Gathering inspiration from a life of travel, hope, long-distance relationships, healing, and adventure, Frayne invites readers into her world. The Gravity Inside Us is an ode to whatever it is we carry that pulls us in and out of place, and speaks so insistently of fate. Through writing about her own experiences, this book is a reach into that space.
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Rating: 5 out of 5.
I wasn’t sure what to expect going into this one, but the description I read had me thinking it would be the type of poetry that I usually enjoy, and I was right. Frayne uses beautiful language and imagery in each piece, some varying from a simple few lines to full prose. Most of the pieces were centered on love, both finding and losing love – with special emphasis on long distance relationships. I really enjoyed the flow and progression throughout the collection and how the themes shifted over time as the author discussed the wide range of emotions that are twisted into any relationship.
There are no monsters anymore, or so the children in the city of Lucille are taught. Jam and her best friend, Redemption, have grown up with this lesson all their life. But when Jam meets Pet, a creature made of horns and colors and claws, who emerges from one of her mother’s paintings and a drop of Jam’s blood, she must reconsider what she’s been told. Pet has come to hunt a monster, and the shadow of something grim lurks in Redemption’s house. Jam must fight not only to protect her best friend, but also to uncover the truth, and the answer to the question–How do you save the world from monsters if no one will admit they exist?
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Rating: 5 out of 5.
First and foremost, this book is not some light and happy story. It’s very heavy and impactful and like me, you will likely have to sit with it a bit after reading it. This is set in a futuristic world where all of the ‘monsters’ have been eliminated, and those who are now technically in power are known as the ‘angels.’
There was so much packed into this book. There was talk about what monsters looked like and how you may not be able to recognize them, talk about race, a ton of diversity and more. It’s really hard to put into words just all this book discusses because of how deep it is. We follow Jam as she meets Pet and the moral conflict that comes from their discussions.
The inclusion and diversity of the book was wonderful to read as such things should become more normalized. These weren’t things added in just to be there, they were integral facets and parts of different characters.
Some of my favorite parts of the book were the conversations Jam would have with Pet and the want they would work through those conversations. Those talks were full of metaphor and morality and really propelled the story towards the end.
First in a magical new series full of edgy and hilarious antics, this is the read you need to finally give your year the fairy-tale ending it deserves! An enchanting story of love, dreams, and second chances—a delightful read for cold winter nights that fans of Christina Lauren, Tessa Bailey, and Kerry Winfrey can’t miss…
If love is the source of all the magic in the universe, and the town of Ever After, Missouri, is the epicenter of enchantment, then the locals are in dire need of a reboot. At least according to resident fairy godmothers Petunia, Jonquil, and Bluebonnet. Their solution? Blow a bit of fairy dust in the direction of those in need of romance…what could possibly go wrong?
SOME KIND OF AWFUL… Lucky Fujiki’s first name is a cosmic joke. Her luck is so bad, even the number seven steers clear of her. But when her adorable godmothers ask for a favor, Lucky can’t say no–even if she can already feel the bad juju waiting to strike. And her mission is even worse than she imagined: to promote Ever After as a wedding destination by faking a marriage to her first love and long-time ex, Ransom Payne–he of the Embarrassing Incident that neither of them will ever live down…
OR ALL KINDS OF WONDERFUL? Ransom Payne has spent years building an impressive new reputation for himself, and now his godmothers want him to pretend to wed the one girl he’d like most to forget? Sure, weddings in Ever After could be a huge boon for his chocolate business, but risking more up-close-and-personal time with Lucky? Considering the stakes, it’s a curse he’ll have to bear, at the risk of being humiliated–or perhaps, bewitched…
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Rating: 4 out of 5.
I’m so glad I got the chance to pick this one up as it was exactly what I needed. It’s a fun rom com with a dash of magic and fantasy thrown in. We do get both the fake relationship trope and the second chance trope in this one, which aren’t always my favorites, but they perfectly worked in this one.
