Lauren

You Should Be So Lucky is about Mark, a somewhat grumpy man who is still struggling to find his footing after the loss of his partner a year earlier, and Eddie, a pro baseball player who was traded from his team and seemingly loses all of his skill overnight.

“I’m not saying things happen for a reason…I’m saying that things happen. And it doesn’t have to mean anything except what it means to you”

This is technically part of a series, though reading We Could Be So Good isn’t required to enjoy this book. I really like the setting Cat Sebastian picked for this. Every conflict that comes up feels real and logical, and she does a great job of avoiding an annoying third act breakup. I also appreciate how real her characters feel. Eddie is both hot headed and naïvely sweet. Mark is grumpy but kind hearted. Even the side characters felt real. George is an older man in the story, who represents the way generations can learn to be accepting regardless of age, even if it can be difficult at first. Price and Rosenthal show both issues and progress in sports, and how sometimes human connections are the most important things. I also appreciate that they had their own issues they were facing behind the scenes, showing life continues even if others aren’t focused on them. Sebastian also did a nice job of showing grief. Mark’s grief felt so real. From struggling to live despite being alive, to feeling okay only to be reminded of something, to finding how to share that and move on at the same time. I do think, however, a year is pretty quick to move on from, but that might just be me. There is something about Cat Sebastian’s books that makes me enjoy them every time.

The Butcher’s Masquerade is book 5 in the Dungeon Crawler Carl series. Considering this is book 5 in the series, I’m assuming anyone reading this review is curious what other people think, and therefore there will be spoilers throughout. I continue to have fun with this series, but I’m stating to think my enjoyment comes from reading this with my partner, not necessarily the books themselves. I know I really enjoyed book 3, but the further I get into the series, the more issues I have. Let me start with what I liked, though. I enjoy seeing the cast of characters growing. It feels realistic that the choices they have to face are getting more and more difficult, and it’s frustrating to see how the rest of the universe doesn’t really see them as people, but just sources of entertainment (frustrating in a good way). I also really like some of the implications about different groups trying to help the crawlers come together and fight against the corrupt forces that run Dungeon Crawler World (especially happy to have Zev around again). I even appreciate this growing feeling of dread/anger/anxiety that Carl is feeling (although the river analogy got old by the end). I also enjoy the development of Lucia and hope to see more. All that being said, this book did have its usual issues. I’m sorry, but I’m so tired of a man thinking just because it’s in a joke or a female character says it, that we can use words like whore (9 accounts). Samantha is often referred to as a “sex doll head” despite her being a literal deity and so much more (18 accounts). Additionally, there’s a lot of girls hating on girls (Eva x Katia; Signet x Imogen). And of course there Vrah, who not only has to have it out for Carl, but then has to suffer a reoccurring STD despite being a virgin (how many times in history have women’s death certificates said something like syphilis when they died from other things?), yet it’s been a hot second since any male character was the problem?? Not to mention the casual mention of Bea having Bulima like it’s a joke? Gross. It just doesn’t feel good. Moving on, something found extremely frustrating was how thoroughly the author does not trust his audience. We will see an entire scene play out, be told the plan word for word, only for someone else (typically Donut or Katia - both female characters) to ask if they understood the plan or to have it explained again. This book could have been cut down significantly if we stopped over explaining everything. Readers are smart enough to keep up. For example, just prior to page 555 of the KU ebook, we get a whole rundown of how Diwata works. Then Katia (who is smarter than everyone else in this whole book) asked, “She changes form to mate with different creatures?” She didn’t ask it astonished or in shock. She just asked it, a clarifying question to a situation that was explained in multiple ways. I don’t believe she wouldn’t have understood. That is only one of many examples. Along the same lines, the ending was exhausting to read. I didn’t need to read the plan notes. Just unfold the scene, and tell me where things deviated from the plan as you go. I swear this book could have lost 100 pages with some editing. Carl is supposed to be the hero, but I’m over him. Now, I do think this MIGHT be intentional with the whole ring thing. I’m hoping it is. Otherwise? He kind of sucks. Yes, he tries to save his friends, but aside from his sexists and racist thoughts throughout the series (I don’t care if it’s commentary from the aliens, Carl describes things as he sees them), he tells us that he thinks killing the NPCs is better for them than living without asking their input, thinks of a time he got grease all over a jacket because he joined his ex and her parents for dinner after work (wash your hands? I’ve dated mechanics, the stains don’t come off the skin, but the grease does), and he justifies killing all the hunters because they pose a threat - but then later tells us, “They weren’t organized. They weren’t properly trained. They didn’t work well with one another.” So they’re not threats then! I don’t have a category to put this in (maybe the sexism one honestly) but the incest story line was unnecessary. I hated it. Write anything else. Anything. Im also starting to feel like Carl’s past is a bit…gratuitous. I love when a book makes me sad for a character, but the way his abuse and his mother’s suicide is handled is uncomfortable. There were some things that happened that I ALMOST liked, but just weren’t explored nearly enough. Prepotente’s grief and newfound resolve was nicely done, but because he isn’t on page very often. I hope we get more of him, but I’m not sure if he’s alive or not. Then there are the hunters. I really liked the inclusion that most of them are desperate (poor and impoverished, forced to live on inhospitable planets, homeless, etc.). It makes their choice to be there believable and gives us an idea of what the universe is like. Unfortunately, it is in one throw away line. It would have been nice for Carl to hear that and reflect. He could still do what he needed to do and have empathy. (Lastly, I didn’t consider this in my review as I’m unsure, but I wanted to note all the mentions of accountants felt like a dated reference to the TikTok trend of sex workers calling themselves accountants. Carl always found it funny, which is odd, and the book was written around that time. I could be reading into things, but that’s how it felt.)

