Review: The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden

The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I thought I would like this more than I did - being that I'm obsessed with all things Russian and I love fairy tales. But it took forever for me to get into this book, I found the first half to be a bit boring. I enjoyed the end, but I wanted more about the Frost Demon, he was the most interesting character and the book is nearly over by the time he shows up.

A while back, someone in one of my online book groups posted that this was a great book and was on sale - a kindle daily deal. I saw that it was a Russian fairy tale and clicked the buy button, without reading much more about it. Then I realized it was classified as "young adult" and sort of regretted my quick purchase. I am not much of a fan of young adult books. I read a lot of them when I was a young adult, and loved them at the time, but twenty or so years later, I no longer have much interest in reading those stories. So my lack of love for this book is my own fault. While I still enjoy fairy tales, I prefer there be more of a adult twist to them, with a bit of grown-up romance. By the time I got around to reading the book, I knew this was a young adult book, so I knew this probably wouldn't be the kind of story I'd hoped it would be when I bought it.

The winter setting is really beautiful, and it did make me want to read more about Russian fairy tales.


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Review: Daughters of the Night Sky by Aimie K. Runyan

As soon as I heard about this book, I knew I had to read it. Female pilots in the Red Army during WWII - that sort of satisfies everything I love in a book: strong women, Russian history, WWII setting.

For the most part, I loved this book. It drew me in immediately. The story is about a pilot, Katya, who was training to be a pilot before the war started. She then joins the Red Army and is part of group of women who became known by the Germans as "Night Witches" because they bombed German camps at night. I know nothing about piloting or navigating planes, but felt this story described the process well enough that I understood what was happening, without feeling overwhelmed with details.

One aspect of the book that I especially enjoyed was seeing how women were treated and how they handled finding themselves in what had previously been considered men's roles. Despite Stalin's support, they still had to deal with men not comfortable with seeing women being treated as equals. These were complex characters, with families and fears and ambitions, as well as insurmountable courage.

The action scenes are well written and exciting. Every time I picked this book up, I had a tough time putting it down. I was reading in the morning before work and during my lunch breaks, always dreading having to put the book away.

I read the entire last half in one sitting. And I continued to love the book, heartbreaking though parts of it were, up until near the end. As the story was progressing, the war was ending, and I was feeling hopeful for these characters, even after all the losses they'd suffered, and then something happened that upset me, that seemed unnecessary. I'm being vague because I don't want to spoil it for other readers - because even though I didn't like what happened, you all need to read this book.

Because this was based on true events, I thought at first that maybe the author had based this character on a real person so the author had no choice. But the author's note said the characters were fictional, and that she took liberties with the end, which was supposed to be a happy ending of sorts, but annoyed me. Sometimes, I think authors do things like this because they think it makes the story more serious or edgy. I don't know, maybe I just read too many books that have guaranteed happy endings. And as I said, this does have a happy ending, but not the one I had hoped for. The fact that I'm still so upset about this, two days after finishing the book, shows how well-developed these characters and this story was. I loved these characters and my heart is broken for them. I may as well admit, I cried through the last few chapters of this book, I felt that attached to this story. 

Anyway, I think this is a really great book. I highly recommend it if you are interested in stories set during WWII, and/or stories about interesting, strong women.

I received a copy of this via Netgalley. 

Review: Still Me by Jojo Moyes

This book is so good. As expected, parts of it made me laugh, made me furious, and made me cry.

I love Lou, so glad to return to her world and find out how she's doing, but part of this story infuriated me. I found myself thinking, all this time and she's learned nothing, she still lets people walk all over her, won't fight for what matters to her. This wasn't the life Will wanted for her, always putting other people's lives before her own. She's too nice, like pathetically self-destructively nice at one point. There were several times when bad things happened to her with regard to her relationship and her job and she just let them, did nothing to protect herself. I can't relate to that level of niceness, but, in the end, maybe her being nice is why things work out for her. Takes a very well written story and characters to make me feel so strongly about a book.

Things do eventually work out for her with regard to her relationship and her job.

In this story, Lou has taken a job in New York City, working as a personal assistant for a very wealthy man's new wife. (The wife reminded me of a rather well-known rich wife, and that bothered me because this was the last place where I wanted to be thinking about those people, but anyway. I imagine the description would apply to a lot of wealthy New York wives.) The couple is pretty awful and it upset me to see Lou in this position.

