What kind of paradise by Janelle Brown

Format: 384 pages, Paperback

Published: May 26, 2026 by Random House Trade Paperbacks

Fiction/own

 I do not actually remember hearing about this book before, it was just a book at the grocery store among livehockey books and I thought I deserved a treat.

Also, nominee for best historical? Whaaaat? no I refuse too, historical should at LEAST be 50 years ago, not the 90s.

Jane grows up with her dad in a cabin in Montana. Nearest town 1 hour away. They only go there as a treat. She is homeschooled. Learns to hunt. And writes her dad´s manifesto as he hates new technology. But she is 17 now and she starts to question things. Where did they come from? Why does her dad disappears for days at a time?

We all know what is coming, certainly not something good. Her dad has escape routes, talks about the feds, and just gets angrier...

I liked this one. I wanted to know what had happened before and if Jane would be ok. She is just trying to hang in there, and she is so curious about the outside world.

The first thing you have to understand is that my father was my entire world.

Growing up in an isolated cabin in Montana in the mid-1990s, Jane knows only the world that she and her father live the woodstove that heats their home, the vegetable garden where they try to eke out a subsistence existence, the books of nineteenth-century philosophy that her father gives her to read in lieu of going to school. Her father is elusive about their pasts, giving Jane little beyond the facts that they once lived in the Bay Area and that her mother died in a car accident, the crash propelling him to move Jane off the grid to raise her in a Thoreau-like utopia.

As Jane becomes a teenager she starts pushing against the boundaries of her restricted world. She begs to accompany her father on his occasional trips away from the cabin. But when Jane realizes that her devotion to her father has made her an accomplice to a horrific crime, she flees Montana to the only place she knows to look for answers about her mysterious past, and her mother's San Francisco. It is a city in the midst of a seismic change, where her quest to understand herself will force her to reckon with both the possibilities and the perils of the fledgling Internet, and where she will come to question everything she values.

Play of Shadows by Sebastien de Castell

Series: Court of Shadows (#1)

Format: 478 pages, Paperback

Published: February 18, 2025 by Arcadia Books

Fantasy/own

Most of this takes place in a Theatre, certainly a change from my usual fantasy.

It starts with Damelas running from a duel he knows he cant win, and then he takes refuge in a theatre. Luckily for him they say sure he is apart of their troop and then he is stuck there. Because he really does not want to fight that duel.

In the mean time there are these Iron Orchids trying to take over the town little by little. A foreign Duke who suddenly got power is loosing control, and the theatre crew is trying to put together a play.

Oh and there is a magic that makes the actor like become one with someone who has passed? And see what they see, to really play that part well. I wonder if that will happen wink wink.

I liked this concept. Theatre , dueling and a town in turmoil. Who to trust? And what happened 100 years ago?

But book 2 is not even about Damelas! It seems to be some other city, sadness

Damelas Shademantaigne picked a poor night to flee a judicial duel.

He has precious little hope of escaping the wrath of the Vixen, the most feared duellist in the entire city, until he stumbles through the stage doors of the magnificent Operato Belleza and tricks his way into the company of actors. An archaic law provides a temporary respite from his troubles - until one night a ghostly voice in his head causes Damelas to fumble his lines, inadvertently blurting out a dreadful truth: the city's most legendary hero may actually be a traitor and a brutal murderer.

With only the help of his boisterous and lusty friend Bereto, a beautiful assassin whose target may well be Damelas himself, and a company of misfit actors who'd just as soon see him dead, this failed son of two Greatcoats must somehow find within himself the courage to dig up long-buried truths before a ruthless band of bravos known as the Iron Orchids come for his head.

Oh, and there's still that matter of the Vixen waiting to duel him . . .

Carole´s Monday: Young Washington

Title: Young Washington

Length: 2h 1m

Released: 2026

Genre: Historical, Biography, War
Rating: PG-13
Where I Got It: Theater

SUMMARY:

A young George Washington faces war, betrayal and impossible choices that will forge a leader.

Trailer

REVIEW:

Oh, Georgie Wash. I was so excited to see this!!!! I had to go see it in theaters. My fellow history nerd friend and I went to see it. And yes, I dragged poor Hubby along. 

