#BookReview: This Gilded Abyss (The Titan's Wrath Trilogy, #1) by @rebeccathornewrites

Synopsis: Sergeant Nix Marr is a damn good soldier. She’s also desperate to leave her haunted past deep in the bioluminescent ocean, buried alongside her best friend, Quian. So, when Subarch Kessandra, Valkesh’s favorite royal–and Nix’s loathed ex–requests Nix’s help investigating a massacre in the abyssal city of Fall, Nix refuses. Vehemently.

She should have known Kessandra would fight back.

Consigned as Kessandra’s bodyguard, Nix grudgingly boards the Luminosity, a luxurious submersible that offers the only transportation to Fall. But Kessandra wasn’t truthful–surprise, surprise–and her “investigation” isn’t about the massacre, but rather what caused it: an illness that incites its victims into a violent craze.

When another royal is brutally murdered, Nix and Kess realize the disease has spread–and no one on the Luminosity is safe. If they’re going to survive until Fall, they’ll have to trust each other… but considering Kessandra is responsible for Quian’s death, that won’t be easy.

#BookReview: Your Knife, My Heart (Dark Forces, #1) by K.M. Moronova

Synopsis: From NY Times and USA Today Bestselling author KM Moronova comes a brand-new compelling and addictive dark romance in her Dark Forces world.

Dark. Deadly. Irresistible.

Cameron Mortem has a problem―he can't stop killing his partners. Officially labeled clinically insane, he's also one of the most lethal assets in the Dark Forces, a brutal underground military operation built on obedience, survival, and silence. But an experimental drug has fractured his control, making him a liability whenever someone else is on the field. As punishment, he's thrown back into the Under Trials―a merciless boot camp designed to break the weak and sharpen the ruthless.

His one directive? Don't kill the new girl.

Emery Maves narrowly escapes a death sentence after her own brutal crimes, only to find herself forced into the same violent world. Assigned to Cameron, she's expected to survive the Trials and her partner's unstable nature. But Emery quickly realizes there's more to Cameron than bloodlust and body counts. Beneath the madness lies a terrifying allure―and a strange, dangerous tenderness.

As the Trials push them to their limits, Emery must navigate the brutal demands of the Dark Forces while resisting the pull of a man who could just as easily kill her as protect her. And Cameron must fight the one urge he's never been able to overcome.

Their bond is intoxicating, chaotic, and born of violence. And if it doesn't destroy them both, it might just save them.

#BookReview: Alchemy & Ashes (The Shadowbound Duet, #1) by @amy.e.yorke @victoryeditingngc

Synopsis: Perfect for fans of Danielle L. Jensen, Carissa Broadbent, and Sarah J. Maas, Alchemy & Ashes is a high-stakes, enemies-to-lovers romantasy where two sisters’ plan to assassinate the king who killed their father goes awry when one of them falls in love with him.

The daughter of a failed rebellion. The king who killed her father. A love that could tear the kingdom apart.

Sylvie has always lived in her sister Adria’s shadow. But at the Great Festival, she finally has her chance to step into the light: by striking down God-King Ronan, the man who destroyed her family. Adria may have led the rebellion, but Sylvie will be the one to finish it.

Ronan has spent years rebuilding a kingdom broken by the war that claimed his father and shattered his faith. But peace has come at a price. Surrounded by enemies and burdened by secrets too dangerous to reveal, he’s losing control: of his court, his magic, and maybe even himself.

The closer Sylvie gets to Ronan, the more she’s drawn to the man she vowed to kill. Wanting him would mean betraying not just her sister, but her people and the memory of her parents. Trusting Sylvie could cost Ronan the throne—or his life. Because even if Sylvie refuses to strike, Adria won’t hesitate to finish the job.

The road to the throne runs through his heart. And only one sister will claim it.

Alchemy & Ashes is the first book in the Shadowbound Duet.

#BookReview: A Fate So Cold (A Fate So Cold, #1) by @amandafoody & @cl_herman @torteen

Synopsis: A Fate So Cold is the first of a new blockbuster duology from the New York Times bestselling authors of All of Us Villains, Amanda Foody & C. L. Herman.

For most of the year, Summer reigns peacefully over Alderland. Then, for six brutal weeks, Winter rages, obliterating towns and wreaking casualties. Magicians bond with powerful wands of Summer to defend the nation, a duty that costs many their lives.

