alex9's reviews
310 reviews

Final Girls by Riley Sager

challenging dark mysterious 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

1.75

Unfortunately I really didn’t like this book, despite most of Riley Sager’s other books that I’ve been being enjoyable. Most of this had to do with the characters in here. The MC was boring and didn’t seem to have any traits or personality other than being a device for the plot to move through. I’m fine with a morally gray MC or an unreliable narrator, as long as they are interesting to read. Quincy felt like nothing more than a final girl in a horror movie, but I expected so much more considering this was a novel and we got to delve into her life prior to, during, and years after the murders. The other characters were all uninteresting to me as well, and I just couldn’t bring myself to care enough about any of them. I highly considered DNFing this book about 2/3rds through, but I stuck with it purely out of just wanting to get it over with. It was a pretty quick read, despite the dark subject matter. I also didn’t see the twist at the end coming, and I do think Sager did a good job of casting suspicion on multiple characters. 

A Good Girl's Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson

challenging dark mysterious fast-paced

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

4.25

Dear Future Me: A Novel by Deborah O'Connor

dark emotional mysterious reflective tense slow-paced

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

4.5

Really enjoyed this thriller a lot more than I expected! Although the premise of it sounded intriguing enough, the actual content that deals with how we process and keep going through grief and reflecting on the unfulfilled dreams of where we thought our pasts would lead us to lended a layer to this book that I haven’t felt from the genre in a while. 
I liked the main character and her drive for answers and desire to help others, although there were a couple times where she made some stupid decisions (although she acknowledged it). Her flaws and the mistakes and shortcomings of the side characters also fleshed them out nicely. I liked reading excerpts from the letters that the students wrote and her process of reconnecting with her classmates was interesting to follow and see where they were all at in contrast to their plans as teenagers. I enjoyed the ending, although the drama and intensity wasn’t strong enough to have me on the edge of my seat, this was a slow burn reveal that drew me in and made me care about the characters and reflect on my own life as well. 

Witchmark by C.L. Polk

adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.75

Thirsty by Lucy Lehane

funny hopeful lighthearted medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

This was a cute and lighthearted romance novel with a a supernatural twist. I enjoyed the myriad of creatures present as both the LI and side/background characters. The letters to Wise Old Crone were also pretty funny and the plotline was overall entertaining. I enjoyed watching the characters slowly fall for each other while pretending to hate the other one, and the tension between the characters made their banter stand out. 
I really wish there had been more of development of the character’s depth and backstories, given that this was still a character-driven story and genre. It seemed like things that had happened in the past shaped them into who they were and caused some of their issues, but they were barely touched on and then resolved with little struggle, so the payoff felt lacking. I felt like I only got to see a snapshot in time for both Charlie and Lorenzo, but given that the reader could see their perspective, I wanted to know more about who they were as people and what impacted them on a deeper level. 

Water Moon by Samantha Sotto Yambao

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective relaxing sad fast-paced

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

4.5

Do Your Worst by Rosie Danan

lighthearted mysterious medium-paced

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

3.75

Dead Of Night by Lisa Gray

challenging 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? It's complicated

3.5

Received an ARC from NetGalley! 

This was an entertaining thriller about a crime fiction author who rents a house to get out of writer’s block and ends up unveiling a decades-old mystery surrounding the disappearance of an entire family. 
I got through this fairly quickly, and the eerie atmosphere of the house and constant discovery of secrets from the past kept the plot moving along nicely. I also appreciated that what I thought would be a big reveal turned out to be another twist, and that who I suspected of messing with Serena/breaking into the house kept changing as the book got further along. I enjoyed the cast of characters, although didn’t really connect with the MC, and the side characters felt a bit one dimensional at times. Overall I enjoyed the book, and found it to be an engrossing thriller that kept me guessing until the end. 

Pizza Girl by Jean Kyoung Frazier

dark emotional reflective fast-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? No

3.25

The Year We Fell Down by Sarina Bowen

challenging emotional hopeful lighthearted medium-paced

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

3.0