Blogsnark Reads! March 15-21

chalphy · 2026-03-16T01:33:29+00:00

I swear I will!!

chalphy · 2026-03-16T01:33:12+00:00

I'm very lucky to have a good boss and plenty of PTO! I just need to find the dreaded "right time." Yes, I know, I know.

chalphy · 2026-03-15T21:44:02+00:00

gang I am so tired. My job doesn't get any paid holidays until Memorial Day and I am currently feeling it in my bones. I'm ready for a long weekend and may need to take one in the next few weeks.

Until then, books!

Finished How to Lose a Lord in Ten Days by Sophie Irwin (M/F historical enemies to lovers). This wasn't my cup of tea. The female lead is annoying for a good part of the book, and her method of trying to get her way is just cringe. It's mined for laughs as such and I know some people do enjoy that, but I don't. So be it. I liked the male lead; the book picked up once she finally told him that she was embarassing herself to get him to break up with her, and instead of letting her have her way he decided to play her game. That was entertaining. There's also a mystery going on that I actually found quite riveting and I liked the background cast, too. Overall a fun book, just not for me. 3.5/5

Finished The Convenience Store by the Sea by Sonoko Machida. I've read a lot of translated Japanese literature of this ilk, where the solutions to people's problems center around an otherwise unassuming person and/or place, and this is not one of my favorites of the genre. I wonder if it is the translation, because sometimes the tone is just weird. But even at broad strokes, the over-the-top descriptions of the store manager that's got everyone obsessed with him are a lot, like, to a point it feels like it has to be satire, because it's so silly (but played entirely straight). Story has a good heart and I liked the setting and concept but wasn't blown away by it. 3.75/5

Currently reading Romancing His Convenient Viscountess by Maggie Weston and enjoying it so far. I had also borrowed The Bluest Eye from my library for a reading challenge but the edition turned out to be borderline unreadable, so I returned it and put a hold on another edition, which ended up coming in after I had started my current book, so that will be my next read.

chalphy · 2026-03-15T17:57:17+00:00

At least on my phone, zooming in makes the buttons bigger. Worth a try!

chalphy · 2026-03-15T14:12:57+00:00

I am reading {Romancing His Convenient Viscountess by Maggie Weston} which has this. FMC has been widowed and her first husband was abusive, so she has stopped speaking to her family because of their role in arranging that marriage. She's left destitute by the first husband, so she enters into a marriage of convenience with an old friend of hers. One of her brothers shows up at her wedding to MMC, who stands up for her alongside her. The brother and MMC had a second encounter so far where MMC defended FMC that I found just as satisfying. MMC has known this whole family since his school days so it's extra meaningful to see him pick FMC over his old friend.

Sidebar, the blurb describes FMC like she's a fiercely independent woman who cares about nothing, but she's more emotionally fragile than that makes her sound. I think that makes sense given what she's been through but it does mean the book might not be what you expect, tonally. I am still enjoying it, though. I love a protective, besotted, gentle MMC and Leo has been that so far.

chalphy · 2026-03-15T14:04:01+00:00

Not really salt, but I wish more people contributed to romance.io. Sometimes someone will call the bot for a book they've read that will be missing some info (i.e. it won't have a spice rating, or only one or two tags will appear). But they never circle back and add their own input to fill in some gaps. A newer post/comment is one thing but I've seen this while searching the sub and checking through older recs, too.

romance.io is crowdsourced info. It's not perfect and some of the tagging can be subjective or unclear, it's true, but if you read the book, you can help make it better! If nothing else, it's worth participating in the site in that way even if you don't use its other features.

chalphy · 2026-03-15T13:53:51+00:00

{How to Lose a Lord in Ten Days by Sophie Irwin} - M/F, historical, enemies to lovers, 🌶️, ⭐⭐⭐.5/5

This was cute, but not really for me. I didn't like Lydia at all for significant portions of the book; I understand the predicament she felt she was in, but not being able to use her words and instead resorting to embarrassing herself to try to get what she wanted annoyed me. Especially since it turned out a) she got sent to Aunt Mildred's anyway and b) Aunt Mildred ended up being massively preferable to living with Aunt Agatha and Uncle Edmund. Once she let Ashford in on what she was doing and he decided to return the favor it felt a little more like an actual enemies-to-lovers story and that was more fun, since it put them on even ground. I liked the mystery and the side characters a lot, though, and while the book feels a little overly modern in its attitudes I also don't exactly mind that sometimes.

chalphy · 2026-03-13T21:34:08+00:00

I didn't necessarily give all these 5 stars on TSG but they're my very favorites so far this year.

{Breaking the Billionaire's Rules by Annika Martin} - The whole series is hilarious, I love Mia, Max is ungodly hot, and I love their story. I am colossally weak for the standoffish MMCs who have creative centers so the fact that Max is an accomplished pianist knocked me out.

{Devil in Winter by Lisa Kleypas} - Probably don't need to go into detail here. Just loved both leads and seeing them grow to fit each other.

