2025 | My Most Anticipated Novels

venerdì 3 gennaio 2025

Buongiorno booklovers, è folle da dire ma finalmente riesco a tornare su questi schermi dopo una lunga assenza!

Il periodo tra studio e lavoro è stato estremamente caotico, e mi ritrovo adesso a stilare la lista delle mie uscite più anticipate del 2025! Siete curiosi di sapere quali sono?



1. ONYX STORM, DI REBECCA YARROS


TRAMA:

After nearly eighteen months at Basgiath War College, Violet Sorrengail knows there’s no more time for lessons. No more time for uncertainty. Because the battle has truly begun, and with enemies closing in from outside their walls and within their ranks, it’s impossible to know who to trust.

Now Violet must journey beyond the failing Aretian wards to seek allies from unfamiliar lands to stand with Navarre. The trip will test every bit of her wit, luck, and strength, but she will do anything to save what she loves—her dragons, her family, her home, and him.

Even if it means keeping a secret so big, it could destroy everything. They need an army. They need power. They need magic. And they need the one thing only Violet can find—the truth. But a storm is coming...and not everyone can survive its wrath.


2. DEEP END, DI ALI HAZELWOOD

TRAMA:

A competitive diver and an ace swimmer jump into forbidden waters in this steamy college romance from the New York Times bestselling author of The Love Hypothesis.

Scarlett Vandermeer is swimming upstream. A Junior at Stanford and a student-athlete who specializes in platform diving, Scarlett prefers to keep her head down, concentrating on getting into med school and on recovering from the injury that almost ended her career. She has no time for relationships—at least, that’s what she tells herself.

Swim captain, world champion, all-around aquatics golden boy, Lukas Blomqvist thrives on discipline. It’s how he wins gold medals and breaks records: complete focus, with every stroke. On the surface, Lukas and Scarlett have nothing in common. Until a well-guarded secret slips out, and everything changes.

So they start an arrangement. And as the pressure leading to the Olympics heats up, so does their relationship. It was supposed to be just a temporary, mutually satisfying fling. But when staying away from Lukas becomes impossible, Scarlett realizes that her heart might be treading into dangerous water...


3. FABLE FOR THE END OF THE WORLD, DI AVA REID


TRAMA:

The Last of Us meets The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes in this standalone dystopian romance about survival, sacrifice, and love that risks everything.

By encouraging massive accumulations of debt from its underclass, a single corporation, Caerus, controls all aspects of society.

Inesa lives with her brother in a half-sunken town where they scrape by running a taxidermy shop. Unbeknownst to Inesa, their cruel and indolent mother has accrued an enormous debt—enough to qualify one of her children for Caerus’s livestreamed assassination spectacle: the Lamb’s Gauntlet.

Melinoë is a Caerus assassin, trained to track and kill the sacrificial Lambs. The product of neural reconditioning and physiological alteration, she is a living weapon, known for her cold brutality and deadly beauty. She has never failed to assassinate one of her marks.

When Inesa learns that her mother has offered her as a sacrifice, at first she despairs—the Gauntlet is always a bloodbath for the impoverished debtors. But she’s had years of practice surviving in the apocalyptic wastes, and with the help of her hunter brother, she might stand a chance of staying alive.

For Melinoë, this is a game she can’t afford to lose. Despite her reputation for mercilessness, she is haunted by painful flashbacks. After her last Gauntlet, where she broke down on livestream, she desperately needs redemption.

As Mel pursues Inesa across the wasteland, both girls begin to question everything: Inesa wonders if there’s more to life than survival, while Mel wonders if she’s capable of more than killing.

And both wonder if, against all odds, they might be falling in love.


4. SUNRISE ON THE REAPING, DI SUZANNE COLLINS


TRAMA:

When you've been set up to lose everything you love, what is there left to fight for?

As the day dawns on the fiftieth annual Hunger Games, fear grips the districts of Panem. This year, in honor of the Quarter Quell, twice as many tributes will be taken from their homes.

