REVIEW: The Unhoneymooners – Christina Lauren (ARC)

Leave a comment

42201431Title: The Unhoneymooners
Author: Christina Lauren
Rating: ★★★★½

ARC provided by the publisher through NetGalley.

As I’ve said in previous reviews, no one writes contemporary romances quite like the amazing duo of Christina Lauren. I read the synopsis once and immediately requested the book and I’m so extremely thankful I was approved. The Unhoneymooners was like reading my own romantic fantasies come to life: hate-to-love romance, fake dating trope, and a dream vacation to Hawaii. 

Everytime I pick up a CLo book, there are a few things I expect to find within the pages: a quirky, relatable heroine, witty banter, scenes that make me laugh out loud (or at least snort unattractively), and a swoon-worthy love interest. And thankfully, The Unhoneymooners checked all those boxes. The only reason I did not give this book five stars, was that it was surprisingly light on the tension/angst, especially considering the plot literally revolves around two characters who hate each other, pretending to be in love. 

The Unhoneymooners is a seriously fun and lighthearted read, perfect for the summer! This book is perfect for fans of The Proposal, The Hating Game, or Forgetting Sarah Marshall. Christina Lauren know how to write contemporary romance and it shows with every book they write.

Game of Thrones: Favorite Characters

3 Comments

As a huge fan of both George R. R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire and the HBO series Game of Thrones, I’m extremely ecstatic (and sad) about the upcoming final season. The books and show are one of my favorite things to talk to others about, and I decided in honor of the premiere coming soon, I will be posting a fun Game of Thrones inspired post every on various Sundays before the first episode airs and throughout the season. If you’re a fan of either of the show or books, please chat with me in the comments with your thoughts and opinions!

For my first post, I’m so excited to talk about all of my favorite characters! The great thing about Game of Thrones / ASOIAF is all the different characters present: good, bad, and every shade of gray in-between. There are many POVs in the books (and on the show) that I enjoy reading/watching, but don’t particular hope they succeed in their endeavors. And then there are other characters whose storylines I cannot get enough of and wish all the happiness in the world for (HA. We all know GRRM by now).

SANSA STARK

My Queen in the North. All I want is for her to end up alive, happy, and surrounded by her loved ones in Winterfell. The amount of hate she gets is not only completely unwarranted and uncalled for, but extremely upsetting and frustrating. People are always so surprised when I tell them she’s my absolute favorite. Must of her hate stems from the fact that she’s a female character that is not oversexualized in the show but is also not a “fierce, warrior” type woman, and so they believe her to be useless – despite the fact that she is sharp, intelligent, kind, and arguably the character with the greatest character growth. People blame her for her idealistic, naive behaviors/thoughts she had when she was a CHILD and continue to hold it against her. The fact that is 2019 and there are still so many people who think she deserves all the abuse/rape/trauma that has happened to her is sickening and you can miss me with that bullshit. sansa

JON SNOW

Given my track record with favorite male characters, you may be surprise to learn that I didn’t like Jon Snow at first. It actually took me until season 4/5 until I really began to like his character. While reading the books, however, he was quickly one of my favorite POVs to read. BookJon and ShowJon have many similarities, but BookJon is a bit more harder and possesses a more questionable sense of honor than in the show – and I kind of dig it. His chapters also helped me appreciate his show character so much more, and it has made a tremendous difference. The last couple of seasons, besides Sansa he is the one character I treasure and hope all the best for.
jon

CERSEI LANNISTER

Let me preface this by saying I do not like Cersei Lannister, but she is a fantastic character – book and showise. In the show, Lena Headey does such a marvelous job with her character. While I never want her to succeed in her schemes, she is just so damn entertaining to watch. In the books, I still despise her as a person and pray for her demise, but I’d be lying if I said her chapters aren’t some of my absolute favorite to read. Cersei’s mind is so interesting to be inside of: she’s diabolical, manipulative, and vain. A Feast for Crow was the most boring book of the series for me, and one of the only redeeming qualities was all of the Cersei chapters.
cersei

