A Single Glance (Irresistible Attraction, #1) by Willow Winters Review

This review contains mild spoilers -- no major plot points are revealed in the review! A Single Glance is currently available for free on iBooks and Kindle.

After the death of her sister Jennifer, Bethany is determined to find out what really lead to her death, and lucky for her, Jase is the one to deal with her constant snooping. Bethany has zero self-preservation skills when it comes to finding out the truth, and while her common sense does seem to be in fact, she is pretty reckless to say the least. Jase, on the other hand, is calculated and does not make a move without being ten steps ahead and two back up plans in place.

In her efforts to seek the truth about what happened to her sister, Bethany finds herself entangled in an unconventional contract with Jase, who is quite literally counting down the minutes when they are together. But what Bethany does not know is what truly is in store for her when she agrees to the unknown with Jase, and the more time she spends with him, the less she may want it to end.

"It's only a pocket knife" GIRL be so serious I am begging you. Bethany literally does not care what happens to her, it is actually so hilarious to watch her get thrown into less than safe situations and her just roll with every punch. Getting kidnapped? No big deal to Bethany, it is just like playing hide and seek!

The smut scenes are actually really well done and not completely over the top that they make you think that they simply are not possible. I really enjoyed the progression of Bethany and Jase's relationship -- it was not insta-love and had its ups and downs, making it much more realistic compared to a lot of mafia or dark romance pairings. With this series having the male lead own a club, we are not super far removed from the mafia world, but I think it was a great choice having him involved in crime that way compared to being a mob boss.

Jase is over here lighting Bethany on fire (safely?) and I am twirling my hair, giggling thinking it is so romantic and swoon-worthy. Perhaps this is the reason why I took a month long break from mafia romance books, because boy oh boy I am back on that ride for the upcoming month. The author actually does a great job articulating both Jase and Bethany's thoughts and emotions through their dual POVs, and we really start to see how similar they are to one another.

The way that Bethany seems to think things through only to do something completely unhinged in order to get closer to finding out who killed her sister actually had me cackling at some points. She literally does not care what happens at all, as long as she is able to finally get answers about what exactly went down between Jenny and someone from The Red Room. As she finds out more information from Jase about her sister, we see her really start to go down this path of throwing logic out of the window in place of rational thinking.

"Why did I have to fall for a villain?" Bethany, sister, that is a question I ask myself with every single book that I read. Too relatable. She really started putting the pieces together right at the end of the book, and the author did a greta job of weaving in the chapters of the book left for Bethany and her actual perspective together in order to make readers uncover what she was at the same time. I wish we were able to see more of Jase's backstory, and I am sure there must be more to it in the next book, I just wish it was a touch longer in this first installment.

I would definitely recommend this book to fans of Debt Inheritance by Pepper Winters and When it Raynes by Montana Fyre. I had a lot of fun reading this book, and with it being such a quick read, it definitely paces well enough that it makes you want to dive right into the next book.

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Dear Evan Hansen by Val Emmich, Steven Levenson, Benj Pasek, and Justin Paul Review

This is a spoiler-free review! The version I am reading is an ARC -- any changes made for the final publication are not reflected in this review.

I had only heard a few songs from the Dear Evan Hansen Broadway musical, and was not entirely sure what the plot of the musical actually was before starting this book. I knew the basics: Evan Hansen has a broken arm, and he is writing fake emails between him and a student who passed away at his school. That's about it, and I was interested to see where the story went knowing so little going into the book.

Right in the beginning of the book, you feel bad for Evan -- he is a bit of a loner, seems to be under a lot of stress and dealing with a boatload of anxiety, and cannot catch a break. No one speaks to him in the halls unless they are making a snide remark, and as for the people who do talk to him, it certainly is not for his benefit. Jared, the son of one of Evan's mother's friends, basically uses Evan as a pawn to stay in the good graces of his parents. Other than Jared, there really is not anyone that Evan can turn to besides his mother or his psychologist.

