2023 TBR Challenge summary

One more year gone and one more TBR Challenge finished!

In 2023 I had interesting reads, others no so good, but it's 12 books more out of the pile!

My picks were the following:

January: The Illegal Gardener by Sara Alexi (starting over) 6/10

This was an interesting story about an illegal Pakistan man who starts over in Greece, and the British woman who is also starting over there. Their relationship begins unbalanced but they eventually become friends. I liked it but I felt the plot could have been more engaging.

February: The Suite Spot by Trish Doller (getaway) 8/10

This is the second installment in the Beck sisters series, and the setting is an island, to where the heroine moves for work and it did felt like a getaway story. I liked it, I think the author did a good job portraying emotions and feelings while presenting a captivating story too, plus a romance.

March: Scandal With a Prince by Nicole Burnham (baggage) 6/10

In this book the heroine had a baby and didn't tell the father. Now, years later,, they reconnect and this is something she will have to confess... what a cliched plot line but I thought it was an interesting baggage to "unload". Sadly for me, the development wasn't that amazing.

April: Untamed by Anna Cowan (unusual historical) 5/10

An historical with a male protagonist who likes to dress up as a woman? Certainly unusual and I was looking for to see how this would play out and how the romance would work. I think the author could have done a much better job, actually, in terms of plot.

May: Two in a Bush by Judith Hale Everett (freebie) 7/10

I got this one for free when it was available in several retailers. It's an historical too, written in a very old fashioned style, we would say now, but that becomes better the more along we go. I just think that the focus should have been on the protagonists more, instead of so much secondary situations.

June: The Purveli by Dianne Duvall (love is love) 8/10

I've gotten this wrong, I took the "love is love" expression literally and thought about love no matter what, so I picked up an installment in a PNR series, featuring a human and an alien, not a LGBT entry. My mistake aside, I did like reading the novel I chose.

July: Evan and Darcy by Melanie Coles (opposites attract) 5/10

This is a story that re imagines the Pride and Prejudice novel switching the genders and is set in Australia in modern times. Well, I think it was interesting but for a contemporary story the behavior of the characters seemed to be slightly juvenile.

August: Rafe by Rebekah Weatherspoon (tropetastic!) 4/10

I thought this story would be more interesting, since it would present a gender switch too, and the male protagonist is a nanny, a role usually portrayed by women. I confess I expected more out of this, and not so much focus on sexual content.

September: Last Song Before Night by Ilana C. Meyer (new author) 5/10

Fantasy novels are something I like if it has certain elements and this one seemed intriguing due to the focus on music and its importance to the plot. However, the development was a bit confusing and I've felt some elements weren't necessary either.

October: Hide From Evil by Jami Alden (danger zone) 4/10

This is a book similar to the style of the late 90s or early 00s and it showed. I think the romance could have been better and the plot better executed. I also think the overall ideas were a bit repetitive which means that many situations were weakly portrayed.

November: The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix E. Harrow (once upon a time) 7/10

I thought this was a fascinating story, with a very good plot idea but I can't say if the execution was as well achieved as possible. A young girl is able to find doors and travel to different dimensions, and she is looking to save her parents. As she becomes older and new dangers arise, she will need to know whom to trust.

December: Christmas at the Little Beach Street Bakery by Jenny Colgan (festive) 7/10

This is the third installment in a series, which I have come to think of as being less charming than what it might seem by the covers. Things are sometimes difficult for heroine Polly but friends and her love for baking tend to help, although I wish there were even more positive or happy scenes. 

Some notes: 

➤The grading average this year wasn't as perfect as I'd have loved it to be, with two entries being what I see as negative (on a scale from 1 to 10), but I prefer to stick to choices I make and not change books. Obviously this means some books aren't as amazing as I hope, but the fun of trying a new book is that, the hope for the unknown.

➤Contemporary settings were still the majority in my book choices, even if not a romance, and that does say something about what I'm gravitating more to nowadays.

➤Nine entries were by authors I had not read before, which is also a funny element to consider.

➤I like doing this challenge because it's a fun way to look at some of the books in the pile. We often add books for so many reasons, something about them, whether a detail, a plot premise, a cover, an indication somewhere... I often forget why a book was added to the pile, but I do love this adventure of discovering why again!

Happy reading, and we will see each other in the challenge next year!

TBR Challenge: Jenny Colgan - Christmas at the Little Beach Street Bakery

It's Christmas in the Cornish coastal village of Mount Polbearne - a time for family, friends and feasting.
Polly Waterford loves running the Little Beach Street Bakery. She's at her happiest when she's creating delicious treats and the festive season always inspires her to bake and knead something extra special for the village residents. In fact, the only thing she loves more than her bakery is curling up with her gorgeous boyfriend, Huckle. She's determined that this Christmas is going to be their best one yet, but life doesn't always work out as planned...
When Polly's best friend Kerensa turns up with a secret that threatens the life Polly and Huckle have built together, the future begins to look uncertain. And then a face from Polly's past reappears and things become even more complicated. Polly can usually find solace in baking but she has a feeling that's not going to be enough this time. Can she get things back on track so that everyone has a merry Christmas?

Comment: The end of the year is here, so much quicker than what seemed possible when it started. What a cliché, but how true anyway... December in the TBR challenge is a month for the festive theme. In recent years that has meant Christmas and I've decided to stick to it again.

In this story Polly and Huckle seemed to have settled well enough in their life in Mount Polbearne. Polly loves her bakery and the feeling of accomplishments and while Huckle thinks he could do more than simply sell honey, he is now eager to for him and Polly to take the next step in their relationship. However, everything gets muddled and brings on other issues when Kerensa does something that she regrets, even though there are consequences she can't avoid. She asks Polly to keep her secret but this has a bigger impact on everyone's lives, more so than she could anticipate...

This is the third book in the Little Beach Street Bakery series, and I've liked the previous books but I must say there's a certain tone in them which isn't exactly conductive to warm feelings all the time. I mean, I like the stories in general and I have liked other books by the author too, but there is a definite sour taste to certain situations depicted. This one is set on Christmas and I must say i thought there would be more content on it.

Polly has opened a bakery at a place where success might not have been obvious at first, but she did it and even after several obstacles, she is now able to say she is successful, even if not at a perfect scenario. She has felt that what she and Huckle have is enough, but he is hoping to go the next step and she isn't certain she is ready for this. In part, her reticence is due to how her family life was, with only her and her mother, without ever knowing who her father is. As one can imagine, this is a subject the author tackled here and we do learn more about this part of Polly's life. 

The series has been focused on putting in evidence how much one is worthy of success if one is a good person, if one perseveres, if one doesn't hide from hard work and at the end there will be a reward. In a way, I think this message has been well accomplished, but Polly has had to face a lot of adversity. In a way, this is understandable and what it is, but personally this hit me in a weird way, considering my life now, and I truly feel the story seems to have a much darker tone than what it required.

As for the big secret by Kerensa (Polly's best friend), this ended up being the big plot device in the novel and I will be honest: I disliked it. I actually think the author could have found a much better way to add some drama and whatever she felt like when she picked this idea. I think I'll go even further by saying I've found the whole thing ridiculous and unnecessary, and I cannot see why this was even an option for a book set during Christmas. I suppose if the resolution had been to highlight the Christmas spirit of acceptance and forgiveness or something, but the big secret is "solved" in a way that I feel was unfair and morally wrong. I did not like it, whatever the reason the author might have had.

On the better, happier side, Neil the puffin remains a funny bird and very close to "his humans", there are some cute scenes and some inspired situations which did bring a smile to my face. I liked that Polly felt more secure in her work and in her feelings,even with curve-balls going her way. I also liked the Christmas references and scenes included and which were part of the plot. I wouldn't say this was very festive, but the idea is there and, overall, I think I could see where the author was going with certain choices.

