Tag Archives: Bloomsbury

ARC — Planning Perfect — Haley Neil

“I can practically see a Pinterest board version of the reception coming together with fairy lights and mismatched vintage china settings and a simple white cake with berries dotted along one side for a pop of color.”

Genre: Young Adult
Actual Rating: 4 stars
Spicy Meter: N/A, it’s clean
Content Warnings: Discusses racism, queerphobia, and ace-phobia.

“Planning Perfect” follows Felicity (Fe) Becker, a high schooler who’s in the asexual spectrum, as she helps plan her mother’s wedding. Looking for a venue for a destination wedding, Felicity’s long distance friend, Nancy, offers up her house and adjacent apple orchard and so it’s set. But as they spend more time together, Felicity’s and Nancy’s friendship blossoms into something more… But what could that something be, given Felicity’s asexuality? Anyways, she doesn’t have time to date because one of the wedding guests is an event planner with a very competitive internship program so Felicity has no time for anything else but to plan the perfect wedding.

This book really resonated with me, as a new adult, because I am currently in the midst of planning my wedding and I now know all too well the hassles and stresses of planning such a particular event. It was also super interesting to listen to Felicity’s inner monologue. My brother is within the asexual spectrum and seeing how Felicity thought really gave me another perspective as to how that could feel and the struggles they can face.

I really enjoyed how these chapters were being separated, instead of just “Chapter One” etc. etc., they used chapter divisions to give context about when things were happening, life for example “Two hours and six minutes after the engagement” or “Twenty one days until the wedding” and so on and so forth. That made flashbacks and the timeline in general more understandable and I loved it.

This was such a unique YA read. I feel like it’s the perfect gift for young readers who are just starting to get into the world of reading and romance. With a very diverse set of characters that goes through extensive personal growth, we get to see a lovely story unfold in a beautiful forest-y setting.

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ARC provided by Holly Ruck and Bloomsbury YA through Edelweiss Plus in exchange for an honest review.

Publication Date: February 14, 2023

“Sure, Nancy knows that I’m on the ace-spectrum, but I don’t think she realizes what that means.
She wants intimacy; she wants passion. I can’t be the one to give those things to her.”

A Court of Silver Flames — Sarah J. Maas — ACOTAR #4

Genre: Fantasy, Romance
Actually Rating: 5 stars
Spicy meter: 5+ fire emojis
Content Warning: (Very) Graphic violence and explicit sexual content.

“A Court of Silver Flames” is currently the last published book in the ACOTAR series, and it follows Nesta Archeron, Feyre’s eldest sister, as she comes to peace with all she’s had to face and all the power that flows through her veins. So in comes the great Illyrian warrior, Cassian, to help her along, in more than one way.

Oh God, I had forgotten you could love fictional characters this much. I am not ready to let this story go. I drew it on, reading this book in bits and pieces, just so I could keep going back to the comfort that were Nesta and Cassian, and Gwyn and Emerie and every single character in this world. SARAH J. MAAS NEEDS TO STOP PUBLISHING OTHER BOOKS AND COME BACK FOR ACOTAR #5 ASAP. Words can’t describe how much I need this.

And I mean, ACOTAR books have all had their fair share of spicy, romantic content…. but oh did Nesta and Cass take the cake. And all the fighting, and history, and alliances, and betrayals. This book could’ve been dragged on to a series of its own–and I kind of wish it had been.

If you like fantasy books with strong character development, then this is the book for you. Out of all the ACOTAR books, I feel like this one represented unconditional friendship the best. If you haven’t started on this fantasy series: WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?

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A Court of Frost and Starlight — Sarah J. Maas — ACOTAR #3.1

Genre: Fantasy, Romance
Actually Rating: 3 stars
Content Warning: Explicit sexual content and some violence.

“A Court of Frost and Starlight” follows Feyre, Rhysand, and their friends and family as they celebrate the Winter Solstice. That’s it. It’s just a whole, filler book.

I mean, yeah, we can all agree Sarah J. Maas is a great writer but I don’t know… this book wasn’t really my cup of tea. If I want fluff and puff, I’d grab a YA or New Adult romance novel, not a fantasy novel. And I know they say this book sets the scene for the rest of the series, but I don’t see how that’s possible. Nothing of importance really happened in this book, it was just a filler book if I’ve ever seen one.

I wasn’t even sure about posting this review because I really don’t want to bring down this series that I’ve dearly loved, but I just feel like this side book wasn’t really worth my time. I mean, at least it was short? But I definitely wouldn’t recommend “A Court of Frost and Starlight” if what you’re looking for is magical action. That’s all I’m going to say.

