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alyssereads's reviews
145 reviews
Wish You Were Gone by Kieran Scott
4.0
I found this book more frustrating than entertaining. No one acts or speaks like a real person. I finished it just to find out who done it and was unsurprisingly disappointed.
Always Be My Duchess by Amalie Howard
4.0
Fun and easy read! The more uh spicy parts caught me off guard lol but they were okay.
The Switch by Beth O'Leary
5.0
Actually was really pleasantly surprised by this! All the characters are enjoyable and interesting. A would recommend this to anyone for a good cozy read.
The Searcher by Tana French
5.0
I bought this in May at the airport on a work trip and was immediately hooked so I didn’t finish it on the trip. It wasn’t until I went on vacation in September that I picked it back up. And oh my god! Tana French is really top of the class in mystery writing. This whole story and the characters is so compelling. I’ve ended up putting holds on the rest of her works because I just can’t get enough of her writing style.
Still Life by Louise Penny
4.0
Not entirely sure how I felt about it. Like it certainly wasn’t bad, but not the best mystery I’ve ever read. Some of the characterization was really weird for seemingly no reason and there’s no resolution for it. Still, I stuck around to find out The Who-done-it so it can’t be that bad.
The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton
4.0
My library tagged this under “mystery” which it obviously is, but I would say this book follows horror/thriller tropes more often than not. Don’t get me wrong, I found it a pleasant surprise, as I love horror novels, especially those set in a Edwardian era-esque period (the novel doesn’t specify a year).
I really enjoyed the concept more so than the plot and when all is said and done, the mystery itself is less interesting than the machinations in which it’s discovered. Still, I would say that all the guest host bodies are different enough to be compelling and Aiden Bishop as a pilot is good, if not a bit stupid at times.
Where the novel fell apart for me, is in the very ending. The best horror novelists will tell you to never show what’s behind the curtain. The conclusion of this Groundhog Day novel gets bogged down in explanations that weren’t really necessary in my opinion. Every time another layer to the mystery is revealed, I became less interested. And once they started to explain the reasons everyone is trapped in the time loop of horror, I was fully bored.
Still it was a good read and I would probably recommend it to anyone into similar stories.
I really enjoyed the concept more so than the plot and when all is said and done, the mystery itself is less interesting than the machinations in which it’s discovered. Still, I would say that all the guest host bodies are different enough to be compelling and Aiden Bishop as a pilot is good, if not a bit stupid at times.
Where the novel fell apart for me, is in the very ending. The best horror novelists will tell you to never show what’s behind the curtain. The conclusion of this Groundhog Day novel gets bogged down in explanations that weren’t really necessary in my opinion. Every time another layer to the mystery is revealed, I became less interested. And once they started to explain the reasons everyone is trapped in the time loop of horror, I was fully bored.
Still it was a good read and I would probably recommend it to anyone into similar stories.
Faithful Place by Tana French
3.0
In many ways, I felt like Tana French wrote this book, or at least the concept, long before the other Dublin murder squad books. I still enjoyed it, but it didn’t feel nearly as fleshed out or well rounded as the first two or the spin offs.
Frank’s character seems really divorced from his characterization in The Likeness, which had a more fun and affable quality. Frank in this is very serious and very uh bland. The plot was fine, but spottable from a mile away. I don’t think mysteries have to be completely unguessable up the very end, but at least past chapter 5.
I wish I could give this an extra half of a star, because I think Tana’s writing style deserves it. But I found myself slogging through this one, unlike the others, so three it is.
Frank’s character seems really divorced from his characterization in The Likeness, which had a more fun and affable quality. Frank in this is very serious and very uh bland. The plot was fine, but spottable from a mile away. I don’t think mysteries have to be completely unguessable up the very end, but at least past chapter 5.
I wish I could give this an extra half of a star, because I think Tana’s writing style deserves it. But I found myself slogging through this one, unlike the others, so three it is.
When Life Gives You Vampires by Gloria Duke
2.0
I’m almost embarrassed to admit I read this as a 24 year old woman. It’s YA fiction in the purest sense. Nothing wrong with YA novels, I get why they exist, but I’ve definitely passed the threshold at which they are interesting.
Promise to myself: no more book recommendations from instagram.
Promise to myself: no more book recommendations from instagram.
One Night on the Island by Josie Silver
4.0
Fun and refreshing, without being very challenging. The romance is simple and sweet, but the book of Cleo would have been just as enjoyable without that aspect.
I enjoyed how the characters were written and liked the plot. The unending was a bit mush, a very “and they all lived happily ever after” type thing, but that’s okay.
I enjoyed how the characters were written and liked the plot. The unending was a bit mush, a very “and they all lived happily ever after” type thing, but that’s okay.
A Touch of Darkness by Scarlett St. Clair
3.0
This was recommended by a friend and I genuinely didn’t realize it was smut until the first scene was upon me. Parents beware, it gets graphic. And of course, the author is not concerned with any kind of accurate sex education. I guess goddesses don’t get UTIs? Or unexpected pregnancies?
Erotic material aside, I think this retelling of the Hades and Persephone love story has an interesting angle. By the end, I was more interested in a romance novel about Aphrodite and Hephaestus. The dynamic the author chose for them is far more compelling that Persephone’s constant internal monologue about how Hades could never love her, usually right after they have very intense sex.
If your looking for an erotica fix, I would recommend this over 50 shades, from a purely writing quality perspective. If you are not into that though, steer clear.
Erotic material aside, I think this retelling of the Hades and Persephone love story has an interesting angle. By the end, I was more interested in a romance novel about Aphrodite and Hephaestus. The dynamic the author chose for them is far more compelling that Persephone’s constant internal monologue about how Hades could never love her, usually right after they have very intense sex.
If your looking for an erotica fix, I would recommend this over 50 shades, from a purely writing quality perspective. If you are not into that though, steer clear.