Synopsis:
Andromeda is a debtera—an exorcist hired to cleanse households of the Evil Eye. She would be hired, that is, if her mentor hadn’t thrown her out before she could earn her license. Now her only hope of steady work is to find a Patron—a rich, well-connected individual who will vouch for her abilities.
When a handsome young heir named Magnus Rorschach reaches out to hire her, she takes the job without question. Never mind that he’s rude and demanding and eccentric, that the contract comes with a number of outlandish rules… and that almost a dozen debtera had quit before her. If Andromeda wants to earn a living, she has no choice.
But she quickly realizes this is a job like no other, with horrifying manifestations at every turn, and that Magnus is hiding far more than she has been trained for. Death is the most likely outcome if she stays, the reason every debtera before her quit. But leaving Magnus to live out his curse alone isn’t an option because—heaven help her—she’s fallen for him.
Review:
This book was absolutely amazing! I was drawn in from the very beginning and couldn’t put it down and get enough. It was very much a gothic tale, and I loved the debtera angle. The layers within the story were awesome; I absolutely love Jember and Andromeda’s relationship because sometimes relationships aren’t always clean and pretty. I didn’t quite love Magnus. While he is quirky there was no real relationship development between Andromeda and Magnus, despite there being multiple times where shared trauma is eluded to, it is never spoken of at length/depth between them. I also quite enjoyed that this was about two different ethnicities and set in the desert- a unique setting and character/class set up.
While this is mentioned as a Jane Eyre retelling I very much liked that there are only very loose resemblances to the novel. While I did think this book was amazing and I couldn’t put it down, I did feel that the very ending was a bit flat and would have liked it to have more pomp and definition of what life looked like at the end, how things were settled between characters. That being said, this is great and you should definitely read it!
Star rating: ✯✯✯✯
multicultural romance
Review of The Fine Print by Lauren Asher
Synopsis:
Rowan
I’m in the business of creating fairy tales.
Theme parks. Production companies. Five-star hotels.
Everything could be all mine if I renovated Dreamland.
My initial idea of hiring Zahra was good in theory, but then I kissed her.
Things spiraled out of control once I texted her using an alias.
By the time I realized where I went wrong, it was too late.
People like me don’t get happy endings.
Not when we’re destined to ruin them.
Zahra
After submitting a drunk proposal criticizing Dreamland’s most expensive ride, I should have been fired.
Instead, Rowan Kane offered me a dream job.
The catch? I had to work for the most difficult boss I’d ever met.
Rowan was rude and completely off-limits, but my heart didn’t care.
At least not until I discovered his secret.
It was time to teach the billionaire that money couldn’t fix everything.
Especially not us.
Review:
This book!! Oh my gosh, the writing was absolutely perfect. There were so many times that I just felt perfectly cocooned and fully immersed in the story. I absolutely love how, despite how bubbly and nice Zahra is, she isn’t perfect and both the main characters are seen to have cracks and issues throughout the story; things that cannot magically heal, but actual trauma that needs to be worked through and is always there behind you. While the novel was very reminiscent of a “Disney Princess” feel, it was truly immersive to see things through the eyes of a layperson and someone very affluent. While booktok may have originally gotten me to look at this book, the book itself took me to entirely new places and I absolutely adored it.
Star rating: ✯✯✯✯✯