I was really pleasantly surprised at the characters themselves. Both Ransom and Lucky have their own obstacles and journeys they have to go on before they can really work on their relationship – and seeing the work being done on both of their parts was nice to see. The humor kept a lot of it light and there were moments that were very serious, so I felt there was a good balance.
I definitely feel like this is a great start to a new series and look forward to further books in the series as well as further work from Saranna DeWylde.
Thanks so much to the publisher for sending me a copy of this book! Happy reading!
Pax Samson: The Cookout is the first volume in a new action-packed, fantasy trilogy that depicts a world struggling to find peace in the midst of threats, and a young superhero chef torn between following his passion and following in his family’s footsteps.
When it comes to the kitchen, no one knows cooking better than twelve-year-old Pax Samson. He’s a hero when it comes to testing recipes and supplying copious amounts of Dragon Noodle Soup at his family’s cookouts. It’s tough being a master chef, though, when the rest of his family are world-famous superheroes, and they expect Pax to take up the beacon to keep the world safe with his telekinetic powers.
Pax’s home planet of Soltellus is home to all walks of life, including humans, gods, as well as elves, orcs, dragons, sprites and other fantasy races known as the “Enchanted” all living in a modern society similar to our own. Among them is the Samson family, led by the fearless and mighty Grandma Samson, the greatest superhero to ever live and the person responsible for always saving Soltellus when trouble strikes. She’s been doing it for hundreds of years, but she’s ready for the younger generation of Samsons, including Pax, to step up.
When the mad god Odin, long-time enemy to the Enchanted race and arch-rival to Grandma, resurfaces in another attempt to regain power, Pax will attempt to put his training into practice, but ends up just making things worse. Tempted to hang up the superhero cape and stick to the kitchen, Pax faces the toughest decision yet when a legendary savior of the Enchanted people arrives, along with a startling discovery that there might be parts of the Soltellus history that are wrong. Pax, determined to protect his family and friends, will do everything he can to stop the new threats set on disrupting the peace between humans and the Enchanted.
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Rating: 4 out of 5.
Just the premise and cover had me wanting to pick this one up and I was not disappointed. While many may look at this like a fun, superhero story with mystical races and situations – it is far deeper than that. It hints to many real world issues that are prevalent today and the personal journey that Pax goes through is also a very real situation that many people have to work through. Deciding on your path and journey is something that pretty much everyone deals with and the conversations that Pax had with his family were real and refreshing. The color palette and art style went perfectly with the setting and scenes and were fun and dynamic. I definitely look forward to reading the future volumes and finding out what else happens with Pax, his family and friends.
In Clarity and Connection, Yung Pueblo explores how intense emotions accumulate in our subconscious and condition us to act and react the ways we do. With his distinctive voice, at once spare and evocative, the author guides us through the excavation and release of the past that is required for growth. On the topic of intimate relationships, he reflects:
find a partner who accepts you as you are but also inspires you to evolve because they take their own growth seriously. love will not seek to change you. it will embrace you so unconditionally that you will feel safe enough to heal the old and put effort into the new. the courage you both have to stay committed to the inner journey will reflect brightly on your relationship.
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Rating: 3 out of 5.
This is a poetry collection that you will have to take your time with and sit with. A lot of it is discussing rising from trauma, healthy and toxic friendships/relationships and being able to grow from your past. Many of the messages do seem to be the same sentiments repeated, so many of the shorter passages could easily be used as mantras. There’s a good mix of prose like writing as well as modern poetry. The overall messages in this collection are useful and beneficial.
Immerse yourself in the hit comic series based in the world of the international best-selling tabletop role playing game, Vampire: The Masquerade!
When Cecily Bain, an enforcer for the Twin Cities’ vampiric elite, takes a mysterious new vampire under her wing, she’s dragged into an insidious conspiracy.
Will she be able to escape with her unlife and protect her aging, Alzheimer’s-afflicted sister, or will she be yet another pawn sacrificed to maintain the age-old secret: that vampires exist among the living.
