Captivating Catch-Up | ARC Edition Pt. 4

As I read some last year, but took a break for “maternity leave”, I have many reviews to catch up on. Because of that, and until I can catch up, I decided to start a bulk review post–hence, “Captivating Catch-Up”. The reviews will be quick, to-the-point, but also give my complete, honest opinion.

This batch is another group of some of the ARCs that I got last year (or years before) and failed to review.

The Four Winds Published by St. Martin's Press by Kristin Hannah
on February 2, 2021
Genres: American South, Literary Fiction, Realistic, Women's Fiction, Historical
Pages: 454
Source: Netgalley
Format: ARC, eBook
Find the Author: Website, Facebook, Goodreads, Instagram
Also by this author: The Nightingale
Find the Book: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

ISBN: 1250178606
Rating:

An alternative cover edition for this ISBN can be found here.
From the number-one bestselling author of The Nightingale and The Great Alone comes a powerful American epic about love and heroism and hope, set during the Great Depression: a time when the country was in crisis, when millions were out of work and even the land seemed to have turned against them.

My land tells its story if you listen. The story of our family.

Texas, 1921. A time of abundance. The Great War is over, the bounty of the land is plentiful, and America is on the brink of a new and optimistic era. But for Elsa Wolcott, deemed too old to marry in a time when marriage was a woman’s only option, the future seems bleak. Until the night she meets Rafe Martinelli and decides to change the direction of her life. With her reputation in ruin, there is only one respectable choice: marriage to a man she barely knows.
By 1934, the world has changed: Millions are out of work, and drought has devastated the Great Plains. Farmers are fighting to keep their land and their livelihoods as crops fail and water dries up and the earth cracks open. Dust storms roll relentlessly across the plains. Everything on the Martinelli farm is dying, including Elsa’s tenuous marriage; each day is a desperate battle against nature and a fight to keep her children alive.
In this uncertain and perilous time, Elsa―like so many of her neighbors―must make an agonizing choice: Fight for the land she loves or leave it behind and go west, to California, in search of a better life for her family.
The Four Winds is a rich, sweeping novel that stunningly brings to life the Great Depression and the people who lived through it―the harsh realities that divided a nation and the enduring battle between the haves and the have-nots. A testament to hope, resilience, and the strength of the human spirit to survive adversity, The Four Winds is an indelible portrait of America and the American Dream, as seen through the eyes of one indomitable woman whose courage and sacrifice will come to define a generation.

While this isn’t my favorite from Kristin Hannah so far (that would be The Nightingale), this one was definitely worth the read.

It was sad, poignant, and at the same time taught about a slice of history that I previously didn’t know much about: the Dust Bowl.

Really, though, this was much more a story of family bonds; especially that of mother and daughter and how no matter how distant you may feel from each other, that love never fades.

All Rhodes Lead Here Published by Avon by Mariana Zapata
on January 30, 2024
Genres: Contemporary, New Adult, Romance
Pages: 608
Source: Netgalley
Format: ARC, eBook
Also by this author: The Wall of Winnipeg and Me
Find the Book: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

ISBN: 0063325896
Rating:

New York Times bestselling author and the Queen of Slow Burn Romance Mariana Zapata’s fan favorite All Rhodes Lead Here, a story about finding love when you least expect it—now with new exclusive content!
The people we lose take a part of us with them…but they leave a part of themselves with us too.
Aurora De La Torre, or Ora to her friends, knows moving back to Pagosa Springs, Colorado, a place that was once home and is now full of bittersweet memories of her late mother, isn’t going to be easy. Starting your whole life over probably isn’t supposed to be.
But after breaking up with her longtime famous musician boyfriend, hiding out in a small town in the mountains might be the perfect remedy for a broken heart. And checking out her landlord who lives across the driveway just might cure it, too.
Only Tobias Rhodes didn’t rent out the apartment to her, rather it was his teenage son, Amos. Fiercely protective of his family and distrusting of strangers, gruff and grumpy Rhodes initially keeps little miss sunshine Ora at a distance. But over days and weeks, long hikes and fireside chats, Aurora breaks down his walls and soon an unbreakable friendship blossoms into a once-in-a-lifetime love.

Admittedly, this is the book that started it all: my Mariana Zapata obsession. I could write a love letter over her entire library. Seriously, though–this book was charming. And, yes, you have to be okay with slow-burn to enjoy this author. But she just does it so well.

I loved the two main characters Ora and Rhodes. Ora was quirky and not afraid of much. Rhodes–well, Rhodes was great at a withering stare. But sometimes that’s all you need.

