Lose Time Reading

Review: The Night We Met by Abby Jimenez
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I was so eager to get to this one but even more so once I saw there were some negative reviews coming through. There’s nothing that makes me want to read an anticipated read more than seeing my friends dislike it 😂

This review is probably kinda spoilery, but I can’t review it any other way 😂

The characters in this book are both amazing and AWFUL. I loved Chris and Larissa so much, but some of the side characters were appalling. Donna is horrid. She’s like one of those mother in laws people make TikToks about how they are estranged. Absolutely vile. Larissa’s mom is also a PIECE of work. Larissa says countless times that she lacks boundaries but wow, she’s something else. I really disliked her but it helped to cement Larissas backstory so much.

As usual the Easter Eggs were awesome. I loved seeing Grandpa again, he’s such a hilarious character. The little mentions of other books and series… I love how they are woven together. Also the dog in this one is fantastic. I’m assuming he must be based on one of Abby’s dogs, the little tiny one who’s always capturing snakes?

I can absolutely see why this isn’t a favorite of everyone’s. The cheating trope can be kind of ick, and it for sure did give me the ick too but ultimately I loved the FMC and MMC too much to not want them to be together. Like Chris loved Larissa SO hard. Probably one of the best loves I’ve seen in awhile. It would have been tragic for them not to be together. And if we are being honest, Mike made his own bed there. He had many opportunities to get help and Chris tried to help him so much.

Mike made me SO angry but I’m excited to see his redemption story. I loved the moment at the end of the book with him and Chris. I loved the idea of a close group of male friends that are super supportive of each other so I’m eager to see how that all comes to play in the next book.

Do I recommend The Night We Met? Of course, it’s an Abby Jimenez book. Her writing is spectacular. However, if you don’t like emotional cheating this is probably not the book for you.

Review: One Shattered Crown by Rebecca Zanetti
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I was really excited to pick up the third instalment in the Grimm Bargain series after binging the first two. I was eager to see where Ella’s story went.

Ella is a Cinderella retelling and I really liked the way it aligned with the fairy tale. Her stepmother is evil, and because she is leading one of the founding families social media’s, you have really gotten to know her throughout the previous two books. Actually, you’ve really gotten to know most of the characters, which I enjoyed.

The first half of the book, admittedly, dragged for me. I didn’t enjoy the escape/fine her back and forth, or atleast the fact it happened SO many times. I was happy when the second half started to take a different direction.

Really, I was quite shocked by how the last part/ending played out. I didn’t see a lot of it coming or I had other thoughts with what was happening.

Is there more coming in this series? I’m unsure but I’d love to see more from these characters I’ve grown to enjoy. There’s a few side characters I’d really like to see more from.

If you love a dark, spicy, fairy tale retelling series you will really enjoy this series!

Thank you Hambright PR pr for the review copy!

July Wrap Up

July was busy and great. I am surprised by what I was able to read given all that went on.

August will be a very busy month as well but I’m hoping to get quite a bit read, we will see 😂 I still have a massive Summer TBR to get through!

Books Read:
•One Cursed Rose by Rebecca Zanetti ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
•One Dark Kiss by Rebecca Zanetti ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
•I Dare You by Monica James ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
•These Summer Storms by Sarah MacLean ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

What was everyone’s favorite read in July? Any big plans upcoming for August?

Review: One Dark Kiss by Rebecca Zanetti
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I picked this up immediately after I finished One Cursed Rose and I’m so happy I did! The story and world were fresh in my mind as you revisit the characters.

I loved the legal aspect to this one, and that Rosalie is Alexei’s lawyer. I really liked both MC’s in this second book, more than the first couple. I also enjoyed the mystery of this one more and surprisingly, the retelling aspect. I’ve not been a huge Snow White fan, although I enjoy the story, but I loved the aspects that compared back to the story. The “second dwarves” as her boarders were so sweet.

I really couldn’t put this down, and I was eager to find out what was going on. Honestly I was surprised a few times, and loved the ending.

I am really enjoying this series!

Review: I Dare You by Monica James
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I was really looking forward to picking up I Dare You, I love a dark romance and I haven’t read a lot of them lately. The trope list was right up my alley.

