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ariellesbookreviews's reviews
149 reviews
The Hookup Plan by Farrah Rochon
4.0
The Hookup Plan by Farrah Rochon is the last book in The Boyfriend Project series. Overall, I enjoyed this series, and I think Rochon did an excellent job writing. The Hookup Plan was my favorite book in the series, but I also wanted more from each book.
This book focuses on three main storylines, London trying to save the hospital from privatization, her developing relationship with Andrew, and her complex relationship with her family. Throughout these storylines, Rochon demonstrates how stubborn London is. London makes a lot of generalized statements and has difficulty looking at other people's points of view. I liked this characterization of London because she is never portrayed as a bad person but simply flawed. London experiences a lot of growth in this book, particularly for an adult woman who is settled in her career. Rochon uses London to demonstrate there is always room for internal growth. Toward the end of the book, I feel like London should have explored more career options outside of Austin, and it could have been a good expansion of her character.
The relationship between London and Andrew was adequate. Andrew falls first and has always been more interested in London than she has been in him. Rochon focused most of Andrew and London's relationship on Andrew convincing London to actually spend time with him outside of sex. Andrew's character was not as developed as London's. Some aspects of his career were not as expanded on as they could have been. Rochon hints about aspects of his career but does not provide the reader many details.
This book, like the previous ones, focuses on several health aspects because London suffers from high blood pressure. Some of the actions of the other characters come off as lecturing, particularly Taylor. I believe Rochon could have structured some of Taylor's interactions better.
My favorite part of this series is its focus on successful black women entering happy and flourishing black relationships. I rate this book and the series 4 stars.
Hades by Ambrosia R. Harris
4.0
Hades by Ambrosia Harris is essentially Kore but from Hade’s perspective. Overall, I would have liked the book more if I did not re-read Kore in preparation for Hades. The author did not expand on the original story, except for several plot points that do not include Kore. This led me to be bored from reading the same story twice. I was ready to continue the story from where we left off originally, which was on a cliffhanger. It feels as if I spent an entire year waiting to receive the same plot again. Ambrosia Harris has claimed that readers are getting a new story with Hades, but I do not think that is true. I wish Harris had expanded on the storyline already written. I might have appreciated this book more in a couple of years once Kore's story is complete. I do not think the book is bad, but the storyline was repetitive, and Kore and Hades do not need to be read close together. The next book in the series is called Demeter, so now I am wondering if the plot will be the same 18-year period but from Demeter's perspective, which I also do not know if I need.
Overall, I am rating this book four stars. It was fine. I would have enjoyed it as a stand-alone. I did enjoy it last year ... as Kore.
That Time I Got Drunk And Yeeted A Love Potion At A Werewolf by Kimberly Lemming
5.0
That Time I Got Drunk and Yeeted a Love Potion at a Werewolf is an excellent follow-up to Kimberly Lemming's first novella in the Mead Mishap series. Lemming kept similar vibes as the first book allowing the reader to have a good time. I will fully acknowledge I was not ready for the tentacles, and I still do not know how I feel it. Overall the book was a fun read with excellent characters and a cute storyline. Lemming did an excellent job of expanding the plot and the world. I also love the cover of this book! The details drawn for Bree and Felix are adorable! I love Bree's hair! Excellent five-star read! Warning for a tentacle smut scene…. I cannot believe I had to write that.
The Heart Principle by Helen Hoang
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
3.0
The Corpse Queen by Heather M. Herrman
Thank you, Penguin Teen, for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review!
The Corpse Queen is a book that makes you think. The book takes place in Philaphedia at the end of the 19th century and focuses on the evolution of Anatomy and medicine. While many medical advances happened during this time, the government and the Catholic Church ruled autopsies illegal and sinful. This led to an increase in grave robbing and resurrection.
The story focuses on 17-year orphan Molly Green who is sent to live with her aunt, the corpse queen. Molly’s aunt starts her down the path to become a Resurrectionist and eventually develops an interest in anatomy and medicine.
This book is dark, sad, and gross. The author does not shy away from the coldness of body snatching, making sure to include how the people are regarded as specimens rather than humans. Resurrectionist targeted the poor, the disabled, people of color, and the disenfranchised. The author acknowledges that through the book, but she shows the reader, not tells. This book makes you think. The reasoning and effects of resurrection are not spelled out for the reader, and I loved that.