I don't think this was as great as I hoped, but on another positive aspect, it wasn't a long book and I was already invested in the characters, so I could focus on that for the most part.

Grade: 7/10

TBR Challenge: Alix E. Harrow - The Ten Thousand Doors of January

In a sprawling mansion filled with peculiar treasures, January Scaller is a curiosity herself. As the ward of the wealthy Mr. Locke, she feels little different from the artifacts that decorate the carefully maintained, largely ignored, and utterly out of place.Then she finds a strange book. A book that carries the scent of other worlds, and tells a tale of secret doors, of love, adventure and danger. Each page turn reveals impossible truths about the world and January discovers a story increasingly entwined with her own.

 

Comment: The year is almost over and there are two last themes left in the TBR Challenge for 2023. 

In November the theme is "once upon a time" and what immediately came to mind was a story with magical elements, just like the fairy tales of my childhood. I had my chosen book in the pile since 2019 and I felt this was a good opportunity to get to it at last.

In this fantasy book we meet heroine January who is living with her warden in a big house, with all the things she needs, except her father, always traveling for work, and freedom to do what she wants. She has been told she needs to stay there for her own protection, but one day she finds a weird door and can cross it, arriving at a completely different world, to her amazed surprise. Then, that door disappears and her progression to find the truth about herself, and what her father really does for mr Locke, her warden, begins. The problem is the more January learns, the more dangerous everything is, including being around people who help her. What can January do to survive, to learn and to find her parents, which has been her dream all along?

I had been captivated by the cover of this book when it was originally released. I also liked the opinion of some readers and the theme alone would be one I'd want, since there were references to those who love books and stories. I can now understand these descriptions but I will be honest: I was confused for a good part of the story and not because of the content. I just could not find a way to follow the sequence of events shared, and this made me wonder if, perhaps, a different type or editing would have made a difference.

The plot is quite fascinating, especially for a reader who constantly listens to or reads about that old saying "to read is to escape into a new world" or something like that. I do like this idea and, in fantasy stories, this is even more appealing. Basically, we follow January as she grows up in a fancy house which isn't loving but is secure, until she starts noticing the doors which lead into different places. At the same time, we have a different POV by someone sharing the life of another character who was able to do the same thing as January.

I'll say I was absolutely not impressed with the supposed twists (perhaps this isn't the best word), since they seemed to be so very obvious. Some things that take time to be presented and developed just felt very easy to follow and I was annoyed here and there with how the author tried to make it more poetic or whimsical or something, instead of placing things in a more linear narrative. I guess this is what worked so well for many readers to give them that notion of magical realism - which I also like - but here just got on my nerves and confused me.

I did like the idea of the story and the different characters, it's clear the author wanted to use diversity in her novel, and the characters' background and origins was a way to accomplish this. I think that, really analyzing the story, there are many subjects to pick up and discuss, namely about race, racism, exploration and stealing, colonialism and freedom, and all this is quite worthy of being called to attention but I kind of wanted January to get things quicker and she took a long time to understand what was going on and that, from a certain moment on, became obvious.

What I liked the best was the idea of traveling through doors into other worlds. What a pity - to me! - that this was a story about the act of traveling and not about where the travel leads to. There's a metaphor there, I'm sure, but the more I read, the more I wanted this to go a different direction and I will say that in the back of my mind there was this memory... 

I just had to google it and I've quickly came across the name of a TV series from the 90s, of which I remember watching some episodes, titled Sliders. It was about characters traveling into other worlds through a wormhole of some kind. The series was about them trying to go back to their world and while they were stuck on another, the episode would be about that. I think I can say the idea of this book is quite similar in the concept, if not in the execution.

This said, the mrs Harrow's story is more about how January learns things and starts to think for herself and how that might lead her to a future where he helps others with some skills she develops in the meantime, as well as looking for her parents whom she believes were killed but she still hopes perhaps this isn't true. As I've said, I liked the story in general and many of the situations described, I liked the pace from a certain point on, but as a whole I did expect this to be better. I also agree with some readers who wish the heroine had been older, since other elements could have been achieved better if that had been the case.

All things considered, this wasn't too bad and in the end I have to say it was a worthy reading experience, but I did hope for a slightly different type of narrative, yes.

Grade: 7/10

TBR Challenge: Jami Alden - Hide From Evil

Sean Flynn should feel lucky he’s alive. But his betrayal by a close friend—and two years on death row — have left him feeling only numb. When his conviction was overturned, Sean retreated to a quiet woodland cabin, far away from prying eyes. There, he believed the past couldn’t come back to haunt him . . . until she showed up.
Overcome with guilt, Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Krista Slater can’t forgive herself for convicting an innocent man. But when another brutal murder reveals chilling, new facts about his case, she must turn to Sean for help. She’s ready to face his anger, but the desire in his eyes ignites a need she’s never felt before. Shadowed by danger, Sean and Krista uncover a twisted maze of deception and betrayal—all under the dangerous gaze of a cunning mastermind who will do whatever it takes to keep his evil secrets safe.

Comment: It's October already and this quickly it's time for another TBR post.

The theme for this month is "danger zone" and that immediately reminded me of romantic suspense novels, which is pretty much what Wendy alluded to in her reminder post. Anyway, I would have plenty of choice and decided to go with a book I saw was in my GR shelf for a long time. So much that I have no idea now why I've added it in the first place, but I suppose it was the fact the main couple started of as a sort of opposites attract or even a little of enemies to lovers? These are tropes I tend to enjoy.

In this novel we meet Sean Flynn (a silly side note: how incredible this character has the same surname of the main character of the book I've read immediately before and I happened to have randomly read them in a row?) who has been two years on the death row for a crime he didn't commit. Now he was released and his conviction overturned and he only wants peace and be left alone. However, his life cannot go on a predictable quiet path because Krista Slater, the lawyer with the prosecution who helped put him behind bars, shows up at his place feeling guilty and wanting his help to catch the real culprits of the crime he was involved in. The problem is that someone doesn't want them to dog too deep and they become targets. Will they be able to find the truth, dodging betrayals and also fall in love in the process?

This is the first book I try by this author so I had no expectations, to be honest. I saw this was also the second installment in a series titled Dead Wrong but I was not interested in the premise of the first book and would not be trying it. I hoped this second book would have enough structure on its own for the story line to make sense.

The story and the characters actually made me think of some books by Sandra Brown, who is an author I like. I have not liked all her books equally, nor have I read everything by her, but I've read enough that this comparison immediately popped up in my mind. Sandra brown's suspense books often have a hero or heroine who pair up to discover something or make something right out of a wrong, while dealing with bad guys who are mostly sleazy instead of really evil.

Honestly, this pretty much sums up the premise of this Hide from Evil, and basically Sean and Krista need to join forces and find some truths, not only to clear Sean's name completely but also to find the real criminals. I'd say the issue for me was that, unlike the majority of the suspense books by Brown I've enjoyed, I was not such a fan of this one because the writing style wasn't as compelling and I felt bored for a big part of the reading experience. I rarely felt like I was truly interested in the characters and in what they felt like accomplishing, so the whole thing was rather meh to me.

Sean and Krista have history, which I obviously could not infer because I didn't read the first book. Since they weren't the main couple in that first book, I can also suppose I would have not missed much anyway, but it seems evident some tension between them exists because of both their roles. I wanted to see how this bridge of sides would happen now that they would be working together somehow, but lust or physical attractiveness only go so far to convince me they would work out on the long haul.