Back in District 12, Haymitch Abernathy is trying not to think too hard about his chances. All he cares about is making it through the day and being with the girl he loves.

When Haymitch's name is called, he can feel all his dreams break. He's torn from his family and his love, shuttled to the Capitol with the three other District 12 tributes: a young friend who's nearly a sister to him, a compulsive oddsmaker, and the most stuck-up girl in town.

As the Games begin, Haymitch understands he's been set up to fail. But there's something in him that wants to fight . . . and have that fight reverberate far beyond the deadly arena.


5. ENCHANTRA, DI KAYLIE SMITH


TRAMA:

Ready or Not meets Throne of the Fallen in a spicy, enemies-to-lovers fantasy romance, where an Italian getaway turns deadly after a young woman is trapped in her host family's cursed game.

Ready or not, the game has begun.

Genevieve Grimm has felt adrift ever since her sister became the head of the family. So when a mysterious friend of their mother's invites her to Italy, she accepts. She arrives at his grand palace, expecting passion and magic, decadence and luxury... perhaps even a midnight ball.

She doesn't expect the owner's ruthlessly handsome son to slam the door in her face. Rowin Silver is tall, dark, and exceptionally rude, and invitation or not, he demands Genevieve leave and never come back. But Genevieve follows nobody's orders, especially those of arrogant rich boys. She slips inside—and immediately discovers her mistake.

Rowin and his family are caught in an insidious game of hide and seek, where only one can win. The rest will be trapped in Hell... until the competition begins again.

Genevieve must either join the hunt or forfeit any hope of escaping. But to her dismay, her best chance of survival lies with Rowin. Since lovers may play as a pair, Rowin and Genevieve agree to form an alliance under the guise of a fake courtship. However, as they race through the game's elaborate labyrinth, trapped among gleaming gold and shining marble, their loathing gives way to irresistible attraction. Only Rowin is keeping secrets, especially when it comes to his ruthless family, and Genevieve can't help but wonder if she's trapped in two treacherous games: Enchantra and the one Rowin is playing with her heart.


6. A TREACHERY OF SWANS, DI AB PORANEK


TRAMA:

Magic has long been outlawed in Auréal . Odile has always known she’d be the one to restore it.

Raised by a sorcerer, Odile has spent years preparing for the heist of a lifetime. It’s perfectly simple. Impersonate a princess, infiltrate the palace, steal the king's enchanted crown and restore magic to the kingdom.

But when the King is unexpectedly murdered, she’s forced to recruit the help of Marie d'Odette, the real princess, and the two begin to unravel a web of lies and deceit that leaves Odile uncertain of who to trust.

Soon though Odile must decide – her mission or the girl she’s falling for?

The fate of the Kingdom depends on her making the right choice. . .


7. THE IRRESISTIBLE URGE TO FALL FOR YOUR ENEMY, DI BRIGITTE KNIGHTLEY


TRAMA:

Osric Mordaunt, member of the Fyren Order of assassins, is in dire need of healing. Naturally – such is the grim comedy of fate – the only healer who can help is Aurienne Fairhrim, preeminent scientist, bastion of moral good, and member of an enemy Order.

Aurienne is desperate for funding to heal the sick - so desperate that, when Osric bribes her to help him, she accepts, even if she detests him and everything he stands for.

A forced collaboration ensues: the brilliant Woman in STEM is coerced into working with the PhD in Murders, much to Aurienne's disgust. As Osric and Aurienne work together to heal his illness and investigate the mysterious reoccurrence of a deadly pox, they find themselves ardently denying their attraction, which only fuels the heat between them.


8. ATMOSPHERE, DI TAYLOR JENKINS REID


TRAMA:

An epic novel set against the backdrop of the 1980s space shuttle program and the extraordinary lengths we go to live and love beyond our limits.

In the summer of 1980, astrophysics professor Joan Goodwin begins training to be an astronaut at Houston’s Johnson Space Center, alongside an exceptional group of fellow candidates: Top Gun pilots Hank Redmond and John Griffin; mission specialist Lydia Danes; warm-hearted Donna Fitzgerald; and Vanessa Ford, the magnetic and mysterious aeronautical engineer. As the new astronauts prepare for their first flights, Joan finds a passion and a love she never imagined and begins to question everything she believes about her place in the observable universe.

