Book reviews
Below you will find the reviews of books I have read. Included with each review, you will find the author, a link to the book on Goodreads, and a link to where the book is for sale in the Netherlands or internationally.
Have a lot of fun reading the reviews, and how nice would it be if you bought a book to get lost in as well.
Follow me on my socials for new review announcements.
Caution!
Always check the trigger/content warnings for every book before you start reading it.
If you have any doubts or if it might trigger you, definitely do not read it.
Your mental health is the most important thing.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sapphire scales and tears by Stella Novoa
Rating : ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Spice : 🌶️🌶️Genre : Romantasy
POV : First person
Tropes : Dragon shifting romantasy, explicit sexual content, suicide attempt, betrayal, murder, magic.
Release : 02-06-2026
This is book 1 in the “Dragonscales and Hearts Saga” . It is a trilogy.
The author reached out to ask if I wanted to read her book.
Stella, thank you so much for sending me a physical copy.
I wasn't sure if I’d enjoy it, as I’m primarily a dark romance reader.
It took me a little while to settle into the story once I started reading. The opening—specifically how Emma ended up in the cave—was a bit confusing for me, but the story itself hooked me almost immediately.
It is a truly wonderful and enjoyable book. It features two dragons who choose her after she has been betrayed.
The book has some great twists that you don't see coming, yet they fit the story perfectly.
The spice level isn't very high, but I didn't miss it.
If you enjoy romantasy, I would definitely recommend reading this book.
I certainly plan to read the other two installments as well.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
My dreadful darling by H.D. Carlton
Rating : ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐Spice : 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️Genre : Dark romance
POV : First person
Tropes : Mystery, bully romance, serial killer, revenge, college setting, enemies to lovers, murder, obsessive MMC.
Release : 21-04-2026
This is book 1 of the Hollow Graves Duet.
H.D. Carlton did it again for me. What a great book. It is a great bully romance with intense bullying and moments.
Dread hates Reverie because when her father went to prison as the locksmith murderer (because of his testimony) no-one believed him as an 8 year old child and the whole world stood by Reverie and her mother.
But Dread doesn’t know that Reverie always believed him and knows her father is the killer. She is terrified of him.
The book is a great book with a really good story with a lot of suspense and mystery. I fully enjoyed reading it.
The book ends with a cliffhanger what almost ruins me because now I have to wait what happens next.
My darling Reverie (part 2 of the Hollow Graves Duet) is coming on August, 27 this year. I can’t wait!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Painted scars by Neva Altaj
Rating : ⭐⭐⭐ Spice : 🌶️🌶️Genre : Dark maffia romance
POV : First person
Tropes : Age cap, Forced marriage, disability, maffia boss, drugs, violence.
Release : 23-05-2022
This book is a really average dark maffia romance. It is not as good as I expected.
Nina her father loaned money from Roman. He can’t pay it back and now Nina has to marry Roman or het father will die. She thinks he will be an old man. Instead she sees a really attractive man in a wheelchair. She is feisty but will do it for her father. Soon she falls for him enterily.
Roman sees it as an good arrangement. He needs to show his enemies that he is still alive and steady. He likes her very much and really soon.
It is a really simple maffia romance with a nice story. It is not very new or spicy.
It is a great book for beginners in this genre.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Twisted games by Ana Huang
Rating : ⭐⭐⭐ Spice : 🌶️🌶️Genre : Dark romance / romance
POV : First person
Tropes : Brother’s best friend, touch her and die, hatred towards almost anyone, childhood trauma.
Release : 21-04-2021
It is a really nice book to read. It is a romance and not a dark romance.
Alex hates all people on this world. He has one best friend Josh. Josh has a sister Ava. Josh is going abroad and asks his best friend to keep an eye out for Ava. Alex doesn’t want to do that because he likes her more than he will admit.
Slowly they fall in love with each other. And it goes wrong. I liked the happy ending and the great side characters.
I liked reading the book and will for sure read the 3 other parts.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Twisted love by Ana Huang
Rating : ⭐⭐⭐Spice : 🌶️🌶️Genre : Dark romance / romance
POV : First person
Tropes : Princess and bodyguard, forbidden romance, forced proximity.
Release : 29-07-2021
It is part 2 of the “Twisted” series by the author. You can read them separately but I recommend reading part 1 “Twisted Love” first. I love the book also it is not a dark romance for me. It is easy to read and you can dream away on it.
I really liked the fact of the forbidden love and a good ending. I read the next part later.
I bought the series myself.
I recommend read this book if you love romance.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------