Review - The Spanish Love Deception (Spanish Love Deception, #1) by Elena Armas

 

 

Title: The Spanish Love Deception (Spanish Love Deception, #1)

Author: Elena Armas

Pages: 497

Publisher: Simon & Schuster UK

Release Date: 25th November 2021

 

Blurb from Goodreads:

 A wedding in Spain. The most infuriating man. Three days to convince your family you're actually in love. . .

Catalina Martín desperately needs a date to her sister's wedding. Especially when her little white lie about her American boyfriend has spiralled out of control. Now everyone she knows – including her ex-boyfriend and his fiancée – will be there.

She only has four weeks to find someone willing to cross the Atlantic for her and aid in her deception. NYC to Spain is no short flight and her family won't be easy to fool. . . But even then, when Aaron Blackford – the 6'4", blue-eyed pain in the arse – offers to step in, she's not tempted even for a second. Never has there been a more aggravating, blood-boiling and insufferable man.

But Catalina is desperate and as the wedding gets closer the more desirable an option Aaron Blackford becomes. . .

The Spanish Love Deception is an enemies-to-lovers, fake-dating romance. Perfect for those looking for a steamy slow-burn with the promise of a sweet happy-ever-after.

"Everything you could want in a romance is right here."
Helen Hoang, author of The Kiss Quotient

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My Review:

*I received an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. Thanks to Simon & Schuster UK and NetGalley*

Catalina Martin lives in New York, but will be returning home to Spain for her sister's wedding in four weeks. After finding out that her ex-boyfriend will be at the wedding and that he is engaged, Catalina is determined to take a date with her and even lies to her family, telling them that she has an American boyfriend that is coming with her.

Then Catalina's colleague, Aaron Blackford, offers to be her date. Catalina is hesitant to accept - their relationship is not exactly friendly, and Catalina loathes Aaron.

When no other options are forthcoming, Catalina reluctantly accepts Aaron's help. As they start spending time outside of work together, Catalina finds out that maybe Aaron isn't so bad after all.

Will Catalina's family be fooled?

I can't remember the exact reason I requested this book on NetGalley. I think it must have been a moment of madness, because I usually try to steer clear of 'TikTok sensations', and this book was the perfect example of why that's the case.

Catalina was an OK protagonist, and while I did feel sorry for her given what she had been through in the past, I didn't feel that I particularly connected with her, and wasn't invested in what happened to her.

Aaron was a bit of a meh character for me. Sure, he did nice things for Catalina, but if he had just talked to her and explained his feelings, then this book would pretty much have been redundant - the 'deception' part, anyway. I found Aaron to be quite a flat, two-dimensional character, unfortunately, and did not feel any chemistry between him and Catalina.

The plot was OK, but pretty predictable. Nothing happened that surprised or shocked me and I was pretty bored throughout.

The dialogue was very cringy at times, and I found the wording/writing quite stilted, especially with the first chapter, even the first few opening lines. If I hadn't been reading a review copy (and even then I switched to the audiobook to get through it faster), then I would have stopped reading and DNF'd the book before long.

Unfortunately, this was not for me and I will not be recommending it.

Review - The Revelry by Katherine Webber

 

 

 Title: The Revelry

Author: Katherine Webber

Pages: 272

Publisher: Walker Books

Release Date: 6th January 2022

 

Blurb from Goodreads: 

A story of best friends, bad luck and the consequences of breaking the rules in a town built on secrets and superstitions.

I am girl of Ember Grove, and these are my woods...

Growing up in Ember Grove, Bitsy Clark knows better than to mess with the long-held traditions of her hometown. Until her best friend, Amy, persuades her to sneak into the Revelry - the end of school party in the woods, to which only those leaving are invited.

When she wakes the next day, Bitsy can't remember anything from the night before. Weirder still, whenever she tries to speak about the Revelry, Bitsy chokes on the words. But this is just the beginning, and what starts out as a run of bad luck starts to feel like a curse. As Bitsy's life goes from bad to worse, things only get better and better for her best friend. It's as if there's only so much luck to go round and Amy's getting all of it...