Stories in which a couple falls in love while on the run, or on a road trip aren't anything new in romance-land, but it still need to be convincing and to me, Krista and Sean just didn't have enough time nor a past connection to make me believe their feelings weren't more than the stress and the adrenaline of their situation. At times, it even felt like the writing was rather juvenile when they were thinking about one another... their characterization was, overall, very weak, and whether it was Sean and Krista or any other character nothing would change. I feel I was not convince by the author to be emotionally invested in these two as individuals, much less as a couple.

I was also a little annoyed - but this could be just my personal preference - by the scenes we have from the villains' POV. Unlike some authors whose work I still love despite this technique (Karen Rose, for instance), in here this felt a weak link because the bad guys' POV felt very much like a caricature. I can't decide if I feel they are simply sleazy people with terrible morals and personalities or this was meant to showcase how ridiculously unscrupulous they were and that was what made them dangerous. Either way, I easily skimmed their parts.

Apart from the romance and the antagonists, what is left is like one of those movies where hero and heroine do things they wouldn't normally do unless they had other choices and on the way they supposedly discover truths about themselves and have to deal with betrayals and things they couldn't think might happen. If this were a movie,it might be entertaining enough but I struggled to be interested and immersed in the lives of these two and what they felt was a necessary task for them.

The plot and structure of this book aren't novelties, but I still wish things could have been done better. I'd have preferred for the bad guys to feel the stress and the worries more, for instance, or for the good guys to get the upper hand in a more ingenious way. Since the story turned out to be a little repetitive and the romance not truly convincing to me, I quickly lost interest and felt quite glad when I've finished. I even considered DNF'ing but I didn't want to think about another pick for the challenge, so I stuck with this one. There are some potentially good elements, but overall this one could have been much better.

Grade: 4/10

TBR Challenge: Ilana C. Meyer - Last Song Before Night

A high fantasy following a young woman's defiance of her culture as she undertakes a dangerous quest to restore her world's lost magic in Ilana C. Myer's Last Song Before Night.
Her name was Kimbralin Amaristoth: sister to a cruel brother, daughter of a hateful family. But that name she has forsworn, and now she is simply Lin, a musician and lyricist of uncommon ability in a land where women are forbidden to answer such callings-a fugitive who must conceal her identity or risk imprisonment and even death.
On the eve of a great festival, Lin learns that an ancient scourge has returned to the land of Eivar, a pandemic both deadly and unnatural. Its resurgence brings with it the memory of an apocalypse that transformed half a continent. Long ago, magic was everywhere, rising from artistic expression-from song, from verse, from stories. But in Eivar, where poets once wove enchantments from their words and harps, the power was lost. Forbidden experiments in blood divination unleashed the plague that is remembered as the Red Death, killing thousands before it was stopped, and Eivar's connection to the Otherworld from which all enchantment flowed, broken.
The Red Death's return can mean only one thing: someone is spilling innocent blood in order to master dark magic. Now poets who thought only to gain fame for their songs face a challenge much greater: galvanized by Valanir Ocune, greatest Seer of the age, Lin and several others set out to reclaim their legacy and reopen the way to the Otherworld-a quest that will test their deepest desires, imperil their lives, and decide the future.

Comment: It's September, Autumn is finally around the corner after a hot Summer and it's time for another TBR post. For this month the theme is "new author" which must be one of the easiest themes of the year, for me. I could have picked anything but I've settled for a fantasy story which I have no idea, at all, on how it ended up in the pile, obviously by an author I also haven't heard of before.

In this story, set in a world where music is considered to be the highest form of art, mainly music done by poets who even have the possibility to reach higher in their skill by studying in a special academy, things start to go wrong when an important competition, honored by royal decree, is in jeopardy after a terrible discovery. It seems someone is using dark magic and wants to go back to the old ways when poets/musicians had the power to manipulate or magically affect others with their songs. Someone wants this power but there is a cast of characters who will try to find the Path, the righteousness of the art of music, to fight against this evil, but will they succeed?

As a fantasy and as a story whose aim is to portray the eternal battle of evil vs good, at the same time a central character (Lin) comes out of obscurity to become a revered figure, this certainly accomplished the necessary to be successful. The issue, for me, was the sequence of information and how some of the fantasy elements weren't very clear to follow.

When the story begins, we follow a few characters, mostly the poets who are getting ready for an important competition at a festival, and of them, whoever wins the prize will be considered a great poet and have some social/financial benefits. Poet here might be compared to bard, for there is both music and poetry involved. The main characters aren't only the poets, but others somehow connected to them, such as the benefactors of the arts and others. I've started to feel lost when several characters were presented and some just seemed to be there for some indistinct reason which never went anywhere understandable.

In a way, this story could be seen as a way to highlight the need for the arts but mainly the need for the continuous sharing of the verbal speech, how much is contained in orality and performance and how the audiences are affected by that in relation to simply knowing or hearing about something written. But I think, or perhaps I should say I got the impression, that the goal was more on Lin's role as a woman and, therefore by the laws of this world, on her not being a true Poet. Clearly then, she was meant to show everyone she is, indeed talented, and how any woman like her could do it too.

After the initial impressions, the plot starts to fall into magical issues, and weird behaviors from the main characters, situations I could not really understand and I started to be a little annoyed at the amount of detail to bear in mind without any real pay off. I wondered why would we need to see so many details which ended up not being that important and then there are things happening without evident reason and I must conclude the author wanted to show a lot without a specific sequence, which made the story convoluted and too busy for far too long.

Since this is the first book by this author I try, the writing felt consistent, true, but the plot not always easy to follow. A lot of the story from a certain point on is heavily set on dreams or dream sequences or flashbacks and I confess I wish the graphic text had been obvious in dividing the plot sequences or the change from what was reality and dream. My interest was waning and, to make it even less appealing, the "hardships" in the characters' paths kept happening and got to terrible moments, which made me think, as this is the first of a trilogy, that the reward of investing in this would take quite a while.

Added to these writing issues, we have the amount of characters to follow to to have to consider and it got a little tiring to keep track. Then the names didn't help, we had a girl Rianna, a boy Rayen, Lin who is Kimbralin, then Darien and someone or some place Edrien, it can be a little confusing for certain. I also think the author wanted to slot these people into specific roles, and some are so cliched that I fail to see where is the depth and interest in knowing what happens next to them. 

The magical elements, which are only alluded at first, also don't seem very logical once things start to become more complex, as if it was handy some things were placed in convenient moments but were no longer vital in others. I think I'd have liked if this book has a more obvious narrative and cohesion in the elements. It does feel as if the author wanted to say so much so quickly that many things were misused, such as the use of magic being only bad? I can't tell if that was the goal anyway...

All things considered, this had interesting elements, especially in the beginning, but the narrative disappointed me, the plot was very confusing and I've finished the book knowing there were sacrifices and "lessons learned" and that Lin will go on to become as special as she might hoped for, but I'll admit I don't feel the need to know more about this world.

Grade: 5/10

TBR Challenge: Rebekah Weatherspoon - Rafe

All Dr. Sloan Copeland needed was someone to watch her kids. What she found was the man of her dreams…
After a nasty divorce and a thousand mile move, Dr. Sloan Copeland and her twin daughters are finally getting the hang of their new life in Los Angeles. When their live-in nanny bails with no warning, Sloan is left scrambling to find a competent caretaker to wrangle her smart, sensitive girls. Nothing less will do.
Enter Rafe Whitcomb. He's all of those things, not to mention good-natured and one heck of a whiz in the kitchen. He's also tall, and handsome, and bearded, and ripped, and tatted, wrist to neck.
It doesn't take long for the Copelands to invite Rafe into their home. Just as quickly, both Sloan and Rafe find themselves succumbing to a heady mutual attraction, neither of them wants to deny. With every minute they spend under the same roof, this working mom can't help but wonder if Rafe can handle all her needs...

