Welcome to Litsy!

A fun read. It went a bit off the rails towards the end getting a bit too unrealistic and outrageous but otherwise very fun. It was probably a bit too much to ask a rom com about an American socialite with zero experience becoming an apprentice sword maker to be realistic. Thanks for the birthday read @Emilymdxn

Okay Alyssa Cole posted on IG awhile ago about this one about a sword expert so I grab it. Super good and I loved the couple and side friends which is rare for me with these series within romance. I loved it! #bookspinbingo

Never read Alyssa Cole but I have a feeling I‘ll enjoy her! I also love the orange against the blue on the cover.
I‘m trying to reacquaint myself with my TBR while on a book buying ban for the month.
#aprilcoverlover21 #geometriconthecover

Thanks for the tag @Sharpeipup -it‘s been a second Monday sort of Tuesday so I needed some fun 😉
1- I love books set in places I‘ve been - Maine and New Orleans come to mind as favorites.
2 - I tend to read a lot of romance, typically about females, but I don‘t really have a preference. I do hate when an author if one gender writes another gender badly though!
#two4tuesday @TheSpineView

Alyssa Cole books just make me happy! The romance between grumpy Scot and sword maker Tavish (seriously my new book boyfriend because 🔥) and Portia was amazing.

I loved Portia in the previous book and seeing her realize what she needed to be happy was just perfect. Tavish was the grumpy hero I hoped for and while he made so many mistakes, he still grew as well. I absolutely loved this book.

I liked Portia and Tav a lot as characters and they had great chemistry but I found the plot points were hard to suspend my disbelief for, plus everything wraps up way too quickly. Enjoyed enough of it to keep Alyssa Cole on the tbr though!

Definitely liked this more than the first! Portia is a great character, smart and funny, and I appreciated seeing her realization process w/her ADHD. It explains some of her issues but doesn‘t define her. The story is a bit out there but not wholly unbelievable. And of course for me, being ace, the fact that there‘s not a lot of sex in this one was a plus, LOL. Definitely looking forward to book 2.5 because QUEER BLACK LADIES YES PLEASE. 4/5 ⭐️

“The fucking numpty lavvy-heided wank stain arsepiece,” Tav growled.

[Scots are definitely good with insults!]

I needed some fluff, and this one involves Scotland, one of the top places I‘d want to visit if I were able to go anywhere even in non-pandemic times. (I can‘t travel ever, at all, to anywhere.) My Goodreads friends are pretty evenly divided between liking this one more than the first or liking it less. But wherever I fall, I‘m sure it‘ll be fun, and that‘s good enough! #nowreading

Enjoyed this one more than the first book.

Portia Hobbs, working on a more responsible, sober, new self, takes an apprenticeship with Tavish McKenzie in Scotland to learn how to make swords. There were some great subjects in here wrapped up in romance, importance of community, gentrification, refugees, what people in power are or aren‘t willing to do. This isn‘t even mentioning the internal transformation Portia goes through. The ending was a little short for me but overall great. Pick!

Another great light read with lots of fun banter however I am not sure I would recommend the audiobook mainly because the narrator‘s attempt at a Scottish accent was more Nigerian than Scottish.

Book 34/100
#booksandcrafting

And I'm off the starting blocks in two of my challenges! #MMDchallenge #monthlymotifGXO

I immediately had to start this one after finishing A Princess in Theory. And I loved it just as much! Edinburgh, swordmaking, enemies(ish) to lovers-- so many good elements coming together to make another excellent royal romance from Cole. The real question is what the heck am I gonna do now since Hoopla doesn't have the next book 😭

4 stars / ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Upon finishing I immediately went online to order the other 2 books in the series. They will be here tomorrow and that‘s not nearly fast enough. This concludes my review.

Needed a quick, fun read that didn‘t require too much of me, and OMG I THINK IM ADDICTED!!

1- I'm totally indoorsy
2- hot tea
3- Edinburgh. It seems like I read a ton of books set partly or entirely there, most recent is tagged
4- pink
5- yep! 😄
#friyayintro @howjessreads

I read the 2nd and 3rd books in this series out of order by mistake but I'm not even mad about it because I seem to have saved the best for last - by far my favorite of the series, and I really enjoyed them all 😍 #romance

(📸 Belated brunch and book pic)

So 👏🏽 much 👏🏽 yes! 👏🏽

Such an enjoyable royalty romance series!!

This was my first of Alyssa Cole's and I really liked it! She had smart, witty writing that was the right amount of steamy. I'll definitely be checking out more of hers! #romantsy #pop19 #popsugar2019 #popsugarreadingchallenge Two Books That Share the Same Title (2)

Alyssa Cole is my Queen.

❤️

Q•U•E•E•N

Fun, easy read! I am a sucker for a "becoming royal" love story. #blitsy
#pop19 book with same title (1)

The Eye of the World is pushing me into a reading slump. Hoping to combat that with some Alyssa Cole.