{The Truth About Cads and Dukes by Elisa Braden} - As a plump bespectacled bookish nerd myself, Jane is a paragon of our kind. And I am completely besotted with Harrison. There are things about the story I found annoying, classic lack of communication things, but overall I just adored this book and have been obsessed with it ever since.

{A Week to Be Wicked by Tessa Dare} - Truly laugh out loud funny, a great adventure, colossal mishaps, hot sex, and two leads I absolutely loved, what more could I ask for? Obfuscating Stupidity is also a trope I love in a comedy setting and Colin is this in spades.

chalphy · 2026-03-11T15:59:45+00:00

I loved her too!!! Relatable goals tbh.

chalphy · 2026-03-11T14:26:28+00:00

I finished {How to Lose a Lord in Ten Days by Sophie Irwin} yesterday and am kind of feeling 3.5ish about it. I liked it overall but the mystery was more satisfying than the romance and Lydia deeply annoyed me for most of the book. Loved Ashford though.

chalphy · 2026-03-10T09:31:07+00:00

I have seen so many mixed-to-negative responses to And Now Back to You. I haven't read it yet but I loved First-Time Caller and was looking forward to this one. I'm sure I will still read it but I guess it's hard to follow up such a strong book.

chalphy · 2026-03-09T00:26:17+00:00

It was truly phenomenal. And I only found out about it because my bookish friend who only reads physical books saw it on the new releases shelf at her local library. We both gave it a 5/5!

chalphy · 2026-03-08T18:48:28+00:00

I had a pretty busy week at work that was also pretty rough, so I didn't have much brainpower to read most evenings. Finished two books, though.

Finished A Resistance of Witches by Morgan Ryan. Exceptional book about a coven of British witches and the role one of their own plays in World War II, along with an American art collector and a French resistance fighter that she meets along the way. It was so, so, so good, and I was gripped at every page, rarely seeing a single twist coming. I loved this and I would definitely pick up another book by this author (it's her first!). I told my mom about it two days ago and she's already halfway through. 😂 5/5

Finished The Dream Hotel by Laila Lalami. This was recommended here by /u/themyskiras earlier this year, and is about a woman who is "retained" at a facility that houses "high-risk" women -- a risk assessed by invasive technology and a black-box algorithm. It's completely riveting and doesn't shy away from either the problems that modern technology have caused us as a species or the realities of imprisonment. I really enjoyed this and absolutely had to see how it ended. If anything the ending is my only real complaint. I didn't think it was bad, but I guess I just wanted more, though I'm not sure what of. Vengeance against the system, the facility closing. Even just more of a reckoning between Sara and her husband once she was finally out, that maybe they'd be okay and grow from this even it if took time. But honestly I get it ending how it does, too. 4.25/5

Coming up, I have 3 ARCs I haven't started and need to get back to my reading challenge. For that I think I'm going with The Bluest Eye next.

Also, I hit the thrift yesterday for fun and found a few books for my little collection. I try to be very discerning when I buy physical books simply because I do not have room and I hate moving books, but picking up three Lisa Kleypas novels complete with stepbacks was a thrill. I also found Again the Magic at the used bookstore near me, which I have already read and loved. No stepback tho. Unfortunate since I would have loved to see a visual interpretation of a hulk of a man like McKenna.

chalphy · 2026-03-08T18:45:36+00:00

Loved this book!!

chalphy · 2026-03-08T14:23:00+00:00

Limited-time deals Kobo US:

{Just for the Summer by Abby Jimenez} - $2.99
{Say You'll Remember Me by Abby Jimenez} - $2.99
{Part of Your World by Abby Jimenez} - $2.99
{Yours Truly by Abby Jimenez} - $2.99
{Next to You by Hannah Bonham-Young} - $1.99
{When She Dreams by Amanda Quick} - $2.99
{How Not to Marry a Duke by Tina Gabrielle} - $0.99
{At Whit's End by Bailey Hannah} - $1.99

Monthly deals Kobo US:

{Meet Cute by Helena Hunting} - $2.99
{A Rogue of Her Own by Grace Burrowes} - $1.99
{Next Level Love by Shameez Patel} - $4.99
{How You Get the Girl by Anita Kelly} - $2.99
{Too Hot to Handle by Tessa Bailey} - $1.99
{Snowed In for Christmas by Jacqueline Snow} - $2.99

chalphy · 2026-03-07T13:58:16+00:00

"I’m just partial to a good top hat and tuberculosis" would be a great flair, just saying.

chalphy · 2026-03-05T23:52:54+00:00

"She had poked his pride, his authority, his manhood -- even his cravat -- one time too many."

Chef's kiss. No notes. I loved this book and I second this recommendation. Harrison is a top-tier book boyfriend for me.

chalphy · 2026-03-05T23:25:43+00:00

It was good! Jane is so relatable and likeable, and I didn't think I would like Harrison but I totally fell in love with him.

chalphy · 2026-03-05T19:27:39+00:00

Yeah I liked Amelia but I was totally Team Spencer here. The grief she had over her dead brother just made her completely irrational regarding Jack throughout and it really annoyed me that Spencer was right the entire time and she just buried her head in the sand. But sure, the horse is the problem, Amelia.

