 Author: Julia Quinn Pages: 354 Overall: 5/5 Setting: 4/5 Characters: 5/5 Plot and Themes: 5/5 Cheers Factor: 4/5 Pairing: Say You love Me I think this drink is sweet and innocent and just the way that young love should be. I think it feels representative of the love that our protagonists eventually share in the novel and how it’s naive, precious and innocent before it becomes all consuming and a whirlwind affair that is true love and romance. Ingredients -2oz Gin -1 1/2oz lemon juice -1/2oz raspberry syrup -½ cup equal parts water and sugar with half a cult of raspberries bring to boil until fully combined strain out solids and voila raspberry simple -egg white -ice Instructions -Combine all ingredients in a shaker with ice -Shake well -Strain into Coupe glass or glass of choice -Enjoy responsibly  Take a Shot: Anthony Bridgerton is the eldest of the Bridgerton siblings making him Viscount Bridgerton as his father died many years ago. Anthony took his fathers death quite hard and was barely able to watch his mother and her grief over the loss of the love of her life. Henceforth, Anthony has sworn off finding love in marriage and he’s now wanting to choose a suitable woman that checks his boxes so that he may fulfill his duty as Viscount by marrying and starting a family and dying young just like his father. However, love may just be right around the corner in the most unlikely of places.
“But love was the enemy of a dying man.” Setting I love the way that Quinn romanticizes Regency era London. Do not get me wrong I don’t think my ideal concept is using a chamber pot and having to use candlelight in order to do anything after dark. Truly Edison inventing the lightbulb is one invention I cherish in the modern day. That aside though I do love the way that we get to see the lives of these lovely and wealthy aristocratic characters at these lovely extravagant parties and balls. It makes the era seem like one you want to live in when in reality I would likely have been sleeping in a maid’s quarters instead of sleeping in a feather bed dreaming of the next masquerade. Characters I really do love the chance to get to see more of Anthony and being introduced to Kate. I like their enemies to lovers aspect we have going on. It’s a fun little vibe for them. I think the television adaptation took it and really ran with it, but I do appreciate that the book was a little more romantic in that it was quite clear they really did have feelings that were forming and we got to see them aside from just like huffing and puffing. “And there was Kate Sheffield. The bane of his existence. And the object of all his desires. All at once.” Plots and Themes I love a scandal and having to get married because of that. I think that was the best part of this book. Not to say that it hasn’t happened similarly in this series, but being caught by ones own mother is quite comedic and funny. It’s also nice that they aren’t particularly thrilled about being hitched to one another. I also loved the nuances that were there like Anthony comforting Kate during the thunderstorm. That was left out of the television adaptation for god knows what reason and it’s one of my favorite scenes of the entire book. I also really enjoyed that Edwina was quite literally not interested in the Viscount. In the show it seemed preposterous that sisters who are so close would have one not tell the other she’s in love with the man courting her sister and the other so blithely unaware of their feelings that they waited until they were at the altar to notice? But what do I know? “And it was stunning how he wanted to be the one to make her feel better.” Overall I really liked this book. I’ve said this about Bridgerton books before emphatically out loud and in reviews, but I love a good HEA (Happily Ever After) that you know is an HEA. There’s something really satisfying about reading a 300-400 page book and knowing what you are getting into. As someone who reads a lot of long series with twists and turns it was pleasantly surprising to find myself enjoying the predictability of the story lines. “And Anthony, who’d only just learned what it was to love, learned what it was to die inside. Reasons to Raise a Glass: Smut is good, Anthony is a good protagonist so is Kate, plays well with the series and is a great second novel proving Quinn can produce similar content without feeling repetitive Too Strong: Why are the main characters so silly and won’t admit they love one another? Personal preference it just bothers me Warning spoilers ahead if you click read more. Proceed at your own risk.
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 Author: Julia Quinn Pages: 384 Overall: 4/5 Setting: 4/5 Characters: 4/5 Plot and Themes: 4/5 Cheers Factor: 4/5 Pairing: Tea in the Drawing Room Ingredients 2 oz gin 1 English breakfast tea bag ½ oz Lemon juice ½ oz Simple syrup Club soda Ice Instructions -Take gin and pour into glass and steep english breakfast tea bag in it -Let steep for half an hour -Combine infused gin, lemon juice, simple syrup and ice into a shaker -Strain into chilled glass -Top with club soda -Enjoy responsibly  “Simon caught her gaze, his eyes burning hot and intense into hers. A warning bell sounded in his mind. He wanted her.”
