Review: The Golden Age of Magic by Luanne G. Smith

The Golden Age of Magic by Luanne G. Smith
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I was provided an ALC via Brilliance Audio and Netgalley, all opinions are my own.

Set in 1920s Hollywood, this follows Celeste, who is essentially a junior fairy godmother out on her first solo mission.  She left France when another of her order felt slighted and her mentor felt it was best for her to leave the country until tempers settled.  She is in search of her first protégé to nudge them to greatness with their inherent talents.  In Hollywood she is drawn to a talented yet unknown seamstress working hard on the set of a movie.  She also finds darkness and chaos on the set, which makes her mission more complicated than anticipated.  

I thought the author did a good job explaining the magic.  The sisterhood of the Fées Gardiennes and their counterparts the Skulks were also well explained, though it does take until the end of the book to get the information.  This has a slight romance subplot, but it doesn't really go anywhere.  Perhaps that develops more as the series progresses.  I anticipate we will get to know Celeste more as well as the series progresses and she grows into her role as a full fledged Fées Gardiennes.  I'm anxious to see how the series progresses and learn more about the other members of the order.

Overall I really enjoyed the plot and the concept of the book.  The narrator did a good job with the story and the characters.  

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Review: In the Veins of the Drowning by Kalie Cassidy

In the Veins of the Drowning by Kalie Cassidy
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I was provided an ARC via Netgalley, all opinions are my own.

This follows Imogen, a siren in hiding.  She is the ward of a strange and abusive king who is making a show of her upcoming marriage to the captain of his guard.  When the handsome king from a neighboring country recognizes her though they have never met, things begin to unravel for Imogen.  She decides she must escape her prison of a home and the friendly king Theo may be her only hope of protection.  Imogen and Theo form a blood bond and embark on a journey to not only save her from her keeper but to save Theo's kingdom.  

I seem to be in the minority, but I thought this was just OK.  The concept was really interesting, but as a fantasy lover, so many things were left unexplained.  For example, why do the sirens have wings instead of tails? That is clearly a deliberate choice the author made to deviate from other siren/mermaid tales we've seen in the past, but we never get an explanation why or what they are for.  Also Imogen doesn't spend much time in the water so we never get to see her use her wings and she doesn't fly.  Maybe that will be made clear in the future.  As a romance reader I didn't feel the tension and chemistry between the two main characters, so I wasn't drawn into the romance aspect of the story.  I wanted more development of their relationship and character development overall.

I would have liked more development and information on the myths and lore of the world.  It was only in the last few chapters that we get a bit of backstory on the goddess Ligea and the deity Eusia.  We don't get much information on the other gods and goddesses of the world.  We also don't get alot of development of the magic system.  Imogen knows she is a siren, but she can't control her power at the beginning of the book.  She has one lesson with Theo then she seemingly is all powerful and can control her powers with no problem.   The concept of the Mage Seer was interesting but it left me confused and I felt like I missed something despite reading those parts over a few times.  I'm hoping we get more in the next book as Imogen's journey continues.

Overall this is a good start to the series, and I'm interested to see where it goes.  

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Review: Of Flame and Fury by Mikayla Bridge

Of Flame and Fury by Mikayla Bridge
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I was provided an ALC of this book via Netgalley, all opinions are my own.

This was compared to Fourth Wing and Iron Widow, but I don't think those are fair comparisons.  The romance is very tame, the enemies to lovers aren't really enemies, and while Kel has her convictions about how the phoenixes should be treated there isn't a war going on and there aren't any battle scenes.  This isn't quite as action packed as those two books, so I don't want readers to expect one thing and get something else.  This is in my opinion YA whereas both of those books were New Adult/Adult when it came to the romance and violence.

I wanted more backstory on the phoenixes and the world.  The phoenix racing was a really cool concept, but the origin story of the creatures was missing as to how the creatures came to live among humans and it wasn't clear if they had magic or not and how that worked.  There is a poem or tale of sorts that Kel mentions several times, but it isn't clear where it came from.

