The Little Library Project

I’m going to precede  all of this by saying I LOVED The Night Circus. It pretty much became my entire personality for a while because I loved it so much and I received my copy of The Starless Sea as soon as it came out in 2019. I picked it up to read it as soon as my grubby little hands could get hold of it.   But I DNF’d it.   About 40 pages in, I couldn’t work out what the hell was going on and I put it straight back down. And I was gutted because everything about the plot screamed LOVE ME to me.   I didn’t get rid of my copy; it’s a gorgeous book and I knew that at some point, it would be the right time for me to read it. It has sat on my shelf for so long. It’s moved around countless houses. It has changed post codes.   And last week, I thought – it might be time.   Again, 40 pages in, I didn’t have a clue what was going on. But I haven’t DNF’d a book yet this year and I wasn’t about to start. So I continued.   About 150 pages...

  I’ve known of T.J Klune’s books for while but had yet to read any. When I saw his latest release, Under The Whispering Door available for discount on Kindle, I picked it up without hesitation and took it along with me for our holiday in Cornwall.   Wallace isn’t a great person. He’s not a bad person; he has never killed anyone but he could definitely have been a better person to others. When he’s collected from his own funeral by a Reaper, he finds himself as Charon’s Crossing, very much confused and upset that his life is over so quickly.   I’ve seen this book listed as Cosy-Fantasy but I’m not quite sure that it fits.   For me, personally; I’m quite sensitive about death. It scares me, makes me feel anxious and I have been known to have sleepless nights laid awake panicking that I don’t have enough time to do everything I want to do with my life.   What is done very well in this book, is provide a different view point and of course, a differe...

  I have no shame in admitting that I have been in constant pursuit of the ACOTAR-vibe since reading the series back in October. It was such an immersive series that I couldn't help but be lowkey obsessed and I've struggled to find anything that gives me similar feels since.  Thankfully, with my trusted Kindle Unlimited subscription, I've been able to sample a fair few series since and whilst they've been great - they haven't quite hit the mark.  Well, The Mist King series definitely comes pretty damn close. Fae - CHECK Series - CHECK 400+ page reads - CHECK Fated Mates - CHECK Smut - CHECK War - CHECK It's all there.  For me personally, the characters aren't written quite as well as I'd like. I want to hate some, I want to love some, but they lack the depth to really become invested in them.  But the twists and turns in the plot definitely make up for it.  I'd highly recommend this to fans of fantasy romance. There is a fourth (and final) book due o...

  Since reading The Night Circus and Caraval books years ago, I'm been on the hunt for another Circus based story to get into and this one absolutely delivered. The First Bright Thing is set in the roaring twenties, when the world is settling back down after the devastating First World War and Rin is travelling America with her troop of performers. But this circus is different; instead of tricks and illusions, each performer has their own special gift - Their Spark.  But Rin is hiding from her past; a rival Ringmaster is desperate to join forces despite having a very different agenda.  This story was definitely darker than other Circus based books that I've read but held something special as the characters dipped in and out of not only social issues, but politics too. I have a feeling this book is going to be very popular and I'll definitely be seeking it out for my collection on publication day!

Naturally - the minute I saw this available for an ARC, I couldn't push that request button quick enough and I was so excited to have been approved. After falling in love with Viv and her merry band of friends in Legends and Lattes, I think everyone has been eagerly awaiting this next instalment and it definitely lived up to the hype. Bookshops & Bonedust take us twenty years before, Viv is injured and finds herself in recovery from a severe leg injury which has put her out of action in the sleep port of Murk. She finds herself in the company of Fern, the proprietor of a run down bookshop that has a flair for choosing the right books for the right people. Once again, this story is beautifully paced, showcasing fun and unsuspecting friendships whilst the underlying plot is there, providing challenges and suspense. I can't wait to see how this series develops.

  No one could ever accuse me of playing it safe with books.  Intrigued by the gorgeous cover and the promise of an adventure set amongst the backdrop of the French Revolution - Scarlet was an intense and ambitious crossover of history and fantasy.  When young Eleanor is likened to a member of French aristocracy, she is employed into service as part of a scheme to release an infamous member of the royal family from imprisonment.  This is a heavily plot driven story which very little weight behind the characters BUT as it promises to be the first in a trilogy, this may be something that develops as the saga continues.  Did I enjoy it? I did. at once I had some Les Mis flashbacks as the Parisian sewer system made an appearance but other than that - the story had some really great twists and turns throughout. I could only spot one plot hole but again, I feel this is going to be developed as the series goes on so I'm not too concerned about it.  If you like you...

  Over the last few years, I've been making an effort to read Stephen King's books as they come out whilst also working through the back catalogue. The Bloke bought Fairy Tale for me for Christmas (I resisted the urge to buy it for myself) and it has sat on my shelf for a few months now. I just knew it was going to be something special so I sat.. staring at it.  I've only read 11 of his books to date but I've noticed that he tends to dabble in varying types of horror/thriller themes and to my (limited) knowledge, this was his first dabble into fantasy.. or at least the kind of fantasy that I'm familiar with. I wanted to make sure I had dedicated time to read this. I wanted to savour it and for once, I was stopping myself from reading too much too quickly.  Fairy Tale fits the patten of fantasy quest. Our unsuspecting Hero is thrown into a world unfamiliar to him, must defeat the evil forces and re-establish the order of civility and good.  Everything about the plot ...

