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Merissa (14142 KP) rated Odriel's Heirs (Odriel's Heirs #1) in Books

Jul 29, 2021 (Updated Jul 17, 2023)  
Odriel's Heirs (Odriel's Heirs #1)
Odriel's Heirs (Odriel's Heirs #1)
Hayley Reese Chow | 2020 | Science Fiction/Fantasy, Young Adult (YA)
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
ODRIEL'S HEIRS is the first book in the series of the same name, and we are introduced to a fantasy world where the Heirs are there to protect the people, even when the people no longer believe in them.

Kaia is only seventeen and wants to be a normal girl. She is the Dragon's Heir by only six minutes, being the first-born of a set of twins. She gets on well with Time's Heir, Jago, but not so much with the Shadow's Heir, Klaus. Of course, I was immediately hoping for something to happen, because, you know, it's me.

I was swept away in a world familiar to me and yet so different. I loved the names of the animals, giving me unique creatures that were, at the same time, familiar. The world-building is second to none and the vistas were amazing.

There is a romantic element between Kaia and Klaus but it doesn't take over the whole story - just enough to keep me happy. They are ably supported by a host of characters with their own foibles. Most of whom I liked, some I loved, and some I loathed.

This was an emotional read and I will admit to having tears in my eyes on more than one occasion. I won't say more as I don't want to spoil it for anyone else, but it was everything I could have wished for, even as my heart broke.

A fabulous start to a series that I have loved and have no hesitation in recommending. Absolutely fantastic!

** same worded review will appear elsewhere **

* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book, and the comments here are my honest opinion. *

Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
Jul 28, 2021
  
Stronger Than Longing (Chesapeake Days #3)
Stronger Than Longing (Chesapeake Days #3)
Katherine McIntyre | 2022 | Contemporary, LGBTQ+, Romance
10
9.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
Scorching hot and full of emotions - I'm not ready to say goodbye!
STRONGER THAN LONGING is the third and final book in the Chesapeake Days series and features Nico's brother, Taran, as one of our main characters. It starts with him being dumped for being too geeky and too boring. Along comes Silas, newly back in town, to help revive his flagging... confidence.

Both Silas and Taran have their issues to deal with which, in turn, affects how they deal with each other. There was going to be a blow-up at some point, I knew that, it was just a matter of when. In the meantime, until that happened, I got an eyeful of tentative longing, sarcastic wit, and geeky flirting, and I loved every minute of it. These two are H.O.T. both in and out of the sheets.

As always, Ms McIntyre's characters are lifelike and loveable. The situations are not far-fetched, and love wins the day. This makes my hopeless romantic heart happy.

I have loved the Chesapeake Days series and was inconsolable (as I just wasn't ready to let it go) until I read that there will be a spin-off series called Chesapeake Nights. That put the smile back on my face so now I just have to wait patiently!

A brilliant addition to the series that I highly recommend. But read the others first - not because you have to but because you'll miss out on two other fantastic stories if you don't!

** same worded review will appear elsewhere **

* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book, and the comments here are my honest opinion. *

Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
  
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KittyMiku (138 KP) rated Playing Games in Books

May 23, 2019  
Playing Games
Playing Games
5
5.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Playing Games by Liliana Rhodes is a romance novel that is short and quick to read. Cassie Monroe needs a job and when her roommate helps get her into her dream job, she finds herself falling for her boss. Torn between her dream and her heart, Cassie has to find a happy medium to get all that she wants, but will it be as easy as that? Especially since there is another woman already in his life, will Cassie be able to overcome that or will she have to back down? Cassie will have to realize that love is unpredictable and sometimes has a few strings attached.



Rhodes is able to give the reader a great romance story that won’t take forever to read. However, I found it very anticlimactic and would have loved the extra drama that could be introduced but never was. Though the book was short and only a couple hours if that of reading and lacked the drama most good romance novels have, it does introduce characters that seem to be a part of Rhodes Billionaire novels that she has created and released as a series. If this book is any foreshadowing, I feel that the other books will be a bit disappointing.



I believe I found the part revolving around the other woman and the situation the Cassie’s lover is in to be extremely relatable. After all not, not everyone can enter a relationship without something for the past being there. To see how hard it is to trust someone else with something that means the world to you, made the book feel like it was speaking from the heart. Then you get to see how something that could seem so major to others would not be a huge deal to the person who loves you. I would have loved to read more about the family Cassie adopts as her own instead of it ending only to move onto the next couple in the series. I believe that there could be more added onto this book by adding some additional details and maybe adding a little more conflict to the characters instead of having that love at first sight situation.



The details in the book were well enough that it was able to be easily followed, however with lack of a major conflict and drama that could have kept it completely entertaining; I would not recommend this book to many people. In fact, I believe the book only made 2 stars on my 4 star rating lists. Yes it satisfied my weird need of romance, but it also left something to be desired. I really would have loved more in the book and feel that maybe it was rushed or not well thought about. The idea was great, but the execution wasn’t all that it could have been. I am even now finding it difficult to write this review as the review itself isn’t as long as I would like it to be.



However, even with these flaws, that make it low in my own tastes, I believe Playing Games could be a good book to those who don’t like to read for long session. If you are looking for a quick book to read that has that romantic air to it, the Playing Games is right up your alley. It doesn’t take more than a couple hours to read, has the romantic gestures and the idea of love being unpredictable, and pretty straightforward without the drama. If this sounds like the perfect book to you, please feel free to go grab it. I got my copy on Amazon for my kindle.
  
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Haley Mathiot (9 KP) rated Triangles in Books

Apr 27, 2018  
Triangles
Triangles
Ellen Hopkins | 2012 | Fiction & Poetry
10
8.7 (3 Ratings)
Book Rating
The thing about Ellen Hopkins is she writes about the stuff that everyone knows happens, but nobody is willing to admit to. She gives emotion and reason to why people make the choices we do, and what they feel like in the middle of a messy hurtful situation. She is the opposite of happyland syndrome. She tells it how it is.

I had read a little bit of Hopkins's work before: I started Crank (When I say started I mean read the first few pages) and loved it, but I was busy and never got the chance to get into it. But I got an ARC of Triangles, so I sat down and read it—and after one page I was hooked.

If you've been reading my blog at all, you know I'm not a person who likes stories about love gone wrong and marriages failing and extramarital sex etc. because I'm a Christian, and a romantic, and a softie (read 'wimp'). But I went ahead and dove into this book, because I knew Hopkins is a good writer.

It surpassed my expectations. I should have expected her to be this awesome, since obviously she's pretty famous and everyone else figured it out before I did, but I really am blown away, not only by her blunt yet graceful storytelling, but by her nerve to tackle the stories nobody wants to tell: a dying child, a gay son, a pregnant teen, sexual disease, threesomes, a woman sleeping with her best friend's husband… it's all in here. Yet, it's not plot overkill. She made it work. Somehow.

Though, be warned. Since she does say it like it is, this book is not for the easily offended. But if you're willing to look past the content, there's a gem waiting for you about forgiveness, hope, and what love really means.

Content/recommendation: explicit sexual content, swearing. Ages 18+