All I Want for Halloween. By Marie Harte.

All I Want for Halloween. By Marie Harte. 2017. Sourcebooks Casablanca. ASIN: B01NC0B6RZ (Kindle).

Following a hot hookup between The Devil and Xena at a Halloween masquerade party, Satan tracks down the Warrior Princess the next day to a Seattle bakery; his mission, to get to know her better, preferably with benefits. He is Gear Blackstone, a talented creator of custom motorcycles who has been forced off his reality show, “Motorcycle Madnezz,” after an altercation with his former best friend. She is Sadie Liberato, a take no prisoners type of gal who is the co-owner of said bakery. Both are recently down and out on love, but neither want to ignore the mutual attraction burning between them. The one rule, no strings attached.

As a big fan of Marie Harte’s Just the Thing and Test Drive, I was looking forward to more of her contemporary romance titles. Unfortunately, while this was far from a horrible read, it was a disappointing one. There was some of the fun banter and sexiness that Harte does so well, but it wasn't as engaging when all of the characters were surprisingly one-dimensional and the leading man and lady seemed to bring out less enjoyable qualities in each other, like misanthropy and a rather alarming level of immaturity for a pair of thirty-somethings. When Harte can deliver strong characters healing from PTSD or realizing that their life doesn’t has to play out like their dysfunctional parent, then Gear and Sadie dole out a pretty weak story.

Right now, this is a single title, but there is sequel bait that doesn’t interest me. Oh well, back to the Donnigans, or maybe I’ll try The Veteran Movers next.

354 pages
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King's Cage by Victoria Aveyard

Emotional roller-coaster... But I shouldn't be surprised. I was anxious....and then I was happy... Y'all I saw joy face to face...and then it left me. I was ecstatic. I foolishly thought.... I forgot that happy endings are at the end of the story and that no one promises happy middles....
I keep seeing references.
Meredith Grey, Grey's Anatomy. Pick Me Choose Me.
The moment in Phantom of the Opera in "Twisted Every Way" where Christine runs away yelling "I can't"
Any of the battle songs from Hamilton....Particularly "Right Hand Man"... Cal is a catch and he knows it...He so sassy; he so smug...I think I have a thing for men who are confident and in leadership roles...


528 Pages

The Wish Granter by C.J. Redwine

Did she mean to reference that....Maybe....

Ok but Sebastian. Fierce women... Everyone being awkward. Body positivity. Women who love food and love eating food... FINALLY. I love Sebastian so freaking much. Awkward flirting
Women who are cunning and selfless. I have lots of feelings.

I repeat. HOW IS THERE NO FANART FOR THIS FANDOM.
448 Pages

Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon Volume 3 by Naoko Takeuchi

Soooooooo.... I forgot THAT happened in the anime...
Whelp.

Chibi Usa.... Baby bunhead
Manga tears...Almost as powerful and almost as bad as anime tears.....

Mamoru and his puppets... Yes.

So many doubles, y'all.

240 Pages

Rabbit Girls by Anna Ellory

After the Berlin wall falls in 1989, Miriam, who has been living in East Berlin, goes back  to West Berlin to care for her dying father. She is fleeing an abusive husband, and is escaping both him and an abusive regime.

In caring for her father, she finds an Auschwitz tattoo on his wrist. She never knew he was in a concentration camp, so starts looking for answers to questions she never knew she had. Her mother is dead, but in her belongings she finds a uniform from a prison camp. Sewn into the linings she finds letters from a mysterious woman named Frieda.

She desperately needs answers, but her father is semi-comatose, and unable to tell her what she needs to know. Will she be able to unravel the secrets of her parent's past?



390 pages

The Lord and Mary Ann by Catherine Cookson

Mary Ann loves her Da, more than anything in the world. Da has a drinking problem, but Mary Ann is convinced that if she can find him just the right job, he would be set for life. So she finds him a job on a farm, believing that if he was away from the temptations of town, he would change into the perfect Da she knew deep down he was.