All hail the book that dragged me out of my reading slump back in October!  After a bit of a dry couple of months bookwise - I'd seen a fair amount about the ACOTAR series on BookTok and I wanted to see what all the fuss was about. I ordered the first book but, resisted buying the rest of the series straight away. I think I was only about 100 pages in before the rest of the series was in my basket - thankfully delivered the next day (Thank you Prime). I devoured the whole series in a week and ever since, I have been reaching for the vibes that I got when I first read them. I've come close but so far, nothing has hit the mark. I wasn't planning on a re-read any time soon - I've got the Throne of Glass and Crescent City books waiting to be started BUT when I finally managed to talk the best friend into taking the leap, I couldn't resist joining her along for the ride. So as a break between my other books, and a reward for being so far into my 2023 reading challenge, I...

I finished this book 10 minutes before writing this... and I've been left with a feeling of - what on earth did I just read? So excuse the haphazard nature of my thoughts! Firstly, the cover and the description of this book do NOT give a true idea as to what this book is about in my opinion.  I quite fancied a 20's murder mystery set in a hotel. The blurb literally says: But when a terrible snow storm isolates the hotel – and its guests – from the outside world, the lines between nightmare and reality begin to blur and Nora will find herself face to face with a past she thought she had long left behind... But what we get instead is an almost horror story.  Trigger warnings: this book has dismemberment and cannibalism. I am not exactly feint-hearted but I know what I like and I do not like either of these things. Had they been included, I would have been able to make a judgement call early on.  I was also quite surprised that when I tried to find out what a Hyring was - I ...

  Well.  That was fun. As always - I was TikTok influenced and saw this little gem in my Kindle Unlimited library so thought to myself, why the hell not? After a couple of semi-serious and intense books, I fancied filling my Saturday afternoon with something fun and this absolutely delivered.  The first 20 pages or so in - I could tell this was going to be an easy read but there is definitely a dark element that the trigger warning on the first page relates too. After that? Plain sailing. Georgie has been abducted by aliens. On their way to deliver their cargo of human females, the aliens crash and disappear, with plans to collect them later. Georgie becomes elected leader and goes off to find out where they are and is snared in a trap but Vektal.  What I wasn't expecting was a plot. I know that sounds silly, but there is a plot that you can't help but get a little bit invested in. And there is spice. A fair amount of spice in fact.  Overall, I loved it. It's fu...

  If there's one kind of book I love - it's one about witches.  Weyward is a new release that I knew I had to read as soon as I could. The cover is absolutely gorgeous too so naturally, I was drawn to it like a moth to a flame.  The story follows three generations of women, each attuned to nature and with a power to right the wrongs against them.  Whilst I was reading I tweeted that it's no wonder I'm a feminist when I read these kind of books because seriously - women have got the raw end of the deal for a while. Through flashbacks of each of the Kate, Violet and Altha, we learn their stories and how they came to realise their ability as a result of the trauma they'd experienced.  It's quite an intense book but I was able to read it quickly (once I'd got a pesky headache out of the way) and is a must for fans of all things witchy. 

  As far as Romeo and Juliet inspired writings go - this was by far, the most perfect I could have expected. On one hand, the trope is familiar to us all but can sometimes come across as cliched and forced.  However, One For My Enemy used so many layers to bring this story to life in a really compelling way.  Using familiar settings of New York and underworld crime families, magic is weaved in to create this love story that focuses not just on our modern-day Romeo and Juliet, but their families.  The writing is stunning, it's extremely plot driven but the insight into the characters is just enough to choose favourites.  This is my first read of Olivie Blake and now I am SO excited to read Atlas Six because her writing is stunning.  And whilst it's completely unrelated, I'm glad that I'd previously read The Witch and the Tsar because it gave some of the Russian family names and terms so much more meaning. 

Having been interested in the Romanov executions from a young age, this book was an immediate addition to my TBR but I was so disappointed to find the paperback was £16 to buy. That's not within my paperback budget.  But then, I signed up to Kindle Unlimited and I cannot tell you how pleased I was to find this book on there - and it was of course my first KU read.  The thing with books that are based on real people and real events; it's easy to judge them on the historical accuracy. It's easy to metaphorically tear a book apart because the fictionalised character and events to not match what the reader believes or knows.  And going into reading Anastasia,, that's exactly what I was concerned about. I have an educated idea of what happened, how and when. And there was one point of this book where the timeline was note matching up - specifically Red Sunday. In reality this would have happened when Anastasia was 4/5 years old, whereas in Lark's story - she was in her t...

