎧 Marin Ireland

Synopsis (via Goodreads): Anna Hart is a missing persons detective in San Francisco. When tragedy strikes her personal life, Anna, desperate and numb, flees to the Northern California village of Mendocino to grieve. She lived there as a child with her beloved foster parents, and now she believes it might be the only place left for her. Yet the day she arrives, she learns a local teenage girl has gone missing. The crime feels frighteningly reminiscent of the most crucial time in Anna's childhood, when the unsolved murder of a young girl touched Mendocino and changed the community forever.

As past and present collide, Anna realizes that she has been led to this moment. The most difficult lessons of her life have given her insight into how victims come into contact with violent predators. As Anna becomes obsessed with the missing girl, she must accept that true courage means getting out of her own way and learning to let others in.

Weaving together actual cases of missing persons, trauma theory, and a hint of the metaphysical, this propulsive and deeply affecting novel tells a story of fate, necessary redemption, and what it takes, when the worst happens, to reclaim our lives--and our faith in one another.

From the New York Times bestselling author of The Paris Wife comes a novel of intertwined destinies and heart-wrenching suspense: A detective hiding away from the world. A series of disappearances that reach into her past. Can solving them help her heal?

When the Stars Go Dark was a compelling story that easily held my attention from start to finish. The author has a really unique writing style, and Marin Ireland brought the characters to life with her narration. The atmosphere was especially well done—I could clearly picture the cabin, the woods, and all the small details revealed along the way.

Instead of a slow-burn romance, this was a slow-burn mystery. We unravel clues alongside the main character, Anna, and I enjoyed watching the gears click together in her mind. She’s excellent at being a missing persons detective, but she’s also careful not to step on the toes of local law enforcement in Mendocino. She didn’t go there to solve or work on a case; she went to confront her own demons and come to terms with recent events in her life.

Anna’s story is a difficult one to read about, especially as you begin to piece together what’s happening beneath the surface. My heart broke for her and everything she was going through, but I think the missing teenager kept her from fully feeling what she had gone there to escape. I thought the author did an amazing job weaving two stories together—solving a missing persons case while also uncovering what Anna was running from. (★★★★☆)

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. My thoughts and opinions are my own. Any quotes I use are from an unpublished copy and may not reflect the finished product.

Night of the Raven, Dawn of the Dove by Rati Mehrotra

🎧 Zehra Naqvi

Synopsis (via Goodreads): To learn what she can become, she must first discover who she is.

Katyani’s role in the kingdom of Chandela has always been clear: becoming an advisor and protector of the crown prince, Ayan, when he ascends to the throne. Bound to the Queen of Chandela through a forbidden soul bond that saved her when she was a child, Katyani has grown up in the royal family and become the best guardswoman the Garuda has ever seen. But when a series of assassination attempts threatens the royals, Katyani is shipped off to the gurukul of the famous Acharya Mahavir as an escort to Ayan and his cousin, Bhairav, to protect them as they hone the skills needed to be the next leaders of the kingdom. Nothing could annoy Katyani more than being stuck in a monastic school in the middle of a forest, except her run-ins with Daksh, the Acharya’s son, who can’t stop going on about the rules and whose gaze makes her feel like he can see into her soul.

But when Katyani and the princes are hurriedly summoned back to Chandela before their training is complete, tragedy strikes and Katyani is torn from the only life she has ever known. Alone and betrayed in a land infested by monsters, Katyani must find answers from her past to save all she loves and forge her own destiny. Bonds can be broken, but debts must be repaid.

I really enjoyed this one! Katyani was an amazing protagonist, and the world-building was breathtaking. The author clearly wanted to make sure we saw and felt everything the main character did. The Indian mythology was well done and incredibly interesting. There were several plot twists I didn’t see coming, and the secondary characters were just as compelling as the MC. I loved their relationships even when they weren't seeing eye to eye.

