Blog Tour Review: The Unready Queen (The Oddmire #2)

Title: The Unready Queen (The Oddmire #2)
Author: William Ritter
Genre: Middle Grade, Fantasy
Publisher: Algonquin Young Readers
Source: Publisher via NetGalley
Format: Ebook
Release Date: June 23, 2020
Rating: ★★★★

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Goodreads Synopsis:

Human and goblin brothers Cole and Tinn are finding their way back to normal after their journey to the heart of the Oddmire. Normal, unfortunately, wants nothing to do with them. Fable, the daughter of the Queen of the Deep Dark, has her first true friends in the brothers. The Queen allows Fable to visit Tinn and Cole as long as she promises to stay quiet and out of sight—concealing herself and her magic from the townspeople of Endsborough.

But when the trio discovers that humans are destroying the Wild Wood and the lives of its creatures for their own dark purposes, Fable cannot stay quiet. As the unspoken truce between the people of Endsborough and the inhabitants of the Wild Wood crumbles, violence escalates, threatening war and bringing Fable’s mother closer to the fulfillment of a deadly prophecy that could leave Fable a most Unready Queen.

Review:

Fable is the daughter of the Queen of the Deep Dark. She’s friends with Cole and Tinn, the human and goblin brothers. Some new people in town decided to dig for oil in the Wild Woods, disturbing the magical creatures who live there. Fable has to stand between her fellow magical creatures in the Wild Wood and her friends from the human town, when the dispute threatens to start a war.

There was a lot of history of the Oddmire world in this story. The story begins with Fable’s grandmother, and her experience with a changeling. She lost her own daughter, but she was returned right before the old woman died. These stories of the past made the story feel realistic, like it existed beyond the pages.

The dispute between the humans and magical creatures reminded me of race relations today. In the story, the humans took the land that the magical creatures lived on, just because they could. Other creatures were put down and accused of doing things, when there wasn’t evidence to support the accusations. This could teach kids the dangers of racism through a fantasy story.

I really enjoyed this story!

Thank you Algonquin Young Readers for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

What to read next:

The Dark Lord Clementine by Sarah Jean Horwitz

The Revenge of Magic (The Revenge of Magic #1) by James Riley

Other books in the series:

Have you read The Unready Queen? What did you think of it?

Top Ten Tuesday – Summer 2020 TBR

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme created by The Broke and the Bookish and it is now hosted by The Artsy Reader Girl. This week’s theme Top Ten Tuesday Turns 10, but I did that one last week by mistake! So I’m going to do the prompt for June 16 this week, which is Summer 2020 TBR. Here’s my list:

1. Hunted by the Sky by Tanaz Bhathena

2. Influence by Sara Shepard and Lilia Buckingham

3. Boyfriend Material by Alexis Hall

4. Burn Our Bodies Down by Rory Power

5. Ever Cursed by Corey Ann Haydu

6. 10 Things I Hate About Pinky by Sandhya Menon

7. Lobizona by Romina Garber

8. Don’t Ask Me Where I’m From by Jennifer De Leon

9. Where Dreams Descend by Janella Angeles

10. The Wrong Mr. Darcy by Evelyn Lozada with Holly Lörincz

(All photos taken from Goodreads)

What’s your list of books on your Top Ten Tuesday?

Happy Pub Day – June 23

Happy Pub Day to all of these new books!

That Summer in Maine by Brianna Wolfson

The Swap by Robyn Harding

The Girl from Widow Hills by Megan Miranda

Take a Hint, Dani Brown (The Brown Sisters #2) by Talia Hibbert

The Unready Queen (The Oddmire #2) by William Ritter

Hunted by the Sky by Tanaz Bhathena

Deadly Curious by Cindy Anstey

Forest of Souls by Lori M. Lee

Seasons of the Storm by Elle Cosimano

Sisters of Sword and Song by Rebecca Ross

What books are you most excited for this week?

Blog Tour Review: That Summer in Maine

Title: That Summer in Maine
Author: Brianna Wolfson
Genre: Fiction
Publisher: MIRA
Source: Publisher via NetGalley
Format: Ebook
Release Date: June 23, 2020
Rating: ★★★

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Goodreads Synopsis:

A novel about mothers and daughters, about taking chances, about exploding secrets and testing the boundaries of family

Years ago, during a certain summer in Maine, two young women, unaware of each other, met a charismatic man at a craft fair and each had a brief affair with him. For Jane it was a chance to bury her recent pain in raw passion and redirect her life. For Sue it was a fling that gave her troubled marriage a way forward.

