Sophie Reads YA

January

Stacking the Shelves: January 28th 2023

10:00

2023 New Release challenge

ARC Review: Curled Up with an Earl (The Byronic Book Club #2) by Amy Rose Bennett

11:00

2022 New Release challenge

ARC Review: Up All Night with a Good Duke (The Byronic Book Club #1) by Amy Rose Bennett

10:00

Up All Night with a Good Duke
Series: The Byronic Book Club #1
Author: Amy Rose Bennett
Published June 28th 2022 by Sourcebooks Casablanca

Goodreads Synopsis
"I can think of the perfect way to keep you occupied and your mind diverted," she murmured. "Come to my room. If you're not too tired..."

Lust flashed in his gaze, and then, he caught her face between his hands and kissed her. "For you, my beautiful Artemis, I'd stay up all night."

Artemis Jones―"respectable" finishing-school teacher by day and Gothic romance writer by night―has never lost sight of her real dream: to open her own academic ladies' college. When Artemis is unexpectedly called upon by a dear friend, a fellow Byronic Book Club member, to navigate her first London Season, she comes at once. Who knows, perhaps she can court the interest of a wealthy patron for her school. As long as she can avoid her high-handed aunt's schemes to marry her off.

Dominic Winters, the widowed Duke of Dartmoor, needs a wife―someone who will provide him with an heir and help him to manage his spitfire adolescent daughter. The problem is, Society has dubbed him "The Dastardly Duke." Rumors are rife that he murdered his mad wife, so his choices for a suitable bride are limited. But then, he meets the ravishing and passionate Artemis Jones, who might just be everything he needs.
Goodreads

Review
I received an Advance Reader Copy from the publisher. This in no way impacted on my view.

For Artemis Jones, undergoing a season is the last thing she wants. She intends to one day open a college for young ladies, and is happy to leave her job at a stuffy 'respectable' school to help her sister and her friends. But arriving in London and walking into the Dastardly Duke of Dartmoor, Artemis is drawn to him. Dominic Winters needs a wife, but even though he is a Duke and relatively young, society believes he killed his first wife and won't go anywhere near him. Dominic needs a wife for an heir, and a mother was his wayward daughter, and Artemis definitely fits the bill.

Well this book was fun. Artemis and Dominic had one of the best meetings in a historical romance, and their subsequent meetings were right for them too. I loved when the plot line turned into a fake engagement, and Artemis grew closer to Dominic's daughter, Celeste. The secret she was keeping was fun, and though I wish she had spoken to Dominic about it before the big 'reveal', it was worth it for the make up scenes. A really enjoyable start to a new series, from a new author for me.

Dates Read:
October 4-7, 2022

Rating
4 Stars

2023 Beat the Backlist challenge

ARC Review: Ophelia After All by Racquel Marie

10:00

Ophelia After All
Series: None
Author: Racquel Marie
Published September 29th 2022 by Pan Macmillan

Goodreads Synopsis
A teen girl navigates friendship drama, the end of high school, and discovering her queerness in Ophelia After All, the hilarious and heartfelt contemporary YA debut by Racquel Marie.

Ophelia Rojas knows what she likes: her best friends, Cuban food, rose-gardening, and boys – way too many boys. Her friends and parents make fun of her endless stream of crushes, but Ophelia is a romantic at heart. She couldn’t change, even if she wanted to.

So when she finds herself thinking more about cute, quiet Talia Sanchez than the loss of a perfect prom with her ex-boyfriend, seeds of doubt take root in Ophelia’s firm image of herself. Add to that the impending end of high school and the fracturing of her once-solid friend group, and things are spiraling a little out of control. But the course of love - and sexuality - never did run smooth. As her secrets begin to unravel, Ophelia must make a choice between clinging to the fantasy version of herself she’s always imagined or upending everyone’s expectations to rediscover who she really is, after all.
Goodreads

Review
I received an Advance Reader Copy from the publisher via NetGalley. This in no way impacted on my view.

As the daughter of a professor of Shakespearean literature, Ophelia Rojas was always bound to be named after one of the Bard's heroines, and Ophelia suits her quite well. Boy crazy, and with a green thumb, Ophelia loves spending time with her friends or in her rose garden. So when she starts developing feelings for the cute and quiet Talia Sanchez, all her plans for prom and the future go out the window. And as her friendship group starts to implode and unravel, Ophelia will discover that the path to true love never did run smooth, and her last few months at high school will be a ride.

As soon as I heard about this book, I knew I needed to read it. And from the very first page, I was hooked. Ophelia was one of the most relatable characters I've ever read. She's not perfect, and life got messy at times for her, but she was just right for this book, and the plot. She discovers that being a teenager isn't easy, especially when big decisions are on the horizon, and that sexuality is not something that is black and white. Her heritage, and her goals were sometimes in conflict with each other, and her history as 'boy crazy' is a hard one to shake off. I loved the dynamics in the friendship group, as it was clear that Ophelia had different relationships with the different people, and they weren't always the 'best' of friends. Being a teenager is hard, and the author showed that so perfectly in this book. I'm going to recommend that my students read this book, because honestly, I wish I'd had it when I was a teen. A truly great debut!