Also, Lou is still trying to maintain her relationship with "Ambulance Sam" and as you can imagine, that proves somewhat difficult. But this is Lou, and she makes things fun and interesting and sweet.

Overall, I loved the book. I imagine this is the last we'll hear of Lou, but I would gladly read more about it, because she really is a wonderful character.

I received a copy of this via Netgalley.

Review: Christmas in London by Anita Hughes

When I realized this was by the same author as Christmas in Paris, I probably should have stopped reading it. But I'm a sucker for a Christmas story set in London (or Paris for that matter).

As with Christmas in Paris, the setting is really nice. The author does a great job of describing the city. I've never been to London at Christmas, but it's one of my dreams and the author makes the setting sound magical. However, also like Christmas in Paris, the characters are, for the most part, not like able people and the relationships are not in any way desirable.

There are two relationships happening. One a brand new one, the other a couple reunited after many years apart. The women in the story were okay, but the men - why would anyone want to be with these men? The men are weak and whiny and have no respect for the women. It felt like in the end both women sort of thought, oh well, probably can't do much better, too busy with careers and all that, so may as well settle for these losers. I would have been much happier if both women had decided that the men weren't worth their trouble and decided to ditch them and continue to focus on their careers. I feel like their careers would be much more satisfying. As far as I could tell, there was absolutely nothing appealing about these men. I don't understand why any woman would want them.


As a romance, this didn't work for me, but I did enjoy the glimpse of London at Christmas.

I received a copy of this via Netgalley.

Review: The Women in the Castle by Jessica Shattuck

Took me a while to get into this story, but once I did, I found it interesting. But I didn't love it.

There were too many different story lines and points of views for me to ever feel any kind of a strong connection to the characters. These were women who had suffered during the war and endured horrible situations, and yet I didn't feel the full impact of what they'd been through. There were a few story lines that I wish had been more fully developed. I felt like there was a lot hinted at beneath the surface of their stories. I wanted to know more.

What I did like about the book though is that it focused on an aspect that I've not read much about - the women in Germany, after the war. Their husbands had died because they tried to stop Hitler. They're trying to rebuild their lives, with the men gone.

Overall, I liked this book, especially toward the end, but it didn't leave a strong impression on me.

I received a copy of this via Netgalley. 

Review: A Secret History of Witches by Louisa Morgan

A Secret History of Witches by Louisa  Morgan
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This book was a bit infuriating. Took me almost a month to read - I am not usually a slow reader. But this story was not interesting in the beginning.

This is the story of several generations of witches. Each witch has a book. The first few books were boring and repetitive. Each woman has a very similar experience regarding her awareness of her powers as a witch, followed by her attempts to either win the affections of a man and/or have a child - specifically a daughter to carry on the family line of witches. But I don't know why they felt so compelled to continue the line when they never really used their powers to their benefit. They spent most of their time trying to keep it hidden away, and when it was discovered, it usually resulted in their ruin or death. I found that so frustrating. At one point, near the end of the book, a witch from another family says people have always feared their kind because they didn't need a man. If that's the case, why did they waste all their powers on seducing men who didn't want them? Why didn't they try to use their powers to protect themselves from people who wanted to hurt them or to improve their lives without the need of a man?

The first few parts of the book felt like an intro, a setup for some sort of action, so I kept reading, but then I was noticing I was almost halfway through the book, and still waiting for something to happen. I had to start skimming then because I was spending so much time on this book, and there are so many other books I want to read, but I felt like I'd spent too much time on it to just give up.

I'm glad i stuck with it, I ended up really liking, almost loving the last part of the story. That's Veronica's book. She's the last of her line, her mother died in childbirth and she knows nothing about the family history. I enjoyed reading about how she discovered her powers, and the way she was later about to use them. Hers was the only story that felt developed and had emotion. Her story had heart, romance and family. I thoroughly enjoyed the role she played in helping her country during WWII.

