u/apieceofeight

This is by Helen Scheuerer and is slated to come out September 22, 2026.

I was a bit hesitant to request this ARC. I liked the first couple Legends of Thezmarr books, but I felt like the ones about Wren were just really poorly written and had a lot of plot holes.

The premise of this one was interesting. FMC is a book binder who has a shop restoring books. MMC is of a warrior race needing new help. They enter into a bargain. The beginning was intriguing because it was from MMC’s POV. Their POVs alter every chapter. MMC was a little bit of the broody stereotype but FMC was not an overly sassy/brash lead. She’s just a woman trying to survive, though she makes terrible decisions imo. I felt like with her friends she acted differently (quieter, more stoic) than she did with MMC, which was flirty at times, a little too chatty, etc. Their relationship was definitely insta lust but there’s a reason for it. I do feel like their interactions got repetitive for a bit. The author tried to insert banter between them and sometimes it was fine, but the rest it fell flat for me.

Moving on: the writing was okay. Some usage of modern slang which I wasn’t a fan of, but it didn’t happen super often. The world building was good. I’m keen to learn more about the houses in later books. Magic system is also neat, though again kinda want more about it in the next book.

All in all, I thought this was okay but could definitely use some polish. I give it like a 3.5 and will read the next book because I’m invested now.

This is by Maria Z. Medina and is slated to come out December 8, 2026.

A week or so ago, I posted a review of book 1, which had been sitting on my TBR. I posted that it was very plot forward with romance so minuscule it might as well have not been there. I am pleased to tell you that this book remained plot heavy, but the romance increased.

At the end of book 1, I really wanted to know what happened next because I liked the cast of characters. FMC Azul del Arroyo is scrappy and so warm hearted. Enjul was rigid, but you could tell by book 2 that he made a lasting impact on Azul’s growth as a character. And she did grow.

The rest of the characters were equally engaging. I don’t often like side characters because they’re not well developed. In this duo, the story is told through multiple POVs. I will say book 2 still is told through multiple POVs, but on a lesser scale. Delving into the side characters profiles, even for a bit, gives you insight into them and makes them more real instead of 2 dimensional figures.

Anyway, I digress. The plot continued to be good. Some parts of it were predictable, but I liked it. I did feel like some things happened too fast/without warning, so the pacing wasn’t 100% there. I also felt like the author could have made this into 3 books (or more) had she wanted, but I appreciate that she didn’t drag this out or insert a bunch of filler.

Book 2 wraps up all the open plot points beautifully. The ending is also realistic and mature. I really like where she went with this. And wholeheartedly recommend it.

This was a 5 star read for me.

It’s in the mall on the 4th floor of terminal 2. I think it’ll be going on til September.

Happy fanart Friday! I loved seeing everyone’s contributions last month and learning about so many new artists!

What’s been your favorite piece of fanart you’ve seen this month? Is it new, or have you rediscovered a past favorite? Please share and make sure to credit the artist (:

On my end, I fell in love with the art from the Hurricane Wars and Monsoon Rising books, particularly though the Monsoon Rising Fairyloot books. The cover and endpapers reminded me of my time in Southeast Asia and the colors are absolutely beautiful!

This art is by Kelly Chong a/k/a @afterblossom_art on instagram.

PS a lil bird told me the author, Thea Guanzon, will be popping on over here on October 13, 2026 to do an AMA for us (;

Please share your favorite pieces and make sure to credit the artist 💗💗💗

This is by Vasilisa Drake and is slated to come out August 4, 2026.

This book has a pretty solid 4 star rating on netgalley and has a lot of 4 and 5 star reviews. I felt like if you’re looking for a basic Romantasy book, this is a solid contender.

The writing is decent — not a lot of juvenile lines or use of modern slang. The beginning is enough of a hook, but also not unique or novel for this genre. The worldbuilding is okay. You explore a few places (seems like it only takes 2-3 days to get anywhere), but not in a whole lot of depth. There is some explanation on the magic system and races, and the cards system is new/cool. Hopefully further books delve into this further.

