Author: Anna and Alexis

Hello! We're Anna and Alexis, twins from the Richmond, Virginia area. We both studied English and creative writing in college. Anna spent a year after college working in book publishing in New York City. After living outside of D.C., she moved back to the Richmond area. She works in marketing. Her favorite genre to read is literary fiction, especially by female authors, and she also enjoys dystopian novels. Alexis works in marketing and writes novels on the side. She recently finished grad school, where she received her MFA in creative writing. She loves reading fantasy, especially YA, magical realism, and the occasional lyrical fiction and romance. We’ve been reading and writing together as long as we can remember, and we’re excited to share our bookish thoughts with you! Check us out on Instagram @takestwotobookreview.

Review: Blue Willow by Ki Stephens

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Blue Willow rests on a bookshelf next to a pumpkin

Alexis:

I’m happy that I got to read a digital ARC of Blue Willow, a magical realism romance that arrives on December 5, 2025.

Synopsis:

Coming home was never part of the plan.

Leaving again might be even harder.

When Elsie Hart returns to Blue Willow for the first time in eight years, it’s only to settle her grandmother’s estate—not to rekindle old memories or untangle the magic she’s worked hard to forget. But the inn she once loved is more stubborn than it looks. So is the man who’s been keeping it alive.

Wells Rourke never wants to leave. He’s spent the last few years patching the inn back together with his own two hands and the quiet certainty that Elspeth Hart didn’t just pour her heart into the walls; she left something behind. Something that’s worth keeping alive.

Elsie wants a clean break and a fast sale. Wells wants her gone before she can rip apart what’s left. But the house has other plans. As winter deepens and long-dormant feelings surface, the two of them are drawn into a tug-of-war not just over the keys to the inn, but over the pieces of themselves they thought they’d long buried.

In a town where quiet magic lingers, some people—and some places—will never stop waiting for you to come home.

Review:

Blue Willow is steeped in winter imagery and winter vibes. The setting perfectly captures the cold yet coziness of many winter nights, and it made me look forward to the holidays.

And a magic inn? I’m a sucker for semi-sentient houses. The magic of the inn was cozy and present without being over the top, and I really enjoyed it. While I wish we almost got even more about the magical town itself, I really loved what we did learn about the setting (can you tell I’m a sucker for small town romances and a sprinkle of magic?).

The story is told in dual POVs and switches between Elsie and Wells. I enjoyed both of their perspectives, and the romance between them was sweet. I also appreciated how they’re both dealing with realistic situations and feelings. 

While I was reading this, my own grandma passed away. The theme of grief, as Elsie deals with the death of her grandma, ended up being very personal and poignant, so this book hit me a little harder than it would’ve otherwise. 

VERDICT: ❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️/5

Thanks so much to author Ki Stephens for my ARC in exchange for a review!

Review: Exo by Colin Brush

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Exo with a coffee cup in a car

Alexis:

Exo comes out on November 18th, 2025!

A debut sci-fi mystery set on an abandoned future Earth, featuring a twisty mystery straight out of a John le Carré novel, a group of larger-than-life characters who’d be at home in the work of John Scalzi, and a deeply weird and dangerous hyperdimensional entity to haunt the dreams of any reader of Kim Stanley Robinson.

Humanity is dying. Banished from the Earth, our descendants eke out lives in orbital habitats and moon colonies–and look with longing on our former home.

But Earth is uninhabitable. Over hundreds of years, its oceans have transformed into an annihilating liquid entity––the Caul. Every living creature approaching its shores is irresistibly compelled to enter. . . and is never seen again.

Scientists working in facilities seek to understand and stop the Caul. And scavenging the shores are the penitents––those who resist its siren lure.

In Exo, Brush explores a myriad of classic sci-fi themes, including environmentalism and what it means to be human. 

The Caul itself was almost impossible to picture, yet Brush’s descriptions mirror the alien vastness of the invading substance. I’ve read sci-fi books with post-apocalyptic Earths before, but the Caul was a very unique and fascinating entity. 

The story goes back and forth in timelines. In the present timeline, Mae, an old woman and ex-policewoman, finds rogue scientist Carl dead—murdered—and his daughter, Sofria, on her own. In the past timeline, we’re reading Carl’s scientific and personal diary entries about his arrival on Earth and study of the Caul. 

