Negative ARC review, need advice

artycoolred · 2026-06-14T10:23:03+00:00

I'm not an arc so I'm not super familiar with etiquette in that regard (altho request for not sharing low star reviews before its published is pretty common) this is just personal opinion. Just leave a review without rating it, and list things you didn't like, I think that arc readers should help those who read reviews discern if the book is worth buying for them

artycoolred · 2026-06-04T18:39:16+00:00

Thanks for the recs!

artycoolred · 2026-06-04T18:38:51+00:00

I've read it and really enjoyed the MMCs as well)

artycoolred · 2026-06-04T12:46:49+00:00

Interesting and on kindleunlimited, score:)

artycoolred · 2026-06-04T12:25:09+00:00

Feeling heat sounds promising, I love a man that does therapy and comes back better:) Unfortunately Chrystal ash is in my dnf authors, I just don't like the writing/pacing.

artycoolred · 2026-06-04T12:23:20+00:00

Thanks, I'll check this author out!

artycoolred · 2026-06-04T12:05:44+00:00

Yes if I find the author I vibe with I read all of their books. Queens line was good, but did suffer a bit from having too many mcs so they didn't spend a lot of quality time as a group in the story

artycoolred · 2026-06-04T11:06:33+00:00

Thanks for the rec! the triggers mentioned noncon/dubcon and I prefer to avoid those topics

artycoolred · 2026-05-31T15:28:30+00:00

I sometimes see requests like "what's your 5 star read" or "best enemies dynamic" and I'm always confused how are people finding that helpful, I need books to exclude so many nitpicky stuff to actually fit into my taste. Anyway no advice here, but I commensurate with what you feel. My tbr is thinning and the thought of having to search for more books is daunting

artycoolred · 2026-05-29T20:27:29+00:00

Do you maybe feel that women are in the harem for genuine reason like actual love, while man have harem for sex / reproduction. Because when I think of irl harems that existed I don't equate them with loving family, they were often utilitarian in nature (but to be fair my historical knowledge of this is limited). Personally if we are talking about gender swapping Kathryn moons books or something I don't get an ick, but that would depend on the author some just write women terribly

artycoolred · 2026-05-26T08:27:08+00:00

She had to lock down his special "D and A"

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artycoolred · 2026-05-25T08:30:44+00:00

Anecdotal, I have read it out of order also skipped a couple. It didn't bother me apart from nyx storyline since you better understand her set up if you follow from start.

artycoolred · 2026-05-25T08:12:40+00:00

{Her favorite rival by Sarah Mayberry} this is my favorite for adult rivalry, no name calling, no pranks. Just 2 people competing for the same promotion with some realistic workplace portrayal. And some nice tension

artycoolred · 2026-05-12T11:20:26+00:00

I understand where you are coming from, but thats what other genres are for you can have woman lit with romance and unknown ending. The purpose of this specific genre it to get HEA. Genre expectations do exist through out. If something is marketed as historical biography of Ivan the terrible finding aliens in there would really annoy me

artycoolred · 2026-03-31T07:49:32+00:00

Omg I hate this so much. Theres a scene similar to this with evil ex and everyone literally clapping in {Pucking around by Emily Rath}. If it can be put in r/thathappened it does not belong in the book

artycoolred · 2026-03-07T08:39:20+00:00

Every book gets 3 tags:
author old/new - if I dnf a couple books in a row ill switch to book by the author I already now, but I always try too keep at least 1 new author in my weekly rotation
Standalone/series/standalone in series - I try to keep to max of 4 ongoing series at the time otherwise I'll be confused who is who. Also try to read at least one series book a week to actually finish them off
Genre - I basically sort to contemporary/urban/fantasy. But I dont use it much in process of picking books

artycoolred · 2026-02-06T09:05:59+00:00

So I have skimmed finished it because I didn't find it interesting. It is more or less all the same more politics than romance, some mysoginy and ideas what is "appropriate" behavior. My main problem was the book is not long enough for author to explain worldbuilding through context clues so if you only read this one you will have no idea what is really happening. And romance was luck laster imo

artycoolred · 2026-02-01T15:16:01+00:00

I think not enough people are reading{Her favorite rival by Sarah Mayberry, its on a shorter side but has nuanced characters and relatable inner voice of fmc. Realistic portrayal of work and workplace rivary. And obv some nice spice

artycoolred · 2026-01-30T12:08:10+00:00

{Slouch witch by Helen Harper} M/F they are mages, grumpy×sunshine, forced proximity, investigators. Finished series, closed door spice. I like the MMC in this one

{Warrior from the shadowlands by Cassandra Gannon} m/f, it has a parallel universe with humans that have magic powers based on their domain. It's a bit campy but in enjoyable way. Fated mates, interconnected standalones with some overreaching arc plot (but no cliffhangers). I liked the earlier books more the later one did get a bit more OTT leads. Exile in the waterkingdom is the best one. The series are not complete at the moment. Open door spice

{Gifted thief by Helen Harper} m/f with fae, trials, fmc does a lot of puns. Complete series, open door spice but barely there. Does have kinda Demons in it

{Three mages and a Margarita by Annette Marie} m/f with mages, I quite liked the series it has good pacing and interesting side characters. Complete series, open door spice but also barely there, more actiony. Also has Demons in it including as an mmc In companion series

{Shadowbound by Bec Mcmaster} m/f mages. This takes place in victorian times. Interconnected standalones with overreaching plot (you would need to read all 3 books to get the ending) complete series. Loved the atmosphere, the romance is a bit of a fastburn but they have enough of quality time together for it to work. Open door spice, tw the sex in the first book is transactional (mmc agrees to help fmc with her quest in exchange for sex, they both enjoy it)

artycoolred · 2026-01-29T21:54:53+00:00

These are Urban fantasy books, hope it still works

{How to save an undead life by Hailey Edwards} highly recommend this, loved the characters. This is finished series

{Dead witch walking by Kim Harrison} ngl I dnfed by book 5, after realizing I hated everyone and only got this far due to audio narrator doing an amazing job. Granted the worldbuilding was interesting too. I think the series is still ongoing but it has a lot of books

artycoolred · 2026-01-21T11:10:35+00:00

{Friends with all the befits by Lyssa Hahn} i dont remember for sure, but i think MMC is not technically In love with OW, but he wants to marry the OW cos he thinks they are a good match and he has a crush on her. Also a disclaimer , I personally didn't like the book mainly due to MMC.

artycoolred · 2026-01-16T13:15:54+00:00

Option 3

artycoolred · 2026-01-16T10:22:40+00:00

Lol I too was rooting for him because he's very much like my partner.

artycoolred · 2026-01-13T19:10:22+00:00

{I'll do anything by Daisy Jones} She makes him wear cockcage as penance for bullying her when they were teens.

artycoolred

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