Everyone has been talking about this book for ages, so I finally thought I'd give it a try. I'm a little torn on my review, as parts I loved, and others felt detached.
Iris is spunky and determined, a heroine that I think many can relate to. She has tragedy thrown at her repeatedly, and while wounded, doesn't let it break her. I feel the situation around her mother could have been brought out more to deepen the impacts on her life and choices, however.
Roman is the quintessential handsome rival, hoity and stiff. But through the letters, you see the other side of him, the soft side with his own tragedies that bind the two together. Again, I think more on page of his family might have built his character a bit more, especially his relationship with his father and certain fall outs.
The war setting was beautifully written, and you felt like you were on those streets, the cities safe far from the front, the small towns torn but determined. It was the whole inclusion of the Gods that felt unnecessary, however. A normal human war would have resulted in the exact same outcomes. The inclusion of Gods felt completely detached from the overall story and provided no actual purpose. 
Overall, it was a beautiful, unique love story. The connection of the typewriters, the rivals to lovers, the setting atmospheric and prose beautiful. 

There's just something about a truly immersive fantasy that soothes my soul. I read Throne of Glass maybe ten years ago, but never the rest. In fact, I didn't read another SJM book until last year when I discovered ACOTAR. Since then, I've been devouring everything she writes, and not regretting it one bit.
Unlike Heir of Fire, which I felt was a little slow and kind of boring until the last quarter, this one kept my attention from start to finish. Heists, revenge, love, loss and triumph all woven together. You fall in love with new characters and say goodbye to others (good riddance to some) and love every minute of it.
Aelin is losing the hesitance of her youth and coming in to her fate as a queen. Chaol, thankfully, makes right his wrongs (or at least tries to), and while I feel like he was turned into such a pain in the butt for most of the book to bring Rowan to the forefront (a la Rhys in ACOTAR) I was thankful for his arc overall. I wasn't a big fan of Manon to start, but she's growing on me. I like strong willed female leads, but they still need to have a heart and depth, which she is finally starting to develop. 
As always, the world building, fight scenes and character development are lovely, and I can't wait to read the next one.

I've read several of this authors books, all twisty mystery's and always am glad I did. This one is no exception!
I'm a sucker for New York elite, high society settings, and this book is atmospheric, chalked full of the lives of the 1% we all love to hate. The kids who want for nothing, the parents who flaunt their money and status like a physical being, only to learn it's all a scam and their world comes crumbling down. 
You spend most of the book wondering where Bernie's mom is, and then it is revealed, it's admittedly a bit of a let down. She's selfish, putting her own needs and status above even her daughter, twisting the lives of those around her like headphones shoved into a pocket that come out all snarled together. In my opinion Esther is the real villain in all this, but I digress. Sure, Skylar is a jerk, doing everything you'd expect from someone like him, but Esther still seems worse. Bernie says she has a plan, but you never really figure out what it is, Tori is the unwitting outsider just dragged along, and Isobel is nothing short of a mess and seemingly only their to put in a 'bad girl' character. The entire book has you guessing who dies, how and why, but the actual ending is a let down. 
​Overall, it was a good read. I just wish the ending had been better.

Tell me you're a man who doesn't know how to write women, without telling me you're a man who doesn't know how to write women. All you'd have to do is write this book, and we'd know.
I don't even know where to begin with this one. I hate DNFing a book, but with this one, I just couldn't keep going. I don't know what was worse -- the HORRIBLE main character, or the endless inner monologues that had me groaning out loud begging for them to JUST STOP.
The concept had SO much potential. Murder, mystery, thrills. I read the blurb and couldn't wait to read it. But the main character was literally the stupidest woman in the world...hence the 'tell me you don't know women' remark. Because only a man would write a female character who does this many things wrong, ignorant to the reality of women and our innate self preservation that is part of our very being. Because this character did everything wrong...so many chances to escape, and never did because of the 'movies in her mind'. Another groan worthy inclusion, basically dramatizing the fact this character is either psychotic or schizophrenic and chalks it all up to her 'love of movies' to escape reality. Honey, no. 
Then there was the writing...parts were good, with some great analogies, but the endless, constant and repetitive inner monologues that took up 80% of the book pulling you out of the action and making you just want it all to end ruined any chance the book had at salvation. 
I quit about 60% of the way in, but did Google the ending out of pure curiosity, and it only solidified my decision to quit early because the ending...absolutely not. 
Don't bother with this one. It misses the mark in every possible way.

