093 ☆

[tinkaton]

I should probably do these reading round-ups monthly rather than every two months, but I hadn't realized how much I got through this May and June! 6 books and 4 graphic novels!




FICTION

But Not Too Bold by Hache Pueyo (★★★★☆) [goodreads]

Horror Romance. A gothic horror f/f romance with a spider lady that could probably have used more of all those genres, but it being a novella at only ~100 pages, I'll take what I can get. It was an enjoyable read, only took me a couple days to finish but could easily be read in one sitting. Anatema's weirdness was a delight and her interactions with Dalia were the highlight of the book. It had a surprisingly happy ending that leaned more toward the romance genre than the gothic horror genre, but I liked it. Could have done without the random heterosexualism in there though. What was up with that.

The Duke at Hazard by K.J. Charles (★★★★★) [goodreads]

Historical Romance. A duke is robbed of his heirloom ring after a one-night stand with a stranger, so he travels incognito around England with the help of a disgraced gentleman in an attempt to retrieve it.

KJ Charles save me.... Save me KJ Charles... I think this is my first 5 star of the year? I just enjoyed returning to my roots of historical romance novels that don't take me two and a half weeks to read lmao. This was a fast-paced adventure with charming characters and a sweet romance. Cassian and Daizell were my favorites, of course, but the side characters were all fun too and I enjoyed seeing how everything fell into place at the end.

The random somno kink coming up out of nowhere really took me out though lmao, literally the last thing I expected to stumble across in a regular historical romance. Props for originality??

A Drop of Corruption by Robert Jackson Bennett (★★★★☆) [goodreads]

Fantasy Mystery. Ana and Din are back investigating the murder of a Treasury officer that seems to have disappeared into thin air, but it's soon revealed to be part of a larger plot targeting the mysterious island known as the Shroud, where the Empire harvests fallen Titans for the magical blood that keeps the Empire running.

This was just as enjoyable as the first one! I think I liked the mystery in this a little better, actually. It felt larger, had a bit of a locked room mystery to parts of it which I always enjoy, and just overall was more intriguing imo.

But same as the first book, the characters and world building were the most fun parts for me. I'm glad we got a bit more info about Ana (though of course only just enough to leave the juicy details for book 3!) and her interactions with Din were great. Malo was a fun addition to the cast, she was probably my favorite of the new characters. The Shroud and the augurs were both fascinating, and the stuff with the titan's blood had a very cool "Annihilation" vibe to it.

The Gentleman and His Vowsmith by Rebecca Ide (★★★☆☆) [goodreads]

Historical Fantasy Mystery Romance. Yes that's a lot lmao. Lord Nicholas, the heir to a crumbling ducal house must marry Lady Leaf to secure a fortune, and the head magical negotiator of the arrangement is his ex-boyfriend Dashiell. Locked into the manor while the contract is negotiated, dead bodies begin piling up...

This had a promising setup but the execution was a bit muddled. I looove a historical-fantasy-romance, but I feel like this could have had more of the latter two. The mystery was interesting enough, I do enjoy a locked-room sort of mystery, but by the end it felt like the romance took a backseat to all the drama going on. Honestly, Nic and Leaf's interactions were more fun than Nic and Dashiell's. For a second-chance romance, there could have been a little more actual second-chancing? And the drama with the parents was more interesting than their drama tbh.

Overall it was an okay read, I guess I don't have strong feelings either way. I wouldn't be opposed to reading something this author comes out with in future though.

The Nightmare Before Kissmas by Sara Raasch (★★★☆☆) [goodreads]

Contemporary Romance. This is blurbed as Red, White, & Royal Blue meets Nightmare Before Christmas, and like. Yeah. That's it lmao. Christmas Prince Coal is set to marry his best friend Iris the Easter Princess in a marriage arranged by his overbearing father, something neither of them wants. To make matters worse, Halloween Prince Hex arrives to 'compete' for Iris's hand, but Coal and Hex are more interested in each other than any fake competition.