Then, in December of 1984, on mission STS-LR9, everything changes in an instant.

Atmosphere is Taylor Jenkins Reid at her best: transporting readers to iconic times and places, with complex protagonists, telling a passionate and soaring story about the transformative power of love, this time among the stars.


9. ROSE IN CHAINS, DI JULIE SOTO


TRAMA:

Captured as her castle is overrun by the enemy, Briony Rosewood knows that the world as she knows it is changed forever. The dark forces of Bomard have won and her people, the Eversuns, face imminent servitude, imprisonment or death. Her brother, fated to be heir twice over and unite the warring kingdoms, is dead.

Stripped of her Mind Magic and her freedom, Briony and the other survivors are quickly auctioned off to the highest bidders in an auction – and as the heir-apparent’s sister, she fetches the highest price.

After a fierce bidding war, she’s sold to none other than Toven a high ranking Bomardsun – and her long-time and ill-fated infatuation. Scion of a family known for their cruel control of Heart Magic, the Hearsts are ruthlessly ambitious, and Briony knows they will use her however they can to further their own interests.

Yet despite the horrors of her new world and the role she must learn to play within it, all is not lost. Help – and hope – may yet arise in the most unlikely of places…


10. ALCHEMISED, DI SEN LIN YU


TRAMA:

“What is it you think you’re protecting in that brain of yours? The war is over. Holdfast is dead. The Eternal Flame extinguished. There’s no one left for you to save.”

Once a promising alchemist, Helena Marino is now a prisoner—of war and of her own mind. Her Resistance friends and allies have been brutally murdered, her abilities suppressed, and the world she knew destroyed.

In the aftermath of a long war, Paladia’s new ruling class of corrupt guild families and depraved necromancers, whose vile, undead creatures helped bring about their victory, holds Helena captive.

According to Resistance records, she was a healer of little importance within their ranks. But Helena has inexplicable memory loss of the months leading up to her capture, making her enemies wonder: Is she truly as insignificant as she appears, or are her lost memories hiding some vital piece of the Resistance’s final gambit?

To uncover the memories buried deep within her mind, Helena is sent to the High Reeve, one of the most powerful and ruthless necromancers in this new world. Trapped on his crumbling estate, Helena’s fight—to protect her lost history and to preserve the last remaining shreds of her former self—is just beginning. For her prison and captor have secrets of their own . . . secrets Helena must unearth, whatever the cost.



Review Time | Inferno's Heir by Tiffany Wang

mercoledì 20 novembre 2024

    






INFO:

Title: Inferno's Heir

Author: Tiffany Wang

Release Date: October 15th 2024

Genre: Fantasy

Editore: Alcove Press


SUMMARY:

Fearing for her life, an outcast princess joins the rebellion against her own kingdom and family. . . but when playing with fire, someone always gets burned. 

Teia Carthan abandoned her morals long ago, and now there’s nothing she won’t do to stay alive. So far she has survived her parents’ deaths, the ire of the Council, and innumerable attempts on her life, orchestrated by Jura, her half brother and soon-to-be king of Erisia. Teia’s rare control over two elements marks her as both an outsider and a formidable opponent—but once Jura is crowned king, there will be no way to survive him. Not for Teia, not for anyone. 

When Jura moves to crush the rebellion that seeks to overthrow the monarchy, Teia sees one last opportunity to ensure her own safety. She can infiltrate the rebels, locate their base . . . and betray them to Jura, trading their lives for her own. 

Yet when Teia meets the rebels, she gets far more than she bargained for. And when she gains not only their trust but their friendship, she begins to have doubts. Perhaps the rebels are right. Perhaps the Golden Palace should be torn down and the monarchy destroyed. 

But then again—what if there is another possibility? What if Teia were on the throne instead? 