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A Court of Wings and Ruin — Sarah J. Maas — ACOTAR #3

“You do not fear. You do not falter. You do not yield. You go in, you get her, and you come out again.”

Genre: Fantasy, Romance
Actually Rating: 5 stars
Spicy meter: 5 fire emojis
Content Warning: (Very) Graphic violence and explicit sexual content.

“A Court of Wings and Ruin” is the third book in the A Court of Thorns and Roses series. This book follows Feyre, a mortal-human-turned-immortal-high-fae, as the war against Hybern begins. Feyre joins the Spring Court as a Night Court spy, riddled with anxiety as she doesn’t know if her sisters or her friends at the Night Court are safe. After two Hybern royals try to kill her and Lucien, they run away to the Night Court, now becoming more or less fugitives, and this will only be the start of so many adventures and challenges to come.

First of all, do y’all think Sarah J. Maas planned the abbreviation of this novel? You know how we’ve been shortening the titles–ACOTAR, ACOMAF, etc…– well, this book’s abbreviation is ACOWAR, and it’s pretty much all about a war… so there’s that.

I really enjoyed this book. Probably more than the others. Some aspects of it were very predictable, but others really weren’t. I am actually surprised I liked it as much as I did because I usually find war books to be very boring, but Maas found a way to always keep you on your toes. I loved all the alliances made in this book. I loved how Tamlin was shown as a complex character, not just a pure evil enemy. This is a very stressful read, I cried in 3 different parts, but it was so worth it.

I couldn’t recommend this series enough. Definitely grab this book and series if you enjoy fantasy books, and love magic combat, detailed world-building, and magical war books.

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“It’s a rare person to face who they are and not run from it – not be broken by it.”

A Court of Mist and Fury — Sarah J. Maas — ACOTAR #2

“When you spend so long trapped in darkness (…), you find that the darkness begins to stare back.”

Genre: Fantasy, Romance
Actually Rating: 5+ stars
Content Warning: (Very) Graphic violence and explicit sexual content.

“A Court of Mist and Fury” is the second book in the A Court of Thorns and Roses series. This book follows Feyre, a mortal-human-turned-immortal-high-fae, as she explores her relationships with the High Lord of the Spring Court, the High Lord of the Night Court, and, most importantly, with herself and her new-found immortality.

I write mostly spoiler-less reviews, but OH GOD, how hard it is to not gush about everything that happened in this book. Yes, it’s a long book, but it’s not slow-paced at all, something is always happening. I loved it. I loved the action, the quests, the romance. This book was definitely spicier than the first installment in this series. There was mist and there was fury, alright? Our girl Feyre really did step up for herself.

I can’t wait to see where this series goes. I would recommend this book and series to readers who enjoy fantasy books, and who love fae, magic combat, detailed world-building, and potential magic wars.

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“I was not a pet, not a doll, not an animal. I was a survivor, and I was strong. I would not be weak, or helpless again. I would not, could not be broken. Tamed.”

“Don’t let the hard days win.”

A Court of Thorns and Roses — Sarah J. Maas — ACOTAR #1

“I love you, (…) thorns and all.”

Genre: Fantasy, Romance
Actually Rating: 5+ stars
Content Warning: Graphic violence and some sexual content.

“A Court of Thorns and Roses” is a fantasy novel that takes place in a world where humans and faeries are mortal enemies after fighting a deadly war against each other. Within this world, Feyre is a human young woman who hunts out of necessity. When, by mistake, she kills a faerie while hunting, she is given two options: either be killed on the spot or be taken to the faerie kingdom, back to one of the Faerie realms called Prythian, to live out the rest of her days. This is how she meets Tamlin, a High Fae who’s the High Lord of the Spring Court, and who’s become her captor? Of sorts? It didn’t feel like any normal prison to Feyre… But that’s for her to experience and for us to read.

Oh wow. This book is something else. It broke me and brought me back together. The world-building and plot were immaculate. The romance wasn’t as spicy as I expected, but I’ve been told it gets better with time (props to Nicole for recommending this series, I can already tell these will be some of my favorite reads of 2022).

“A Court of Thorns and Roses” is an action-pack, fast-paced read. Yes, it’s long, but trust me when I say it’s fast-paced, it’s only so long because so many things happen within the chapters of this book. It’s amazing how I fell in love with all characters, even with the villains, throughout this story. Filled with descriptive narratives and dynamic interactions, there’s really nothing I would change about the first installment in this series.

I would recommend this book to anyone willing to commit to reading the rest of the series. It’s not even that they leave us in a cliffhanger or anything, it’s just that you’ll end up wanting more after finishing this read. So, if you like fantasy books and faeries, then this is the book for you.

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