The Highlander's English Bride by Vanessa Kelly

Title: The Highlander’s English Bride (Clan Kendrick #3)

Author: Vanessa Kelly

Publisher: Zebra 2020

Genre: Romance

Pages: 448

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges:

Lady Sabrina Bell has never been so embarrassed in her life. Not only did her new suitor fail to appear for their morning rendezvous in Hyde Park, but a thief pushed her into the Serpentine. Being rescued by a burly Highlander just adds to her humiliation. Nor is he content with rescuing her just once. Even when Sabrina travels to Edinburgh as part of King George’s entourage, Graeme Kendrick is there, interfering, exasperating, and so very tempting . . .

Once notorious for being the most unruly Kendrick brother, Graeme now runs dangerous missions for the King’s spymaster. Yet nothing has prepared him for Sabrina. The only child of a wealthy earl, and the pampered goddaughter of the king himself, she is stubborn, impetuous, and far too good for him. He doesn’t deserve her, but he can protect her and then send her safely back home. But the bonny Sassenach has her own ideas—and a plan for seduction that no red-blooded Highlander could resist . . .

Graeme was the perfect Kendrick for the next book. I loved the little glimpses that we saw of him in the previous books and was excited to see his story laid out. Graeme has a heart of gold even through he keeps things cool on the outside. But that makes him a very compelling main character. Once he meets Sabrina, the story kicks into gear and we are off on an adventure. Their banter is great but even more, I loved the little bits of humor. Sabrina isn’t as strong as Ainsley, but she’s a great addition to the Kendrick clan. I can’t wait to see what happens next to the family.

Clan Kendrick

• #1 The Highlander Who Protected Me

• #2 The Highlander’s Christmas Bride

• #3 The Highlander’s English Bride

• #4 The Highlander’s Irish Bride

• #5 The Highlander’s Holiday Wife

Next up on the TBR pile:

Whiteout by Various

Title: Whiteout

Author: Dhonielle Clayton, Tiffany D Jackson, Nic Stone, Angie Thomas, Ashley Woodfolk, Nicola Yoon

Publisher: Quill Tree Books 2022

Genre: YA Romance

Pages: 291

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: 

Atlanta is blanketed with snow just before Christmas, but the warmth of young love just might melt the ice in this novel of Black joy, and cozy, sparkling romance—by the same unbeatable team of authors who wrote the New York Times bestseller Blackout!

As the city grinds to a halt, twelve teens band together to help a friend pull off the most epic apology of her life. But will they be able to make it happen, in spite of the storm? 

No one is prepared for this whiteout. But then, we can’t always prepare for the magical moments that change everything.

A very cute story about a group of friends trying to help two of them get back together in the midst of a snow storm. We get chapters from each friend’s perspective. The chapters were short but full of heart. I sped through this book and ended with a warm hug. The book wasn’t my favorite, but it was a delightful little young adult romance. I loved all the personalities and perspectives from the friends. A very nice book for the holiday season.

Next up on the TBR pile:

You're a Mean One, Matthew Prince by Timothy Janovsky

Title: You’re a Mean One, Matthew Prince (Boy Meets Boy #2)

Author: Timothy Janovsky

Publisher: Sourcebooks 2022

Genre: Romance

Pages: 304

Rating: 3/5 stars

Reading Challenges: 

Matthew Prince is young, rich, and thoroughly spoiled. So what if his parents barely remember he exists and the press is totally obsessed with him? He's on top of the world. But one major PR misstep later, and Matthew is cut off and shipped away to spend the holidays in his grandparents' charming small town hellscape. Population: who cares?

It's bad enough he's stuck in some festive winter wonderland—it's even worse that he has to share space with Hector Martinez, an obnoxiously attractive local who's unimpressed with anything and everything Matthew does.

Just when it looks like the holiday season is bringing nothing but heated squabbles, the charity gala loses its coordinator and Matthew steps in as a saintly act to get home early on good behavior...with Hector as his maddening plus-one. But even a Grinch can't resist the unexpected joy of found family, and in the end, the forced proximity and infectious holiday cheer might be enough to make a lonely Prince's heart grow three sizes this year.

