Review: Calamity by Constance Fay

Calamity

Constance Fay

(Uncharted Hearts #1)

Publication Date: November 14, 2023

Paperback, 320 pages, Bramble

Genres: Adult, Sci-Fi, Romance

Goodreads

Bramble's inaugural debut is equal parts steamy interstellar romance and sci-fi adventure, perfect for fans of Firefly and Ilona Andrews.

 

She’s got a ramshackle spaceship, a misfit crew, and a big problem with its sexy newest member…

 

Temperance Reed, banished from the wealthy and dangerous Fifteen Families, just wants to keep her crew together after their feckless captain ran off with the intern. But she’s drowning in debt and revolutionary new engine technology is about to make her beloved ship obsolete.

 

Enter Arcadio Escajeda. Second child of the terrifying Escajeda Family, he’s the thorn in Temper’s side as they’re sent off on a scouting mission on the backwater desert planet of Herschel 2. They throw sparks every time they meet but Temper’s suspicions of his ulterior motives only serve to fuel the flames between them.

 

Despite volcanic eruptions, secret cultists, and deadly galactic fighters, the greatest threat on this mission may be to Temper’s heart.

My Review

Constance Fay's Calamity is a good book for fans of Meagan Spooner and Amie Kaufman's Starbound trilogy as well as some of the cheesier Sy-Fy space television shows that are addicting but ridiculous at the same time. Unfortunately, Calamity for me was a bit of a miss, but I could see some people having fun with it, especially for readers who like lighter romances with a decent amount of worldbuilding.

So the main character, Temperance Reed, has been kicked out of her rich family and is now the captain of a ship. Her and her crew take on an odd job involving another rich family, and one of the sons of said family, Arcadio, tags along for the trip. Temperance's personality wasn't super mature. Her inner dialogue and even conversations with other characters just weren't funny. The banter was really juvenile, in my opinion. And I feel like that's what the story and the romance was leaning on: being a light-hearted, funny, space romance. Honestly, it was just kind of weird and awkward. Arcadio also never really got a chance to move beyond "hot solder" designation. The supposedly "romantic" and "sexy" scenes did not hit.

The action for this story was decent. The conflict between the main characters and the cult group and another evil rich family was intriguing, but it didn't make up for the lackluster chemistry between the two leads. There was no real tension between the two; it was a bit insta-lovey/lusty. With some cheesiness thrown in. Some of the descriptions towards the end were also a little hard to follow. The writing got a little clunky.

Overall, Calamity didn't hit like I thought it would. I expected worldbuilding on the scale of The Expanse with a romance story similar to ACOTAR or FBAA, as this is published by a sci-fi/fantasy romance imprint. I think my expectations were too high. However, don't let that stop you from reading it. It could be a nice palette cleanser between heavier romantasy stories.

*Note: I received a copy of this book to review from the publisher via NetGalley. This in no way affected my opinion/review.

My Most Anticipated 2024 Sequels

There are A LOT of 2024 book releases I'm looking forward to, and my top 10 changes each day based on what genre I'm in the mood to read. But I also noticed a lot of my most anticipated books are sequels, so I'm making two separate posts for my most anticipated books (similar to what I did last year). This is the list of sequels. Later, I'll post my list of books by authors I haven't read before/new releases/start of series by authors I've read before. It's a working title. Ha ha.

For your reading pleasure, here are my ten most anticipated sequels of 2024. There are a few honorable mentions that I couldn't fit in the list. They include Father Material by Alexis Hall (disappointed with book two, so this didn't make it higher on the list), The Ashfire King by Chelsea Abdullah (just didn't fit in the list), Red God by Pierce Brown (skeptical this will release in 2024), and Court of Wanderers by Rin Chupeco (already read and reviewed).

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The Relentless Legion by J.S. Dewes

Honestly, I had to take The Ashfire King out of the Top 10 when The Relentless Legion was officially announced in December. Literally days after I'd just wrote my Most Anticipated list. Ugh. Why does that always happen? But yeah, I forgot this series is still ongoing. I loved book one, and book two, The Exiled Fleet, was good, but it's been so long, I just hope I remember everything for The Relentless Legion.

Serpent Sea by Maiya Ibrahim

This is the only YA book on my list. Wow. That's so weird to think about. But Serpent Sea is the sequel to Spice Road, which I loved back when I read it in 2022. It's taken forever to get the sequel, so I'm excited that it seems like it'll actually release in 2024.

