ARC, Books

Book 923: Lucky Match (Hearts for Hire #1) – Raquel Riley

Nope. Unfortunately, that’s the bulk of my response if you want to skip the overall review. When this landed in my inbox I said yes and had such high expectations because the cover looks well done and the premise was a great idea.* Unfortunately, the execution was lackluster at best.

Lucky Match is the tale of Lucky McGuire, a cocky student who started a dating service near his college campus, and Hayes Brantley, his recently divorced professor who’s decided to lean into his bisexuality and date a man.

Continue reading “Book 923: Lucky Match (Hearts for Hire #1) – Raquel Riley”

Books

Book 920: Fifteen Hundred Miles from the Sun – Jonny Garza Villa

I’m not sure where I first came across this work, it might’ve been on a library list of YA novels to read, or it might’ve been a random Insta ad/post by someone I follow.

Either way, I added it to my list immediately and promptly forgot about it. When we went on vacation last month this was one of the few reserve books I took with me that I didn’t quite make it to, so I slotted it in at first chance and am so glad I finally got around to reading it. If I would’ve read it on vacation it would’ve taken half as long, but I kept falling asleep reading it this time (stupid time change).

Continue reading “Book 920: Fifteen Hundred Miles from the Sun – Jonny Garza Villa”

ARC, Books

Book 907: Hot Seat (The Hot Cannolis #1) – Eli Easton and Tara Lain

Give me an opposites-attract, man-in-uniform, light on the sex book any day and I am here for it! I knew the first two when I grabbed a copy of this from Gay Romance Reviews, but I didn’t know the third and that made it that much better!* And that was before I opened it to find a discussion about Wuthering Heights on the first page!!!

I’ve previously read Easton, but not Lain so I wasn’t sure what to expect with this one as I started, but quickly got into the story and the writing and didn’t look back finishing it in basically two sittings, and of course, spent a portion of it tearing up in public because one series of scenes towards the end just hit me hard.

Continue reading “Book 907: Hot Seat (The Hot Cannolis #1) – Eli Easton and Tara Lain”

Books

Book 905: Heartstopper, Vol. 4 (Heartstopper #4) – Alice Oseman

I’m not sure I was ready for this one. I’d guessed it would overlap with what happened in Solitaire, but wasn’t 100% sure it would. I wasn’t sure how Oseman would handle it graphically, I think there were a couple of images in Solitaire, and she sort of glossed the particular scene probably because of this.

I really appreciated having Nick’s outside perspective on the situation as we know he’s been worried about Charlie for two books now and when it came to the point right when Charlie was going to tell Nick he loved him, Nick asks about the eating disorder and it throws both of them into confusion which was just so real.

Continue reading “Book 905: Heartstopper, Vol. 4 (Heartstopper #4) – Alice Oseman”

Books

Book 904: Heartstopper, Vol. 3 (Heartstopper #3) – Alice Oseman

Wow, just wow. I honestly don’t know how I haven’t re-read this one before now.

Re-reading this a second time showed me how much Oseman packs into these books. Vol. 1 and Vol. 2 both had their powerful moments, but Vol. 3 takes it to a new level between Charlie and Nick, but also with their friends and even their teachers! And the fact Oseman does it with so little dialogue and just a shift in perspective shading in her artwork is fantastic.

Continue reading “Book 904: Heartstopper, Vol. 3 (Heartstopper #3) – Alice Oseman”