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bookswithbuns's reviews
332 reviews
Tonight I'm Someone Else: Essays by Chelsea Hodson
Reading this collection of essays felt like poking around in the quieter, darker corners of a person’s mind, the first draft of a private journal entry that’s still all bleeding heart and no head. It’s brutal and vulnerable and detached and intimate and yes, a bit pretentious too, but still just as true.
And maybe if I had read this a few years back or a couple years forward, I would feel differently— a different time, a different version of myself. More stressed, less jaded. Still hopeful. Maybe then I wouldn’t have resonated with this collection as much as I did. But I didn’t and I do, which is why I guess I don’t really mind that these pieces carry such sense of self-importance (and also because, at 28, I know I fall right under this book’s target demo).
The lens under which Hodson chooses to dissect her personal experiences & inner musings isn’t always favorable, sometimes far from it…. but it’s honest, even when it’s unlikeable. And I think that’s what counts.
Because who are we
And maybe if I had read this a few years back or a couple years forward, I would feel differently— a different time, a different version of myself. More stressed, less jaded. Still hopeful. Maybe then I wouldn’t have resonated with this collection as much as I did. But I didn’t and I do, which is why I guess I don’t really mind that these pieces carry such sense of self-importance (and also because, at 28, I know I fall right under this book’s target demo).
The lens under which Hodson chooses to dissect her personal experiences & inner musings isn’t always favorable, sometimes far from it…. but it’s honest, even when it’s unlikeable. And I think that’s what counts.
Because who are we
The Fine Print by Lauren Asher
4.0
Some quick context no one asked for— earlier this year, I actually read
Just One Night by Carly Phillips
3.0
A quick, steamy read! The two MCs, Linc and Jordan, were believable (at the very least) despite the overall plot of the story being pretty basic/formulaic. My only real complaint about this book was the insta-pregnant trope lol, which I felt was basically just there as a means for Linc to get over some of his man-pain. That isn’t to say it wasn’t well written (again, the characterizations of both Linc and Jordan are distinct enough I guess, imho), I just think the insta-baby trope didn’t add much and the story could have reached the same HEA conclusion without it. All in all, this is a fun book that you can just breeze through while sitting beachside, tbh.
Terms and Conditions by Lauren Asher
3.0
(Actual: 3.25⭐️) This book felt like watching a CW show lol. And I enjoy some of their shows a lot, so I’m not saying it negatively… just maybe some wasted potential. But I had fun & flew right through this despite its length (435?!
The Hawthorne Legacy by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
4.0
(Actual: 4.5⭐️) More secrets, games, and discoveries await Avery Grambs & the Hawthorne clan in THL, which thankfully wastes no time & only picks up a week later from where we last left our cast of characters at the end of Book 1.
This definitely feels like A Sequel™ tbh, but that‘s not always a bad thing. There were times where it all just felt a little *too* grand to me, if that makes any sense…. like when you can tell a production got a FAT budget increase in-between films lol, that kinda thing. These youths were really traveling *around the world* to look for CLUES…. while also still “regularly” attending school?? Lmao I can’t. That said, everyone does get their own chance to shine here – as they all get key scenes integral to the plot – which I thought was pretty cool.
And I do give props to Barnes/this series for not putting such a heavy emphasis on the “love triangle” like other YA reads sometimes do— it’s weird for me to even call it that bc it honestly feels like such a non-factor?? Idk.
Don’t get me wrong, I love Grayson & want him to find his happy too ofc, but there’s a line in Ch. 46 that I feel clearly demonstrates how the whole kerfuffle isn’t really a love triangle but rather…. A defense mechanism of sorts? And I like/agree w that statement because Avery (+ everyone else, lbr) is a mess, and it’s easy to see why.
At first I wanted to complain that so much of Avery’s identity seemed to be wrapped up in either the literal plot itself or any one of the brothers— but as I kept reading, I realized that maybe that’s the point? She’s still figuring herself out. I obviously won’t go into more detail bc spoilers & etc, but I do like where we end things with Avery and I’m excited to see how she further evolves in the final book.
—— ❦
“
This definitely feels like A Sequel™ tbh, but that‘s not always a bad thing. There were times where it all just felt a little *too* grand to me, if that makes any sense…. like when you can tell a production got a FAT budget increase in-between films lol, that kinda thing. These youths were really traveling *around the world* to look for CLUES…. while also still “regularly” attending school?? Lmao I can’t. That said, everyone does get their own chance to shine here – as they all get key scenes integral to the plot – which I thought was pretty cool.
And I do give props to Barnes/this series for not putting such a heavy emphasis on the “love triangle” like other YA reads sometimes do— it’s weird for me to even call it that bc it honestly feels like such a non-factor?? Idk.
Don’t get me wrong, I love Grayson & want him to find his happy too ofc, but there’s a line in Ch. 46 that I feel clearly demonstrates how the whole kerfuffle isn’t really a love triangle but rather…. A defense mechanism of sorts? And I like/agree w that statement because Avery (+ everyone else, lbr) is a mess, and it’s easy to see why.
At first I wanted to complain that so much of Avery’s identity seemed to be wrapped up in either the literal plot itself or any one of the brothers— but as I kept reading, I realized that maybe that’s the point? She’s still figuring herself out. I obviously won’t go into more detail bc spoilers & etc, but I do like where we end things with Avery and I’m excited to see how she further evolves in the final book.
—— ❦
“
A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas
4.0
One of my goals this year is to read more [high] fantasy novels/series, as it’s a genre I struggle with at times. It’s not that I don’t enjoy them (I do), but rather I know it’s a large commitment to truly get invested in all the world-building + systems usually associated with fantasy reads. But! I got myself all mentally prepared & I’m so ready to expand my horizons~
Holiday Romance by Catherine Walsh
5.0
(Actual: 4.75⭐️, rounded up) I’ll admit, I wasn’t too sure about this novel at first bc the title sounded so….. plain to me?? Sorry lol. BUT— what a wonderful surprise it turned out to be! My first real holiday-centric book & it seriously had no right being as cute as it is. I’m not even a ~grinch~ about the holidays like our FMC, Molly, is and yet this book thawed my apparently actually frozen heart