Book review: The Ballad of Never After ( Once Upon a Broken Heart #2) by Stephanie Garber

Published September 13th 2022 by Flatiron Books

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Not every love is meant to be.

After Jacks, the Prince of Hearts, betrays her, Evangeline Fox swears she’ll never trust him again. Now that she’s discovered her own magic, Evangeline believes she can use it to restore the chance at happily ever after that Jacks stole away.

But when a new terrifying curse is revealed, Evangeline finds herself entering into a tenuous partnership with the Prince of Hearts again. Only this time, the rules have changed. Jacks isn’t the only force Evangeline needs to be wary of. In fact, he might be the only one she can trust, despite her desire to despise him.

Instead of a love spell wreaking havoc on Evangeline’s life, a murderous spell has been cast. To break it, Evangeline and Jacks will have to do battle with old friends, new foes, and a magic that plays with heads and hearts. Evangeline has always trusted her heart, but this time she’s not sure she can…

The fiercely-anticipated sequel to the #1 New York Times bestseller Once Upon a Broken Heart, starring Evangeline Fox and the Prince of Hearts on a new journey of magic, mystery, and heartbreak.

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Book review: Book Lovers by Emily Henry

Published May 3rd 2022 by Berkley

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One summer. Two rivals. A plot twist they didn’t see coming….

Nora Stephens’ life is books—she’s read them all—and she is not that type of heroine. Not the plucky one, not the laidback dream girl, and especially not the sweetheart. In fact, the only people Nora is a heroine for are her clients, for whom she lands enormous deals as a cutthroat literary agent, and her beloved little sister Libby.

Which is why she agrees to go to Sunshine Falls, North Carolina for the month of August when Libby begs her for a sisters’ trip away—with visions of a small-town transformation for Nora, who she’s convinced needs to become the heroine in her own story. But instead of picnics in meadows, or run-ins with a handsome country doctor or bulging-forearmed bartender, Nora keeps bumping into Charlie Lastra, a bookish brooding editor from back in the city. It would be a meet-cute if not for the fact that they’ve met many times and it’s never been cute.

If Nora knows she’s not an ideal heroine, Charlie knows he’s nobody’s hero, but as they are thrown together again and again—in a series of coincidences no editor worth their salt would allow—what they discover might just unravel the carefully crafted stories they’ve written about themselves.

Book review: Love on the Brain by Ali Hazelwood

Published August 23rd 2022 by Sphere

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From the New York Times bestselling author of The Love Hypothesis comes a new STEMinist rom-com in which a scientist is forced to work on a project with her nemesis—with explosive results.

Bee Königswasser lives by a simple code: What would Marie Curie do? If NASA offered her the lead on a neuroengineering project – a literal dream come true – Marie would accept without hesitation. Duh. But the mother of modern physics never had to co-lead with Levi Ward.

Sure, Levi is attractive in a tall, dark, and piercing-eyes kind of way. But Levi made his feelings toward Bee very clear in grad school – archenemies work best employed in their own galaxies far, far away.

But when her equipment starts to go missing and the staff ignore her, Bee could swear she sees Levi softening into an ally, backing her plays, seconding her ideas… devouring her with those eyes. The possibilities have all her neurons firing.

But when it comes time to actually make a move and put her heart on the line, there’s only one question that matters: What will Bee Königswasser do?

WWW Wednesday: August 24, 2022

Welcome to WWW Wednesday! This meme was formerly hosted by MizB at A Daily Rhythm and then revived on Taking on a World of Words. Just answer the three questions:

• What are you currently reading?
•  What did you recently finish reading?
• What do you think you’ll read next?

So, let’s get to it!

Goodreads Monday: August 15, 2022

Goodreads Monday is a weekly meme hosted by by @Budget Tales Book Blog. To participate, choose a random book from your TBR and show it off.

Book reviews: A Lady’s Guide to Fortune-Hunting by Sophie Irwin

Published July 12th 2022 by Pamela Dorman Books

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A whip-smart debut that follows the adventures of an entirely unconventional heroine who throws herself into the London Season to find a wealthy husband. But the last thing she expects is to find love…

Kitty Talbot needs a fortune. Or rather, she needs a husband who has a fortune. Left with her father’s massive debts, she has only twelve weeks to save her family from ruin.

Kitty has never been one to back down from a challenge, so she leaves home and heads toward the most dangerous battleground in all of England: the London season.

Kitty may be neither accomplished nor especially genteel—but she is utterly single-minded; imbued with cunning and ingenuity, she knows that risk is just part of the game.

The only thing she doesn’t anticipate is Lord Radcliffe. The worldly Radcliffe sees Kitty for the mercenary fortune-hunter that she really is and is determined to scotch her plans at all costs, until their parrying takes a completely different turn…

This is a frothy pleasure, full of brilliant repartee and enticing wit—one that readers will find an irresistible delight.

Six for Sunday, August 7th, 2022: Yellow Covers

Hey there! Six for Sunday is a meme hosted by Steph at A Little But a Lot. This month, the theme is Summer holiday fun! And this week’s topic is Yellow Covers.

Let’s Talk Bookish August 5th, 2022: All About Ebooks

Let’s Talk Bookish is a weekly bookish meme created by Rukky @ Eternity Books and has been hosted by Aria from @booknookbits since April of this year! Each Friday, there is a discussion topic for bloggers to write about. This week’s topic is all about ebooks (Fives @ Down the Rabbit Hole))!

Prompts: Are ebooks the future of books? What are the advantages and disadvantages of ebooks? Are ebooks strictly better than physical books? Do all avid readers prefer real, paper books? Do you use an e-reader, or read on a phone/tablet? Do you ever find yourself missing one or the other?

Let’s start!

Book review Her Dark Wings by Melinda Salisbury

Published July 7th 2022 by David Fickling Books

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The great love of Corey’s life has always been her best friend, Bree: closer than sisters, their bond is unbreakable.

Or so Corey believes, until Bree betrays her, and Corey’s world is shattered.

Corey finds herself heartbroken, furious and alone…

Only to discover that the Underworld – and Hades, Lord of the Dead – is closer than she thinks…

Book Review: Violet Made of Thorns by Gina Chen

Published July 26th 2022 by Delacorte Press

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A darkly enchanting fantasy debut about a morally gray witch, a cursed prince, and a prophecy that ignites their fate-twisted destinies—perfect for fans of The Cruel Prince and Serpent & Dove.

Violet is a prophet and a liar, influencing the royal court with her cleverly phrased—and not always true—divinations. Honesty is for suckers, like the oh-so-not charming Prince Cyrus, who plans to strip Violet of her official role once he’s crowned at the end of the summer—unless Violet does something about it.

But when the king asks her to falsely prophesy Cyrus’s love story for an upcoming ball, Violet awakens a dreaded curse, one that will end in either damnation or salvation for the kingdom—all depending on the prince’s choice of future bride. Violet faces her own choice: Seize an opportunity to gain control of her own destiny, no matter the cost, or give in to the ill-fated attraction that’s growing between her and Cyrus.

Violet’s wits may protect her in the cutthroat court, but they can’t change her fate. And as the boundary between hatred and love grows ever thinner with the prince, Violet must untangle a wicked web of deceit in order to save herself and the kingdom—or doom them all.