Kingdom of the Forgotten & A Gods' War by Charissa Weeks

The fourth and fifth books in the Witch Walker series are both supposed to release in 2024. Will they? Who knows. Kingdom of the Forgotten comes out in April, though, so it should release then for sure. I've read books one and two, so I'm just waiting for the rest of the series to come out before re-reading and bingeing.

The Dawn Throne by Tara Sim

I'm honestly not sure if this book will release in 2024. Goodreads says it will, but I believe The Midnight Kingdom was also supposed to release within a year of the first book, and it got pushed back. I'm hoping this one won't, because I would like to reread book one and then binge the entire trilogy. No cover yet for The Dawn Throne, FYI.

Somewhere Beyond the Sea by TJ Klune

Book one, The House in the Cerulean Sea, was one of my favorite reads a few years ago, so I'm excited TJ Klune wrote a sequel. I am super nervous, however, that it seems to follow Arthur's POV instead of Linus's. I don't like POV shifts in series unless they're companion stories.

Goldfinch by Raven Kennedy

This is the last book in the Plated Prisoner series. Have I read Gold, book five, yet? Nope. Do I know the wait for this one will be hard on my nerves? Yep. I'm fairly sure Raven Kennedy is going to write a spinoff book about some of the characters, from what she hinted at in a livestream once. But I'm not sure which characters that will follow. So yeah, Goldfinch will be bittersweet.

Honey Cut by Sierra Simone

I read the first book, Salt Kiss back in September, and it was absolutely addicting. I couldn't stop reading. I am worried, however, because the first book followed one character's POV, and the sequel switches POV. I hope the other character gets some chapters, though. I don't like the female main character as much as I like the narrator from book one. I'm also worried because I read another series by this author and things started getting wonky in book two, so I DNF'd the entire series after that. I hope that's not the case for this trilogy.

Hare Underneath by H.G. Birde

I read Crossing Acheron this past summer, and it was awesome! So addicting, with a dubious dark romance and wicked paranormal creatures. I'm very excited for book two which I think is supposed to release in June 2024. But, like all of my top three, it doesn't have a cover yet.

Zodiac Academy 9 by Caroline Peckham & Susanne Valenti

GAH! This series! It's so frustrating and addicting, and I just want more, but I don't want it to end, but I also do want it to end with happily ever afters for everyone. Ugh. This last book is supposed to release in April, so if I can't go to ApollyCon, at least I can read a book in one of my favorite series as consolation.

Visions of Flesh and Blood & Primal of Blood and Bone by Jennifer L. Armentrout

I'm cheating and putting two books because Visions isn't a full book. It's a compendium of series information. Also, it's my most anticipated book for the first half of 2024, while Primal (no cover yet) will likely be my most anticipated for the last half. If it releases this year. It's supposed to be the final book in the Blood and Ash world through Poppy's POV, but I don't think that'll be the case. JLA said that for the third book in the Flesh and Fire series too, and look how that turned out!

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Alright, there you have it. My most anticipated 2024 sequels. What 2024 books are you looking forward to? Let me know in the comments section.

Stacking the Shelves: The December FairyLoot Edition

 "Stacking the Shelves" is a weekly haul meme hosted by Tynga's Reviews and Reading Reality. It allows book buyers to share their accumulation of books with the online book-loving community.

I don't even know what to say anymore. I could say my week has been fine. That I've gone to work like normal. Gone to the gym. Gone out to eat with my family to celebrate my sister's birthday. But then I think about the people in Palestine, the people in Congo, and now the people in Yemen who are suffering because of evil people and evil corporations, and it's hard to feel like my week has been fine. Why is the solution to every problem violence? Governments should be above this. It's sick.

 

I'm going to share the books I got this month with you, because that's what this blog is for: books. But please know that books and reading are very low in my mental space right now. It's really hard to be excited about a hobby you used to love with war on the horizon. It's also awful to see people who have read books like The Hunger Games and The Poppy War just do/say nothing in the face of injustice. So yeah... Here are the books.

My FairyLoot edition of Faebound by Saara El-Arifi. This book sounds like it'll be great, and the edition is so pretty. I actually prefer this one over the Goldsboro purple edition, and I normally love purple. I just think Goldsboro went a little overboard with the purple. Also, I do have to mention that FairyLoot went under fire for their support of an author that supposedly writes pro-Isr@el messages. I have not read the book, so I do not know this for sure. I'm disappointed FairyLoot is continuing to sell the book with what is going on in Palestine right now, but I am choosing, in this instance, to believe that the author and publisher were contacted and expressed views that did not support Isr@el, either truthfully or lying so the book would continue to be sold by FairyLoot. I do hope FairyLoot was not lied to. I will be watching the situation closely to see if canceling my subscription is best.

