Sophie Reads YA: October 2023

monthly summary

October Summary

11:00

2023 New Release challenge

ARC Review: Never Wager with a Wallflower (The Merriwell Sisters #3) by Virginia Heath

10:00

October

Stacking the Shelves: October 28th 2023

10:00

2023 Beat the Backlist challenge

Review: Last Duke Standing (A Royal Match #1) by Julia London

10:00

Last Duke Standing
Series: A Royal Match #1
Author: Julia London
Published March 3rd 2022 by Mills & Boon

Goodreads Synopsis
First in a sparkling all-new historical series by New York Times bestselling author Julia London

Deemed ‘unsuitable’ to rule by her parents, Princess Justine arrives in London to learn the ropes of royalty before she takes the throne. Here she must face the scrutiny of Queen Victoria herself as she learns what it means to be royal, including acquiring a suitable husband. Yet, a plan to marry her off to a convenient groom, is underway, and roguish bachelor William, Lord Douglas is given the task of ensuring a suitable husband is found.

But the longer William spends in Justine’s company the more the opinionated young woman inspires a protective instinct in him and soon he deems all potential suitors unacceptable. Yet Justine is expected to marry.

But what if the right man has been there all along…
Goodreads

Review
As the Crown Princess of Wesloria, Princess Justine has been raised to one day be queen. However, the country are not looking forward to a female monarch, and especially not one like Justine. With her father ill, her mother sends Justine and younger sister, Amelia, to London, to learn how to be royal, by Victoria herself, and find themselves husbands before it's too late. Justine has no intention of changing herself for a husband, especially not someone who covets the throne that is hers, and being chaperoned by Lord William Douglas, the future Duke of Hamilton, is an insult. But Justine finds that William brings out the best and worst in her, and when they start to critique her 'suitors' together, it's soon clear to everyone but themselves that they are the perfect match.

I adored Julia's A Royal Wedding series, and when I saw she had a new series, with some overlap of characters, I knew it would be one for me. Books like this, where the main couple have a history, and uses the enemies-to-lovers trope are always a win with me, and this book had it all. William was a stickler for the rules, though with a rakish reputation, and he saw Justine as too flighty and flirty, but his family needed the money he was given to be her chaperone. When they meet again, it was clear that they both hadn't forgotten the other, and were definitely attracted to each other. The banter and snarkiness of their conversations were so right for these characters, and the little asides and bets they made when Justine was faced with her suitors added a spark of humour in the story. Having the matchmaker appear, and provide some truly horrible options for her to choose from was funny, and the conclusion was just the piece de resistance! A wonderful story, and I can't wait to read Amelia's romance!

Dates Read:
July 28-31, 2023

Rating
4 Stars

Never Wager with a Wallflower

Waiting On Wednesday: Never Wager with a Wallflower (The Merriwell Sisters #3) by Virginia Heath

10:00

2023 New Release challenge

ARC Review: Gwen and Art Are Not in Love by Lex Croucher

10:00

Gwen and Art Are Not in Love
Series: None
Author: Lex Croucher
Published May 11th 2023 by Bloomsbury YA/November 28th 2023 by Wednesday Books

Goodreads Synopsis
Heartstopper meets A Knight’s Tale in this queer medieval rom com YA debut about love, friendship, and being brave enough to change the course of history.

It’s been hundreds of years since King Arthur’s reign. His descendant, Arthur, a future Lord and general gadabout, has been betrothed to Gwendoline, the quick-witted, short-tempered princess of England, since birth. The only thing they can agree on is that they despise each other.

They’re forced to spend the summer together at Camelot in the run up to their nuptials, and within 24 hours, Gwen has discovered Arthur kissing a boy and Arthur has gone digging for Gwen's childhood diary and found confessions about her crush on the kingdom's only lady knight, Bridget Leclair.

Realizing they might make better allies than enemies, they make a reluctant pact to cover for each other, and as things heat up at the annual royal tournament, Gwen is swept off her feet by her knight and Arthur takes an interest in Gwen's royal brother. Lex Croucher's Gwen and Art Are Not in Love is chock full of sword-fighting, found family, and romantic shenanigans destined to make readers fall in love.
Goodreads

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

Arthur Pendragon, descendant of the famous King, and Princess Gwendoline have known that they are betrothed for as long as they can remember, but have hated each other for just as long. They are very much not in love, but go along with the time they are forced to spend together each summer, during the Tourney Season, to save the peace. But this year is different. They are told that their marriage will take place at the end of the summer, just when both are starting to develop feelings. But not for each other. No, Gwen is drawn to the kingdom's only lady knight, Bridget Leclair, and Arthur finds himself thinking about Gwen's brother, Prince Gabriel. No, Gwen and Art are not in love, but that doesn't mean they can't be happy, right?

I was drawn to this book by the title and synopsis, so requested it as soon as I saw there was a UK publisher. Then I realised that I had read the author's adult debut, and hated it, so was a little apprehensive about reading their YA novel. So, I put off reading Gwen and Art Are Not in Love, for a while, but in a way I'm glad I did, as I found myself enjoying it much more than I expected. Firstly, this is not a book for people who want historical accuracy. In the years following King Arthur's reign, England has been split into cultists and non-cultists, and after fighting the Vikings (I think this book is set around the time of the real Norman invasion), Gwendoline's father is proclaimed king, and decamps the royal court to the ageing Camelot. I liked seeing the way that world building was interwoven in this book, with some real aspects standing side by side with fantasy. All of the main characters were great, though Art got a little grating at times with how blasé he could be. Even so, the camaraderie between them all was great, especially once the drama and action increased. I found myself needing to devour the last third of the book in one sitting, because it became too exciting and fraught with danger and intrigue, that I needed to see if our heroes managed to make it out alive. Definitely a fun read, though one you need to go into expecting it to be more fantasy than historical.

Dates Read:
August 12-17, 2023

Rating
4 Stars