ARCs reviews
2.75 stars After reading S. T. Gibson’s third book, I’ve found they are definitely hit or miss on whether I’m going to enjoy the story. I liked A Dowry of Blood but couldn’t finish An Education in Malice. Evocation fell more in the middle of those two. I like Gibson’s writing style but the storyline […]
4 stars Threads that Bind was a good read. I found the idea of this world so interesting. Descendants of gods, always siblings, have different powers. The sad part is the other-born are discriminated against and are often blamed for things that are not their fault. Io is a moira-born, which means she’s a descendant […]
4.25 stars This book was great. I was hooked by the first chapter. It’s such a dark and heartbreaking first chapter; it really sets you up for the story you will be reading. This did not get a higher rating because the first third, after chapter one, was super slow for me. It felt bogged […]
3.75 stars I am a sucker for mythology retellings, even when I don’t know anything about the original myth. Since this book is based on the Mahabharata, an epic I am unfamiliar with, I did a little research as I read. There are many characters and sometimes I found it confusing as to who was […]
2 stars I tend to like mythology retellings, and I was definitely interested in this one. It was compared to The Bear and the Nightingale and Uprooted, so I was intrigued because I loved both of those novels. This one did not hold a candle to them. I wanted to like Zerryn, but I could […]
4.25 stars I cried. Twice. This is a historical fantasy that broke my heart. Ann Liang’s worldbuilding and storytelling are fantastic. While the start of the book was slow, once Xishi got to the Wu empire, I could not put it down. Usually, when I read a fantasy, I want magic, and there is none […]
DNF – 38% I really tried to get into this book, but every time I tried to pick it up, I wanted to put it down. I felt no connection to any of the characters, and the rising action did nothing to pull me in. I found Ocean’s reason for being reprimanded so harshly a […]
3.5 stars This book was difficult for me to rate. While reading it, I enjoyed many aspects, but it was also so easy to put down and not pick back up. The worldbuilding is interesting and I liked the history that we are given on how the Shimmer came to be. Eveen is a fun […]
4.5 stars I’m not a parent, nor do I really plan on becoming one. Despite this, I really wanted to read Gwenna’s book. I follow her on TikTok, and I find her parenting techniques very interesting. She is also hilarious, so I just had to read her book. The thing is, this book was great, […]
1 star I was drawn to this because of the cover, the title, and the summary. It all seemed like this would be perfect for me. In the end, I was just disappointed. This was not good. First, the art. It was confusing to follow at some points, and relied too heavily on copying previous […]
Spellbound Reviewer 