angielucy's reviews
247 reviews

Summers at the Saint by Mary Kay Andrews

lighthearted relaxing medium-paced

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

3.25

The writing in this novel is delightful. The everything else is a bit messy. There's too many characters and too many plot points. The book is a murder mystery/beach read/romance - which sounds really cool in theory, but in practice is just clunky and chaotic. The world building is fabulous, and this book is insanely charming, and it immediately captivates you if you can get through the general overwhelming nature of the book. 

Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros

adventurous 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

Literally every single scene had me hooked and interested (rare for me reading almost 500 page fantasy books).

I only have two things that I think this book could've done better; the smut (these bitches are breaking every object in sight with their powers over the most mediocre heterosexual sex I've ever read, girl be fucking for real). And the very ending, I think the way Xaden handled that reveal was out of character and cheesy and just done for the melodrama (it was literally two pages, I'm being dramatic).

Anyways neither of these things are serious complaints - it's a very fun read, well paced, great plot, fantastic characters, beautifully written. 

A Dowry of Blood by S.T. Gibson

dark reflective 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

This novel is like a cake that is 90% icing and 10% cake. The icing is delicious and absolutely beautiful, but the cake to icing ratio is too fucked up to enjoy it properly. The prose in this book is the icing and the cake is the plot. The plot is there, it just consists of "the vampires move to this town!" but said way cooler and more poetic.

Seriously this novel is so beautifully written it just is an automatic 4 stars. Gorgeous prose and polyamorous gay vampires. Beautiful story.

Phaedra by Laura Shepperson

dark medium-paced

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

3.0

Extraordinarily accurate to the classical era, but ultimately feels bogged down by its constant perspective changes with relatively uninteresting, poorly introduced characters. The pacing suffers, but Shepperson revels in creating genius, hard-hitting twists. Interesting pronunciation choices, but ultimately the narrators depict Shepperson's words in such a way that they flow even more beautifully. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape

The Heart Goes Last by Margaret Atwood

4.0

I enjoyed it for its strange and exciting premise. The more the story progressed, the more the characters flaws emerged. I found that the plot point of both main characters cheating a bit banal, and the ending was a tad out of left field.

Cat's Eye by Margaret Atwood

4.0

Gut wrenchingly incredible. Cruel in it's realism. It's mostly a character driven story, you won't find much of a plot. Heavily relies on human avoidism - particularly from childhood trauma.

A Cure for Suicide by Jesse Ball

4.0

Strangely incredible with great prose. Unique concept and execution. An enjoyable read in it's light mysterism.

Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng

3.0

The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger

3.0

Dance of Thieves by Mary E. Pearson

3.0