Horse Talk Reviews

A December to Remember by Jenny Bayliss My rating: 3 of 5 stars 2.5 stars (rounded up) This book was fine but not as whimsical as I expected. The curio shop was not actually magical it was unfortunately only filled with some valuable antiques they sold for cash (of course). And the seemingly ageless cat that had always been at the shop/family ancestral home was never explained. And the book was mostly about the three half sisters cleaning out the dusty old shop and reconnecting with each other while completing a scavenger hunt and party planning as were the rules of the will their weird old dad left them. But the focus was more on other stuff I didn't particularly care about like having babies and property law. It was also very long and had POVs from all three sisters. If it was more tightly written and didn't dedicate so much to, like, housing and leases and focused more on the whimsy it would've been better, I think. Also, it starts wit...

Once a Rogue by Allie Therin My rating: 4 of 5 stars 3.5 stars rounded up This series is what I consider a popcorn read where you consume it without thinking too hard about it and everything works out and you remember almost nothing once you're finished. This book is no exception. I like Sebastian but Wesley can be kind of grating with his "im the worst man on the entire earth how can you POSSIBLY like me" stuff it, man, you are not the worst AT ALL. The magic is also rather convenient especially in this book (which it was very convenient in the whole series) but you know what? sometimes it's nice to know everything will be fine. I am looking forward to their next book and hopefully Wesley stops with the thinking he's some unloveable monster crap and lives his truth of being a cat dad and doting boyfriend to Sebastian. I received an ARC copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own. ...

Rachel Reid is back to answer some new (or the exact same) interview questions in celebration of her brand new book TIME TO SHINE out now and available wherever you get books! And no, there is no Ilya or Shane in this book this is a BRAND NEW STANDALONE BOOK HOCKEY UNIVERSE! Yay! Anyway, onto the questions! Horse Question 1: If Landon and Casey were actually thoroughbreds and racing the triple crown which one would win? Rachel: Landon would win because he runs a lot and Casey hates running. If the horses were on skates Casey would win. Horse Question 2: If Landon was a thoroughbred horse what would his horse show name be? Rachel: The first thing that popped into my head was Daddy’s Little Sad Sack, but Landon deserves better. How about Unexpected Hero? Regular Question 3: If you rewrote the book as a paranormal romance what would each character be? Rachel: Casey would be a laid back and helpful ghost who is kind of annoying but is also good company. Landon would be a cursed ...

Prince and Bodyguard by Tavia Lark My rating: 4 of 5 stars 4 stars This was cute and had nice forehead kisses and caretaking but I do not remember nearly enough of the previous books to follow the intricacies of the political gambit parts. I also expected the series about the House Dire princes in the evil land of blood magic and dragons and whatnot to be darker but this was as light-hearted and neatly wrapped up as the previous series. Which is fine but a bit more evil angsty grit would be great! Of course, as always, it's a very readable and sweet book. Even if I couldn't remember who any of these people were lol. I received an ARC copy of this book from the author in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own. View all my reviews

Famous for a Living by Melissa Ferguson My rating: 2 of 5 stars 2 stars I love a Hallmark movie romance plot as much as the next person but I require them to be at least a tiny bit original or, you know, accurate. This book was perfectly set up with Cat being a disgraced influencer who moved back to a small town (or into a national park her uncle was the...something of? Head ranger? Overlord?) and a hot mountain man guy who helped her survive her idiotic City girl impulses like improper footwear and driving a convertible Mercedes in the snow. Sounds great, right? Well you would be WRONG. This book, in the year 2023, requires you to believe: - mason jars were never popular and this influencer made them sell out across the country! I did not suffer through the hipster and Pioneer Woman eras where we made small batch pickles and poured carafes of water into mason jars for this crap. - a national park needs a City girl influencer to make them popular ...

Moorewood Family Rules by HelenKay Dimon My rating: 3 of 5 stars 3 stars Ah yes, the delightful tale of a white collar criminal being released from prison and conning her con-man-filled family into never conning again because crimes are bad or something. So while Jillian, the criminal, is trying to outcon her family in the one (1) week this book takes place she: - hires and sleeps with her bodyguard - that she hired because one of her cousins keeps trying to kill her?? - because Jillian controls the money but if she's dead then ... Profit!!!??? - I'm not sure the bodyguard did any actual protection work. What kind of professional sleeps with their client who just got out of prison after 2 days of knowing each other?? - finds another conman lady trying to steal from her Uncle Conman and exposes her! - never leaves the estate at any time?? I wish a hot bodyguard would show up at my house and date me. And also that I was wealthy with a giant hou...

Best Men by Sidney Karger My rating: 3 of 5 stars 2.5 stars rounded up A chaotic stream of consciousness liveblogging style book loosely disguised as a romance wherein the point of view character is a dude who is almost 40 but constantly drinks, never sleeps, has way too many inside jokes, eats diner food at all hours, and is generally Bad at Life. The book gave me a lot of sympathy heartburn and made me want to sit on my couch and talk to no one. The title is apt as the two main characters are both Best Men in the same wedding. Max, the POV character, is bad at wedding planning but is a huge baby about being left out, and Chasten is good at wedding planning and is a Grown Up and shenanigans ensue! Like, a LOT of shenanigans. Too many shenanigans. I needed this whole thing to be turned down like 10 or so notches. The word "gay-xpectations" was used. Approximately four hundred songs were mentioned by name, artist, and song lyric. Every offic...