Glimpses Of My Books

This book was an utter delight from beginning to end. Easily my favorite read this year! The Lonely Hearts Book Club  can only be described as a love letter to book lovers. To the readers that feel they are alone until one day they stumble upon a book that takes them to another world or a fellow reader who understands the magic of reading! And it is a love letter to anyone that has ever felt true loneliness and how one book, one chapter, or even one sentence, can make you feel less alone. How one act of kindness seemingly unrelated, can change everything.  This is the story of a lonely librarian that does not realize how truly lonely she is until the cranky old man she verbally spars with over books daily stops coming to the library. It is the story of a grandson who made promises he is not sure he can keep. Who found in a group of strange people with little in common with each other a place where he can be himself, and less alone. It is the story of a lonely mother who finds ...

Babel, Or the Necessity of Violence: An Arcane History of the Oxford Translator' Revolution , or as we will call it for the remainder of this review. just Babel , was nothing short of extraordinary. I am not the biggest fan of any book that deals a lot with political and social issues, or that is too long, or, when the books are meant to be a fantasy book it has minimal to no fantasy elements until close to the end. And yet, once I started reading this one it was impossible to stop. Are you a lover of languages? There is no doubt in my mind that the author spent hours, days, months, if not years researching the many intricacies of languages and translation. I love the study of languages. I am fluent in two, understand somewhat two others, and have studied a dead language (ancient Greek) at university. So needless to say, I was geeking out with the author throughout the whole book. I honestly do not believe this book will suit everyone, if you are not a lover of languages you might ...

 It has been a crazy month and I fell behind badly on my reviews! But here are some highlights for you. Barbarian Lover (Ice Planet Barbarians #3) Ruby Dixon  2.75/5 Although I liked this one it is my least favorite in the series so far. The book was going well until a little over the halfway point when it just doesn't read right. She accepts leaving someone behind too easily and although up to this point the book does a good job at dealing with infertility it all of sudden throws it all out of the window. So good, I will carry on with the series, but not great. A Precious Jewel (Stapleton-Downes #2) Mary Balogh  3/5 This was different, unique. And I like that about it. I have not read any other book quite like it. She is a prostitute;  he starts of as just any other client. The story was sweet and interesting . The MC comes across  rather clueless at times,  but it is somewhat endearing. The romance is believable  and they make a very c...

As much as I really enjoyed this book, I have to be honest and say that unless you, like me, are a big fun of the classic, you might not love it. It relies heavily on your knowledge of the classic. Although everything is well explained you will be missing something without it.  I'm also not sure calling this one a romance is correct. Even a dark reverse harem as it is advertised... but that I think will most definitely become the case in the second book. We are just not there yet and when I went into this one, I didn't know it was series with cliffhangers.  Allison's Adventures in Underland  is a fantastic adaptation of the classic. It is Dark, it is sexy, it has charm.  Allison watches a man with bunny ears murder her crash and runs after him. She falls down the rabbit hole in the process coming face to face with the twins. Expect in this version the twins are two very sexy man with signs hanging around their necks that say, "eat me", "drink me". I am s...

Continuing with my newest obsession, bully romance, we now have Jace. Insufferable, hateful, vengeful Jace. Blurb: I never thought I'd step foot in Royal Manor again. But four years later, here I am... back to finish my senior year at Royal Hearts Academy. And forced to face Jace Covington. My first friend. First crush. First kiss. The one I left behind. Only—he isn't the same boy I gave my heart to. This new Jace is as cruel as he is gorgeous. And he's determined to make my life a living hell. Along with the rest of his glorified family and crew of tyrants. They expect me to worship the ground they walk on like everyone else, but I'd rather eat dirt. If Jace Covington wants me gone...he'll have to try harder. Because I've never been the kind of girl to play by the rules. Jace is cruel. Not as cruel as some of the other bully romances I've been reading lately, but he is definitely not a nice guy. Burnt by his past, still hurting from everything that happened...

@glimpses_of_my_books I am not one to shy away from dark romances. I like them. I like finding out the reasons for the wrongs done, trying to understand people's motivations, I like the redemption in the end (though you don't always get it), I of course like the spice, and I do like that sickening feeling in your stomach when you read certain scenes. Proof I am still a normal human being I suppose LOL I have read some bully romance in the past, but nothing as dark as Untouchable . Untouchable  is NOT for the faint hearted; the opening scene is very unpleasant to read. I confess I was certain I was not going to be able to finish the book and I was not going to like it. In the end, it was damn near perfect .  There is an argument to be made that it romanticizes sexual abuse, but it IS FICTION . It's not real life. Which brings the question, in my mind at least, why are some dark romance readers ok with murder but not this? If you are going to have a problem with this you abso...

A Proposal They Can't Refuse  has a wonderful selection of themes I adore in a book: food, family, culture (in this case hispanic), and two main characters impossible not to love. Oh, and some Irish Whiskey! Kamilah Vega is a fiery Puerto Rican chef determined to make her family's restaurant,  El Coquí,  succeed. She is hopeful that entering the Fall Foodie Tour will help put the restaurant on the map for good. Convincing her family however is a struggle, they are not too keen on the changes that would be necessary for a win. And even worse, they don't trust her to succeed.  The restaurant shares a building with a Distillery.  Liam Kane and his grandfather have turned their family Irish Distillery into a successful business and are hoping to win a national competition with their secret and new whisky blend. But just as they are about to get things going, his grandfather hits him with some horrible news: he has cancer, is not looking...

