Here are four recent books that I read over my summer break! There are more to come too. I have a backlog of books I've read that I need to post about.
Defy the Night by Brigid Kemmerer (ebook)
I held onto this one from last year so that I could read it over the summer, which is something I seem to do with Brigid's books. I enjoyed getting into a new fantasy world here, one with a big problem and even bigger issues with the solutions. Though this is an enemies-to-lovers story at heart, it also had a great deal of in-world politics, scheming, and adventure — all things I love in a good book. Once again, Brigid writes fantasy books that I can get into. She makes them kind-of Earth-adjacent with not a lot of elements that will trip me up and pull me out of the story. It's definitely more my speed. I raced through this one and immediately ordered the second book which comes out soon! I'm looking forward to reading it.
Forging Silver Into Stars by Brigid Kemmerer (ebook)
I went straight from one Brigid book to another and that was not a mistake. This one is the start of a new series but it's set in the same universe as her previous Cursebreaker series, all of which I have read. I liked this one for its parallel stories, both of Jax and Callyn. Jax's story had a tender LGBTQ+ storyline that was sweet and powerful. Callyn's story told of trust and confidence. The two come together in the end with a great battle. I raced through this book too, and I didn't want it to end. Once again, it was just enough fantasy for me with a little magic and nothing too far-fetched. This one ticked all the boxes for me!
Eclipse the Moon by Jessie Mihalik (ebook)
I had been eagerly awaiting this book since reading the first in the series. This one focused on hacker Kee and grumpy Varro, two protagonists I wanted to learn more about. It was obvious after a few chapters that I was going to identify with Kee to my very soul. She does a lot of things that I do, and I wonder every day if I have ADHD because I think she does. We both set timers for everything or we would forget. We both can become so engrossed in a task we'll forget to eat or miss an important deadline. We both love tech and digging up information. I loved Kee and how she was super aware of her feelings. I also tend to cry if I'm confronted. Lol. We have a lot in common. Anyway, the story itself was great. Full of twists and turns and adventure with a great romance. Jessie Mihalik writes books I love to read, space opera romance to the core.
The Viscount Who Loved Me by Julia Quinn (audiobook)
Another Bridgerton book down! Plenty more to go! Unfortunately, every time I see the title of this book I start singing The Spy Who Loved Me in my head. I wish that would stop. Anyway, after watching the second season of the Netflix show, this was a good follow-up and gave me a deeper appreciation for Anthony and the way he was. The poor bloke had a lot riding on him, the fate of his family being his cross to bear. The story line was somewhat different from the show, but that was fine. I could see why and where things diverged. It was still good. Lots of fun sarcasm and tongue-in-cheek humor too that made me laugh. I'm definitely going to be continuing on with this series!
And that's it for this Book Chat! Have you read any of these? Let me know in the comments!
