Can't Wait Wednesday #248

 

Can't-Wait Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted at Wishful Endings, to spotlight and discuss the books we're excited about that we have yet to read. It's based on Waiting on Wednesday, hosted by the fabulous Jill at Breaking the Spine.

Can love survive an unbreakable curse?

Kierse McKenna’s magic is bound to a man she hates―one who has spent lifetimes fighting the man she loves.

To end this binding, Graves―her winter god, her monster―will stop at nothing. He discovers that the only hope of freeing Kierse is to locate a stone relic of legend, rumored to lift any curse.

The only problem? The stone has been missing for a century.

And the Oak King is on their trail.

Now Kierse is trapped at the heart of a centuries-long battle while the rest of the world comes unraveled. The Fae Killer is hunting. The peace with monsters is fracturing. And as the very rules of their myth start to shift, escaping the Oak King’s hold may demand more than stolen artifacts and clever heists.

For Kierse and Graves, it may mean risking the only thing they have left to lose.

Definitely can't wait to read this one at some point! Lol. Fell into the series randomly and have enjoyed it thus far and expect to continue loving it!

TITLE: The Raven at the Ash Door
AUTHOR: K.A. Linde
PUBLISHER: Red Tower Books
GENRE: Fantasy Romance
RELEASE DATE: June 16, 2026

The media believes they have uncovered all the royal scandals about the "killer princess," but there is one game-changing secret remaining that will take the crown in the final book of the Royal Blood series, which Jennifer Lynn Barnes calls "a darker Princess Diaries."

Evangeline Bright has only one shot to prove she isn’t a traitor: by finding the real mastermind behind the plot that almost killed her father, the King of England.

With the help of Kit, her steadfast boyfriend, Evan must find a way to outsmart the real threat to the throne no matter the cost, because the deadliest enemy the monarchy has faced in over a century is back with a vicious vengeance. And Evan soon uncovers the reason why.

A scandal so huge that if it ever becomes public, it will tear the monarchy apart.

To protect her loved ones, Evan must silence her enemies for good—because if the truth gets out, it won’t just shatter the monarchy. It’ll shatter Evan’s entire family.

I still need to read the second book of this series. I'll admit, that I did go into the first one thinking something paranormal was happening based on the OG cover. Luckily there was still mystery and mayhem to keep me entertained! Lol.

TITLE: Royal Vengeance
AUTHOR: Aimee Carter
PUBLISHER: Delacorte Press
GENRE: YA Mystery
RELEASE DATE: June 16, 2026

Teaser & Top Ten Tuesdays

 

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly feature hosted by Purple Princess of The Purple Booker. 

Here are the rules:

1. Grab your current read
2. Open to a page
3. Pick out 2 lines that are SPOILER FREE
4. Name the title, author, etc.

"She had been patient long enough. Now it was time to see if there was any difference between gutting a fish and gutting a man." p 115

TITLE: Scavenge the Stars
AUTHOR: Tara Sim
PUBLISHER: Disney-Hyperion
GENRE: YA Fantasy
RELEASE DATE: January 7, 2020

Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and The Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.

This week's topic is: MAY FLOWERS: Top Ten Book Covers Featuring Flowers

*in no particular order
**ironically, I had written this idea down as one of my "freebie" picks and was almost working on in it in April before we got our May topics! Lol.

10. THE SONGBIRD & THE HEART OF STONE by Carissa Broadbent
9. NIGHTWEAVER by R.M. Gray
8. THE DARK FABLE by Katherine Harbour

7. LOST GIRLS OF HOLLOW LAKE by Rebekah Faubion
6. RITES OF THE STARLING by Deveny Perry
5. THRONE OF THE FALLEN by Kerri Maniscalco

4. THE GRAVEWOOD by Kelly Andrew
3. BLACK CITY by Elizabeth Richards--this is a rose that was frozen and shattered to create this stunning cover! I vaguely remember a blog post of Elizabeth's on this one!
2. CRAVE by Tracy Wolff

1. LADY TREMAINE by Rachel Hochhauser--the book that was on my desk that prompted me to have this idea to save for a freebie pick before it became an actual topic for May! Lol.

