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One Last Stop by Casey McQuiston | Discussion with Ely

Aug 26, 2021

Welcome back to Ely and I’s buddy read discussions. Sorry that it’s been so long – lots of things have just come out. We are a little behind, but we are going to try and catch up. Hopefully soon.

Anyway, here we are. Today we are talking about One Last Stop by Casey McQuiston. This is one both of us have been highly anticipating and I’m so glad that we both were finally able to get to it. You can check out our other buddy reads here on Angel Reads and Earl Grey Books.

One Last Stop by Casey McQuiston

Pages: 422
Publish date: June 1st 2021
Publisher: St. Martin’s Griffin
ISBN: 9781250244499
Purchase: Book Depository – Amazon UK – Amazon US – Amazon AU – QBD

For cynical twenty-three-year-old August, moving to New York City is supposed to prove her right: that things like magic and cinematic love stories don’t exist, and the only smart way to go through life is alone. She can’t imagine how waiting tables at a 24-hour pancake diner and moving in with too many weird roommates could possibly change that. And there’s certainly no chance of her subway commute being anything more than a daily trudge through boredom and electrical failures.

But then, there’s this gorgeous girl on the train.

Jane. Dazzling, charming, mysterious, impossible Jane. Jane with her rough edges and swoopy hair and soft smile, showing up in a leather jacket to save August’s day when she needed it most. August’s subway crush becomes the best part of her day, but pretty soon, she discovers there’s one big problem: Jane doesn’t just look like an old school punk rocker. She’s literally displaced in time from the 1970s, and August is going to have to use everything she tried to leave in her own past to help her. Maybe it’s time to start believing in some things, after all.

Casey McQuiston’s One Last Stop is a magical, sexy, big-hearted romance where the impossible becomes possible as August does everything in her power to save the girl lost in time.

One Last Stop:

Angel: Like I said this book is one of my most anticipated reads of 2021. I adored Red, White and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston, which was actually one of our first buddy read discussions. And let me tell you it didn’t disappoint me at all. It’s different from Red, White and Royal Blue for sure. And it’s not something that I normally gravitate to in regards to science fiction and time travel. But I seriously loved it so much. How did you feel about it?

Ely: Honestly, I feel a little conflicted. I loved it, but I can’t decide whether I loved it more than RWRB or less. It was certainly different and it was incredible, but I still can’t decide!

A: I feel the same. RWRB is top tier for me. I love it so much. And like you said One Last Stop it’s incredible. There were just a few things that just stopped me from falling head over heels obsessed with it.

Firstly I think August was the perfect protagonist for this story. From the start, she captivated me and I didn’t want to leave her story. She was different and stood out, but also felt very familiar. What are your feelings about August?

Photo by Adi Goldstein on Unsplash

E: I also loved August. She’s such an interesting and layered character and I loved how we got to see her go from this quite closed-off person in the beginning to this completely different one by the end. That was really beautiful.

I absolutely adore her housemates as well, particularly Myla. They are all just such weird and wonderful characters and the relationships they all have with one another are so lovely and pure. What did you think of them?

A: August character arc was seriously spot on. Her growth throughout the novel was so damn good. She didn’t just change quickly, it was nice and slow and worked perfectly with the novel.

August’s housemates added another 10 layers to this novel. Seriously. They were absolutely brilliant. Found family is one of my favourite tropes and it was utilised perfectly here. I wanted to know more and more about them – and got that – without it taking away from August’s story. They made August feel loved – and that just hit.

The romance in One Last Stop was also a massive highlight for me. From the start, Jane is captivating and took me by surprise. And together they are just so good. What did you think of Jane?

E: Absolutely! I think it was almost the perfect description of a found family—one that just kind of sneaks up on you.

I adored Jane. And I think she’s one of the best love interests I’ve read about in a while. She’s so much fun, but she also, of course, has this mysterious depth to her. She and August just work together, there’s no other way to put it.

We’ve buddy read quite a few NA and adult romances at this point, some that we’re kind of ruined by the romance and/or sex scenes. How did you feel about this one?

A: Jane really took me by surprise. I didn’t I was going to like her as much as I did, but she just latched onto me and didn’t let go.

Damn it was good. I was surprised by it, let me tell you. Compared to RWRB this is another level and I was so here for it. It not only added another layer to the novel, but it was a fantastic way to explore Jane and August’s relationship more. What were your thoughts on it?

E: She really does suck you in. Maybe this is something to do with the way August sees her, but either way, Jane rocks.

