banana_hutch's reviews
370 reviews

The Bandit Queens by Parini Shroff

adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful tense fast-paced

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

4.25

This book was such a thrill-ride. Once the action started, it did NOT stop. At no point was I ready for the thing that happened next. This book does such a wonderful job portraying the lives of these women and the rules they're bound by, mixing humor with devastation and cruelty. I loved this one!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Gun violence, Murder

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Sexual assault, Blood

Minor: Addiction

Perfect Little World by Kevin Wilson

emotional reflective sad tense fast-paced

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

3.75

I love Kevin Wilson's books. I enjoyed the other two books of his I've read a bit more than this one, but I still really liked this!

It has the charm and oddities and creeping sadness that I've come to love about his work.

And, as with Family Fang and Nothing to See Here, I'll be mulling this one over for a few weeks.

Note--this one contains some descriptions of self-harm which took me by surprise so I wanted to note it for others.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Self harm

Minor: Suicide attempt

Murder Your Employer: The McMasters Guide to Homicide by Rupert Holmes

dark funny lighthearted fast-paced

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

3.75

This was a really fun one. I was ready to give it 4 stars but some of the wrap-up, aftermath stuff was sort of a let-down. Definitely worth a read if you're looking for a lighthearted twist on a dark topic.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death

The Cloisters by Katy Hays

dark mysterious reflective tense slow-paced

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

4.0

This book is a slow burn. It is dark and rhythmic. I love the way she weaves the toxic, interpersonal elements of the story in with elements of history, art history and academia. Slow-paced books do not necessarily mean dull. This one is slow, but attention-keeping. And your patience will be rewarded with a delicious little twist.

Nothing to See Here by Kevin Wilson

emotional funny mysterious tense fast-paced

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

4.25

I had so much fun reading this book. I came to it directly from The Family Fang and I'm so glad I did!

This one knocked the wind out of me a couple of times and I've been telling people about it nonstop.

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Content Warnings

Minor: Violence, Blood

Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens

emotional inspiring mysterious sad medium-paced

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

3.75

An Unkindness of Ghosts by Rivers Solomon

challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.75

This book was so harrowing, creepy, and upsetting. Lots of tension and unease and class violence but in space and with gender fluidity! I really enjoyed it and recommend it to people often!

Maphead: Charting the Wide, Weird World of Geography Wonks by Ken Jennings

funny informative lighthearted medium-paced

3.5

 Whoa. It took me forever to get through this book because I found myself stopping every few paragraphs just to look up something that Jennings' talked about in this book. It was absolutely riveting, and I can't wait to make some of my friends read it so I can talk to them about it.

Ken Jennings is a talented writer. The content is fascinating, and the style is conversational and just a little bit sassy.

GREAT READ. 

The Tattooist of Auschwitz by Heather Morris

dark emotional inspiring sad tense fast-paced

• Strong character development? No

4.25

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

4.25

Simultaneously heartwarming and heartrending, this book is difficult to put down. I tore through it. Set in Germany during the late 1930's and early 1940's, and narrated by Death, 'The Book Thief' tells the tale of Liesel, her foster family, her town, and each of their places in the greater context of WWII, the Nazi party, Jewish people, and bombs.

I want to spill every detail of this book just so I can talk about it, but I also want you to pick it up and discover it for yourself. It won't take you long to read, and it's an enchanting, tragic story.