This follows Kelyn aka Kel and her phoenix Savita.  Kel's father found Savita and raised her from a young age.  Kel is essentially a phoenix whisperer, she is Savita's handler and works with her and her team to race in elaborate and dangerous phoenix races.  Their team isn't sponsored so they don't have the best gear or tech like some of the other teams.  When a race goes sideways and they lose their rider, the team has to join forces with exiled members of a rival team.  They are also approached by a sponsor who can really help their racing progress.  The problem is Kel's least favorite person Warren Coupers aka Coup is their new rider.  She doesn't really like him for his reckless stunts.  Kel is a bit uptight and prickly and wants everyone to do things her way, it kind of makes her unlikable.  Coup is fun and has no fear and he wants Kel to loosen up and live a little.  As Kel actually gets to know Coup, she realizes he isn't that bad.  They also uncover some questionable practices within their sponsor's research facility that don't add up to what they were told.

Overall I think this book was enjoyable, but there were some things I felt were underdeveloped.  I wanted a bit more worldbuilding from the perspective of the magic system, the lore, and the character development.  The descriptions of the races was done well and that concept was really cool.  I think as an adult I want more from my books these days and I think a younger audience would really enjoy this.

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Review: The Code for Love by Anne Marsh

The Code for Love by Anne Marsh
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I was provided both an ALC and an ARC via Netgalley, all opinions are my own.

This unfortunately didn't work for me.  The narration was a bit too monotone for me and the characters were far too immature for my liking.  As this is told from Pandora's perspective I found that much of it felt as if Pandora was rambling for 26 chapters.  I felt like it was one big rambling inner monologue.  This is marketed as an enemies to lovers, but Ozzy is never really her enemy, Pandora is just a workaholic introvert.  Their "meet cute" is super awkward, all of their interactions are immature, their conversations make no sense, and they have no chemistry.  Pandora is constantly objectifying Ozzy and his body or she is complaining and self loathing, it makes for a weird dynamic and the plot suffers.

Having worked in software development for much of my career, I question if the author did any research or has experience in development.  I often found myself saying "that is not how that works" in many situations.  I admit it is possible that my experience could differ from someone else's however many of these situations were inappropriate or just unrealistic for a professional setting.  Inaccuracies like that are an immediate turn off for me in a book.  I also didn't need to be told 50 times that Pandora is an engineer and that is her entire personality.  Engineering is a profession and not all engineers are nocturnal introverts who ignore basic hygiene. 

Overall I think this had a good premise, but this suffered from trying to throw every romance trope into one book.  I wasn't a fan of the rambling style of stream of consciousness style of delivery.  The character development and plot were also lacking.

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Review: A Witch's Guide to Magical Innkeeping by Sangu Mandanna

A Witch's Guide to Magical Innkeeping by Sangu Mandanna
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I was provided an ARC of this book via Netgalley and the Berkley Besties program, all opinions are my own.

This book was the cozy hug I needed.  Sera lost most of her magic when she cast a spell to save her beloved Aunt Jasmine.  Sera is always sacrificing and taking care of others, despite the grumpy facade she puts on.  She helps Jasmine run the Batty Hole Inn (great and appropriate name by the way), where people who need a comfortable and safe place to stay always find one for as long as they need.  Together they have built a wonderful found family with a skeleton chicken, a talking fox, a knight, and a quirky gardener among others.  When an old friend gives Sera the key to gaining her magic back, it just so happens that Luke Larsen is the only one who can help her translate the spell and he and his sister happened to show up at the inn shortly after the spell lands in Sera's hands.  Coincidence?  I think not!  Luke much like Sera will do anything to take care of his sister Posy and the people who mean something to him, but he has spent years building walls and conforming to the rules of magical society.  He wants nothing to do with the shenanigans that make up the inn, but soon realizes that it might be what is best for Posy and maybe for himself.

I absolutely loved the dynamics of the Inn and Sera's family and friends.  While I don't run an inn, I related to her so well with taking care of the people around me.  I wish I could magic all the laundry away and make my appliances more efficient with magic.  I really loved that we got to see her both with an without magic in the book on her journey of self discovery.    Sera and Luke's romance was super slow burn, but they were really cute together.  Every character was so lovable and while there were big conversations on big topics, at the end of the day they just wanted to be near each other  The characters were wonderful, the messages this book holds are even more wonderful, and I delighted in every moment spent within the pages of this book!