However, she can't count on others to do what she thinks they should, so her plans go awry in this second book of the delightful Tyneside series featuring Mary Ann, an extraordinary child.


192 pages

Within Ash and Stardust by Chani Lynn Feener

The third and final installment of The Xenith Trilogy left me frustrated and disappointed.

For a series that started out with such a fantastic premise, the ending felt rushed, underdeveloped, and ultimately fell flat. While reading this installment, I couldn't wait for it to be over. 

Love triangles are usually fine with me, but this was overdone to the extreme. Every touch, glance, and thought felt contrived and forced, rather than a natural development of the plot or interactions between the characters. 

Darn it!

336 pages

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Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon Volume 2 by Naoko Takeuchi

Tuxedo Mask drama..... my beautiful love... I love tragic backstories. Sacrificial love. The cliches that I live and die for. The hill that I die on.

Brainwashing. Hypnotism. What's happening? Like I know.
(Jaws theme song plays in the background)


Seriously though, who thought it was a good idea to put Mamoru in a cow print vest.....WT..


244 Pages

Setting Free the Kites by Alex George

Summary: "For Robert Carter, life in his coastal Maine hometown is comfortably predictable. But in 1976, on his first day of eighth grade, he meets Nathan Tilly, who changes everything. Nathan is confident, fearless, impetuous--and fascinated by kites and flying. Robert and Nathan's budding friendship is forged in the crucible of two family tragedies, and as the boys struggle to come to terms with loss, they take summer jobs at the local rundown amusement park. It's there that Nathan's boundless capacity for optimism threatens to overwhelm them both, and where they learn some harsh truths about family, desire, and revenge."

Setting Free the Kites is trying to be something that it just...isn't. Alex George is talented with unique descriptions and poignant words. However, his writing lacks focus and direction. The plot was completely missing, and developments in the story were far-fetched and unnecessary. Various parts of the story made me feel icky, confused, and apathetic.

326 pages

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The Shadow Queen by C. J. Redwine

Snow White. Did they seriously drop the classic Snow White lines?! Really?!
Dragons....I freaking love dragons... And transformations...this is sick. I love Kol. I love him so much. The cutie.
Magic powers.
Sibling relationships..WHYYYY Sassy brothers.
I can predict loopholes in promises, y'all. I'm cackling.
Quotes about being a hero and being brave.

.....I'm not crying about the thing... I'm not in denial...Because I refuse to believe that THAT happened....like no...you don't just int--

HOW IS THERE NO FANART FOR THIS FANDOM. WT.

394 Pages

The Story of Arthur Truluv by Elizabeth Berg

Summary: "For the past six months, Arthur Moses's days have looked the same: He tends to his rose garden and to Gordon, his cat, then rides the bus to the cemetery to visit his beloved late wife for lunch. The last thing Arthur would imagine is for one unlikely encounter to utterly transform his life. Eighteen-year-old Maddy Harris is an introspective girl who visits the cemetery to escape the other kids at school. One afternoon she joins Arthur--a gesture that begins a surprising friendship between two lonely souls."

What a weird, interesting, and bittersweet story. I have never read a book quite like this, but I'm glad I did. 

222 pages

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Lessons from a One-Night Stand (The Baileys #1). By Piper Rayne, Narrators: Tanya Eby, Tim Paige.

Lessons from a One-Night Stand (The Baileys #1). By Piper Rayne, Narrators: Tanya Eby, Tim Paige. 2019. Piper Rayne, Inc. ISBN: 9781987925494 (Unabridged audiobook, 7 hours, 43 mins)

Austin Bailey is a high school biology teacher and baseball coach in the small Alaskan town of Lake Starlight. He is also the oldest of the nine Bailey siblings and since his parents died nine years ago Austin’s been raising the seven youngest. And while this has been no small accomplishment, perhaps his most extraordinary feat is having remained under the radar of the town’s gossip blog...until last Saturday night.