REVIEW:

Teia Carthan's life is a mess not only for being a princess, the only having royal blood other than her psychopatic and sadistic older half-brother Jura.

What about being daughter to two enemy countries, the late Erisian king and the Shaylani witch?

What about being able to bend both fire and water?

Jura's coronation is approaching, and news of a possible firebender in the Dawnbreakers rebels are frightening the Erisian court, prompting Jura to repress even more people. 

Her name is Kyra Medoh, and Teia Carthan is getting involved in it.

She will try everything to prevent Jura from seizing the throne and finally destroying her country.

Even siding with the rebels: pure Kyra, witty Alara and dangerously charming Tobias are growing on her every minute, even if Dawnbreakers leader Cornelius Lehm seems as reliable as a striking viper involved in plots that seem darker by every minute.

If they succeed in their mission, Teia's mind is thinking on a possible outcome: her on the throne.

She needs to choose now: their trust... or their security.


...


Inferno's Heir is an interesting debut, with a weaker start but a really strong ending (with a terrible cliffhanger).

We are in a fantasy world with many countries: the history is set in Erisia, with the royal family being the only ones to bend fire (Teia is half Shaylani, the country with whom Erisia was at war), in some ways similar to Avatar: The Last Airbender.

I found the characters to be really interesting, probably the gemstones of the books: I'd have wanted to see more the Dawnbreakers and their relationships with Teia (yes, I'm talking about two couples).

The plot kept me hooked until the last page (I screamed, yes). I sensed there was something wrong, but Wang threw a genius move in the end!


I honestly can't wait to read the sequel.


...


Rating: ★★★★


...


I want to thank Bindery Books for the digital ARC (Advanced Reader Copy) via Netgalley. I'm not affiliated to the author, to the publishing house or any other person/agency. My review is honest and based only on my thoughts/feeling while reading the book.


Anais by The Bookish Scorpio

Review Time | Not In My Book by Katie Holt

giovedì 14 novembre 2024

   






INFO:

Title: Not In My Book

Author: Katie Holt

Release Date: December 10th 2024

Genre: RomCom

Editore: Alcove Press


SUMMARY:

The Hating Game meets Beach Read in this sexy and hilarious contemporary romance from a debut Peruvian-Tennessean voice.

Rosie, an idealistic and passionate Peruvian-American who has grown up without strong ties to her culture, leaves her Tennessee hometown to pursue her dream of making it in New York as a writer. But her plan is derailed when she ends up in class with her arch-nemesis and ex-crush, Aiden Huntington—an obnoxious, surly, and gorgeous literary fiction writer who doesn’t have much patience for the romance genre, or for Rosie.

Rosie and Aiden regularly go to verbal battle in workshop until their professor reaches her breaking point. She allows them to stay in her class on one condition: they must co-write a novel that blends their genres.

The reluctant writing duo can’t help but put pieces of themselves into their accidentally steamy novel, and as they slowly get to know each other, they try to put their differences aside. Meanwhile, their manuscript-in-progress provides an outlet for them to confess their feelings—and explore their attraction toward each other.

When Rosie and Aiden find themselves competing against each other for a potentially career-changing opportunity, the flames of old rivalry reignite, and their once-in-a-lifetime love story is once again at risk of being shelved—unless they can find a way to end the book on their own terms.


REVIEW:

 "Not In My Book" is Peruvian-American Katie Holt's debut novel. 


A kind of blend between Beach Read and the latest contemporary novels full of enemies-to-lovers banter, it follows Rosie, a Latina girl (half Peruvian half American, like KH) in her journey from Tennessee to NYC to make true her greatest goal: being an author, a romance writer.

You know, only one bed, swoon-worthy book boyfriends. Stuff like that.

Her dreams literally shatter when she meets Aiden Huntington: she used to have a teeny-tiny crush on him at the start of Creative Writing workshop before realizing he's... a total jerk.

He despises romance novels & he's her worst critic, leading to fights in class like that which sets motion to the plot. 

Ida, the professor/course mentor, threatens to expell both of them... but only if they don't try to get along with each other by... writing a novel! Together!

