I Have Opinions on Books: April – August 2026 Edition

I read a lot of books during my move that while I could theoretically divide all of this up into different posts and be all booked up for the next few months, I’d rather not do that. Instead, I’m just going to be mildly insufferable and throw down all of the books* that I had from April – August 2026 that I have thoughts and opinions on and carry on. At least until I move again, but that’s assuming I’m still blogging at that time, which, as much as I enjoy blogging, probably isn’t likely. Not to say that I plan on quitting anytime soon.

*Well, almost all of them. I ended up moving Theo of Golden and Boring Asian Female into full-fledged reviews since I had a lot more to say than I originally did.

I normally don’t do a Table of Contents for these types of posts since they’re all mini reviews and it’s just 3 or 6 books (lately 3) so they’re really quick to read and don’t involve much scrolling. We’ve got quite a few books here, though, so feel free to skip around to the books that interest you and skip the ones that don’t interest you (or read all of my word vomit! I’d like to think I’m coherent).

To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before: The Graphic Novel adapted by Barbara Perez Marquez

To All the Boys I've Loved Before: the Graphic Novel by Barbara Perez Marquez, Jenny Han
Illustrator: Akimaro, Li Lu
To All the Boys I've Loved Before: The Graphic Novel #1
Published by Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers on May 5, 2026
Age Group & Genres: Comics/Graphic Novels, Contemporary, Romance, Young Adult
Format: Physical
Source: Library

To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before is now a major motion picture on Netflix and the inspiration for the spin-off series XO, Kitty—now streaming on Netflix!

In this sparkling graphic novel adaptation of the Time Best YA Book of All Time selection and New York Times bestselling first book in the beloved series, Lara Jean’s love life gets complicated.

What if all the crushes you ever had found out how you felt about them…all at once?

Sixteen-year-old Lara Jean Song keeps her love letters in a hatbox her mother gave her. They aren’t love letters that anyone else wrote for her; these are ones she’s written. One for every boy she’s ever loved—five in all. When she writes, she pours out her heart and soul and says all the things she would never say in real life, because her letters are for her eyes only. Until the day her secret letters are mailed and, suddenly, Lara Jean’s love life goes from imaginary to out of control.

Experience Lara Jean’s story all over again in an all-new graphic novel format!

It’s been a long while since I read the novel version of To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before and watched the movies, so it was an absolute delight to get another adaptation that introduces new readers to the series in addition to reintroducing old readers. Barbara Perez Marquez captures the heart of the series really well, including some of the most important plot points and favorite dialogues from Jenny Han’s books. However, I feel the adaptation could’ve been made longer so it fleshed out some scenes further – when I first got the book in my hands, it was honestly surprising just how short it is.

That being said, I enjoyed every moment of seeing the series come to life in another medium, especially as someone who’s been reading more graphic novels lately. It’s got such a cute art style and soft color palette that is definitely captured by Li Lu and Akimaro through each page, and I’m really hoping the rest of the series will also get the same graphic novel treatment.

Verity Guild by Mai Corland

Verity Guild by Mai Corland
Published by Entangled: Red Tower Books on May 5, 2026
Age Group & Genres: Adult, Fantasy, Romance
Format: Physical
Source: Owned

Secrets built this republic; one truth could burn it down.

High Priestess Kerasea Vestal has spent her life hiding the truth―that she’s the last surviving heir of the magical bloodline the republic slaughtered. One wrong step could be fatal. But when a senator is brutally killed and a temple blade is found at the scene, all eyes turn to her.

Praetorian Torren Morvane has made a career of dragging liars into the light, and Kerasea is the one person he’s vowed to ruin. But locked on a mountain with a murderer, scheming senators, and a prophecy of death, he’s forced to work at her side. The closer he gets, the more dangerous the truth―and their attraction―becomes.

With traitors closing in and a nation on the verge of shattering, Kerasea and Torren must risk everything to uncover the real killer…even if it means trusting their sworn enemy.