This book reads fairly quickly, yet that does not take away from the fact that I was speeding through the story and still felt as though nothing was going on. Information is thrown out to the reader and we are left with bits and pieces of Evan trying to get himself out of a mess he did not mean to get himself into, while everyone else in the story is pushing a narrative onto him. Especially when it comes to Evan -- at least in the beginning -- trying to right the wrongs that have been committed, but he consistently backs out at the last minute and arguably makes everything so much worse than it was before he tried to fix anything.

Jared was pretty funny in the beginning of the book, but as the story went on, his presence became more of a black cloud hovering over Evan, since he was the only one who knew the truth from the very beginning. I found it interesting and pretty strange that Jared would continue to say that he and Evan were never friends despite their history, and yet he was very open to helping Evan build upon this growing lie for a mere twenty dollars and a passing comment to his mom so that his car insurance could be covered.

Alana had way to much pep in her step and a controlling nature that you could spot from a mile away and know that she was going to be a problem and blow things way out of proportion, and that is exactly what she did. I could not stand her any time she came on the page and the way that she treated Evan was so incredibly annoying -- as if he was just a step for her to become more popular at school and for people to know that she exists at all.

You feel so incredibly bad for Connor's family the entire book -- they are just being fed lie after lie as they try to come to terms with Connor's death, and you can tell that his parents, especially his mother, is clinging to this new version of Connor in order to understand what happened. Zoe, Connor's sister, and Evan's friendship to relationship was actually so hard to read because we know all of this information about Evan and what he has been keeping from Connor's family that it makes it seem absolutely unthinkable that he would attempt any form of romantic relationship with Zoe.

By the end of the book, the only character I liked was Zoe -- sure, she has her flaws, but she seemed to be the only one who actually grew as a character and was a genuine person. Even Connor's parents were unbearable at times, and do not even get me started on Jared. Evan grew into this person who seemed to recognize that what he was doing was wrong, but still fed into the attention that everyone gave him, while also struggling with the anxiety he had been battling. Everyone in the school seemed to use Connor's death as a personal gain instead of looking at it as a tragedy and try to grow and understand how to help others.

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Forlorn (Forlorn, #1) by Gina Detwiler Review

This is a spoiler-free review!

When I picked this book of my shelf, imagine my surprise to see that I had already started reading it, and had a book mark about one third of the way through. Just to jog my memory, I read the summary on the back of the book and realized that the title is a combination of Grace and Jared's last names. Which then of course becomes the name of their band and they explicitly state that it is a combination of their names... wow, very unpredictable.

The author gives us the story in three perspectives: Grace, Jared, and Angel -- Grace's guardian angel that has been assigned the name Ariel by Grace. Angel's perspective was my least favorite, and considering all three main characters were driving me crazy, that says a lot. It is also told through first person, yet once I finished the book I still felt absolutely no connection to any of the main characters or side characters. Not a single character had a personable trait and they all seemed very one-dimensional in the sense that their personalities were very surface level. I spent the entire book waiting for any of these characters to have some sort of character development, and was left with characters who were in exactly the same state as when they were first introduced.

Starting right off the bat, the story goes into detail of a school shooting and all these tragedies, and yet it was still hard to connect with the characters and their emotions as they dealt with a number of devastating life events. With the chapters being so short, we really would only get a glimpse of someone's thoughts before switching right over to a new perspective or completely different event with other characters. I would have much preferred that the book have more of a focus on the Dark ones or literally anything pertaining to fallen angels -- I felt as though they were used as a tagline to get people interested in the story, but then quickly abandoned to actually follow more of a religious story instead.

The romance felt forced and very one-sided for the majority of the book, and there was so much back and forth between Grace and Jared that I quickly became bored of their will-they-won't-they game that I was begging for the book to be over. There was absolutely no actual chemistry between the two of them, and I felt like the only reason they were being pushed together was because of circumstances beyond their control, rather than actual feelings for one another.