I am going to continue reading partly because it’s something I get to bond over with my partner, partly because the epilogue was interesting, and partly because I’m always stupidly hopeful these issues will stop. I didn’t notice many of them in book 3, so I know it’s possible.

Down Among the Sticks and Bones is book two in the Wayward Children series. This one does not take place in the home for these children as the first did, but at the Moors. Jacquelin (Jack) and Jillian (Jill) are twin girls who are seen more as accessories than children, never given the opportunity to find themselves (they were also in book one, effectively making this a prequel). Enter the door, which gives them many options, and inevitably leads the to the Moors. There they have life altering decisions to make.

If you read the first book, you probably have a good idea of where this story will go. I find it interesting than at the end of the first book, there were things with those sisters I don’t really understand, but this book made that one make more sense in a way. I’d still say read them in order, but if you accidentally read this one before book one I don’t think it would really matter. While the first book had a murder mystery plot, this one really is just about these two girls and what the world/society/adults have turned them into. So far, I recommend these books overall as they’re short, easy to read novellas with interesting, darker plots. I’m assuming some of the future installments will also include other children from the original books.

I do wonder if Jack and Jill’s parents got them confused when they returned since they sort of flipped roles. I’m betting they did.

So Fetch: The Making of Mean Girls (and why we’re still obsessed with it) is exactly what you would expect from the title. It provides looks behind how the movie came to be, and how the cast was chosen and how they interacted. It also (briefly) discusses the different decisions made behind costuming/set/ etc, which I would have liked more of. The book examines the messaging (and how some of it aged poorly) and why the generations than have followed still can relate to it and enjoy the story.

It was overall interesting. At times it was a little repetitive and while I understand the author wanted to book to be accessible to everyone, the many recaps of what happens in Mean Girls felt unnecessary. Is anyone picking this up this doesn’t know the movie well?

The narrator for the audiobook did a good job.

Ladies in Hating takes place during the regency era and follows Georgiana, daughter of an earl who grew up with status but now lives with her mother doing well, but getting by on her own. It also follows Cat, who grew up with a loving family with lesser means. Both women are successful authors, and Georgiana is convinced that Cat is somehow intentionally stealing her characters, book titles, and plots.

I won’t go into much more of the plot than that as far as the summary goes. I really felt this book was…fine? The romance was pretty strong. I enjoyed how well the yearning and wanting was written, and I believed each woman had their reasons for having feelings for the other. They also felt like individuals characters in their respective POVs. I even like the way communication (and miscommunication) occurred between them. During the first 40-50% of the book, I was having a great time. However, once they got together I just didn’t care anymore. Throughout the second -ish half of the book there is a mystery subplot, but frankly, I didn’t care about it. The small reveal of why their books were similar was good enough, though made little sense for how specific those coincidences were to me.

I also enjoyed the author’s note, something I don’t always take the time to read.