Characters were also not unique. You have a super powerful MMC (though he was more morally gray than others, which was a change), a brooding stoic person, the overly friendly to the FMC female bestie, and then FMC herself as the main cast. The only original thing about FMC was how by the end of the book, I found her significantly more insufferable than she was at the beginning.

The relationship made little sense to me. They almost had no chemistry and I could not figure out why MMC liked her. FMC consistently made really stupid decisions and refused to see what was right in front of her. You can make an argument as for why she acted the way she did (which I won’t get into), but I personally did not find it compelling. To me, she just came off immature (which, to be fair, may be warranted given the circumstances in which we meet her).

There were multiple small items that didn’t fit logically though that annoyed me but I’ll redact them so as not to spoil things (though they’re small peanuts in terms of plot/spoilers):

First, >!at one point they’re trekking somewhere and FMC narrated that they slept during the day, on the ground, but it was problematic because guards were supposed to be chasing after them and they’re on foot while the guards had horses. They’d def catch up.!<

At another point, >!FMC hasn’t had real food or enough food in a while but eats an entire rabbit and doesn’t get sick. She also somehow skins and dresses the rabbit without a knife.!<

Also, >!MMC can’t tell she has special items made of his kryptonite but can smell arousal? Tbf he prob can sense it but lets her have her security blanket bc he is a Nice Guy!<

The bigger issue I had (and this is a bigger spoiler so maybe avoid if you wanna read) is, >!MMC treated FMC pretty nicely through the book and I felt like as the book progressed she was pretty ungrateful and rude to him/could not let go of her prejudice. Her whole decision at the end just had me rolling my eyes so I hope we get a serious character redemption/rehabilitation in book 2, or a new FMC lol.!<

One last nitpicky thing is >!she’s supposed to translate a grimoire and it takes her a bit, but it’s only like one paragraph long lol. I cannot.!<

So, in short, not my favorite book but not terrible either. The end was a lil predictable but I’ll still read the next book. Again, a lot of people did like this book, so maybe give it a chance and read the sample if the blurb speaks to you. I gave it a 3 out of 5.

This is by Maria Z. Medina and is her debut novel. It is the first book in the series (I have no idea how long of a series it’ll be though as I couldn’t find this author on instagram but also didn’t look that hard into it).

The author is Spanish and it’s very clear there are Spanish influences in the story, which I liked. A summary of the plot based on the blurb is as follows: FMC, Azul del Arroyo, is a necromancer who wants nothing more than to resurrect her sister. MMC is an emissary of the god of death (or Lord of Death as he’s called in the book) and will do anything to stop her because he believes this goes against his god’s wishes and the natural order of things.

Part of the book is a mystery, but you don’t really see it until later. The story itself is told through multiple POVs and timelines (eg some events are in the present, others in the past). It got a little confusing because a lot of the characters had similar names or were part of the same family and the author would refer to them by surname.

I think the world building is pretty rich and the magic is cool, but could use some further explanation that we’ll hopefully get in the next book. This book does not end on a super bad cliffhanger btw. I felt like the writing/prose was generally good. No modern slang, though again the multiple POVs and naming was not the most helpful.

Character development could also use some work. The book is through multiple POVs, but you don’t really learn too much about all the characters. Their motivations and backstories have the potential to be really interesting, so I’m hoping the next book has more depth.

If you’re into plot forward books, this one is for you. The romance was minuscule. I wondered if there even was romance in the book for a bit tbh. That being said, it was a pretty good palate cleanser.

On the whole, I enjoyed my read and am curious to see what comes next. I would rate this a 4 out of 5.

