Book Review – Page 5 – World of Bai

Book Review: “The Grandest Game” By Jennifer Lynn Barnes

The Inheritance Games series by Jennifer Lynn Barnes have been some of my favorite books this year. Wow, it’s crazy to think I have read all of those this year… this is unheard of from me.. Anyways, its just proof that her books are amazing! When I found out the first book in her break off series “The Grandest Game” was being released I was so stoked! I went and picked it up the week it came out. It may have taken me a few weeks to actually pick it up and read but I read this in two sittings leaving me to finish the book at 1 AM on a work night! Yet another unheard of thing for me, as I love my sleep!

Ok, lets save some of my feelings for my actual review haha.

“Trying to write trick questions backfires if the person taking the test knows how to look for tricks.”
Jennifer Lynn Barnes, The Grandest Game

About The Book

Author: Jennifer Lynn Barnes

Publisher: Little Brown Books

Published Date: July 30th, 2024

Page Count: 384 Pages

Main Genres: Mystery, YA

GoodReads Rating: 4.04

Format: Physical Book

“Some people can make mistakes, make amends, and move on. And some of us live with each and every mistake we make carved into us, into hollow places we don’t know how to fill.”
Jennifer Lynn Barnes , The Grandest Game

Synopsis

Seven tickets. An island of dreams. The chance of a lifetime.

Welcome to the Grandest Game, an annual competition run by billionaire Avery Grambs and the four infamous Hawthorne brothers, whose family fortune she inherited. Designed to give anyone a shot at fame and fortune, this year’s game requires one of seven golden tickets to enter. With millions on the line, those seven players will do whatever it takes to win.

Some of the players are in it for the money. Some for power. Some for reasons all their own. Every single one of them has secrets. Amidst it all is Grayson Hawthorne, tasked with a vital role in this year’s game. But as tensions rise and the mind-bending challenges push the players to their limits—physically, mentally, and emotionally—it soon becomes clear that not everyone is playing by the rules.

Synopsis From GoodReads

“Sometimes, in the games that matter most, the only way to really play is to live.”
Jennifer Lynn Barnes, The Grandest Game

Rating

Review

I don’t want to cause any spoilers so before I move on just know that I recommend reading “The Inheritance Games” Series in full before starting this break off series. As many of these characters are returning characters with a few newbies sprinkled in. I will do my best not to spoil anything in my review but this is you warning to only go on in this review if you are ok with very mild spoilers.

Ok now that the formalities are over, lets begin this review!

I loved nearly every part of this book! I am used to the Inheritance games swapping POV’s so I expected that of this book going into it. However, I was not ready for three POV’s one of which being a new character we briefly even knew existed. Because we weren’t following Avery or one of the Hawthorne boys this book started off a bit slow for me. It took time for me to get used to these newer characters and their stories so the begging of the book did drag a bit for me. But once we actually got into the book and The Grandest Game actually started I was hooked!

Each characters POV brought something new and exciting to the story. They each had their own reasons to win the games and even grew to understand one another’s reasons, starting out as enemies but ending, in some cases as friends. I say ending as if the story is over… Little did I know this book would end in a cliffhanger! This was only part one of the games…

With every twist and turn this book presented our characters were faced with new challenges that just kept the book moving! The chapters were short but always ended in a place that left you wanting to know more. This is a huge reason why I was able to read this book so fast! I had to know how all the puzzles were solved and where the drama would take us next.

I found myself trying to figure out the riddles before they could answer them which gave me like 6-10 (Short) chapters to find the answer. Did I ever solve one? No, I did not, not even close haha. But when they solved the riddles I was like “Oh wow, that makes so much sense!” Jennifer Lynn Barnes really knows how to write a mystery book, she has really taken her place as one of my all time favorite authors!

I hope you guys will give her books a try as they are totally worth it! This is coming from someone who doesn’t read YA much anymore because I feel like it reads too young. But her writing is so well done that sometimes I even forget it’s YA! Let me know if you have already read these books as I would love to chat with someone about these.

“I have spent my entire life being fine when I wasn’t. I know the price. I know what it’s like to bear that prince with every cell in your body. It isn’t worth it.”
Jennifer Lynn Barnes, The Grandest Game

QOTD: What is your favorite YA?

Book Review: “Dungeons and Drama” By Kristy Boyce

This book was Mostly just a cover buy, I normally don’t love the look of covers that have people on them even if it is a cartoon drawing but the bright pink and over all esthetic of this cover really pulls you in. My boyfriend also really loves DND and I really love musicals so this just felt like the perfect book for me to pick up.

