Alyce Caswell - Author
  • Home
  • Books
    • The Galactic Pantheon >
      • The Tortured Wind
      • The Twisted Vine
      • The Flickering Flame
      • The Shifting Ice
      • The Whispering Grass
      • The Creeping Moss
      • The Galactic Pantheon Novellas
      • The Adventures of Grace Pendergast, Galactic Reporter
    • The Shadow of the Gods
    • Dealing with the Demon
    • Love and Lockdown
    • The Eyes of Charon
    • Sweet Delights
  • Other Works
  • Book Reviews
  • Get in Touch

Book Reviews

Crazy Rich New Yorkers

30/9/2020

0 Comments

 

Sex and Vanity by Kevin Kwan

Picture
Lucie Churchill's sheltered life is shaken by an encounter with George Zao in Capri. She has spent years blissfully avoiding him - until he reappears in her life just after she becomes engaged to a man who could seemingly give her everything. A retelling of A Room with a View.

I was taken in right at the start by Kwan's usual masterful blending of travel romance and comedy of manners - which I expected, given his previous books. But then of course the plot kept going and I lost interest. I'll admit I've never read the book this is based on, so I don't know who to blame for Lucie being extremely unlikeable. She got really nasty at one point. And I didn't see any love between her and George. It felt like they were strangers to each other, even at the end.

0 Comments

#TWINNING

28/9/2020

0 Comments

 

The Duplicate Bride by Ginny Baird

Picture
I received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

​Hope's twin sister, Jackie, is getting married this week, but she's a wedding planner with another wedding to sort out first. She asks the unthinkable of Hope - take her place and pretend to be her, just until she arrives. It'll only be a day, tops! Hope knows it's all wrong, but she really wants her sister to be happy - and then she starts to fall for Brent and his family...

This was a fun and fresh take on the "marriage of convenience" trope (with twins thrown in for good measure!) and I enjoyed every minute of it. Brent and Hope were written well together, so clearly meant-to-be. You can throw characters together, but you've got to make sure they have chemistry - and boy, do they! I suppose the premise is slightly on the ridiculous side and sometimes I felt as frustrated as Hope as things continued to worsen for her. Still a great read, however.

0 Comments

Move Over, Max

27/9/2020

0 Comments

 

The Matriarch (Women of the Dust #1)
by Annabella McInnes

Picture
I received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Yolanda is the Matriarch of the Horde, struggling alongside her people as they are denied water and sustenance. They are on the brink of annihilation when a disastrous battle sees Yolanda in charge of the fate of the new king of a rival nation. She could destroy him. Or she could save the Horde - if only she could allow herself to trust him.

A sexy, post-apocalyptic tale with a heroine who isn't reduced to the stereotypical "warrior woman"? Yes please! I absolutely loved everything about this book. The world-building felt natural, the relationship developed at just right pace, and the writing was superb. I'm an instant fan of this series - I can't wait to read the rest of it. A perfectly gritty sci-fi/romance.

0 Comments

The Holiday Version 2.0

20/9/2020

0 Comments

 

The Christmas Swap by Sandy Barker

Picture
I received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Chloe, Jules and Lucy are lifelong friends who are scattered across the globe (Australia, the US and the UK respectively) and have often travelled together. But they've always spent Christmas with their own families. This time, however, they've decided to swap locations for a change of scenery. Love can be found in many places, but this year it will be with a best friend's brother, a movie star and a hot winemaker...

As a huge fan of The Holiday, I was excited to get into this story, but perhaps my expectations were a little too high given the book's inspiration! That said, I think it would make for very pleasant reading over the holidays. These three women are interesting characters with interesting backgrounds, not cardboard cutouts.

However, the three storylines never quite meshed into a single cohesive plot for me - I think they might have worked better as separate novellas. There were some scenes I really wanted to see fleshed out more - or just see, given that they happened "off-screen". But this isn't a dealbreaker for me.

One thing I should flag is a line that appears in Jules' POV - the sentence is worded in such a way that it suggests that ace men are "boring". Being so near to the end of the book, it did leave a lingering impression (and not a good one). It's such a small thing, but still...

0 Comments

Gods Gone Wil - er, Just Gone

14/9/2020

0 Comments

 

Seer (The Titanomachy #1)
by S.E. Welsh

Picture
Chloe Santos was revealed as a Seer at the very moment she lost her sight. The horrific attempt on her life did not end it, but nor did it end the danger she's in. Someone is moving against the remaining Olympians and Chloe is thrown right into the middle of this plot. It's a good thing she finds her soulmate in a strong son of Ares.