This is by Madeline Taylor and has been on my TBR for a bit. I’m trying to alternate ARCs with TBR reads in an effort to shorten my TBR list 🤣

So, I’ll start by saying I did like this book. I felt like the magic system and world was cool and somewhat unique. I won’t get too much into it, but the gist is various classes of people have different gifts. We’re introduced to FMC using hers pretty early on, in a situation that’s engaging to one’s interest — not a slow start.

I liked FMC. She was scrappy but not overly strong and perfect. She knew when to improve herself and practice. MMC was a lil broody but not bad. Would love to learn more about his motivations but I think that’s more for the next book. This one had him more mysterious but that was necessary for the plot. They had some witty bantering convos, which I liked. I definitely found parts of this book amusing.

The writing itself was fine. There were parts that came off a little juvenile, and some language I felt didn’t really fit but on the whole it was good. Definitely not anything worth putting the book aside for. Obviously, I liked the plot. I will say that some of the “twists” were fairly obvious. Don’t read the redacted block if you don’t wanna spoil book 1. If you’ve read book 1 and want to discuss theories, please read and redact your comments or dm me! I’m dying to talk about it with others lol.

Though >!I thought she was the heir of illusion and did not see Baylor being an heir coming. I am desperate to know what heir Thorne is — maybe life???? I’m also confused as to how he couldn’t touch people if he wasn’t the god of death. His touch killed the other guy. And as heir of death, wouldn’t she be able to kill people with touch? Though maybe her collar prevented that. Similarly, she never noticed having a giant tattoo on her back???? 🤔 again though, maybe it was blocked by the collar. Though you’d think she’d have had it as a child… my theory is Baylor figured out who she was based on the not dying incident and that’s why he took her!<

I give this a solid 4.7. I liked it a lot, and would recommend!

Thought I’d share for laughs. Enjoy! 🤣

This is by Bel Banta and is slated to come out September 29, 2026.

After like 3-4 mid ARCs with juvenile writing and plots without an iota of uniqueness, came this breath of fresh air. Let’s get into it.

The worldbuilding is ace. You are in court (Tudor era inspired), where magicians are sort of the behind-the-scenes-but-in-front-of-everyone people that have gifts allowing them to better serve their family. magicians are born when the stars align so to speak, and each planet has different gifts. Truly novel.

The story itself is fantastic. Part crime solving who dunnit, part political intrigue worthy of being on game of thrones (minus the gore). There’s so much interesting stuff going on without the use of the tropes you typically see.

The writing is good, powerful, and compelling. I’d liken the quality of writing to be as good as in In the Veins of the Drowning. I could not help but be intrigued. The language used definitely fits the milieu— no modern slang. It just worked so well. I will say the book felt a little slow at times, but it needed to be, to set up the story.

Characters: FMC is a scrappy lil thing. She’s smart, and so, so competent. MMC is charming. It takes a bit for them to get there too, not insta lust. For a decent amount of the book, I wondered if there would be a romance component to this story.

I’d say more, but I don’t wanna spoil anything. I think that if you liked In the Veins of the Drowning, you’ll like this (imo it has less angst, take that as you will). I also think fans of Traitor Son will like this. If you don’t like either of these two series, check out the sample of this book anyway before making up your mind. With a magic system and plot line so unique, you owe it to yourself to give it a try. This is easily one of my top reads this year.

I give this a solid 5 out of 5.

May was a powerhouse of new releases! Please share your favorite reads from May! It can be a standalone, series, anything! :p

Also, remember we started a super fun game for this year: Battle of the Books! You can fill out the image with your favorite book each month and have them battle! At the end of the year, we'll have a book of the year post and we'll see which books made it! Please share your cards with your January through May filled out (:

This is by A.M. Bennett and came out May 15, 2026. I was not able to get to it before the release date unfortunately ):

So, I kinda love crime dramas. This book is kinda a mix between a police investigation/cop drama and romantasy. There is somewhat of an urban setting: FMC is a detective on the police force. They have cars, guns, and technology. Normally, I don’t really care for urban fantasy but the crime solving aspect of it drew me in.

The worldbuilding is fine. You mainly follow the police while they’re solving a crime. You don’t explore much of the city though, and the author could have spent more time describing the different races and their magic. There was little of that background, but I think there may be a prequel so that might have some of it. Plot was fine. It was a pretty standard trying to solve a crime and save the world kinda situation.

Now for the thing you want to know most: the romance. This was definitely insta lust. They basically fell for each other from the first moment. There is no fated mates in this story but it kinda felt like there was given how quickly things progressed.

Side characters were fine but not memorable or interesting really. The focus is all on the main characters. I think the author could’ve done more tbh. I would like to know more about the villains, including their back stories and motivations. Maybe that’s in the prequel or next books though.

Speaking of the next book (yes, this is the first in a series), the end did not feel like a cliffhanger. Rather, it was kinda like Harry Potter where each book wraps up its storyline but is part of a whole, larger storyline. So, if you hate cliffhangers, I wouldn’t worry about this one.

Overall, the book was a little different from my usual pure romantasy reads, which was a nice break. However, it could’ve been stronger. I would rate it a 3 out of 5.

Trying something new out, let me know if you want to see this every month, or nah.

What is your fav piece of fanart you’ve seen this month? What series is it from?

On my end, I rediscovered this piece of Elide and Lorcan by Mads Schofield of the circus scene in Throne of Glass 🤣 Love her attention to detail!

Please share your fav piece of fanart you’ve seen this month and make sure to credit the artist!

This is by Masha Sova and is slated to come out June 6, 2026.

This story… I liked this story. This is the blurb:

The Scarlet Letter meets the divine, deadly trials of The Games Gods Play in this dark, epic romantic fantasy where society weaponizes shame, gods weaponize survival, and love becomes the most dangerous rebellion of all.

They branded her a sinner.
She chose to become a threat.

The scarlet letter? Color me intrigued. The political premise was different, which I liked. In that vein, the worldbuilding itself is good. You learn about the backstory of the country and the rules of that world as well as the politics going on. There’s a cool magic system as well (fyi one character has shadow magic but it’s kinda different). I got into this book from the start.

Writing was okay. At times it was a little juvenile or phrases were too modern for the milieu. However, it didn’t really bother me because I just kept wanting to know what would happen next. Despite wanting to know what happened next, I do have to say that the book was fairly predictable. Aside from being wrong about one thing in the beginning related to a male character, I pretty much pegged each “twist” that I came across. Nevertheless, I ate it up. Warning, this is the first book in a series and there is a cliffhanger but it’s not that bad.

Some of my least favorite tropes were involved (they start with T’s, I’ll let you guess them), but I didn’t feel like they were the end all be all of the story. Rather, they were stepping stones for a larger premise.

Characters were fine. Side characters were aiite but nothing special. I did not grow to care too much about them but it’s rare for me to care about side characters. They need a lot of development and a first book in a series typically doesn’t have that. Not gonna talk about the romance bc I don’t wanna spoil anything.

I do also have to note some of the names in this book were atrocious, including one of the worst character names I’ve ever read: Peonica. Even FMC’s name is kinda heinous (Raylane).

Despite these flaws, this story was fun if you don’t go in with super high expectations. If you liked we who will die and kissed by the gods (I’m sensing a theme w book title names here) then I think you will like this as I think it may even be a lil bit better.

I’d give it a 4.2 but def check out the sample if on the fence. Tho, it is only $1.99 on kindle right meow.

This is my Rachel Griffin. I had been curious bc I really liked the fairyloot cover (which is the image I chose to upload) + had heard good things about the book. So, I decided to slot it into my obscenely long list of ARCs (my poor tbr is woefully neglected). Here are my thoughts!

