A Reader's Ramblings
  • Home
  • About
  • Books
  • Travel Photos

My Ramblings on A Lady for a Duke

5/16/2022

0 Comments

 
Picture
A Lady for a Duke
By: Alexis Hall
Release Date: May 24, 2022
Author Website
Goodreads Page


Why I loved this book: ​The very short of it is that I absolutely love this book. I'm not entirely sure what I expected from this book, I was a little 
hesitant on how it would all pull together, except I know that Alexis Hall has never dissapointed me before, and so I trusted that he would have it well in hand and that it would all come together. It did. It really, really did. I have been burned before on Historical romance and bad takes, but I never should have doubted. Hall creates characters that you are almost immediately invested in and from the jump I knew that Viola and Gracewood were endgame and it was just a matter of how they would get there.

Hall does something that I deeply appreciate with this book- Viola's gender is key to the story, and key to her growth as a person and key to her relationship with Gracewood. The fact that it was something that wasn't spoken about at that time in history is made clear, but, and this is where Hall nails it- Viola's gender is not treated as the big bad in the plot. It's a concern in so much as she is worried about how it will impact her closest relationships, but at the end of the day the people who love her, love her. Their hurt comes primarily from the fact that she felt that she couldn't tell them, that they had given her any reason to doubt their love and acceptance... but never for becoming who she was always meant to be. Hall weaves the internal worry that comes with the not knowing how people will react perfectly, and makes it clear that no matter what, you deserve love and acceptance.

And that message carries over to all the characters- Gracewood is suffering both mentally and physically from the things he encountered at Waterloo. He is grappling with the loss of his best friend and the loss of the man he thought he was supposed to become. At a time when he believes he needs to project strength, instead he feels hopeless and the injuries to his leg have left him feeling like he can never be the man he thinks he must. His sister Mira is also a bit lost. She knows what she is supposed to do and who she is supposed to be, knows that it is expected for her to find a husband and begin a family, but  her wants and desires leave her a bit on the outside of traditional society. With both Gracewood and Mira, Hall again reminds us that it's okay to be who you are, it's okay to not meet the expectations of those around you (especially those who do not actually care for you), and it's okay to chase your dreams even if others don't understand them. That again, no matter what, you deserve love and acceptance.

I love historical fiction and I love a good romance. This one hits both notes perfectly and I'm hoping that Hall will allow us to keep visiting with these characters- I'd love to check back in with Viola and Gracewood and their family and I would especially love to join Mira on some adventures.
0 Comments

April Wrap Up

5/11/2022

0 Comments

 
About a week late- but finally ready to post a reading wrap up for April. I managed to get through 10 books in April, a good chunk of them ARC's from Edelweiss, and again, all of them really good. The bnulk of them came out in April or the first part of May, so you can get your hands on the now! I did DNF one book this month, not neccessarily a bad book, but defintiely not a book for me. At any rate- lets get to it. 
Picture
Most Anticipated ARC
​Cafe Con Lychee by Emery Lee


This one just came out yesterday and it is excellent. My absolute favorite part of this book, and really of Lee's other book (Meet Cute Diary) as well, is that these characters are messy, they make awful choices,
and yet... you want the best for them. They are allowed to be realistic teenagers and screw up, and also be totally worthy of good things. Gabi and Theo are a full disaster, and I love them for it. 
Favorite Fantasy
​So This is Ever After by FT Lukens


I do not read a ton of fantasy books, but FT Lukens' books are the perfect blend of fantasy and real life. The characters are people you can imagine running into on a regular Tuesday, their worries and dreams are 
Picture
increadibly relatable... they just happen to also be dealing with magic and high courts and ancient prophecies that might well end up with someone dead. On top of that the main characters Arek and Matt are instantly loveable. You know where the story is going, you know how you want it to end, and you hope Lukens is going to give it to you... the fun is following along as they bumble their way to the finish line. 
Picture
A little bit of Romance
Lucky Leap Day by Ann Marie Walker


I choose romance books two ways: recommended on twitter and walking past the table at Barnes and Nobles and grabbing something without knowing anything about it. I got this one at Barnes and Nobles and fell
immediately in love with it. I read the whole thing in one sitting. It hits all the right RomCom notes, there's an instant meet cute, a terrible ex, an accidental wedding, many (MANY) misunderstandings and a super adorable dog. Both Cara and Finn are great characters and its easy to get swept away in their nonsense and become invested in their future. What I really liked about this one is that by the end, I was happy with who both characters were on their own, and even though your always looking for that HEA in a RomCom, I also felt like if this was just a blip on their timeline I'd be okay with it. Ultimately it ends perfectly and I'm super glad I snagged this one on a whim. 
Favorite Library Find
Ain't Burned all the Bright by Jason Reynolds and Jason Griffin


Saying this is a "library find" is a bit of a misnomer- it's not like I stumbled upon it at the library. I am the librarian, I fully ordered this book knowing it would be perfect for our library. It's just that I do my 
Picture
orders in October/November and because of some supply chain issues the last of them just rolled in... so it's a bit like Christmas for me in that I dont' know which books are going to be in there until I open the box. So, yeah, I bought this one for the library and it arrived a few weeks ago and I immediately devoured it before checking it out to kids. This book is EXCELLENT. Reynolds is already a fan favorite here in the library, so I was excited to get this title in. 

In Ain't Burned all the Bright Reynolds and Griffin look at the reality of living through the pandemic and how that impact is felt on a daily basis by a kid. What does it feel like to know a parent is sick in the next room, or when a sibling is withdrawing into their phone, or when watching the news is so repetative that it feels inescapable. The topics in the book are heavy and I was a little worried that it might be too soon, since we are very much still in it, but Reynolds prose combined with Griffin's art pull you right into the story and you remember first what those early days are like, and then that there is always hope. This book is a perfect addition to our shelves. 
Full Wrap Up! 
Those are some highlights from the last month- reviews of all my April reads are up on Goodreads and will be slow rolling out here as we hit the release dates. 
0 Comments

My Rambling on Cafe Con Lychee

5/8/2022

0 Comments

 
Picture
Cafe Con Lychee
By
: Emery Lee
Release Date: May 10, 2022
Author Website
Goodreads Page

Why I loved this book: My absolute favorite thing about Emery Lee's writing is that eir characters are 
complete chaos and make absolutely disasterous decisions and yet somehow they are entirely endearing and no matter how much you want to yell at them, you also, in equal measure want the absolute world for them. Cafe Con Lychee delivers in total messy glory. 

I immediately loved both Gabi and Theo and I knew that although they would most likely find their way together in the end, that it would be a wild ride to get there. Both Gabi and Theo are trying their best- they have school, sports, their family businesses and their families expecatations to contend with and both are drowning a little bit. And then they are shoved together in a scheme to save their family restaurants and the enemies to lovers vibe is strong in this one, but the path isn't easy. Neither believes they deserve happiness so they find themselves fighting not only with outside influences, but with themselves as well. 

I won't give the resolution away- but what's beautiful about what Lee does here is that e allows for both Gabi and Theo to make a mess of things and still find themselves worthy of forgiveness and love. It's something that they needed to learn and hear, it's something that readers need to learn and hear- that you can mess up, you can say hurtful things that you don't mean, sometimes when you are trying to do your best you might make really bad decisions... and you can still be a good person worth of respect and love. 

This is exactly the kid of book I like to put on the library shelf- I can't wait for more readers to meet Gabi and Theo. ​
0 Comments
<<Previous
                                            About
    Home of the ramblings of an avid reader. In my spare time I also run, ride, teach, go on adventures and get into shenanigans. 

    ​Find me here: 
    Goodreads
    Twitter
    Instagram
    ​Etsy
    TikTok
    Professional Reader
    Picture

    RSS Feed

    2022 Reading Challenge

    2022 Reading Challenge
    Kit has read 38 books toward their goal of 70 books.
    hide
    38 of 70 (54%)
    view books

    Kit's bookshelf: 2022

    Never Ever Getting Back Together
    it was amazing
    Never Ever Getting Back Together
    by Sophie Gonzales
    Ain't Burned All the Bright
    it was amazing
    Ain't Burned All the Bright
    by Jason Reynolds
    You Better Be Lightning
    really liked it
    You Better Be Lightning
    by Andrea Gibson
    Lucky Leap Day
    really liked it
    Lucky Leap Day
    by Ann Marie Walker
    Café Con Lychee
    it was amazing
    Café Con Lychee
    by Emery Lee

    goodreads.com

    Categories

    All
    Art
    Author Interview
    Book Review
    Books
    Convention
    Guitars
    Hiking
    Kayaking
    Louden Swain
    NetGalley
    North Face
    Photography
    Race Recap
    Reading
    Running
    Runnnerbox
    #SPNFamily
    Star Wars
    Supernatural
    Trail Running
    Travel
    Wilderness
    Yellowstone

    Archives

    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    April 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    November 2019
    October 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    April 2017
    February 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    February 2016
    November 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014

Proudly powered by Weebly
  • Home
  • About
  • Books
  • Travel Photos