Tag Archives: Romance

Reminders of Him — Colleen Hoover

“Now that I’ve forgiven myself, the reminders of him only make me smile.”

Genre: Romance
Actual rating: 5+ stars
Content warnings: Car accident, death, grief, and suicidal thoughts.

“Reminders of Him” follows Kenna Rowan, a young mother who just spent 5 years in prison, as she looks to be reunited with her daughter. Kenna was separated from her daughter, Diem, as soon as she gave birth and she lost custody to Diem’s paternal grandparents. Then in comes Ledger Ward, a retired football player who was best friends with Diem’s father and who cares for Diem as if she were his own daughter. In an(other) emotionally charged romance, Colleen Hoover has once again torn our hearts and pulled them back together.

No review I could ever write will do this book justice. “Reminders of Him” is so so sad. I would dare to say sadder than most CoHo books. It was perfectly paced, which made it even more enjoyable. It was fast enough that you wouldn’t get bored but slow enough that the anticipation alone made the romance much better.

Then you have a bunch of likable but imperfect characters. Kenna and her grief and perseverance, Ledger and his guilt, the Landrys and their anger. There was so much character growth in this book—sometimes even in unexpected ways. Colleen knows just how to build up tension, and oh was this book tense.

I always say my favorite CoHo book is always the last one I’ve read, and this holds true for “Reminders of Him” one too. This book was all I didn’t know I needed.

I would recommend this book without a shadow of a doubt that the reader will be entranced by it. If you’re looking for a romance book that’ll make you swoon and cry and love and heal, then this book is for you.

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“It proves that time, distance, and devastation allow people enough opportunity to craft villains out of people they don’t even know. But Kenna was never a villain. She was a victim. We all were.”

The Simple Wild — K.A. Tucker — Wild #1

“(…) wanting someone to be something they’re not won’t make it happen.”

Genre: Romance
Actual Rating: 5+ stars
Content Warning: Discusses cancer and airplane crashes.

“The Simple Wild” follows Calla Fletcher, an Alaskan-born, Toronto-raised 26-year-old. When she was 2 years old, her mother took her and left Alaska for good, leaving her pilot father, Wren, behind. Having never seen her father again and having cut all relationship with him when she was in middle school, she is shocked when she hears he’s—perhaps terminally—ill. Embarking on a trip to re-meet her own father, Calla will find more than solitude and tundra in this romantic, heart-shattering book.

Why was this hidden gem kept from me? This was one of the best reads of the year already. I missed out on this book for almost 4 years, that’s inconceivable. I loved Calla and her inner voice. I loved the adventure K.A. Tucker took us on. I loved the raccoons. I loved loved loved the character development. If anything, I feel like this book ended too soon. Good thing there are more books in this series, I need more Calla and Jonah in my life.

If you like romance: read this book. If you like nature: read this book. If you like books that will make you cry a lil: read this book. If you’re breathing: do yourself a favor and just read this book. It’s so so good.

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“Jonah is Alaska to me.”

Lovestruck — Kate Watson

Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy, Romance
Actual Rating: 3 stars
Content Warnings: None that I can think of.

“Lovestruck” follows Kalixta, a 16-year-old cupid-in-training, who’s the daughter of Eros and Psyche and is very frustrated over the fact that the Fates control everyone’s future. In a turn of events, she accidentally gets struck with one of her own arrows and ends up head-over-heels over a young, human boy called Ben—but that may or may not be her fate. This book follows this young goddess as she searches for a way to break the love spell put on by the arrow and make everything right.

Mixing mythology and young adult literature together, Kate Watson has brought together a nice, light read. This book is fast-paced and entertaining, but I would say it’s been wrongly labeled as being a romance. Young Adult and Fantasy? Yeah. Romance? Absolutely not. But it was still a nice read, maybe just not my speed anymore.

I would recommend this book to teenagers, around the ages of 14-18, who like Greek mythology and light-hearted books.

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Preview ARC — Husband Material — Alexis Hall — Boyfriend Material #2 (First 5 Chapters)

Genre: Romance, LGBTQIA
Actual Rating: 5 stars
Content Warnings: Mentions cheating.

