thejuniperjinx

[thejuniperjinx]

Book 34 of 2025

Fiends and Festivals by S. Usher Evans

Book two of the Weary Dragon Inn series, we join the people of Pig's End at their annual Harvest festival. Bev is running ragged with the Inn full up for the event, and she is hosting the festival judges. She meets Claude, who is filling in for his Aunt, and Petula, a member of the newly minted Queens festival judges. As soon as the events start we start seeing issues and Bev of course is asked to investigate them.

I loved this installment. That was her normal hilarious charming self. Her new friend Biscuit the dog is entertaining with doggy antics. I quite like the inclusion of the new characters going hand in hand with the ongoing passage of time the books are doing. Her discussions with her neighbor Ida, who also seems to be her best friend, always feel real. The hints and quiet nods towards the obvious use of magic in their area which has been banned by the queen always makes me smile. Resist! Lol. I would have to say my favorite part was one of the sadder parts her reaction to the first festival disrupting incident, as she is the victim, is very poignant to me.

I still stand by I do not like that the local authorities do not seem to actually do their job but if they did we wouldn't have a story because Bev would not be doing the investigating.

[thejuniperjinx]

Book 33 of 2024

Drinks and Sinkholes by S Usher Evans

Weary Dragon Inn book 1

I really like this book it is funny and cozy and a interesting mystery premise for the cast to solve. I did this as a split I listen to most of it as an audiobook and and read the last few chapters.

This series follows amnesiac Bev, who has taken over running the Weary Dragon Inn. It's been 5 years since the war and Bev came to town and everyone has settled in nicely. One morning Bev goes to the market and find the sinkhole in the middle of the main road on her way back. What follows is her having to solve the mystery while dealing with the myriad of personalities both in town and of her guests.

My favorite character is Merv. He shows up at interesting points, and I like his attitude.

The only thing I didn't really like was the pacing of this book. It started a little slow and took a while to get into the actual meat of the story. This might have been because I'm still getting used to audiobooks and it feels different listening than reading.

[thejuniperjinx]

oh. i just found out that the writer of the vincent van gogh doctor who episode wrote it as a tribute to his sister.

[thejuniperjinx]

Book 32 of 2023

The Halfling's Harvest by S.L. Rowland

An adorable fantasy following Halfling Innkeeper and Vinter Marigold Bramblefoot through the harvest season. She is agonizing over what to enter for the yearly wine contest, as well as dealing with the day to day of innkeeping, and meeting Gnome Historian Poppy who's visiting to study the Harvest. She's got a lot on her plate, but with the support of her friends, she will do great.

This book was very cozy. It's very much a day to day of the ins and outs of the inn and vineyard during harvest. Throw in a budding sapphic romance between Marigold and Poppy, and you get that cozy fluffy story I love!!

There really was nothing I disliked about this book. It did take me longer to read than I usually do, because it started a bit slow I guess.

[thejuniperjinx]

Book 31 of 2025

Mandrake Manor by JP Rindfleisch IX

A delightful cozy fantasy, set in a truly magical little community. We visit Mat, Frankie and August, 3 college pals who move into Mat's recently inherited home Mandrake Manor in the charming Henbane Hollow. They quickly come to find that everything they knew was wrong, and magic is real. What follows is teamwork, making new friends, and novices bumbling through spells in hilarious ways.

I really liked this book. It was funny, had an interesting magic system, and had the slice of cozy, fuzzy romance I love. My favorite character is Frankie, and I adore the outfits he is described wearing. This is a queer romance, so be aware of that. It's still super cute, and a mostly clean romance, with a single, very glossed over intimate scene.

The only thing to dislike is that this is clearly the first in a series, and the rest are not complete yet. Now I am stuck waiting, lol.

[thejuniperjinx]

Book 30 of 2025

Haunted In America by Leslie Rule

Another audio book for me, I listened to it while gaming, and my walks to and from work. A collection of ghost stories from the best of Leslie Rule collection, she gives updates on a lot of the stories from her past books. I really liked the voice actor for this one, she reminded me a lot of Miranda Merrick from The Midnight Library podcast. I found her voice perfect for the tone of the book.

