Tag Archives: ARC

ARC — Something in the Heir — Suzanne Enoch

“I love you, William Pershing.” (…)
“I have waited a very long time for you to say that, Emmeline Pershing.”

Genre: Romance, Comedy, Women’s Fiction
Actual Rating: 2.5 stars
Spicy Meter: 1 fire emoji (if that)
Content Warning: Mentions physical and emotional child abuse, domestic violence, classism, and death of parents.

“Something In The Heir” is all about marriages of convenience and fake adoptions. It follows Emmie and William Pershing, as they deceive their family into thinking they have kids, just so they can inheriting Winnover Hall. (Is it weird it’s called Winnover, when this whole books is about winning over this Estate? Anyways, let’s move on.)

You see that endorsement on the cover? Nice stuff. Julia Quinn saying Suzanne Enoch is “one of (her) favorite authors”… See how she says nothing about the book per se? That tells you pretty much all you have to know about that. I had to know I would hate it as soon as I read her last name was “Pershing”. Or as soon as I saw how the Pershings were willing to take two orphans through a ride of faking being their kids, cementing those strong abandonment issues.

I love books from the Regency period—think “Pride and Prejudice” or the Brigertons series—so I had very high hopes for “Something In The Heir”. Oh, how wrong I was to expect so much. I feel like this book was 150 pages longer than it should’ve been. In the end, I had to skim through it because the descriptions were too long and downright boring, and I felt absolutely nothing for any of the characters. This did not feel like a romance book at all. I am not even sure why I tortured myself getting through it, I’m thinking I should’ve just DNFed.

I’m not sure who to recommend this book to. But here we are. Writing this review anyway. I guess grab “Something In The Heir” if you want a slow-paced read with lying characters that want to be quirky and clever but aren’t, with two first-endearing-but-then-annoying kids, and a somewhat happy ending.

This is the first St. Martin’s Press book that wasn’t a hit for me, but that doesn’t me it can’t be a hit for you. Reviews on Goodreads are mixed, so might as well give it a try if you like historical and Regency Era novels.

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ARC provided by NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press in exchange for an honest review.

Publication Date: September 20, 2022

ARC — Something Bright and Burning — Whitney Amazeen

“He does the most dangerous thing a person can do; he lets me hope.
And this kind of hope-the kind that makes me feel like somehow everything’s going to turn out okay in the end-will only end in disappointment.”

Genre: New Adult, Romance, Women’s Fiction
Actual Rating: 4.5 stars
Spicy Meter: 1.5 fire emojis
Content Warnings: Is all about teenage pregnancy, discusses rape and blackmailing leading to sexual assault, sexual content in general, suicide, underaged drinking, incest, miscarriages, financial hardships, parental death and abandonment, and religious guilt.

“Something Bright and Burning” follows Everly Martin, as she finds out she’s pregnant at 18… and she’s not sure who the father is. Her whole future is ahead of her, she’s taking college classes and working and barely making ends meet. The father could either be Vaughn, the douchebag coworker who’s forced himself on her, or John, the older man she met at a bar. But then there’s also Nicolai, her best friend’s brother, and someone Everly had an instant connection with. In this world, where there are no right answers, will Everly choose to follow what she things if best for her or her baby? Or for both?

Told through journal entries, poems, and a first-person narrative, “Something Bright and Burning” is an ode to hardship and self-improvement. Some characters were a bit cartoonish but, in general, almost all were well-defined, with their diverse personalities, stories, and beliefs.

“I often feel like she willingly allows me to shoulder the weight of our family’s responsibilities. When she leaves the parent role empty, I have no choice but to fill it.”

The only thing I wasn’t 100% sold on was the poetry… It was simply not my cup of it. It was just some instagram-worthy prose, just like the next guy. No poem really spoke to me. It just felt like a little something added to give the main character some hobbies and personality traits.

But oh, was the plot twist so so wild. It has been months, maybe even years, since a plot twist had hit me so hard. Just that plot twist makes this book worth reading. I wish I could go back and read it for the first time all over again.

This book kind of reminded me of Lauren J. Sharkey’s “Inconvenient Daughter” and maybe even a bit to Hanya Yanagihara’s “A Little Life”. It just undertook some very heavy subjects. It did an amazing job of portraying life, with some of its extreme threats.

I would highly recommend this book. “Something Bright and Burning” is a complex read, with a ton of triggering situations (and therefore a ton of content warnings), but if you find the heart to read through them, you won’t regret it.

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ARC provided by NetGalley and Swan Pages Publishinf in exchange for an honest review.