I did not expect this book to be so heavily influenced and incorporating Christian aspects -- maybe because I missed the little bible verse in the beginning of the book, but I had gone into the story thinking it had more of a focus on Nephilim and angels, rather than God. In fact, I entirely forgot that Jared was Nephilim because it was so rarely mentioned, despite the fact that the summary of the book seems to place emphasis on its importance to the plot. Additionally, for someone who was supposedly cursed by God, Jared sure does seem to spend a lot of time talking about how great he is and how everyone should be thanking him and praying. It definitely should have been much clearer from the summary that the themes of the book were more religion based than supernatural, because I honestly do not think I would have picked it up knowing its true theme.

Why is there so much singing??? I understand they created a band together, but my gosh they were singing nearly every other page and I thought my head was going to explode. Especially when the lyrics are written out like I'm not reading that, sorry! Every single time lyrics popped up on the page, they would last a page and half, taking up room where the author could have been developing the characters or moving the plot along. There was a ton of unnecessary music and song references as well, and I understand that they go to a school for musical talents, but it really felt like the number of references was pushing it.

The pacing was all over the place -- at some points I thought the plot was moving way too slow, and at other points I felt as though the author was introducing conflicts in one chapter and then abandoning them in the next one. Especially after finishing the book and understanding that the timeline takes places over the course of a year, everything felt way too rushed to be happening over such a long period of time. There were a few plot points that I was actually starting to get interested in, and then they would be resolved in the next ten pages or completely ignored for the rest of the book. I had absolutely no interest in any of these side characters, and their unnecessary presence during the majority of the book had me begging for it to be over.

Personally, this book was not for me and I will not be continuing on with the series. It was just all over the place regarding plot, main themes, and character development, and the summary definitely mislead me on what the story was going to entail. If you are looking for a fallen angel series, I would definitely recommend Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick instead.

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Lord of Shadows (The Dark Artifices, #2) by Cassandra Clare Review

This is a spoiler-free review! You can read my review of Lady Midnight, here.

I started reading this book in 2017 and got 62 pages in, and did not touch it again for six years... sorry! When I opened this book back up, I could tell you two details about what was happening in the story, and everything else seemed to be wiped from my brain until I started reading again and it all started coming back to me. Big shoutout to Cassandra Clare for name dropping nearly every single one of her characters so that my memory could be jogged.

Zara is hands down one of the most ANNOYING characters in one of Clare's books -- she is absolutely insufferable, not to mention a straight-up bigot. Every single time her name popped up on the page, my eyes rolled into the back of my head. I probably spent the entire book hoping she would magically disappear or just stay silent in any scene. It was very reassuring that the rest of the characters shared my despise of her as well -- she is certainly not subtle about how much of a supremacist that she is, and yet somehow she continues to think that her and her father are on the right side. Zara girl, please go away and never come back -- if I never have to read your name on a page again, it will be too soon.

"Will you be my jailer?" had me literally closing the book and take a lap around my room because I could not handle how much pain you could feel behind those words. The book was moving a little slow for me, and to have that scene be the turning point of the story actually made me excited and nervous for the rest of the book. Mark and Kieran have some of the most insane chemistry I have ever read, and yet they also have off the charts chemistry with Cristina -- I can literally feel their tension rising after every page and I am rooting for them so hard it hurts.

Now, I have to say that I was not over the moon, gushing over Emma and Julian during Lady Midnight, and even in the first half of Lord of Shadows I was weary of anything ever happening between them, However, boy oh boy was I wrong. They had me giggling and kicking my feet and I will admit that I have switched sides. Consider me Emma and Julian's personal support system because there is absolutely no way that I will stop cheering them on, even after Julian and Emma reveal some information that the Seelie Queen had about parabatai bonds. Julian definitely acquired the Blackthorn charm with the way he was talking to Emma by the end of the book, because let me say that if a guy ever said to me "Break my heart. Break it in pieces... I give you permission" I would be marrying him on the spot.

