Grow Your Own Medicine Handbook for the Self-Sufficient Herbalist by Ava Green and Kate Bensinger

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I received a digital copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. 

So I went into this expecting a coffee table style book with a ton of pictures interspersed with information. Were I in a physical bookstore this would not be an issue because I could flip through it first. Just fyi - not a coffee table book with lots of pictures. 

There are a sufficient number of illustrations to make identification of a relevant item clear. There is solid information presented in a clear and concise format in easy to understand language. 

An excellent addition to any library. 5/5

Far to Go by Noel Streatfeild

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I received a digital copy of the reprint of Far To Go by Noel Streatfeild originally published in 1976 and re-released 3/8/22 in exchange for an honest review.

Set in London and the surrounding area this is a historical older elementary school age style book. I had not read anything by this author but it reminded me somewhat of Stuart Little in that it is a fantastical series of adventures that do not shy away from large vocabulary words.

I requested this book primarily because You’ve Got Mail is one of my favorite movies - unsurprising for a bookworm I know and when I saw this book on netgalley I was immediately transported to the scene where Meg Ryans character visits the big box book store that put her shop out of business and a customer asks for The Shoe Books and the employee has no idea and she has to spell the authors name while trying not to cry. 

I’m a boy mom to to 5 and 8 year olds. I do not think the 5 year old would have the attention span for this and while the cover is pink and our main character is a girl the adventure of it makes it accessible to boys though there is some talk about being proud to own underthings that have lace on them because it means they’re of high quality and I can see mine thinking that weird and lame but we’re I to read it aloud I would just skip over that part. Obviously this book has stood the test of time. I hope everyone that reads it googles jellied eels half way through like I had to. 5/5

Anticipated Angel An Astral Heat MM New Adult Sci Fi Romance Novella by Laura Navarre

I received a digital copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is a short novella prequal. I read it after reading the series and feel it was more enjoyable to me to read as a flashback to the past. However I’m sure it would be good as first up reading also. There are some revelations that occur that are not disclosed in the later books that were surprising to me. Now I’m intrigued to know more about what happens after this book between Dex and Zoren and Ben and Kira. High steam - open door as usual. 5/5

Captive Wilderness Goldenlach Ridge Shifters, Book 1 by J. E. McDonald

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I received a digital copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is a high steam contemporary suspense shifter romance. Themes of shifter heat/mating/biting claim/mental mate bond. Open door. The middle of the book is a lot of these activities so If that’s not your thing steer clear. The ending is what I would categorize as a partial cliffhanger. Our leading couple in this book comes to an HEA style understanding but the overall mystery/suspense plot will continue into the next book presumably starring our heroines sister and I’m going to guess one of the hero’s bffs. It’s alluded to that the bff “came back from the military different”. Personally a fan of the scarred hero trope in my romance so I am here for it. Trigger warnings - kidnap/abduction/being drugged, uncontrollable rage, unknown father, mom who moves from man to man. 

Set primarily in Canada. I don’t see that terribly often, the scenery sounds gorgeous. Happy reading! 5/5

Edge of the Woods Moonrise, Book 1 by Jules Kelley

I received a digital copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. 

This is the first book in a series and a good set up for the continuation of a story with many open ended side plots. This is a great “own voices” offering in contemporary paranormal romance. While the primary romance is between a hetero couple the heroine is bisexual. One of the primary side characters is trans and another is gay. The gender fluidity and and variety of sexual orientations is treated within the book as run of the mill normal. Additionally the main couple are both curvy with love handles and belly creases which only increase their attraction to one another and the many of the leadership roles in the community are primarily held by women. The person that provides a packed picnic basket for one of their dates is a male side character who is a great cook. Nice to see normalization of non stereotyped characters. 

This is a contemporary wolf shifter/werewolf romance. Vampires are also present but do not feature prominently though their is evidence that they may be more involved in later books. There’s a lot of action and some steam but nothing that goes beyond heavy petting though what does happen does not shy away from describing the full events but this occurs only 3-4 times if it’s something you’d bleeder to skip over. 

Trigger warnings - bad parents, law enforcement ptsd.

4.5/5 

Lady Love by Emma Hart Narrated by Shakira Shute

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I received a digital copy of this audiobook from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is the first book for a new three book series by Emma Hart starring the modern day British aristocracy. Which being an avid regency romance reader is a refreshing and interesting theme for me.