I received another FairyLoot order. This is a series set from another author that is under fire for Isr@el views. I will not mention their name here. I purchased this before the news came out. I personally did not see the post/story on Instagram, so I don't know what the content was. Right now, I am being optimistic and hoping the author shared the Isr@el propaganda out of simple misinformation. It's sad to say, but there are a lot of lies out there right now, and sometimes we as American citizens don't take the time to look into things before posting. I am 100% guilty of this as well. Like with the FairyLoot situation, I will keep an eye on this situation. I, perhaps naively, want to believe that any author who writes about overcoming injustice would not side with an oppressor as large-scale as what we're seeing right now. I truly hope none of them do. 

 

Well, that's all for me. Sorry this post was a bit more depressing than normal. The world is on fire right now. Please cheer me up and let me know what books you have bought/received lately.

My Top 10 Books of 2023

Another year over, which means another barrage of Top 10 lists for January. This list is for my top 10 reads of 2022. I read 101 books in 2023. That's great! I'm hoping to do similar numbers in 2023, but as long as I get over 50, I think I'll be fine.

Enough of the future talk though, let's take a look at the past. In this top 10 you'll notice a theme of fantasy/paranormal books. Only one contemporary allowed. Ha ha. And unlike previous years, most of these books are solid where they are at, meaning their rank doesn't change based on my mood. It was a decent reading year for racking up some favorites, so let's get started.

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A River Enchanted by Rebecca Ross

This book was so lyrical and surprising. I didn't think I'd enjoy it as much as I did. Jack is definitely my favorite of the four main characters, but the others all grew on me as well. And, while I didn't love the sequel as much, this duology will always be one I think fondly of.

Broken Bonds by J. Bree

Oh man, this series started off so strong with Broken Bonds and the first 2-3 sequels. Yes, it went downhill towards the end, but the worldbuilding is so fascinating. I loved the relationships between the characters and the powers were awesome! I just wish the books had slowed down a bit. The author was definitely rushing to complete the series towards the end.

Fall of Ruin and Wrath by Jennifer L. Armentrout

JLA's new book in her new adult fantasy series had its ups and downs for me. But I read it so fast that I couldn't not put it on this list. I devoured it in 24 hours, I believe. I loved the beginning of this book and the end of this book. The middle was a bit to slow-paced for me, but still, a great time overall.

A Soul of Ash and Blood by Jennifer L. Armentrout

You might be asking why ASOAAB is so low on this list. Well, it's because JLA promised something with this one that I don't think she delivered on. She said that there would be important storylines for book five in ASOAAB. And while there were a few chapters that were present day, 90% of the story was set in the past in Cas's POV. I just think she got everyone too hyped up for new information when the story was really just FBAA retold. I still love the characters, though, and the new info we did get was amazing!

The Jasad Heir by Sara Hashem

This Egyptian-based fantasy story is addicting. It reminded me a lot of The City of Brass, which I adore. I can't wait to read the sequel, whenever it comes out. I'm not even sure. But, my review for this one is up now, if you'd like to check it out.

Untainted by Lilian T. James

I didn't expect to love Untainted as much as I did. It was a book I read to prep for 2023's ApollyCon to see if I liked the author. Well, it's safe to say that I did. I met her and got my books signed. This series gave me major Heir of Fire vibes, if anyone is missing SJM right now.

Salt Kiss by Sierra Simone

The only contemporary title on this list. Wow. I went into Salt Kiss thinking I'd really enjoy it, and I'm happy to say it exceeded some of my expectations. I wouldn't think that a story about a mafia/political gangster type and his bodyguard would be a top 10 read for me, but I really liked it. I am worried the sequel won't quite hit the same, though, as it follows a different narrator. Ugh.

Mysteries of Thorn Manor by Margaret Rogerson

It's been a while since I read this one, so it's hard to discuss some of the details, but I know I laughed, I cried, and I just had the greatest time back in this world with the characters from Sorcery of Thorns. Do I wish this had simply been a full-length novel instead of a short novella? Absolutely. But I'm thankful for more, nonetheless.