We all know the history of George Washington. But how many know his early days? It was not an easy road for him. 

The cast was lovely. I LOVED who they had to play young George. I hope, in a few years, he can play an older George. He really filled those shoes well.

One thing of note I kept whispering to myself was the camera angles, especially in the battle scenes. They felt different but good. There is so much going on, and you feel in the middle of it. I think the camera team did great. 

Some of the dialogue felt a little cliché, but it didn't ruin the story or characters. I loved the foreshadow drops. Made me chuckle.

There was a "special message" at the end...skip it. It didn't add anything extra to the story or whatever. 

I would for sure watch this again. The battle, the story. It was entertaining and a reminder that everyone starts somewhere. A leader is not born. A leader is made. 

4 stars from me. 

 

The Unfortunate Side Effects of Heartbreak and Magic by Breanne Randall

Format: 322 pages, Paperback

Published: September 19, 2023 by Alcove Press

Paranormal/borrowed

The person I borrowed it from dnfed it, people on my friend list had dnfed it, and it was meh, but I wanted to see if the romance would pay out. BOOM! I got hit in the face, wtf happened? The romance part suddenly imploded. Was this not a cozy paranormal romance? Eh..ok?

Nope, now we are all about the curse because this is a family of witches. And oh no, grandma is dying and we are all doomed!

Boom! Bloody hell, that effing romance is back. I hate this romance. It sucked! What the heck was that?!

I honestly do not know what this book was meant to be. Paranormal cozy? Nope changed. Romance? Nope, changed. It was messy and it made me mad at the end.

Yes yes I should have given up, but I wanted to know.

Sadie Revelare has always believed that the curse of four heartbreaks that accompanies her magic would be worth the price. But when her grandmother is diagnosed with cancer with only weeks to live, and her first heartbreak, Jake McNealy, returns to town after a decade, her carefully structured life begins to unravel.

With the news of their grandmother's impending death, Sadie's estranged twin brother Seth returns to town, bringing with him deeply buried family secrets that threaten to tear Sadie's world apart. Their grandmother has been the backbone of the family for generations, and with her death, Sadie isn't sure she'll have the strength to keep the family, and her magic, together.

As feelings for Jake begin to rekindle, and her grandmother growing sicker by the day, Sadie faces the last of her heartbreaks, and she has to decide: is love more important than magic?

The Ornithologist's Field Guide to Love by India Holton

Series: Love's Academic (#1)

Format: 384 pages, Paperback

Published: July 23, 2024 by Berkley

Historical fantasy

I liked it, but while I was reading I came to realised something was missing. Something that could have made it great.

Two ornithologists are competing in a contest, they are rivals, but are thrown together. It is a historical fantasy romcom with birds with magical powers.

And now I get all negative because that is all I can think of. I liked the world. I liked the banter, the hidden jokes, the weird birds with magic. But as I was reading I kept wondering why it was not truly pilling me in?! And I realised, it was the damn romance. I did not feel the romance. I totally thought they were rivals, and that she despised him. But as they got closer, nope, I felt no connection, no chemistry. The romance was this dead weight that made me feel nothing.

I did look that following books have other couples, but as the romance was dead here I worry. I am curious though.

Rival ornithologists hunt through England for a rare magical bird in this historical-fantasy rom-com reminiscent of Indiana Jones but with manners, tea, and helicopter parasols.

Beth Pickering is on the verge of finally capturing the rare deathwhistler bird when Professor Devon Lockley swoops in, capturing both her bird and her imagination like a villain. Albeit a handsome and charming villain, but that's beside the point. As someone highly educated in the ruthless discipline of ornithology, Beth knows trouble when she sees it, and she is determined to keep her distance from Devon. 

For his part, Devon has never been more smitten than when he first set eyes on Professor Beth Pickering. She's so pretty, so polite, so capable of bringing down a fiery, deadly bird using only her wits. In other words, an angel. Devon understands he must not get close to her, however, since they're professional rivals. 

When a competition to become Birder of the Year by capturing an endangered caladrius bird is announced, Beth and Devon are forced to team up to have any chance of winning. Now keeping their distance becomes a question of one bed or two. But they must take the risk, because fowl play is afoot, and they can't trust anyone else—for all may be fair in love and war, but this is ornithology.