Trigger & Content Warnings: violence, death, gore, evisceration, augury, suicide ideation, self-harm, suicide, torture, death of family

Verity Guild was kind of disappointing, honestly? The first in Mai Corland’s newest series features a locked room mystery (more like locked palace, tbh) set in a world inspired by Ancient Rome – all of which are things that very much pique my interest.

And it was definitely fun to read! I loved how Corland really kept me on my toes throughout the entire book; despite my attempts to guess the mastermind, I can never really tell who it actually was and I was always constantly second guessing. But despite enjoying a good mystery, Verity Guild got old quite quickly with how repetitive it gets and how much it drags.

The characters were lacking (I could not care less on who was going to die off next; I was very much not invested in them), and while I can get around to the intention of leaving an air of mystery to keep readers on their toes, even the main characters were lacking despite us being in their heads the most. Torren and Kerasea don’t seem to have a strong basis to hate each other, and their chemistry was strongly lacking (this is advertised as enemies to lovers but it’s really more slow burn? Lusting slow burn? Is that even a thing…). It really felt like Corland was trying so hard to prioritize keeping the murders a mystery that it affected pretty much everything else.

I did like seeing a hint of Kerasea’s powers, though, and I like how Corland explores a bit on how power corrupts – there’s a lot of focus on the current Republic’s corruption and mentions of the corruption from the Elusians, but I feel like we could’ve dived deeper into their history. I’m hoping the sequel will touch upon this a bit more since we won’t be locked up in one place solving murders, though I’m not entirely in a rush for it either.

Nobody’s Quest by Alyssa Day

Nobody's Quest by Alyssa Day
The Nobody Chronicles #1
Published by Entangled: Red Tower Books on June 2, 2026
Age Group & Genres: Adult, Fantasy, Romance
Format: ARC, Physical
Source: Publisher

The goddess needs a nobody. The prince needs a miracle.
Soli Graymind might be both.

Soli has spent most of her life being invisible—an indentured servant, a library mold-scrubber, the girl no one sees unless she’s in the way. So, when the king’s guards show up with swords drawn, she assumes it’s a mistake.

It’s not.

Moments later, she’s standing in the throne room while the king tells her she’s been chosen to retrieve a set of ancient keys—only the keys can save the goddess and stop the chaos beyond the palace walls. Because the world isn’t waiting to be saved.

It’s already burning.

And beside him stands Prince Kaelen: devastatingly beautiful, mercilessly cold, and certain Soli won’t survive the hard journey ahead.

He’s probably right.

But Soli's survived a lifetime of hard everything. She may be a nobody—no training, no real power, and no idea why she was chosen—but she refuses to be expendable. Even if the quest ahead is anything but simple. When assassins, monsters, and impossible choices fracture the fragile alliance slowly building with the Prince, Soli realizes she can’t hide in the shadows anymore.

Because, for the first time in her life, she has something to lose…

A high-stakes romantasy filled with slow-burn romance, found family, and a heroine who never expected to be anyone’s first choice.

A copy of the book was provided for review purposes - thank you! Receiving a copy does not guarantee a positive review and therefore does not affect the opinion or content of the review.

Trigger & Content Warnings: depression, childhood abuse, death of a parent, violence, indentured servitude

Nobody’s Quest was such a solid first book in a series. I loved the depression representation and the care that was put into it (though it did have to be adjusted to fit the book!), especially with how everyone was overall very supportive of Soli even when she had down days. They never invalidated her or put her down like everyone else around her did.

I did feel the story dragged around a bit though. It’s a very heavy journey book as Soli goes on a quest to retrieve a set of ancient keys to awaken a goddess, but I enjoyed the found family vibes a lot and Soli’s character growth as she begins to find her footing in the world. She’s such a funny character sometimes, and it brought me great joy when moments of her personality shine through.

