emilyreadthatbook's reviews
807 reviews

This book finds the fine balance of a dark gothic-y story that moves at a steady pace. Slatter gives us the dark gothic vibe we crave housed in a fantastical story. We see human nature being portrayed by creatures of magic. There is not always a clear villain, but instead the tales of what happens when power corrupts.  We need more stories to remind us in the real world that checks and balances are needed to keep people true. On this note, I will continue devouring everything from this author.

After how Wyatt was portrayed in Cash’s book, I was curious on how this was all going to pan out. Wyatt, as it turns out is a complete cinnamon roll of a guy. I love that through it all he only has eyes for his BFF Sally. And Sally only has eyes for him. 

This could have been a complete cheese ball story but the emotional storyline regarding Wyatt and his grief from losing his parents, really gave it another layer of depth. The sacrifices there two are willing to make for each other is sweet. Though I found the whole overbearing father piece a little much. Sally is 30 years old and her dad is still pressuring her about careers and life choices… ick. But they figured it out.

I’m looking to forward to Sawyer’s book next.

What a curious book. I’ve read some other “dark academia” books and some I’ve enjoyed where others dragged. This one fell somewhere in the middle. The story moved, the characters were vibrant, but the world building was a little slow for me. I spent the bulk of this book attempting to identify and remember all the rules of the magic. Trying to explain it, I ended up comparing it to Harry Potter houses, and even that did not fully clear it up. I’m hoping future books will help smooth out some of the edges in this world.

There are two POVs in this book, which quickly shows you how the love triangle is going to shake out. The descriptions the characters use for each other is pure poetry. Not to mention the descriptions of the landscape. Have you ever looked at a picture of a lighthouse with the waves crashing up around it? That is how this book made me feel; alive, battered by a storm, and maybe a bit chilly.

Hilarie does it again. Her storytelling ability really comes through, along with her ability to see those around her. I love when she describes the places she has lived and the community that is present in those places. 

This book is a quick and cozy book, with a little continuation of the story Hilarie first started telling us in ‘Rural Diaries’ along with some spells, recipes, and lore.

This story was fairly predictable and leaned heavily on some miscommunication/misunderstanding/misheard situation that happened years prior. That along with the sense of responsibility to the dead kinda dragged this story down. It’s hard when the ghost of the dead sibling is dictating how one of the characters lives their life. 

In this case June made plans with her sister to run a tea shop on their hometown. The sister dies (tragically young but they really drag out telling us how she died… it wasn’t that dramatic) and June quits adventuring around the world with her lackluster boyfriend turned reality star to take over the tea shop. So much of this story revolves around June feeling a sense of guilt and not changing ANYTHING about the tea shop, which essentially runs the business into the ground. In the midst of guilty business-murders, June’s boyfriend makes her internet famous by breaking up with her on his reality show. 

But wait, there’s the dude she needs to break-up pact with. Levi, also recently internet famous after his girlfriend (realtor to the stars or something equivalent) cheats on him with the latest hottest action star guy. Did I mention Levi was also besties with June’s dead sister, grew up with the family, and is the object of June’s longstanding affection since puberty?!?

Yeah it’s a lot. 

So obviously June and Levi have to fake date while also (for unclear reasons) planning June’s brother’s wedding to June’s bestie, since the first wedding was postponed due to the dead sister dying (I don’t even remember her name but somehow she ruins EVERYTHING).

This book was approximately 320 pages and it took 3 paragraphs to explain the plot. It’s a little convoluted. Essentially, the relationship drama between Levi and June would not have existed if they had had a simple conversation. The sister would have still died, but it would have been a book about figuring out what was next instead of all the weird internet notoriety.

In summery, this book would best be enjoyed on a beach with a boozy beverage while on vacation. 

Shiloh and Cary have been best friends since their school days. The two of them and their friend Mikey were the theater/art/school newspaper kids who did everything together, until school ended and they parted ways. Years later they are reunited at Mikey’s wedding.

This story is told in two timelines, current state and “before.” Sometimes “before” is when they were in school. Sometimes it is when they are 19 and Cary visited Shiloh at college. Sometimes it is when they reconnect at Mikey’s wedding. The timeline switch fills in some of the background story, but can also break the story up so it feels a little scattered going back and forth and figuring out which “before” the story is in. 

