Happy Fall Part 3

Posted on October 27, 2022 by Reading Robyn

I meant to take a picture of the tree outside of my mom’s house this morning because the leaves have turned and it’s beautiful. It’s the best the tree has looked all year in my opinion. But I was juggling my daughter and my nephew while trying to find an old football jersey of mine that would fit my mini-me and I spaced it. It’s Red Ribbon Week and baby girl is taking it very seriously.

It is truly fall and we are in that weird stage here where you need a coat in the morning and a light jacket by 2 pm. I love it.

Anyways…

I know why you’re here so let’s get to the books!

Happy Fall Part 2

Posted on September 23, 2022 by Reading Robyn

Even though the weatherman lied and said that it would be 90 degrees. Instead I have on my favorite sweater, I’m watching Legacies and typing this up. It’s a great fall day and I am here for it.

I’m going to crank this out and not over-think it. Here are 5 more of my top Summer Reads.

All the books in this post got a 4 star rating from me. I am going to start paying more attention to the level of spice in the books. Someone asked me for a clean romance and I am embarrassed to say that I couldn’t name any. Honestly, I didn’t even know clean romance was a sub-genre.

The Dead Romantics by Ashley Poston

Goodreads
Storygraph

This book was unlike any other romance book I’ve ever read. The ending is obvious but that didn’t take a way from the story. The Dead Romantics is a perfect book for the spooky season. The main character’s family reminded me of the Addam’s family.

I made a note saying that the spice in this is minimal. This is definitely a slow burn.

TW: grief (death of a parent)

Reluctantly Yours by Erin Hawkins

Storygraph
Goodreads

The title gives us a big hint that this story contains the fake dating trope and it absolutely does. It also has the billionaire boyfriend, boss’s son, work romance tropes. Reluctantly Yours is a fun, sexy read with the right amount of fluff.

Chloe, our female main character, is hilarious and had me laughing out loud multiple times.

The spice though, 🥵 🥵 🥵.5 out of 5. (I feel like I need to make an actual scale or spice meter. Hmm 🤔) If you like your spice with a side of dirty talking, here you go. Barrett is very good at it.

My Mechanical Romance by Alexene Farol Follmouth

Goodreads
Storygraph

One thing I love about YA books is the moral of the story. This book is about taking up your own space. Get out of your own way. It seems to be a theme for me this year.

If you like robotics, this one is about a girl who has eye for engineering. It deals with the obstacles that women face when trying to enter the STEM world. STEM is a male dominated field because people fail to push girls towards STEM activities. We push dolls in front of them, princesses, art and dance. We tend to not want our girls to get messy or hurt. As my daughter says: Girls are tougher than we look.

The Herculeia Series by C. Rochelle

Goodreads
Storygraph

The spice in this one is next level. Just to give you an idea, remember the 12 labors of Hercules? As a descendent of Hercules, Herculeia has her own 12 labors, but they’re sexier. And that’s the whole point of this series. 🫣 Lots of monster sex in this one. Herculeia’s niece is a fun character too. It’s mentioned at the end of book 2 that she will be getting her own book but I can’t find it listed on Goodreads 😢.

The Age of the Seventh Sun by Lani Forbes

Goodreads
Storygraph

I must have a problem when it comes to reading the final book in trilogies because I have yet to read The Obsidian Butterfly despite loving the first two books of this series. I’ll have to get on that. (I’m sure there are others too 😆) Especially since The jade Bones ended in a cliffhanger. If you are opposed to cliffhangers I would suggest making sure that you have all 3 books before starting. A friend of mine hates them so I have notes saying that both of these end in one.

You can check out my full review of these books here.

Alright lovelies, there’s that. As I mentioned earlier, I am not going to overthink this post. I need to get it up and out there so I can give you the final piece of my Summer Reads (there’s one more left).

Did you know I have a Twitter account? While I suck at updating allllllll the social media accounts, Twitter seems to be the easiest to do. Follow me there for quick updates, reviews and overall shenanigans.

Reading Robyn Twitter Account

As always, happy reading,
-Robyn

Happy Fall!

Posted on September 22, 2022 by Reading Robyn

It is my absolute favorite season of the year! There’s just a comfy vibe to autumn and nobody can convince me otherwise. I cannot wait to pull out my oversized sweaters and boots. Fall is a whole mood.

Since this year (and the last couple honestly) have been so long, I’m going to embrace this season. I’m going to drink my pumpkin spice and I might even take the kids to a pumpkin patch who knows?

