Posted on by tacklingtbr

January 2 – January 8

New Releases and Publications

Hello, friends – and happy Tuesday! Welcome to another round of new releases that I was lucky enough to get an early copy of, and have either already read or are upcoming on my #TBR.

These books could be gifted from the publisher through sites like NetGalley or Edelweiss+, they could be electronic copies gifted directly to me from the publisher or the author, an early audiobook copy through the publisher or Libro.fm, or even a physical copy that has been sent to me from the author or publisher. I am so thankful for all of the reading opportunities that I am given through these various sources, and I am excited to share these new releases!

In these weekly posts I will include a 20% review if I am currently reading the book, as well as a link to my full review if I have already finished the book. And if I have not yet started the book by the time this is posted, I will leave those spots blank and edit the post to add them in later!

Reckless Girls

Author: Rachel Hawkins

Publication Date: January 4, 2022

Genre: Fiction, Thriller, Mystery, Adult

Thanks so much to the author, Netgalley, and St. Martin’s Press for the gifted advanced e-copy of this book.

Description from Goodreads:

From the New York Times bestselling author of The Wife Upstairs comes a deliciously wicked gothic suspense, set on an isolated Pacific island with a dark history, for fans of Lucy Foley and Ruth Ware.

When Lux McAllister and her boyfriend, Nico, are hired to sail two women to a remote island in the South Pacific, it seems like the opportunity of a lifetime. Stuck in a dead-end job in Hawaii, and longing to travel the world after a family tragedy, Lux is eager to climb on board The Susannah and set out on an adventure. She’s also quick to bond with their passengers, college best friends Brittany and Amma. The two women say they want to travel off the beaten path. But like Lux, they may have other reasons to be seeking an escape.

Shimmering on the horizon after days at sea, Meroe Island is every bit the paradise the foursome expects, despite a mysterious history of shipwrecks, cannibalism, and even rumors of murder. But what they don’t expect is to discover another boat already anchored off Meroe’s sandy beaches. The owners of the Azure Sky, Jake and Eliza, are a true golden couple: gorgeous, laidback, and if their sleek catamaran and well-stocked bar are any indication, rich. Now a party of six, the new friends settle in to experience life on an exotic island, and the serenity of being completely off the grid. Lux hasn’t felt like she truly belonged anywhere in years, yet here on Meroe, with these fellow free spirits, she finally has a sense of peace.

But with the arrival of a skeevy stranger sailing alone in pursuit of a darker kind of good time, the balance of the group is disrupted. Soon, cracks begin to emerge: it seems that Brittany and Amma haven’t been completely honest with Lux about their pasts––and perhaps not even with each other. And though Jake and Eliza seem like the perfect pair, the rocky history of their relationship begins to resurface, and their reasons for sailing to Meroe might not be as innocent as they first appeared.

When it becomes clear that the group is even more cut off from civilization than they initially thought, it starts to feel like the island itself is closing in on them. And when one person goes missing, and another turns up dead, Lux begins to wonder if any of them are going to make it off the island alive.

20% Review:

I am really enjoying this book so far! It was a bit of a slower start than I had expected (I had listened to The Wife Upstairs on audiobook last year, and I seemed to remember it jumping in with a bit more of the tension pretty early on, but that could be due to reasons anywhere between faulty memory or a difference of visual versus audio), but now that I’m getting into more of the story I’m not minding that at all. I really like Lux as a main character, but I’m really glad that we’re starting to get more of a peak into Brittany and Amma’s back stories as well. But above all else now I just want to be reading it on a beach in Hawaii, rather than the rain-drenched PNW.

Check out my full review here!

It Will End Like This

Author: Kyra Leigh

Publication Date: January 4, 2022

Genre: Horror, Young Adult, Thriller, Mystery

Thanks so much to the author, Netgalley, and Random House Children’s for the gifted advanced e-copy of this book.

Description from Goodreads:

For fans of The Cheerleaders and Sadie comes a psychological thriller that reminds us that in real life, endings are rarely as neat as happily ever after. A contemporay take on the Lizzie Borden story that explores how grief can cut deep.

Charlotte lost her mother six months ago, and still no one will tell her exactly what happened the day she mysteriously died. They say her heart stopped, but Charlotte knows deep down that there’s more to the story.

The only person who gets it is Charlotte’s sister, Maddi. Maddi agrees—people’s hearts don’t just stop. There are too many questions left unanswered for the girls to move on.

But their father is moving on. With their mother’s personal assistant. And both girls are sure that she’s determined to take everything that’s theirs away for herself.

Now the only way to get their lives back is for Charlotte and Maddi to decide how this story ends, themselves.

20% Review:

(This will be added at a later date, once I start reading this book!)

Review:

(This will be added at a later date, once I have finished this book!)

When You Get the Chance

Author: Emma Lord

Publication Date: January 4, 2022

Genre: Romance, Contemporary Romance, Young Adult

Thanks so much to the author, Netgalley, and Wednesday Books for the gifted advanced e-copy of this book.

Description from Goodreads:

Nothing will get in the way of Millie Price’s dream to become a Broadway star. Not her lovable but super-introverted dad, who after raising Millie alone, doesn’t want to watch her leave home to pursue her dream. Not her pesky and ongoing drama club rival, Oliver, who is the very definition of Simmering Romantic Tension. And not the “Millie Moods,” the feelings of intense emotion that threaten to overwhelm, always at maddeningly inconvenient times. Millie needs an ally. And when a left-open browser brings Millie to her dad’s embarrassingly moody LiveJournal from 2003, Millie knows just what to do. She’s going to find her mom.

