Reading Recap: August

Four books in August ain't bad considering I had a baby, right?

Here's the line-up:

Court of the Vampire Queen ⭐️⭐️⭐️ Divine Rivals ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Hooked ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Realm Breaker ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

My favorite book of the month was Realm Breaker. After writing Spell Weaver, I've been searching for more epic fantasy with multiple points of view. It's been great to see more women in the predominantly male-focused epic fantasy genre (think Tolkien, Martin, Sanderson, and so many others).

Read my reviews below. There are no spoilers. And at the end I've listed a few of my favorite quotes from this month.

Hope you enjoy.

August Stats:

• 1955 pages read

• 6.66 hours listened

• Average rating: 4⭐️

August Reads:

Court of the Vampire Queen by Katee Roberts⁠

Mina -- half human, half vampire -- has only one use in the eyes of her father: a political pawn. When she is gifted to Malachi, a powerful and dangerously seductive vampire from an old family. Little does Mina know that she will soon be involved with not just one but three powerful vampires. And with their help, she will discover more about herself -- and her power -- than she ever thought.

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This book was exactly what I thought it would be. With a basic (somewhat predictable) plotline and a reverse harem romance, Court of a Vampire Queen was a fun, quick read. The sex was spicy and raunchy. The characters and world were generally fleshed out enough for believability, but I wouldn't say I felt connected to them as strongly as other stories.

The main draw of this book is the romance and smut, which is probably to be expected of an erotic romance. And in that regard, the novel delivered. Readers should check trigger warnings to make sure they are comfortable with the content.

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⭐️ I gave this 3 stars⁠ (the book was good as an erotic romance but as a reader, I prefer books with heavier plot and more robust world-building)

Divine Rivals by Rebecca Ross ⁠

Iris Winnow is surprised when her letters to her brother disappear from beneath her wardrobe door. Even more surprising is when more letters return, from an anonymous recipient. Little does Iris know that her rival, Roman Kitt, is writing back to her. Their letters are the start of a relationship that grows into something beautiful as Iris leaves her job at the paper and travels to the front lines of battle where she learns about family, grief, and love.

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If people aren't talking about Fourth Wing on bookstagram, it seems they are talking about Divine Rivals. I'm always wary with so much hype (sigh, sorry Violet and Xaden), but this book didn't fall short.

Divine Rivals is a sweet rivals-to-lovers romance with epistolary elements set against a backdrop of a mid-twentieth century wartime setting. Add in some magic typewriters and a feud between Gods and you've got yourself a very intriguing story. Iris and Roman's story leaps off the page with gorgeous prose and heartfelt emotion. The book tackles themes of grief, family, and love in the best of ways.

My only complaint is that I wanted more of the divine element in this book. While the Gods were mentioned, they were background to the plot in this book. However, I believe the world will get fleshed out more in the next book so I'm really looking forward to that!

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⭐️ I gave this 4 stars⁠

Hooked by Emily McIntire

With a rich and famous father, Wendy has never been able to go out much. But after meeting James at a bar one night, she is suddenly entangled in a passionate relationship with a dangerous man with quite a reputation. Meanwhile James -- or Hook, as many call him -- sees Wendy as the perfect opportunity for his revenge. Or at least that was what he told himself.

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Hooked is a dark romance novel that is part of the Never After series which reimagines classic fairy tales with a contemporary twist. I loved that this wasn't a true retelling but rather had little hints and easter eggs and call outs to the source material while crafting a completely original story.

If you love the story of Peter Pan and Wendy and if you love a good sexy villain with an accent, then this book is for you. Part romance and part thriller/mystery, Hooked was also filled with lots of twists and turns. I didn't call all of the reveals, but I definitely saw some fun hints along the way.

The romance was steamy and spicy. Readers should check trigger warnings to make sure they are comfortable with the content.

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⭐️ I gave this 4 stars⁠

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Realm Breaker by Victoria Aveyard

Corayne an-Amarat has always yearned to travel. And when she discovers that her yearning is due to her ancient bloodline, she finally gets her chance, joining an interesting assortment of individuals to ... well, to save the Realm. Meanwhile, Queen Erida sits on her throne, ready to do anything to avoid losing it. And with the threat of shadowy corpse armies growing stronger, saving the Realm is looking a lot harder every day.⁠

It all started with a shared enjoyment of using "hiss" as a dialogue tag. Yes, friends, I started reading this book solely because of Victoria Aveyard's hilarious Instagram reels. This book had been on my TBR for a while, now, and the third book is coming out soon, so why not get ready to binge the series?⁠

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And I'm so glad I did. As I got into the story, I realized that this book was everything I've been looking for in fantasy. Ever since I began to write my own epic multi-POV fantasy (Spell Weaver), I've been looking for other books in the traditionally published world who share common characteristics. Realm Breaker delivered in all possible ways. ⁠

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The characters in this book are a delight -- sassy, witty, amusing, downright despicable, and -- my personal favorite -- morally grey. The queen of twists and turns, Aveyard has a reputation for deceiving readers (and causing massive heartbreak when they fall for the villain), so I went into this book expecting to be on my toes.⁠

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And I was.⁠

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A note of caution -- since this is an epic fantasy with lots of POVs, the beginning was a touch slow as Aveyard sets up all of the characters and world-building. But the payoff is worth the short wait. I promise.⁠

⭐️ I gave this 5 stars

Quotes of the Month:

There were so many good ones (especially the banter between Sorasa Sarn and Dom) But one of my favorites:

I can't imagine living for a thousand years and still being so stupid... It's almost an accomplishment. . - Realm Breaker

And Divine Rivals was filled with beautiful quotes like this one:

“I don't think you realize how strong you are, because sometimes strength isn't swords and steel and fire, as we are so often made to believe. Sometimes it's found in quiet, gentle places.” - Divine Rivals