“I decided having something fake with you was better than having nothing at all. I would have faked it forever rather than give you up.”
Kristy Boyce, Dungeons and Drama

About The Book

Author: Kristy Boyce

Publisher: Delacorte Press

Published Date: January 9th, 2024

Page Count: 304 Pages

Main Genres: Romance, YA, Contemporary

GoodReads Rating: 4.23

Format: Physical Book

Synopsis

Musical lover Riley has big aspirations to become a director on Broadway. Crucial to this plan is to bring back her high school’s spring musical, but when Riley takes her mom’s car without permission, she’s grounded and stuck with the worst punishment: spending her after-school hours working at her dad’s game shop.

Riley can’t waste her time working when she has a musical to save, so she convinces Nathan—a nerdy teen employee—to cover her shifts and, in exchange, she’ll flirt with him to make his gamer-girl crush jealous.

But Riley didn’t realize that meant joining Nathan’s Dungeons & Dragons game…or that role playing would be so fun. Soon, Riley starts to think that flirting with Nathan doesn’t require as much acting as she would’ve thought…

Synopsis From GoodReads

Rating

Review

As a reminder mild spoilers may be ahead.

Despite this being a cover buy, I did actually read this for a potential buddy read in February and I was shocked at how quickly I actually flew through this one.

I will be the first to admit that the first 50-75 pages of this book were beyond boring and I was close to DNF’ing the book before I hit that mark. Once I did hit 50 ish to 75 ish pages I read it in one sitting! So it does pick up pace I promise.

I don’t know what it is but the main girl characters in books lately have all just been a tad bit annoying to me. I am not sure if this is a me problem or if authors just like writing annoying female leads. Riley is quite head strong and she will do anything she can to make the musical happen for her school which is great but honestly I cared more about the dungeons and dragons story line more than the musical aspect of this book. I love that she picked a bard as her DND character as it does fit her really well, and again this is a me problem, but I really hated that she was actually singing broadway songs during the campaign. Again, I know this is who she is and there is honestly nothing wrong with it but I personally could never and in my mind the songs had nothing to do with the game or the situation she was needing them for so in my mind it was just cringey and showboaty.

Kind of along the same lines as above, Riley literally is the whole reason this school musical happens which is great, girl bossing. But it just felt so unrealistic, the teacher literally said you will have to do this on your own, like excuse me? I have never been in theater so I am truly not an expert on the topic and I did come from a school that was number one in state drama comps so my school was seriously into their theater shows and theres no way that the student body could have pulled this off, maybe it is different in a smaller school but again It all feels too perfect in my eyes.

Now, let’s talk about the romance. I love a good fake dating trope and I really loved Nate! I knew as soon as Nate walked into the scene I would have no issues with him. Sure he is pining for another girl but you can quickly tell he has more interest in Riley than anyone else but he is just too awkward to come out and say that. I do think our characters had chemistry with each other and I am pleased with the way the book ended things. I felt like our third act conflict was a tad annoying but I also think that about most conflicts in romance books.

I know this maybe sounds like a negative review but honestly I am just being nit-picky. After all I devoured this book in one sitting because I was truly invested in this fake dating even if everyone knew they were fake dating but Sophia. I love a good jealousy plot after all.

If you have this book on your radar I do suggest giving it a chance. It’s a super light and quick read that you can knock off your list, so why not?

QOTD: How do you feel about YA books?

Book Review: “Flawless” By Elsie Silver

At this point in the year I have read 17 books and it is only the beginning of March! I truly hope this streak continues, but with that said I am quite behind on reviews as I haven’t posted any since January. Will I catch up on all of them? Probably not but now I have some back up reviews to fall onto if needed.

I honestly had no desire to pick this book/series up. Sure I have heard quite a few good things about it but I haven’t really been feeling romance books as of late. However, I met a new friend and she wanted to read something together and this was one that we could agree on and to say I devoured it would be an understatement.

“You were out there this whole time, and now I know you exist, and I can never go back. Wouldn’t want to if I could.”
Elsie Silver, Flawless

About The Book

Author: Elsie Silver

Publisher: Bloom Books

Published Date: June 24th, 2022

Page Count: 400

Main Genres: Sports Romance, contemporary

GoodReads Rating: 4.01

Format: Physical Book

“I’m tired of doing what I should and ignoring what I want. And what I want is you. Inside me. All around me. I want you with me. And I want to be the only one.”
Elsie Silver, Flawless

Synopsis

The rules were simple. Keep my hands off his daughter and stay out of trouble.