Trying to be Schitt’s Creek and failing very badly. I could not ever get behind Matthew as a person. He annoyed me up through the ending. Even after he started showing a bit of humility and understanding, I still didn’t really see his appeal. Hector I loved, but you can’t love one half and hate the other half in a romance novel. At least the characters on Schitt’s Creek were funny. There was no humor in here to offset the spoiled rich kid-ness. Definitely not my pick for the season.

Boy Meets Boy

• #1 Never Been Kissed

• #2 You’re a Mean One, Matthew Prince

• #3 New Adult

Next up on the TBR pile:

The Highlander's Christmas Bride by Vanessa Kelly

Title: The Highlander’s Christmas Bride (Clan Kendrick #2)

Author: Vanessa Kelly

Publisher: Zebra 2019

Genre: Romance

Pages: 432

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges:

Being thrown over by the man she expected to marry was humiliating enough. Now that Donella Haddon, grandniece of the Earl of Riddick, has also proven a failure as a nun, she has no choice but to return to her family's estate. The brawny Highlander sent to escort her is brash, handsome, and the only thing standing between Donella and a gang of would-be kidnappers. But the scandal in her past can't be so easily outrun . . .

Wealthy widower Logan Kendrick was expecting to meet a plain, pious spinster--not a gorgeous, sharp-tongued lass who can hold her own in any ambush. Though she's known as the Flower of Clan Graham, Donella is no shrinking violet. In fact, she might be the perfect woman to bring happiness back to his lonely little son's life, just in time for Christmas. But first he must protect her from ugly gossip and a mysterious threat--and convince her that their wild, unexpected desire is heaven sent.

The second in this series was definitely better than the first. We get a great main male and a great main female character. I loved the interactions between Donell and Logan. We get two strong characters that have to learn to rely on each other for support. It’s a lovely partnership that I was rooting for from the first page.

Clan Kendrick

• #1 The Highlander Who Protected Me

• #2 The Highlander’s Christmas Bride

• #3 The Highlander’s English Bride

• #4 The Highlander’s Irish Bride

• #5 The Highlander’s Holiday Wife

Next up on the TBR pile:

Wallbanger by Alice Clayton

Title: Wallbanger (The Cocktail #1)

Author: Alice Clayton

Publisher: Omnific Publishing 2012

Genre: Romance

Pages: 384

Rating: 3/5 stars

Reading Challenges:

Caroline Reynolds has a fantastic new apartment in San Francisco, a Kitchen Aid mixer to die for, and no O (and we’re not talking Oprah here, folks). She has a flourishing design career, an office overlooking the bay, a killer zucchini bread recipe, and no O. She has Clive (the best cat ever), great friends, a great rack, and no O. Adding insult to O-less, she also has an oversexed neighbor with the loudest late-night wallbanging she’s ever heard. Every moan, spank, and—was that a meow?—punctuates the fact that not only is she losing sleep, she still has—yep, you guessed it—no O. Enter Simon Parker. When the wallbanging threatens to literally bounce her out of bed, Caroline, clad in sexual frustration and a pink baby-doll nightie, confronts her heard-but-never-seen neighbor. Their late-night hallway encounter has…well…mixed results. Because with walls this thin, the tension’s gonna be thick. A delicious mix of silly and steamy, this is an irresistible tale of exasperation at first sight.

I’ve been looking for a good choice for our book club’s Dirty Book Month. I do not think this is my choice. My first issue is that there is too much talk about sex and not enough actual sex. Our main characters don’t actually have sex until the last few chapters of the book. I definitely needed more in my spicy romance. Instead of actual sex, we get a lot of ridiculous sex talk full of silly comments and nicknames. I was very over the silly talk. And then we get to the main characters. I really enjoyed Simon, but Caroline was very naive and grating at times. I think I need to stay away from spicy romances that center around characters in their early 20s. We’ll see how it goes, but this one is going into the nope category.

