Warrior Girl Unearthed by Angeline Boulley

Pages: 400 

Publisher: Rock The Boat 

Released: 4th of May 2023 

From the New York Times bestselling author of Firekeeper’s Daughter comes a thrilling YA mystery about a Native teen who must find a way to bring an ancestor home to her tribe.

Perry Firekeeper-Birch was ready for her Summer of Slack but instead, after a fender bender that was entirely not her fault, she’s stuck working to pay back her Auntie Daunis for repairs to the Jeep.

Thankfully she has the other outcasts of the summer program, Team Misfit Toys, and even her twin sister Pauline. Together they ace obstacle courses, plan vigils for missing women in the community, and make sure summer doesn’t feel so lost after all.

But when she attends a meeting at a local university, Perry learns about the “Warrior Girl”, an ancestor whose bones and knife are stored in the museum archives, and everything changes. Perry has to return Warrior Girl to her tribe. Determined to help, she learns all she can about NAGPRA, the federal law that allows tribes to request the return of ancestral remains and sacred items. The university has been using legal loopholes to hold onto Warrior Girl and twelve other Anishinaabe ancestors’ remains, and Perry and the Misfits won’t let it go on any longer.

Using all of their skills and resources, the Misfits realize a heist is the only way to bring back the stolen artefacts and remains for good. But there is more to this repatriation than meets the eye as more women disappear and Pauline’s perfectionism takes a turn for the worse. As secrets and mysteries unfurl, Perry and the Misfits must fight to find a way to make things right – for the ancestors and for their community.

What I Have to Say 

This book made me so angry on behalf of all of the Native American tribes who's artefacts and ancestors are hoarded away in museums and private collections instead of safely with the tribes where they belong. I am sicken on behalf of all the indigenous people's of the world who have had so much taken from them by western greed. 

I loved Perry's character so much. I loved the toughness and the sarcasm, but underneath how much she cared about her ancestors, her tribe and her friends. The fact that Team Misfit toys were so willing to help her out even with her illegal activities even though she hadn't known some of them that long is a testament to friendship and found family. 

I haven't read much about Native American Tribes and only this about Ojibwe so that's something I would really like to read more about. I knew they were treated really badly and I've heard about residential schools and other things like that, but this book showed me that it doesn't even begin to scratch the surface of the abuse they've faced in history and are still facing in modern times. 

4 stars 

My thanks go to Netgalley and Rock the Boat for providing me with this gifted copy for review. 

Red, White and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston

Pages: 425

Publisher: St Martin's Griffin 

Released: 14th of May 2019 

A big-hearted romantic comedy in which the First Son falls in love with the Prince of Wales after an incident of international proportions forces them to pretend to be best friends...

First Son Alex Claremont-Diaz is the closest thing to a prince this side of the Atlantic. With his intrepid sister and the Veep’s genius granddaughter, they’re the White House Trio, a beautiful millennial marketing strategy for his mother, President Ellen Claremont. International socialite duties do have downsides—namely, when photos of a confrontation with his longtime nemesis Prince Henry at a royal wedding leak to the tabloids and threaten American/British relations.

The plan for damage control: staging a fake friendship between the First Son and the Prince. Alex is busy enough handling his mother’s bloodthirsty opponents and his own political ambitions without an uptight royal slowing him down. But beneath Henry’s Prince Charming veneer, there’s a soft-hearted eccentric with a dry sense of humor and more than one ghost haunting him.

As President Claremont kicks off her reelection bid, Alex finds himself hurtling into a secret relationship with Henry that could derail the campaign and upend two nations. And Henry throws everything into question for Alex, an impulsive, charming guy who thought he knew everything: What is worth the sacrifice? How do you do all the good you can do? And, most importantly, how will history remember you?

What I Have to Say 

I can't believe I waited this long to read this, it was so cute. I loved the characters and the romance so much. I kept up with most of the American politics in the way it was relative to the story, though I can't say I didn't get a bit confused by it at times. 

As this was an American writing about a British prince, the Britishness was sometimes overexaggerated. I didn't find it too bad for most of it as Henry is a stuffy old prince and more likely to speak in an overly posh manner. But the one bit that did make me cringe was when he used the word "innit" which is very much not a word that someone as posh as Henry would ever used. We definitely need to educate Americans on that word because I hear it too much in American fiction. 

I loved Alex's family, especially June and Nora who were very much my kind of characters. And the friend group widening to include Henry's friend and sister was very endearing. There was such a strong sense of friendship and family in this book. 

Read for fake friendship, dashing royalty and a lot of gayness. 

5 stars 

My thanks goes to Netgalley and St. Martin's Griffin for providing me with this gifted copy for review. 

The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E. Smith (audiobook)

Pages: 236 

Publisher: Quercus 

Released: 7th of September 2023 

Who would have guessed that four minutes could change everything?

Today should be one of the worst days of seventeen-year-old Hadley Sullivan's life. Having missed her flight, she's stuck at JFK airport and late to her father's second wedding, which is taking place in London and involves a soon-to-be stepmother Hadley's never even met. Then she meets the perfect boy in the airport's cramped waiting area. His name is Oliver, he's British, and he's sitting in her row.