“Husband Material” is the sequel to Alexis Hall’s “Boyfriend Material” and I am here for it. The sequel once again follows Luc O’Donnell, the son of two celebrities who’s kind of famous by association, and Oliver Blackwood, a.k.a. the perfect boyfriend and fancy barrister. This time around, everyone close to them is getting married and that’ll make them question where their future lies.

First of all, AAAAAHHHHHH I AM FREAKING OUT. I know it’s only a preview, but getting to read just a bit of this sequel has made my day, my week, my month. Get to pre-ordering this bad boy as soon as possible, as we’ll get all the wonderful Luc and Oliver banter we got to know and love through “Boyfriend Material”.

From what we could see in these first five chapters, this book will come packed with drama, yes, but most of all it’ll come packed with Luc and his panicky periods and Oliver and his calming qualities, as we got to see the first time around with “Boyfriend Material.”

I will recommend this book to absolutely everyone. But first: go read Boyfriend Material!!! These books are light and well-written and just a blast to read. If you’re into LGBTQIA romance, this is for you.

Red Queen — Victoria Aveyard — Red Queen #1

“Anyone can betray anyone.”

Genre: Young Adult, Dystopian, Romance
Actual Rating: 3 stars
Content Warnings: Discusses death, war, and discrimination. Mentions suicide.

“Red Queen” takes place in a dystopian future where everyone is defined by the color of their blood. Red versus Silvers, powerless versus powerful. Silver blood gives you superhero powers, while red blood confines you to a live of servitude… or does it? Mare Barrow is a 17-year-old red girl that discovers she actually does have a power of her own. This book follows her story, as she infiltrates the world of the Silvers and is set to be betrothed to one of the Silver princes.

The reason why I gave this book such a low rating is kind of ridiculous. I liked the story, I liked the plot twists, I liked the characters, but for some reason I wasn’t passionately invested in them. It’s like I was a witness to their story while having absolutely no sympathy for them. And for that I gave this book 3 stars. It’s a good story, but the characters feel distant at this point. I can’t wait to read the second installment in this series and see if it’s any better.

I would recommend this book to fans of dystopian novels, like The Hunger Games. But when thinking about dystopian novels, this wouldn’t be the first one I recommend.

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All The Feels — Olivia Dade

Genre: Romance, Comedy
Actual Rating: 5 stars
Content Warning: Discusses fat-shaming and domestic violence.

“All the Feels” follows Lauren Clegg, a former ER therapist, and Alex Woodroe, a famous actor in the long-running TV show “Gods of the Gates”. Hired to keep Alex out of trouble, Lauren must follow him wherever he goes. With a budding friendship and a ton of sexual tension on the line, this book, although shelved as a sequel, really isn’t. You could read it as a stand-alone, so don’t let that deter you.

Does this book encompass the close-proximity trope? Honestly, I don’t know. I feel like Lauren and Alex would’ve fallen in love either way, but I guess their close proximity did help. Also, I will not be picking favorites from this series. I just loved them both so much. The writing is great, the characters are charming and complex, the stories are radically different (although they both include famous actors and non-famous, plus-sized women falling in love), and they are both spicy, if you know what I mean.

I would recommend this book to anyone who’s ever fantasized about soulmates or read fanfiction or both. I would recommend reading Spoiler Alert first, but honestly this series is like multiplying, the order of the factors does not change the product—you’ll love the stories no matter which one you read first.

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The Spanish Love Deception — Elena Armas

Genre: Romance
Actual Rating: 4.5 stars
Content Warning: Mentions sexual assault, power-imbalance couples, and cancer.

“The Spanish Love Deception” follows Catalina—a.k.a. Lina—Martín, as she sets to find a fake boyfriend that’ll follow her all the way to Spain, to her hometown, for her sister’s wedding. Then bring on her only candidate: Aaron Blackford, her annoyingly smug coworker. Ever since Aaron’s been in the office, Lina’s had the impression he doesn’t like her that much, and so she’s skeptical, to say the least, about him being her fake boyfriend. Set mostly in New York and the northern coast of Spain, this book will engulf you between two cultures and a not-so-deceptive love affair.