Earl Crush by Alexandra Vasti

Series: Belvoir's Library (#2)

Format: 336 pages, Paperback

Published: January 21, 2025 by St. Martin's Griffin

Historical romance/own

Lydia is a spinster and an heiress. She has been writing to an Earl for some time, under a male name obviously. They talk politics, and now she is on her way to propose to him. He needs money, she has money.

Arthur is the Earl who is kind, and so busy trying to keep his estate going. But he has no idea why this woman is.

Oh no, it was the brother, we must find him! But the plot thickens. Suddenly it gets more spydrama too. And feelings grow between Arthur and Lydia as the hunt for his brother around Scotland.

It was humorous and fun. I will def read more in this series, and perhaps her other ones too

For three years, wallflower heiress Lydia Hope-Wallace has anonymously penned seditious pamphlets. And for almost as long, she’s corresponded with the Earl of Strathrannoch, whose political ambition is matched only by his charm. When Arthur’s latest letter reveals his dire financial straits, Lydia sets out for Scotland to offer him the only salvation she can think of—a marriage of convenience. To, um, herself.

Unfortunately, the Earl of Strathrannoch has no idea who she is.

When a bewitching redheaded stranger offers him her hand in marriage, Arthur Baird is stunned—but when he learns that his traitorous brother has been writing to her under Arthur’s name, he’s bloody furious. He’s content to live alone in his moldering castle, and he has no desire for a provocative, radical wife. (Or at least, he shouldn’t.)

But Arthur is desperate to track down his brother, who’s become dangerously entangled in British espionage, and he needs Lydia’s help. What he doesn’t need? The attraction that burns hotter each moment they spend together. As Lydia slips past his defenses and his brother’s mysterious past becomes a very present threat, Arthur will have to risk everything to keep her safe—even his heart.

Slewfoot by Brom

Format: 305 pages, Paperback

Published: April 25, 2023 by Tor Nightfire

Horror/borrowed

Oh you know what is coming, 1600s, the colonies. Men thinking they know better. Men saying women should do this and that, but not other things.

And here comes Abitha, struggling with her husband on their farm. His brother being a total ahole. A guy pointing fingers in town and group mentality. Abitha does speak her mind, she works hard, she forgets to be prim and proper.

And then she is alone, and vulnerable. And that brother really wants her farm. But something is in the woods, something that was wakened. Something angry....

It was never like eeek, horror! Mostly it made me angry at men at the end and I might have cheered at some things cos men suck.

I liked it. But ugh, puritans sucked!

Connecticut, 1666: An ancient spirit awakens in a dark wood. The wildfolk call him Father, slayer, protector.

The colonists call him Slewfoot, demon, devil.

To Abitha, a recently widowed outcast, alone and vulnerable in her pious village, he is the only one she can turn to for help.

Together, they ignite a battle between pagan and Puritan – one that threatens to destroy the entire village, leaving nothing but ashes and bloodshed in their wake.

This terrifying tale of bewitchery features more than two dozen of Brom’s haunting full-color paintings and brilliant endpapers, fully immersing readers in this wild and unforgiving world.

Carole´s Monday: The Dungeon Anarchist's Cookbook

Author: Matt Dinniman

Title: The Dungeon Anarchist's Cookbook

Series: Dungeon Crawler Carl #3

Genre: SciFi, Fantasy, Comedy

Format: ebook

Pages: 544

Published: March 19, 2021

Where I got It: Borrowed from library

Summary: 

Welcome to the Gun Show!

The top 10 list is populated. The sponsorship program is open. The difficulty is ramping up. The first three floors were nothing compared to what Carl and Donut now face.

The Iron Tangle. An impossibly complicated subway system built out of the world's subterranean railway systems, all combined and then tied together into a knot. Up is down. Down is up. Close is far. The cars are filled with monsters, the railway stations are less than safe, and the exit is always just a few stops away.

But there is hope. For the first time, the crawlers are all working together. The loot is better than ever. And the secret to unraveling it all may be hidden in the pages of a seemingly useless book.

Welcome, crawlers. Welcome to the fourth floor of the dungeon.

