Rambling Writer and Reader

Författare: Heléne Holmström Titel: Sikta Högt Förlag: Lovereads Genre: Romance Länkar:  Bokus  |  Adlibris  |  Goodreads Sikta högt är den fristående uppföljaren till Falla Fritt , en av mina storfavoriter inte bara förra året, utan överhuvudtaget. Det är alltid nervöst att ge sig in i samma värld, med glimtar av samma karaktärer, när det kommer en ny berättelse. Jag kan ju gärna överhajpa… Men här var det inget att vara nervös över. Holmström fångar in mig direkt med undran över vad en maffiaboss skulle ha gjort. Victoria är en karaktär som jag känner mycket för - hon är fyrtio, nyligen skild och har ett riktigt svin till exmake som verkar leva för att göra livet svårt för henne. Hon har gett upp mycket för honom och har inte ens ett arbete att komma tillbaka till. Dock ger hon inte upp. Drömmen om ett eget barn, ett stabilt liv och det faktum att hon är en stark, smart och självständig kvinna, får henne att jobba hårt och visa framfötterna. Erik är ocks...

Author: Tricia Levenseller Title: Warrior of the Wild Publisher: Feiwel & Friends Published: 2019 Genre: YA Fantasy/Fantasy Links:  Bokus  /  Adlibris  /  Goodreads This is the perfect standalone book . It has a great start that sucks you right in, a fantastic world building that doesn't make you yawn and skip paragraphs, characters with more depth that striking blue eyes and dimples and beasts. Beasts, guys! I haven't even realized that I have a thing for fantasy books that involve beasts. Bad one, good ones, smart ones, stupid ones. I love the all, apparently! And this book has a bunch. I also has a cruel god, secluded villages and old fashioned rules that banishes anyone who doesn't fit the bill. Kind of. Read it, you'll see. Okay, so I've told you what I like about this book.  Let me tell you a bit more. I loved how Rasmira grows during the entire book. Sure, this could have been a duology to make the development take som more time, but she ...

Author: Tessa Bailey Title:  Fix Her Up Series: Hot & Hammered #1 Publisher: Avon Published: 2019 Genre: Contemporary romance Links:  Book Depository  /  Bokus  /  Adlibris  /  Goodreads Okay, where to start with this one. Hm... Let's start with what I liked. I loved Georgie and at moments I also liked Travis, especially when he defended her. I did not see the complete point with the "fix up", but I felt like it was made for her sake and not anyone else (no matter how much she wanted Travis to  see  her) so that's a good thing. I  love  her being a clown, of all things. I don't think I've ever read about clowns in romance before..? It awesome, in any case! The love Georgie has for her family is also lovely to read, even though I hated Stephen (Steven? Damn audiobooks), because he was frankly a misogynist dick. (Who the hell comes to fetch his wife just because she wasn't home when he came out of the shower? Really?...

Author: Christina Lauren Title:  The Unhoneymooners Publisher: Gallery books Published: 2019 Genre: Contemporary romance Links:  Book Depository  /  Bokus  /  Goodreads So, the biggest question is, why am I not reading Christina Lauren books all the time? I've read four of them so far and with the exception of My Favorite Half-Night Stand (which I only liked), I loved them so much and had such a great time reading them. So why do I hesitate before I pick up the next one? Maybe I scared of it not being great, who knows. Anyway, we're all here for my awesome reactions to books I've read, so you're going to get one! It's a really wacky idea, isn't it? Writing about two people who hate each other, going on a honeymoon because the entire wedding except them became vomiting wrecks. But it works. I read in a review that Olive and Ethan reminds them om Hazel and Josh. And I see the point, but I don't see the issue. I loved Hazel and Josh, so why wouldn'...

Author: Ilona Andrews Title: Sapphire Flames Series: Hidden Legacy #4 Publisher: Avon Published: 2019 Genre: Fantasy/Paranormal romance Links:  Book Depository  /  Bokus  /  Goodreads After having read and loved the other books of the Hidden Legacy-series, I was so excited to hear about Sapphire Flames. Getting the chance to read an ARC of this book was so great. Thank you Avon and Edelweiss+! (This review was originally written and published 2019-07-03) (What is up with the flames on Catalina's hands, though? She should have wings!) The first three books is about Nevada, the breadwinner of the Baylor family. This book is about one of her sisters, Catalina, who is a now a Prime (super awesome and strong magic person) and the head of the Baylor house. Not the easiest job in the world, keeping your family safe while also trying to run a business. Cue murdered people and the will to help a friend in need. Too bad the smoking hot Alessandro, who she's had c...

