_chrstnlvly's reviews
216 reviews

The Unhoneymooners by Christina Lauren

funny lighthearted medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Infidelity, Sexual content, and Alcohol

The Ex by Freida McFadden

mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Stalking and Murder

Moderate: Death, Mental illness, Pregnancy, and Alcohol

Minor: Child death

The Next Girl by Carla Kovach

dark mysterious sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

This book is a straightforward procedural thriller. 

It took me some time to finish it due to a lack of compelling tension. Although the stakes were high with a life on the line, the plot revealed the victim's situation while the protagonist, DI Gina Harte, was still trying to solve the case. As a result, I, the reader, was merely waiting for the protagonist to catch up with what I already knew. The question was not 'what will happen?' but 'when and how will the villain be caught?' This aspect dulled the suspense and made me less inclined to pick up the book. 

However, DI Gina Harte, the protagonist, was a well-developed character. Even though her personal backstory didn't profoundly affect me, I could understand her because her character was thoroughly explored. 

I'm undecided about continuing with the series. I might consider reading the second book in the future, but if it follows the same format, I may not pursue the entire series.

Also, to be honest, Harte was a bit.. dumb for a DI. She actually didn't solve the case in this book. All the pieces just fell into place: she didn't find the victim, someone else did. She didn't take down the perpetrator. Someone else did.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Torture, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Kidnapping, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Death, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Stalking, and Death of parent

Minor: Animal cruelty and Pregnancy

The Perfect Wife by Blake Pierce

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

A quick, easy read. I knew it was part of a series, but I wasn't aware it's a 38-book series. I guess I've found another series that I'll be reading for a while.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Torture, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Gore, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Vomit, Pregnancy, and Alcohol

The Seven Year Slip by Ashley Poston

emotional medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Sexual content, Suicide, and Grief

Mary Jane by Jessica Anya Blau

informative medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Racism, and Antisemitism

Moderate: Drug abuse and Drug use

Mile High by Liz Tomforde

emotional slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.5

Top three reasons why I didn't like this book:

1. This could have been 150 pages shorter.
2. Insecurity is different from self-criticism without reason. Stevie is a perfect example of the latter. It took me almost five months to finish this simple romance book due to Stevie's persistent "woe is me" attitude, which I found annoying. Note to Stevie: the world does not revolve around you.
3. Bad writing. Liz Tomforde consistently stated the obvious. For example,
   when Stevie's dad was explaining that her maternal grandmother was harsh to Stevie's mom, leading to Stevie's mom's similar behavior towards Stevie. He was discussing the difficulties for Stevie's mom and hinting at generational trauma. However, in the next paragraph, Stevie's dad explicitly labels it as generational trauma.
   Such repetition was not a one-time thing and it became frustrating. It seemed as if Tomforde underestimated the readers' ability to understand the narrative without explicit explanations. An author should trust their eloquence to convey the message to the audience. This led me to speculate that Tomforde lacked confidence in her explanatory skills, hence the need to state the obvious.

Bonus: “Pop/s a shoulder” or “shoulders pop/popping” was mentioned 15 times. Why can't you come up with a more fitting adjective to describe something like that?

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing and Sexual content

Moderate: Body shaming and Abandonment

Minor: Blood, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

Ward D by Freida McFadden

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Addiction, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Death of parent, and Fire/Fire injury

Minor: Drug use and Dementia

House of Hollow by Krystal Sutherland

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

I like weird books and I cannot lie. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Blood, Vomit, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Death, Sexual assault, Suicide, Torture, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, and Alcohol

Minor: Animal death, Bullying, Child death, Drug use, Self harm, and Stalking

The Legacy by Elle Kennedy

funny lighthearted fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I understand that some people didn't enjoy this epilogue novel, but I did. It was enjoyable to read about the couples from the Off-Campus series, and I found myself laughing at several scenes. Those who know me understand that it's usually easier to make me cry than laugh while reading books.

I enjoyed Dean and Allie's storyline in The Legacy, even though The Score was my least favorite book in the Off-Campus series.

I greatly disliked Hannah in this book. I understand she was trying to protect Garrett, but her unwillingness to speak out, fearing it might negatively affect her due to Garrett's mood, revealed her selfishness.

Garrett and Hannah both had a part in making their child. Garrett should have been told about the pregnancy right away. But when he got upset because Hannah hid it for a long time, she was surprisingly angry at him.

It felt like reading about a completely different Hannah. The Hannah from The Deal and The Legacy seemed like two different people.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content and Pregnancy

Moderate: Alcohol

Minor: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, and Abortion