Title: Tress of the Emerald Sea
Author: Brandon Sanderson
Genre: Fantasy
Format: Audio
Pages: 369
Length: 12h 27m
Narrator: Michael Kramer
Source: Owned
Reason: Recommended
Rating:
My Thoughts
I’m glad I had a chance to read TRESS OF THE EMERALD SEA, but it wasn’t what I was expecting. I enjoyed the book, but I didn’t love it. Part of the issue for me was Hoid, the narrator. I didn’t like his way of telling the story. I’m not a huge fan of 4th-wall-breaking, unless it’s in movies or TV shows, because it usually takes me out of the story and I want to be immersed.
I did like Tress and most of the other characters. I also liked the overall story of her defying the king’s order to not leave her little island to search for her lost love and travel through the dangerous spore oceans. I also liked the ending and the fact that Sanderson left it open so he can write more stories about Tress and her planet.
After doing some research, I’ve now realized that this book is part of Sanderson’s Cosmere universe. While TRESS OF THE EMERALD SEA is a standalone novel, it has connections and some shared characters to his other series and books.
Tress of the Emerald Sea
Author: Brandon Sanderson
Genre: Fantasy
Format: Audio
Pages: 369
Length: 12h 27m
Narrator: Michael Kramer
Source: Owned
Reason: Recommended
Rating:
My Thoughts
I’m glad I had a chance to read TRESS OF THE EMERALD SEA, but it wasn’t what I was expecting. I enjoyed the book, but I didn’t love it. Part of the issue for me was Hoid, the narrator. I didn’t like his way of telling the story. I’m not a huge fan of 4th-wall-breaking, unless it’s in movies or TV shows, because it usually takes me out of the story and I want to be immersed.
I did like Tress and most of the other characters. I also liked the overall story of her defying the king’s order to not leave her little island to search for her lost love and travel through the dangerous spore oceans. I also liked the ending and the fact that Sanderson left it open so he can write more stories about Tress and her planet.
After doing some research, I’ve now realized that this book is part of Sanderson’s Cosmere universe. While TRESS OF THE EMERALD SEA is a standalone novel, it has connections and some shared characters to his other series and books.
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.
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.
September 2025 Wrap-Up
Books Read
Favorite: Silver Elite
Least Favorite: The Last Word
Stats
September
Books Read: 8
Rereads: 0
Pages Read: 3,211
Hours Listened: 104h 10m
Average Rating: 4.3
Year-to-Date
Books Read: 32
Rereads: 1
Pages Read: 11,937
Hours Listened: 367h 25m
Average Rating: 4.2
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.