The Cocktail

• #1 Wallbanger

• #2 Rusty Nailed

• #3 Screwdrivered

• #4 Mai Tai’d Up

Next up on the TBR pile:

The Christmas Clash by Suzanne Park

Title: The Christmas Clash

Author: Suzanne Park

Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire 2022

Genre: YA Romance

Pages: 349

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: 

Chloe Kwon can't stand Peter Li. It's always been that way. Their families don't get along either: their parents operate rival restaurants in the Riverwood Mall food court—Korean food for the Kwons and Chinese food for the Lis. Now it's the holiday season and Chloe's the photographer at the mall's Santa's Village, and Peter works at the virtual reality North Pole experience right across the atrium. It's all Chloe can do to avoid Peter's smug, incredibly photogenic face.

But it turns out the mall is about to be sold to a developer and demolished for condos. Eviction notices are being handed out right before Christmas. Their parents don't know what to do, and soon Chloe and Peter realize that the two of them need to join efforts to try to save the mall. Just when it seems like they can put aside their differences and work closely (very closely) together, they discover that the Kwon and Li feud goes far deeper than either of them realize...

What is with YA romance doing the Romeo and Juliet trope? I guess it is a classic for a reason and it includes lots of opportunities for great banter. I loved the mall setting to this particular story. The old rivalry between the Chinese restaurant and the Korean restaurant is perfect fodder for the rivalry between Chloe and Peter. Right away, we know that Chloe and Peter are going to end up together, but how are they going to get over their attitudes toward each other? I was completely on board with all the longing glances and confused feelings. So cute! As an added bonus, we get a mystery of how the Lis and Kwons can to be enemies. The book was cute and breezy and fairly chaste. A good pick for this week.

Next up on the TBR pile:

Lovelight Farms by B.K. Borison

Title: Lovelight Farms (Lovelight #1)

Author: B.K. Borison

Publisher: 2021

Genre: Holiday Romance

Pages: 309

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: 

Where the lovelight gleams …

A pasture of dead trees. A hostile takeover of the Santa barn by a family of raccoons. And shipments that have mysteriously gone missing. Lovelight Farms is not the magical winter wonderland of Stella Bloom’s dreams.

In an effort to save the Christmas tree farm she’s loved since she was a kid, she enters a contest with instafamous influencer Evelyn St. James. With the added publicity and the $100,000 cash prize, she might just be able to save the farm from its financial woes. There’s just one problem. To make the farm seem like a romantic destination for the holidays, she lied on the application and said she owns Lovelight Farms with her boyfriend. Only … there is no boyfriend.

Enter best friend Luka Peters. He just came home for some hot chocolate, and somehow got a farm and a serious girlfriend in the process.

A decent contemporary romance with good main characters. While some of Stella’s insecurities got a bit annoying by the end of the book, I was still on board with her as a main character. I wanted to see her succeed with her Christmas tree farm. While she’s on the way to succeed by the end of the book, the romance is the more important focus of the book. Friends to lovers isn’t my favorite romance trope, but this one does work. Luka is such a great counterpoint to Stella that I actually buy their relationship. The steamy scenes don’t kick in until about 60% of the way through, but when they do, they are steamy. Beyond the romance, I did love meeting Stella’s business partners. I am excited to read their stories next.

Lovelight Farms

• #1 Lovelight Farms

• #2 In the Weeds

• #3 Mixed Signals

Next up on the TBR pile:

The Fourth Suit by Neil Patrick Harris

Title: The Fourth Suit (Magic Misfits 4)

Author: Neil Patrick Harris

Publisher: Little, Brown Books 2020

Genre: MG Fantasy

Pages: 336

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: 

Ridley Larsen is everything you want in a friend. She's tough as nails, she's fiercely loyal, and she's smart as a whip. But she can be a harsh critic, which has put her position with the Magic Misfits on the rocks, even as the threat of the group's longtime enemy Kalagan looms large. Ever since his recent appearance in Mineral Wells, the kids know that a showdown with the vicious magician is imminent.
They must first deal with a series of odd instances and random attacks, though, all of which they use to bring themselves closer to discovering where Kalagan may be hiding, and the nature of his true identity. But can Ridley finally master her temper and put her essential magical skills to good use? She'll do anything to protect her friends, and when the time comes, she'll find that the Magic Misfits are strongest when they all work together.
Join the Magic Misfits as they discover adventure, friendship, and more than a few hidden secrets in this finale of the unique and surprising series. Whether you're a long-time expert at illusion or simply a new fan of stage magic, hold on to your top hat!

