breabooks's reviews
172 reviews

This was one of my favorites of the five in this novella series. It was cute, short, and sweet. I really liked Evie’s personality. I listened to the audiobook for this one. The narrator almost sounded fake at first but seemed to become more real as the story progressed.

It’s been a while since I’ve had a book keeping me up into the odd hours of the night. The Gods Time Forgot is a beautiful historical fantasy romance with impeccable banter and the pining and yearning that so many other comparable books lack. The story leans more into the historical aspect than I’m accustomed to- but it was a nice change! Irish mythology was expertly woven into the story. 

The story brings to light the darker side of New York socialites/business moguls in the late 1800s. Rua must pretend to be a woman of new money in order to figure out her past and how she ended up in her odd predicament. Finn is a wealthy Irish immigrant determined to climb the social ladder in order to help the less fortunate of Manhattan. They cross paths and cannot seem to stop running into each other- much to each other’s detriment. They both discover there’s a far greater power (and evil) at work. The intricacies of being a person in the Upper Tens are fascinating and well explained!

The beginning is a bit slow, but the plot really picks up at around the 40% mark. The last 30% was a whirlwind of scandal and revelations!

Thank you Alcove Press for the gifted egalley. I really enjoyed it!

Another cute short story! … but it was too short! I want to know more about happens between Everleigh and Griffin! Give me more mayhem!

I don’t even know where to begin. I was literally screaming at the last few pages. This is a stunning Norse inspired romantasy set in a unique world with magic based in blood and bones. 

LJ Andrews is some sort of romantasy magician. I’ll admit, the beginning was a little slow. I was almost afraid it would follow the typical romantasy formula. NOPE!! This book was amazing. You think you have it figured out, but you really don’t - which, in my humble opinion, are signs of a fantastic story. 

Lyra Bien is a melder, someone who holds immense magical power in a world where magical power is sparse and coveted. She hides her identity as a melder by hiding the scars in her eyes, or at least she does until she is found by Prince Thane’s Sentry, Roark Ashwood. She is to be the King’s melder. She must fight to find a way to free herself and her friends all the while battling new and unseen forces. 

The world building is immaculate. The character-building is extensive. I was crying for characters before I even hit the halfway mark of the book. LJ Andrews does the found family trope right- slowly and with lots of angst. There was so much yearning between lovers. The banter between all of the characters had me laughing out loud. All the twists and turns of the last 10% of the book had me shirking all my responsibilities just so I could find out what happens next. 

I cannot thank Berkley enough for the advanced egalley. I will be screaming about this book for years to come. I hope I don’t have to wait for the second book long after this one releases in April.

Cute, short, and funny. Awkward as heck in the best way. I know this a short story but so wish this had more development- I felt like this could have been a full novel.

This book was the perfect little fae romcom with a little spice. I loved seeing the side characters from the previous standalone - A Rivalry of Hearts - get their own story.

Daphne is a pine marten fae with dreams of becoming an illustrator. She’s also crushing on her now former coworker, Monty Phillips. They formed a friendship while working on a book tour for two authors together. Daphne also needs a husband in order to get out of a ridiculous bargain - if not, she’ll be forced to reside her in home town in her Unseelie (pine marten) form for the rest of her life. Monty Phillips is a rake who was fired from his previous publishing job only to step into the secretive role of writing scandalous Ask Gladys column for the local newspaper. After the success of the article, Monty seeks to publish a book about the smutty suggestions of Ask Gladys with his old publisher. Monty must find a case study to prove his “steps to finding a partner” is a viable book. In a hilarious turn of events, Daphne finds herself as Monty’s case study as she uses him as a model for her risqué cover illustrations. But the old feelings she had for Monty are still alive… and Monty may have the same feelings but has a million reasons he can’t reciprocate. 

I absolute loved the characters and the side characters. Araminta is a hoot. Monty is so tragic and such a silly jerk. Daphne is determined to find her way in life but has to learn how to love herself. 

The only issues I could find were long chapters and the realization at the end that (SPOILERS STOP HERE IF YOU DONT WANT ME TO RUIN IT) all of this for Daphne could have been avoided.

What can I say? Tessonja Odette is the queen of fantasy romcoms and this one did not disappoint. 

Thank you to the author for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

After thinking a bit on it I’ve decided this book is a masterpiece in theory but annoying as hell when it comes to the dislikes. 
It is, in short, weird. 
This book immediately hooks you in with constant jaw-dropping moments. You’ll be terrified, confused, and gasping. I’ve literally never had so many visceral reactions to a book (except maybe the entirety of the Throne of Glass series). It covers some very, very touchy subjects so I appreciated the fact that the author had a note about it in the beginning. It truly is a captivating love story entertained with fantasy, horror, and mystery. The plot is wild and will not make sense until the last 1/3 of the book. Everything had a purpose- from the silly pet names to the depraved, messed up things. It is definitely a trust the process story. I loved the constant twists, the very very layered characters, and how it all eventually tied together.

Now to the dislikes.
It’s a published book and needs a ton of editing. The errors were annoying obvious in the first half of the book. 
The plot was very unpredictable until it wasn’t. The last 1/3 of the book did have some surprises, but I honestly found myself skimming the last 100 pages. And it is a beast of a book at almost 800 pages. I felt disappointed with the ending - even though it is a satisfying ending- because I found myself skimming and bored with the predictability. 
I’m not opposed to smut but holy crow there was a lot. It was almost to the point it was erring on excessive (to me). And it became repetitive. 

It wad a good overall story. I’ll suggest it to others (with tons of trigger warnings) but I don’t see myself rereading it or wanting to purchase a physical copy.