But now I’m stuck with her. There’s only one bed. And well, rules are made to be broken.

I’m the face of professional bull riding—the golden boy. Or at least I was, until it all blew up in my face. Now my agent says I have to clean up my image, so I’m stuck with his ball-busting daughter for the rest of the season as my “full-time supervision.”

But I don’t need a goddamn babysitter, especially one with skin-tight jeans, a sexy smirk, and a mouth she can’t stop running.

A mouth I can’t stop thinking about.

Because Summer isn’t just another conquest. She sees the man behind the mask, and she doesn’t run—she pulls me closer, even when she shouldn’t.

She says this means nothing.

I say this means everything.

She says there are boundaries we shouldn’t cross. That my reputation can’t take any more hits—and neither can her damaged heart.

I say I’m going to steal it anyway.

Synopsis From GoodReads

Rating

3.75

Review

As me and my friend were wandering Barns and Noble we realized quickly that we seem to have different tastes in books which there is nothing wrong with. But she leans more towards fantasy and far away from thrillers. Where I am a thriller girly and have only recently tried dipping my toe into fantasy. The safest option for us to buddy read was a romance. While debating what book to pick we had at least 5 people come up to us and recommend this series. So this is for all five of you who said we wouldn’t regret picking this up. (P.S.) While I write this my friend hasn’t even started the book… OOPS…

Do I regret reading this book? No, absolutely not. Did I adore it just as much as everyone else? Well… That’s also a no, but based on the Average GoodReads rating I fell just below the average person in enjoyment, that is not too bad in my opinion.

When I first read the back of the book and found out this was about a Bull Rider I wasn’t all that interested. Look I am from a small country town but the rodeo was not a scene I particularly enjoyed. But for this being about Bull Riding we really didn’t read too much about that particular aspect, Sure we read a few quick paragraphs about his rides but once the comps were over it dove more into small town country life so it really wasn’t in my face as much as I thought it would be which pleasantly surprised me.

I read this book in practically one sitting meaning I read 75% in one day which is extremely quick for me! This is a super fluffy quick read that doesn’t take much, if any, brain power. I would rate the spice at like a 2/5, so there wasn’t too much spice compared to other books I have read but my oh my the pining was so good! The first spicey scene wasn’t till at least half way so we really got to get to know the characters and see them fall for each other which really helped this books rating on my side of things.

I do think these characters made a good couple. I really like that we start of with an uptight main character and get to watch her slowly let go of the “reins” Haha see what I did there? The character development was probably one of my favorite parts of this book.

The biggest issue I had with this book is that we had quite a few side characters but didn’t get a lot of information on them and this is of course because they get their own books later down the line and Elsie can’t spoil anything for their stories. In a way this made me excited to pick up the other books but also left me with burning questions that made it hard to to care about their characters and the roles they play in the main characters lives. I just felt a lack of connection to some of these side characters that hindered this book in its own way. I have heard the series only gets better as you go and I can now understand why.

Do I recommend this book? Sure, if you are interested then go for it but if you are on the edge then I would say you can skip it.

Will I continue this series? Well the second is already in my amazon shopping cart so yeah I will probably continue but only because I am into hockey romances at the moment and “Powerless” is just that!

“If this were my last moment alive, how would I want it to be?”
Elsie Silver, Flawless

QOTD: What Romance Series are you obsessed with?

Book Review: “Ruthless Vows” By Rebecca Ross

Divine Rivals was up for the running for my top books of 2023 so I was beyond excited to start the second and final book in this series. We read Divine Rivals as my book club pick for November so we decided to read Ruthless Vows as Buddy read and me and my friends had a blast discussing this.

This is a second and final book in a duology so there may be spoilers ahead, proceed with caution if you haven’t read Divine Rivals.

“Their souls weren’t mirrors but complements, constellations that burned side by side.”
Rebecca Ross, Ruthless Vows

About The Book

Author: Rebecca Ross

Publisher: Wednesday Books

Published Date: December 26th, 2023

Page Count: 432 Pages

Main Genres: Fantasy, Romance

GoodReads Rating: 4.31

Format: Physical Book

“For anyone who sought a different realm through a wardrobe door, Who wrote a letter and is still waiting for a reply, Or who dreams of stories and bleeds words.”
Rebecca Ross, Ruthless Vows

Synopsis

Two weeks have passed since Iris Winnow returned home bruised and heartbroken from the front, but the war is far from over. Roman is missing, and the city of Oath continues to dwell in a state of disbelief and ignorance. When Iris and Attie are given another chance to report on Dacre’s movements, they both take the opportunity and head westward once more despite the danger, knowing it’s only a matter of time before the conflict reaches a city that’s unprepared and fracturing beneath the chancellor’s reign.