Comment: One more month already gone, if one counts things using the challenge's themes going by and it does seem this happens very quickly! 

In August the theme is tropestatic which immediately made me think about the immense amount of tropes often seen in books, especially in romances. I went with a book that switches the trope a little: instead of boss/single dad with nanny/employee I chose a book with a female boss and a male nanny.... in m/f this isn't certainly the norm so I thought it was an interesting play on the whole trope idea!

In this book dr Sloan Copeland is a young but genius cardiologist, one of the most brilliant black women in the field and she is very good at her job but her family life wasn't as successful. She is divorced and has the guard of her twin six year old girls and the demands of her work hours means the best option for her is a live in nanny. When the story begins, the girls' nanny has suddenly left and Sloan needs someone immediately. That is how referrals indicate her Rafe, a white male with tattoos who often intimidates others but that has a lot of experience and Sloan meets him, the girls seem to approve, and he starts living with them. But there's something neither was counting on, how much attracted to one another they would be...

Just the blurb and my small summary are more than enough to think of this as tropetastic, and adding the other elements, it seems obvious, wouldn't you agree? There's certainly plenty to choose from if one wanted to discuss this book but I will say right away I wasn't too dazzled due to one single reason: it was boring. I just couldn't not feel enough emotional investment in the story and reading it, from a certain point on, was rather like a duty instead of being fun. Still, I had decided to stick with this choice and finished the book. Thankfully, it isn't a long book.

I was sold on trying this one after some positive reviews where some readers said the black woman and white male made for a sexy combination and the personalities of each protagonist made for a clashing but sweet romance and I wanted to read that too. However, while Rafe and Sloan do seem to complement each other in terms of personality - she is driven and always in motion, he seems quieter and takes longer to make decisions - as soon as they meet, instead of things progressing slowly but romantically, I've felt their sexual connection happened way too soon.

I mean, this wouldn't have to be a problem but I was really convinced more attention would be given to the nanny side of things and that the romance would be sweeter. I don't mind they become lovers rather soon but this definitely changed the whole "vibe" of the story and it started to be very boring because it was more about the steps between them in how to progress this side of their relationship than the emotional aspect or the relationship with the girls. Besides, I was annoyed they would be able to put aside the whole boss/employee issue aside so easily, even if boundaries were being respected by agreement between them. Where's the fun of a slow burn because they see each other often and have to interact until they trust each other enough to fall in love? That was what I was looking for.

On one hand, though, I did like how they took time to tell each other what they wanted and how both took into consideration the other's needs and emotional state when they start being lovers, but... at the same time, this wasn't very romantic, for instance if it had been done in a way that would indicate they couldn't help it... I also disliked the wording a bit, how they kept having sexy thoughts about one another while dealing with mundane things put me off of the story and felt jarring.

The author also introduces several other issues which can be pertinent to a relationship between people with different types of jobs and there's even the issue of Sloan's ex, which seems to be an easy villain in this scenario. I think some scenes were used to validate the need for women, no matter white or black, to have a voice and how they have the right to speak their minds and have careers without the approval of a man, it does seem clear the author had a purpose by using certain content, which I agree with, but then I kept thinking this was a premeditated goal, and perhaps not a real need for the plot.... so, my attention wandered, I've lost interest and just wanted the story to be done.

All things considered, this isn't a big book and certain elements were interesting, which could have made this an OK read. But then I think of what I liked less, of what I'd change and realize I just didn't have much fun reading this one. 

Grade: 4/10

TBR Challenge: Melanie Coles - Evan and Darcy

Jane Austen gets a little dusty in this outback retelling of a beloved story about a man who learns that first impressions can be wrong when you’re looking for Ms Right.
Wheat farmer Evan Bennet is happy being single until his brother falls for the new girl in town, wealthy hotel owner Claire Bingley. Suddenly finding a girl seems more appealing…unless you’re talking about Claire’s best friend, pretentious lawyer Darcy Fitzwilliam. Her cold manners have Evan seeing red, and when a cute girl with links to Darcy’s past catches his eye, he’s even more determined to dislike her.
When a startling revelation turns Evan’s world upside down and he unexpectedly crosses Darcy’s path again, he’s forced to reassess his opinion of her. But just as he starts to open his heart, a crisis engulfs his family, threatening to destroy any hope of a future with Darcy.
With a cloud hanging over his family, Evan knows his chance of winning Darcy’s heart is gone… until some surprising news and a generous gift leave him wondering if her heart might be his after all.

Comment: In July, the TBR Challenge theme is "opposites attract" and as it probably happens with a vast majority of readers, it's probably one of the tropes in romance that is easier to find. I went with a book I had already planned to read and that has two very different protagonists. It has the added bonus of being a retelling of Pride and Prejudice set in modern day Australia and I was curious to see how the author would develop it.

In this novel, Evan Bennett is a farmer, along with his father and brothers and he loves it all but his dream is to have a winery. His life is pretty much happy but then news come of the recent purchase of a propriety nearby and the new owner, Claire Bingley, wants to transform the place into a hotel, things start to become more hectic. When the Bennetts meet her and her brother, they also meet Darcy Fitzwilliam, a young woman who seems very aloof and with whom Evan doesn't get along. However, in the world of coincidences, their paths keep meeting and once Jemma Wickham shows up to work with the horses in a neighborly estate, it's impossible to avoid each other even more, especially when Darcy and Jemma also know each other. Evan realizes with time that there's more to Darcy than her posh personality, but is he ready to accept their differences?

This is the first book I try by this author and I only got aware of it after some recommendation somewhere. I don't purposely seek retellings, but I thought this one might be interesting, due to the gender swap in relation to the original work. 

Well, I have to say the author certainly succeeded in her assignment in retelling Pride and Prejudice this way, with two very opposite characters, whose personality clashes right away and they don't seem to see eye to eye in simple things such as how to interact with people they just recently met. For those who are fans of the original work, everything in this book is recognizable and I actually have to say it: I think the author took the retelling task a bit too far and I struggled to truly see her "voice" in such a work.

In fact, while reading this, I kept picturing a friend from high school who once shared a text she wrote for English class where they had to do a retelling of a fairy tale but set in modern times. She did a funny text where the heroine worked in McDonald's, but I can't remember which tale. Melanie Coles could probably be lauded for a similar task here, but while I wasn't very impressed in terms of content - it's not that original after all - I still read it until the end, more with the purpose of checking every little item she used from Pride and Prejudice I could put in context. For instance, the Pemberley tour Elizabeth and her uncle and aunt do is exchanged for a winery setting and Evan does a tour of the propriety which produces amazing and exclusive wine.

This said, I suppose the plot isn't hard to guess nor to anticipate and, to be honest, the actual swap of things was a little juvenile, I don't think the writing is bad but clearly the author wasn't really recreating things with her own ideas in mind. Certainly she had to pay attention and know Jane Austen's work well and for me, having read it also, it was a bit fun to laugh at some choices but in terms of execution? Not so impressive because there's nothing truly new here, and I even think the author tried to use as much as she could, to the point some things were very irrelevant foe the setting she invented.

The relationship between Evan and Darcy isn't very romantic nor amazing because the author stuck to the obvious and the reasons why they had opposed personalities didn't really matter in the big scheme of things. I also think the little differences between these characters and the ones they are based on could have been developed better, but in the end, they aren't very fleshed nor layered and I was not convinced of their new feelings when Darcy sends the letter that changed everything between them. I think that, for this retelling to be successful, the author should have added her own interpretation of things or added complexity to the characters' actions... it was also disappointing how the present life details weren't very exploited and the dynamics too close to the 19th century novel. This means some things feel very... silly or unlikely for a modern lifestyle whereas in the original it was part of typical social behavior.

