Leslie and I are planning a group read for Dungeon Crawler Carl starting in January 2026! Find more details on Leslie’s page or at the end of this post!
Hello, hello and welcome back to another episode of WWW Wednesday, a weekly meme hosted by Sam @ Taking On A World of Words, which means I’ll be answering these questions:
Special thanks to the Rachel Quin for providing me a digital ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review!
Pitcher Perfect (Big Shots #4)
Publisher: Avon
Publication Date: 9 September 2025
Genre: Adult Contemporary Sports Romance
Panda Rating:
(3.5 pandas)
#1 New York Times bestselling author Tessa Bailey is back with an all-new enemies-to-lovers, fake-dating sports romance about a playboy hockey rookie and the disciplined softball pitcher completely immune to his charms.
Boston Bearcats rookie Robbie Corrigan is living the dream. Heโs made it to the NHL, his best friend/teammate and fellow โorgasm donorโ is his roomieโand the women of Boston love them both. Life is sweet. That is, until he meets Skylar Paige, division 1 softball pitcher, girl least likely to take anyoneโs bullโฆand the one member of the opposite sex immune to his charms. Robbie might be dazzled by the badass pitcher, but Skylar pegs him as a filthy player and wants nothing to do with him.
When he discovers sheโs carrying a serious torch for her brotherโs best friend, Robbie knows he should just go back to clubbing and whipped cream bikini parties, but he canโt seem to leave Skylar to flounder on her romantic quest to land another man. Nor can he miss out on the opportunity to spend time with her and hopefully redeem himself. Before Robbie knows it, heโs agreed to be Skylarโs fake boyfriend/love coach at an upcoming family wilderness competition where her crush will be in attendance. What could go wrong?
Through a series of contests that require them to trust each other, Robbie and Skylar grow closer and closer until their fake relationship starts to feel like the realest thing theyโve ever known and the sizzling lessons in sensuality burn out of control.
But itโs all just pretendโฆright?
Near drowning incident (on-page)
TL;DR: Pitcher Perfect wound up being a surprisingly fun fake-dating time?! I really enjoyed the banter between Robbie and Skylar but I also loved the sweeter, quieter, and more intimate (non sexual) moments between them. Skylar didn’t need anyone to rescue her, but she could’ve used someone vocal in her corner, and that’s exactly what she got from him. He was a surprisingly great cheerleader and I loved how hard he believed in her and how quickly he recognized how amazing she is and how lucky he got. While some of the steamy scenes had me cringing a fair bit, and I wish that we got to see more interactions with side characters, this gave me a giggle, made me blush, and I had a fun time with it!
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September… What happened in September? Not a whole lot, really. The highlight of the month was celebrating mum’s 70th birthday, which was surprisingly low-key. It was nice though, and I enjoyed spending time with her and her siblings who joined the festivities. Other than that, I got a new desk set up, which I’m feeling pretty half-half about at the moment.
I love how big it is and how I have more shelf space to put books and my knick-knacks (although it is looking a little bare at the mo), but I’m not keen on the desk part being so wobbly. It’s especially bad with my monitor on this arm cos it’s like, one touch of my desk and it wobbles like it’s going to break. ๐คฃ I guess I can’t complain considering the desk set up was less than $50… ๐คญ Let’s how long it lasts thoughโI sometimes feel if I put too much pressure in the centre of it (where my wrist wrest is), it’ll cave (or at least bend) in, haha. Not ideal!
Read More » Leslie and I are planning a group read for Dungeon Crawler Carl starting in January 2026! Find more details on Leslie’s page or at the end of this post!
Hello, hello and welcome back to another episode of WWW Wednesday, a weekly meme hosted by Sam @ Taking On A World of Words, which means I’ll be answering these questions:
A Pho Love Story
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Children’s UK
Pub Date: 18 February 2021
Genre: YA Contemporary
Panda Rating:
(actual rating: 3.75 pandas rounded up!)
All’s fair in love, war and noodles . . .
If Bao Nguyen had to describe himself, heโd say he was a rock. Steady and strong, but not particularly interesting. His grades are average, his social status unremarkable. He works at his parentsโ pho restaurant, and even there, he is his parentsโ fifth favorite employee.
If Linh Mai had to describe herself, sheโd say she was a firecracker. Stable when unlit, but full of potential for joy and spark and fire. She loves art, and she dreams of making a career of it one day. The only problem? Her parents rely on her in ways theyโre not willing to admit, including expecting her to work practically full-time at their familyโs pho restaurant.
For decades, the Mais and the Nguyens have been at odds, having owned competing, neighboring pho restaurants. Bao and Linh have resolved never to befriend each other, for fear of pushing too far and bringing on undue heartbreak. But when a chance encounter brings Linh and Bao closer, sparks fly . . .
Can Linh and Baoโs love survive in the midst of feuding families and complicated histories?
This delicious debut is perfect for fans of When Dimple Met Rishi and To All the Boys Iโve Love Before.
Racism, cultural appropriation, Vietnam War mentioned, death of family member (recounted)
TL;DR: While I can see the appeal of this book, especially for the young adult audience, but I unfortunately didn’t end up loving it as much as I thought I would. Part of that might have to do with my elevated expectations but, despite the interesting family history and the blossoming romance between Bao and Linh, it was the pacing that really did it for me. The pacing dragged the story down immensely and with the ‘slice-of-life’ style of storytelling, it made for an incredibly slow read. That said, I did enjoy the family drama, learning about Vietnamese history, the Vietnamese food, the journey to find one’s passion, and of course, all the art. If any of that sounds appealing to you, I would recommend this coming-of-age contemporary!
