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anastasia_raf's reviews
133 reviews
This Winter by Alice Oseman
fast-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
Honestly I read it because I really like Tori. It is an okay book!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Biphobia, Cursing, Eating disorder, and Mental illness
Get a Life, Chloe Brown by Talia Hibbert
emotional
funny
inspiring
fast-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
4.25
Take a Hint, Dani Brown by Talia Hibbert
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
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
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Death, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Grief, and Death of parent
Minor: Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Misogyny, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Grief, and Gaslighting
Down Among the Sticks and Bones by Seanan McGuire
adventurous
dark
emotional
fast-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
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Body shaming, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Gore, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Murder, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Kidnapping
You Made a Fool of Death with Your Beauty by Akwaeke Emezi
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
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
4.0
"There are so many different types of love, so many ways someone can stay committed to you, stay in your life even if y'all aren't together, you know? And none of these ways are more important than the other."
This was...wow.
"...This was hers, her monsters to fight and slay and skin, dry it in the sun, hang it on her walk as a reminder that she was more than what the voices in her head tried to tell her."
This book made me hungry. In a lot of ways... It's a book about love, loss, grief, messiness and life. It's the journey of being lost, staying lost and accepting the difficulty of being found out while abandoning grief's food that sustained you while hiding away from continuation, from what the world expects of you as someone who still breathes. As someone who survived.
It's a book about making art out of the ugly, getting strong while learning to be weak, starting to heal when accepting your broken parts, and honestly just seizing and treasuring a second chance. Risking and loving against the odds. Believing that there is indeed life after death, after loss, after heartbreak. There is joy after sadness, laughter after tears. And in the end? That the book you've written with someone can always have a sequel even without them. Stories live beyond someone's death. They are memories, regrets, hopes, dreams, nightmares. They are a commemoration to those now lost who had partaken to its writing and a testimonial to those who kept their pens up, the pages filled and their words open to co-writers.
"Death is not the greatest loss in life. The greatest loss is what dies within us while we still live." -Norman cousins
I think it does an amazing job of describing nuanced characters. It's not your common black and white shit you know? This bad, that good, the villain, the hero. It really captures the complexity of being...Well, human!
It's an exceptional book, with exceptional characters. This novel is yet the best book I've read dealing with grief. And the writing is ENVIABLE. I loved the writing so very much. Also the bond between Joy and Feyi??? Cannot even begin to describe it. I am definitely going to pick up more books by this author.
"She wanted to be consumed by the relentless volume of a place so much louder than she was, a place where her past and her pain could drown in the noise."
".....No one in new York cared about the vintage of the sadness tucked behind her eyes and in the small corners of her smiles."
"...she didn't even know if she was talking to the man in front of her of the one who'd left her too early."
This was...wow.
"...This was hers, her monsters to fight and slay and skin, dry it in the sun, hang it on her walk as a reminder that she was more than what the voices in her head tried to tell her."
This book made me hungry. In a lot of ways... It's a book about love, loss, grief, messiness and life. It's the journey of being lost, staying lost and accepting the difficulty of being found out while abandoning grief's food that sustained you while hiding away from continuation, from what the world expects of you as someone who still breathes. As someone who survived.
It's a book about making art out of the ugly, getting strong while learning to be weak, starting to heal when accepting your broken parts, and honestly just seizing and treasuring a second chance. Risking and loving against the odds. Believing that there is indeed life after death, after loss, after heartbreak. There is joy after sadness, laughter after tears. And in the end? That the book you've written with someone can always have a sequel even without them. Stories live beyond someone's death. They are memories, regrets, hopes, dreams, nightmares. They are a commemoration to those now lost who had partaken to its writing and a testimonial to those who kept their pens up, the pages filled and their words open to co-writers.
"Death is not the greatest loss in life. The greatest loss is what dies within us while we still live." -Norman cousins
I think it does an amazing job of describing nuanced characters. It's not your common black and white shit you know? This bad, that good, the villain, the hero. It really captures the complexity of being...Well, human!
It's an exceptional book, with exceptional characters. This novel is yet the best book I've read dealing with grief. And the writing is ENVIABLE. I loved the writing so very much. Also the bond between Joy and Feyi??? Cannot even begin to describe it. I am definitely going to pick up more books by this author.
"She wanted to be consumed by the relentless volume of a place so much louder than she was, a place where her past and her pain could drown in the noise."
".....No one in new York cared about the vintage of the sadness tucked behind her eyes and in the small corners of her smiles."
"...she didn't even know if she was talking to the man in front of her of the one who'd left her too early."
