booksmithscientist's reviews
236 reviews

Equal Rites by Terry Pratchett

adventurous funny lighthearted mysterious fast-paced

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

4.0

Ymir by Rich Larson

adventurous dark mysterious tense slow-paced

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

2.5

The Last Hero by Linden A. Lewis

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring mysterious sad tense medium-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? Yes

5.0

Scattered All Over the Earth by Yōko Tawada

adventurous emotional hopeful inspiring lighthearted mysterious reflective relaxing sad slow-paced

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

4.0

The World We Make by N.K. Jemisin

adventurous dark funny hopeful mysterious tense fast-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

🐙 The World We Make by N.K. Jemisin 

Listen up, Squigglebitches! I have a masterpiece to present to you! 

Firstly, Jemisin is a genius hidden in plain sight. If you've never read any of her works, I highly recommend the Great Cities duopoly (this one) and The Broken Earth trilogy. 

(Potential spoilers for book 1 below. Read on at your own risk.)

The World We Make dives straight back into the action with the avatars of NYC and, as expected, more chaos ensues! With Brooklyn running for mayor against a sickening candidate competitor with all the corrupt beliefs you can think of, things start going from bad to worse when the infamous Woman in White aka Squigglebitch starts to flex her metaphorical muscles again. 

This book is AWESOME. I personally listened to the audiobook because the narration by Robin Miles cannot be beaten and don't even get me started on the sound effects! 🤩 

Whilst being a work of fiction, Jemisin delicately weaves in many of the prominent real world topics and issues found in New York and beyond. The story actively highlights harassment, gentrification, homophobia and xenophobia, to name a few, so please do check the content warnings before reading.

Under the Whispering Door by TJ Klune

emotional funny hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective relaxing sad tense 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

Roverandom by J.R.R. Tolkien

adventurous funny lighthearted mysterious fast-paced

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

4.0

Hood Feminism: Notes From the Women That White Feminists Forgot by Mikki Kendall

challenging emotional informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

5.0

The Expert System's Brother by Adrian Tchaikovsky

adventurous challenging dark mysterious sad tense slow-paced

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

3.0

Arsenic and Adobo by Mia P. Manansala

emotional funny hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective relaxing tense 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

4.5