Read More » Leslie and I are planning two group reads in the coming months! Find more details on Leslie’s page or at the end of this post!
Hello, hello and welcome back to another episode of WWW Wednesday, a weekly meme hosted by Sam @ Taking On A World of Words, which means I’ll be answering these questions:
Leslie and I are planning two group reads in the coming months! Find more details on Leslie’s page or at the end of this post!
Hello, hello and welcome back to another episode of WWW Wednesday, a weekly meme hosted by Sam @ Taking On A World of Words, which means I’ll be answering these questions:
Hi friends, I’m back for another blog tour today! I’m excited to share my thoughts as part of the blog tour hosted by Toppling Stacks Tours for The Wicked Lies of Habren Faire by Anna Fiteni.
Thanks to Little, Brown Books for Young Readers for providing a digital ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review!
Click the banner above or here to check out the other incredible bloggers on the blog tour!
The Wicked Lies of Habren Faire
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Publication Date: 9 September 2025
Genre: Young Adult Fantasy
Rep: LGBTQIA+, disability
Rating:
(4 pandas)
An irresistible dark fae romantasy, inspired by Welsh mythology and perfect for fans of Sarah J. Maas, Faebound, Leigh Bardugo and Holly Blackโs The Cruel Prince.
Ceridwen Parry has run away with the fairies.
But this is not her story.
For Sabrina Parry, the world is tough, cruel and practical. With her father in prison, her aims in life are 1. hold onto her job, 2. hold her tongue and 3. set up her sister Ceridwen with a man rich enough to look after her. Ceridwen is lovely, romantic, timid โ everything that Sabrina isnโt. But then Ceridwen vanishes into the eerie woods leaving only an iron ring behind and Sabrina is drawn into a beautiful but decaying world of fairies and monsters of old. And when an annoyingly handsome fairy prince offers her a dangerous deal, Sabrina is forced to put her own freedom at risk to save her sister.
Imprisonment, blood, gore, dismemberment, violence, death
TL;DR: This is for those who enjoy complex, morally grey, and somewhat unlikeable MCs that will make you work to appreciate them. Itโs for those who enjoy the intertwining of real history with mythological faerie tales and folklore and magic. And itโs for those who enjoy reading about sibling bonds, a taste of a hate-to-love romance, and a coming-of-age story about a bitter, tired, and scared young woman who longs to live as big a life as she possibly can. I feel like Habren has become one of my favourite YA FMCs and I think sheโs going to stick around in my head for a while! Overall, I found The Wicked Lies of Habren Faire a surprisingly touching and heartwarming story, even if at first, I was a bit uncertain about it. I would recommend this to those who enjoyed stories like The Cruel Prince, and darkly whimsical faerie tales centering family and friendship, such as those by Emily Lloyd-Jones (The Bone Houses, The Drowned Woods).
Read More » Leslie and I are planning two group reads in the coming months! Find more details on Leslie’s page or at the end of this post!
Hello, hello and welcome back to another episode of WWW Wednesday, a weekly meme hosted by Sam @ Taking On A World of Words, which means I’ll be answering these questions:
The Tainted Cup (Shadow of the Leviathan #1)
Publisher: Hodderscape
Pub Date: 6 February 2024
Genre: Fantasy Mystery
Panda Rating:
(5 pandas)
In Daretanaโs greatest mansion, a high imperial officer lies deadโkilled, to all appearances, when a tree erupted from his body. Even here at the Empireโs borders, where contagions abound and the blood of the leviathans works strange magical changes, itโs a death both terrifying and impossible.
Assigned to investigate is Ana Dolabra, a detective whose reputation for brilliance is matched only by her eccentricities. Rumor has it that she wears a blindfold at all times, and that she can solve impossible cases without even stepping outside the walls of her home.
At her side is her new assistant, Dinios Kol, magically altered in ways that make him the perfect aide to Anaโs brilliance. Din is at turns scandalized, perplexed, and utterly infuriated by his new superiorโbut as the case unfolds and he watches Anaโs mind leap from one startling deduction to the next, he must admit that she is, indeed, the Empireโs greatest detective.
As the two close in on a mastermind and uncover a scheme that threatens the Empire itself, Din realizes heโs barely begun to assemble the puzzle that is Ana Dolabraโand wonders how long heโll be able to keep his own secrets safe from her piercing intellect.
Body horror, blood depiction & emesis, murder, smoking, animal & human medical experimentation, classism
TL;DR: I haven’t been able to stop thinking about The Tainted Cup since I finished reading it and that was almost 2 weeks ago now. If you enjoy a richly developed fantasy world, quirky, entertaining, and sharp characters, a layered murder mystery, plus a bit of politicking, then there’s a very good chance you’ll enjoy this book. I loved Ana, Din, and their Holmes/Watson dynamic that had me grinning with delight, especially because the witty sharp banter was so much fun to read! The world-building was immersive and complex, the mystery was intriguing and I was so curious to learn more about this world (not because it wasn’t well-developed but because it is and there’s so much more to explore)! Overall, this was a fantastic read and every bit as incredible as everyone says it is.
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