Review--Scavenge the Stars by Tara Sim

 

When Amaya rescues a mysterious stranger from drowning, she fears her rash actions have earned her a longer sentence on the debtor ship where she’s been held captive for years. Instead, the man she saved offers her unimaginable riches and a new identity, setting Amaya on a perilous course through the coastal city-state of Moray, where old-world opulence and desperate gamblers collide.

Amaya wants one thing: revenge against the man who ruined her family and stole the life she once had. But the more entangled she becomes in this game of deception—and as her path intertwines with the son of the man she’s plotting to bring down—the more she uncovers about the truth of her past. And the more she realizes she must trust no one…

Packed with high-stakes adventure, romance, and dueling identities, this gender-swapped retelling of The Count of Monte Cristo is the first novel in an epic YA fantasy duology, perfect for fans of Sarah J. Maas, Sabaa Tahir, and Leigh Bardugo.

Tara Sim’s Scavenge the Stars is a YA gender-swapped retelling of The Count of Monte Cristo and it did a pretty good reimagining of the classic tale in a new way. Elements of the beloved (on my part) classic are still there and so is a fresh new take.

Amaya has been working on a ship for several years now working off debts. She never really understood why she was separated from her mother, but the vile captain she works for lets her and the other children know how much debt is left to payoff regularly.

Then just as her time working is almost up, Amaya makes a decision to save a man lost at sea. It costs her greatly, but then the man called Boon makes a tempting off: help him escape the ship before they make port and he’ll make her rich.

Naturally things go awry and when Amaya thought freedom was near, she ends up jumping overboard to save her own life. She reconnects with Boon almost magically and she agrees to work with him so they can both get revenge on the people who took much of their own lives from them.

Then we have Cayo Mercado who just so happens to be the son of the rich merchant who Boon wants to exact his revenge on. Amaya taking on the role of an elusive young rich countess will have to try to somehow use Cayo to their advantage but you can probably guess what happens there. Although there are other romantic complications involved in this one. I feel like Cayo and Amaya didn’t really get many romantic moments so I had a hard time getting into that aspect. I wasn’t against their relationship, it was just a matter of “do you really like them?” given your other circumstances? Hopefully the sequel will give them more togetherness so I can root for them more.

This was definitely an interesting take on one of the only classics I’ve ever enjoyed. I love a good revenge story and Amaya was definitely planning her revenge on the people she believed to play a role in what ended up being her family’s predicament. Although, she ends up being a bit more bloodthirsty than her original counterpoint. I can’t figure out if I enjoyed that as well or not. There was something deliciously satisfying about the Count absolutely ruining the lives of the men who wronged him. It’s been ages since I read the original source but I can’t recall him directly killing anyone. Which is why I found it so satisfying. Lol.

But as with any retelling you take it with a grain of salt. Nothing will ever be a direct play by play and I would t want it too. But I guess taking away that main element that I thoroughly enjoyed from the classic was mildly annoying. I still enjoyed Sim’s take on the story.

The ending was where things really get shook up! The original classic’s plot gets lost in the wind and Amaya’s story fully takes over. It does end with some cliffhanger type feelings as chaos ensues, secrets were revealed, and now there’s hell to pay again! Cannot wait to start the continuation of this duology asap!

Scavenge the Stars was a well written novel that retells one of two classics I ever enjoyed outside of fairy tales. It stays true to the original in essence and yet has its own brand as well, making for a magnificent retelling!

Overall Rating 4/5 stars

It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

 

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is hosted by Kathryn at Book Date. It's a fun meme where we gather to share what we've read last week and our reading plans for this week.

Last Week I Read:

The Bad Ones by Melissa Albert (3.5 stars)

Scavenge the Stars by Tara Sim--Review to come later today!

Currently Reading:

Ravage the Dark by Tara Sim

What I Plan to Read Next:

King of Ravens by Clare Sager

Other Posts of Interest:

Teaser & Top Ten Tuesdays
Can't Wait Wednesday #247
MIA
Books from the Backlog #185
Book Blogger Hop #410

Book Blogger Hop #410

 

This meme is hosted by Billy at Ramblings of a Coffee Addict!

