Published: June 30, 2020
Del-Ray/Penguin Random House
Series: NA
Genre: Horror, Gothic
Available: BN | Amazon
Add it on Goodreads
Mexican Gothic was a creepy ride...at times, a long creepy ride but still….
Let us get into this review.
Noemi is living her life in 1950s Mexico City. She’s eating good, her family is eating good...she is living the life and she’s also bringing the boys to her yard. Her parents are side-eyeing her about the boys but Noemi is going to do what she wants. Besides, she not tryna to marry these hoes.
So when her father calls her into his office and asks her to go check on her now married cousin...she looking at her dad like “why I gotta go?”. In a nutshell, the man doesn't want any scandal because her cousin is talking kinda crazy in a letter she sent back home. Her dad eventually convinces Noemi to go by telling her “look if you go, I’ll let you go to that school that you’ve been wanting to go to”. And Noemi like “for reals? Okay, I’ll go but don’t try to worm your way out of this old man”. LOLs, I liked Noemi.
So when her father calls her into his office and asks her to go check on her now married cousin...she looking at her dad like “why I gotta go?”. In a nutshell, the man doesn't want any scandal because her cousin is talking kinda crazy in a letter she sent back home. Her dad eventually convinces Noemi to go by telling her “look if you go, I’ll let you go to that school that you’ve been wanting to go to”. And Noemi like “for reals? Okay, I’ll go but don’t try to worm your way out of this old man”. LOLs, I liked Noemi.
So off she goes to visit her cousin Catalina who had married some English man ain’t nobody in Mexico know about. And then the weird things start happening. Dreams, bland unseasoned food and a house that everyone has to stay quiet in. Noemi isn’t for any of it but she has to help her cousin and Francis, one of her cousin-in-law relatives isn’t bad to look at either.
I liked Mexican Gothic for the most part. I do feel like there were some slow prolonged parts in the story because the real action didn’t truly start until like after 60% of the book. But I got what this author was doing. She was building up the creepiness that is Mexican Gothic...the horror. Still I wanted the story to move along a bit faster. What works for this story is the house itself here. The slow terror that almost swallows Noemi and her cousin but they fight literally to a horrifying ending that I’m still trying to process. I don't think I'm going to look at a mushroom normally again....
Still Mexican Gothic is a fantastic edition to the world of Gothic horror. Old creepy houses, people in period clothing and a story-line that is as old as time itself….who belongs in this world and who doesn’t. And what some people will do to keep what they deem superior bloodlines pure...even at the expense of one's own family.
Side Note: Francis was okay and all but he would have been left behind with his family...ijs.
I'm a huge fan of Silvia Moreno-Garcia and this book right here solidifies my fandom. Add to your TBR quickly.
I'm a huge fan of Silvia Moreno-Garcia and this book right here solidifies my fandom. Add to your TBR quickly.
Four star rating on Goodreads.
*Thank you to the publisher/author for the opportunity to read/review.
**Update: Here are a couple of links provided by the publisher for your reading pleasure...and listening.
Printable Paper Dolls of Noemi
Book club List
Spotify Playlist
Zoom Backgrounds
*Thank you to the publisher/author for the opportunity to read/review.
**Update: Here are a couple of links provided by the publisher for your reading pleasure...and listening.
Printable Paper Dolls of Noemi
Book club List
Spotify Playlist
Zoom Backgrounds
Published: June 22, 2020
Self Published
Warm Hues Creative
Series: NA
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Available: BN | Amazon
Add it on Goodreads
I loved the f.u.c.k out of this story.
Tempest Lane and Tristan Grimes are NOW in my top five couples. I loved the banter between them. It was low angst and rude af (but in a good funny way). They played so well off of each other, this truly was a reinvention story for both them...not just Tempest.
Tempest, a former assassin is attempting to reinvent herself. She now owns a candle shop and should be working on that but she is people watching. After a night where she was about to whoop some mans dumb ass, Tristan steps in with an assist. She is interested in the “neighborhood hottie” and he is interested in her…. Now starts our reinvention….
As I said above it wasn’t just Tempest who wanted a new outlook on life, for me it was Tristan too. Both are transplants to the town of Mahogany Heights. Tempest trying to build a life after her time in The Garden and Tristan doing the same after coming home from the military. It’s not easy but they try and it works….notwithstanding a few interruptions, they get to a space that fits them.