I think this would have been a wonderful book if it had focused on Veronica, and the lives of the women before her had been explained in more of a summary. Maybe have Veronica learn about them as she's learning about her own powers, through research of some sort or from viewing the crystal or the stories of other witches who may have been familiar with her family. The details of their lives were not essential, and almost caused me to give up on this book completely. This is why I felt this book was infuriating. The story, if told differently, could have been great and entertaining. But the format in which it's presented is not enjoyable at all. Those first few books read like a dry textbook, providing information about the women's lives, but not in a way that you care about them. There were touches of what could have been, but weren't.

I don't know that I can recommend this book, except to say, rush through the first parts as quickly as possible to get to the story at the end. The last part of the book is really good. That's why I'm giving this three stars - I think the last part would have been four or five stars, but the first, more like one or two - so I'm compromising with three.

I received a copy of this via NetGalley.



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Review: The Witch's Quest by Michele Hauf

The Witch's Quest by Michele Hauf
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I loved this book! Absolutely loved it! Really beautiful story about sacrifice and doing the right thing even when it hurts. Also, very sweet, sexy love story between a fairy and a witch. Hauf's Beautiful Creatures stories are some of my favorites, and I especially love her descriptions of fairy wings. I never thought much about fairies until I read her books involving them, now I'm a little obsessed.

Will attempt to write a more thorough and thoughtful review later. I know "I loved it and it's amazing" isn't really helpful review-wise, and yet, that's exactly how I feel about this book, moments after finishing it.

If you are a fan of paranormal romance, I highly recommend this book.

I received a copy via Netgalley.


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Review: Monsoon Summer by Julia Gregson

When I read the description of this book, I was hoping for a big romance, spanning continents. Forbidden love, culture clashes and such.

And I suppose that exists in this story, but the manner in which it's written sort of downplays everything. This is the story about an English woman who falls in love with and marries and Indian doctor, shortly after India has gained independence from the English. They move to India, and his family is unhappy with his choice of a wife and she's regarded as something of an enemy in the community. Also, the fact that she wants to work as a midwife is frowned upon.

This story should have created all kinds of emotional reactions, but it didn't.

I never felt any strong connection with any of the characters. I was not shocked or concerned or upset when bad things happened - and a lot of bad things did happen. She's attacked, she's thrown in jail, she disgraces her husband's family, she had problems with her own family. But I never felt like we were allowed enough of a glimpse into the characters emotions to invoke any kind of a strong response.

The story was interesting, and I liked learning about this time period and location, because it isn't something with which I'm familiar. I was also interested in the way the women lived during this time and place. But it wasn't quite the grand, intense romance I'd hoped it would be. Maybe that's my fault for having false expectations. I wanted something to read at the end of the summer that would completely sweep me up into the story, and this wasn't it.

It is by no means a bad book. I just wanted something a bit more.

I received a review copy of this via NetGalley.

Book review update

I am so behind with my book reviews. Hoping to post a few more in the next few days.

Have recently read Alice Hoffman's Rules of Magic - loved it so much! It's the prequel to Practical Magic. Will have a review soon, hopefully.

Also received and read a review copy of Krysten Ritter's Bonfire. Really good book.

And for romance readers, I recently read the first two books in Jennifer Bernard's Jupiter Point series, Set the Night on Fire and Burn So Bright. All of her books are great, including these.

And, I finally got around to reading Amor Towles' Gentleman in Moscow. That I got from the library. Wonderful book, highly recommend it.

Anyway - if I can get my act together - I should have reviews for those and a few more in the next few days.

Review: Rules of Magic by Alice Hoffman

The Rules of Magic by Alice Hoffman
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

For me, this was easily the most anticipated book in a long while. Was so excited to get invited to read an advance copy. And even more happy to say it completely lives up the hype.

This book is wonderful. I read Practical Magic years ago, before the movie came out. I might have read it in anticipation of the movie. (As readers know, the movie is a bit different from the book, but the spirit is the same and I love them both.) That book turned me into a huge Alice Hoffman fan. I love the books in which she so skillfully weaves magic into every day life. Rules of Magic is one of her best at doing this.

The story begins with Franny, Jet and their brother, Vincent. (Not really a spoiler, but Franny and Jet will eventually be the aunts in Practical Magic.) Their mother, an Owens, tries to keep her children away from magic, hence the rules. But her efforts are in vain.