I finally made it to the conclusion of this series and it was definitely worth the wait. We finally get to unmask Kallagan. But more importantly, all the members of the Misfits finally repair their friendships and find their places. At the end of the series, Carter remained my favorite character, but this book really made me love Ridley. Despite all her prickly bits, she loves fierce. We finally got a glimpse into her family life. We needed that peek behind the curtain to see exactly why she reacts the way she does. I sped through this volume in one day desperate to finish the series. Extra bonus points: Arthur and I both read this series and had a great time discussing it.

The Magic Misfits

• #1 The Magic Misfits

• #2 The Second Story

• #3 The Minor Third

• #4 The Fourth Suit

Next up on the TBR pile:

Snowpiercer Vol. 1

Title: Snowpiercer Vol. 1: The Escape

Author: Jacques Lob, Jean-Marc Rochette

Publisher: Titan Comics 1984

Genre: Comic

Pages: 110

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges:

In a harsh, uncompromisingly cold future where Earth has succumbed to treacherously low temperatures, the last remaining members of humanity travel on a train while the outside world remains encased in ice.

The surviving community are not without a social hierarchy; those that travel at the front of the train live in relative luxury whilst those unfortunate enough to be at the rear remain clustered like cattle in claustrophobic darkness. Yet, things are about to change aboard the train as passengers become disgruntled...

Okay, so I was very disappointed by the Prequels. The original comic was so much better. We get to actually see the train and the inhabitants. We find out the situation between all of the social classes. And events are set in motion to radically change the status quo. Although after reading this first volume, the prequels make even less sense. There was so much reconning it’s not even funny. Oh well.

Next up on the TBR pile:

Snowpiercer The Prequel Part 2

Title: Snowpiercer The Prequel Part 2: Apocalypse

Author: Matz, Jean-Marc Rochette

Publisher: Titan Comics 2020

Genre: Comic

Pages: 104

Rating: 3/5 stars

Reading Challenges:

After the extinction event that caused the new ice age, the train Snowpiercer travels perpetually around the globe, with the last survivors of humanity learning to come to terms with their new reality.

Meh. I wanted to see what happened. I guess I did. I wasn’t so mad at this book, just a little bored by the repetitiveness. I think the prequels could have been condensed down into one book. Not sure why we needed multiple.

Next up on the TBR pile:

Snowpiercer The Prequel Part 1

Title: Snowpiercer The Prequel Part 1: Extinction

Author: Matz, Jean-Marc Rochette

Publisher: Titan Comics 2021

Genre: Comic

Pages: 98

Rating: 3/5 stars

Reading Challenges:

The Snowpiercer saga continues with this brand new story by original artist Jean-Marc Rochette and Eisner nominated writer, Matz. Set before the extinction event that caused the new ice age in which the Snowpiercer travels perpetually around the globe, witness the terrifying events that led to the need for and creation of the eponymous train.

Overall, I enjoyed the plot. The pages progressed a little too slow for me. And I had a hard time really diving into any of the characters. They just didn’t seem that interesting. I kind of just wanted to see how the train came together in the end.

Next up on the TBR pile:

The Girl Who Drank the Moon by Kelly Barnhill

Title: The Girl Who Drank the Moon

Author: Kelly Barnhill

Publisher: Algonquin Young Readers 2016

Genre: Middle Grade Fantasy

Pages: 388

Rating: 5/5 stars

Reading Challenges: 

Every year, the people of the Protectorate leave a baby as an offering to the witch who lives in the forest. They hope this sacrifice will keep her from terrorizing their town. But the witch in the Forest, Xan, is kind. She shares her home with a wise Swamp Monster and a Perfectly Tiny Dragon. Xan rescues the children and delivers them to welcoming families on the other side of the forest, nourishing the babies with starlight on the journey.

One year, Xan accidentally feeds a baby moonlight instead of starlight, filling the ordinary child with extraordinary magic. Xan decides she must raise this girl, whom she calls Luna, as her own. As Luna’s thirteenth birthday approaches, her magic begins to emerge—with dangerous consequences. Meanwhile, a young man from the Protectorate is determined to free his people by killing the witch. Deadly birds with uncertain intentions flock nearby. A volcano, quiet for centuries, rumbles just beneath the earth’s surface. And the woman with the Tiger’s heart is on the prowl . . .

