The Cassandra Curse Hope Bolinger Publication date: February 1st 2021 Genres: Middle-Grade, Young Adult
STRANGER THINGS X CURSED PRINCESS CLUB
Charity’s acts of kindness always end in disaster, but when one clown costume too many lands her in the Vice Principal’s office, she receives a mysterious note from a group called “The Cassandra Coalition,” asking her if she wants to be rid of the curse that seems to follow her.
The teens of the coalition claim to be cursed by a mirror world connected with their hometown known as Delphos. To make things worse, Delphos appears to be invading their world and turning people into zombies—either that, or someone switched all the coffee to decaf.
When one of their members goes missing, they’ll try to track her down, close the portal to their world, and find a way to end their curse, before the curse ends them.
Hope Bolinger is literary agent, freelance author and editor, YA novelist, and obsessed with anything to do with theater.
Books include The Quiet and the Storm (Taylor University Press), Blaze (IlluminateYA), Den (IlluminateYA), Dear Hero (INtense Publications), and Dear Henchman (INtense Publications). She’s also contributed to books that were published by Broadstreet Publishing and New Hope.
When she isn’t busy adding to her 600+ bylines, or showing up in her town square dressed as Red Riding Hood, she loves to connect with readers. Find her at hopebolinger.com or connect with her @hopebolinger
Title: Love at First Spite Author: Anna E. Collins Genre: Romance, Contemporary Publisher: Graydon House Source: Publisher via NetGalley Format: Ebook Release Date: January 4, 2022 Rating: ★★★★★
Goodreads Synopsis:
They say living well is the best revenge. But sometimes, spreading the misery seems a whole lot more satisfying. That’s interior designer Dani Porter’s justification for buying the vacant lot next to her ex-fiancé’s house…the house they were supposed to live in together, before he cheated on her with their Realtor. Dani plans to build a vacation rental that will a) mess with his view and his peace of mind and b) prove that Dani is not someone to be stepped on. Welcome to project Spite House.
That plan quickly becomes complicated when Dani is forced to team up with Wyatt Montego, the handsome, haughty architect at her firm, and the only person available to draw up blueprints. Wyatt is terse and stern, the kind of man who eats his sandwich with a knife and fork. But as they spend time together on- and off-site, Dani glimpses something deeper beneath that hard veneer, something surprising, vulnerable, and real. And the closer she gets to her goal, the more she wonders if winning revenge could mean losing something infinitely sweeter…
Review:
After breaking up with her cheating fiancé, Sam, Dani wants revenge. Since her fiancé didn’t buy the extra lot next door to their home like she asked him to, she decides to buy it along with her cousin and her new landlady. Dani decides the best way to get back at Sam is to build a rental home that will block the view he loves. To build the house, Dani asks her coworker, Wyatt, a serious and unfriendly architect, to help her draw up the blueprints. As they spend time together, Dani realizes Wyatt isn’t as unlikeable as he seemed. Dani doesn’t want the project to end, because then she wouldn’t have a reason to spend time with Wyatt. She has to prolong the project, and maintain her new relationship with Wyatt, before they both end in disaster.
This was a great enemies-to-lovers revenge story. There was also some forbidden romance, since Dani and Wyatt worked together and had to keep their romance a secret in the office. These were really well developed romance tropes.
The ending was suspenseful and thrilling. It was a little predictable, but still exciting. I won’t give away what happened, but I think Dani’s goal of getting revenge had a satisfying ending.
Love at First Spite is a great revenge story!
Thank you HarperCollins for providing a copy of this book.
What to read next:
Talk Bookish to Me by Kate Bromley
Get a Life, Chloe Brown by Talia Hibbert
About the author:
Anna E. Collins is a Seattle-area author who writes stories about the lives and loves of women. Once upon a time she was a teacher, and she has a master’s degree in educational psychology. LOVE AT FIRST SPITE is her first novel.
Have you read Love at First Spite? What did you think of it?
This is a weekly meme hosted by Breaking the Spine. In this post we highlight a book that’s highly anticipated.
The book that I’m waiting on this Wednesday is Bright Ruined Things by Samantha Cohoe. The expected publication date is February 15, 2022.