This is the story of how the Owens children discover magic, and the effect it has on their lives, for better or worse. This story is about family and secrets and uncomfortable truths. It's filled with romance and heartbreak - as is the lot of an Owens witch.

Reviews of books I love are the most difficult to write. It's tough to say much more than, I really loved this book. I can't think of anything wrong with it or anything that bothered me or I felt should be changed. The story is beautiful and of course, magical. I also really enjoyed the New York setting during the 60s.

I found it so interesting to learn about the lives of the aunts, before they became the aunts. They had dreams and plans and lovers and they wanted more out of life than to simply be, the aunts. But the Owens curse is a powerful one.

After I read this, I listened to the audio book of Practical Magic, and as much as I love that book, I believe I like Rules of Magic more.

I am so glad that Hoffman chose to return to this world. I hope she continues to do so.

I read this book in July and have every intention of reading it again, closer to Halloween because what better time to read about magic and witches?

If you like Practical Magic, if you like stories about magic or witches, if you like stories about women and families and struggling to be yourself while in opposition with a past over which you have no control, I highly recommend this book.

I received a copy of this via NetGalley.


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Review: Bonfire by Krysten Ritter

I really wanted to read this book because I've become a Krysten Ritter fan as a result of watching Jessica Jones. Because of that, as I read the book, I may have been sort of picturing Jessica Jones as the main character - which isn't fair, but isn't entirely far off. She's not a superhero, but she's kind of a badass trying to uncover some dark secrets in her hometown after being away for ten years. I liked the characters, they were believable and interesting. This sort of explores the dark side of small town life. Having grown up in a small town, I could very much relate to some of this.

It's been a while since I read the book, and I'm not sure why I never got around to writing a review, but I did enjoy the book. It's a good, engrossing suspenseful mystery. I would definitely recommend it to anyone who enjoys the Gone Girl or Girl on the Train type books. I do like books like that, so I enjoyed this.

I received a copy of this via NetGalley.

Review: Accidentally on Purpose by Jill Shalvis

Accidentally on Purpose by Jill Shalvis
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I was so looking forward to reading this book. Jill Shalvis has written some of my favorite romances. I recommend her books to everyone. And I've enjoyed the other books in this series. In the other books, I'd really liked this particular couple so I thought I'd love their book.

I was saving this for when I needed a great romance to read, when I didn't want to take chances on an unknown or unreliable author. And I'll admit upfront that maybe part of the problem is me, it's been a few months since I've read a romance. They used to be my preferred escape, but lately I've not enjoyed them much or felt any desire to read them - sticking to nonfiction or mystery or historical fiction instead. But whatever the problem, this book did not work for me.

The characters were painfully immature in their behavior and the scenarios were not believable. A group of guys wanted s'mores so much that they call one of their girlfriends and beg her to drive an hour and a half with supplies. Really? S'mores aren't even that good - not good enough to expect someone you care about to drive out into the middle of no where at night.

I found the character of Elle to be so irritating. All we really know about her is that she had a bad childhood and now wears very nice, expensive clothes. Over and over again, we're told that she has on a great dress and shoes and she looks badass. But she's always cold because she's under dressed and feels it's more important to look nice than be practical. At some point, she should maybe start to pay attention to the weather and dress accordingly, but then she wouldn't need to be wearing Archer's jacket all the time. This happened several times in the book. That might have been my biggest problem with the story, it felt so repetitive. The same things kept happening, and the same phrases were used. Elle wanted to "climb him like a tree" multiple times within just a few pages. I grew tired of the word "badass" being used so often. I need to know what makes that person a badass, don't just tell me they are.

We're told that Elle's strong and independent and she cares deeply about people, but I never saw that in her actions. She seemed incredibly shallow and rude most of the time. There's playing hard to get and there's downright mean. I'm not a big fan of the whole - "he/she picks on you because they like you." These are supposed to be adults. That Archer kept wanting her kind of made him seem like a creep who couldn't take a hint. As readers, we know that Elle really likes him, but he can't read her mind, and she keeps telling him to get out of her life. Then later on we find out more about Archer that made him seem especially creepy and I wasn't expecting that because, for the most part, I liked him. Thought he seemed like a nice guy, but not so much by the end of the book. When he was turned on by seeing her barefoot and in his kitchen and "maybe pregnant", I decided he was simply gross.