I love a good mystery. Trying to figure out who the killer is, all the possibilities mixed in with the protagonists motives and challenges. It's like I'm Jessica Fletcher in Murder She Wrote, and it's fun. 
This book popped up on a recommendation list, and after reading the blurb I figured I'd give it a try. I've been reading so much romance and romantasy for so long I needed a change.
With two MC's with drastically different personalities, it gave the opportunity to lead you in a million different directions. The small town setting, where everyone was a suspect and no one had motive. Cam, while brazen and strong willed, was a little too pushy and seemed completely ignorant of her friend's feelings. If she wanted to do something, she did it, damn the consequences. Which blew up in her face in the end, but it was off putting. Blair, while relatable in a lot of ways, was flat with no personality or motivations beyond keeping her boyfriend happy. I think their lack of personal motivation and true depth made it difficult to really delve deep into this one. Jones did a great job in making you consider every single person in Clarissa's life as a suspect, even if the true killer was kind of a cliche. At times it felt like they were running blind, charging head first without a plan, which I suppose is possible with young MC's but at the same time, would you really start investigating a murder without ANY plan? I don't know...
Overall, it was a good read in line with A Good Girls Guide to Murder.

I love a good rom-com. Whether it's the grumpy sunshine, the rivals to lovers, whatever it is, if its a rom-com I'm all in. My queen of rom-com has been Abby Jiminez for quite a while, and then after a conference in 2023 I discovered Ali Hazelwood and fell in love. So when I heard everyone talking about Emily Henry books and that they were alone the same lines as my two queens of the rom-com, I decided to give it a try with a book that seemed exactly my type.
Overall, though, it was just ok. I enjoyed it, don't get me wrong, but I wasn't 'all in' like I tend to be with AJ or AH. Nora was the hard assed city girl who getter, with the perfect rival in Charlie, except you didn't get the true rival vibe, so he was just kind of...the guy who was available. He was clear he was smitten early, but the why was never really worked out. 
It was like a Hallmark movie with the small town setting, big city girl, finding herself with her little sister in tow. They played up 'the list', which could have done A LOT more for this book if it had been utilized a bit better. Like, show them going through each item, the folly and the fun, Charlie appearing either opportunely or not so opportunely. But they only focused on 2 items-date a townie, and save a business. Both quality list items, but there was so much untapped potential there that probably could have made this book a bit more exciting of a read.
For me, if I don't ache to come back to the world of the book and keep going, it's just an 'ok' for me. And this was one of those times. Good writing, solid tropes and some cute moments, but a bit too much missed opportunity for it to be...more.

I love when books are stuffed full of tropes. This one definitely was. Enemies to lovers, forced proximity, first love, etc, etc. The stakes were great...what's better than saving your family, or those you love? 
And yet, I just couldn't fall in love with this one.
I can see that Roth was trying to make Cyra the strong female lead, with her martyr nature and torturous fate. But to me, she felt flat, almost whiny. There was much to admire, but I just couldn't get past the obvious opportunities she squandered.
Akos was similar, but not quite as bad. He wanted to help his brother, and would do anything to make that happen. He fought for himself and for those he loved, while still keeping a piece of himself intact. While he was the love interest, again, I just couldn't get in to their connection.
It gave kind of Shatter Me meets Hunger Games kind of vibes, which was why I was excited to read it. And I've loved Roth's previous books, so figured this was a sure thing. I liked the setting, the originality and the immersive world building, but at times it felt repetitive and a little anti-climatic. I mean, the Shotet want to rule, and yet they scavenge from other planets? It just felt a little unlikely, in terms of political dynamics.
Overall, it was okay. Not sure if I'll read the second one or not...