Book Review: Prince Charming by Rachel Hawkins

Series: Royals Book #1

Format: Paperback

Pages: 320

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

How I Got It: Purchased

Genre: Young Adult, Contemporay

Publisher: Penguin

Synopsis courtesy of Goodreads

Meet Daisy Winters. She's an offbeat sixteen-year-old Floridian with mermaid-red hair, a part time job at a bootleg Walmart, and a perfect older sister who's nearly engaged to the Crown Prince of Scotland. Daisy has no desire to live in the spotlight, but relentless tabloid attention forces her join Ellie at the relative seclusion of the castle across the pond.

While the dashing young Miles has been appointed to teach Daisy the ropes of being regal, the prince's roguish younger brother kicks up scandal wherever he goes, and tries his best to take Daisy along for the ride. The crown--and the intriguing Miles--might be trying to make Daisy into a lady . . . but Daisy may just rewrite the royal rulebook to suit herself.

Review

This was a cute YA contemporary. I read it in just a couple of hours and enjoyed my time with the characters. The romance was cute, but not as developed as I would've liked. Actually, I felt that way about a lot of the story. I wanted more development with many of the characters and story lines. 

It felt kind of like a Disney movie-if drinking was kosher on the Disney channel. It was a very one level story. Like I would've like to know more about the sister's relationship. I would be ok with less romance if that relationship had been more deeply explored.

The friendships were really cute and pretty healthy. There is a group of guy friends that seems a little toxic, but is actually pretty good which I like. And Daisy's parents were funny. It's nice to have a YA book with parents who are actually in their kids' lives.

Overall, this was a good story. Maybe it is more of a 3.5 star read. I definitely want to pick up the next story. And I hope more of the side characters get books because I'm interested in them.

Thanks for reading!

Holly

June Wrap-Up (2019)

June was a crazy month. I knew it was going to be. Although it was a tad bit more crazy than I expected. Not in a good way, but I'm trying not to dwell on that.

I did have my dance recital which went well. If I can find away to insert the footage, I will. 

And I read way more than I thought was possible. I definitely think audio books help with that. I also finally signed up for Audible. I also got the romance package. Now, I just have to stop myself from listening to all the books. 

Here are the books I read and their ratings:

Court of Fives-3 Stars

Graceling-5 Stars

Guarding the Amish Midwife-3 Stars

The Raging Ones-5 Stars

Warrior of the Wild-5 Stars

Exclusively Yours-4 Stars

The 5 AM Club-3 Stars

The First Conspiracy-4 Stars

Prince Charming-4 Stars

Silver Shadows-5 Stars

The Duke is But a Dream-3 Stars

Him-4 Stars

The Night Circus-4 Stars

The Ruby Circle-4 Stars

Us-4 Stars

Addicted for Now-5 Stars

Good Boy-4 Stars

Let's Get Textual-4 Stars

Thanks for reading!

Holly

Book Review: Warrior of the Wild by Tricia Levenseller

Stand Alone

Format: Hardcover

Pages: 329

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

How I Got It: Purchaed

Genre: Fantasy, YA

Publisher: Feiwel & Friends

Synopsis courtesy of Goodreads

As her father's chosen heir, eighteen-year-old Rasmira has trained her whole life to become a warrior and lead her village. But when her coming-of-age trial is sabotaged and she fails the test, her father banishes her to the monster-filled wilderness with an impossible quest: To win back her honor, she must kill the oppressive god who claims tribute from the villages each year—or die trying.

Review

I read this in like 3 hours. And now I'm sad because I don't have any more Tricia Levenseller books to read. I just really enjoy her writing. For me, there is the right balance of fantasy, action, and romance. I also really appreciate a standalone fantasy.

The Viking-inspired elements were interesting. And there was definitely a serious and dark tone. I was kept on the edge of my seat. I would get anxious and made on Rasmira's behalf. I even teared up a couple of times. 

I've seen some people complain about the romance. I didn't think it overwhelmed the story but I also love a romance. The romance was cute and added some lightness to the story. The friendships were also a nice break. I also liked how the friendships impacted Rasmira and contributed to her character development.

Overall, this was engaging and a fun stand alone read. I loved spending time with these characters and in this world.

Thanks for reading!

Holly

Summer TBR (2019)

Spring is ending and Summer is beginning so it is time for another seasonal 

This is a 5 book TBR which I try to read in the next 3 months. 1 book that has been on my TBR for a long time and gets unhauled if I don't read it, 2 ebook TBR jar picks, and 2 physical TBR jar picks.

Here are the books I picked for the summer.

TBR Veteran:

E-Book picks

Physical book picks

Thanks for reading!

Holly

Spring Book Haul

I'm back with another book haul. I bought these over the last few months. A lot of them came from Thriftbooks, Library booksales, or Goodwill so I feel a little better about the money I have spent. Also, at least half of them were books I already had read or have read since buying them.

Here are the books I purchased.

March 2019 Purchases

The Darkest Surrender

The Darkest Seduction

Destined for an Early Grave

The Bear and the Nightingale

Rookie Move

Let Me Tell You about Jasper

Hot Response

The Return

The Power

The Struggle

The Prophecy

April 2019 Purchases

Soulless

Changeless

Blameless

Heartless

Shades of Wicked

Love & Gelato

Secrets of a Summer Night

It Happened One Autumn

Devil in Winter

Scandal in Spring

Let's Get Textual

A Scoundrel in Her Bed

Daughter of the Siren Queen

Warrior of the Wild

May 2019 Purchases

The Duchess Deal

Fluffy

These Broken Stars

The Bollywood Bride

My Not So Perfect Life

Love from A to Z

I've Got Your Number

Illuminae

Him 

Us

Thanks for reading!

Holly