spellbindingtomes's reviews
347 reviews

A Prayer for the Crown-Shy by Becky Chambers

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hopeful inspiring lighthearted relaxing medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

๐˜ ๐˜ฐ๐˜ถ ๐˜ฌ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฑ ๐˜ข๐˜ด๐˜ฌ๐˜ช๐˜ฏ๐˜จ ๐˜ธ๐˜ฉ๐˜บ ๐˜บ๐˜ฐ๐˜ถ๐˜ณ ๐˜ธ๐˜ฐ๐˜ณ๐˜ฌ ๐˜ช๐˜ด ๐˜ฏ๐˜ฐ๐˜ต ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฏ๐˜ฐ๐˜ถ๐˜จ๐˜ฉ, ๐˜ข๐˜ฏ๐˜ฅ ๐˜ ๐˜ฅ๐˜ฐ๐˜ฏโ€™๐˜ต ๐˜ฌ๐˜ฏ๐˜ฐ๐˜ธ ๐˜ฉ๐˜ฐ๐˜ธ ๐˜ต๐˜ฐ ๐˜ข๐˜ฏ๐˜ด๐˜ธ๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ข๐˜ต, ๐˜ฃ๐˜ฆ๐˜ค๐˜ข๐˜ถ๐˜ด๐˜ฆ ๐˜ช๐˜ต ๐˜ช๐˜ด ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฏ๐˜ฐ๐˜ถ๐˜จ๐˜ฉ ๐˜ต๐˜ฐ ๐˜ฆ๐˜น๐˜ช๐˜ด๐˜ต ๐˜ช๐˜ฏ ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ธ๐˜ฐ๐˜ณ๐˜ญ๐˜ฅ ๐˜ข๐˜ฏ๐˜ฅ ๐˜ฎ๐˜ข๐˜ณ๐˜ท๐˜ฆ๐˜ญ ๐˜ข๐˜ต ๐˜ช๐˜ต. ๐˜ ๐˜ฐ๐˜ถ ๐˜ฅ๐˜ฐ๐˜ฏโ€™๐˜ต ๐˜ฏ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฅ ๐˜ต๐˜ฐ ๐˜ซ๐˜ถ๐˜ด๐˜ต๐˜ช๐˜ง๐˜บ ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ข๐˜ต, ๐˜ฐ๐˜ณ ๐˜ฆ๐˜ข๐˜ณ๐˜ฏ ๐˜ช๐˜ต. ๐™”๐™ค๐™ช ๐™–๐™ง๐™š ๐™–๐™ก๐™ก๐™ค๐™ฌ๐™š๐™™ ๐™ฉ๐™ค ๐™Ÿ๐™ช๐™จ๐™ฉ ๐™ก๐™ž๐™ซ๐™š.

This delightful cozy sci-fi duology felt like a warm hug in book form. Becky's captivating world-building combined with the fascinating backstory of the vanished robots hooked me from the start. It also explores deep questions about life in a thought-provoking way, without ever feeling overbearing.

I related to Sibling Dex a lot and every interaction they had with Mosscap was perfect. Their charming banter and profound exchanges touched my heart. 

This gave me similar feels to Nier: Automata and a Studio Ghibli film. It asks philosophical questions about humanity and ponders the meaning of life all while giving off heartwarming and whimsical vibes.
 
The Monk and Robot duology is a story about connection, finding solace, and the beauty in our shared humanity - even amidst the great unknowns of the universe. If you crave an uplifting, soul-soothing read, look no further. 

What to expect:
๐Ÿต novella length duologies
๐Ÿค– cozy sci-fi
๐Ÿต queer rep
๐Ÿค– non-binary MC
๐Ÿต traveling tea monk + a robot
๐Ÿค– philosophical discussions
A Psalm for the Wild-Built by Becky Chambers

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hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective relaxing medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.75