Publication Date: September 20, 2022

“It’s not you, Nicolai. It’s me, I want to tell him. But
those words have never worked for anyone. So, I don’t look back. I grab all my shit, I take a deep breath, and leave.”

ARC — The Make-Up Test — Jenny L. Howe

“You don’t have to take care of me.”
“Yeah, I do. We have a mild truce now, remember?”

Genre: Romance
Actual Rating: 4 stars
Spicy Meter: 3 fire emojis
Content Warnings: As given by the author—Fatphobia both in flashback and in present day, fatshaming from a family member, and deals with death and loss.

“The Make-Up Test” follows Allison Avery and Colin Benjamin, two grad students with the same advisor. Sounds simple enough, right? Except it isn’t. Allison and Colin dated while they were in undergrad and it did not end well, to say the least. Now, years later, and in a more competitive program, they’re left to work together to the best of their abilities. That is, until their advisor tells them she’ll only be able to keep one grad student moving forward. Now, with higher stakes, they end up in the exact same situation they were years ago. Will history rewrite itself? Or will old habits prevail?

You see that endorsement on the cover? Well, I agree wholeheartedly with Ali Hazelwood: I’ll read anything Jenny Howe writes. Her narrative is clever and her (most of her) characters complex and layered. This book had a second-chance romance and lovers-to-enemies-to-friends-to-lovers trope. It’s told partially through flashbacks, which were nice and helped us understand why the main characters act the way they do.

I loved Allison and how she was protrayed as more than just a student. I, myself, am currently in grad school and something I feel like my whole life revolves around that—but Allison’s doesn’t. We get to see her shifting relationships with old friends and how her family dynamics, all but ideal, affect her, but she pushes on.

And then there is Colin. Bland, one-dimentional Colin. Now, I really did feel like he was only there to fill up that romantic void in Allison’s life. Like he had no other purpose than that. We do get a sob story about his family background, but it doesn’t really seem to phase him or define him in any way. He’s just an insecure, white man hoping to thrive in academics. That’s it.

But the story was entretaining and relatively fast-paced. I think it was definitely worth the read. My only complaint is that it wasn’t as spicy as I thought it would be. The sexual tension was there, but the scenes didn’t deliver. I felt like it was missing something. I wasn’t ready to let go of these characters.

I would highly recommend this book, I can’t believe it’s a debut novel. If you like second-chance romance and enemies-to-lovers, “The Make-Up Test” is for you.

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ARC provided by NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press in exchange for an honest review.

Publication Date: September 13, 2022

“You don’t like happy endings?”
(…) “I think the problem is more that I like them too much. No one gets that in real life.”

ARC — Artemis Made Me Do It — Trista Mateer

“The wolf caught me in his jaws
but when I cried out,
others only said:

I have seen the wolf many times
and he has not bitten me.”

Genre: Poetry, New Adult
Actual Rating: 5 stars
Spicy Meter: N/A
Content Warnings: As given by the author: blood/gore, body image, death/grief, domestic and emotional abuse, rape, sexual harrassment, and probably more.

“Artemis Made Me Do It” is more than just poetry and doodles. Trista Mateer has brought together impressive art that takes countless shapes and forms. Using images and different compositions, a story of hurt and healing is told through beautifully curated words.

“I resent my own resiliency.
I don’t want to bounce back.
I don’t want to be strong.”

This poetry book is heavy, don’t take those content warnings lightly, but it is worth the read. Although it is somewhat Greek-mythology-based, you don’t need extensive knowledge on every single god or demigod. Trista gave a small summary at the beginning of the book about who was who, and that should be more than enough to understand the poems in this collection.

“Grief makes you feel small, though you are not small. Grief makes you feel weak, though you are not weak.”

For someone who is continuously grieving, such as myself, this book was specifically hard. There is not a day that goes by that I don’t speak to my grandma, even though it’s been almost 3 years from her passing. It does make me feel small, but it doesn’t make me feel weak anymore.

I think Trista Mateer did an excellent job at capturing raw emotions through various forms. I would highly recommend this poetry book. It’s beautiful, yet heartbreaking. It touches on important topics and it breaks their mold. I’ll definitely be reading more of Mateer.

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ARC provided by NetGalley and Central Avenue Publishing (one of the first publishers that trusted me with their ARCs) in exchange for an honest review.

Publication Date: September 6, 2022

“I don’t know why
I keep their names
out of my poetry.
They don’t deserve it.

I KEEP THEIR NAMES
OUT OF MY POETRY
BECAUSE I MUST
ALLOW MYSELF
A SAFE PLACE.
I DESERVE THAT.”

