Title: Crave

Series: Crave #1

Author: Tracy Wolff

My whole world changed when I stepped inside the academy. Nothing is right about this place or the other students in it. Here I am, a mere mortal among gods…or monsters. I still can’t decide which of these warring factions I belong to, if I belong at all. I only know the one thing that unites them is their hatred of me.

Then there’s Jaxon Vega. A vampire with deadly secrets who hasn’t felt anything for a hundred years. But there’s something about him that calls to me, something broken in him that somehow fits with what’s broken in me.

Which could spell death for us all.

Because Jaxon walled himself off for a reason. And now someone wants to wake a sleeping monster, and I’m wondering if I was brought here intentionally—as the bait.

Why I left this so long, I don’t know.

So girl comes to an academy and finds out mythical creatures are real!

I loved it! It was actually delish and so addictive! The excitement and pull of a new relationship!

There seemed a lot of similarities with Twilight but I’m here for that!!!

I’m totally going to wimp out and just say all the things I loved:

Loved Katmere academy,
Loved The Order,
Loved Macy,
Loved what Grace is,
Loved Jaxon and Grace together,
Especially loved Jaxon!!!!

Title: The Drowned Woods

Author: Emily Lloyd-Jones

Once upon a time, the kingdoms of Wales were rife with magic and conflict, and eighteen-year-old Mererid “Mer” is well-acquainted with both. She is the last living water diviner and has spent years running from the prince who bound her into his service. Under the prince’s orders, she located the wells of his enemies, and he poisoned them without her knowledge, causing hundreds of deaths. After discovering what he had done, Mer went to great lengths to disappear from his reach. Then Mer’s old handler returns with a proposition: use her powers to bring down the very prince that abused them both.

The best way to do that is to destroy the magical well that keeps the prince’s lands safe. With a motley crew of allies, including a fae-cursed young man, the lady of thieves, and a corgi that may or may not be a spy, Mer may finally be able to steal precious freedom and peace for herself. After all, a person with a knife is one thing…but a person with a cause can topple kingdoms.

Mer, sold by her family at a young age has a coveted gift and Prince Garanhir takes an interest in her for ill gains. Trained by a spymaster, Renfrew, she escapes and so does he….and they team up for a heist with some company including Fane and the lovely Trefor.

The characters were likable but Fane was the one I connected to but him and Mer were alike in many ways.

Mer – ‘The nobility called such people diviners.’

Renfrew – ‘He was whisper and steel, poison and shadow.’

Fane – ‘Fane was death itself.’

I really enjoyed this story full of Welsh folklore and I ached to read more about it and searched up some terms!

The writing was utterly beautiful, there was lots of action, drama and a few bombshells dropped!

The end made my heart sing a little. Overall a brilliant standalone!

Title: A Little Bit Country

Author: Brian D Kennedy

Emmett Maguire wants to be country music’s biggest gay superstar – a far reach when you’re seventeen and living in Illinois. But for now, he’s happy to do the next best thing: Stay with his aunt in Jackson Hollow, Tennessee, for the summer and perform at the amusement park owned by his idol, country legend Wanda Jean Stubbs.

Luke Barnes hates country music. As the grandson of Verna Rose, the disgraced singer who had a famous falling out with Wanda Jean, Luke knows how much pain country music has brought his family. But when his mom’s medical bills start piling up, he takes a job at the last place he wants: a restaurant at Wanda World.

Neither boy is looking for romance, but sparks fly when they meet – and soon they’re inseparable. Until a long-lost secret about Verna and Wanda comes to light, threatening to unravel everything.

Will Emmett and Luke be able get past the truths they discover…or will their relationship go down in history as just another Sad Country Love Song?

Emmett and Luke both find themselves working at Wanda World for the summer, one a budding country star and the other a budding cook. But their reality is far from their dreams!

It was a beautiful tale about falling in love, it made my heart sing! Watching them navigate their relationships, their inner struggles was heartbreaking and heartwarming at the same time!

So, Emmett, I loved him!

