An Unlikely Proposition by Rosalyn Eves

I received an ARC of this book thanks to NetGalley and publisher Macmillan Children's Books in exchange for an honest review.

An Unlikely Proposition is the second book in the Unexpected Seasons series, although you can read it without having read the first one and pick up on most of the story beats. This book focuses on Thalia (from the first book) and Eleanor (new) as they navigate romance and their livelihoods on the London marriage scene.

I'm going to be honest, Thalia was not the character I particularly wanted to read more about. She was my least favourite from the first book and I wasn't really looking forward to spending more time around her. Having said that, she is much less infuriating this time around. She still makes some bad decisions and I still found her poetry stuff a little annoying. 

Unfortunately though, the main takeaway was this book didn't really make me feel anything. I only read it about a month ago and already I can remember so little about it. Eleanor is fine as a protagonist but she is quite flat. She is prim, to the point where I found it really hard to buy that she is only 17. I had to keep reminding myself that she was a young woman because it was almost jarring when she started doing what Thalia was. I kept mixing up the two love interests and now I couldn't tell you a single thing about them. I don't want to be mean, I just generally can't recall even their names.

Overall, I unfortunately can't recommend this book. The first one is still a good time for most of it so I'd give that a read, but this didn't really offer me anything new

Overall Rating:

.5

An Improbable Season by Rosalyn Eves

 

I received an ARC of this book thanks to NetGalley and publisher Macmillan Children's Books in exchange for an honest review.

I, like most of the world right now, am obsessed with Bridgerton, so when the opportunity to read a romance book set in a similar period came up, I was more than a little curious. An Improbable Season is the tale of three young women coming out to society in Regency London, some more eager to meet their husbands than other. We have Kalli, a starry-eyed romantic who is immediately forced to make a match when she is caught in scandal, her sister Thalia who dreams of being a poet (and has zero common sense) and finally Charis, my personal favourite being autistic-coded and obsessed with science. Each of the three girls has their own romance plotline which gets explored throughout the book.

As with any book with multiple plots/characters, people are bound to have favourites. In my case, I thought the Charis romance was by far the most interesting. Kalli's was fine but predictable, and Thalia's outright annoyed me. Minor spoilers here but Thalia gets immediately taken in by an obvious hot guy rake, and every decision she makes with regards to this is frustrating and predictable. There was little tension, just annoyance at how stupid she was being. Kalli fairs a little better, being predictable but enjoyable still. There is a little doubt as to which suitor she will end up with, which is also nice.

Charis's romance is good. There isn't much representation of someone like her in this kind of romance (at least, not to my admittedly-limited knowledge) and it was really refreshing. I loved that she bonded with her romantic partner through science, that her attitudes and behaviours weren't a problem for him and that she had a small breakdown anytime she thought she might have romantic feelings for someone. I adored her story and if the whole book was focused on her, it would be an easy 4-5 stars.

Overall, this book is definitely worth checking out if you're enjoying Bridgerton and want more of the same with a YA twist. The historical elements aren't too heavy so that might irritate readers of the genre, but it's still a lot of fun for the most part. Just be aware there are a few obvious tropes/cliches alongside the good stuff

Overall Rating:

.5

The Lamplighters by Emma Stoney

 

I received an ARC of this book thanks to NetGalley and publisher Pan Macmillan in exchange for an honest review.

I knew requesting this book was a bit of a risk. I don't typically enjoy historical fiction but I found the temptation of a lighthouse disappearance too tantalising to resist. When I began reading it, I was worried I had made a mistake. I was initially going to DNF this book but then I couldn't. Something was making me read on, despite the features I don't typically enjoy in fiction. I couldn't put it down.

I will say, I think it's important to know going in that the mystery of this book is a little...unsatisfying. Even though I picked it up for its mystery element, that wasn't what kept me reading with the characters and the prose being the strongest factors for me. Stoney manages to create a really interesting atmosphere throughout the book, one is which is very compelling and draws you in. The characters aren't the most developed but they feel real and three dimensional. What we don't learn about the characters actually feeds quite strongly into that atmosphere I talked about and the general nature of the mystery of this book.

It's hard for me to say much more about this book because it is one of those where I think you either like books like this or you don't. If you like books with a somewhat dreamy atmosphere, a mystery driving but not being the center of the plot, and a lot of character exploration and moments, then I would say give this a try. If you want a super intricate mystery or a book heavy on historical elements, then this probably isn't what you're looking for. Having said that, it did surprise me so it might be worth giving a try if you like the sound of the blurb.

 Overall Rating:

.5

The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V. E. Schwab

 

I received an ARC of this book thanks to NetGalley and publisher Titan Books in exchange for an honest review.

I must admit, I was a little afraid to read this book. Fantasy isn't hugely my genre but I have loved Schwab's writing in the past and the hype for this book was real. Thankfully I was utterly enchanted by The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue. This is a romance with a fantasy set up, with the premise being our main character Addie is immortal due to a deal she made with some kind of devil/demon figure long ago. Now she will never age nor die, but she can also never be remembered or leave a lasting mark on the world. Much of the book focuses on her past life and the unique relationship she has with the devil/demon figure, but in the modern day she meets a man who is able to remember her and quickly falls in love.

As I already hinted at, this was much more of a romance than I expected which I am glad of as I'm not the biggest fan of historical fiction. Having said that, I really enjoyed the passages set in the past and Addie was a compelling character so it was good to have so much focus on her. If you enjoy dreamy, slow-paced character explorations then this is definitely the book for you. It did take me a long time to read as it is slow-paced and quite long, but it never felt like a slog or a chore to get through. For a genre of book I don't normally reach for, I was very enchanted.

Overall, I have to join the legions of people singing this book's praise. It is beautifully written, full of heart and manages to be quite unique despite the topic of immortality being nothing new. I fell completely in love with Addie and her story, and I know this is a book which will stay with me for a long time.

Overall Rating:

.5

Wife After Wife by Olivia Hayfield

I received an ARC of this book thanks to NetGalley and publisher Little, Brown Book Group UK in exchange for an honest review.

Don't be fooled by this cover, this is not a thriller. It is however an exceptionally good book! This is a retelling of the story of Henry VIII and his marriages, reimagined in the 1980s to modern day. I have a cursory knowledge of this part of history but I think one of the strengths of this book is you can enjoy it regardless of your historical knowledge. If you know the story, you can appreciate the amazing amount of work that has gone into researching this and how it is cleverly twisted to work in the modern day. If you know nothing, you can be surprised by the engaging plot and frankly very interesting life of the main character and his wives.

Another thing to be praised is what an easy read this is. The writing is so engaging and, despite it being a fairly long book for its genre, it never once dragged. In fact I read all of it in two days because I could not put it down. The character guides allow it to be more accessible for people who don't know their history, but it can be easily understood and followed without them. There are lots of characters but they are handled well and I never lost track of who anyone was. Henry is made very likeable despite his flaws and some artistic license is taken to make the plot flow better which I fully support. I even read the interview with the author at the end (which I almost never do) and I loved the explanations for why she made the changes she did. I can't see anyone but the strictest historian being bothered by them.

Overall, this is one of the best retellings I have ever read, if not the best. The source material is perfectly translated into modern day with what is clearly a lot of work from the author, and none of the writing style or enjoyment is sacrificed in order to make that happen. This is such an engaging book and it's clear to me that Hayfield is incredibly talented. If you want a fun way to digest history or just a really good adult contemporary book, I could not recommend this more.

Overall Rating:

.5