The start is rocky, but gradually they warm to each other at the point they're dangerously falling into some depths that are quite... sentimental.


...


Not In My Book is everything I like in a romance. First of all, it's books in a book.

It has got a kind of college-school setting, a quirky and tough heroine (maybe too much in some cases), a "cold-but-not-so-cold" hero with a remarkable past (who he tries to forget), lots of funny banter, some spicy moments.

Rosie, the FMC, has also got Latina heritage, and honestly I loved everything about Peruvian traditions: you know, Christmas fatcs, sweets, a few dialogues in Spanish (for me it wasn't an issue since I speak Spanish between the languages I know). What I didn't like was her stubborness and the lack of communication (especially in the ending) between her and Aiden.

Aiden, Aiden, Aiden. What can I say other than you're like a boy I know? Tall, handsome... & who makes memes on me for reading spicy romances (like the puns you do on Rosie?). And that I love you both?

Funny enough, Aiden Huntington is one of my romcoms book boyfriends now. I would have given a try with Aiden if he was real, let's be honest! 

Rosie Maxwell you're lucky!

The vibes in autumn-winter NYC were chef's kiss. And also the writing was very approachable even for those who are not from English-speaking countries but lack knowledge of advanced English or are not used to read in a foreign language.

In the end, except for some little details (I don't like the miscommunication trope), it was a worthy and excellent read!

I'm looking forward to read another book by KH.


Rating: ★★★★.5


...


I want to thank Alcove Press for the digital ARC (Advanced Reader Copy) via Netgalley. I'm not affiliated to the author, to the publishing house or any other person/agency. My review is honest and based only on my thoughts/feeling while reading the book.


Anais by The Bookish Scorpio

Review Time | Pride & Prejudice in Space by Alexis Lampley

giovedì 7 novembre 2024

  




INFO:

Title: Pride & Prejudice in Space

Author: Alexis Lampley

Release Date: October 15th 2024

Genre: Romance, Sci-Fi

Editore: Union Square


SUMMARY:

Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice is arguably the forerunner of all romantic comedies and certainly one of her most popular and irreverent works. And now, graphic designer and Nerdy Ink co-owner—and obsessive fan of Pride and Prejudice—Alexis Lampley gives this timeless, classic, Regency-era romance a new twist, setting it among the stars in a futuristic universe where spaceships and interplanetary travel is the daily norm. Featuring 50+ color illustrations of the Londinium Lunar System, drawings of gowns by Lydia Bennet, and spaceship designs by Elizabeth Bennet, this is a futuristic take on a classic by a dedicated Jane Austen fan, for Austen newbies and super-fans alike.


REVIEW:

It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a booklover in possession of a brain must have read Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen or also have known any other work related, either cinematographic or literal.

I am one of those girls who grew up with the cult of Elizabeth Bennet as one of the most fascinating characters in English Literature and fell in love with Mr. Darcy's professions of love for Lizzie.

I can admit it's one of the main reasons I've applied for reading this ARC, combined with my own obsession with astronomy & astrophysics.

A Retelling set in space, with spaceships & court manners? Sign me in!

...

Probably the strongest (and weakest) point is that it's Pride & Prejudice. I've read both the original novel and the translation in my native language (Italian), and I can say with precision that most parts are indeed a copycat from the 1813 novel.

Yes, the parts (and traits of the characters) were adjusted to the setting (I really loved a Lizzie space pilot, btw), but this was P&P. Point.

This will surely be appreciated by the "purists", but also raises, in my opinion, a doubt: was this really necessary?

In truth, Lampley gives spotlight to the other characters: we have coms between the Bennet sisters, journal entries from many characters, including Charlotte Lucas and even the one and only Fitzwlliam Darcy. 

The author's artistic side is showed in colourful drawings of the Londinium (London) Solar System and its surroundings moons (Kaels - Kent, or Dyberion - Derbyshire), creating a little gem, which I could say it's on my physical TBR.

