"Cosmic," Bronwyn said, squeezing her friend's hand. "Nothing is a coincidence."

"Our lives are full of these magical moments if we pay attention to them."

GENRE: Romance with magical realism
RATING: 5/5
FORMAT: eBook ARC
Tropes: Women in Sport, Magical Realism, Second Chance & Rekindling

Review:
Can I just say that I really enjoyed Struck Speechless so much? Yes, I know I can in this review but it's worth emphasising it because this book was funny, wholesome and filled with so much warmth and emotions that I had the best time reading it!

I read Losing Sights first and then read Struck Speechless and Tati Richardson has a way of maintaining a perfect balance between the emotional aspects that our MCs go through while adding just the right amount of humour, spice and friendship. Truly, both books would are amazing as books and would be AMAZING as tv shows/movies.

Jackie is the group's "strong" friend. She doesn't need love or anyone in her life, aside from her friends and her dog. She is an independent, strong woman we all strive to be and is not scared to say what she thinks. So the impact of her losing her voice? It's BIG and forces her to deal with a lot of emotions she spends a long time avoiding.

And Antonio? Oh, what a perfect man for Jackie. I loved how we got to see his life outside of Jackie, seeing him interact with his family and the people in his life as well. We get a perfect balance of both of our MCs in my opinion. AND (x2) the way Antonio treats Jackie? So well deserved AHHH!

Essentially, Struck Speechless is a story that allows us to watch both characters explore who they are and be more vulnerable with each other in a fun, humour filled story while focusing on the same concept we had in Losing Sight: That things are destined for us and nothing is a coincidence!

Thank you to the author, publisher and netgalley for the Arc copy in the exchange for my honest opinion.

"That's always the problem with watercolor, of course. You have to know when to stop. The temptation to add just one more wash is so strong sometimes..."

GENRE: Horror (Botanical x Parasitic Horror)
RATING: 4.75/5
FORMAT: eBook Arc

Overall Impression: Honestly? Just read it and enjoy this creepier version of T.Kingfisher's work that has the same humour and wittiness we have come to expect and enjoy

Review:
T.Kingfisher has done it again and this time it's a parasitic x botanical horror and guys? This one is CREEPY in the best of ways with the typical humour that we get in all of the author's book and the wittiness we have come to expect from all of T.Kingfisher's books

Let me start by saying the description of bugs, plants and colours is done so beautifully and lyrically in here. I think this makes it so much more imaginative, even for someone like me who has hypo-aphantasia and could still very much imagine the bugs as well as I could

The story itself is a combination of historical horror with us following Sonia, a scientific illustrator and getting to know her setting, employer and the people she works with. We slowly have the story unravel, as we go through the adventure with Sonia to find out what is happening? And the ending, where we understand what's been happening, was in a lot of ways UNEXPECTED

This is definitely one of my favourite T.Kingfisher books and I love how it slowly builds up over time and delivers an amazing tale for us to enjoy throughout. I think if you enjoyed What moves the Dead, then this one is perfect for you (AND its creepier).

Thank you to the author, publisher and netgalley for the Arc copy in the exchange for my honest opinion.

"What good was having a heart if you didn't give it away to every other person you met?"

GENRE: Cozy Romantasy
RATING: 4.25/5
FORMAT: eBook/physical Arc

Review:
I always enjoy cozy fantasy and historical fantasy and when you combine them? I am always down for that, especially when its funny and filled with whimsy. We get introduced to Hilde, Elmwood and a lot of other characters that just make the whole story so fun!

Let me give first start by giving my love to Rollo, who is an adorable dog in the the book and I wish we could have gotten a way to pet him! And now about the book, I really enjoyed the plot in this one and the humour in it. The fact that we get so much excitement and it's more of a adventurous type of cozy romantasy was a fun read! I think the writing and the type of characters we have in here fit so well for the type of plot they are going through.

Elmwood is very much done with life and about to call it quits. He essentially decides he has had enough with life and that it's not worth it anymore. Hilde, on the other hand, is determined to solve the entire world and decides that only she can do so.

Both of our MCs also have Charm, which is our magic bit in here! I really enjoyed learning more about Charm, how it fits into the historical elements of the world and the world building overall. I think I would have liked to have a bit more details into the Charm as it played such a big role in both Hilde and Elmwood's lives but that's just me wanting more of the book really!

I also really enjoyed the interaction between our MCs and how it allows them to look back and to see that they both deserved better overall, whether from themselves or from others around them. I think the book does a good job of diving into how people in the position of power abuse it, whether its with their own family members or for a relationship and this is something we tend to see more in historical fantasy.

In summary, A Widow's Charm is a fun, witty story that shows us we dont have to carry the whole world in our own shoulder alone and we can rely on others to help and support us along the way and who knows? You might fall in love with the necromancer along the way!

Thank you to the author, publisher and netgalley for the Arc copy in the exchange for my honest opinion.