Let’s get to what we’re here for — the books. This is going to be a bit lengthy so grab your notebook and pen and be prepared to add to your TBR.

Top Reads of the Summer!

I’ve made a wonderful list of all my favorite books of the summer and my reviews on them. As I am typing this I am thinking about a better way to do this for my fall reads 🤦🏽‍♀️ but I am already committed to the layout of this post. So full steam ahead!

Wicked Beauty by Katee Robert

Goodreads
Storygraph

Series Overall Rating: ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ out of 5
Spice level: 🥵 🥵 🥵 .5 out of 5

I am big on Greek Mythology. I love the stories and the high stakes in the lessons that we are supposed to learn from them. In this series, the books reimagine the drama around the Olympians in a more modern world. All the women are badasses in their own way and the men are beautifully flawed in a way that will make you swoon.

Here’s my full review!

Good Girl Complex by Elle Kennedy

Goodreads
Storygraph

Robyn Rating: ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ out of 5
Spice level: 🥵 🥵 out of 5

My favorite Quote: “I’m telling you there are plenty of ways that life and circumstances beyond our control conspire to keep us down. The least we can do is get out of our own way.”

What better summer read than a romance about a summer fling? Throw in a good girl meets bad boy trope with laugh-out-loud banter and you’re all set.

(I have this whole review written out in a notebook and ready to be posted soon.)

Book Lovers by Emily Henry

Goodreads
Storygraph

Robyn Rating: ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ out of 5

I don’t know if it was just me but this book made me cry happy tears at the end. Any book that gets me like that I have to recommend it. Especially when it is about characters in the book industry or characters who love to read. I’ll take a chance on one of these types of books every time. Emily Henry is on my watchlist now, I think I’ve read all 3 of her books this year.

Check out my full review here.

Dating Dr. Dil by Nisha Sharma

Goodreads
Storygraph

Robyn Rating: ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ out of 5
Spice level: 🥵 🥵 🥵 .5 out of 5

Dating Dr. Dil is listed as a #1 in a series called If Shakespeare was an Auntie but there is no information about book #2, at least none that could find.

If you’re looking for a POC enemies-to-lovers story with fake dating and some spice, look no further.

Culture is a big part of this story. One of the best parts about reading is putting yourself in someone else’s shoes and experiencing the story from their eyes. To me, reading is one of the best ways to learn about cultures other than our own. It’s a way to experience a tradition you might have never heard of and it’s a way to see similarities to your own.

The No-Show by Beth O’Leary

Goodreads
Storygraph

Robyn Rating: ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ out of 5

It’s okay to be broken, we all kind of are…

Wow, I needed that. Like really needed it.

While I think maybe this book was a bit too long, in the end, everything wrapped itself up nicely and I think this book may stay with me for a while. I read it right when I needed to. Here’s what I got out of it. Reach out to others when you are hurting. Be empathetic with others because you never know what their story is. Life and love can be both beautiful and ugly. But they’re better when you are honest with yourself and those around you. Life is full of bumps and bruises, scars, and traumas. But you’re not alone. And most importantly, you are worth it.

I was going to give you the whole list in one go but if I’m being honest, I’m just going to keep procrastinating about posting this. I tend to nitpick and try to make each post as perfect as possible. So, I am making myself post this today. It is the first day of Autumn after all. Fall is about letting go. It’s about preparing yourself for the reset that is Winter. And you know what they say about winter…

Here’s to trying to get out of my own way. My Summer Reads list has like 15 books on it. Expect a part 2 soon!

Happy Reading,
-Robyn

By Any Other Name by Lauren Kate

Posted on August 5, 2022 by Reading Robyn

Did y’all know that there are questions about books on Goodreads? 😂 I didn’t! You can ask a question on the website for someone else (that has hopefully read the books) to answer. The things you miss when you only use the mobile app instead of the website. I’ve been using Goodreads for years!

From the title, I was expecting a story with a Shakespeare theme and I was disappointed. I think I might have requested this book on Netgalley for that reason alone and SHAKESPEARE WASN’T EVEN MENTIONED! (I’m obviously still salty about that.)

Robyn Rating ⭐️⭐️.5/5
Goodreads
Storygraph

Plot: Lanie is a romance editor for a romance author that no one has ever seen or spoken with, Noa Callaway. When she learns the identity of Noa, it rocks her understanding of love.

