Review Roundup Autumn 2024 – Part 1

Much thanks to Charlotte Stein, Macmillan Audio, and NetGalley for allowing me to listen to a free eaudio ARC in exchange for an honest review.

So funny and charming! I loved spending time with Cassie and Seth. However, I can believe some readers may find this kind of awkward humor not to their taste; I’m sure some people will find it annoying. Side thought – I wonder if it’ll come across as less annoying in print than in narration. I thought it was fine, at any rate, though at times it tread the line of annoying; once or twice I found myself mentally screaming, Oh my god, quit tripping over your tongue and get to the point!

The characters are very likeable and endearing, and relatable as far as they can be. By that I mean we really didn’t explore the characters’ lives much, their world. Unsupportive parental relationships were briefly mentioned (I was quite surprised Cassie had such a full conversation with her mother over the phone), as were Cassie and Seth’s current living situations, but otherwise the narrative was very focused on their relationship with one another and secondarily discovering the supernatural world. Which, you know, duh, it’s a romance, but it was almost too insular. Like they were in their own little bubble apart from the real world. The main external antagonist, the wolf pack, also had a very specific narrative function and that was it. Neither Cassie nor Seth seemed to have a job, though that might have been addressed; if it was, it was so brief that I missed it. On one hand it’s great that Stein can keep her narrative focused with little fluff or side tangents or the like. On the other it makes the story and perhaps the characters feel limited and shallow. I’d be in favor of fleshing out the world, and especially fleshing out the characters.

But where would that additional flesh go? It could replace some of the second half, which is almost solid horniness and sex acts, which I had two problems with. One, there was too much of it; I was dying to get back to the far more interesting exploration of the supernatural aspects. Skip—skip—jesus, are they still talking about how horny they are?—skip—skip—thank christ, they’re finally fucking, maybe now we can get back to the story.

Two, the tone of the sex scenes didn’t mesh for me. Felt like a departure from the tone of the rest of the book. Stein writes with a light tone, even while discussing serious things like bullying, fat shaming, and the consequential emotional trauma, and it works. I liked the tone of the first half. It flowed, it felt natural, it suited the characterization, and the narrator, Yael Rizowy, was perfect for it. Then in the second half we get into the horniness and now this light, charming tone is trying to talk dirty, literally, and I can’t take it seriously. The same narrative that gives a witch an adorably feisty raccoon familiar who brandishes a toilet brush like a musket (loooved that!) is also throwing around “cum” and “cock” and “pussy” and I can’t reconcile it. Like vulgar graffiti sprayed over a heartwarming poster about friendship. Another author might have been able to make it work, but here it was discordant. Maybe if there had been far less of it, it wouldn’t have felt so jarring, but it went on and on and on….

Overall, I really liked this book, I just wanted more character and world building and less sex. Sorry, Stein, you’re just not an erotic writer. Or perhaps this story just isn’t erotic. But it’s not a deal breaker for me yet; I’ll be looking out for the next in the series.

Title: The Mirror

This isn’t really a bad book, it’s just not what I expected. I thought there’d be a harrowing quest with near-death experiences, a handsome rogue, a cackling villain, cool uses of magic, etc. Nope. Accompanied by her selfish and annoying owl familiar, Evelyn goes on a quaint little trek to investigate a blight and meets oodles of people. Many become friends, some become enemies. She helps the villagers, stands up to the bullies, and gets to the bottom of the blight without bloodshed. Her romance is sweet and chaste. She realizes she’s home, and cue the awwww….

Like the other reviews say, this is a cozy, not an epic. I didn’t think much of the difference until I read this book. Now I get it. If you like feel-good stories with more heart than plot, you’ll probably be on board with this book. I’m not against cozies, but when you’re expecting something more ambitious, it’s rather a let down.

It also didn’t help that I didn’t care for the narration. I’ve always wondered what an American accent sounds like to foreigners, and I imagine it sounds like Amanda Ronconi’s narration. The entire time I was listening I was trying to think of how to describe it. Blunt? Aggressive? Abrupt? Loud? I don’t know, I just know I don’t like her voice.

So, not a bad book, but not for me.

Title: The Witches of Santo Stefano

Author: Wendy Webb

Series: n/a

Thank you to Wendy Webb, Brilliance Audio, and NetGalley for allowing me to listen to a free eaudio ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I’m a fan of Webb’s ghost stories, but because her audios are published by Brilliance, who doesn’t share with libraries, I haven’t been able to listen to many of her books. So when I saw this one pop up, I requested it without reading the blurb or knowing anything about it. I was disappointed to find it’s more women’s fiction than anything, though there are a few haunting scenes. But I found myself more and more invested the further into the story I got, intrigued by the mystery, caring about Cassie and her ancestors—and the animals! I don’t care to jump around in time or head hop, which knocks a star off for me, but I cared enough about finding out what happened that it didn’t irritate me too much.

I don’t typically care for Xe Sands as a narrator; she makes everything sound melancholy and emotionally charged, couldn’t sound matter-of-fact or clinical if she tried. I actually stopped listening to Kristan Higgins’s books because I couldn’t stand Xe’s melodramatic style. So realizing she was the narrator was another disappointment, but I can’t deny she’s brilliant at those exact things—sounding melancholy and emotional. I cried over a dead donkey because of her.

Overall, not at all a bad book, just not entirely to my taste/what I wanted it to be. Anyone who likes women’s fiction or digging into family mysteries or simply multi-generational tales should enjoy this book.

Title: A Fatal Feast at Bramsford Manor

Author: Darci Hannah

Series: A Food and Spirit Mystery #1

Much thanks to Darci Hannah, Tantor Audio, and NetGalley for allowing me to listen to a free eaudio ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I didn’t know what this book was about going in, I just knew it was a Darci Hannah mystery, so I was very pleasantly surprised to learn there was a paranormal element! Yay ghosts! I loved the murder mystery and the ghost mystery and how they intertwined.

Bunny is a likeable lead, and Granny was fine, but the guys need work. Giff was written extra, but Charlie Albers’s portrayal of him was over the top. And Brett—I don’t know the first thing about him. He was overshadowed by Giff’s personality and everything else going on. There are supposed to be romantic vibes between Brett and Bunny, but hell if I felt any chemistry between them. For a while I thought Bunny had something going on with the detective, but that was wrong. So Giff needs toning down and Brett needs development.

Overall I’m looking forward to more of this series!

Title: Haunted World

Author: Theresa Cheung

Series: n/a

Thank you to Theresa Cheung, Dreamscape Media, and NetGalley for allowing me to listen to a free eaudio ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I don’t usually read nonfiction, but I love ghost stories, which I figured this more or less would be, so I went for it. And it is, in part. There’s also what’s essentially a paranormal glossary and other textbook-y type information, which was interesting but less compelling. Unsurprisingly, my favorite part was the residual hauntings. I wish there had been more of that, but I understand Cheung was going for a more comprehensive guide to modern paranormal phenomena. Overall I liked this book and it wasn’t as much of a chore to read as I was afraid it might be. Most of all, though, I loved that it was published in audiobook format; so much nonfiction, especially of this ilk, isn’t.