This week's question is: If you designed a cover for a beloved book, how would it look, and how would it reflect the story? (submitted by Billy @ Coffee-Addicted Writer)

MY ANSWER: I'm sort of a fan of the covers with symbols or images of "things" versus people covers. I mean I still like people covers fine enough and some are supremely gorgeous. But I am definitely drawn to the other ones more.

I suppose if I were to design something for Caraval, (lol. Because of course!) I would chose images. Like the symbol of Caraval, maybe a tent because it's got circus vibes, a carousel (of roses!), a pocket watch. I always feel more drawn to these covers versus ones with models or drawn people. 

Books from the Backlog #185

 

Books from the Backlog is a fun way to feature some of those neglected books sitting on your bookshelf unread.  If you are anything like me, you might be surprised by some of the unread books hiding in your stacks. This is a fun meme hosted by Carole's Random Life in Books!

Children can have a cruel, absolute sense of justice. Children can kill a monster and feel quite proud of themselves. A girl can look at her brother and believe they’re destined to be a knight and a bard who battle evil. She can believe she’s found the thing she’s been made for.

Hazel lives with her brother, Ben, in the strange town of Fairfold where humans and fae exist side by side. The faeries’ seemingly harmless magic attracts tourists, but Hazel knows how dangerous they can be, and she knows how to stop them. Or she did, once.

At the center of it all, there is a glass coffin in the woods. It rests right on the ground and in it sleeps a boy with horns on his head and ears as pointed as knives. Hazel and Ben were both in love with him as children. The boy has slept there for generations, never waking.

Until one day, he does…

As the world turns upside down, Hazel tries to remember her years pretending to be a knight. But swept up in new love, shifting loyalties, and the fresh sting of betrayal, will it be enough?

I added Holly Black's The Darkest Part of the Forest to my TBR pile in January of 2018! Pretty certain I bought this one at a Holly Black signing! It had to have been at The Cruel Prince book tour, so right at the start of her hype! I mean I had read a few books by her already at the time, but for whatever reason never picked this one up prior to so I thought why not buy it here and get it signed?! Lol. It's still one I would like to read at some point.

Review--The Bad Ones by Melissa Albert

 

Goddess, goddess, count to five
In the morning, who’s alive?

In the course of a single winter’s night, four people vanish without a trace across a small town.

Nora’s estranged best friend, Becca, is one of the lost. As Nora tries to untangle the truth of Becca’s disappearance, she discovers a darkness in her town’s past, as well as a string of coded messages Becca left for her to unravel. These clues lead Nora to a piece of local folklore: a legendary goddess of forgotten origins who played a role in Nora and Becca’s own childhood games...

An arresting, crossover horror fantasy threaded with dark magic, THE BAD ONES is a poison-pen love letter to semi-toxic best friendship, the occult power of childhood play and artistic creation, and the razor-thin line between make-believe and belief.

Melissa Albert's The Bad Ones had a very intriguing and creepy premise. It gives a lesson about the power of belief and the magic within. There's dealing with difficult friendships and other hardships, and a good mystery to boot.

Nora and Becca have been friends for years and then one night Nora gets an odd text message from Becca. They had been fighting and it was radio silence for months and then out of nowhere Nora receives a text that has her rushing to Becca's house in the middle of the night, only to find Becca's cellphone outside by the defunct pool. And come morning, it has been announced that Becca along with three other people are missing.

Nora thinks Becca may have run away as she always talked about leaving her stepmom's behind when she turned eighteen which was getting closer and closer. As to the other missing people, Nora wasn't sure what to make of their disappearances. Then Nora begins to find odd little clues left behind by Becca, things that bring back memories to Nora of their time as children when they created their own set of goddesses that they would worship and pray to.

It all gets pretty convoluted almost at this point. It's not that I wasn't grasping the storyline, but I felt bombarded with flashbacks. They were important ones for sure, but I felt like some of them could've been shorter or at least gotten its point across sooner. We probably spend a good third of the book lost in flashbacks. They eventually connect to the present day and the mystery afoot, but it just really kind of took me out of the mystery too many times that I felt like I was scrambling to get caught back up in present day after each trip down memory lane.

