October Review-a-Thon 2024
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booknook! :DDD I signed up for five (whyyy?) and oh boy did I deliver <3
Read 'em and weep <333
Title Lout of Count's Family, Vol. 1
Author: Yu Ryeo-Han
Genre: Fantasy
Review: So back before the translation left Wuxiaworld, I read something like 600 chapters of this novel; the most I've ever read of any webnovel. I really liked it! But once the translation left I didn't keep up with it, and I haven't read it in years. But then Seven Seas published it? And I kind of regret that I got it as an ebook now, because I adore this so much and I want it on my physical shelf but I'm not sure how to justify that when I've already got it. Decisions, decisions.
Anyway, Lout of Count's Family (I'm never going to get used to the new title, LOL) is a korean webnovel in which an ordinary man who just wants to live a simple, lazy life is transmigrated into a lout of a count's son in a fantasy novel. Luckily, he's read the first five volumes of the novel! Unlucky, doom and despair awaits as the continent will descend into war, and the Real Protagonist will, On The Road To Becoming a Hero run across Cale Henituse, the count's lout of a son. And things don't go that great for Cale, then. Ouch.
So in order to prevent this, Kim Roksu, now Cale, decides to skip passed all the fighting and just drag the protagonist to his future side-kicks so they can set out on their adventure and leave him alone.
Somehow things don't turn out that way. Wonder why. Could it... possibly.. have to do with the fact that Cale keeps saving people? No. No, that can't be why. I'm sure it's just... the natural... wings of a butterfly... and all that...
Hahhahah. Cale didn't do this to himself, did he?
No. Of course not. Haha. Ha.
Anyway, so yeah it's all Cale's fault that things then go way off the rails. Things escalate. They escalate so much. Not in the first volume! (Although things certainly get set in motion.) But things will escalate so much, it's hilarious.
I love this novel. I love all the characters. I love the dichotomy of the way the other characters view Cale and his actions vs. what Cale thinks and why he's doing what he's doing. I think the first volume sets up a lot of relationships and misunderstandings and worldbuilding, and I find the development of the various relationships to be lovely. There's so much friendship going around and so many different dynamics, which is really fun (and also scheming. I like the scheming, too.)
I can't wait for more to be released. I am gritting my teeth against the urge to buy both ebooks + paperbacks. Sigh. My poor budget.
Title: Crimson Halo
Author: Daniel May
Genre: Paranormal Romance
CW: The main character has an unnamed mental illness, which includes graphic descriptions/depictions of hallucinations and withdrawal from the meds he needs but has run out of due to the pharmacy not having them in stock.
Review: I didn't expect to like this book nearly as much as I did. *Crimson Halo* is a paranormal M/M vampire romance, with insta-romance and a vampire that's right up my alley. I haven't been into the vampire genre in a long time, and the last few tries I made at reading MM vampire romance did not pan out at all; I think I DNF'd both, and I just really didn't have any expectations picking this up—but I was really pleasantly surprised. The writing style works incredibly well for me, and the portrayal of vampires is a nice break from the angsty, brooding vampires I remember.
I just adore the side characters in this, in particular the relationship the vampire has with his familiar, and the relationship he has with his former familiar. It becomes clear during the course of the book that the reason for his emotional changes—going from a cold, distant vampire to a person aching for companionship and love—is in large part because of his former familiar, with whom he had a familial relationship. He’s a little emotionally constipated about it! But honestly, without her laying the groundwork, the vampire never would have been in a place where he would fall in insta-love.
(Yes, it’s been a minute since I read this and I’ve forgotten everybody’s names.)
In addition to the romance, there’s a mystery. Someone’s killing humans, and in a city with vampires that are more or less under control, who could it be? I clocked it. I figured it out. It wasn’t super hard, the clues were there—but honestly, I like this a lot more than mysteries that don’t give clues at all. (Tossing shade.) And I think the resolution to the mystery makes sense.
The romance is lovely, and the ending feels sound. I like the various friendships that are in the book; I think this succeeded very well at making it clear there exists something in this world beyond just the main characters’ relationship, which is cool!