This book is honestly perfect for Spooky time.
I rate it 4.5 stars.
adventurous
dark
informative
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
4.5
Thank you, Penguin Teen, for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review!
The Corpse Queen is a book that makes you think. The book takes place in Philaphedia at the end of the 19th century and focuses on the evolution of Anatomy and medicine. While many medical advances happened during this time, the government and the Catholic Church ruled autopsies illegal and sinful. This led to an increase in grave robbing and resurrection.
The story focuses on 17-year orphan Molly Green who is sent to live with her aunt, the corpse queen. Molly’s aunt starts her down the path to become a Resurrectionist and eventually develops an interest in anatomy and medicine.
This book is dark, sad, and gross. The author does not shy away from the coldness of body snatching, making sure to include how the people are regarded as specimens rather than humans. Resurrectionist targeted the poor, the disabled, people of color, and the disenfranchised. The author acknowledges that through the book, but she shows the reader, not tells. This book makes you think. The reasoning and effects of resurrection are not spelled out for the reader, and I loved that.
This book is honestly perfect for Spooky time.
I rate it 4.5 stars.
Fire with Fire by Destiny Soria
4.0
I had never heard of Fire with Fire until it arrived in my Fairyloot book, and I am glad it did. Fire with Fire was an excellent book. It is well written, developed, and has excellent pacing. Destiny Soria created an immersive world filled with dragons, dragon slayers, and sorcerers. She made sure to include Latinx, anxiety, bisexual mc, and mlm sc representation.
Every character has their own distinct voice and character development. Soria doesn't shy away from creating complex relationships between characters. Eden and Dani's sibling relationship feels realistic and leaves the readers hopeful for the future. I loved Dani and Nox's relationship. I did not agree with Soria's decision to write Dani's proposed love interest as immortal. Dani has not entered her senior year in high school by the end of the book, but her proposed love interest is over 200 years old. Why is that necessary?
Every character has their own distinct voice and character development. Soria doesn't shy away from creating complex relationships between characters. Eden and Dani's sibling relationship feels realistic and leaves the readers hopeful for the future. I loved Dani and Nox's relationship. I did not agree with Soria's decision to write Dani's proposed love interest as immortal. Dani has not entered her senior year in high school by the end of the book, but her proposed love interest is over 200 years old. Why is that necessary?
These Hollow Vows by Lexi Ryan
Thank you Houghton Mifflin for an eARC. I received a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review
These Hollow Vows is described as The Cruel Prince meets ACOTAR. I do not think it is similar to The Cruel Prince. These Hollow Vows' plot is not politics or about a woman obtaining power, and the biggest similarity between the two is both stories have Fae characters. The book is similar to ACOTAR; both books start with a young woman entering Fae territory to save their family.
I did like this book. I had a great time while reading; the book was fun and adventurous. It does feel like a typical YA Fantasy novel; however, that is a really popular genre, and not every book needs to be groundbreaking. Classics are classics for a reason.
I do not know who Bree is going to end up with at the end of this series. This book had multiple twists and turns with the male love interest. While some aspects of the plot were predictable, the love triangle isn't. You have the dark and mysterious stranger and the loveable best friend. Both great options, but everyone has an ulterior motive in this book.
This book does not really have any representation. The book contains your typical YA protagonist, a white redheaded young woman, and there is an overall lack of LGBTQ and BIPOC characters. Personally, I would rather have no representation than poor representation in a book, but the lack of diversity is worth noting.
I really liked These Hollow Vows, and I am excited to see where the story goes in the sequel. I rate the book 4 stars.
4.0
Thank you Houghton Mifflin for an eARC. I received a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review
These Hollow Vows is described as The Cruel Prince meets ACOTAR. I do not think it is similar to The Cruel Prince. These Hollow Vows' plot is not politics or about a woman obtaining power, and the biggest similarity between the two is both stories have Fae characters. The book is similar to ACOTAR; both books start with a young woman entering Fae territory to save their family.
