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carolinareadz's reviews
120 reviews
A Good Girl's Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75
i loved everything about this.
pip i love you so much. she’s me i’m her, but a little less genius.
ravi you got me all giggling and shit STOP IT
victor, what a legend
pip i love you so much. she’s me i’m her, but a little less genius.
ravi you got me all giggling and shit STOP IT
victor, what a legend
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Bullying, Emotional abuse, Grief, and Drug abuse
Moderate: Sexual assault and Animal death
Minor: Death of parent, Racism, and Body shaming
The Hummingbird Coven by Augusta Owens
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
A huge thank you to Pepperback Press for kindly sending me the arc.
This book follows Amelia, a 15 year old that thinks her life is just like any other teenager. One day her grandmother dies and leaves her with a cat and a book. At first the book seems harmless and empty inside, but then out of the sudden the tittle slowly begins to appear: The Hummingbird Coven. Her life then changes as two so called witches invade her house and tell her she’s a witch. Amelia and her bestfriend Sam must adapt to this new information and many obstacles that will come.
I enjoyed this book. I liked the magic system, the characters, the family dynamic, the friendship and I had a good time reading it.
I feel like this story can be very meaningful, not just because of the clear hint of a wlw relationship, essential for queer kids growing up, but also by showing such a young main character battle her own emotions and struggles, normal at her age, and not having to act like an adult. I believe that would be relatable and comforting to the younger audiences reading this book out there.
I really liked Sam´s character, liked the way her dilema and relationship with her dad was handled, felt the pain she felt throughout the book even though i think it was a little overlooked by the characters.
Overall I just wanted to give her a hug.
I hope the author in the next book dugs a bit deeper into Sam’s past and the grief that she is going through.
I enjoyed reading some of the chapters in the different characters point of view, it helped me to understand them a bit better.
I’m very curious and intrigued by Harriet’s character and i hope I’ll learn more about her in the next novel.
I’m very excited to discover more about Amelia’s grandmother past, who Diana and Eloise are, more worldbuilding now that they’re going to be more in contact with magic, Amelia’s journey with her self-discovery as a witch, learning about her powers and the covens (how it works, the history behind it and how it will change the girls friendship).
I would also love to see where the author takes Amelia and Sam´s relationship.
The reason why I gave it 3 stars was because I was hoping for bit more of worldbuilding, i think it just skipped to the action and felt a bit rushed. The writing wasn’t the best and felt a little childish but that’s probably the point since it’s targeted for younger audiences, I think I would’ve enjoyed it more if I had read it a couple years ago.
This book follows Amelia, a 15 year old that thinks her life is just like any other teenager. One day her grandmother dies and leaves her with a cat and a book. At first the book seems harmless and empty inside, but then out of the sudden the tittle slowly begins to appear: The Hummingbird Coven. Her life then changes as two so called witches invade her house and tell her she’s a witch. Amelia and her bestfriend Sam must adapt to this new information and many obstacles that will come.
I enjoyed this book. I liked the magic system, the characters, the family dynamic, the friendship and I had a good time reading it.
I feel like this story can be very meaningful, not just because of the clear hint of a wlw relationship, essential for queer kids growing up, but also by showing such a young main character battle her own emotions and struggles, normal at her age, and not having to act like an adult. I believe that would be relatable and comforting to the younger audiences reading this book out there.
I really liked Sam´s character, liked the way her dilema and relationship with her dad was handled, felt the pain she felt throughout the book even though i think it was a little overlooked by the characters.
Overall I just wanted to give her a hug.
I hope the author in the next book dugs a bit deeper into Sam’s past and the grief that she is going through.
I enjoyed reading some of the chapters in the different characters point of view, it helped me to understand them a bit better.
I’m very curious and intrigued by Harriet’s character and i hope I’ll learn more about her in the next novel.
I’m very excited to discover more about Amelia’s grandmother past, who Diana and Eloise are, more worldbuilding now that they’re going to be more in contact with magic, Amelia’s journey with her self-discovery as a witch, learning about her powers and the covens (how it works, the history behind it and how it will change the girls friendship).