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Grief, and Car accident
Minor: Ableism, Violence, and Death of parent
Razorblade Tears by S.A. Cosby
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
I liked this book very much. I found it entertaining, dark, realistic, hard and raw. It is very well crafted and interesting. The characters were complex and I appreciated how nuanced was the presentation of grief. It was very well handled in my opinion.
I also think that people give Buddy Lee too much gredit when he rarely stops himself from being an asshole.
Ike, I think you need to start appreciating your wife more.
There was one of many sentences that rubbed me the wrong way... But this one? Not a fan. ''Buddy Lee leaned against the sink. His chest was as tight as virgin pussy." Huh.
I want to believe that this book is supposed to be a punch in toxic masculinity's throat since all this happened because Cis-het (especially white,) man are insecure in their own sexuality and very existence,
BUT, I felt like queer people were just there to serve the plot. I felt their presence was "over-exploited." I get how and why they were important to the plot but they were also used as an excuse for "character growth." This book goes out of its way to show how these fathers were educated on these topics by their gay sons and queer people in general and yet does nothing to educate its audience and to lift up queer voices. Another perspective on the plot is that these two homophobic fathers used revenge as a way of absolving themselves of the guilt (about the awful treatment towards their sons and their ignorant ass towards queerness.) And yet, was it intentional? Or just...there? I think that's where the book lacked in a way. It's not clear on where it stands.
"Still, some of Cosby's other choices render this novel something short of a triumph. Queer people are central to the investigation and the story, but not a one has a particularly strong, fully realized voice of their own..." "Cosby also has straight people talking about LGBTQIA+ marginalization in conversations that sometimes sound preachy rather than organic. It's a jarring juxtaposition — having straight characters gain this growing awareness of and sensitivity to discrimination when the queer characters are marginalized in the narrative." By Carole V. Bell, a cultural critic and communication scholar focusing on media, politics and identity.
I also think that people give Buddy Lee too much gredit when he rarely stops himself from being an asshole.
Ike, I think you need to start appreciating your wife more.
There was one of many sentences that rubbed me the wrong way... But this one? Not a fan. ''Buddy Lee leaned against the sink. His chest was as tight as virgin pussy." Huh.
I want to believe that this book is supposed to be a punch in toxic masculinity's throat since all this happened because Cis-het (especially white,) man are insecure in their own sexuality and very existence,
BUT, I felt like queer people were just there to serve the plot. I felt their presence was "over-exploited." I get how and why they were important to the plot but they were also used as an excuse for "character growth." This book goes out of its way to show how these fathers were educated on these topics by their gay sons and queer people in general and yet does nothing to educate its audience and to lift up queer voices. Another perspective on the plot is that these two homophobic fathers used revenge as a way of absolving themselves of the guilt (about the awful treatment towards their sons and their ignorant ass towards queerness.) And yet, was it intentional? Or just...there? I think that's where the book lacked in a way. It's not clear on where it stands.
"Still, some of Cosby's other choices render this novel something short of a triumph. Queer people are central to the investigation and the story, but not a one has a particularly strong, fully realized voice of their own..." "Cosby also has straight people talking about LGBTQIA+ marginalization in conversations that sometimes sound preachy rather than organic. It's a jarring juxtaposition — having straight characters gain this growing awareness of and sensitivity to discrimination when the queer characters are marginalized in the narrative." By Carole V. Bell, a cultural critic and communication scholar focusing on media, politics and identity.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Body horror, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Terminal illness, Torture, Transphobia, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Car accident, Murder, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Body shaming, Fatphobia, Sexism, Car accident, Death of parent, and Lesbophobia
Furyborn by Claire Legrand
Did not finish book. Stopped at 16%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 16%.
I trieddd... I'm just not interested.
Every Heart a Doorway by Seanan McGuire
challenging
dark
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
I truly liked this book! I found it fascinating to say the least. That book is what an original idea is, and I believe the execution of that idea was excellent.
It makes me wonder if it is a metaphorical way of presenting children scarred from familial expectations and traumatized by a parent's ambitions and ideas of a daughter, a son, a child.
Or if it bears the hope that imagination can be salvation to a child and to those prisoned in societal views and ways.
And still this book felt so magical, so surreal and yet so heavily rooted in reality.
I have so many thoughts about this book and so little to say. I decided that I'm going to let the book show you everything.
It makes me wonder if it is a metaphorical way of presenting children scarred from familial expectations and traumatized by a parent's ambitions and ideas of a daughter, a son, a child.
Or if it bears the hope that imagination can be salvation to a child and to those prisoned in societal views and ways.