Now, sixteen years later, the family lives these women have made are suddenly upended when their teenage girls meet as strangers on social media. They concoct a plan to spend the summer in Maine with the man who is their biological father. Their determination puts them on a collision course with their mothers, who must finally meet and acknowledge their shared past and join forces as they risk losing their only daughters to a man they barely know.

Review:

Since her mother, Jane, had twins, Hazel has felt left out of her family. It used to be just her and her mom, but then her mom married Cam and they had twin sons. She doesn’t even look like anyone in her family, with her dark hair while they are all blonde. One night, she gets a message online from a girl who claims to be Hazel’s half-sister. Eve suggests that Hazel and her go to visit their father, Silas, together for the summer. That seems like the perfect escape for Hazel to leave her family behind and find new relatives. Hazel and Eve seem to bond over their new found biological father, while their moms have their own shared history with Silas.

This was an intriguing concept for a story. I read an article once about a young woman who found out she had 30-something half-siblings because their mothers all used the same sperm donor. That isn’t the way Hazel’s and Eve’s mom’s had their daughters, but it was similar in the way that these girls had many close relatives that they didn’t know about.

There were a few loose ends at the end of the story. Some of the subplots weren’t explained. Silas had a former girlfriend who he almost had a baby with, and their story was only told in parts, though it seemed important to the overall story. The format of the story was a little confusing as well. The first part was about Jane and Hazel in their home. The second part was about what Jane did when Hazel was visiting Silas, as well as stories about how she met Silas and how Eve’s mother met him. The next part was about Hazel and Eve spending the summer with Silas. The final part was when they were leaving his home. The second and third parts happened simultaneously, so I wish they had been combined so the story continued to move forward. The way the story jumped between time periods was disjointed and anticlimactic.

I liked the premise for the story, but I wish it had been organized more clearly.

Thank you HarperCollins for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

What to read next:

Rosie Colored Glasses by Brianna Wolfson

About the author:

Brianna Wolfson is a New York native living in San Francisco. Her narrative nonfiction has been featured on Medium, Upworthy and The Moth. She buys a lottery ticket every Friday.

Have you read That Summer in Maine? What did you think of it?

It’s Monday, What Are You Reading? – June 22

This blog meme is hosted by Book Date. It is a place to meet up and share what you have been, are and about to be reading over the week.  It’s a great post to organize yourself. It’s an opportunity to visit and comment, and er… add to that ever growing TBR pile!

What I just finished:

This weekend I finished That Summer in Maine by Brianna Wolfson.

What I’m currently reading:

I’m currently reading The Unready Queen (The Oddmire #2) by William Ritter.

What I’m reading next:

Next I will be reading Every Step She Takes by K.L. Armstrong.

What are you guys reading this week? Have you read any of these books?

Jill’s Weekly Wrap-Up – June 21

Here are my reviews for the week with my ratings:

I did 9 weekly blogging memes:

How was your week? What did you guys read?

Sundays in Bed With… That Summer in Maine

The meme that dares to ask what book has been in your bed this morning? Come share what book you’ve spent time curled up reading in bed, or which book you wish you had time to read today! This meme is hosted by Midnight Book Girl.

This Sunday I’m reading That Summer in Maine by Brianna Wolfson.

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Goodreads Synopsis:

A novel about mothers and daughters, about taking chances, about exploding secrets and testing the boundaries of family

Years ago, during a certain summer in Maine, two young women, unaware of each other, met a charismatic man at a craft fair and each had a brief affair with him. For Jane it was a chance to bury her recent pain in raw passion and redirect her life. For Sue it was a fling that gave her troubled marriage a way forward.

Now, sixteen years later, the family lives these women have made are suddenly upended when their teenage girls meet as strangers on social media. They concoct a plan to spend the summer in Maine with the man who is their biological father. Their determination puts them on a collision course with their mothers, who must finally meet and acknowledge their shared past and join forces as they risk losing their only daughters to a man they barely know.

What book are you in bed with today?

Six for Sunday – Favourite LGBTQ Romances

This meme is hosted by Steph at A little but a lot. The weekly prompts for 2019 can be found here.

