Susan’s Book Blog

  Off The Map by Trish Doller Release date: March 7, 2023 🐑🐑🐑🐑🐑 My Rating: 5 sheep out of 5 Carla and Eamon are such charming characters and I absolutely love their dynamic. They’re so laid back, easy going and lovable. And just plain cool. I loved who they were, what they wanted, where they wanted to go and how they got there. And I loved how much Carla inspired and impressed Eamon.  Carla is the NLOG FMC of Abby Jimenez’s dreams but fortunately (and to Trish Doller’s credit) she comes off more like a modern day Disney princess with a side of trauma. Having been raised by a single dad, Carla is a very independent, self sufficient woman. She has learned everything her father could teach her, from camping to car repair to emotional unavailability. And Eamon has every reason to be a toxic arsehole but he just… isn’t. He’s top notch book boyfriend material. Recently single from a bad breakup with someone he was in no way compatible with, (and only a *little* bit bitter), he ...

 2022 was a year where I spent a great deal of time reading and reviewing ARCs (advance reader copies). I didn’t always get all the books I requested (Edelweiss is particularly brutal) but I did get approved for a truly amazing selection of great books.  Pictured below are most of the ARCs I received this year from NetGalley. [NetGalley only; I didn’t include the one I was sent via Edelweiss ( You Made a Fool of Death With Your Beauty ) or the one I got directly from an author ( Daniel Cabot Puts Down Roots ).] All told, if my counting is right, I left reviews for a total of 30 books in 2022. I DNF’d (Did Not Finish) a total of 5 of them. I’m hoping to pull back on how many I request in the coming year because reading and reviewing on a deadline, no matter how much time I’m given, becomes like work and I’ve found that reading obligations put me in a reading slump. I’m much too much of a mood reader to be able to read and review to someone else’s timeline.  If you request ...

  Solomon’s Crown  by Natasha Siegel Scheduled to publish on March 14, 2023 // 5 👑 out of 5 // This is Richard I/Philip II fanfic and I’m so here for it. If you’re unfamiliar with these historical figures, never fear because IT DOES NOT MATTER. Siegel makes it clear in her author’s note that she plays fast and loose with historical accuracy - in that there is very little. 😂  Richard I and Philip II are one of those “were they lovers?” situations. (Historians just love telling us how two kings sleeping in the same bed was a PR move/political statement. Sure, Jan.) And frankly they lived 1000 years ago so it’s damn near impossible to get a definitive answer but who cares? They lived a THOUSAND YEARS AGO. To us, they have always been and will always be characters in a story. This author is just using them to tell her own story.  The family drama between Richard, his father the king, and his brothers was compelling and totally had me invested. I know a (small) bit abou...

⏳ Coming Soon ⏳ ARC reviews of two new queer YA books: Unexpecting by Jen Bailey and  Darkhearts by James L. Sutter 🔜 🔜 🔜 Synopsis: Benjamin Morrison is about to start junior year of high school and while his family is challenging, he is pretty content with his life, with his two best friends, and being a part of the robotics club. Until an experiment at science camp has completely unexpected consequences: a baby. After he came out, Ben and his mother never expected him to be raising a baby as a single dad, but together they come up with a plan to fight for his rights and prepare him for fatherhood. As the weight of his decision weighs down on him, Ben struggles to keep up with school, friends, family, and a budding romance. Unexpected is categorized as YA (13-18) and is scheduled to be released by Wednesday Books on 8/22/23.  🔜 🔜 🔜 Perfect for fans of  Red, White, & Royal Blue  and  Perks of Being a Wallflower ,  Darkhearts  is a hilario...

Never Ever Getting Back Together   by Sophie Gonzales Available now! DNFd at 41% (Click on the title above for a synopsis and more info.) Okay so it wasn’t *bad*, there were just some choices made that felt inappropriate to me and, bottom line, just made it too much of a young read for me. I see people say they’ve “aged out” of YA or don’t feel comfortable reading it because they’re too old to relate to it anymore but I have never felt that way. I love rooting for a teen to find self-acceptance, self worth, or a love interest. I have no problem with that at all. Sometimes I even feel like I can vicariously relive my own teen years through them only with a much more satisfying outcome at the end. 😂  I also love a good frothy sleazy reality tv show as much as the next person. But can we at least agree literal teenagers probably shouldn’t be participating in them? These kids are 18. Sigh. No. Nooooo. This felt like a worse kind of exploitation than one normally finds on reality ...

  Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries    🧚🏻‍♂️ by Heather Fawcett 🧚🏻‍♂️ 🍄 Pub date: Jan 10, 2023 🍄 (US cover above; UK cover below) // 🍄🍄🍄🍄🍄 out of 5 // I initially fell in love with the cover (both the US and UK editions are really cool) and was amused by the title and description, and I quickly discovered that the contents absolutely lived up to my hopes and expectations. It’s charming and delightful and clever and I really enjoyed everywhere the story went. This book is the very definition of cottage core. It’s so cozy and rustic, it makes for a perfect winter read. There’s cozy fires, snowy forests and tea drinking. But it also has great characters, mysteries, secrets, danger, adventure, and a sweet romance. And it’s  presented as a journal of Emily’s experiences during her research trip. The journaling element worked really well for telling the story.   I love the dynamic between Emily and Bambleby. Their banter (or bickering) is delightful. T...