Overall, I had a really good time with this book, and I definitely recommend it! :D
Title: Skeletons in the Closet
Author: Nicky James
Genres: Romance, Mystery
Content Warnings: Domestic Abuse (I don't quite remember; I think it was mostly off-screen and in references, but it was definitely on-screen as well, and it has left Diem with lots of trauma, especially because he still has to be around his dad, who's still abusive, when Diem goes to visit his grandmother who lives with Diem's dad, because she can't live on her own anymore)
Review: *Skeletons in the Closet* is an MM romance mystery novel and the first in a series. The romance doesn't necessarily develop a lot in this book; I think it's setting up to be a multi-book series romance with a slow burn development, but it's definitely the star of the show. Diem and Tallus' relationship is the highlight of the book (well, *Diem* is the highlight of the book and Tallus is kind of dragged along. I'll get into it soon) while the mystery part is a little bit unsatisfactory on my part.
Diem is a private investigator who just got a new job; Faye, a woman who thinks her dead husband was cheating on her and wants proof. For information, Diem reluctantly goes to a police records clerk, Tallus, whom he had an unsatisfactory sexual encounter with some months ago. It's fair to say this encounter has further scarred (emotionally) Diem, who already has plenty of them (both physical and emotional) and it's difficult for Diem to work up the courage to approach Tallus. But he eventually succeeds, and Tallus, who craves adventure and finds his job boring, promptly inserts himself into the case. To be fair, he *is* helpful; unlike Diem, Tallus isn't big and scarred and intimidating and is pretty good at communication, which Diem is decidedly not.
But personally I can't say I ever really warmed up much to Tallus. It just felt a little bit like he was walking all over Diem's boundaries a little too much to me, and his irreverent attitude about Diem's issues bothered me a lot. He took a lot of liberties, and while Diem definitely wanted Tallus to take liberties, it also wasn't easy for Diem and I feel like Tallus doesn't understand how not easy it really is.
He does get better about it and more respectful of Diem's boundaries and learns to recognize that Diem really is trying over the course of the book, so they're on the right track. The progression of their relationship really is the focal point of the story, I think, and it makes sense that the story ended before they've officially gotten together—they definitely still have a ways to go!
On the mystery side, I'm not sure if this was that good a book? Personally I was lost the entire story, and I felt like the characters were, too; there were a lot of pieces but I couldn't see how they connected and neither could the characters until like the 90% point. I at no point clocked who the actual perpetrator actually was, and it felt like it came out of thin air when it was revealed.
Like, I don't know, I just feel like part of the joy of a mystery story is trying to figure out whodunnit but this novel provided no clues and didn't point me in any one direction, so I just didn't feel involved in that whatsoever, and when it did finally came up with a theory, it did that annoying thing where it didn't *tell* the reader the theory. It just glossed over it and moved on until they got the deets and then somebody else confirmed it all 'tell no show' for me. It just kind of felt a bit like an afterthought.
The novel spent so long on the *misdirection* of the mystery that I kind of feel like it never deigned to point in the right direction, if that makes sense. And so I never felt like I had a grip on the mystery or who could have done it.
All in all, Diem is definitely the best part of this novel. He's a delightful character, a lovely person. He's damaged and he tries so hard to be good, and it shows so much. I just love him. (I think he deserves better than Tallus, but I guess I'm not the one deciding that, sigh…) I’ll probably pick up the sequel at some point, if only for Diem, but while this wasn’t bad by any means and was overall enjoyable, it’s not my favorite read. I do recommend it though, if it appeals to you!
Title: Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries
Author: Heather Fawcett
Genre: Historical Fantasy
Review: If left to my own devices, I probably wouldn’t have picked up this book. But I saw good things about it, my library had it and I went sure, I’ll give it a try.
No regrets. It’s very good.
It’s probably not the kind of book I’ll feel like rereading; it’s not quite up my alley. Genre-wise, I’m kind of iffy on it, and books with female POV’s are hit and miss for me. It worked this time, but I don’t really want to revisit it, and I’m not sure I’m going to read the sequel. Maybe when some time has passed!
Emily Wilde is a professor working on an Encyclopaedia of Faeries, and she sets out to cold lands far away from her comfortable office to complete it. Except, horror of horror, her rival Wendell (who thinks they are the best of friends, which I find hilarious) unexpectedly traipses right after her. Together with Wendell and her dog Shadow, they set out to solve the riddle that’s plaguing this otherwise idyllic snowy village; why do the village girls keep being stolen by the fae?
I was confused for a moment; I thought it was going to be a rivals-to-romance kind of story based on skimming the blurb, which was not what happened. They’re not even rivals! I don’t know where I got that from! And there wasn’t much romance at all, which is the part that made me hesitate the most to read, because I just didn’t want romance out of it, if that makes sense. But it definitely delivered on the mystery and the question of *how is Emily going to get out of this*, and I thought the world-building was very interesting, and the footnotes very fun.