What do you look for in love? Did anyone else make a list of all the things you wanted in a partner? I know I did and the last time I read it I was so embarrassed that I quickly buried it in a box with all the other cringe-worthy journals from my youth. Lanie lived by hers and found a man that checked off every single item on that list. That was unrealistic to me especially since her list was like 99 items long. Her list was born from a romance book she read that changed her whole life.

Characters: Lanie felt immature and underdeveloped. The way she responds to the reveal about Noa Callaway’s identity felt over the top and unnecessary. I also feel like it pushed a narrative that men can’t write romances which is kind of sexist. I understand that the point of her reaction was to set up the enemies-to-lovers trope but I’m not sure it works. Especially since the publisher that she works for is female-run and prides itself on that, yet their biggest author was a man.

Noah, on the hand, is why I kept reading this book. I enjoyed his banter with Lanie even when she was inappropriate and unprofessional. I imediately felt like he was a better fit for her than the fiance she had at the beginning of the book even if that didn’t translate well across the page. The chemistry between the two of them was off but I think that came from Lanie mostly.

I think this book should be classified as a clean romance and I’m discovering that they are not my jam. I’m not sure I liked the language used in this book. It was a little cheesy in the beginning and over time I adjusted to it because it was less annoying in the end. I was however ready to quit when there was a fade to black sex scene.

Let’s answer these Goodreads questions because I am fascinated with that feature. Now if we can just get them to allow us to sort or filter our book lists by genre.

Does this book have smut? If so, how steamy is it on a scale of 1 to 10?
-There is absolutely zero smut in this book. As I mentioned earlier there was a fade to black sex scene at the beginning of the book and I was hurt.

Multiple POV?
-Unfortunately no, there was just Lanie’s POV. I think the book could have been better if we would have had both her and Noa’s POV but it would have given away the identity of Noa Callaway which wouldn’t work for the way Lauren Kate told this story.

Does this have emotional/physical cheating?
-No.

I think this might be one of the first books that I’ve reviewed on here that I didn’t love. There were parts that I enjoyed, scenes that made me laugh, and even one (near the end) that made me cry and those are the scenes that factored into the 2.5/5 rating I gave this book. However many people loved this so read this book for the following:
-NYC setting
-a character who works in the book industry
-enemies to lovers (even though I think it’s a stretch)
-clean romance

We have about 4 months left of 2022 to finish our challenges. I hope everyone is doing well and as always…

Happy Reading!
Robyn

An Honest Lie by Tarryn Fisher

Posted on August 1, 2022 by Reading Robyn

I’ll be the first person to tell you that I don’t spend a lot of time reading thriller books. There is just a certain level of “Oh hellll no” that runs through my blood which makes it hard for me to settle into the story and enjoy it. However, I’ve already read a couple of Tarryn Fisher’s books and you never really know where the story is going. It’s always like watching an accident happen. You just can’t look away even though everything in you is saying “there ain’t no way…”

That being said, my reviews on any thrillers are going to come with a bonus of my thoughts while reading the books. No worries, I’ll put up spoiler warnings around them so if you want to skip them until you’ve read the book, you can.

Let’s get into it.

“I’m going to kill her. You’d better come if you want to save her.”

Robyn Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5/5
Goodreads
Storygraph

Plot: Rainy is an artist who moved from NYC to Washington for love. Grant has this established group of friends that he pushes her to try to get closer to. Rainy reluctantly agrees to their gatherings until a girls’ trip to Vegas comes up. She refuses but later finds out that Grant already purchased her ticket.

The story is told in a now-and-then format. We learn through flashbacks about Rainy’s past and the dangerous secrets that lie there. When her past catches up to her in Vegas, Rainy has to get creative to save herself and another.

In the first few pages, you get settled into the story. The characters are introduced and I spent a fair amount of time lamenting the fact that I was reading middle age women’s issues and dreading it. Nothing like a reality check in a fictional book. Then it picks up, and it was like a marathon race to unravel all the pieces of Rainy’s past and why they matter 20 years later.

I think that this story could have been shorter. The chapters from the past are where all the drama is in the first half of the book and then in the end everything catches up to Rainy and it gets overly chaotic in the end.