Honestly, top tier. It also just made me super happy. Their entire relationship just feels really, well, real. I know RWRB sort of ignited this trend of contemporary royal romance books, so here’s hoping some more sapphic books get their turn in the sun.

Photo by Luke Pennystan on Unsplash

A: Oh I absolutely agree with you, this romance not only felt real but honest and it just made it for me. Oh, I am so for sapphic royal romances any day of the week.

Like I said before while this was one of my most anticipated books of the year, I was also very hesitant. The science-fiction/time travel elements of the book made me nervous. But it didn’t feel out of place at all. I understood everything that was happening, and I didn’t get too confused. What about you?

E: I think I got a little lost with some of the time travel stuff, but not in a way that took me out of the story. It was more like oh, I don’t know what that term means but okay. Otherwise, I thought it tied in really well as you said—nothing felt out of place.

A: Oh I didn’t understand everything, but it didn’t make me feel dumb so that is something.

I wasn’t a massive fan of the long chapters – but that is seriously the only thing that really bothered me. Overall, it was such a fantastic read and I couldn’t put it down.

I hope that you all enjoyed this discussion. Have you read One Last Stop yet? Are you planning on reading it? Let’s Chat!

5 Reasons Why I Love Neon Gods by Katee Robert

Aug 15, 2021

I didn’t want to just do a normal review for Neon Gods by Katee Robert. I wanted to share my love for it in a different way, so I thought I would share five reasons why I love reading it.

This has been on my tbr ever since it came out and I finally got around to it recently. And while I don’t regret that I didn’t pick it up sooner, I hate that I have to wait for the next book. Neon Gods is seriously a fantastic modern Greek Mythology retelling of Hades and Persephone. I just want to say I will never get sick of a Hades and Persephone retelling but this one does stand out above the rest.

Neon Gods (Dark Olympus #1) by Katee Robert

Pages: 380
Publish date: June 1st 2021
Publisher: Sourcebooks Casablanca
ISBN: 9781728231730
Purchase: Book Depository – Amazon UK – Amazon US – Amazon AU – QBD

He was supposed to be a myth. But from the moment I crossed the River Styx and fell under his dark spell… he was, quite simply, mine.

Society darling Persephone Dimitriou plans to flee the ultra-modern city of Olympus and start over far from the backstabbing politics of the Thirteen Houses. But all that’s ripped away when her mother ambushes her with an engagement to Zeus, the dangerous power behind their glittering city’s dark facade.

With no options left, Persephone flees to the forbidden undercity and makes a devil’s bargain with a man she once believed a myth… a man who awakens her to a world she never knew existed.

Hades has spent his life in the shadows, and he has no intention of stepping into the light. But when he finds that Persephone can offer a little slice of the revenge he’s spent years craving, it’s all the excuse he needs to help her—for a price. Yet every breathless night spent tangled together has given Hades a taste for Persephone, and he’ll go to war with Olympus itself to keep her close…

A modern retelling of Hades and Persephone that’s as sinful as it is sweet.

I just want to make a quick note. This book will not be for everyone, it is a romance but it does come with a few warnings. This includes triggers for Abuse, Parental death (historical, off-page), assault/attempted assault, explicit sex, guns, blood. It also includes content warnings for exhibitionism and BDSM.

1. The Romance

I love Hades and Persephone together in most retellings, but the romance in this one really does stand out. They are sexy, adorable and hot together. I pretty much smiled throughout the whole book because of these two. They were brilliant together and made the reading experience even more enjoyable.

From the start, the reader is able to feel and see the spark between the two – even before they admit it. And what starts off as a fake relationship turns into something much more. I just couldn’t deal with these two, at all. I adored them.

As I said in the content warnings there is exhibitionism and BDSM included in this book. So please this is another warning before you jump in. I really enjoyed how this was intertwined into the book and it didn’t feel out of place at all. Not only did it explore the relationship between Hades and Persephone more, but it also introduced some very interesting characters. And I’m intrigued by this and looking forward to seeing where it’s taken in the future.

Hades and Persephone were hot together, they were fire and these scenes just added to it. And it’s not just the scenes that they do, but when they are alone you can see that they truly do care for one another, even if they don’t want to admit it.

