Booktrospective

This week was one of my worst nightmares: dolls. Louise and her estranged brother Mark are left with their parents' house and belongings after their tragic and untimely death. Because these two have almost never got along, they don't realize until it's too late that they were both in danger of the same fate - Pupkin. Not only are the siblings being attacked, but Louise's daughter Poppy is the next...

Harriet and Wyn have been the perfect couple since they met in college and are 1/3 of their dynamic friend group. This week is their annual trip to Maine with their friends but this time is different - they broke up six months ago and still haven’t told their best friends. Can they survive the week pretending without their friends discovering the truth OR rekindling their love? Let's find out! As...

This is another heavy read this week! Not only do we have the story of abused adopted black children but it is all occurring in the middle of Covid lockdown and the Black Lives Matter explosion. Andre Jackson is returning from juvie. His Portland, Oregon, neighborhood is rapidly gentrifying, and COVID-19 shuts down school before he can return. The one thing Andre is counting on is his relationship...

I can't believe we are at the final (as of now) book in the ACOTAR series but alas we are! Happy Monday! We are back with the second half of ACOFS. We pick up with Cassian dragging a withdrawn Nesta through the wilderness and she finally breaks. But what will this lead to? Our faves are also still trying to put the Night court back together but it seems that everyone is plotting against. What will...

I can't believe we are at the final (as of now) book in the ACOTAR series but alas we are! We are back in Prythian this week but with a different POV: Cassian and Nesta. Nesta Archeron has always been prickly-proud, swift to anger, and slow to forgive ... and just about everyone is sick of her behavior. Cassian, the battle-scarred warrior, is the only one left who even wants to attempt to help her...

This is a heavyyyyy episode. Monday Charles is missing, and only her best friend, Claudia, seems to notice. They have been inseparable their entire lives and Claudia has no other friends. Her search for Monday takes her down a dark road, exposing her personal struggles and the sad reality of the lack of support many children struggle with at home. Trigger warnings include: Ableism Addiction Bullyi...

Who does love Greek Gods and a Hades & Persephone retelling? This week we are covering A Touch of Darkness, book 1 of the Hades x Persephone sage introduces to Persephone, Goddess of Spring who is pretending to be a normal mortal college student and is the unknown daughter of the goddess Demeter. She finds herself in a contract with the most feared of the Gods - Hades, God of the Underworld. W...

This week we had a debut author with his suspenseful, action-packed thriller - The Midnight Rambler! We follow a US Environmental Protection Agent Sophie, as she teams up with CIA agent Carter to take down Italians and Russians who are dumping toxic waste and smuggling US weapons - little does she know, her family involvement (the family she cut off decades ago) is also deeply involved. Trigger wa...

A little cozy interlude of the ACOTAR series this week with A Court of Frost and Starlight by Sarah J Maas! We are chugging along with this series and almost to the "current" end! In ACOFAS, we are a few months post ACOWAR and it is almost winter solstice. This novella offers perspectives from not only Feyre and Rhysand, but also Cassian, Nesta, and Mor. As Feyre navigates her first Winter Solstic...

This episode is covering Their Vicious Games by Joelle Wellington. Adina is a brand new high school graduate who had her dream college lined up until an incident occurred that “put her in her place” and stripped away her accomplishments. Now, her only chance at regaining her accolades is to compete in the annual Remington Finish - a challenge to provide one female the opportunity of a lifetime - o...

Not just a romance, but a resilient love story! Before I Let Go is the story of Josiah and Yasmin in the recovery period of their relationship - post-divorce. They have two children and a very successful business, but due to some extreme losses, their relationship did not stand the test of time - or will it? This episode does contain the following trigger warnings: Death of loved one (off page), s...

Continuing our journey through the Maasiverse this week with ACOWAR! Feyre has returned to the Spring Court, determined to gather information on Tamlin's actions and learn what she can about the invading king threatening to bring her land to its knees. But to do so she must play a deadly game of deceit. One slip could bring doom not only for Feyre, but for everything-and everyone-she holds dear. A...

There's always time for a spooky Halloween horror novel so this week we are covering There's No Way I'd Die First by Lisa Springer. Noelle Lane wants to have an unforgettable anniversary party for her horror movie club, Jump Scares, and Gage the Clown definitely delivered. As an upcoming horror film hopeful, Noelle gathers all her classmates and associated influences to make Halloween night her la...

