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Eileen ❀

@readwitheyeleen

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pieces of my life & the things I love
orlando • pisces
📖☕️📷 🌊
dark & emotional mood reader ✨

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review: tropesick by @laurenokieauthor 🩷📝

I went into this book completely blind, and boy, was I in for an unexpected ride.

Tropesick is full of witty banter, undeniable chemistry, and characters with a dark, complicated past. When Katie and Tyler’s ghostwriting story started mirroring their own romantic journey, I realized we were going meta, and it made the story stand out in a whole new way. I just didn’t realize how much so until the twist, which had me REELING and texting friends, “WTF is happening?!” 😅

While I was thrown by it at first, I grew to appreciate how it wrapped up as I sat with it, and I loved it. However, it was a moment that divided our book club.

Katie and Tyler are messy and complicated, and I was a bit worried the story might get toxic, but I got through it fairly unscathed.

I recommend this book if you want a romance that has fun with tropes and blends rom-com writing with deeper, angsty, emotional moments.

*Reader Note: I eyeball-read this, and it seemed like our group agreed that’s the best way to read it.

Ratings Breakdown:
Characters: 4.5 ⭐️
Plot: 5 ⭐️
Setting: 5 ⭐️
Emotional Impact: 4.5 ⭐️
Personal Enjoyment: 4.5 ⭐️
Rounded Average: 4.75 ⭐️
Steam Rating: 2 🌶
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#bookreview #tropesick #romancebookrecs #romancereadersofinstagram #newbooks

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soooo….. your place or ours? 😏

photo by @readwitheyeleen ♥️

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review: the open era by edward schmit 🎾

This one was a bit of a rollercoaster for me. Set during the U.S. Open, it features the budding relationship between an openly gay, recently turned pro tennis player and the number two-ranked player in the world.

Because it was a strangers-to-friends-to-lovers story that takes place over two weeks’ time, considering it a love story was a stretch for me. Austin and Diego’s friendly interactions were cute and provided openings to something more, but Diego’s hot-and-cold behavior started to grate on me. Paired with Austin’s obsessive and self-destructive behavior, it amplified how unready either of them was to pursue anything romantic during this timeline.

I did enjoy Austin’s arc, which showed that mental health is a continuous journey, accepting help is its own hurdle, and there is no quick fix. The symptoms of his anxiety were displayed in a raw and visceral way, highlighting how buried trauma and emotions can manifest into debilitating episodes.

Both he and Diego are pretty messy characters who have a lot to work on personally. I think this would have worked better as a contemporary sports fiction without the romantic subplot, especially considering the length of the book and the short timeframe. I would have preferred them becoming friends, with the promise of maybe something more by the end.

Ratings Breakdown:
Characters: 3.5 ⭐️
Plot: 4 ⭐️
Setting: 5 ⭐️
Personal Enjoyment: 3.5 ⭐️
Emotional Impact: 3.5 ⭐️
Rounded Average: 4 ⭐️

Steam Rating: 2 🌶
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#bookreview #theopenera #lgbtqbooks #newbooks

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review: our perfect storm by carley fortune

This is a story that grew on me, cause I’m not gonna lie, the beginning nearly lost me. But a friend encouraged me to continue, so I rallied and decided to give it a chance, and I’m really glad I did.

I am a SUCKER for a friends-to-lovers trope, especially childhood friends-to-lovers. I think Carley did a really good job of providing context for why it took Francesca and George, given their decades-long friendship, so long to take the plunge into something more, which is really important with this trope.

I saw a lot of myself in Francesca, so that was an interesting journey for me. And George, well, George was pretty perfect. His work, passion, devotion, and letters…🫠😭. Their chemistry was off the charts, and the peeks into their past were just enough that they didn’t drag the pacing down and added the depth we needed for their relationship. I also applaud Carley for giving us only Francesca’s point of view, because once George finally shared his feelings, it was an emotional unleashing. 🥲🥲

While the romance and character arcs were good, what really set this book apart for me was the Tofino setting, Carley’s integration of endangered right whales, the 2023 Canadian wildfires, and the food. I’ve read a lot of stories with a chef as the main character, but Carley’s use of food to showcase the region was chef’s kiss. I wish I could live in this book, and I’m ready to book a trip to Tofino tomorrow.

Ratings Breakdown:
Characters: 4.5 ⭐️
Plot: 4.5 ⭐️
Setting: 5 ⭐️
Emotional Impact: 4.5 ⭐️
Personal Enjoyment: 4.5 ⭐️
Rounded Rating: 4.5 ⭐️
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#bookreview #ourperfectstorm #carleyfortune #popularbooks #summerreads

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review: into the blue by emma brodie

Honestly, for a book I wasn’t sure I would finish, I’m kind of shocked at where I landed on my rating for this one. I started this book in mid-February and didn’t finish it until the end of April. So, let that be a sign of how conflicted I started to feel over this one. Thankfully, I had a group chat to push me through it, and I’m glad I finished it.

So what happened?

Well, this started off super strong for me, which may be a hot take based on reviews I’ve seen. I loved the slow build of AJ and Noah’s relationship and the use of improv training to create the soulmate connection they shared. It was beautiful, palpable, heady, and even had a visual element to it.

