I love reading books that reimagine fairy tales, so I was instantly drawn to The Book of Heartbreak by Ova Ceren. Set mainly in Istanbul, it follows 17-year-old Sare in the countdown to the end of her curse of heartbreak. All she must do is survive until her 18th birthday without having her heart broken... Continue Reading →
This week Darcie Wilde released the first in her Young Queen Victoria mystery series, The Heir. Set in 1835, it follows 16-year-old Princess Victoria when she stumbles upon a dead body. Who was this man, and why is his death being covered up? Was it truly an accident, or is something more sinister afoot? As... Continue Reading →
For the past couple of years, I have been loving Liana de La Rosa‘s Luna Sisters series. Following Ana María and The Fox in 2023 and Isabel and The Rogue in 2024, the trilogy now comes to an end with the fiery youngest sister in Gabriela and His Grace. Gabriela Luna is no friend of Sebastian Brooks, Duke of Whitfield, and... Continue Reading →
I have been absolutely loving all the music-themed romances coming out this year, and one of my most anticipated was Kate Golden's If Not for My Baby. It starts with the kind of unexpected opportunity we all dream of: Small-town waitress Clementine's best friend drops out of backup singing duties in a big star's tour... Continue Reading →
William Shakespeare is among the most important authors in history, and his works endure to this day. There has been some speculation about his authorship—a fringe theory, but one that inspires a fascinating new novel, The Shakespeare Secret by D.J. Nix. Here, it is late 1591 when three women of different social class happen to... Continue Reading →
My first time reading Emily Sullivan was last fall with Duchess Material. I loved that series opener, so I was excited to read another book—also the first in a new series!—A Death on Corfu. Set on the Greek island of Corfu in 1898, it opens with Minnie Harper, the widowed mother of two. Despite her... Continue Reading →
Ruth Ware has been my favorite thriller author since I read The Woman in Cabin 10 nearly eight years ago. That book is still among my top three favorites by her, so I was excited to learn it would have a sequel: The Woman in Suite 11. It's ten years after the horrors that happened... Continue Reading →
For me, the best summer reads tend to be ones that transport me to other countries around the world. One of my favorite destinations is Italy. That led me to Jill Francis's debut, The Summer You Were Mine. Fourteen years after childhood friends almost became something more, they're back in Italy together for their respective... Continue Reading →
Virginia Heath's books are always a ton of fun, and that's certainly true of her latest: Look Before You Leap, the second in her Miss Prentice's Protégées series. This one follows Lottie after she's been fired (again) and gets a new job for the famously cranky Lady Frinton. Together they go to Kent for Lady... Continue Reading →
Happiest release week to the latest novel by one of my favorite authors, Harper St. George. Following last year’s The Stranger I Wed, the Doves of New York series continues with the youngest Dove sister in Eliza and the Duke. Contrary to the title, the “duke” here is actually Simon, a bare-knuckles fighter who’s been trying to fight... Continue Reading →
I've been loving Claudia Gray's Mr. Darcy and Miss Tilney Mystery series, so I could hardly wait for the fourth installment, The Rushworth Family Plot. Now that Jonathan Darcy and Juliet Tilney have a reputation for solving murders, it's no wonder the London police immediately give them free rein to investigate the latest crime: Mr.... Continue Reading →
Pride and Prejudice is a popular book to reimagine, but The Unlikely Pursuit of Mary Bennet by Lindz McLeod is the first I've seen that draws a romance between Charlotte Lucas and Mary Bennet. To be honest, this actually seems like the perfect pairing! Here, Charlotte has become a widow after only four years of... Continue Reading →
Last year, Christy Schillig released her debut novel, Wish You Weren't Here. I love travel romance, and this one brings readers to Urbino, Italy. Ava has been dating her boyfriend for a few years and is expecting a marriage proposal. Instead, when she's about to leave for a month-long trip to Italy, he proposes that... Continue Reading →
I'm a person who's obsessed with time and reality and the butterfly effect of everyday life decisions. This is what drew me to Paige Harbison's adult debut, The Other Side of Now. Over a decade after losing her best friend, Meg Bryan is a successful actress, but she's not happy. Nothing in her life is... Continue Reading →
Next week, V. E. Schwab will release her highly anticipated new novel, Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil. Divided between three timelines—1520s and 1530s in Spain; 1827 in London; 2019 in Boston—it follows three young women craving something more in life. But there's a price to pay when seeking freedom and answers. Though I've... Continue Reading →
Happy release day to one of my most anticipated books this year, Rules for Ruin by Mimi Matthews. This is the seventh book of hers that I've read, and dare I say, possibly my favorite yet! The first of her new Crinoline Academy series, Rules for Ruin introduces Effie Flite, a woman raised at an... Continue Reading →
Alex North has become one of my favorite authors in the past few years, so I was excited to read his brand new book, The Man Made of Smoke. Following several characters and a few timelines, it starts when young Dan has a brief encounter with a serial killer and one of the boys he'd abducted. Decades... Continue Reading →
As a former and soon-to-be (again!) expat, I'm always drawn to books set in other countries. This is what caught my attention about Rachel Lynn Solomon's newest release, What Happens in Amsterdam. I've been wanting to read this author for a few years, and this novel looked like the perfect, wanderlust-inducing place to start. When... Continue Reading →
Tomorrow is the release of Natalie Jenner's fourth novel, Austen at Sea. While this book continues her theme of Austeneque historical fiction, it goes back farther in time, to 1865, and features people who knew Jane Austen in her lifetime. It follows two sisters who begin corresponding with Sir Francis Austen, brother of the famous... Continue Reading →
Yesterday the U.S. finally got to see the release of C. J. Cooke's novel, The Ghost Woods. It originally came out in 2022, the final in a trio of books she wrote surrounding themes of motherhood (the other two being The Nesting and The Lighthouse Witches). This Gothic novel follows two timelines, Mabel in 1959... Continue Reading →
Hazardous to a Duke's Heart by Sabrina Jeffries has been on my radar for sometime, and I greatly enjoyed this brief preview of the prologue and first two chapters. It begins in April 1814 when Jon, a détenu trapped in France for the past decade, is finally freed and able to return home to England.... Continue Reading →
We're only three weeks away from the release of Natalie Jenner's fourth novel, Austen at Sea. While this book continues her theme of Austeneque historical fiction, this one goes back farther in time, to 1865, and features people who knew Jane Austen in her lifetime. It follows two sisters who begin corresponding with Sir Francis... Continue Reading →
Two years after releasing her first novel, Emilia Hart is back with her second book, The Sirens. Set mainly in Australia in alternating timelines between 1800, 1999, and 2019, it follows pairs of sisters grappling with what makes them different and the otherworldly rumors surrounding their communities. Why I Chose This Book: Though I haven't... Continue Reading →
Alex North has become one of my favorite authors in the past few years, so I was excited to read his forthcoming book, The Man Made of Smoke. It's due out in May, but I was lucky to receive a physical arc this month. The Man Made of Smoke has many of the themes that... Continue Reading →
Amanda's Book Corner 