‘I like who I am.
And I like who I like.’

He is his own person, he likes what he likes and that’s it. All teenagers should be like that instead of the typical mold they are all shoved into these days. But anyway, I digress.

Luke, I so felt for him. He has a lot on his shoulders and doesn’t think he can be who he is but then he meets Emmett.

‘I may not be big on theme parks. But I’d buy an endless number of tickets to stay on this ride.’

Cute, real, beautiful. Absolutely loved it!

Title: For the Throne

Series: Wilderwood #2

Author: Hannah Whitten

The First Daughter is for the Throne
The Second Daughter is for the Wolf…

Red and the Wolf have finally contained the threat of the Old Kings but at a steep cost. Red’s beloved sister Neve, the First Daughter is lost in the Shadowlands, an inverted kingdom where the vicious gods of legend have been trapped for centuries and the Old Kings have slowly been gaining control. But Neve has an ally–though it’s one she’d rather never have to speak to again–the rogue king Solmir.

Solmir wants to bring an end to the Shadowlands and he believes helping Neve may be the key to its destruction. But to do that, they will both have to journey across a dangerous landscape in order to find a mysterious Heart Tree, and finally to claim the gods’ dark, twisted powers for themselves.

Back with Red and Neve where their stories intertwine again.

Red is at the Black Keep in the Wilderwood where she is happy with Eammon. Neve finds herself in the Shadowlands with Solmir who wants to get rid of the Kings who are trapped in the unstable Shadowlands.

It did take me a while to remember who was who and what they had done, maybe I should have reread Wolf first? I also found it slow going in some places and definitely liked the second half more than the first….but I found myself very addicted to Neve and Solmir!!!!  Aaaah enemies to lovers hooks me every time!

Now Solmir, he actually didn’t need much redemption from me because I already loved him!

‘He smelled like pine needles and snow, far reaches and open sky.’

The writing was gorgeous, the plot was fabulous, the romance was everything I wanted and a bit more spicier and, after, a slow start, I loved it!

Top Ten Tuesday is featured by That Artsy Reader Girl. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.

Topic: Books With a Unit of Time In the Title

I thought this was going to be a breeze but it was actually really hard so I’ve only got 9 and I played hard and fast with it!!!!

The Last Hours by Cassandra Clare
Year of the Reaper by Makiia Lucier
Days of Blood and Starlight by Laini Taylor
End of Days by Susan Ee

Stealing Infinity by Alyson Noel
Midnight Sun by Stephanie Meyer
Defy the Night by Brigid Kemmerer
Lover Eternal by JR Ward
Nine Minutes by Beth Flynn

Any I’ve missed here?

Title: Forging Silver into Stars

Series: Forging Silver into Stars #1

Author: Brigid Kemmerer

When ancient magic tests a newfound love, a dark fate beckons . . .

Magic has been banished in the land of Syhl Shallow for as long as best friends Jax and Callyn can remember. They once loved the stories of the powerful magesmiths and mythical scravers who could conjure fire or control ice, but now they’ve learned that magic only leads to danger: magic is what killed Callyn’s parents, leaving her alone to raise her younger sister. Magic never helped Jax, whose leg was crushed in an accident that his father has been punishing him for ever since. Magic won’t save either of them when the tax collector comes calling, threatening to take their homes if they can’t pay what they owe.

Meanwhile, Jax and Callyn are astonished to learn magic has returned to Syhl Shallow — in the form of a magesmith who’s now married to their queen. Now, the people of Syhl Shallow are expected to allow dangerous magic in their midst, and no one is happy about it.

When a stranger rides into town offering Jax and Callyn silver in exchange for holding secret messages for an anti-magic faction, the choice is obvious — even if it means they may be aiding in a plot to destroy their new king. It’s a risk they’re both willing to take. That is, until another visitor arrives: handsome Lord Tycho, the King’s Courier, the man who’s been tasked with discovering who’s conspiring against the throne.

