Book Review

Review of To Carve a Fae Heart by Tessonja Odette

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Synopsis:
Every young woman dreams of marrying a king.
Everyone except for me.
Because the king I am to wed has razor sharp fangs and a thirst for blood.

All my life I knew I’d come of age during the Hundred Year Reaping. According to the ridiculous treaty, two human girls are sent to the faelands as brides for the fearsome fae king and his devilish younger brother.

Not me. I was supposed to be safe. Two girls were chosen from my village already. But when they are executed for offending the king, my sister and I are sent in their place.

What a mess. Then again, maybe it’s not so bad. The younger brother I’m paired with doesn’t seem as monstrous as I’d expected. He’s delightfully handsome too. But nothing compares to the chilling, dangerous beauty of the fae king. And when my sister flees the castle and her terrifying husband-to-be, I’m left to marry him instead.

If I go through with this, I might not survive my wedding night. If I don’t, no one is safe, neither human nor fae. An ancient war will return, bringing devastation we haven’t seen in a thousand years. Can I sacrifice myself for the good of my people? Or will a dangerous desire be the death of me first?

If I don’t lose my heart, the king will certainly lose his. I’ll carve it out with an iron blade if I have to.

To Carve a Fae Heart is an enemies-to-lovers fantasy, perfect for fans of The Cruel Prince, ACOTAR, and Kingdom of the Wicked. If you like snarky fae, brooding royals, sizzling romance, and fierce heroines, you’ll love this breathtaking fae fantasy.

*NOTE: This series is Upper YA/NA and contains sexual situations, moderate steam, and some violence.

To Carve a Fae Heart is the first book in The Fair Isle Trilogy, set in the same world as the Entangled with Fae series. To Carve a Fae Heart takes place twenty years before the Entangled with Fae books. Journey back to Faerwyvae or start your adventure for the first time with this epic fantasy tale!

Review:
This book had me from the very first line. I absolutely adore that Tessonja Odette’s heroines/protagonists have lives, aspirations, goals, and not everything in their heads disappears the instant there is a chance of romance. This book is a perfect mesh of faerie tales and the duality of what you see from the outside of someone versus what they may be harbouring within. I absolutely loved how Evelyn is always at war between her head and her heart, there were a few times that she seemed to do things that she absolutely should have known better than. While I believe the couples have great tension, I do wish a certain royal explained better why he felt as he did. Sure, I can deduce that much, but clearly Evelyn couldn’t, so it would have been nice to have it spelled out.

Quite enjoy her differences between Seelie and Unseelie courts, and the explanation of the different powers different creatures have. Evelyn seemed to take up the sayings of the fae quite quickly, whereas as someone raised human, you would think she would have kept those instead, but that could be because of how immersed she quickly had to become in the fae. Evelyn’s narration is quirky, amusing, and fun and this book was entirely impossible to set down. Highly recommend, and have already finished the second book before writing this review (oops!)

Star rating: ✯✯✯✯✯

Happy New Year! 2022 Book Recommendations…

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In 2022 I read/wrote book reviews for 73 books (that’s one down from last year)! Of course there are always a few stand out authors/series/books so of all the books I read my top recommendations would be:

Books

A Dreadful Splendour by B.R. Myers
A Victorian spiritualist who made her way by swindling people ends up in jail. Her salvation is a stranger who asks her to help a grieving widow move on, except Mr. Pemberton doesn’t seem like the heartbroken man she was supposed to manipulate. He believes his fiancée had been murdered, and he wants her to help use her trickery to convince the murderer to confess. When odd happenings begin around the manor, they realize there may be more to the Somerset ghost than originally thought.

The Forgotten Book by Mechthild Gläser 
A forgotten book can hold such power! Emma finds a book that whatever she writes in comes true, but there are consequences. Unfortunately someone else has realized the power of the book, and she has to rely on the new boy with a sour face and rude disposition, Darcy de Winter, to help. A mixture of fairy tales meets Jane Austen, this story will suck you in and enrapture you.

The Raven Spell by Luanne G. Smith
Ian Cameron finds himself bludgeoned and almost killed, demanding answers from two witches, Edwina and Mary Blackwood with odd abilities. As their secrets are slowly unveiled, Edwina attempts to help Ian figure out his lost time and the investigative case he was on. As they search through London for a missing person, and a series of gruesome murders, they find clues that threaten the unshakeable bond of being a twin.

A Sorcery of Thorns by Margaret Rogerson
Elisabeth, a librarian who had been orphaned and raised by the library staff, is implicated in the crime of releasing the most dangerous magical book. The only choice she has is to go to Nathanial Thorn, even though as a sorcerer he should be her mortal enemy. Once with Thorn and his demon servant, Silas, she finds herself caught up in a centuries-old conspiracy, racing to keep the great libraries, and the world, from going up in smoke.


