Kindle

The Heart Trials

by J. Elle

coming September 1, 2026

(4 / 5)

I’ve been a big fan of dystopian fiction for years, so when I read the description of The Heart Trials, I knew it was a book I wanted to read. I could feel how dire things were in this world after only reading a few sentences. The descriptions throughout the story were great, especially when it came to the emotions Axira, the FMC, was feeling. It was like I could feel it too. I liked Axira as a character and really liked Caelus too. There were a lot of characters to keep track of at times, but the author did a decent job of leaving clues so I could keep them all straight. There’s quite a bit of action along the way, and it really kept me engaged with the story. It could get quite dark, brutal, and sad at times, but it all felt very fitting. I will admit that there were a few things along the way that I wish were explained better since I was a bit confused by them, but some of that could also be me overthinking it. The story ends pretty abruptly, and I still have so many questions – I would definitely like to read the sequel when it comes out.

Thank you to Penguin Young Readers Group, G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers, and NetGalley for providing a free review copy of The Heart Trials! All thoughts and opinions are completely my own.

The Museum of Modern Love

by Mariko Turk

coming October 13, 2026

(4 / 5)

The Museum of Modern Love takes place in a single night at the Met museum, and it was so much fun! I have to admit that all the art was my favorite part of the book. The author’s descriptions were great, but my imagination still wasn’t doing it justice, so I ended up looking up pictures of almost every piece that was mentioned in the book. It was like getting my own private tour of the Met! The main characters were very much teenagers, so they had a lot of moments of being stubborn or completely oblivious about things, but it was also part of their journey to reflect and break down walls. I was a little concerned that I might not like the romance aspect since it seemed unlikely how so much could change in a matter of hours. But in the end, it actually felt like a natural progression, and I was rooting for the couple to work out. I was also happy with how things were resolved with both of the love interests.

Thank you to Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group, Henry Holt and Co. and NetGalley for providing a free review copy of this book! All thoughts and opinions are completely my own.

June 23, 2026 by danimae1981 Fiction Kindle Romance Young Adult 0

Prince of the Sun

by Emma Noyes

coming August 4, 2026

(4 / 5)

I have enjoyed reading books by the author, Emma Noyes, in the past, so I was excited to received an ARC copy of her new book, Prince of the Sun! The book was very easy to get into, and it kept my interest well until the end. I liked how the beginning of the book balanced explanations of the world and past events with what was currently happening for Quinn. It really immersed me into the world. I liked the sense of mystery it brought while Quinn tried to figure out why the elves had come to Earth and what they were searching for. The ties to linguistics was interesting, even though I don’t know a whole lot about the topic. By the end there’s a lot of high stakes action that kept me on the edge of my seat. And don’t forget the romance… the book really was a great blend of different genres. Speaking of the romance, I really enjoyed the interactions between Quinn and Daerios, with some good banter and tension. I think my biggest disappointment was that there were some questions I had that were never answered by the end. It’s very possible that this wouldn’t bother other readers at all, but I guess I’m just curious. For the most part though, the book wrapped up pretty nicely for a standalone fantasy.

Many thanks to the author for providing a free review copy of this book! All thoughts and opinions are completely my own.

June 21, 2026 by danimae1981 Fantasy Fiction Kindle New Adult Romance 0

The Enigma Challenge

by S.C. Godfrey

coming August 11, 2026

(3 / 5)

I was pretty excited about this book when I read the description, but it didn’t end up appealing to me quite as well as I hoped it would. It took a while for me to warm up to the author’s writing style. It almost felt like it was written for a younger audience despite the older content, but it did improve for me as I went on. There was a lot of action and barely a dull moment, which was something I enjoyed. I liked the aspect of puzzles throughout the story, though it wasn’t really something I was actively solving with the characters since I don’t know much about ciphers, which is what most of them were. Sometimes I felt like the characters solved things unbelievably quickly, but then other times they seemed to miss things that felt very obvious to me. Even one of the reveals toward the end was something I had seen coming since early on. Honestly, I felt like too many things about the story were so unlikely that I started to lose interest at times. The book had a much bigger romance element to it than I was expecting. I read a lot of romance so I didn’t necessarily mind it, but some of the tropes felt a bit out of place. I did like the relationship that developed. I really loved the various settings around Europe, and it was fun to look up actual pictures of some of the statues and locations. CW: There’s quite a bit of violence that happens along the way, so this book won’t be for everyone.

