nikkisbooknook's reviews
4946 reviews

 A small town librarian with a nose for murder can't help but keep finding bodies!

A bookish amateur sleuth gets called in to assist when a treasure-hunting club member ends up dead.

We're knee deep in code-breaking, gangster lore, modern day homicide and greed with this mystery.  Greta and her gang of librarians not only have to solve a murder but also keep their librarian convention on an even keel.  Oh...and there's the small matter of Greta's narcissistic and very married ex sauntering into town.

There are plenty of twists and red herrings to keep you occupied as the mystery unfolds. All our main protagonists are charming, likeable and involved in the story. I felt that McHenry, Greta's detective boyfriend, had a very real fear of her being hurt during her investigations and handled it pretty well.  I did have to suspend my grip on reality when the Chief of Police asked her to step in, my police staff brain just fried at that point lol! But hey ho that might be a very real thing in the USA!

Well worth a read and a great way to brush up on your prohibition era history! 

When any of the characters in a book are Scottish, I always panic in case they come across as "comedy Scots!" There is no panic with this book though because it's written by an author married to a Scot!

The idiom and pacing of Alexander's character was spot on I think.  He was a great blend of grumpy, sweet and protective. Alex's career and his love for puffins makes him an unusual but realistic kind of MMC. His divorce has also made him cautious about a new love.

Rosie leaves everything she has in the US, all for the chance at a HEA in a new life, a bookstore and a new community.  She finds everything she's looking for and more!  Rosie is sweet, gentle but not a wimp.  She can stand up for herself and just because she wants a simple life doesn't make her weak - she makes the choice to have that life, not anyone else.

There is a wee element of fantasy and magic - flying books, etc. The Book Bitches are hilarious and their age really lets them get away with most things!  They interfere, bicker and bully/love those around them. 

I love when characters from other books pop up or at least get mentioned in newer books, it makes the whole "universe" the characters reside in more real. My fave coo, Clyde, gets a mention so I was over the moon! Tattie the puffin is a dream and I loved the name! The secondary characters, especially Jessica, are all involved in the storyline and I felt like I really got to know them in a small way and they weren't just filler.

Gentle, slow burn romance with a dry, very Scottish, humour and puffin puns galore!  Low spice but with a hint of fiery passion under those woolies! 

 Jade has had a horrid existence up till now.  It wasn't anything like a "life", she's emotionally and physically abused by her foster parents, she's been made out to be dependent on them and now she's basically being sold off!

She makes a break for freedom and ends up on a shuttle heading for the Latharian Space Station.  She manages to hide out for a while but becomes a target for the local bullies.  Thankfully she is saved by a Latharian scientist.

Saad may be a geneticist but he is still a warrior.  Being a healer was his calling but his clan took protecting others seriously.  He's taken young "Jay" under his wing, given him a job and a place to stay.  He's part of the Mate programme but he's had no matches so far.  But now he's attracted to Jay and feels so torn over it as he thinks he's cornering Jay after inviting him into his home.

I really enjoyed the way Jay and Saad's relationship organically grew.  The story manages to explore attraction to the person not the gender, traumatic relationships, bullying, forced pairings and fated mates. The blend of an office romance and forced proximity really heightens poor Saad's worry that he's taking advantage of someone he is in a supervisory capacity with.

The continued storyline of someone interfering with the mate programme continues and this story deals with essentially a human trafficking ring working under the cover of an LMP office and forcing women into "matings" which have no legitimacy and may even be dangerous. 

 A new author and one I almost got to meet at RARE in Edinburgh this year but sadly ran out of time.

There are plenty of good things about this book. Elara may be in over her head - what with Star's hunting her, a prophecy to avoid fulfilling and magic to learn how to wield, but she is determined, intelligent and has vengeance on her mind!

Learning the mythology and history of a new world is always a bit of an information overload but it's been written in such a way that I didn't feel overwhelmed and we got to learn what we needed to know, when we needed to know it.  The various kingdoms/queendoms are based on the Zodiac houses we're familiar with but with a twist.  As usual the gods are fickle, duplicitous and downright evil (well most of them!)

Lorenzo, aka Enzo, is perfect as the enemy prince with a reputation for death and destruction but who oddly makes our Elara feel safe. The tension is chemistry filled with these two sparking off each other from the get-go.  The secondary characters of Merissa, Leo, et al are fabulous and the banter between the 4 is barb-filled and witty.  The spice is wonderfully sprinkled through but it does take a while, these two are very slow burn!

None of the characters felt stereotypical and I felt that there was great LGBTQIA representation.  Elara especially did a lot of growing up but was never portrayed as a damsel in distress.  She may be out of her depth and on the back foot occasionally but she never cowers and awaits rescue - she faces her foes when possible and gives as good as she gets.  She is cunning and strategic when she needs to be.

Things are not easy between our MC's - there is a lot of history between their kingdoms and it's not solved overnight but both can see that neither side is perfect and work together in a great partnership eventually.

So whilst this wasn't perfect, it was a rollicking good read.  I'm invested now and I really cannot wait for book 2 - November 2025 is gonna be a long wait! 

 Every so often I take a walk on the wild-side and escape my comfort zone.  Whilst I have always enjoyed a good thriller, I usually avoid ones which would usually go over my head.  Anything involving money/stock market or cyber/AI breaks me out in a sweat!  I'm so glad I pulled up the big girl pants and stuck with this thriller cos it was a fantastic read.

Did I still have to google things? Yes, yes I did but the writing didn't make me feel like an idiot and with any book I always like to come away with the feeling of having learned something.  Whilst I'll never be in a position to worry about blockchains, bitcoins and NFT's, I no longer am terrified of them, lol!