There’s Steph, a still-aspiring stage actress and receptionist at a talent agency. There’s Farrah, ethereal dance teacher who clearly doesn’t have the two left feet Millie has. And Beth, the chipper and sweet stage enthusiast with an equally exuberant fifteen-year-old daughter (A possible sister?! This is getting out of hand). But how can you find a new part of your life and expect it to fit into your old one, without leaving any marks? And why is it that when you go looking for the past, it somehow keeps bringing you back to what you’ve had all along?

20% Review:

(This will be added at a later date, once I start reading this book!)

Review:

(This will be added at a later date, once I have finished this book!)

The Sunny Nihilist

Author: Wendy Syfret

Narrated By: Jean Ann Douglass

Publication Date: January 4, 2022

Genre: Nonfiction, Philosophy

Thanks so much to Libro.fm and Chronicle Books for the gifted advanced audio copy of this book.

Description from Goodreads:

A positively rebellious take on a traditionally negative philosophy offers an antidote for our anxious times.

Career success, a beautiful life, a beautiful Instagram account—what’s the point? In a world where meaning has become twisted into a form of currency that everyone is very keen to cash in on, journalist Wendy Syfret invites you to change the way you think about the way you think.

In her seminal work, The Sunny Nihilist, Syfret presents the optimism in Nihilism, encouraging us to dismantle our self-care and self-centered way of living and accept a life more or less ordinary. Syfret re-examines the meaning of worth, value, time, happiness, success, and connection, and guides us towards the alternative path of pointless pleasure.

When you let go of the idea that everything must have purpose, you will find relief from stress, exhaustion, and anxiety. Most importantly, you can embrace the opportunity to enjoy the moment, the present, the chaos and luck of being alive at all. The Sunny Nihilist is an inspiring call to action and survival adaptation for modern life.

20% Review:

(This will be added at a later date, once I start reading this book!)

Review:

(This will be added at a later date, once I have finished this book!)

Posted on by tacklingtbr

December 26 – January 1

New Releases and Publications

Hello, friends – and happy Tuesday! Welcome to another round of new releases that I was lucky enough to get an early copy of, and have either already read or are upcoming on my #TBR.

These books could be gifted from the publisher through sites like NetGalley or Edelweiss+, they could be electronic copies gifted directly to me from the publisher or the author, an early audiobook copy through the publisher or Libro.fm, or even a physical copy that has been sent to me from the author or publisher. I am so thankful for all of the reading opportunities that I am given through these various sources, and I am excited to share these new releases!

In these weekly posts I will include a 20% review if I am currently reading the book, as well as a link to my full review if I have already finished the book. And if I have not yet started the book by the time this is posted, I will leave those spots blank and edit the post to add them in later!

Girls Before Earls

Author: Anna Bennett

Publication date: December 28, 2021

Genre: Romance, historical romance, regency

Thanks so much to the author, St. Martin’s Press, and Netgalley for the gifted e-copy of this book.

Description from Goodreads:

WHAT A GIRL WANTS

To survive her difficult childhood, Miss Hazel Lively relied on two things:a tough outer shell and a love of books. Now, at the age of twenty-eight, she’s finally realized her life-long dream of opening a school for girls. She’s hoping that the wealthy families who flock to the shore for the summer will entrust their daughters to Bellehaven Academy―and help pay the way for less fortunate students. All Hazel must do is maintain a flawless reputation and raise a good deal of money. It’s a foolproof plan…till a sinfully handsome earl strides into her office.

WHAT AN EARL NEEDS

Gabriel Beckett, Earl of Bladenton, has had a monstrous headache since the day his teenaged niece became his ward. She’s been expelled from two London boarding schools and is doing her damnedest to scare off his potential fiancée. But Blade has a plan of his own―enroll his niece at Bellehaven Academy, where she’ll be out of town and out of his hair. He just needs to convince the buttoned-up headmistress with the soulful brown eyes to take on his niece.

LEAD TO AN IRRESISTIBLE DEAL

When Blade makes a generous offer to the school, it’s impossible for Hazel to refuse. But she has one non-negotiable condition: the earl must visit his niece every other week. Soon, Blade discovers there’s much more to Hazel than meticulous lesson plans. In moonlit seaside coves and candlelit ballrooms, their sparring leads to flirtation…and something altogether deeper. But the passion that flares between them poses a threat to Hazel’s school and Blade’s battered heart. They say a good thing can’t last forever, but true love? Well, it just might…

20% Review:

Okay okay, so as I am writing this maybe I am a bit past 20% and maybe I’m a little bit closer to 50%, but this book is so much fun! I’m just really not wanting to put it down! I really love Hazel as a character (Sassy bookwork in a historical? You really can’t go wrong.) It has also been a pretty quick read when I’ve actually had the chance to sit down and read it, too, with short chapters and fun dialogue, which I always love! It really makes you feel accomplished when you read a book quickly, right? Maybe just me? Who knows, either way this sassy regency has been just what I was needing this week.

Check out my full review here!

Bake, Borrow, Steal

Author: Ellie Alexander

Publication date: December 28, 2021

Genre: Mystery, cozy mystery, adult

Thanks so much to the author, St. Martin’s Press, and Netgalley for the gifted advanced electronic copy of this book.

Description from Goodreads:

Ellie Alexander’s Bake, Borrow, and Steal, the most delicious installment yet in the Bakeshop Series set in Ashland, Oregon!