I did feel like Trick and Soli’s history could’ve been developed more, though, and while I love Kaelen as a love interest (he’s the GOAT), I also felt the romance was unnecessary. I’m not a fan of instalove/lust in the first place, though, so this one really is a me problem. Anyways, I really liked this a lot, and I’m looking forward to the sequels.

Our Perfect Storm by Carley Fortune

Our Perfect Storm by Carley Fortune
Published by Berkley on May 5, 2026
Age Group & Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance
Format: Physical
Source: Library

Best friends have one week in paradise to fix their friendship or fall apart in this heart-stopping, utterly romantic new novel from the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Every Summer After and One Golden Summer.

Frankie and George have been best friends since they were eight years old. Both passionate, impulsive, and headstrong—they’ve always clashed . . . and come back together. Until now. It’s the eve of Frankie’s wedding weekend, and she doesn’t know where they stand or even if George will show up as her best man.

Then, at the start of the festivities, in walks George. For one glorious evening, surrounded by her loved ones, Frankie’s life is finally perfect. But it all comes crashing down when her fiancé dumps her the next morning, leaving only a note as an explanation.

Crushed and confused, Frankie returns to her family’s home to wallow. But George has a different idea and a plan for healing Frankie’s broken heart. He wants her to go on her honeymoon. With him. For one week, to the lush rainforests and misty beaches of Tofino.

Frankie agrees, seeing the trip for what it really is: one last chance to repair their friendship. Even if it means unearthing secrets and long buried feelings neither knows how to handle. Even if it means falling apart for good.

DNF @ 54%.

I absolutely loved One Golden Summer, which was my first Carley Fortune book and then picked up Every Summer After and also enjoyed it (though not as much as One Golden Summer; I’m forever a Charlie Florek stan and not Sam’s biggest fan), so I was really looking forward to reading Our Perfect Storm. I also love a good childhood friends to lovers trope, so this really sounded like something I’d enjoy.

I hated it though. Frankie is way too dense at the ripe age of 30 and while I’m also dense in the romance department (and therefore probably cannot judge her)*, this girl truly takes the cake because George has heart eyes popping out of his sockets and his heart torn out of his chest living on his sleeve. Tell me how tattooing (permanent!) each other’s name is platonic friendship?????? I think I’d leave a note the day before the wedding too if I were Nate. There’s more that made Our Perfect Storm a bust later on in the book since I DNFed at 54%, but the tattooing truly lives rent free in mind, and I probably should’ve called it quits earlier (but I was really hoping it would turn itself around).

*My friends have my permission to drag me into an alleyway and knock some sense into me if I’m ever in a Frankie and George situation (and they will), so maybe Frankie needs more friends.

Break Room by Miye Lee (Translated by Sandy Joosun Lee)

Break Room by Miye Lee
Published by Bloomsbury Publishing on July 10, 2024
Age Group & Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Literary Fiction
Format: Physical
Source: Library

A gripping and incisive psychological gameshow drama from one of the biggest stars in Korean fiction, author of million-copy bestseller The Dallergut Dream Department Store.

Eight unsuspecting people receive an invitation to participate in a new reality show called Break Room. But what starts as an opportunity for fame is quickly revealed to be something far more unsettling when they learn how they were chosen--voted in by their respective coworkers as "the office villain."

Among them is an imposter--a mole planted by the show's producers. The only way to win the prize money is to uncover the saboteur before time runs out.

As alliances shift and paranoia festers, the contestants begin to realize that the true challenge isn't surviving the show--it's facing their own selves.

Welcome . . . Step into the world of the reality show, Break Room, where every smile hides suspicion, and every word could be a clue.

Break Room was such a short and quick read – I would’ve finished it in one sitting if I could. I love the concept of office workers being on a Mafia-inspired game show and being invited due to them being the office villain (I wouldn’t want to be voted as the office villain though and being on the show), but I did feel this was, overall, underwhelming.