A long night on the plane passes in the blink of an eye, and Hadley and Oliver lose track of each other in the airport chaos upon arrival. Can fate intervene to bring them together once more?

Quirks of timing play out in this romantic and cinematic novel about family connections, second chances, and first loves. Set over a twenty-four-hour-period, Hadley and Oliver's story will make you believe that true love finds you when you're least expecting it.

What I Have to Say 

This is my second time reviewing this book. The first review can be found here. 

I wanted to reread this book so when I saw the audiobook up for request, I jumped at the chance. I feel like a lot has changed since my first read. I wasn't so swept up in the humour and the comfort of it. I still think it's written in a very light-hearted style but man this one plays with your emotions. 

I liked the narrator a lot, she had a good voice for the character and her terrible accents for the English characters didn't grate on me as much as I thought they would at the start. I don't have much to say about her beyond that, but I would definitely read another book narrated by her. 

One thing I did pick up on, which while being a bit of a mistake, I find really funny is the times in the book. At the start of each chapter the time is said in each time zone that the book takes place in, but while it's summer in the book and therefore the British time should be in BST, it's not, it's written in GMT. 

I maintain my comment from the earlier review that this book would be absolutely perfect for a plane ride. 

5 stars 

My thanks got to Quercus and Netgalley for providing me with a gifted copy of this audiobook to review. 

 

If I Have to Be Haunted by Miranda Sun

Pages: 369

Publisher: Magpie 

Released: 14th of September 2023 

Your first love will always haunt you…

The most haunting, heartwarming debut of 2023. Perfect for fans of strong female leads and supernatural stakes in Buffy, with all the sweetness and romance of To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before.

Cara’s just trying to stay on top of all her classes, excel at her extracurriculars, and prepare for college – which means not speaking to the dead, an ability she inherited from her grandmother. Ghosts are trouble, and Cara doesn’t need to add their problems to her own.

But then she stumbles upon the body of Zach – the super popular but very newly dead high school golden boy – in the woods, and guess what? He wants her to resurrect him.

Cue trouble.

Miranda Sun’s debut touches on the power and conflicts in a mother-daughter love, first romance – and finding your place in the world while honouring your culture. Full of heart, humour and thrills, If I Have to be Haunted will put a spell on you.

What I Have to Say 

This one let me down a bit. I was hoping for more sassy banter and back and forth, which is the best thing about any enemies to lovers, but most of it just seemed to be them telling the other how much they hated one another. Then there was the romance, which employed my favourite trope of them refusing to say that they like the other or see that the other clearly likes them when it's so obvious. I just wanted to bash their heads together to make them see sense. 

I really liked the ghosts though. The ghost lore with the silver around so you could tell they were ghosts was really interesting and I liked seeing what they could and couldn't interact with. Like the fact that they could touch Cara but Cara couldn't touch them back. It was an interesting take on ghost lore that I've seen elsewhere. 

I also liked the adventure. I liked seeing the different places they went to, especially the extinction meadow which is now one of the top places in a book that I'd like to visit. 

All in all, this could have been better. It was mostly the romance and the lack of banter I didn't like, though that was because it was employing a trope I don't like. So if you like the trope, you might have a better time of it than me. 

3 stars 

My thanks go to Magpie and Netgalley for providing me with this gifted copy for review. 

 

The Borrow A Boyfriend Club by Page Powars

Pages: 288

Publisher: Hodder Children's Books 

Released: 14th of September 2023 

Need a prom date? Want to impress your friends? Or make your ex jealous? Just call...

THE BORROW A BOYFRIEND CLUB

When sixteen-year-old Noah starts at a new school, he has a plan to ensure the students see him as his true gender: join the school's secretive Borrow a Boyfriend Club, where members rent themselves out to their classmates for dates. The endless "accidental slip-ups" that plagued him at his last school will be a thing of the past once he joins the club; after all, it has "boy" right in the title.

But he fails the audition. Desperate, he strikes a deal with the club's prickly president, Asher: he'll help lead the nearly-bankrupt club to victory at the school's fundraising dance competition, and in exchange Asher will allow Noah to prove his skills as a boyfriend in a series of tests that include romancing Asher himself.

As Noah passes test after test, his fake romance with Asher starts to feel surprisingly real, and Noah is faced with a dilemma. If he fails to win the dance fundraiser the club will go bankrupt, and he'll not only lose the new friends he's made - the whole school will know he isn't "boy enough". But if Noah succeeds in securing the club their victory, he'll have to follow the most important, unbreakable rule of the Borrow a Boyfriend Club: no real girlfriends (or boyfriends) allowed.

Will Noah risk breaking the rules for a chance at love?

What I Have to Say 

This was such a cute story with some really strong emotions inside. It went deep into the need a trans boy has to be accepted as a boy both by his classmates and by his family. I really felt for Noah every time he didn't feel enough or every time his parents called him N. 

I liked the cast of characters in this book, though sometimes there were a few too many boyfriends to keep track of. It was nice to be handed a little hint about the character's personality at the start with "the popular one" or "the sporty one" or "the influencer one" and then learn more about their personality beyond that as we went through the book. 