For me, part of why P&P is so incredible and why I loved reading it, was to see the slow but believable development of a relationship between two people who antagonize each other right away but are obviously immediately attracted too and how special it is they slowly get to know each other despite their social and personal differences and fall in love. I wonder, however, as other readers have mentioned in their reviews, if a reader finds this book and doesn't know the original, would some of these elements be perceived in the retelling? Would some things make that much sense after all? It seems as if the goal was really just the fun experience of retelling, not the actual need to deliver a book the author felt she had to write and share.

I've read this book easily, that is true and I think the task of retelling was a fun experience but I don't think it was a well accomplished exercise. All the necessary things are there and the story does have its positive aspects but I also believe the author could have done much better.

In terms of opposites attracting, I think it was obvious enough how this subject was done and the novel gives us that, but I hoped for more interactions between the main characters and a romantic way of it happening, which ended up not being the goal.

Grade: 5/10

TBR Challenge: Dianne Duvall - The Purveli

Ava has always been different. Born with strong telepathic abilities, she lives a very isolated life until she is offered a job with an obscure network that aids powerful Immortal Guardians in their quest to protect humanity from the psychotic vampires who prey upon them. Suddenly, she doesn't feel so different. For the first time in her life, Ava has found a place where she belongs. She's happy. Life is good. And when her employers invite her to join a group of other gifted ones and a handful of Immortal Guardians on a journey to another planet, it becomes absolutely fantastic.
In no time at all, she is speeding across the galaxy aboard a Lasaran warship manned by two amazing alien races. It's the dream of a lifetime... until a vicious attack by a mutual enemy of Lasara and Earth lands her alone in an escape pod with no habitable planet in sight and only one ship within range: one that carries the enemy who wants to know why the bioengineered virus they released on Earth long ago didn't exterminate humanity and leave the planet ripe for their claiming.
Jak'ri doesn't know how long he has been a prisoner aboard the Cebaun, but he fears the enemy's twisted experiments will soon lead them to a virus that will eradicate the Purveli people. Despair grips him until a female from Earth is taken captive and reaches out to him telepathically. The gift that Ava said caused her such misery in the past soon becomes his salvation as the two of them form a fast friendship. Determined to distract each other from the horrors of their existence, they immerse themselves in telepathic communion during the day, then seek solace and adventure together in shared dreams. As their friendship deepens into love, the two hatch a daring plot to escape their captors. But the enemy will not let them go without a fight.
Can Ava and Jak'ri stand against so many and emerge victorious?

Comment: We're back to another TBR Challenge post, half way through the year already...

This time, the theme is «love is love» which is quite vague...for me, it brought to mind the idea that love is seen as such in regards to anyone or any form and I went the road of "different type of love" kind of, with a sci fi romance with love between a human and an alien, I mean, why not?

In this story, the 3rd in a spin of series of the original Immortal Guardians series by Dianne Duvall, we keep following the adventures of a group of humans with special abilities (such as telekinesis, telepathy, etc) who have joined a network of several types of people where they aren't seen as different nor are mistreated. This book begins with human Ava escaping in a pod after the space ship where she and other people from Earth were traveling was destroyed. Sadly, Ava was captured by the enemy alien species of the planet which was her destination and now she knows she will be used as a guinea pig for the aliens investigations. However, she and a fellow alien prisoner escape and can only take refuge in a planet where no one knows they might travel to. They will have to hide from the possible enemies looking for them, but will they succeed?

For context: In the original series we learned thousands of years ago, an alien race (Gathendiens) infected the population in hopes to decimate the planet and then steal the resources. This resulted in people infected becoming ill, mentally unstable and violent (like vampires) or, if by chance of having a different genetic code, transformed into Immortal Guardians, with the new abilities but none of the mental illness. Then these people formed a community/network and help save other humans and now the aliens seem to might to come back due to other alien alliances.

I know this seems very, very weird and complicated therefore I must say: this book has a good structure but it makes way more sense if read in order of the series. Plus, the author has a certain tendency to write books which, sometimes, occur simultaneously to others and we get to see or have information of certain events in different POVs. I don't mind it, it always feels as if it's something new, but I can imagine that for a new reader, things might feel a little repetitive and confusing.

This aside, for me this book was quite appealing. In fact, this and the previous installment were much better than the first spin of book (The Lasaran) because the main couples and their relationships were much more appealing. I kind of like it the author has invented many details for the several alien races but to be a little fair, they are pretty much all humanoids so whatever adjustment humans - and we, as readers - have to do - is quite easy. I had a good time reading and wishing to know what would happen next, so even bearing in mind inconsistencies in the world building, I still liked reading this.

The plot is very simple, Ava and Jak'ri find themselves in the same alien ship, they are of interest for their scientists and tortured, along with Jak'ri's brother. The brother seems to make a sacrifice and Ava and Jak'ri escape in a pod and to run from those chasing them, hide in a planet with a convenient atmosphere. The bond they established on the ship and even in their shared dreams - Jak'ri and his brother, as well as their race, can talk telepathically, and Ava has that ability too - becomes stronger the more they interact and we already know that when they escape, Ava and Jak'ri already have feelings for one another.

I think this was done well enough, I could believe they felt happy and could trust the other. The shared experienced helped but I can say everything was still a bit too quick, after all, they were different enough that it would still mean to learn about their respective races. Of course, this does seem a lot easier to accomplish when they are running for their lives and hoping for a rescue. I still liked reading about what they faced on the planet and how things ended up positively for them. I can't say these books are that high on character complexity, true, but they are entertaining and fluid and I could feel myself interested in them and in what would happen.

Ava went through a transformation, since being a special type of human and then infected in the ship by the bad aliens, she is now an Immortal Guardian. I think the author could have done this a little better, everything feels too simple when we think about the process and how it had been done in the original series, but... it did advance a few plot points and I can't truly say it was that bad. I feel this was a handy way for the author to maintain expected information and "rules" in mind, in the big scheme of things.

I think the final part of the book was a bit rushed, after rescue happens and things become quieter, and all that, the what now part of how to deal with a new situation, to live with someone in anew place... I understand the romance of it, the fact the HEA is more important and it was a goal achieved, but my general interest in the world and in how everything is connected, makes me think some details were clearly overlooked.

Despite this, I did have a good time reading, like I said, and now I'm very curious to know what happened to other characters who, like Ava, escaped in pods. 

Grade: 8/10

TBR Challenge: Judith Hale Everett - Two in the Bush

Sir Joshua Stiles wants nothing more than to fill the hole in his heart left by his wife's death, but it seems that women are more interested in his fortune than in himself. Cynical and ready to renounce all females, he is none too pleased when his sister invites her dear friend to visit for the Season.
Having survived a joyless marriage, Genevieve Breckinridge has no romantic expectations. In coming to London, she hopes only to cure her daughter's Gothic fantasies. But Sir Joshua seems always to be at hand, either to witness Genevieve's most mortifying moments, or to make himself so agreeable that she wishes she had not given up romance.
When her daughter develops a decided tendre for Sir Joshua, however, Genevieve suddenly realizes where her own heart lies, and must make a painful choice. For what loving mother could—or would—play rival to her own daughter?

Comment: It's time for another TBR Challenge post. In May the theme is "freebie", which immediately brings to mind a book that was free. I got the one I chose for free after seeing it mentioned in a deals' page of a website I subscribed. At the time, this was free in several retailers and there I went to grab it, since it caught my attention.

This is an historical romance, set in the Regency period. Sir Joshua Stiles is a widowed man, who mourned the death of his wife but is aware he might still find someone to spend the rest of his days with, but all the young debutantes always seem very immature to him. Due to certain circumstances, he finally meets mrs Breckinridge, a friend of his sister and a widow as well. Although the woman seems a bit silly at times, always getting herself into weird situations, he can't help but liking her and her daughter Lenore, about to have her come out, as well as Tom, her son. When someone from the lady's past, linked to her unlikable husband, comes to cause trouble, can sir Joshua ignore it or his awareness of the woman and of what being a gentleman means can influence him to help her once more?