Next up on the TBR pile:

Eternal Empire Vol. 2

Title: Eternal Empire Vol. 2

Author: Sarah Vaughn, Jonathan Luna

Publisher: Image Comics 2018

Genre: Comic

Pages: 136

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges:

In the concluding arc of this fantasy epic, Tair and Rion use their fire power to try to take down the Empire, while the Eternal Empress plots to use the duo for her own devices. Can the two avoid her clutches, or will they be the weapon the Empress needs to finally control all of Saia?

With the conclusion, we learn more about the daraka and the prophecy of the three. I liked seeing Tair and Rion come to understand each other and their place in the world. I would have liked a bit more about the lore and legends of the daraka, but we speed past most of that to get to the showdown with the Empress. Decent comics for an afternoon’s reading.

Next up on the TBR pile:

Eternal Empire Vol. 1

Title: Eternal Empire Vol. 1

Author: Sarah Vaughn, Jonathan Luna

Publisher: Image Comics 2017

Genre: Comic

Pages: 128

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges:

JONATHAN LUNA (ALEX + ADA, THE SWORD, Spider-Woman: Origin) and SARAH VAUGHN (ALEX + ADA, Deadman: Dark Mansion of Forbidden Love, Ruined) return with ETERNAL EMPIRE, a fantasy epic!

The Eternal Empress has waged war against the countries of Saia for over 100 years, and now her sights are set on the last country standing. But within the brutal Empire’s workforce, a young man and woman discover they share a synergistic power that could change the fate of the entire world. Collects issues 1 through 5.

A fun saving the world comic involving dragons with a limited run? Sign me up! I have enjoyed other comics from Vaughn and Luna and this was no exception. We slowly sink into the world of Saia and the lore of the daraka and the triple suns. We meet two characters somehow connected. The first trade shows them meeting and learning of their purpose. We have to wait until the second trade to see if they succeed.

Next up on the TBR pile:

The Low Low Woods by Carmen Maria Machado

Title: The Low, Low Woods

Author: Carmen Maria Machado, Dani, Tamra Bonvillain

Publisher: DC Black Label 2020

Genre: Comic

Pages: 168

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges:

There's something in the woods...

Shudder-to-Think, Pennsylvania, has been on fire for years. The woods are full of rabbits with human eyes, a deer woman who stalks hungry girls, and swaths of skinless men. And the people of Shudder-to-Think? Well, they're not doing so well either.

When El and Octavia wake up in a movie theater with no memory of the last few hours of their lives, the two teenage dirtbags embark on a horrifying journey to uncover the truth about the strange town that they call home.

We get shades of Silent Hill and the creepy atmosphere from the real-life Centralia mixed with magic and transformation. Horrifying yet poignant look at the treatment of women and memory. I was confused for the first issue or so, trying to get my bearings in this very strange town. And then I started to suspect that not all the occurrences were random. The truth slowly unfolds over the issues to reveal decades-long horrors. I loved the interjection of the witch to give council, but it’s the two main characters that have to made the ultimate choice for everyone. I imagine that I will be thinking about this short comic for awhile after reading.

Next up on the TBR pile:

I'm Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy

Title: I’m Glad My Mom Died

Author: Jennette McCurdy

Publisher: Simon & Schuster 2022

Genre: Memoir

Pages: 304

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges:

Jennette McCurdy was six years old when she had her first acting audition. Her mother’s dream was for her only daughter to become a star, and Jennette would do anything to make her mother happy. So she went along with what Mom called “calorie restriction,” eating little and weighing herself five times a day. She endured extensive at-home makeovers while Mom chided, “Your eyelashes are invisible, okay? You think Dakota Fanning doesn’t tint hers?” She was even showered by Mom until age sixteen while sharing her diaries, email, and all her income.