"She had me for as long as she wanted, and I don't think she even realized it."

GENRE: Romance
RATING: 4.5/5
FORMAT: eBook Arc
Tropes: Strangers to friends to lovers, Latine Leads, One bed, College Romance, Dual POV

Overall Impression: What a wholesome, beautiful love story between Ita & Jake!

Review:
Okay what a lovely Romance book! I really enjoyed reading from both our FMC and MMC's perspectives and the letters from Jake to his dad? That is SO wholesome and healed a little of my own grief in reading them🥺

There are so many beautiful things about Craving You and it truly is a book about two people getting to know each other in the best of ways and carving space for each other in their lives without trying to force the other person to change. We meet Ita (Margarita) and see her experience in life, what shaped her and how she comes out of her stressful experiences in her past and builds her own future. Jake, on the other hand, has just had a loss in his life and we get to go through his journey of grief and how he copes with it.

I think the thing that captured my attention the most is the way both of the characters fitted SO well together and their relationship grew alongside their lives. Both of the MCs were so lovely and wanted the best for the other. It's the kind of love we spend a lifetime looking for and a few of us are lucky enough to find it.

Also, the food that Jake makes for Ita? The way Ita gives Jake space and time to process things? The way they take care of each other in the small and big things? May this love find us all and for those of us who have found it, may we experience a lifetime of it

Also, I loved how we get to see both MC's families, how they grew up in different cultures and how it shaped them. I love when we get books that have multiple languages as usually any mixed culture families will have that happening in reality (or if you're from so many, you'll have more than 2 languages that you grow up around but never fully speak) and it's a beautiful thing to read in Craving You! I think Kaila did this in a way that is a needed representation for a lot of us and I loved exploring it in the book

Thank you to the author and Amor En Paginas for the Arc copy in the exchange for my honest opinion.

"I wish I could really, really get myself to understand that the things that make you happiest are the things that can tear you apart and leave you so empty that nothing feels any more."

GENRE: Romance
RATING: 4/5
FORMAT: eBook Arc
Tropes: Single Dad, Sports Romance (Lacrosse), Small Town, Mental Health Rep

Overall Impression: A lovely tale that takes you on an emotional adventure (literally) with the characters as you experience their journey with them.

Review:
I've started getting into Sport Romance and when I saw that this was Single Dad x Sport Romance? I was in for the adventure!

Now, Long Hot Summer was an interesting read for me in that the way we get to know the MCs was done differently than what I'm used to. In the beginning, I had a lot of questions as to who were both of our MCs, Jordan and Rod? We only knew them as they knew each other, which was superficially and that left space for a lot of curiosity as a reader. As we progress through the story, we get to know them as they know each other and I think this was uniquely done and super fitting for both of our MCs, who have been scarred in the past and do not trust easily.

This writing style and way of exploring their love for each other won't work for all readers and will require patience from whoever reads it. I do think it is worth it, seeing them find love and finding support in one another that they never did elsewhere.

My favourite thing might just be how they both eventually shed their tough exterior and open their hearts up to each other at last. It's been a lovely way of seeing it blossom and I think it was a fun to see Jordan bonding with Rod's family, especially Tali (my recent obsession in Romance is Single parent trope as it leads so naturally to found family).

And the way Esha Patel wrote Rod and his mental health journey? Oh what a way to read it and how accurate it felt as someone who has gone through something similar. I think, ultimately, Long Hot Summer does not shy away from the heavier theme but is done in a unique narrative style that has it hitting you all at once and you get to feel the entire journey with the characters. This is especially true with both MCs, with Rod and his mental health journey plus his past with his ex and how he became a single dad. It is true with Jordan, her past and childhood, which led to the fear of being in a relationship.

I am very excited to read Esha Patel's other stories, see how her narration style plays out in there in comparison to Long Hot Summer. Thank you to the author, publisher and netgalley for the Arc copy in the exchange for my honest opinion.

"We're bugs in a terrarium. Not being hunted. Just watched."

GENRE: Horror (Body Horror with Worms)
RATING: 4.25/5
FORMAT: eBook Arc

Review:
Indigent is such an interesting story that tackles a lot of social commentary in a perfect way for this horror book with Worms (!!) in it. The way it's weaved in and with some of the social commentaries, you do have to pay attention and reflect back to it (and reread it, which I will be doing) in order to grasp it all. Briana does a lovely work of combining so many commentary, themes and important message together in the book.

I also quite enjoyed that we get multi-POV and I am always going to be a huge fan of books that have multiple POV, especially from minor characters. Some of the characters, like Xavier and Ari, get deeper POVs and more of them so we get to know them a lot more. Others, we see their POV and understand their impact on the main characters instead. I think in this way, the multi-POV feeds in beautifully together to deliver the themes across.