I had not heard of this author before this title (and simple but tasteful) cover caught my eye. The blurb also made this seem like a quiet but romantic story and I was ready to see how the author would deal with the interesting key element in said blurb: "When her daughter develops a decided tendre for Sir Joshua, however, Genevieve suddenly realizes where her own heart lies, and must make a painful choice." This is not something very often seen in romance novels and I was curious.

The story starts rather simply. One day, at the request of his sister, sir Joshua is on the way to deliver a letter to one of her friends when, after some obstacles that tired him already, he has to stop to aid a woman who had trouble with her horse. They don't get along but he does recognize she isn't one of those woman who seem to depend on man for everything. He thinks nothing more of it, delivers the letter although no one except a servant is home. Of course, this being a romance novel, the letter was precisely destined to that woman he helped.

The lady is mrs Breckinridge, who we are told has had a loveless marriage and she regrets the fact she was more infatuated than in love but now she is a widow, she has her children already grown up and she never assumed she would find someone else. She is, I'd say, a conscious and intelligent woman, but with some vulnerability and I was eager to see how the romance with someone who seemed way more practical and serious would pan out. Added the young daughter in her first season who is still immature abut the ways of the world, and perhaps this could be an interestingly dramatic but romantic tale.

The plot is quite unassuming, and the characters focused on proper behaviors and being good people even when faced with complicated situations or past disappointments/tragedies. I think the author has not invented exaggerated issues, delivered a simple story with appealing characters (except young Lenore which was just too immature and a bit annoying at times) but probably the detail that one cannot ignore is the writing style. Unlike many novels, the writing here is done to resemble the way people spoke back then, using expressions and speech patters that we would see as "old fashioned". I suppose the author wanted to convey more authenticity to the characters' behavior and interactions.

On one hand, this was well done but on the other, it did made for a bit more awkward reading. I've read the idea was based on the author's love for Georgette Heyer and Jane Austen and how she attempted to recreate those types of books. I think it might depend on one's mood and preferences because it can make for a certain duller read here and there. I also felt it highlighted the ridiculousness of some issues, such as the villain's actions - he felt like a caricature at the end, when he does one last action - or Lenore's behavior. I believe the choices were close to accurate to actual behaviors people back then might have done, but Lenore was so immature...which made the possibility of her thinking herself in love with an older, mature man such as sir Joshua something we know could happen, but very unlikely here to be believable.

This could be labeled "clean romance" (or whatever is the identification of no intimacy scenes in books) and I wasn't bothered by it, for I've felt the important and key emotions were expressed well enough just by actions the characters had. At the same time, I also felt the author could have gone steps further in enhancing the romance scenes, the romantic developments between the main characters... it isn't necessary to be explicit for a romance to feel intense and while I could see how sir Joshua and mrs Breckinridge might be falling in love, everything was just a bit too subtle and the author could have added more things without changing the "label" or her style. It also made some revelations in the end to feel a bit superficial, as I feel we didn't have enough scenes with longing/chemistry to highlight those feelings before they declare themselves.

In the end, I can say I liked the story as a whole, not so much certain details, I think it was definitely an immersive type of story. I also would have liked of more focus had been on the main romance and not so much on secondary characters and/or situations, but it turned out balanced enough at the end. I'm still debating if I feel like reading more books by the author.

Grade: 7/10

TBR Challenge: Anna Cowan - Untamed

Outspoken and opinionated, Katherine Sutherland is ill at ease amongst the fine ladies of Regency London. She is more familiar with farmers and her blunt opinions and rough manners offend polite society. Yet when she hears the scandalous rumours involving her sister and the seductive Duke of Darlington, the fiercely loyal Katherine vows to save her sister's marriage – whatever the cost.
Intrigued by Katherine's interference in his affairs, the manipulative Duke is soon fascinated. He engages in a daring deception and follows her back to her country home. Here, their intense connection shocks them both. But the Duke's games have dangerous consequences, and the potential to throw both their lives into chaos…

Comment: For the month of April, the theme of the TBR challenge post is unusual historical. I suppose many books could be interpreted this way, but I've chosen one which is identified or labeled as such by many readers. I have had it for a long time but it has slipped my attention until now, where it would fit this theme perfectly. I also had some expectations, considering the blurb and the opinion of some people whose review I've checked.

In this book we meet Katherine Sutherland, a woman many would think of as unusual among the more refined ladies in the city. She is spending some time with her sister, a countess whose marriage has been gossiped about in the papers, especially because of her connection with the Duke of Darlington, someone Kit believes to be unsavory. At a ball, she happens to express her blunt opinion to him, unknowing he was in disguise and that the man everyone thinks is the duke happens to be a friend of his in a convincing role. The duke is surprised but fascinated by Kit and since he has some issues of his own and would like to be away from London for a while, he manipulates things so that Kit believes she is helping her sister by taking him away from the city. Where else could Kit take him, but her own house in the country? She is amazed he travels with her disguised as a woman but that doesn't stop her from seeing his more vulnerable side and the feelings between them become stronger. But is there any future for them when they are from different classes and their personalities seem to be different as well?

I had not read anything by this author before this book and her writing style was a novelty. I didn't really dislike the book nor her way of telling the story but I wasn't as impressed as I would have liked, and I admit I imagined the story would go in a different path, more towards a traditional type of plot, which I see I shouldn't have expected.

In fact, this is an unusual story and not only because there's a difference of class and of personality between the protagonists. These things alone would make for a story we might label unusual but I suppose that isn't as unusual nowadays, when it comes to historical romances anyway. The unusual elements are very clear: the duke likes to cross dress and the heroine isn't a refined lady, making her out of her depth in a ballroom but uncaring of rules. That such opposite people would find each other and develop a relationship is amazing enough but I was curious to see how the author would deal with the dynamics between them.

Since this didn't follow a more traditional road, in the sense that the focus could be in them spending time together and falling in love and try to be together no matter what, the story seemed to be centered in other elements, such as political intrigues related to the dukedom and how Darlington should be recognized as the duke or if he isn't eligible for it. There is also a lot of talk and general content about his actions, his personality, his role and how he sees himself, why he feels is natural to cross dress, to embrace his "unmanly" nature (his definition), how manipulative he is, how he plays the society "games" when his spirit/heart isn't truly in it, among other aspects. I won't go into why this is clever or intentional by the author but from a pure escapism POV, I was sometimes too distracted by all these things and failed to see how the duke and Kit were falling in love.

The words are there and the scenes and I could see how the aim was to showcase that even in differences and in expectations, they could still find each other, but apart from one scene close to the end, their romance was kind of boring, to be honest. Both have issues, emotional scars they didn't deal with properly before and that now affect their behaviors and notions of self, which is all great and necessary for character development, but the way this was told just didn't captivate me. I suppose I wanted them to be a bit more clever about everything, a bit more aware of what it all meant in the past and why they are now this way, making these choices and decisions. instead, it feels as if they are thinking about their problems and why things might not work or how others might perceive them... which is all realistic and part of being human, but I wanted less introspection, more romance.

Perhaps I'm being unfair or I didn't get the point of the story, but these two weren't happy people and the things that made them miserable might be quite fair but the process of their romance didn't warm up them to me. Kit was a little easier to like because she is a young woman who does what she has to in order to see things happen, and she prefers to stay home and deal with things she controls. The HEA she and the duke achieve would not have been believable if her personality weren't one of self confidence and of tackling things straight on, so I kind of liked her and was happy she found her path but this wasn't one of those stories where I feel their romance was the best solution. I often thought maybe they should simply go their own way and remain alone.

