anisyrah's reviews
92 reviews

Sunrise On The Reaping by Suzanne Collins

dark emotional sad tense fast-paced

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

4.75

Suzanne Collins, you will be receiving the billing for the next three of my therapy sessions minimum.

Wow wow wow.

Haymitch was always a man clearly plagued by ghosts and now we know why. Time and time again, Haymitch as a child tried his best to keep the people he cared about alive. Time and time again, he failed. Putting space between his allies when he knew he'd draw Capitol attention; bonding with his co-confidants in rebellion; opting to not do something seemingly trivial to spend time with his girl; and letting a harrowing, impossible reunion blind him into a false sense of security.

And on top of it all, his own telling of his story is gone. We get to see these games pasted together at the end and it's like we're reliving it with Haymitch. We know he'll do over and over again (hence the alcohol), but we watch him do it for the first time and simultaneously seeing how the real tragedies are cut out and his alone to carry.

I harken back to the "Hamilton" quote: "Dying is easy, young man. Living is harder." And it is. It is so fucking hard to be the one still alive after something tragic and heartbreaking. When you’re the haunted one.

I'm glad he got his successful rebellion in the end. And his geese. Oh the geese.

Tempting Olivia by Clare Ashton

4.75

Meeting Millie by Clare Ashton

emotional funny hopeful inspiring slow-paced

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

4.75

Millie and Charlotte were such lovable characters. I just wanted more and more of them, specifically when they finally got together. I’ve read slow burns before but WOW getting together at the 95% mark is not at all what I was expecting. Even still? I loved every second of it. Ashton’s writing is addictive and I immediately went for the second one in the series. 

Down to a Science by Haley Cass

emotional funny hopeful reflective sad 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? No

4.0

Haley Cass has a true storytelling ability because the fact that she can write both a dual POV, dual timelines thick romance book and a single POV little novella that spans years is a FEAT! Never did either book feel slow or drag.

Absolutely loved getting to see Ellie and Mia’s love story play out. I will say, I was only slightly disappointed in all of the back and forth conversations. It did feel a little too miscommunication-y for no real reason. I wish she had leaned more into the introspection Riley really got in On the Same Page. The spice also felt a little too quick after a big (and amazingly well-executed) trauma reveal, but that’s also rather true to my own WLW experiences lmfao so I guess I can’t criticize it all that much.

Iron Flame by Rebecca Yarros

adventurous dark emotional funny mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

3.75

So unlike a lot of people, Xaden and Violet’s back and forth didn’t really upset me that much the first ten or so times. Not for nothing, he knew her brother was alive and didn’t tell her. I don’t care about the reasons; that’s CRAZY! Violet learns he’s not only kept that secret but is leading an underground revolution? Yeah, I think it’s fair of her to feel like her life just got turned upside down and she doesn’t know if she can trust him anymore!

But at around the 50% mark, it did start to feel stale and repeated. 

The ending shocked me. The second half felt like the quickest march toward an insane ending and I still don’t know if I like how the plot shook out. Some criticism of repeating book one’s flow is definitely valid, but the stakes were definitely higher this time around. 

On the Same Page by Haley Cass

emotional funny hopeful reflective medium-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? It's complicated

4.75

If you liked this one then, well, we’re ON THE SAME PAGE!

I had to, sorry hehe.

This book in total was about three times longer than the average romance book—and yet, it sure as hell didn’t feel like it. I was actually just left wanting more! The slow burn was absolutely slow burning in this one. I really, really just wanted more scenes and more time with these characters actually dating. Realizing they love each other was at the 90% mark of the book! And then to get married in the epilogue?! It just felt so quick.

Seriously, I’d read another two or three books of this length to get more development from the two as a couple. I loved the established core friendship and their found family. I loved the development from best friends to best friends with benefits. But I was just left craving more. More please!!!

The Seemingly Impossible Love Life of Amanda Dean by Ann Rose

emotional hopeful mysterious reflective 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

3.5

Reading this one felt like trying to untangle a mystery, given the premise of the book is that you have no clue who’s the right one for Mandy. That aspect was both a kinda fun take on a romance book and mildly annoying because all of the jumping around between timelines left me wanting more time to develop the several romantic partners Mandy has. Two of the main ones blended together and I was confused as to who was who because they weren’t very well defined due to time constraints and the jostling between their scenes.

Big fan of the grief representation in act three. Very, very realistic as someone who’s on that journey right now. 

Make the Season Bright by Ashley Herring Blake

emotional funny hopeful reflective medium-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

Folks, Ashley Herring Blake once again writes THE most compelling romance books!!! Spicy scenes that have you kicking your feet? Check. Emotional growth that has you feeling proud of the characters and gives their stories meaning? Check. Relationship development and tribulations with a third act conflict that actually makes sense? Check. 

She even sprinkled in an amazing ensemble cast that just left me wanting more! I really, really hope she turns these characters into a series like the Bright Falls cast. I absolutely loved every second of this book and cried at their happy ending! Nobody does it like AHB. 

In the Event of Love by Courtney Kae

emotional funny inspiring reflective 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

3.5

In The Event of Love was slow-moving for a large portion of the book. Compared to other holiday romances, I feel as if the plot development of the characters was better than average but still lacking compared to my favorites. At points, Morgan’s internal and external dialogue come off as incredibly whiny. Even after all she’s gone through, which was rather well-developed, I still found myself getting annoyed with her.

The town built around the main characters was incredibly sweet, with adorable characters I would enjoy following further into the series. The ending had me literally crying and the steamy scenes were indeed blush-worthy steam, so extra points to the book and author for those high emotion moments. 

Even Though I Knew the End by C.L. Polk

adventurous dark mysterious fast-paced

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

4.0

This novella was so immersive!! Pressing play on this audiobook was like diving headfirst into a 1940s film noir, quirky detective phrases and fun Trans-Atlantic accent and all!! While the twists and turns were rather predictable, I fully enjoyed my time in this fun novella outside of my typical genres. Hearing 1940s wlw flirting and pining was exquisite!