anamazingday's reviews
154 reviews

A Little Magic by Lindsey Lanza

adventurous 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

This was a quick, cute winter read. I love the strong small town vibes and am excited to see how many books end up in this series. 

I love a good childhood friends to lovers plot. But the fact that these two met when Ellie was 8ish and she had feelings for him then. Shes 8! 

There were also some crazy similes. One having to do with tungsten and one having to do with an explorer. When you read them you’ll know. 

It has the smallest touch of magical realism, which wasn’t ever really addressed. 

But I was very satisfied with the ending overall.

There Is No Ethan: How Three Women Caught America's Biggest Catfish by Anna Akbari

emotional slow-paced

4.25

The title was misleading, this does not solely take place in America.

However, I was captivated by the audiobook from the start. Though I was surprised at how many reg flags each of them women affected seemed to ignore, I wasn’t in their shoes so I can’t really judge them for their actions. 

I thought it was definitely worth a listen. 

Sure, I'll Join Your Cult: A Memoir of Mental Illness and the Quest to Belong Anywhere by Maria Bamford

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny sad slow-paced

This was a wild ride. Maria is very open about her life and mental health struggles.

Frizzy by Claribel A. Ortega

challenging emotional informative medium-paced

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

4.5

What a great graphic novel about being yourself and accepting the body you have. I read this with my 7 year old and we both enjoyed it. 

The Vanderbeekers Lost and Found by Karina Yan Glaser

challenging emotional inspiring sad slow-paced

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

4.5

I I listened to this with my 7 and 10 year olds. We all really enjoyed it. This one had a lot more sadness than the other VanderBeeker books, but it was all resolved. This series, while super slow paced, is such a great one for kids. 

The Pumpkin Spice Café by Laurie Gilmore

emotional funny lighthearted mysterious 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

4.75

I loved this book! Small town. They fall fast. Super cute. Little bit of a mystery along the way. I can’t wait to read the next one!

The Ex Vows by Jessica Joyce

challenging emotional funny reflective sad 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

4.75

I really really liked this one. The wedding disasters got a bit old after a while. But in the end the second chance love story was just precious. And when the “surprise” was revealed at the end I audibly “aww”-ed. Super cute book. 

Fly with Me by Andie Burke

challenging emotional funny reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.75

I really enjoyed this sapphic novel! Olive and Stella’s fake relationship is fun, and obviously more real than either of them think. There is a lot of tragedy, especially for Olive with her family. But the growth both Olive and Stella experience throughout the book is really well written. I am excited to read Burke’s next book now!

A Reign of Rose by Kate Golden

adventurous dark emotional sad medium-paced

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

3.0

I am feeling kind of unsatisfied by the ending to the trilogy. 

While Dawn of Onyx recycles a lot of romantasy material, I flew through it. And A Promise of Peridot kept me engaged too. But this one was too long and then too short. 

And I over romantasy as a genre? I usually don’t mind the repetitive nature of romance books, but I’m finding elements of this one to just be old now. 

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling

adventurous challenging emotional funny sad 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

4.75