Candice

Ana and Din are two of the best literary characters to come out of modern sci-fi/fantasy in a long time. When there are strange deaths (as usual) they’re on the case. However this time they’re close to Din’s home town and he has to figuratively and literally face his past. What Ana thinks will be a budding case also ends up dragging more of her past to light. We get more of the old gods and lie around this world.

What you can always get from RJB is not just a great story but a thoughtful commentary on the world. Dueling families from interdependent agricultural trades reflect our own modern agricultural space and the impacts and sustainability moving forward.

Mystery, murder, a sprouting virus that can turn you basically into a zombie, social commentary, and a bit of romance. What more can you ask for.

I’m a bit torn on this one. This isn’t your bubbles and sunshine quirky romance. It has thriller/horror aspects and definitely falls into the slow burn category. Alexys is our (mostly) HR person who works for Entity, a group that hunts cryptids. She works with the wardens aka boss on the ground. Nic heads up the research department. When one of Alexys’ wardens goes missing, she’s on the case to try to find him and bring him home. Nic also learns that the missing warden was on the trail of the Hollow Walker, a cryptid thought to be extinct. So he crashes the search. What could be a funny enemies to lovers romp through Appalachia in search of a missing warden is actually a bit dark and bloody. While this one does also wrap up, it still has some loose ends that definitely need the sequel.

This one is cute. It’s your academic rivals, enemies to lovers, he falls first goodness set in a magical world. It all starts witha kiss with a stranger on Beltan night. Fast forward to the school year and someone’s spell goes horribly wrong and now there’s a massive pall trying to take over the college. Arthur and Maggie must team up to defeat the pall and maybe find love.

Cute premise. But there was a lot between like 10% and 40% of the book that just didn’t really add much to the story. It really felt like a 20-30% cut in editing would have done this one some good.

One thing you can anyways count on with Stacey McEwan is an action filled book, yearning and then screaming and wanting to throw the book across the room because HOW DARE YOU. A Forsaken Prophecy picks right up where A Forbidden Alchemy left off. Nina and Patrick have been taken back to the capitol because Alchemist + Earth Charmer are the only way to find the last seam of idium. Families are reunited and then torn apart. I’m still convinced Patrick freaking Colson is god-tier book boyfriend. If book three makes me regret this statement for the first two books, me and Stacey are going to have words. And never thought I’d really cheer for someone getting killed off… but here we are (and he sooooo deserved it). When you get there, you’ll understand.

I really liked getting quite a few chapters from Donny’s POV. Theo is still a wild card. But at the end of the day, we get more Patrick Colson and all is good in the world.

It feels like it’s so hard to find good mystery novels these days which is why I love the Annie Gore series. Annie is a modern PI with her own ghosts but those ghosts give her so much heart. When she’s hired by an estranged daughter to find out the circumstances around her dad’s death, Annie reluctantly takes the case. Of course, things can’t be that straight forward. Con men, drug dealers, snake churches and not one but four murders. Annie’s support system is still in place with Tina and Leo (and of course Honey).

Just an all around fun mystery.