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Review: The Situation by Adriana Locke

The Situation by Adriana Locke
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I received an ALC via the author, all opinions are my own.

I really felt old when Tate didn't know who Kelly Kapowski was, but it was really funny when finally figured it out.  Saved by the Bell was such a big part of my childhood.  Aurora has not been lucky in love, so when gorgeous Tate Brewer sits down next to her on a flight to a conference she is not interested in his charm.  Tate is used to getting what he wants, and right now he wants her.  She gives him a fake name and they have some witty banter until their flight lands, but she turns him down when he asks her to dinner.  Undeterred, Tate meets her for dinner anyway and they have a night to remember.  Aurora returns to her life in marketing, only to reunite with Tate when she finds out his family owns the hockey team she is working to rebrand and he is taking over the marketing efforts.  He also isn't backing down on his efforts to woo her.

Tate is a little over the top with his overtures and spoiled brat mentality.  Then again he's still in his twenties and the baby of his family.  He is used to getting his way and is rarely told no in any situation.  Aurora on the other hand is while not old, older than Tate and has had more experience with relationships and knows what she wants and doesn't want.  She has been burned by men in the past and is willing to ask for what she wants.  Their relationship moved a bit fast for my taste, but they were entertaining.

Can I say how much I loved Mimi?  I'm a sucker for a good grandparent character and Mimi was such a great one?  She gave great advice and was hilarious.   I miss my grandmother so much, so when I see a character like this where there is such a loving and genuine connection it fills my heart.  I also love that she loves to bake and they bake together!

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Review: An Irish Summer by Alexandra Paige

An Irish Summer by Alexandra Paige
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I was provided an ARC of this book via Netgalley, all opinions are my own.

Chelsea made me so angry as she wasted her opportunity to explore Ireland during her summer abroad. I have always wanted to visit Ireland, my great grandparents on both sides of my family immigrated from Ireland and I would love to visit one day. I hope to get there someday and get to experience some of the magic the country has to offer.

This follows Chelsea, who has her future all mapped out. She has a comfortable job working at a cozy bed and breakfast, but when the couple she works for unexpectedly decide to retire and sell the property all of her plans some to a screeching halt. As a consolation, the couple offer Chelsea and opportunity to work at their sister property The Wanderer, a hostel in Ireland. This will give her the summer to figure things out. Chelsea is not thrilled with this opportunity, she likes plans and order and is not a fan of change. Encouraged by her more spontaneous best friend and her parents to take a chance on Ireland, she takes the job at the Wanderer. There she meets the staff who despite her best efforts become a found family of sorts for Chelsea and encourage her to make the most out of the time she has and live in the moment. The biggest proponent of this is the hostel's tour guide and charmer Collin. He is determined to to show Chelsea the magic of his country and get her to slow down and enjoy life a little.

Chelsea was really hard to like. Collin and Flo were so lovely and likeable, I can't imagine them as actual real people being friends with Chelsea. It would have been more realistic that they would have given up on her after a few interactions as she was so whiny and standoffish. Chelsea was so rigid and unwilling to accept her situation. I am all for a plan for your future, but she always putting Collin down for his choice to work at the hostel. Their relationship, while sweet, wasn't very realistic and lacked chemistry. Fortunately, Chelsea figures herself out before it is too late. I also wanted more world building. Ireland is one of my bucket list places to visit and I wanted to experience Ireland through Chelsea and Collin's eyes.

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Review: Pretty Good Science Jokes: 230 Peer-Reviewed, Lab-Tested, Nobel-Worthy Jokes, Puns, and Zingers

Pretty Good Science Jokes: 230 Peer-Reviewed, Lab-Tested, Nobel-Worthy Jokes, Puns, and Zingers by Steve Mockus
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I was provided an ARC of this book via Netgalley, all opinions are my own.

Some of these jokes were really funny, while others were great puns, and the illustrations were great. Unfortunately some of the jokes required a more intimate knowledge of science to really get the joke making them not funny for the average reader. My husband and I are well educated, and we just didn't get some of these hence the lower rating. I've also heard some of these before, so some of the jokes are not original.

This would be a great gift for a science lover depending on their personality. There are some good ones in here.

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