Book Review | This Wretched Valley | Jennifer Kiefer

Book Review | This Wretched Valley | Jennifer Kiefer

Three mutilated bodies have been found in the woods. One, a perfectly clean skeleton. Another missing its eyes and tongue. And the third one with his rib cage perfectly cracked open. No one can figure out what happened. Seven months earlier,  Clay might have just found it, the thing that will let him complete his dissertation — an untouched cliff face in the Kentucky wilderness. Now, he just has to hike in and document this discovery. Enlisting the help of his friends, the four of them set out one March day. Dylan can’t believe her luck either. After getting a brand deal with Pretzel, Clay invited her to be a part of his discovery giving her a chance to stake her claim in the climbing world. She can ascend a new route. Claim it as her own. Even name it. And Pretzel is even sponsoring the trip. All she needs to do is document it for her fans. At first, everything is going well. The research is practically writing itself and Dylan’s body responds perfectly to the climbing. But disaster strikes when their dog goes missing. And then Dylan catches an unlucky break and falls. And then they can’t find their way out even with the GPS. And then Dylan’s boyfriend starts to see things. And why has their food been ripped apart?

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Book Review | That Time I Got Drunk and Yeeted a Love Potion at a Werewolf | Kimberly Lemming

Book Review | That Time I Got Drunk and Yeeted a Love Potion at a Werewolf | Kimberly Lemming

It’s been a year and Cin has returned home, bringing with her a hoard of demons that claim to be safe. But they’re causing a ruckus in Brie’s hometown. Especially a specific werewolf that might be reacting to the love potion Brie accidentally hit him in the head with after a very obsessed human tried to get her to drink it. But why does she have to be the one to suffer for that idiot’s horrible actions? Now the werewolf won’t leave her alone, claiming that it’s not the love potion making his heart beat. He’s really in love with her. Actually, mated is the term he used. Brie is forced to wait out the potion’s effects as her town begins to spiral from the disappearances of three women from the town. Could the new demon neighbors be to blame, or is something more sinister hoping to tear down the thin line of peace between humans and demons?

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Book Review | Five Broken Blades | Mai Corland

Book Review | Five Broken Blades | Mai Corland

When the king is a god, how do you kill him? You employ a poison maiden, a strong arm, a thief, his brother, and the crown’s spymaster. But from the beginning, their plan is fraught with peril. From pirates to assassins, the crew struggles to even arrive at the king’s side to pull off the coo of the century — putting the king’s brother on the throne. Questions begin to swirl about trusting each other as each one has their own reason for seeking the king’s death. Can vengeance keep them united? Can they bring harmony to their home where the rich rule and the poor barely survive? 

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Book Review | The Ladies Rewrite the Rules | Suzanne Allain

Book Review | The Ladies Rewrite the Rules | Suzanne Allain

Diana Boyle, a wealthy young widow, has no desire to ever marry again. Particularly not to someone who merely wants her for her fortune. So when she discovers that she’s listed in a directory of rich, single women she is furious, and rightly so. She confronts Maxwell Dean, the man who published the Bachelor’s Directory , and is horrified to find he is far more attractive than his actions have led her to expect. However, Diana is unmoved by Max’s explanation that he authored the list to assist younger sons like himself who cannot afford to marry unless it’s to a woman of means. She gathers the ladies in the directory together to inform them of its existence, so they may circumvent fortune hunters’ efforts to trick them into marriage. Though outraged, the women decide to embrace their unique position of power and reverse the usual gender roles by making the men dance to their tune. And together… the ladies rewrite the rules. - Goodreads

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Book Review | That Time I Got Drunk and Saved a Demon | Kimberly Lemming

Book Review | That Time I Got Drunk and Saved a Demon | Kimberly Lemming

In a world where demons are feared, what do you do when you accidentally save one and he shows up to family breakfast the next day? Or when the same demon tells you that your entire society is wrong? That demons aren’t the bad guys. No. It’s just the goddess you’ve been worshipping for centuries. Or that he’s hot as hell and loves your cooking? As the only human who knows the truth, Cin is tasked with helping the demon kill the sorceress that’s been enslaving his people. Either that, or he kills her family. And he says that demons aren’t the evil short.