As the autumnal hues of November fall over the Shakespearean hamlet of Ashland, Oregon, Jules and her team at Torte are working on their biggest event ever. They’ve been invited to create chocolate showpieces for the gala opening of a new exhibit, Shakespeare’s Lost Pages at SOMA. The museum, located on the campus of Southern Oregon University, is getting ready to unveil the Bard’s lost manuscript, Double Falsehood, which is being touted as the greatest artistic discovery of modern times. In addition to molding luscious, silky chocolate into magnificent structures, Torte will be serving an authentic Elizabethan feast straight from the pages of a sixteenth century cookbook featuring Lardy cakes, Frangipane tarts, and jellies with chestnut cream.

Jules has underestimated the amount of work required to pull off such a culinary feat. She finds herself in the strange position of feeling frazzled and stressed as the day of the gala approaches. However, her team rallies around her and once the massive works of chocolate art are safely installed at the museum, she can finally let out a sigh of relief and revel in the excitement of the grand celebration. But her relief is short-lived. Right before the unveiling, news quickly begins to spread that Shakespeare’s lost manuscript is missing. Not only that, but the security guard tasked with keeping the priceless artifact safe has been killed. Is this a case of a heist gone terribly wrong? Or could it be that a killer is lurking in the museum archives?

20% Review:

This book is so much fun! Although reading it on an empty stomach is really proving to be a problem.. We are just barely starting to get into the mystery, but what we’ve really been diving into so far is all. Of. The. FOOD! It all sounds so good, and I want to eat all of it. I can’t wait to see where the story goes as I keep reading, but honestly part of me is just hoping that this turns into one of the cozies with recipes in the back!

Check out my full review here!
Posted on by tacklingtbr · 1 Comment

Bake, Borrow, and Steal (A Bakeshop Mystery #14) by Ellie Alexander

St. Martin’s Press – Review: 4 Stars

Thanks so much to the author, Netgalley, and St. Martin’s Press for the gifted advanced e-copy of this book in exchange for my honest thoughts. All of my opinions are entirely my own. All of my reviews can also be found on Instagram @Tackling_TBR and on my blog at tacklingtbr.home.blog.

TW: death (accidental death, murder), theft

Oh my gosh, this book was such a delight! I mean, let’s be honest, I LOVE a cozy mystery, so I am pretty easy to please in that sense. Honestly it’s kind of hard for a cozy mystery to go wrong, in my eyes. So I had no doubt that I would really enjoy this read, and I am glad to say that I was right.

Let’s start with what really might be the most important part – the FOOD! Jules, our main character in this story, runs a bakeshop, a winery, and an ice cream parlor, so it comes as no surprise that there are some really tasty sounding recipes mentioned throughout the story. Talking about and thinking about the food basically dominated my 20% review for this book, that’s how much it was on my mind as I was reading. And I’ve got to be honest, part of me is crushed that this isn’t one of the many cozies that includes a handful of it’s recipes in the back of the book. This is a story where the setting is definitely it’s own character, but the food is really playing a character as well in a really delicious way. And now I want to eat my weight in baked goods.

Speaking of the setting, Ashland, OR made such a lovely setting for this story! Like I said earlier, the small town feel really plays an important role in the story. Plus, as a PNW girl myself, I always enjoy getting to read books set along the west coast! And something about finishing up this story about the snowy little west coast town while I’m sitting in Seattle and looking out the window at all of the snow falling, it felt like I was really a part of it for a little bit. Like I could go across the street and get one of Andy’s cups of coffee.

Now getting back to more important things, like the colorful cast of characters. There were so many characters that played their roles in the story, that in the beginning I did have some trouble keeping everything and everyone straight in my head while reading. Now to be fair, this is book #14 in a serious of cozies. I always say that reading a series in order doesn’t tend to matter quite as much with a series of cozies as much as it might for a different genre, but I’m betting that had I read the other books that lead up to this one then I wouldn’t have had as many issues with remembering which character was which. So, you know, take that with a grain of salt. But overall I really loved the characters. Some of them were fairly cartoon-y, especially the two more villainous men who Jules is butting heads with throughout the story, but I didn’t mind that too much. The almost campy aspects felt like they belonged in a really fun way. Maybe that comes from the very theatrical town of Ashland (home of the famous Oregon Shakespeare Festival), but either way it worked for me.

Overall I would definitely recommend this book to my friends! I think that everyone needs a genre that they can read through easily without having to necessarily put their entire heart and soul into it, and (especially when it gets cold out) I think that a cozy mystery fits the bill perfectly! I think that the best way to read this book would be inside and under a blanket while you’re listening to the rain, or watching the snow outside your window. And also with lots of baked goods. Obviously. No, seriously. Give me the cakes, the hand pies, the cookies, the pastries, everything!

Posted on by tacklingtbr · 1 Comment

Girls Before Earls (Rogues to Lovers #1) by Anna Bennett

St. Martin’s Press – Review: 5 Stars

Thanks so much to the author, St. Martin’s, and Netgalley for the gifted advanced e-copy of this book. All opinions are entirely my own. My reviews can also be found on Instagram @Tackling_TBR and on my blog at tacklingtbr.home.blog.

Publication Date: December 28, 2021

TW: death, orphaned children, infidelity

Oh my gosh, this book was so much fun! I go through phases in my reading life and I am DEFINITELY in a big regency phase right now, where I just can’t get enough of it. So this book was everything that I was wanting, and I enjoyed the heck out of it.

I really loved Hazel as a character – and while it did take me a little while to come around to Blade the girls of Bellehaven Academy really made up for that lost time! The girls were so fun and sweet and I wanted to adopt every one of them, honestly. I thought that the setting of a finishing school was a fun way to differentiate this story from the other enemies-to-lovers regency novels out there (not that I ever seem to get tired of those anyway) by having such fun characters in the girls but also having the school acting as a character in itself. It almost feels like the true third in Hazel and Blade’s love triangle, and I really loved it!