Characters: I couldn’t relate with any of the characters honestly but I do understand how a mother’s decisions in a critical moment can affect the daughter’s life. From both sides. So that is what I am choosing to take from this book. As a mother, I have had to make some hard decisions in these last couple of years and I often wonder and worry about how my decisions will affect my children right now and as adults. As a daughter, I have been confronted with the consequences of decisions my mother made when I was a child. I always tell my kids that there are consequences to every decision they make. I feel that it is my job to make sure that they learn to stop and think things through so that they can be prepared for anything. Including the things we didn’t think could happen or never dreamed would happen. Someone should have had this conversation with Rainy’s mother because I spent some time very upset with her while reading this one.

Oh and Grant’s friends, overall as a group, suck. I would not want to be friends with any of them.

Thoughts while reading:

you have been warned. Skip to the next GIF if you haven’t read this one.

Omg am I really old enough for middle age women problems. Eww.
What exactly happened in Nevada?
Did this woman just join a cult with her daughter?? Can I even read this?
whatever Rainy isn’t telling Grant needs to be talked about. It’s obviously heavy and she’s going to continuously be put in uncomfortable situations if she doesn’t just come clean.
This woman joined a cult with her daughter and is now bothered by the way it’s changed her daughter. 😒😒 what did you expect? She’s surprised the cult has turned her daughter against her.
Summer journals her thoughts and sends them to Taured. Wow. Just wow on so many levels.
Trigger warning: rape description.
Sooo human trafficking? Underage girls.
This is so tense. I’m reading this like I’m watching a train wreck. Whatever is happening is horrible but I need to know how she escaped.
Why haven’t I read this before? Im so sucked into this story. Although this whole Braithe thing is a bit weird. Hopefully it wraps up soon.
Are we really having a “The Boy is Mine” conversation while being kidnapped? We’ve got bigger fish to fry. Wtf.
Oh okay it’s like a dying confession. I guess.
Wait a fucking minute. She sent that email to fucking Taured???? What about the police??? You called out to another monster for help? A monster you narrowly escaped?
Oooh okay well played.

Happy Reading!
Robyn

Smutty Smut Smut

Posted on July 30, 2022 by Reading Robyn

Before we get started I want to point out that if you are related to me, this one is not for you. Today we are getting a little spicy and honestly, I’m old enough to not care. This is your warning.

Alexa, play “Let’s Talk About Sex” by Salt-N-Pepa

I was scrolling through my social media book club feeds and someone said, “no triggers except poor writing.” At first, I laughed because once upon a time, when looking for smutty reads, we kind of just got what we got. (Think back to those fanfic days.) Then it occurred to me that I have yet to do a review on one of my more spicy reads, despite having read a few. (Or more, who am I kidding 😂) There are some well-written ones out there and if we want more well-written ones then we (the bloggers, the readers) have to let the world know so these authors can keep giving them to us.

One thing you will learn about me is that my curiosity is next level. A lot of the books I read are books that I have seen on my feed a lot or that I saw just one time and I could not let go of it. (I saw a book called Dick Fight Island the other day and I am definitely buying it as a Christmas gift for one of the lucky ladies in my life. Anyway, I’m saying that it could and most likely will get wild whenever you see a Smutty post.

Just saying, I am not liable for any pearl-clutching.

Since I just finished books 2 and 3 of this series (yessss there are smutty series for yall who have been missing out) we are going to start with Katee Robert.

Radiant Sun doesn’t come out til Feb 2023 😒

Series Overall Rating: ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️/5

Since it is a series I’m just going to drop the link for Neon Gods, you’ll be able to find the others from it.
Goodreads
Storygraph

A wonderful bonus about this series is that the women are badasses. They don’t sit back and wait to be saved. In each book, the women are strong and learn that they have to be their own champions.

Neon Gods

If you are into Greek mythology, then the series starts where it should, with a Hades and Persephone retelling. Neon Gods is set in the modern world, there is technology, social media, cars, and political chaos. Except this political chaos is strictly to do with The Thirteen. (Zeus, Hera, Hades, Poseidon, Demeter, Aphrodite, etc…)

The spice level on this one… 🥵🥵🥵🥵/5

I do want to make sure I point out that there is a plot to these books. I might be showing my age here but I know that tags were important back when we could only find these types of stories on AO3 and the like. This book will have you worried for Hades and Persephone and it will have you cheering for them. There’s drama, angst, action, betrayal, and redemption. Plus it has something Greek mythology normally lacks and that’s a #HEA. (HEA= Happily Ever After)

The banter between the characters will have you laughing. Hermes is a real treat!

