I read and reviewed A House of Vipers by Emma Jackson. The book follows Sutter, whose brother went missing. Sutter learns his brother had ties to a secret organization, the House of Vipers, at their school, dedicated to finding the school’s legendary treasure. Sutter and his three best friends join the Vipers but quickly learn they do not know what they have gotten themselves into.
This book is presented as a mystery with some romance, but, for me, the romance seemed to overpower the mystery plot points. However, those mystery elements and the tension still live in my brain. I don’t hate the book, but I can’t say the book is amazing. This book lives in limbo.
I love Jessica Cunsolo’s With Me series, including its spin-off. I read the first spin-off book, Be With Me, but I still have yet to read the second book, Belong With Me. I still want to read the next book, but I just keep not ordering it. Be With Me is about Siena, who, after being arrested, joins her younger sister to live with their estranged father, who seems to want nothing to do with her. Not even having been there for twenty-four hours, she ends up as the passenger to Jason Parker, who is currently fleeing the police. Siena never wants to be arrested again, and with her younger sister spiraling and her classmate missing, Siena can’t seem to catch a break. Worst and perhaps best of all, Jason is always there when she needs him.
Be With Me kept me on my toes. I really liked this book; I just have yet to unshelve Belong With Me from my TBR list.
Saving Everest by Sky Chase will always have a small soft spot in my heart, but it is very grumpy x sunshine, and I wish the book addressed more of the home issues of one of the main characters, Beverly. Beverly runs into Everest one day by coincidence in the library after his suicide attempt. With his friends distancing themselves, Everest finds himself lonelier than ever. Beverly is everything he’s not, but they find that perhaps it isn’t such a bad thing. However, Beverly’s life isn’t all that perfect either. Together they try to learn how to be themselves, embrace life, and find ways to live.
I love this book, but it plays heavily into tropes and stereotypes. For me, it works, but I have recommended it to others who couldn’t get into it. I also feel like it glosses over some issues revolving around Beverly a little too quickly, and because the book switches between Beverly and Everest’s points-of-view (POVs), I wish it discussed their problems equally.
For The Condemned Villainess Goes Back in Time and Aims to Become the Ultimate Villain Vol. 1 by Bakufu Narayama (a light novel), I love how the story pans out. It follows Claudia, whose half-sister deceives her and gets her sent to a brothel. After learning some tips and tricks of the trade, Claudia dies and ends up going back in time to when she was fourteen years old, and this time she vows to protect those she cares about by becoming the ultimate villainess.
I love how everything falls into place with this story and how Claudia fights against her half-sister. For me, I loved this book as is and don’t really feel the need to watch how her life could become more complicated. I’m satisfied with just the first book. Perhaps one day I will try the second book, but for now I’m content as is.
Overall, these books just circulate through my brain from time to time. Perhaps I’ll let some of these go, and perhaps I’ll read the sequels, but for now I’ll let them linger as they please.
Natalia Williams, Pine Reads Review Writer and Website Manager