I loved all of the behind-the-scenes drama of AJ trying to make it as a comedic writer in the entertainment industry—the sexism, the power dynamics—and how Noah always quietly had her back throughout. The celebration of cult TV fandom was niche and another highlight for me.

Into the Blue covers a lot of ground when it comes to the personal challenges AJ and Noah navigate over the course of the story, but I won’t get into specifics because I consider them spoilers. The story spanned many years, which gave it an epic feel, and I appreciated the themes it tackled, but I think it ultimately hurt the pacing. At times, it felt like it was trying to do too much, even though I understood how these things helped them grow and reach certain realizations.

Where I really struggled was around the 60% mark, when I didn’t think my Kindle was going to survive AJ and Noah’s yo-yo relationship dynamic and how that bled into their relationships with themselves and others. It became too toxic, in my opinion, and I really struggle with these kinds of relationships, but that’s a me thing. By the end, I just wanted them to figure it out so I could be done with it. I will say, though, that I really did like *how* Emma ended it.

Ratings Breakdown:
Characters: 3.5 ⭐️
Plot: 4.5 ⭐️
Setting: 5 ⭐️
Emotional Impact: 4.5 ⭐️
Personal Enjoyment: 4 ⭐️

Rounded Rating: 4.25 ⭐️

Steam Rating: 4🌶️

#intotheblue #popularbooks #bookreview #bookclubreads

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new favorite dark romantasy 🖤

#thepoisondaughter #darkromantasy #standalonebooks #topreads #indieauthor

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💭 probably… 💭

I’ve seen so many people do this little trend and I love it!! I could’ve done WAY more admiring pages too 🥲 and the “reading” section is really just to show some of my genre rotations and some of my fav reads!

It maxed out at 20 tags posts so last two are @acapricornreads & @velsbooknook 💞

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a perfect standalone fantasy!

and amazing on audio!
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#bloodoverbrighthaven #mlwang #bookreview #bookishreels #popularbooks #fantasybooks #bookishreel #bookrec #fantasyreader

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prepare to be sick of me talking about this book 🗣️

I had the best reading experience with this story, these characters, and the audio…🏆🥇💯. The narrator for August was 🥵🫠🧎‍♀️.

I felt so much for each of these relationships. I was squealing, kicking my feet, screaming, sobbing. I went through the full range of emotions.

I also loved how the setting felt like a character where I got lost in the story. This one is perfect for fall/winter. 🕯️🌫️ The pacing was perfect and the execution of the multiple POVs was really well done.

I went into this completely blind—I didn’t even know it was multi-POV—so I don’t want to give too much away, but here’s a bit of what you can expect:

- academic setting
- unalive characters
- angst and yearning!! 😩
- afterlife political drama
- academic rivals
- found family vibes
- diversity, LGBTQ+ rep
- no steam
- a cliffhanger you can handle…maybe 😶‍🌫️

I’m tagging some friends and fellow fantasy readers who I hope will pick this one up soon! Congrats, @ivmariebooks for a strong and unique debut! I can’t wait for the next one!
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#bookishreels #yafantasybooks #bookreview #bookreel #bookishreel #fantasyromancebooks #newbooks #immortalconsequences #gmabookclub

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Blessed with the best (friends and readers) ❤️⁠

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☀️ june wrap-up ☀️

Thank you @torbooks, @atriabooks, @ballantinebooks, @scribner, and @stmartinspress for the #gifted copies!

I cannot believe we are halfway through the year! I had some fantastic reads this month and so many fun IRL moments too 🏝️

Physical books 📖: 3
🧛🏻‍♀️ Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil (4.5🌟)
🚀 Atmopshere (5🌟)
💙 Bad Girl Reputation (4.25🌟)

E-books 📱: 1
🤠 The Brave and the Reckless (3.75🌟)

Audiobooks 🎧: 7
🚪 Don’t Let Him In (3.5🌟)
🏡 A Family Matter (4🌟)
🍋 Problematic Summer Romance (4.5🌟)
🩵 Taming 7 (5🌟)
💌 The Things We Leave Unfinished (3.75🌟)
🎶 Sounds Like Love (4🌟)
🌊 These Summer Storms (4.5🌟)

Total: 11 Books

My favorites this month were Atmosphere and Taming 7! What was your favorite June read?!

🏷️ #stephonashelf #problematicsummerromance #alihazelwood #berkleyromance #atmosphere #taylorjenkinsreid #ballantinebooks #afamilymatter #scribner #thebraveandthereckless #thethingsweleaveunfinished #buryourbonesinthemidnightsoil #veschwab #torbooks #soundslikelove #badgirlreputation #stmartinspress #smpinfluencers #dontlethimin #atriabooks #thesesummerstorms #sarahmaclean #romance #contemporary #newbooks #junewrapup #summerbooks #summer #summervibes

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My summer dopamine menu: a little sunshine, a good book, iced drinks, and all the tiny joys that make this season feel like magic 🌤️🍓📖🍃

⊹ ࣪ ˖ what would be on your menu?

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