Review | The Arcane Realm Chronicles by Larissa Antonioni

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“I only killed in one of two ways. By the high lord’s command, or to protect her.”

Renwick

Renwick, the high lord’s most trusted assassin, has been captivated by Davina for years. He has always kept his feelings buried beneath layers of duty, but a growing threat surrounding her makes it hard for him to keep his distance.

Balancing duty and desire, he is torn between his loyalty to Lord Arwen and his need to protect Davina. She is the key to secrets that could unravel the realm, and Renwick wants her–magic, darkness, and all.

Davina

Sixteen years ago, Davina’s parents died under mysterious circumstances, leaving her with a legacy of dark secrets and forbidden magic. Ever since, she has hidden her abilities while serving at Asterin’s Temple, determined to live a quiet life alongside her best friend.

When a murder eerily similar to the one from her childhood surfaces, Davina’s world shatters and her magic threatens to escape.

Their Story

Thrust into a realm of lies and power, Davina and Renwick’s paths collide. Pursuing powerful enemies, and unraveling the truth behind the mysterious murders, they must decide if love can triumph over duty–and if hope can illuminate shadows of the past.

Amazon | Goodreads

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Now he’s had her, and he’ll never let her go.

Renwick

Once the high lord’s most trusted assassin, Renwick is no longer bound by obedience alone. His bond to Davina—his Kindraid, his fated mate—ties him to her pain, her power, and the truths she has yet to face.

Protecting her means defying the very systems that shaped him. As the realm fractures under tyranny and betrayal, Renwick must confront the secrets he’s kept and consider how far he’s willing to go to keep his mate alive.

Davina

Davina is broken and captive in the high lord’s manor. Her magic is stolen, her body is destroyed. But she was not weak. She is heir to a throne she never wanted and power that grows by the minute. Haunted by voices whispering of ruin and rule alike, Davina must decide what kind of queen she will become. The darkness within her grows stronger with every truth uncovered, every betrayal revealed.

Their Story Continues

Bound by magic, pain, and a love forged in shadows, Davina and Renwick stand against a corrupt, devastating world.

As ancient powers stir and their home edges closer to collapse, they must decide whether love can survive the weight of crowns and chains.

Will Davina and Renwick survive the pressure and admit they need each other more than ever?

Amazon | Goodreads

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Picking up this one immediately after finishing the first one was definitely the way to go. We jump right back into the story. There are a lot of reveals and immediate action needing to be taken. There is a ton of adventure in this installment and the romance just keeps growing.

I didn’t feel like the pacing was as solid as the first one, but it was still enjoyable and a great continuation. I still really enjoyed the writing style and found it easy to consume, so even though it moved a little slower for me, I still devoured it.

Happy reading!

Review | As You Wish by Danika Brown

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Honey Braxton doesn’t break rules, she enforces them. As an auditor for the Bureau of Magical Compliance, she specializes in wishing wells. Her audits are thorough, her judgments final, and her detachment absolute.

Her latest assignment lands her on the orchard of Ethan Hale, a skeptical single father who has no time for magic, or the cheerful meddling of his three children.

When Honey discovers that the kids used the family’s long-forgotten wishing well to keep the farm afloat, she knows her revoke the unauthorized wishes, file her report, and walk away.

But something about Ethan and his family tugs at her tightly guarded heart and Honey finds her once-clear rules beginning to blur.

With her boss pressuring her to close the case, and the orchard hanging in the balance, Honey faces a uphold the rules and risk destroying the fragile happiness this family has found—or break them, jeopardizing the career she’s spent her life building.

And in the midst of it all, she finds herself considering the one thing she swore she never making a wish of her own.

Amazon | Goodreads

Rating: 5 out of 5.

When you combine a grumpy dad, three mischievous daughters, a straight laced rule following auditor, a baby goat and Cluck Norris – you know it’s going to be a fun time. What surprised me about what I thought was going to be a very light hearted and magical rom com, was all the hard hitting emotional gut punches. Honey and Ethan are so well developed it’s hard not to feel like they are real people, with their individual life issues – Ethan with his struggle to keep everything together for his three girls (but stubbornly refusing to look for help) and Honey with her plans and determination for her life to follow a very specific path.

They definitely clash, for a number of reasons, but they come to understand each other. There are lots of misunderstandings, flares of temper and hardships – but there are a lot of beautiful moments too. The relationships that are built, not just between Honey and Ethan, but the town itself, really set the stage for what I hope are a number of upcoming books.