ARC — Lucy Checks In — Dee Ernst

“You sound happy, she texted me.
Maybe I am, I texted back. Or maybe I’m too tired to be sad.”

Genre: Romance
Actual Rating: 4 stars
Spicy Meter: 1 fire emoji
Content Warning: Mentions alcoholism, parent death, and cheating.

“Lucy Checks In” follows Lucia Giannetti, a shunned hotel manager, as she moves to the other side of the world, from New Jersey to France, in order to help renovate Hotel Paradis, a boutique hotel in Rennes, a small historical town. As soon as she arrives, she notices she’s way in over her head, but after a scandal left her unemployed and unemployable in the United States, she has nothing left to do but try.

I don’t even know where to begin. How can I describe a book that’s well written but not particularly captivating to me, personally? Basically I wasn’t a fan of the hotel remodel theme, but I liked a few of the characters and it was definitely catchy, I read it almost entirely through a 5-hour airplane flight.

Also, not to sound age-ist, but it seemed weird to me how Lucy was described as a 49-year-old with grey hair, yet the girl in the cover looks like anything but that, in my opinion. Misleading covers are one of my pet peeves.

This book was a slow-burn romance that drove me insane, and I am sad to say that the fire was not worth the wait. And not to mention that the nickname “Bing” was a bit of a turnoff for me, but for each their own, I guess. Actually, I wouldn’t even classify this as romance per se, more like Women’s Fiction or just Fiction would be fine. It deals with a lot more than just romance and the romance parts aren’t even the most important if you ask me.

This is would be a very cool read for anyone who likes DIYing and remodeling and fixer upper shows. “Lucy Checks In” is a colorful romance with a plethora of whimsical characters and an enemies-to-lovers and Grump-meets-Sunshine trope that’s quite cute. I would highly recommend this read, especially if you’re looking for a mild romance with not a lot of sexual descriptions.

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ARC provided by NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press in exchange for an honest review.

Publication Date: August 16, 2022

“She said, ‘But if you loved me, you’d stay.’ He said, ‘But if you loved me, you’d go.’ ”

ARC — Mr. Perfect on Paper — Jean Meltzer

“But love—”
“Doesn’t conquer all. (…) It doesn’t, Chris. Look at the divorce rates in America. (…) Do you know what every single one of those couples had when they got married? Love. They all stood in front of an altar and gazed into each other’s eyes, and that’s the problem with these modern notions of love. There’s too much staring into each other’s eyes, and not enough looking in the same direction.”

Genre: Romance, Comedy
Actual Rating: 5 stars
Spicy Meter: 1 fire emoji
Content Warning: Discusses antisemitism, generalized anxiety disorder, and mixed religion discrimination, and mentions car crashes, parent death, aneurysms, and head tumors.

“Mr. Perfect on Paper” is just about what the title suggests. Dara Rabinowitz is a modern Jewish matchmaker, having created a dating app called J-Mate, when she just still hasn’t found her Mr. Perfect. In comes, Chris Steadfast, a news anchor who moved to New York recently after losing his wife. Dara’s “Perfect Jewish Husband” list is broadcasted by her grandmother in live television, pushing in a series of events that lead to Dara and Chris working on a reality TV style segment where they try to find this Mr. Perfect on Paper. But what does it say of Dara when they actually find Mr. Perfect, but all she can think about is Chris (who fits basically none of her requirements)? Will she follow tradition or will she follow love? And why can’t she follow both?

I am not Jewish myself, but I enjoy so much reading and learning about different religions and beliefs, and I must say this is truly a blast for that. This books takes place during the High Holidays, and even though I had read about them before, Jean Meltzer really did deliver at subtly explaining and showing how these holidays are lived—and why.

I loved Dana’s mannerisms and Chris’s insecurities and empathy. They both felt really human to me. Did I like the outcome? I’m not sure, but I still gave it 5 stars because in the end I just wanted Dara to be happy, and that’s the best testament of how this book moved me. But, if what you’re looking for is spice, this book isn’t for you. You’ll get a few kisses and that’s it.

I would recommend this book to readers with exposure to the Jewish religion and traditions, or anyone whose willing to Google a ton of terms you might not understand (that’s what I did, and I loved it). If you’re looking for a light-hearted, clean romance, “Mr. Perfect on Paper” is perfect for you.

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ARC provided by NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing in exchange for an honest review.

Publication Date: August 9, 2022

“But what I learned from this journey, from finding my real-life Mr. Perfect on Paper, is that love isn’t something that can be quantified on a list. Love is messy. And terrifying. It shows up when you least expect it, and complicates your life in every way. But it’s also…safe. And comforting. It allows you to be yourself completely, without judgment or fear, and it feels right.”