๐˜ ๐˜ฐ๐˜ถ ๐˜ฌ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฑ ๐˜ข๐˜ด๐˜ฌ๐˜ช๐˜ฏ๐˜จ ๐˜ธ๐˜ฉ๐˜บ ๐˜บ๐˜ฐ๐˜ถ๐˜ณ ๐˜ธ๐˜ฐ๐˜ณ๐˜ฌ ๐˜ช๐˜ด ๐˜ฏ๐˜ฐ๐˜ต ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฏ๐˜ฐ๐˜ถ๐˜จ๐˜ฉ, ๐˜ข๐˜ฏ๐˜ฅ ๐˜ ๐˜ฅ๐˜ฐ๐˜ฏโ€™๐˜ต ๐˜ฌ๐˜ฏ๐˜ฐ๐˜ธ ๐˜ฉ๐˜ฐ๐˜ธ ๐˜ต๐˜ฐ ๐˜ข๐˜ฏ๐˜ด๐˜ธ๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ข๐˜ต, ๐˜ฃ๐˜ฆ๐˜ค๐˜ข๐˜ถ๐˜ด๐˜ฆ ๐˜ช๐˜ต ๐˜ช๐˜ด ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฏ๐˜ฐ๐˜ถ๐˜จ๐˜ฉ ๐˜ต๐˜ฐ ๐˜ฆ๐˜น๐˜ช๐˜ด๐˜ต ๐˜ช๐˜ฏ ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ธ๐˜ฐ๐˜ณ๐˜ญ๐˜ฅ ๐˜ข๐˜ฏ๐˜ฅ ๐˜ฎ๐˜ข๐˜ณ๐˜ท๐˜ฆ๐˜ญ ๐˜ข๐˜ต ๐˜ช๐˜ต. ๐˜ ๐˜ฐ๐˜ถ ๐˜ฅ๐˜ฐ๐˜ฏโ€™๐˜ต ๐˜ฏ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฅ ๐˜ต๐˜ฐ ๐˜ซ๐˜ถ๐˜ด๐˜ต๐˜ช๐˜ง๐˜บ ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ข๐˜ต, ๐˜ฐ๐˜ณ ๐˜ฆ๐˜ข๐˜ณ๐˜ฏ ๐˜ช๐˜ต. ๐™”๐™ค๐™ช ๐™–๐™ง๐™š ๐™–๐™ก๐™ก๐™ค๐™ฌ๐™š๐™™ ๐™ฉ๐™ค ๐™Ÿ๐™ช๐™จ๐™ฉ ๐™ก๐™ž๐™ซ๐™š.

This delightful cozy sci-fi duology felt like a warm hug in book form. Becky's captivating world-building combined with the fascinating backstory of the vanished robots hooked me from the start. It also explores deep questions about life in a thought-provoking way, without ever feeling overbearing.

I related to Sibling Dex a lot and every interaction they had with Mosscap was perfect. Their charming banter and profound exchanges touched my heart. 

This gave me similar feels to Nier: Automata and a Studio Ghibli film. It asks philosophical questions about humanity and ponders the meaning of life all while giving off heartwarming and whimsical vibes.
 
The Monk and Robot duology is a story about connection, finding solace, and the beauty in our shared humanity - even amidst the great unknowns of the universe. If you crave an uplifting, soul-soothing read, look no further. 

What to expect:
๐Ÿต novella length duologies
๐Ÿค– cozy sci-fi
๐Ÿต queer rep
๐Ÿค– non-binary MC
๐Ÿต traveling tea monk + a robot
๐Ÿค– philosophical discussions
The Only One Left by Riley Sager

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dark mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

๐˜ˆ๐˜ต ๐˜ด๐˜ฆ๐˜ท๐˜ฆ๐˜ฏ๐˜ต๐˜ฆ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฏ, ๐˜“๐˜ฆ๐˜ฏ๐˜ฐ๐˜ณ๐˜ข ๐˜๐˜ฐ๐˜ฑ๐˜ฆ
๐˜๐˜ถ๐˜ฏ๐˜จ ๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ ๐˜ด๐˜ช๐˜ด๐˜ต๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ ๐˜ธ๐˜ช๐˜ต๐˜ฉ ๐˜ข ๐˜ณ๐˜ฐ๐˜ฑ๐˜ฆ
๐˜š๐˜ต๐˜ข๐˜ฃ๐˜ฃ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฅ ๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ ๐˜ง๐˜ข๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ ๐˜ธ๐˜ช๐˜ต๐˜ฉ ๐˜ข ๐˜ฌ๐˜ฏ๐˜ช๐˜ง๐˜ฆ
๐˜›๐˜ฐ๐˜ฐ๐˜ฌ ๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ ๐˜ฎ๐˜ฐ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ'๐˜ด ๐˜ฉ๐˜ข๐˜ฑ๐˜ฑ๐˜บ ๐˜ญ๐˜ช๐˜ง๐˜ฆ
"๐˜๐˜ต ๐˜ธ๐˜ข๐˜ด๐˜ฏ'๐˜ต ๐˜ฎ๐˜ฆ," ๐˜“๐˜ฆ๐˜ฏ๐˜ฐ๐˜ณ๐˜ข ๐˜ด๐˜ข๐˜ช๐˜ฅ
๐˜‰๐˜ถ๐˜ต ๐˜ด๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ'๐˜ด ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ฐ๐˜ฏ๐˜ญ๐˜บ ๐˜ฐ๐˜ฏ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ฏ๐˜ฐ๐˜ต ๐˜ฅ๐˜ฆ๐˜ข๐˜ฅ.