And I loved how supportive this club was to each other and to Noah. It really had such a feeling of found family to it. I can imagine them sticking together through everything. 

4 stars 

My thanks goes to Netgalley and Hodder for providing me with this gifted copy for review. 

The Headmaster's List by Melissa de la Cruz

Pages: 400 

Publisher: Macmillan Children's Books 

Released: 2nd of March 2023 

Four students. A fatal car crash. Three come out alive – and they will do anything to bury the truth.

One of them was driving.

One of them was high.

One of them screamed.

And one of them died.

When one of their own is tragically killed in a car crash, Argyle Prep is full of questions. Who was at the wheel? And more importantly, who was at fault?

But in a place ruled by pedigree and privilege, the answers can only come at a price.

Set against the glitz and glamour of an elite LA private school The Headmaster's List , Melissa de la Cruz's first YA thriller, is an addictive whodunit perfect for fans of Gossip Girl and A Good Girl's Guide to Murder 

What I Have to Say 

Mysterious, privilege and full of gossip, this book delivered on all fronts. The mystery was intriguing enough to keep me reading and I was interested in the characters and their lives. I really warmed to Spencer quickly and wanted her to succeed in getting to the bottom of the accident. 

It was really wonderful to see a service dog! Service dogs work really hard and can be useful plot devices but I rarely see them in books! I think this is only the second book I've read where the character has a service animal! So that was really good to see, 

 I guessed a couple of the plot points which made me feel really clever but I always question whether that means that they were obvious because I am not good at guessing plot points usually! But I do think in this case that I just picked up on one or two clues in the text. Maybe I'm just getting better at guessing! 

If you, like me, eat up books about terrible things happening to privileged teenagers, this might be the book for you. 

4 stars 

My thanks go to Macmillan and Netgalley for providing me with this copy for review. 

 

Six Times We Almost Kissed (and One Time We Did)

Pages: 356

Publisher: Hodder Children's Books 

Released: 2nd of February 2023 

Six moments lead us to two girls, one kiss, and three little words that were maybe always true in this gorgeous novel perfect for fans of Nina LaCour and Jenny Han.

Penny and Tate have always clashed. Unfortunately, their mothers are lifelong best friends, so the girls’ bickering has carried them through playdates, tragedy, and more than one rom-com marathon with the Moms. When Penny’s mother decides to become a living donor to Tate’s mom, ending her wait for a liver transplant, things go from clashing to cataclysmic. Because in order to help their families recover physically, emotionally, and financially, the Moms combine their households the summer before senior year.

So Penny and Tate make a pact: They’ll play nice. Be the drama-free daughters their mothers need through this scary and hopeful time. There’s only one little hitch in their plan: Penny and Tate keep almost kissing.

It’s just this confusing thing that keeps happening. You know, from time to time. For basically their entire teenaged existence.

They’ve never talked about it. They’ve always ignored it in the aftermath. But now they’re living across the hall from each other. And some things—like their kisses—can’t be almosts forever.

What I Have to Say 

I'm reading so many queer books lately and I am living! This one broke me though. It was so sad! The relationship between Penny and her mum and the trauma that had happened to cause it were so tragic. I could really feel the pain in the words. 

I wasn't so into the relationship between the two girls. The kisses were good, but other than that I just didn't really feel the tension between them. It was however beautiful writing. There were some really touching metaphors that I'm certain are gonna be picked up and quoted from the book for years to come. 

It was definitely worth reading. I enjoy books that discuss trauma and healing and I was very interested in those parts of the story. 

 4 stars 

My thanks go to Hodder and Netgalley for providing me with this copy for review. 

Friday I'm in Love by Camryn Garrett

Pages: 288 

Publisher: Penguin Random House 

Released: 2nd of February 2023 

It's too late for a Sweet Sixteen but what if Mahalia had a Coming Out Party? A love letter to romantic comedies, sweet sixteen blowouts, black joy and queer pride.

Mahalia Harris wants.

She wants a big Sweet Sixteen like her best friend Naomi.

She wants the super cute new girl Siobhan to like her back.

She wants a break from worrying--about money, snide remarks from white classmates, pitying looks from church ladies . . . all of it.

Then inspiration strikes: It's too late for a Sweet Sixteen, but what if she had a Coming Out Party? A singing, dancing, rainbow-cake-eating celebration of queerness on her own terms.

The idea lights a fire in her, and soon Mahalia is scrimping and saving, taking on extra hours at her afterschool job, trying on dresses, and awkwardly flirting with Siobhan, all in preparation for the Coming Out of her dreams. But it's not long before she's buried in a mountain of bills, unfinished schoolwork, and enough drama to make her English Lit teacher blush. With all the responsibility on her shoulders, will Mahalia's party be over before it's even begun?

A novel about finding yourself, falling in love, and celebrating what makes you you.

What I Have to Say 

Ahhh! So much gay, so much longing, so much music stuck in my head. This book was a delight to read. The idea of a coming out party is so wonderful to me as a queer woman. The idea of everyone coming together to celebrate your sexuality and show you that they accept you is just so affirming.