Since waking below in Dacre’s realm, Roman cannot remember his past. But given the reassurance that his memories will return in time, Roman begins to write articles for Dacre, uncertain of his place in the greater scheme of the war. When a strange letter arrives by wardrobe door, Roman is first suspicious, then intrigued. As he strikes up a correspondence with his mysterious pen pal, Roman will soon have to make a decision: to stand with Dacre or betray the god who healed him. And as the days grow darker, inevitably drawing Roman and Iris closer together…the two of them will risk their very hearts and futures to change the tides of the war.

Synopsis From Goodreads

Rating

Review

Before you start reading this review I highly recommend reading my Divine Rivals Review. I also want to point out that their will be spoilers in this review so read at your own risk.

This book picked off only two weeks after the ending events of Divine Rivals so we really don’t miss anything and just jump right on in. I really appreciated this as I was worried we would have a time jump and would be going back and fourth on timelines but this was really straight forward and we quickly got into the action.

I really think this book could have been broken into two books. We receive so much information and have so many big things happen in the first half that at that half way point I was just mentally exhausted to the point where I took a few days off of reading to hype myself back up. I am not saying this as a bad thing though. Yes we had a ton of info thrown at us but it was all much needed information, I really don’t think Rebecca could have taken anything out to lighten it up a bit and I don’t know that I would want that in the first place. I just think we could have had two books because of the total amount of events and information and stretched this series out a bit longer because I need more of these characters! Another plus for it being so action packed was that it really did make reading this book fly by! It was truly unput downable (If you don’t count my mental exhaustion break lol).

I absolutely love that we got to see them write more letters back and fourth to each other. I was a bit worried this wouldn’t happen but looking back that feels like a silly thing to worry about seeing how the letters are such a huge factor into their relationship. Speaking of their relationship I have some thoughts… I want, no actually, I need more! By the end of the first book we had just barely fell in love with them before they tragically got ripped apart and in this one we did see their relationship grow but the epilogue left me wanting to know about their lives after. I really want to see them through to the end.

Can we talk about the way I literally was screaming when he found her in that wardrobe! The moment he remembered her and then had to immediately send her away and then watch her get shot at! My Heart! I was just rooting for them the whole time and truly did not want to see anything go wrong for these two, and man oh man did they find themselves in some incredibly sticky situations! This book kept me on my toes!

I will always recommend this series to people, especially those who are newer to fantasy just like me.

“Write me a story where there is no ending, Kitt. Write to me and fill my empty spaces.”
Rebecca Ross, Ruthless Vows

QOTD: What was the first Fantasy Series you ever read all the way through?

Book Review: “A Cat Cafe Christmas” By Codi Gary

This was the last Book I read in 2023 and it was such a perfect romance to end the year on. I am lucky to have friends who know my reading tastes so well that they can provider spot on recommendations, thanks @bees.book.buzz for convincing me to pick this one up during the holidays.

Donation Links

This book talked about how difficult it can be for some of these animal non-profits to make money, In light of that I am going to link the cat cafe’s websites I have recently been too along with their donation tabs if you feel so inclined to donate to one of these amazing places.

Tinkers Cat Cafe (SLC Utah)

Neko Cat Cafe (Seattle WA)

This was Kewpert Mayonnaise, he stole my heart! I was so sad I couldn’t adopt him!

About The Book

Author: Codi Gary

Publisher: Forever Books

Published Date: October 4th, 2022

Page Count: 375 Pages

Main Genres: Romance, Contemporary, Fiction

GoodReads Rating: 3.75

Format: Physical Book

Synopsis

Veterinarian and animal lover Kara Ingalls needs a Christmas miracle. Opening the Meow and Furrever Cat Café to find loving homes for adorable, adoptable cats was a dream come true—but with more cats than customers, it’s quickly turning into a nightmare. If Kara can’t figure out some way to get the café out of the red, it won’t last past the holidays.

Marketing guru Ben Reese may be annoyingly smart and frustratingly bossy, but when he hatches a plan to put the café in the “green” by Christmas, Kara realizes that she’d be a fool to turn down his help. And so what if he turns out to be an excellent problem solver and nerdy-hot—he can’t even handle fostering one little kitten. She needs to keep their relationship professional and focus on saving the cafe.