The characters are well done and will stay with you for a while. I found myself wanting more and I was a little disappointed about moving on to a new couple in book 2 but I got over it.

Electric Idol

When I first typed the short list of some of The 13, I left Aphrodite out. Then I thought about how vengeful the stories have made her out to be, so I went back and added her, just in case. 😂 We have enough problems globally right now and I’m not adding pissing off the gods to the list. That being said, this one is about Eros and Psyche.

Aphrodite decides that Psyche needs to die because she gets offended by something. Doesn’t matter what it is, if you know Greek Mythology you know that Aphrodite was a loose cannon who got offended by the slightest things. Especially when it came to her beauty.

An important part of this book is that there are different ways to skin a cat. (That is the craziest saying and so I just googled it. The oldest known use for the saying “more than one way to skin a cat” dates back to 1854 in Portraitures of Yankee Life by Seba Smith. The more you know. 🤷🏾‍♀️) Anyway, Psyche and Eros come up with plans to outsmart Aphrodite and they end up having to risk it all because as we know, vengeance is something that Aphrodite is fond of.

Spice level: 🥵🥵🥵🥵/5

Wicked Beauty

This one is about Helen (of Troy), Achilles, and Patroclus. If you’ve been looking for a book about a triad, this is it. There is some sword-crossing 😉 and when they all come together (wink wink) it is explosive.

This book gives you more information on The 13 and how these titles are obtained. In Wicked Beauty, the title of Ares is up for grabs and because she is tired of everyone telling her what to do and how to do it, Helen decides to fight for the title. She refuses to listen to Zeus and is determined to make her own way.

If I’m being honest, this is the best book of the series (so far.) My bias wants me to tell you that Neon Gods is the best because I will read anything with Hades and Persephone but the plot of this one had me in a chokehold. The title of Ares is won in a competition. Seeing how Helen learns to hold her own against these overgrown men was exciting and you can imagine Helen’s dilemma with competing against Achilles and Patroclus. You can’t help but want this ship to sail but boy is it complicated for them.

Spice level: 🥵🥵🥵/5

**sidenote** I do want to point out that I listened to the audio of this one and I cringed whenever the narrator said pussy. I think it was the accent, I’m not sure, but it did take me out of the sex scenes a bit so I’m going to suggest the ebook or physical for this series.

All that being said, if yall have any Greek mythology recs, send them my way!

I hope I’ve added a little spice to your life!
You’re welcome,

Robyn

Book Lovers by Emily Henry

Posted on July 15, 2022 by Reading Robyn

Today’s review is brought to you by the letter F because on Fridays we read Fluff. For me, fluff is a romance story in which nobody dies and there are no life or death situations. Typically my romance reads come with magic and danger but sometimes you need a fluff before diving into the next fantasy.

That being said, I’ve heard nothing but good things about this book.

Storygraph
Goodreads
Robyn Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

Honestly, I should’ve read this one sooner. I read People We Meet on Vacation (5/5 stars from me) and Beach Read (4/5 stars) at the end of 2021 and loved them both. Emily Henry is on my watchlist for any othere romances she might write.

Plot: Nora is a literary agent who loves her work. She fights for her clients and she brings out the best in the authors she works with. However, that success does not exclude her from failing, namely in relationships. She’s accepted that she is not the girl who gets her happily ever after, shes the girl that people move on from. And that is okay so long as she has her job and her little sister, Libby, is happy. But there’s been distance between the sisters lately and then Libby springs a trip to Sunshine Falls, the setting in a book they both love, on Nora along with a checklist of tasks. Operation Small Town Transformation. Will it be enough to bring the sisters closer?

Characters: Nora, is snarky. I couldn’t relate to her or the love interest, Charlie, in the beginning, but that might be because the money they have is an amount I can’t even imagine (especially right now) and cultural differences. After a while though, I got used to them and it became less about their lifestyle in New York and more about them and their love of books which made them more realistic to me.

I absolutely love the banter between Charlie and Nora. Their dialogue was entertaining and at times even laugh-out-loud funny.

I cried at the end of this book. I found myself explaining to my daughter that I cry at happy endings. And she asked me why? My answer to her; was because everything was happy and they got what they wanted. Sitting here thinking about and I think my real answer is deeper than that. I don’t know about y’all but I dive into books when I’m reading them. This is great because the characters talked about this in the book. I escape reality and become a part of the story. There have been times that I have been so deep into a book that the real world is muted. And when my name is called (for likely the 3rd time) I’m jarred back into reality slightly disoriented for a brief moment. If the storytelling is good, I feel what the character feels on top of whatever heartstrings the story has pulled from my past. But how do you explain that to a 7-year-old or really to anyone who asks why you’re crying while reading?

