DarkRumours
I like to read alot. Mainly fantasy and romance but will read anything.
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DarkRumours started reading...
4d
Crochet and Cauldrons (Vampire Knitting Club, #3)
Nancy Warren
Every family has annoying relatives; mine just happen to be undead. My Grandmother, Agnes Bartlett, used to own Cardinal Woolsey’s knitting shop in Oxford then died and left her shop to me, without informing me that she wasn’t actually dead. She’s a vampire and part of the world’s strangest craft circle – the Vampire Knitting Club. As you might imagine, this means she’s free to interfere in how I run the business that used to be hers. She’s trying to teach me to knit and it’s not going well. She’s also trying to teach me how to be a witch, since it turns out I’m from a long line of witches. Another tiny detail about my family that no one ever told me, along with the long-lost witch cousins I recently discovered. But I’m learning. I’ve got my family spell book, my black cat familiar, some powers that sometimes scare me, and an interesting new group of friends. My archaeologist parents are coming to visit and bringing me a gift I could do without. So, to recap, I run a knitting shop and I can’t knit. I’m a beginning witch who can’t always control her cat, never mind her magic, and my love life is as tangled as the last sock I tried to knit. Oh, and for some reason, I keep getting involved in murder investigations. Good thing I have my vampire knitters to help sniff out clues. At least I’ve finally hired the perfect assistant, a real demon with the crochet hook. Or is she too perfect?
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DarkRumours wrote a review...
4d
I felt like the writing was very disjointed and parts of the story might have been missing? I don't know. I didn't really go in with high hopes and as I read it, it had promise I just felt like it fell a little flat.
(Review also posted to Fable)
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DarkRumours finished a book
4d
Graceless Heart
Isabel Ibañez
A lush, atmospheric and achingly magical standalone adult fantasy romance set in Renaissance Italy from a #1 New York Times bestselling author.In 15th-century Volterra, sculptress Ravenna Maffei enters a competition hosted by a secretive, immortal family who offer an invaluable boon to the victor. Desperate to win so she can save her brother, Ravenna reveals a rare magical talent-a dangerous act in a city where magic is forbidden. Her revelation makes her a target, and she is kidnapped by the Luni family and taken to Florence, a city of breathtaking beauty and cutthroat ambition.There, Ravenna is forced into an impossible task where failure means certain death at the hands of Saturnino dei Luni, the family's enigmatic and merciless heir. But under his cold reserve hides a vulnerability that draws her closer than she ever intended.Meanwhile, Ravenna's forbidden magic does not go unnoticed. The Pope, waging war against Florence, the Medici, and magic itself, has his own interest in her abilities, seeing her as a potential weapon in his ruthless campaign.As alliances shift and war brews on the horizon, Ravenna must navigate the treacherous line between survival and betrayal, between love and duty. With time running out and her every move watched, the choices she makes will determine the fate of not just her own life, but the fragile balance of magic and power that could unravel Florence itself.
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DarkRumours wrote a review...
1w
This was an amazing read. Freida McFadden has been ony TBR for a while now and this is the first one I picked up due to it being my local book clubs monthly read. I loved it. It was well paced. Well written and the twists were well thought out and exceptional. I found the conclusion to be satisfying and would highly recommend this to anyone. The added bonus of the Dear Debbie drafts from Debbie's PC made it more enjoyable. 10/10.
(Review also posted on Fable)
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DarkRumours finished a book
1w
Dear Debbie
Freida McFadden
A brand new twisted thriller that will have you cheering "good for her!" from the #1 New York Times bestselling and global sensation Freida McFadden, author of The Housemaid!
Sometimes, enough is enough…
Debbie Mullen is losing it. For years, she has compiled all of her best advice into her column, Dear Debbie, where the wives of New England come for sympathy and neighborly advice. Through her work, Debbie has heard from countless women who are ignored, belittled, or even abused by their husbands. And Debbie does her best to guide them in the right direction.
Or at least, she did.
These days, Debbie’s life seems to be spiraling out of control. She just lost her job. Something strange is happening with her teenage daughters. And her husband is keeping secrets, according to the tracking app she installed on his phone. Now, Debbie’s done being the bigger person. She’s done being reasonable and practical. It’s time to take her own advice.
And now it’s time for payback against all the people in her life who deserve it the most.
From #1 New York Times and international bestselling author Freida McFadden comes a biting, subversive thriller about what happens when women finally choose to take justice into their own hands – with killer results.
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DarkRumours wrote a review...
1w
This is the second book in the series and as light hearted cosy mystery's go this is a nice little filler book to read to decompress. I've enjoyed it. Is it literay genius no. Is it cosy and warm and great for days where you feel on the cusp of burnout? 100%.
