As I’ve mentioned a lot lately, I’m really behind with reviews at the moment. These five (technically six) mark the end of May so I’ve still got a bit to go yet. But today we have the reads I did as part of the vlog in which my boyfriend, Alex, picked my TBR plus some rereads and a new favourite. So let’s get into them.
Broken Bonds & Savage Bonds (The Bonds That Tie #1 & #2) by J Bree
I don’t know what it is about these two but I always end up reading them back to back and then don’t end up continuing the series. I read them for the first time last year around July, and then reread them post-RARE (where I met J Bree) in early May this year. I really enjoy these but I’m just terrified to continue the series, I guess. I had a lot of fun rereading these—there was so much I’d gotten mixed up between the two that it was fun rediscovery what order things actually happened in. I’d forgotten how quickly things move once the story actually gets underway—there’s a lot that happens over just two books. Now that I’ve come back to write this, I do really want to try and push on with the series, hopefully, this month.
Iced Out (Heston U Hotshots #1) by Veronica Eden
I’m very much in an ice hockey romance mood at the moment, and this is definitely the favourite of my recent reads. Maybe even my favourite ice hockey romance ever. I’m liking hockey romances so much right now because they’re fun, and this fit that bill too. I love all the tropes this sets up—the cocky guy and the girl who’s sworn off hockey players, a rival’s sister, and of course, he falls first. I also just love the found family aspects in so many hockey romances—I love how attached the other players get to Maya and how important all of their relationships are beyond just the romance between Maya and Easton. I honestly couldn’t tell you why I’m considering it my favourite ice hockey romance so far—there’s just something about it that stole my heart. I’m honestly probably going to reread this a few times before the next book comes out, which isn’t due out until next year at this stage, because I just love this so much.
Sugar by Carly Nugent
Now we get into the books my partner picked for me. In my mind, this was a shoo-in for my favourite book of the year before I picked it up. It’s about a teenage girl with type one diabetes written by an actual diabetic. As someone who was diagnosed at 14, that made me incredibly excited—I’ve never seen a good representation of diabetes in the 13 years since, and I hoped this would be that. In a way, it was. Nugent nails what having diabetes is really like—to the point where some of it was almost exact word-for-word thoughts I’ve had. That was honestly fantastic to read, if a little scary at times. Unfortunately, the rest of the book fell flat for me. This is an angst fest. And yes, I was definitely an angsty teenager, partly because of diabetes, but reading that as a 27-year-old was decidedly less fun. The lead character, Persephone, is angry all of the time but to the point where it took away from my enjoyment of the story. There was just so much anger that it was unbearable to read and I ended up having to DNF it. Even with the good representation of diabetes, I don’t think I’d actually recommend this to anyone unless they were specifically looking for something angst-filled. As usual, I don’t give my DNF star ratings.
A Bookshop in Algiers by Kaouther Adimi
I was honestly not expecting to like this book at all. I got it in a book box and it’s definitely not my usual type of read, but I ended up loving it. I’m honestly still in shock. I thought the writing was extremely beautiful—there’s something quiet and understated about it but with a lot of charm. It’s definitely a book about people and ideas more than an actual plot, but there was something about it that really worked for me. I liked the way it was broken into a few different layers—some of it based on the real-life of Charlot and Algerian and international writers and then the story of the bookshop from there. I definitely think this is a good pick for a slow reading day where you just want to be transported somewhere else for a while.
The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
This was a reread for me—I’d originally read it in 2018 and had been telling myself that I’d reread it ever since. I regret that a little now. I’d considered this a favourite, partly because of the way it completely ruined me and had me uncontrollably sobbing. The second time around, it definitely lost some of its magic for me. For one, I didn’t cry at the end at all. I felt disconnected from the story, and honestly, a little bored. I think maybe part of the reason for that is because I’ve read more about the Trojan War since reading this originally and I haven’t been impressed by anything. Maybe that should’ve made this one seem even better but instead, it just felt much of the same. I definitely wasn’t as taken in by Miller’s writing this time either—I know she gets held up online as being this fantastic writer but it felt forced to me this time around. Plus I couldn’t move past her weird obsession with feet—I get the importance of Achilles’ heel but I didn’t need the constant reference to people’s gross feet. So all in all, I wish I hadn’t picked this up again and I honestly don’t know whether I’ll ever come back to Miller now.
And that’s it for today. I know there’s been a lot of reviews from me lately as I try to catch up, but there’ll be a couple of days break now for some other posts!
Earl Grey Books 