Then there were her "dancing" "happy" nipples. They could sense when Archer was near and would respond, even though she hadn't realized he was in the room yet. At one point, this is how she knows it must be him in the room, her nipples were happy. What? This, along with the use of the phrase "friend zone" sort of completely lost me. I can't take seriously anything that uses that phrase.

I'm being especially harsh, and feel somewhat guilty about that. Had this not been by one of my favorite authors, and had I not been so anxious to read it, and certain I was going to love it, I probably wouldn't be so critical of it. I have every intention of continuing to read this series and anything else by this author, but I might need to lower my expectations, just as a precaution.

Review: The Light We Lost by Jill Santopolo

I read this books months ago, I decided to hold off on writing a review until closer to publication date and then waited too long. Now I feel compelled to finish the review because I'm seeing this book everywhere. I didn't enjoy this book much at all. I found the love story to be weak and the story line to be very predictable. I was describing the book to someone else, and they kept guessing what happened, and they were right each time.

Sometimes I read a love story, and I find myself thinking I may be missing out in life because it all sounds so wonderful, even if things do end badly. (My favorite love stories are those that end badly - Wuthering Heights, Casablanca, Gone With the Wind, English Patient, you get the idea.) But other times, I read a story in which the primary love story is so unsettling, it gives me a brand new appreciation for my single status. This book falls into the latter category.

I was looking for something romantic and tragic, and hoped this would be it. But for one, while I understood that the events in the story were pretty dreary, I never felt a strong emotional connection to the characters or their situation. The love, which seemed like more of an infatuation, seemed very one-sided.

The main character, the person telling the story, was such a weak character. Throughout the entire story, she continued to allow things to happen to her, never taking control of the situation. She meets Gabe in class, and it's a very intense situation. They share a moment on a day they'll never forget, and she thinks she's met the love of her life. Next time she speaks to him, she learns he's returned to his ex-girlfriend. They eventually do get together, but Gabe leaves her to pursue his career. For the next few years, they're in and out of each other's lives, but their whole history together seems to be about him turning to her when he's alone and can't find anyone better.

This character marries someone she doesn't love because she feels like she's expected to marry him, she has children because it's expected. I was so bothered by the situations in which she became pregnant. Despite being secure financially and loving her job (which her husband wants her to quit), she has a fairly awful life. So of course she continues to think the relationship that ended shortly after her college days is the ideal situation. To me, it didn't seem like a great love affair, but rather a desperate need to escape.

A lot of people seem to like this book. I'm not one of them.

I also don't like the way it's being marketed as "the next Me Before You." Seeing this, you know there must be some sort of tragedy. But other than that, there isn't anything similar.

I received a review copy via NetGalley. 

Review: The Harlot and the Sheikh by Marguerite Kaye

First a disclaimer of sorts: I've been having some trouble reading romance novels lately. Once, they were my perfect escape, but now, what used to work so well does not. I'm finding it more difficult to disconnect from the real world and slip into these fantasy worlds. But I'm trying.

I selected this book because I wanted something indulgent. Something completely unrelated to anything in my real world. I needed a dirty, sexy fairy tale. The title made this sound like what I needed. I was thinking escape to Arabian Nights or something like that.

I found the beginning of the book to be slow. (But see my disclaimer at the beginning, this could be a me problem and not necessarily a book problem.) The book wasn't grabbing my interest. Too much about the horses, not enough about the characters or any sort of development in their relationship. I was beginning to think the book was entirely too tame for what I was wanting.

But then, somewhere around the 40 to 50 % mark, the book became exactly what I needed.

This is the story of a strong, intelligent heroine trying to move beyond her past mistakes, and a sexy prince, looking to redeem his family name and bring honor back to his kingdom.

After a mysterious illness strikes his prized horses, Prince Rafiq sends for an English veterinarian. Stephanie Darvil arrives in her father's place. She views this as a fresh start, and a way to spare her family disgrace. She foolishly fell in love and allowed herself to be seduced by a man who used her, thus earning her the reputation of a harlot. The prince isn't quite sure what to make of her at first, having not expected a woman to appear to tend to his horses, but her skill quickly wins him over. Rafiq though is having trouble seeing her as only his horses' veterinarian, and the attraction is mutual as Stephanie realizes that there are advantages and an element of liberation to her ruined reputation.

