Title: Beneath the Canyons Author: Kyra Halland Rating Out of 5: 2.5 (Readable, but not worth reading again) Pace: Slow Format: eBook, Novel Year: 2014
I’ve gotten to a point in my life that if something doesn’t hook me within the first 3 chapters, I don’t tend to stick with it. Sadly, this one lasted 4 chapters before I realised I just wasn’t reaching for my kobo to see what happened next.
For me, it was the writing style that put me off. I liked the premise, but I found it kind of repetitive with the he said and the descriptions were a little clunky. Enjoyable, but not enough to pull me in and make me care what happens next.
When there’s a tragedy in your youth, there is always something that sets you apart. Whilst my tragedy wasn’t quite as tragic as this, I do recognise that feeling of not quite being able to relate to my peers and just generally struggling with ideas and expectations of the future.
I love that Simon helps the narrator to bloom, but was ultimately a short term person to give her the chance. Instead, it’s a friendship with Chava that really feels like the monumental relationship and turning point. It’s a reminder that, even if a relationship is important, it may not be a long-term one.
The delivery food which takes up most of the story in this tale is definitely what comfort foods are made of. I know literally nothing about Jewish delis, so it was cool to imagine some of the foods that passed through their hands. And how such simple food can bring warmth to a cold heart.
I love the premise of this blind date also being a second chance. Alright, it might be a little underhanded to set yourself up on a blind date with your ex to get her back. But, it does also work kind of nicely. I also liked this in the format of a short story – it was a story that entirely took place over one evening with the reconciliation and date all happening in a short amount of time. And just the right amount of angst to keep you interested.
Honestly, this is one of the more basic second chance romances that I’ve read. Both characters put their careers before their relationship. And then, after a little bit of time and a whole heap of pride do their work, they realise they’ve made a mistake and desperately try to get back together again. It’s sweet and cute, if not a little bit ridiculously predictable. Although, sometimes, that’s just what we want.
This was honestly a very lustful and lust driven story. But, also quite cute and a little bit sweet. I do like a good second chance romance, and even if this didn’t quite hit all of my happy points for a short story, it still worked incredibly well.
I absolutely adored this collection – it was brilliant, light-hearted and fun. Plus, it was filled with many new authors and beautiful stories. A great journey of stories by #OwnVoices authors who gave me a glimpse into a multitude of experiences. Ones that I look forward to repeating again in the future.
As someone who loves her food, I really appreciated that each story in this collection featured food and the many feelings that an accomplish it throughout. Food is a great avenue through which to experience the world, and process feelings. The stories in this collection run the gambit of experiences. And I found it intriguing the different feelings that were expressed throughout.
This is one of those fantastic collections of stories that I will read and reread again and again in the future. I also can’t wait to read more stories by the authors that I’ve added to this collection. There wasn’t one that I don’t look forward to reading again in the future.
I enjoyed this anthology more than I enjoyed 1001 Dark Nights: Bundle One, but it still wasn’t a collection in which I loved every single novella. Rather, I found that I adored two and was a bit meh about two. Still enough to make me want to continue reading through these anthologies – there are some wonderful gems and new authors to discover with just a turn of the page.
The stories within this collection are fairly intensely sexual at times. Which, depending on my mood and the style in which they are written, can be thoroughly enjoyable, or a little bit too intense. I always love to put myself in uncomfortable mindsets when reading. It’s how I learn and grow. Some of these might even be the kind of uncomfortable I enjoy on a second reading.
Although some of these stories were a little intense, I also loved that all four of them have a common thread. All four of these novellas featured some kind of Dom/Sub relationship, but they were also filled with love and respect, something I really enjoyed. I can’t wait to continue with these anthologies and keep pushing my comfort levels.
Whilst I really enjoyed this story, I didn’t necessarily love the end of this tale – I mean, Molly goes from being a tough and kick ass federal agent. To being barefoot and pregnant. I have no issue with her quitting her job for her family and happily ever after – but, maybe it could have been more of her wish than his?
I loved that Molly and Jonathan were childhood sweethearts and best friends. And then, they reconnected after they’ve had the chance to become adults. Particularly Molly, whilst the time apart may have been difficult in ways, they also emphasised who she was as a person and that she needed the space and time to grow up.
There is so much gun slinging and pure insanity throughout this story. Which is probably why I enjoyed it so much – I love the crazy. And crazy with guns? That makes me seriously enjoyable. Then, there’s the fun characters and fantastic world building. I mean, this is a novella which features the wild west with paranormal, steampunk flavours. Now I can’t wait to see how Jonathan’s brothers find their happily ever after…
I love that although Coyle and Deri had an instant attraction, they build their relationship over three years before actually making their move. Alright, some of it is fear, but some of it is just the whole, getting to know one another thing. I read a few too many stories that the insta-lust turns into insta-love. Instead this was a story that was insta-lust to friendship to love… definitely a progression that I found far more enjoyable and relatable.