(Review also posted to Fable)
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DarkRumours finished a book
1w
Stitches and Witches (Vampire Knitting Club, #2)
Nancy Warren
Dropping stitches and catching killers.
When an older gentleman keels over in his scones and tea at the Elderflower Tea Shop in Oxford—a victim of poison—Lucy Swift and her band of undead amateur detectives are on the case.
Elderflower Tea Shop is next door to Cardinal Woolsey’s, the yarn shop Lucy runs and home to the late-night Vampire Knitting Club. The tea shop owners are a pair of octogenarian spinsters and old family friends, so Lucy wants to help clear up the mystery that’s keeping their shop closed. But murder isn’t the only issue troubling the Miss Watts. A man has come between them. Miss Florence Watt is being romanced by an old flame, one Mary Watt distrusts.
In between figuring out who, among his many enemies, might have poisoned the unpleasant Colonel Montague, Lucy’s trying to brush up on her magic spells before the Wiccan potluck dinner her witchy cousin insists she attend.
However, she’s still settling into being a witch and since she botched a spell and blew up her kitchen, she’s taking the magic slowly.
Her knitting endeavors aren’t much better. Between purling when she should knit and dropping so many stitches her hand-knit scarf looks like it was attacked by giant moths, there are days Lucy thinks she’ll pack it all in and move back to Boston. She might, except she’d miss her beloved undead grandmother, her new friends, one very sexy vampire and a local detective who is very much alive.
Stitches and Witches is Book 2 in the Vampire Knitting Club series of paranormal cozy mysteries. It is a standalone novel with no sex or gore, just humor, knitting, magic and a touch of romance.
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DarkRumours started reading...
1w
Dear Debbie
Freida McFadden
A brand new twisted thriller that will have you cheering "good for her!" from the #1 New York Times bestselling and global sensation Freida McFadden, author of The Housemaid!
Sometimes, enough is enough…
Debbie Mullen is losing it. For years, she has compiled all of her best advice into her column, Dear Debbie, where the wives of New England come for sympathy and neighborly advice. Through her work, Debbie has heard from countless women who are ignored, belittled, or even abused by their husbands. And Debbie does her best to guide them in the right direction.
Or at least, she did.
These days, Debbie’s life seems to be spiraling out of control. She just lost her job. Something strange is happening with her teenage daughters. And her husband is keeping secrets, according to the tracking app she installed on his phone. Now, Debbie’s done being the bigger person. She’s done being reasonable and practical. It’s time to take her own advice.
And now it’s time for payback against all the people in her life who deserve it the most.
From #1 New York Times and international bestselling author Freida McFadden comes a biting, subversive thriller about what happens when women finally choose to take justice into their own hands – with killer results.
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DarkRumours started reading...
2w
Stitches and Witches (Vampire Knitting Club, #2)
Nancy Warren
Dropping stitches and catching killers.
When an older gentleman keels over in his scones and tea at the Elderflower Tea Shop in Oxford—a victim of poison—Lucy Swift and her band of undead amateur detectives are on the case.
Elderflower Tea Shop is next door to Cardinal Woolsey’s, the yarn shop Lucy runs and home to the late-night Vampire Knitting Club. The tea shop owners are a pair of octogenarian spinsters and old family friends, so Lucy wants to help clear up the mystery that’s keeping their shop closed. But murder isn’t the only issue troubling the Miss Watts. A man has come between them. Miss Florence Watt is being romanced by an old flame, one Mary Watt distrusts.
In between figuring out who, among his many enemies, might have poisoned the unpleasant Colonel Montague, Lucy’s trying to brush up on her magic spells before the Wiccan potluck dinner her witchy cousin insists she attend.
However, she’s still settling into being a witch and since she botched a spell and blew up her kitchen, she’s taking the magic slowly.
Her knitting endeavors aren’t much better. Between purling when she should knit and dropping so many stitches her hand-knit scarf looks like it was attacked by giant moths, there are days Lucy thinks she’ll pack it all in and move back to Boston. She might, except she’d miss her beloved undead grandmother, her new friends, one very sexy vampire and a local detective who is very much alive.
Stitches and Witches is Book 2 in the Vampire Knitting Club series of paranormal cozy mysteries. It is a standalone novel with no sex or gore, just humor, knitting, magic and a touch of romance.
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DarkRumours started reading...