It's a chonky read but please don't let that put you off, I sailed through this, only really struggling with the technical language occasionally.  The action parts certainly ramped up the pacing and I'm really hoping this isn't the last we've seen of these characters!

Whilst I did work out the hacker's ID, it wasn't until about 1/3 of the way through and even then I wasn't 100% certain until the big reveal. The puzzles and clues were a great way to hook the reader
and the music breadcrumbed throughout was really evocative and I found myself making a wee playlist as I went along!

Now be warned - we do end on a bit of a WTAF? But that only left me with a hankering for book 2! 

 There are some big reveals, huge tantrums and titanic tears with this book.

I'll admit, I had to close the kindle at one point cos if I didn't I was going to throw it against the wall. No spoilers but I did think Robin was not at his best in this book.  He showed callous disregard at times and I thought he went from hot to cold at supersonic speeds at times.  I 'm still a bit lost as to why he's developed such feelings for this new character. He's having to cope with some big plot twists and new information but he is occasionally his own worst enemy.  However, it is easy to forget he's only young and kind of reverts to sarky teenager when he's frustrated.

I'm all for morally grey characters but so far I'm not warming up to Duncan.  It may be that the "moral boundary" he has with the other Hunters is just the bare minimum I would expect from any character - I'm feeling a bit underwhelmed.  I'm still #TeamErix and I want some major  magical do-over please!

Now to wait for book #3 

 When we left Lor I was completely broken.  I couldn't believe what had just happened.  I was dreading how to finish the series without wanting to throw the book at the wall if certain things did not happen!

Thankfully all has been rectified in my little world and Lor and her family get the ending they all deserve.  There are allies won and lost, new friendships formed, and families are reunited.

Nadir and Lor have been #couplegoals since book 1, even though at times I worried just how they were going to get that HEA. I have loved getting to know Ouranos, the various kingdoms and queendoms.  The world is really well described without being totally bogged down and the mythology of the world was new to me and I really enjoyed seeing that Gods can be a*holes too!

Lor has been an amazing character to see grow throughout the books.  She has overcome so much and is deserving of all the good things in life.  She can be sly, sarky, stubborn to the point of insanity but she is also brave, loving and determined.

The spice is spicing and the action scenes don't get overlooked - the romance and action are equally well depicted.  #Did I have a giggle at the little #soapgate in-joke - why yes, yes I did!

It's sad to leave this series.  It has been an absolute dream - it was so refreshing where the main characters are not pasty like me, they are vibrant, colourful and unabashedly themselves.  The LGBTQIA characters aren't stereotypes and are just as wonderful as the main couple.  My only grumble was I wanted to see into the future and see who Lor is now that she has peace! 

These type of books were my jam back in primary school and the premise of an adult choose your own adventure murder mystery was really intriguing.

The storyline and the characters were what I'd expect in a Hollywood set Crime-Noir.  However, something was just missing.  When you chose the path you wanted to take the chapters didn't flow well, sometimes people came back to life or evidence was rediscovered.  And sadly the main character was less than effective - it sometimes felt like it was their first day on the job!

It may have been a better experience if I hadn't read the ebook version but I really think this could a great nostalgia-soaked idea for the gen x crowd who grew up with these kind of books, it just needs finessed a bit and the MC to be given a bit of oomph!

Joy has been a people-pleaser all her life.  Always the good girl, obedient wife, perfect mother and efficient teacher.  But now she's over 60, divorced, loving but distant from her children and after a disastrous Christmas she decides to do the adult thing...and runs away to her sister in France!

I wanted to alternately strangle and cuddle Joy!  She wants everything perfect and then complains when her family doesn't notice or appreciate all the effort she made.  She really made a rod for her own back, they saw their father disrespect her and now they are essentially doing the same thing.  However, once Joy gets to France and she spends time with her sister and her gaggle of gallic friends, Joy starts to come into her own and I feel that she really became her own person.

Isabelle is her complete opposite in many ways, scatter-brained to a fault but her family love her, her French neighbours love her and even her mother-in-law grudgingly respects her.  I think Isobelle really showed Joy how to be herself, be naughty or even just self-centred on occasion and people will still love you.

The gentle romance with Jean-Luc really gave her a chance to see what romance could and should have been with her husband if he hadn't been such a controlling curmudgeon. 

I even got a chance to practice my terrible school-level French with Joy as she settles into French life.  

A perfect little, feel good, happy vibes romance with a dash of learning to respect your own boundaries and that being a little selfish is no bad thing!

Rosemary couldn't wait to meet her soulmate.  Now that her sister has met hers, that desire has only increased.  So what does she do when she finally meets him?  When he turns up on her literal doorstep?  She walks away from him.  Her soulmate is the new Sheriff...and she and her sisters just locked up an evil magic user in a Hedge Realm!

Asher is used to some weird reactions to him being a cop but the Bay sisters reaction is new!  He only wanted information but now all his protective instincts are twitching and that intense attraction to Rosemary is going to need reined in!

I'm a sucker for a witchy read and this ticked all the boxes.  Star crossed lovers, magic, evil doers needing taking down, sisterly vibes and a good deal of humour.

Once Asher and Rosemary get over themselves, the smexy times are intense and HAWT.  As their backstory unfolds you can't help but cheer for them and hope that this time around things work out for them.  I loved watching Asher just accept Rosemary and her sisters odd behaviour and lean into it once things were revealed.  I can't wait to read more in this series. 

#TeamGundrun