I really dig the world-building in this book. Gods and mythology are my jam and Seer did not disappoint on that front. This was an easy, fun read that showed the ancient Greek gods in an interesting light. But I think this book could have been longer - the plot felt a bit rushed and the insta!love felt a bit like insta!lust. I was also hoping for less vanilla sexytimes, given the warning at the front lol

0 Comments

Some Things Come in Threes

5/9/2020

0 Comments

 

Bridge of Dreams (Ephemera #3)
by Anne Bishop

Picture
Ephemera is a living world that changes to suit the people inside it - and should you travel between parts of that world, you may find yourself in a place that resonates with your heart. Lee is a Bridge and can connect such places, but he begins closing himself off from his sister and the parts of Ephemera that belong to her after the events of Belladonna. A encounter with Wizards sends him to Vision, a place where his family can't reach him - and place where he is blinded and becomes a madman.

I'm going to be honest. The Ephemera books have always confused the heck out of me. I do my best to muddle along and am always glad that I did, because I enjoy the characters inhabiting that world. I loved the first two books. It's been a while since I read them, but they've stayed in my mind for years. I suppose Bridge of Dreams was never going to match up. Still a unique and fascinating fantasy story, just not as well rounded as Sebastian and Belladonna.

0 Comments
    Picture

    About

    ​Alyce Caswell, when she isn't drinking her way through a giant pot of tea, can be found dabbling in multiple genres and writing forms. She has self-published several titles in her space opera family saga, which is divided into two series: The Galactic Pantheon and The Pantheon War. Her most recent book is The Shadow of the Gods.

    Picture

    Archives

    April 2025
    March 2025
    February 2025
    January 2025
    December 2024
    November 2024
    October 2024
    September 2024
    August 2024
    July 2024
    June 2024
    May 2024
    April 2024
    March 2024
    February 2024
    January 2024
    December 2023
    November 2023
    October 2023
    September 2023
    August 2023
    July 2023
    June 2023
    May 2023
    April 2023
    March 2023
    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020

    Picture

    Categories

    All
    Alt Hist
    Anthology
    Ashley Poston
    Australia
    Australian
    Barbara Hambly
    BIPOC
    Book Review
    Brazil
    Canada
    Canadian
    Chicklit
    Classic
    Collection
    Comedy Of Manners
    Comics
    Community Unravels
    COVID 19
    COVID-19
    Crime
    Denmark
    Diversity
    Emma Baird
    Endometriosis
    Fairy Tales
    Fantasy
    Female Relationships
    Gamebook
    Ghosts
    Harlequin
    Healing Fiction
    Heist
    Heroic Fantasy
    Historical
    Historical Romance
    History
    Hugo Award Winner
    Irish
    Italian
    Jack Campbell
    Japan
    JNR
    Julia Quinn
    Kim Harrison
    Korean
    LGBTQIA+ Representation
    Literary Fiction
    Lorraine Heath
    Lynsay Sands
    Malaysian
    Martha Wells
    Meg Cabot
    Memoir
    Messy Family
    MG
    Mills & Boon
    NA
    Netgalley
    Neurodiverse
    New Adult
    Noir
    Non Fiction
    Non-fiction
    NOPE NOPE NOPE
    Norse Mythology
    Novella
    Paranormal Romance
    Patricia Briggs
    Paula Quinn
    Philippines
    Prequel
    Problematic
    Queer Romance
    Reference Material
    Romance
    Romcom
    RUBY
    Rural Romance
    SA
    Sarah J Maas
    Sci Fi/fantasy
    Sci-fi/fantasy
    Scottish Romance
    Sequel
    Small Town Romance
    Sophie Barnes
    Space Opera
    Spin Off
    Star Wars
    Suspense
    Tea
    Television
    The Epic EU Read Through
    Time Travel
    Timothy Zahn
    TW: Emotional Abuse
    TW: Gaslighting
    TW: Paedophilia
    TW: Pregnancy Loss
    TW: Self Harm
    TW: Sexual Assault
    TW: Stalking
    TW: Suicide
    UK
    Urban Fantasy
    US
    Vampires
    Video Games
    Wattpad
    Werewolves
    Witches
    Woman With A Sword!
    YA
    Zimbabwe
    Zombies

    RSS Feed

User-agent: GPTBot Disallow: /

  • Home
  • Books
    • The Galactic Pantheon >
      • The Tortured Wind
      • The Twisted Vine
      • The Flickering Flame
      • The Shifting Ice
      • The Whispering Grass
      • The Creeping Moss
      • The Galactic Pantheon Novellas
      • The Adventures of Grace Pendergast, Galactic Reporter
    • The Shadow of the Gods
    • Dealing with the Demon
    • Love and Lockdown
    • The Eyes of Charon
    • Sweet Delights
  • Other Works
  • Book Reviews
  • Get in Touch