This week’s prompt is Favourite LGBTQ Romances. Here’s my list:

1. Tammy and Sharon (Music From Another World by Robin Talley)

2. Simon and Blue (Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli)

3. Will and Ollie (Only Mostly Devastated by Sophie Gonzales)

4. Nate and Cam (Deposing Nathan by Zack Smedley)

5. Alex and Henry (Red, White and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston)

6. Mal and Molly (Lumberjanes by Noelle Stevenson, Grace Ellis, Faith Hicks)

(All book cover images from Goodreads)

Did you make a Six for Sunday list?

Review: Take a Hint, Dani Brown (The Brown Sisters #2)

Title: Take a Hint, Dani Brown (The Brown Sisters #2)
Author: Talia Hibbert
Genre: Romance, Contemporary
Publisher: Avon
Source: Publisher via Edelweiss
Format: Ebook
Release Date: June 23, 2020
Rating: ★★★★

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Goodreads Synopsis:

Talia Hibbert returns with another charming romantic comedy about a young woman who agrees to fake date her friend after a video of him “rescuing” her from their office building goes viral…

Danika Brown knows what she wants: professional success, academic renown, and an occasional roll in the hay to relieve all that career-driven tension. But romance? Been there, done that, burned the T-shirt. Romantic partners, whatever their gender, are a distraction at best and a drain at worst. So Dani asks the universe for the perfect friend-with-benefits—someone who knows the score and knows their way around the bedroom. 

When brooding security guard Zafir Ansari rescues Dani from a workplace fire drill gone wrong, it’s an obvious sign: PhD student Dani and ex-rugby player Zaf are destined to sleep together. But before she can explain that fact, a video of the heroic rescue goes viral. Now half the internet is shipping #DrRugbae—and Zaf is begging Dani to play along. Turns out, his sports charity for kids could really use the publicity. Lying to help children? Who on earth would refuse? 

Dani’s plan is simple: fake a relationship in public, seduce Zaf behind the scenes. The trouble is, grumpy Zaf’s secretly a hopeless romantic—and he’s determined to corrupt Dani’s stone-cold realism. Before long, he’s tackling her fears into the dirt. But the former sports star has issues of his own, and the walls around his heart are as thick as his… um, thighs. 

Suddenly, the easy lay Dani dreamed of is more complex than her thesis. Has her wish backfired? Is her focus being tested? Or is the universe just waiting for her to take a hint?

Review:

Danika Brown is a PhD candidate. She isn’t interested in romance, but she needs to have friends-with-benefits. When her friend, Zaf, rescues her from a building during an emergency drill, the video of him carrying her outside goes viral. Zaf is a former rugby player, who works as a security guard at the university. The sudden viral video brings a lot of attention to the mental health charity that he created after a tragedy ended his rugby career. Since Zaf needs the popularity of the viral video to promote his charity and Dani needs a new friend-with-benefits, they decide to start a fake relationship to help them both. However, their fake relationship becomes threatened when feelings get involved.

This was another steamy romance in the series about The Brown Sisters. Even though there was a lot of romance, there were also some important issues that were brought up in the story. Zaf suddenly lost his brother and father in a car accident, which ended his rugby career. He experienced anxiety and depression following that accident. He still has triggers that can give him panic attacks. One way that he dealt with that is creating a charity to help athletes with mental health. Dani was supportive of his mental health, which is so important.

One thing I loved about the first book in the series was seeing the three Brown sisters together. They were a lot of fun and supportive of each other. In this book, the other sisters only appeared a couple of times for short scenes. I wished they had gotten together more, because it was great to see their relationship. Hopefully in the next book, the Brown sisters will have more time together.

This is a great, steamy romance!

Thank you HarperCollins for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

What to read next:

The Kiss Quotient (The Kiss Quotient #1) by Helen Hoang

The Wedding Date (The Wedding Date #1) by Jasmine Guillory

Other books in the series:

Have you read Take a Hint, Dani Brown? What did you think of it?

Top 5 Saturday – Books I’d Give a Second Chance

This is a weekly meme hosted Devouring Books. This week’s prompt is Books I’d Give a Second Chance. These are books that I just wasn’t in the mood to read the first time I started them, but I plan on reading them again. Here’s my list:

1. The Iron Flower (The Black Witch Chronicles #2) by Laurie Forest

2. Raven Lane by Amber Cowie

3. A Court of Thorns and Roses (A Court of Thorns and Roses #1) by Sarah J. Maas

4. My Summer of Love and Misfortune by Lindsay Wong

5. Crown of Feathers (Crown of Feathers #1) by Nicki Pau Preto

(All book covers from Goodreads)

If you’d like to do this list too, consider yourself tagged!

Did you make a Top 5 Saturday list?