Ridley Aris

I received an ARC of What We Can Know from NetGalley. All feedback and opinions expressed are my own.

Where to start? This book was extremely challenging for me on several levels. The first being the formatting. The flow and structuring of sentences where certain things were bolded, where the break in the sentence moved to another line at the start of a new paragraph, etc., put me off from the beginning. I found myself having to go back and re-read to make sure I didn't miss something. The second being the narration/povs. It was like being on the outside looking in on someone's paraphrased recounting of events but the paraphrasing was being presented as a dissertation. It was a struggle to get through the first half of this book and by that point I feel I just wasn't invested.

While I appreciate the opportunity to read this story as an ARC, I struggled to connect with it and appreciate the story for what it is.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

How best to describe this book? Think The Prince & Me meets Red, White & Royal Blue. This book is on point with the enemies-to-lovers trope, and the banter between our MMCs is fantastic. Too often, the banter and/or the angst takes too long to build without a payout, but I didn't feel that way with The Prince and the Player, as the story's pace was quick. My only criticism of the MMCs is that while the banter was good, Farron skipped straight past brooding and was just aggressively angry the entire story, and there was no actual development of a relationship other than going from enemies right to lovers. Most enemies-to-lovers tropes have a period where a relationship starts to form before the eventual realization that feelings are involved.

As an aside, the cover irks me slightly. The characters depicted on the cover are reversed from how they are described in the story...

Overall, I enjoyed this book and would recommend it. It was also my first introduction to Nora Phoenix, and I look forward to reading more from the author.

I received an ARC of The Witch of Wall Street from NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

The Witch of Wall Street is a cute, cozy fantasy with witches and magic woven into the corporate world. Add tropes like he falls first, golden energy, enemies to lovers, etc., and you have a pretty typical fantasy rom. What sets it apart is its world-building and the characters. One character's magic is chaotic while the other is very controlled, and they have to work together for a common purpose while navigating the opposites-attract pitfalls our long-time rivals encounter.

Although this story has a fast-paced plot, the pace of the overall story is enjoyable and engaging.

I received and ALC of this audiobook. All opinions are my own.

I loved this book. The plot, while magically, is still very relatable in how we deal with pain and the pain of love/loss. There is no complicated world building, an easy to follow magic systems and overall the story is very reminiscent of Encanto meets Practical Magic...which are both vibes I enjoy.

The story and its pace were perfect for me. The narrator was also very enjoyable to listen to.

I would highly recommend this book/audiobook to anyone looking for a story about love and family.

I received this title as an ARC. All opinions are my own.

Honestly, I loved this book. As someone who enjoys cozy fantasy and cozy stories, especially between epic/high fantasy series, this was such a welcomed surprise. Another reviewer said that this is a recommendation for fans of The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches and Emily Wilde, which I fully agree with. Unlike most stories where our MC is a villain, Violet is a former villain, trying to atone for her deeds and forge a new life of good...but, nothing is ever that cut and dry and we'll just say perspective is everything. While a cozy story, there is some spice but it is pretty tame all things considered. The character development, struggles and ultimate relationships built throughout our FMC's road to redemption are kept me interested and entertained This was my first title by Emily Krempholtz but it will not be my last. If you're looking for a cozy read with witches, found family, redemption, life reboots, etc., then pick this one up!