It's not until the last hundred pages or so that things finally start to come together, but alas it was through yet another flashback. One that took an exceedingly long time to get its point across and lay the message out. I don't mind a good flashback, especially if it helps the story move along, but this was another one of those where I thought we could shorten it up a bit. Sometimes, less is more, you know?

The ending itself was another puzzle of sorts. One of those weird, eerie mysteries you're still trying to puzzle together to see the answer in the end. I mean I feel like I got the gist of it all, but with being trapped in the past so many times, I am wondering if I might have forgotten something or other about the current mystery. I mean I know what happened, but not the explicit hows of it all. Just that weird feeling where you want to keep asking why and how.

All in all, The Bad Ones wasn't a bad read. It was intriguing, creepy and mysterious just like I had anticipated. But there was just too many flashbacks for me to really get into the story in the present day. The constant need to go back and remember specific things that didn't always pertain to the current situation got a little repetitive, but I can admit that the flashbacks did serve a point, I just wish they weren't so time consuming.

If you enjoy a good creepy, supernatural inspired mystery and don't mind a consistent use of flashbacks, then I highly recommend this one! It was a good read in a sense, I just wished for maybe a little more by a little less flashback.

Overall Rating 3.5/5 stars

MIA

 (image borrowed from Indie Music Box)

Hey all! Just popping in to say that I will be MIA for the rest of the week! Going on a little road trip so my usual commenting will be paused until I return. But my usual posts will still be up on the usual days. I'll be back in action on Monday for sure!

Can't Wait Wednesday #247

 

Can't-Wait Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted at Wishful Endings, to spotlight and discuss the books we're excited about that we have yet to read. It's based on Waiting on Wednesday, hosted by the fabulous Jill at Breaking the Spine.

How did Joe Goldberg become Joe Goldberg? What led to his first love…first obsession…first kill?

Find out in the highly anticipated prequel to New York Times bestselling author Caroline Kepnes’s hit You series, which inspired the blockbuster Netflix show.

Joe Goldberg is ready for his life to start. He’s seventeen years old, working in Mr. Mooney’s bookshop, falling in love with every girl on the subway all while wondering who will be the one. He knows what he A woman who will force him to get his GED, go to night school, and make something of himself. But who would ever fall in love with him?

Then he spots MISSED CONNECTION, NYC Bookstore Babe.

Someone is looking for Joe. And that someone is Vail Gunderson, a production assistant with a passion for rom-coms. The only she’s twenty-four, which means that Joe has no choice but to lie about his age…and, naturally, nearly everything else in his life. Joe thinks he’s found true love, but when Vail needs more convincing that Joe is her happily ever after, he’s determined to convince her…no matter what it takes… 

With her incisive and darkly comedic prose, Caroline Kepnes captures Joe poised on the edge of manhood, entering the vicious, dog-eat-dog New York dating scene for the very first time, and buffeted by forces that will determine what kind of man he will become—and how he will write his own twisted love story.

I still need to read the last YOU book but this has been a fun series! It was surprising to me but yeah, I am pretty hooked! Just need to circle back to Joe's last "adventure" before I read his "first" one!

TITLE: You First
AUTHOR: Caroline Kepnes
PUBLISHER: Random House
GENRE: Thriller
RELEASE DATE: June 9, 2026

A mystical new YA series that blends fantasy, sci-fi, and romance.

All seventeen-year-old Dusty wants is to escape into books and the wilderness that surrounds her mountain home. What she doesn’t know is that there’s something waiting for her in the shadows of the forest.

One morning, Dusty wakes up with dirt on her feet. Then she realises that her body and senses are changing. And after a chance encounter with quiet and mysterious Will, she feels an attraction unlike anything she’s experienced before. It isn’t just an emotional connection making her heart beat faster—it’s a thirst.

But Dusty isn’t the only person experiencing strange events in Black River. Darker forces are at play, and Dusty must uncover the mystery—or risk losing everything and everyone she loves…

This one sounds soooo intriguing! And this cover! Gah! I need it!

TITLE: Black River
AUTHOR: Ruby Jean Cottle
PUBLISHER: Henry Holt and Co.
GENRE: YA Paranormal
RELEASE DATE: June 9, 2026

Teaser & Top Ten Tuesdays

 

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly feature hosted by Purple Princess of The Purple Booker. 