Overall I would definitely recommend this book to my friends who are looking for a fairly fast (and quite steamy!) read. But I’m not kidding, if you’re picking this one up you need to be prepared for the steam. Do not read at work. Do not read in company. Maybe try reading it in a bubble bath with a large glass of wine and nobody around to ask you why you’re still in the bath. You’ll thank me later.

Check out the author’s website here!
Posted on by tacklingtbr

December 5 – December 11

New Releases and Publications

Hello, friends – and happy Tuesday! Welcome to another round of new releases that I was lucky enough to get an early copy of, and have either already read or are upcoming on my #TBR.

These books could be gifted from the publisher through sites like NetGalley or Edelweiss+, they could be electronic copies gifted directly to me from the publisher or the author, an early audiobook copy through the publisher or Libro.fm, or even a physical copy that has been sent to me from the author or publisher. I am so thankful for all of the reading opportunities that I am given through these various sources, and I am excited to share these new releases!

In these weekly posts I will include a 20% review if I am currently reading the book, as well as a link to my full review if I have already finished the book. And if I have not yet started the book by the time this is posted, I will leave those spots blank and edit the post to add them in later!

If This Gets Out

Author: Sophie Gonzales and Cale Dietrich

Publication date: December 7, 2021

Genre: LGBTQIA+, Contemporary, Romance, Young Adult

Thanks so much to the author, St. Martin’s Press and Wednesday Books, and Netgalley for the gifted advanced e-copy of this book.

Description from Goodreads:

Eighteen-year-olds Ruben Montez and Zach Knight are two members of the boy-band Saturday, one of the biggest acts in America. Along with their bandmates, Angel Phan and Jon Braxton, the four are teen heartbreakers in front of the cameras and best friends backstage. But privately, cracks are starting to form: their once-easy rapport is straining under the pressures of fame, and Ruben confides in Zach that he’s feeling smothered by management’s pressure to stay in the closet.

On a whirlwind tour through Europe, with both an unrelenting schedule and minimal supervision, Ruben and Zach come to rely on each other more and more, and their already close friendship evolves into a romance. But when they decide they’re ready to tell their fans and live freely, Zach and Ruben start to truly realize that they will never have the support of their management. How can they hold tight to each other when the whole world seems to want to come between them?

“If This Gets Out is an absolute showstopper! Equal parts edgy and adorable, this bright, joyful book has everything I look for in a queer YA romance.” —Phil Stamper, bestselling author of The Gravity of Us

20% Review:

(This will be added at a later date, once I start reading this book!)

Review:

(This will be added at a later date, once I have finished this book!)

The Ballerinas

Author: Rachel Kapelke-Dale

Publication date: December 7, 2021

Genre: Fiction, Thriller, Mystery

Thanks so much to the author, St. Martin’s Press, and Netgalley for the gifted advanced electronic copy of this book.

Description from Goodreads:

Dare Me meets Black Swan and Luckiest Girl Alive in a captivating, voice-driven debut novel about a trio of ballerinas who meet as students at the Paris Opera Ballet School.

Fourteen years ago, Delphine abandoned her prestigious soloist spot at the Paris Opera Ballet for a new life in St. Petersburg––taking with her a secret that could upend the lives of her best friends, fellow dancers Lindsay and Margaux. Now 36 years old, Delphine has returned to her former home and to the legendary Palais Garnier Opera House, to choreograph the ballet that will kickstart the next phase of her career––and, she hopes, finally make things right with her former friends. But Delphine quickly discovers that things have changed while she’s been away…and some secrets can’t stay buried forever.

Moving between the trio’s adolescent years and the present day, The Ballerinas explores the complexities of female friendship, the dark drive towards physical perfection in the name of artistic expression, the double-edged sword of ambition and passion, and the sublimated rage that so many women hold inside––all culminating in a twist you won’t see coming, with magnetic characters you won’t soon forget.

20% Review:

(This will be added at a later date, once I start reading this book!)

Review:

(This will be added at a later date, once I have finished this book!)

I am Arcana

Author: Kristy Nicolle

Publication Date: December 7. 2021

Genre: Poetry

Thanks so much to the author for the gifted advanced copy of this collection.

Description from Goodreads:

THE CARDS KNOW ALL…

From the Author of Award-Winning fantasy romance “simply dripping with poetic justice” comes a debut poetry collection inspired by the enthralling world of tarot.

Divided into the 22 Major Arcana cards of the traditional tarot deck, Kristy Nicolle presents a brand new poetry collection with fresh insight into the multiple interpretations of each legendary icon.

From The High Priestess to The Fool, jump into a lyrical, poetic world of painful truth and natural beauty. A searing indictment of the world we know today, discover how the very mysticism which runs deep through our collective history is relevant now more than ever.

Simple, evocative, and thought-provoking, the world of tarot has never seemed so tangible.

Perfect for poetry fans of Nikita Gill, Julie Anne Addicott, Atticus, and  Kate Baer.

20% Review:

Since this is such a short poetry collection, I was able to read it in one sitting and didn’t write a 20% review. But check out my full thoughts at the link below!

Check out my full review here!
Posted on by tacklingtbr

November 7 – November 13

New Releases and Publications

Hello, friends – and happy Tuesday! Welcome to another round of new releases that I was lucky enough to get an early copy of, and have either already read or are upcoming on my #TBR.