I did enjoy this book as a whole; however, it’s not really a twisty murder mystery. Exo is a scientific, mathematical kind of sci-fi book. While it is gritty, it’s a haunting, slow moving book that you have to read slowly to ponder over. The murder mystery and investigation take a backseat to the Caul and Mae trying to help Sofria, and nothing really gets solved until the very end of the book. Yet I enjoyed learning about the Caul, Mae and Sofria, and Brush’s prose, and the ending was satisfying!

Thanks so much to Diversion Books for my ARC in exchange for a review! ⁣

VERDICT: ⭐⭐⭐.5 /5 

Review: The Sacred Space Between by Kalie Reid

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The Sacred Space Between in front of an autumn coffee shop display with balloons

Alexis:

Happy Pub Day! 

One of my ARCs that I just finished releases today! The Sacred Space Between is described as: “An enchanting enemies-to-lovers fantasy about an exiled saint and the devout iconographer sent to paint him, for fans of Divine Rivals and A Study in Drowning.” 

Well, I love both of those comps, so you know I had to read it!

What I Liked: 

  • Reid’s writing style: It can definitely be compared to Rebecca Ross and Ava Reid’s writing style. It’s lyrical, and just from a prose level, I really enjoyed it! I loved reading all of the details Reid included in the story.
  • The atmosphere: Her writing is perfectly atmospheric. You can feel the damp heaviness of the moors. As someone who studied abroad in England, you can definitely feel the UK influence in the setting, and it worked really well for the dark themes Reid presents. Each page drips with atmosphere, whether we’re in the Abbey or in the moors.
  • The memory magic: What an interesting concept for a magic system! Reid really captured the haziness of not being able to trust your own memory. 
  • The first half of the book: I was sucked into the first half of the story. The Sacred Space Between follows 2 main characters: Maeve, an iconographer for the Abbey, and Jude, a saint who was exiled to live in the moors. When Maeve is sent to paint Jude’s new icon, Maeve is forced to confront her beliefs and realize that the Abbey, the saints, her religion—all of it may not be what it seems. And I think Reid did a fantastic job of detailing Maeve’s descent into questioning and reckoning with her beliefs, religious trauma, and the only life she’s ever known.

What I Didn’t Like As Much:

  • The second half: Unfortunately, I didn’t resonate with the second half of the story as much as the first. I found myself wondering when it was going to finally wrap up and end—something that is never a good sign. The pacing began to feel a little inconsistent. To me, some of the decisions Maeve and Jude made didn’t seem to fit with their characters.
  • The ending: After the climax, there are two more chapters where there is an abrupt tone shift, and without giving anything away, it just didn’t work for me. Plus, all of the reveals happen at once, which felt a little too convenient, and nearly every transition scene seems to begin with one of the characters fainting.

Conclusion:

Overall, I still enjoyed reading The Sacred Space Between. I think Reid is a promising writer, and I loved her prose. If you’re interested in learning more about the book, check out the synopsis below! Thanks so much to Netgalley and Little, Brown and Company for my ARC for review.

VERDICT: 🕯️🕯️🕯️/5 

Synopsis:

The Abbey has controlled the minds of its patrons for a millennium through memory magic, stolen from exiled saints. At fifteen, Jude was exiled from the Abbey to the bleak moors in the countryside, to maintain their control over his burgeoning magic. Almost a decade later, he wants to live a normal life free from the Abbey’s oppressive gaze. When they send Maeve, a stubbornly devout iconographer, to paint an updated icon of him, Jude makes it his mission to get rid of her as soon as possible. That is until he discovers she holds the same tainted magic of the saints as he does, and that the icons she paints may be the key to destroying the Abbey’s power.

As Jude and Maeve draw closer, the two of them face a choice—they can take on the full power of the Abbey and risk their lives for freedom or escape back to exile and make the most of their fading memories. But this institution has eyes everywhere, and the only thing the Abbey loves more than a saint is a martyr.

Review: The Demon and the Light by Axie Oh

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The Demon and the LIght on a Kindle and a matcha latte rest on a marble table

Alexis:

Happy Pub Day! 

Final Fantasy meets Shadow and Bone in The Demon and the Light, the hotly anticipated follow-up to Axie Oh’s The Floating World.

The battle is over, but the war is just beginning…

The Demon and the Light is the sequel to The Floating World, which I read an ARC of in early 2025 and really enjoyed. I’m happy to say that The Demon and the Light was an explosive sequel. 

It has plenty of light vs darkness imagery. It explores themes of love, grief, responsibility, and more. Its main plot twist threw me for a loop. At first, I wasn’t sure if it would work, but Oh did a great job of making it believable and fit into the world.