The plot is sometimes confusing, all the games and moves made can be a bit tiring to keep track of and with the tactics used by the duke to set things up, I sometimes felt a little annoyed. 

As for the secondary characters, Kit's mother and brother were unassuming, quiet people and I liked them and the contrast to Kit and the duke in disguise. Some village related sub plots which affect Kit and her family were more interesting to me than the political stuff or the dukedom issues and even Lydia, the sister who first linked Kit and the duke together weren't as fascinating. Often characters would act in such ways... OK, in real life I might be more understanding of what they perceive as their flaws and challenges, but in fiction this made for an annoying read at times.

In the end, I just didn't feel a connection with the protagonists as a couple. Their romance didn't feel special, despite the circumstances that should have guaranteed that anyway. Even the cross dressing and all the details linked to it about the duke's personality and tastes felt a little secondary, as if he was just doing it to get a result and not because he truly felt that need, so it made me think of him as someone who was simply too confused. Perhaps as confused as I felt sometimes while reading...

Grade: 5/10

TBR Challenge: Nicole Burnham - Scandal With a Prince

A one night stand. A lifelong obsession.
One magical summer, Megan Hallberg met—and loved—Prince Stefano Barrali. But his royal duties took him home, and when she discovered she carried his child, she also discovered he was engaged…to a beautiful, worldly aristocrat.
Ten years later, Stefano runs into Megan at the grand opening of a Barcelona hotel, and it’s his every sensual fantasy come to life. His memory of the stunning blonde and their passionate summer has haunted his dreams, and a night under the stars gives him the perfect opportunity to reclaim the woman he thought lost to him.
Megan finds herself torn between passion with a prince and a fierce need to protect her daughter. Can the man who captured her heart so many years ago be her destiny…or her downfall?

Comment: The days just keep passing by... it's time for the TBR Challenge post once again and for March the theme is "baggage", which is vague enough to be interpreted in many ways. For me, I thought of the idea of someone having some kind of information/situation not shared with someone else and in the case of this novel, the heroine has not told her past fling that there was a baby. So, I thought, isn't the secret baby trope the most interesting type of "baggage" one could carry?

In this book we meet heroine Megan Hallberg who, ten years ago, was doing volunteer work and that is how she met prince Stefano Barrali. They had a wonderful summer romance but when the summer ends and they have to go back to their routines, Megan discovers she is pregnant. Unfortunately, she can't get Stefano to call her back, despite the several attempts, and she accepts he just isn't interested and has moved on, since he announces his engagement soon after. 

Now, they randomly meet again at the opening of the Barcelona hotel she has helped to design and manage and it seems as if their attraction never ended. It's true he didn't marry after all, but can she trust him once more, especially since there's their daughter Anna to consider as well?

I mean, this does sound as if it's a pretty basic story line in one of those Mills and Boon books... I've seen the author wrote for Silhouette but I think her more recent books are self published? I could not find precise information on this but, anyway, the story is as basic and linear as one would imagine from the blurb. It's not that category books are bad or weaker than anything else, but it's also true one might have expectations on them. I can't remember why I added this but I suppose it's another example of a "royal romance" type of book I wanted to try.

As for the "baggage" detail, I also think that is very obvious and exactly I picked this one for the challenge. I actually liked that, unlike so many other similar books, in this one the secret baby wasn't a terrible secret hidden on purpose. There's a sort of mix between bad communication and realistic expectations by Megan, after all she did try to contact him, but it was also quite refreshing that, now, after seeing him again, she didn't try to hide it as soon as she thought on the subject.I say this because it would be so easy to keep the angst and the secrets but they went for talking and trying to find a way to make a relationship between Stefano and Anna work, despite their different lives.

I'll be contradictory, though: since they acted like adults and discussed this, it became obvious as well where this would go and part of the conflict ended, being the focus now on how soon they would reconnect, both emotionally and physically. To me, at the same time I liked this, I think it made the plot quite boring. It seemed as if the path could only be one, so the constant discussion of issues, the supposed encounters to make Anna spend time with her father and the fact he disguised himself so he could play tourist with them in a crowded Barcelona... it just turned boring.

In part, this feeling of being bored comes from how Megan and Stefano are characterized. They are good people, under all the professional and personal personas they present but there aren't that many layers to them, nothing really "special" except the reason why they have a bond and the baggage they have to solve is all emotional and in how can they be a couple, considering Stefano's identity and the demands on who and what he is. It's true he belongs to a fictional royal family, in an also fictional city state - funny how it is said if the line of Barallis ended, their city state would revert to Italy - but the author has put an interesting twist in this.

Therefore, the story is rather basic, things go slowly but steadily to make them feel like a couple, perhaps a family in the future, and the way this is headed will certainly mean Megan will be part of the royals too. But I thought to myself, where is the conflict now, why is everything so easy if only people accept their choices (such as Megan accepting to work in the city state or Stefano accepting he can make decisions and not just following his parents decisions)? This reconnecting also happened in a very short period of time, so I got the feeling they didn't really work for the changes, they just did plans and hoped for the best.

I can't pinpoint exactly why this felt too bland and boring, but perhaps, for me, it would have more fun to watch the interactions of these three, as soon as Stefano and Anna's relationship had been established, with Stefano's family... but this didn't happen, so there were no new elements to be added.

The end is also a bit abrupt and while one can imagine well enough, it's just not the same. At the same time, I can't be that bothered because I wasn't fully impressed and I don't plan on reading the following installments.

Grade: 6/10

TBR Challenge: Trish Doller - The Suite Spot

Rachel Beck has hit a brick wall. She’s a single mom, still living at home and trying to keep a dying relationship alive. Aside from her daughter, the one bright light in Rachel’s life is her job as the night reservations manager at a luxury hotel in Miami Beach—until the night she is fired for something she didn’t do.
On impulse, Rachel inquires about a management position at a brewery hotel on an island in Lake Erie called Kelleys Island. When she’s offered the job, Rachel packs up her daughter and makes the cross country move.
What she finds on Kelleys Island is Mason, a handsome, moody man who knows everything about brewing beer and nothing about running a hotel. Especially one that’s barely more than foundation and studs. It’s not the job Rachel was looking for, but Mason offers her a chance to help build a hotel—and rebuild her own life—from the ground up.

Comment: For the month of February, the TBR Challenge theme is "getaway". It's true one could go many directions, but I've chosen something where the main character moves to a new (distant) place, mainly for work, but also as a way to escape an apparent stagnated situation.

In this second installment in the Beck sisters series by author Trish Doller, we focus our attention on Rachel, sister to Anna (from book #1). Rachel is older and feels as if Anna has had it easier in life, despite the tragedy of her fiancé. Now that Anna seems to have moved on, Rachel feels even worse, her job is a good one but everything else seems to go badly and now even her amazing daughter stops her from having less positive thoughts once in a while. However, her bubble pops when the most unfair of reasons causes her to be fired but thankfully, a new job offer goes her way and she decides to move from Florida to Ohio, to work at Kelleys Island, where a brew hotel needs a manager. Things aren't as simple as they seemed when she accepted, but Rachel feels this project will be good for her and her daughter and the fact her new boss isn't hard on the eyes also helps. Will Rachel finally find stability for her life?

This is the second book by the author I pick for the TBR post. I did like Anna's story, which I had read last year, mostly for the setting. This time the setting is again special - an island with a hotel oriented towards those who like beer - and I was interested in seeing how the fact Rachel would be "getting away" to a new job and place and reality would affect her development as a character.