Wendell is lovely and I high-key adored him, and his journal entries were the best. It didn’t end up being much romance at all, which I thought worked out great, but the romance that was in there I thought worked well, and I can see the sense in it, to put it very coldly. And I honestly thought that Wendell’s… you know, that question he asks (I’m trying to avoid spoilers!) was kind of lovely and I appreciated his reaction to Emily’s answer.
The way the situation with the fae played out overall was very interesting and all the villager’s were colorful and enjoyable even when they were mean and off-putting. Emily’s actions managed to stride the line of making perfect sense in the moment and yet being a giant mistake in hindsight pretty well for me, and overall it was a compelling read with interesting characters and world-building.
Wendell was definitely my favorite part, though.
I definitely recommend it!
Title: Izzy and the Right Answer
Author: R. Cooper
Genre: Romance
Review: I don't think I can overstate how much I love this book.
Jamie Islington—Izzy—is in love. This is a new thing for him; he's ace and it turns out demiromantic (I think is the term?) and he has no experience with romantic love. Much less being in love with two people at the same time. And sure, it hurts that neither of them wants him, but they do want each other, and he wants them to be happy. So ergo, the correct answer is obviously that Ronnie and Rocco need to get together, and this will be solved!
Except things aren’t quite turning out that way. Despite now dating, Ronnie and Rocco still hang out with Izzy and invite him with them, and drag him along on their dates. And while Izzy is still nursing his broken heart, it makes him happy to see them together—they’ve very pretty!—and he misses them when they’re not around.
But Patricio, Izzy’s best friend, seems to think that Izzy is missing something about this, and he wants Izzy to think about it more.
First off, I really vibe with Cooper’s writing style. It’s just so comfy to me, and it makes everything Cooper writes come off as more comfy for me than it might be for somebody else. I do genuinly love this story, though (I haven’t read anything by Cooper yet that I haven’t loved!)
The story is kept tight enough to Izzy’s POV that I can follow the logic of the misunderstandings and Izzy simply not realizing something pretty important, and it doesn’t trip over my suspension of disbelif. Like, I’m able to follow his train of thought and it makes perfect sense; it’s *a* answer, it’s just not the *only* answer. And yet the writing also manages to convey all the bits and blobs that Izzy misses—Izzy notices a lot, and he might not pick up on the totality of what it means, but I got the picture, and I thought that was very smoothly done.
Ronnie and Rocco are both lovely, too. They’re super in love with each other and Izzy, and it felt like they had a complete relationship of their own, and Ronnie had a complete relationship with Izzy, and Rocco had a complete relationship with Izzy. They’re different relationships but it all adds up.
Ronnie had a crush on Izzy their freshmen year, and tried to kiss Izzy and was promptly rejected, and it broke his heart. Rocco, who knew Ronnie and liked him and fell in love with him at some point, worked hard to keep Izzy at a distance when they started hanging out with the same people, but Ronnie and Izzy stayed good friends. The kind of friends who fell asleep on each other and held hands and—in hindsight, Izzy understands his feelings were romantic in nature.
There is actually a lot communication in this book! When I read the blurb I was like, okay, so this is a Misunderstandings book because nobody talks. But they talk a lot! Izzy isn’t shy; and he spills the beans about his feelings pretty quickly once he figures it out. It’s just that everybody has issues; Izzy doesn’t believe he fits with Ronnie and Rocco—not when they’re a couple. That’s not how love works in the romcoms, after all. So it takes a while for everyone to get on the same page, but honestly? Worth it. Izzy’s angst was delicious (cue evil villain laughter), and Ronnie and Rocco are both absolutely adorable, and everybody puts in so much *effort* to make this all work. They want to be together! It’s lovely!
It’s a very comfy book to me. Is it my favorite Cooper book? No, that doubtlessly desirable title is still held by *A Suitable Consort* and *Hottie Scotty and Mr. Porter* (which I just read and loved and highly recommend, too; there are so many emotions in it, just a bit of a soft gut-punch in the best way.) However, I do definitely recommend this book.
I had a really good time with this book. All the characters were lovable, and the progression of Izzy, Ronnie and Rocco’s relationship was, for lack of a better word, sublime.
