anielabooks's reviews
247 reviews

Fruits Basket Collector's Edition, Vol. 2 by Natsuki Takaya

emotional funny lighthearted mysterious

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes

4.75

Beach Read by Emily Henry

emotional funny hopeful medium-paced

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

5.0

This was a wonderful book. I am not surprised by that considering that I’ve read Emily Henry’s books before. The only disappointing part was that I expected to cry and didn’t. That definitely doesn’t take away from how much I loved the romance between the main characters. I think the book was also extremely funny at times. January and Gus’s banter was perfection, absolutely my favorite part. I also really appreciated how we got to see their books unfolded at the end. 100% would recommend this book for summer.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Infidelity and Death of parent

Moderate: Cancer, Death, Sexual content, Vomit, and Grief

Minor: Addiction, Alcoholism, Religious bigotry, Car accident, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Alcohol

Ruin and Rising by Leigh Bardugo

adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.5

Overall, this was a great series. I felt very attached to the characters, and I am excited to read the other books inside the grishaverse. Normally, I would get bored with talk of war plans but I think Bardugo did a good job at keeping it interesting. I also loved the ending she gave Alina; It was very heartwarming to see. The plot twists were well done and I hadn’t seen many of them coming.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Violence, Blood, Murder, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Body shaming, Gun violence, Rape, Suicide, Grief, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, and Fire/Fire injury

Minor: Bullying, Incest, and Infidelity

How to Make Friends with the Dark by Kathleen Glasgow

dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

3.75

This book was definitely a book about the grieving process. I suggest anyone considering reading this book to check  the trigger warnings beforehand. While I was not the target audience Glasgow wrote for, I did find this book very important; I think everyone should expose themselves to this type of writing at least once in their lives. In my experience reading “How to Make Friends With the Dark” I learned so much about the foster system, among other parts of the lives of orphaned teenagers. This book truly leaves you seeing people differently and wondering who around you could have a difficult life at home.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, Grief, and Death of parent

Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Animal cruelty, Cancer, Child death, Cursing, Eating disorder, Gun violence, Racism, Terminal illness, Vomit, Stalking, Abortion, Pregnancy, Lesbophobia, and Fire/Fire injury

Siege and Storm by Leigh Bardugo

adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.5

Overall great book, but I still preferred the first one. It was very slow at first, but it really picked up towards the end. Honestly, I was not expecting that many character deaths. Some of those were a but out of pocket. However, I was really excited to meet many characters and grow some old ones. I particularly loved Tamar and Nikolai. Although I wasn’t particularly fond of Zoya, I still appreciated how Bardugo developed her character in this book. I’m excited for what is to come in the next book as I am still very much in love with the world and NIKOLAI LANTSOV. Additionally, I really appreciated the bonus Genya chapter because she was always one of my favorite characters from book 1.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Blood, Murder, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Gun violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Toxic friendship, Alcohol, and Classism

Minor: Body horror, Body shaming, Drug use, Genocide, Gore, Infidelity, Self harm, Xenophobia, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Gaslighting, and Colonisation

Kill Joy by Holly Jackson

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death and Murder

Moderate: Cancer, Drug use, Infidelity, Terminal illness, Blood, and Death of parent

Minor: Incest, Suicide, Grief, Suicide attempt, Abandonment, and Classism

One Last Stop by Casey McQuiston

funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective 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

3.75

It took me quite long to finish this book because, although it was relatively short, it was slow paced and had long chapters. However, I still enjoyed this book and the writing style Casey McQuinston used. The cast of characters was very diverse, which I loved, and they were portrayed in a very real and respectful way. I was recommended this book by a friend and I am glad I read it because I am always down to expand my TBR with sapphic books. I felt satisfied with the ending, and it really made the book for me. The only reason I rated it less than 4 stars is because I am not a big fan of slow paced books (just my personal taste). 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content

Moderate: Confinement, Cursing, Death, Drug use, Hate crime, Homophobia, Racism, Sexism, and Abandonment

Minor: Biphobia, Violence, Vomit, Car accident, Lesbophobia, and Fire/Fire injury

Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo

adventurous dark funny mysterious medium-paced

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

5.0

Honestly, I really liked this book. I finished it in about 5 days, and I’m very excited to start the next one. Definitely a book that got a lot of gasps from me towards the end. The world it is set in seems so interesting that I already see myself falling in love with it. Although I was a little late to reading this series, I don’t doubt that it will live up to the hype.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Death, Blood, War, and Classism

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Gun violence, Slavery, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Xenophobia, Suicide attempt, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Colonisation, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Confinement, Rape, Excrement, Grief, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Alcohol

Dating Dr. Dil by Nisha Sharma

funny hopeful lighthearted fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

The story itself was okay. I haven’t read the Taming of the Shrew so I can’t testify to it’s accuracy to the original source material.  I only rated it 3.25 stars because I had some key criticisms of the book. First, my copy seemed to have a few mistakes in spelling, and in one instance, even had the wrong character name in a scene. Second, for those who have read the book, “Charlie” kind of made the spice scenes kind of awkward. This book wasn’t all bad though, as it incorporated so many terms related to Indian culture, which greatly increased my knowledge on the subject. Also, I particularly loved the fun scenes between the main characters; I think the museum and food contest scenes were super creative and memorable. I wouldn’t reread it or highly recommend it, but it was enjoyable, and I felt seen by the way the immigrant family dynamic was portrayed.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content

Moderate: Cancer, Cursing, Misogyny, Sexism, Death of parent, and Alcohol

Minor: Chronic illness, Drug use, Terminal illness, Kidnapping, and Grief

Daughter of the Siren Queen by Tricia Levenseller

adventurous funny fast-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

4.0

This book was a fun read. I definitely loved the setting and the characters. I especially loved that we got to meet more of the crew, and I absolutely loved Roslyn. However, I did rate it lower than the first book because I felt that it mostly ignored the possible romances, which I was quite excited to read about. I would be elated if we got some short stories to get insight on what happens after this book. I have to say though, I really appreciated how this book explored Alosa’s relationship with her mother. I definitely let out some audible gasps with this book.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Confinement, Death, Misogyny, Sexism, Blood, Medical content, Cannibalism, Murder, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Addiction, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Torture, Violence, Death of parent, and Abandonment

Minor: Domestic abuse, Gore, Infertility, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, Grief, and Pregnancy