And still this book felt so magical, so surreal and yet so heavily rooted in reality.
I have so many thoughts about this book and so little to say. I decided that I'm going to let the book show you everything.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Deadnaming, Death, Gore, Transphobia, Blood, Grief, Acephobia/Arophobia, Murder, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Violence, and Vomit
Our Share of Night by Mariana Enríquez
Now, to the good parts. It is very very clear that the writer of this book is talented. The story she has crafted is deliciously haunting and masterfully horrifying.
The atmosphere is honestly astounding, the writing even more so. Excellence.
The horror? Incredible.
The plot? Unique, and surprise surprise, excellent.
Am I having nightmares because of this book? Absolutely.
Do I still see Moira in my sleep? You bet I am.
I will be thinking about this book for a long long time.
adventurous
challenging
dark
tense
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? No
3.0
Thank you very much to Netgalley and Granta Publications for providing me with an e-arc of this book.
"Spanning the brutal decades of Argentina's military dictatorship and its aftermath, Our Share of Night is a haunting, thrilling novel of broken families, cursed inheritances, and the sacrifices a father will make to help his son escape his destiny."
This is how the book is described, and for the most part I agree with the statement! But, I would also like to add that this book is cleverly executed, it's full of horrifying demons and sinister ghosts, merciless cults and hidden secrets. Shall we move to my complaining?
"Spanning the brutal decades of Argentina's military dictatorship and its aftermath, Our Share of Night is a haunting, thrilling novel of broken families, cursed inheritances, and the sacrifices a father will make to help his son escape his destiny."
This is how the book is described, and for the most part I agree with the statement! But, I would also like to add that this book is cleverly executed, it's full of horrifying demons and sinister ghosts, merciless cults and hidden secrets. Shall we move to my complaining?
I will not comment on the disability rep since it's not my place to judge that, and WE should definitely read reviews from disabled reviewers on that topic.
I felt the usage and presence of queer people is mostly sexual and I'm honestly offended by it. I felt queer people were dehumanized in a way. As much as sex with and between queer people was normalized I think we should be allowed to exist outside and beyond it. We are more than our sexual partners.
I would say that "sexchange" surgery is an inappropriate word and its usage is hurtful towards the trans community, so I would advise you to connect with and contact trans people about the correct and appropriate terminology.
The CONSTANT f slur usually directed at homosexual/erotic people. I get it, this is how we were treated, this was most common name for us and all that but half of it felt totally unnecessary.
S
ome commentaries left me wondering about their purpose and intentions and found them problematic.
Now, a few observations about the characters.
Gaspar not feeling akward or "disgusted" by gay people is nothing. It doesn't make him a descent being. It just doesn't make him an ignorant bigot.
I found a lot of them problematic, none of them lovable, although I think that was intentional. They were...real. In a terrifying and masterful way, real.
I felt the usage and presence of queer people is mostly sexual and I'm honestly offended by it. I felt queer people were dehumanized in a way. As much as sex with and between queer people was normalized I think we should be allowed to exist outside and beyond it. We are more than our sexual partners.
I would say that "sexchange" surgery is an inappropriate word and its usage is hurtful towards the trans community, so I would advise you to connect with and contact trans people about the correct and appropriate terminology.
The CONSTANT f slur usually directed at homosexual/erotic people. I get it, this is how we were treated, this was most common name for us and all that but half of it felt totally unnecessary.
S
ome commentaries left me wondering about their purpose and intentions and found them problematic.
Now, a few observations about the characters.
Gaspar not feeling akward or "disgusted" by gay people is nothing. It doesn't make him a descent being. It just doesn't make him an ignorant bigot.
I found a lot of them problematic, none of them lovable, although I think that was intentional. They were...real. In a terrifying and masterful way, real.
Now, to the good parts. It is very very clear that the writer of this book is talented. The story she has crafted is deliciously haunting and masterfully horrifying.
The atmosphere is honestly astounding, the writing even more so. Excellence.
The horror? Incredible.
The plot? Unique, and surprise surprise, excellent.
Am I having nightmares because of this book? Absolutely.
Do I still see Moira in my sleep? You bet I am.
I will be thinking about this book for a long long time.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Homophobia, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Self harm, Sexism, Terminal illness, Torture, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Kidnapping, Grief, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail
Nick and Charlie by Alice Oseman
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
It was okay. Bummed out with the whole miscommunication on a whooooole other level but I still quite enjoyed it.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Eating disorder
Minor: Bullying, Eating disorder, Homophobia, and Mental illness