I’m undoubtedly going to reread this.
booknook! :DDD I signed up for five (whyyy?) and oh boy did I deliver <3Read 'em and weep <333
Title Lout of Count's Family, Vol. 1
Author: Yu Ryeo-Han
Genre: Fantasy
Review: So back before the translation left Wuxiaworld, I read something like 600 chapters of this novel; the most I've ever read of any webnovel. I really liked it! But once the translation left I didn't keep up with it, and I haven't read it in years. But then Seven Seas published it? And I kind of regret that I got it as an ebook now, because I adore this so much and I want it on my physical shelf but I'm not sure how to justify that when I've already got it. Decisions, decisions.
Anyway, Lout of Count's Family (I'm never going to get used to the new title, LOL) is a korean webnovel in which an ordinary man who just wants to live a simple, lazy life is transmigrated into a lout of a count's son in a fantasy novel. Luckily, he's read the first five volumes of the novel! Unlucky, doom and despair awaits as the continent will descend into war, and the Real Protagonist will, On The Road To Becoming a Hero run across Cale Henituse, the count's lout of a son. And things don't go that great for Cale, then. Ouch.
So in order to prevent this, Kim Roksu, now Cale, decides to skip passed all the fighting and just drag the protagonist to his future side-kicks so they can set out on their adventure and leave him alone.
Somehow things don't turn out that way. Wonder why. Could it... possibly.. have to do with the fact that Cale keeps saving people? No. No, that can't be why. I'm sure it's just... the natural... wings of a butterfly... and all that...
Hahhahah. Cale didn't do this to himself, did he?
No. Of course not. Haha. Ha.
Anyway, so yeah it's all Cale's fault that things then go way off the rails. Things escalate. They escalate so much. Not in the first volume! (Although things certainly get set in motion.) But things will escalate so much, it's hilarious.
I love this novel. I love all the characters. I love the dichotomy of the way the other characters view Cale and his actions vs. what Cale thinks and why he's doing what he's doing. I think the first volume sets up a lot of relationships and misunderstandings and worldbuilding, and I find the development of the various relationships to be lovely. There's so much friendship going around and so many different dynamics, which is really fun (and also scheming. I like the scheming, too.)
I can't wait for more to be released. I am gritting my teeth against the urge to buy both ebooks + paperbacks. Sigh. My poor budget.
Title: Crimson Halo
Author: Daniel May
Genre: Paranormal Romance
CW: The main character has an unnamed mental illness, which includes graphic descriptions/depictions of hallucinations and withdrawal from the meds he needs but has run out of due to the pharmacy not having them in stock.
Review: I didn't expect to like this book nearly as much as I did. *Crimson Halo* is a paranormal M/M vampire romance, with insta-romance and a vampire that's right up my alley. I haven't been into the vampire genre in a long time, and the last few tries I made at reading MM vampire romance did not pan out at all; I think I DNF'd both, and I just really didn't have any expectations picking this up—but I was really pleasantly surprised. The writing style works incredibly well for me, and the portrayal of vampires is a nice break from the angsty, brooding vampires I remember.
I just adore the side characters in this, in particular the relationship the vampire has with his familiar, and the relationship he has with his former familiar. It becomes clear during the course of the book that the reason for his emotional changes—going from a cold, distant vampire to a person aching for companionship and love—is in large part because of his former familiar, with whom he had a familial relationship. He’s a little emotionally constipated about it! But honestly, without her laying the groundwork, the vampire never would have been in a place where he would fall in insta-love.
(Yes, it’s been a minute since I read this and I’ve forgotten everybody’s names.)
In addition to the romance, there’s a mystery. Someone’s killing humans, and in a city with vampires that are more or less under control, who could it be? I clocked it. I figured it out. It wasn’t super hard, the clues were there—but honestly, I like this a lot more than mysteries that don’t give clues at all. (Tossing shade.) And I think the resolution to the mystery makes sense.
The romance is lovely, and the ending feels sound. I like the various friendships that are in the book; I think this succeeded very well at making it clear there exists something in this world beyond just the main characters’ relationship, which is cool!