Domenic Barrow never wanted such responsibility―but destiny hasn’t granted him a choice. The greatest Summer wand has awakened for the first time in a century, warning that an icy cataclysm looms on the horizon. And despite his reputation as the least suited of his classmates, the wand Chooses Domenic to wield it.

Ellery Caldwell spent years striving to be a perfect Summer magician―and burying her fears of her own power. But her worst suspicions are proven true when she accidentally creates the first ever Winter wand.

Now, as the unprecedented Chosen Two, Domenic and Ellery must thwart the oncoming cataclysm together. And in trying to fulfill their destinies, they wonder if they were brought together for a second fate: to fall in love.

Until they discover the unthinkable truth. The Chosen Two aren’t fated allies, but eternal rivals, and the only way to save their home is for one of them to slay the other.

This is no love story. It's a tragedy.

#BookReview: The House Saphir by Marissa Meyer

Synopsis: This is the tale of Bluebeard as it's never been told before--a romantasy murder mystery.

Mallory Fontaine is a fraud. Though she comes from a long line of witches, the only magic she possesses is the ability to see ghosts, which is rarely as useful as one would think. She and her sister have maintained the family business, eking out a paltry living by selling bogus spells to gullible buyers and conducting tours of the infamous mansion where the first of the Saphir murders took place.

Mallory is a self-proclaimed expert on Count Bastien Saphir—otherwise known as Monsieur Le Bleu—who brutally killed three of his wives more than a century ago. But she never expected to meet Bastien's great-great grandson and heir to the Saphir estate. Armand is handsome, wealthy, and convinced that the Fontaine Sisters are as talented as they claim. The perfect mark. When he offers Mallory a large sum of money to rid his ancestral home of Le Bleu's ghost, she can’t resist. A paid vacation at Armand’s country manor? It’s practically a dream come true, never mind the ghosts of murdered wives and the monsters that are as common as household pests. 

But when murder again comes to the House Saphir, Mallory finds herself at the center of the investigation—and she is almost certain the killer is mortal. If she has any hope of cashing in on the payment she was promised, she’ll have to solve the murder and banish the ghost, all while upholding the illusion of witchcraft.

But that all sounds relatively easy compared to her biggest learning to trust her heart. Especially when the person her heart wants the most might be a murderer himself.

#BookReview: The Nameless Land (The Witch Roads, #2) by @kateelliottsff @torbooks

Synopsis: Surprising betrayals, surprising alliances, and surprising discoveries of heritage abound in this energetic sequel to The Witch Roads.

When the royal party finds themselves in a land they never believed they could access, it will take all of Prince Gevulin's (admittedly impressive) diplomatic skills to forge a coalition with an unlikely group of would-be allies.

Meanwhile, as Elen mourns her lost love, an unwelcome visit to the land of her birth brings back the traumatic memories of the childhood she shared with her sister.

And a surprise visit from an unwelcome family member threatens to derail the plans of multiple opposing factions.

Loyalty cannot be demanded, only won

#BookReview: Save Us (Maxton Hall #3) by @monakasten, Rachel Ward (translator) @berkleypub

Synopsis: The third and final book in the international bestselling Maxton Hall series, now in English for the first time.

Can they save themselves? Or will they destroy each other?

Ruby is in Her worst nightmare has come true, and now Oxford and all her dreams that finally seemed within reach are at risk. Worst of all, everything points to James as the one responsible, even after everything they’ve been through together. Ruby thought that she had met the real James—the one who has his own dreams, the one who makes her laugh and makes her heart beat faster with a single glance.

However, after an explosive fight between the two, they discover a terrible truth. Together, Ruby fights to graduate, as James tries to clear her name at school. But that means once again James must challenge his father and his expectations for him. And despite everything, James still threatens to break under the obligations to his family. Ruby and James must ask themselves if the worlds they live in are perhaps too different after all, or if they can finally find a way back to each other.

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#BookReview: Throne in the Dark (Villains & Virtues, #1) by @akcaggiano @sourcebookscasa

Synopsis: His dark destiny awaits, and nothing will stand in his way. Except her.