I would also love to see where the author takes Amelia and Sam´s relationship.
The reason why I gave it 3 stars was because I was hoping for bit more of worldbuilding, i think it just skipped to the action and felt a bit rushed. The writing wasn’t the best and felt a little childish but that’s probably the point since it’s targeted for younger audiences, I think I would’ve enjoyed it more if I had read it a couple years ago.
Still Beating by Jennifer Hartmann
dark
emotional
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Physical abuse, Rape, Murder, Death, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Self harm, Sexual assault, and Torture
Moderate: Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Mental illness, and Animal death
Minor: Infidelity
Conversations with Friends by Sally Rooney
emotional
funny
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
this was my first sally rooney book and i was very surprised by it, i was expecting it to be slow and kind of hard to read but it wasn’t. the fact that she doesn’t use quotation marks didn’t bother me, once or twice i was a bit confused if it was an interaction with someone or Frances’ inner thoughts, but apart from that i can’t complain.
i enjoyed this book, i liked Frances’ character i thought it was very realistic and i think that’s what i like about this book and their relationships. they were realistic. i believe the reason why some people don’t like sally rooney’s books and characters is because they’re realistic, they don’t offer that escapism that other books do, they show many flawed and “controversial” characters, there is a lot of miscommunication because that’s what exists most in our world.
i loved the aspect of politics and views on it that were talked about especially by bobbi, a character that i liked a lot.
i do however wish that they went more in depth of Frances self harm storyline and that whole thing, i felt like that wasn’t really explained and talked about.
i think something important to be aware of before reading this is that there is no plot it is solely character based.
overall i enjoyed this book.
i enjoyed this book, i liked Frances’ character i thought it was very realistic and i think that’s what i like about this book and their relationships. they were realistic. i believe the reason why some people don’t like sally rooney’s books and characters is because they’re realistic, they don’t offer that escapism that other books do, they show many flawed and “controversial” characters, there is a lot of miscommunication because that’s what exists most in our world.
i loved the aspect of politics and views on it that were talked about especially by bobbi, a character that i liked a lot.
i do however wish that they went more in depth of Frances self harm storyline and that whole thing, i felt like that wasn’t really explained and talked about.
i think something important to be aware of before reading this is that there is no plot it is solely character based.
overall i enjoyed this book.
The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune
i’m not even going to rate this book.
i’m going through my process of reading this book with you.
i started this book and i LOVED IT, loved the characters, ABSOLUTELY loved the kids and truthfully enjoyed the story.
at first i thought this book represented our society, the kids represented the people with disabilities that so many times are seen and looked at with disgust and are treated differently just because of it. and i think it was my interpretation that made me love this book even more.
i finish the book and i was leading to a 4.5 stars.
then i was highly disappointed. i went to see the reviews on this book and it left me speechless. the event that this book was inspired by?!? and how the author “transformed” it?! absolutely disgusting. the fact that he took a very sad history event, full with racism, genocide and with the purpose of favoring white people, and turned it into a cute a wholesome fantasy?!? disgust. i’m really disappointed.
if you want to know and understand more do some research on this topic and some stuff that the author has said about it.
i’m going through my process of reading this book with you.
i started this book and i LOVED IT, loved the characters, ABSOLUTELY loved the kids and truthfully enjoyed the story.
at first i thought this book represented our society, the kids represented the people with disabilities that so many times are seen and looked at with disgust and are treated differently just because of it. and i think it was my interpretation that made me love this book even more.
i finish the book and i was leading to a 4.5 stars.
then i was highly disappointed. i went to see the reviews on this book and it left me speechless. the event that this book was inspired by?!? and how the author “transformed” it?! absolutely disgusting. the fact that he took a very sad history event, full with racism, genocide and with the purpose of favoring white people, and turned it into a cute a wholesome fantasy?!? disgust. i’m really disappointed.
if you want to know and understand more do some research on this topic and some stuff that the author has said about it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse
Minor: Fatphobia