Fangirl Down Published by Avon by Tessa Bailey
Series: Big Shots #1
on February 13, 2024
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance, Sports
Pages: 380
Source: Netgalley
Format: ARC, eBook
Find the Author: Website, Twitter, Facebook, Goodreads, Instagram
Find the Book: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

ISBN: 0063308371
Rating:

#1 New York Times bestselling author Tessa Bailey launches a super sexy sports romance series with a rom-com about a bad boy professional athlete who falls for his biggest fan...
Wells Whitaker was once golf’s hottest rising star, but lately, all he has to show for his “promising” career is a killer hangover, a collection of broken clubs, and one remaining supporter. No matter how bad he plays, the beautiful, sunny redhead is always on the sidelines. He curses, she cheers. He scowls, she smiles. But when Wells quits in a blaze of glory and his fangirl finally goes home, he knows he made the greatest mistake of his life.
Josephine Doyle believed in the gorgeous, grumpy golfer, even when he didn’t believe in himself. Yet after he throws in the towel, she begins to wonder if her faith was misplaced. Then a determined Wells shows up at her door with a wild proposal: be his new caddy, help him turn his game around, and split the prize money. And considering Josephine’s professional and personal life is in shambles, she could really use the cash…
As they travel together, spending days on the green and nights in neighboring hotel rooms, sparks fly. Before long, they’re inseparable, Wells starts winning again, and Josephine is surprised to find a sweet, thoughtful guy underneath his gruff, growly exterior. This hot man wants to brush her hair, feed her snacks, and take bubble baths together? Is this real life? But Wells is technically her boss and an athlete falling for his fangirl would be ridiculous… right?

Tessa Bailey is one of those authors that I just love her work 99% of the time. And this was definitely in that category.

I really loved the relationship between Josephine and Wells. And the whole premise was just so original–I don’t see many golf romance books, in general.

Wells was a character that I’m not sure I would’ve loved very much without the influence of Josephine. But with her, I thought he was fabulous!

I’m so glad I read this one! And I’m really looking forward to book two in the series, featuring some side characters.

The Painter's Daughters Published by Simon Schuster by Emily Howes
on February 27, 2024
Genres: Adult, Art, Family & Relationships, Romance, Historical
Pages: 352
Source: Netgalley
Format: ARC, eBook
Find the Book: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

ISBN: 1668021382
Rating:

A story of love, madness, sisterly devotion, and control, about the two beloved daughters of renowned 1700s English painter Thomas Gainsborough, who struggle to live up to the perfect image the world so admired in their portraits.
Peggy and Molly Gainsborough—the daughters of one of England’s most famous portrait artists of the 1700s and the frequent subject of his work—are best friends. They spy on their father as he paints, rankle their mother as she manages the household, and run barefoot through the muddy fields that surround their home. But there is another reason they are from a young age, Molly periodically experiences bouts of mental confusion, even forgetting who she is, and Peggy instinctively knows she must help cover up her sister’s condition.
When the family moves to Bath, it’s not so easy to hide Molly’s slip-ups. There, the sisters are thrown into the whirlwind of polite society, where the codes of behavior are crystal clear. Molly dreams of a normal life but slides deeper and more publicly into her delusions. By now, Peggy knows the shadow of an asylum looms for women like Molly, and she goes to greater lengths to protect her sister’s secret.
But when Peggy unexpectedly falls in love with her father’s friend, the charming composer Johann Fischer, the sisters’ precarious situation is thrown catastrophically off course. Her burgeoning love for Johann sparks the bitterest of betrayals, forcing Peggy to question all she has done for Molly, and whether any one person can truly change the fate of another.
A tense and tender examination of the blurred lines between protection and control, The Painter’s Daughters is a searing portrait of the real girls behind the canvas. Emily Howes’s debut is a stunning exploration of devotion, control, and individuality; it is a love song to sisterhood, to the many hues of life, and to being looked at but never really seen.

This story was so beautifully done–a tribute to the art that inspired it.

A story of two sisters, at its core, The Painter’s Daughters is the story of artist Thomas Gainsborough’s daughters, Peggy and Molly.

This wasn’t always a comfortable read as it’s realistic and things weren’t always easy for the sisters. But uncomfortable reads can be so rewarding. And this one definitely paid off.

Bonding Fire by Ava Richardson
Series: The Throne of Dragons #1
on February 26, 2024
Genres: Dragons, Fantasy, Magic, Mystery, Romance, Royalty, YA
Pages: 398
Source: Netgalley
Format: ARC, eBook
Find the Book: Amazon | Goodreads

Rating:

Only a dragon prince and a disgraced healer can save the kingdom…

When Prince Tagaris shows up on Gwen’s doorstep asking for help, she’s tempted to shut the door in his face. After all, the dragon lord banished her from court—alongside her mentor—when they failed to heal the dying king five years before. But Gwen can’t deny his request.

Tagaris’s niece, Comnena, has been stricken with the same mysterious disease that killed the king. And Gwen soon realizes the young woman isn’t sick—she’s been poisoned. The dragon queen insists her daughter’s condition be kept secret, so Tagaris devises a solution to hide Gwen’s true a fake courtship.

He’s the last person on earth Gwen could ever love, but he’s the only one she can rely on to help her cure Comnena. And there’s more to Tagaris than she imagined. As she finds herself getting closer to him, their fake courtship begins to turn into something dangerously real.

But can Gwen truly forgive the dragon lord? And can they work together to stop the kingdom from going up in flames?

This book was such a surprise for me! I don’t think I expected to enjoy it as much as I did because of the YA branding. But I think all that did was serve to make this more of a “clean” romance.
It had some many great aspects: dragon shifters, fake dating trope, a badass witch, and a fabulous slow-burn romance.
This was a new-to-me author who appears to be strong in this genre.

The beginning was questionable for me–only because I wasn’t sure I’d like the love interest, Prince Tagaris. But the author did a great job of unveiling is character throughout in a way that was natural.
This was a fabulous romantasy!

 

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