Julie Soto

Rose In Chains

Rose In Chains is out today! Thank you to the publisher for the early review copy. 

Loved loved loved this wild ride. I’ve loved every Julie Soto book I’ve read and this was no exception.

Some of my favorite parts:

The world building was excellent and it kept me interested. I was dying to find out what was going on (instead of bored and skimming like I often do in fantasy)

The forced proximity!

The strong, smart, competent FMC!

The morally great hero!

The slow burn romance!

I am dying for more from this world already! Julie Soto really can do it all. 

Side Note – I haven’t read the author’s fan fic so I can’t compare it to the original story but I would never in a million years been about to tell this was based on fanfic of that certain world (the heroine was smart, the hero had silvery hair, they had magic, and that’s about it.) so I feel comfortable reading and supporting it despite very much not supporting the transphobic author of the original work.

The Thrashers

The Thrashers is out now! Thank you @wednesdaybooks for the ARC.

Oh wow did I love this! I didn’t really think I was a YA fan anymore but Julie Soto has proven me wrong. If you love teen television dramas with a bit of mystery, like Pretty Little Liars, Riverdale, etc, then you’ll probably love this too! 

I picked it up and did not want to put it down, I finished in under 24 hours which is unheard of for me these days. Though it’s YA, the characters weren’t overly immature or anything, though they still felt age appropriate. 

I really loved the FMC, and most of her friends. There’s a bit of Logan and Veronica vibes between Jodi and her best friend’s other best friend and I loved their tension!

This book does have a solid ending, but I am still begging for another book, @wednesdaybooks pleasssseee. I just really thoroughly enjoyed my time reading this and definitely recommend it! 

*For clarification, this wasn’t a romance, it’s a thriller, though there are certainly romantic elements. Just wanted to be clear since I normally only post romance reviews! 

Forget Me Not

Forget Me Not by Julie Soto releases tomorrow! Thank you to the publisher for the gifted copy in exchange for an honest review. 

Well this was an amazing debut!

It’s a second chance romance between Ama, an up & coming wedding planner, and Elliot, her ex boyfriend and the florist already contracted to do the wedding Ama has just signed on to plan. It’s a well known influencer’s wedding that could launch her wedding planning career, so she’s forced to work beside the man who she shares a history with, which is unraveled through flashbacks as the book progresses. 

Both characters were interesting and I liked Ama’s growth throughout the book, but the real winner for me here was Elliot. He comes across as grumpy and maybe a little rude but he’s so soft and gooey on the inside. He’s absolute book boyfriend material and I’m still swooning over the deliberate way he took care of Ama, even after she broke his heart. Also, he has a thigh tattoo. 

Look, I’m not a fan in general of dual timelines (I lose interest when the timeline changes and I never feel like we get enough of them together in the present day because so much time is spent in the past) but I did appreciate that the past chapters were told from Elliot’s POV. He’s an outwardly stoic character so it was a much needed insight into what he was thinking. 

The writing is light and funny but still emotional at times when it needed to be and it was honestly hard to believe this was a debut. There’s a good bit of steam, excellent supporting characters (I’m going to need Mar’s story next, thx), and a fun plot set around planning a splashy wedding. 

Overall this was a really great read! Especially if you like dual timelines!