I think the goal was well achieved by the author, in fact. I liked Rachel as a character and how she goes from believing she would not find fulfillment in life (in whatever shape that would be to her) to finding a small community which accepts her, a job she likes and takes satisfaction from, a new leaf for her own feelings and, of course, a new love. I mean, down to its basics, this is pretty much the dream and in real life things rarely go as smoothly. The author has decided to add a few small twists to this, and the focus is most definitely on Rachel's personal and emotional growth, so the plot is very character-focused and the complications at the end felt a little staged, as if something had to happen so things wouldn't be so easy.

I can't fully judge, but in terms of emotional journey I think this was a good and healthy portrait of how to go on with life with small steps - OK, except moving so far away! - so that Rachel could feel more confident with herself and the choices she made. Rachel describes herself as "fat" at some point and we do have indication others see her this way as well, and this is one of the reasons why she isn't always as confident as she would want, and it was something that affected her romantic decisions, including why she slept with the father of her daughter. Going to a new place where no one seems to point the finger at her is probably a little unrealistic but of course I liked that this also helped her feel more assertive.

The daughter is a cutie, not one of those precocious children who speak as if they're teenagers or adults but I feel her presence wasn't just a prop to advance certain things. Rachel's relationship with her mother and sister isn't perfect either, as if they read each others's thoughts or something, but I liked that whatever issues they had weren't too hard to deal with or that by talking something positive came out of it. The secondary characters were also key enough to help Rachel feel she belonged and that she could achieve the things she wanted, without much antagonism. Even her work at the hotel felt like it clicked quite easily, not only because she is skilled but because what was happening wasn't a closed situation.

As for the romance, I liked that the author took time to set up Rachel and Mason as employee and boss but the dynamics aren't weird at all because of how the setting and the work itself was planned. I felt like they started of as polite strangers, aware of each other's limits in what was acceptable or not and then progressed to show how they became friends. It does help that the work they had to do allowed for small steps of getting to understand each other, and that makes the relationship feel it developed slowly.

I've mentioned that there are some difficulties towards the end of the story, an issue which didn't seem possible to become one, does. I confess it felt like a sudden choice made by the author just to add some drama, because it didn't really feel as if it had to be a problem for Rachel and the path the took. It helped to reinforce that what she had found was the best for her, but considering the kind of emotional development everyone who mattered had gotten, this felt unnecessary.

All things considered, I liked this one a little bit more than the first. Of course I feel like trying the third book too, featuring friends of these characters, perhaps.

Grade: 8/10

TBR Challenge: Sara Alexi - The Illegal Gardener

Driven by a need for some control in her life, Juliet sells up on impulse and buys a run down farmhouse in a tiny Greek village, leaving her English life behind. Her boys have grown and she has finally divorced her bullying husband. This is her time now.
Whilst making her new home habitable, Juliet discovers she needs a sturdy helping hand with the unruly and neglected garden. Unwilling to share her newfound independence with anyone, but unable to do all the work by herself, she reluctantly enlists casual labour.
Aaman has travelled to Greece from Pakistan illegally. Desperate to find a way out of poverty, his challenge is to find work and raise money for the harvester his village urgently need to survive.
What he imagined would be a heroic journey in reality is fraught with danger and corruption. Aaman finds himself in Greece, and with each passing day loses a little more of himself as he survives his new life as an immigrant worker; illegal, displaced, unwanted and with no value. Hungry and stranded, how will he ever make it back home to Pakistan?
In what begins as an uncomfortable exchange, Juliet hires Aaman to be her gardener, but resents the intrusion even though she needs the help. Aaman needs the work and money but resents the humiliation.
In spite of themselves, as the summer progresses, they get to know one another and discover they have something in common. Pieces of their lives they have kept hidden even from themselves are exposed, with each helping the other to face their painful past.
Will Juliet and Amaan finally let each other in? And what will be the outcome of this improbable conjoining of two lost souls?

Comment: The new year has barely started and it's already the middle of January! 

Once again, I've signed-up for the TBR Challenge and this year, the theme for this month is "starting over". I've decided to go with a book which I thought would be a romance but it isn't truly, featuring a British woman who is starting over in Greece after a divorce, and an illegal Pakistani man looking for a better life but facing terrible adversity in his attempt to start over again. I mean, practically a two-for-one deal...

In this novel we meet Aaman, a Pakistani man who went the illegal emigrant route so he could try to earn money and help his family back home. It's a common story among so many other men and women like him but he believed the journey would be a little less hard. He is now stuck in Greece, things are miserable and he can only have goals from day to day. One of those days, a woman who is looking for help hires him and another man to do some work around her garden....

Juliet is divorced and has two grown up sons but she decided to move to Greece so she could live her dream and heal in a place that would make her happy. She is wary at first by hiring those men and one of them she doesn't feel like hiring back. But as the days go by and she starts to understand Aaman a little, the closer their connection is. But Aaman can't control his life, what can Juliet do to help him become legal?

I should start by saying that this isn't a romantic story... Aaman and Juliet become friends and probably could be even more than that but circumstances don't really allow their relationship to be much more than that... I say this because the blurb and reviews might indicate romance and, in some way, one could see this as such, but there's no love story or HEA at the end... for me, it's more a story about connections, being true to yourself and the wonderful power of friendship and sacrifice.

The story has a very serious feel to it and doesn't hide from the hardships and corruption immigrants face, especially the illegal ones and how much prejudice and fear is constant in any interaction these people face. Aaman is portrayed as a man with a quest, as if his journey is one of those old knight stories where a man must accomplish a task in order to be recognized for his value. He isn't an immigrant for personal glory but because he wants to help his family and his village back in Pakistan.

Throughout the story we get to see plenty scenes/situations where Aaman is mistreated, deceived, hurt and how so many others have the same treatment and all this happens as in a vicious cycle because of corruption and lack of real strategy to help any poor immigrant seeking help in a different country. I won't go more into it, after all this is a real problem with no apparent solution in sight but let it be said the author summarized pretty well what these people would face. 

The theme is, therefore, too hard to ignore and makes the story have this permanent depressing tone, I must say. Still, Aaman is almost too good to be true, he has a kind heart and genuinely wants to help Juliet and not harm her and I could see how simple a relationship between two different people can be if people just respect one another. I can see how this would lead one to assume they would become a couple but I also believe the author's intention was more a portrayal of the situation than to have this amazing romance story.

Juliet is a bit easier to read, she is divorced and wants a new life, she is now trying to renovate the house she bought in Greece and she doesn't rust Aaman that much at first but with time they become friends. I loved the way we got to see their friendship blossom and despite the differences, how much in common they actually had. I also loved Juliet is a translator and she works in her own pace... although it felt she could find jobs very easily and I know it's not always exactly so...

When the story gets to a point where something has to happen, Juliet goes way beyond what a person probably would be able to do and I think some details were a bit too fantasy-like in how they are done, but it make the whole story have a goal, to show how friendship and love don't have to mean a couple emerges from shared experiences, in this case Juliet helps Aaman because she knows that is the definition of friendship and care for another, to help someone achieve what is important to them as she self realizes a friend helped her too, although at a different level.

I'd say this is a book more focused on possibilities and exemplifying what could happen if people would help each other more than when they judge. Aaman and Juliet as characters aren't stereotyped at all, which means we get to feel their relationship as unique and unlike the norm, something possible if not very likely, but truthful nonetheless. For me, these two did start over and managed to find peace or accomplishments at the end because they are good people and helped one another... 

I think the author had a goal with writing this story this way but the fictional parts, although sometimes a bit too unlikely, softened some issues and made for a good reading in general. Still, I couldn't help but think of this, that I had the feeling this was a book with an agenda. The fictional elements, mainly the character's actions and surroundings, didn't seem as strongly presented.

Grade: 6/10