Dark lord
Demon spawn
Prophesied realm destroyer

With a demon for a father, Damien Maleficus Bloodthorne’s destiny could be nothing but nefarious, and with the completion of his most vicious spell, Damien is on the cusp of fulfilling the evil inevitability all of his dark machinations have led to.

And then, her.

Bubbly
Obnoxious
Blonde

Harboring secrets of her own, a tiny yet troublesome thief calling herself Amma completely upsets Damien’s malevolent plans when she mistakenly gets chained to his side through magic, forcing him to drag her across the realm. Killing her would fix things, of course, but the nauseatingly sweet Amma proves herself useful on Damien's unholy crusade and then proves herself the source of something even more sinister: feelings.

Will Damien be forced to abandon his villainous birthright to help the tender thorn in his side? Or will he manage to overcome the virtue Amma insists on inspiring and instead cut it out at the heart?

#BookReview: Our Vicious Oaths by @nia.davenport @harpervoyagerus

Synopsis: Enter a new world of romantic fantasy from award-winning author N.E. Davenport—a journey of powerful magic, enemies-to-lovers, and political intrigue—as a warrior-princess and a vengeful king from rival fae courts form a fierce alliance to take down a merciless despot.

Princess of the Aether Dominion, Kadeesha wants nothing to do with fae politics. She is a warrior, first and foremost, and believes her greatest strength is leading her squadron of elite winged serpent flyers to protect her homeland. But bound since infancy to be betrothed to the Hyperion High King, ruler of all Dominions, she has no choice but to do what men have chosen for her.

Repulsed by the idea, she decides to spend one last night of freedom—in the arms of a dangerous stranger who takes her to sexual heights she’s never experienced before…but who is only using Kadeesha to set a trap for the High King.

For the High King and the kings of his six Dominions were responsible for the decimation of the Apollyon Court, and its new king, Malachi, wants his pounds of flesh.

On Kadeesha’s wedding day, Malachi and his special forces attack. Her father is killed, and Malachi wounds the High King, ultimately taking Kadeesha as hostage back to his land.

But she is no true hostage. The two form a pact: she will help lure the High King so Malachi can kill him once and for all, and he in turn will not harm Kadeesha or the Aether people. And as much as Kadeesha hates politics, she is now the Queen of her folk. Fae bonds are unbreakable…and so, perhaps, is the attraction Kadeesha and Malachi feel for each other. For even as they must publicly display their connection to provoke the High King’s jealousy, they struggle to resist the powerful allure between them in order to achieve their ultimate goals.

#BookReview: The Book of Autumn by @mollyobooks @kensingtonbooks

Synopsis: For readers of Adrienne Young, Olivie Blake, Hazel Beck, and Leigh Bardugo’s Ninth House, a spellbinding debut about ambition, privilege, second chance romance, and ancient magic set at an enchanted school tucked among the red mesas of the New Mexico desert, where a formidable pair of magicians are summoned to pursue an alleged killer.

Try as she might, anthropologist Marcella Gibbons can't escape the fact that she's a dimidium, one half of a formidable pair of Magicians, forever tied together to enable the other's powers. After a tumultuous final year at Seinford and Brown College of Agriculture (and Magic) in rural New Mexico, Cella felt more than a little uneasy about returning to the sun-drenched desert campus ever again. She'd cut ties with her other half—the charming and rugged rancher Max Middlemore—and sworn off Magic, academia, and heartache for good.

Until Max turns up at her door, grinning under his cowboy hat for one last favor. Something is shifting at her alma mater, something bigger than anyone understands. One student is dead. Another is floating midair in the infirmary, growling guttural nonsense and terrifying the staff. Their best, perhaps only, chance to intervene requires Cella and Max to work together. But the origins of the disturbances lie centuries ago. To unravel them, Cella will have to confront the truth about her past—and Max. Because she might be challenging a power she could never rival alone . . .

#BookReview: Ravenminder (Ravenminder #1) by @authorlindsaycummings

Synopsis: A kingdom at war. A girl with a gift. A destiny to be revealed.

Your new romantic fantasy obsession awaits in this captivating epic adventure, perfect for fans of Jennifer L. Armentrout and Sarah J. Maas.

………

The sky is a dangerous place for a girl without wings.