Here are the rules:

1. Grab your current read
2. Open to a page
3. Pick out 2 lines that are SPOILER FREE
4. Name the title, author, etc.

"'You hurtle yourself through a metal cage on a death machine and you subsist on a diet of waffles and sugar. I can't say I trust your self-preservation instincts.'" p 138

TITLE: Scythe & Sparrow
AUTHOR: Brynne Weaver
PUBLISHER: Slowburn
GENRE: Dark Romance
RELEASE DATE: February 11, 2025

Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and The Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.

This week's topic is: Top 10 Authors I Wish Were Still Writing Today

*in no particular order
**oh this had me crying and just sad! Only a few authors that I know of have ever passed away, the rest, it seems, just fell out of writing.

10. RACHEL CAINE--sadly Rachel passed away a few years ago. She was one of the first authors I ever got to meet and she took time away from the convention she was attending to meet me in the hotel lobby with my mom! She was so sweet and I continued to see her over the years at other conventions/festivals.
9. ALYSSA ROSE IVY--I'm not sure what happened to Alyssa and it saddens me. I was on her review team and then one day, the emails just stopped coming. I was too shy to reach out, wanting to see if everything was okay and I kind of regret that now as things have just been so silent.
8. L.J. SMITH--another author I found when I was young and loved her books. Sadly never got to meet her and within the last year or so I had seen that she passed away too.

7. JEANNIE HOLMES--I'm thinking Jeannie might have stopped writing after her first two books didn't do well in sales. The publisher didn't ask for more, despite my asking for more! Lol. Social media wasn't what it was back then so when newsletters/blog posts stopped I had no way of keeping up with authors who vanished.
6. JENNA BLACK--another one of the greats! I've met Jenna a few times as well and loved her books. I continued following her on Instagram after she seemed to stop writing, but then her posts stopped too.
5. NICOLE PEELER--another author I loved who seemed to have fallen out of writing. I know she is also a professor at a university, so that job probably became more fulfilling for her? Not sure really. I still get an occasional newsletter from her though.

4. KALAYNA PRICE--I fell in love with Kalayna's first indie series that sadly will likely never be finished. I did enjoyed her mainstream Alex Craft series and was glad that that series got to be completed with a few hiccups over the years. I recall she had health issues that partook in the delay, which I totally understand. Still wish her first series could've gotten its final book. I hate that Goodreads is allowed to have these non-existent books up on their site. It's pure torture.
3. ELIZABETH RICHARDS--I loved this author's debut series and from what I could find out, that's all she ever wrote too. Not sure what happened to cause the "no more books" scenario here, but it's another one I mourn.
2. NANCY HOLDER & DEBBIE VIGUIE--my first author duo team! Loved their books they wrote together but I really haven't seen anything from them at all lately, either as a duo or solo.

1. RICHELLE MEAD--the author who brought me back to YA when I thought there would never be another YA Paranormal book! Her last series, The Glittering Court, was the last books she wrote. I remember she toured here for the final book and had mentioned not being on contract for anything at the time and she was just going to see where the muse took her. It's been 8 years since then and still now new news.

BUT ON A HAPPIER NOTE...

There are of course more authors I could add to this list, but instead I decided to add some new and/or upcoming releases from authors I hadn't heard from in awhile who have NEW BOOKS coming out THIS YEAR!

RACHEL VINCENT--just when I thought Rachel might be done with writing since she became a professor at one of her colleges, she wrote a new book that came out this year and I was STOKED that she came to St. Louis for her tour! I still need to read it, naturally, but I am so happy!
BREE DESPAIN--I loved all of Bree's books! The Dark Divine and The Shadow Prince were among my faves and now she has a new thriller coming out in August! It was supposed to release in March, but it got pushed back, but at least it's still 2026!
BECCA FITZPATRICK--Becca would've been at the top of this list and almost was, but then just weeks before I drafted it, she announced she will have a NEW BOOK out THIS YEAR! I AM STOKED! SO STOKED! I loved her Hush, Hush series and all her standalone thrillers. So this book is making me incredibly happy and I haven't even read the blurb all the way through yet! Lol. I read enough that had me excited!