In the end, I can only lower my rating (a .5 rounded higher) being this truly P&P with fewer innovation that I'd expected.

Rating: ★★★.5 (rounded to ★★★★) but infinitive for the AustenVerse.


...


I want to thank UnionSquare & Co for the digital ARC (Advanced Reader Copy) via Netgalley. I'm not affiliated to the author, to the publishing house or any other person/agency. My review is honest and based only on my thoughts/feeling while reading the book.


Anais by The Bookish Scorpio


Review Time | A Dark and Secret Magic by Wallis Kinney

martedì 29 ottobre 2024

 




INFO:

Title: A Dark & Secret Magic

Author: Wallis Kinney

Release Date: October 8th 2024

Genre: Cozy Fantasy; Romance

Editore: Alcove Press


SUMMARY:

A warm, spellbinding tale about a witch and the secrets her coven has been keeping from her, with echoes of the classic Hades and Persephone story, in the tradition of Practical Magic and Witch of Wild Things.

Hecate Goodwin, Kate to her friends, has curated the perfect life as a hedge witch, living in a secluded cottage with only a black cat for company. She spends her days foraging herbs from the Ipswich forest, gardening, and creating tinctures to sell at the apothecary she owns. Most evenings pass without her speaking to another human being, an arrangement she quite prefers.

Kate’s solitude is thrown into disarray when her older sister, Miranda, reaches out and asks her to host their coven’s annual Halloween gathering. The day marks the beginning of the new year for witches and is also Kate’s birthday. The pressure from her coven to make the evening memorable mounts as the event draws near. To complicate things further, a handsome man from Kate’s past turns up at her cottage, asking for sanctuary. It is Kate’s duty as a hedge witch to honor this request, much to her dismay. Matthew Cypher is no ordinary lost soul–he’s a practitioner of forbidden magic who’s tricked Kate once before, and her guard is up.

As she juggles Matthew’s arrival and the preparations for Halloween, Kate comes across an old tome shrouded in dark magic. She is horrified when she realizes the blood-red inscription is written in familiar handwriting: her recently deceased mother’s. Afraid to even touch the dark magic her mother secretly studied, Kate can turn only to Matthew for help. Her idealized memory of her mother begins to distort, and as she and Matthew grow closer, Kate has to reevaluate whom she can really trust.

A Dark and Secret Magic is a celebration of the Halloween season and a love letter to anyone who drinks pumpkin spice in August and carries the spirit of a witch inside their heart all year long.


REVIEW:

Hedge witch Hecate "Kate" Goodwin has been having a tough time since her late mother's passing.

A kitchen witch & one of the Atlantic Key's coven elders, she left Kate and her sisters: older sea witch Miranda, a kind of twisted Ariel with her red curls, and younger Celeste, a divination witch.

Like all the fellow witches & hexen, they chose their path at thirteen years old.

ALL. Except Hecate.

Since her birth on Samhain (Halloween, Oct 31st - Kate, my fellow Scorpio), her mother chose for her the hedge witch's path, an heresy. Hecate never discovered why.

But things, especially secrets, can't be buried forever. And with her thirty-first birthday approaching & the Containment Ritual set, in which a witch willingly chooses to give up some of her powers, her mother's legacy starts to bring up dark truths.

And with elder Margaret Halliwell's strange death and Matthew Cypher's arrival in Ipswich, a shadow hexen (necromancer) and heir to rival coven Pacific Gate, it's a fact that her life is starting to rot.

Because he's the same man with whom Kate has had a tumultous past. He claims he's here to protect here.

But it's an omen, and factually true, that The King Below is coming, and he won't stop to claim what he thinks is his. 

Or better, who.


...


Debut author Wallis Kinney has produced a spellbinding cozy (and also dark) tale, relying on witches' lore to create a lush book. It's natural that this book is meant to be read in October, in full spooky season mode, and especially in the week before Halloween, which also marks the very same start of the zodiac' Scorpio Season. 

Yeah, I think I'm a little bit unreliable on this, because I'm a Scorpio myself (er, double, both Sun & Moon) and this is my favourite year period.