There was a decent amount of build up in this story for a quick turn around to a happily ever after. Although, some of that may be because this was quite a short story, at least in comparison to what I was quite frankly expecting. I was almost disappointed that there wasn’t more conflict and discovery before Deri and Coyle ended up together. But, not tragically disappointed because I really, really enjoyed this short diversion.
I was fairly surprised that the villain in this story wasn’t harder to dispatch than he was. I thought that he’d suddenly pull out a surprise ninja move that would surprise Coyle and his brother. One that would extend their battle and raise the stakes. Instead, it was embarrassingly quick and brutal. It also didn’t give any big reveals about his part in Deri’s hiding and outcast status. Which I was kind of expecting…
I love that this was a quick and easy read, more of a novella length than a full length novel. Sometimes it’s nice to fit a quick read in-between the longer ones, especially one that is this enjoyable and happy. I can’t wait to read more light romances in the Druid series!
Jake was a great character in Once Hunted, Twice Shy, so I love that he got his own story and happily ever after! It also meant more Wilbur shenanigans. And just, general chaos. Plus, it opens up more of the Happily Everlasting world. Pete, Hugh and all of the other entertaining cast also make appearances, just so that Jake’s love story is all that much more fun and ridiculously enjoyable.
Kelsey is a great match for Jake, if not as engaging and relatable to some of the other female leads thus far in this series. She’s still got backbone, and I love that she comes “home” to rest in Everlasting. The fact that she gets the super dreamy centaur Jake when she decides to come to everlasting just makes it all that much better.
He might be a secondary character, but Wilbur is still completely totally and utterly a favourite. I mean, he pretty much spends the entirety of the book messing with and aggravating Jake and Hugh. I love that a seemingly innocent and sweet old man is actually the terror of a supernatural town. And that he finds serious entertainment in just… annoying pretty much everyone. And kidnapping people. And just generally being a menace.
Total Eclipse of the Hunt is ultimately a story about good and bad witches, and generations of wars between them. Having the name Babcock for a family of evil witches just… worked. On a level that I wasn’t expecting. I absolutely loved the whole dynamic, and that the guy I thought was evil wasn’t, and the one I thought wasn’t, was. A great little cozy mystery. But one that was about theft, and not death this time around.
Witchful Thinking is a great story, and one that I will most likely read again. It was fun and light hearted, with just enough drama to keep me hooked in from the very first moment. Charlotte and Walker were a fun couple, and I like that they were in a race against time to figure out just who was hunting for the grimoire. And destroying Charlotte’s property, and just generally who was on the side of evil.
Whilst I really enjoyed this story, I found Charlotte to be almost annoyingly innocent. I mean, I still liked her, and eventually she showed some backbone. But it took a little while for her to get there, and it was a bit frustrating in the lead up. Then, it did make me even more happy when she decided to step up and act like an adult. Walker was incredibly loyal from the very beginning, and I found his inability to deviate from his loyalty to Charlotte to be quite cute and endearing.
This is the first Everlasting story I’ve read that wasn’t written by Mandy M. Roth – so it was nice to have a different perspective of this jointly created town. I love series which provide different facets of small town life by having stories crafted by different authors. That, and it gave me a whole new author to add to my shelves and investigate.
I love that this is a cozy mystery which features and evil book and evil witches. I mean, the book didn’t seem so evil, until you start learning about what spells inhabit it’s pages. I also love how the demise of the evil is actually really anticlimactic. A disgustingly fun way to spend an evening, guessing who the villain is and getting that easy happily ever after that I love.
I love that this is a paranormal romance and a cozy mystery all rolled into one. I particularly love how Hugh and Penelope are falling in love and getting to know one another as they try and solve a pair of murders. Plus, then there’s Penelope’s grandfather and all of his insanity – the man who likes to kidnap others and is a kind elderly guy who also scares every single person in the town.
I love that Hugh is a werewolf, but his perfect soul mate is the daughter of a long line of monster hunters. And that Hugh is absolutely terrified of her grandfather. That in and of itself leads itself to a lot of high jinx and shenanigans throughout the story. It also means that instead of just Hugh and Penelope trying to solve a murder, her grandfather is running around causing chaos in his own controlling, crime-solving manner.
Although I absolutely adored Hugh and Penelope, I must admit that it was the secondary cast and the town of Everlasting that had me falling in love with this story. I mean, every single person in this was an absolute character. And all of their crazy together created an amazing and vibrant world that I can’t wait to get back to. And I can’t wait to see who falls in love next, who gets kidnapped, killed or robbed, whatever chaotic mystery is going to happen in the next Happily Everlasting World book.
I did end up guessing who the culprit was in this story, although, quite honestly, only moments before the big reveal. However, that is often why I like to read cozy mysteries – they are generally not filled with a mind bending mystery, but one that is big enough to keep you engaged. Plus, there is the fact that the culprit had a paranormal motive and wasn’t actually as evil as originally anticipated. Now I can’t wait for the next story in Happily Everlasting or Bewitchingly Ever After.
Earth and Skye 