emileereadsbooks's reviews
1119 reviews

Luke! I love Luke. A super manly man who is also a big ‘ole softy. He is maybe my favorite modern book boyfriend (gasp, a big statement, I know!). And the fact that he falls for a princess in his own dreaded Hallmark style romance is *chef’s kiss* perfection. i could reread this book a dozen times and never tire of it. Which is saying a lot as someone who doesn’t really reread books! Love love love.

Thank you to Thomas Nelson and Libro.fm for the gifted title. All opinions are my own.

I enjoyed The Mistletoe Prince the most and the others are very festive! The first is especially great for those who love romances with older protagonists. 

I can get easily frustrated at novellas for not nailing the pacing needed to have the proper build up and pay off of a love story, but Pepper Basham is a master of her craft and I of course loved this dive back into the world of Skymar and the Edgewoods. This novella is a great punctuation on the Skymar series. Seeing the love blossom between Charlie and Aron was so sweet and the way they have to pull back the facade each other is presenting to the world is delightful.

*Unfortunately I would skip the third novella in this collection.

Thank you to Thomas Nelson for the gifted title. All opinions are my own.

On both my original read and my reread, this book sucked me in. From the beginning you are thrust into the story and into relationship with these characters. You are rooting for them all. Plus, there is something so relatable about each of them! I am a sucker for a well written online meet cute since that is my own romantic origin story, and this one does not disappoint. Brody and Izzy are clearly a perfect match and watching their love story play out was like sitting in a warm cozy hug.

Thank you to Thomas Nelson for the gifted title. All opinions are my own.

This is much more than a story about a girl's desire to play baseball. It's about dreams and ambition, family obligation, and culture conventions and what they mean for us as individuals. This book isn't showy. It's not shocking. It's not big and loud. It's quiet. It celebrates nuance. It lets you sit in the details. You know these characters and their mannerisms intimately through the smallest description. No word is wasted and you will fly through this touching tale. I love reading about a time in history we don't get to visit much in our fiction. And this time in history could lend itself to a shocking and loud tale, but it is better served here with this lovely family friendly fare.  

Thanks to Revell for the gifted title. All opinions are my own. 

Not my usual reading fare, but it blends magical realism, with historical fiction and mystery making it such a fun reading experience. I read book 1 with my book club and it made for good discussion, so I had to quickly read books 2 and 3 as well. 

Book 3 ties off this series with a bow but I did feel like this story needed at least another book to really share out the full arc of what could have been. However, since these books go downhill from book 1, a fourth book wouldn't be great. Marion just can't seem to learn to trust anyone and thus is a bit annoying an unrelatable. 

After reading book 1 in this series, I wanted to finish the whole series quickly. It was a fun jaunt into a magical world full of unsure loyalties and found family. It doesn't quite live up to book 1, but the magic in this world is so fun I wanted more and more. 

A.J. Pearce has not failed me yet with heartwarming WWII Homefront fiction that really highlights female friendship, rising above adversity, and finding your footing in tumultuous times. I love the edition of a personal villain to the bunch. It add humor and even more heart to a series that was already brimming with both. 

Thanks to Simon Audio and Scribner for the gifted book. All opinions are my own.

We have gone dark my friends. Things have taken a turn in this world and the ever looming danger that Barclay and the gang have been facing has become even more intense. We get much more backstory about the adults in the story and how their past drama has had the ripple effects into the present. I love how the found family element was further highlighted here and really cemented further. Themes of trust and duty permeate this edition of the story.

Content Note: Violence and Death, and LGBTQ side characters

Steve West nails the narration of these books. I am always quickly immersed in this world thanks to his excellent work.

Thanks to Simon Audio for the gifted book. All opinions are my own. 

The gang is growing up. Set a year after book 2, this book encompasses a whole year of schooling for Viola, Tadg, and Barclay so the pace is a bit slower as we get to dig into more of this world and find out bearings more which I'm sure will be helpful going forward. As well as the group having to work together to save the world again, this one also had a treasure hunt element with a magical library and riddles that I loved.

Content Note: Violence and Death, and LGBTQ side characters

Steve West nails the narration of these books. I am always quickly immersed in this world thanks to his excellent work. 

Thanks to Simon Audio for the gifted book. All opinions are my own.