Dark Humor

Synopsis:
Roses are red, violets are blue, Emma’s not dead, and her gravedigger’s hot too. This Valentine’s Day, love claws its way out of the grave in #1 New York Times bestselling author Navessa Allen’s steamy and hilariously dark rom-com.

Louisiana gravedigger Noah Evans’s Valentine’s night shift takes an unexpected turn when his high school crush starts screaming from her freshly dug grave. Whoever tried to bury Emma six feet under is in for a nasty surprise—they should have checked for a pulse because she’s got unfinished business, starting with the hot gravedigger who just saved her life. As they unearth a deadly family conspiracy, Noah and Emma discover that old flames burn even hotter the second time around—especially when someone’s trying to kill them.

Navessa Allen’s Valentine’s Slay is part of The Improbable Meet-Cute: Second Chances, stories for star-crossed lovers and hopeless romantics. They can be read or listened to in one sitting. Let’s do it again.

Review:
This book is more a novella than a novel and is a good, quick read if you’re looking for something super spicy with a bit of grit and edge to it. Did I think things went a bit too fast? Yes, in parts. This is also an extremely short story in regards to doing the most you can with the least amount of characters possible, but having it make sense as to why there aren’t more people around. It’s a great dark romance with some very serious stuff going on in the background. The chemistry between the main characters was great, and the ending was just perfect. This is definitely one that will grip you from the first page, and leave you hoping for a happily ever after because damn, do they deserve one.

If you’re looking for a quick in between palate cleanser book of dark romance with quite a lot of spice, this is the book for you! If you just want some dark romance that involves graveyards, also the book for you!

Star rating: ✯✯✯✯
Spice rating: 🌶️🌶️

Synopsis:
When Charlotte Kinder treats herself to a two-week vacation at Austenland, she happily leaves behind her ex-husband and his delightful new wife, her ever-grateful children, and all the rest of her real life in America. She dons a bonnet and stays at a country manor house that provides an immersive Austen experience, complete with gentleman actors who cater to the guests’ Austen fantasies.

Everyone at Pembrook Park is playing a role, but increasingly, Charlotte isn’t sure where roles end and reality begins. And as the parlor games turn a little bit menacing, she finds she needs more than a good corset to keep herself safe. Is the brooding Mr. Mallery as sinister as he seems? What is Miss Gardenside’s mysterious ailment? Was that an actual dead body in the secret attic room? And-perhaps of the most lasting importance-could the stirrings in Charlotte’s heart be a sign of real-life love?

Review:
I did not realize just how enthralling I would find this book, and accidentally ended up reading late into the night to read to the end. I wasn’t sure that I would love this book, having started it previously and abandoned it, but I found once I was a few paragraphs in I was easily hooked. This book had all the regency and romance of the original Austenland, but with a huge mystery that left me needing to read to the very end. Warning: this book makes you want to keep reading and do nothing else until you reach the conclusion.

The book shifts between days in Austenland and days in the past in Charlotte’s past, finally catching up in the end to the modern day. I thought it was really unique to tell the backstory in such a manner, so that we were experiencing it with Charlotte as she considered things herself while on her vacation. Her gumption, change, and confidence are inspiring for anyone who finds that they have allowed themselves and their lives to move too far from what they wanted, or have allowed themselves to be too cowed by others that they shouldn’t have.

I loved how Charlotte fell into the mystery and wanted to just focus on that instead of letting the outside world and her real life problems fill her mind. I also adored how well everyone developed the characters are, and getting to see another side to Miss Charming that hadn’t been present in the original Austenland.

I highly recommend this book if you like the regency time period, Jane Austen, mysteries and a hint of romance.

Star rating: ✯✯✯✯✯

Amy S. Brown

Review of Valentine’s Slay by Navessa Allen

Review of Midnight in Austenland by Shannon Hale