Review:

Finally got a chance to get into this. However, I'm bummed that my library didn't have the audio version of this one. SIGHS. Ebook is fine and all, and I'll take what I can get. 

We are back with Carl and Donut. The top 10 list is populated. The sponsorship is open. And the difficulty is ramping up. They will face an impossibly complicated subway system, all knotted up and filled with monsters. Even with these odds, there is a spark of hope......crawlers are working together to solve the puzzles and find good loot. 

Oh Carl. Oh Donut. This was a mess but fun and chaotic. 

There were some tedious moments, but it didn't bug me too much. I powered through them because I needed to know what was going to happen next.

I don't want to spoil anything, but yes, lots of trains and lots of monster mobs. Lots of crawlers. I loved seeing them start to work together. Honestly.....they need to all work together. F these TV people. 

The ending has me screaming. I can't wait to get started on book 4!

As you seen above, I did the book version of this book. I enjoyed it, but I missed Donut screaming in my ear. I may have to cave and buy the audio or use my Audible credits. Sighs. 

Overall, this was chaotic and messy and fun. Some tedious moments, but worth pushing through. Def read the other books first. 4 stars from me. 

 

Reading Challenges:

- Library Love #17

The Summer skies by Jenny Colgan

Series: MacIntyre 

Format: 347 pages, Paperback

Published: March 13, 2024 by HACHETTE INTL

Women´s fiction/own

Morag comes from a line of pilots and when her granddad calls that he is sick she goes to help. her family owns a flying route through the Scottish isles.

But Morag was involved in a horrible accident and has some trauma even though she claims she is fine.

I am so not in a review writing mood today, I am doing badly. Blergh, make it short!

Morag was nice, she did have some trauma, she did want to run away to Dubai. And clearly she belongs here, and not flying boring big planes.

There are some fun interesting people around. She meets a grumpy guy.

It all works out! I enjoyed it, it was a nice easy read. Perfect for the summer.

Morag McGinty is a Scottish lass from the remote islands that make up the northernmost reaches of the UK. She's also a third-generation pilot, the heir apparent to an island plane service she runs with her grandfather. The islands--over 500 dots of windswept land that reach almost to Norway--rely on their one hardworking prop plane to deliver mail, packages, tourists, medicine, and the occasional sheep. As the keeper of this vital lifeline, Morag is used to landing on pale golden beaches and tiny grass airstrips, whether during great storms or on bright endless summer nights. Up in the blue sky, Morag feels at one with the elements.

Down on the ground is a different matter, though. Her grandfather is considering and Morag wonders if she truly wants to spend the rest of her life in the islands. Her boyfriend Tim, from flight school, wants Morag to move to Dubai with him, where they'll fly A380s and say goodbye to Scotland's dark winters.

Morag is on the verge of making a huge life change when an unusually bumpy landing during a storm finds her marooned on Inchborn island. Inchborn is gloriously off-grid, home only to an ancient ruined abbey, a bird-watching station, and a population of one: Gregor Cameron, a visiting ornithologist from Glasgow who might have just the right perspective to help Morag pilot her course.

Bat Eater by Kylie Lee Baker

Format: 336 pages, Paperback

Published: January 8, 2026 by Hachette

Horror /borrowed

Sometimes my brain is not working at its fullest. I started reading this one, but did not get far. Anyway 3 h later it hit me why it was called bat eater! I thought it was like cos it was horror. Not because the book would deal with racism.

Srsly, why were people like that? I did not fear anyone more than anyone else while Covid was at its worst. If anything people should have feared me most! I worked through it all, SO worked through it all, my kid was at daycare through it all. Honestly the only thing I noticed about Covid was those stupid masks that I haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaated. Other than that business as usual.

Covid hit NY. Cora found herself without a job. Her sister was pushed infront of a train. Now she works as a crime scene cleaner.

And someone seems to be killing Asian women....

Oh and there are ghosts. This is the ghost month when ghosts come back and they are hungry so there are rules you must follow, but Cora did not so now they are huuuungry.

This book dealt with covid, racism, and ghosts. Quite the mix. I am glad I do not have to deal with hungry ghosts, they sound scary.