 

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My Review:

*I received an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. Thanks to Walker Books and NetGalley*

Bitsy Clark has lived in Ember Grove her entire life and knows not to go against the traditions that have lasted generations. Traditions such as the Revelry - a party held in the woods at the end of the school year where only the graduating classes are invited.

But when Bitsy's best friend, Amy, convinces her to sneak into that year's Revelry - which is not their year to attend - strange things begin to happen. Bitsy can't remember anything from the Revelry, and words get stuck in her throat when she tries to talk about it.

Then bad luck starts to plague Bitsy, meanwhile Amy seems to be getting all the good luck.

What happened at the Revelry?

Will Bitsy be able to change her luck before it's too late?

The mystery element of this book really intrigued me, so I was looking forward to reading it.

Bitsy was a likeable and relatable protagonist most of the time - for while I did feel sorry for her, there were also times when I found her annoying.

I felt the same about Amy, Bitsy's best friend. Although, I did prefer Bitsy to Amy.

The setting of Ember Grove was interesting, and I thought the author did a good job of making Ember Grove feel small, isolated and a bit creepy.

The plot was interesting to begin with, but after a while I did start to lose interest, partly due to finding Bitsy frustrating at times. Unfortunately, I did become less invested as the book went on.

The concept of the Revelry was interesting and I enjoyed finding out more about it.

The writing style was easy to follow.

I'm disappointed that I didn't enjoy this more.

Overall, this was a mixed read.

 

Review - Only a Monster (Monsters, #1) by Vanessa Len

 

 

Title: Only a Monster (Monsters, #1)

Author: Vanessa Len

Pages: 349

 Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton

Release Date: 17th February 2022

 

Blurb from Goodreads:

In every story there is a hero and a monster.

It should have been the perfect summer. Sent to stay with her late mother's eccentric family in London, sixteen-year-old Joan is determined to enjoy herself. She loves her nerdy job at the historic Holland House, and when her super cute co-worker Nick asks her on a date, it feels like everything is falling into place.

Then a Good Samaritan attempt gone wrong sends Joan spinning through time, and her life quickly begins to unravel.
Her family aren't just eccentric: they're monsters, with terrifying, hidden powers.And Nick isn't just a cute boy: he's a legendary monster slayer, who will do anything to bring them down.

As she battles Nick, Joan is forced to work with the beautiful and ruthless Aaron Oliver, heir to a monster family that hates her own. She'll have to embrace her own monstrousness if she is to save herself, and her family. Because in this story . . .

. . . she is not the hero.

 

Goodreads | Storygraph | Amazon UK | Amazon US | Bookshop

 

 

 

My Review:

*I received an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. My thanks to Hodder & Stoughton and NetGalley*

Joan is staying in London for the summer with her mother's family while her father is away.

Her summer is going very well - Joan has a job at a local historic house, and Nick, the colleague she has a crush on, has asked her on a date.

But then everything changes when Joan learns that her family can travel through time and aren't human - Joan's family are monsters.

Things go from bad to worse when Joan learns that Nick is the hero that the monsters tell stories about, the hero that kills monsters.

While fighting Nick, Joan finds herself allying with Aaron Oliver, who is from a rival monster family.

Can Joan stop Nick from killing monsters?

Can Joan and Aaron work together?

The concept for this book intrigued me, especially the main character not being a 'hero'.

Joan was a likeable and relatable protagonist, but I didn't feel that I especially connected with her. I also felt that I didn't get to know her very well.

None of the characters really shone for me, but I liked Joan's relationships with her family, who I would have liked to see more of.

The settings were interesting, as was the concept of how the monsters time-travelled. However, I'm left with a lot of questions about the monsters and would have liked more world-building as some of it was a bit vague.

The plot was enjoyable to begin with, but as the book went on I did find myself losing interest. I wasn't invested in what happened and was a little bit glad when I reached the end.

The writing style was easy to follow.

I am disappointed that I didn't enjoy this more.

Overall, this was a mixed read.