I used this month to finally take advantage of the Kindle Unlimited 30 day free trial and download a bunch of novellas in order to hit my read goal for 2024 (mission accomplished!). Truthfully, most of these were bad– but there were a few winners in there!
Kingdom of Ash by Sarah J. Maas
I am FINALLY done with the Throne of Glass series now! Kingdom of Ash was so long, but it was certainly the best of the series. However, there were still a lot of story lines within this one that I could not have cared less about and so it felt like there was zero reason it needed to be as long as it was. My main takeaway though? Anyone who tells you that this series is better than ACOTAR is lying!
4/5 stars
The Serpent and the Wings of Night by Carissa Broadbent
This one is so fun! I haven’t enjoyed a roman-tasy book this much in a while. If you enjoy ACOTAR, Throne of Glass, and Hunger Games, I think you will like The Serpent of the Wings of Night!
4.5/5 stars
Barbarian Alien by Ruby Dixon
LISTEN!!! I read the first Ice Planet Barbarians book in November (and wrote about it in the November round-up). Was it bad? Yes! Did I enjoy it and fly through it? Also yes! So when I needed to read some short things fly through to hit my read goal for the year, did I read 3 more books of the series? YES!
This is the worst one of the 4 books I read in the series. The guy is annoying. That’s all I have to say.
2/5 stars
Cruel Winter with You by Ali Hazelwood
Like I said, I was desperately trying to reach my Goodreads reading goal of 75 books for the year, and this short novella was only 73 pages! It wasn’t amazing, but it wasn’t the worst I’ve read.
Cruel Winter with You is actually free with a Prime membership (here’s a link to a free Prime trial!), you don’t even need a Kindle Unlimited plan!
3/5 stars
Barbarian Lover by Ruby Dixon
The 3rd book in the series is probably one of the better ones of the 4 (although the OG Ice Planet Barbarians book 1 is the best).
3/5 stars
Evidence of the Affair by Taylor Jenkins Reid
This novella is only 88 pages and I really enjoyed it! I love Taylor Jenkins Reid’s writing and this was a really unique format for a novella. The story is told through letters between characters. Recommend this one if you’re looking for a quick read!
4/5 stars
Merry Ever After by Tessa Bailey
At only 59 pages, I almost feel guilty including this one, but this one was so wild and bad that if it was any longer I would have gone insane.
Someone check in on Evie’s child??? What the heck, TRULY
1/5 stars
How My Neighbor Stole Christmas by Meghan Quinn
I had SUCH high hopes for this one! I thought it would be a fun Christmas romance that is vaguely Grinch themed. The beginning was so funny and genuinely would make me laugh out loud, but I felt like it took a turn around 50-60% where it started to lose the humor. If it had remained as charming as it was in the first 50%, it would have been a 4-ish star read.
Spiciness level is a 3.5/5 FYI!
3.5/5 stars
Barbarian Mine by Ruby Dixon
I fear I may need to take a break from this series after reading the 4th. Not as bad as book #2, but I’m starting to lose interest!
2.75/5 stars
The Ashes & the Star-Cursed King by Carissa Broadbent
This is the 2nd book in the series after Serpent and the Wings of Night (see above!) and while I didn’t love this one as much, I still enjoyed. The 3rd book just came out a few months ago, so I plan on reading that one soon and doing a full review on the blog!
4/5 stars
All Systems Red by Martha Wells
If you are looking for more of a science-fiction novella, this one is only 144 pages. I really enjoyed this one. If you enjoy science-fiction that has to do with creating civilization on other planets and robots with some action, I think you’ll like this one!
4.25/5 stars
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