Emily Wilde's Map of the Otherlands by Heather Fawcett

Pages: 352 

Publisher: Orbit 

Released: 11th of January 2024 

When mysterious faeries from other realms appear at her university, curmudgeonly professor Emily Wilde must uncover their secrets before it’s too late in this heartwarming, enchanting second installment of the Emily Wilde series.

Emily Wilde is a genius scholar of faerie folklore—she just wrote the world’s first comprehensive of encylopaedia of faeries. She’s learned many of the secrets of the Hidden Folk on her adventures . . . and also from her fellow scholar and former rival, Wendell Bambleby.

Because Bambleby is more than infuriatingly charming. He’s an exiled faerie king on the run from his murderous mother, and in search of a door back to his realm. So despite Emily’s feelings for Bambleby, she’s not ready to accept his proposal of Loving one of the Fair Folk comes with secrets and danger.

And she also has a new project to focus a map of the realms of faerie. While she is preparing her research, Bambleby lands her in trouble yet again, when assassins sent by Bambleby’s mother invade Cambridge. Now Bambleby and Emily are on another adventure, this time to the picturesque Austrian Alps, where Emily believes they may find the door to Bambley’s realm, and the key to freeing him from his family’s dark plans.

But with new relationships for the prickly Emily to navigate and dangerous Folk lurking in every forest and hollow, Emily must unravel the mysterious workings of faerie doors, and of her own heart.

What I Have to Say 

This was a great sequel. It sank me back deep in the world of Emily Wilde. I loved many of the same things as I did from the first book, the science of it all and the fact that Emily's character was an introvert and sometimes got cranky, which is rare to see in books! 

It wasn't quite as good as the first though that might be nostalgia talking. The first one had a cosy charm to the cabin that Emily and Bambleby were staying in that just sang to my heart. This one, though it came close, was just missing a tiny bit from the first book. 

I still loved it so much though. While not quite hitting the high standards the first book left, it did still have plenty of charm and whimsy that contrasted nicely with the action and led it to be a beautiful book. 

I can't wait for the next book in the series! 

 5 stars 

My thanks goes to Orbit and Netgalley for providing me with a gifted copy of this book for review. 

 

Bookshops and Bonedust by Tavis Baldree (audiobook)

Pages: 368 

Publisher: Macmillan UK Audio 

Released: 7th of November 2023 

First loves. Second-hand books. Epic adventures.

Viv’s career with the renowned mercenary company Rackam’s Ravens isn’t going as planned. Wounded during the hunt for a powerful necromancer, she’s packed off against her will to recuperate in the sleepy beach town of Murk – so far from the action that she worries she’ll never be able to return to it. What’s a thwarted soldier of fortune to do?

Spending her hours at a struggling bookshop in the company of its foul-mouthed proprietor is the last thing Viv would have predicted. Even though it may be exactly what she needs. Still, adventure isn’t far away. A suspicious traveller in grey, a gnome with a chip on her shoulder, a summer fling and an improbable number of skeletons prove Murk to be more eventful than Viv could have ever expected.

Sometimes, right things happen at the wrong time. Sometimes, what we need isn’t what we seek. And sometimes, we find ourselves in the stories we experience together.

Set twenty years before the events of Legends & Lattes , Bookshops & Bonedust is a standalone cosy fantasy by BookTok sensation Travis Baldree about the power of good bookshops, great friends and the unexpected choices along the way.

What I Have to Say 

This was wonderful. It's hard to top Legends and Lattes, but I don't think it needs to be topped. This was a lovely prequel, showing Viv and a few new characters on a whole new cosy fantasy adventure! I loved the new setting of a bookshop, because in case you hadn't noticed, I love books. The new characters were just as good as the original characters (I would die for Potroast) and it was a story that was just as good as the first. 

I feel like this book had more action in it than the last. Though there was some action in Legends and Lattes, this one had a bigger overall story with mystery and adventure and murder. For people looking for something cosy and low stakes like Legends, this book still has those cosy moments, but it does have high stakes. Conversely, for people who liked Legends but thought it could use a bit more action, this one could be perfect for you! I feel like Bookshops added action adventure without losing that lovely cosy vibe that the first book had going for it. It got a good balance between the two. 

For anyone asking if the books connect up, they do! Though I don't think you necessarily have to read Legends and Lattes to understand Bookshops and Bonedust, those who've read Legends are rewarded for their efforts! I really think this was the perfect prequel. 

Read for bookshops and well bonedust as well as great characters, sapphic love, found family and a sprinkling of action! 

5 stars 

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

The Lonely Hearts Rescue by Missouri Vaun, Morgan Lee Miller and Nell Stark

Pages: 300

Publisher: Bold Stroke Books 

Released: 11th of October 2022 

When a hurricane hits the Gulf Coast, the animals at the Lonely Hearts Rescue Shelter need love, and so do the humans who adopt them.

Something About You by Morgan Lee Miller. After rescuing a cat stranded in the hurricane, animal control officer Reese Shepard is adamant about finding shy, timid Apollo the best forever home. When she discovers Apollo giving cheek rubs to Hannah Marsh, Reese’s high school crush, she’s captivated by her all over again.

Force of Nature by Missouri Vaun. Rebekah Hawks has stepped in to help with hurricane disaster relief. Challenges are no match for Rebekah. At least until she agreed to foster an impossible dog. Rebekah has no choice but to seek the aid of handsome local dog trainer Rory Maclaren. But who is training whom?