It was good to see a book about someone scraping the money together to get what they want. I feel like so much of YA has become about rich kids recently and it's definitely been hard to find queer literature about people who don't have loads of money. There's a few more books this year that have come out about working class people and it's been good to see. 

There was so much longing in this book too. It was painful at some points, but in a good way.  It was a very good representation of the agony of having a crush. 

Definitely a good read for feel good vibes even if it takes a little while to get there. 

(four stars) 

My thanks go to Netgalley and Penguin for providing me with this copy for review. 

The Davenports by Krystal Marquis

Pages:  384 

Publisher: Penguin Random House 

Released: 2nd of February 2023 

The Davenports delivers a totally escapist, swoon-worthy romance while offering a glimpse into a period of African American history often overlooked.

The Davenports are one of the few Black families of immense wealth and status in a changing United States, their fortune made through the entrepreneurship of William Davenport, a formerly enslaved man who founded the Davenport Carriage Company years ago. Now it's 1910, and the Davenports live surrounded by servants, crystal chandeliers, and endless parties, finding their way and finding love—even where they’re not supposed to.

There is Olivia, the beautiful elder Davenport daughter, ready to do her duty by getting married . . . until she meets the charismatic civil rights leader Washington DeWight and sparks fly. The younger daughter, Helen, is more interested in fixing cars than falling in love—unless it’s with her sister’s suitor. Amy-Rose, the childhood friend turned maid to the Davenport sisters, dreams of opening her own business—and marrying the one man she could never be with, Olivia and Helen’s brother, John. But Olivia’s best friend, Ruby, also has her sights set on John Davenport, though she can’t seem to keep his interest . . . until family pressure has her scheming to win his heart, just as someone else wins hers.

Inspired by the real-life story of the Patterson family, The Davenports is the tale of four determined and passionate young Black women discovering the courage to steer their own path in life—and love.

What I Have to Say 

I love this period of history, when the rules are starting to lapse and things are starting to become a bit freer. I really liked this opportunity to learn about the history of black society in this time. It's something I'll admit, I hadn't thought much about, but I will definitely be doing more research into it going onward. 

The characters were this book's greatest strength. The four girls are strong, intelligent and tell the story beautifully. Though I liked some characters more than others, the story wouldn't be the same if even one of these girls was missing. It showed different ways to be a woman and different ways to be black, whether striving out to set up your own business, skilfully evading your etiquette tutor, setting out into a world of activism and protests or simply trying to secure a husband so that she cans survive on in a world that is so cruel to women, each girl brought a different story to the mix and I loved every one. 

I liked how there was the suggestion of lives without husbands in the mix. It's clear that each girl is on a journey of power for themselves, not just a journey to get with the dashing man that each of them finds along the way. I have no doubt that each girl will end up in a life that she has built for herself with no need of a husband but oh look there's the perfect man by her side anyway. 

I didn't know this was a duology at first, so be warned it doesn't all wrap up at the end! I can't wait to read the conclusion though! 

4 stars 

My thanks go to Penguin Random House and Netgalley for providing me with this copy for review. 

The Luminaries by Susan Dennard

Pages: 336 

Publisher: Daphne Press 

Released: 26th of January 2023 

Hemlock Falls isn’t like other towns. You won’t find it on a map, your phone won’t work here, and the forest outside town might just kill you…

Winnie Wednesday wants nothing more than to join the Luminaries, the ancient order that protects Winnie's town―and the rest of humanity―from the monsters and nightmares that rise in the forest of Hemlock Falls every night. Ever since her father was exposed as a witch and a traitor, Winnie and her family have been shunned. But on her sixteenth birthday, she can take the deadly Luminary hunter trials and prove herself true and loyal―and restore her family's good name. Or die trying.

But in order to survive, Winnie must enlist the help of the one person who can help her train: Jay Friday, resident bad boy and Winnie’s ex-best friend. While Jay might be the most promising new hunter in Hemlock Falls, he also seems to know more about the nightmares of the forest than he should. Together, he and Winnie will discover a danger lurking in the forest no one in Hemlock Falls is prepared for.

Not all monsters can be slain, and not all nightmares are confined to the dark.

What I Have to Say 

I'm not sure I can even put in to words how much I loved this book. It was everything. It was just different enough from other books in the genre to make it new and interesting, while also hitting that itch for a good monster hunter book. 

I didn't interact much with the twitter story that inspired this book, but I knew enough about it to get some of the references while still being surprised by the story. It's really nice to see it being made into a proper book like this as I found the twitter thread a bit difficult to keep up to date with. I love the idea that Dennard's readers inspired her and that this book is what came out of it. 

I think what really makes this book is the characters. Winnie just hits the spot for a YA protagonist, a brave underdog who's going to do her damn hardest to become a hunter. She is relatable, she is something to be idolised and she just feels special. With Jay there to be a bit of a love interest and a whole cast of background characters to make the society feel vibrant and interesting, we really have a great group of characters to follow. 

I can't wait to see what else comes out of this world next! 

(5 stars) 

My thanks got to Daphne Press and Netgalley for providing me with this copy for review. 