Kinney's prose felt magnetic and stimulated my senses to imagine Goodwin Manor, its cottage, the near village, the witches' ritual. It's pretty great because English is not my primary language (in fact, it's Italian, its roots far away from English)... & yet the author made me feel all of this.

And made me feel for the characters. I fell in total synchrony with Kate and in total symphony with Matthew. Their path was so different yet so similar, bounded by their past or by other people.

I liked having some glimpses of Kate's sisters, Siren Miranda & Bubbly Celeste, and I'm secretly hoping for a spin-off on each of the Goodwins. Not so secretly, ups.

More pages into I fell in love with the setting, with every character - slightly rotten or not (yes, Sybil & Winifred, I'm talking about you, old hags!).. and after even more pages I start to see hints to Hades & Persephone lore, and yes, I start to dread the ending.

This book made me feel so much. I could say that it's a little bittersweet in some parts, but hey, this is the life. And even the sour can't compare to the cozy heat of famly, friends. 


And love. 

Amor vincit omnia.


Rating: ★★★★.5


...


I want to thank Alcove Press for the ARC kindly offered via Netgalley. I'm not bound to the publishing house, to the author and/or any other person related. My opinion is only based on my honest thoughts and feelings.


Anais by The Bookish Scorpio

Review Time | This Fatal Kiss by Alicia Jasinska

giovedì 24 ottobre 2024





INFO:

Title: This Fatal Kiss

Author: Alicia Jasinska

Release Date: September 24th 2024

Genre: Dark Fantasy; Romance, LGBTQ+

Editore: Peachtree Teen


SUMMARY:

Spirit away with a whimsical fantasy filled with dark magic and flirty, polyamorous romance.

Cursed to haunt the river running through the magical spa town where she drowned, Gisela is a water nymph who dreams of returning to the living world and the family she left behind. All it takes to regain her humanity is a kiss from a mortal...but everyone sees her as a monster.

And then there’s Kazik, the brooding, interfering, spirit-hunting grandson of a local witch. He's determined to rid the world of unholy creatures like Gisela. After Kazik botches Gisela’s exorcism, she strikes up a deal. She won’t tell the other spirits that he’s losing his magic, if he agrees to play matchmaker and helps her get a kiss. But Gisela’s plan goes awry when Kazik also falls for the devilishly handsome young man that she sets her heart on—someone who could be linked to Gisela’s troubled past.

Finely crafted with a magical setting, this delectable quest through the spirit world is an enchanting read for fans of queer romantasy.


REVIEW:

This Fatal Kiss is Alicia Jasinska's debut novel, a dark fantasy filled with Eastern European folklore and creatures as fascinating as they are deadly. Like the FMC, Gisela.

Once a teenage girl, now a water nymph (a "rusałki"), doomed to infest the waters where she died, terribly close to the nearby town and its exorcist, a boy named Kazik. Clever, cunning, a little arrogant and for sure antisocial, Kazik has learned the old ways from his grandmother and seeks to extirpate evil from Leśna Woda, especially since last year his grandma was viciously attacked alongside him by a forest demon (a "biesy") and that established the downfall of hers, who died mere weeks later.

It's not rare to see Kazik and Gisela fight, especially since the latter has been dreading to kiss a human, the only way to regain her status as a human. The other way to unbid her fate as a rusałki is forgiving or avenging her death, but it means ascending.

Gisela sets eyes on Leśna Woda's Golden Boy, Aleksey, who is also Kazik's crush, and makes Kazik join her as a team to get this kiss. The plan is going well, as Aleksey is smitten with both, but it also spreads doubts, as Kazik stars to question his beliefs, while also getting dangerously close to Gisela.

And dark forces are lurking near, closer than they all imagine.


...


This Fatal Kiss has instantly smitten with me. I'm all in for a dark fantasy exploring less known folklores, and Slavic is one I always look forward to reading it. Jasinska's prose felt magical, dangerously lush like the book itself and its setting.