Test of Faith by Nell Stark. Rescuing a dog is a dream come true for Faith Kincaid—and a chance to prove to herself that she really can, in the words of her therapist, “commit to commitment.” When Faith takes her new best friend, Pinoe, to the vet, she can’t stop staring at Dr. Delphine Wu. Del is completely out of Faith’s league. Or is she?

What I Have to Say 

This book has cosy written all over it. It's so warm and full of love. Revolving around the Lonely Hearts Rescue Centre, in a world where everyone seems to be gay (or at least everyone adopting or working at lonely hearts anyway) each story starts with a person agreeing to adopt or foster a pet, only then to meet the woman of their dreams along the way. It was simple and perfect and made for great reading. 

As it's a animal book, obviously I have to dedicate a paragraph on the animals in the book! Though I felt there could be more animal content (because who doesn't need more animal content?), the stories were full of cute moments between the animals and their owners. I would have liked to see more of Apollo the cat's rehabilitation, but Buffy the Cav cross and Cotton the dachshund (what better name is there than cotton??) featured a lot in their respected stories and there were moments that I really loved. 

The romance was simple, I could have done with more conflict in the first story as it all seemed a little easy, but with three short stories in a three hundred page book, there was not much room for elaborate stories. I liked all three main characters and their love interests, so I was fairly easy to please. 

Basically if you're LGBTQ+ (or just like reading about gay characters) and love animals then you couldn't really find a more perfect book to read. 

My thanks go to Bold Stokes Books and Netgalley for providing me with this copy for review. 

 

Make You Mine This Christmas by Lizzie Huxley-Jones

Pages: 354 

Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton 

Released: 13th of October 2022 

It's the golden rule of pretending to be someone's girlfriend: don't fall for their sister.

After a year from hell, Haf is ready to blow off steam at a Christmas party: a kind stranger, a few too many drinks and suddenly she's kissing Christopher under the mistletoe - in front of his ex-girlfriend.

The next day the news is out that they're apparently a couple, madly in love and coming to Oxlea to spend the festive season with Christopher's family. But Haf doesn't have better holiday plans and to save her new friend from embarrassment, she agrees to pretend to be Christopher's girlfriend for Christmas.

It has the makings of a hilarious anecdote they'll be telling for years. Until Haf meets Christopher's sister: the mysterious, magnetic and utterly irresistible Kit. Maybe love was waiting for Haf in this quiet little town all along . . . 

What I Have to Say 

The perfect book to get the chaotic bisexual in your life for the holidays. It is filled with chaos, hijinks and mixed up as well as a good helping of cosy comfort, Christmas cheer and food descriptions which will have you drooling. 

I just have nothing but praise for this book. I loved every second that I spent reading it and though I'm very late reviewing it since it came out in October, I'm really glad I waited until December to read it so that I could really enjoy the seasonal charm. It has taken it's place as my favourite Christmas book and I am already planning a reread for next year! 

If all of that hasn't got you in the mood for this book, I will say that there is a baby reindeer involved and he is very cute and just as chaotic as the rest of the characters, so you have that to look forward to! 

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

 

The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches by Sangu Mandanna (audiobook)

Pages: 336

Publisher: Hodder and Stoughton 

Released: 23rd of August 2022 

A warm and uplifting novel about an isolated witch whose opportunity to embrace a quirky new family—and a new love—changes the course of her life.

As one of the few witches in Britain, Mika Moon knows she has to hide her magic, keep her head down, and stay away from other witches so their powers don’t mingle and draw attention. And as an orphan who lost her parents at a young age and was raised by strangers, she’s used to being alone and she follows the rules...with one exception: an online account, where she posts videos "pretending" to be a witch. She thinks no one will take it seriously.

But someone does. An unexpected message arrives, begging her to travel to the remote and mysterious Nowhere House to teach three young witches how to control their magic. It breaks all of the rules, but Mika goes anyway, and is immediately tangled up in the lives and secrets of not only her three charges, but also an absent archaeologist, a retired actor, two long-suffering caretakers, and…Jamie. The handsome and prickly librarian of Nowhere House would do anything to protect the children, and as far as he’s concerned, a stranger like Mika is a threat. An irritatingly appealing threat.

As Mika begins to find her place at Nowhere House, the thought of belonging somewhere begins to feel like a real possibility. But magic isn't the only danger in the world, and when a threat comes knocking at their door, Mika will need to decide whether to risk everything to protect a found family she didn’t know she was looking for....

What I Have to Say 

This was such a cute book. It had a cosy atmosphere that I love in romances. It was very enjoyable to read. I loved the family and their quirks, I loved the descriptions of Nowhere House and I loved the way that the magic was described and used. 

Mika Moon, despite having a really stupid name, is a really great character. She is well rounded and her voice is funny, easy to read and completely right for the story. The narration added to this well and brought her and the other characters to life in a great way. 

There were just a couple of things that bugged me. The first was the plot. It was all hinged around the fact that the girls would have to be at the house when the lawyer came and so their magic had to be kept in control. But during the book they leave the house! Rosetta goes to the bookshop, the other two are taken to the beach at the same time and all three girls go out foraging with Mika. There was no reason that they couldn't be taken out into the woods while the lawyer was there! 

The other thing was explained and it made sense but was confusing for me through most of the book. Despite the witches being orphaned at an early age and it being stated at several times that they can't have siblings for that reason, a couple of witches are mentioned to have sisters!! It wasn't said out loud but it finally clicked why during the finale of the book, but it frustrated me a bit while reading. I think it would have been better if they'd explained earlier that it can happen. 

All in all though, this was a good read and I really enjoyed it. 

(4 stars) 

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