Goodreads Synopsis:
The only life Mae has ever known is on the island, living on the charity of the wealthy Prosper family who control the magic on the island and the spirits who inhabit it. Mae longs for magic of her own and to have a place among the Prosper family, where her best friend, Coco, will see her as an equal, and her crush, Miles, will finally see her. Now that she’s eighteen, Mae knows her time with the Prospers may soon come to an end.
But tonight is First Night, when the Prospers and their high-society friends return to the island to celebrate the night Lord Prosper first harnessed the island’s magic and started producing aether – a magical fuel source that has revolutionized the world. With everyone returning to the island, Mae finally has the chance to go after what she’s always wanted.
When the spirits start inexplicably dying, Mae starts to realize that things aren’t what they seem. And Ivo, the reclusive, mysterious heir to the Prosper magic, may hold all the answers – including a secret about Mae’s past that she doesn’t remember. As Mae and her friends begin to unravel the mysteries of the island, and the Prospers’ magic, Mae starts to question the truth of what her world was built on.
Forbidden magic, a family secret, and a night to reveal it all…
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 is Most Anticipated Books Releasing in the First Half of 2022. Here’s my list:
1. Gallant by V.E. Schwab
2. Only a Monster by Vanessa Len
3. The Book of Living Secrets by Madeleine Roux
4. This Woven Kingdom by Tahereh Mafi
5. The Maid by Nita Prose
6. The Last Grand Duchess by Bryn Turnbull
7. Reputation by Lex Croucher
8. Four Aunties and a Wedding by Jesse Q. Sutanto
9. The Rumor Game by Dhonielle Clayton and Sona Charaipotra
10. The Lady Tempts an Heir by Harper St. George
(All book covers from Goodreads)
What’s your list of books on your Top Ten Tuesday?
Title: My Darling Husband Author: Kimberly Belle Genre: Thriller, Contemporary Publisher: Park Row Source: Publisher via NetGalley Format: Ebook Release Date: December 28, 2021 (paperback will be published March 8, 2022) Rating: ★★★★
Goodreads Synopsis:
Jade and Cam Lasky are by all accounts a happily married couple, with two adorable kids, a spacious home and a rapidly growing restaurant business. But their world is tipped upside down when Jade is confronted by a masked home invader. As Cam scrambles to gather the ransom money, Jade starts to wonder if they’re as financially secure as their lifestyle suggests, and what other secrets her husband is keeping from her.
Cam may be a good father, a celebrity chef and a darling husband, but there’s another side he’s kept hidden from Jade that has put their family in danger. Unbeknownst to Cam and Jade, the home invader has been watching them and is about to turn their family secrets into a public scandal.
With riveting twists and a breakneck pace, My Darling Husband is an utterly compelling thriller that once again showcases Kimberly Belle’s exceptional talent for domestic suspense.
Review:
Cam Lasky is a famous chef in Atlanta with a few high-priced restaurants. He arrives at his biggest restaurant to find that it’s burned down. While he’s dealing with the insurance, his wife, Jade, is confronted with a masked intruder who has trapped her and her two children in their home. The kidnapper is asking for a specific amount in ransom, which Jade thinks won’t be a problem for her successful husband to put his hands on in a few hours. However, Jade doesn’t know about the secrets her husband has been keeping from her, that could determine if anyone gets out of this situation alive.
This was a fast paced and suspenseful thriller. There were great cliffhangers at the end of chapters that made me keep reading. It was really hard to put down because I needed to know how it ended.
There were a couple of surprising twists at the end of the story. However, some of the subplots weren’t related to the main plot. I won’t mention them and give them away, but they were really good subplots, yet they didn’t really add to the main plot. I would have loved it if all of these plot threads came together at the end.
My Darling Husband is a fast paced thriller!
Thank you HarperCollins for providing a copy of this book.
What to read next:
Tell Me My Name by Erin Ruddy
Dear Wife by Kimberly Belle
About the author:
Kimberly Belle is the USA Today and internationally bestselling author of seven novels, including her latest, My Darling Husband (December 2021). Her third novel, The Marriage Lie, was a semifinalist in the 2017 Goodreads Choice Awards for Best Mystery & Thriller, and a #1 e-book bestseller in the UK and Italy. She’s sold rights to her books in a dozen languages as well as film and television options. A graduate of Agnes Scott College, Belle divides her time between Atlanta and Amsterdam.
