February was a pretty good reading month! Because of the holiday and my participation in the Bookish First’s Valentine’s Day Bingo, I read a lot of contemporary romance and I believe that’s why I had such a great time with books this month.
ALL THE STARS AND TEETH: This a fun, adventurous story about the heir to a kingdom joining a cast of vastly different characters in order to prevent an evil force from destroying their world and regaining what they’ve all lost. This book was not short on action, that’s for sure. And the pacing was executed perfectly. It never felt like the plot was stalling or that unnecessary pages were spent on passages of time. ARC provided by the publisher through NetGalley. [review] ★★★½
THE BEST LAID PLANS: Ladies and gentleman, I don’t believe it’s too early to say that I have found one of my favorite reads of the year. The Best Laid Plans was everything I had hoped it would be and so much more. Basically, all you need to know is that it contains best friends-to-lovers, unrequited pining, delicious drama and lots of angst! ARC provided by the publisher through BookishFirst. [review] ★★★★★
ALWAYS NEVER YOURS: Wherefore art thou, Romeo? I loved that Megan was unapologetically flirtatious and “boy-crazy”. Every relationship she’s been in ends with her boyfriend finding the love of his life while they’re dating, and instead of being bitter and feeling sorry for herself, Megan is carefree and just has fun with her dating life. Which makes it even more special to see the bond that develops between her and Owen. [review] ★★★★
EMBER QUEEN: This was such a great finale to a series that I have absolutely loved. The hard part about trilogies is that many times one of the books either lags or weakens, but that never happened with the Ash Princess trilogy. The third book finished strong and wrapped up the plot in a way that felt complete yet realistic. For a book that is 500 pages long, I was actually surprised as to how fast the plot moves. If you haven’t read this series yet, I highly recommend it. ★★★★
UNDERCOVER BROMANCE: As with The Bromance Book Club, the idea of a book club for men who unashamedly enjoy romance novels and use the “knowledge” they learn from said romance novels to better their love lives is amazing and Lyssa Kay Adams knocks it out of the park. This story totally changed my opinion about Braden Mack: there’s definitely more to him under the surface of easy-going charm and we need more men like him in the world! ARC provided by the publisher through NetGalley. [review] ★★★★
THE WILL AND THE WILDS: This was such a unique fairytale fantasy story! After enlisting his help, a young woman works together with a demon to break the magical pact they had created to save both their lives. I flew through the pages. I loved the built up romance between Maekallus and Enna and how it stemmed from the trust and understanding they had to slowly develop first. I think this is my favorite Charlie H. Holmberg book! ★★★★
THE STARS WE STEAL: My favorite thing about this book is the sci-fi retelling of Jane Austen’s novels. I have to admit that I’ve never read Persuasion, but that didn’t stop me from understanding the plot of this story or the nods to the original. I think that Alexa Donne did a fantastic job writing a unique and clever twist on the classic novel and making the story her own. I would definitely recommend this to anyone who enjoys subtle Jane Austen retellings. ★★★
CHASING LUCKY: Usually I really enjoy Jenn Bennett’s books, but this one was very disappointing. I didn’t like any of the characters, the plot failed to keep my attention, and I found parts of the story a little ridiculous. Some parts were still really cute and I enjoyed, which is why I didn’t completely hate it, but it was definitely not my favorite and fell short to the other stories I’ve read by this author. ARC provided by the publisher through NetGalley. ★★½
THE UPSIDE OF FALLING: This book is about two teenagers who decide to fake being in a relationship for their mutual benefit. I mean, is there anything better than a fake-dating that turns into real feelings kind of book? Unfortunately, although I loved the premise of the story, the rest of the book didn’t do it for me. The first major issue was that the pacing was extremely fast, especially for such a short book. My other issue was there wasn’t enough to convince the reads as to why they need to be in a fake relationship. It happened just for the sake of the book. [review] ★★½
OTHER
Blog Tour: Foul is Fair | Favorite Young Adult Contemporary Romances | WWW Wednesday #26 | Blog Tour + Giveaway: All the Stars and Teeth | The ABC Book Challenge W
I mean, I couldn’t start this post without beginning with this book, which is basically the gold standard to which I hold all YA romances. First of all, fake dating is one of the best romance tropes out there. Please reference 
When I first read this book I was not expecting how vastly different it would be from the movie, and it such a good way! I read the entire thing in one sitting with zero regrets. A secret enemies-with-benefits relationship in which one or more parties develops feelings for the other? Sign me the f**k up. And besides the romance, the book has a really important message about the power of words and the meanings we give them.
This story revolves around the main character, Cameron, enlisting the help of someone she once ridiculed to help “tame” herself for the boy she’s been crushing on. On top of the amazing character growth she experiences, I absolutely loved watching opposites attract as Cameron and Brendan reluctantly form a friendship, and then watching that friendship blossom into love.
This is apparently a twist on the movie You Got Mail, which I can neither confirm nor deny since I’ve never seen that. However, I can confirm that this book is a magical, heartwarming story about two characters that meet in real life, after unknowingly talking to each other online for months, and slowly falling in love. This book makes an absolute perfect summer read so if you’re looking for something fun for the warmer months, this is for you!
Reading this made me immensely glad that my big meddlesome Italian family is not as meddlesome as Sophie’s. This book gives readers warm and fuzzy feelings and is reminiscent of those wholesome, heartwarming Hallmark movies. It’s impossible not to cheer for Sophie and hope she finds the perfect New Year’s Eve date. Definitely recommend this for anyone who wants to read a cheerful story about family and friendships with happy endings.
I needed a trip to the dentist after finishing this book because it was so sweet and fluffy. Is there anything more fun to read about than two people engaging in Twitter warfare over the internet but falling in love in real life after learning how much they have in common with each other? The answer is no. And of course the fact that Pepper and Jack started out as unfriendly classmates and had a bit of animosity between them at the start of the story made it that much sweeter.
RED, WHITE & ROYAL BLUE:
THE KINGDOM OF BACK:
BRINGING DOWN THE DUKE:
LOVE HER OR LOSE HER: 
LUCKY CALLER: 
THIS VICIOUS CURE:
