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Part of Your World

Part of Your WorldTitle: Part of Your World
Author: Abby Jimenez
Series: Part of Your World #1
Genre: Romance
Format: Audio
Pages: 388
Length: 10h 5m
Narrator: Zachary Webber, Julia Whelan
Source: Library
Reason: Just Because
Rating:

My Thoughts

PART OF YOUR WORLD was a fun opposites attract romance. I loved the setting of Wahkon, Minnesota and all the animals, especially Barrack Ollama (iykyk). I loved the idea of a white collar woman getting drawn into a blue collar world. I loved both Alexis and Daniel, their chemistry, and banter.

Even though PART OF YOUR WORLD is mostly fluff, it dealt with some hard topics–physical and emotional abuse, interactions between different classes, the idea of love in all its forms. I loved the emphasis on mental health and therapy, and recognizing abuse in all its forms and learning to walk away.

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Husbands & Lovers

Husbands & LoversTitle: Husbands & Lovers
Author: Beatriz Williams
Genre: Romance
Format: Audio
Pages: 384
Length: 12h 31m
Narrator: Helen Laser, Caroline Hewitt
Source: Owned
Reason: BotM Backlist
Rating:

My Thoughts

I absolutely adored HUSBANDS & LOVERS. I was hooked from the prologue. It was a beautiful story of love, loss, and betrayal. I equally loved reading both Hannah’s and Mallory’s stories and loved how they fit together.

I knew why Mallory left and didn’t talk to Monk about Sam way before the reveal. I’m sad I was right, but I’m glad the story happened the way it did. I also feel so much for Hannah and her life. She lost so much. I’m glad Mallory and Paige figured out what happened to her and got to meet Károly in the end.

Silver Elite

Silver EliteTitle: Silver Elite
Author: Dani Francis
Series: Silver Elite #1
Genre: Romantasy
Format: Audio
Pages: 528
Length: 19h 12m
Narrator: Amanda Dolan
Source: Owned
Reason: Book of the Month
Rating:

My Thoughts

I adored SILVER ELITE. I was hooked from the get go and I couldn’t put the book down. I loved the setting and the concept of the “modified” and I loved the dystopian aspect of the story. The story felt like THE HUNGER GAMES meets DIVERGENT and GRACELING, with a little bit of FOURTH WING thrown in as well (no dragons, though). It is more of a romantopian than a romantasy, but either way it was awesome.

I thought Wren was a great protagonist and heroine. She reminded me of all my favorite dystopian/fantasy heroines. I loved the chemistry between her and Cross. Their banter was amazing and none of the spicier scenes made me roll my eyes. (Francis really knows how to write good kissing scenes!) The other characters were also fantastic. I kept second guessing their motives and had a hard time deciding which side they were on. I’m really looking forward to reading the second book when it comes out next year.

As far as the controversy, I didn’t feel like SILVER ELITE was written by A.I. The writing may not be the best literature has to offer, but it seemed natural for a story like this.

Darling Girl

Darling GirlTitle: Darling Girl
Author: Liz Michalski
Genre: Retelling
Format: Audio
Pages: 341
Length: 11h 42m
Narrator: Elizabeth Knowelden
Source: Owned
Reason: BotM Backlist
Rating:

My Thoughts

DARLING GIRL was a very interesting, dark twist on Peter Pan by J.M. Barrie. I really enjoyed the topsy turvy nature of this story and flipping everything on its head. I thought the idea of Holly Darling looking for her daughter while trying to keep her son safe from what lurks in the shadows, windows, and wind was a fun concept.

At first, I thought Holly was selfish but as I learned more and more about the truth and what happened to her and her family, I realized that even though many of her decisions and actions were questionable, she did what she thought was best for her family. I liked her arc of character growth. I wish, however, she had done more in the story instead of relying on other people. The ending was a bit anticlimactic because of it. I also didn’t think she spent enough time with Christopher Cooke to warrant him being the love interest. I loved that he was, but I thought he needed more time and pages in the story.

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The Slowest Burn

The Slowest BurnTitle: The Slowest Burn
Author: Sarah Chamberlain
Genre: Romance
Format: Audio
Pages: 336
Length: 11h 12m
Narrator: Hunter Johns, Kate Handford
Source: Library
Reason: Just Because
Rating:

My Thoughts

I really enjoyed THE SLOWEST BURN. I loved both Ellie and Kieran, their chemistry, and banter. I loved that the story switched between Ellie and Kieran’s POVs. I thought it was a fun, spicy, enemies-to-lovers romance that dealt with some hard topics.

I really appreciated the look at grief from different perspectives and how messy it can be. I also loved the look at what it feels like to be a square peg in a round-hole family and never measuring up for the people who are supposed to love you. I loved the sense of found family, the look at neurodivergence, and the lesson of learning to love yourself the way you are.