2w
Graceless Heart
Isabel Ibañez
A lush, atmospheric and achingly magical standalone adult fantasy romance set in Renaissance Italy from a #1 New York Times bestselling author.In 15th-century Volterra, sculptress Ravenna Maffei enters a competition hosted by a secretive, immortal family who offer an invaluable boon to the victor. Desperate to win so she can save her brother, Ravenna reveals a rare magical talent-a dangerous act in a city where magic is forbidden. Her revelation makes her a target, and she is kidnapped by the Luni family and taken to Florence, a city of breathtaking beauty and cutthroat ambition.There, Ravenna is forced into an impossible task where failure means certain death at the hands of Saturnino dei Luni, the family's enigmatic and merciless heir. But under his cold reserve hides a vulnerability that draws her closer than she ever intended.Meanwhile, Ravenna's forbidden magic does not go unnoticed. The Pope, waging war against Florence, the Medici, and magic itself, has his own interest in her abilities, seeing her as a potential weapon in his ruthless campaign.As alliances shift and war brews on the horizon, Ravenna must navigate the treacherous line between survival and betrayal, between love and duty. With time running out and her every move watched, the choices she makes will determine the fate of not just her own life, but the fragile balance of magic and power that could unravel Florence itself.
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2w
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2w
Fallen City (Fallen City Duology, #1)
Adrienne Young
In the great walled city of Isara, political turmoil ignites a rebellion one hundred years in the making. But when a legionnaire falls in love with a Magistrate's daughter, their love will threaten the fate of the city and the will of the gods.Luca Matius has one purpose—to carry on the family name, maintaining its presence in the Forum once his powerful and cruel uncle dies. But his noviceship with the city's Philosopher places him in the middle of a catastrophe that will alter the destiny of his people.Maris Casperia was raised amidst the strategic maneuvers of the Citadel's inner workings, and she knows what her future holds—a lifetime of service to a corrupt city. But her years of serving as a novice to the last Priestess who possesses the stolen magic of the Old War has made her envision a different kind of future for the city. When she meets Luca, a fated chain of events is set into motion that will divinely entangle their lives.As a secret comes to light and throws the city into chaos, Luca and Maris hatch a plot to create a calculated alliance that could tip the scales of power. But when an execution forces Luca to become the symbol of rebellion, he and Maris are thrown onto opposite sides of a holy war. As their fates diverge, they learn they are at the center of a story the gods are writing. And even if they can find their way back to each other, there may be nothing left.
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DarkRumours started reading...
3w
Fallen City (Fallen City Duology, #1)
Adrienne Young
In the great walled city of Isara, political turmoil ignites a rebellion one hundred years in the making. But when a legionnaire falls in love with a Magistrate's daughter, their love will threaten the fate of the city and the will of the gods.Luca Matius has one purpose—to carry on the family name, maintaining its presence in the Forum once his powerful and cruel uncle dies. But his noviceship with the city's Philosopher places him in the middle of a catastrophe that will alter the destiny of his people.Maris Casperia was raised amidst the strategic maneuvers of the Citadel's inner workings, and she knows what her future holds—a lifetime of service to a corrupt city. But her years of serving as a novice to the last Priestess who possesses the stolen magic of the Old War has made her envision a different kind of future for the city. When she meets Luca, a fated chain of events is set into motion that will divinely entangle their lives.As a secret comes to light and throws the city into chaos, Luca and Maris hatch a plot to create a calculated alliance that could tip the scales of power. But when an execution forces Luca to become the symbol of rebellion, he and Maris are thrown onto opposite sides of a holy war. As their fates diverge, they learn they are at the center of a story the gods are writing. And even if they can find their way back to each other, there may be nothing left.
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DarkRumours wrote a review...
3w
I absolutely loved this book from chapter one and was a great magical adventure to read in gloomy January. I think one of its biggest selling points is it's a contemporary fantasy that's set in this day and age. Unlike Olivie Blake's Gifted and Talented (2025) it feels more opulent and optimistic.
Holland St James is likable and there's a cast of normal and morally ambiguous characters that keep you on the edge of your seat. It mixes the idea of a treasure hunt and some of the narrative choices are interesting and immersive.
Beautifully written, interesting and has encouraged me to read more from Stephanie Garber a real feel good magic book.
(Review also posted to Fable)
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DarkRumours finished a book
3w
Alchemy of Secrets
Stephanie Garber
YOU'RE HERE BECAUSE OF A STORY . . .
It starts with a class in an old movie theatre. Folklore 517: Local Legends and Urban Myths, taught by a woman called the Professor.
Most students believe the Professor's stories are just fiction, but Holland St. James has always been convinced that magic is real.
Her search for the truth leads her to a dazzling new world, a deadly ultimatum hidden at the heart of Los Angeles, and into the path of a magnetic stranger who claims he's been sent to save her life.
But everyone in this intoxicating new world is lying to her, even this stranger. And if she can't figure out whom to trust, her magical reality could change from a Hollywood dream to a nightmare.
Alchemy of Secrets is the spectacular new novel from global phenomenon Stephanie Garber, the multimillion-copy bestselling author of the Caraval and Once Upon a Broken Heart series. Fusing spellbinding Hollywood secrets with a cinematic mystery, it will transport you into another world.
