{DNF Review} Simmer Down by Sarah Smith

 Page count:  320

Published on: October 13, 2020

Published by: Berkley

Genres: Adult contemporary romance

Rating: DNF

Goodreads synopsis:

In this finger-licking good rom-com, two is the perfect number of cooks in the kitchen.

Nikki DiMarco knew life wouldn’t be all sunshine and coconuts when she quit her dream job to help her mom serve up mouthwatering Filipino dishes to hungry beach goers, but she didn’t expect the Maui food truck scene to be so eat-or-be-eaten—or the competition to be so smoking hot.

But Tiva’s Filipina Kusina has faced bigger road bumps than the arrival of Callum James. Nikki doesn’t care how delectable the British food truck owner is—he rudely set up shop next to her coveted beach parking spot. He’s stealing her customers and fanning the flames of a public feud that makes her see sparks.

The solution? Let the upcoming Maui Food Festival decide their fate. Winner keeps the spot. Loser pounds sand. But the longer their rivalry simmers, the more Nikki starts to see a different side of Callum…a sweet, protective side. Is she brave enough to call a truce? Or will trusting Callum with her heart means jumping from the frying pan into the fire?

~~~~

Hey, guys!

A couple of months ago I was approved to read Sarah Smith's 2020 novel, Simmer Down; however, this reading experience didn't go as expected. Unfortunately, I didn't enjoy it as much as I anticipated. In fact, I DNF'd it. 

If you've been following me on Instagram and Goodreads, you've probably seen the massive amount of romance novels -- a romance binge if you will. However, Simmer Down just wasn't what I was looking for. I've heard so many wonderful things about the author's work, but I was really let down by this novel. When going into this novel, I was really excited to read about food trucks, Hawaii, Filipino foods, and the promise of a heavy familial influence was really promising. However, when hitting the half-way mark of this story, I began to lose interest. By the 60% mark, I was completely bored and any of my interest in the story had disappeared.

This was just not for me. 

By 60%, I had begun to feel like the romance was forced and the angst and predictable conflict that naturally develops in romances just felt boring and uninspired. Their relationship, unfortunately, didn't really develop as I had hoped. They got together far too quickly, it wasn't even shown on-page, and it just was really frustrating. The moments that you would want from a romance -- the scenes where they begin to actually fall for each other -- were glazed over and their happiness in their relationship was established far too quickly. The angst that could come from the slightly forbidden aspect of their relationship was just nonexistent. The scene that allowed the characters to come into continuous contact was just really unrealistic and the heroine's behavior drastically changed in order to let that scene pan out.

Overall, I didn't like this story. I DNF'd at 60% and I don't plan on picking it back up. I know that this romance will definitely be something that other readers will enjoy, but it wasn't the kind of romance that I enjoy.

Happy reading!
Olivia
~Liv the Book Nerd~
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{Review} Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes (The Hunger Games #0.5) by Suzanne Collins

Page count:  439

Published on: May 9, 2020

Published by: Scholastic Press

Genres: YA dystopia, science fiction

Rating: 4 stars

Goodreads synopsis:

It is the morning of the reaping that will kick off the tenth annual Hunger Games. In the Capital, eighteen-year-old Coriolanus Snow is preparing for his one shot at glory as a mentor in the Games. The once-mighty house of Snow has fallen on hard times, its fate hanging on the slender chance that Coriolanus will be able to outcharm, outwit, and outmaneuver his fellow students to mentor the winning tribute.

The odds are against him. He's been given the humiliating assignment of mentoring the female tribute from District 12, the lowest of the low. Their fates are now completely intertwined -- every choice Coriolanus makes could lead to favor or failure, triumph or ruin. Inside the arena, it will be a fight to the death. Outside the arena, Coriolanus starts to feel for his doomed tribute... and must weigh his need to follow the rules against his desire to survive no matter what it takes.

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Hey, guys!