I absolutely love that this is mostly updates on stories Leslie had done before. I am always curious about what happens next for these kind of things, and we so rarely see anything out there. I also like the pacing of this. There was nothing to dislike about this book for me. I love her writing style, and enjoyed every minute of this.

[thejuniperjinx]

Book 29 of 2025

Ghosts Coast to Coast by Leslie Rule

A hauntingly well written collection. I love the way she writes, with little asides, and personal anecdotes as she goes. This was a fairly simple collection, she piggybacks relatively unknown hauntings on famous ones, like the Queen Mary, to keep you entertained.

This is a non fiction collection, so it's hard to pinpoint a plot point I loved, but I would say the photos. The author took many photos during her research and includes them throughout the book. She even took the photo that's on the cover.

[thejuniperjinx]

Anyone want my recipe for floorless 3 ingredient peanut butter cookies?

Who am I kidding? Of course you do!

1 cup creamy peanut butter

1 cup granulated white sugar

1 large egg

Mix together, until it forms a shaggy dough. If it's kind of liquidy at this point, stick it in the fridge for a hour. Form into 1 inch balls, and place on cookie sheet, use a fork to flatten, bake at 350° for 10 or so minutes, until the edges are dry and a bit golden.

Cool on a flat surface, serve with jam and tea.

No, we are not a gluten free family, I just really wanted cookies and was too lazy to go buy flour when I came across this. Nothing wrong with those who want or need to be gluten free, that's just not us! They turn out melt in your mouth smooth. My husband thinks we eating them with jam is icky, but I love a tart raspberry jam on top.

[thejuniperjinx]

Book 28 of 2025

The Dead Children's Playground by James Kaine

This was the perfect blend of spooky, intriguing, and sweet. The ending even made me cry!

This story is about sisters Kayla, 19 and Kylie, 9. They move to Alabama with their parents, and quickly discover a nearby playground, that happens to be in a cemetery. Kylie soon meets the mysterious Emily, and things are not what they seem. Can Kayla save his sister from this haunted jungle gym?

I love the tense family dynamic in this. I won't give the spoiler, but the parents drama, and the overprotective behavior over Kylie really give this some good drama. Kayla is very 19, but once she realizes there is an ISSUE that the adultier adults don't notice, she is a fierce tiger in defence of her sister. I also love the character of Desiree, and how she just, believes the girls. No denial, no pushback, just okay, what are we going to do about it. So good.

There were only 2 things I disliked in this book. They done did Aunty Ethel dirty, she deserves better. I know it was a plot pusher, but still. And the other was that epilogue. The author is dead to me because of it. He knows what he did.

[thejuniperjinx]

Book 27 of 2025

100 True and Terrifying Ghost Stories by Robert J Dornan

I audio booked this. It was read by AI, which I didn't realize when I started. It was okay, but some stories were repeated, kind of, like they would talk about a major location, ie Tower of London, and it's haunts, then later tell each individual haunt as a separate story. That's fine, but really isn't truly 100 stories because of it. it's a good listen though. Kept my walks to work, and gaming sessions entertaining for a week.

[thejuniperjinx]

Book 26 of 2025

Tangled Up In You by Christina Lauren

5/5!

This was a ride. I mean seriously. I loved this book. It was tense and sweet, and mysterious and romantic. Everything I could have wanted for a Rapunzel retelling. This was actually more of just a modern AU than a full retelling, but I digress.

Tangled Up In You is about farm girl Ren, who was raised by strict, rather isolationist parents, finally going away to college. She is a fish out of water, because she grew up without regular schooling, regular social interaction, the internet or TV. She spent her time working the farm and reading. She quickly adjusts to college life, to a point. Then after bio class reveals a long kept secret, she bullies her classmate Fitz into letting her accompany him on his road trip to Nashville so that she can get answers. They have adventures, he shows her a whole world she was denied, from dive bars to Mt Rushmore. They fall in love along the way.