This is an action-packed sequel, and the vibes were immaculate. There’s a lot of flying. There are sword fights. There are battles. There are demons and monsters. I flew through the story (quite literally, too, because I read it on a plane).

What I especially loved were the characters. While I liked the characters in the first book, I grew to love them even more—and it helped that their character ARCs were done perfectly. Ren and Sunho, the main characters, are often perfect foils for each other and complement each other so well. 

Jaeil, a side character in the first book, plays a more important role in the sequel, and I loved his character progression, as well. The characters definitely give me found family and Six of Crows vibes. 

My only main con was the same issue I had with the first book: the pacing in some of the critical scenes was a little off, and I think Oh could’ve lingered longer on them a lot more, especially the climatic final battle. 

Overall, without giving anything away, I definitely recommend this duology if you’re looking for a fast-paced, action-filled YA fantasy with dynamic characters, Korean mythology/steampunk worldbuilding, romance, and magic. 

Check out my review of The Floating World here!

VERDICT: ⛰️⛰️⛰️⛰️⛰️/5 

Thanks so much to Netgalley and Macmillian for my ARC in exchange for a review. 

Review: Wild Reverence by Rebecca Ross

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Alexis holds Wild Reverence next to a pumpkin and a cat

Alexis:

Rebecca Ross’ lyrical writing style is my favorite, so it’s no surprise that I really enjoyed Wild Reverence. At no point did I know where this story was going, which I found really refreshing! ⁣⁣

Wild Reverence is set in the same world as Divine Rivals, which I was lucky enough to get an ARC of years ago and loved.

⁣⁣The story feels like a mix between Circe and A River Enchanted. It’s a beautiful, romantic mythology book. Just know that Rebecca Ross really loves keeping her love interests apart as often as possible 😂⁣⁣

It follows Matilda, a young messenger goddess, and Vincent, who wrote to Matilda on the darkest night of his life—begging the goddess he befriended in dreams to help him. 

⁣⁣While this isn’t a perfect book, it has Ross’ beautiful descriptions and interesting worldbuilding, and the story tugs at the heartstrings. The first half took its time really establishing the world, the gods, and the characters, leaving a more action-packed second half. ⁣⁣

⁣⁣It’s part mythology, part revenge story, and a great prequel to Divine Rivals.

⁣⁣VERDICT: ⁣⁣🪽🪽🪽🪽🪽/5 

Review: Red Demon by Sill Bihagia

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An ARC package of Red Demon sits on a wall

Alexis:

Happy October 1st! 🎃

Thanks so much to author Sill Bihagia for sending me this beautiful ARC package.

Red Demon was released on September 16th! It’s a science fiction/fantasy book with found family and themes of coming of age, resilience, and redemption. It has a mystery woven throughout and some really interesting worldbuilding.⁣ The bioengineering concept was fascinating. 

Overall, I enjoyed this one and appreciated Jesse’s resilience and will to survive. I liked reading from his POV, and my favorite part of the story was him forming a connection to his adopted brother, Asher. 

My main critique is that the pacing in the first half dragged, as Jesse growing up and finding his new family took up a large part of the book. I love a good coming of age story, but since this was advertised as a fast paced book, I expected just a little more action and for the plot to move along faster; the actual plot didn’t start until the second half of the story. Additionally, the ending felt too abrupt.  

VERDICT: ⭐⭐⭐/5

I have several more ARCs to read, and I look forward to digging into them this fall!

If you want to learn more about Red Demon, check out the synopsis below.

Synopsis:

On an isolated planet where unity is as engineered as its people, Jesse seeks the truth behind the slaughter of his family-starting with the immortal who spared him.

A century ago, two human lines nearly wiped each other out rather than acknowledge their shared humanity. But when Jesse’s mining town is slaughtered under mysterious circumstances, it’s clear ancient bigotries are still alive, and rebels have access to some magic or tech capable of wide-scale genocide.

The Red Demon bloodied her swords in that massacre-a bioengineered immortal left over from that century old war. Jesse expected her to be upholding his empire’s fragile peace, not killing her own. But Jesse is too optimistic and stubborn to break. Better days are coming, and he’s willing to take on an immortal to protect the life he’s rebuilt among the ashes.

Faruhar, the so-called Red Demon, is not the mastermind Jesse expects. Her fragmented mind is ravaged by guilt over crimes she cannot remember committing, and a code impressed on her by a few kind people she cannot forget.

Review: Katabasis by R.F. Kuang

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Katabasis rests on a table next to an iced chai latte and a half-eaten cardamom bun

Alexis: Happy September🍂 It’s the perfect time of year for dark academia! 

