anisyrah's reviews
69 reviews

She Gets the Girl by Rachael Lippincott, Alyson Derrick

emotional lighthearted 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

She Gets the Girl was an incredibly sweet YA romance! I’ve always loved the trope of matchmaker falling in love with matchee, and this book did a great job making both young women so individual yet representative of college freshmen: ready to party it up or incredibly anxious. 

I was surprised when there was very little post-get together scenes, as most romance novels will often give readers a time-skip epilogue. I really just wanted more time with these two together!

Mothballs by Sole Otero

challenging dark hopeful inspiring reflective 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

5.0

Mothballs is revolutionary in its artistic exploration of the family saga and the ways in which generational trauma and choices impact future ones.

Otero's art style is absolutely stunning, and the way in which her designs change, both big and small, to tell a story—especially its most haunting and heart-wrenching beats—is a feat. Otero's voice and art is welcomed warmly to the canon of generational family sagas and seeks to answer in Mothballs a life-long question: how do the choices of those who came before us impact our existence?

Thank you to Fantagraphics Books and NetGalley for the partial ARC! All opinions are my own.

A Good Happy Girl by Marissa Higgins
Did not finish book. Stopped at 35%.

DNFed at 35%

This book just wasn't for me. I felt as if the scenes I read weren't just intentionally stark or purposefully lacking, but struggled to hold interest in a way that made me want to learn more. It felt like a book meant for fans of Sally Rooney and Poor Things, neither of which I enjoyed.

I did enjoy the twisted inner monologue and the way Helen would inject the oddest sentiments of intense violence or gross attraction. The execution of the world around Helen just wasn't appealing enough to continue.

Thank you Catapult and NetGalley for the ARC! All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Never Ever Getting Back Together by Sophie Gonzales

emotional funny 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? Yes

4.0

I absolutely ATE this book up! I, like many, like reality TV dating shows just a bit too much—and when told this book had both reality TV dating AND sapphics? AND a Taylor Swift lyric as the title? Ummm, yes please. Sign me up!!

While I do feel as if the book focused more on the take down of the villain than the actual on page romance, I feel as if that imbalance actually added to the point of the overall message and the dynamic our two protagonists held. I'm just a sucker for sapphics and would've loved some more romance between these two before the book ended.

Triple Sec by TJ Alexander

emotional funny hopeful lighthearted 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? It's complicated

4.5

The way in which Alexander’s writing blends together the absolute best parts of romance as a genre is what I imagine it would be like to take a sip of a Mel cocktail—perfection!

The book had absolutely everything anyone could want from a throuple romance: emphasis on communication; chemistry between all parties; lots of genuine, believable connection; and the perfect amount of steaminess! Although, with how well Alexander writes steamy scenes? Let’s just say I would’ve been perfectly happy with another fifty pages. 

I will now be exploring the rest of Alexander’s novels! Absolutely loved it. 

Thank you so much to Atria Books and NetGalley for the digital ARC! All opinions are genuine and my own. 

Don't Want You Like a Best Friend by Emma R. Alban

emotional 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? No

5.0

I should've known . . . that I was going to ardently LOVE this book!!

Taylor Swift lyric as the title? Check. Sapphic? Check. Regency Era longing and yearning? Check. Bumping hoop skirts? CHECK!

This book was an absolute delight from start to finish. It made me laugh, cry, swoon, and blush--what else could you want from a romance novel?! I adored their friends to lovers to schemers plotline. 

Everyone's Thinking It by Aleema Omotoni

emotional mysterious 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

4.0

Even though I guessed who spread around the polaroids within the first few chapters, this book was incredibly enjoyable to read! Both Kitan and Iyanu had incredibly lovely story arcs, and I adored the plot really representing the way in which teenage friendship can be easily torn apart and then lovingly stitched back together with time and effort.

Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver

adventurous dark funny sad slow-paced

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

4.0

This seemingly hopeless, trauma-filled saga managed to have bits of lightness that made it worth continuing on just to hope it would stay that way.

Kingsolver’s writing is incredibly immersive and visual in a Vonnegut-esque fashion, detailing horrors with a comedic edge that juxtaposes just how closely raw this fiction novel gets to real life. 

The pacing felt a bit rushed at the end. Even though it was a saga, I would’ve loved 50 more pages to expand upon the final message. 

Love in the Time of Serial Killers by Alicia Thompson

adventurous emotional funny medium-paced

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

4.0

One True Loves by Taylor Jenkins Reid

emotional hopeful sad medium-paced

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

4.0