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 ...

 In the Lives of Puppets by TJ Klune Available April 25, 2023 ✨4 stars out of 5✨ When I started this, I knew next to nothing of what it was about other than having heard vague rumblings about it being a Pinocchio retelling? All I knew: TJ Klune wrote it, which means I want to read it.  Initially, the story/plot wasn’t that interesting to me but I immediately loved the characters with my whole heart. I fell in love with them and they kept me coming back. By the climax of the book, I was fully invested and eagerly awaiting the emotional wallop that Klune has become so masterful at delivering.  Victor, a lonely scavenger, his elderly father Gio, a guileless anxiety-ridden roomba named Rambo and a sociopathic medical robot are the main cast in this little fairytale. And like most fairy tales it is melancholy but hopeful and has important lessons. It is filled with Klune’s signature humor and pathos. It is poignant, thoughtful, charming, hilarious, insightful and WEIRD. It is ...

  Unexpecting by Jen Bailey YA, LGBTQ    Romance Wednesday Books Scheduled release: 8/22/23 🍂  5 stars out of 5  🍂 “ Sometimes doing the necessary thing, even when you’d rather do anything else, is the right thing to do. ” You know those books that just get better and better as you go along? This is one of those books. The premise was enough to hook me, the plot hit the ground running on page one, the characters completely had me wrapped around their fingers, and the emotional stakes just increased with every page turn. By the 70-80% mark, I was in tears. I really loved this one.  Ben is the sweetest kid. He’s 16 and an excellent student, super smart, responsible, a hard worker, but now he’s struggling to make sense of his life now that he’s found out he got his friend pregnant. He’s also gay. So there’s a bit of angst and drama but Ben ends up learning a lot of important lessons with the help of his amazing support system of family and friends....

  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...

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...

  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...

Alexis Hall’s newest book, Paris Daillencourt is About to Crumble , is now available. It’s the second book in the Winner Bakes All series. (Both can be read as standalones.) 🎂 🧁 🍰 🍞 🥖 🥐 You can read my original review here .  From quicunquevult.com: Paris Daillencourt is a recipe for disaster. Despite his passion for baking, his cat, and his classics degree, constant self-doubt and second-guessing have left him a curdled, directionless mess. So when his roommate enters him in Bake Expectations, the nation’s favourite baking show, Paris is sure he’ll be the first one sent home. But if Paris can find the strength to face his past, his future, and the chorus of hecklers that live in his brain, he’ll realize it’s the sweet things in life that he really deserves. 🎂 🧁 🍰 🍞 🥖 🥐 ⚠️ Content Guidance: MC with an undiagnosed anxiety disorder (that does get diagnosed), on-page panic attack, hospital stay due to panic attack, treatment plan for anxiety disorder discussed, Islamophobi...

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...

Daniel Cabot Puts Down Roots  by Cat Sebastian  Pub date: November 15,  2022  ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5 stars out of 5 I’ve been looking forward to reading more Cabot stories since I finished the first two over a year ago, and it did not disappoint.  Daniel Cabot is a character study and a story about the gradual building of a relationship, filled with quiet moments that are both realistic and compelling. It always blows me away how Cat Sebastian can fit SO MUCH character development into so few pages. And you can always count on her to write incredibly unique, richly drawn people who you can’t help but fall in love with. There is a foundation of kindness in this story, as there has been in the previous two Cabot novellas (or, really, ALL her books I suppose) that I find so beautiful and hopeful. Daniel and Alex take care of one another and others - friends and strangers both - in so many little ways and without wanting anything in return. It’s a refreshingly uncynical displ...

  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...