Listen, what a ride this story was. Reading as Tempest was just trying to live normal but still had a bit of that killer instinct was refreshing. CCJones didn’t make her too robotic, Tempest knew exactly what she wanted and wasn’t taking any shit because let me tell you Tristan’s ass tried it and as she was cussing his ass out, I was too. Like I would have been that friend in the back like “that’s right girl...cuss his ass out!” lmao. I’m not a violent girl, but I was happy CCJones let Tempest kick ass a little. I mean we cannot let all that training go to waste…
And Tristan, even though I side-eyed him on more than one occasion...he was a good dude. He didn’t know what to do with Tempest...ol boy was confused as fuck and I found that endearing because he really did want to try with her. His own reinvention after coming home from the military was still a work in progress.
And this is what I loved so much about The Reinvention of the Rose. Yes, we get a HEA but it’s still a relationship that is being worked on because both Tempest and Tristan still needed to work on some things and this is what made this book so different from all the other CCJones books I’ve read thus far. But, its a wonderful difference and I would like to see more of it. Just two folk still trying to figure their shit out...I’m not mad about it at all.
With drop-ins from a couple of old favorites and hilarious and heated moments, you need to add this to your reading list with a quickness. And...yes, I’m looking at your real funny if you haven’t read Christina C. Jones yet because I know I done told ya’ll she is the bomb.com….I know I did.
Also, although this can be read as a stand-alone...I highly suggest reading CCJones High Stakes series.
Published: June 2, 2020
Self Published
Series: NA
Format: ARC (Paperback)
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Available: Amazon
*Kindle Unlimited
Add it on Goodreads
Mekada Delane is a first year college athlete is looking to get the student debt her mother is steadily falling under some help. When the school of her choice doesn't give her the scholarship she feels like she worked so hard for, she drops out and transfers to a out-of-state school that offers her a full-ride. But that full-ride comes with a weight that Mekada isn't prepared for.
I feel like Sprint Dreams the plot of this story got swept away with too many unresolved issues that were going on within the book itself. What was the purpose of Sprint Dreams? Initially going into this story, I thought we were going to get a story about a young college student navigating her way through athletic academia while exploring her sexuality. Although the book starts off pretty strong, it often times loses its purposes the further the reader goes into the story.
Don't get me wrong, there are good points in this story. The focus on the abuse and misuse college athletes go through was stellar. But what is its purpose? What story is the author attempting to tell here? The plot of Sprint Dreams imo gets lost in unexplained and unresolved side plots. The powerful points Ms. Dismuke seemed to want to take on are often times lost in translation.
Still...at the end of it all, I do think Sprint Dreams is a gem of a story and can be used as a cautionary tale for young college students.
TW: sexual abuse, rape and abortion.
Three 1/2 star rating on Goodreads
*Thank you to the author for the opportunity to read/review.
Published: June 23, 2020
Avon
Series: The Brown Sisters #2
Format: eARC (NetGalley)
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Interracial Romance
Available: BN | Amazon
Add it on Goodreads
I love a good fake dating romance trope but Take A Hint Dani
Brown just didn’t do what this trope usually does for me….let’s get into this
review shall we?
So this is second book in Talia Hibbert’s The Brown Sisters
series. Dani Brown is a witchy, nerdy college professor working on her tenure….we
don’t get much detail of her life on campus outside of occasional lunches with
her friend Sorcha and then eventually Zafir Ansari whom is a retired rugby
player now security guard who becomes her “fake” boyfriend. Dani and Zafir decide
to become a “couple” when they’re captured in a viral video of him “rescuing”
her from their work building. Zafir who has a HUGE crush on Dani decides to ask
her to fake being his girlfriend to get his struggling non-profit off the
ground. What starts off as them having fake dates in order to make their
relationship look as real as possible soon turn into more…. BUT Dani being the
commitment-phobic woman that she is only wants one thing from Zafir and it isn’t
a relationship.
Okay, what was a big turn off in the story for me was Dani
herself. Bad enough we had to get through near 80% of the book for these two
to even hook up which really isn’t a big deal because the cute funny
banter between them eased some of that annoyance. BUT we read through a
majority of this book with Dani literally being THAT deer caught in bright
headlights.