It’s hard to review I Dare You without spoilers because I don’t want to give anything away. There’s twists upon twists and the ending is so good.

It’s very dark, and very spicy, so be sure to do your research on the trigger warnings before hand, the content will not be for everyone.

This was SUCH a page turner, I finished it in 24 hours and it only took that long because of life and sleep 😂

Now, unfortunately for me, I immediately knew what was happening from the very beginning. I think it’s probably because one of my favorite books had a similar premise. Do I think this will happen to everyone? Not at all. I think everyone will be very surprised while reading.

I Dare You is out today!!!

Thank you Hambright PR and Monica James for the gifted copy.

☀️Summer(ish) Books on my Summer TBR🏖️

Well we are halfway through Summer, or atleast what I consider Summer which is July and August (September is firmly in Fall ok). This year, probably more than ever before, I’ve been really wanting to read Summery books during the Summer.

Here’s a stack of books I’d love to get to:
•Love, Life, and the List by Kasie West
•Same Time Next Summer by Annabel Monaghan
•Summer Romance by Annabel Monaghan
•Forever is the Sweetest Con by Joanna Thurlow
•Meet Me at the Lake by Carley Fortune
•Every Summer After by Carley Fortune
•Make the Fireflies Dance by Rachel Bateman
•These Summer Storms by Sarah Maclean (this one is almost done I just need to buckle down and not be distracted 😂)

Any of these on your Summer TBR? What books do you like to read during the summer?

Review: One Cursed Rose by Rebecca Zanetti
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I love a retelling and I especially love a Beauty and the Beast retelling so I was excited to hear about this series.

The world is a cool concept, it’s basically this world but there are four families who have control of crystals and subsequently own social media companies. They power those crystals and their social media companies are ranked from most powerful.

This follows Thorn and Alana; Thorn is the owner of Malice Media, the number one company and Alana is the heir to Aquarius Social.

The first half of the book I found kind of corny sometimes, and the “she’s mine”/possessive trope wasn’t my fav. That one’s always hit or miss for me, even if the MMC is delectably morally grey (which he was). The last 30 percent though really grabbed me, even surprised me at one point.

A lot of the side characters I really enjoyed, which made me excited for the other books as they follow Alana’s friends.

This was a fun retelling and a very quick read!

🌻ARC Signups are now open for Peace & Quiet, the third book in C.N. Rudy | Romance Author Emerald Falls series!!

You can find the link at Luna: Author Services or her bio!!

I’m so excited for this one… those tropes 😍😍

Review: Sable Peak by Devney Perry
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The final book in The Edens! I am sad to close the door on this series (well with the exception of one novella), it was what introduced me to Devney Perry’s writing, who is definitely one of my favorite authors now.

This was Mateo’s story and also Vera’s, which I wasn’t expecting, but very happy to see where her story went as well, plus her father.

I thought Sable Peak would thrill me because it’s single dad trope but unfortunately it fell a bit short for me. I think I just loved so many of the other Edens SO much, that Mateos story was just a bit lacklustre for me.

Of course I loved the cameos from the rest of the family and I really loved how the story tied up, both Mateos and then the wrap up for the series.

I’ll really miss The Edens but I’ll definitely be doing a reread at some point, this series has some of my favorite characters ever!

☀️What This Week 🍉

It’s July. I don’t even know how we got here? It feels like it should be the beginning of 2026!

It’s been a slow couple of days around here, and probably will be coming up since I have a cold! Eloise had it first, which I then caught. She was completely unaffected and I feel like a truck hit me 😂😂

Today will be a day of resting on the sofa, cuddling with the little cats, drinking hot beverages and eating popsicles while watching HGTV and reading. A dream really!

Reading: I’m currently reading Delicate Escape, One Cursed Rose and These Summer Storms. I’ve just been switching back and forth to whatever is taking my interest at the time. Right now it’s One Cursed Rose.

Listening: Nothing. I don’t have any audiobooks out from the library and it’s for the best since I’d probably let them lapse right now as I can’t really focus.

Watching: Endless amounts of HGTV and Magnolia Network. I go back and forth with home shows and lately I’ve been loving them. Oh and baseball of course.

What does everyone have on the docket this week?