ARC — The Stars Between Us — Cristin Terrill

“This is a significant decision, son. Are you entirely sure?”
“I am. Even if I wanted that fortune, it would require me to hurt someone I love in order to claim it and I wouldn’t—couldn’t—do that to her. (…) No amount of money is worth hurting the girl I love that way.”

Genre: Young Adult, Science Fiction
Actual Rating: 3 stars
Spicy Meter: 1 fire emoji
Content Warning: Discusses classism, death and murder, fire injury details, and infidelity.

“The Stars Between Us” follows Vika Hale, a barmaid in an impoverished planet, as she learns she is to have an arranged marriage to the son of a very powerful and rich man, from one of the privileged planets. But what will happen when people around this powerful man begin to be targeted by a rebel group? People are dying and Vika feels like she might be in danger, but won’t stop until she finds out why this is happening.

I had high expectations of this book, having it compared to a futuristic Bridgerton, but it was sadly disappointing to me. It felt longer than it actually was, that’s how dreadful it was. Some names really threw me off (I mean, do we really think there’ll be someone named Janus in the future?) and the use of peculiar language also felt really weird (an’t instead of can’t, da referring to her dad…).

The dialogue between characters felt forced almost all the time, they were stiff-y and downright rude sometimes. In the very first chapter, Vika screams “Stop!” to her mom and dad bickering, and that is something I just would never imagine anyone in their sound and respectful mind doing. Vika had the absolute worst attitude always. This was just a very weird read.

It did have a few really cool plot twits tho, I’ll give it that. I’d recommend this book if you’re looking for a futuristic, space-setting, peculiar science fiction read.

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ARC provided by NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press in exchange for an honest review.

Publication Date: August 2, 2022

“Ariel exhaled, cause she knew, seeing the way they looked at each other in that moment, that those two were as inevitable as gravity.”

ARC — For Butter or Worse — Erin La Rosa

“You have excellent taste in wine and terrible taste in men, are you happy?”

Genre: Romance
Actual Rating: 5 stars
Spicy meter: 4.5 fire emojis
Content Warnings: Discusses panic attacks, relationships with a narcissist, and parent death.

“For Butter or Worse” follows Nina Lyon, a renowned, award-winning chef, and Leo O’Donnell, a restauranteur who’s made his family restaurant into a famous franchise. They have been cohosts (and nemesis) on a cooking reality TV show for 3 years, but things quickly go south when management decides to have their final episode for season 3 filmed live, and Nina ends up quitting mid-episode. To make matters worse, when Leo goes to Nina’s restaurant to apologize, they’re photographed in a compromising position, sparking up dating rumors…which actually end up helping both their restaurants? Seeing the effect their “relationship” has on their respective businesses, their publicist decides it’d be best if the fake date, at least for a while—they’ll just have to not kill each other while doing so.

Um, can I just say I can’t believe this is Erin La Rosa’s debut romance novel? The story she’s told is well written and complex without being pretentious. Both main and side characters were lovely but imperfect. I loved Nina, I loved Leo, I loved their family and friends, I loved and lived vicariously through their story. I found out I apparently love cooking themed romance novels? I can’t get enough of it. I just finished reading it and want to grab it all over again.

And on the spicy side… I’ll just say it didn’t disappoint. The last few novels I had read were sort of lacking on that front, but “For Butter or Worse” definitely delivered. Also, I found it hilarious how in the acknowledgements, Erin La Rosa thanks (and apologizes to) her cousin, Mela Lee, who’s an audiobook narrator and who narrated the audiobook version of this book—with sex scenes and all.

I’ll be recommending this book for the rest of the year. It’s that good and entertaining, there is not a single dull moment. It’s relatively fast-paced and the different points of view really built on the pressure between Nina and Leo.

If you enjoy fake dating romances, close proximity tropes, books with “famous” characters, or books that involve the culinary world, then “For Butter or Worse” is definitely for you. Also, just in general, if you’re looking for a steamy, generous read… then grab this novel as soon as you can.

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ARC provided by NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing in exchange for an honest review.

Publication Date: July 26, 2022

“Believe it or not, I’ve dealt with bigger assholes than you.”
“Give me a chance. I’ll try harder.”

ARC — The Bodyguard — Katherine Center

“There’s nothing like the mutuality of a hug—the way you’re giving comfort but you’re getting it, too. I didn’t know what was real or fake anymore, but right then, it just didn’t matter.”