Thank you to Viking Penguin, Pamela Dorman Books, and NetGalley for providing a free review copy of this book! All thoughts and opinions are completely my own.

June 13, 2026 by danimae1981 Fiction Kindle Thriller 0

Level Up for Love

by Lenora Woods

coming September 8, 2026

(4 / 5)

I really enjoyed the author’s first book, so I was excited to get approved for the ARC copy of her new book, Level Up for Love! And I’m happy to say that it was just as much fun and easy to get pulled into as I was hoping it would be. Since one of the main themes is Dungeons and Dragons, we actually get a bonus story within the story. I thought it was done well and felt different enough from the main storyline that I didn’t get them mixed up, though I did like looking for parallels between them. I’ve never actually played D&D myself, but the book is written in a way that doesn’t make it feel confusing at all. I think my favorite part of the book was the dynamic between Rae and Wes. It felt like a natural progression with a slow burn. Sometimes I was a little frustrated with how Rae handled things, but it was also understandable given her past experiences. Plus, her character was able to grow and evolve over time, which is something I love to see. Despite some of Rae’s feelings toward him, I thought Wes was a likeable character, especially as we got to know more about him. Plotwise there wasn’t necessarily anything super surprising going on, but things also didn’t always go the way I thought they might, which was a nice surprise. I really enjoyed reading this book and look forward to seeing more from the author!

Thank you to Ballantine, Dell, and NetGalley for providing a free review copy of this book! All opinions are completely my own.

June 5, 2026 by danimae1981 Fiction Kindle Romance 0

Chase Me If You Can

by Heather Frances

coming June 23, 2026

(4 / 5)

First off, thank you to Berkley Publishing Group and NetGalley for providing a free review copy of this book! All thoughts and opinions are completely my own.

This was a book that was easy to get pulled into and kept my interest well. I really loved the storm chasing theme in the story. It was different from anything else I’ve read, and it really made for some great settings, which were well described. It was all very exciting and high-adrenaline. Plus it gave the story a fun road trip feel while the characters traveled to find the storms. I will admit that there were a lot of weather terms that I wasn’t familiar with, but it was all described well enough that I didn’t feel confused by it. Our main characters were Sloane and Wes, who had some good banter. It was fun to watch them grow closer and learn more about each other. Sloane especially had some good character growth by the end. I will admit that I wasn’t a big fan of the circumstances that led to the drama that happens toward the end, but I was happy enough with how things were resolved by the end. I’m impressed that this was the author’s debut novel!

May 19, 2026 by danimae1981 Fiction Kindle Romance 0

Dreams of Ruin

Soul of Shadow #3

by Emma Noyes

coming November 17, 2026

(4.5 / 5)

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press, Wednesday Books, and NetGalley for providing a free review copy of this book! All thoughts and opinions are completely my own.

Dreams of Ruin is the 3rd and final book in the Soul of Shadow series, and the books should definitely be read in order. I enjoyed the first two books, so I was really excited when I was able to get the advance copy of book 3. I’m happy to say that it didn’t disappoint, and I think it turned out to be my favorite book in the series! It just sucked me right in, and I couldn’t put it down. Scenes were beautifully described, and some almost felt like watching a movie. There were parts that even felt a bit like reading a fairy tale. Plenty of action along the way kept things exciting. I really liked seeing Charlie’s character develop in this book beyond what she already had in the first 2 books. I also loved getting some chapters from Elias’s point of view. The romance in this series has always had a magnetic pull to it, but in this one it felt downright electric. The book managed to surprise me multiple times while I was reading it, yet everything fit together really well. I can’t wait to read more by this author!