At first, I kept wondering why people liked it so much. The writing felt juvenile at times and occasionally hard modern language, which I felt didn’t fit the setting. FMC is 18, and MMC is centuries old (though he stopped aging at 19). FMC was kinda bratty though tbf both were really bad at communicating and instead just sniped at each other in the beginning half. The romance also didn’t feel quite genuine and came off kinda insta lust bc it seemed like they just thought each other was really beautiful but didn’t spend much time getting to know each other through all the sniping? Idk it felt fast to me.

However, towards the end, I got in my feels and I def was struggling not to let others around me on my flight see me silently tearing up lol. So, I will say I was able to move past the shortcomings and let the story itself take over. And I have to give credit where it’s due if the author made me feel some kinda way, yenno? I also give the author some grace because I found out she suffered a brain injury while writing the book. So, I have to say it came out impactful knowing what she went through just to get this story written.

It’s a quick read, and if you’re in the mood for some emotional devastation + can go in with low expectations, I’d say give it a chance. I rate this a 3.5.

This is by Stacey McEwan and is slated to come out July 21, 2026. Note: there may be spoilers for book 1 here.

I will start this review by saying I thought book 1 was fine but maybe a little too slow for me. >!I also was not a fan of how book 1 seemed like Pat would be endgame when I’m a sucker for anyone named Theo!<

Book 2 starts out kinda slow. It feels like not much happens for a bit (which isn’t exactly the case). Around 30% of the way through, in a scene, I was wondering why the characters involved didn’t do X instead of Y, which would have resolved a lot of things. There’s an implied reason, but the series would have been cut off there imo. In any event, the book picks up a lot more towards the end. The end itself is a cliffhanger surprise that no one could have predicted, which was cool.

Characters/writing: i really was not a fan of how maybe POVs there were in this book and how everyone but Nina was in third person. This trend is annoying. I also did not like how a male character would periodically refer to a female character as “woman.” That being said, I think our 3 leads — Patrick, Nina, and Theo — all display significant growth that is visible. There are some hard choices to make and you see each one do it. The author did the growth and character arcs pretty well, I’d say.

The worldbuilding and political intrigue carried over from book 1. There’s more to see and explore here. It kinda reminded me of a final fantasy game tbh with the questing. But it was an interesting ride. I think book 2 had a different focus/vibe than book 1, though it fit. It’s really hard for me to write this review since I don’t want to give anything away, but my last thought is that for a second book in the series, I think the author did a good job of maintaining the plot, world building and the characters. The idea continues to be different. I would say that if you liked book 1, you probably will not be disappointed.

My rating would be probably a 4.2/5.

This is by M.J. Hastings and is slated to come out September 1, 2026.

The premise of this series was interesting/unique, which I liked. In Durst, children are split — firstborns become soldiers, middleborns become inventors/crafters, and no one really knows what they do with thirdborns. FMC is a firstborn who favored to win in a trial but she can’t focus on the trial because she finds out her sister is going to be taken so she sets off after her. (Note: even though there is a trial, which is one of my least favorite tropes, it was a small part of the story)

There were some challenges with the execution though. For example, the world building is mid. Some people have magic, but it’s never really explained what kind people have or how they do it. You travel through a lot of places, but they’re never really described. The author focuses way more on the characters and their interactions, at the expense of everything else kinda.

The writing itself is okay. There were some parts that felt juvenile and the author def told rather than showed some things, but on the whole it was okay. There are multiple povs though (and for some reason everyone but FMC’s is in third person while hers is in first person). I actually liked that and in the beginning there were some povs I cared about more than FMC’s.

FMC and MMC do not really have a believable backstory. Tbh, FMC is not really very likable in the beginning of the book. She improves over time though. MMC was fine. However, they kinda have an insta lust thing going on. She’s also so bratty in the beginning I couldn’t see how he liked her lol.

There were some twists in the book that I didn’t see coming. The end isn’t a bad cliffhanger, but there’ll for sure be a next book. Even though the book had some flaws, I’m still going to read book 2 because the plot was fairly interesting. Def read the sample first before picking it up. I’d probably give this a 3.8 rounded up to a 4.