Book Review Round-Up (#24)

Hello hello! As I say every month… how is it the end of February?? How is it already time for my Book Review Round-Up (#24)?

I’m assuming, like you, I have no idea because this month truly flew by. My workload was unbelievably large this month but a lot of it was mundane and was able to get through a lot of audiobooks. I had a long walk in the morning, then ended up coasting through two of them because they were so good.

In total, I got through 8 books this month! I get into stats below.

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Book Review Round-Up (#24)

Alright, I used to do this a lot with my audiobook round-up every quarter. In full transparency, one of my biggest goals is to read more books with POC as the main characters. Unsurprisingly, that’s not always easy… especially because I like to put books on hold through the Libby app and then go in order of what becomes available.

Due to that, I may have months where I have 4 books with POC as the MC. This month fell a bit short. I had a lot of very tall handsome brooding/towering men… Clearly, I have a fictional type.

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Tempting Taste by Sara Whitney

_{Format: eBook | Goodreads Review | Amazon | Bookshop.org}

I’m kind of bummed to start the month off with this book. I wanted to love it, due to the ratings but it fell flat for me. Especially toward the end.

You are not Stuck by Becky Vollmer

_{Format: Audiobook | Goodreads Review | Amazon | Bookshop.org}

There wasn’t anything particularly terrible about this book but it also didn’t stand out to me. It was a quick listen and the author spoke about her life and experiences, all while battling alcoholism and trying to find a new path. I did enjoy specific moments. For example, granting yourself permission to leave something. Whether it be work, a relationship, etc. Something that isn’t serving you anymore and has become mundane. I appreciated the stories, etc, but I don’t think I’ll go back and pick it up again.

Wicha Gonna Do? by Avery Flynn

_{Format: Audiobook | Goodreads Review | Amazon | Bookshop.org}

Oh goshhhhh. I won’t lie. I judged this book by its cover. The illustration is SO beautifully done by Leni Kaufman that it drew me in… Now, this book is absolutely about a magical realm of witches with everything you can imagine mixed in. Unicorns, trolls, social media, etc. However, this book read as a YA novel to me and so when they had open-door spicy scenes… everything felt wrong about it. The MC acted much more like a 15-16-year-old than someone in her twenties.

In short, this book wasn’t for me.

Stuck on You by Ali Hazelwood

_{Format: Audiobook | Goodreads Review | Amazon | Bookshop.org}

The Goodreads reviews for this short novella are split 50/50. I’m rating this a little higher for a few reasons. The first is, I don’t think I like novellas because there’s not enough character development for me. However, Ali Hazelwood did a good job with this one because we got to get a glimpse into their past connection. That helped move the story along. The second is because their connection was strong for me. I love any scene where the characters’ dialogues are so sweet and kind that my heart jumps.

The Wedding Crasher by Mia Sosa

_{Format: Audiobook | Goodreads Review | Amazon | Bookshop.org}

Whoooooeeeee! This book was wild and unexpectedly fun. Oh my gosh, I had no idea what I was walking into but I really enjoyed this one. It was fun, flirty, and sexy. So much so that I recommended it to two of my friends before I was even done with the book!

Dean was looking for a marriage of convenience before he was left at the altar. Solange, the woman responsible for stopping his wedding, finds herself owing Dean big time. So, she agrees to fake date him til he gets a promotion at work. Spoiler… they fall for each other!

The Heart Principle by Helen Hoang

_{Format: Audiobook | Goodreads Review | Amazon | Bookshop.org}

So much more than a romance book. Helen Hoang once again hit me with all the feels in this shy and sexy threequel. This one is heavy and weighing. There are loads of unrealistic expectations, gaslighting, depression, and the crushing and tragic end to the life of a parent.

Please don’t let that sway you from picking up with ultra steamy romance. It plays into Anna and Kuan’s story beautifully. It’s a slow-burn romance and I’m happy the characters from the last two books were in it too. I love how much it spoke of mental health and learned how commonly undiagnosed Aspergers is in women.

I enjoyed this whole series. Can’t wait to see what Helen writes next!

Ship Wrecked by Olivia Dade

_{Format: Audiobook | Goodreads Review | Amazon | Bookshop.org}

From the beginning, you get to know Peter’s emotional side and how hurt he is that Maria left in the middle of the night after their one-night stand. Even though he does know her last name, she shows up at the same casting audition as him and then gets cast alongside him! Causing them to work together and Peter unable to even think about another woman for the next 6 years…

The book itself was great but quite long. I loved reading about Maria’s life in Sweden and how different it is from America. I love traveling through books. These two had really tough childhoods and were able to overcome their own tribulations and bond with each other over it.

Love on the Brain by Ali Hazelwood

_{Format: Paperback | Goodreads Review | Amazon | Bookshop.org}

Ali Hazelwood strikes again! This book was so so much fun to read. Yes, because it was an enemies-to-lovers and the slow burn was realllll slow on this one. But also because we got to follow Bee and work at NASA alongside her.

NASA, you guys!!!

Science is so cool. Science rules! Anyway, I loved how much Bee genuinely believed Levi hated her guts. When it was love all along. These two are SO much fun. Flirty, sexy, steamy, and playful. I might just need to buy this one for my collection. I want to go back through and highlight my favorite parts. Now I’m excited to pick up the third book!

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This was a great month for books. I either loved them or strongly disliked them. Hope next month I get a 5 star in this roundup.

What are your reading plans for March??

Other posts you might enjoy:

• Book Review Round-Up (#23)
• How to get Free Books while Traveling
• Books I Love to ReRead