๐Œ๐ข๐ง๐ข ๐’๐ฒ๐ง๐จ๐ฉ๐ฌ๐ข๐ฌ:
In 1929, the Hope family was murdered in their Maine mansion, with seventeen-year-old Lenora Hope the sole survivor. Though suspected, she was never charged. By 1983, an elderly and mute Lenora remains in Hope's End mansion, communicating only by typewriter. When Kit McDeere becomes her home-health aide, Lenora offers to finally tell her storyโ€”but her story may not be what it seems.
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The Only One Left had me completely captivated with its gothic atmosphere at Hope's End mansion. Riley Sager crafts an eerie, creeping tension that seeps through every page. 

The story of Lenora Hope and Kit McDeere starts as a slow-burning mystery that had me hanging on every word Lenora typed out on her typewriter. 

While the first half is a solid 4-star atmospheric thriller, the latter portion became tangled in its own web of revelations. The twists started piling up and there were a lot of coincidences that didn't make total sense.  

I don't want to give away any spoils so I won't go into details, but if you love gothic atmospheric thrillers with a lot of twists, then give this a try!

Expand filter menu Content Warnings
The Love of My Afterlife by Kirsty Greenwood

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funny lighthearted reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75


Expand filter menu Content Warnings
Welcome to the Hyunam-dong Bookshop by Hwang Bo-Reum

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hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

This was such a heartwarming slice-of-life story about how a neighborhood bookstore transforms into more than just a place to buy books โ€“ it becomes a sanctuary where people discover both themselves & each other. Each character who steps through the Hyunam-Dong Bookshop finds not just books, but also understanding & acceptance.

This is a love letter to bookstores & the communities they foster and for anyone who has ever found solace between the shelves of a bookshop.

Rather than say more, I'll let these quotes convince you to pick up this book:

๐˜ˆ๐˜ด ๐˜ธ๐˜ช๐˜ต๐˜ฉ ๐˜ฆ๐˜ท๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ๐˜บ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ช๐˜ฏ๐˜จ ๐˜ช๐˜ฏ ๐˜ญ๐˜ช๐˜ง๐˜ฆ, ๐˜ณ๐˜ฆ๐˜ข๐˜ฅ๐˜ช๐˜ฏ๐˜จ ๐˜ช๐˜ด ๐˜ข๐˜ฃ๐˜ฐ๐˜ถ๐˜ต ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ณ๐˜ช๐˜จ๐˜ฉ๐˜ต ๐˜ต๐˜ช๐˜ฎ๐˜ช๐˜ฏ๐˜จ.

โ€ข

๐˜ˆ๐˜ด ๐˜ช๐˜ง ๐˜ต๐˜ณ๐˜บ๐˜ช๐˜ฏ๐˜จ ๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ ๐˜ฃ๐˜ฆ๐˜ด๐˜ต ๐˜ต๐˜ฐ ๐˜ฎ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฏ๐˜ฅ ๐˜ข ๐˜ฃ๐˜ณ๐˜ฐ๐˜ฌ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฏ ๐˜ง๐˜ณ๐˜ช๐˜ฆ๐˜ฏ๐˜ฅ๐˜ด๐˜ฉ๐˜ช๐˜ฑ ๐˜ง๐˜ณ๐˜ฐ๐˜ฎ ๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ ๐˜ค๐˜ฉ๐˜ช๐˜ญ๐˜ฅ๐˜ฉ๐˜ฐ๐˜ฐ๐˜ฅ, ๐˜ด๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ช๐˜ฎ๐˜ฎ๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ๐˜ด๐˜ฆ๐˜ฅ ๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ๐˜ด๐˜ฆ๐˜ญ๐˜ง ๐˜ช๐˜ฏ๐˜ต๐˜ฐ ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ฃ๐˜ฐ๐˜ฐ๐˜ฌ๐˜ด, ๐˜ฅ๐˜ข๐˜บ ๐˜ข๐˜ฏ๐˜ฅ ๐˜ฏ๐˜ช๐˜จ๐˜ฉ๐˜ต, ๐˜ฏ๐˜ฆ๐˜ท๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ ๐˜ญ๐˜ฆ๐˜ข๐˜ท๐˜ช๐˜ฏ๐˜จ ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ๐˜ช๐˜ณ ๐˜ด๐˜ช๐˜ฅ๐˜ฆ. ๐˜๐˜ต ๐˜ฅ๐˜ช๐˜ฅ๐˜ฏ'๐˜ต ๐˜ต๐˜ข๐˜ฌ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ญ๐˜ฐ๐˜ฏ๐˜จ ๐˜ง๐˜ฐ๐˜ณ ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ๐˜ช๐˜ณ ๐˜ต๐˜ณ๐˜ฆ๐˜ข๐˜ด๐˜ถ๐˜ณ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฅ ๐˜ณ๐˜ฆ๐˜ญ๐˜ข๐˜ต๐˜ช๐˜ฐ๐˜ฏ๐˜ด๐˜ฉ๐˜ช๐˜ฑ ๐˜ต๐˜ฐ ๐˜ณ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฌ๐˜ช๐˜ฏ๐˜ฅ๐˜ญ๐˜ฆ. ๐˜›๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ฃ๐˜ฐ๐˜ฐ๐˜ฌ๐˜ด ๐˜ธ๐˜ฆ๐˜ญ๐˜ค๐˜ฐ๐˜ฎ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฅ ๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ ๐˜ฃ๐˜ข๐˜ค๐˜ฌ ๐˜ธ๐˜ช๐˜ต๐˜ฉ ๐˜ฐ๐˜ฑ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฏ ๐˜ข๐˜ณ๐˜ฎ๐˜ด ๐˜ธ๐˜ช๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ฐ๐˜ถ๐˜ต ๐˜ซ๐˜ถ๐˜ฅ๐˜จ๐˜ช๐˜ฏ๐˜จ ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ฑ๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ๐˜ด๐˜ฐ๐˜ฏ ๐˜ด๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ'๐˜ฅ ๐˜ฃ๐˜ฆ๐˜ค๐˜ฐ๐˜ฎ๐˜ฆ, ๐˜ข๐˜ฏ๐˜ฅ ๐˜ข๐˜ค๐˜ค๐˜ฆ๐˜ฑ๐˜ต๐˜ฆ๐˜ฅ ๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ ๐˜ง๐˜ฐ๐˜ณ ๐˜ธ๐˜ฉ๐˜ฐ ๐˜ด๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ธ๐˜ข๐˜ด.

โ€ข

๐˜‰๐˜ฐ๐˜ฐ๐˜ฌ๐˜ด ๐˜ข๐˜ณ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ฏ๐˜ฐ๐˜ต ๐˜ฎ๐˜ฆ๐˜ข๐˜ฏ๐˜ต ๐˜ต๐˜ฐ ๐˜ณ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฎ๐˜ข๐˜ช๐˜ฏ ๐˜ช๐˜ฏ ๐˜บ๐˜ฐ๐˜ถ๐˜ณ ๐˜ฎ๐˜ช๐˜ฏ๐˜ฅ, ๐˜ฃ๐˜ถ๐˜ต ๐˜ช๐˜ฏ ๐˜บ๐˜ฐ๐˜ถ๐˜ณ ๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ๐˜ข๐˜ณ๐˜ต. ๐˜”๐˜ข๐˜บ๐˜ฃ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ๐˜บ ๐˜ฆ๐˜น๐˜ช๐˜ด๐˜ต ๐˜ช๐˜ฏ ๐˜บ๐˜ฐ๐˜ถ๐˜ณ ๐˜ฎ๐˜ช๐˜ฏ๐˜ฅ ๐˜ต๐˜ฐ๐˜ฐ, ๐˜ฃ๐˜ถ๐˜ต ๐˜ข๐˜ด ๐˜ด๐˜ฐ๐˜ฎ๐˜ฆ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ช๐˜ฏ๐˜จ ๐˜ฎ๐˜ฐ๐˜ณ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ข๐˜ฏ ๐˜ฎ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฎ๐˜ฐ๐˜ณ๐˜ช๐˜ฆ๐˜ด. ๐˜ˆ๐˜ต ๐˜ข ๐˜ค๐˜ณ๐˜ฐ๐˜ด๐˜ด๐˜ณ๐˜ฐ๐˜ข๐˜ฅ๐˜ด ๐˜ช๐˜ฏ ๐˜ญ๐˜ช๐˜ง๐˜ฆ, ๐˜ข ๐˜ง๐˜ฐ๐˜ณ๐˜จ๐˜ฐ๐˜ต๐˜ต๐˜ฆ๐˜ฏ ๐˜ด๐˜ฆ๐˜ฏ๐˜ต๐˜ฆ๐˜ฏ๐˜ค๐˜ฆ ๐˜ฐ๐˜ณ ๐˜ข ๐˜ด๐˜ต๐˜ฐ๐˜ณ๐˜บ ๐˜ง๐˜ณ๐˜ฐ๐˜ฎ ๐˜บ๐˜ฆ๐˜ข๐˜ณ๐˜ด ๐˜ข๐˜จ๐˜ฐ ๐˜ค๐˜ข๐˜ฏ ๐˜ค๐˜ฐ๐˜ฎ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ฃ๐˜ข๐˜ค๐˜ฌ ๐˜ต๐˜ฐ ๐˜ฐ๐˜ง๐˜ง๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ ๐˜ข๐˜ฏ ๐˜ช๐˜ฏ๐˜ท๐˜ช๐˜ด๐˜ช๐˜ฃ๐˜ญ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ฉ๐˜ข๐˜ฏ๐˜ฅ ๐˜ข๐˜ฏ๐˜ฅ ๐˜จ๐˜ถ๐˜ช๐˜ฅ๐˜ฆ ๐˜บ๐˜ฐ๐˜ถ ๐˜ต๐˜ฐ ๐˜ข ๐˜ฅ๐˜ฆ๐˜ค๐˜ช๐˜ด๐˜ช๐˜ฐ๐˜ฏ. ๐˜—๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ๐˜ด๐˜ฐ๐˜ฏ๐˜ข๐˜ญ๐˜ญ๐˜บ, ๐˜ ๐˜ง๐˜ฆ๐˜ฆ๐˜ญ ๐˜ญ๐˜ช๐˜ฌ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ฃ๐˜ฐ๐˜ฐ๐˜ฌ๐˜ด ๐˜'๐˜ท๐˜ฆ ๐˜ณ๐˜ฆ๐˜ข๐˜ฅ ๐˜ญ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฅ ๐˜ฎ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ต๐˜ฐ ๐˜ฎ๐˜ข๐˜ฌ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ค๐˜ฉ๐˜ฐ๐˜ช๐˜ค๐˜ฆ๐˜ด ๐˜'๐˜ท๐˜ฆ ๐˜ฎ๐˜ข๐˜ฅ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ช๐˜ฏ ๐˜ญ๐˜ช๐˜ง๐˜ฆ. ๐˜ž๐˜ฉ๐˜ช๐˜ญ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ ๐˜ฎ๐˜ข๐˜บ ๐˜ฏ๐˜ฐ๐˜ต ๐˜ณ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฎ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฎ๐˜ฃ๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ ๐˜ข๐˜ญ๐˜ญ ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ฅ๐˜ฆ๐˜ต๐˜ข๐˜ช๐˜ญ๐˜ด, ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ด๐˜ต๐˜ฐ๐˜ณ๐˜ช๐˜ฆ๐˜ด ๐˜ค๐˜ฐ๐˜ฏ๐˜ต๐˜ช๐˜ฏ๐˜ถ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ต๐˜ฐ ๐˜ฆ๐˜น๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ๐˜ต ๐˜ข ๐˜ฒ๐˜ถ๐˜ช๐˜ฆ๐˜ต ๐˜ช๐˜ฏ๐˜ง๐˜ญ๐˜ถ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฏ๐˜ค๐˜ฆ ๐˜ฐ๐˜ฏ ๐˜ฎ๐˜ฆ.
The No-Girlfriend Rule by Christen Randall

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emotional funny lighthearted reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5


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The Cheat Sheet by Sarah Adams

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funny lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.75

Out with the Tide by Julie Olivia

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funny lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0


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The Inmate by Freida McFadden

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dark mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0


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Off the Hook by Julie Olivia

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emotional funny lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

๐˜ž๐˜ช๐˜ต๐˜ฉ ๐˜ž๐˜ฆ๐˜ฏ๐˜ฅ๐˜บ, ๐˜ญ๐˜ช๐˜ง๐˜ฆ ๐˜ด๐˜ช๐˜ฎ๐˜ฑ๐˜ญ๐˜บ ๐˜ง๐˜ฆ๐˜ฆ๐˜ญ๐˜ด ๐˜ญ๐˜ช๐˜ฌ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ข๐˜ฏ ๐˜ข๐˜ธ๐˜ง๐˜ถ๐˜ญ๐˜ญ๐˜บ ๐˜ฃ๐˜ช๐˜จ ๐˜ข๐˜ฅ๐˜ท๐˜ฆ๐˜ฏ๐˜ต๐˜ถ๐˜ณ๐˜ฆ.

Gosh, I have so much love for this book. I watched the 2003 Peter Pan film so many times as a kid that I knew every line by heart. So to have a romance story inspired by the beloved fairytale and film I already knew it would resonate with meโ€”but I wasnโ€™t prepared for just how much!

I went into this story without knowing a lot, and some of the plot choices Julie crafted genuinely took me by surprise (in the best way!). So, I wonโ€™t spoil anything for you.

Off the Hook is an enchanting romance that captured my heart from the very first chapter. The story is ๐—ถ๐—ป๐˜€๐—ฝ๐—ถ๐—ฟ๐—ฒ๐—ฑ by Peter Pan but very loosely, making it a fresh and unique story. 

I absolutely adored Jasper and Wendy! Jasper is the quintessential grumpโ€”living on the outskirts of town with his adorable son, Sam (who is just too precious for words!), and preferring his solitude. Wendy, on the other hand, is loved by everyone she meets.

I wasnโ€™t sure Iโ€™d enjoy the ex-fiancรฉeโ€™s older brother trope, as I typically shy away from romances that complicate sibling relationships, but Julie handled it with such care. The slow-burn nature of Jasper and Wendyโ€™s relationship made me appreciate how thoughtfully they navigated their feelings, considering how it would impact the entire family before taking any steps forward.

๐˜๐˜ต'๐˜ด ๐˜ข๐˜ญ๐˜ธ๐˜ข๐˜บ๐˜ด ๐˜ซ๐˜ถ๐˜ด๐˜ต ๐˜ฃ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฏ ๐˜‘๐˜ข๐˜ด๐˜ฑ๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ. ๐˜‰๐˜ฆ๐˜ค๐˜ข๐˜ถ๐˜ด๐˜ฆ ๐˜'๐˜ฅ ๐˜ค๐˜ฉ๐˜ฐ๐˜ฐ๐˜ด๐˜ฆ ๐˜ฉ๐˜ช๐˜ฎ ๐˜ฆ๐˜ท๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ๐˜บ ๐˜ต๐˜ช๐˜ฎ๐˜ฆ. ๐˜๐˜ฏ ๐˜ข๐˜ฏ๐˜บ ๐˜ณ๐˜ฆ๐˜ข๐˜ญ๐˜ช๐˜ต๐˜บ. ๐˜๐˜ฏ ๐˜ข๐˜ฏ๐˜บ ๐˜ง๐˜ข๐˜ฏ๐˜ต๐˜ข๐˜ด๐˜บ. ๐˜๐˜ฏ ๐˜ฆ๐˜ท๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ๐˜บ ๐˜ง๐˜ข๐˜ช๐˜ณ๐˜บ ๐˜ต๐˜ข๐˜ญ๐˜ฆ.

And I just HAVE to gush about the cliff-diving sceneโ€”itโ€™s easily one of my top favorite romance moments. The tension, the passionโ€”everything about it was perfect. I even had to make a graphic of it, because it was sooo good! 

Julie's writing is brimming with passion. With every chapter, I felt like I was wandering the streets of Never Harbor. The subtle nods to the 2003 Peter Pan film brought back so much nostalgia, yet the story felt fresh and wholly original.

Read if you love:
๐Ÿฆ Peter Pan (specifically the 2003 film!)
๐Ÿช Hook x Wendy
๐Ÿฆ single dad + nanny
๐Ÿช grumpy x sunshine
๐Ÿฆ ex-fiancรฉe's older brother 
๐Ÿช small town
๐Ÿฆ slow burn


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