Book Reviews - The Reading Cat

Chasing the Moon - S.M. Soto

11/5/2020

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

WOW. let me just say that it's been awhile that I stayed up past my body's limits in order to finish a book. I couldn't stop myself from flipping the pages, and just LIVING their story.

Maybe it's because I felt such an affinity to Selene. To her beliefs, to the moon, to Greek mythology, to her relationship with her father, down to her best friend's name. My heart belonged to her throughout this book. I felt like I was the one who was chasing the moon.

There is such magic in these emotional books. There is such magic in the subtleties. The simple things that make your heart race, and your eyes tear, whilst filling your soul with meaning.

There is a beauty in minimalism. The best writing isn't flashy, or shocking. It's honest, it's real, and it comes from the heart. I think the cosmos made it so that I would read this book at the specific moment. It's the kind of book I didn't think I needed to read until I did.

Thank you Selena, for this beauty of a book.

A Cut So Deep - Dani René

7/27/2020

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

I’ve been reading Dani René books for years. Since she released Crave I’ve hung onto every word she has written. I’ve seen her develop and flourish as an author, but I’ve never read something like this. This was a whole new level. It’s like she broke through a wall everything came together in the most beautiful way.

There is a newfound pace, peace and maturity to René’s writing in A Cut So Deep. She doesn’t shy away from difficult subject matter and forces you be confronted with it. The words will cut you deep – yes I did just write that cause I’m a dork, but its true. She shows impressive command of the story and her characters, Damien and Nesrin bloom in their environment. They ooze a richness and profoundness.

This new series she has created is promising to be an epic one and I cannot wait to see where she takes it in the next book!

I believe this is a new chapter in René’s writing, one I am happy to read every single page of with my heart skipping beats in my chest.

BREATHE - C.L. MATTHEWS

4/15/2020

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Wow, I beta read this book, and weeks later, Toby and Joey are still on my mind. They are characters that imprint on you and their story is so impactful it knocks you on your knees.

Breathe will make you forget to breathe. The angst will captivate you and will not let you go until the very last page. Both Joey and Toby's struggles will rip your soul to shreds in the most beautiful way possible. Maybe not in a safe way for your kindle ;)

There is such a rawness to this book, a rawness that is created by how honest and real the PAIN is. It blows me away how much Matthews can create this ambiance and affect me in that way simply using words.

This series is sure to break my soul, but I am here for every word of it!!!

THE DEVIL'S PLAYTHING - Dani René

4/1/2020

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

2 words: MAFIA PERFECTION

This novel by Dani René has everything you would want from a mafia romance: sexiness, angst, captor/captive, betrayal and surprise. All these elements come together in a captivating story where not everything is as it seems.

Victor and Sofia are hot. Not sizzling right from the start, but their connection is undeniable and the slow embering (yes I made up a word) burn between them is so delicious. They just capture your heart and you can't help falling for the Diablo and his juguette.

Not only did René manage to incorporate all these beautiful elements, she managed to crossover to another series - The Cavalieri della Morte. (If you have yet to read these books - do it now). It was such a fun surprise, and as a reader, I LOVE when worlds cross over.

All in all, I LOOOOVED this book, and for René's first Mafia? I gotta say it was expertly done. She has a grasp of the trop and was able to com through with the perfect ambiance and mood.

In Fury Lies Mischief - Amo Jones

3/10/2020

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

5 HOLY CORNELII STARS!

This book was amazing.
This book was flawless.
This book was everything.
This book was completely and utterly Amo Jones.

When you read an author who has a distinct voice and style, it’s something special. What makes is even more special? Witnessing the author’s growth, evolution and perfecting if their craft.

Yes, this was a dark book, it was full of Amo sass and witt, but it held some lighter moments. Some that made time still, where the tick tock faded away and you lived suspended between the words for a second. And that fellow readers, is what I call MAGIC.

Sass and Killian are complicated (SURPRISE! Haha) but gah the way Amo slowly reveals plot twist and layers of the story you thought you knew always enthralls me. The way she flips everything on its head.. GAH no words! She is a Q U E E N.