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Book Review | Funny Story | Emily Henry

Book Review | Funny Story | Emily Henry

Daphne has a new roommate, but not by choice. After getting dumped by her fiance after his bachelor party for his “I’ve never had feelings for her” best friend, Daphne has been forced to move in with the “best friend’s” ex, Miles. Now she’s counting down the days till she can leave town while trying to live around the other lost soul in the apartment. This town had never been hers — she moved there for Peter. She never had friends of her own — they were Peters. And now she’s hunting for jobs back home. But she’s not prepared to be sucked into Miles’s orbit when she lies about a new relationship to her ex. Or kissing Mile’s when they run into Peter. Or spending every Sunday with Miles so he can show her his version of the town. Suddenly, the lines between what is fake and what is real blur as their shared trauma bubbles to the surface. Both suffering from abandonment, they might be the only two people who can save each other.

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Book Review | The Watchers | A. M. Shine

Book Review | The Watchers | A. M. Shine

What would you do if your car died and a woman yelled at you to run? That’s exactly the position Mina is in. Tasked on delivering a bird for a friend, her car dies out on the road, trees on both sides and her phone won’t work. She sets out to find help only to find a woman yelling at her to run. As the light in the forest dims, she runs into a concrete building and is ushered through another door before the lady locks it quickly. What Mina finds inside are two other people and a wall of glass. A single light hangs above them. And then the screams come. Horrible sounds make Mina want to curl in a corner and hide. She can’t see anything through the glass except her reflection, while on the other side, the monsters watch them.

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Book Review | The Warm Hands of Ghosts | Katherine Arden

Book Review | The Warm Hands of Ghosts | Katherine Arden

The end of the world is here. At least that’s what Laura’s mom told her when the Great War began. But now her mother’s dead, lost to the boat explosion in Halifax. Same as her father. All she has left is her brother who’s stationed at the front line. When a mysterious box arrives, Laura is confused. On one hand she’s told her brother is dead and on the other, a note arrives with her brother’s personal effects saying that he’ll be found. Convinced that she’ll find answers from the people stationed with her brother, Laura returns to a private hospital at the front as a nurse. Her questions aren’t answered though. The more she searches, the more the truth alludes her until she’s beginning to see ghosts around every corner. Will she be able to find her brother in time or will she become a ghost herself?

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Book Review | The Failures | Benjamin Liar

Book Review | The Failures | Benjamin Liar

There’s a giant under the mountain and in a world ruled by light, whoever can get to the giant first might change the future. Some want to kill the giant. Some want to control it. And some just want the sun to return. But all want to stop the impending darkness that plagues their home. As dreams filter through the youth of the world, they unknowingly search for three artifacts that can access the giant. A girl named Sophie is the first to find the book, using it to end a war that destroyed her city. A boy named James finds the key and uses it to flee his backwater city. And finally, a group of unlikely travelers cross over into the world carrying a sword of untold ability. But can the artifacts be used for good and return the sun to the sky? Or will evil forces use the power to bring about the end?

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Book Review | Bride | Ali Hazelwood

Book Review | Bride | Ali Hazelwood

Misery has always been considered collateral. As a child, she was used to keeping up vampire and human relations. And now it comes as no surprise that she’s being put up for collateral again, but this time it’s to strengthen relations with the Were, a group of hot-blooded shifters that have hated vampires for centuries. After marrying their Alpha, she has no idea what to expect in were territory. She doesn’t expect to find the alpha charming or to find his little sister adorable. Especially not to be considered an actual living being. While the rest of the world uses Misery as a pawn, they’re not ready to learn that she’s using them back. She didn’t just agree to marry the alpha for the good of the vampires. She married him to find out what happened to her best friend who went missing a few months ago. Her only clue is a piece of paper with the were alpha’s name written on it.