In the war-torn kingdom of Lordach, Ezer has spent two years as the Ravenminder of Rendegard. Chained in a prison tower’s aviary, she pays the debts of the man she calls uncle, who rescued her after shadow wolves killed her parents. With three glittering scars on her cheek and mystical ‘strangeties’ unlike any magic in their world, Ezer is haunted by dreams of her death at the hands of an unknown warrior.

Then a Sacred Knight arrives to recruit Ezer for the fight against the enemy, the Acolyte. When her affinity with birds reveals itself on the journey to Citadel, she is given a new mission: to help the Prince of Lordach tame one of the Acolyte’s captured raphons. Half giant raven, half black panther, these creatures are as loyal to the Acolyte as his strongest darksoul soldiers . . and only they can make the flight to infiltrate his lair.

While Ezer forges an unbreakable bond with the raphon, her heart becomes torn between the loyal Knight and the mysterious Prince. But as her dreams take on new clarity, she finds herself faced with a choice and a question: has the darkness been her destiny all along?

#BookReview: Good Spirits (Ghosted #1) by @authorbkborison @avonbooks

Synopsis: He’s the Ghost of Christmas Past. She’s not exactly Scrooge.

Ghost of Christmas Past Nolan Callahan intends to spend this holiday haunting like every other—get in, get out, return to his otherwise aimless existence as a ghost awaiting the afterlife. But when he’s faced with Harriet York, the sweetest assignment he’s ever had, he suddenly finds himself wishing for a future.

Harriet York has no idea why she’s being haunted. She’s a good person—or, at least, she tries to be. A people pleaser to her core, she always does what’s expected of her. But as she and Nolan begin to examine her past, they discover there are threads that bind them together— and realize there might be more to moving on than expected.

With the deadline of Christmas Eve fast approaching, will they find the key to their futures in each other’s pasts? Or will they stay firmly in the present, indulging in their unexpected, spirited connection?

Filled with magic, mayhem, and cozy holiday charm

#AudiobookReview: The Lure of Wolves and Whispers (The Martyred Isle #1) by Amanda Connolly

Synopsis: A darkly addictive romantasy debut about a girl who sacrifices everything to buy the dangerous magic that could save her sister—the first in a trilogy perfect for fans of Powerless and Throne of Glass.

On the mist-shrouded Isle of Eireann, buying magic comes with a price.

But when her beloved older sister is gravely injured, Maeve risks everything to buy the forbidden magic that might save her. In exchange, Maeve trades her life to a ruthless and dangerously alluring rebel leader. Bound to do his bidding, Maeve finds herself thrown into a deadly competition to become the next queen and stand beside a prince rumored to be more brutal than his tyrannical father.

With the isle on the brink of war, trust and survival come at a terrible cost—one that will tear Maeve’s world, and her heart, in two.

What would you sacrifice to survive?

#AudiobookReview: The Tarot Trials (The Tarot Trials #1) by @katee_robert

Synopsis: In the tarot trials, betrayal is always in the cards . . .

Kestrel has trained to compete in the Tarot Trials her entire life. Winning means becoming one of the five Cinque – a position of influence and power that could reshape the lives of people living in her hometown slum, the Dregs. The position Kestrel’s mother should have had when she won the Trials twenty-two years ago as the Champion of the Moon. Instead, she was executed for treason after allegedly attacking the Minor Court.

Determined to find out the truth, Kestrel joins the trials as the Moon’s new champion, desperately trying to master her new powers of shadow and illusion – and find allies she can trust (or trust enough) to
survive both the Trials and the schemes of the Minor Court. Though enemies abound, she soon strikes some unlikely the coy and unnaturally lucky Wheel of Fortune, Vesper, and the arrogant powerhouse Sun, Cato. She’s equally drawn to the mysterious and brooding Tower — whose alliance with Death, the man who killed Kestrel’s mother years ago, may lead to the answers she seeks.

But in the Trials, betrayal is a question of “when,” not “if.” Kestrel will come to learn that winning the game isn’t about what she must do to win, but who she needs to survive.

From the New York Times bestselling author of the Dark Olympus series, this high-octane, fast-paced epic fantasy of tarot magic and deadly competition launches an explosive new series, perfect for fans of V.E. Schwab and Carissa Broadbent.

#AudiobookReview: To Dream in Darkness by @annliangwrites

Synopsis: Two gods strike a bargain that leads them on a journey with devastating consequences in this lush historical fantasy from New York Times bestselling author Ann Liang.

