illstoptheworldandreadwithyou's reviews
736 reviews

Are you looking for a book that is pure escapism? Check this one out.

A 20-year-old witch discovers there’s a fine line between love and hate in Laura Thalassa’s Bewitched. 

Pick up this new adult paranormal fantasy romance for its mysteries, flashes of forbidden magic, main character’s unconventional familiar, palpable tension and—pauses to fan self—chemistry.

There’s a young witch who loses her memories each and every time she performs magic. 

There’s a protective panther familiar.

And there’s a growly, ancient—but shockingly well-preserved hero/anti-hero. If you like love interests who can switch from protective and soothing to vengeful and full of wrath at the flip of a switch, this man’s for you.

(This is the first book in a series.)

I received copies of the book from Bloom Books. All review opinions are my own.

Two twenty-somethings fall in love during the 2024 Olympic Games in Athens, Greece, in Rufaro Faith Mazarura’s Let the Games Begin. He’s a famous track-and-field athlete on the British Olympic team. She’s an intern with a carefully plotted plan outlining the steps she needs to take to achieve her dream career. 

 

At a glance: 

- Meet-disaster 

- Summer Olympics backdrop 

- Athlete + non-athlete 

- Both are driven by the expectations and goals of immigrant parents 

- Both with parents who immigrated to Great Britain from Zimbabwe 

- Dating a professional athlete / celebrity 

- Depictions of anxiety and grief 

- How one dictates their own behavior in relation to others’ preconceptions based on gender, race, and social class 

- Depictions of nepotism 

- Learning how to pivot when plans change 

- Figuring out what one’s willing to do to get ahead 

- Trying to strike a balance between working towards goals and having a life outside of them 

- Closed door 

- Queer rep (secondary characters) 

 

Highlights for me: 

- The friendships / found family aspects 

- The atmosphere and connections in the Olympic Village 

- Olivia’s and Zeke’s families 

- The flirtatious banter 

 

What didn’t work as well for me: 

- It’s an enjoyable story, but the love story was missing that intangible spark and sparkle for me. 

- I wanted to get even more swept up in the phenomenon of the Olympic Games. There are moments when the author describes people watching all over the world that gave me a glimpse of that magic, but I would have loved to feel that tug to become engrossed in the events and the athletes’ stories even more. 

 

I listened to an advance copy of the audiobook, and Shaniqua Okwok’s narration kept me going. I was especially impressed with the number of accents she tackles in the audiobook. Since the story is set at the Olympics, there is quite an array of international characters, and she uses an appropriate accent for each and every one. 

 

I received an advance copy of the audiobook from Macmillan Audio. All review opinions are my own. 

I love Alexis Hall’s writing. His writing style and sense of humor immediately pull me into the story each and every time I pick up one of his works. 

 

If you’re familiar with the other Spires stories already, you know that the content tends to be heavier and the physical intimacy displayed on page is much greater than some of Hall’s other contemporary works, like the Winner Takes All and London Calling series. 

 

For Real, in particular, takes that door—which sometimes gets closed during romance—and blows it off its hinges. It depicts a MM dom-sub relationship with an age gap. 

 

Laurie is a trauma doctor with an established career and established proclivities. He knows what he likes and he’s open to physical intimacy but is closed off to anything else. Compared to Laurie, it feels like Toby is barely out of high school. He may not have as much experience in the Scene, but he knows what he wants. With Laurie, things just click. 

 

I’ll admit that, given the ages of these characters, I had my initial misgivings about this relationship, but as the book went on, I learned that, although Toby is young age-wise, in many ways he’s been the adult in his household for years. I ended up rooting for the couple. 

 

Since this relationship is initially driven by physical intimacy, much of the book is spent depicting physical acts, but, as Hall is apt to do, that honesty and vulnerability portrayed physically turns into emotional vulnerability as well. 

 

This one may not be a hit for all Alexis Hall fans, but it will definitely pull on the heartstrings of those willing to leap into the Scene. 

 

This rereleased version from Sourcebooks Casablanca includes annotations from the author as well as Toby’s lemon meringue pie recipe. 

 

I received an advance copy of the book from Sourcebooks Casablanca. All review opinions are my own. 

A twenty-seven-year-old woman finally starts living in Kirsty Greenwood’s The Love of My Afterlife.

It’s just too bad that she had to die first.

“Here lies Delphie Denise Bookham.
 She died just as she lived: alone, perplexed, wearing something a bit sh*t.”

You would think that’s the end of the story, right?

It’s a good thing that Delphie’s Afterlife Specialist just so happens to be an avid romance reader, who loves a good, ole HEA. 

When Delphie has a meet-cute with a handsome stranger in that launderette-themed waiting room for her afterlife, and it turns out that stranger was sent there by mistake, her Afterlife Specialist gives Delphie the chance to return to the land of the living to find him.

There’s a catch, of course: she has to find him AND he has to kiss her within the next ten days. 

(Alexa, play “Kiss the Girl”.) 

If Delphie succeeds, she gets to stay on Earth. If she doesn’t? Well, she’s back to being dead.

As the story progresses and she begins interacting more with the people around her, Delphie learns that maybe she’s not the only person that needs to (at least metaphorically) start living again.

This book delivers that perfect balance of humor and emotion. I laughed out loud. I was in my feels. I swooned. I got that wrapped-in-a-warm-hug feeling.

I just adored it.