Overall, I had a really good time with this book, and I definitely recommend it! :D
Title: Skeletons in the Closet
Author: Nicky James
Genres: Romance, Mystery
Content Warnings: Domestic Abuse (I don't quite remember; I think it was mostly off-screen and in references, but it was definitely on-screen as well, and it has left Diem with lots of trauma, especially because he still has to be around his dad, who's still abusive, when Diem goes to visit his grandmother who lives with Diem's dad, because she can't live on her own anymore)
Review: *Skeletons in the Closet* is an MM romance mystery novel and the first in a series. The romance doesn't necessarily develop a lot in this book; I think it's setting up to be a multi-book series romance with a slow burn development, but it's definitely the star of the show. Diem and Tallus' relationship is the highlight of the book (well, *Diem* is the highlight of the book and Tallus is kind of dragged along. I'll get into it soon) while the mystery part is a little bit unsatisfactory on my part.
Diem is a private investigator who just got a new job; Faye, a woman who thinks her dead husband was cheating on her and wants proof. For information, Diem reluctantly goes to a police records clerk, Tallus, whom he had an unsatisfactory sexual encounter with some months ago. It's fair to say this encounter has further scarred (emotionally) Diem, who already has plenty of them (both physical and emotional) and it's difficult for Diem to work up the courage to approach Tallus. But he eventually succeeds, and Tallus, who craves adventure and finds his job boring, promptly inserts himself into the case. To be fair, he *is* helpful; unlike Diem, Tallus isn't big and scarred and intimidating and is pretty good at communication, which Diem is decidedly not.
But personally I can't say I ever really warmed up much to Tallus. It just felt a little bit like he was walking all over Diem's boundaries a little too much to me, and his irreverent attitude about Diem's issues bothered me a lot. He took a lot of liberties, and while Diem definitely wanted Tallus to take liberties, it also wasn't easy for Diem and I feel like Tallus doesn't understand how not easy it really is.
He does get better about it and more respectful of Diem's boundaries and learns to recognize that Diem really is trying over the course of the book, so they're on the right track. The progression of their relationship really is the focal point of the story, I think, and it makes sense that the story ended before they've officially gotten together—they definitely still have a ways to go!
On the mystery side, I'm not sure if this was that good a book? Personally I was lost the entire story, and I felt like the characters were, too; there were a lot of pieces but I couldn't see how they connected and neither could the characters until like the 90% point. I at no point clocked who the actual perpetrator actually was, and it felt like it came out of thin air when it was revealed.
Like, I don't know, I just feel like part of the joy of a mystery story is trying to figure out whodunnit but this novel provided no clues and didn't point me in any one direction, so I just didn't feel involved in that whatsoever, and when it did finally came up with a theory, it did that annoying thing where it didn't *tell* the reader the theory. It just glossed over it and moved on until they got the deets and then somebody else confirmed it all 'tell no show' for me. It just kind of felt a bit like an afterthought.
The novel spent so long on the *misdirection* of the mystery that I kind of feel like it never deigned to point in the right direction, if that makes sense. And so I never felt like I had a grip on the mystery or who could have done it.
All in all, Diem is definitely the best part of this novel. He's a delightful character, a lovely person. He's damaged and he tries so hard to be good, and it shows so much. I just love him. (I think he deserves better than Tallus, but I guess I'm not the one deciding that, sigh…) I’ll probably pick up the sequel at some point, if only for Diem, but while this wasn’t bad by any means and was overall enjoyable, it’s not my favorite read. I do recommend it though, if it appeals to you!
Title: Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries
Author: Heather Fawcett
Genre: Historical Fantasy
Review: If left to my own devices, I probably wouldn’t have picked up this book. But I saw good things about it, my library had it and I went sure, I’ll give it a try.
No regrets. It’s very good.
It’s probably not the kind of book I’ll feel like rereading; it’s not quite up my alley. Genre-wise, I’m kind of iffy on it, and books with female POV’s are hit and miss for me. It worked this time, but I don’t really want to revisit it, and I’m not sure I’m going to read the sequel. Maybe when some time has passed!
Emily Wilde is a professor working on an Encyclopaedia of Faeries, and she sets out to cold lands far away from her comfortable office to complete it. Except, horror of horror, her rival Wendell (who thinks they are the best of friends, which I find hilarious) unexpectedly traipses right after her. Together with Wendell and her dog Shadow, they set out to solve the riddle that’s plaguing this otherwise idyllic snowy village; why do the village girls keep being stolen by the fae?
I was confused for a moment; I thought it was going to be a rivals-to-romance kind of story based on skimming the blurb, which was not what happened. They’re not even rivals! I don’t know where I got that from! And there wasn’t much romance at all, which is the part that made me hesitate the most to read, because I just didn’t want romance out of it, if that makes sense. But it definitely delivered on the mystery and the question of *how is Emily going to get out of this*, and I thought the world-building was very interesting, and the footnotes very fun.