These books could be gifted from the publisher through sites like NetGalley or Edelweiss+, they could be electronic copies gifted directly to me from the publisher or the author, an early audiobook copy through the publisher or Libro.fm, or even a physical copy that has been sent to me from the author or publisher. I am so thankful for all of the reading opportunities that I am given through these various sources, and I am excited to share these new releases!

In these weekly posts I will include a 20% review if I am currently reading the book, as well as a link to my full review if I have already finished the book. And if I have not yet started the book by the time this is posted, I will leave those spots blank and edit the post to add them in later!

Murder Most Actual

Author: Alexis Hall

Publication Day: November 9, 2021

Genre: Mystery, LGBT, Contemporary Romance, Cozy Mystery

Thanks so much to the author, Valentine PR, and Netgalley for the gifted advanced e-copy of this book.

Description from Goodreads:

From the author of Boyfriend Material and Rosaline Palmer Takes the Cake comes a cozy mystery that revisits the Golden Age of detective fiction, starring a heroine who’s more podcaster than private eye and topped with a lethal dose of parody — perfect for fans of Clue, Knives Out, and Only Murders in the Building!

When up-and-coming true crime podcaster Liza and her corporate financier wife Hanna head to a luxurious hotel in the Scottish Highlands, they’re hoping for a chance to rekindle their marriage – not to find themselves trapped in the middle of an Agatha Christie-esque murder mystery with no way home. But who better to take on the case than someone whose entire profession relies on an obsession with all things mysterious and macabre? Though some of her fellow guests may consider her an interfering new media hack, Liza knows a thing or two about crime and – despite Hanna’s preference for waiting out the chaos behind a locked door – might be the only one capable of discovering the killer. As the bodies rack up and the stakes rise, can they save their marriage — and their lives?

20% Review:

20% in to the book, and we’ve had our first murder! So far we’ve met the cast of characters, which has been a lot of fun. I was trying to tie some fun Clue references out of it in the beginning (Mrs. White, a Colonel wearing yellow, a professor wearing purple, another young man wearing green, an eccentric older woman with lots of money? I mean, come on! I can’t be making this up!), but hey maybe that’s just me.

Check out my full blog tour and review here!

Heard it in a Love Song

Author: Tracey Garvis Graves

Publication Date: November 9, 2021

Genre: Romance, Contemporary Fiction, Adult

Thanks so much to the author, St. Martin’s Press, and Netgalley for the gifted advanced e-copy of this book.

Description from Goodreads:

Layla Hilding is thirty-five and recently divorced. Struggling to break free from the past—her glory days as the lead singer in a band and a ten-year marriage to a man who never put her first—Layla’s newly found independence feels a lot like loneliness.

Then there’s Josh, the single dad whose daughter attends the elementary school where Layla teaches music. Recently separated, he’s still processing the end of his twenty-year marriage to his high school sweetheart. He chats with Layla every morning at school and finds himself thinking about her more and more.

Equally cautious and confused about dating in a world that favors apps over meeting organically, Layla and Josh decide to be friends with the potential for something more. Sounds sensible and way too simple—but when two people are on the rebound, is it heartbreak or happiness that’s a love song away?

From the bestselling author of The Girl He Used to Know comes a love song of a story about starting over and second chances.

20% Review:

(This will be added at a later date, once I start reading this book!)

Review:

(This will be added at a later date, once I have finished this book!)

Five Tuesdays in Winter

Author: Lily King

Narrated by: Stacey Glemboski, various narrators, Mark Bramhall, Christa Lewis, Cassandra Campbell & Bronson Pinchot

Audio Publication Day: November 9, 2021

Genre: Short Stories, Fiction, Literary Fiction, Adult

Thanks so much to Blackstone Publishing and Libro.fm for the gifted advanced audio copy of this book.

Description from Goodreads:

By the award-winning, New York Times bestselling author of Writers & Lovers, Lily King’s first-ever collection of exceptional and innovative short stories

Told in the intimate voices of unique and endearing characters of all ages, these tales explore desire and heartache, loss and discovery, moments of jolting violence and the inexorable tug toward love at all costs. A bookseller’s unspoken love for his employee rises to the surface, a neglected teenage boy finds much-needed nurturing from an unlikely pair of college students hired to housesit, a girl’s loss of innocence at the hands of her employer’s son becomes a catalyst for strength and confidence, and a proud nonagenarian rages helplessly in his granddaughter’s hospital room. Romantic, hopeful, brutally raw, and unsparingly honest, some even slipping into the surreal, these stories are, above all, about King’s enduring subject of love.

20% Review:

(This will be added at a later date, once I start reading this book!)

Review:

(This will be added at a later date, once I have finished reading this book!)

Posted on by tacklingtbr · 1 Comment

Murder Most Actual by Alexis Hall

Review and Blog Tour courtesy of Valentine PR

Thanks so much to the author, Valentine PR, and Netgalley for the complimentary advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest thoughts and participation in this blog tour. { partner } All opinions are entirely my own. All of my reviews can also be found on Instagram @Tackling_TBR and on Goodreads.

Publication Date: November 9, 2021
Genre: Mystery, LGBT, Contemporary, Romance, Cozy Mystery

Book Description from Goodreads:

From the author of Boyfriend Material and Rosaline Palmer Takes the Cake comes a cozy mystery that revisits the Golden Age of detective fiction, starring a heroine who’s more podcaster than private eye and topped with a lethal dose of parody — perfect for fans of Clue, Knives Out, and Only Murders in the Building!