Authors

Helen Harper
Amazon Page – Website
Originally recommended to me because of her Slouch Witch books, I found her writing style quite enjoyable, with mysteries that I often don’t quite figure out before the end. I quite enjoyed that series, so when I started reading The Firebrand series, I was surprised how much I absolutely adored her way of writing a quirky detective who doesn’t exactly listen to what she’s told, despite having been the best in class before being “demoted” to working with the supernatural squad. Very English, great descriptions of locations with The Firebrand taking place predominantly in London, England.

Tessonja Odette
Amazon Page – Website
Having just started another one of her books, I can say I was drawn in from the first sentence. The depth of her characters and politics within her novels is quite endearing. Her retellings of fairy tales I’d long known and loved were refreshing and while they did have a connection, the story doesn’t merely follow the same path we already know, and there are certainly times when it seems that there will not be a happy ending. I ended up reading all of the books in the Entangled in Fae series and found that none of the characters were as I expected them to be, and their depth and uniqueness made them all the more enthralling to read about.

LJ Andrews
Amazon Page – Website
Oh my goodness, she writes amazing fairy tale retellings mixed with Vikings. Once you start reading they are impossible to put down, and I binge read the entire series she’d done of The Broken Kingdoms (which starts with a Beauty and the Beast retelling) just to find the next one won’t be out until February 21st! Soon, I’ll get to continue! Her writing immediately draws you in and immerses you in the world, and her characters are both flawed but likeable. Her characters drastically change throughout the books and grow, making you feel as if you’re truly along for the experience.

K. M. Shea
Author Page – Website
She writes some amazing fantasy books. I first got hooked on The Fairy Tale Enchantress books, but there hasn’t been a book of hers I’ve read that I haven’t loved. Her writing is refreshing and her plotlines interesting and you’re never quite sure what you might be getting yourself into. Also absolutely loved her Court of Midnight and Deception book series, and of course Pack of Dawn and Destiny!

Review of Phantom by Greer Rivers

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Synopsis:
A dark, modern, romantic retelling of the musical classic, Phantom of the Opera.
But this time, the man behind the mask won’t stop until she is his.

She is my muse, and I am her demon of music.

A year ago, I witnessed sweet Scarlett Day’s dark side. She’s been my obsession ever since.

I was content with being her secret. Content with protecting her from afar… until an enemy from my past sets his sights on her.

Our families have a deep history of hatred, and Scarlett is caught in the middle.

Meanwhile, her mind plays tricks on her. When a panic attack goes horribly wrong, I emerge from the shadows to save her.

Now that she’s mine, I can’t let her go.

I’ve mastered the darkness. She tempts me with her light.

But when my mask is gone, will she fear the monster underneath?

PHANTOM is a spicy story set in modern-day New Orleans and a complete STANDALONE in the Tattered Curtain series. Guaranteed HEA.

Author’s Note: All CWs/TWs can be found in the front of the book, the author’s website, or on Goodreads. Mature readers only.

Review:
I love the Phantom of the Opera. I have since I was 13 years old. I’ve liked a few retellings, but this, this blew me away! Firstly, the location and use of French was spot on and absolutely splendid. Rivers did an excellent job of describing an opera house, the costumes, the performances, and what goes into music as well as the musical connection between our phantom and ingenue. The characterizations and descriptions of them, ailments, and distinguishing features was perfect.

Wasn’t sure I’d be alright with the name change but it was spot on, especially the connection between Scarlett’s father’s nickname for her and a certain poser. Seeing how people who believe they have power will do anything and everything in their power to manipulate someone, both because of age and/or gaslighting and how hard it can be to see that and get away was really well written. Recognizing that what you thought you want may not be what actually makes your heart sing is a lesson that not many get until they’re in a position that they can no longer leave to go do whatever would have made them happy, so it was really interesting to see multiple people’s takes on that, and how someone supportive versus controlling reacts.

I loved how our two main characters call to each other, both darkness and light. This is certainly a very hot read, and I thought the spice was absolutely perfect. While their connection is instant, our ingenue can be quite dense and overtly naïve. I do think the characters grew quite a lot during the story, more our Phantom than Scarlett. While I likely wouldn’t want to encourage falling into this type of relationship, I can’t deny that I found this book to be absolute perfection, and may have cried when it was over because I wanted more.

This book was everything I wished POTO the musical gave you; the spice, the tension, the desire. I highly intend to read more of Greer Rivers’ novels, if this is any indication of how brilliant she is.

