ashley_mrose530's reviews
342 reviews

Pageboy by Elliot Page

emotional inspiring reflective medium-paced

3.5

This was a wonderfully admirable story to read. I really appreciate Elliot's willingness to share his journey and everything he has dealt with in Hollywood as well as coming out as transgender. It was really eye opening and beautiful as well as tragic and heartbreaking. 
I usually don't read nonfiction books but this one was the first one to actually keep my attention and didn't feel like a slog to get through and I really appreciate that. But I wish it had been a little bit more linear or chronological in the telling. It became chronological at the end but most of the book was haphazard and random. Each new chapter was a new story but it was hard to pin down at what point in his journey each story was at. Because of this a lot of the hard and traumatic things were put at the beginning of the story when the reader should be getting settled in. The randomness of the story became confusing at times but I soon just decided to let myself go with the flow and it became easier to digest after that. 
In all, I really admire Elliot's willingness and bravery to put his story out into the world but I feel like the execution of it wasn't the greatest. 

Down to a Science by Haley Cass

emotional lighthearted 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

4.5

I really loved this book. This was another great hit from Haley Cass. She has such a way with creating chemistry between her characters and making you want to see them together. She's so damn good at it. 
I really appreciated the depth that she put in this book too with Mia's background. I loved that she became a firefighter because her parents died in a burning building and I was so heartbroken when she finally talked about her story and how she thought she was to blame for her father's death. I also loved Ellie's journey of realizing she's gay and coming out as she's falling in love with a woman for the first time.  They're both such beautiful characters and I really identified with Ellie as the introvert who never really examined herself and how she feels until she was kind of forced to. There were so many times where I just thought she was describing me to a T. 
The only reason that I didn't give this five stars is because I felt like the pacing was a little fast at points but then perfect at others. I also felt like she did the friends-to-lovers troupe better in Those Who Wait. But this was still a fantastic romance book. 

The Sun and the Star by Rick Riordan

adventurous emotional funny 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

4.75

This book is so good. I loved the hero adventure feel that all of these demi-god stories from Rick have. He does a fantastic job of coming up with things to stall his heroes while also keeping them learning something new and staying on the original quest.
But this book has an added benefit of doing a really deep dive into a character's mental health and how that affects a romantic relationship. It was so well done especially for a middle grade to young adult audience. Nico has PTSD and depression as well as grief and his boyfriend doesn't understand it or know how to deal with it. And the book deals with that and how Nico has to learn to ask for what he needs and open up about his feelings. It was really a wonderful addition to this book and really added some depth to the story. 
I feel like the only thing that might be an issue about this book is that you kind of have to read all of the other books in the other three series to fully understand Nico's character and the events he's one through. I haven't read the trials of Apollo books and I did feel some confusion about past events because of it. I do wish I had had access to those books before reading this one. 
But the slight confusion aside, I loved this book probably even more than the other two series that I have read. I do hope I can get ahold of the Apollo books soon. 

The Last Bloodcarver by Vanessa Le

adventurous emotional mysterious medium-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

4.0

This is a really good book. I think the world is interesting and fascinating and I love Nhika. She cares so much about everything but the world has made her hard on the outside so she refuses to show it. I love how Kochin refused to accept that and saw through her anyway even though he was actively trying to antagonize and discourage her. I really loved the subtle comments on differing cultures and exploiting them versus accepting and nurturing them. It was done really well throughout the novel.
I did find the world building to be a little shotty. I'm not sure why everyone is expected to wear gloves at all times and I'm really unsure why heartsooths are considered dangerous rather than praised for their healing abilities. It was never really explained. If there had been a story about how one heartsooth had used their gift to kill and that was the biggest story to survive the colonization then I would get it, but there was nothing like that in the story, so I'm just unsure of this.
In all this was a really good book and I'm looking forward to the sequel when it comes out. 

Iron Widow by Xiran Jay Zhao

adventurous dark tense medium-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

This is a fantastic book. I loved the world building and the magic system. It's so cool and different and I love the added element of it being very patriarchal and connecting it with elements seen in our world that way.
I loved the main character Zetian. She was so brazen and stubborn and she knew exactly what she believed was right and what wasn't. She knew how she and most other women were being treated wasn't right and she had the guts to stand up against the injustice. And I loved how she turns out at the end to be

kind of morally grey and you're left with a feeling of discomfort about what she does.

I can't wait to see how she handles everything in the next book.
I loved the poly relationship as well. I'm rooting for all three of them. I thought they all balanced each other out perfectly and they each got the other to open up so well in their own ways. It was lovely to see. I do wish we had gotten more scenes between them though to help develop those relationships a little more especially between the two men but also between Zetian and Li Shimin. Their feelings weren't completely out of nowhere but they also seemed to develop too quickly so it would have been nice to see them on the page a little bit more. 
I'm excited to see what the next book has in store. 