Take a Shot: Daphne is not the diamond in the start of her **third season being out** and is always seen as the friend. That is until a handsome Duke shows up in London who is also friends with her brother. He and Daphne devise a plan to pretend to have an attachment and as the best laid plans always go…they go awry. “If Anthony isn’t a rake, I pity the woman who meets the man who is.” Setting I love a period piece. I will never not like a period piece and will always feel fondy of them. That being said I read this after the lovely television adaptation by the incredible Shonda Rhimes so I love the setting in fiction. In reality it was a lot smellier and far less glamorous that we make it seem on the big screen. Nonetheless regency era London still sounds like fun if you were one of the ton and got to live in lavish mansion style homes with endless balls to attend in the lavish homes of your friends. Characters I really love Daphne and the Duke. I have to admit I liked their characters equally to the television adaptation which is hard to do. I think their slight variances in their story make them likeable in different ways. I think the books are obviously better because I love the character development we get when we see in both Daphne and Simon’s heads and getting to watch the events of their relationship unfold from their respective perspectives. Plot and Themes I think this book is a perfect example of a mass market paperback that is successful. I found such utter enjoyment out of a simple plot, that did have some unexpected turns, that was quick and easy. There is something to be said about reading a 300 some odd page book and getting a lovely bow on top at the end. I’ve made many a tik tok about this but it’s so rewarding. We get minimal investment, 300 pages, for a happy ending. That’s not to say an 8 book series across multiple thousand pages is not amazing but it’s so wonderful to just read a nice book with a nice easy plot. Overall I really liked this book. It was easy to read and easy to get invested in. It was also easy to read a chapter and put it down then pick it back up a day or two later. While that is contradictory to my reading goal for the year, it’s nice to not feel so pulled in by a book that I can’t breathe without reading it. I think a balance of a book like this one with one like House of Sky and Breath is vital and this one was necessary to break up my routine. “I just don’t know whether to thank you or throttle you.” Too Strong - I know a lot of people take issue with Daphne taking advantage of the Duke and I don’t disagree. I negatievley support non consensual relationships, however, I do recognize that it was a different era and truthfully Daphne’s lack of knowledge about a lot of things can be seen as equally as bad. Sending a woman into a marriage not knowing what to expect is so dangerous because who is to say her husband is to be righteous and honorable in the interaction. I think in this story it is easy to see that as the sole transgression, but I think overall as it is a period piece we must all reflect on the progress that has been made not only for women, but for consent in all forms as well. Reasons to Raise a Glass- I love seeing inside the heads of our characters. It takes what we see on the silver screen and in my opinion amplifies it and expands upon it in ways that only literature can.  Author: Matthew McConaughey Pages: 308 Overall: 4/5 Takeaways: 4/5 Cheers Factor: 5/5 Pairing: Green Tea Shot This in no way tastes like green tea to me and is also odd it has whiskey, but when it comes to shots it's an easy one and far better than shooting it straight (sorry not sorry Carrie Underwood I will never be that girl) Ingredients (makes 2) -2.5oz whiskey (I used Tin cup Colorado represent but it's usually made with Jameson) -1/2 oz lime juice -1/2 oz lemon juice -1/2 oz simple syrup -1 oz sprite -ice -can substitute lime, lemon and simple for sour mix I just made my own Directions -Combine all ingredients except sprite in a shaker and shake well -Strain into glasses then top with sprite -You can stir it if you want unless you want to shoot it with sprite first to cover the taste -Enjoy responsibly  “No matter who’s in your bed each night, we sleep w/ ourselves. We either live or get sick and tired of it.”