Suddenly, Jax and Callyn find themselves embroiled in a world of shifting alliances, dangerous flirtations, and ancient magic . . . where even the deepest loyalties will be tested.

This story follows on from the Cursebreaker series with Rhen, Grey, Harper and Lia Mara and here we have Kings Courier, Tycho, along with some newcomers, Callyn, Nora and Jax.

Tycho stumbles upon Cal and Jax on his travels and a whole plot is revealed to defeat the King (Grey), from a group called the Truthbringers who want to see an end to magic. And our leads find themselves on opposite sides!

I really enjoyed this story because Tycho is one of my faves! He and his newfound love made my heart soar! It’s a big book and it’s a bit slow in places but exploded with action in the last 30%!

The character I loved the most though was Nora. Although she has had a hard life she is bright, cheery, positive and speaks the truth always.

Although I had a gripe about pacing, I did enjoy this and will read the next book as I love this world but am hoping its faster paced!

The Sunday Post is a blog news meme hosted by Caffeinated Reviewer It’s a chance to share news, a post to recap the past week on your blog and showcase books and things we have received.

Hi everyone, hope you’ve had a good week?

What a week! My son was on school holidays and I had the week off work and we packed everything in! It was my birthday so we went out for food, we went to the zoo, haircuts, crazy golf and I had to keep up with my son’s hectic social calendar!! I appear to have transformed into Mums taxi service!!

It was also the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee and we went to a garden party with scones, sandwiches and tea yesterday (I don’t like tea so didn’t drink that!) It was really fun!

What I’ve Read

Book of Night by Holly Black
🌟🌟🌟🌟
See my review soon!

Lizzie and Belle Mysteries: Drama and Danger by JT Williams
🌟🌟🌟🌟
See my review soon!

Tall Dark and Evil by Alexi Blake
🌟🌟🌟🌟
See my review soon!

The Never King by Nikki St Crowe
🌟🌟🌟🌟
See my review here

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In case you missed it…..

Unboxing – Fairyloot adult: May
Unboxing – Illumicrate: May
Feature – new to me authors: May
Review – Tall Dark and Evil by Alexi Blake

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What have you read lately?

Title: Tall Dark and Evil

Author: Alexi Blake

The Five Realms University is an open battlefield. After surviving three years of pranks, insults, and the occasional attempted murder, Alis thought she knew the rules of the game.

One encounter with Reiks, the golden prince everyone adores, shows her just how mistaken she was. He’s decided she’s his for his last year at Five, and no one can save her from his clutches, until an actual war comes knocking at the doors.

Alis had her reasons for staying under the radar for so long, but to survive, she might have to embrace the devastating magic in her blood, at the risk of destroying the entire world.

Born to take over a kingdom divided to its very core, Reiks has grown calculating and cruel, for the greater good.

He treats friends and foes as unwitting pawns on his board, until he comes to realize one piece might have been his enemy’s queen in disguise. Alis could be his undoing.

Or his salvation.

I grabbed this because of the cover, look at it!!!

Alis is a member of a powerful Witch family and at school she finds herself in a predicment with a future King and has to play his fake girlfriend. But everything is not as it seems!

I really enjoyed this and would recommend! I loved the world, the characters and the school setting. Especially loved Reiks but he reminded me of someone who should’ve existed years ago with the way he spoke! I still would though!!!!! There was one point where I was fanning myself!!!

Maybe the last quarter could’ve been fleshed out more, it seemed a bit rushed and I wanted all the deets! Would also love 2 more things:

1) other books in this world with other characters from this story,
2) an extended epilogue of where Reiks and Alis end up in the future!

Always wanting more!!!

I grabbed this idea from Lucy (with permission!) from Bookworm Blogger! Go check out her blog!

I always hope that I read new-to-me authors every month and getting book box subscriptions really helps with that so thought it would be nice to look back and see what new authors I’d read this month.

In May I read 3 so that’s 17 new-to-me authors I’ve read so far this year!

Nora Sakavic

Olivia Atwater

E Lockhart

Have you read any new to you authors this month?