What really won me over with these characters was Rafiq's reflections on how women are treated by society. He's furious when he finds out about what happened to Stephanie, certain there must be a way to punish the man who lied to her to get her into his bed. Also, he becomes aware of how she's treated in her profession, and how she has to work harder than a man to earn any sort of respect. At the same time, he's guilt-ridden about his deceased wife, who married him as part of an arrangement and had to give up so much of what she loved to satisfy a deal made by her father. Suffice it to say, Rafiq is understanding and respectful, reflective and willing to change, as well as being an attentive and skilled lover. This, along with being a prince, makes him just about perfect. Strong women and men who love and
appreciate strong women are essential for me to like a romance novel, and this book does well in that area.

While the book may have started out slow for me, in the end, I really liked it. Great, strong, intelligent characters; angsty backgrounds the characters need to overcome, and some very steamy sex scenes.

I received a copy of this via NetGalley.

Review: Playboy on her Christmas List by Carol Marinelli

I enjoyed this book quite a bit. Carol Marinelli writes really great characters. I've enjoyed everything I've read by this author.

I liked that the playboy doctor, Daniel wasn't too awful or too perfect. He was a nice guy who was sincerely interested in Holly - a nurse at the hospital where he sometimes worked - and he wasn't quite sure how to handle his feelings for her after a one night stand starts to feel like something much more. Holly isn't really a one night stand sort of person, but she thought she'd never see Daniel again - he kept saying he was going to take off on a year old holiday - and she had a moment in which she decided to take a chance.

The holiday setting worked well as the hospital employees enjoyed their advent calendar chocolates and put together a Secret Santa exchange, all while planning the holiday work schedule and trying to figure out how to fit in time with their families.

Definitely would recommend to anyone in need of a fun, sexy holiday read, with believable, likable characters and an interesting story.

I received a copy of this book via NetGalley. 

Review: A Cotswold Christmas by Kate Hewitt

I loved this book. The setup for the story is a bit absurd - in real life you should probably never do what Anna did. The bed and breakfast she booked for Christmas was flooded, so she goes off with Colin, a relative of the owner - thinking he's got a vacation cottage where she can stay. Turns out it's not a vacation rental, but rather an empty, unfurnished house. Colin feels bad about the situation, realizing Anna is alone for the holidays and her plans have been ruined, he does his best to try to make her comfortable in the empty house. The two quickly hit it off, feeling comfortable in each other's company, despite barely knowing each other.

This is a sweet story, very romantic and sexy without being explicit - which seems to work well in this story. This is the perfect, feel good holiday romance. An American attempting to run away from her heartbreak and be alone for the holidays meets the perfect man - who isn't at all what she ever would have considered to be perfect.

I liked this story a lot and would readily recommend it to anyone wanting something sweet and romantic, and quick, as it isn't a very long story. Perfect for an afternoon or evening read when the real life holidays get to be too much.

I believe this is the first in a series of books set in the same village. I'm looking forward to reading more. This is a very nice beginning and introduction to this area and characters.

I received a copy of this via NetGalley. 

Review: Christmas in Paris by Anita Hughes

I was really looking forward to reading this because I love Paris, and I ended up not liking this book very much at all.

The descriptions of Paris at Christmas were very nice. While I've spent time in Paris and am familiar with the city, I've never been during Christmas, so it was nice to visualize those areas I knew decorated for the holidays.

I also, for the most part, enjoyed the descriptions of the food. However, I got tired of the use of the word "bowl" - it got to the point where it was really starting to bother me by the end of the book. They had numerous "bowls of soup" as well as a bowl of chocolate mouse, and a bowls of cafe au lait. Couldn't they just have soup, isn't a bowl of soup implied?

As for the things that I didn't like - the characters. They were so shallow and obsessed with name brands. The main character, Isabel, did so much shopping. And her obsession with marrying a French aristocrat? She behaved like a spoiled teenager, not an adult who had a successful career.  And Alec, the man who was supposed to be the hero in the story - I guess - wasn't a pleasant person at all. He was bitter and angry and I'm not sure why anyone would fall for him. Actually, not sure why either of the characters would be considered at all appealing.