I did like this book. I had a great time while reading; the book was fun and adventurous. It does feel like a typical YA Fantasy novel; however, that is a really popular genre, and not every book needs to be groundbreaking. Classics are classics for a reason.
I do not know who Bree is going to end up with at the end of this series. This book had multiple twists and turns with the male love interest. While some aspects of the plot were predictable, the love triangle isn't. You have the dark and mysterious stranger and the loveable best friend. Both great options, but everyone has an ulterior motive in this book.
This book does not really have any representation. The book contains your typical YA protagonist, a white redheaded young woman, and there is an overall lack of LGBTQ and BIPOC characters. Personally, I would rather have no representation than poor representation in a book, but the lack of diversity is worth noting.
I really liked These Hollow Vows, and I am excited to see where the story goes in the sequel. I rate the book 4 stars.
The Gilded Ones by Namina Forna
3.5
When I first saw this book, I was very excited to read it. The cover is absolutely gorgeous, and it pulled me in right away. The storyline seemed very interesting, but it's not the story I thought it would be. When I first started reading this book, I did have to take a break after 100 pages; because it was sad, and I wasn’t in the right frame of mind. The story talks a lot about purity culture and the oppression of women in society. I was intrigued by the story right away and was captivated by the first couple of pages. Overall, I don’t know if I liked the book as much as I wanted to. This is mainly because of how the plot developed.
I could’ve never guessed the ending of the story, and is so different from what I would've thought. The author also doesn’t create a lot of situations for the reader to connect with secondary characters. I often forget about them and would not remember their backstories until it’s brought up again. There are only a few exceptions to this.
The author also doesn’t create a sense of time in this book. Time is clearly passing because the characters are training and strengthening, but how much time passes is very unclear. Also, new recruits are continuously coming into the location, so that creates a lot of confusion; because I thought the purity test only occurred twice a year. The characters start as neophytes but somewhere become novices. The timeline doesn’t make a lot of sense.
By the ending of the book, I had multiple questions. Not questions that will be answered in the next book; instead questions caused by possible plot holes. I also do not understand what the Death Strikes look like; whatever, I’m picturing in my head is not how they physically appear. The author doesn't do a good job of describing what they look like and how they move, and this created a lot of confusion for me throughout the story.
This book wrapped up very quickly and easily. However, there is another book in the series, and this feels unnecessary. The author adds the possibility of a future conflict at the very end of the novel, but she wrapped up the conflict so quickly, the future conflicts feel inauthentic.
While this book isn’t bad, it’s also not what I thought it was gonna be. It just took a random turn 3/5 of the way in, so I don’t like it as much as I anticipated. I also don’t dislike it; it’s just really different. I’m giving the book 3 1/2 stars. Mainly because I don’t know where the story is going, and I'm not sure it needs to continue in another book
I could’ve never guessed the ending of the story, and is so different from what I would've thought. The author also doesn’t create a lot of situations for the reader to connect with secondary characters. I often forget about them and would not remember their backstories until it’s brought up again. There are only a few exceptions to this.
The author also doesn’t create a sense of time in this book. Time is clearly passing because the characters are training and strengthening, but how much time passes is very unclear. Also, new recruits are continuously coming into the location, so that creates a lot of confusion; because I thought the purity test only occurred twice a year. The characters start as neophytes but somewhere become novices. The timeline doesn’t make a lot of sense.
By the ending of the book, I had multiple questions. Not questions that will be answered in the next book; instead questions caused by possible plot holes. I also do not understand what the Death Strikes look like; whatever, I’m picturing in my head is not how they physically appear. The author doesn't do a good job of describing what they look like and how they move, and this created a lot of confusion for me throughout the story.
This book wrapped up very quickly and easily. However, there is another book in the series, and this feels unnecessary. The author adds the possibility of a future conflict at the very end of the novel, but she wrapped up the conflict so quickly, the future conflicts feel inauthentic.
While this book isn’t bad, it’s also not what I thought it was gonna be. It just took a random turn 3/5 of the way in, so I don’t like it as much as I anticipated. I also don’t dislike it; it’s just really different. I’m giving the book 3 1/2 stars. Mainly because I don’t know where the story is going, and I'm not sure it needs to continue in another book