A Lovely Little Book Blog

Books are political

recent posts

about

30 something year old writer, reader and member of the Travel Industry. I used to read more than I do, so it’s all about getting that enthusiasm back.
  • Review: Assistant to the Villain

    Review: Assistant to the Villain

    Title: Assistant to the Villain
    Author: Hannah Nicole Maehrer
    Series: Assistant to the Villain
    About this book:

    ASSISTANT WANTED: Notorious, high-ranking villain seeks loyal, levelheaded assistant for unspecified office duties, supporting staff for random mayhem and terror, and other Dark Things In General. Discretion a must. Excellent benefits.

    With ailing family to support, Evie Sage’s employment status isn’t just important, it’s vital. So when a mishap with Rennedawn’s most infamous Villain results in a job offer―naturally, she says yes. No job is perfect, of course, but even less so when you develop a teeny crush on your terrifying, temperamental, and undeniably hot boss. Don’t find evil so attractive, Evie.

    But just when she’s getting used to severed heads suspended from the ceiling and the odd squish of an errant eyeball beneath her heel, Evie suspects this dungeon has a huge rat…and not just the literal kind. Because something rotten is growing in the kingdom of Rennedawn, and someone wants to take the Villain―and his entire nefarious empire―out.

    Now Evie must not only resist drooling over her boss but also figure out exactly who is sabotaging his work…and ensure he makes them pay.

    After all, a good job is hard to find.

    (more…)
  • Review: The Good Vampire’s Guide to Blood and Boyfriends

    Review: The Good Vampire’s Guide to Blood and Boyfriends

    Title: The Good Vampire’s Guide to Blood and Boyfriends
    Author: Jamie D’Amato
    Series: N/A
    TW: Attempted Suicide, anxiety and depression.
    About this Book: It’s only natural nineteen-year-old Brennan’s life would be upended by something as ridiculous and unexpected as turning into a vampire. But if there’s one thing Brennan can do, it’s pretend everything’s fine when he’s close to losing his mind. Brennan has just clawed his way back to Sturbridge University after recovering from a suicide attempt, and this is not the new life he was hoping for.

    Brennan’s newly bloodthirsty existence gets way more complicated when Cole, the super cute librarian and everyone’s campus crush, stumbles on Brennan drinking from a stolen blood bag. Luckily, adorable Cole is happy to keep Brennan’s secret, and even seems to maybe like him? Navigating a new relationship is hard enough without the added struggles of vampire puberty, an eclectic clan of self-proclaimed “good” vampires, and growing feelings for the one person who makes Brennan feel normal. With swirling rumors of a missing student and a rise in strange “animal attacks” near campus, Brennan must uncover the secrets of the clan and figure out how to balance vampirism and humanity, or risk losing the first real friends he’s ever had.

    My Thoughts:

    (more…)
  • Review: Go Luck Yourself

    Review: Go Luck Yourself

    Title: Nightmare Before Kissmas
    Author: Sara Raasch
    Series: Royals and Romance
    About this Book: Here
    Source: My local library.
    Would I buy it? Abso-freaking-lutely.

    My Thoguhts: Sara Raasch gave Kris his own book. I screamed. I shouted. I kicked my legs in glee.

    This is not the same Kris you meet in Nightmare Before Kissmas, this is more mischievous version who plays pranks on people who aren’t his brother Coal. And I love him for it.

    He also loves a private study space. Can’t blame him there.

    This book sure has a somewhat explosive beginning and I am most definitely not going to complain about that either.

    Kris is easy to identify with, unsure of what he wants to do with his life and finding himself on the path of what’s expected of him instead of leaning into his likely dream.

    (more…)
  • Review: Nightmare Before Kissmas

    Review: Nightmare Before Kissmas

    Title: Nightmare Before Kissmas
    Author: Sara Raasch
    Series: Royals and Romance
    About this Book: Here
    Source: My local library.
    Would I buy it? Abso-freaking-lutely. Just waiting for the money to do so.

    My Thoughts:

    These characters were so completely and utterly easy to fall in love with.

    Nicholas aka Coal is grumpy, sad, and completely hilarious and easy to love. He is not dedicated to anything except his brother and the seeming destruction of his life including kissing a hot as hell stranger behind a bar. He is the epitome of longing, constantly thinking about this strange, mysterious bar worker. He loves Christmas, in the same way that I love the winter holidays, when it’s filled with memories of family, of giving and warmth and joy, and less about competition in giving the best present, or who can win in the corporate world.

    Hex. What can I say about Hex? I adore him? He’s lowkey hilarious and no one would expect it from him which is actually somehow even better. He wears CORSET VESTS. I adore a man that cares about fashion. His angst became my angst, his jokes made me laugh out loud and god, the love he feels for his holiday and family just made me want to swoon.

    (more…)
  • Review: Death at Morning House by Maureen Johnson

    Review: Death at Morning House by Maureen Johnson

    Title: Death at Morning House
    Author: Maureen Johnson
    TW: Talk of eugenics, not the main character.
    About this Book: The fire wasn’t Marlowe Wexler’s fault. Dates should be hot, but not hot enough to warrant literal firefighters. Akilah, the girl Marlowe has been in love with for years, will never go out with her again. No one dates an accidental arsonist.

    With her house-sitting career up in flames, it seems the universe owes Marlowe a new summer job, and that’s how she ends up at Morning House, a mansion built on an island in the 1920s and abandoned shortly thereafter. It’s easy enough, giving tours. Low risk of fire. High chance of getting bored talking about stained glass and nut cutlets and Prohibition.

    Oh, and the deaths. Did anyone mention the deaths?

    Maybe this job isn’t such a gift after all. Morning House has a horrific secret that’s been buried for decades, and now the person who brought her here is missing.