This week's read was a little different from what we have read in the past! S.A. Cosby's Blacktop Wasteland is what we consider to be Fast and the Furious meets Ocean 11 meets a black trauma novel. We are introduced to Beauregard "Bug," who's tried everything to walk the straight and narrow line, but is backed into a corner with no other choice but to use his speedy talents to support his family....

This week is super special because this book review was requested by the author! Laurel Black is making her YA Fantasy review with Lost Kingdom and we think she's a hit. This book follows Raven and Jeddak in a world a magic, with an evil king, a white widow, shape shifts, poisons and a magical binding element. Raven has lost all of her memories but everyone knows she is the key to an ultimate powe...

Back again with a twisted man by Ana Huang! Mr. Rhys Larsen rocks his Princess' world...and ours. Bridget von Ascheberg is 2nd in line to the throne and never planned on ruling, until her brother falls in love with an American. Rhys is an ex-navy seal with THEE ultimate chip on his shoulder who has never gone weak in the knees for a woman. It is your forbidden love, grumpy/sunshine, medium burn ro...

This week we are reviewing one of 2023’s most anticipated memoir releases, which is from Britney Spears herself. The Woman in Me covers the life of Britney from birth all the way up until about 2021/2022. As almost everyone knows, Britney was forced into a conservatorship for 13 years and was finally freed from that in 2021. Britney was a major international superstar in the late 90s and early 200...

Happy New Year! We are back in SJM World and finally getting to the good stuff in the ACOTAR Universe! We love Feysand over here at Booktrospective. A Court of Mist and Fury is Book #2 of the series and start with Feyre reunited with Tamlin in the Spring Court. She has a bargain with Rhysand hanging over head and will that or her PTSD from under the mountain cause the bigger strain on her love lif...

It's the end of our beginnings! What a whirlwind of four months this has been for Booktrospective and just a wonderful year of reading! We are doing a recap of 2023, the books we have read both on and off the podcast, ranking and categorizing some of our favorite reads, and setting goals for 2024. We want to thank you all for supporting us so far and we hope you plan to stick with us as we head in...

Do you all remember in 2022 when a group of strangers rented a car in Florida because all the flights were cancelled? This book is that same situation - but with twists and thrills! Mira is trying to get home from California to Pennsylvania on Christmas Eve but due to a blizzard her connecting flight is canceled. Harper, a girl from the flight, rents a car and asks if she would like to join her -...

Who doesn't love a cute little winter romance with some steamy scenes? Melody Gallard and Beat Dawkins are both children of the legendary rock duo - Steel Birds. But before they were born, their mothers had the ultimate fall out and the pair barely know each other. A producer has contacted them both to see if they can reunite the legends, and due to Beat's unfortunate secret and Melody's strained...

Part 2 of Iron Flame !!!! We were so happy to finally be able to discuss this book and theories with you ! Iron Flame is the second installment in Rebecca's Empyrean series and was another 5/5 for both Dominyse and Keeley. We continue the love story of Xaden and Violet, the brewing war of our team (the revolution) vs. Navaar vs. the venin along with a slew of new characters, laughter, and heartbre...

What was probably THE most anticipated release of November 2023 is out and we gave everyone a few weeks to read it before we dive right in! Iron Flame is the second installment in Rebecca's Empyrean series and was another 5/5 for both Dominyse and Keeley. We continue the love story of Xaden and Violet, the brewing war of our team (the revolution) vs. Navaar vs. the venin along with a slew of new c...

Adalyn Reyes is the daughter of the owner of the Miami Flames soccer team and she recently went viral knocking the head off her mascot mid game. She is sent to Green Oaks North Carolina for a mystery mission while her dad deals with the repercussions of her fame. Cameron Caldoni is an abruptly retired soccer who is hiding out in Green Oaks for an unknown reason. While Adalyn thinks she has booked...

This week we are back with another Riley Sager thriller! The Only One Left follows home-health aide Kit McDeere, who becomes the caregiver for Lenora Hope—the woman believed to be responsible for the grisly murders of her family when she was a teenager. It’s a good ole Whodunit! Our podcast is intended for those 18+ as it does contain mention of mature content. Please listen, like, review and shar...