grumpy sunshine

Review of How To Fae It With A Fae by Amy Boyles

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Synopsis:
A broody fae king bent on revenge meets his match in this hilarious modern romance.

Book lover Addison Thornrose can match you with your next perfect read. Unfortunately, she can’t match herself with a good man. Her latest just dumped her. Worse, she’s learned that unless she marries, and quickly, her family will lose their witch magic—forever.

Feylin, king of the fae, has no interest in romance. In fact, the only thing he’s interested in is getting revenge on the Thornrose family for ruining his life. So when he learns that they’re holding a Bridgerton style ball to marry off their oldest daughter, Addison, he sees an opportunity for vengeance.

But what Feylin doesn’t expect is to start falling for Addison. And worse, he really doesn’t expect it when ancient fae magic binds them together.

His solution is to strike a bargain—be in a fake relationship. Just until they can break the spell between them, and just until he can get his revenge.

For Addison, this is a dream come true! She doesn’t want to be pawned off to a line of suitors, and she certainly doesn’t want to be engaged. But between the spine-tingling fake dates and the tension-infused banter, lines begin to blur. And Addison begins to wonder when her heart will stop faking it and her feelings become real.

This grumpy/sunshine witch romcom features a ballroom dance complete with frilly gowns, a magical bookshop, a tight-knit family, sisterhood, and of course, the promise of true love. It’s the first in a series of stand-alone romances.

Review:
I absolutely loved this book, which is odd, because usually I’m not a huge fan of “forced” pairings. I thought this book did really well with the enemies to lovers troupe, and getting Addison and Feylin to learn more about each other. I did think the ending seemed a bit rushed, and a bit too obvious in the big horrible event being just so easily swept away and everything returned to normal and forgiven. Addison, come on, girl! I also believe that the true culprit was very obvious from the start, but I absolutely love who came to the rescue in a complete deus ex machina moment (no spoilers here!!) All in all, this book is a quick, fun, light read and I have been looking forward to continuing with the next one in the series once it came out. Now that I’ve written this review… time to read book 2!

Star rating: ✯✯✯✯

*This book was read in August, though reviewed now.

Review of Assistant to the Villain by Hannah Nicole Maehrer

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Synopsis:
Once Upon a Time meets The Office in Hannah Maehrer’s laugh-out-loud viral TikTok series turned novel, about the sunshine assistant to an Evil Villain…and their unexpected romance.

ASSISTANT WANTED: Notorious, high-ranking villain seeks loyal, levelheaded assistant for unspecified office duties, supporting staff for random mayhem, terror, and other Dark Things In General. Discretion a must. Excellent benefits.

With ailing family to support, Evie Sage’s employment status isn’t just important, it’s vital. So when a mishap with Rennedawn’s most infamous Villain results in a job offer—naturally, she says yes. No job is perfect, of course, but even less so when you develop a teeny crush on your terrifying, temperamental, and undeniably hot boss. Don’t find evil so attractive, Evie.

But just when she’s getting used to severed heads suspended from the ceiling and the odd squish of an errant eyeball beneath her heel, Evie suspects this dungeon has a huge rat…and not just the literal kind. Because something rotten is growing in the kingdom of Rennedawn, and someone wants to take the Villain—and his entire nefarious empire—out.

Now Evie must not only resist drooling over her boss but also figure out exactly who is sabotaging his work…and ensure he makes them pay.

After all, a good job is hard to find.

Review:
Firstly, while it took me a while to get around to reading this book, I had actually preordered it the day the preorders opened. I absolutely adore the TikTok series and highly recommend her series of “what it would be like if I was the morally grey villain’s personal assistant”. That being said, this book was an altogether different feel and story than the short videos. While I didn’t hate the book, instead of being urban/modern fantasy it was pushed back to some sort of medieval-ish time which changed the entire feel of the story. The back and forth of trying to use modern food and explaining things away with magic made the book feel a bit hard to truly fall into.

There were definitely some elements of other stories woven throughout such as Ever After and Ella Enchanted, which I loved. While it was interesting to see Evie’s home life developed, it seemed to merely be a small plot to show another few form of villainy that were dropped at plot points far too quickly and without thorough examination. Unfortunately there were many times in the book where the heroine came across as self degrading as opposed to the obliviousness featured in the videos. The book also seemed to be written down in level than what I perceived the videos to be; more of a beginner level young adult novel.

While the story could have been a bit further developed, I did still quite enjoy it and look forward to reading the next installment. That being said, I still vastly prefer the video series to the book. If you’re looking for a very light cozy romantasy read, this is it, though there is a content warning at the beginning.