    All it takes is one clue to set off a catastrophic chain of events. One small detail, just like a spark, could burn it all down—if someone doesn’t bury Marlowe first.

    (more…)
  • Review: Nine Liars by Maureen Johnson

    Review: Nine Liars by Maureen Johnson

    Title: Nine Liars
    Author: Maureen Johnson
    Series: Truly Devious
    About this book: Senior year at Ellingham Academy for Stevie Bell isn’t going well. Her boyfriend, David, is studying in London. Her friends are obsessed with college applications. With the cold case of the century solved, Stevie is adrift. There is nothing to distract her from the questions pinging around her brain—questions about college, love, and life in general.

    Relief comes when David invites Stevie and her friends to join him for study abroad, and his new friend Izzy introduces her to a double-murder cold case. In 1995, nine friends from Cambridge University went to a country house and played a drunken game of hide-and-seek. Two were found in the woodshed the next day, murdered with an axe.

    The case was assumed to be a burglary gone wrong, but one of the remaining seven saw something she can’t explain. This was no break-in. Someone’s lying about what happened in the woodshed.

    Seven suspects. Two murders. One killer still playing a deadly game.

    (more…)
  • Review: Star Wars: Jango Fett – Trail of Lost Hope by Ethan Sacks and Luke Ross

    Review: Star Wars: Jango Fett – Trail of Lost Hope by Ethan Sacks and Luke Ross

    Title: Star Wars: Jango Fett – Trail of Lost Hope
    Creators: Ethan Sacks and Luke Ross
    About this book: The legendary Mandalorian bounty hunter Jango Fett embarks on a brand-new mission!

    Jango Fett, father of Boba Fett and legendary bounty hunter, has a bounty to find! A mystery to solve! And a treaty at risk! But can even the galaxy’s most formidable bounty hunter achieve all his goals with the dangerous and deadly Aurra Sing in the mix?!

    COLLECTING: Star Wars: Jango Fett (2024) 1-4, Star Wars: Revelations (2023) 1 (Story 5)

    This series of comics takes place pre-Clone Wars, and pre-Jango’s first contact with the Sith known as Darth Tyranus but after Galidraan for those wondering.

    (more…)
  • Review: Dream Girl Drama

    Review: Dream Girl Drama

    Title: Dream Girl Drama
    Author: Tessa Bailey
    Series: Big Shots
    Release Date: February 4, 2025
    About this Book: Here
    Source: My bookshelf.
    Would I buy it for someone else? Absolutely

    My Thoughts?

    How much do I love a Tessa Bailey book? Let me count the ways (all the ways). This book, the third in the Big Shots series, involved two characters I had been hoping to get more information about from the get-go.

    Yes, I’m talking about Sig Gauthier and Chloe Clifford. The “tough as nails” hockey player, and the girl who everyone underestimates.

    These two could not be more different and maybe that’s why I love them so much. Sig drives an old vehicle which is constantly threatening to break down and Chloe has grown up never knowing what public transit might be like.

    Sig is a big softie when it comes to her, when he should be firm, and firm when he should be soft (not in that way, although…)

    Chloe is learning how to do things without her mother, who, to be honest, needs to learn how to loosen the reigns on her wild-hearted child. She is the epitomy of living through your child and god, I hated her so much.

    Will everyone like Chloe? No, probably not, but I definitely had a soft spot for her. Did I identify with her? No, but it was really good to see how the other half lives, and what it could be like to no longer be able to do so.

    Can’t lie, the plot of step-siblings feeling romantic feelings toward each other will always make me think of Clueless, and I’m not even mad about it. Is it taboo? Yes. Do these two deserve to be together more than their parents do? Yes. (Sorry, Chloe’s mom.)

    This book is an easy read, and the banter is always world class when it comes to Tessa Bailey, and I’m so glad these two got their day in print.

    And as with all Tessa Bailey books, this was spicy af.

  • Review: The Mask of Fear

    Review: The Mask of Fear

    Title: The Mask of Fear
    Author: Alexander Freed
    Series: Star Wars: Reign of the Empire (Book 1)
    Release Date: February 25, 2025
    About this Book: Here
    Source: My shelf
    Would I buy it as a gift for someone? Abso-freaking-lutely. In fact I already have.

    My Thoughts:

    You might want to smack Bail Organa after reading parts of this book. It’s honestly amazing the rebellion got off the ground at all, if he was involved in it in the state that he’s in in this book. The dude is straight up a Jedi fanboy, which I feel, but this is not the level-headed Bail Organa you see in Revenge of the Sith, nor is it the one you see in Star Wars: Rebels or even the one that you get a glimpse of in Kenobi. This is Bail Organa cranked up to eleven, uncaring about anything except how to take down the ever-so-powerful Palpatine, somehow even if it gets him and everyone around him in deep Kark.

    (more…)
  • Review: Beauty Queens by Libba Bray

    Review: Beauty Queens by Libba Bray

    Title: Beauty Queens
    Author: Libba Bray
    Trigger Warning: Abandonment, misogyny, homophobia, transphobia, mentions of eating disorders, sexual assault and harassment,

    About this book:

    Survival. Of the fittest. The fifty contestants in the Miss Teen Dream Pageant thought this was going to be a fun trip to the beach, where they could parade in their state-appropriate costumes and compete in front of the cameras. But sadly, their airplane had another idea, crashing on a desert island and leaving the survivors stranded with little food, little water, and practically no eyeliner.

    What’s a beauty queen to do? Continue to practice for the talent portion of the program – or wrestle snakes to the ground? Get a perfect tan – or learn to run wild? And what should happen when the sexy pirates show up? Welcome to the heart of non-exfoliated darkness.

    (more…)