Review: The Rose Bargain - Book #1 Rose Bargain Duology - Sasha Peyton Smith - February 2025 I'll be honest—when I picked up The Rose Bargain, I was skeptical. As someone who typically steers clear of romantasy and fantasy in general, I expected to struggle through another overwrought magical romance. Instead, Sasha Peyton Smith delivered something unexpectedly engaging that reminded me why I fell in love with dystopian fiction during the mid-2000s boom of series like Divergent and The Chemical Garden. The premise immediately hooked me: an Immortal Queen who once saved King Edward's kingdom, only to usurp his throne and rule with an iron fist for decades. Every year, she offers eighteen-year-olds "Rose Bargains"—the chance to gain something precious in exchange for a devastating sacrifice, whether physical or emotional. It's a brilliantly dark concept that feels fresh despite drawing from familiar fairy tale elements. Our protagonist Ivy wants nothing to do with...

Review: Heir of Fire - Book #3 Throne of Glass Series - Sarah J. Maas - September 2014 Every year, I try and make it my goal to read at least one author's complete booklist, and this year as I stood staring at my bookshelf and seeing that I had almost all of Sarah J Maas's books, I picked her. This is also an author that I had been meaning to read for at least 10+ years as well, I just never got around to her books as when she first came out. I had been in a bit of a fantasy burnout stage as it was the end of the vampire era for me. So far I have read the first three ACOTAR books and now the first three TOG books and I am saying I am more Team ACOTAR than TOG, though this series could grow on me. Heir of Fire was a chunky read and has left me this week with a book slump as I haven't started a book since Tuesday night when I finished this one. I think it was because of the size, it took a lot out of me energy-wise. In Heir of Fire we read as Celaena headed to see Queen Maeve...

A Cinderella story set in the dramatic world of reality TV dating shows. My Royal Showmance, an all-new swoon-filled romantic comedy from New York Times bestselling author Lexi Blake & Blue Box Press is now live! Anika Fox knows exactly where she wants to be, and it’s not on the set of a reality TV dating show. She’s working her way up at the production company she works for and she’s close to achieving some of her dreams. The big boss just wants one thing from her. She’s got a potential problem with the director of The King Takes a Bride and she wants Anika to pose as a production assistant and report back. As the king of a tiny European country, Luca St. Marten knows the world views him as one of the pampered royalty of the world. It couldn’t be further from the truth. His country is hurting and he’s right there on the front lines with his citizens. When he’s asked to do a dating show, his counselors point out that it could bring tourism back to Ralavia. It goes...

Review: Royal Blood - Book #1 Royal Blood Series - Aimee Carter - March 2023 I first have to clarify something, I got this book initially thinking it had to do with Royal Vampires or something "Blood" as I thought she was on the cover drinking a cup of blood, not English tea. This book though was a great read and reminded me a lot of the author Ally Carter where in fact in places I had to remind myself it wasn't an Ally Carter adventure book but another Carter - this time Aimee. In Royal Blood, we first meet 17-year-old Evan who has been expelled from yet another boarding school and instead of being shipped off to her home in Virginia or Juvie, she is being taken to her father's place in London. This would have been alright if she was a normal girl but she's not - her father is the King of England and she is his illegitimate daughter and the one he has kept hidden away from the world. Her Dad's is her last resort and she's planning to bide the time away fo...

The Backup Princess Kate O’Keeffe (Royally Kissed, #1) Publication date: April 4th 2024 Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance When a Texas gal punches a prince instead of curtsying, you know this isn’t your grandmother’s fairy tale. Taking the bull by the horns is child’s play compared to ruling Malveaux. Yet here I am, a Texas girl turned princess, swapping tacos for a tiara. Then I meet Europe’s most eligible bachelor, the irritatingly handsome Prince Alexander, and accidentally deck him instead of curtsying. Oops. I’d feel bad if he wasn’t such a self-satisfied jerk. Now, I’m racing against a royal clock that ticks with the urgency of a preening peacock, trying not to let down my newfound country or my own wild heart. Alexander? He’s a walking contradiction, with a smirk that heats my blood and eyes that tell tales of a depth I didn’t expect. Decisions aren’t exactly my rodeo, but this time, my choice could cost me my new crown—or lead to a love story that rewrites my...

Review: The Broken Elf King - Book #2 Kings of Avalier Series - Leia Stone - November 2022 Near the end of 2023, I started reading a little bit of fantasy again and found myself really enjoying it - of course, now there is a new term for the fantasy I do enjoy, once described as Urban Fantasy it is now called Romantasy which is fantasy with romance sprinkled throughout the story. It's great if you aren't a high and epic fantasy reader which is a bit more involved storylines and a bit drier plot. After really loving The Last Dragon King, I decided to continue the series and now in Book #2, we move over to the Elf Kingdom. In The Broken Elf King, we have our King Raife whose family was killed years ago by the Evil NightFall Queen who resides over the human world. She believes that all magic should be wiped out and humans be in power. In Nightfall lives Lani with her Aunt. Her Aunt has been sick, so Lani took a loan to buy medicine but she struggled to pay it back and has now been...

The Unlikely Heir Jax Calder Publication date: August 24th 2023 Genres: Adult, Comedy, Contemporary, LGBTQ+, Romance What happens when the Prince of Wales falls in love with the Prime Minister? My boring life working in an insurance call center in sunny California just took an unexpected turn. Thanks to my misbehaving relatives, I’ve leapt from obscurity to royalty as the new heir to the British throne. But my welcome in England is about as warm as the weather. I arrive to discover a country horrified at the thought of an American version of Prince Charming and ready to revolt against the monarchy. I vow to my grandmother, the Queen, that I will do everything possible to help her save the crown. Unfortunately, royal life isn’t easy. From bewildering traditions, traitorous friends, and malevolent swans, the only thing I’m succeeding in is providing entertainment for the tabloids and social media trolls. And then the broodingly handsomePrime Minister, Oliver Hartwell, bursts...

Review: The Journey of the Little Prince - Corrine Delporte - April 2023 This was such a cute read and a bit of walking down memory lane as when I was about 5-6 years old, I went through a stage of loving French children's books like Barbar the Elephant, Madeline, and The Little Prince. So, it has been at least 30 years since I read the children's book but I still remembered a bit about it, mainly its distinct illustrations. The Journey of the Little Prince by Corrine Delporte is not only a special book that has glow-in-the-dark stars throughout the story. The story of the Little Prince itself has just turned 80 years old - I still find it amazing that there are books that last that length of time and on the other hand it does make me sad as I think like movies, books these days don't have the same longevity like they used to have when we were children and it could be because there are more children's picture books being published daily compared to what we had ourselv...