Alyce Caswell - Author
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Book Reviews

Deck the Halls

27/8/2021

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Highland Christmas (The Highland Books #5)
by Emma Baird

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A family Christmas is always going to be stressful, but add in an ex-alcoholic father, a father reappearing after a lengthy absence, a father flying the coop when he realises his child isn't his, and a father with sad, secret news - then the stress becomes practically stratospheric! Gaby and Jack are so run off their feet with the pub that they haven't any presents for their daughter. Can this Christmas be merry at all?

So I'm writing this nearly a day after finishing the book because MY EMOTIONS. Baird made me love all these people and seeing them go through so much makes me want to hug them all (...even Zac). Evie and Tamar were a delight, especially in scenes together! And Dylan finally shed his cardboard cutout identity and became a well-rounded character. I'm sad that this seems to be the end, but also happy to see off Lochalshie and its people when they're in a relatively good place.

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Three on a Match

13/3/2021

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All We Have is Now by Kaneana May

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

Olive, Elsie and Bree move their growing wellness centre into a larger place and must navigate the ensuing changes and challenges in their lives. For Olive, it's her secret past surfacing in the form of the wellness centre's new masseuse. For Elsie, it's her role as stepmother and soon-to-be mother. For Bree, it's the sister who blows in and out of her life and causes trouble wherever she goes. Achieving wellness will be harder than any of them ever realised.

I'm always hungry for a novel that explores the varied and fascinating relationships between women and this certainly delivered. Olive, Elsie and Bree felt like real people to me. I could easily picture running into them on the street. May has a history of making me ugly cry (see her previous novel, The One!) and All We Have is Now was no exception. Definitely park yourself beside a box of tissues when you pick up this book. A thoroughly satisfying read.

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This Girl is on Fire

29/12/2020

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Heiress on Fire by Kellie McCourt

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

Heiress Indigo-Daisy-Violet-Amber Hasluck-Royce-Jones-Bombberg (*draws breath*) married a man who was supposed to be her boring, reliable "Bran Muffin". But after her clumsiness inadvertently leads to his death in an explosion, she begins to unravel her Bran Muffin's secrets - and must somehow clear her name by venturing out into a world she has been sheltered from.

This was a somewhat amusing romp and I'm rather impressed that McCourt made someone who should have been unlikeable into a main character who I might follow into the sequel. You'll have to suspend disbelief a lot with this book and you really need to be in the mood for a vapid MC in the midst of a vapid plot (there are definitely times for this!). I'm not sure I liked how achingly obvious this book was as a setup for a series. It felt a little unfinished because of that. But I am like a moth to the Heiress on Fire and will probably pick up a sequel if there is one.

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Crazy Rich New Yorkers

30/9/2020

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Sex and Vanity by Kevin Kwan

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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.

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#TWINNING

28/9/2020

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The Duplicate Bride by Ginny Baird

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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.

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Gods Gone Wil - er, Just Gone

14/9/2020

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

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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

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What I Like About This Book

13/8/2020

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What I Like About Me by Jenna Guillaume

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Maisie Martin is being forced to keep a journal over the summer by a tyrannical teacher. What she'd rather do is spend summer the same way she always does: hanging out on the usual family holiday, pining away over Sebastian, running away from her problems and definitely not entering a beauty pageant.

Okay. All caps time. WHERE THE HELL WAS THIS BOOK WHEN I WAS A TEENAGER?

Well, obviously I couldn't obtain it through wibbly wobbly timey wimey means. But you know what I mean! Jenna Guillaume writes YA books that I can really relate to. Her characters feel like people I know in Real Life - and they all speak like people I know. But Guillaume's real strength is in how she tackles teen issues (eg. body image) without it feeling forced or heavy-handed. I really would have loved Maisie and learned a lot from her when I was younger.

And here I was thinking that nothing could best You Were Made For Me...

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A Slice of Country Life

14/7/2020

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Bottlebrush Creek by Maya Linnell

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 Angie McIntyre and Rob Jones have finally found the perfect fixer-upper for their small family, but soon after buying it the cons seem to outweigh the pros. Spiralling costs, an overbearing mother-in-law next door, a twin brother who Rob would rather never see again, and miscommunications may just be the end of what Angie and Rob have been trying to build together.

Well, this must be the first time anyone's ever managed to make me feel sympathy for an overbearing MIL! But that's what I like about Linnell's characters - they're complex and realistic and even the worst of them aren't reduced to caricatures. Another excellent piece of rural fiction. It's so easy to fall into the rhythm of the country towns that Linnell creates for us and it's always so hard to leave them after the last page is turned.

(PS: I'm still tickled pink by my review of Wildflower Ridge being quoted in the front of Bottlebrush Creek! I could say that I bought a paperback over an ebook for another reason, but I'd be lying...)

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A Sun Rises

4/7/2020

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Unconquerable Sun (The Sun Chronicles #1)
by Kate Elliott

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

​Sun, the heir to the queen-marshal of Chaonia, is a hero in her own right - but her passage to power will not be easy. Her collection of Companions and "cee-cees" will prove invaluable as she fights to stay alive, darts through political intrigue, uncovers awful truths AND saves the Republic of Chaonia.

There are some good bones to this story and the world-building has resulted in an intriguing setting that I enjoyed falling into - once the awkward, confusing start was over and done with, that is. The first 20% of this book feels superfluous and we're constantly introduced to new POVs without any seamless transition (and only one of them is in first person, for some reason). It's slow going. I nearly DNFed. But as soon as thing get going, they REALLY get going. I had a blast following Sun and co. from peril to peril. What a ride.

I found this book entertaining at times, though it's not without problems - the most major one being that Sun and her POV just aren't very interesting and she's supposed to be the main character! However, the other characters - Persephone especially!!! I love her - do make up for this.

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Golden Child vs. Scapegoat

8/6/2020

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We Are Family by Nicola Gill

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I received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
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Laura and Jess are sisters. They are also polar opposites who have always been divided by their differences and the favour of their mother. Now orphans, Laura and Jess have an opportunity to repair things - or to let their insecurities continue to drive them apart.

Gill has created very sympathetic characters who feel very real, like the type of women you'd run into on your way to the shops. This books shows how tangled and complex female relationships can be, no matter if they're with siblings, parents, friends or the mother of a schoolyard bully. Grief is also dealt with every well here and I'd easily have given this five stars without the last couple of chapters.

The ending comes across as rushed and the fallout of a large revelation occurs "off-screen". We don't get to see it ourselves (or the various other "events" that we're told about rather rapidly), which is disappointing.

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    About

    Alyce Caswell, when she isn't buried in a book or drinking her way through a giant pot of tea, is a keen writer of science fiction and romance. She has published two novels and four novellas in her space opera family saga, The Galactic Pantheon Series.

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  • 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
  • Contact