As You Wish came out today! Make sure to pick it up!

Happy reading!

*Disclaimer: Amazon links included may be affiliate links that I receive a commission on if purchased through.

Review | The Forgetting Navigations by Marlee Jane Ward

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Abandoned in a lifepod in the vastness of space, Evey is left for dead. When the bookish freight hauler Shirr rescues her, the two form a connection over tea and unspoken trauma. Just when things feel safe again, their peace is threatened by a relic of their past, and they’re forced to embark on a mission across the stars to protect themselves and others from the threat of violence. THE FORGETTING NAVIGATIONS is a brutally honest exploration of what it means to be a survivor, set against the brilliant backdrop of the cosmos.

Amazon | Goodreads

Rating: 4 out of 5.

The start of this book is immediate action, you immediately know the stakes are high for our main character, Evey, and that she is in immediate danger. The story and the events that came before unfold slowly as Evey does what she can to survive. The writing is very atmospheric and even in moments where there isn’t a lot of action, very compelling and fast paced.

There is a lot of alluding and discussion of SA, especially the aftereffects of the trauma. Evey goes through quite a journey in this story, learning how to heal and how to come back to herself after what she goes through, as well as reclaiming herself in the process.

Thanks to Interstellar Flight Press for the review copy through Netgalley!

Happy reading!

*Disclaimer: Amazon links included may be affiliate links that I receive a commission on if purchased through.

Review | A Universe of Wishes

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From We Need Diverse Books, the organization behind Flying Lessons & Other Stories, comes a young adult fantasy short story collection featuring some of the best own-voices children’s authors, including New York Times bestselling authors Libba Bray (The Diviners), Victoria Schwab (A Darker Shade of Magic), Natalie C. Parker (Seafire), and many more. Edited by Dhonielle Clayton (The Belles).

In the fourth collaboration with We Need Diverse Books, fifteen award-winning and celebrated diverse authors deliver stories about a princess without need of a prince, a monster long misunderstood, memories that vanish with a spell, and voices that refuse to stay silent in the face of injustice. This powerful and inclusive collection contains a universe of wishes for a braver and more beautiful world.

AUTHORS INCLUDE: Samira Ahmed, Libba Bray, Dhonielle Clayton, Zoraida Córdova, Tessa Gratton, Kwame Mbalia, Anna-Marie McLemore, Tochi Onyebuchi, Mark Oshiro, Natalie C. Parker, Rebecca Roanhorse, Victoria Schwab, Tara Sim, Nic Stone, and a to-be-announced debut author/short-story contest winner.

Amazon | Goodreads

Rating: 3 out of 5.

The fourth installment in the We Need Diverse stories anthologies, this one contains 15 own voices stories that involve a wish in some ways. I enjoyed all of the different writing styles and cultures represented in this anthology. There are a few tied to other series, such as V.E. Schwab’s A Darker Shade of Magic series, so be warned if you haven’t read any that are from those universes.

In many ways the stories carry a theme, not just of wishing, but of what each character may want deep in their heart, even if that is not achievable. Some stories definitely leave you wanting to know more of the story, while others feel complete.

Overall it was an enjoyable read, told in each of the author’s unique styles, but not all of the stories captured me. I always enjoy We Need Diverse Stories anthologies because you do get that wonderful mix of cultures and experiences, but this one, while enjoyable, wasn’t my favorite so far.

Happy reading!

*Disclaimer: Amazon links included may be affiliate links that I receive a commission on if purchased through.

Cover Reveal | The Void Between Stars by J.K. Ross

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Thrilled to be able to share the cover reveal for The Void Between Stars by J.K. Ross, Out June 11th! Keep reading to learn more.

Elle thought surviving the Heartspire was the hard part.

She was wrong.

Now she is lost between worlds, slipping through the fractures of dying realities, while Kaelren burns his way through each collapsing iteration to find her. With every jump, the cost grows higher. The worlds more unstable. The line between survival and destruction thinner than ever.

When their paths finally collide in a war-torn realm anchored by a living city, the truth becomes impossible to ignore. This cycle has played out before. Again and again. And every version has ended in ruin.

Now something born from those failures is coming.

A living nightmare stitched from shattered timelines is closing in on the last safe place left, and the people standing against it are the same ones who have already failed over and over. 