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Book Review | Scarlet | Genevieve Cogman

Book Review | Scarlet | Genevieve Cogman

Liberté, égalité, fraternité. The French Revolution has begun. Marie Antoinette has been captured, and it’s the misfortune of a serving girl in England to be the only one to save the Queen and her children. Noticed for her likeness to the Queen, Eleanor is sent to a wealthy estate where she learns to act just like a noble. Soon, she’s able to mimic the queen on a whim, and the plan is born. She’s to travel to France and create a distraction while others free the Queen. But there are plots afoot. Things quickly go astray as vampires impede them, leaving many to wonder if they’re entirely safe behind their estates. Could the French people be right in ripping them from their pedestals? Based on the historical Scarlet Pimpernel, Scarlet follows the courage of one young woman during the French revelation with a fantastical, vampire twist.

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Book Review | Butcher and Blackbird | Brynne Weaver

Book Review | Butcher and Blackbird | Brynne Weaver

Sloane isn’t in the best position. She’s stuck in a cage in the middle of nowhere and there’s a dead body decomposing next to her. Luckily, another infamous serial killer happens to stumble upon her predicament. Her name proceeds her though — Orb Weaver. A serial killer that kills serial killers. The man is ecstatic, coming up with a devilish competition. A competition, Sloane has a hard time refusing. They meet up once a year to kill a serial killer and the first one to get the kill wins. The competition brings new light into Sloane’s life. She’s having fun again. She’s finding a purpose. And the hot guy she’s hanging out with isn’t so bad either. He’s one of the first people to accept her for what she is — an artist. But their line of work doesn’t always allow for a happy ending. As their killer ways catch up to them, there might be no future left for them.

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Book Review | Dead on Arrival | Matt Richtel

Book Review | Dead on Arrival | Matt Richtel

After falling into obscurity as an infectious disease specialist, Lyle is on his way to a conference he hopes will jump-start his career again. But when he lands in Steamboat Springs, the world is eerily quiet. The pilots can’t contact the tower and there are bodies lying on the tarmac. The symptoms are nothing that Lyle has seen. The people look dead but they’re not. And soon, the people on the plane succumb to the same symptoms, leaving Lyle, the pilots, and one passenger to figure out the cause of this new deadly virus. The more Lyle learns, the more things aren’t adding up. Is this really a biological virus or something else?

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Book Review | The Twisted Ones | T. Kingfisher

Book Review | The Twisted Ones | T. Kingfisher

With her dad in his 80s and her grandmother gone, Mouse has been tasked with clearing out her grandmother’s old house. A house she hasn’t lived in since being put in a nursing home. Mouse isn’t ready for the mess that greats her. Turns out, her grandmother was a hoarder. As the long days of cleaning stretch on, Mouse stumbles on an old journal. The stories are weird. The writer keeps referencing seeing things in the woods. How he “twisted himself like the twisted ones.” It all feels like a farce until Mouse begins to hear noises at night. Her dog barks at the window. And she stumbles on a gruesome dead dear in the woods. But things take a turn when her dog leads her up a hill full of weird stones that shouldn’t be there. Stumbling back to reality, Mouse tries to ignore the creatures making nightly visits until she receives a message begging for help.

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Book Review | Two Twisted Crowns | Rachel Gillig

Book Review | Two Twisted Crowns | Rachel Gillig

The Nightmare has come alive. Elspeth no longer holds the reins of her own body. Instead, the soul of the Shephard king has taken control. His wish, to reunite the Providence Cards and bring peace to his beloved realm. With the help of Ravyn and Jasper, they set out to take the treacherous road to find the Twin Alders card. Even though the King has given them leave, the castle is no place for Elm to stay behind. His brother lays deathly wounded from the Nightmare’s attack, and Ione is on the hunt for the Maiden Card that’s making her heartless. Elm does his best to keep control of the plan he’s crafted with Ravyn, but the Providence Cards hold more secrets than they knew. As the winter solstice grows near, they must race to find the last card, unite the deck, and save those infected. 