The romance in this story was not at all convincing. Most of the story is focused on Isabel trying to persuade a French aristocrat to propose marriage - even though she's known him for about three days. Alec sits in his hotel room and pouts about everything. Another large portion of the story is devoted to the characters' past relationships, especially their sexual activities with those characters - which is odd because there's not any sex between Isabel and Alec.

This was a strange book. I didn't find it romantic or heartwarming or anything like that. Very disappointing. Beautiful cover though.

I received a copy of this via NetGalley. 

Review: Suddenly Sorceress by Erica Lucke Dean

I didn't enjoy this book very much. Never felt much of a connection to the main character. I thought the situation was a little too abrupt - there needed to be more of an explanation as to the cause of magical things that were happening. I saw this as someone who reads a lot of paranormal novels - so it takes a lot for me to think something is too out there.

This really just wasn't the type of book I enjoy, a little too light and fluffy for me. The characters were a bit too silly and I found that boring rather than entertaining. That might be more of a problem with me and my usual tastes and expections than the actual book.

I received this via NetGalley. 

Review: Her Halloween Treat by Tiffany Reiz

The sex in this book is very hot and very good and well written. But other than that, there isn't much of a story at all. Main character returns home for brother's wedding, hooks up with brother's friend. And that's the story, which is fine if all you're wanting to read is something hot and sexy.

I was disappointed though that despite the title mentioning Halloween, the holiday had very little significance in the story. Halloween is one of my favorite holidays and there aren't a lot of Halloween romances out there. I knew it wasn't a paranormal story, but had thought it would have something more to do with the day. Instead, at the very end they attend a wedding on Halloween and people dress up as characters from 80s movies. Halloween is supposed to be spooky and creepy, not Pretty in Pink.

I received a copy of this via NetGalley.

Review: The Witches of Cambridge by Menna van Praag

As soon as October begins, I like to read nothing but witch themed books. I make a few exceptions, but I tend to set aside these books until this time of the year.

I started with Menna van Praag's Witches of Cambridge. I'd been looking forward to reading this for a while. I love academic settings. One of my favorite books is about a witch in Oxford. I'd hoped for something similar with this book in regards to intellectual stimulation. Didn't happen.

The book started out well, and I enjoyed the first half. Very light read, focusing on relationships and babies and baking. In the beginning though, it reminded me a bit of Alice Hoffman's Practical Magic, which I loved. But about midway through, I began to lose interest. I thought the beginning was written in the way it was as a way to introduce characters and establish  the setting, but it never moved beyond that style of writing. In fact, about halfway through, it became even more distant and choppy.

There are six different witches in this story, and each of them have their own story lines, with some slight overlap. It was hard to follow their stories though because we would get about four to eight paragraphs about one character, and then it would jump to a completely different story line. This happened for a significant portion of the book. It made it difficult to stick with the book. I think it would have worked much better as a collection of short stories, each character getting her or his own story, with the same characters making a few appearances. Had I not already been about 70% into the book, I would have simply stopped reading because I didn't care about the characters. I never felt any kind of emotional connection to what was happening with their characters. They were suffering with problems in their families, their marriages, problems with their children and lovers, and I simply didn't care because I never felt like we learned enough about the characters to understand what they were feeling.

Also there were a few factual errors that bothered me. One person is a professor of art, another is a student, so in the beginning, there are several mentions of art. As an art lover, I thought this would endear me to the book, but instead, I was just annoyed with the mentions of art. Klimt's The Kiss is not on display at the Fitzwilliam (it's in Vienna), nor is Van Gogh's Starry Night (that's in New York City) or his Church at Auvers (Paris). I know the story is fiction, but if someone is going to mention real works of art, maybe at least explain why they're on display in other places - special exhibition or something. For other people, this might not be a big deal. But I travel to a lot of art museums and have seen these paintings, and I teach art, and when I show students works of art or have them look up information about paintings, I also require that they find out where the painting is currently located. So maybe don't mention specific paintings if the rest of the info about the paintings isn't accurate?

Overall, I didn't enjoy this all that much. Started out well, but by the end, was kind of wishing I hadn't read it.

I received a copy of this via NetGalley.