As always, I’m here for your challenges so read this book if you are looking for:

small town setting
sisters
character who works in the book industry
vacation
enemies to lovers (I feel like its a reach but you can judge for yourself)

You guys! I am excited because now this blog feels consistent! I feel like I’m back but I might be celebrating a little prematurely. 3 blog posts in the last 30 days and another ready to be published on Monday? I’m proud of myself. I’m excited to share these books with you. Until next time…

Happy Reading,
Robyn

The Age of the Seventh Sun by Lani Forbes

Posted on July 11, 2022 by Reading Robyn

There are 3 books in this series:
1. The Seventh Sun
2. The Jade Bones
3. The Obsidian Butterfly

WARNING: There is a huge cliffhanger at the end of The Seventh Sun so have book 2 ready and on deck. Now that I think about it, there’s a cliffhanger at the end of The Jade Bones too.

Full disclosure: I read The Seventh Sun in February of 2020 and then again earlier this month right before diving into The Jade Bones. When I first finished The Seventh Sun, I ran to Edelweiss and Netgalley to see if I could get an ARC of The Jade Bones. Then 2020 happened and kind of ruined all books with any kind of angst or apocalyptic themes. So despite how excited I was for the story, The Jade Bones found its way onto my backlist. But fear not! I am slowly trudging through the backlist and I am finding gems. This series is one.

We are going to cover 2 of the 3 books. I haven’t started book 3 yet. I only have one Audible credit and I have to make a hard decision between The Obsidian Butterfly and This Wicked Fate by Kalynn Bayron. (If my mini-me doesn’t use the credit first 😒).

In case you missed it, here’s my review for This Poison Heart and you’ll see my dilemma 😂

I will mark spoilers just in case because it is harder to avoid spoilers when talking about a series.

The Seventh Sun

Robyn Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
Storygraph
Goodreads

Controversy: I looked at other reviews after reading because my rating is higher than the average rating. I don’t want to spend too much time on others’ reviews but I’ll give you a heads up with the issues I found.

This is not an #ownvoices book. So if you’re looking for that, this is not it.

This book is loosely based on Aztec/Mayan culture with a little Egyptian culture sprinkled in there. Remember that it is a fictional book. If you are hoping to learn something about either culture, this book is not it.

Plot: Prince Ahkin just inherited the throne (and a slew of problems) due to his father’s sudden death. He feels unprepared for the role he has in his empire. Especially since he and his sister are the last ones of his bloodline, the last ones who can raise the sun daily. The sun is fading and everyone feels as if they are headed towards the next apocalypse. He is also being pressured to choose a wife from one of the 6 noble daughters that are sent to his city, a wife to be the other half of his duality. Those who are not chosen must be sacrificed to the gods to bless their marriage. No pressure.

I’ll cover the characters when we talk about The Jade Bones. I will add that I’ve read The Seventh Sun as an ebook and as an audio. In the audio, I want to point out that Yemania’s voice was jarring and pulled me out of the story. She was so whiny.

Review: (2020 read) Okay, I have always been interested in Mayan and Aztec culture and this book has some strong themes of both cultures. There’s drama and suspense. There is a ship that you can’t help but root for and then that ending…. I need the next book like yesterday!!! I really don’t want to spoil anything for you but I loved this one. Check it out.

2022 Reread edit: I listened to the audio this time around and some of the voices were annoying so I think it took me out of the story a bit. The blind faith that the prince has in the rituals made me roll my eyes this time around too. Mostly because I’ve seen blind faith in a lie cause destruction since I read it the first time. I will however keep the rating at 5 stars.

The Jade Bones

Did I mention that this book also ends in a major cliffhanger?

Robyn Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
Storygraph
Goodreads

This book picks up right where The Seventh Sun left off. So if you haven’t read that there will be spoilers in this part of this blog post.

Plot: Mayana and Ahkin are in the Underworld, desperate to get out and reclaim the throne. They must survive several trials with impossible odds. They have to learn to trust each other, the gods, and their abilities to succeed. All with an ominous warning from the mother goddess, Ometeotl. Yemania, who survived the Empress selection ritual due to Ahkin entering the Underworld, has her own challenges she must face. She deals with betrayals and the new Empress, Ahkin’s sister, has made her the new High Healer. She meets and falls in love with an enemy and must keep that secret for fear of the empress learning of their romance. Which is made even harder by her needing to be close to the Empress to figure out what exactly she is up to.