Essentially, I dont want to share anything as to avoid spoilers but the author wrote this book as a commentary to the medical system and healthcare in the USA. We see the impact of society, lack of funding and finance on people who cannot afford healthcare and we see what greed and so many other things do to further this.

The writing in here was done well and I quite enjoyed the fact that we also have so many anatomical phrases, which Xavier uses throughout the book. Also, I loved the footnotes in the book, I'm always here for having them in fiction books! I am looking forward to more by the author and can't wait to read their future work!

Thank you to the author and netgalley for the Arc copy in the exchange for my honest opinion.

"Traveling as much as she did, home hadn't been singular in a very long time. Each place holding a special corner of her heart based on what happened there."

GENRE: Romance
RATING: 5/5
FORMAT: eBook Arc
Tropes: Sport Romance, Fake Dating, Black Cat FMC x Golden Retriever MMC, He falls First

Overall Impression: This one is for us who are from everywhere and are in search of a home that represents us and its for those of us who had to say goodbye to those we loved from far away🤎 May this story heal you the way it healed me

Review:
Salacia Project is the story for those of us who are in-betweeners, you know, those of us who never really fit in anywhere fully. It's for those of us who are always one foot in this world and one foot in another. It's also a story that follows the consequences of that and what we miss because we are never fully in any place.

Salacia has my heart as someone who is mixed and grew up somewhere that isn't their home. It's about speaking multiple languages yet mastering none. It's about growing up in one place but leaving to find a place that feels true to you, one that is home to you rather than to everyone else in your family and circle.

And the mention of Grief in here, exploring how it affects Sofia, how she goes back home and gets to be with her loved ones as they go through it? That hit so hard. The dedication alone just shows that this is for those of us who live away from what is meant to be home, whether because we have to or because we are in search of somewhere that is home for us
"For my grandparents and my aunt, and for everyone who had to say goodbye from far away."

I loved the dynamic between Sofia and Ilias, getting to know their family and friends and watching their loves blossom and grow. I loved that Ilias helps Sofia with breaking down her walls post her break up and that he is there with her during her grief. I loved how Sofia helped him with his family business and how they just brought the best out in each other

I can't wait to read the next book in the series and I'm SO excited to read Elena's backlog! What a book😍

Thank you to the Author for sending me an early copy (& a netgalley copy) as well!

"I wasn't sure I had one - a belief in any perfect, untouchable oasis. Then again, I had always moved through life a little too skeptically. I'd been raised to mind the gaps. The deceptively small ones. The one you think you can jump, even though you know those that try never make it."

GENRE: Cyber-punk Sci-Fi Retelling (The Great Gatsby)
RATING: 4.5/5
FORMAT: eBook Arc

Review:
A Retelling of The Great Gatsby as a Cyerber punk story? I knew this one was going to be a good one and I'm glad I wasn't disappointed!

I read The Great Gatsby in high school os its been many years now since I've read it and analysed it (meaning I didnt remember all the finer details but knew the overall story enough) and I think Local Heavens is a lovely retelling of it. My favourite parts are that there is an introduction of them vs us and instead of New Money vs Old Money (its still there and a bit more to the background), there's more of a focus on being othered, a POC and marginalised communities.

The concept of corruption, people who are self serving and billionaires who think of themselves only is blended really well with the idea that "third world corporations" and people who want to destroy America are coming back to hurt them. We see this through Tom and how he sticks to so many of his learnings of being morally superior as an Old Money, non-modded American.

And yet, everyone that stands and tolerates Tom's talk is no better. Nick, our narrator, is meant to be someone watching from the outside and someone who slowly fits in and uses his privileges to his advantage. In fact, it is said by Tom that he forgets Nick is "one of them" from third-world nations. I think Nick is our ideal character that essentially becomes a wallflower. He absorbs what happens and tries to minimise the damage by not really being proactive or doing much about it.

I genuinely enjoyed the character development in Nick and how we got to see him change and embrace that he is different. He can't really blend in and do good that way. The ending of the story isn't meant to solve all of the issues that arises throughout but to show a realistic understanding of how using your privileges the wrong way can still be harmful. Nick had one foot in both worlds and you truly see how he changes as a character in the book with everything that happens.

There are so many other themes done beautifully in the story, like chasing your legacy, building a relationship and finding who you are amongst it all, understanding your privileges and doing better and I think K.M. Fajardo did a beautiful job connecting them all while standing true to The Great Gatsby as a retelling.

I think the only thing that would have made the book better for me is if we got a deeper dive into the Sci-Fi element of the book as I really wanted to know more about the mods and the way it all worked (being a diver...etc.). I appreciated that the author wrote about her struggles of getting a balance between her own author voice vs the original works voice in the book. I do think we can see this struggle a little bit throughout the story but K.M. Fajardo's voice is unique, lyrically beautiful and mysterious in just the right moments throughout Local Heavens and it was lovely to be able to read that.

Thank you to the author, publisher and netgalley for the Arc copy in the exchange for my honest opinion.