The Lies We Tell by Katie Zhao

Pages: 352

Publisher: Bloomsbury YA 

Released: 15th of November 2022 

Anna Xu moving out of her parent's home and into the dorms across town as she starts freshman year at the local, prestigious Brookings University. But her parents and their struggling Chinese bakery, Sweetea, aren't far from campus or from mind, either.

At Brookings, Anna wants to keep up her stellar academic performance and to investigate the unsolved campus murder of her childhood babysitter. While there she also finds a familiar face – her middle-school rival, Chris Lu. The Lus also happen to be the Xu family's business rivals since they opened Sunny's, a trendy new bakery on Sweetea's block. Chris is cute but still someone to be wary of – until a vandal hits Sunny's and Anna matches the racist tag with a clue from her investigation.

Anna grew up in this town, but more and more she feels like maybe she isn't fully at home here -- or maybe it's that there are people here who think she doesn't belong. When a very specific threat is made to Anna, she seeks out help from the only person she can. Anna and Chris team up to find out who is stalking her and take on a dangerous search into the hate crimes happening around campus. Can they root out the ugly history and take on the current threat?

The Lies We Tell is a social activism/we all belong here anthem crossed with a thriller and with a rivals-to-romance relationship set on a college campus. 

What I Have To Say 

The first 200 pages of this book were a delight to read. Then I guessed the ending really easily, which I can never do with mystery books, so I felt it was a bit of an obvious ending. Then the situation with the two bakeries was magically resolved with no real explanation of how it happened. And then when everything was resolved and I was ready to put the book down, there was at least 50 pages more of dance contests and talk about court trials and pressing charges. I just didn't need so much ending on a book! 

It was just such a disappointing because until then it had been a really pleasant read. Really easy to read with strong themes tackling racism and secret societies. The only complaint I had up until the last 100 pages was that she wasn't using her connection to Melissa Hong to get information (because I think people are much more likely to talk if you say you're asking because the girl used to be your babysitter rather than just being nosy). 

All in all, I'm just extremely disappointed. This could have been something great, hell, it WAS something great until the ending. 

My thanks go to Netgalley and Bloomsbury for providing me with this copy for review. 

Bloodmarked by Tracy Deonn

Pages: 576 

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Children's UK 

Released:  8th of November 2022 

The shadows have risen, and the line is law.

All Bree wanted was to uncover the truth behind her mother’s death. So she infiltrated the Legendborn Order, a secret society descended from King Arthur’s knights—only to discover her own ancestral power. Now, Bree has become someone new:

A Medium. A Bloodcrafter. A Scion.

But the ancient war between demons and the Order is rising to a deadly peak. And Nick, the Legendborn boy Bree fell in love with, has been kidnapped.

Bree wants to fight, but the Regents who rule the Order won’t let her. To them, she is an unknown girl with unheard-of power, and as the living anchor for the spell that preserves the Legendborn cycle, she must be protected.

When the Regents reveal they will do whatever it takes to hide the war, Bree and her friends must go on the run to rescue Nick themselves. But enemies are everywhere, Bree’s powers are unpredictable and dangerous, and she can’t escape her growing attraction to Selwyn, the mage sworn to protect Nick until death.

If Bree has any hope of saving herself and the people she loves, she must learn to control her powers from the ancestors who wielded them first—without losing herself in the process.

What I Have to Say 

I love these books so much!! I love Bree and Alice. I love the world of Legendborn and Bloodcasters and how the problems of race and privilege are woven into the story, without bogging it down. I love the tension and the action and just learning more about this world. I don't love the cliffhangers, which leave me hanging so often, but they definitely do their job to keep me reading! 

This book was a good sequel, it wasn't quite as good as Legendborn but I still enjoyed it immensely. I loved learning more about the world and seeing it expand as they moved out of Legendborn territory and into the wider world of magic users. And I definitely loved seeing more of Alice as she is so badass and perfect. I also really loved how dark it got with the regents.  I can't wait to see Bree kick their asses. 

My only hang-up really was that Bree didn't fight many of her own battles. She had all this training in weaponry and fighting, but because she can't call ether she can't fight at all? I felt that was a bit of a cop out. Especially when seeing Alice trotting around all happy with being able to protect herself because she has a pair of brass knuckles. I just don't like seeing Bree sidelined like that and made to be something to be protected rather than the awesome powerful girl she has the potential to be. 

Other than that though, I really loved it. I can't wait for the next instalment! 

My thanks go to Netgalley and Simon and Schuster for providing me with this copy for review. 

Foul Lady Fortune by Chloe Gong

Pages: 528

Publisher: Hodder and Stoughton 

Released: 27th of September 2022 

From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of These Violent Delights and Our Violent Ends comes the first book in a captivating new duology following an ill-matched pair of spies posing as a married couple to investigate a series of brutal murders in 1930s Shanghai.

It’s 1931 in Shanghai, and the stage is set for a new decade of intrigue.

Four years ago, Rosalind Lang was brought back from the brink of death, but the strange experiment that saved her also stopped her from sleeping and aging—and allows her to heal from any wound. In short, Rosalind cannot die. Now, desperate for redemption from her traitorous past, she uses her abilities as an assassin for her country.