Author: Helena Hunting Title: Meet Cute Publisher: Forever Published: 2019 Genre: Contemporary romance Links:  Book Depository  /  Bokus  /  Goodreads Oh, how I've missed reading romance. It's been a lot of fantasy and sci-fi for me lately, so now I felt like a pure romantic book. And I must say I choose good. This was a breeze to read, even if it made my heart squeeze multiple times. Dax loses his parents and gets custody of his 13-year old sister. Kailyn is the lawyer responsible for the sister’s trust and becomes conservator for her, as well, when their aunt sues for custody. It’s just that Kailyn and Dax had a thing for each other in college and did not end on the best of terms. And starting anything now isn’t exactly the ideal situation. What I liked about this book was the characters, I guess. The relationships between them and the way they handled the situations they were put in. Emme is probably the one a rooted most for, because she was a swe...

Författare: Caroline Hurtig Titel: Ödesgudinnans val Serie: Själarnas Öden #1 Förlag: Seraf förlag Genre: Fantasy Länkar:  Bokus  |  Adlibris  |  Goodreads Okej, kan vi bara försöka få mig att sluta läsa första boken av serier? Det finns ju en chans att boken är bra och att jag behöver fortsätta läsa serien och jag har inte tiiiiid med fler serier! Suck.. Vilka problem jag lider av. Som ni kanske listat ut gillade jag   Ödesgudinnans val  en hel del. Jag läste inte första utgåvan av den, så jag kan inte säga vad som ändrats och hur det har påverkat storyn, men det kvittar. För mig är det en helt ny bok och jag är väldigt tacksam för att jag har fått läsa den! Boken är centrerad runt en värld , en dimension, där ödesgudinnor lever tillsammans med andra varelser - svartänglar, troll, hybrider, demoner - och väver, förutser och vägleder alla varelsers öden. En av gudinnorna, Aria, ser förälskelse och kärlek och efter att hon träffar svartängeln Ko...

Author: Maxym M. Martineau Title: Kingdom of Exiles Series: The Beast Charmer #1 Publisher: Sourcebooks Casablanca Genre: Fantasy/Paranormal romance Links:  Book Depository  /  Bokus  /  Goodreads I got the chance to read an ARC of this book and I finished it a while ago, but completely forgot to review it. Great of me, right? Well, I'm getting to it now, okay? Kingdom of Exiles were all I hoped it would be. A completely new story, with new creatures and characters. I've read of animal mages and watched Pokémon, but the way Charmers work is for me unique. The guild of again risen assassins isn't something I read about every day, either. In this book, there's a lot of descriptions of the environment, but the story also goes deep inside the characters' feelings and thoughts. Leena and Noc are two people with very different backgrounds of abuse and defeat, but still have a heart that longs for closeness and love. None of them trusts that longing, thou...

Författare: Gabriella P. Kjeilen Titel: Födelsemärket Serie: Mellody Looh #1 Förlag: Seraf förlag Genre: Fantasy/Sci-fi Länkar:  Bokus  |  Adlibris  |  Goodreads Jag fick möjligheten av förlaget och författaren att läsa den nya utgåvan av Födelsemärket, första boken om Mellody Looh. Vilket jag är väldigt tacksam för! Jag har sneglat på den första utgåvan på jobbet några gånger och funderat på att läsa den, men har aldrig riktigt kommit till skott, av någon anledning. Jag är också otroligt svag för ett snyggt omslag, så jag ska vara ärlig: det nya omslaget fick mig lite att kasta mig över boken. Hur snyggt är det inte? Även baksidan och själva kapiteldesignen är perfekta. I alla fall, över till vad boken handlar om och vad jag tyckte? Jag har många känslor och tankar om denna bok, okej? Vi träffar Erika i människornas värld , där hon går omkring med känslan av att inte riktigt passa in. Saker händer med henne, fysiskt och mentalt, som hon varken kan kontr...

