My Thoughts: Philippa Flynn's Year of Panic and Piracy by Jacqueline Firkins

*I received an advance reader copy of this book from Firefly Books Ltd in exchange for an honest review.

Philippa Flynn's Year of Panic and Piracy

by Jacqueline Firkins

September 1, 2026

Goodreads Summary:

An introverted history professor and a former romance cover model collaborate on a life-changing endeavor in a witty and swoonworthy novel about new beginnings in unexpected waters.

When a sinkhole nearly swallows her whole, burned-out history professor Philippa Flynn takes it as a wake-up call. Leaving her carefully planned but unfulfilling life behind, she moves into an old seaside house she inherited from her grandmother, a bestselling author of swashbuckling romances. Philippa expects the clutter, disrepair, proximity to the family she deliberately moved away from, and reclusive writer she’ll be sharing the house with. She doesn’t expect that writer to also be the cover model who personified Iris Flynn’s bare-chested, cavalier-booted pirate king.

While navigating their awkward cohabitation and searching for creative inspiration, the pair discovers the outlines for six more novels they could work on together. But Philippa’s used to facts, Dylan has writer’s block, and neither can craft a love scene while real sparks are flying.

To write the story on the page, Philippa will have to embrace the one she’s living, even if it means swapping tenure for treasure maps and plans for pirate kings.

My Thoughts: How to Ruin a Wedding by Elba Luz

*I received a copy of this book from Firefly Books Ltd in exchange for an honest review.

How to Ruin a Wedding

by Elba Luz

August 1, 2026

Goodreads Summary:

When a professional wedding crasher storms the wrong party, an irresistibly charming man enlists her services for a job that’s about to give her outlook on love a run for its money.

Lucy Delgado knows all about things that don’t work out. Between two failed marriages and losing her job, “meant to be” doesn’t seem to mean much anymore. And watching her sister’s marriage deteriorate isn’t convincing Lucy otherwise.

Desperate for money and disillusioned by love, she turns her nothing-left-to-lose attitude into action as a professional wedding saboteur. Lucy knows how to play any part—old lover, nosy relative, wise stranger—to save brides and grooms from making the same mistakes she did.

Until she crashes the wrong ceremony.

For Anders Kennedy, Lucy’s timing couldn’t be better. She’s exactly what he needs to derail his own sister’s upcoming nuptials by posing as Anders’s new girlfriend so she can slip into the family circle and sabotage from within. And Anders has the kind of money Lucy can’t afford to turn down.

As they fake-date their way through family celebrations, high jinks, and secrets, Lucy and Anders are forced to confront their cynicism about marriage. Their schemes were meant for the greater good, but what if love really does conquer all?

My Thoughts: Heavensent & Hellbent by Sara Jafari

*I received a copy of this book from Penguin Teen Canada in exchange for an honest review.

Heavensent & Hellbent

by Sara Jafari

August 11, 2026

Goodreads Summary:

In this riveting contemporary fantasy, a teen uncovers a life-altering family secret while discovering that the boy haunting her nightmares is not only an angel—sworn enemy of jinn—but her fated mate.

When Roxy moves from her small town in England to Denver, she expects her summer to be uneventful. All she has to do is not piss off her dad, continue healing from the loss of her mom, and conquer her sleep paralysis before going to university in the fall. Easy.

But as fate would have it, she bumps into the beautiful boy, Zain, who's been in her recurring nightmare. Each time, they're burning at the stake. In real life, she witnesses him snapping the neck of a man and quickly learns that not only do jinn—demons—exist, but angels, too.

Meeting Zain triggers new nightmares, ones that come with a warning: If Roxy and Zain don't ignore the attraction between them, there will be hell to pay. And upon learning that their souls have been entwined for centuries, they must decide whether their connection in this lifetime is worth fighting for, especially against the divine forces that forbid them from being together.