“I was remembered by being forgotten." Take a Shot: Matthew McConaughey shares life lessons and his green lights that have kept him on his path. He takes on his career, his childhood, his marriage and many things inbetween. “Good from afar, but far from good.” If you don’t listen to the audiobook you are a fake fan. I can think of a short list of more exciting things than listening to McConaughey talk for 7 hours. I did indeed listen to it while working (if we work together you know I live to have my headphones in). But truthfully I feel like it was a great environment to listen to his wise words of wisdom. I really love when he talks about his time in Australia and the wacky times he had there. It reminds me of my own experience abroad, albeit in a different country, context and century, but nonetheless similar. I loved the way he so honestly described his desire to be a father and the way he spoke of his wife. I really loved the way that he elaborated in detail with candor about his career. I think someone who is very settled with themself can write those things from their own heart and that was my favorite part of the novel. There’s not message being shoved down your throat either. Now he may push you to follow your greenlights and to accept the things that present themselves to us in life, but it doesn’t feel condescending as though he has all the answers to life. He merely shares his own experiences in an inspiring manner that makes him relatable and easy to listen to (literally and metaphorically). “Don’t invent drama. It will come on its own.”  Author: Katee Robert Pages: 380 Overall: 3.5/5 Setting: 4/5 Characters: 3/5 Plot and Themes: 3/5 Cheers Factor: 3.5/5 Pairing: Where Darkness Meets the Light This cocktail is super simple and has literally two ingredients, but the flavors all work really well together. It’s essentially a gin and soda with mango. Plus it has this really vibrant color contrast that reminds me of neon signs and I felt it worked really well with this title. Ingredients -1.5 oz empress gin -¾ of a can of Mango Bubbly -ice Instructions -Fill a short glass with ice -Add in bubbly leaving enough room for the gin -Using a stirring spoon gently layer the gin on top -Enjoy responsibly  Take a shot: What if the greek gods lived today and Olympus was a place here on earth? What if Hades used a cellphone and had a Christian Grey style of interests? Well look no further you get all the spice with this Hades and Persephone retelling.
Setting Truly this was the best aspect of the novel. I think the setting was very interesting, setting up Hades as simply being in the lower city as the designation of Hell instead of traditional ways of showing where he resides. I also think the setting was very easy to see and create in my head. Characters I did like the characters oddly more than I do usually in this genre. However, I was quite annoyed with the repetition of things the characters did. I’m not a huge fan of the damsel concept anyway and it was so present in this. Like Persephone constantly needing to be taken care of by Hades because she forgets to eat or walks too long and over tires herself? It felt a little condescending and almost manufactured. I know everyone wants to be taken care of that way, but it just felt grating a little. Plots and Themes There was a real plot with a beginning, middle and end. That was a great addition because again in this genre plots can sometimes fall a little flat. I wish we had more resolution with the mother storyline, but I know there’s going to be more installments. I also wish there had been a little more elaboration on a number of small moments. It would have truly made a difference and I’m curious as to what future installments will bring. Overall This was a pleasant and quick read that I liked. It was an easy read and was paced well enough that I felt invested in the characters. Overall, I really liked it and will be reading future installments. Too strong - The character traits of neglectful damsel and overprotective male love interest Raise a Glass - Exhibitionism, dark and broody love interest, his name is Hades Warning spoilers ahead if you click read more. Proceed at your own risk.  Author: Chris Bohjalian Pages: 499 Overall: 3.5/5 Setting: 4/5 Characters: 3/5 Plot and Themes: 3/5 Cheers Factor: 3/5 Pairing: Not My Vacation This tropical drink fits this book because it’s a great summer travel read. I also like that it’s a tropical inspired drink that someone traveling would be expecting, only Cassie is the one who would be serving said drink because she’s not the one on vacation she just does her job at 35,000 ft. Ingredients -2 ½ oz Empress Gin -2oz Pineapple Juice -2oz Lemon Juice -1oz Orgeat Syrup -Ice -Optional Pineapple Wedge Instructions -Combine pineapple juice, lemon juice and orgeat syrup in a shaker with ice and shake -Strain into a Tom Collins glass over fresh ice -Layer gin on top -Optional Garnish with Pineapple wedge or edible flower (if it’s not edible just don’t eat it) -Enjoy responsibly!  “The truth was, there was nothing casual about casual sex.”