Author: Helen Harper Title: Shrill Dusk Series: City of Magic Publisher: Tantor Audio Genre: Urban Fantasy Links:  Book Depository  /  Adlibris  /  Goodreads I read Harper's Slouch Witch, or The Lazy Girl's Guide to Magic-series, and liked it a lot. This was nothing like it and still I felt the same way when I read it. Calm, entertained and intrigued.  Charley is just a totally normal professional gambler, trying to suppress some awful memories from her teen years. Life is okay, she's making the money, have a good friend and a decent house. Except stuff's happening. Like rats invading the streets and fireballs raining from the sky. Oh, and her friend turning fluffy. What the what is happening? Things do not get better when a Scottish werewolf shows up on her doorstep. Freaky, right? I really liked this one. Magic is in overload in Manchester and even when the threat of imminent death is out of the picture, it's still infected by it. People nee...

Author: Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff Title: Aurora Rising Series: The Aurora Cycle Publisher: Rock the Boat Genre: Science fiction Links:  Bokus  /  Adlibris  /  Goodreads You guuuuyyys! I am so effing pleased with this book. It's such a good start and it leaves me wanting more and more and more. Okay, so I've not read Illuminae - that will most definitely change in a near future - so I have nothing to compare this to. Maybe it's a good thing, maybe it doesn't matter. Anyway, long story way short - I loved this. (Also, my book is an Illumicrate-edition and it's a super sweet pink color, with pink sprayed edges. It's so pretty and cool). Okay, long story long - I'm going to make a list of all the things I loved: THE SQUAD! I mean, come on. It's a crew. A team. A squad. Friends.  Like, everyone in the squad, because the authors really managed to make all of them unique. Even Zila, who basically says nothing. They all even manage to grow and ...

Författare: Annah Nozlin Titel: Återfunnen Förlag: Seraf förlag Genre: Fantasy Länkar:  Bokus  |  Adlibris  |  Goodreads Okej, för det första så fick jag chansen att läsa Återfunnen några dagar innan den släpptes, men jag har inte haft tid att recensera den förrän nu. Tack så mycket för chansen! Nu till mina tankar om denna bok! Återfunnen cirkulerar runt Gabriella , Ella, vars farmor just dött, precis innan hon skulle berätta en hemlighet. Konstiga människor verkar dyka upp runt henne och hon vet inte riktigt vad hon ska tänka eller tro. Farmoderns syster kontaktar henne och berättar dom mest konstiga saker om livsöden och fraktioner, vilket gör henne ännu mer förvirrad. Vad ska hon tro på? Och vad vill dessa människor henne? Samtidigt spirar känslorna för en nära vän, som hon definitivt inte vill förlora, oavsett livsöden, mörkt och ljust, gott och ont. Parallellt med Ellas berättelse får vi också följa Karin, genom hennes dagbok som Ella läser, skriven...

Författare: Anna Jakobsson Lund Titel: Starkt försvar och Släppa in Förlag:  Hegas förlag Genre: Ungdomsbok Länkar:  Bokus  /  Adlibris  /  Hegas Jag stod i lånedisken på jobbet och det var en väldigt lugn dag, så jag kollade runt i hyllorna i närheten. Så såg jag Anna Jakobsson Lunds nya lättlästa ungdomsböcker och kände att jag måste testa att läsa den första. Oj, så bra att jag tänkte så! Böckerna cirkulerar kring  Evelyn och Arvid. Evelyn tycker att Arvid är lite väl kaxig och uppmärksamhetstörstande, men så får hon plötsligt se en annan sida av honom.  Första boken är från Evelyns , en driven, omtänksam person med lite kort stubin, perspektiv och andra boken ser vi utifrån Arvids, kaxig och mjuk, ögon. Båda karaktärerna blir levande på bara några få sidor. Att skriva lättläst utan att det blir för barnsligt eller tunt är inte alltid lätt, men här har Jakobsson Lund lyckats utmärkt! Det är två väldigt fina böcker som fokuserar mycket ...