Crossing Acheron by H.G. Birde

I downloaded Crossing Acheron on Kindle Unlimited on a whim, and boy do I not regret that one bit! This story had me sucked in immediately. I had a whole period of time this summer where dark, gritty vampire romance stories were consuming me, and this one just really hit the mark. Same with the next books on my list.

Silver Under Nightfall & Court of Wanderers by Rin Chupeco

I've already mentioned that this duology would be my favorite reads of 2023, so it shouldn't come as a shock to anyone. This series had action, adventure, vampires, weird zombie creatures, and a cinnamon roll protagonist stuck in the middle of everything. I loved it so much, and I'm sad to see it end.

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Alright, there you have it. My top 10 reads of 2023. What 2023 reads were your favorite? Let me know in the comments.

My 2023 Wrap-Up

Yeesh! 2023 is over! I, once again, moved and went to ApollyCon, just like I did in 2022. However, this time I also went to Iceland instead of Disneyland. Sadly, I don't have more fun stuff planned in 2024, but I'm also looking forward to having some time off to focus on organizing my house. I might do that in the spring. However, before I get into the future, I need to discuss the past. Specifically, all of the books and book-related stats associated with my 2023 reading year!

Books Read in 2023

This year, I read 101 books! That's more than last year's 90! I honestly can't believe I read that much, but I guess it has a lot to do with Kindle Unlimited. Being able to download books I'm in the mood for at the push of a button has made reading a lot easier. Unfortunately, I'm going to get rid of my KU sub soon, so I can focus on my physical TBR. I'm still hoping I can reach around the same number in 2024, but I'm not holding myself to that. I'm setting my 2024 reading goal at 30, like always.

I'm not going to list out every single book I read in 2023, but I do have some fun stats to share.

In 2023, I read:

📚 28 fantasy books
📚 38 paranormal/urban fantasy books
📚 4 sci-fi
📚 28 contemporary
📚 3 historical fantasy

📚 10 young adult
📚 91 new adult/adult

📚 21 physical copies bought/received
📚 9 ebooks bought/received
📚 4 library ebooks
📚 4 e-ARCs
📚 63 Kindle Unlimited ebooks

📚 10 books owned pre-2023
📚  24 books acquired in 2023 (not counting KU)
📚 2 rereads

📚 Finished reading 2 series that I started pre-2023.
📚 Started 38 new series in 2023 (some of which I don't plan on continuing).
📚 Started 12 series in 2023 and caught up with the series in 2023.
📚 Started and finished 7 series in 2023.
📚 Continuing 6 ongoing series.

📚 My highest rated books at 4.5 stars: Silver Under Nightfall and Court of Wanderers by Rin Chupeco, Mysteries of Thorn Manor by Margaret Rogerson, Crossing Acheron by H.G. Birde.
📚 My lowest rated books at 2 stars: To Bleed a Crystal Bloom by Sarah A. Parker, Enchanted to Meet You by Meg Cabot, A Court of Honey and Ash by Shannon Mayer, American Prince by Sierra Simone, Violent Secret by Ariana Nash, Calamity by Constance Fay.

Books Bought in 2023

In total, I bought 152 books in 2023. This came out to over $4,380. Yikes! That's $1,300 more than last year. Oof. ApollyCon probably contributed to the first few months of damage. Oh, and those special editions are killing me. I'm not even reading them, so I'm not sure why I have the subs. I guess I need to do some major soul searching this year to decide if its worth spending all this money on books. This table doesn't even include my monthly Kindle Unlimited subscription. That was $9-12 each month. I also didn't think my swag spending was that bad, either. As I had a few months with pretty low amounts, some were even $0. But it still added up to almost $1,800, and I don't even remember if I got anything that was worth it. I'll be attempting to cut back a lot in 2024. 

Because I bought 152 books but only read 101, I have to get rid of 51 books in early 2024. We'll see how that goes, as I don't have a local used bookstore anymore, just a library to donate to. Plus, books don't really sell well online. Just to note too, I only included books I bought. This doesn't include books I received for free (e.g., gifts, review copies, free ebooks, etc.), so I actually acquired much more, but I don't want to calculate all that. I'm sure it's around 225 books. Additionally, some of the books I bought are duplicate copies, like FORAW, FBAA, Lux, Dark Elements, Red Queen, and other special editions, so I don't necessarily have to read all 152. I think I only spent money on 59 that I need to actually read. That's just insane. The rest I've either already read since I bought them or are special edition sets.

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Okay, well, that’s the summary of 2023, all wrapped up into one post. Do you have a wrap-up post for last year? If so, share in the comments!