booklistqueen's reviews
612 reviews

For a thousand years, the Lord Ruler has enslaved the Skaa with no hope that his despotic rule will ever end. From a hellish prison, Kelsier snaps and develops the powers of a Mistborn. As a brilliant thief, Kelsier instigates the ultimate heist to overthrow the Lord Ruler with a crew of the underworld's elite. But adding in Vin, a ragged orphan girl, might just be what they need to succeed, if they can teach her to use her powers and to learn to trust others.

My college bestie told me this was her favorite book and since I didn't read it when my entire family did a few years ago, I felt like this was the summer to finally try the Mistborn series. Fantasy isn't my usual genre but Sanderson quickly hooked me with his rich world-building and fascinating characters. The detailed explanation of the magical system wasn't really my thing, though I know people like my husband love reading about such things. However, the compelling narrative was complex enough to keep you guessing and perfectly set up the rest of the series. 

Although he will miss his son's baseball game, Captain Bill Hoffmann can't refuse when his boss asks him last minute to pilot a flight from LAX to JFK. Once he's in the air, Bill is informed that terrorists have kidnapped his wife and son. Their demands: Bill must crash the plane or his family will be killed. Now Bill and his cabin crew have only a few hours to figure out how to save the plane and his family in this page-turning thriller.

Falling is a pure action thriller with constant twists and turns that keep you glued to the page. It was just what I needed to survive a long layover at JFK. The terrorist motivation was on the thin side and there wasn't much character development. Yet, Newman's experience as a flight attendant gave refreshing authenticity to the crew interactions. Sometimes a high-action plot is all you really want and Falling definitely delivers that. 

When her father's unexpected death reveals that he had a long-running affair, January Andrews can't seem to get back to her happy self. After her boyfriend dumps her, January is forced to move into her Dad's secret second house in Michigan, desperately trying to finish her contracted novel. Of course her next-door neighbor is her college nemesis, Augustus Everett whose literary fiction was released to great acclaim. When they discover they both have writer's block, they make a deal. He will write a happily-ever-after story while she pens a serious piece of literature.

Emily Henry's bestseller Beach Read stole the summer in 2020 and Henry has become a staple of the summer beach reads ever since. This sweet enemies-to-lovers story has the kind of romance that tugs at the heart. You can't help but feel for January and Gus as they each deal with family issues and deep emotional pain. But their silly challenge leads them to motivate each other and their great chemistry makes for a just plain fun summer read. 

Linus Baker enjoys his solitary life working as a caseworker for magical youth in orphanages. When Linus is assigned to Marsyas Island Orphanage, he must investigate whether the six orphans there are in good care. For these aren't just any youth - but the most extreme cases, including an actual Antichrist. But as Linus gets to know the children and befriends the mysterious caretaker of the orphanage, he struggles to decide whether he can do his job without letting his personal feelings get in the way.

Everyone has been raving about The House in the Cerulean Sea for years but I was a little iffy. Especially after a failed attempt to read Under the Whispering Door. Yet, Klune's novel deserves all the hype for it is an adorable heartwarming fantasy. From start to finish, The House in the Cerulean Sea will simply enchant you, leaving you with the happiest feelings. For anyone looking for a delightfully wholesome read, this is one book not to miss. 

Stella doesn't mind leaving her jetsetter life as a flight attendant behind when she marries Adam, a nice normal guy. While vacationing in Paris, Adam goes missing after a bomb explodes in a public square. Now the police are telling Stella that Adam is a known dealer of stolen antiquities. Refusing to leave Paris until she learns the truth, Stella must discover if Adam was a random victim or a target of the explosion.

The Paris Widow starts off with a bang, literally, which had me geared up for a high-action thriller. Instead, the action slowed to a crawl as Stella processes her grief and confused feelings before settling into a slow-burn mystery. I know this is more realistic pacing but it wasn't a ton of fun to read about and I struggled to stay engaged. While the action picked up near the end, it was over-the-top and rather anticlimactic. Other than the fun setting, The Paris Widow is a rather forgettable summer thriller.