I’m so excited to have been approved for the ARC of Heather Fawcett’s newest book: Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries!    I discovered this book and author on Instagram, adored the cover and immediately fell in love with the description (which you can read below) and the general cozy adorableness that practically radiates from this book. I can’t wait to read it.  Have you heard of this one? Does it sound like something that would interest you? I know I’m so excited to start it! Description from Penguin Random House site: Cambridge professor Emily Wilde is good at many things: She is the foremost expert on the study of faeries. She is a genius scholar and a meticulous researcher who is writing the world’s first encyclopaedia of faerie lore. But Emily Wilde is not good at people. She could never make small talk at a party—or even get invited to one. And she prefers the company of her books, her dog, Shadow, and the Fair Folk to other people. So when she arrives in the h...

  A Restless Truth (The Last Binding, book 2) by Freya Marske Pub: Nov 1, 2022 // 3.5 stars out of 5 // tl;dr - I struggled to finish this. I needed it to be about 30% shorter. I think I just need to admit mysteries are not my genre. I found it a little tedious. But the characters are fantastic and Marske expanded on the magic mythology she began in the previous book and it was brilliant! My attention span just wasn’t totally up for this one.   Full review: The characters in this book were so great. Hawthorn and Violet both turned out to be a real highlight of the book for me. Lord Hawthorn really surprised me - I wasn’t expecting to like him! He’s the biggest grump ever to grump, he’s hilariously deadpan, feigns disinterest, and is, against his better judgment, caring (even though he’d never admit it). I enjoyed his character so much. And Violet is progressive, independent, ahead of her time and willing to push people’s buttons. She proudly refuses to be shamed or guilted fo...

Marlowe Banks, Redesigned by Jacqueline Firkins Pub date: Oct 25, 2022 // ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ // Marlowe Banks is an overworked, under appreciated production assistant on a TV show filming in LA with dreams of one day becoming a costume designer. She has a run-in with grumpy actor Angus on set and things don’t really get off on the right foot. They eventually get to know each other through working together but it takes extra work for Marlowe to excavate the real Angus Gordon from all the publicity she reads about him in magazines and online.  Even though this is a romance, the main story arc of the book is more about Marlowe’s journey in discovering who she is, what she wants in life, and figuring out how she’s going to get it. It has more emotional depth than a typical romcom and explores many important topics.  Aspects of the book remind me a little of Katherine Center’s The Bodyguard and Ava Wilder’s How To Fake It in Hollywood, both of which I loved. The blurb totally sold me o...

  So This is Christmas   by Jenny Holiday Pub date 10/4/2022   Avon/ Harper Collins 🏔 3.5 stars out of 5 🏔 ✨ 🏰 👑 🎿🛷❄️🎄🎅🏻✨ Matteo Benz has spent his life serving at the pleasure of the Eldovian crown. His work is his life and his life, well…he doesn’t have much of one. When he is tasked to aid a management consultant who has been flown in to help straighten out the king’s affairs, he is instantly disturbed by her brash American manner—as well by an inconvenient attraction to the brainy beauty. Cara Delaney is in Eldovia to help clean up the king’s financial affairs, but soon finds herself at odds with the very proper Mr. Benz. As intrigued by his good looks as she is annoyed by his dedication to tradition for its own sake, she slowly begins to see the real man behind the royal throne. As they work together to return Eldovia to its former glory during the country’s magical Christmas season, Matteo discovers he is falling hopelessly in love with the unconventional A...

  You’re a Mean One Matthew Prince by Timothy Janovsky Pub Date 10/4/2022 ⛄️ 3 stars out of 5 ⛄️ This is basically a Schitt’s Creek Christmas AU. The narrator, Matthew, is so clearly written to be a David Rose-style spoiled brat that I could only picture the character as Dan Levy. He was so unlikeable it took me quite a while until I became invested. I actually considered quitting several times before the 25% mark. (Then again, it took me a long time to warm up to Schitt’s Creek as well.)  Matthew learns things about himself during his exile to his grandparents’ home. As he spends more time in the small town and with Hector, he learns that the life he previously knew was not a good one despite all its material rewards. Hector helps bring him down to earth and keep him there. Matthew’s struggles with anxiety also helped humanize him and soften his rough edges. I generally appreciate anxiety/mental health rep but it almost felt like a cheap ploy here to make Matthew likeable. It...

This beauty is now released into the world! Well, in the US. The UK release is tomorrow Sept 1! Please go pick it up, you won’t regret it!  You can read my original review of it HERE !