Check & Mate by Ali Hazelwood

This felt just like her adult books however, the steamier scenes were fade to black. If you loved the Queen’s Gambit you’re going to love this story. It reminded me a lot of the grit of the series mixed in with family, love and lots of life lessons. Mal, her sisters and her Mom are struggling to make ends meet. Mal shoulders a lot of the burden and doesnt see how it could get better. However, when she finally gets to play chess again, all the pieces start falling into place. Delving into the world of professional chess, it’s a personal journey for Mal to figure out how what she wants.

Kit McBride Gets a Wife by Amy Barry

I LOOOOOOOVED this book. One of my favorite movies is 7 brides for 7 brothers and this is reminiscent of the movie with a few changes that make it even more charming. Junebug is the youngest sister and only girl in a family of 5 who live in the big open frontier. She’s tired of being relegated to doing all the “womenly” chores and proceeds to find her favorite brother a wife. What ensues is a tale of mistaken identity, snowpocalypse, and a lot of hilarious banter. The relationships between the family and their found family makes this a laugh out loud read with a swoony romance as well. When Maddy, an Irish immigrant, lands in Montana she had no idea if her endless bad luck would finally turn. Kit McBride has never thought about a wife but when Maddy crash lands in front of him that all may change. I HIGHLY recommend for a fun ,swoony, wild west ride.

Suburban Hell by Maureen Kilmer

I’m actually not a huge horror fan but the concept of desperate housewives meets the exorcist got me and it delivered. While yes, there are plenty of horror moments with double jointed occurrences, demented roombas, and demonic dolls, there’s also a big emphasis on community. As the moms of this neighborhood are infiltrated by a demonic spirit they realize that how important they are to their relationships. I was also very fond of lot having to read another mom book where are the husbands are assholes, they’re sometimes clueless but most were actually supportive. It was an extremely fun ride through wine nights, school carnivals and too many life instances that took on an edge in the plot. It was a story of found families and actually an introspective piece on women friendships.

A Letter to Three Witches by Elizabeth Bass

This was such a cute fun read. A perfectly zany witchy read, it definitely brings to mind some Practical Magic vibes. We follow three cousins as they receive a letter from their more evil cousin Tannith letting them know that one of their partners will be leaving them for her. As they scramble to try to figure out who is going to have their relationship blown up, many secrets are revealed. There’s cupcake spells, toads, missing cousins reappearing and family craziness. I really enjoyed it, it was the perfect blend of funny and had a lot of action to keep the story moving

Rebel Rose by Emma Theriault

This was a surprise for me! I love any fairy tale retelling and add in a badass disney princess?! I am there! This book surpassed my expectations, I definitely did not expect the mature content that was in it and I don’t mean romantically. This is a very detailed account of Belle and Lio’s life during what would have been the French Revolution. The attention to detail was pinpointed to precision, down to the style of dress and even food. It was lavish and chock full of nobility but through it all it held a thread of revolution and tension. I read this the week of election week and let me tell you, it did not help with my anxiety. 

 

This takes place 10 years after the curse was placed on the castle, Belle and the beast Lio, have to deal with the aftermath of the awakening. At this point, everyone is pretty much ignorant of what happened during the time and no one speaks about it. To the outside world, prince Lio was sick and became a recluse, inside they refuse to acknowledge all they went through. Belle and Lio have decided to travel the continent and what they find is the world has greatly changed while they dealt with the curse. 

 

As Belle travels to Paris and back, she’s confronted with what she’s given up for her prince. There isn’t much of a romance story line as the relationship is established but, it is great to see how they develop it. Belle and Lio are virtually strangers that were in an intense situation and now they’re discovering the ins and outs of the other. Relationships take work, add in a revolution against the nobility, spies, assianation plots and you’re bound to have some tense moments. 

 

I loved seeing all the characters from the story, Cogsworth, Lumiere, Mrs. Potts and even Chip. These main characters shape the world of Aveyon from the baker to the bookshop keeper, they all give us glimpses to the story we shared and loved. I really love how this author has blended disney and history and I really can’t wait to see what she does with the rest of the stories. I give this a 4.5 because I think sometimes the superficial details bogged down the plot of the story. There were many great characters to explore here and sometimes the story delved too deep into a wartime strategy.