A Marvellous Light by Freya Marske

adventurous emotional mysterious medium-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

4.5

This was a cute book. I really liked the magic system and the world building. I did have many of the same questions that Robin had that never really got answered, mainly what happens to the magicians that are born outside of the main families, but this didn't bother me too much because they weren't really necessary to the plot and I'm hoping they might get answered throughout the series. 
I liked the main characters, Robin and Edwin. Their motivations and wants were easy to follow and I sympathize with Edwin's desire to separate himself from his family. I also empathize with Robin's need to deal with his family's estate but not wanting to because it's overwhelming. That happened to me and my wife a couple years ago and it was so much to deal with. I definitely understand his desire to run away from it.
I liked how their relationship developed too. It was nice and slow, never feeling like it was trying to rush their feelings for each other. I think pacing of their relationship went perfectly with the pacing of the plot.
I think the only reason I didn't give this five stars is because I never got fully immersed in the story like I would have with a five-star read. I don't know why, I just always felt distant from it. Maybe it had something to do with the writing style, or maybe it's just because I'm a lesbian, I don't know. It was still a great story though and I'm looking forward to reading the rest of the series. 

Silver Under Nightfall by Rin Chupeco

adventurous dark mysterious medium-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

5.0

I loved this book so much. It's everything everyone was saying about it. I loved the characters and watching their relationship develop with each other slowly was so beautiful. The world building was perfect, never clunky or out of place with the exposition. The characters desires were clear and their flaws were also well established. This book was a little more political than I thought it was going to be but it's still so good. It never got boring or over the top.
I am worried about reading the second one because I've heard people say it's a let down compared to this one, but I will take the chance on it just because I love this book so much and I want to know what happens. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Blood, Violence, and War

When You Least Expect It by Haley Cass

emotional lighthearted fast-paced

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

2.0

I am honestly really disappointed in this book. I loved Those Who Wait so much so I wanted to try other books by the same author, but I guess this one was not the one to try.
First of all, the writing was very much telling rather than showing, especially at the beginning. It seemed to be rushing throughout the book rather than being slow and developing things well. The beginning of the book went from one plot point to the next rather than developing the main character and setting up her motivations, desires, dreams, or even her past. I felt like I got no details about her at all.
Speaking of character development, there was next to none. I know that Caroline is a lawyer and that seemed to be her only personality trait. The only thing that was shown about her fairly well was that she liked kids. That was actually developed naturally and shown to us. I couldn't tell what her flaws were or what she needed to work on herself. I really don't know why this book was from her point of view at all. Because there were no flaws, there was also no growth for her and that was a huge issue with this book. I felt like Hannah had more character development and even growth than our POV character did which is very disappointing.
All around I'm very upset about this book. I almost DNF'd it but decided not to because I did like Hannah and the slow burn of the relationship. Probably the only redeeming qualities here unfortunately. 

The Fiancée Farce by Alexandria Bellefleur

emotional funny 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

5.0

I loved this book. The characters were what really sold it. The plot was a little far-fetched but the characters and their dynamics were perfect. I loved all of them. I think my favorites were Ted and Brooks though. They were so funny and Brooks had so much depth that you learned as you read and he wasn't even one of the lead characters.
And then there was the main girls, Tanzie and Gemma. I absolutely loved them together. The fluff was so good and the spice was even better. I loved that they had open communication throughout the whole book too. They realized they had feelings or, in Tanzie's case, could develop feelings if they tried to do friends with benefits and they were both open about them instead of hiding them. It was refreshing to see in a romance novel.
I loved their relationship so much. This was definitely a fantastic sapphic romance story.

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

dark emotional mysterious 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

4.5

This was a really great character study on what is right and wrong and how we are perceived based on those actions.
In this short story the main character chose to save her brother's life ten years ago by promising her soul to a demon. In this world, that is considered the highest sin and you are dirty and shunned for making that deal. It doesn't matter why you made it at all. It has the same energy of if someone kills another person it's typically seen as the worst thing you could possibly do, but what if they killed them to save someone else or even themselves? It shows that there can be grey areas in even the things people consider irredeemable.
I liked that the main character believed that she did nothing wrong in making that trade and never regretted it and she was right. It was definitely worth it, at least to her. And she put up with everyone disagreeing and putting her down for it for ten years.

And then she was faced with the same decision at the end of the story and she made the same choice.

It was a beautiful full-circle moment and made you really look at the other characters around her for their reactions.

It was nice to see her brother change his opinion after he was faced with that same choice - damning himself or losing the person he loves.

I also loved the romantic relationship in this book between the main character and her girlfriend. It felt so realistic and beautiful. They were so supportive of each other and it was obvious how much they loved each other even through their bad choices. It was truly amazing to see.