I received an advance copy of the book from Berkley and NetGalley. All review opinions are my own.

A Novel Love Story has that magical realism charm of Ashley Poston’s other adult novels with the added bonus of a Stars Hollow-esque setting, and I simply adored it.

When romance-loving, literature professor Elsy finds herself stranded in small-town New York, she quickly realizes that the town and its people seem eerily familiar. It’s as if she turned off the main road and drove through the covered bridge straight into her favorite book series.

Well, everyone is familiar, that is, except the “blond-haired Darcy” bookstore owner, Anders. She doesn’t remember him from her books.

A Novel Love Story explores what happens to the characters when a series is left unfinished, to whom stories truly belong, and what happens when people become unstuck in their lives and start living again.

The town is frozen in time; Elsy and Anders are a bit frozen themselves. Coming together may be exactly what they all need to begin moving forward again.

A few of my favorite things:
- How very bookish this book is (a town from a book + a bookstore owner + a literature professor whose mother was a librarian + a love of romance novels + an online book club that gets together once a year)
- The idea of daydreaming being seen as a talent
- The quirks of the small town and how quickly gossip travels 💙
- The banter between Elsy and Anders

I received an advance copy from Berkley and NetGalley. All review opinions are my own.

 

“‘I believe if something makes you happy, it’s not a waste of time.’” 

 

When young workaholic, Kelsey, and female business icon, Georgina, end up sharing a hospital room, what could be a transitory acquaintance turns into much more. Reevaluating her perspective after being in an accident, Kelsey starts considering how she has been limiting her own life and begins wondering what kind of regrets Georgina may have as well. 

 

And so the Summer of Yes is born. Kelsey convinces Georgina to take a break from her normal day-to-day and to start saying, “Yes,” to experiencing life. 

 

This is an uplifting summer read that emphasizes the importance of human connection, seeking out wonder, and appreciating the small moments as well as the big ones. It’s full of friendship, family, simple pleasures, taking chances, and a bit of romance. 

 

I read an advance copy of the book as part of a traveling ARC group. All review opinions are my own. 

 

4.5⭐️ 

An interstellar heist, a race across space, collapsing travel nodes, and extremely high stakes pull readers into this latest novel from Yume Kitasei. There’s a lot of world-building involved in this one, so I tried to approach it like I was watching a sci-fi movie or show. Once Maya left New Jersey, things began to get more interesting for me. 

 

I appreciated the migraine rep, enjoyed watching the dynamics between the different characters aboard Auncle’s ship, and found the differing motivations and moral codes of the various alien species to be fascinating. 

 

I listened to this one on audio, and Katharine Chin’s narration kept me immersed in the story. I could easily keep track of who was speaking and was especially impressed with how the narrator handled a character who mimicked voices in one of the final chapters. This is a pretty complex tale, though, so I recommend listening when you are able to focus on the story. Due to the intricacies of the world-building and vast cast of characters, this isn’t the easiest audiobook to listen to while multitasking. 

 

I received a copy of the audiobook from Macmillan Audio. All review opinions are my own. 

Sometimes you need a push to help you change your perspective. 

 

Poised to start a new position as a mathematics professor, tightly-wound Catherine Lipton’s plans are turned upside down when her government records disappear. Her Social Security number, driver’s license, and birth certificate are deemed fake. As far as the government is concerned, Catherine Lipton doesn’t exist, and without proper documentation, the university can’t file the paperwork for her job. 

 

Tattooed, charming doorman Luca Morelli and his many, many connections come to Catherine’s aid. He seems like her opposite, but maybe the two can strike the right balance together and point Catherine’s life in the right direction again. 

 

Read for the found family, the sense of community, Luca’s huge heart, a touch of magical realism, and the hug of an ending. 

 

Full disclosure: Catherine has a very driven, Type A personality, and her perspective on success is highly achievement-based. By the end, she has learned to broaden how she defines success and living, but throughout the story, she does judge both herself and those around her using her original definition. 

 

I received an advance copy of the book from Forever and NetGalley and had access to a traveling ARC copy as well. All review opinions are my own. 

 

3.75⭐️  rounded up to 4⭐️ 

 

An annotated book left in a community library—like a Little Free Library—leads two people stuck in limbo to connect through the pages. The margin notes become questions, and soon the two are having full conversations nestled among the passages of literary classics. 

 

When their identities are revealed and they discover their shared past, will they be able to reconnect or will their blossoming relationship be confined to the notes in the novels they’ve already traded? 

 

In turns heartwarming and heartbreaking, The Book Swap put me in my feels and put the characters through the emotional wringer along the way. Thankfully, this one has a happy ending for the couple that made me feel cozy and like I was wrapped in a warm hug. 

 

I received an advance copy from Harlequin Trade Publishing and NetGalley. All review opinions are my own. 

 

TW: grief, death of a friend by cancer, manic depressive swings (secondary character), bullying, abusive language, cheating (secondary characters), divorce (parents) 

A famous screenwriter and an aspiring one team up to write a romantic comedy in Katherine Center’s newest book. 

It’s a romantic comedy about writing a romantic comedy, y’all.

There are some heavy moments and emotions in the book, too, but there is so much joy.

It made me grin; it made me giggle; it pulled at my heartstrings.

Every time I pick up a Katherine Center book, I’m reminded to seek out the joy in life. Her books make me want to be a better person.

I received an advance copy of the book from St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley. All review opinions are my own.