Edit to add (January 4, 2022): I love how perfectly morally grey our Phantom is, as well as what he means by she’ll sing only for him.

Star rating: ✯✯✯✯✯

Review of The Book Witch by Melanie Karsak

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Synopsis:

A bookish witch struggling to tame her magic.

A single father fighting to keep his business afloat.

They say opposites attract, but there have never been two more opposite people than Stone Schneider and me. Stone, the brawny owner of the Chancellor Brewery and Biergarten, is my definition of nemesis. His noisy pub is a constant source of irritation. Where my bookshop brings beauty and stories to the world, Stone brings a Friday-night cover band.

Even though Stone has the most adorable, bookish child on the planet, that handsome tapster and I cannot find a way to get along. If Stone could stop being annoying for five seconds, I might ask him out. But when Stone breaks yet another business agreement between us—just in time for the holiday season—all bets are off.

Despite my coven’s warnings, it seems like just a little book magic would do the trick to bend things my way. But in Chancellor, magic has a mind of its own, and Lady Winter will have her way this Christmas season.

Meet Paige and Stone in The Book Witch, a delightful holiday-themed, sweet, clean romance set in the magical small town of Chancellor. The Book Witch is a stand-alone novel in a shared quirky, magical town.

Review:
What a beautiful and sweet story. This book is brilliant, showing how ending a relationship can look and screw your life up from the standpoint of dating and the convoluted nature of a family breaking apart. I quite enjoyed seeing how Paige gets on with Stone’s son, and how absolutely brilliant Oliver is, as well as Stone rejoining the world and finally stepping up to see how things have been progressing in life since he buried himself in work. It was certainly the first time I’d seen that type of transformation for a Beauty and the Beast retelling, and it was very sweet and subtly done. I loved Paige’s magic, as well as Mother Redbone, and like all the Chancellor books, I wish it’d been a bit longer.

Star rating: ✯✯✯✯✯

Review of The Glass Gate: A Retelling of Cinderella by Hanna Sandvig

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Synopsis:
Sometimes all a girl needs is a good dress and some magic shoes.
Prince Charming is optional.

My goal was simple: create a killer fashion design portfolio, win the scholarship to the school of my dreams, and never have to clean my step-family’s house again. I just needed some inspiration. Something to set my portfolio apart from all the other up-and-coming designers. A little fashion magic.

I didn’t expect literal magic.

But then my friend dressed me up like a fae princess, and whisked me away to Faerie. The food! The dancing! The dresses! This was just the inspiration I needed, so when the crown prince asked me to stay and be his fake girlfriend, I jumped at the opportunity.

Prince Tiernan is gorgeous and charming, but I’m just a part of a plot to find his bride. That’s fine by me. I’m just here for the fashion. No messy feelings. On the other hand, it’s very hard to not have my head turned by a boy who gives me a dragon egg.

The longer I stay in Faerie with Tiernan, the more caught up I get in the magic of his kingdom, and I start to believe the stories we’re spinning for everyone. Stories of magic and sacrifice and maybe even true love.
I can’t lose sight of my goals. I need to win that scholarship. Putting my heart on the line for a prince and his kingdom is just too risky. Am I brave enough to try? Maybe if I find the right dress.

Where’s a fairy godmother when you need one?

**If you think Ever After is the best Cinderella retelling, because they actually get to know each other, or that Project Runway would be improved by having a baby dragon, try The Glass Gate! This is a sweet, stand-alone retelling of Cinderella, set in the Faerie Tale Romances world**

Review:
This book is very much along the same lines of Ever After, where the prince doesn’t show his true self much of the time. Ella is an amazing girl with a lot of stress on her plate. I quite like that she has real problems that are not solved just by going to a fantasy land with different responsibilities and expectations, a very accurate depiction of how many people face mental health problems and that it’s alright, and better, to be open and talk about them. I love the world Sandvig has created and all the different types of fae; the connection to both Celtic, German, and Japanese folklore/fairy tales. I love that Ella has goals and dreams and ambitions, but also finds what she really had needed all along. I especially loved how Ella came across the name Cinderella in this retelling, as I’d never seen a retelling use that reasoning and I quite liked how it very much fit in this story.

Star rating: ✯✯✯✯✯

Review of The Vintage Medium by Melanie Karsak

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Synopsis:

People think being haunted is a bad thing.

That’s because they’ve never visited The Curiosity Curio.