China in the age of brilliance, where gods freely wander the three realms. Amongst them is the cruel and beautiful Death God, who has never failed to collect a soul on time. Until now. For when he seeks out Rujia, the noble god of healing—and the only god he is fated to kill with his own hands—she makes him an offer he can’t she will help lift the excruciating, century-old curse placed upon him if he gives her a one-month reprieve.

Rujia knows she isn’t as noble as everyone believes. Her deal with Death is merely an excuse to buy herself time while she figures out an escape plan. But when her plan causes the Celestial Palace’s collapse and the beloved crown prince’s disappearance, she and Death are both held responsible. The only way to avoid the wrath of all the other gods is to travel across the realms and safely retrieve the crown prince themselves.

Yet the journey proves far more treacherous than expected. As the unlikely alliance between them blooms into more, and Death’s resolve to kill Rujia weakens by the day, neither can outrun their intertwined fate without devastating A mysterious plague. An empire-destroying flood. A thousand deaths—and rising—to restore the balance Rujia's disrupted. And if Rujia continues to live despite the will of the Heavens, this is only the beginning...

#AudiobookReview: The Atlas Keeper by Gail Anderson-Dargatz

Synopsis: For fans of Cassandra in Reverse by Holly Smale and The Midnight Library by Matt Haig, a young woman finds a magical atlas that can transport her both backward and forward in time

Every life follows a path. Elsie has just found the map to hers.

Elsie Campbell’s life has stalled. Since her mother’s death five years ago, she’s lived in her sister’s basement in the same small town where she was born. She has no real friends, no romance and spends her days crunching data for her dad’s mapping firm. And now, as her sister marries, she’s about to lose her home.

The day after a solar eclipse, Elsie hikes to the lookout where her mother died. There she finds an atlas filled with maps and astrological charts that have the power to send her to twelve turning points in her life. In visiting the past, Elsie makes surprising discoveries about herself. But she can also visit the future—which leads to unexpected consequences.

When the atlas leads her both back to her old boyfriend and toward a new love, Elsie finds herself at a crossroads where she must choose between a familiar and nostalgic road or an uncharted path. Can she really change the course of her life? And should she?

#AudiobookReview: Some Kind of Haunted (The Feed Duology #1) by Hazel Beck

Synopsis: Home is where the haunt is.

Lexi Darling has always been a city girl through and through. New York is loud, crowded, and just chaotic enough to keep her mind off everything she’d rather not think about—especially the eerily realistic nightmares that have plagued her all her life. So when she and her twin brother, Logan, are summoned to the postcard-perfect town of Midas, Iowa, one golden October to handle an inheritance from the grandmother they never knew, Lexi figures it’ll be a quick detour: sign a few papers, snap a fall foliage selfie, and catch the next flight home.

But Midas has other plans.

The town has been waiting for the Darling twins, and it’s not about to let them leave. Their arrival stirs up a centuries-old curse, one that promises something dark and hungry will rise again by Halloween night. And the key to stopping it might just lie in their family’s mysterious past. Now, trapped in Midas with the shadows closing in, Lexi has to team up with a group of stubborn locals to save the town…including Jack, the grumpy-but-unfairly attractive diner owner who drives her crazy in all the wrong ways.

As the nights grow longer and an uncanny evil creeps closer, Lexi must uncover the truth behind the curse before Midas—and everyone in it—is consumed. Because in Midas, some secrets refuse to stay buried—and some nightmares never end.

#BookReview: Queen of Shadow by P.C. Cast

Synopsis: From #1 New York Times and #1 USA Today bestselling author P. C. Cast—a passionate and magical epic bringing alive Celtic legend, perfect for romantasy fans who love Sue Lynn Tan and Thea Guanzon and historical fantasy fans of Madeline Miller.

Step into the mystical world of the Isle of Skye in 200 BCE, where legends come to life, goddess and gods walk the mortal earth, and the Queen of Shadow holds court. But Scáthach is no ordinary queen. Daughter of the Underworld goddess Befionn, golden-haired Scáthach is not just a brilliant trainer of warriors, her divine mother has gifted her with the ability to pass between the living world and the Underworld and has granted her dominion over shadows.