Our heroine is the daughter of a Duke with a crush on her fathers head gardener who is hot but rather grumpy. She lives with her father on his estate where his sister - her aunt also lives and apparently is forever getting into hair brained schemes. She has 2 pet goats that are constantly getting out of their designated area. 

Emma Harts books are generally on the shorter side. This one clocks in at about 7 hours. I love the heart and humor she infuses in every story. She provides depth of character and laugh out loud moments. 

This book is more of a slow burn. There is gradually building romantic tension. Lower steam, though there is some. Closed door. Trigger warnings - parent death (cancer and off page), classism, flooding.

Very enjoyable listen. Can’t wait to check out the next two books. 5/5

Reach for the Stars by Emily Calandrelli Narrated by Emily Calandrelli

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I received a digital copy of this audiobook from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. 

In my house we are big fans of Emily Calandrellis Netflix series - Emily’s Wonderlab so this was a no brainer request for me. As a boy mom I feel it is important to instill in my boys a level of respect for girls, women and all people that they will never question who’s more capable based on something as arbitrary as gender, even when a person is dealing with some of the more unique features of being female (for those that are not aware the show is a childrens science education show hosted by Emily while very pregnant and wearing hot pink overalls - like a boss).

This is the kind of book I would want to read to my kids, I would want them to know these things but I would get too choked up to actually read it so I’m very glad there’s an audiobook read along version. Since having kids I’ve never yet made it through a reading of love you forever. Though I know from following Emily on social media that it took her a couple tries to make it through as well. The sound effects are a great addition to bring notice to the actions on the page. The rhyming was solid and even when some words are too big for kiddos to grasp yet reading rhyming books to children nurtures basic language skills and builds a report with books that encourages life long reading and learning. This is a book that will grow with children through the years nuanced to reveal new insights as they grow and change.

5/5 Great book.

All the Duke I Need Desperately Seeking Duke by Caroline Linden

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I received a digital arc of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

There are aspects of this book that very much reminded me of The Secret Garden. The story is largely set in the country and we follow our hero as the new steward as he revitalizes the estate. There is an unseen unwell male shrouded in mystery that our hero eventually stumbled across and also has a positive improving influence upon. 

Our heroine is the beloved step granddaughter of the duchess in residence. She loves her home in the country and is reticent to leave for London to do the season. Not least of which because she must deal with prejudice at her mothers being from India and her having browner skin than the average English lady. 

There is a theme of mystery surrounding the heir to the dukedom. The romance is slow build, low to medium steam with only about 1.75 open door scenes. Minor enough to skip over if that’s not your thing. Trigger warnings - parent death, racial prejudice.

This is an author I have read before and I would say this is representative of her work if you’re a fan you will likely enjoy it as well. Personally I’m a huge fan of epilogues and there was one but this was a situation where I really wanted to know more about how things continued on and would very much have liked a second epilogue. It is by no means however a cliffhanger and at least all of the important parts are wrapped up. The characters were just really endearing and I would have liked to spend more time with them. 5/5

Leko Lunar Uprising, Book 3 by Cyndi Friberg

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I received a digital copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is the third book in the series. It will make more sense read in order but is possible to be read as a stand alone. There are over arching plot themes through the series but each book is one separate couple. I do appreciate the character name as the title. It makes it nice not to have to hunt to figure out who’s book it is when you’ve been previously introduced to the characters.

This is a fated mates alien romance. It reminds me slightly of Laurann Dohners New Species series in that our heroes were essentially created in a lab and have no traditional family dynamic except this is in space and on the moon which they have colonized. There’s also an element of homegrown terrorism based on prejudice which is also a theme in the New Species series and reverberates in the current times. I very much enjoyed the book. It is really interesting to see the different perspectives within this unique world building set up. The most unusual aspect I feel is that their tech - ships, cities etc is partially biological and therefore can communicate with those that have an affinity for it and express definitive opinions and emotions based on their experiences. In fact one of the cities is enamored with our hero and not terribly understanding when he finds his fated mate.

Trigger warnings - death in childbirth (past), bad/controlling parent, prejudice, sibling death. High steam / open door.

5/5

Pride and Prejudice (Premium) Narrated by Adjoa Andoh by Jane Austen Narrated by Adjoa Andoh

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I received a digital copy of this audiobook from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. 

I have read and listened to pride and prejudice at least 100 times. So obviously I love the story as so many do therefore my review is a reflection of the audiobook performance.