Code name: Fortune.

But when the Japanese Imperial Army begins its invasion march, Rosalind’s mission pivots. A series of murders is causing unrest in Shanghai, and the Japanese are under suspicion. Rosalind’s new orders are to infiltrate foreign society and identify the culprits behind the terror plot before more of her people are killed.

To reduce suspicion, however, she must pose as the wife of another Nationalist spy, Orion Hong, and though Rosalind finds Orion’s cavalier attitude and playboy demeanour infuriating, she is willing to work with him for the greater good. But Orion has an agenda of his own, and Rosalind has secrets that she wants to keep buried. As they both attempt to unravel the conspiracy, the two spies soon find that there are deeper and more horrifying layers to this mystery than they ever imagined.

What I Have to Say 

I put so much expectation on this book and I'm so glad it didn't disappoint.  I think I liked it even better than These Violent Delights. Spies and immortality is more my kind of thing than gangsters and monsters, so this was just right up my alley. The fake marriage trope was pulled off really well. I wasn't especially into the trope when I started the book, but with Orion's casual use of "beloved" I was quickly invested in their relationship. 

 I would honestly give my life for Alisa Montagova  and Phoebe Hong. They are perfect I and adore them. I don't know what it is about little sisters, but Chloe Gong writes them perfectly.  Honestly, all the characters in Foul Lady Fortune were wonderful. There wasn't a single of the main characters who didn't stick out for me in different ways. It was a very good cast. 

I can't end this review without talking about the historical elements. I love a good historical as it gives me a glimpse into a historical setting and China has such an interesting history, especially during and after the second world war, so I was really interested to read more about it. Half of me wants to research and find out more about the time period and the other half wants to keep reading Chloe Gong's books and see it all unfold alongside the plot. 

My thanks go to Netgalley and Hodder and Stoughton for providing me with this copy for review. 

The Dragon's Promise by Elizabeth Lim

Pages: 400 

Publisher: Hodder and Stoughton 

Released: 30th of August 2022 

Series: Six Crimson Cranes #2 

From the New York Times Bestselling author of Six Crimson Cranes comes a thrilling new adventure! A journey to the kingdom of dragons, a star-crossed love, and a cursed pearl with the power to mend the world or break it... Fans of Shadow and Bone will devour this soaring fantasy.

Princess Shiori made a deathbed promise to return the dragon's pearl to its rightful owner, but keeping that promise is more dangerous than she ever imagined.

She must journey to the kingdom of dragons, navigate political intrigue among humans and dragons alike, fend off thieves who covet the pearl for themselves and will go to any lengths to get it, all while cultivating the appearance of a perfect princess to dissuade those who would see her burned at the stake for the magic that runs in her blood.

The pearl itself is no ordinary cargo; it thrums with malevolent power, jumping to Shiori's aid one minute, and betraying her the next—threatening to shatter her family and sever the thread of fate that binds her to her true love, Takkan. It will take every ounce of strength Shiori can muster to defend the life and the love she's fought so hard to win.

What I Have to Say 

Six Crimson Cranes was one of my favourite books from last years, so I had high expectations for this book but I wasn't disappointed in the slightest. 

It took me a little time to remember what had happened in the last book (I was confused for a little while about why she had made the promise to Raikama until I remembered them reconciling), but it quickly came back to me and I fell back in love with the characters once more. Shiori is one of my favourite characters of all time and Kiki has a special place in my heart, so it felt very much like coming home again. I'm really going to miss these characters. 

I loved how so many elements of Chinese mythology are bound up in this duology. From the dragons and their pearls to the red string of fate that connects Shiori and Takkan, it is full of Lim's take on these very Chinese elements while adding her own fantasy elements as well. 

I also thought it came together in a very satisfying way. I definitely hope this isn't the last we hear from the characters as I know she's had cameos before. 

I was so relieved that I still have the Spin the Dawn duology on my shelf to read as I'm so in love with Lim's writing. 

My thanks go to Netgalley and Hodder and Stoughton for this copy for review. 

I Kissed Shara Wheeler by Casey McQuiston

Pages: 368

Publisher: Pan Macmillan 

Released: 12th of May 2022

Chloe Green has spent the past four years dodging gossipy, classmates and a puritanical administration at Willowgrove Christian Academy. The thing that's kept her going: winning valedictorian. Her only rival: prom queen Shara Wheeler, the principal's perfect daughter.

But a month before graduation, Shara kisses Chloe and vanishes.

On a furious hunt for answers, Chloe discovers she's not the only one Shara kissed. There's also Smith, Shara's longtime quarterback sweetheart, and Rory, Shara's bad boy neighbour with a crush. The three have nothing in common except Shara and the annoyingly cryptic notes she left behind, but together they must untangle Shara's trail of clues and find her. It'll be worth it, if Chloe can drag Shara back before graduation to beat her fair-and-square.

Thrown into an unlikely alliance, chasing a ghost through parties, break-ins, puzzles, and secrets revealed on monogrammed stationery, Chloe starts to suspect there might be more to this small town than she thought. And maybe - probably not, but maybe - more to Shara, too.