ASHA / YARA GREYJOY

Asha – known as Yara in the show – is such a badass female character and I love following her! She’s an easy character to root for and I really want her to claim the Seachair in the Iron Islands. Throughout both the books and the show, she has proved herself to be a strong, intelligent, courageous woman. I’m still making my way through A Dance with Dragons, but I’m excited that there will finally be more chapters from her POV! asha

ARYA STARK

She’s about as opposite as you can get from her sister, but I really enjoy her character. Throughout the story, Arya has gone through some really tough shit. I’ve enjoyed watching her grow as a character immensely, and I absolutely love every time she gets revenge on someone. She was so close so many time to reuniting with different members of her family; it was both heartbreaking and extremely frustrating. I was ecstatic when she finally made her way home to Winterfell. 

arya

DAENERYS TARGARYEN

She is such a fascinating character, and I’ve really enjoyed reading and watching her transition into an anti-hero as the time has gone on. As with Cersei, I don’t necessarily like her as a person, but I love being in her mind. Even though there a lot of things she does that I don’t agree with and that make her a borderline villain, there are a few situations in which I rooted for her and applauded her success. There’s no denying the fact that Daenerys sets out to do good, and yet the way she gets things done is not always right or just. Do I want her to ultimately sit on the Iron Throne? Gods, no. Have I enjoyed watching her journey to the throne? Hell yes. daenerys

Thanks for reading! Do you watch or read Game of Thrones? Who are your favorite characters? If you enjoyed this post let me know below and be sure to look for my next Game of Thrones themed post next Sunday!

REVIEW: The Queen’s Resistance – Rebecca Ross

3 Comments

40510629Title: The Queen’s Resistance (The Queen’s Rising #2)
Author: Rebecca Ross
Rating: ★★★★

The Queen’s Rising was such a quietly impressive debut last year and so this book was one of the sequels I was most anticipating. Everyone I loved about the first book was also present in The Queen’s Resistance: the visual writing, the lovely characters, and the compelling storytelling create such a marvelous and unique YA fantasy!

The biggest difference between this book and the first is that Ross adds a second character point of view. The probably that typically occurs when a POV is added in the middle of the series is that it does nothing to the story. However, I loved the inclusion of Cartier’s chapters. Not only was the addition of his POV expertly executed, but it really added to the narrative and helped move the plot along. 

Speaking of plot, there is so much more going on in this book! The Queen’s Resistance was a lot faster paced and it was very easy to find myself lost amongst the pages. I really loved the continued worldbuilding (especially all the Irish elements!) and the large focus on found families. Brienna continues to have a small spot in my heart – not only because her name is the closest any MC has had to mine – but also because she’s a wonderful, smart heroine you can’t help but to root for. 

The Queen’s Rising is a seriously underrated series that I cannot recommend enough! Rebecca Ross has a special way with words and the beautiful story she has created deserves much more hype. 

#ARCstravaganza: Dark Shores – Danielle L. Jensen

2 Comments

Happy Monday! #ARCstravaganza is a weekly meme now hosted by Flavia the Bibliophile where readers can show off their wonderful ARCs (Advanced Reader Copies) and spread the word about upcoming releases. For more information about this meme and its origins check out this post. 

ABOUT THE BOOK

41438037Title: Dark Shores (Dark Shores #1)
Author: Danielle L. Jensen
Release Date: May 7, 2019

A PIRATE WITH A WILL OF IRON
Teriana is the second mate of the Quincense, a ship beholden to the Goddess of the Seas. Her people are born of the waves, and they alone know how to cross the impassable oceans between East and West. 

A SOLDIER WITH A SECRET
Marcus is the commander of the Thirty-Seventh, the notorious legion that has led the Celendor Empire to conquer the entire East. The legion is his only family, and even they don’t know the secret he’s been hiding since childhood.

A DANGEROUS QUEST
When a power-hungry ruler captures Teriana’s crew and threatens to reveal Marcus’s secret unless they help him conquer the unknown West, the two are forced into an unlikely–and unwilling– alliance. They unite for the sake of their families, but both must decide how far they are willing to go, and how much they are willing to sacrifice.