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Rating: 3 out of 5.
I was intrigued when I found that there was a new graphic novel series coming out of Vampire: The Masquerade, being someone who was familiar with the role playing game. While I did enjoy the storyline as it came together, I feel like this would be hard to get into for someone who didn’t have some base knowledge of the world. There isn’t a ton of backstory, but some clan information and world information is revealed throughout the story. I would be interested to see where the story goes and did like that there were game sheets in the back.
Journalist Neema Kamau will risk anything to uncover the truth. She’ll even get close to politician Davis Black in order to investigate his possible organized crime connections. But when her professional interest turns personal, Neema knows that she risks losing the story—and the man—if she tells Davis the truth. And the stalker who’s circling them both might rob her of the chance to make things right…
I think this is one of those instances where I should have read the previous books in the series first, as that may have given me more of a foundation, but I did still enjoy this story. The beginning was pretty slow for my taste but once it got going it was an enjoyable read with some good twists. I would say that the suspense was on the low side of suspense, but the romance portion was good. I did feel like the setting and situations were very realistic and probably true in their depictions, and enjoyed how real that felt. I would definitely read more of this author’s writing and may pick up the other books in the series to see if they do lend more to the story.
Deborah Fletcher Mello has been writing since forever and can’t imagine herself doing anything else. Her first romance novel, Take Me to Heart, earned her a 2004 Romance Slam Jam nomination for Best New Author, and in 2009, she won an RT Reviewer’s Choice Award for her ninth novel, Tame a Wild Stallion. Born and raised in Connecticut, Deborah now considers home to be wherever the moment moves her.
Letters to Jupiter is a poetry collection that explores a tale of the fragility of the mind. With each poetic letter, written by an unknown narrator seeking to let go of the past, we see life at its darkest time, brightest, and examine how much a person can grow after a life-changing event.
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Rating: 4 out of 5.
This poetry collection is another example of the type of modern poetry that I do enjoy. The length of the poems vary depending on the subject matter and there is a definite progression of the poems throughout the collection. Many of them when you sit with them for a minute are poignant and touch on deep emotional experiences. Some of them weave together truly beautiful phrases and language, and even have a lyrical feel to them. All in all I really enjoyed this collection and the progression and growth that was represented within it.
Nima doesn’t feel understood. By her mother, who grew up far away in a different land. By her suburban town, which makes her feel too much like an outsider to fit in and not enough like an outsider to feel like that she belongs somewhere else. At least she has her childhood friend Haitham, with whom she can let her guard down and be herself.Until she doesn’t.
As the ground is pulled out from under her, Nima must grapple with the phantom of a life not chosen, the name her parents didn’t give her at birth: Yasmeen. But that other name, that other girl, might just be more real than Nima knows. And more hungry.And the life Nima has, the one she keeps wishing were someone else’s. . .she might have to fight for it with a fierceness she never knew she had.
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Rating: 4 out of 5.
I was instantly intrigued by this title when I saw it was compared to Elizabeth Acevedo and Jason Reynolds so I wanted to give it a read. It’s similar in style as it is a story told in verse and features and American born Sudanese (I believe) girl trying to find her place and also trying to figure out her own identity and being comfortable in it. She faces a number of instances of hate due to how she is perceived and is caught in between being an American and identifying with the country her mother came from. The examination of place and identity was definitely poignant and raw and when we got the magical aspect that was a nice surprise. I really felt that that was when her exploration of self and place really came to a climax and loved how it was handled. It’s a beautiful story that is so valuable right now.
Hey everyone! I didn’t add a ton of books to my library last month, which is a good thing, but it also means this post will likely be pretty short. I got some manga from Amazon, had one Barnes and Noble trip and of course got a couple books from Book of the Month. This means I’ve only added eight books to my physical TBR from February.
Did you add any of these to your library? What books did you pick up?
The Wandering Wordsmith 