What I Have to Say

This is how you do enemies to lovers. It was clear from the start that Chloe's hatred of Shara Wheeler was based completely on the crush she had on her, which was so painfully obvious to absolutely everyone but Chloe herself. It was perfect, the way that the grudge was built up so beautifully that it led the reader to love Shara a little bit as well. 

On top of that, this book was so queer. I don't think a single one of the main characters was actually straight. It had representation for bi, lesbian, gay, non-binary and gender questioning characters and that's just what I remember off the top of my head. If you had any question that this book was gay (which how can you really considering the plot), let me assure you, this book was very, very gay. 

If I absolutely had to give a negative about the book, then maybe the mystery was all resolved a bit too quickly as the last half of the book is more about Shara and Chloe's relationship, but even then, I would have hated the book to end on finding Shara and the games between Shara and Chloe are just beautiful. 

All in all, this book was just perfect. A must read for anyone who loves the enemies to lovers trope. 

My thanks go to Netgalley and Pan Macmillan for providing me this copy for review. 

Confessions of An Alleged Good Girl by Joya Goffney

Pages: 384

Publisher: Hot Key Books 

Released: 3rd of May 2022

Monique lives a perfect life - a preacher's daughter and the girlfriend of the town's golden boy. But it's not that simple. She's torn between her parents who want the pure virginal daughter, and her boyfriend, Dom, who wants to explore the more intimate side of their relationship.

Tired of waiting, her boyfriend breaks up with her, spurring Monique to discover she has a medical condition that makes her far from perfect and she concocts a plan to fix her body and win him back.

With the help of her frenemy, Sasha, the overly zealous church girl Monique's mum pushes her to hang out with, and Reggie, the town's not-so-good boy, Monique must go on trips to unknown and uncomfortable places to find the treatment that will help her. But in doing so, she must face some home truths: maybe she shouldn't be fixing her body to please a boy, maybe Sasha is the friend she needed all along and maybe Reggie isn't so bad at all.

What I Have to Say 

This book was so good. When I started it, I thought it might be too heavy on the teen drama for me, but it reminded me of everything I love about YA. The complex plots, the heavy emotions, the fact that everything can feel so immediate and that the parents can be a real obstacle and sometimes threat. 

What I loved most was just how easy it was to sink into the book.  The main character Mo, was easy to get to know and get into the voice of and I just loved every second of reading her story. I also felt the subject matter was important. It was handled in an honest, feminist and completely entertaining way that never felt forced or like it was pushing the issue. 

It also had a little sprinkle of LGBT rep, as two of the side characters are Sapphic! 

All in all, this book was just perfect. I loved it. 

My thanks go to Netgalley and Hot Key Books for providing me with this copy for review. 

An Arrow to the Moon by Emily X. R. Pan

Pages: 400 

Publisher: Hachette Children's Group 

Released: 12th April 2022

Romeo and Juliet meets Chinese mythology in this lyrical and magical novel by the New York Times bestselling author of The Astonishing Colour of After.

Hunter Yee has perfect aim with a bow and arrow, but all else in his life veers wrong. He's sick of being haunted by his family's past mistakes. The only things keeping him from running away are his younger brother, a supernatural wind and the bewitching girl at his new high school.

Luna Chang dreads the future. Graduation looms ahead, and her parents' expectations are stifling. Then her life is turned upside down by the strange new boy in her class, the arrival of unearthly fireflies, and an ominous crack spreading across the town of Fairbridge.

As Hunter and Luna uncover hidden secrets and navigate the feud between their families, everything around them begins to fall apart. All they can depend on is their love . . . but time is running out, and fate will have its way.

An Arrow to the Moon, Emily X.R. Pan's brilliant and ethereal follow-up to The Astonishing Colour of After, is a story about family, love, and the magic and mystery of the moon that connects us all.

What I Have to Say 

I didn't like this as much as The Astonishing Colour of After.  I don't know why really. It just fell a bit flat for me. I do wonder if it's just that I wasn't in the right mood for this book. It's a fantastic story, based on the Chinese legends of the Moon Goddess. It skilfully wove the legends together with the contemporary setting to make a beautiful new story. Maybe I'll reread it sometime and see if my opinion of it changes. 

I'm really glad that I was already acquainted with the story of Chang'e and Houyi. I could read a lot deeper into this book and all the foreshadowing because of that knowledge. If both books appeal to you, definitely read Daughter of the Moon Goddess or at least read through the legends before you read this one because you'll have so much more appreciation for the story. 

In all, I'm really disappointed that this book didn't live up to what it should have done. I don't think this review gives it any kind of justice. Maybe I'll re-review it some time in the future.  It was really a beautiful story and I feel I should have enjoyed it a lot more. 

My thanks go to Netgalley and Hachette Children's Group for providing me with this copy for review. 

The Soul of the Sword by Julie Kagawa

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

Pages: 384 

Publisher: HQ Young Adult 

Released: 25th of June 2019 

THE TIME OF THE WISH APPROACHES…

Yumeko the shapeshifter had one task: take her piece of the ancient and powerful scroll to the Steel Feather temple and prevent the summoning of the great Kami Dragon. But she has a new enemy now. The demon Hakaimono, has escaped and possessed the samurai she thought would protect her, Kage Tatsumi of the Shadow Clan.