It started off a bit slow, but it got interesting. I waited for the horror aspect. But then it all was horror because people will always be scarier than ghosts

Cora Zeng is a crime scene cleaner, washing away the remains of brutal murders and suicides in Chinatown. The bloody messes don't bother her, not when she's already witnessed the most horrific thing possible: her sister being pushed in front of a train.

Before fleeing the scene, the murderer whispered two words: bat eater.

Months pass, the killer is never caught, and Cora can barely keep herself together. She pushes away all feelings, disregards the bite marks that appear on her coffee table, and won't take her aunt's advice to prepare for the Hungry Ghost Festival, when the gates of hell open.

Cora tries to ignore the rising dread in her stomach, even when she and her weird co-workers begin finding bat carcasses at their crime scene clean-ups. But Cora can't ignore the fact that all their recent clean-ups have been the bodies of East Asian women.

Soon Cora will learn: you can't just ignore hungry ghosts.

Audio: The Butcher´s Masquerade

Series: Dungeon Crawler Carl, Book 5

Narrated by: Jeff Hays

Length: 23 hrs and 33 mins

Release date: 05-26-22

Publisher: Audible Studios

Categories: Science Fiction & Fantasy

Oh another crazy book. You really have to read them to get it.

A new floor, new dangers as there are hunters hunting the crawlers on this floor. There are also dinosaurs, and poor Carl will obviously never get pants.

I do not have a lot to say. It is a crazy ride. Dangers, explosions, quests, space gonorrhea, a convention. I mean honestly you just have to be there for it.

I better take a little break again, I only have 3 more to listen to! And then a long wait for the next one. And they are now entering the 8th floor, eeek!

Amazing narration, just amazing.

A lush jungle teeming with danger. Savage dinosaurs seeking blood. A fallen princess intent on vengeance. A mysterious, end-of-floor celebration for the top crawlers, dubbed “The Butcher’s Masquerade.”

The sixth floor. The Hunting Grounds.

As the remaining crawlers battle for their lives, a new, terrible threat looms. Outside tourists are finally allowed to enter the game, and they are here and ready to hunt. Among them is Vrah, a famed and veteran hunter, intent on collecting the biggest trophy of her career.

But their prey is far from harmless, and this season they are fighting back.

Yesteryear by Claire Caro Burke

Format: 400 pages, Paperback

Published: April 7, 2026 by Fourth Estate

Fiction/library

 I kept seeing reviews how I would hate Natalie, and sure I did not like her. She was horrible. But at the end I just felt sorry for her.

She was clearly depressed already in College, after the first kid even more. She should have gotten help then. Instead she seems to turn more manic, people throw money at her. And she has enablers. No one ever seems to point the finger at the ever more rightwing conspiracy freak of a husband. I just cant hate someone who seems really mentally unstable, and I do not think she ever got help. She is just evil, nah, the woman needs some psychiatric help.

I feel like I read another book then everyone else. Why did no one ever help her?! I get it is hard to help someone who does not know they need help but come on.

Natalie marries young, moves to a farm, starts to film her life. Think Ballerina farm. Smile and pretend everyone is happy, even though everyone is miserable. She only cares about likes. She is focused and driven and pretends to be the best Trad Wife there is.

And then she is transported to the 1800s. And being a real trad wife sucks....

I liked it, it was good. I enjoyed the twists, but, srsly, why did no one ever help her?

Natalie lives a traditional lifestyle – and has the social media accounts to prove it. Her charming farmhouse on her working ranch is artfully cluttered, her husband is a handsome cowboy, her homemade sourdough boules are each more beautiful than the last. So what if there are nannies and producers and industrial-grade ovens behind the scenes? What Natalie’s followers don’t know won’t hurt them.

Then, one morning, Natalie wakes up in a strange, horrible version of reality. Her home, her husband, her children―they’re all familiar, but something’s off. Is this a hoax? A reality show? A test from God? Natalie knows just two things for sure: this isn't her perfect life, and she must escape, by any means possible.