This series is quickly becoming one of my favourites and I cannot get enough of this world Amo Jones has created. Midnight Mayhem is Mind-blowing Masterpiece.

Saturn and her Rings - BL Mute

1/1/2020

★ ★ ★ ★ ½

What impressed me most about this book is the amount of growth in the author's storytelling, flow and scene building. Mute has a strong grasp of creating captivating plots and riveting twists. I was on the edge of my seat for most of this book.

That being said, sometimes I do wish more would have been spent slowing down a little, have some breathing room between the revelations. I loved the characters so much I simply wanted MORE from them.

Another aspect that impressed me was the author's development of her style. It's fun to read and there are some breathtaking passages. I am so hooked to this series, I cannot wait to read what else BL Mute has in store for us!

Censored Soul - Anne Malcom

12/31/2019

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

There are some stories that stick with you. Some that just touch the deepest parts of your soul. A feathery soft touch that feels like fire, teetering between comfort and inferno. This is one of them.

Censored Soul begins with a gut punch. A huge one, and you will need strength as you read through, however, Malcom is a great guide and will lead you through the chaos that is Noah.

I must admit, I am writing this review two weeks after finishing the book, and I still feel as strongly about it now as I did when I read the last page. The Unquiet Mind series is now at a close, and this endnote was the great finale to their masterpiece. This series is one of my all time favourites. Anne Malcom is brilliant at bringing these characters to life. There hardly goes a week when I don’t think about either Lexi, Sam, Noah or Wyatt. That is when stories take a life of their own.

This is the part where I go back to talking - writing? - about Censored Soul, but there is just so much to be said yet nothing more to say other then - BRILLIANT. Every great show deserves a standing ovation, and this is mine.

VOLATILE LOVE - DANI RENÉ

12/14/2019

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

FIVE-ETIENNE-CAN-BE-YOURS-BUT-TARIAN-IS-MINE-STARS

Everything you want from a Dark New Adult Romance! Steam - check. Violence - check. Emotions - check. More of the Guilded Sovereign - CHECK WITH A KISS ON TOP. Those boys are panty-dropping swoony and moody. Hello!

There were so many secrets and revelations. So many twists and demons lurking in the corners. Just when you think you know what’s coming... René throws all of that out of the window and shows you you had it wrong all along. *insert applause*

Etienne and Rukaiya have this insane chemistry that so undeniably believable. Their relationship is so tangible and real. I was impressed with René’s character development and her grasp on human complexity.

All in all, what a great continuation to the Guilded Sovereign series, and I cannot wait for the third installment!

IN PEACE LIES HAVOC - AMO JONES

11/4/2019

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

The Kiznitch Brothers are the Shiznitch!

Okay, jokes aside, this book held me captive from the very first page until the very last. The fact that Amo Jones is able to pull me in so completely and literally entrance me blows my mind. Everything is just so VIVID.

In true Jones fashion, this book will play tricks on your mind. It will distort reality and destroy all your bearings. It is not for nothing that she is the Queen of mind-fudge.

Dove and King are something special, unique, raw. There is a softness and a contradictory hardness to them. The world they are in is unique and fantastic. Jones is a master at world-building and creating secret worlds and societies. She never ceases to blow me away.

Now run and get your ticket to Midnight Mayhem! You won’t regret it!

volatile waters - india r. adams

10/29/2019

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Some stories are hard to read, but those stories must be read. Volatile Waters is one of those.

What I always love about Adams’ is how she write in the murky grey waters. Where your perceptions are never clear and you swim in ambiguity. Yury is complex, and the author did an amazing job of capturing that volatility.

Unlike the typical “trope”, this book is written from the captor’s point of view. You learn about him, his childhood, his own abuse, his own darkness. It’s an interesting take and Adams’ manages to show us another facet to this tragedy and epidemic.

Like with every India R. Adams book, there is light. There is that flicker of hope that pulls you along the treacherous road. There is some beauty within this book which makes this book all the more rewarding to read.

Adams’ represented this topic with such grace and respect for the victims. She didn’t glorify it, romanticize it or spare the horrors. She wrote it for awareness. She wrote it for the survivors, and that is worth applauding.