Have you read My Darling Husband? What did you think of it?
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 My Darling Husband by Kimberly Belle.
What I’m currently reading:
I’m currently reading Love at First Spite by Anna E. Collins.
What I’m reading next:
Next I will be reading Compass to Vinland by Dani Resh.
What are you guys reading this week? Have you read any of these books?
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 My Darling Husband by Kimberly Belle.
Goodreads Synopsis:
Jade and Cam Lasky are by all accounts a happily married couple, with two adorable kids, a spacious home and a rapidly growing restaurant business. But their world is tipped upside down when Jade is confronted by a masked home invader. As Cam scrambles to gather the ransom money, Jade starts to wonder if they’re as financially secure as their lifestyle suggests, and what other secrets her husband is keeping from her.
Cam may be a good father, a celebrity chef and a darling husband, but there’s another side he’s kept hidden from Jade that has put their family in danger. Unbeknownst to Cam and Jade, the home invader has been watching them and is about to turn their family secrets into a public scandal.
With riveting twists and a breakneck pace, My Darling Husband is an utterly compelling thriller that once again showcases Kimberly Belle’s exceptional talent for domestic suspense.
Title: Honest June Author: Tina Wells Genre: Middle Grade, Contemporary Publisher: Random House Books for Young Readers Source: Publisher via NetGalley Format: Ebook Release Date: November 9, 2021 Rating: ★★★★
Goodreads Synopsis:
For June Jackson, middle school is hard enough–but it’s even harder when a fairy godmother grants her the ability to only tell the truth ALL THE TIME! Is it a blessing… or a major curse? June’s charming story will inspire big laughs and even bigger love for a new heroine for our times.
June Jackson is an expert at exceeding people’s expectations. She can’t help it; she’s a people-pleaser! She’ll do everything she can to be the perfect student, daughter, and friend, even if it means ignoring her own feelings sometimes. Cue Victoria, June’s secret fairy godmother, who blesses June with the ability to never tell a lie in the hopes that June will finally be honest with her loved ones. Instead of telling them the truth to their faces, June turns to a secret online blog–the only place she can write out her true feelings without hurting people.
When all of her responsibilities start to pile on–field hockey, the school paper, family responsibility, her friends–June begins feeling so overwhelmed that sometimes it feels hard to breathe. Not to mention June is desperately trying to figure out how to overthrow the spell at the same time! When the pressures reach new heights, will Honest June finally be able to break free and tell whole truth and nothing but?
Review:
Sixth grader June is always focused on pleasing everyone around her. That means that she often tells white lies to impress and please her friends and family. However, her own feelings get pushed aside as she tries to make everyone else happy. One day, Victoria, June’s fairy godmother, arrives and puts a spell on June that forces her to tell the truth. She can no longer lie about liking her mother’s cooking or wanting to follow in her dad’s footsteps to become a lawyer. June tries to get around this by creating a private blog to type up the truth so that she doesn’t have to speak it. June must learn the importance of the truth so the spell can finally be lifted.
This story had an important message about telling the truth, that is for adults as well as children. It’s so easy to tell little white lies that end up snowballing into bigger lies. Even just saying “I’m fine,” when you aren’t, is a lie that June was caught up in a few times.
June felt a lot of pressure from her family to do well in school. Her father had her entire life planned out for her when she was eleven-years-old, but she didn’t know what she wanted to do in the future. This could be very relatable for many readers. Once she finally spoke the truth and talked to her parents about what was bothering her, she was able to begin to solve her problems.
Honest June is a great middle grade novel!
Thank you Random House Books for Young Readers and TBR and Beyond Tours for providing a copy of this book.
Tina Wells is the founder of RLVNT Media, a multimedia content venture serving entrepreneurs, tweens, and culturists with authentic representation. Tina has been recognized by Fast Company’s 100 Most Creative People in Business, Essence’s 40 Under 40, Cosmopolitan’s Fun Fearless Phenom, and more. She is the author of nine books, including the best-selling tween fiction series Mackenzie Blue, its 2020 spinoff series, The Zee Files, and the marketing handbook, Chasing Youth Culture and Getting It Right.
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