In I’m Glad My Mom Died, Jennette recounts all this in unflinching detail—just as she chronicles what happens when the dream finally comes true. Cast in a new Nickelodeon series called iCarly, she is thrust into fame. Though Mom is ecstatic, emailing fan club moderators and getting on a first-name basis with the paparazzi (“Hi Gale!”), Jennette is riddled with anxiety, shame, and self-loathing, which manifest into eating disorders, addiction, and a series of unhealthy relationships. These issues only get worse when, soon after taking the lead in the iCarly spinoff Sam & Cat alongside Ariana Grande, her mother dies of cancer. Finally, after discovering therapy and quitting acting, Jennette embarks on recovery and decides for the first time in her life what she really wants.

CW: All the warnings! Sexual assault, Disorder eating, Child abuse

This was so tough to read and yet I did laugh at a few parts. McCurdy starts at the beginning to show us what exactly it was like growing up in her family. All the family secrets are laid bare as we struggle to understand how these people could treat a little girl like that. And then things get even worse as she ages. I was absolutely appalled at a few scenes and it was very difficult to read them. But you need to to understand why McCurdy then makes the choices that she does in her late teens and early 20s. Everything makes so much more sense. I was glad to see that she is finally on the road to recovery. But I think I would have like another 5 years or so before she wrote this book. I would have liked to hear a bit more about her recovery before reliving all this trauma.

Next up on the TBR pile:

The Lady Tempts an Heir by Harper St. George

Title: The Lady Tempts an Heir (The Gilded Age Heiresses #3)

Author: Harper St. George

Publisher: Berkley 2022

Genre: Romance

Pages: 314

Rating: 5/5 stars

Reading Challenges: 

Tall, dark, and brooding—to say that American Maxwell Crenshaw stood out in the glittering ballrooms of London is an understatement. He vowed never to set foot in England again, but when a summons from his father along with an ultimatum to secure his legacy has him crossing the Atlantic for the last time, reuniting him with the delectable Lady Helena March, he can’t deny the temptation she presents. Or the ideas she inspires…

Lady Helena March is flirting with scandal. Instead of spending her time at teas and balls in search of another husband, as is expected of a young widow, Helena pours her energy into The London Home for Young Women. But Society gives no quarter to unmarried radicals who associate with illegitimate children and fallen women, and Helena’s funding is almost run out. So when the sinfully seductive Crenshaw heir suggests a fake engagement to save them both—him from an unwanted marriage and her from scorn and financial ruin—Helena finds herself too fascinated to refuse the sexy American.

As their arrangement of convenience melts oh so deliciously into nights of passion, their deception starts to become real. But if Max knew the true reason Helena can never remarry, he wouldn’t look at her with such heat in his eyes. Or might the Crenshaw heir be willing to do whatever it takes to win the one woman he’s never been able to forget…

The best book out the series so far! I absolutely loved this story of a fake engagement turned real feelings all wrapped up in the history of Helena and Max’s family’s business dealings. I loved seeing two character actually talk to one another before making ridiculous decisions. I loved the conversations about the plight of single mothers and women in the industrial age. I loved the string characters stand up for their own feelings while also being cognizant of the other’s feelings. This one had so much good communication and lovely romance. So good!

The Gilded Age Heiresses

• #1 The Heiress Gets a Duke

• #2 The Devil and the Heiress

• #3 The Lady Tempts an Heir

• #4 The Duchess Takes a Husband

Next up on the TBR pile:

The Midwife's Revolt by Jodi Daynard

Title: The Midwife’s Revolt

Author: Jodi Daynard

Publisher: Lake Union Publishing 2015

Genre: Historical Fiction

Pages: 426

Rating: 3/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Unread Shelf Project

On a dark night in 1775, Lizzie Boylston is awakened by the sound of cannons. From a hill south of Boston, she watches as fires burn in Charlestown, in a battle that she soon discovers has claimed her husband’s life.

Alone in a new town, Lizzie grieves privately but takes comfort in her deepening friendship with Abigail Adams. Soon, word spreads of Lizzie’s extraordinary midwifery and healing skills, and she begins to channel her grief into caring for those who need her. But when two traveling patriots are poisoned, Lizzie finds herself with far more complicated matters on her hands—she suspects a political plot intended to harm Abigail and her family. Determined to uncover the truth, Lizzie becomes entangled in a conspiracy that could not only destroy her livelihood—and her chance at finding love again—but also lead to the downfall of a new nation.