The spirits who linger in my store dance the jitterbug, look after the plants, and gossip about long-dead relatives. Even though no one believes me about my mediumistic gifts, it’s my job to aid these lost souls. I can help them, even if I gave up hoping to find someone who understood me long ago. Call me a vintage-items peddler, but it’s my duty to match ghosts—and the objects to which they are attached—with the people who need them.

That’s where James comes in. James Herringbone, the high-end antique dealer who looks like he just stepped out of an expensive cologne ad, possesses a pocket watch I desperately need. Until I get it back, the spirit of a flapper girl who haunts my shop will let me have no rest. Talking to James isn’t necessarily a bad thing. I mean, he is perfection in glasses and a tweed jacket, even if he looks down on junk-item antiquarians like me.

But when I try to bargain with James for the pocket watch, things get…complicated.

Of course they do.

Because this is Chancellor, where magic lives on every corner.

Review:
This was a very sweet book. It was very very short, a very quick read, but incredibly sweet. I loved and truly connected with James and his connection to his grandfather. Ness and James are very cute together and it seems as if they fit together quite well. There wasn’t a lot of rising action or potential reasons for them not to work, which is nice sometimes. The ending was understandable and definitely fitting, however, I’d expected a different ending; perhaps in the future a certain small child will get a certain rocking horse. I do love James and Ness’ connection and their story is very sweet, but this isn’t a very deep read and is very heart on your sleeve. If you’re looking for something light and sweet, this is definitely up your alley! And of course it was great getting to return to the world of Chancellor.

Star rating: ✯✯✯✯✯

Review of The Raven Spell by Luanne G. Smith

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Synopsis:
Fleeing Victorian London, a witch finds her newfound independence comes with all-new perils—both mortal and immortal.

Forever untangling the branches of her strange family tree, Edwina Blackwood is at a turning point. Her parents’ disappearances still strike her as unaccountably odd. Her sister’s questionable life and untimely death have left her shaken. Spellfire has transformed her home and livelihood to ash. And now a devious stalker is on her trail. With supernatural detective Ian Cameron by her side, Edwina can’t get out of London fast enough.

Gaining safe passage, she finds refuge with Sir Henry Elvanfoot, famed wizard of the north, and is promised protection from ill-aimed curses. But in this unfamiliar city of fair folk and witches, where the veil between Earth and the Otherworld is about to be lifted, something is amiss. How else to explain Edwina’s sudden prophetic visions? Or the fear that surviving whoever pursues her will require the powers of an ancient bloodline she’s only beginning to comprehend?

Whatever destiny awaits, it’s Edwina’s to finally control. Where will it lead? Only time, cunning, and magic—in this world or the Other—will tell.

Review:
This book was absolutely phenomenal and I couldn’t get enough of it! The world building was exceptionally done and well crafted; the type of story you find yourself enthralled in and not wanting to put down… until you’re near the end and then you never want it to finish. This book perfectly followed Edwina, Ian, and her stalker. There was so much more fae, and magic, and fairy tales, and it was just the type of perfectly encompassed story that will stay warming your heart long after you finish the series.

I loved the aspect of choice and how it plays into fate and the future, whether everything is an illusion or written in stone. I absolutely adored all of the characters we were introduced to and became attached to; even those that were unsavory. I quite loved the Celtic tie ins, and the descriptions used so if you were unaware you weren’t left in the dark. The one caveat I had with this novel was how easily Edwina did the expected in a circumstance, however it is somewhat explained later given her lack of thorough magical studies. I love who Gavina turned out to be, and I certainly hadn’t expected how tied into everything she already was, or how much Sir Henry played into things. The only question left unanswered was the how of Ian and Edwina, but that isn’t as important as their feelings. All in all, I absolutely adored this little two book series and intend to one day have the paper version on my shelf.

Star rating: ✯✯✯✯✯

Review of The Raven Spell by Luanne G. Smith

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Synopsis:
In Victorian England a witch and a detective are on the hunt for a serial killer in an enthralling novel of magic and murder by the Amazon Charts and Washington Post bestselling author of The Vine Witch.

After a nearly fatal blow to the skull, traumatized private detective Ian Cameron is found dazed and confused on a muddy riverbank in Victorian London. Among his effects: a bloodstained business card bearing the name of a master wizard and a curious pocket watch that doesn’t seem to tell time. To retrieve his lost memories, Ian demands answers from Edwina and Mary Blackwood, sister witches with a murky past. But as their secret is slowly unveiled, a dangerous mystery emerges on the darkened streets of London.

To help piece together Ian’s lost time, he and Edwina embark on a journey that will take them from the river foreshore to an East End music hall, and on to a safe house for witches in need of sanctuary from angry mortals. The clues they find suggest a link between a series of gruesome murders, a missing person’s case, and a dreadful suspicion that threatens to tear apart the bonds of sisterhood. As the investigation deepens, could Ian and Edwina be the next to die?