Photo by Miltiadis Fragkidis on Unsplash

2. It’s Sexy

This book isn’t just smutty and spicy it’s sexy. And I was thinking this before any of the real sexy things started to go down. I don’t know if I can explain this right and make sure that it makes sense. Not only are the characters sexy, but the writing is as well. The way that everything comes together just works brilliantly. Together Hades and Persephone are just sexy. They could be talking about nothing, but their interactions alone are sexy.

One of my favourite conversations in Neon Gods – is when Hades and Persephone are talking about consent and safewords. Not only does it make me happy that this conversation takes place, but it adds to the sexiness of the book.

This concept is just so hard to explain and maybe if you have read the book you can see where I’m coming from. There is heat before any sexy time. There are these fantastic conversations and Hades and Persephone bring the heat.

3. Hades is a Cinnamon Roll

Hades is a puppy dog. I don’t think that is something that you would hear very often, but he really is. On the outside, he has this grumpy exterior that we all know Hades to have, but Persephone sure does break him down.

From the start of Neon Gods, we can see that there is more than meets the eye with him. We can see that he isn’t just that hard god of the underworld, but something way more than that. And slowly as the novel goes on readers get to see that. And it’s not something that stands out, it’s the little things. The conversation about consent. Making sure that Persephone is taken care of. Making sure that Persephine is eating. And my favourite way – Hades and the puppies. I seriously couldn’t contain myself.

Hades is badass don’t get me wrong and he won’t take shit from anyone – but Persephone turns him to pudding and it’s just fantastic to witness. I also loved that everyone around him just watched it happened and laughed.

Photo by Praveen kumar Mathivanan on Unsplash

4. Fantastic Retelling

Another reason I loved Neon Gods so much was the retelling aspect. I think that Katee Robert intertwined so many different elements of the original tale into this modern story. I love how the small things were just slowly intertwined into the story. And if you don’t know the story well then you might not have picked it up.

The fact that pomegranate was the safe word, the names of characters and their jobs. It just all worked fantastically. Another aspect of this that I really enjoyed was how Persephone came to Hades. It was a clever way of doing it and the fact that she went willingly is a massive tick for me.

The concept of the world is also really interesting and how Gods and picked for their role. How the thirteen are chosen. It wasn’t hard to really understand, everything made sense, but I’m also excited to learn more about it.

I’m really excited for the rest of the books in the series, there are some really interesting retellings picked for the rest of the series so far and that just makes me even more ecstatic. I just want the rest of the series now. Electric Idols is set to come out in January next year. With Wicked Beauty set for mid-2022.

5. Imagery and Writing is Fantastic

I’ve read a few Katee Robert books now and each one of them has such fantastic imagery and the writing is excellent. Sometimes in romance novels, the writing can lack a little, but that is not the case here in Neon Gods. And while this is traditionally published, I have read Katee Roberts indie-published romances as well. And they are still to this standard.

I find that I sometimes struggle when delving into a new world, but I never felt out of place here. I always knew what was going on, what was happening and how things looked. As well as struggling with new worlds, I sometimes can’t imagine how the world or characters look. And while I did have a little trouble at first, it wasn’t long before I was pretty comfortable with where I was.

I was fully immersed in the world from the start of Neon Gods and I didn’t want to leave. It was pretty epic and I loved the combination of the traditional elements of Greek Mythology while also still being very modern.

Photo by Echo Wang on Unsplash

Overall, I adored Neon Gods by Katee Robert. It was everything I wanted it to be and more. It’s sexy, smutty and just so addicting. I couldn’t put it down, and all I wanted to do was keep on reading. Hades and Persephone are fantastic together, they just made me smile and I didn’t want it to stop. Like the rest of the book, they have this great balance of being sexy, smutty and absolutely adorable. This is my fourth Katee Robert novel and I think she might just become an auto-buy author for me soon. Eek. I’m so excited for the rest of the series and picking up some more of her books.

If you are looking for a fantastic modern retelling that is spicy, then pick this up if you haven’t. You will not be disappointed.

Have you read Neon Gods by Katee Robert yet? What did you think of it? Are you planning on reading it? What is another Katee Robert book that I should pick up? Let’s Chat!

Book Review: With You Forever by Chloe Liese

Jul 25, 2021

With You Forever (Bergman Brothers #4) by Chloe Liese

Pages: –
Publish date: September 14th 2021
Publisher: –
ASIN: B092TJXSND
Purchase: Amazon UK – Amazon US – Amazon AU

Axel
Rooney Sullivan is sunshine incarnate. Warm, bright, always smiling, she’s everything I’m not and the last person I have any business desiring. Desperate to hide a hopeless attraction, I’ve done everything possible to keep my distance…until a charades game gone wrong brought that to a grinding halt.