But if Ben and Kara can set aside their differences—and find homes for all the cats by Christmas—they might discover that, by risking their hearts, they’ll have their own purr-fect holiday . . . together.

Synopsis From GoodReads

Rating

Review

I really haven’t been reading a lot of romance books this year, they just haven’t really been doing it for me like they used too. So I didn’t think this would really interest me all that much especially a holiday romance as I don’t have a great track record with them. But this book was seriously so cute that I couldn’t put it down! I mean how could you go wrong with a book about a cat cafe?! I am a huge sucker for cat cafe’s, in fact me and Noah go to the local one a few times a year and even stopped by one while we were vacationing in Seattle!

This book talked a lot about mental health and the every day struggles people go through especially when having anxiety and panic attacks. I truly loved this representation! The way all the characters handled certain situations just made my heart melt.

The one thing that I truly loved about this book was how little spice was in it. I know this might seem weird to some people but I really just loved reading about the characters emotional connections and watching them grow closer together without physical intimacy being shoved down your throat. In my opinion this was a very cozy romance read and that was exactly what I went in expecting.

Something fun I loved about this book was that each chapter started with one of the adoptable cats names and their cute little bio. Because this was a Christmas read a bunch of the cats names were Christmas themed but they were at least very unique and that made the book just that much better. I highly recommend everyone to read this one!

QOTD: Have you ever been to a cat cafe?

Book Review: “A Good Girls Guide To Murder” By Holly Jackson

Over the last month I have been reading books that my Friend @syds.bookshelves has been recommending to me for ages and this is probably the one she has told me to read the most. I think it is so much fun to read the books your friends love, as it is a great opportunity to actively chat to them as you read so they can see your reactions.

“You go around asking dangerous questions, girl, you’re going to find some dangerous answers.”
Holly Jackson, A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder

About The Book

Author: Holly Jackson

Publisher: Electric Monkey

Published Date: May 2nd, 2019

Page Count: 433 Pages

Main Genres: YA, Mystery, Thriller

GoodReads Rating: 4.34

Format: Physical Book

“women can be just as dangerous as men.”
Holly Jackson, A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder

Synopsis

The case is closed. Five years ago, schoolgirl Andie Bell was murdered by Sal Singh. The police know he did it. Everyone in town knows he did it.

But having grown up in the same small town that was consumed by the murder, Pippa Fitz-Amobi isn’t so sure. When she chooses the case as the topic for her final year project, she starts to uncover secrets that someone in town desperately wants to stay hidden. And if the real killer is still out there, how far will they go to keep Pip from the truth?

Synopsis From GoodReads

“Real men wear floral when trespassing”
Holly Jackson, A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder

Rating

Review

I have not been a big Young Adult reader lately. Part of me likes how easy they are to read but then theres another part of me that struggles with that. I feel like I am left wanting more out of Young Adult books and that was the exact case with this one.

This book honestly started off super slow for me and did read really young at the beginning. However, it quickly picked up the pace at about half way which is when I sat down and devoured the rest in one sitting, staying up till 1 am to finish on a work night!

One thing that I really loved about this book was our characters.

Pip was a really great main character, I loved her determination to this case even though it could have gotten her into some really sticky situations, I mean good thing this book is a work of fiction! The love she had for her friends and family really showed in this book and I think this is one of the biggest reasons I liked her. One thing that did bug me about Pip though was the million of nicknames she had in this book, some of them were quite cringy honestly.

Ravi was honestly my favorite character by far. He was so misunderstood throughout this book! I couldn’t imagine having to go through the things he did after his brothers death but as the story unfolded we got to see him really shine and come out of his shell. He for sure had the most beautiful story arc of any of the characters.

My biggest Gripe with this book, and it really isn’t even that horrible of one, is the fact that we had so many suspects! It was hard to keep everyone straight in my mind and they truly all felt guilty to me. This in turn also made the story really interesting as we got to explore everyone in this town and find out all of their deep dark secrets.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book and I do think I will continue on with this series. As always check your trigger warnings before picking this one up as their is a few big ones to be aware of. For me it was animal death, luckily there wasn’t too many details so it was brief but still emotional.

“But sometimes remembering isn’t for yourself, sometimes you do it just to make someone else smile. Those lies were allowed.”
Holly Jackson, A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder

QOTD: What is a must read YA in your Opinion?