Författare: Sara Dalengren Titel: Ensamvarg Serie: Flocken #1 Genre: Paranormal romance Förlag: Seraf förlag Länkar:  Adlibris  /  Bokus  /  Goodreads En svensk paranormal romance!  Whaaa. Så kul att hitta och läsa denna! Även om jag inte är överförtjust i skiftare - har aldrig riktigt sett något lockande i det, likaså vampyrer - kände jag ändå att jag ville testa denna. Och det var ju en väldans tur att jag gjorde det. Vad handlar den om?  Jonathan är dömd till döden av sin flock, men lyckas fly med hjälp av en annan flockmedlem. På sin flykt stöter han på Miriam och han kan inte hålla sig borta. Han vill bara se henne en gång, känna hennes doft, prata med henne, röra henne... Miriam är en soft om än något entusiastisk thrillerförfattare (ugh, jag är INTE en thrillerläsare - jag gillar att sova om nätterna),  som bor ensam i sin lilla stuga efter att hennes pojkvän dumpat henne på grund av hennes något makabra intressen (och visst råkade ...

Author: Ilona Andrews Title: Burn for Me Series: Hidden Legacy #1 Genre: Paranormal romance Publisher: Avon Links:  Bokus  /  Book Depository  /  Goodreads It's been ages since I read  a paranormal romance and actually finished it. I know some people don't like this one and while I have some things that bothers me, I also really enjoyed this read. I listened to the audiobook and the narrator wasn't awesome, but I still managed to like this book, which is saying something. Nevada is P.I. in an alternative  Huston, Texas, where people has developed magical powers after injecting a serum and now, hundreds of years later, people are born with them instead. Power houses breed for power while regular people live their lives regardless of being magic or not. In either case, magic is a natural state of life in this world. Nevada is forced by the company that owns her family's business to find and bring in a powerful fire mage - something she's not...

Author: Laura Thalassa Title: Pestilence Genre: Apocalyptic romance  Publisher: Independent Links:  Bokus  /  Book Depository  /  Goodreads Yeah, this was... I don't really know how to feel about this. On the one hand, I liked the writing and the main story - The Four Horsemen coming to earth, killing everyone because of the wrath of God and a human falling for them. Buuuut, the execution left somethings to be desired. Let's start with the good things: Pestilence is hot - Yeah, seriously, that's a good thing. Hate-to-love-trope  - I love that. Unfeeling to feeling  - I liked the transition for Pestilence, from being an ethereal being, hating humans, to slowly falling in love with Sara, wanting to protect her from everything (even though he hurt her a few times, but details). Trixie Skillz  - dat horse, though. Violence  - okay, I don't specifically like violence, but I liked that the author didn't really skip the de...

Author: Sophie Jordan Title: All the Ways to Ruin a Rogue Genre: Historical romance Publisher: Avon Links:  Bokus  /  Book Depository  /  Goodreads I can't say I loved this book, but it had me intrigued until the last page. I did like the story - how at childhood crush is, well, crushed when it comes to light that he's not so great, after all. And then a misunderstanding that's actually believable and they are so petty and funny and bickering all the time and you can almost touch the tension. Okay, what was good?  I really liked Aurelia. She tried to be independent, to not settle for any marriage even though she felt like a burden to her brother and his wife. She's a fantastic artist and that big misunderstanding years before peaked her interest in making caricatures of people. But not of anyone, just of people who deserves it (according to her). Max was also totally okay. He really has the whole "I'm-a-man-and-therefore-you-shall-do-as-I-...

Author: Taylor Jenkins Reid Title: The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo Genre: Fiction/Historical Publisher: Atria Books/Random House Audio Links:  Bokus  /  Book Depository  /  Goodreads Jenkins Reid does know how to write problematic characters. Evelyn Hugo isn't in any way all that likable. All the same, I felt for her story and in the end, she had a place in my heart. Why did that happen?  Evelyn Hugo has had a long life filled with success and heartbreak. When she starts telling her story to Monique, the young journalist she insists on sharing it with, we slowly but surely get a glimpse of a strong woman with a great desire to be someone. She's manipulative, smart and knows how to use her looks to get what she wants. The stories about how and why she married her husbands make me mostly sad, because this isn't really a happy book. I like happy books, but just as Daisy Jones, Evelyn had me so interested in her story that I held on till the ...