Emma has always wanted to be a screenwriter but her dreams have taken the backseat to being a full-time caretaker for her father. When Emma gets the chance to rewrite a script for Charlie Yates, her screenwriting role model, Emma's younger sister steps in as a caretaker so Emma won't miss this opportunity. Yet Charlie has no interest in working with Emma or even in the script they are rewriting. Emma must convince Charlie that love stories matter, but it might end up being her heart that is on the line.

The Rom-Commers has all the hallmarks of a fantastic romantic comedy: witty banter, darling personalities with adorable clashes, and over-the-top plot twists. But all of these are combined with real emotions and character development. Emma and Charlie was so cute together and their will-they/won't-they had me gripped to the page. I love how Center knows all the clichés of the romance genre and expertly utilizes them to write something that feels charmingly adorable.

In The Last Mrs. Parrish, Amber was able to claw her way to become Jackson Parrish's wife. While Jackson has been serving time for tax evasion, Amber has enjoyed being the queen bee of Bishops Harbor. With Jackson's release from prison imminent, Amber's time and money is running out. Meanwhile, Daphne has never looked back after divorcing Jackson. But when her daughter runs away desperate to see Jackson, Daphne must return to Bishops Harbor and reenter a vicious cat-and-mouse game.

I wasn't the biggest fan of The Last Mrs. Parrish and wasn't sure if it really needed a sequel. Now I can soundly proclaim that it didn't. The Next Mrs. Parrish was an unnecessary return to Bishops Harbor whose premise hinged on Daphne making the most idiotic decision to voluntarily return to Jackson's life. Having escaped Jackson and Amber's psychotic behavior, I cannot believe she would ever go back. From there, the current book felt much like the last one, though all the villains get a proper comeuppance this time.

From the author of The Guest List comes another locked-room mystery where not everyone will make it out alive. At the opening weekend of The Manor, a luxury resort in an ancient forest, the guests each have their own agenda. On the guest list: the founder, her lover, the mystery guest, the kitchen help, and the detective. All have their own secrets and by the end of the weekend, a fire will break out and several people will be dead.

The Midnight Feast was simply a hot mess; a failed attempt to replicate the magical locked room vibe of her hit The Guest List. The problem with The Midnight Feast is that you hate almost every character. Worse, the characters are all supposedly tied together from their teenage years but somehow none of them recognize each other. Add in tons of clunky timeline shifts and you have the recipe for a complete waste of your time. I'm seriously annoyed with myself that I didn't DNF this one.

After being offered an exorbitant salary, a government worker starts a new position at the Ministry of Time. Studying whether time travel is possible and feasible, she is tasked with being a "bridge", an assistant to a time-traveling expat. Now she is unlikely roommates with Commander Graham Gore, who history records as having died on an 1847 Arctic expedition. By the time the Ministry of Time's true objectives come to light, she has fallen hopelessly in love and must decide if she is able, and willing, to change the future.

First off, I have to say that marketing The Ministry of Time as a comparable to Outlander was a terrible idea. The Ministry of Time is not a romance; even worse, its love story felt more off-putting than swoon-worthy. Commander Gore was an interesting character and his interaction with his fellow time traveling expats was the only bright spot of the book. Unfortunately, the novel is instead told from the point-of-view of his unnamed female handler as she quashes any moral scruples she has about the project. Basically nothing happens for almost the entire book until it suddenly shifts to a high-action spy plot that would have mattered more if I had cared about the characters. 

After moving to her fiancé Peter's lakeside Michigan hometown, Daphne finds her life upended when Peter decides to leave her days before the wedding for his childhood best friend Petra. Needing a place to stay, Daphne moves in with Petra's ex-boyfriend, Miles, who is completely Daphne's opposite. And no big deal if they happen to post misleading photos to make their exes jealous, because there's no way they would ever actually fall in love.

Emily Henry has become known for her cute romances that give a therapeutic look at how past traumas affect our current relationships. Funny Story had all the witty banter and a decently realistic fake dating trope that would normally hook me in. Yet, although the story was cute, I didn't particularly enjoy Daphne or Miles, individually or together.