It could’ve used more fleshing out plot and character wise, but I think if Lee wanted readers to do introspection and self-reflect on how their actions in the break room affected others at their workplace, then that definitely was accomplished. I think I sat for a good hour after finishing the book in existential crisis thinking about all of the different ways my habits have driven my coworkers up the wall.

Kiki’s Delivery Service by Eiko Kadono (Translated by Emily Balistrieri)

Kiki's Delivery Service by Eiko Kadono
Illustrator: Yuta Onoda
Kiki's Delivery Service #1
Published by Delacorte Press on July 7, 2020
Age Group & Genres: Fantasy, Middle Grade
Format: Physical
Source: Library

Nostalgic fans of the Miyazaki film and newcomers alike—soar into the modern classic about a young witch and her clever cat that started it all!

Half-witch Kiki never runs from a challenge. So when her thirteenth birthday arrives, she's eager to follow a witch's tradition: choose a new town to call home for one year.

Brimming with confidence, Kiki flies to the seaside village of Koriko and expects that her powers will easily bring happiness to the townspeople. But gaining the trust of the locals is trickier than she expected. With her faithful, wise-cracking black cat, Jiji, by her side, Kiki forges new friendships and builds her inner strength, ultimately realizing that magic can be found in even the most ordinary places.

Blending fantasy with the charm of everyday life, this enchanting new translation will inspire both new readers and dedicated fans.

I had such a good time with Kiki’s Delivery Service – it was just so cute and wholesome and had a magical charm. I loved seeing Kiki’s growth as she sets out on her own and settles into her life in a new city with Jiji (love him so much) and goes on various adventures as her delivery service begins taking off during her first year away from her family. I think if I picked it up when I was younger I would’ve loved it just as much as I did when I picked it up as an adult. Super excited to read the sequel when I get my hands on it!

Ruinous Ends by I.V. Marie

Ruinous Ends by I.V. Marie
The Souls of Blackwood Academy #2
Published by Delacorte Press on July 14, 2026
Age Group & Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult
Format: ARC, eBook
Source: Publisher

The Decennial is over, but for the students of Blackwood Academy, the fight for the afterlife has just begun.

The infamous school was hiding more secrets—and lies—than any of the Decennial’s participants could have imagined. And there’s still so much that remains buried beneath its ancient foundations. Now the future of the academy, and all the souls within it, rests in the hands of six former pupils:
The charmer and the golden boy . . .
The traitor and the girl desperate to save her . . .
The Chosen One and the one who would choose her over and over again . . .

Any of them could be the hero the afterlife needs . . . or the villain who will destroy it for good. Because the truth is, Blackwood’s biggest secret has yet to come to light—and when it does, it will shake the institution to its core.

A copy of the book was provided for review purposes - thank you! Receiving a copy does not guarantee a positive review and therefore does not affect the opinion or content of the review.

Immortal Consequences was one of my favorites of 2025, so I was really excited to read an eARC of Ruinous Ends and see how I.V. Marie would conclude the duology.

This was a struggle, though, especially for the first half of the book. Everyone was separated from each other after the end of the first book (Wren and August; Irene; Olivier, Emilio, and Masika) so there were multiple plotlines happening while there’s an overarching plotline. There’s also a lot of characters, and overall a lot going on while there was also nothing going on. I felt like we kind of got left with more questions regarding the world and the back stories of some of the key side characters (like Edith).

But the ending was beautifully written, and I think it fit the characters and their arcs really well. Despite struggling with the sequel and preferring Immortal Consequences, I still enjoyed reading this overall, and I’d absolutely pick up Marie’s next book.

Gingerbread Bones by Lindsay Lovise

Gingerbread Bones by Lindsay Lovise
Published by Entangled: Mayhem Books on June 2, 2026
Age Group & Genres: Mystery/Thriller, Paranormal, Young Adult
Format: ARC, Physical
Source: Publisher

They're being hunted…

When sixteen-year-old Georgie and her troublemaking brother are shipped off to the wilderness for their stepmother’s newest reality show, Georgie is convinced it’ll be the worst experience of her life. Two weeks. No phones. Hiking. Camping. Cameras catching every humiliating second.