Genre: Women’s Fiction
Actual Rating: 5 stars
Spicy Meter: 2 fire emojis (stays PG13, but it’s great)
Content Warnings: Mentions cheating, cancer, car crashes, and discusses the loss of parents and alcoholism.

“The Hating Game” meets “Spoiler Alert” (or Starstruck, that Disney movie from the 2000s) in this exceptional novel about an Executive Protection Agent (essentially a bodyguard) and a superstar falling in love. “The Bodyguard” follows Hannah Brooks, a recently-dumped, ordinary-and-stumpy Executive Protection Agent, and Jack Stapleton, a famous actor who took a hiatus after a tragic accident that led to the death of one of his brothers. Now that Jack’s mother has been diagnosed with cancer, he steps back into society and is forced to get a security team—but refuses to scare his mother with the fact that he needs security at all. So in comes Hannah, who is lowkey forced to be Jack’s fake girlfriend while they stay at his family’s ranch. But when does faking end and reality starts? That’s for them to find out.

Oh God, I can’t even begin to explain how much I enjoyed this book. I loved the characters, I loved the plot and the writing, I hated the villains (for a change), and I just couldn’t get enough of the fanfiction feel of it all. I just have to mention it again: I can’t believe how good of a villain we got, I don’t know who I hated more: her ex boyfriend or her ex best friend, that’s all I’m saying.

Also, I can’t believe this is my first Katherine Center book, I’ll definitely be adding her to my TBR list. I really enjoyed her writing, her descriptions are there but aren’t long enough to be boring. The characters she crafted were both relatable and fantastical, in the best sense of the word. Both Hannah and Jack were so sweet. It’s like you know the things that happened in this book probably wouldn’t happen in real life, but they still technically could, and it would be wonderful if they did.

I also couldn’t tell you if this book was a slow burn or not, because it sort of was, but, at the same time, it felt like a romance from the start, even if that was fake. What I can tell you is that this book is filled with character development and growth, not just two shallow characters pining after one another.

I would recommend “The Bodyguard” to any readers who’ve enjoyed close proximity and fake dating trope books, like “The Spanish Love Deception” by Elena Armas, “The Unhoneymooners” by Christina Lauren, or “The Hating Game” by Sally Thorne. Also, if you’ve been into fanfiction at any point in your life, or if you’ve ever had a big crush on someone famous, this book is for you.

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ARC provided by NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press in exchange for an honest review.

Publication Date: July 19, 2022

“To what we’ve held onto. And what we’ve lost.”

ARC — The Charmed List — Julie Abe

“This summer’s going to be perfect. This is going to be the summer when my Anti-Wallflower List becomes a reality.”

Genre: Young Adult, Romance
Actual Rating: 4.5 stars
Spicy Meter: 0 fire emojis
Content Warnings: Mentions cancer, deadly car crashes, and death of parents, and deals with bullying and shame.

“The Charmed List” follows Ellie Kobata and Jack Yasuda, two ex-best friends from magic-aware families in the summer before their Senior year of high school. How they went from best friends to strangers, we’re not so sure, but what we’re sure about is that when Ellie thought about the perfect summer roadtrip it never included Jack—but that’s how things turned out. Driving through California on the way to a magic convention, will Jack and Ellie be reunited, get honest with each other and finally talk about what drew them apart? Or will this be the awkwardest summer ever?

This book has it all—from a summer bucketlist, to a roadtrip, to a friends-to-enemies-to-friends-again-to-lovers dynamic, and a close proximity trope for sure. And of course, it had magic. I loved how this book made it feel like you were in on a secret, like small magic was a simple, everyday thing that few were lucky to experience consciously but many did see it in their lives—describing it as luck or love or happiness.

Some of my favorite things about Julie Abe’s writing was how flow-y it was, the story was well-constructed and used some flashbacks here and there that really made the narrative stand out and be unique amongst so many other magic YA books that I’ve read.

I would recommend “The Charmed List” to anyone looking for a funny, YA romance that centers around lost friendships and magic, and that’ll give you all the summer vibes. It isn’t an explicit romance by any means, all we get is a simple kiss at the very end (they’re kids, that’s fair), so I would highly recommend this book to be given as a gift to young readers. It truly is a lovely, magical book.

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ARC provided by NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press in exchange for an honest review.

Publication Date: July 05, 2022

“And, I’ve realized, I don’t have to be all one thing or the other. And just because someone else has slapped a label on me, it doesn’t mean that I have to accept their definition of who I should be. My list was never about standing out and getting attention, but to make myself someone I admire. And I don’t need a bottle of luck or a charm to change my life.”