This time has to be different.

This time has to be the last.

Goodreads | Author Website

Happy reading!

Review | The Body by Bethany C. Morrow

DeAnne1 Comment

The Body is a pulse-pounding supernatural horror story from bestselling author Bethany C. Morrow, where one woman must survive a series of bizarre and escalating attacks on her marriage.

Mavis broke from her parents’ congregation years ago, but she still hasn’t recovered. Their impossible expectations and soul-shredding critiques have dug deep into her mind, and she’s taunted by the knowledge that even when she’s done nothing wrong, she’ll never be right.

Now Mavis is afraid she’s about to lose the only thing she has: her husband, Jerrod. The man she’s always known was too good to be true. No one thinks she deserves him—not even after surviving the serial cheater they wanted her to stick by—and soon they’ll all find out they were right.

Mavis is already unraveling when a brush with death shows her what real fear looks like. Soon, she’s under constant attack from all directions. As the assaults turn increasingly vicious and bizarre, Mavis realizes that Hell isn’t reserved for the afterlife.

And sinner or not, no one is coming to save her.

Amazon | Goodreads

Rating: 3 out of 5.

This was a book I hadn’t heard about until I received in in my Owlcrate horror box, but I figured I would give it a go.

The Body centers around Mavis and her husband Jerrod, the former of which starts the book off with a rather nasty car accident that leaves her shaken and injured, but not terribly so. She’s more shaken by the fact that the people who hit her were a couple she knew. That event sets off an essential landslide of eerie events.

This was an interesting take on religious horror, but there were times I felt it didn’t quite go far enough with the supernatural element. It definitely could have been fleshed out more and more developed in the premise. There was also a lot of back and forth timeline wise, which at some points was a little confusing as it was abrupt at times.

Overall it certainly had that creepy factor and a whole different take on how binding certain things can be – but I felt it didn’t quite go far enough in the way of fleshing out the concept.

Happy reading!

The Body review graphic

*Disclaimer: Amazon links included may be affiliate links that I receive a commission on if purchased through.

TBR Card Challenge | April

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Hey everyone! It’s that time again where I attempt to gamify my TBR, at least a little. I use this challenge to work on my backlist as well as add some variety. I don’t often get all of them read, but I do try depending on what I’m feeling in that month.

This month took us for a bit of a loop, but ultimately I am happy with the picks. I’m keeping random kindle open as I’m constantly reading on my kindle so I’ll just make sure one fits and that will be that pick.

Wish me luck!

Happy reading!

Can’t Wait Wednesday | 4/1/2026

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Can’t Wait Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Wishful Endings based on the meme Waiting on Wednesday by Breaking the Spine. In this weekly post people share a book that they’re excited about being released.

This week’s pick is one we don’t have to wait too long for. Having loved Marcus Kliewer’s previous book We Used to Live Here I have been eagerly anticipating his next book, which comes out on April 21st!

EXCITING OPPORTUNITY:
Caretaker urgently needed. Three days of work. Competitive pay. Serious applicants ONLY.

Macy Mullins can’t say why the job posting grabbed her attention—it had the pull of a fisherman’s lure, barbed hook and all—vaguely ominous. But after an endless string of failed job interviews, she’s not exactly in the position to be picky. She has rent to pay, groceries to buy, and a younger sister to provide for.

Besides, it’s only three days’ work…

Three days, cooped up in a stranger’s house, surrounded by Oregon Coast wilderness.

What starts as a peculiar side gig soon becomes a waking nightmare. An incomprehensible evil may dwell on this property—and Macy Mullins might just be the only thing standing between it, and the rest of humanity.

Follow the Rites…

Follow the Rites…

Follow the Rites…

..— / ….. / —..

Amazon | Goodreads

Happy reading!

*Disclaimer: Amazon links included may be affiliate links that I receive a commission on if purchased through.

Weekly Reading Update | 3/23-3/29

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Hi everyone! I’m trying to be more diligent about keeping track of my weekly reading and post about this on instagram, so figured I would post here too!

Last week was a little bit of a struggle in terms of reading, I had grand plans but other things demanded my attention and it was a struggle with some of my chronic illnesses flaring. Still, I’m happy with what I managed to get done and the progress I made.

One of my goals this year it to get my backlog on Netgalley up to date, and both Meet Me at Blue Hour and Hart & Souls were from that list.

What did you manage to read last week?

Happy reading!