When Ballad was first announced, I was really excited to dive back into the world of the Hunger Games, but really, I was just ecstatic to read more from Suzanne Collins. Her books and style are just so well done and give me so much nostalgia for a simpler time. When I first read the Hunger Games series, I was in middle school and the class that I was in was so much fun. I've never had a classroom dynamic like that since. Additionally, Collins' Underland Chronicles are just freaking fantastic. I definitely want to do a reread soon because they are flawless. Read them.

Surprisingly, Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes was genuinely a good read and didn't disappoint. I'm not saying that because it was a nostalgic experience, I'm really impressed with how this book was written. 

There are a lot of readers who were just not happy with how this book was laid out and I can see how their reading experience would lead them to their conclusions. However, I fully believe that everyone reads differently. When I started this book I was purely looking to have my questions answered when it comes to how Snow became so freaking evil, how the Capitol became what it was, and how the war went down initially.  

Snow is obviously malevolent and the bad guy in the original trilogy. There was no way that Collins could escape the actual terror that Snow inflicted upon so many people. But -- hear me out. Reading how his villain origin story developed was deliciously fascinating. When I read this book, I found myself really connecting with Snow. His thought processes were flawed, but his grappling feelings about good, evil, morality, justice, etc. were so fascinating. He seems to be a fairly morally gray character at first, but he really dives deep into his flawed, greedy perspective as the novel develops. It's just so interesting to me! To me, Ballad is fascinating because it's a character study, an examination of how a great nation can fall into evil and greed, and how hardship can cause a nation to be incredibly divided and brainwashed into separatist ideals. 

This book wasn't perfect. There were moments where I felt like things were drawn out too far and the pacing would lag. The romance? -- Shouldn't have happened. However, I enjoyed the dynamic between the two, but I really wish that the book had been broken up between Lucy Gray and Snow's perspective in a sort of dual perspective execution. I feel like it would have really added a sense of complexity to the whole situation. While Lucy Gray was incredibly mysterious and smart, I really wanted a peek into her mind. I have so many questions about her intentions and character development. I would have loved to get a glimpse of her experience in the arena. The parts about the development of the Games and the behind the scenes parts of the Games were interesting, but it grew kind of tiresome and bleh because we weren't in the thick of the action.     

Though the last 40% of the book was a bit slow and the stakes were supposed to be high, but you knew they were pretty low considering you knew Snow would eventually become what he is. But, I still enjoyed so many of the smaller elements. There were so many lovely references to the original trilogy and even more hints toward how Katniss's world became so bleak. I really enjoyed the stepping stones that Collins laid out that led you to discover how so many practices, laws, etc. came to be -- especially in the Capitol and District 12. 

Overall, I really liked this book. It made me incredibly emotional and the analysis that I did while reading this book made me really nostalgic for the original trilogy, really overwhelmed and sad for the world we are in today (because there were so many elements that were far too relevant, and it just made me have even more questions. I would have loved to have a sort of anthology with the history of Panem, the history of the games, and the influence that each of the Games had on Panem's overall culture and way of life. I love Suzanne Collins and I cannot wait to read more from her. 

I definitely encourage you to check this out if you're interested. It's a pretty polarizing read, but I think a lot of HG lovers will find things to take from it.

If you're interested to read my thoughts on the Hunger Games trilogy (2015-reread), I have a full series review up on my blog. If you're interested in reading my thoughts or following a reading vlog where I discuss the books with what I've learned from my last 4 years of college, let me know! I'd love to reread, annotate, and analyze these books. 

Happy reading,

Olivia

~ Liv the Book Nerd ~

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{Review} A Heart of Blood & Ashes (A Gathering of Dragons #1) by Milla Vane

Page Count: 560

Published On: February 4, 2020

Published By: Berkley Romance

Genre(s): Adult romantic fantasy

Source: mass-market paperback personally purchased/listened to for FREE on Hoopla