Star rating: ✯✯✯

Review of A Taste of Poison: A Snow White Retelling by Tessonja Odette

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Synopsis:
A runaway princess wanted for murder.
A deadly huntsman who’s after her heart…

Half-fae Astrid Snow is used to being disliked. With magic that makes her mirror back one’s worst qualities, she has more enemies than friends. And when she’s accused of poisoning her father, her stepmother—the formidable Spring Queen—becomes her greatest enemy yet. Forced into hiding, she finds solace at the Seven Sins Hotel. It provides the perfect subterfuge she needs. For who could ever find an outlaw in a hotel famed for sin?

Bear shifter Torben Davenport lost everything to the gambling halls. To pay off his debts, he serves the fae royals as their personal Huntsman, locating hard-to-find fugitives with his scent-based magic. When the Spring Queen offers him a bargain that will erase his debts for good, he’s willing to do what it takes—even if it means finding the queen’s runaway stepdaughter and cutting out her heart.

Astrid won’t go down without a fight, even if her assailant is a strikingly handsome Huntsman. If she can evade the bear-shifter’s claws, maybe she can make him an ally. It’s easier said than done, especially after she accidentally gets herself handcuffed to her infuriating captor.

Can Astrid cut through Torben’s icy demeanor and convince him to help her find the real killer? Or will she lose her heart in more ways than one?

ACOTAR meets Kingdom of the Wicked in this standalone fairytale retelling of Snow White. If you like brooding heroes, just one bed, and grumpy sunshine romances, then you’ll love this swoon-worthy story in the Entangled with Fae series.

*NOTE this book is upper YA/NA featuring mature situations, moderate violence and gore, substance abuse, and some adult language. The romance is slow burn but leads to moderate steam.

A Taste of Poison is a complete stand-alone novel set in the same world as The Fair Isle Trilogy. Journey back to Faerwyvae or begin your adventure for the first time with this enchanting tale. Each book in the Entangled with Fae series can be read on its own and in any order. Happily ever after guaranteed!

Review:
Wasn’t completely sure how I’d feel about this one since Astrid was so interesting. I quite enjoyed how the Huntsman got caught up and found himself more involved than he intended. I also had figured out who our big bad was going to be which I am quite please with myself for! This story had such depth and I quite loved all of the different places and people we got to meet and experience. It was beautiful seeing Astrid learn to let herself be and feel, and I think that’s something a lot of us relate to. Emotions are hard. It can be very difficult to process them and many times you can find yourself stagnant and trapped by memories and bad things, be that by what you use to get away from it or the thoughts themselves, but it’s important in life to keep moving forward and growing and working through. Quite enjoyed it, and very much enjoyed the connection that Astrid and Torben have!

Star rating: ✯✯✯✯✯

Review of The Little Black Dress by Piper James

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Synopsis:
Never underestimate the power of a little black dress. Especially one as lucky as mine.

Every time I’ve worn my favorite black dress, something good has happened. I’ve talked my way out of speeding tickets––and into a date with the cute cop––and I’ve found money on the ground, won cool prizes on the Las Vegas strip, and even got a cushy job with an even cushier paycheck.

It’s my lucky dress, and in it, I can’t lose.

Until I did.

Thanks to an enthusiastic bidder at an art auction, the dress failed me when I needed it most. I disappointed my boss and got fired, even though it wasn’t my fault. It was his. The man who writes thirty-five million dollar checks for ugly, ridiculous paintings.

Now, I’m unemployed, broke, and incredibly close to losing the life I’ve built for myself. When I score a job as an assistant to a billionaire casino owner, I’m over-the-moon happy. Hoping there’s still some luck left in my little black dress, I wear it on my first day to meet my new boss…

Jared Hart. Owner and operator of The Black Hart Casino.

And the insufferable, grumpy, gorgeous jerk who got me fired in the first place.

I want to tell him to take his job and shove it, but I need the money. Plus, being his assistant might give me an opportunity to exact a little payback.

Game on, sir.

Oh, and I’m setting that dress on fire the first chance I get. Its luck has obviously run out.

The Little Black Dress is a steamy romantic comedy with enemies who turn into lovers, lots of laughs, stellar friendships, and it brings all the heat. You might want to keep a fan nearby while you’re reading.

Review:
This book was absolute perfection. The characters were well fleshed out, and it flowed very well. There was never a point where I wanted to set the book down. It was an amazing grumpy/sunshine enemies to lovers style book and I highly recommend it. It had a very slow build up but it was done right; the tension was there, the stakes clearly outlined. Seeing these two get to now each other and find if there is something more than meets the eye was a treat. Highly recommend!

Star rating: ✯✯✯✯✯