Take a Shot: Cassie is a flight attendant that lives the lifestyle to the fullest. With no ties she finds herself living dangerously and drinking her free time away. That is until she wakes up in the bed of the cute guy from 2C in the first class cabin on her route to Dubai and rolls over to find him dead and herself covered in his blood. To make things worse she has no recollection of the night before due to her blackout and she knows she has to leave or be charged in Dubai for his murder. “In the meantime, she would brace for impact.” Setting I really love the idea of having a flight attendant be the main character because of all the fun places the book can take place. Like I loved that we go from Dubai to New York then to Italy. I also love the travel references of first class cabins and all the joys that come from fun international travel. It reminded me of the fun times that I have had while internationally traveling prior to the pandemic. Characters I hated Cassie. Like really almost the entire time I didn’t feel like I was rooting for her. It pissed me off the way she acted and the way that she was so immature about a lot of serious situations. I did like the depiction of her addiction because that felt real and I guess it influenced her personality and her decision making, but it still made me angry. I really loved Enrico though and he saved it for me. I would love to date a cute Italian bartender who is as sweet as him. Plots and Themes I liked the plot of this book, but it kind of had me bored. I have a feeling that the TV show made it more sensational than the book did. A lot of the investigation made me hesitant to believe that it was accurate. It just felt predictable and slightly boring. Conclusion If you are a fan of The Girl on the Train or anything by Gillian Flynn you will like this. It’s a good thriller type mystery novel that I did really like, but it wasn’t entirely my favorite. It was, however a good vacation read. Reasons to Raise a Glass: Easy travel book, thriller aspects, murder mystery Too Strong: Cassie’s personality, seemingly low stakes despite it being a murder? Warning spoilers ahead if you click read more. Do not click read more unless you want spoilers!  Author: Rebecca Serle Pages: 255 Overall: 4/5 Setting: 4/5 Characters: 4/5 Plot and Themes: 4/5 Cheers Factor: 4/5 Pairing: Bright Side This is a light pairing that’s super tasty and reminds me of our main characters best friend Bella. It also reminds me of my best friend Bella with the light taste and possibilities for cute presentation. Ingredients 1 ½ oz gin (I used Breckenridge) ½ oz Aperol 1 oz lemon juice 1 egg white Aromatic Bitters Lemon wheel Ice  Instructions
-Fill shaker with ice -Add gin, aperol, lemon juice and egg white to shaker -Shake for about a minute -Strain into a glass without ice -Garnish with bitters and lemon wheel -Enjoy “This is the thing she’s wanted forever. This right here. This is love.” Take a Shot: Dannie has it all. The boyfriend, the work ethic, and soon to be the job after her interview. On the night of her engagement she falls asleep only to wake up five years later in a bed that isn’t hers, an apartment she’s never been in, in a neighborhood she detests, wearing a ring that isn’t her engagement ring and with a man who isn’t her fiancé. The catch is, it’s five years later. After an hour in this future time, Dannie returns to herself in present time and can’t shake the thought of her night five years from now. “She is life incarnate. What would happen if we just pretended we’d never heard?” Setting I love the New York setting of this novel and it did a great job of not over explaining to the degree of becoming too minute in the details that I wouldn’t feel lost. Personally, I liked the details we were given and it was fitting Characters I didn’t love the characters individually, but I loved the relationships the characters had with one another. I loved the depth of the relationships that we didn’t see. It was reminiscent of Normal People to me which is beautifully private while still being a book. The friendship between the main character and our best friend is just so sweet and the kind of friendship that I feel like I don’t read frequently enough. I love the love displayed outside of romantic relationships towards other characters. Plot and Themes This one hit me with the We Were Liars kind of feel and I really liked the plot. It was meant to be a quick short novel so it felt somewhat underdeveloped and I don’t entirely love all of the insinuations throughout. However, I think it’s overall very moving and as someone who has experienced a lot of similar experiences to those depicted in the book it felt very real and raw. Conclusion I would recommend this book to anyone who loved We Were Liars by E. Lockhart and Normal People by Sally Rooney. Reasons to Raise a Glass: friendship between main character and best friend, ending tie in Too Strong: the pacing, realistic factors of real life were ignored To read a more of my thoughts including spoilers click read more!  Author: Sarah J Maas Pages: 757 Overall: 4.5/5 Setting: 4/5 Characters: 5/5 Plot and Themes: 4/5 Cheers Factor: 5/5 Pairing: Fire in My Veins If you’re heard anything about this book you know it sets something aflame. So this fun little drink is truly perfect not just in its coloring, but in the kick it brings. Ingredients 2oz silver tequila (I used Jose Cuervo) ¾ oz lime juice ¾ oz grenadine 4-5 dashes bitters lime wheel Ice  “She had the courage to tell me the truth.”