First things first: HOW IS THIS ELENA’S DEBUT NOVEL? It’s so well-written, her storyline was clear and well-constructed, and her characters were unique and lovely… Most writers don’t get it this right this early on in their careers. I can’t wait to read her second book, that’s coming out in August 2022—although it won’t follow Lina and Aaron, it’ll be following Rosie (Lina’s friend and coworker) and Lucas (Lina’s cousin) instead.

I would recommend this book to anyone who liked The Hating Game (book or movie, doesn’t matter), or anyone who’s fond of the enemies-to-lovers troupe. It’s a semi-lengthy book (almost 500 pages) but oh God, did I not get enough of those two and their story. I can’t recommend this book enough.

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Beach Read — Emily Henry

“Happy endings don’t matter if the getting there sucks.”

Genre: Romance
Actual Rating: 5+ stars
Content Warning: Discusses death, divorce, cancer, and violent cults, mentions of cheating (but not from the main characters).

“Beach Read” follows January Andrews and Gus Everett, two former university classmates-turned writers, as they fight through some writer’s block in a small beach town by Lake Michigan. Both fighting different demons, they embark on small adventures as they venture outside of their writing styles as well thanks to a small bet between the two competitive writers. This is a book for romance-lovers and cynics alike.

I… I understand the hype. That’s all I can say. January and Gus were lovely characters, but so were all the supporting characters. I don’t know who I grew to love the most: January or Gus or Pete or the Labradors or the Labradorite (which is actually a really pretty stone, Google it). It is beautifully written, as Emily Henry transports us to that small town feel. It is heartbreaking, as both January and Gus grow as people. It is healing, as every loose knot is tied in the end.

I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a heavy but heartwarming story, with a very very very HEA.

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“Your mother has been a lot of people in the twenty year I’ve known her, and I’ve had a chance to fall in love with every single one of them, Janie. That’s the key to marriage. You have to keep falling in love with every new version of each other, and it’s the best feeling in the whole world.”

The Crown — Kiera Cass — The Selection #5

Genre: Young Adult, Dystopian, Romance
Actual Rating: 2 stars
Content Warning: Mentions of abuse.

“The Crown” is the last installment I’ll read from The Selection series. Having a radically different arc from the first three books, I must say the last two books have been my least favorite… And considering I did not like the first three all that much, it means a lot. This last book follows Eadlynas she comes to choose who’ll be her prince consort and as she becomes queen. There’s no other way to put this: it sucked.

Eadlyn’s faults were worse than the first time around. The only redeeming quality of this book was that the writing wasn’t terrible—but what’s good writing without a good story? Well, it’s a waste of your time, that’s what it is.

I would not recommend the second arc of The Selection at all. Maybe read The Selection #1-3, if you like reality TV shows like The Bachelor, but other than that, I wouldn’t even recommend those books that much either. Reading this series has been the worst decision I’ve made this year. What a shame.

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The Heir — Kiera Cass — The Selection #4

Genre: Young Adult, Dystopian, Romance
Actual Rating: 1.5 stars
Content Warnings: None that I can think of.

“The Heir”, although included within “The Selection” series, has basically nothing to do with the first three books of this series. This books follows Eadlyn, the eldest daughter of Maxon and America, as she goes through her own Selection, the first ever Selection where it’s a princess not a prince doing the choosing.

I understand the need to make Eadlyn’s personality as distant from America’s personality as you could, to differentiate the narrators… but really? So different? Eadlyn does not seem like someone who was raised by Maxon and America. She was so stubborn for the sake of being stubborn, so unpleasant for the sake of being unpleasant. The was almost nothing I liked about this book. I am giving it 1.5 stars only because of Kile and Erik, the only two characters I could tolerate.

I would not recommend this book at all. But I’ll be reading the next and last book in “The Selection” because if I’ve made it this far, I can’t give up now.

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