hookedbythatbook's reviews
3131 reviews

Every new book in this series brings more information about Rockton, its founders, the settlements, the hostiles, and the environment. And every new detail reveals horror and disbelief, and understanding and acceptance in equal measure. As usual, nothing is as it seems, and Casey and Eric, with their close allies in Rockton, are put through the wringer to untangle it all. I've come to rely on Casey and Eric and their close bond, and they do not disappoint. 

At first glance, this sounds like a light summer read, but it's so much more. Emma and Justin each were confronted with extremely challenging situations and some very difficult personal choices. Every time the author mentioned that Emma gets small, I felt that with all my soul. Maddy was an angel and Emma would've been a very different person if it wasn't for her support and understanding. Justin threw himself wholeheartedly into this relationship with Emma and I loved the way he paid attention to what Maddy was saying and to what Emma wasn't saying. This book was so emotional and left me wrung out, but also happy for Emma and Justin. 

Another Davies and Montgomery finally go after what they want in this delightfully fun romance. 

A Scandal in July is the seventh book in The Rake Review series, one book for each month of the year written by different authors. And reminiscent of Bridgerton, it comes complete with its own scandal sheet, The Rake Review, penned by the Brazen Belle. Mr. July in our calendar of rakes is Mr. Rhys Davies. 

This novella also continues the Ruthless Rivals series by Kate Bateman, showcasing the ongoing feud between the Davies and Montgomery families. It is a charming, playful series that sees various members of the two warring families spectacularly fall in love. 

Lenore was a remarkable and resourceful woman who lived a very interesting life. For all that she had set her sights on Rhys from the moment they met, she didn’t pursue him in an overly aggressive way. In fact, he had no idea how she felt about him. Granted, he did his best to stay out of her way, so that explained how he missed the signals. I thoroughly enjoyed their antics on the treasure hunt and how their families colluded to throw them together. Rhys and Lenore made falling in love seem effortless and exciting. 

There were editing issues with the wrong characters’ names being used, which had me going back a few times to try to sort through it, but that didn’t take away too much from appreciating the story. 

The Rake Review is a diverse and interesting series and I can recommend it if you like steamy historical romance. 

 

Tangled is my favourite Disney princess movie and Christina Lauren captured those charming and endearing qualities perfectly in Ren and Fitz. 

This entire book was such a delight. I couldn’t help but be swept away by Fitz and Ren and her wide-eyed innocence. Just like the movie, there was Fitz and then he was just Edward. Ren stripped away all his pretend layers until he was completely bared to her. 

Some of their travels were maybe a bit slow, but I enjoyed their interactions and their growing friendship. Every step they took served to bring them closer together. The actions and ramping anxiety leading to the culmination of finding Ren and her parents had me at the edge of my seat and my eyes flying across the pages. 

There are many parallels between Tangled Up In You and the movie, but enough differences to give this story a unique feel. I enjoyed this excellent Tangled retelling filled with heart, hope, and courage. 

Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with a copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own. 

This is the beginning of a new series built around an innovative fantasy world idea, and dark romance readers will find plenty to love. 

I’m more on the fringe when it comes to dark romance, but I’m a huge Rebecca Zanetti fan, so there’s no way I was missing out on this book. 

The meld of magic and technology that this world is based on was brand new to me. I found the idea of social media interaction fuelling the power and influence of the four founding families very intriguing. The world building was thorough and consistent, although it took a while to make sense of how it all worked, and it was difficult at times to imagine it visually. 

Thorn was menacing, paranoid, obsessed, and delightfully predictable in his actions towards Alana. I think I would’ve liked it better if Alana had embraced her own dark attraction to Thorn right from the start and used it, instead of posing some token resistance on multiple occasions and then inevitably giving in to her feelings. 

I was riveted by the concept of this world, the intense feelings, and the nail-biting action. If you like your heroes possessive and brooding, then this super hot dark romance is just the thing. 

Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with a copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own. 

A chance meeting at a bar, followed by an unforgettable evening and some amusing antics at a reality dating show, leads to a playful, heart-warming romance. 

Anika was passionate about her job and she embraced her newest assignment with gusto, albeit somewhat reluctantly. She took all the unexpected changes in stride with grace and a quiet strength. Her friends and her mom went above and beyond to make sure that Anika is safe. All these phenomenal women added so much heart and dimension to the story. 

Luca was an absolute sweetheart and it was clear that he wasn’t going to choose anyone other than Anika. His reasons for participating in the reality show were well-defined and made sense. Their flirty interactions had me smiling all the way through. 

I didn’t like the way Anika’s boss treated her, even though Anika had nothing but praise for her mentor. The “reality” of reality tv was excellently done and I liked the variety that the other contestants provided. Their little on-air confessionals were hilarious. 

Overall, this was a fun, charming story that also competently dealt with harassment in the workplace. I can’t wait to read Harper’s story. 

Thank you to the publisher for providing me with a copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own. 

Cameron and June’s journey back to each other was fraught with feelings of betrayal and it definitely wasn’t easy or comfortable. 

I was wondering how the author was going to get June out of her loveless marriage, and that outcome was quite a doozy. June and Cameron had suffered ever since they were cruelly and deliberately kept apart when they were young and very much in love. Cameron was quite mean to June initially and I felt really sorry for her. She was just trying to survive. 

There were a lot of plot lines to keep track of, between June and Cameron’s past, June’s present struggles, and her husband’s nefarious dealings. The story was maybe slightly too short to explore all of these with enough detail, so it felt a bit jumbled together at times and not that easy to untangle. And while I commiserated with June and Cameron, I wasn’t all that invested in their relationship. They did have some emotionally charged moments together, which I enjoyed. 

This is shaping up to be a very entertaining series and I can highly recommend it if you like steamy historical romance. 

Thank you to the author for providing me with a copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own. 

I fell in love with Scotland and Addie and Logan as a couple, as Logan tried to show Addie the magic in the country. I loved the detailed descriptions of the people and the landscape and the way it opened Addie's heart to love again. Addie's continuing grief after her mother's death was so palpable and it painted all the experiences in a bittersweet light. This was a beautiful, sweet romance, but also a kind of poignant love story between Addie, her memories of her mother, and Scotland. 

A feel-good story about finding family in unexpected places and appreciating the one you already have. 

Erica and Allison were both dropped into an impossible situation not of their own making. The only thing binding them in any way was Summer, Erica’s daughter and Allison’s stepdaughter. Summer turned out to be quite the tenacious bit of glue. I had mixed feelings about her. She was only 16 with a whole lot of good intentions, but she did manipulate her mother quite a bit without taking her feelings into consideration. 

I really liked Erica and Allison. They were very different people. Erica’s steely core was the backbone that kept this whole menagerie of a family together. Allison was forced to develop her own inner strength, it was sink or swim for her. Luckily, she didn’t have to do it on her own. It was very heartwarming to see these two women grow closer and form a stronger new-found family. 

The romance between Erica and Killion was like a gentle, meandering river that cut through everything and brought Erica a much-needed safe space. It also wore her defenses down gradually, so that she could see the potential future available to her.  

The story started out a bit slow, but it was engaging and I was heavily invested in the outcome for all of these characters. I can recommend this if you like an emotional family drama with strong female characters front and center. 

Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with a copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.