Katabasis: The Greek word for the journey into the underworld. 

Katabasis is R.F. Kuang’s newest novel. It follows two rival magick academics from Cambridge, Alice and Peter, who venture into Hell to save their academic advisor, Professor Grimes—after all, his accidental death may have been Alice’s fault. 

The Writing

If you’ve read Kuang’s books before, I would describe the tone of this one as a mix between Babel and Yellowface. It’s academic, yes, but it’s also funny. While I read Katabasis, I was often struck by how often I was laughing. Her actual writing is witty and smart yet—you guessed it—full of humor.

The References

I sped through this book. It was exactly what I was in the mood to read. I appreciated Kuang’s intense take and criticism of academia. And, listen, I have a BA in English and an MFA in Creative Writing, and, once upon a time, I took Latin for 3 years and learned a lot about Roman and Greek mythology. So you can be sure that I was nerding out over all of the literature and mythology references.

I will say, though, I feel like they make total sense in this book. The way Kuang delves into literature, mythology, and even magick theory echoes the way that Alice and Peter think and solve problems. And, without giving too much away, since Hell mimics Cambridge, it perfectly fits into both the above and below worlds. 

The Characters

As for the main characters, I thought Alice and Peter were both well-rounded. Did I root for them to find Grimes and get the hell out of, well, Hell? Yes. Did I find their flaws frustrating at times? Yes. Did I understand them, though? Also yes. They’re the perfect academics to venture into Hell, and when we finally get their backstories halfway through, they feel earned, and they really worked well for their character arcs.

The Romance

While I think the marketing of this book sometimes focused too much on the romance, I can honestly say that the romance is a subplot of a subplot, so if you’re more of a dark academia person vs. a romance person, you’ll still enjoy the story. However, if you’re more of a romantasy reader, you’ll still appreciate the rivals to lovers trope. 

The Story

While I wouldn’t call Babel a fantasy book, but more a historical alternate history with fantastical elements, I appreciated that Katabasis was both a dark academia and a fantasy book. The magick system uses chalk and pentagrams, and I found it fascinating as a whole. I love a good classic hero’s journey, and I was interested in all of the side characters and side quests we met along the way.

Oh, and also, there’s a cat named Archimedes. 

VERDICT: 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥/5 

Review: The Raven Scholar by Antonia Hodgson

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The Raven Scholar on a marble table with a pen, notebook, and perfume bottle

Alexis:

I can’t believe it’s almost September! August flew by.

I’ve unfortunately been in a bit of a reading slump lately; I haven’t been in the right mood to read anything. But the last book I really enjoyed was The Raven Scholar.

The Raven Scholar is part dark academia, part trial to become the next emperor, and part murder mystery. Honestly, it has something for every type of fantasy reader—as long as you don’t mind reading 650 pages!

This was just such a different and unique read, which I was craving. The story follows Neema, the emperor’s brilliant, idiosyncratic High Scholar, who is tasked to find the killer of one of the contestants in the trials. Yet, without spoiling anything for you, this book ends up having a unique POV, as well, and jumps back and forth in perspectives.

The story has humor and snark but with enough action and political/court intrigue to add tension to the plot. It has several (yes, several) killer plot twists. On top of that, it has:

  • A chameleon named Pink-Pink
  • Scholars and a talking magical book
  • Eight chaotic gods
  • Talking ravens
  • A cast of quirky, morally grey characters
  • LGBTQ friendly world

It’s weird, sometimes absurdist, and sometimes a little slow in its pacing, yet it kept my attention for all of its almost 700 pages. These days, I’ve had a bit of a hard time rating every book I read by a star rating, but just know that I enjoyed The Raven Scholar. 

Next up: I’m currently reading a sci-fi ARC that I’m enjoying, so look out for a review of it soon! My preorder of Katabasis by R.F. Kuang is also on its way, so I’m looking forward to reading that one, as well. 

Review: House of the Beast by Michelle Wong

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Kindle with House of the Beast in a coffee shop and strawberry matcha

Alexis:

Happy Pub Day to House of the Beast by Michelle Wong!

This dark, new adult fantasy debut is about a young woman who strikes a deal with a mysterious and alluring god to seek revenge on her aristocratic family—featuring illustrations throughout by the author. 

I am going to include the synopsis here, because otherwise, this review might not make all that much sense.

