midnightrose_reads's reviews
315 reviews

Off the Deep End by Lucinda Berry

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dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Off the Deep End is a fast paced mystery-thriller by Lucinda Berry. The audiobook was narrated by Amy Landon & Andi Arndt. This was a super twisty listen and Lucinda is always good for a compelling short read!
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City of Mirth and Malice by Alexis L. Menard

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

City of Mirth and Malice is the second and final book in the Vows of Vengeance duology. This book was more romantic fantasy leaning than fantasy romance.  The first book had great pacing, and kept my interest the whole time, whereas this one felt like a bit of a slog to get through. It also didn’t help that Nico and Milla are separated for a good portion of the beginning of this story. I like both the sub genres of fantasy romance and romantic fantasy so it’s disappointing that I didn’t connect as much with this second installment.
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House of Bane and Blood by Alexis L. Menard

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adventurous dark emotional funny mysterious sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

House of Bane and Blood is the first book in the Vows of Vengeance duology by Alexis L. Menard. I really enjoyed this romantic fantasy marriage of convience, rivals to lovers story. The banter between the two leads is fantastic. Nico and Camilla are characters that you really root for, and the found family aspect was excellent! Can’t wait to read the next book in this duology.
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The Good Samaritan by John Marrs

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dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

The Good Samaritan is a fast paced thriller novel by John Marrs. The audiobook was narrated by Elizabeth Knowelden, Charlotte Cole, Matthew Lloyd Davies, and Tim Campbell. They were all excellent. This is my first time reading a John Marrs novel but it won’t be the last!
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Not in Love by Ali Hazelwood

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dark emotional funny hopeful sad tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

Not In Love is the newest contemporary romance from Ali Hazelwood. It’s a fast paced, sexy and emotionally raw story about two people who are each dealing with major baggage from their pasts. 

Rue and Eli had me glued to the book and didn’t let go until the last page.
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The Guests by Margot Hunt

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dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This was a fun fast paced thriller by Margot Hunt that is a new to me author. There were a few twists I didn’t see coming. Audio book narrated by Amy McFadden, Sarah Naughton, Michael Crouch, Soneela,  and A.J. Beckles. 
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The Wren in the Holly Library by K.A. Linde

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

The Wren In The Holly Library is an urban fantasy set in an alternate New York City. It’s filled with vampires, witches, werewolves, mer-folk, and other fairytale creatures. This was a perfectly average read. I thought the beginning of the book was very strong and thought it was going to end up being a solid 4 star read. That ended up not being the case. The middle of the book sort of lagged, and we get introduced to a lot of characters in a short amount of time. There are certainly aspects that I really liked such as the library and the found family trope. But they came together in a pretty average way. The urban fantasy angle to the story reminded me of the Shadowhunter Chronicles series, or An Unkindness of Magicians, both of which are favorites of mine: but this book is not nearly as strong as those books. Also the folklore angle of the fae reminded me of Holly Black’s style of fae, although again, not nearly as good as that author’s works.

The romance is not very strong here either between Kierse and Graves, instead being mainly physical with moments scattered here and there of emotional vulnerability. I think the problem is that they don’t spend enough time together so the declaration of affection towards the end of the book feels unearned.

So in the end, unfortunately, I have to give this book a 3 star rating.  I won’t be continuing the Oak & Holly Cycle series.
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Heavenbreaker by Sara Wolf

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Did not finish book. Stopped at 48%.
This was one of my most anticipated books of the year, but was disappointing ultimately. There were definitely beautiful moments but I found myself overall bored. I found myself not engaged in the action like I normally would be in a high octane book like this. Even the love interest for Synali that we meet early on is a bit blah. Even though the chapters are short it reads super slow. There’s something about this book that’s not clicking for me sadly, which made me come to the conclusion that this book is not for me. Also this is much more a sci-fi leaning book than a sci-fi romantasy. 


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Dragonfruit by Makiia Lucier

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adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring mysterious sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.25

Dragonfruit is a Pacific Islander YA fantasy adventure that is positively magical! Definitely reminds me of the adventure stories I read as a teen. 
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Five Broken Blades by Mai Corland

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adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful lighthearted mysterious sad tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

Five Broken Blades is the first book in the Broken Blades trilogy by Mai Corland. This book was so much fun and quite an intense read (check trigger warnings). It’s a fast paced book full of morally grey deadly liars, hilarious banter, action, and plenty of plot twists. I truly came to care about each of the POV’s in this book and can’t wait for the sequel called Four Ruined Realms! 
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