Carole´s Monday: Duke of depravity

Author: Scarlett Scott

Narrator: Kate Handford

Title: Duke of Depravity

Series: Sins and Scoundrels #1

Genre: Historical Romance

Format: Audiobook 

Published: November 23, 2018

Where I Got It: Audible

Summary: 

Crispin Ashforth returns from battle the newly inherited Duke of Whitley with two sisters under his charge. Publicly lauded as a hero, he is haunted by the bitter mission that nearly saw him killed and cost the life of his best friend. He’s desperate to drown out the demons tormenting him by any means, regardless of how depraved.

All he needs to do is find a proper governess for his hellion sisters so he can drink and wench himself into oblivion. Enter Miss Jacinda Turnbow, who is as lovely as she is prickly. It doesn’t take Crispin long to realize he’s found precisely the sort of distraction he needs in the prim governess.

But Jacinda has secrets of her own, and she’s no ordinary governess. To save herself and her father from ruin, she has agreed to infiltrate the duke’s home and search for evidence that he’s a traitor.

Resisting his advances grows more difficult by the day, however, as she discovers there’s more to Crispin than the careless life of sin he’s cultivated. And the greatest danger she faces is losing her heart to the man she has no choice but to betray.

Review:

Picked this up randomly when I saw the title! It fits a reading challenge, and plus it has been ages since I read a Historical Romance. 

Here we follow Jacinda and Crispin. He is the new Duke and has to take care of his sisters, but his mind is still haunted by the war's events, so he's been drinking and man-whoring around town. However, he needs a new governess since his prankster sisters made the last one quite rather quickly. Enter Jacinda. She is undercover to search for evidence against Crispin. There are rumors that he is a traitor. As time goes on, she starts doubting his guilt, but is she biased because she is falling for the man, or is he truly innocent?

This one was alright. It had it's shiny and fun moments, but I didn't buy the love story between these two. Lust? Heck yeah, but there was little love there from what I could see. They rarely spoke, and then Jacinda wasn't who she said she was. There was little time at the end for them to talk it through and really get to know each other.

Love a good lust, and the chemistry was lovely, but I didn't buy their love. Not even in the epilogue. 

Other than that, I still had a lot of fun with this story and seeing them fumble about. 

The narrator did a good job. His voices fit. 

Overall, this was just alright for me because I never felt the love. The lust and etc...that was great! The narrator was good. I just needed more talking. 3 stars. 

Reading Challenges

- Audiobook #27

- Reading Romance Challenge #16 (Duke in Title)

 

Mid Year Check in Audiobook Challenge

 

Checking in :) Standing at 40 audiobooks

40. Hunt the ever wild by S.E.Kiser

49. Her final wish by Renata McMann

38. The Butcher´s Masquerade by Matt Dinnimann

37. Nobodys quest by Alyssa Day

36. A stitch in time by Kelley Armstrong

35. So material a change by Amy DOrazio

34. The gate of feral gods by Matt Dinnimann

33. Startup Hell by Caitlin Rozakis

32. Mr Hurst´s return by Jann Rowland

31. The dungeon anarchist´s cookbook by Matt Dinniman

30. A folly of youth by Amy Dorazio

29. Carl´s doomsday scenario by Matt Dinniman

28. Death at a Highland wedding by Kelley Armstrong

27. Summer with my cowboy by Linda Meal Miller

26. Maybe this time by Cara Bastone

25. This kingdom will not kill me by Ilona Andrews

24. The shades of Pemberley by Jann Rowland

23. Holidays on the ranch by Carolyn Brown

22. The vampire in the potting shed by Hailey Edwards

21. Wed for their royal heir by Jackie Ashenden

20. Turns of fate by Anne Bishop

19. Done for the best by Amy Dorazio

18. Disturbing the dead by Kelley Armstrong

17. Schemes and scandals by Kelley Armstrong

16. The accidental dating experiment by Lauren Blakely

15. An offer of marriage by Amy Dorazio

14. I love you like it´s 1999 by AJ Pine

13. Love at first psych by Cara Bastone

12. Cocktails and chloroform by Kelley Armstrong

11. The nameless lands by Kate Elliott

10. A baristas guide to love and larceny by Caroline Bonin

9. The flirting game by Lauren Blakely

8. Pumpkin spice and pour overs by Elise Kennedy

7. Blind date with a werewolf by Patricia Briggs

6. Hemlock&Silver by T.Kingfisher

5. Evergreen by Buck Turner

4. Suddenly Mrs Darcy by Jenetta James

3. Lucky Suit by Lauren Blakely

2. Still mad about you by Liz Maverick

1.The poisoner´s ring by Kelley Armstrong

Hunt the ever wild by S.E.Kiser

By: S. E. Kiser

Narrated by: Graham Halstead

Length: 13 hrs and 22 mins

Release date: 06-23-26

Publisher: Tantor Media

To review/fantasy

Sy is a wizard, but he is also indentured to a king who makes him do things he is disgusted by. Then the same king calls for a Phoenix hunt, so that he can rule forever.