Perfectly average contemporary romance novel. They referenced Thor: Ragnarok in this and I was reminded why I don't read contemporary romance novels. The premise is fun and silly, honestly I enjoy how cheesy the worldbuilding is. But the actual plot was lackluster--there's no real conflict in the romance until the very end, and the Holiday politics stuff isn't that exciting. I was kind of zoning out toward the end there. I do agree this had the same kind of vibe as Red, White & Royal Blue, and as such I think it would also be better as a movie the way RW&RB was.

Also spoilers for a side pairing:

click for spoilers

I can't believe Iris/Kris didn't happen?? I mean I knew it because the second book is already out featuring Kris and anyway I wasn't even invested in them getting together, but it seems silly to even bother with it as a side plot if it was never going to happen. If Iris doesn't get with some Valentines princess or something in book three I'm gonna lose it.

Don't Let Me Go by Kevin Christopher Snipes(★★☆☆☆) [goodreads]

Contemporary Romance. Two teens in modern day Florida discover the dreams they're having of past lives together are real. Yet if their cycle of reincarnation isn't broken, tragedy may strike...

I have GOT to listen to myself and stop reading contemporary romances!! Unfortunately I am a huge sucker for reincarnation and soulmate tropes, so here I am again. Sadly this one just didn't work for me. The reincarnation stuff barely featured until the last 30%-ish of the book, the majority of the characters were all written like stereotypical chronically online queer kids who are constantly lecturing people, and I feel like this being a YA book was an overall hindrance. Maybe I'm just old but them only being 18 and being like 'ohhh we're so in love even though we met 2 weeks ago we're soulmates' is mostly just eyeroll worthy even though if the exact same premise was used for a fanfic AU of my middle aged blorbos I would be eating it up.

Also. Major spoilers for the very end but

click for spoilers

why did they die in the most ridiculous possible way at the end sjdhfksjfs like their past lives died in the Vesuvius eruption and WWII bombings!! Like tragic serious shit. Being crushed to death under a collapsing knockoff of Space Mountain is sooooo funny holy shit.

GRAPHIC NOVELS

Youth Group by Jordan Morris & Bowen McCurdy (★★★☆☆) [goodreads]

Contemporary Fantasy. A YA graphic novel about a teen whose mom makes her join an Evangelical youth group only to find out they exorcise demons in their spare time. The art is cute and the premise has a bit of a Buffy the Vampire Slayer vibe to it. There's a lot going on in a fairly short amount of pages and I would've liked to learn more about the characters, but overall it wasn't bad.

Saga Vol. 12 by Brian K. Vaughan & Fiona Staples (★★★☆☆) [goodreads]

Fantasy. Keeping up with the individual issues is impossible so waiting for the collected volumes it is. Nothing crazy happens in this volume so uhh *spins wheel* 3.5 maybe? Still good but not as good as it used to be, it feels.

Also Petrichor ❤️❤️❤️

Strange Bedfellows by Ariel Slamet Ries (★★★★☆) [goodreads]

Sci-Fi. A YA graphic novel about a young trans college dropout who suddenly gains the power to manifest things from his dreams. Powers aren't unusual in this futuristic society--all his siblings have them--but Oberon's powers have appeared late, and along with them comes a conjured version of his high school crush Kon, who he hasn't seen in years. Now Oberon has to deal with all the usual young adult problems: family, friends, anxiety, what to do with his life, and learning how to control his new powers.

The art in this book is really dreamy, and the coloring is especially pretty. My main critique is that sometimes it's hard to tell what's going on in the really complex pages, and the word bubbles are kind of hard to follow sometimes. But other than that I enjoyed this book, it felt like the right balance of slice of life and sci-fi problems.

Suitor Armor Vol. 2 by Purpah (★★★★☆) [goodreads]

Fantasy Romance. The comic about a fairy lady who falls in love with a magical sentient suit of armor. Like a lot of Webtoons the plot is moving kind of slow for being two volumes in, but we do get some drama starting to brew in this one. There's deeper interaction between Lucia and Modeus as Modeus learns more about fun things like emotions and death. Overall I'm still curious to see where this goes and learn more about Lucia's backstory, which was hinted at in this volume.