Cute story. I like Portia.

Someone had a bad dream and climbed onto my lap and fell asleep. My leg is cramping, and it's really hot, but he is too sweet. So I am going to ignore the discomfort and start a new book instead. #momlife

Delightful romance between an American socialite intent on (im)proving herself and a grumpy swordmaker/secret Duke. Set in Scotland, the novel actively interrogates class, economic power, and racial issues as the main characters find their Happily Ever After. There is a bit of boss/employee tension, but Cole handles this dynamic well. The characters have strong family and friend support, too. Recommend!

heeeeee do you have any books about dukes indeed @helgagrace

While I liked the first book better, this one was still fun! Full of nerdy jokes that passed the MC by. Also much social justice commentary (yes!!!), a biracial hero, and lots of nerdy sword facts. #romantsy

Books # 57-60 that I‘ve read in 2019! 📚
57. “A Duke By Default” (Reluctant Royals # 2) by Alyssa Cole ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
58. “As Kismet Would Have It” (Dimple & Rishi # 3)by Sandhya Menon ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
59. “Because You‘ll Never Meet Me” (# 1) by Leah Thomas ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
60. “My Sister, the Serial Killer” by Oyinkan Braithwaite ⭐️⭐️⭐️✨/5
#books #goodreads #reading #yalit #fiction #thriller

Sweet, improbable, humorous, and sexy. Two thumbs up!

Eh. I liked the last 20 pages or so and I love the cover. The rest I felt whatever about. I remember really enjoying the first one, so I'll continue with this series in the hopes that I will like the others.

Loved this! Sweet, funny, and full of swords! Gotta love #swordbae

Reading on the deck on a foggy, rainy morning.

Needed a break from non-fiction and snapped up this ebook from my library 😄

⭐️⭐️⭐️🎧2019.04.05. I enjoyed this book but not as much as the first book in the series. The #audiobook experience was lacking because the narrator had a pretty bad Scottish accent (it came off as more African than Scottish). Her internal struggle was hard to deal with but I get that it helped move the story along. #pocauthor #readdiversebooks #romantsy

After a great start with A Princess in Theory I was disappointed by this. I listened to it on audio and the Scottish accent was terrible.

#currentlyreading 🏰📖
“A Duke By Default” (Reluctant Royals # 2) by Alyssa Cole 💖🌹😘🎩
#alyssacole #romance #adukebydefault

Loving this! I've actually laughed out loud several times now.

I finished this in audio while traveling and cooking the last few days. I didn't care for the story in this one as much and felt like the major plot point in the third fourth was more of a distraction. The narrator, who I loved in previous books, seems to struggle with the Scottish brogue (which, let's be honest, I was surprised was needed and not where I expected this series to go, at all, at all.)
#hoopla #romantsy

When I think of Royalty, I think of Romance novels!

Two Romance novels I would highly recommend! One is historical and the other is contemporary!

#Royalty #LiteraryLuck

One of my very best friends is coming in the middle of this next week and one of our main goals is to read together. I'm listening to this while I straighten up and she posted to Instagram that she also started listening today. It figures!

Enjoying this so far! Seems appropriate since Valentine‘s Day is next week!

This book was so fun! It had a few Harry Potter references, a bunch of Doctor Who references, a swordsmith and was set in Scotland! I really liked this book and it checked all my boxes. I liked Portia and her journey to learn more about herself. This is the first I‘ve read, so I don‘t know how she is in the first book. As this book is Project: New Portia. I don‘t read many contemporary romances, but this was a good one!

#fridaynightreads

When somebody writes in a library book with pen 🙄🤦‍♀️🙄🤦‍♀️🙄🤦‍♀️🙄

And it doesn‘t even make sense. If you read the book, the text is right and the reader just wasn‘t paying attention. So annoying.

💙💛💙💛💙 Loved this book! And I‘m a bit loopy from reading for the #24in48 readathon. So that‘s all I‘m going to say ☺️ I didn‘t read as much as I wanted to, and apparently I‘m a very slow reader as I only finished 2 1/4 books in 12 hours lol (I clocked 12 hours and 30 minutes). But I had fun! (I envy those who can read for hours and hours at a time! 😄)

Good morning! I slept in later than I wanted, but I think I needed it. I just downed a cup of coffee and am going to continue on with this book. I‘m hoping to clock in at least another six hours today. I can tell my husband wants to go do something and I feel bad because I just want to sit and read. Sigh.... #24in48 #readathon

Alyssa does it again. I love how relatable Portia is in her problems, how has handled things in the past, and how she is trying to do better. I enjoyed Tav's grumpiness and how his family brought some wonderful flair to the story. Also I love how Cole does not go for all the normal tropes or turns them just enough to be interesting. I cannot wait for the next one.

I love this interaction. Had me laughing at work. #romantsy