May 13, 2026 by danimae1981 Fantasy Fiction Kindle Romance Young Adult 0

Shapes of Love

by L. V. Peñalba

Audiobook narrated by Mieko Gavia

coming May 19, 2026

(4 / 5)

Many thanks to Macmillan Audio, St. Martin’s Press, Wednesday Books, and NetGalley for providing free review copies of the eBook and audiobook of Shapes of Love! All thoughts and opinions are completely my own.

Shapes of Love follows Sasha, a young adult musician who is aroace. While this isn’t your typical love story, I thought it was quite beautiful, showing love in many different forms. It was very diverse with several characters that were LGBTQ+, plus characters from different races and cultures. I felt like Sasha was a relatable character who portrayed being aroace in a positive light while still showing realistic struggles a person might have. I’ll admit that I hated seeing her hiding her true identity from her fans, but I also understood why she felt the way she did. I also like that she represented a person who is (probably) autistic very well. I loved watching her character grow over the course of the story. I enjoyed a lot of the side characters and seeing their journeys and interactions as well. At times the book felt a bit slow, especially at the beginning, but I didn’t notice it as much as I kept reading. There’s a lot of internal monologue, and it overall seems like a very introspective book. I think the book handled some interesting topics very well, and even kept some lighthearted humor along the way.

I had the opportunity to read the audiobook version of the book, and I thought the narrator did a great job. She used different voices for different characters, and even did accents for the characters who had them. I thought her delivery of the text added to my enjoyment of the book.

May 7, 2026 by danimae1981 Audiobook Fiction Kindle LGBTQ Young Adult 0

Meet Me at Midnight

by Brianna Bourne

coming June 30, 2026

(4.5 / 5)

Thank you to Random House Children’s Books, Delacorte Press, and NetGalley for providing a free review copy of this book! All thoughts and opinions are completely my own.

I wasn’t quite sure what to think when I went into this book. I could pick up on some sad vibes right away, and the dreams Aria had were a bit surreal. But wow, this story really pulled me in. It was packed with emotions that I could feel along with the characters. I enjoyed the sense of mystery it had while we got clues about what had happened in the past. I liked Aria and Strat as the main characters, and really loved the dynamic they had with each other. But I think the thing I liked most was the message it had about facing reality versus escaping into dreams. I thought it was very insightful, and I loved watching these characters grow over the course of the story. While there were some aspects of this story that reminded me a bit of other books I’ve read, it had some truly unique elements that all fit together very well.

May 5, 2026 by danimae1981 Fantasy Fiction Kindle Romance Young Adult 0

Royal Summer

by Kass Morgan

coming May 12, 2026 (audio available May 5, 2026)

(4 / 5)

I want to thank HarperCollins Children’s Books, HarperAudio Children’s, and NetGalley for providing free review copies of the ebook and audiobook of Royal Summer. All thoughts and opinions are completely my own.

In Royal Summer, an American girl, Hannah, is supposed to be working abroad in Scotland with her favorite author for the summer. When her plans fall through, a prince, Finn, helps her get a new job at a castle.

I really liked this book! The story pulled me in easily from the start, and it kept my interest right through to the end. I loved how it could make me smile and laugh, especially when it came to the banter and interactions between Hannah and Finn. The romance between them was really sweet too. Hannah was a relatable narrator who had some tough things from her home life that she was dealing with. It was nice to see her character grow over the course of the story! I’ll admit, some of the situations seemed extremely unlikely to happen in real life, but it was still made a fun escape. There’s a bit of spice to this one… more than a lot of the YA that I read but not super graphic. The book is probably best suited to older teens and college age.

I was able to listen to the audiobook version of the book, and while it wasn’t bad, the narrator wasn’t my favorite either. I noticed that sometimes she had an accent where she dropped r’s, but it wasn’t consistant and didn’t feel like a good representation of Hannah’s voice. She also tended to pause unexpectedly in the middle of sentence, then not pause between sentences. A few words were also mispronounced (for example, double instead of doable). Since I was reading the ebook along with the audiobook, it’s possible that some of my complaints were more noticeable than if I was just reading the audiobook by itself.