Now, only a few months away from the youngest graduating, Austin is setting his sight on a new life, away from Lake Starlight. And with his freedom in sight, Saturday night may have included a few too many drinks, a beautiful stranger and a steamed-up jeep. And when Monday rolls around and that stranger becomes Principal Holly Radcliffe, Austin’s new boss for the rest of the school year, a fun story unfolds.

Piper Rayne is a writing duo and they are new to me, but I gotta say that is was a combination of the cover, jacket information and audio sample of the first chapter narrated by Paige that reeled me in and I very much enjoyed getting to know the Baileys and Lake Starlight. Austin is the kind of character that is hard not to like; he’s genuine and dedicated, with a desire for change that is relatable.

Eby’s a prolific narrator, so I knew from previous contemporary romances I’ve listened to that her delivery style is not what I care for. Her pitch and intonations may change, but I never find emotional resonance in her performances. There is often the impression the she’s barreling through with an excitement for the content she’s reading; which works against listeners expecting the voice to portray nuanced characters, not the voice that has them picturing a teacher or librarian reading to them at story time. That said, Eby’s Holly is the best performance I’ve heard from her. Here’s hoping that I feel the same for the rest of the series, because I’m definitely moving on to the next book and I think I’ll go the audiobook route again.

340 pages.

Captain Marvel: Volume 3: Alia Volat Propiis by Kelly Sue DeConnick

How dare they make me sad and make Carol deal with feelings.

As a side note: sassy expressive cat. Yes.

96 Pages

Rebel by Marie Lu

...So I have lots of feelings, as usual. And last chapter--I am thriving.

Human rights! Yes. Quality of life and equal rights for the homeless and under-privileged. I have such a heart for the homeless and seeing them as human...Because everyone is human and deserves to be treated with human dignity.Call out society! Preach. I am living. I will rail against the machine, so help me.
Commentary on technology. Chef kiss.

"UN-Limit-ed. Together we're unLIMITed".... does my brain default to musicals... Yes it does.
It also defaults to Disney (Lion King and Oliver and Co....and there's more, but that's just me), Star Wars (...because you can't forget the first one no matter how much you bleach your brain), and How to Train Your Dragon....Because I picture fight scenes in animated form....

I love Eden. The cute little nerd brain with a heart of gold.
Protective siblings. I love getting back into Daniel's head...but I had so much anxiety for some of this because I had no fear and then I had one fear. Sibling bonding time with "Stranger Like Me" in the background.

Daniel you cute little romantic. Marry me. You are a ball of anxiety you little kitten. I must protect.

June. Heart eyes... My sunshine. I love her. Encouraging clear communication and working on relationships. She is a goddess; we all know.

384 Pages

The Wicked King by Holly Black

I live for mildly vindictive scheming, and doing things out of spite.
Playing life like a chess board and moving people around like puppets
Girls who can fight with swords and who can be crafty when they need to be...
And you can see someone digging themselves into a very dangerous hole, but hey it's cool to watch them try to get out of it.
Enemies to  friends  whatever the heck that is...
I love heroes who act like villains and who have the heart of a villain... Problematic faves..
...Plot twists, y'all...

Did they really make a shout-out to that anime (which will not be named)...too soon, bro..

336 Pages

Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon Volume 1 by Naoko Takeuchi

I've been watching the anime...and this honestly has less filler, and it is amazing. It jumps right in with the action and drama. It has the predictability and repetitiveness that comes with defeating villains...but I love it. I love ditzy characters and I love Usagi. Because I've watched some of the anime, I know some things, and it's so exciting to watch it play out on paper..
I love Tuxedo Mask. He's great. I'm fine.

248 Pages

How to Break a Dragon's Heart by Cressida Cowell Read by David Tennant

Toothless. Heart Eyes. Enough said. The stupid stubborn wonderful baby who eats everything and never learns his lessons.

I loved learning more about the lore and Hiccup's family history and seeing the parallels. Destiny.

Storytelling. A+

Y'all things are getting darker...

