Hey Book Friends! I am so very behind on my round ups! My summer has been very crazy with covid and the kids schedules. How did everyones reading go in July? Hope you and your family are staying healthy and safe.
The Darkest King by Gena Showalter – 3 Stars In this book we finally get William’s story and happy ending. He has always been one of my favorites and I was glad to finally get it. Overall it was a fun story but I guess I just wanted a little more than insta attraction and all the sex thoughts. This is #15 in the series and I am wondering if I might be about done with it. I hope not because these used to be some of my favorite books.
The Sinner by J R Ward- 3 Stars Again we have a long standing series here, this is #18 in The black Dagger Brotherhood series. In it we are following Syn who is one of the Bastards and Jo a vampire on the brink of transition and not knowing what she is. Overall I enjoyed the book but I definitely like the books about the original brother’s best. I recently read her newest release so look out for that one in a wrap up soon.
Engagement and Espionage by Penny Reid – 5 Stars Cletus and Jenn have got to be one of my favorite couples I have read about! From the very first appearance of Cletus in one of Penny’s books I have loved him and his sneaky revenge filled plots! This book takes up pretty soon after Beard Science but before Roscoe and Billy’s books. This was my first cozy mystery book and I don’t have anything to compare it to except other Penny books. With that said I loved this one, I loved the mystery that Jenn and Cletus are trying to figure out but still giving us the things that make us love her books! I loved seeing other characters from her past books as well. Shelly has always been a favorite of mine as well and I loved getting to see her help Cletus and Jenn and her scene at the end was perfect! I also loved the mentions of the Armadillo and the tie in to past books with that. While I think it would be helpful to have read other books in the Winston series I don’t think its necessary because Penny does a good job of giving plenty of background on the characters. Overall another great book by Penny Reid! Highly recommend if you are looking for a fun mystery that is also pretty steamy. 5 Stars!!! Thank you to Social Butterfly PR for my advanced copy in exchange for my review.
The Last Chance Summer by Shannon Klare – 3.5 Stars Last Chance Summer was a fun YA romance where we follow Alex who has recently gotten into some trouble as well as recovering from an accident. Her parents decide that since she failed her senior year that before she starts it over she is going to spend the summer as a camp counselor at her Aunt’s camp in Texas. Alex who is still dealing with the guilt and trauma from her accident the previous fall does not want to be there and is making things a little difficult for her co-counselor Grant. I really enjoyed following Alex as she learned to trust others around her all while trying to deal with her accident. I really enjoyed the banter between Alex and Grant and their relationship was fun to see grow, it wasn’t quite enemies to lovers but it was close. My one real complaint was that I felt it was too short. In the beginning there are references to a person and an accident that Alex was involved in and she had some strong feelings about this person but it is never explained at all. I felt that having that information could have helped understand Alex’s character a little more. I also wanted some more from Grant because I really liked his character. Over all it was a fun read and I will be picking more up from this author in the future.
The Shadows by Alex North – 3 Stars The Shadows follows Paul Adams when he was 15 and a gruesome murder happened and also present day when he is 40 and has to go back home to see his ailing mom. Two of Paul’s friends were responsible for the killing but one of the boys was never found, so the disappearance of the other boy has always been a big mystery. 25years later and another murder has taken place that mimics the first and police detective Amanda is trying to find out what happened now as well as then. I enjoyed the story and it definitely kept me engaged while I was listening but I felt like something was missing to make me really like it. I thought the author did a great job of writing the characters, you felt so many emotions for them and I love that in my reading. I was also expecting this one to be creepy and I did it get that vibe at all. There were a few twists that I did not see coming but I felt like it did not tie to well together in the end. The ending left me wanting, I like to have more a wrap up of the characters. Over all it was an engaging read and I would recommend it for someone looking for a small town thriller. Thank you to Netgalley for my audio copy in exchange for my honest review.
Until Next Time, Happy Reading!
BeckyBookstore 