Wendell is lovely and I high-key adored him, and his journal entries were the best. It didn’t end up being much romance at all, which I thought worked out great, but the romance that was in there I thought worked well, and I can see the sense in it, to put it very coldly. And I honestly thought that Wendell’s… you know, that question he asks (I’m trying to avoid spoilers!) was kind of lovely and I appreciated his reaction to Emily’s answer.
The way the situation with the fae played out overall was very interesting and all the villager’s were colorful and enjoyable even when they were mean and off-putting. Emily’s actions managed to stride the line of making perfect sense in the moment and yet being a giant mistake in hindsight pretty well for me, and overall it was a compelling read with interesting characters and world-building.
Wendell was definitely my favorite part, though.
I definitely recommend it!
Title: Izzy and the Right Answer
Author: R. Cooper
Genre: Romance
Review: I don't think I can overstate how much I love this book.
Jamie Islington—Izzy—is in love. This is a new thing for him; he's ace and it turns out demiromantic (I think is the term?) and he has no experience with romantic love. Much less being in love with two people at the same time. And sure, it hurts that neither of them wants him, but they do want each other, and he wants them to be happy. So ergo, the correct answer is obviously that Ronnie and Rocco need to get together, and this will be solved!
Except things aren’t quite turning out that way. Despite now dating, Ronnie and Rocco still hang out with Izzy and invite him with them, and drag him along on their dates. And while Izzy is still nursing his broken heart, it makes him happy to see them together—they’ve very pretty!—and he misses them when they’re not around.
But Patricio, Izzy’s best friend, seems to think that Izzy is missing something about this, and he wants Izzy to think about it more.
First off, I really vibe with Cooper’s writing style. It’s just so comfy to me, and it makes everything Cooper writes come off as more comfy for me than it might be for somebody else. I do genuinly love this story, though (I haven’t read anything by Cooper yet that I haven’t loved!)
The story is kept tight enough to Izzy’s POV that I can follow the logic of the misunderstandings and Izzy simply not realizing something pretty important, and it doesn’t trip over my suspension of disbelif. Like, I’m able to follow his train of thought and it makes perfect sense; it’s *a* answer, it’s just not the *only* answer. And yet the writing also manages to convey all the bits and blobs that Izzy misses—Izzy notices a lot, and he might not pick up on the totality of what it means, but I got the picture, and I thought that was very smoothly done.
Ronnie and Rocco are both lovely, too. They’re super in love with each other and Izzy, and it felt like they had a complete relationship of their own, and Ronnie had a complete relationship with Izzy, and Rocco had a complete relationship with Izzy. They’re different relationships but it all adds up.
Ronnie had a crush on Izzy their freshmen year, and tried to kiss Izzy and was promptly rejected, and it broke his heart. Rocco, who knew Ronnie and liked him and fell in love with him at some point, worked hard to keep Izzy at a distance when they started hanging out with the same people, but Ronnie and Izzy stayed good friends. The kind of friends who fell asleep on each other and held hands and—in hindsight, Izzy understands his feelings were romantic in nature.
There is actually a lot communication in this book! When I read the blurb I was like, okay, so this is a Misunderstandings book because nobody talks. But they talk a lot! Izzy isn’t shy; and he spills the beans about his feelings pretty quickly once he figures it out. It’s just that everybody has issues; Izzy doesn’t believe he fits with Ronnie and Rocco—not when they’re a couple. That’s not how love works in the romcoms, after all. So it takes a while for everyone to get on the same page, but honestly? Worth it. Izzy’s angst was delicious (cue evil villain laughter), and Ronnie and Rocco are both absolutely adorable, and everybody puts in so much *effort* to make this all work. They want to be together! It’s lovely!
It’s a very comfy book to me. Is it my favorite Cooper book? No, that doubtlessly desirable title is still held by *A Suitable Consort* and *Hottie Scotty and Mr. Porter* (which I just read and loved and highly recommend, too; there are so many emotions in it, just a bit of a soft gut-punch in the best way.) However, I do definitely recommend this book.
I had a really good time with this book. All the characters were lovable, and the progression of Izzy, Ronnie and Rocco’s relationship was, for lack of a better word, sublime.
I’m undoubtedly going to reread this.