Characters: I don’t know if there was much character growth in this book. In the end, Ahkin and Mayana show a little growth but mostly Ahkin is still overly self-sacrificing. Mayana is still trying to prove herself, whether to herself or simply to break out of the expectations she feels are placed on her. Yemania is still whiny and I spent some time mad at her decision-making.

This storyline is high stress. Yemania’s, I think, is supposed to be a reprieve from the constant life or death situations that Ahkin and Mayana are in. However, Yemania’s situation is also full of narrow escapes from death.

I did listen to the audio of this book. I decided to since I realized that I butchered all of the names of the characters and places in the first book. So I would suggest at the very least looking up how to pronounce them online.

As always, I’m here to help you with your challenges so…
Read these books for the following:
Underworld (book 2)
Forbidden Romance (book 2)
Dual POV (both)
Betrayal (both)
Mythology (both)

I’m off to start another book! As I mentioned earlier I have an extensive backlist 🙈🙈 and I’m slowly chipping away at it.

Happy Reading!
-Robyn

This Poison Heart ♥️

Posted on June 27, 2022 by Reading Robyn

I’m going to try something out. Covid knocked me off the creative path I was on going into 2020. But this blog is one of the things that haunt my dreams because it is something I have always wanted to do. So, I’m going to just organically type up my thoughts here as a draft while I’m reading books if I am moved to do so. No commitment. No hassle. All so I can express myself (and my thoughts on the books I read.) That’s all this was supposed to be anyway. So if you’re here for the ride and the recommendations, thank you for your time. If not, I’ll just be over here in my little corner of the internet still (hopefully) yelling out about the books I love (and a few that I don’t.) 😂

Up first!

This Poison Heart by Kalynn Bayron
Add it to your TBR below:
Storygraph
Goodreads
Robyn Rating: ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️/5

I tend to go into a story blind. I didn’t read the synopsis, I avoided spoilers on social media and I didn’t ask any questions when a friend read it. I just knew that the cover was everything. The moment I held my Owlcrate copy I vowed to display it on my shelf even if it sucked. It’s just that gorgeous.

When my daughter saw the cover, she said, “Oh! This is pretty. What is it about?” My response? “Black Girl Magic”

Now, as I am typing this up, I see that this author also wrote Cinderella is Dead. That one got a 4/5 rating from me and it was such a unique retelling of Cinderella that it stuck with me. So I should’ve known that this book was going to be good but it was better.

I had barely started the book and the main thought running through my head was “omg yessssss to a black girl fantasy.” I was so geeked about it that I ended up having to restart it because I missed parts. I could relate to the characters in this fantasy and it was amazing. There were times that a character would say exactly what I was thinking in response to what was happening.

Plot: Briseis is a teenage girl living in Brooklyn with her moms. They own a flower shop and Bri loves plants. She can make them grow with just a touch. Every day it is a struggle to keep her powers a secret. Then an aunt, that she didn’t know of, dies and leaves her an estate surrounded by plant life and a garden with every known species of poisonous plants in it. Brie is the only person left who can safely tend to the garden thanks to her gift. Before she can get settled in her new home, she meets some colorful character and uncovers dangerous secrets. Soon Bri is drowning in secrets, questions, and warnings about her birth family. Who can she trust?

Characters: I loved all the characters. Bri’s moms were great. They loved the hell out of Bri and neither of them hesitated to show her that. They were funny and protective and it was refreshing to see a black character with a good home life. They were just happy and dealing with having a magical daughter the best they could.

Briseis very quickly moved onto my Fave Female MC list. She was a good-natured, down-to-earth (literally 😂) girl. She was a bit lonely since she had to keep her powers secret. Then when she moved to the estate she made a few choices that made me 🤦🏽‍♀️ shake my head but I understood why. Plus baby girl needed some support because as she said “some of the people here were clearly on some other shit.” Which made me laugh out loud because it was exactly what I would’ve said.