I think an introduction to the style of reading and the dialects employed would be very appropriate in this case. As an American from the mid west my ears are used to hearing a straight read with an upper crust accent of English lit or if voice acting is done I’m used to hearing uniformly the higher classes all voiced the same and the common people with different unsophisticated accents. So to me and I would guess many Americans the dialect of speech used by some of our characters were a little surprising but upping googling the dialect of their home regions seemed more appropriate but this is not something many Americans would be aware of without some introduction and therefore may feel not quite correct.

The personality infused to each character was excellent and shown new light on gems of wit and wisdom that had previously been less appreciated by me. Sound quality was very good.

So to summarize this is voice acted by one person and the dialect accents used by various characters may be unfamiliar to American ears. 4.5/5

​A Brief History of Timekeeping The Science of Marking Time, from Stonehenge to Atomic Clocks by Chad Orzel Narrated by Mike Lenz

I received a digital copy of this audiobook from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Have you ever wanted to take a semester long college course on the history and science of time keeping? Then this is definitely the book for you. Complete with anecdotes and jokes referencing the author/professors academic and personal life. It genuinely made me feel like I was back in grad school. Complete with jokes that fell a little flat. I’m going to give the benefit of the doubt and assume this was more due to the lack of passion in the subject matter evidenced in the narrators reading. He spoke clearly and well and with some fairly animated inflection for not being the author but this is no Neil DeGrasse Tyson, which really who is? It does make me wonder if the audiobook had been read by the author who must be enthusiastic about the subject matter to have written a book, that perhaps that would have been an improvement? Though likely no one can live up to the standard set by Neil DeGrasse Tyson. 

All of that is to say the reading was a little dry so I would not advise listening while driving long distances and tired. However the subject was very interesting and I did enjoy all of the information presented as I’m always eager to learn. I would recommend this book to someone truly interested in the knowledge and not just casually consuming “pop science”.

Overall - 4/5

Alien's Captive Earth Brides & Alien Warriors, Book 1 by Tina Moss

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I received a digital copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoy the premise of this book. Our heroine had been going into space to study new frontiers when something went wrong and she wound up captured and sold as a slave on an alien planet. Our hero is on the same alien planet and is working undercover to thwart the morally reprehensible slave trade and its perpetrators. This is a fated mates trope.

I think the book could have baked just a tiny bit longer in the oven to come out fuller. There were words that the alien used that felt very earth like with no explanation how they knew them. The heroine mentions she’s an academic scientist multiple times and talks about how she wants to write a paper about her experience. Calm down lady - we get it, you’re educated, cool. I only need to be told that 1 maybe 2 times after that it feels like a shallow personality trait or that she’s fixated on it and a little full of herself. 

As I said this is fated mates. Our hero has these magical arm tattoos that recognize her as his fated mate and he starts to feel emotions again because the males of his species lose the ability to experience emotion without a mate. Again seriously fascinating concept. Love it. However for a fated mates situation there’s almost too much autonomy in thinking through the developing relationship - to the point that then the I love yous feel a bit unearned because if there had not been all the over thinking then the not talking about it wouldn’t have mattered because we could have gone the route of fated mate = auto love - great, makes sense. 

These are my little quibbles. I am certain many will find it a very enjoyable read and I enjoyed it myself. It almost felt like a pilot episode of a new show that you know is going to be good but the first episode up is just a little rough around the edges. I do want to know what happens next for the other unfeeling aliens. Do they find their mates in time? 

Trigger warnings - parent death, sister death, torture, slavery. Open door and high steam.

4/5

The Cursed King by Abigail Owen

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I received a digital arc of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is the 4th book in a four book series. I had not read the previous books so it can be done but I imagine the payoff would have been much sweeter having read the whole series. 

This is an epic adventure of the supernatural, primarily shifters. Excellent job with world building to flesh out this world of the authors creation. I love an underdog heroine and a scarred hero who doesn’t want to allow anyone near for the others safety. That is my favorite trope - sunshine/grumpy - heroine breaking down the hero’s walls and making his world a better place. 

It feels like many of the sci-fi/paranormal romances I’ve been reading lately have been on the shorter side however this one is full length. No cliffhanger. So many rich characters and interwoven plots. I was literally moved to tears at one point and laughed out loud several times.

Trigger warnings - parent death, indecision to be together, witchcraft, abuse flashbacks (hero). Open door, very steamy.

Great book now I need to go back and read the first 3. 

5/5

How to Be a Wallflower A Would-Be Wallflowers Novel by Eloisa James

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I received a digital arc of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. 