Me while reading:
Somebody needed to fix Dani's life...
I mean Zafir’s feelings for her were bleeding off these pages but she was running around like “oh I just don’t do relationships", "I’m not good at them” and I was annoyed. And the other thing that rubbed me wrong was that ridiculous break-up towards the end because this man has severe anxiety and for her to just do what she did could have left him in a bad space but the author didn’t go that route so I guess….
Me while reading:
Somebody needed to fix Dani's life...
I mean Zafir’s feelings for her were bleeding off these pages but she was running around like “oh I just don’t do relationships", "I’m not good at them” and I was annoyed. And the other thing that rubbed me wrong was that ridiculous break-up towards the end because this man has severe anxiety and for her to just do what she did could have left him in a bad space but the author didn’t go that route so I guess….
Anyolwho’s, the book does has some good things within it.
Zafir's work with young boys on their feelings, his relationship with the women
in his family. Shit, he was just a good guy. Love the fact that the IR relationship
here doesn’t center whiteness. More stories between Black and Brown people
please.
I do feel like the story was unnecessarily stretched. I mean
continuing to read Dani flail around this book was a struggle and her lusting
after Zafir didn’t…couldn’t save her, at least for me. By the middle of the
book, even that got a bit too much.
But I don’t begrudge the story. I think it had a good start and the humor here and there helps but somewhere in the middle…ending, I at least lost interest. Honestly, Zafir
deserved better. I mean the man reads romance books...I wanted better for him.
TW: Anxiety, Panic Attack, Lost of family members.
TW: Anxiety, Panic Attack, Lost of family members.
*Thank you to the publisher for the opportunity to read/review.
Three star rating on Goodreads.
Three star rating on Goodreads.
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Published: June 9, 2020
Berkley
Series: NA
Format: eARC (NetGalley)
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Available: BN | Amazon
Add it on Goodreads
I really did enjoy this book!
Okay, so Layla returns home after a disastrous break-up with
her ex-boyfriend where she ends up losing her job and a bit of her dignity. After returning home and being convinced by
her dad to start her own business, she now has her own office upstairs from the family's restaurant…. The only issue, she has to share it with Sam, the man
whom her dad had already promised the space too and who has his own thing going
on….Ya’ll, queue the hilarity.
Layla soon finds out that her dad has set up a marriage contract for her on a Desi website and Sam in an attempt to get her out of the office they now share agrees to be her “escort” as she sets up to meet the ten men her father had initially approved. Queue more hilarity.
Me reading Sam and Layla through these marriage meetings:
Layla soon finds out that her dad has set up a marriage contract for her on a Desi website and Sam in an attempt to get her out of the office they now share agrees to be her “escort” as she sets up to meet the ten men her father had initially approved. Queue more hilarity.
Me reading Sam and Layla through these marriage meetings:
But for both Layla and Sam, their strong dislike of each other soon turns into a sparkling heat neither one of them can deny.
Strong points in this book for me was the strong sense of family and duty. The relationship between Layla and her Father was wonderful to see on page. And her family…my gawd today; nosy aunties and all, I loved every minute of reading. Also, it was so good to see Sam and his parents reconnect. And I really and I mean I really did enjoy Layla and Sam on these pages. They were so perfect together. Sam with his serious self and Layla was like that silly burst of sunshine that he desperately…and I mean desperately needed. Now, Sam will work your nerves throughout the story because I was seriously reading certain parts like...Sir....
I feel like the author did an amazing job of staying on theme with The Marriage Game although, I do feel like she drew things a bit out towards the ending.
Strong points in this book for me was the strong sense of family and duty. The relationship between Layla and her Father was wonderful to see on page. And her family…my gawd today; nosy aunties and all, I loved every minute of reading. Also, it was so good to see Sam and his parents reconnect. And I really and I mean I really did enjoy Layla and Sam on these pages. They were so perfect together. Sam with his serious self and Layla was like that silly burst of sunshine that he desperately…and I mean desperately needed. Now, Sam will work your nerves throughout the story because I was seriously reading certain parts like...Sir....
I feel like the author did an amazing job of staying on theme with The Marriage Game although, I do feel like she drew things a bit out towards the ending.
Still, TMG was a joy to read. It's a great feel good story and will have it readers smiling... and laughing through the read. Highly recommend adding it to your TBR list.
(Re)Published: May 2020
Self Published
Series: Falling Like A Johnson #1
Format: eBook (Kindle)
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Available: Amazon
*Kindle Unlimited
Add it on Goodreads
This romance is heavy af.
for Jaxon, can you imagine falling in love with your now dead wife's best friend? or for Maya, can you imagine falling in love your now dead best friends husband?
Both Jaxon and Maya are trying to deal with the death of Charlotte and its hard, really hard especially given the fact that initially these two did not like each other AT ALL. And just when Jaxon thought he could finally rid Maya out of his life, a surprise his wife never got to tell him keeps them tethered in a way he never thought possible. It also brings out unexpected feelings in both him and Maya. Now they must decide if being together is something they fight for or a act of betrayal to the person who meant everything to the both of them.
Whew! when I tell ya'll this book messed of my feelings....my gawd today! Both Maya and Jaxon were characters to root for and rant against. But being that they both lost someone they loved outside of each other was enough to make me root for the romance the brewed between them to have a change.
The way this author wrote this story will have you all in your feelings. You will be left raw at times while reading...maybe even shed a tear or two... or a whole lot. Rilzy Adams did a very good job of keeping me as a reader engaged. The play on attempting to find one's self after the lost of someone so significant in one's life was really amazing and then to have these two fall in love with each other? Oh.My.Gawd. I was totally invested in seeing in this story, these characters...shoot, just everything in it.
The only thing I wished for more of was Maya's past before she started living with Charlotte and her parents.
I say add it to you TBR, you'll be a little "mucked up" but it's worth it.
Proof of me after reading:
*cw: death of a spouse
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(Re)Published: May 2020
Self Published
Series: Falling Like A Johnson #2
Format: eBook (Kindle)
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Available: Amazon
*Kindle Unlimited
Add it on Goodreads
This was a fantastic read but Hallie worked my ever loving nerves. I can't believe I said "Girl." annoyingly so much during a read.
So check it, JT and Hallie are best friends but JT is in love with Hallie okay? like in love in love and she walking around like "oh I love him like a brother". Girl. You ever want to fight a character? Yeah, Hallie was that character to for me. I'm not gonna lie, I didn't like the lady for most of book (even though I was pining for JT and his fine self...). Any ol who's, I grew a soft spot in my heart for her once I found out "the tea". Ya'll! let me tell you me and my good girlfriend would have been fighting in Antigua, lols but she still managed to make me see red...again because damn, if this lady didn't have blinders on...she really couldn't see! But I understood her fear. It's something to feel when you think you are truly going to loose literally the love of your life.
Listen, if you are THAT reader that loves you a cinnamon roll hero (ask me why I had to google that?...), then JT is that dude. Also, if you love a good friends to lovers reading, Will You Be Mine? is your story.
Rilzy Adams wrote tf out of this story. Her writing is straight to the point and the events goings on in this book had me stressed, happy, sad....back to happy. Also, I realized that this is the second book in the series so I'm just going to go back and read book one. I say she did what she had to do. Highly recommend adding it to your TBR.
*cw: teenage pregnancy
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Published: June 9, 2020
Forever Publishing
Series: TBP #1
Format: eBook (ARC)
Genre: Romance (Multicultural)
Available: BN | Amazon
*Add it on Goodreads
Oh how I wanted to really love The Boyfriend Project but somewhere along reading, this story lost mainly…. its romance. I’ll start by telling you what I enjoyed about this story and then we will dip on into what didn’t work for me. So, let’s get into this.
Let us start with what this story is about (because ya’ll know I never give ya’ll the blurb…lols). Three women form an unlikely friendship after a man whom they all thought was their “boyfriend” tried to play them. After becoming close, these women decide to keep each other accountable in achieving their planned goals. We start off with Samiah Brooks. Samiah works in the tech field and is damn good at what she does, her goal? To develop her own app. While at work, she meets new employee Daniel Collins. Samiah likes what she sees but can’t get distracted… or will she?
Okay, what I liked:
I enjoyed the unexpected friendship of Samiah and the other ladies formed. Especially given the fact that a dude tried to play them all. I loved the fact that this author didn’t go the route of cattiness and women fighting. I loved the fact that she gave us three mature women who knew their worth and knew they were being played by an ol selfish muthatrucka. Three women singing Beyonce’ “Middle finger up, throw them hands high! Put em in his face, tell him “Boy bye!” got me right in the feels. Women need friendships and not to dismiss any other ethnicity of women but Black women NEED their sisters so I was especially happy that Ms. Rochon took care in how it was important for Samiah and the other ladies to cultivate a relationship….even though they just met. I love seeing books where care is taken with Black women and their friends.
I also enjoyed the mention of women in tech that is covered in The Boyfriend Project, mainly the conversation around Black women in the field. Samiah was smart…she was good at her job but she still encountered micro-aggression.
Now, what I didn’t like:
Even with all that good mentioned up above, this is a romance…correct? Well, ya’ll the romance in The Boyfriend Project didn’t not move me, it wasn’t interesting…at all. What started off as cute little meet ups for coffee between Samiah and Daniel soon grew cold, imo. If I’m being honest, I feel like there was no chemistry between them. The development of their relationship fell so flat, they would have been better off as friends. Unfortunately, they just did not work together. I liked them well enough separately, but together? Not so much.
Also, Daniel is biracial (Black/Korean). Him being biracial is severely lacking in the book as this man barely knew anything about Black people and him remembering his Korean grandmother's cooking. I just….didn’t understand that. And I say this because the author does some focus on racial themes here so why Daniel's ethnicity isn't fully explored will probably leave some readers a bit bereft. I feel like this author didn’t or couldn’t “go in” like she could have.
There were no mentions of Daniel being biracial in the TBFP before or during the conversations around the book. And if I'm being honest, it feels a bit disingenuous.
All and All:
The Boyfriend Project didn’t fill my romantic sweet spot. I thinks it is an alright read...more on the level of “little yang yang yang to read around the house”. This would have imo worked better under women’s fiction. Hopefully this series will get better as the it moves further along with the other ladies stories.
Rated three stars on Goodreads.
*Thank you to the publisher for the opportunity read/review.
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Published: May 26, 2020
Kensington Publishing
Series: Cass Raines #3
Format: eBook (eARC)
Genre: Mystery
Available: BN | Amazon
*Add it On Goodreads
Oh this was sooo good! My first read by this author and I’m
telling you right now, it won’t be my last.
Cass Raines is helping her ex-partner with a “stubborn”
celebrity client and chile…whew! Listen when she told that lady off, I was like
yes!
Any ol ways, Cass just wants to help her friend out but what should be a simple security job gets truly interesting once bodies start dropping.
Any ol ways, Cass just wants to help her friend out but what should be a simple security job gets truly interesting once bodies start dropping.
The pacing of What You Don’t See and the development of its
story arc and characters is top tier writing. Ms. Clarke kept me up until 5 am in
the morning trying figure out who was who, what was what AND if Cass was gonna
beat the mess out of her client lols. Suspense, action and crazy plot twists
will have its reader in its grasp until the very last page. Cass is smart, street wise and with the city of Chicago as the backdrop, WYDS is a highly recommended
read for any lover of mystery and suspense stories.
Also note that this is the third book in the series. I got
along fine but I will definitely go back and read the other books. Cass Raines is a character that will quickly become a top favorite in the
genre.
Rated five stars on Goodreads.
Rated five stars on Goodreads.
*Thank you to the author/publisher for the opportunity to
read/review.
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I'm not much for words anymore so below are some links of where to donate:
Blacklivesmatter.carrd.co (updated as of 6/3/2020)
Bailfunds:
ActBlue Civics
National Bail Fund
Mutual funds (tweet thread)
Breonna Taylor GofundMe
George Flyod GofundMe
Darnella Fraizer GofundMe (the young lady that filmed Mr. Floyd's murder is now being harassed)
It's also Pride Month.
Black Trans Protesters Emergency Funds (via Instagram)
Iyanna Dior (A young Black trans woman who was brutally beaten while protesting). I will come back in add a link. Seems there are people scamming her CashApp name so I want to be sure the give the correct one.
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