I do wish there had been more to the romance, but this book easily held its own as an amazing fantasy—and it’s a standalone! It had characters to love and root for, along with a plot that kept me engaged and on the edge of my seat. I thought Night of the Raven, Dawn of the Dove had a really unique premise that absolutely delivered. (★★★★☆)

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. My thoughts and opinions are my own. Any quotes I use are from an unpublished copy and may not reflect the finished product.

Wreck Your Heart by Lori Rader-Day

 Synopsis (via Goodreads): Dahlia “Doll” Devine had the kind of hardscrabble beginning that could launch a thousand broken-hearted country songs, but now she’s the star of her own stage at McPhee’s Tavern. As part of Chicago’s—yes, Chicago’s—country music scene, Dahlia is an up-and-coming singer in spangles and boots of classic country tunes. Up and coming, that is, until her boyfriend Joey up and went, taking the rent money with him.

So Dahlia is back to square one, relying on Alex McPhee—again. Alex helped her out of a bad situation when she was a kid living rough with her mother. Now he’s part landlord, part band booster, all-around rescuer. It’s just that Dahlia wishes she didn’t keep giving him reasons to have to do it.

Just as Dahlia suspects she’s scraped rock bottom, the mother she hasn’t spoken to in twenty years shows up with something to say. The next morning, a distraught young woman arrives at the bar, asking after her missing mother—Dahlia's mother, too, even if the missing suburban PTA mom the girl describes sounds pretty different from the one who let Dahlia down all those years ago.

Though no one is using the word sister any time soon, Dahlia lets herself be drawn into reuniting the family that might have been hers. But when a body is discovered outside McPhee’s Tavern, the crime threatens not just the place Dahlia has made into a home, but everything she’s believed about her past, her dreams for the future, and the people she was just, maybe, beginning to let into her heart.

I guess I understood family, though. Family made itself out of whatever materials it found. Out of scraps, if necessary. Out of strays.

I stayed up well past midnight finishing Wreck Your Heart. I hit the point of no return around 85% and absolutely had to know what happened next. The plot was plotting, the mystery was mystery-ing, and I needed to know that Dahlia—and everyone else—was going to be okay.

I thought the author did an amazing job setting up this story, and I really enjoyed Dahlia as a character. As a product of the foster care system, she carries understandably jaded feelings toward the mother who was unable to care for her. Seeing her suddenly reappear after twenty years was jarring enough, but learning she also had a sister was something Dahlia was completely unprepared for. Even so, I felt her reactions were realistic, and she handled the situation with as much bravado as she could muster given the circumstances.

Dahlia struggles to let people in, whether in friendships or relationships. She prefers to live lightly and keep things carefree, believing that’s safer than risking disappointment or abandonment. Music is her passion and the anchor that’s held her together over the years, and Alex has been a steady presence in her life—one she’s starting to feel conflicted about relying on so heavily. Their dynamic is complicated, but I thought the author handled Alex’s neurospiciness incredibly well. It came through clearly in both his limited dialogue and his actions.

While Wreck Your Heart firmly centers on Dahlia, I also really enjoyed the supporting cast—Sicily, Alex, Oona, and the Jims all stood out. Dahlia herself was deeply relatable: someone who doesn’t fully understand what it means to love or be loved, but who is genuinely trying her best in a world that keeps pushing back against her fiery spirit. Her reactions and realizations felt earned, and I appreciated that she paid attention when things felt off—even if she sometimes had to convince herself to do so.

The twist at the end caught me completely off guard, and I was pleasantly surprised by how everything played out. I did feel the ending was just a bit rushed (a very minor complaint), and I would’ve loved more time spent fleshing out the predicament and how it was resolved. The epilogue was hopeful, but I found myself wanting a little more closure for Dahlia.

Those small things are the only reasons I’m giving this 4.5 stars instead of a full five—but I’ll be rounding it up on Goodreads. Definitely keep this one on your radar this year! (★★★★⋆)

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. My thoughts and opinions are my own. Any quotes I use are from an unpublished copy and may not reflect the finished product.