I cannot remember if Dru's age was mentioned in the first book or not, but her being only thirteen had me screaming -- I absolutely was under the impression that this girl was at least sixteen. And does anyone know Jaime's age?? Is he seventeen? Because that certainly is something I would like to know to give myself some piece of mind that he is not pursuing a minor and that he runs away and does not see her for years if anything ever happens between the two of them.

Any time that we had to switch over to the Kit, Livvy, and Ty storyline I nearly fell asleep -- I was just not interested at all in what they were running around doing, and the only relatively interesting thing about their little side quest was Magnus and Alex being there. Everything else felt like the same recycled scenarios that we have seen before in Clare's books before, and if she decided to explore more of Kit's inner thoughts and leave the kids behind, maybe I would have enjoyed it more than I did.

I would have loved if we spent more time in the Courts of Faerie -- from the synopsis, you would have expected the story to primarily take place there, but it felt as though we really only spent a handful of chapters following everyone around the faerie lands. And for a book called Lord of Shadows, we did not get to see the Unseelie King very often, and even when he did pop up from time to time, it felt very brief.

My god.. that ending??? The last twenty pages had me hollering every two seconds and crying in between gasps. I could sense certain things were going to happen, but I did not expect such insanity at this magnitude right at the very end of the book. The absolute heartbreak and shock the reader will feel for so many characters is something on an entirely different level when it comes to fantasy novels. It truly reminded me how much I had enjoyed reading The Mortal Instruments and The Infernal Devices all those years ago, and I absolutely will be continuing on with the series.

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Hunting Prince Dracula (Stalking Jack the Ripper, #2) by Kerri Maniscalco Review

This is a spoiler-free review! The version I am reading is an ARC -- any changes made for the final publication are not reflected in this review.

I am going to be completely honest and say that I did not immediately remember how Stalking Jack the Ripper actually ended -- I read the book about four years ago and from what I can remember, I had to power through. Hunting Prince Dracula basically picks up right where the first book left off and throws you right back into the thick of it with Audrey and Thomas, our little workplace romance lovers that cannot seem to do anything with each other besides send longing glances each other's way.

Maybe it is because I usually do not read historical fiction, but this book was dragging on like no tomorrow. Every fifty pages I was crossing my fingers hoping something exciting or unpredictable would happen, and every fifty pages I would be disappointed. It was either riddled with Audrey complaining about Thomas or having her sneak off into the night, only to find some horrific crime scene or potential clue to solving the murders, which always ended up with her being interrupted. It became very repetitive very quick into the book, and I had to push myself to finish this second installment -- the last fifty pages somewhat made up for it though.

I wish we were able to have chapters with a perspective from Thomas -- it would have balanced out the story much more effectively, and we would have been able to see his thought processes behind a lot of the things he did throughout the story. Instead, we were given just little bits of letters between him and Audrey, which basically told us the bare minimum of what we needed to know about his decisions. Additionally, Audrey's constant references to the Jack the Ripper case had me wanting to pull my hair out. I understand that the case left some uneasiness behind on her, but mentioning it every other page seemed a but much.

The side characters provided a bit of relief from the constant complaining that Audrey never seemed to cease -- especially Anastasia, who was an absolute riot. The other boys who came to the academy also added a little bit of fun, some much more than others. With murders occurring left and right, you would think the involvement of these characters would increase, but they remained on the sidelines for quite some time before any of them seemed to get a line or two of dialogue.

Maniscalco did a fantastic job on describing anywhere that Audrey and Thomas found themselves -- the scenery was heavily detailed and really felt like you were in Romania at Bran Castle. Readers will definitely be able to immerse themselves into the story and gain a real grasp on the environment, which is much different compared to the streets of London where Stalking Jack the Ripper took place. I am a sucker for all things gothic and vampiric, so I can say with much certainty that I liked this setting more than the setting in the first book.

There was something about this book that just was not clicking for me, which is a shame because the premise and scenery really sounded intriguing. Audrey and Thomas has me giggling one minute and then wanting to throw my book across the room the next. At first I was on the fence if I would be continuing on with the series, but now I feel like I will only move on to the next to see what happens with Audrey and Thomas, rather than for their next case.