Eloisa James does not disappoint. This book was simply delightful. We start out as enemies to lovers but the adversarial tension is not overdone. The takes on the supporting characters were so refreshing. There’s usually some older adult trying to keep young people toeing the line during the process of courting in a historical romance. Not these two, they are the masters of their own destiny and know exactly what they want; or at least they think they do but will soon learn. 

I loved that the servants were mildly supportive of the impropriety. I loved that the side characters were just like yep here to be supportive but not pushy about it. 

I loved the fashion involved for both leads. I loved that the cover is exactly how she is described in a certain dress. 

Our hero truly respects our heroine for her brain not even just her kindness or something less substantial but genuinely asks her for advice in business often and appreciates her answers. The heroine is confident and self possessed but not annoyingly so. The hero does not take himself too seriously and the instigating events that lead to leveling up their relationship are unique perfection. 

I hope this is the beginning of a series because I need to know what else happens with many of the side characters. Loved this one! Already looking forward to a re-read! 

High steam, open door also wait until you see this guys carriage. Wow. 

Trigger warnings - parent death, parent cheating.

5/5

Boss Witch by Ann Aguirre Narrated by Ava Lucas

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I received a digital copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review. 

This is the second book in the series and I would recommend reading the first book before this one as this one overlaps with the previous book - starting about 2/3 in maybe? Additionally I feel it’s important to see what’s happening on the other side of this cousin relationship otherwise the previous heroine may seem less likable.

Trigger warnings - generational trauma/controlling criticism, family secrets, bigotry. Open door and steamy. 

I love that Ann Aguirre makes her supernatural characters so human and relatable. She really excels at this by highlighting their deep rooted personality traits and “flaws” that lead them into relatable foibles, fumbles and misunderstandings or unique understanding when ordinarily people cannot relate well. Additionally offering the inner thoughts of our two man characters through alternating points of view lends invaluable insight and understanding to seamlessly take you along for the ride. 

I’ve read more witchy contemporary romances since I started reviewing for NetGalley than I ever had before but Ann Aguirres are my favorites. 5/5

The Suite Spot by Trish Doller Narrated by Sarah Naughton

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I received a digital copy of this audiobook from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book opens on a trigger warning which I appreciate as sometimes there are some topics one just can’t deal with on a particular day or ever depending on your situation. 

Here are my trigger warnings. Single mom/unplanned kiddo/minimally involved dad. Parent abandonment. 1st generation Americans. Minor racism - more reflecting on experience of a character not racism on the page. Divorce. Child death. (In the past) Custody battle. Sexual harassment/assault (no rape).

Own voices representation - Our heroine is indicated to be plus sized. Her mother is a German immigrant. Our hero is half Japanese - his mom is a Japanese immigrant. He has a sibling with an African American spouse. 

Steamy though there is some fade to black. Its like the first minute is on the page so there is some beyond pg-13 info but not a lot. So not very steamy but there is some steam. 

Some pieces of this felt too easy, the mental/emotional work that needed to be done may well have happened during some of the fade to black moments but not a lot of it was on the page so there were a few things that felt like they may have not been “earned”. I think this could have been remedied by employing alternate narration between the leads.

My other problem with this is that (and let me preface this by saying I’m a mom with anxiety and I have 2 small children) This mom leaves her 3 almost 4 year old asleep in an unfamiliar house on a couch with an unfamiliar cat (I have a cat, love cats but an unknown cat here) and goes outside for a length of time with no baby monitor, no other adults around, no mention of - the windows open so I’ll hear her etc. My anxiety would never let me do this. I’ve got a video monitor on my kiddos while they sleep at all times. Maybe that’s just me but it felt very jarring every time she did something like this. 

Anyway. I love a makeover project. There is a considerable amount of shopping and property make over which I always enjoy. This is a new girl in a small town making a home for herself, joining the community and gaining a found family which is generally fun as well. There were many amusing moments. There is beer brewing. There is a lot of fun and atmosphere in this book. There are kids if you’re not a fan of kids in romance books this is not for you. An enjoyable listen. The narrator was excellent.

4/5

Cozy Knits 30 Hat, Mitten, Scarf and Sock Projects from Around the World by Sue Flanders; Janine Kosel

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I received a digital arc of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is a knitting book full of gorgeous socks, hats, scarves and mittens and the title is apt as they all look very cozy. Lots of detailed color and pattern work means this is a book that lends itself to the more experienced knitter or a knitter looking to grow. I counted 35 patterns. Lots of full color photography of the finished products as well as detailed instructional illustrations. Excellent knitting book. 

5/5