Dates Read:
January 5-8, 2022

Rating
4 Stars

Lorraine Heath

Waiting On Wednesday: The Counterfeit Scoundrel (The Chessmen: Masters of Seduction #1) by Lorraine Heath

10:00

2021 Beat the Backlist challenge

ARC Review: Paper Butterflies by Lisa Heathfield

10:00

Paper Butterflies
Series: None
Author: Lisa Heathfield
Published June 30th 2016 by Electric Monkey

Goodreads Synopsis
June's life at home with her stepmother and stepsister is a dark one—and a secret one. She is trapped like a butterfly in a net.

But then June meets Blister, a boy in the woods. In him she recognises the tiniest glimmer of hope that perhaps she can find a way to fly far, far away from her home and be free. Because every creature in this world deserves their freedom... But at what price?
Goodreads

Review
I received an Advance Reader Copy from the publisher, via NetGalley. This in no way impacted on my view.

Paper Butterflies follows June Kingston throughout her life from the age of 10. It sees her trapped at home, with a horrific home life, and alone at school. It's only when she meets a boy, called Blister, in the woods, that she starts to recognise the signs of freedom, and sets her on the path to recover and grow strong enough to escape. She's like one of the paper butterflies she and Blister makes, yearning for freedom and the power to grow wings, but will she be able to, or is she doomed to be locked in her world for good?

This book was horrific, and heartbreaking, right from the first page. I've had it on my TBR for a good few years now, and even though I loved Seed, I kept pushing this book further down, but decided enough was enough, and as soon as I started it, I couldn't put it down. June lost her mother when she was only 5, and has had a stepmother and stepsister since she was 6. Her stepmother, Kathleen, was abusive, and on the first page, we see her force June to take drink after drink, refusing to allow her to use the bathroom, and then send her to school where she wees herself. She's already ostracised by her peers for being mixed race, and they regularly are racist towards her, and being known as the girl who wet herself on the school bus hasn't helped. There's more forced feeding, and racist comments, and down right psychological abuse at the hands of both her stepfamily (Megan included) and her peers, and no one helps her. She tries to tell people, alluding to different things that are happening, but no one cares about her, and it's so heartbreaking! Her dad just thinks she's a stroppy brat who's acting against a loving mother figure, especially with Kathleen appearing to be caring when he's around. Once she meets Blister, and later his family, she starts to see what a normal home life should be like, being loved and cared for by parental figures, and I really thought she might end up with a happy ending. Then the book took a turn, and I was completely blown away - it was so out of the blue, I just didn't see it coming. This is a book that is so thought provoking, and it's going to stay with me for weeks to come!

Dates Read:
February 24, 2021

Rating
4 Stars

4 Stars

ARC Review: Her Lessons in Persuasion (School for Scoundrels #1) by Megan Frampton

10:00

Her Lessons in Persuasion
Series: School for Scoundrels #1
Author: Megan Frampton
Published January 24th 2023 by Avon Books

Goodreads Synopsis
Megan Frampton dazzles in the first book in her new series, A School for Scoundrels. Five gentlemen with unbreakable bonds navigate life--and love--in London. Perfect for fans of Sarah MacLean and anyone who loves BRIDGERTON!

To Lady Wilhelmina Bettesford, the "game" of finding a husband is a competitive sport she wants no part of...until her much-younger step mama forces her to play it. So when her stepmother asks sexy barrister Bram Townsend to pretend to woo the amateur astronomer to boost Wilhelmina's popularity, it's up to Wilhelmina to navigate a fake courtship that will keep the family from forcing her into a marriage--any marriage--before she finally receives the inheritance that will allow her to live as she wants.

The trouble is every time Bram takes her in his arms she has a most difficult time remembering theirs is an act...the make-believe passion feels very real indeed.

Bram Townsend is a man on the way up: living for his books and his beliefs. Squiring Lady Wilhelmina through London's dusk-to-dawn social whirl is hardly an ordeal--she's beautiful, bright, and bold, everything he finds tempting in a woman. Their deal means he can meet the "best" people while she keeps her family at bay. The challenge is he quickly finds himself wanting her to say "yes" when she's so determined to say "no." She persuaded him to make this impetuous bargain, but how can he convince her to make it real?
Goodreads

Review
I received an Advance Reader Copy from the publisher. This in no way impacted on my view.

Knowing that she only needs to wait six month until her 25th birthday, and her independence, Lady Wilhelmina Bettesford is shocked when her father returns home from their country estate, with a new wife in tow. A wife who just happens to be 5 years younger than Wilhelmina, and is set on getting her married off by the end of the season. Wilhelmina is definitely not interested, but when the man roped into helping her find a husband turns out to be the one who 'rescued' her from the bridge in the dead of night, and who she kissed. Bram Townsend knows his place in society, and he has no interest in joining 'Polite Society'. But Bram wishes to be a judge one day, and his friends explain that being seen by the right people may be his way in.

Well this is my first Frampton book, but definitely not by last. The premise of the series is about a group of friends who were all raised at the Devenaugh Home for Destitute Boys (what they call the School for Scoundrels), and have found family together. Bram is a barrister, and cares about righting injustice in the world. He is drawn to Wilhelmina, and wants to help her evade marriage - which she definitely does not want - until she comes into her inheritance. However, as they spend more time together, it's clear they are made for each other, and Bram wants to marry her, but will not force her. I loved the debating scenes, particularly when all of the 'scoundrels' became involved and brought the whole family together. A great start to the series, and one I can't wait to continue.

Dates Read:
December 22-23, 2022

Rating
4 Stars