This was our selection for November’s book club and I was not initially thrilled by the summary. But I decided to give it a go anyway and dove in. And it was thoroughly boring. I was bored by our main character. I was bored by the plot line. I was bored by the writing. I thought were was going to be a poisoning plot line, but that doesn’t come into the picture until over halfway through the book. And that portion of the book wasn’t that exciting either. I was just really really bored with this one.

Next up on the TBR pile:

The Highlander Who Protected Me by Vanessa Kelly

Title: The Highlander Who Protected Me (Clan Kendrick #1)

Author: Vanessa Kelly

Publisher: Zebra 2018

Genre: Romance

Pages: 423

Rating: 3/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Fall TBR

Lady Ainsley Matthews, heiress and darling of the ton, was expected to make a magnificent match. Instead she’s hiding on a remote Scottish estate, terrified that her vicious former fiancé will use her pregnancy to force her into marriage. One man can help her—Royal Kendrick, son of a distinguished Highland clan. Though a mistake drove them apart long ago, Royal is the only person Ainsley trusts to protect her baby—even if that means agreeing to never see either of them again . . .

Scarred in body and soul by war, Royal suddenly has a purpose—caring for an innocent babe and thereby helping the woman he can’t stop loving. But when Ainsley ultimately returns to Scotland, determined to be a real mother to her child in spite of the risk, there’s only one solution: marriage. And only one likely outcome: surrendering to the desire that’s simmered between them for so long, no matter how dangerous it may be . . .

CW: Sexual Assault, Child Death

And a mostly disappointing Regency romance novel. I wanted to love this one and I did really enjoy the Kendrick Clan. I just could not at all find any way to like Ainsley. She constant lies and lies of omission to Royal didn’t build any tension; they build anger and resentment in me. I was so incredibly annoyed with all of her behaviors. I could not see what Royal saw in her and therefore did not like the book. I am going to continue with the series as I’m am intrigued by the other Kendrick brothers. Hopefully their stories are better.

Clan Kendrick

• #1 The Highlander Who Protected Me

• #2 The Highlander’s Christmas Bride

• #3 The Highlander’s English Bride

• #4 The Highlander’s Irish Bride

• #5 The Highlander’s Holiday Wife

Next up on the TBR pile:

Small Spaces by Katherine Arden

Title: Small Spaces (Small Spaces #1)

Author: Katherine Arden

Publisher: G.P. Putnam’s Sons

Genre: MG Horror

Pages: 218

Rating: 5/5 stars

Reading Challenges:

After suffering a tragic loss, eleven-year-old Ollie who only finds solace in books discovers a chilling ghost story about a girl named Beth, the two brothers who loved her, and a peculiar deal made with "the smiling man"—a sinister specter who grants your most tightly held wish, but only for the ultimate price.
Captivated by the tale, Ollie begins to wonder if the smiling man might be real when she stumbles upon the graves of the very people she's been reading about on a school trip to a nearby farm. Then, later, when her school bus breaks down on the ride home, the strange bus driver tells Ollie and her classmates: "Best get moving. At nightfall they'll come for the rest of you." Nightfall is, indeed, fast descending when Ollie's previously broken digital wristwatch begins a startling countdown and delivers a terrifying message: RUN.
Only Ollie and two of her classmates heed these warnings. As the trio head out into the woods—bordered by a field of scarecrows that seem to be watching them—the bus driver has just one final piece of advice for Ollie and her friends: "Avoid large places. Keep to small."
And with that, a deliciously creepy and hair-raising adventure begins.

Ooooohhhhh… this book was deliciously creepy! It takes awhile to set up the story. We need to understand a bit about Ollie and the dynamics within her class. We need to get some tantalizing clues as to what’s actually going on. After everything is established, Arden turns up the creep factor and plunges ahead. Once the action gets going, it doesn’t stop until the last page. There were some very creepy scenes in this story. I would not give it to my 6 year old or even my 9 year old (he’s pretty sensitive to the scary). But this adult with a black heart absolutely loved it. I will definitely be picking up the other books in this series.

Small Spaces

• #1 Small Spaces

• #2 Dead Voices

• #3 Dark Waters

• #4 Empty Smiles

Next up on the TBR pile: