spellbindingtomes's reviews
330 reviews

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𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘐 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘣𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘬. 𝘈 𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘴 𝘣𝘶𝘳𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘮𝘦. 𝘐’𝘮 𝘣𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘨𝘢𝘴𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘢𝘪𝘳 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘮𝘶𝘴𝘤𝘭𝘦 𝘐 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘥𝘰𝘸𝘯, 𝘵𝘳𝘺𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘲𝘶𝘦𝘦𝘻𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘱𝘢𝘪𝘯 𝘤𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘰𝘧 𝘮𝘦 𝘴𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘐 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦. 𝘉𝘦𝘤𝘢𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘐 𝘸𝘰𝘯’𝘵 𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘷𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘪𝘧 𝘪𝘵 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘺𝘴. 𝘏𝘰𝘸 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘢𝘯𝘺𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴? 𝘏𝘰𝘸 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘐 𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴?

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𝘎𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘧 𝘪𝘴 𝘢 𝘳𝘦𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘱. 𝘐𝘵’𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘸𝘦 𝘧𝘪𝘨𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘵𝘰 𝘬𝘦𝘦𝘱 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺’𝘳𝘦 𝘨𝘰𝘯𝘦. 𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘰𝘳𝘥𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘰 𝘥𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘬𝘦𝘦𝘱 𝘰𝘯 𝘨𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘨. 𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘨𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘨𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘨.

My favorite romance of 2024 AND my first infinity star rating!? 💖

When grief-stricken Lenny takes a babysitting job to survive after losing her best friend to cancer, she doesn't expect to find healing in the form of her charge's grumpy uncle. Miles Honey sees right through her "I'm fine" act & offers a deal: he'll help her complete her "live again" list if she helps him reconnect with his family.

What follows is pure Cara Bastone magic. Somehow Cara balances soul-crushing grief with moments that make you laugh out loud, creating something incredibly special & that will stay with me for a very long time. 

I really love Cara's FMCs. Lenny is the kind of character I wish I could be friends with in real life - hilariously real, refreshingly honest, & somehow managing to be both a total mess & completely lovable while navigating her grief. 

And Miles isn't just another grumpy MMC - he's the kind of character who knows exactly when to offer a shoulder, when to crack a joke, & when to just silently show up with food. The way he shows up for Lenny, no questions asked, has officially placed him as my favorite MMC.

The slow burn here is absolute perfection. I could read an entire book on Miles & Lenny's interactions alone. Their conversations with each other had me cracking up so many times. I really appreciated that the focus was on Lenny's grief & healing, but we can still see how their friendship truly transformed into something more. Every moment between them felt earned.

This isn't just a romance - it's a story about friendship & how sometimes the end of one chapter can lead to the most unexpected & beautiful beginning. I really can't wait until more people read this gem. If you loved Eve & Shep from Ready or Not, Lenny & Miles will absolutely steal your heart.

Thank you to NetGalley & Dial Press for this ARC. 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗺𝗶𝘀𝗲 𝗠𝗲 𝗦𝘂𝗻𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗽𝘂𝗯𝗹𝗶𝘀𝗵𝗲𝘀 𝗼𝗻 𝟯/𝟰!

What to expect:
☀️ slow-burn
🌅 grief & healing
☀️ friends to lovers
🌅 grumpy x sunshine 

𝘐 𝘤𝘢𝘯'𝘵 𝘨𝘦𝘵 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘧𝘭𝘢𝘷𝘰𝘳 𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘮𝘺 𝘮𝘰𝘶𝘵𝘩. 𝘐 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘻𝘦 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘐'𝘷𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘵𝘳𝘺𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘪𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨. 𝘚𝘩𝘦 𝘪𝘴𝘯'𝘵 𝘤𝘪𝘯𝘯𝘢𝘮𝘰𝘯. 𝘚𝘩𝘦'𝘴 𝘩𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘺 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘐 𝘯𝘦𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘦 𝘪𝘵 𝘢𝘨𝘢𝘪𝘯.

𝐌𝐢𝐧𝐢 𝐒𝐲𝐧𝐨𝐩𝐬𝐢𝐬:
Recently divorced Michelle takes over her mother's B&B in Copper Run, Vermont, planning to stay only three months. She struggles to adjust but finds herself drawn to her charming, single-dad neighbor Cliff, despite her impending departure. Set in autumn 1997, this small-town romance explores their growing connection as friends and potential lovers.
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Julie Olivia does it again! If you're looking for a cozy romance to snuggle up with this Fall, look no further. If it Makes You Happy is incredibly cute and captures the essence of small-town charm that Julie is known for expertly crafting.

Reading this book felt like taking a stroll through Copper Run, waving hi to Lisa and George, stopping by Michelle's B&B for coffee, and joining the line at Cliff's bakery for some mouthwatering apple fritters. The side characters are as much a part of the story as the main couple, and I adored each one (though I have to admit, Rocket stole my heart!).

Set in 1997, this book is a nostalgic throwback filled with 90s references that'll make you smile. Julie describes it as Gilmore Girls meets When Harry Met Sally, and while I haven't watched either, I know they're beloved by many – and this book is destined to be just as cherished.

The slow-burn, friends-to-lovers romance between Michelle and Cliff unfolded beautifully. I loved seeing their relationship blossom with each interaction. What truly captivated me was Michelle's gradual integration into the Burke family. Watching her win over not just Cliff's heart, but also earning a special place in his daughters' lives, added so much warmth to this already heartfelt story. Their journey from neighbors to something more is paced perfectly.

If this isn't on your Fall romance TBR yet, go add it now. The best part? It's available TODAY! Trust me, this is one autumn read you don't want to miss.

Thank you Julie and Pen Pal PR for this e-ARC!

Read if you love:
🍂 cozy Fall vibes
🥧 nosy, but endearing small town
🍂 single, baker dad
🥧 1990s
🍂 golden retriever x black cat 
🥧 slow burn friends to lovers 

𝘐𝘯 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘸𝘦 𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘵𝘸𝘰 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘢𝘭𝘴, 𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥 𝘣𝘺 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘳𝘰𝘭𝘦𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘩𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘧𝘭𝘪𝘤𝘬𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘥 𝘣𝘦𝘵𝘸𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘶𝘴 𝘧𝘦𝘭𝘵 𝘴𝘰 𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘳𝘪𝘣𝘭𝘺 𝘧𝘳𝘢𝘨𝘪𝘭𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘪𝘮𝘮𝘰𝘷𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘸𝘦𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘮𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘴, 𝘰𝘧 𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘥𝘰𝘮𝘴, 𝘰𝘧 𝘸𝘢𝘳.

𝐌𝐢𝐧𝐢 𝐒𝐲𝐧𝐨𝐩𝐬𝐢𝐬:
Inspired by the legend of Xishi, one of ancient China's Four Beauties, this novel follows a young woman's journey as she becomes a spy to save her kingdom. Trained by military advisor Fanli, Xishi infiltrates the rival Wu palace to seduce & weaken their king. As she navigates court politics & her growing feelings for Fanli, Xishi must maintain her cover or risk the destruction of both kingdoms.
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Ann Liang's retelling of Xishi's legend is a breathtaking journey through ancient China's political landscape. Her writing paints such a vivid world, bringing to life the struggles of women in a male-dominated society.

The intricate dance of courtly politics & espionage was brilliantly executed, contrasted with the forbidden romance & pining between Xishi & Fanli added so much more to this already emotional story. 

𝘏𝘰𝘸 𝘪𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘪𝘤 𝘪𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘴, 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘸𝘦 𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵, 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘐 𝘸𝘪𝘴𝘩𝘦𝘥 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘩𝘪𝘮. 𝘠𝘦𝘵 𝘢𝘴 𝘴𝘰𝘰𝘯 𝘢𝘴 𝘸𝘦 𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘶𝘯𝘪𝘵𝘦𝘥, 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘸𝘦 𝘥𝘪𝘥 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘵𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘦𝘢𝘤𝘩 𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘰 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘷𝘦.

This isn't just historical fiction; it's a captivating experience that will resonate long after the final page. Prepare for a harrowing odyssey through love, duty, & self-discovery. 

Fair warning: it's emotionally intense and gut-wrenching at times. I have not fully recovered as of posting this review ❤️‍🩹 but Ann has truly elevated her craft, cementing her status as a must-read author of mine.

If you loved I Hope This Doesn't Find You, prepare for something totally different but equally amazing ✨

Read if you love:
🏮 ancient Chinese legend retelling
🪷 strongly written FMCs
🏮 forbidden romance
🪷 star-crossed lovers
🏮 espionage