Scáthach dedicates her life to training the most talented warriors from across the ancient world at Dunscaith Castle, her impenetrable fortress on the magical Isle of Skye. When Cuchulainn, the Hero of Ulster, son of the Irish god Lugh, arrives asking to become one of her students, Scáthach reluctantly agrees to train him—even though she has serious misgivings about his violent past and the mindless berserker who sleeps within him and whose rage, once awakened, has always been uncontrollable…until the Hero of Ulster meets the Queen of Shadow. Scáthach soon realizes Cuchulainn is much more than the brutal, emotionless warrior everyone expects him to be. And the Hero of Ulster begins to believe he might take control of and even change his foretold fate.

As their growing attraction deepens, Cuchulainn’s father, the God of Light, forces him to retrieve a weapon that will seal Cuchulainn’s fate and forever take him away from the Queen of Shadow. But when Scáthach joins him on the quest through the most dangerous and disturbing parts of the Underworld, Scáthach discovers that her fate may lie in the Underworld and, perhaps, she might be able to forge a future for herself and Cuchulainn by tricking death herself....

Supplemental enhancement PDF accompanies the audiobook.

#BookReview: Monster, Monarch, Maiden by @raecarsonpics

Synopsis: A sweeping stand-alone fantasy from award-winning and bestselling master of the genre, Rae Carson. After she loses everything, Bria will do whatever it takes to survive—even pledge herself to a secretive young man on a perilous quest. Breathtaking adventure and swoon-worthy romance for fans of Sarah J. Maas, Ava Reid, and Rebecca Ross.

Bria Angarsold isn’t supposed to be a hero. She’s just a mountain girl. A mountain girl with a near useless Gift, living an idyllic life with her sister and her parents, running the family’s thriving inn. But then the raiders come, and Bria’s family is destroyed.

One of the last survivors of the raid, Bria isn’t sure she’ll live to see where the captors are taking her. Until the caravan crosses paths with a mysterious traveler and Bria’s luck changes again.

With no family or home to return to, Bria swears her life to this moody, secretive young man. Titus has been chosen to complete a perilous quest—one that will make Bria question everything she’s ever believed, from the magic that weaves through their world to the very gods themselves. As the journey unfolds, Bria realizes she has something—someone—new to believe in. She’d follow Titus to the Edge of the World, sworn oath or not, even if neither of them stands a chance at returning from it.

But Bria Angarsold is a survivor. She isn’t useless, and neither is her Gift. And this is her story.

Shadow and Bone meets Divine Rivals for an exhilarating journey and a slow-burn romance from the author of the acclaimed The Girl of Fire and Thorns.

#BookReview: Finlay Donovan Rolls the Dice (Finlay Donovan #4) by @ellecosimano

Synopsis: Finlay Donovan and her nanny/partner-in-crime Vero are in sore need of a girls’ weekend away. They plan a trip to Atlantic City, but odds are―seeing as it’s actually a cover story to negotiate a deal with a dangerous loan shark, save Vero’s childhood crush Javi, and hunt down a stolen car―it won’t be all fun and games. When Finlay’s ex-husband Steven and her mother insist on tagging along too, Finlay and Vero suddenly have a few too many meddlesome passengers along for the ride. 

Within hours of arriving in their seedy casino hotel, it becomes clear their rescue mission is going to be a bust. Javi’s kidnapper, Marco, refuses to negotiate, demanding payment in full in exchange for Javi’s life. But that’s not all―he insists on knowing the whereabouts of his missing nephew, Ike, who mysteriously disappeared. Unable to confess what really happened to Ike, Finlay and Vero are forced to come up with a new plan: sleuth out the location of Javi and the Aston Martin, then steal them both back. 

But when they sneak into the loan shark’s suite to search for clues, they find more than they bargained for―Marco's already dead. They don’t have a clue who murdered him, only that they themselves have a very convincing motive. Then four members of the police department unexpectedly show up in town, also looking for Ike―and after Finlay's night with hot cop Nick at the police academy, he’s a little too eager to keep her close to his side. 

If Finlay can juggle a jealous ex-husband, two precocious kids, her mother’s marital issues, a decomposing loan shark, and find Vero’s missing boyfriend, she might get out of Atlantic City in one piece. But will she fold under the pressure and come clean about the things she’s done, or be forced to double down?