emileereadsbooks's reviews
1113 reviews

After reading book 1 in this series, I wanted to finish the whole series quickly. It was a fun jaunt into a magical world full of unsure loyalties and found family. It doesn't quite live up to book 1, but the magic in this world is so fun I wanted more and more. 

A.J. Pearce has not failed me yet with heartwarming WWII Homefront fiction that really highlights female friendship, rising above adversity, and finding your footing in tumultuous times. I love the edition of a personal villain to the bunch. It add humor and even more heart to a series that was already brimming with both. 

Thanks to Simon Audio and Scribner for the gifted book. All opinions are my own.

We have gone dark my friends. Things have taken a turn in this world and the ever looming danger that Barclay and the gang have been facing has become even more intense. We get much more backstory about the adults in the story and how their past drama has had the ripple effects into the present. I love how the found family element was further highlighted here and really cemented further. Themes of trust and duty permeate this edition of the story.

Content Note: Violence and Death, and LGBTQ side characters

Steve West nails the narration of these books. I am always quickly immersed in this world thanks to his excellent work.

Thanks to Simon Audio for the gifted book. All opinions are my own. 

The gang is growing up. Set a year after book 2, this book encompasses a whole year of schooling for Viola, Tadg, and Barclay so the pace is a bit slower as we get to dig into more of this world and find out bearings more which I'm sure will be helpful going forward. As well as the group having to work together to save the world again, this one also had a treasure hunt element with a magical library and riddles that I loved.

Content Note: Violence and Death, and LGBTQ side characters

Steve West nails the narration of these books. I am always quickly immersed in this world thanks to his excellent work. 

Thanks to Simon Audio for the gifted book. All opinions are my own.

It was great to jump back into Coyote’s world again. Riding along on an adventure with Coyote and characters old and new, I felt like I was all in on the bus with the gang and experiencing the highs and lows of their trek and Coyote’s quest. 

Dealing with grief in a real way, a way that doesn’t tie up grief in a tidy bow, the narrative here will give you “all the feels”. Plus the new characters and the tension they create within the group and with outsiders added fresh life to this series and made sure this sequel kept the magic of the first book. 

You could probably read this as a standalone, but don’t be a monster. Read the first one first!

Thanks to Macmillan Children's for the gifted book. All opinions are my own.

I got really into home renovation shows during postpartum and quickly had some favorites, and the Marrs were in my top two. I love how she incorporates the family and how they really function in a space. Her style isn’t necessarily what I would pick for my own home, but I still love to see and hear how she thinks through designing and styling spaces. 

Thanks to Convergent for the gifted title. All opinions are my own. 

Thanks to Simon Audio and Aladdin for the gifted audio of this title. All opinions are my own. 

The City Spies series is an automatic read always for me, and this fifth book is further proof of why. 

Ponti continues to add rich layers of character development in this series and I love how he writes complex relationships that are in line with real life. This book is probably the most action packed of the series, but it still doesn't feel overdone. I will happily go on any adventure with this crew. Also, Ponti does a FANTASTIC job of writing responsible, competent adults whose goal is to empower and work with the kids in this book rather than hinder them. I really appreciate as a parent that not every adult is either a villain or a dolt. 

Bonus, this one leaves us with some more questions so we will thankfully likely get at least one more addition to this series. 

Thanks to Macmillan Audio and Minotaur for the gifted audio of this title. 

This book was entertaining, but ultimately just fine for me. The characters were not the most likable (and I don't particularly enjoy unlikable characters). The thing that grated on me most is that the detectives are a group of expectant moms and as a new mom myself, I could just not see them being good parents and therefore I was annoyed at the whole premise. 

Thanks to Libro.fm and Thomas Nelson for the gifted book. 

I read this book for the first time last year but never got around to reviewing it. But I am thrilled that my real life book club picked it for our September read so that I could reread it! And it was just as enjoyable on the reread!

Isadora is so loveable even when she doesn’t realize it and we get to see that through the eyes of the friends she makes along the way. The humanize her to the reader and I loved how Courtney Walsh used these secondary characters to really inform the reader about the main character. It was so well done.

We had some interesting conversations in our book club about priorities and the things we do and can do to work towards having l happy lives.
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This is a women’s fiction book with a closed door, kisses only romance storyline.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. 

Anytime I need to inject some book momentum into my life, I just need to read some Emma St. Clair. She always hits it out of the park for me, and this book is no exception.

I may not like a bad boy in real life, but I play someone who does in my reading life. I'm here for more of Van and his snark and penchant for fun! Plus he is SO CHARMING. The way Emma balances his bad boy persona with his more gentle side that he only shows Amelia and his sisters is just perfection. 

Amelia is so relatable. Writing the end of the story in her head instead of living it out is so frustrating to read and yet, I do it, so I get it. I loved her character arc here.

As always the Appies text chain was so fun and that alone could be a whole hilarious book. Give us some bonus scenes from the text chain Jenny and Emma!

I will be forever recommending this one! 

Content Warning (from author): Parents passing away (past), Divorce and parental neglect (past), Cheating boyfriends (VERY present), Some punching, Some pinching, Criticism of Keanu Reeves’s body of work

Thanks to the author for the gifted book. All opinions are my own.