I particularly love how kind Ren is, despite her upbringing. She is always seeking connection with people, and while she wants to obey her parents, she also craves her own life. I also love that she just has that 'never met a stranger' type personality, though she is cautious due to her parents warnings. I also like that this author gave some closure after the climax of the story. We get aftercare!! The plot is actually wrapped up! No cliffhanger!!

I really can't find anything that I disliked about this book. It was cute, I like the characters and the plot choices made. I can't believe it, lol.

[thejuniperjinx]

Book 25 of 2025

Kiss the Girl by Zoraido Cordova

I give this 5/5!

I love music industry novels! I am fascinated by the whole process of making music, and while I know these type of books are rarely in anyway accurate, I still love them. I also loved the change ups to some character’s personalities. I love that the villains are not the villains in most of these retellings.

In this novel, we meet Melody, better known as Ariel, who is the youngest member, and sister of the pop girl group Seven Sirens. The girls started out on a kids show as mermaids, and after their mother’s death, their father has the show cancelled, and starts Atlantica records, and skyrockets the girls to stardom! The girls are now a bit older, and the Pop group thing is over. Their father wants Melody to go solo as Ariel, but she just wants a break. She sneaks out to a concert, meets Eric, the lead singer of the fast rising band Star Crossed, and ends up running off to work at the band’s merch girl.

The only thing I didn't like about this book is the way Melody/Ariel is treated by some. She is a 25 year old woman. Not a child. It ties into her father’s behaviour though, so it is a plot point, I just don't like it.

I will definitely be reading this book again sometime. I quite enjoyed the retelling, and the characterizations. I also love the ending! I was sad the book ended but thrilled with the ending.

[thejuniperjinx]

Book 24 of 2025

By the Book by Jasmine Guillory

I give this book 4 out of 5 stars.

While I quite liked this Beauty and The Beast retelling, I feel like it was missing something. Maybe some of the tension you see in other versions? I wanted to love it, but it fell a little behind.

In this book, we have Isabella (Izzy), an editorial assistant at Tale As Old As Time publishing, in New York. She is a go getter, who has been trying to reach a difficult author, Beau Towers since she started her job. She takes a chance when she is in California for a convention, and knocks on his door to have a chat. The beastly Beau refuses to see her, but relents when she assists his assistant takes a fall, and Izzy helps her. Beau is reclusive, and is over a year behind on producing his manuscript. Izzy manages to worm her way into his graces, and convince him to get to work. From pep talks, writing workshops, to surfing lessons, can Izzy get Beau to produce in time?

I really liked the book theme in this story. As expected for a Beauty and the Beast retelling published by Disney Hyperion, the Library plays a large part in this story. The home library that is described sounds like paradise to me. I also love the way the author describes the settings. She has a way with simple descriptions having enough depth to give you a real idea of what she imagined.

I did think that this was missing some of the tension other versions have. The ‘beast’ in this is not that beastly. This is more of a Grumpy/Sunshine book.

Fans of light fluffy romcoms will love this book, but if you like things a little darker, this is not the retelling for you.

[thejuniperjinx]

Book 23 of 2025

If The Shoe Fits by Julie Murphy

This book is amazing. It's by the author of Dumplin' (now a Netflix movie with a great soundtrack!), beautiful shoes are a plot point, the FMC is a PLUS SIZE DIVA, and its a Cinderella retelling!! Everyone should know by now that I adore a fairy tale! I love this book, like, I read it in a couple hours love.

FMC Cindy is a fashion design graduate, with a focus on footwear, who is a curvy queen. Her stepmom Erica is actually a sweetie and so are her stepsisters, Anna and Drew. The love interest Henry is funny, and dorky, and really is a great dude. Cindy and her steps end up on the Bachelor-esque show that Erica is show runner for. The hijinks of the girls are funny. I quite enjoyed the story, even if those type of tv shows are not my jam.

The only thing I didn't like was how short this felt! 316 pages, but I breezed through!

[thejuniperjinx]

tgirl who sees you all bloody after you take a big fall and tries her best not to sound aroused as she bandages you up.

[thejuniperjinx]

It's all fun and games and laughing at BookTok until you can't get on AO3 anymore, as someone who likes both romance and fanfic.

[thejuniperjinx]