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Book Review | A House with Good Bones | T. Kingfisher

Book Review | A House with Good Bones | T. Kingfisher

With her archeology dig closed due to finding human remains, Sam has been forced to live with her mom until things get sorted. But the house she’s returned to is not the one from her childhood. The walls are an ecru color. The picture over the mantelpiece is borderline racist (something her grandmother used to have hanging). And there’s a vulture always watching their house. None of that gives her the chills like finding out there are no insects in the backyard. Something only an entomologist like herself might be able to notice. Looking into her great-grandfather’s past digs up old letters referring to made children and his sorcerer’s ways. The weirdness continues from a swarm of ladybugs to sleep paralysis. Sam wants to explain things away until she can’t rationalize anything else that’s happening, forcing her to question her heritage, sanity, and ability to keep her and her mother safe.

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Book Review | From Blood and Ash | Jennifer L. Armentrout

Book Review | From Blood and Ash | Jennifer L. Armentrout

Chosen from birth to usher in a new era, Poppy’s life has never been her own. The life of the Maiden is solitary. Never to be touched. Never to be looked upon. Never to be spoken to. Never to experience pleasure. Waiting for the day of her Ascension, she would rather be with the guards, fighting back the evil that took her family, than preparing to be found worthy by the gods. But the choice has never been hers. The entire kingdom’s future rests on Poppy’s shoulders, something she’s not even quite sure she wants for herself. Because a Maiden has a heart. And a soul. And longing. And when Hawke, a golden-eyed guard honor bound to ensure her Ascension, enters her life, destiny and duty become tangled with desire and need. He incites her anger, makes her question everything she believes in, and tempts her with the forbidden. Forsaken by the gods and feared by mortals, a fallen kingdom is rising once more, determined to take back what they believe is theirs through violence and vengeance. And as the shadow of those cursed draws closer, the line between what is forbidden and what is right becomes blurred. Poppy is not only on the verge of losing her heart and being found unworthy by the gods, but also her life when every blood-soaked thread that holds her world together begins to unravel. - Goodreads

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Book Review | One Dark Window | Rachel Gillig

Book Review | One Dark Window | Rachel Gillig

Magic is dangerous. Magic must be controlled. When the fever comes, you will die. When Elspeth catches the fever, her father, the head of the dysentery, he doesn’t turn her in. Instead, he hides her away with her aunt and uncle in the woods. There she sweats out the fever hoping to pass unnoticed.  But those who catch the fever have access to the magic that all others must use cards for. And most that have unnatural access degenerate from the magic. Elspeth thinks she’s come out unscathed until she touches a card and a voice begins to speak in her head. A voice that goes stronger the longer she calls on it. She keeps the voice hidden until running into a strange highwayman who turns out to turn her life upside down. The highwayman turns out to be the kind nephews and he has plans of his own to free their city from its dark magic.

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Book Review | Heavenbreaker | Sara Wolf

Book Review | Heavenbreaker | Sara Wolf

Only a few space stations are left after the war. The people inside live in the wards and entertain themselves with the jousting tournaments. Synali’s life doesn’t get to stay so simple after her mother is assassinated. She spends six months trying to learn who did it until she finally finds a way in and puts a dagger in her noble father’s back. But killing him isn’t enough. His house still stands. His accomplishments are still alive. If she fades away now, no one will know that he tried to kill his bastard daughter. Luckily another noble has just the right plan to see her history set right. By joining him in winning a jousting tournament, the man not only offers her revenge on everyone involved with her mother’s murder but also relief at the end.  All she has to do is survive all seven rounds of the tournament. But as she spends more time in her stead, she’s not entirely sure if she’s the only one controlling the machine.

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Book Review | Never Lie | Freida McFadden

Book Review | Never Lie | Freida McFadden

On the hunt for their forever home, newlyweds Tricia and Ethan head out of town to tour a secluded home in the country — the former home of a psychiatrist who went missing a year ago. Tricia and Ethan aren’t prepared for the snowstorm that leaves them stranded and Tricia keeps finding evidence that someone else is in the house with them. A weeping glass. A sleeping bag. Ethan tries his best to calm her down, telling her that they’ll love living in the house, but nothing helps. Especially when Tricia stumbles onto a secret room filled with tapes of the psychiatrist’s recorded sessions with her patients. Tricia can’t help herself. She steals a few of the tapes and begins to listen. The more she listens, the more the pieces of the psychiatrist’s disappearance fall into place, until Tricia can’t ignore the evidence anymore.

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