Författare: Christoffer Holst Titel: Söta, röda sommardrömmar Genre: Feelgood/Deckare/Romance Förlag: Lovereads Länkar:  Adlibris  /  Bokus  /  Goodreads Det verkar som att så gott som alla böcker jag läser på svenska kommer från förlaget Lovereads, för jag läser ju väldigt sällan böcker på svenska numera. Och nu kommer jag här och meddelar att jag vanligtvis inte läser deckare, heller. Så har jag satt mig ner och läst en svensk deckare! Hur gick detta till? Well, jag läser ju feelgood och jag gillar Christoffer Holst och titta på det där omslaget och själva begreppet feelgood-deckare fick mig att ge den en chans. Och om jag är glad för det! Cilla Storm är journalist, men inte den luriga, pengakramande sorten. Hon är nyfiken, glad, rolig och omtänksam och lite konstig. Jag gillade henne nästan direkt. Grannen Rosie är lite av hur jag drömmer om att vara som pensionär och hennes son Adam är helt enkelt yummy. Eller ja, han är ju faktiskt mer än så. Polis. ...

Author: Taylor Jenkins Reid Title: Daisy Jones & The Six Genre: Fiction/Historical Publisher: Ballantine Books/Random House Audio Links:  Bokus  /  Book Depository  /  Goodreads Daisy Jones and the Six  truly surprised me. I saw it on my audiobook service and, having seen all the hype, I though I’d give it a go. I don’t know why, since I almost never read hyped books and I definitely don’t read books about a 70’s band. But I did and I’m glad. I don’t think I would have enjoyed this book as much as I did if I hadn’t listened to the audiobook. That’s rarely the case, but this book worked amazingly as an audiobook. The narrators - and there where a lot of narrators (another thing I usually dislike, what’s this book done to me?) - were amazing. It was like listening to a movie. A real documentary. What's so damn good, then?  I don't know! I kept expecting to be bored, getting fed up with the cheating, the booze, the drugs. But the bo...

Author: Caleb Roehrig Title: Death Prefers Blondes Genre: Young Adult Publisher: Feiwel & Friends Links:  Bokus  /  Book Depository  /  Goodreads My oh my.  If you'd said to me that I would love a book about ass-kicking drag queens, murder mysteries, daring heists, sweet romances and spinning action scenes... I'd probably have believed you. Pick this up, just do it. Also, look at that cover. Total insta-cover-love Okay, what was so good, then?  I don't know. I liked the story, about a spoiled rich girl trying to create some action in her life, ending up loving the action and becoming a thief. Getting in over her head on a job and her personal life crumbling before her eyes. With her band of drag queens. I liked the characters, each one unique in their own way. I loved the friendship. I loved the way the romance was low-key - even though I would have liked to know about the romances around Margo. Something not so great?  Well,...

Author: Christina Lauren Title: Josh and Hazels Guide to not Dating Genre: Contemporary romance Publisher: Gallery Books Links:  Bokus  /  Book Depository  /  Goodreads I saw that someone described  this book as "pure fun" and I have to agree. Hazel is such a wonderful character and I loved how she loved herself. Sure, she was quite adamant that she was a bit loony, but she was also determined not to change for a man. You go, of course you shouldn't change for a man. Be you. Josh is also a great guy, funny, thoughtful and respectful. What did you like about the book?  Well, honestly, almost everything. It's not a complicated story with lots of intrigue, lies, action or anything and that's absolutely perfect. This is a book about Hazel and Josh getting to know each other. Becoming friends. Falling in love. It also has one of my favorite tropes - opposites attract! I adore watching people who are so completely different falling for each ot...

Author: Christina Lauren Title: My Favorite Half-Night Stand Genre: Contemporary romance Publisher: Gallery Books Links:  Bokus  /  Book Depository  /  Goodreads Okay, so this book  has one of my favorite tropes - friends-to-lovers. When done right, it's can be such a fun and sweet read. In this case, the friends are best friends and have such a great relationship, being comfortable with each other, bantering, caring about one another. But, this book also  has one of my least favorite things - lying. I just don't like it. Especially when there's no real good reason. Like in this case, the woman, Millie, is catfishing the man, Reid. This is not okay and I had trouble with it the entire book. That said, if I had to read a book about lying and catfishing (and, apparently no one had to put a gun to my head), I'd pick this one. Even though the story is important, I find even more important that I love the characters. Millie had her issues (bad de...