Often I read to get soothed by the story but this one was uncomfortable. It seemed like there are questions being asked throughout it about why you would care. Why would you want to live in Omaha (it’s so Omaha)? Why would you want to be around these people they’re so extra? These houses are so cluttered. These kids are so whiny. Everything felt like when you sit at a restaurant table and accidentally put your hand in leftover syrup… it’s so sticky and it’s not your syrup mess.

Overall, I liked the concept but the writing style wasn’t for me.

What a fun adventure. After reading so much romantasy, this book felt like a breath of fresh air. Unfettered by the restraints of romance, which can weigh a plot down, this story was able to soar. 

Jai is a prisoner of war, forced into servitude for most of his life. When the kingdom he is held in creates an  alliance through a marriage with a neighboring kingdom, Jai finds his world changed in ways he didn’t expect. Suddenly on the run with a dragon hatchling and the betrothed princesses’s handmaiden, Jai has to fight his way through a war torn land, while attempting to reclaim his birthright.

The magic in this story is an interesting concept, linking towards the creatures one soulbonds with. You can gain the power “mana” from your bounded, but also by soulbreathing, which allows the core to collect mana. Both soulbreathing and collecting/holding mana are learned skills. The author does a great job of explaining how this all works, while not overwhelming you with an info dump. It helps that you learn as Jai learns. Having had a sheltered life, he is not familiar with many of these concepts. 

The characters were well thought out and entertaining. Even the creatures, such as Winter, have personalities and a clear sense of self. Both Rufus and Frida have secrets, but their personalities still shine through. I greatly appreciated that Jai was shown as a 17 year old who still was learning. So many books have 16-19 year olds described as fully formed all knowing persons. Jai is still figuring out his body and confidence and trust. He has been sheltered as the companion for the aged former emperor, but his problem solving in the moment feels really age appropriate.

I really enjoyed this book. It reminds me a bit of Eragon.

This book takes a minute. I am pretty sure I didn’t really like the main characters for the first part of this book. LaRaynn seemed cold and closed off and Deacon came off as manipulative and overly harsh. While that wasn’t completely true, it also wasn’t completely wrong. What was missing with that first impression was context. The rest of the book was spent filling in gaps in each characters histories with their families and with each other. Once you understood, you understood. As the walls of the house they were renovating in the story, so did the walls they had each erected between each other, and that was truly enjoyable. 

Read this if you like stories of imperfect people trying regardless of the failures of their families and life trying to smack them down. Read this if you like stories about small towns and second chances, along with the trials and tribulations of home renovations.

Rebecca Woolf has the remarkable ability to tackle hard topics using truth and candor. Instead of this book feeling heavy, it feels like permission. Permission to speak the truths of how you really feel in the light of a difficult situation. Permission to acknowledge everything is not always hunky-dory. Permission to talk about how a relationship was not super functional, even after one of the people has died. 

As a culture, we tiptoe around talk of death, dying, and the dead. We only remember the positives and don’t allow for the recognition of the imperfections of the dead. Woolf does not avoid these areas of discussion. She highlights the dysfunction of the relationship and the responsibility of both parties. While this is her story, she doesn’t shy away from her truth, including her infidelity.

This story is not just the death and dying of a man, but also a woman coming back to herself and her truth.  

An interesting concept, though it took a while to get there. This is not the longest book but the pacing dragged in places. You have to love female rage though. 

Both Dania and Noor are perfect examples of not taking the beating lying down. Both are strong and intelligent women. Noor is a herbalist, trained to properly mix special seeds that give the person who intakes them certain magics, if not uncertain death. Dania is the daughter of a blacksmith and a sword fighter in her own right, having been trained by her father all her life. Through a series of betrayals and missteps, both women in up in prison, that is until they both break free. Hungry for revenge, they plot to strike down those who did them wrong.

The part that was hardest for me was the jumping back and forth between the past and present to tell the story. Other books use this tactic, but in this one, it felt a little awkward. I appreciated that gender never seemed to be roadblock for the female characters. We saw women in all different roles without it being commented on. 

I would have loved to learn more about Maz’s story. It’s felt like the bits we were given provided an incomplete picture and left some gaps. For example, why did the emperor take Maz and his sister in to raise as his own? 

Altogether, I appreciated this story and the different backdrop it took place in. This was not the typical fairytale, and at the end of the day, none of the women needed a man to rush in to rescue them. This is a story about strong independent women, friendship, and revenge.