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DarkRumours started reading...
5w
Alchemy of Secrets
Stephanie Garber
YOU'RE HERE BECAUSE OF A STORY . . .
It starts with a class in an old movie theatre. Folklore 517: Local Legends and Urban Myths, taught by a woman called the Professor.
Most students believe the Professor's stories are just fiction, but Holland St. James has always been convinced that magic is real.
Her search for the truth leads her to a dazzling new world, a deadly ultimatum hidden at the heart of Los Angeles, and into the path of a magnetic stranger who claims he's been sent to save her life.
But everyone in this intoxicating new world is lying to her, even this stranger. And if she can't figure out whom to trust, her magical reality could change from a Hollywood dream to a nightmare.
Alchemy of Secrets is the spectacular new novel from global phenomenon Stephanie Garber, the multimillion-copy bestselling author of the Caraval and Once Upon a Broken Heart series. Fusing spellbinding Hollywood secrets with a cinematic mystery, it will transport you into another world.
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DarkRumours wrote a review...
5w
I personally did not enjoy this book. I don't have an issue with explicit language but it did feel at times like it was explicit language for the sake of explicit language. My main issue may have been I have never been a fan of westerns, but this was gifted to me and I read it. It wasn't awful, it just felt convoluted in places and rushed. But if you like Fae, cowboys and a little smut this is an easy read dark romance. As a dark romance please mind the trigger warnings.
(Review also published on fable)
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DarkRumours finished a book
5w
Last Ride of the Umbra Fae
Monica Amore
A Dark Western Fantasy Romance
WANTED
For the murder of forty-five harmless civilians and counting at Grand Dusk’s Tavern. Last seen heading west in the company of an old man and a pet blue jay.
The last of the Umbra Fae are legends, rarely ever seen. But when Vessa is forced to emerge from the shadows in search of a highly coveted tonic, she has more than a warrant out for her arrest.
Little does she know, Ryder, her hired guide through the City of Donia, is a bounty hunter who can blend into the worlds of both fae and humans. Ryder is prepared to double-cross anyone for the coin he needs to buy a clean slate. And he has nefarious plans to discover why one of the Umbras is so special.
She’s a light in the dark. A fallen star.
The longer Vessa is in his range, the more this ruthless cowboy cannot tear his eyes away from her, forcing him to confront feelings he hasn’t felt in a long time. While she is forcefully bound to another, she is also his destiny.
When their storms collide, Vessa and Ryder must choose a side, but the price may be steeper than what anyone anticipated. Her vengeance could become a toll, painting the lands with more innocent blood.
Welcome to the land of outlaws, where no one can outride their fate.
“Be careful who you run to when you’re lost.”
This dual-POV, dark Western fantasy romance is intended for an audience 18 and over. While there are heavy themes, there is also banter, beauty, and romance to be found within the hidden spaces of the desert’s saloons. Perfect for readers who love villainous MMCs with shadow magic and a leading FMC who would gladly bring them to their knees.
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DarkRumours set their yearly reading goal to 50
5w
DarkRumours's 2026 Reading Challenge
7 of 50 read
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DarkRumours started reading...
5w
Last Ride of the Umbra Fae
Monica Amore
A Dark Western Fantasy Romance
WANTED
For the murder of forty-five harmless civilians and counting at Grand Dusk’s Tavern. Last seen heading west in the company of an old man and a pet blue jay.
The last of the Umbra Fae are legends, rarely ever seen. But when Vessa is forced to emerge from the shadows in search of a highly coveted tonic, she has more than a warrant out for her arrest.
Little does she know, Ryder, her hired guide through the City of Donia, is a bounty hunter who can blend into the worlds of both fae and humans. Ryder is prepared to double-cross anyone for the coin he needs to buy a clean slate. And he has nefarious plans to discover why one of the Umbras is so special.
She’s a light in the dark. A fallen star.
The longer Vessa is in his range, the more this ruthless cowboy cannot tear his eyes away from her, forcing him to confront feelings he hasn’t felt in a long time. While she is forcefully bound to another, she is also his destiny.
When their storms collide, Vessa and Ryder must choose a side, but the price may be steeper than what anyone anticipated. Her vengeance could become a toll, painting the lands with more innocent blood.
Welcome to the land of outlaws, where no one can outride their fate.
“Be careful who you run to when you’re lost.”
This dual-POV, dark Western fantasy romance is intended for an audience 18 and over. While there are heavy themes, there is also banter, beauty, and romance to be found within the hidden spaces of the desert’s saloons. Perfect for readers who love villainous MMCs with shadow magic and a leading FMC who would gladly bring them to their knees.
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