When up-and-coming true crime podcaster Liza and her corporate financier wife Hanna head to a luxurious hotel in the Scottish Highlands, they’re hoping for a chance to rekindle their marriage – not to find themselves trapped in the middle of an Agatha Christie-esque murder mystery with no way home. But who better to take on the case than someone whose entire profession relies on an obsession with all things mysterious and macabre? Though some of her fellow guests may consider her an interfering new media hack, Liza knows a thing or two about crime and – despite Hanna’s preference for waiting out the chaos behind a locked door – might be the only one capable of discovering the killer. As the bodies rack up and the stakes rise, can they save their marriage — and their lives?

Review (5 Stars) :

Thanks so much to the author, Kobo Books, Netgalley, and Valentine PR for the gifted advanced e-copy of this book in exchange for my honest thoughts and participation in the blog tour. All opinions are entirely my own. All of my reviews nd blog tours can also be found on Instagram @Tackling_TBR and my blog tacklingtbr.home.blog.

TW: death/murder, description of violence, description of crime scenes

This book was seriously so much fun! I didn’t want to put it down while I was reading, and I was very mad any time I actually had to. Darn work and life getting in the way of my reading!

If you like Clue then you’ll enjoy this book. The big mansion where people keep mysteriously passing away, the kooky and colorful cast of characters, the sense of humor of a serious story that isn’t taking itself too seriously (although we can mostly thank Ruby for that mindset), it really had it all for me. And wrap it all up with an adorable queer couple bow? Yes please.

I will say that I guessed some bits of the ending before we got to it, but there were still some fun surprises for me along the way, so I wasn’t too mad about the few things I saw coming. And I think using Liza’s podcast as the reasoning for the detective work brought a fun, modern twist. Plus, sassy podcaster solving a crime with her adorable wife playing Watson? It was just so much fun.

I would absolutely recommend this book to my friends and family – in fact, my mom has already tried to steal my kindle so that she can read it next! I think that the perfect setting for reading this book would be inside in bed or on the couch under a couple of blankets with snow falling outside. And in honor of Murder Most Actual, the podcast within the book, a glass of wine is a necessity!

Connect with the Author:

Alexis Hall is an English author of urban fantasy, science fiction, and m/m romance. His novels include Murder Most Actual, Boyfriend Material, Rosaline Palmer Takes the Cake, For Real, Glitterland, Iron & Velvet, Looking for Group, and Pansies.

His work has been nominated for to the 26th Lambda Literary Awards, 28th Lambda Literary Awards, and 29th Lambda Literary Awards in the category of Gay Romance.

Website: https://quicunquevult.com/

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/alexishall

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/quicunquevult

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/quicunquevult/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/quicunquevult

Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/alexis-hall

More by Alexis Hall:

Rosaline Palmer Takes the Cake

Boyfriend Material (check out my review here!)

Husband Material (Publication date: August 2, 2022)

the Arden St Ives series

the Spires series

Something Fabulous (Publication date: January 25, 2022)

A Lady for a Duke (Publication date: May 24, 2022)

the Kate Kane Paranormal Investigator series

The Affair of the Mysterious Letter

Download your copy from Kobo here!

Check out more of my recent blog tours here:

The Book of Hope by Dr. Jane Goodall

Anarchy in High Heels by Denise Larson

A Fate of Wrath and Flame by K A Tucker

Posted on by tacklingtbr

October 3 – October 9

New Releases and Publications

Hello, friends – and happy Tuesday! Welcome to another round of new releases that I was lucky enough to get an early copy of, and have either already read or are upcoming on my #TBR.

These books could be gifted from the publisher through sites like NetGalley or Edelweiss+, they could be electronic copies gifted directly to me from the publisher or the author, an early audiobook copy through the publisher or Libro.fm, or even a physical copy that has been sent to me from the author or publisher. I am so thankful for all of the reading opportunities that I am given through these various sources, and I am excited to start sharing these new releases!

In these weekly posts I will include a 20% review if I am currently reading the book, as well as a link to my full review if I have already finished the book. And if I have not yet started the book by the time this is posted, I will leave those spots blank and edit the post to add them in later!

Heartbreak for Hire

Author: Sonia Hartl

Publication Day: October 4, 2021

Genre: Romance, Contemporary Romance, Fiction

Thanks so much to the author, Gallery Books, and Netgalley for the complimentary advanced electronic copy of this book.

Description from Goodreads:

Brinkley Saunders has a secret.

To everyone in the academic world she left behind, she lost it all when she dropped out of grad school. Once a rising star following in her mother’s footsteps, she’s now an administrative assistant at an insurance agency—or so they think.

In reality, Brinkley works at Heartbreak for Hire, a secret service that specializes in revenge for jilted lovers, frenemies, and long-suffering coworkers with a little cash to spare and a man who needs to be taken down a notch. It might not be as prestigious as academia, but it helps Brinkley save for her dream of opening an art gallery and lets her exorcise a few demons, all while helping to empower women.

But when her boss announces she’s hiring male heartbreakers for the first time, Brinkley’s no longer so sure she’s doing the right thing—especially when her new coworker turns out to be a target she was paid to take down. Though Mark spends his days struggling up the academic ladder, he seems to be the opposite of a backstabbing adjunct: a nerd at heart in criminally sexy sweater vests who’s attentive both in and out of the bedroom. But as Brinkley finds it increasingly more difficult to focus on anything but Mark, she soon realizes that like herself, people aren’t always who they appear to be. 

20% Review:

(This will be added at a later date, once I start reading this book!)

Check out my review here:

(This will be added at a later date, once I have finished this book!)

Flower Crowns and Fearsome Things

Author: Amanda Lovelace

Publication Day: October 5. 2021

Genre: Poetry, Nonfiction, Adult

Thanks so much to the author, Andrews McMeel Publishing, and Netgalley for the complimentary advanced electronic copy of this book.

Description from Goodreads:

in her new standalone poetry collection, flower crowns & fearsome things, bestselling & award-winning poetess amanda lovelace explores the complexity of femininity through alternating wildflower & wildfire poems.

within these pages, you will find that each of us has the ability to be both soft & fierce at the same time. there is no need to choose one or the other.

20% Review:

Since this is such a short collection of poetry, it is very easy to read in one sitting, so I don’t have a 20% review for this one – but feel free to check out my full review at the link below!

Check out my review here!

Bad Fat Black Girl: Notes from a Trap Feminist

Author: Sesali Bowen

Narrated by: Sesali Bowen

Audio Publication Day: October 5, 2021

Genre: Nonfiction, Autobiography, Memoir, Feminism, Gender

Thanks so much to HarperAudio and Libro.fm for the complimentary advanced audio copy of this book.

Description from Goodreads:

From funny and fearless entertainment journalist Sesali Bowen, Bad Fat Black Girl combines rule-breaking feminist theory, witty and insightful personal memoir, and cutting cultural analysis for an unforgettable, genre-defining debut.

Growing up on the south side of Chicago, Sesali Bowen learned early on how to hustle, stay on her toes, and champion other Black women and femmes as she navigated Blackness, queerness, fatness, friendship, poverty, sex work, and self-love. 

Her love of trap music led her to the top of hip-hop journalism, profiling game-changing artists like Megan Thee Stallion, Lizzo, and Janelle Monae. But despite all the beauty, complexity, and general badassery she saw, Bowen found none of that nuance represented in mainstream feminism. Thus, she coined Trap Feminism, a contemporary framework that interrogates where feminism and hip-hop intersect.

Notes from a Trap Feminist offers a new, inclusive feminism for the modern world. Weaving together searing personal essay and cultural commentary, Bowen interrogates sexism, fatphobia, and capitalism all within the context of race and hip-hop. In the process, she continues a Black feminist legacy of unmatched sheer determination and creative resilience.

Bad bitches: this one’s for you.

20% Review:

(This will be added at a later date, once I start reading this book!)

Check out my review here:

(This will be added at a later date, once I have finished this book!)

A Carnival of Snackery

Author: David Sedaris

Narrated by: David Sedaris & Tracey Ullman

Audio Publication day: October 5, 2021

Genre: Autobiography, Memoir, Nonfiction, Humor

Thanks so much to Hachette Audio and Libro.fm for the complimentary advanced audio copy of this book.

Description from Goodreads:

There’s no right way to keep a diary, but if there’s an entertaining way, David Sedaris seems to have mas­tered it.
 
If it’s navel-gazing you’re after, you’ve come to the wrong place; ditto treacly self-examination. Rather, his observations turn outward: a fight between two men on a bus, a fight between two men on the street, pedestrians being whacked over the head or gathering to watch as a man considers leap­ing to his death. There’s a dirty joke shared at a book signing, then a dirtier one told at a dinner party—lots of jokes here. Plenty of laughs.
 
These diaries remind you that you once really hated George W. Bush, and that not too long ago, Donald Trump was just a harm­less laughingstock, at least on French TV. Time marches on, and Sedaris, at his desk or on planes, in hotel dining rooms and odd Japanese inns, records it. The entries here reflect an ever-changing background—new administrations, new restrictions on speech and conduct. What you can say at the start of the book, you can’t by the end. At its best, A Carnival of Snackery is a sort of sampler: the bitter and the sweet. Some entries are just what you wanted. Others you might want to spit discreetly into a napkin.

20% Review:

(This will be added at a later date, once I start reading this book!)

Check out my review here:

(This will be added at a later date, once I have finished this book!)

My Monticello

Author: Jocelyn Nicole Johnson

Narrated by: Aja Naomi King, January LaVoy, Landon Woodson, LeVar Burton, Ngozi Anyanwu & Tomiwa Edun

Audio Publication Day: October 5, 2021

Genre: Short Stories, Fiction, Historical Fiction

Thanks so much to Macmillan Audio and Libro.fm for the complimentary advanced audio copy of this book.

Description from Goodreads:

A young woman descended from Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemings driven from her neighborhood by a white militia. A university professor studying racism by conducting a secret social experiment on his own son. A single mother desperate to buy her first home even as the world hurtles toward catastrophe. Each fighting to survive in America.

Tough-minded, vulnerable, and brave, Jocelyn Nicole Johnson’s precisely imagined debut explores burdened inheritances and extraordinary pursuits of belonging. Set in the near future, the eponymous novella, “My Monticello,” tells of a diverse group of Charlottesville neighbors fleeing violent white supremacists. Led by Da’Naisha, a young Black descendant of Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemings, they seek refuge in Jefferson’s historic plantation home in a desperate attempt to outlive the long-foretold racial and environmental unravelling within the nation.

In “Control Negro,” hailed by Roxane Gay as “one hell of story,” a university professor devotes himself to the study of racism and the development of ACMs (average American Caucasian males) by clinically observing his own son from birth in order to “painstakingly mark the route of this Black child too, one whom I could prove was so strikingly decent and true that America could not find fault in him unless we as a nation had projected it there.” Johnson’s characters all seek out home as a place and an internal state, whether in the form of a Nigerian widower who immigrates to a meager existence in the city of Alexandria, finding himself adrift; a young mixed-race woman who adopts a new tongue and name to escape the landscapes of rural Virginia and her family; or a single mother who seeks salvation through “Buying a House Ahead of the Apocalypse.”

