I am on the fence with this one. There were good parts, and there were some not so great parts. I honestly thought it being a Hades and Persephone modern retelling I knew what I was getting into and I did not.

Cora is naive. Marcus is jaded. The two of them have great chemistry for a lot of scenes but there are parts that even made me feel icky.

Not for me but someone would love this. It has all the gritty sensual scenes that make it a mafia romance with extra heat.

I started this yesterday afternoon and finished around 2am in the morning because I could not put this book down until it was finished. This felt like reading the Hunger Games for the first time. Cedric is Peeta coded in all the best ways and while Elyria has a lot more sass than Katniss did and a lot less severe, the coding was there and it was a delight to see the two of them moving through each trial together. I loved the world building and the uniqueness of each characters voice. The world read like it wasn’t just there as background noise but as a living breathing entity that was as much apart of the story as the characters were. The prose was delightful to read and with the current discourse over authors using big words, I found enough words I didn’t know to fill 1 page handwritten front of back of my medium notebook! I loved it! I will say I am glad one of my favorite characters made it in the end, which sadly means they likely won’t in the next book but I am crossing fingers they do. Would recommend this book. Onto book 2!

3rd book of Ms. Chases I have read and I was really hoping this one would be the one to cinch the deal. I read so many reviews believing I hadn’t read the right one yet. No. I love her writing, her style is outstanding. But Sebastian and Jess didn’t hook me. He lost me when this was said in his POV: “ For one deranged instant, while he contemplated licking her from the top of her alabaster brow to the tips of her dainty toes, he wondered what her price was.” After acknowledging she was a Lady. I couldn’t look at that character anymore without contempt. Even as the romance continued and the story progressed I wanted to scream at him over and over again. Jess I liked but felt bad for her after certain events began. I am not adding spoilers but let’s say that Sebastian is a smart man he could have done things better in regards to his child and his mother. There are some funny moments but not enough to ease the cringe and abhorrent behavior from the MMC.

I wanted to love this book but it was lacking in so much. I didn’t know this was 3rd in the series and a prequel. It doesn’t say that anywhere on the inside cover of the hardcover. The story itself was lacking. To be honest there was one love scene along with a smattering of kisses and a relationship I think should have ended as friends between Alice and Giles. The romance was bland. There was no chemistry whatsoever, they acted as if they were more buddies than budding lovers. The storyline plot was wanting, as well as the external arcs happening around the two main characters.

I love how Ms. Chase writes it lives up to the hype but the overarching story is lackluster, and that saddens me greatly.

This is my second book by Ms. Chase I have read and I have one more that I will try but after the two I have read I have little hope to love these books.

I liked this book but didn’t love it.

The dynamic between Marceline and Clevedan was refreshing considering the era for which it was set in. A working woman with a child no less gets entangled with a highly desired and already engaged Duke. Not entirely off for Regency Era romance. The writing was amazing! I loved how she moved between Marceline and Clevedan per chapter. It was clear who’s head the reader was in.

The thing that made me like this but not love it was the steamy scenes. They fell flat with me. You would think that something as scandelous as a Modiste and a Duke would be more steamy and reckless, but they all just fell flat. I started skipping after the first couple.

Not giving up on Chase’s stories yet but I think I am going to move over to Scoundrel’s.

I found this book via Tiktok through the content creator @RazorbladCactus I already loved his political commentary and when I heard him recommend a book, I added it to my tbr. I am glad I did. Anne gives advice like that one cool aunt everyone has or that neighbor that just makes things easier to grasp. She splices in good advice bore from experience with personal anecdote that makes the advice relatable and engaging to read about. Personally speaking I will be getting a copy of this book to annotate. One of my favorite pieces of advice is about killing your darlings “It can be a real killing, a murder, or it can be a killing of the spirit or of something terrible inside one’s soul.” I have never felt more moved by a piece of advice than when I read that.

This has improved my writing in a way I hadn’t thought was possible. Neal is as Anne puts it “Woo Woo” but in all the best ways as he takes you through the 36 rules he has made for himself. At the end of every chapter you have Anne Lamott from Bird by Bird annotating what he has said and adding a much needed comedic element to his advice. The Rules include things like “Show, then tell,” “Smell the Roses” “Remove the boring stuff” and so many more. If you want to improve your sentences, I would recommend this book.