272 Pages

The Sound and the Fury by William Faulkner

This is another one that has been sitting on my shelf forever, so I decided to strap on my English major belt again and give it a go. I lost interest in it one section through but I kept persisting and a couple of months later I finally finished it!!!! This book has cemented the fact that I hate stream of consciousness writing. I see the value in it, but the story (especially the first 2 narrators) kept jumping back and forth in time and I didn't know which way was up. Being done with it now, I can see why it's a classic of American literature, but this is not something that I will be rereading again.

371 pages

Happily Ever After: Companion to the Selection Novels by Kiera Cass

What can I say, I love getting into Maxon's head....the cutie. My baby. He really does love women that could kill him.

Aspen. My devoted little angel. I grow to love you more every day. He so smart. (Yes, I know that's grammatically incorrect).

Marlee and Carter. Devotion and love goals... Also sacrificial like Jesus. Ok I'm gonna cry some more. I love sneaky Maxon being super sweet.

I wasn't crying during "The Maid"....I didn't write down some of the passages....I'm not overly emotional...

I'm not crying about "After the One" No smirking here..Nope nope nope

416 Pages

The Family Plot by Cherie Priest

Chattanooga Tennessee is full of lots of things, including the century and half old estate owned by the Winthrow family. Augusta Winthrow, the only remaining Winthrow wants it demolished, but first she approaches Music City Salvage to see if they would be interesting in gutting the house for all it's valuables. Chuck Dutton wagers the future of the salvage company on the floors and woodwork inside of the Winthrow Estate, and out, and sends a small crew to get everything that they can. Led by his daughter, Dahlia -- a recently divorced lover of all houses old and spooky -- they operate on a shoestring budget trying to get the house emptied in four days.

Quickly the crew realizes that there are certain things that Ms. Winthrow has left out of her story of the estate, like the small cemetery plot that they happen upon on the very first day and the spirits that inhabit the estate, long after the last living Winthrow had stepped foot on the property.

What better time of the year to rediscover the joy(is that the right word) of reading a well put together haunted house story. Cherie Priest manages to bring a feeling of a classic Southern Gothic horror story and blends it with a modern ghost story. It does succumb to the modern horror tropes from time to time, but overall The Family Plot is a well written ghost story with characters you care about, and a ghost that is downright evil.

365 pages

Primary Suspect (Callahan Confidential #5). By Laura Scott

Primary Suspect (Callahan Confidential #5). By Laura Scott. 2018. Love Inspired Suspense. ISBN-13: 9781355081209 (paperback).

When Mitch Callahan, a firefighter turned arson investigator, turns up at the site of a recent fire at the request of his boss, he is broadsided by the dead body he finds, followed quickly by the 2x4 to the side of his face. Realizing he is being set up, Mitch flees the scene, but needs medical attention for the gash in his neck. Showing up at the ER he unwittingly involves the young widowed nurse Dana Petrie and the two quickly find themselves running for their lives from armed pursuit. Can Dana trust Mitch, the man who tried, but failed to save the life of her rookie firefighting husband three years ago? Or will the evidence building up against him prove that she has teamed-up with the bad guy?

Primary Suspect by Laura Scott is a quick read with a satisfying combination of action, suspense and second chances as Dana experiences a rekindling in her heart for her faith, purpose and chance at love. Both Scott’s Callihan Confidential series and Harlequin’s Love Inspired Suspense stories are new to me and while this is book five, the story is easy enough to follow without having started at the beginning of the series. But I am curious about the rest of the Callahan clan.

224 pages

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Queen of Air and Darkness by Cassandra Clare

Last book of the Dark Artifices trilogy, but not the last of the Shadowhunter novels thank goodness. I'm stupidly obsessed. I love that we get to see a new cast of characters for each series but my old favorites play significant roles. This series has forbidden love, death and heartbreak, werewolves, faeries, vampires, warlocks, angels, demons, and an immortal cat named Church (y'all read Pet Semetary?)

Pages: 912