Since then, steering clear of Rooney has been impossible. In a matter of months, she’s kissed me speechless, commandeered my art career, and infiltrated not only my dreams but my home. The woman who was once avoidable has become the last thing I needed: temptingly within reach.

Rooney
Axel Bergman is a gorgeous grump who doesn’t have the time of day for me. Thankfully, I’ve kept my crush under wraps…well, until I kissed him. Charades got away from me, okay? It was an accident! I haven’t seen him since, which is for the best. My life is a mess, and the last thing I need is to embarrass myself further with the man who avoids me like that’s his job rather than painting modern masterpieces.

It seems the universe, however, has a different plan. When Axel and I unexpectedly find our paths—and problems—converging, a marriage of convenience proves the perfect solution. At least, until I’m facing my most serious problem yet: a once-loveless marriage of convenience that’s inconveniently become a love match, after all.

With You Forever:

I received an earc of With You Forever by Chloe Liese via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This has in no way influenced my thoughts and feelings about the book.

It’s shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone that I love this series. I picked it up for the first time last year and each time there has been a book out since I jump on it. As soon as I heard who this book was going to be about, I knew that I needed it even more. And let me tell you, it’s fantastic and I wasn’t disappointed.

With You Forever by Chloe Liese follows Axel Bergman, a brother that I feel we don’t know too much about till this point. But we know how the last book ended and I have been hanging to know what happens next. Rooney’s life isn’t what she thought it would be. It’s a mess. And after the charades game that leads to the kiss between Axel and Rooney, she doesn’t want to see him any time soon. But that doesn’t go to plan. Then one thing leads to another and now a marriage of conveniences is where Axel and Rooney find themselves landing.

Photo by Dai Nguyen on Unsplash

Axel is a grumpy pants and I love it. He has a lot going on in his life as well, and sadly, he cannot deal with it all. I have always found Axel really interesting throughout the series, but we never knew too much about him for me to get to really know him. But throughout the whole of With You Forever, the reader gets to slowly see him. Axel likes the quiet, he likes to be alone. So when Rooney breaks this quiet life he lives, it shakes him up. But it’s in a good way. While he doesn’t change who he is, he comes out of his shell a little and lets those around him help a little. I adore that he is an artist and the reader gets to see him not only struggle to create but also get to see him live through his art.

Rooney, I would say, is quite the opposite to Axel and I think that is why they fit perfectly with one another. But her life has currently been shaken and she doesn’t know who she is anymore or where she wants to go. After life-changing health news not only does Rooney need time to recover, but also figure out what she wants to do with her life now. I really enjoyed seeing Rooney grow throughout the novel. At the start, she feels weak and like she doesn’t know herself. But after spending some time with herself, Axel and just relaxing – we see that she can find herself again.

Photo by nine koepfer on Unsplash

I adored the romance in this one. I mean I’ve loved the romances in all the series but there is something about Axel and Rooney that just makes me so happy. When Axel finds out that it’s going to cost way more money than he has to fix his families getaway house he knows that there is only one way. But it comes with a cost – and then Rooney just happens to rock up. And a marriage of convenience is born. It’s one of my favourite romance tropes and it’s done so well here. Both Axel and Rooney have a history with one another and we get to see this tension. It’s fantastic. We get to see them go from friends to lovers and gosh it hits.

Another reason I adored this book so much, is the conversations about consent. It was just so fantastic and made me smile even more. They both cared about one another just so much, but not only that they cared about each others health and the limits that they both had.

This whole series has been fantastic in regards to disabilities and it hits the spot again here. But characters are living with different disabilities and health issues, some new ones and some older. I always find it so interesting to see how both the author and then therefore the character deal with health news that changes the way someone lives. And I think the way that Rooney dealt with it was fantastic.

Photo by Scott Goodwill on Unsplash

Overall, With You Forever by Chloe Liese is the perfect addition to the Bergman Brothers series. I absolutely adore the romance, the plot was fantastic and the writing was just as great as always. This is a fantastic marriage of convenience, grumpy hero, friends to lovers romance. It just made me smile so much. If you haven’t picked up any books in this series please do. Each book explores disability in many forms as well as having sweet a spicy romances.

Have you read With You Forever by Chloe Liese yet? What did you think of it? Are you planning on reading it? Have you read any of the books in this series? Let’s Chat!