I have been ITCHING to read this for about 6 months now so I was pleased as anything when I caught it in the Hardback sale at Waterstones in the New Year.  If you want cosy fantasy then this is definitely a book for you.  Viv has been adventuring and caught up in bounty hunting for all of her life but she wants to settle down. She sets herself up in a quiet village and starts her business venture... coffee! Discovered in a faraway town, coffee is a gnome creation and she has no idea if those in Thune will even like it.  With the local mob and an old acquaintance threatening to bring everything down around them, Viv teams up with Cal, Tandri and Thimble to make Legends & Lattes a success. I want to live in Thune. I want to take a book and sit in one of the booths of the cafe and try a Thimblet.  This has so much potential to become a cult series akin to Discworld. There is so much scope for Baldree to develop the world he's started.  If you love fantasy but w...

An impulse selection on NetGalley, the Foxglove King the beginning of a fantasy series by Hannah Whitten. Having not read any of her previous books, I had no idea what to expect.  In a world where poison has recreational use, Lore is a poison-runner recruiting by the King to spy on his son and heir. Villages outside of the central kingdom are being wiped up by an unknown power with no evidence is its wake. Using her birth power of channeling Mortem, Lore teams up with Gabe and Bastian to find out who is behind the murders whilst they also navigate the politics of the court and the religion that rules it.  This is a great first book for a series. The characters have been set up really well; Lore is fierce, Gabe is brooding and Bastian... he's probably the epitome of ideal fantasy guy for me.  I don't want to drop any spoilers but (of course) there's a budding romance but I honestly have no idea which way Whitten is going to go with it.  Will I be eagerly awaiting the ...

The Thorns Remain is set in Scotland, in the wake of the First World War and in the midst of the Spanish Flu epidemic of 1919. In a rural Scottish village, Moira Jean is celebrating with her friends, a last hurrah before they go on their separate ways to make their lives their own. But the evening takes a turn when a beautiful stranger comes upon them. Awaking from a daze filled with dancing and strange music, Moira Jean finds herself alone. Her friends have disappeared and it's down to her to find them again. Making bargains with Fae is exactly what she's been told not to do, but how else will she get her friends back? The story was brilliantly written and Moira Jean's character was fantastic - absolutely fearless and possibly even reckless but very likeable. Her determination and almost cavalier behaviour made my inner feminist squeal with joy. The only thing I wish for - MORE OF THE DREAMER. I would have loved to see more of a relationship between him and Moira, the...

This was SUCH an eagerly awaited sequel. But I was good, I waited and let the bloke buy it for me as a Christmas present.  And then I waited to finish the books I already had on my TBR before I dove straight in. I even waited until I had a full weekend of nothing so I could reread OUABH before I started it.  And it was worth the wait. Firstly, getting reacquainted with Evangeline and Jacks was amazing. Seeing their begrudging friendship develop was a treat. Finding out more about The Archer and The Fox was... well... delightfully unpredictable.  I know this is still a relatively new book to the market so all I'm going to say is... I will be booking the 13th September off of work so I can the third and final instalment in one day. 

I don't often re-read books; a book has to be really special for me to do that. It's one of the reasons I tend to not read series until they're at completion - so I can devour in one swoop. However, after being so invested in the Caraval series, I knew I wouldn't have been able to wait with Stephanie Garber's next series.  I first read Once Upon A Broken Heart back in February last year and I have been EAGERLY *impatiently* waiting for The Ballad of Never After ever since.  If I remember rightly, the first read was over the course of maybe a couple of days... the re-read was the same.  This is a book that is so easy to get invested in. As a YA novel, the language is easy without being patronising, and the plot is deep enough without being over complex. Whist this is a continuation of the world featured in the Caraval series, you can read OUABH as a standalone series (though I'm also itching to reread Caraval) Evangeline Fox is orphaned. She thought she'd fou...

  This was such a fun book. It's very suitable for the YA (Young Adult) market though it could easily - and gratefully may I add - be adapted into a saucy romance if the writer wanted to.  The story focuses on Alessandra, an ambitious and power hungry young women that sets her sights on the Shadow King. But he keeps her at arms length, instead, proposing a mutual agreement that gives them both what they want.  The book had some serious and well thought out feminist undertones, with both Alessandras encouragement of her friends, the Kings desire to change the way social norms are expected as well as Alessandra's own exploits in knowing her own mind and body.  the only thing that threw me off was the time period - though the story is clearly fantasy (you'll be able to tell this early on), the presence of electricity threw me off, combined with the clothing which is described at length, and then the social boundaries and class standings. Overall, I enjoyed it and would ...

  It's rare that I'll write up a review immediately after finishing a book... but this is an exception to the rule.  This book.... words are failing me (this is why I normally wait)... but it was incredible. Since finishing, I've read a few other reviews, the main jist seems to be that it's amazing and reminiscent of the Lord of the Rings books.  Disclaimer - I've never read the LOTR books. As much as I adore the stories and consider myself a fan, I have never sat down and tried to read them, however after reading TPotOT, I have a new found confidence in doing so. But I can see where the similarities lie.  If you are intimidated by the size of this book - I do not blame you one bit. It scared the hell out of me. I'm not a light reader but I also like to read lots of stories, therefore smaller books means more consumption. That was why I chose to read this as my New Year handover book. I started on the 30th December knowing full well it would take me over to the ...