I don’t want to spoil any of the book because it is such a fun story. I’m getting ready to start book two since it was released this week. I cannot imagine what I would have felt like if I had read this when I was supposed to (hides behind the backlist in shame 🙈) I was almost finished with the book, in a high-stress moment, and realized that there was wayyy too much to wrap up in the amount of book I had left. Now I just have to use some self control and wait until tomorrow to start. #TeamNoSleep

It looks like Kalynn Bayron is officially on my watchlist.

In the spirit of helping y’all get your reading challenges…

Read this if you are looking for: BIPOC, f/f, black girl magic, fantasy, mythology, plants/flower shop, apothecary

Happy reading,
Robyn

Book Blitz: Maya and the Rising Dark

Posted on September 22, 2020 by Reading Robyn

Going into this book I had no idea what to expect. I’m that reader that judges books by their covers and I very rarely read synopsis before I pick up a book. Let’s look at the cover

This cover jumped out at me for multiple reasons. First, there is a black girl on the cover with dreads holding a staff ready for whatever comes her way. Even as I’m typing this my 5 year old (who is supposed to be focusing on her ABCs with her teacher 🤦🏽‍♀️) just said “Mommy are we going read that book about a girl who looks like me fighting monsters?” She’s not ready for this book of course but trust me, it will be in her mini library when she is ready.

Synopsis: In this highly anticipated contemporary fantasy, twelve-year-old Maya’s search for her missing father puts her at the center of a battle between our world, the Orishas, and the mysterious and sinister Dark world. Perfect for fans of Aru Shah and the End ofTime and The Serpent’s Secret.Twelve-year-old Maya is the only one in her South Side Chicago neighborhood who witnesses weird occurrences like werehyenas stalking the streets at night and a scary man made of shadows plaguing her dreams.When Papa goes missing, Maya is thrust into a world both strange and familiar as she uncovers the truth. Her father is the guardian of the veil between our world and the Dark—where an army led by the Lord of Shadows, the man from Maya’s nightmares, awaits. Now that the veil is failing, the Lord of Shadows is determined to destroy the human world and it’s up to Maya to stop him. She just hopes she can do it in time to attend Comic-Con before summer’s over.

About the Author: Rena Barron grew up in small-town Alabama where stories of magic and adventure sparked her imagination. After penning her first awful poem in middle school, she graduated to writing short stories and novels by high school.From a very young age she loved reading stories where kids saved the world, tamed dragons, wielded magic, flew spaceships, became the chosen one. She desperately searched for characters in books who looked like her and was always disappointed to find none, which fueled her early interest in writing. Before HarperTeen acquired her Young Adult Epic Fantasy, Kingdom of Souls, Rena spent 10 years in the query trends–writing across multiple genres and age groups in the pursuit of publication. In 2017, she entered Pitch Wars, a popular and highly sought-after online mentorship program that included an agent showcase round. Rena’s entry (then titled “The Last Witchdoctor”) received multiple offers of representation. She signed with Suzie Townsend at New Leaf Literary shortly after, and the manuscript went on to sell in a heated auction.In addition to the Kingdom of Souls series, Rena also has written a middle grade epic fantasy titled Maya and The Rising Dark debuting in Spring 2020, pitched as Stranger Things meets Percy Jackson, that sold in a pre-empt to Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.On a personal note, Rena loves all things science fiction and fantasy, ghosts, and superheroes. When she’s not writing, she can be found reading or brushing up on her French.

You can find her at the following:
http://renabarron.com/
Twitter
Instagram
Facebook
Goodreads

Review: I’m giving this book a 3.5 out of 5. I loved the representation for little black girls and the loving relationship with a dad who is gone a lot for work. That tugged on my heartstrings because I remember my dad almost always being at work when I was a kid and now I am watching my daughter go through the same. She is an entirely different person when her daddy is home on his off day. Just like Maya in this book. She lights up when her dad comes home. So you can imagine that when her dad goes missing, that she is going to do everything she can (and definitely shouldn’t) to get him back.

This book introduced me to Orishas and I cannot wait to read more about them. I’m going to have some fun researching. I live for fantasy books and the magic in this book did not disappoint. If you have a young reader who wishes for a little more magic in their every day life, this is for them.

Goodreads

Go buy the books at these sites:

Amazon
Barnes & Noble
Book Depository
Indigo

If you want to see what others are saying about this book check out the rest of the book blitz here! Book Blitz

As always, happy reading!! There will be an announcement soon on Reading Robyn to explain my lack of posting.

Reading Robyn

Adding to your TBR pile, one book at a time.

Books

Happy Fall Part 3

Anyways…