Instructions -Combine all ingredients in shaker with ice -Strain in glass with fresh ice -Garnish with lime wedge -Enjoy “And I have never hated you, Cassian.” Take a Shot: (18+ for sexual content and discussion around mental health) It’s been 18 months since the war and Nesta is on a downward spiral. Her sister doesn’t know what to do with her and no one, not even Cassian or Amren, can get through to her. So as a form of rehab she’s forced to start training and working in the library. Go along with Nesta as she heals wounds she never thought she could heal and starts to love those in her life and more importantly herself.  Author: Emma Straub Pages: 356 Overall: 2.5/5 Setting: 3/5 Characters: 2/5 Plot and Themes: 2/5 Cheers Factor: 2/5 Pairing: Dirty Martini Because there isn’t something that seems more adult than basically drinking vodka straight with olive juice. Ingredients -2 ounces Grey Goose Vodka (any good quality works but I personally like Grey Goose the best) -1 ounce dry vermouth -½ ounce olive brine -2 olives -ice -toothpick Instructions -In a shaker combine the vodka, vermouth and olive brine together with ice -Stir together with a stirring spoon -Strain into chilled martini glass -skewer olives on toothpick and use for garnish -Enjoy  Take a Shot: Astrid is a mother to her three grown children with budding families of their own experiences, a life changing event that has her questioning everything about the way she is living her life. In a weird series of events all of her children end up back in their hometown and confront the demons of growing up and the imperfections that life brings about and parenting. “For my parent’s who did their best and for my children, for whom I am doing mine.”
 Author: Helen Hoang Pages: 323 Overall: 5/5 Setting: 4/5 Characters: 5/5 Plot and Themes: 5/5 Cheers Factor: 4/5 Pairing: Panty Dropper This has no pun intended; it's a pomegranate margarita. It’s a panty dropper because any gal who knows tequila knows. IYKYK. This drink makes you want to read this little book. Ingredients 1 ½ ounces tequila ¾ ounce lime juice ¼ ounce pomegranate juice ½ ounce triple sec Agave to taste Ice Salt Instructions -dip the rim of a margarita glass in a plate with water -salt the rim -combine all remaining ingredients in a shaker -shake, strain and enjoy  Take a Shot: (18+ for sexual content) Stella Lane is so incredibly smart and loves her work as an econometrician, but she is also very clearly aware of how her autism affects her life and is dearly wanting to make her family happy and fulfill her life by finding a boyfriend and later a husband. However, she believes she needs more help so she hires Michael, a male escort, to teach her how to be a better lover and to overcome some of her impediments when it comes to men and the bedroom.
I want to give this a preface though that Hoang does a magnificent job of ensuring that Stella’s autism is not the defining characteristic of her essence and that her disability is not seen as a disability, but more a facet of who she truly is.  Author: Leigh Bardugo Pages: 459 Overall: 3/5 Setting: 4/5 Characters: 3/5 Plot and Themes: 2/5 Cheers Factor: 3/5 Pairing: Cherry Crypt Cider by True Brewing This choice comes more from an aesthetic point. It’s super tasty as well, but I just love the dark can and the ominous name. It feels very fitting for a book with dark organizations that are cult like and ritual based using tombs and their own kinds of crypts. "I let myself die. To save myself, I let you die."  Take a Shot: Galaxy (Alex) Stern is a new student at Yale and the newest member of Leith House. She comes from a troubled past and she found out she was going to Yale when she awoke in a hospital bed after an almost fentanyl overdose and a murder scene that would make any detective squeamish. She is absconded of guilt seeing as the murderer was left handed, she’s right handed and she was nearly dead of an overdose. However, her superior Darlington is missing and she’s been limping along in hopes of eventually bringing him back from wherever he is in the universe after being sucked into a black hole. "A lie isn't a lie until someone believes it."
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Cheers FactorEach book here at Cheers&Chapters is rated based off of certain categories that are genre specific, however every book will get a Cheers Factor. The Cheers Factor is how much we wanted to raise our glass while reading it. So get your glasses ready and cheers! Archives
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