caseythereader's reviews
1753 reviews

Whenever You're Ready by Rachel Runya Katz

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emotional funny reflective sad 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


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Kisses, Codes, and Conspiracies by Abigail Hing Wen

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adventurous funny 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? No

3.5


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Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar

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emotional funny hopeful reflective 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? It's complicated

4.25


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Glass Houses by Madeline Ashby

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dark tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5


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The Most Wonderful Time: A Novel by Jayne Allen

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Did not finish book. Stopped at 21%.
The premise doesn’t make sense. Chelsea needs to rent her house to pay property taxes, and I guess one week of Ramona AirBnBing it will pay whatever that is for a beachfront house in Malibu? But also she’s negotiated to go stay in Ramona’s Chicago condo…for free? 

But I stopped when Ramona’s best friend - a man - just lets himself into Ramona’s condo KNOWING she is away and a guest is staying there. 

Finally, this book is two hetero romances but the cover is just the two women, making it look like a sapphic romance. 
A Well-Trained Wife: My Escape from Christian Patriarchy by Tia Levings

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challenging dark emotional hopeful sad tense fast-paced

4.25

Thanks to St. Martin's Press for the free copy of this book.

 - A WELL-TRAINED WIFE might be the most harrowing book I’ve ever read, period. Even knowing that Levings gets through it to write this book, I was clutching the book and mentally screaming the whole time.
- For most of the book, Levings is simply relaying events without much extra commentary. Even so, one can see exactly how this theology and worldview has infiltrated mainstream life in large and small ways.
- The last section, where Levings is out and in therapy, remarried, etc., feels a bit rushed and that’s where she crams in the lessons as well. It reads like it may have benefited from a few more years of distance and healing, but I do understand her sense of urgency in telling her story. 

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Heavenly Tyrant by Xiran Jay Zhao

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adventurous challenging dark emotional tense medium-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

4.5


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The Teller of Small Fortunes by Julie Leong

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adventurous funny hopeful 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? No

5.0


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The Pairing by Casey McQuiston

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adventurous emotional funny hopeful 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? No

4.25

Thanks to St. Martin's Press for the free copy of this book.

 - This is a potentially controversial opinion, but I think THE PAIRING is McQuiston’s best book since RWRB.
- I adored both Kit and Theo. They’re my favorite kind of romance characters: smart and kind but also dummies who can’t see what’s right in front of their faces.
- It’s true that this book could be half the length if they just talked to each other. But the slow burn that keeps heating up and heating up is so delicious.
- Also delicious: the food! the wine! the art! the many many hot people they encounter! This book is a feast. 

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Sing Anyway by Anita Kelly

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emotional funny 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? No

4.0


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