Where To Find It: Amazon // Book Depository

My Rating: 3.5 stars

 

Goodreads synopsis:

A generation past, the western realms were embroiled in endless war. Then the Destroyer came. From the blood and ashes, he left behind, a tenuous alliance rose between the barbarian riders of Parsathe and the walled kingdoms of the south. That alliance is all that stands against the return of an ancient evil--until the barbarian king and queen are slain in an act of bloody betrayal.

Though forbidden by the alliance council to kill the corrupt king responsible for his parents' murders, Maddek vows to avenge them, even if it costs him the Parsathean crown. But when he learns it was the king's daughter who lured his parents to their deaths, the barbarian warrior is determined to make her pay.

Yet the woman Maddek captures is not what he expected. Though the last in a line of legendary warrior-queens, Yvenne is small and weak, and the sharpest weapons she wields are her mind and her tongue. Even more surprising is the marriage she proposes to unite them in their goals and to claim their thrones--because her desire for vengeance against her father burns even hotter than his own... 

 

~ ~ ~

 Hey, guys!

I'm really not sure how to review this book... I enjoyed many aspects of it, but there was a lot that I couldn't mesh with. There was so much to unpack on every page and it definitely wasn't the easy read I was looking to start 2020 Tome Topple with... Granted, that isn't a bad thing at all, but I've been reading so many historical romances lately, that this was almost a culture shock (even though I absolutely adore fantasy).

I really wish that GR would implement the 1/2 and 1/4 stars. This book is probably going to get 3.5 stars because there was a lot that I liked, but not enough to give it 4 stars. I wish I had loved this more because it's definitely my jam.

This was recommended to me by the lovely Taylor from BaeCrate and other wonderful members of the BaeClub/BaeCrate group on Facebook. When the blurb mentioned "dragons" and a marriage of convenience, I needed it. This was also my first dip into the romantic fantasy genre. I've read quite a lot of fantasy/high fantasy novels WITH romance, but this novel had a focus on the romance that was being developed throughout. Before, I really didn't think I liked romance-heavy stories, but now I'm converted, and I can't wait to read more. This was a really enjoyable novel, but it had some flaws that I just didn't jive with.

For one thing, I didn't feel like the characters were written as well as they could be. When I was reading or listening, it just felt like they were missing an extra element that would have allowed me to be connected to them or care about what they really did. I wasn't INVESTED. When really lovely characters that I enjoyed got hurt or died, I didn't feel anything at all...which breaks my heart! I wanted to care! Maybe it was because of the different writing style they used, but I couldn't connect with the main couple at all. Whenever I would be on the edge of my seat, the next scene would just lose me. I was bored quite a lot in this book because it would go off on a tangent/info-dump that I didn't want to know about then. I really just wanted a lot more of the characters.

This was a deliciously slow-building romance. I was dying for Yvenne and Maddek to interact and just TALK and hash out their feelings, but they were stubborn as heck -- especially Maddek. Maddek was so hot, but such a stubborn meathead. GRANTED, for the entire book he is grieving for the loss of his parents and struggling to move past the anger and hurt that he's faced because of the lies that are spread about their demise, but holy cow. He can go from being such a sweetheart to a royal dick within a page. I loved it. Yvenne was so stubborn and fit him so well. I loved how she stood up for herself consistently and didn't let the alphaholes step all over her when they thought they knew what was best. She was so wise beyond her years and didn't allow the terrible terrible things that happened to her define how she served her people. She was such a well-developed character. She had her flaws and shortcomings and she wasn't physically able to do all that was expected of her (cue the abuse), but she worked past it to do all that she possibly COULD do. [ Additionally, I loved that Maddek didn't stop her from attempting to push her limits, but when she did push them too far, he would counsel her and help her heal from whatever she did. He didn't know it until it was screamed at him, but holy crap he's such a softy for Yvenne. (hide spoiler)]