United by these characters’ relentless struggles against reality and fate, My Monticello is a formidable book that bears witness to this country’s legacies and announces the arrival of a wildly original new voice in American fiction.

20% Review:

(This will be added at a later date, once I start reading this book!)

Check out my review here:

(This will be added at a later time, once I have finished this book!)

Posted on by tacklingtbr · 2 Comments

Flower Crowns and Fearsome Things by Amanda Lovelace

Andrews McMeel – Review: 4 Stars

Thanks so much to the author, Andrews McMeel Publishing, and Netgalley for the complimentary advanced copy of this e-book. All opinions are entirely my own. { #giftedbook } All of my reviews can also be found on Instagram @Tackling_TBR and on Goodreads.

Publication Day: October 5, 2021

TW (from the book): “This book contains sensitive material relating to: intimate partner abuse, sexual assault, cheating, child abuse, trauma, death, violence, misogyny, body image, eating disorders, alcohol, fire, & possibly more. Remember to practice self-care before, during & after reading.”

I, like so many others, fell in love with Amanda Lovelace reading her Woman Are Some Kind of Magic trilogy a few years ago. I’ve read all but two of her collections since then, and to this day I’ve yet to be disappointed in any of them. They are quick (although not light) reading, and I always love setting aside an afternoon to make myself a cup of tea, read one of her collections, and reflect on it.

I understand that her writing style might not be for everyone, as most of the poems are no more than a sentence or two, but I’ve always found it to be a really nice breather in between reading longer, more verbose novels.

This particular collection was taking a look at femininity and feminism through the story of Persephone, and using wildflowers and wild fires to show the soft, delicate sides versus the hard, fierce sides. This might just be the teen-girl-obsessed-with-mythology in me, but I loved that aspect of this collection.

I will say that there are two small things keeping this from a 5 star collection for me. Part of me missed the small bit of narrative flow that so many other of Amanda’s collections seem to weave through the various poems. There was a little bit of it with the story of Persephone, but I wish that it had leaned just a tiny bit more into that, since it always feels like it just ties the collections together with a perfect bow. And one of the best parts of her collections is always the illustrations, as silly as that sounds. They are always soft and dreamlike and lovely, and they enhance the poetry so much. The illustrations in this collection were really lovely, but I wish that there was just a little bit more variety in them, rather than having the same two alternating. I’m sure Amanda had a reason for choosing that style this time around, but I’m just not sure what it is.

Overall I would absolutely recommend this collection to any of my friends, so long as it was healthy reading for them. The trigger warnings at the beginning of these collections are really no joke, and if those triggers will not be healthy for you to read, then these books aren’t for you. But if you can do it safely, then curl up with a blanket and a pot of tea, and make this a part of your quiet, self-care day. (Note: Sounds of heavy rainfall definitely encouraged, but not required. I guess not everyone can live in the PNW.)

More Collections by Amanda Lovelace:

the Women Are Some Kind of Magic trilogy

The Princess Saves Herself in This One

The Witch Doesn’t Burn in This One

The Mermaid’s Voice Returns in This One

the Things that H(a)unt duology

To Make Monsters out of Girls

To Drink Coffee with a Ghost

the You Are Your Own Fairy Tale trilogy

Break Your Glass Slippers (check out my review here!)

Shine Your Icy Crown (check out my review here!)

Posted on by tacklingtbr · 2 Comments

Finlay Donovan is Killing It by Elle Cosimano

Minotaur Books – Review: 5 Stars

Thanks so much to the author, Minotaur Books, and Netgalley for the complimentary advanced electronic copy of this book in exchange for my honest thoughts. All opinions are entirely my own. { partner } All of my reviews can also be found on Instagram @Tackling_TBR and on my blog at tacklingtbr.home.blog

TW: murder, death, gun violence, mention of sexual and domestic abuse, blackmail, custody battles, mention of infidelity

Sassy and sarcastic female lead? Check. Bad ass female friendship? Check. Hot potential-book boyfriends? Check. All wrapped up in a book about book people? Check and check! Oh, and did I mention there is some murder and crime solving thrown in for good measure? This book has it all, and I seriously loved every minute of it!

Finlay Donovan is a bit of a hot mess, and I mean that in the most loving way possible. I feel like I know Finlay, like our souls recognize the hot mess in each other, and we would be good friends. Plus, I know where all of the good hiding spots are, which could come in handy in her new line of work!

Moral of this review so far: I would TOTALLY help Finlay Donovan hide a body!

The characters in this book were so much fun to read about. And they all (for the most part) somehow still felt like real people, even when they were in these seriously crazy situations. Obviously Finlay was my favorite character – sarcastic author-turned-hitwoman, ready to jump right in to the crazy situations that life throws at her, and looking (mostly) fabulous while doing it. But a very close second favorite is Vero, the girlfriend that we all so desperately need in our lives. I always talk about sarcastic or witty banter between love interests in books, and sure there is a bit of that here too, but the book is dripping with that sarcastic banter between these two BFFs too, which makes it all the more fun! I left the book just really wanting to sit down with these two ladies and an entire bottle of wine, and just see what happens.

Overall I would absolutely recommend this book to friends! There is some romance, but it’s not the main focus, so it feels much more like a comedy-thriller, which is just such a fun and gripping combination! I think that it could be a great way to ease people into the romance genre if they are maybe hesitant to read that way. I think the best way to read this book is in a bubble bath that lasts way too long because you don’t want to put the book down, with a glass of wine and maybe a snack. Although I may be a bit biased, since that is how I read most of this one!