Synopsis:

Born out of wedlock and shunned by society, Alma learned to make her peace with solitude, so long as she had her mother by her side. When her mother becomes gravely ill, Alma discovers a clue about her estranged father and writes a message begging for help. Little does she know that she is a bastard of House Avera, one of the four noble families that serve the gods and are imbued with their powers—and her father is a vessel of the Dread Beast, the most frightening god of all, a harbinger of death.

In a desperate exchange for her mother’s medicine, Alma agrees to sacrifice her left arm to the Beast in a ceremony that will bind her forever to the House and its deity. Regardless, her mother soon passes, leaving Alma trapped inside the Avera’s grand estate, despised by her relatives and nothing but a pawn in her father’s schemes.

Now vengeance is the only thing that keeps Alma going. That, and the strange connection she has with her god—a monster who is constantly by her side, an eldritch being taking the form of a beautiful prince with starlit hair that only she can see. He tells Alma that she has been chosen to bring change upon their world, and with his help, Alma plots a perilous journey to destroy the House that stole everything from her.

What I Liked:

First things first, the cover! It’s gorgeous, mysterious, and gothic, which fits this book perfectly. Secondly, Wong includes her own illustrations throughout the story, and even on my Kindle, they added a little something extra to the story.

When I’m in the mood for a dark fantasy, I want it to be dark, and this hit the spot. The atmosphere overall is dark and gothic, with small sprinklings of humor. I especially enjoyed the monsters that Wong included in the story; there’s even a woman who creates Frankenstein’s monster-esque creatures. There are plenty of body horror elements.

The entire concept of being a vessel of a god called the Dread Beast is dark and fascinating, and I really felt for Alma when she was forced to lose her hand by her abusive father. Additionally, as the Dread Beast himself is a harbinger of death, death magic plays a role in the story.

I also enjoyed the cast of characters that we get. Wong did a great job of making them each well-rounded by having them have complicated feelings, motivations, and distinguishing characteristics. 

Overall, I connected with the first half of this book more than the second half. The first focuses more on Alma’s struggle as she is thrust into this strange and dark new role, as well as her loneliness, grief, and desire for revenge on her father. It shows just how out of place she feels in the world, which leads her to forming a connection with Aster, her god/monster who only she can see and hear.

What I Didn’t Like Quite As Much:

The second half of this book lost me a little bit. While I enjoyed the action scenes, as Alma fights monsters and deals with her antagonistic father, the emotional side of it just fell a little too flat for me. The final fight/climax didn’t have the impactful emotional impact that I expected. On top of that, Aster’s character was always held at arm’s length from me as the reader, especially since the story itself jumps over the time when Alma actually forms her connection to him, so I didn’t feel his connection to Alma as much as I wanted to. On top of that, there was one mention of a TV that completely took me out of the story for a minute and felt very out of place.

That being said, I loved Wong’s descriptive language and how she didn’t shy away from dark topics, and I appreciated how she turned several tropes on their heads. Thank you so much to HarperCollins and Netgalley for my ARC of House of the Beast in exchange for a review!

VERDICT: ⭐⭐⭐⭐/5

Review: Red City by Marie Lu

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Alexis holds Red City above a stone walkway and a tree

Babel meets Jade City 📚⁣

⁣Alexis: I got an ARC of Red City from my fave indie bookstore at the beach, and it didn’t disappoint! ⁣

⁣The story takes place in an alternate Los Angeles called Red City, and the city is the perfect gritty backdrop. The magic system of alchemy was interesting and well thought out, and even though the first half of the story was slow paced, it really allowed you time to learn alchemy and learn the stakes of the story in time with both of the main characters.

The beginning of the book follows Sam and Ari, two separate alchemy students, during their school years. It definitely has dark academia vibes and some parallels to Babel by R.F. Kuang. The second half of the book is much more Jade City, with dueling alchemy groups that are essentially mobs and some political intrigue. 

Lu discusses this a little in the back of the book, but Red City dives into the grittiness of immigrant families and was inspired by her own family’s immigrant story. This is really where I felt the heart of the story was; her exploration of the hardships of the immigrant family was devastating—and in different ways when it comes to Sam and Ari.  

⁣This is a darker story (and Lu’s adult debut!) and deals with a lot of dark themes—including grooming, drug use, murder, violence and more. And the tagline of “power always has a price” certainly rings true throughout the story. This was so close to being a five-star read for me, but there were some plot points at the end that didn’t quite work for me. 

⁣VERDICT: ⭐⭐⭐⭐💫/5 ⁣

⁣Is Red City on your tbr? Special thanks to Tor Publishing Group for the copy in exchange for a review!