ALSO! The side characters were so lovely. I wanted so much more from them. I wish they had been described more -- PHYSICALLY! I have no idea what they look like at all other than vague and general descriptors -- gender, beards, general conversational vibes. I also couldn't keep track of all the names a lot of the time. That's probably on me, but I wish there had been a list of characters or some sort of character art for me to refer to. Someone, please send me all of the fanart. If there isn't fanart, can someone artistically inclined make some? Pretty please?

It's so obvious to me that this author has so much talent and I loved the complexities of her world and the complexities of her characters. There is so much skill that was put into their setting, world-building, and the political aspects that came with such a complex world. However, it was hard to stay immersed if I couldn't connect with the characters. There were so many great lines and conversations, but I felt like the characters were overshadowed by the world and the info-dumping that tended to occur throughout.

I'm excited to read the second book in the series. I really liked how the story developed and progressed. I just wish that there had been more physical descriptions of the book and more character interaction.

The issues that I had with this story, I think, are because of my own preferences. I prefer to read character-based stories. Take it how you will. I'm not trying to bash the book. I really did like it.

Happy reading!

Olivia

~ Liv the Book Nerd ~

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Most Anticipated Winter & Spring 2020 Releases

Hey, guys!

There are so many wonderful books coming out in 2020! There is no way that I'm going to get to them...for goodness sake, I have at least 70 on my Goodreads shelf alone. Here are the 14 books that are on my radar and my 5-star predictions. There are only three authors (bottom row) that I have never read on this list, but I'm confident that they are going to be excellent reads. 


This year is probably going to be the year of library check-outs and tackling my physical TBR because I can honestly not afford to buy all the new releases this year. I've decided to really cut down on my book-buying and to focus on the books that I have right now, rather than acquiring more books that I won't read right away. It sounds like common sense, but I get so tempted in book stores. It's wild.

Here are the books that I'm anticipating the most from 2020! I plan to read every single one of them in 2020.

      

• A Heart So Fierce and Broken by Brigid Kemmerer - January 7
• Woven in Moonlight by Isabel Ibanez - January 7
• Beyond the Shadowed Earth by Joanna Ruth Meyer - January 14
• Lucky Caller by Emma Mills - January 14

Once again, January is beginning with a bang. There are so many fantastic books from my favorite people that are being published. I'm so jazzed to continue on with the ACSDAL series and read some more stand-alones by my favorites.

• House of Earth and Blood (Crescent City #1) by Sarah J. Maas -- March 3
• Docile by K.M. Szpara - March 3
• Undercover Bromance by Lyssa Kay Adams - March 10
• The Consequences of Loving Me by Kat Singleton - March 19
• The Honey-Don't List by Christina Lauren - March 24

Another month of fantastic releases! I'm so so so excited for House of Earth and Blood. It's my most anticipated read of 2020. I need it in my hands as soon as possible. You bet your butt that I'll be spending the beginning of March tackling this massive book. I've also heard so many interesting and intriguing things about Docile. I cannot wait to give it a try. Of course I had to add the new Bromance Book Club book to my list. I've already read an ARC of it, but I'm so excited to have a finished copy. 

• Check Please! Book 2: Sticks and Scones by Ngozi Ukazu - April 7
• The Heart Principle by Helen Hoang - May 4
• The Betrothed by Kiera Cass - May 5 
• Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo -May 14
• The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins - May 19

I'm not sure how I became so blessed to be alive for so many of my favorites continued releases, but holy cow, I'm so freaking jazzed for the Helen Hoang's newest book, Kiera Cass's newest book, Suzanne Collins is back????, Elizabeth Acevedo has a new release that sounds just fabulous, and we're getting another collected volume of Check Please!? How are we so blessed? I'm so excited to read all of these books. My heart rate is already going nuts just thinking of getting my hands on these books.

Which 2020 releases are you the most excited for? Which of the books from this list have you heard of and which are completely new to you? Let's discuss in the comments!

Happy reading!
Olivia
~ Liv the Book Nerd ~

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