Review:
Oh my goodness. Finding another book/series to fall into after reading one you love can be hard, but this one called to me, and I am so glad I read it! From the beginning you are drawn into the peculiar lives of two sisters, and the depth and characterization of their relationship and sense of self outside of being sisters made this book truly spectacular. Edwina is left between trying to keep things the way they’ve always been, and growing/evolving and learning the truth of some things that she may not have wanted to know. Ian is great; a man with an uncertain past, who despite that relies on his intuition for what is right in many circumstances.

I absolutely love the somewhat steampunk/gaslamp type of world that we are drawn into, and how well developed and organized it is. I love that it’s so different from the type of magic/world that we seemed to be dealing in with The Vine Witch series by the same author. Of course I always love a good mystery. Honestly, this book hit almost all the marks for me in things I love, and I would highly recommend it to others (and am already well under way in the next in the series).

Star rating: ✯✯✯✯✯

Review of Mr. Malcolm’s List by Suzanne Allain

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Synopsis:
It is a truth universally acknowledged that an arrogant bachelor insistent on a wife who meets the strictest of requirements—deserves his comeuppance.

The Honourable Mr. Jeremy Malcolm is searching for a wife, but not just any wife. As the target of matchmaking mothers and desperate debutantes, he’s determined to avoid the fortune hunters and find a near-perfect woman, one who will meet the qualifications on his well-crafted list. But after years of searching, he’s beginning to despair of ever finding this paragon. Until Selina Dalton arrives in town.

Selina, a vicar’s daughter of limited means and a stranger to high society, is thrilled when her friend Julia Thistlewaite invites her to London, until she learns it’s all part of a plot to exact revenge on Mr. Malcolm. Selina is reluctant to participate in Julia’s scheme, especially after meeting the irresistible Mr. Malcolm, who appears to be very different from the arrogant scoundrel of Julia’s description.

But when Mr. Malcolm begins judging Selina against his unattainable standards, Selina decides that she has some qualifications of her own. And if he is to meet them he must reveal the real man behind…Mr. Malcolm’s List.

Review:
This book sucked me in from the very first page. It was beautiful and the characters well described and quite brilliant. I loved the sibling-esque relationship between Cassie and Julia, and Julia is just perfectly set up for you to hate her. Overall it is a brilliant piece of clean historical romance that instantly pulls you into the life of the characters, hoping they can manage to work out what is clearly meant to be between all of them. Very much gives the same feelings as an Austen romance (both Emma and Pride and Prejudice come to mind), and just as much trouble that must be sorted! A hint of passion, but a completely clean romance. Read in one day, pleasant to spend long periods of time falling into.

Highly recommend!

Star rating: ✯✯✯✯✯

Review of Desperate Measures by Katee Robert

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Synopsis:
Once upon a time, I was a sheltered princess.

On the night Jafar takes everything from my father, he offers me a devil’s bargain—walk with my freedom and nothing else, or attempt to best him and regain my inheritance. In my arrogance, I play right into his hands. I foolishly assume I have a chance to come out on top. I’m wrong.

Now Jafar owns me, body and soul.

We fight during the day, but when night comes, we play out every fantasy I’ve never allowed myself to admit to having. I can’t hide them from Jafar, though. We know each other—and the dark desires we share—far too well. He sees to my every need, no matter how carnal or extravagant. It’s almost enough for me to be happy…

But a gilded cage is still a prison, and I’ll do anything to obtain my freedom—even betray the man I’m falling for.

Review:
This book was a great romance novel with some properly described BDSM elements. The heat between Jafar and Jasmine is tangible, and it is easy to believe she wanted to trust him and let him give her what she was never allowed to have: a man who actually supported her and her ambitions to move forward in life. While the intertwined fairy tale/myth elements were interesting, especially the use of Rajah, I feel as if this story was quite brilliant and very much could have stood on its own without trying to draw people in with the fairy tale element; that being said, I’m almost certain that’s why I was originally drawn in to purchase said novel.

The one issue I did have was how rushed the ending/climax felt. It seems unrealistic that Jasmine would have changed so quickly to become a much more assertive and self assured person willing to force her position on others, especially given the multiple instances where she’s mentioned/felt/shown that she isn’t that type of person and didn’t have enough life experience/knowledge to be able to do such a thing. That being said, I did very much like the ending, it could have just happened in a more convincing manner.

If you like fairy tales, like the morally grey villain, and like well written smut (romance) then I’d highly recommend you read this.

Star rating: ✯✯✯✯✯