Hello Hello friends! Who is ready for another Stay a Spell  book? Here is the blurb: Livvy Savoie is a people person. Not only does she have the magical gift of persuasion, but her natural charisma charms everyone she meets. She hasn’t met a person she didn’t like. Until her annoyingly brilliant competitor walks through the door. No matter how hard she denies it, loathing isn’t the only emotion she feels for him. Grim reaper Gareth Blackwater is rarely, if ever, moved beyond his broody, stoic state. But the witch he’s partnered with in the public relations contest is destroying his peace of mind. He’s convinced that the flesh-melting attraction he feels for her is merely her witchy magic at work. But forced proximity proves there is more than magic sparking between them. Livvy learns this enigmatic grim’s abilities are beyond any supernatural she has ever known. And when Livvy becomes the obsessive target of a dangerous warlock, Gareth proves just how powerful he truly is. Because ...

I absolutely adore this series, I will never be able to forget Quinn and Jane from the first book, My Only and Only Duke ,  and even less my favorite to date, Lord Stephen, from book 6, How to Catch a Duke . All the books in this series are very well written and have charming and lovable characters. It is often the case that one can pick up any book in a series like this and read that without having read the others. My one and only issue with Never a Duke  is that you really can't do that. There is an immense amount of focus on characters from previous books and it sadly distracts the reader from Ned and Lady Rosalind's love story. I love when previous characters make an appearance, but this was a just a tad too much. I was getting confused because liking it or not it is hard to keep 6 other couples straight in your head, especially when you read so many other books in between. It was just all a little too much. But, don't let that deter you from reading this beauty. As alw...

Parks and Provocation Another Juliete Cross win! Can this author write a bad book? I think not. From where I stand SmartyPants Romance is lucky to have Juliette in their team! Blurb: Lola Landry stares through the window of her locked car with the keys in the ignition and the radio blaring Beck’s “Loser.” While standing there and sweltering in the soupy Tennessee humidity, she wonders how her orderly life had crashed and burned so badly. Then her high school nemesis saunters up in all of his tall, strapping, fireman-to-the-rescue glory, slapping her with the humiliating proof that it can always get worse. When the uber-confident Jedediah Lawson requests a date in return for popping her lock, a lightbulb goes off. Revenge is sweet. He would make the perfect victim—guest, that is—for her next podcast episode on Kiss and Tell. What shocks her is the casual way he not only agrees to the post-date interview on air, but ends up hijacking her audience and wooing them with his swoony, southern...

I discovered Gena Showalter long after her Lords of the Underworld series had started. I have those books, but I haven't read them all. I have however read many of her other smaller series. My favorite still the one that introduced me to her books in 2018, Shadow and Ice  (Gods of War).  The Warlord  is the start of a new series, but if you have read Lords of the Underworld  some bits will connect. It is not necessary you read them though, gods know I have not. They sit on my middle shelf and I stare at them daily, does that count? hehe Here is the blurb: For centuries, Taliyah Skyhawk has prepared to become Harpy General, leader of the deadliest female army in existence. One of the requirements? Remain a virgin. But, for a chance to save her people, she must wed the fearless leader of the Astra Planeta, Alaroc Phaethon. The time has come for Roc to sacrifice another virgin bride to his god. There has never been a woman alluring enough to tempt him from his path. N...

*A scorchingly hot modern retelling of Helen of Troy, Achilles, and Patroclus that's as sinful as it is sweet.*   And that right there is 100% accurate!  Wicked Beauty  is the third book in the series: - Neon Gods  (Dark Olympus #1) - Electric Idol  (Dark Olympus #2) -Wicked Beauty (dark Olympus #3) I've been a big fan of Katee Robert for a few years now, but I have to be honest and say that nothing has come even close to the O'Malley's for me. Not until now that is :) I wish I could direct you to reviews on that amazing series, but I didn't start posting romance reviews until 2017 and my first Katee review went live in 2018. You will just have to trust me on this, it is an amazing series and if you are looking for something to read while waiting for the next release in the Dark Olympus series, that is a great choice. Now back to Wicked Beauty!  The 'Hunger Games' vibe was strong. And I'm not one little bit upset about it. I love a spicy romance and a ...

Meet me in the Margins by @glimpses_of_my_books Meet me in the Margins  is a book lover's dream! A whimsical and delightful tale of how hard and how wonderful it is to work in the world of books. This book has passionate book editors, a heavenly ARC room (advanced reader's copy), book events, a hidden nook... I was sold from the start. Savanah works at a non-fiction publishing company that pretty much looks down at all fiction books, but specially anything as 'silly' as romance. She is great at her job, but she has a little secret: she wants to write fiction. Her first manuscript is ready to go. After having to leave her manuscript behind at work one day she finds out she is not the only one that uses the little hidden nook she found in the building. Someone else must know about it too. Someone that thought it was ok and acceptable to edit her manuscript. She finds comments and observations all over the first few pages of her manuscript. She ignores it and submits it an...

Did you know that in Ireland, every four years, when February 29th comes around ladies can propose to their lovers and the gentlemen must say yes? I had no idea Americans didn't know that until recently. Well, it is an old Irish tradition that makes for some fun stories to tell and in this case, a very well written romantic comedy.  Lucky Leap Day  is the story of Cara, who after one too many whiskeys on Leap Day, proposes to her taxi driver - who also happens to be a musician in the Irish bar she ended up at during her last night in Ireland. She wakes up the morning after with a tin foil ring on her finger, a bad hangover, and a new husband. Because well, it was Leap Day, Finn could not reject such a proposal!  Cara has a flight in just a few hours that she cannot miss. The most important meeting of her career is waiting for her. So they do the most logical thing: Cara, Finn, and his dog, pack their bags and fly to the US. After all, it is much easier to annul ...