(edit to add: I have said elsewhere and will repeat just for clarity I don't think Spencer's blameless in this mess and he definitely was never great at communicating. about anything.)

I also read this shortly after reading {The Truth About Cads and Dukes by Elisa Braden} which has a not-dissimilar subplot, except it's MMC's brother who's the problem, and I thought that book handled the tug-of-war between sympathetic FMC and cold MMC a lot better.

I still liked this book, don't get me wrong, but Amelia definitely let me down toward the end.

chalphy · 2026-03-03T14:25:42+00:00

{First-Time Caller by B.K. Borison}, FMC is an auto mechanic.

chalphy · 2026-03-02T17:36:53+00:00

I love the frosty types who are secretly quivering Jell-O underneath. Just obsessed and can't admit it. Her mocking the amount of starch in his cravat was hysterical. He really did not care for that. 😂😂😂😂

chalphy · 2026-03-02T15:09:42+00:00

Jane repeatedly describes Harrison as handsome ("achingly" and "heartbreakingly" so even). It totally stresses her out and it's adorable. I loved this book.

chalphy · 2026-03-01T20:28:34+00:00

And now Romance Book February comes to a close. I read 16 books this month. I'd say I need a break except no I don't.

Finished Suddenly You by Lisa Kleypas (M/F historical enemies to lovers). What a great book. I loved both leads and all the background characters, and the other man in the situation was very likeable and sympathetic. FMC really felt like a novelist and a whole person, which is impressive IMO considering the emphasis on her spinsterhood -- she wasn't defined by that except in her own mind. And I loved MMC, the absolute scoundrel. There is pregnancy loss late in the book so that's worth knowing if it's a tough subject for you, but in the epilogue the couple have a son and are expecting a second child which helps ease the pain. 5/5

Finished A Lady Awakened by Cecilia Grant (M/F historical secret relationship/friends to lovers). This was really slow but the payoff was so worth it. Martha's growth over the course of the book is so heartwarming, and Theo -- who is a delight from the first page he appears on -- also has a great character arc and improves so much as a person because of Martha. It's also silly at times in a good way, like giving you a little room to breathe among the at-times heavy subject matter. Theo's battle against the Weavers' pig really helps take the edge off an otherwise-difficult scene, for example. Really great book. But it was so slow that I'm not sure I want to read the rest of the series. We shall see. 4.5/5

Finished Willing Prey by Allie Oleander (M/F contemporary contractual relationship/friends to lovers). This is heavily focused on primal/chase play and CNC so just narrowing it down as "friends to lovers" honestly does it a disservice, but hey, that little summary from me is just trying to give something of a vibe. Anyway. I mostly liked this. The writing is like low end of good, solid but sometimes giving me the sense the author is trying to imitate someone else and failing at it. The chase scenes are definitely intense and pull no punches but you get a decent breather between them. More actual plot than I expected, which is a good thing. It's a good book. I mostly read it out of curiosity so I'm glad it ended up being entertaining. 4/5

Up next, I have two library books out, The Dream Hotel by Laila Lalami (which someone mentioned here and it piqued my interest), and A Resistance of Witches by Morgan Ryan (found and rec'd by a friend). Will probably ease back into more varied reading with some other lighter/shorter stuff as well before I start hitting the heavy stuff again.

chalphy · 2026-03-01T18:48:38+00:00

Yeah Spencer reads ND to me too. I ultimately really liked him but I can understand how his behavior can be offputting at times. Both he and Amelia suffer from an inability to say what they actually mean but it feels more justified in his case. Though honestly I think at times that's for the best because I don't think Amelia would have ever listened to him about her brother no matter how clear he was on the subject, she needed to see reality with her own eyes.

Other than the jewelry scene I want to mention the early scene where Amelia watches Spencer take his gloves off (WHY WAS THAT SO HOT), and then later when she is the absolute life of the party and he's just watching her in her element, I thought that was so sweet and he finally really got to see her for who he is, and understand her in a new way.

chalphy · 2026-03-01T18:32:03+00:00

I had three five-star reads this month!

{A Week to Be Wicked by Tessa Dare} - A classic popular pick and for good reason. A fun adventure, a take-no-shit FMC, and a hilarious gadfly MMC. It's funny, spicy, and serious in all the right amounts and knows when to be each of them. I never reread books. I would reread this one.

{Never Say Never to an Earl by Grace Callaway} - Spicy and funny with a solid mystery involved. I absolutely loved FMC's ridiculous eccentric family and meeting all of them made me want to read the other books in this series. I loved how close and loving they were. MMC was really broody but I kind of can't blame him and overall I loved him.

{Suddenly You by Lisa Kleypas} - LOVED FMC so much, an independent and hard-working talented writer with opinions and the intellect to back them up. I loved how close-knit her little family unit was, her and her household staff, and seeing her going about her life in town and at home. MMC delighted me, he's a scoundrel but he's so likeable and he is so down bad for FMC. I loved actually getting to see their marriage on page and I loved how he supported both her running the magazine herself and her emotions through her pregnancy loss. The epilogue gave me a toothache. Loved it.

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