Then she meets Mack Gray. Tattooed, unreadable, and―among a cast of kids already branded as trouble―he’s the one she’s sure is dangerous.

One night, the counselors are chanting affirmations around the fire. By morning, they’re gone.
But the kids are not alone.

Georgie can feel it, stalking them from the shadows―watching, waiting, picking them off one by one. Whatever it is, it isn’t just hunting.

It’s playing.

And in this game, there seems to be only one ending: no one gets out alive.

A copy of the book was provided for review purposes - thank you! Receiving a copy does not guarantee a positive review and therefore does not affect the opinion or content of the review.

Trigger & Content Warnings: suicide, murder, cannibalism, blood, violence, cutting

I had a bulleted list that I tried to string together into sentences but nothing felt right so here’s an edited bulleted list instead since I still wanted to talk about this book.

• Ashley is the worst type of parenting influencer and honestly she’s a reminder that you truly don’t know who someone really is behind the content – don’t place your favorites on a pedestal.
• I really liked the snippets at the beginning of each chapter featuring social media posts/comments, news snippets, email conversations, etc. as the book is centralized to an isolated part of the forest.
• There’s a huge cast of characters, which makes sense given the book is about a group of teens who are “casted” (reluctantly or not) in a reality survival show, but I do feel like it was hard to keep track of people aside from the main characters and maybe 1-2 of the side characters.
  • Madison’s kinda iconic, ngl.
• There’s constant fighting amongst them, which really made the first half exhausting to read since it felt like that’s all they would do. At a certain point I just wanted to DNF because I was that Tired™.
  • I’ve not been a teen for a decade at this point, so I’m not exactly the target audience anymore; my feelings are valid, but they’re also teens, and I’m sure I was also annoying as a teen at some point.
  • Despite feeling exhausted from the constant fighting, I did want to keep reading and finding out what would happen next.
• Lovise absolutely delivered on the paranormal/horror elements and Hansel and Gretel retelling once we got there, though! The writing was so vividly horrid.

Float Vol. 2 by Kate Marchant

Float, Vol. 2 by Kate Marchant
Illustrator: C.J. Joaquin
Float #2
Published by Graphix on July 7, 2026
Age Group & Genres: Comics/Graphic Novels, Contemporary, Romance, Young Adult
Format: Physical
Source: Library

Dive into summer fun with the second volume of this graphic novel romance from Webtoon. It's perfect for fans of True Beauty and Pumpkinheads!

Amidst the chaos of her parents' bitter divorce, Alaskan teenager Waverly Lyons trades in her textbooks and parka for a summer of suntans and short-shorts with her aunt in Florida. After a few weeks of dipping her toes into these new waters, she's actually starting to feel like she's found her people. And now that she's taken a few swimming lessons with Blake -- the super-tan, super-hot, super-arrogant lifeguard next door -- their relationship starts to turn into a romantic one. What will Waverly do with summer almost at an end? And what tragic events of his past led Blake to want to teach her?

The second volume of this slice-of-life YA romance is illustrated in an anime-inspired style that readers will love. What are you waiting for? Dive in!

Float Vol. 2 is the follow-up of the first volume and continues right off from where the first ended. Waverly has begun to settle down in Florida with her aunt for the summer: making friends, learning to swim, and developing her relationship with Blake.

This was a cute follow-up with equally cute art, and I enjoyed it a lot! Waverly grew a lot as a character from the first, and I really liked seeing her finding her footing. Some of the side characters also grew as well, and I also liked seeing Blake and his stepmom finding a middle ground. I’m not sure if there will be additional volumes since it seemed to wrap up nicely, but it also had the possibility for a third volume (which I’d absolutely pick up).