Hakaimono has done the unthinkable and joined forces with Genno, the Master of Demons, to break his curse and set himself free. But Genno wishes to overthrow the empire and cover the land in darkness. To do that he needs only one thing, the scroll Yumeko is hiding. As the paths of Yumeko and the possessed Tatsumi cross again the entire empire will be thrown into chaos.

AND CHAOS WILL DARKEN AN EMPIRE.

What I Have to Say 

I fell back into this world so quickly that it was like coming home. Sometimes it's so hard to remember what characters are doing and who they are when you've had a year between books, but Kagawa has a knack of reminding you everything without making it feel like an info-dump. You just get back into a beautiful setting with fantastic characters. 

I loved seeing how much Yumeko grew in this book. It felt for a start like Kagawa was falling back into old patterns of having female characters being protected by the males because they have no fighting skills, but instead what we saw was Yumeko going through a journey of learning how illusion can be used to fight and do damage. She became a complete badass and I can't wait to see more of her fox magic, especially because it's such a unique form of fighting that isn't utilised much in books. 

I just love to get lost in Kagawa's writing so much. I love this setting and these characters. I can't wait for the third book. 

My thanks go to HQ and Netgalley for providing me with this free copy for review. 

Call It What You Want by Brigid Kemmerer

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

Pages: 374 

Publisher: Bloomsbury YA 

Released: 1st of July 2019 

When his dad is caught embezzling funds from half the town, Rob goes from popular lacrosse player to social pariah. Even worse, his father’s failed suicide attempt leaves Rob and his mother responsible for his care.

Everyone thinks of Maegan as a typical overachiever, but she has a secret of her own after the pressure got to her last year. And when her sister comes home from college pregnant, keeping it from her parents might be more than she can handle.

When Rob and Maegan are paired together for a calculus project, they’re both reluctant to let anyone through the walls they’ve built. But when Maegan learns of Rob’s plan to fix the damage caused by his father, it could ruin more than their fragile new friendship...

This captivating, heartfelt novel asks the question: Is it okay to do something wrong for the right reasons?

TW: Mentions of Suicide/ finding someone post suicide, disability post suicide, pregnancy 

What I Have to Say 

This was such an interesting read, going deep into the idea of morality and the shades of grey that go with it. It follows the path of two teenagers, one who made a mistake and cheated on her SAT exam and another who has to deal with his father having cheated a lot of people out of a lot of money. It shows how the community sees these people and how they can recover from what happened. There's also the story of Meagan's sister who has to deal with a pregnancy and the fall out from that/ the power that the father of the child has over her. 

It also looks into the Robin Hood-esque concept of stealing from the rich to give to the poor. It debates whether stealing to help your friends buy food or expensive shoes that their mother needs for her job is okay if the people who have the money won't notice. It really looks deep into the issue and the opposing sides of the argument. 

It was most interesting to see Rob's side of things, with his father having been the one to do the crimes, but Rob having to suffer through the repercussions. Having lost all his families money, all his friends and having to help look after his father after the failed suicide attempt. It was really interesting to so how much Rob was seen as the villain by his classmates when it was his father who had done the crimes. 

A great read with deep complex issues. 

My thanks go to Bloomsbury YA and Netgalley for providing me with this free copy for review. 

The Everlasting Rose by Dhonielle Clayton

Synopsis (from Goodreads)

Pages: 342
Publisher: Gollancz
Released: 7th of March 2019

With a price on her head, the evil Queen Sophia out for blood, and no idea who to trust, Camellia Beaureguard, the former favorite Belle, must race against time to find the ailing Princess Charlotte, who has disappeared without a trace. Sophia's imperial forces will stop at nothing to keep Camille, her sister Edel, and her loyal guard, Rémy, from returning Charlotte to the palace and her rightful place as queen.

With the help of an underground resistance movement called the Iron Ladies--a society that rejects beauty treatments entirely--and the backing of alternative newspaper the Spider's Web, Camille uses her powers, her connections, and her cunning to outwit her greatest nemesis, Sophia, and attempt to restore peace to Orléans. But enemies lurk in the most unexpected places, forcing Camille to decide just how much she's willing to sacrifice to save her people.

What I Have to Say 

I loved the Belle so much, so I was really excited for this one! It was so easy to sink back into the world of Belles and Beauty work where everything is so defined by how you look. The writing is so evocative and I just love how Clayton shows so many different definitions of beauty in her books. She shows people picking out any skin colour or eye shape even while showing the dark side of this obsession with beauty and pushing the limits of what's possible. 

Everlasting Rose really upped the stakes for Camille and the other fugitive Belles. They really did deep into how much the Belle system is being abused and Sophia tightening her grips on the society. Sophia is such a frightening character. She shows the abuse and addiction of both the thrill of power and of the beauty work that the Belles do. 

I have so many questions about the world. I want to know more about the Iron Ladies and the Gris. I feel like there are more lies to be uncovered and so much more to tell about the world. I look forward to seeing what comes next. 

My thanks go to Gollancz for providing me with this free copy for review.