Sy have to do it so that he can free himself. He needs help and gets it from Anya, a hunter. With secrets of her own, and reasons for wanting that phoenix too.

But the once deserted magical woods is crawling with people.

Sy and Anya are both kind of lost and lonely, even with people around them who the trust, and have loved. Both really want something. And then they meet and something grows.

The book is humorous, fantastical and there is also some longing thrown in. I enjoyed it.

Good narration. He told the story in a good pace and the voices were good

When a king calls a hunt for a phoenix in a deadly, magical forest, wizard Sy jumps at the chance. Years ago, he indentured himself to pay for his magical education, binding him by unbreakable spell to the wicked king. The prize is just enough to pay off his debt. He can't split it. Neither can he survive the forest alone. He seeks Anya, a skilled huntress who lives on the forest's edge, and lies about splitting the money.

But Anya is lying, too. Cursed by a vengeful witch after killing her familiar, Anya must find the phoenix and bind it to her before the summer solstice. Until then, she will suffer a gruesome transformation. With the forest swarming with wizards, she needs one on her side—for now.

Neither can split the prize. Neither can win alone. Betrayal is their only option.

But anything can happen in the wood.

And the wood is hungry.

Best of June

June is done. Here comes the July sun!

Here are our faves for last month. 

Best Book of the Month:

Blodeuedd - The Haunting of Ashburn House by Darcy Coates

"I am giving this one best of! Sure DCC is amazing, but some other books needs to shine too."

Carole -  An Ordinary Sort of Evil by Kelley Armstrong

"Had some stiff competition for June! However, this one was just too good to not give the trophy to."

Best Movie of the Month:

Carole -  Project Hail Mary (2026)

"This was the only movie I watched in June and it was a darn good one that I had to watch it again."

Blodeuedd - Little Brother (2026)

"I watched Little Brother. Was it great? Nah, but it gave a few good laughs."

Best TV show of the Month:

Blodeuedd - Mating Season (s1) & The Mentalist (s3 & 4)

"Mating Season was effed up, lol. And now I have watched s3 and 4 of The Mentalist."

Carole - Off Campus (s1)

"One of the rare times that it was overall better than the book! I loved this show and I'm re-watching it as we speak."

Best Cover of the Month:

B's pick: Cute!

C's pick: Adorable!

Audio: Her Final Wish

By: Renata McMann, Summer Hanford

Narrated by: Benjamin Fife

Length: 7 hrs and 1 min

Release date: 06-30-26

Publisher: Tantor Media

Categories: Literature & Fiction /to review

Pride and prejudice variation time! In this one Elizabeth gets word that everyone is sick back home so she needs to leave at once as she is staying with Charlotte. Mr Darcy is kind enough to help them there.'

A sickness has swept through and both her parents are ill. Kitty and Mary are left alone with one servant to care for everyone. There is a quarantine, so when Darcy and Elizabeth enters the house they can no longer leave.

This was a different Darcy that decided to take care of the house, chores and see to that everyone got the best care.

Her final wish is her mother wanting Lizzy or anyone to marry rich in case The Bennets die.

I liked it and it was different since they were stuck at the house. And Mr Darcy was so nice!

I enjoyed the narration. Good voices and it flowed really well. It got me invested in the story.

When a sickness burns its way through Hertfordshire, Darcy casts prudence aside to ensure Elizabeth reaches Longbourn in time to tend her ailing mother. Trapped by a quarantine and hastily made promises, the two find themselves bound by obligation and honor. With Longbourn in chaos and the Bennet family at odds, will good ever come from Mrs. Bennet's final wish?