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Review #323
I rated this Nutcracker retelling as 4.87/5 stars. Midnight in Everwood by M.A. Kuzniar starts with a prestigious family dinner. Marietta, in 1906, is age 20 and apparently needs to entertain her suitors more thoroughly according to her parents. Neither know that she...
November wrap-up
I was very busy doing the final edits on my Linked trilogy this month so I only got around to six books, and let me tell you … I’m in a major reading slump. These reviews were the lowest collectively in quite some time. Hopefully my December picks up. Check out my...
Top Ten 4-star books in 2022
Check out each individual review on my blog for more information. Number 10- Spellmaker by Charlie N. Holmberg (4.1/5)- sequel to Spellbreaker Number 9- The Shadows Between Us by Tricia Levenseller (4.4/5) Number 8- A Touch of Darkness by Scarlett St. Clair (4.4/5)...
December 2022 Hopefuls
Midnight in Everwood by M.A. Kuzniar Nottingham, 1906 Marietta Stelle longs to be a ballerina but, as Christmas draws nearer, her dancing days are numbered – she must marry and take up her place in society in the New Year. But, when a mysterious toymaker, Dr...
Top Ten Completed Duologies
Here's my top ten list of completed duologies. Please let me know if any of them have turned into a trilogy without my knowing. All of these fall into the fantasy genre. Which is your favorite? Which ones have I missed and didn't make the list that I need to read?...
Top Ten Contemporary Romance Reads of 2022
Which was your favorite this year? I may have forgotten to include The Spanish Love Deception. And I still have all of December to read the cozy winter romcoms. Number 10 Love and Gelato by Jenn Evans Welch (4.0/5) Number 9 Love on the Brain by Ali Hazelwood (4.5/5)...
Review #322
I absolutely loved this unique contemporary romance by Ashley Poston. I gave “The Dead Romantics” a 4.9/5 stars. It was written all in one point of view, first person-past tense. Here’s my live thoughts while reading: Florence Day is a ghost writer for a best selling...
Review #321
The cover is breath-taking. But I’m giving this mermaid-esque fantasy novel a 2.9/5 stars. I read the first novel in this series many months ago but I'm immediately overwhelmed by too many names being dropped by page 2. To be reintroduced to all of these all at once...
Review #320
I loved her other YA books but this adult fantasy didn’t quite make the cut for me. I rated it a 2.9/5 stars but I actually skimmed the second half. Here’s my live thoughts while reading: The first chapter of "Spells for Forgetting" was about August returning to his...
Review #319
Well, “The Shadow in the Glass” started out so well but I’d give it a 3/5 stars because I skimmed pages 200-370 to get the gist of it. First of all, I wouldn’t have marketed it as a Cinderella story. Not at all. I agree with the gothic vibe, but none of the...
Review #318
“The Spanish Love Deception” earned a 4.7/5 stars for me. I thoroughly enjoyed this contemporary romance with a happily ever after that almost hit too cheesy at the end but not quite. Here’s my live thoughts while reading: It starts out as an office setting enemies to...
Review #317
I’ve been procrastinating to read The Light We Cannot See for 10 months and now I know why. I rated this historical fiction a 2.8/5 stars. I’ve read lots of historical fiction and yes, this one might be more realistic than the others, but it was so boring. It hasn’t...
DNF
This siren fantasy was a DNF for me. So I decided to stop at page 86/388. One of the reasons why is because so want to read stories that model the style of writing I’m trying to achieve in my novels. I don’t want to read too many pages or books that go against my goal...
Top Ten October Books
I read 12-13 books in October and the list below was my ranking. As always, check my full reviews of each at www.cassieswindon.com Have you read any of these? Do you agree or disagree with my ratings? Number 10 The Surface Breaks by Louise O’Neill (4/5) Number 9 River...
Review #316
I rated this dark fantasy as 4/5 stars. It’s all written in one point of view in first person present tense narrative. River of Shadows is the first in a series. I can’t really label this as a romance in any way though it’s marketed as “dark fantasy adult romance.”...