Leśna Woda's town was magnificently descripted, and I felt it like I was in the own book, with all my senses. But if I have to be honest I think I was way way more intrigued with the characters.

Gisela, the rusałka, is still the young girl she was before dying, and I really liked how she hid her pain with jokes. It's not a game, she wants her humanity back. She misses her life, her young brother, her family... being alive. And she still doesn't know how she ended like this. It's a void which will create a solid plot thread.

Aleksey is the sunshine of the group, the human boy who doesn't know he's being won over by a literally water demon or who tries to hide that he's also attracted to boys. Especially one. But he doesn't want to lose the girl too.

Kazik was the star of the bok, the one with more growth. Short and somehow funny in a non-comical way, Kazik hids himself, is scared of people. But when he sees more, he's not that willing to return into the shell.

I loved the sisterhood in the rusałki group and in its "leader", a kind of water goblin named Wojciech, who feels like a father figure.

The plot twists were crazy, and I don't know how I survived.

From the ending, I hope there will be a sequel because yeeesssss I'll read it for sure!


Rating: ★★★★.25


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I want to thank PeachtreeTeen for the digital ARC (Advanced Reader Copy) via Netgalley. I'm not affiliated to the author, to the publishing house or any other person/agency. My review is honest and based only on my thoughts/feeling while reading the book.


Anais by The Bookish Scorpio 




Happy Release Day | Post Fata Resurgo di Chiara Saccuta

venerdì 18 ottobre 2024

Buongiorno booklovers, come state? Oggi voglio augurare buon compleanno al sequel di una delle mie gemme preferite del 2023, che ho già letto per via dell'anteprima a Stranimondi Milano!

Sto parlando di Post Fata Resurgo, di Chiara Saccuta. Siete pronti a tornare nel Kosmos?


SCHEMA:

1. Per Aspera ad Astra

2. Post Fata Resurgo

3. TBA

4. TBA

5. TBA






SCHEDA TECNICA:

Nome: Post Fata Resurgo

Autore: Chiara Saccuta

Genere: Romantasy con elementi Sci-Fi

Data: 18 ottobre 2024

Editore: Lumien


TRAMA:

Da quasi un anno, Edward Lannore e Ambrosine Lira sono separati, ma il Kosmos non è rimasto fermo ad aspettare che le cicatrici lasciate dalla loro unione si rimarginassero. L’Incarnazione Stellare di Vega è stata punita in modo esemplare, la reputazione della famiglia macchiata, forse per sempre. Ambrosine è rimasta sola, senza l’uomo che aveva giurato di proteggerla e senza il calore della sua stella. Alle sue spalle, amici e nemici complottano contro di lei, per usarla per il proprio tornaconto. Il Signore dei Buchi Neri è invece sparito, trasformandosi in una minaccia silenziosa che terrorizza le famiglie stellari. La Compagnia di Astrea e i Pilastri della Creazione sono sulle sue tracce, ma ad essersi perso è anche lui, costretto a seguire una via che sembra non appartenergli: quella dell’Era dei Buchi Neri. Il suo potere è cresciuto, il controllo sulle sue creazioni è diventato più solido e affidabile, ma fame e dubbi lo divorano. Le stelle brillano ancora, ma forze diverse minacciano la loro luce. Anche quella di Vega. Qualcosa si muove dentro e fuori il Sistema Solare. Qualcosa di pericoloso, di sconosciuto. Il risveglio di timori passati e di una nuova grande guerra nel Kosmos ha portato alla formazione di insolite e meschine alleanze. Nella vastità del Sistema Solare, luci e ombre si confondono, bene e male perdono di significato. Schiacciati da rimorsi, paure e responsabilità, Edward e Ambrosine devono di nuovo trovare il loro posto nell'Universo. C'è da capire soltanto se il posto sarà lo stesso.


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Lo leggerete, booklovers?

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ATTENZIONE: Io, Chiara, Agnese (attraversalibri) e Francesca (memoriediunalettricedisperata) organizzeremo un Post Fata Resurgo GDL dal 21 ottobre al 21 novembre!

 
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