What I Read in February 2024

House of Flame and Shadow by Sarah J. Maas

I was so incredibly excited to read this book! Every since I finished House of Sky and Breath (HOSAB), book two in the Crescent City series last summer, I’ve been dying to get my hands on this book! Especially with the cliff hanger at the end of HOSAB (IFYKY!!!).

Now let’s talk about my review. Was this book everything I wished and hoped for? No. But did I still have a good time reading it? Absolutely! I never have a bad time reading a book by Sarah J. Maas, and this book proves that to still be true. I love the way she creates found families and has strong female main characters throughout all of her stories.

While I do feel like Bryce, the main character’s storyline to be a bit ~off~ this book, I still really enjoyed how action packed this book was. I really don’t know what to expect with the next Crescent City book (which I’m assuming will be called House of Many Waters) but I’m excited to see how the rest of this series fleshes out!

A Touch Of Ruin by Scarlett St. Clair

This book is the second in the Hades x Persephone Saga, which is a modern (and spicier) take on the Greek mythology story. I went completely blind into this series and bought them on a whim. I did read the first book last year and thought it was just ok, so I normally would’ve not read the next book in the series, but since I already bought a physical copy, I kind of forced myself to read it!

Was it a bad book? Eh, not really. I just kind of found the character development a bit lackluster and I wasn’t really vibing with the pacing of this book. I know there are a lot of people who really enjoy these books and I love that for them but unfortunately I won’t be continuing on with this series.

Ruthless Vows by Rebecca Ross

This book was highly anticipated for me since I really enjoyed book one of this series, Devine Rivals. I would classify this book as a whimsical fantasy. While I enjoyed this book, for some reason I was having a hard time reading it for some reason! I kind of found myself in a reading slump while reading this book and it took me two weeks to read this which is so unlike me!

Now as for the book itself, I thought this was a great sequel to the first book! Roman and Iris, the main characters of this series, have the most beautiful love story. They are just precious and have the sweetest and most innocent love. I would recommend this book on the fact of the whimsical magic alone. I haven’t read anything like this before!

Pucking Around by Emily Rath

Where do I begin with this one… if you like spicy books, Pucking Around by Emily Rath is the book/series for you. I am such a fan of hockey romance books and I have never read a book by Rath before so I wanted to give this a try. I also read the prequel novella, That One Night, before reading this book.

Little did I know that this book would be the SPICIEST book I’ve ever read LOL. This is a reverse-harem book where the female main character is a doctor at a NHL team and she develops relationships with two of the players and the team manager. Let’s just say there were some ~interesting~ scenes.

I think I’ve realized that super spicy books aren’t for me, but if you enjoy it, then I would give this book a try!

Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard

This book has been on my TBR for FOREVER! I’m glad I finally got to it! I really enjoy the dystopian/fantasy genre of this book and I thought it was entertaining. While I did think it was very similar to other books I’ve read before (young girl who has special abilities takes down a corrupt government), I still think there were elements to make it unique.

While I don’t think I’ll be continuing on with the series, I do recommend this book if you love the Hunger Games, Fourth Wing, or Divergent, I think you would really enjoy this book!

Heartless by Elsie Silver

I’ve never read a cowboy romance book before I started the Chestnut Springs series and let me just say… I’ll DEFINATLEY be reading more! This book is the second book of the series and I seriously loved it so much. I was kind of holding off on reading this series for a long time because I was afraid it wouldn’t live up to the hype but it seriously does.

This book has a single parent trope which I’ve always been a fan of. And also the child in this book was just so cute and I really enjoyed the bond that formed with him and the female main character.

The angst, the buildup, and the romance in this book was just so perfect. I can’t wait to continue on with this series!

Bride by Ali Hazelwood

Ali Hazelwood’s books are usually rom coms about women in STEM, but Bride is her first paranormal romance and it was so entertaining! The romance is between a vampyre and a werewolf where their species are considered “mortal enemies” and I ate it up!

I haven’t read a vampyre/werewold book since my Twilight days and this book brought me so much nostalgia. While there were obvious elements of romance in this book, I also really enjoyed the sublot of the mystery the main characters were solving together. I felt like it added a lot of substance rather than just straight spice the entire book.

Also, I definitely think there will be a spin-off book with how the epilogue ended which I am so excited about. If you are wanting a fresh take on the traditional rom com book, I highly recommend Bride by Ali Hazelwood!