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Ace of Shades (The Shadow Game, #1) by Amanda Foody Review

This is a spoiler-free review!

I finally picked up Ace of Shades and I am so glad that I did! With similar vibes to Caraval by Stephanie Garber and Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo, we enter a fantasy world of card games and trickery as Enne goes on a journey to the City of Sin to find her adoptive mother. Along the way, she meets Levi, a con man who is in severe debt, and sees an opportunity to pay off that debt with the help of Enne's payment to find her mother. In an unfamiliar city with all etiquette thrown out the window, Enne is lost and losing hope, but with Levi's help, she may be able to find her mother before it is too late.

I loved the entire environment that Foody takes the readers into -- casinos, cabarets, and city streets where people are up to no good. The reader is really able to immerse themselves into the story through the level of detailing when they are exposed to a new part of the city. You are immediately thrown into the plot as Enne arrives in the City of Sin, and from there the world-building feels never-ending as the author continues to expand on this new world. Both the readers and Enne are experiencing the city for the first time, so you are able to learn everything alongside our female lead.

You can feel the urgency in the city and how the people are cautious about anything and everything, especially when it comes to illegal activity and paying off debts. Levi knows the inner workings of this casino-lead world like the back of his hand, whereas Enne merely has an old guidebook filled with dos and don'ts to help her. These two character could not be more different -- Enne has completed finishing school and is the picture of perfection and elegance, while Levi is in a gang being roughed up and running from debt. As usual, opposite attract and we find ourselves with their dual perspective as they both work toward their end goals -- Enne finding her mother, and Levi gathering up the funds to pay off the ten thousand volts he owes.

The fantasy aspect of Ace of Shades is so intruguing -- characters have two talents, one blood talent and one split talent, with the blood talent being the dominant ability. These talents can vary from dancing, seeing auras, counting, controlling fire, and so much more. I found it so interesting that the talents were a combination of typical skills people could excel in and talents that possessed more magical components. The author did a very good job at not overwhelming the reader with complicated explanations for the talents, and worked them into each character's personality and appearance to the point where you could tell these skills were so incredibly natural to them.

I am always up for a romance subplot, and this book did not disappoint one bit. You can literally see the tension building off the page as the days go on as Enne and Levi work together to accomplish their goals. Especially with getting both of their perspectives, the readers are right inside their heads and are there from the very first thought they have about one another. This is a pretty intense slowburn, and when I say slowburn, I mean it. It had me giggling and kicking my feet until the very end, rooting for even a near touch to happen between Enne and Levi.

You can see Enne's confidence grow as the story goes on, which was so nice to see, especially because she was rather stoic at the beginning of the book. As she got more accustomed to the City of Sin, she begins to adopt more characteristics of her fellow Iron Lord friends she has made along the way. Even from the beginning, she was always assertive and knew what she wanted, and while just a tad annoying during some chapters and lacking a touch of common sense in others, she made a great lead to follow.

Levi is probably one of the most Kaz Brekker-coded characters I have ever come across, while also being quite the opposite of our favorite Crow Club leader. He has got trauma, plays card games, loves money, and has seemingly fallen for a girl who has a skill for acrobatics and dancing. While our dear Kaz does not mind getting some blood on his hands, Levi does not have a taste for that sort of thing. But lucky for him, Enne does not mind having to do what needs to be done in order for the both of them to get want they want.

One qualm I did have with this book is that the made up curse words were absolutely driving me up a wall. Understanding that this is a young adult, you do not need a curse word every other page, but given that we are literally in the City of Sin, it would have been fine to throw in some normal curse words instead of hearing "Muck!" every other page when something went wrong.

This was a great introduction to The Shadow Game trilogy, and readers looking for a romantasy will be pleasantly surprised at the world-building and pacing of this first installment. For fans of Leigh Bardugo and Stephanie Garber, this is for you!

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