cclift1114's reviews
1321 reviews

Revenge of the Tipping Point: Overstories, Superspreaders, and the Rise of Social Engineering by Malcolm Gladwell

informative reflective fast-paced

5.0

This book had so many brain tingles on so many different topics. From crime in LA and Miami, to teen suicide clusters in a small town, to universities manipulating their enrollment numbers, to COVID superspreaders, to gay marriage being legalized, and even to societal awareness of the Holocaust, it was so fascinating to see how tipping points and overstories played into what played out in these seemingly disparate topics. 

I especially recommend the audiobook, as it almost feels more like an extended podcast (in a good way), with music and actual recordings of some of the statements and interviews. 

One of Us Is Back by Karen M. McManus

challenging dark emotional mysterious 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

4.0

I liked how this book combined the two groups from the previous books and that we got to see how they came together. I will say that the only issue with this was that with so many people, it felt like everyone got a bit less airtime. But I’m here for all the Nate attention and am so glad at where his storyline ended up. 

One of Us Is Next by Karen M. McManus

challenging dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

I appreciated how this sequel didn’t just stick with the same group of characters and try to recycle the same kind of plot with them. It felt fresh, while still giving us a look at what had happened with the characters from the first book. I didn’t find this mystery quite as intriguing as the previous one, but it was still a good read.

Deep End by Ali Hazelwood

challenging emotional funny reflective 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

5.0

This may be my favorite Ali Hazelwood book yet, which was surprising to me. I thought that she had gotten her formula down with enemies-to-lovers rival scientists and that that was all we were going to get. Yes, there was a bit of a change with Bride, but I wasn’t convinced it would hold. But this one was very different for her normal, and I liked the changes. I really liked Scarlett and Lukas as characters, I enjoyed their banter, I found their relationship endearing, and I appreciated Scarlett’s growth over the course of the book. In some ways it was spicier than some of her other books (with some very light BDSM), but I found it comparable to Not in Love in that respect, really. Hazelwood has convinced me that she can break from her formula and do it well. 

Legendborn by Tracy Deonn

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

3.5

“Don’t make your life about the loss. Make it about the love.”
There were many things about this book that I thought were well done. The first thing that stood out to me was how well Deonn does with the treatment of Bree’s grief for her mother. Having lost my own mother at a young age, this felt very true to life, especially the idea of a before Bree and an after Bree. I also really appreciated how direct Deonn is with the racial issues that Bree faces. All of the micro aggressions are not treated as being something subtle to be overlooked, but are brought to light very clearly. I also thought that Deonn does a nice job with the descriptions of the action scenes, which is something that I think some authors struggle with in fantasy writing.

I did still have some issues with the book. Firstly, the world-building and magic system were so hard to follow, especially at the beginning. I’m still not sure that I fully grasp what all the different titles mean and what kind of powers different people have. While I think Deonn did well with fully fleshing out Bree’s character, most of the other characters I thought could have used some more development. Many of them become Bree’s “friend”, but we don’t really get many scenes to show that true development of a relationship. Take William for example. He heals Bree and does a lot of infodumping, and then Bree starts considering him to be her friend. Her relationship with Nick felt similarly undeveloped for me. I felt like we got more for a relationship between Nick and Sel than we did for either of them with Bree. 

The Bones Beneath My Skin by TJ Klune

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful lighthearted mysterious sad 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? No

5.0

Klune is a master at writing precocious, funny kids that make you fall in love with them. There were definitely aspects of this book that have already been done before, but I loved the relationship dynamics. I found myself laughing at the things Artemis would say, and then tearing up at the end. Of course, part of my feelings towards the book might be wrapped up in the fact that had I been choosing a name for myself as a young child, there was definitely a time when I would have chosen something way too close to Artemis Darth Vader. But I think a lot more has to do with this book just being sweet and heartwarming and heartbreaking all at the same time. 

Debido a la tormenta by Jennifer Degenhardt

challenging emotional hopeful sad tense medium-paced

4.0

One of Us Is Lying by Karen M. McManus

challenging dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

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

4.0

I do enjoy a good mystery and this book does a teen mystery pretty well. I liked the characters and how it felt like a twist on the setup of the Breakfast Club. There were some parts that were a bit predictable, but I still enjoyed the twists. 

The Situationship by Abby Jimenez

adventurous funny lighthearted 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? It's complicated

4.0

Two reasons to read this short story: Dick Rock and Kevin Bacon (the pig). Need I say more?

A Prayer for the Crown-Shy by Becky Chambers

adventurous challenging emotional funny hopeful lighthearted reflective relaxing 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

Very similar to the first one, this time with Mosscap getting the opportunity to get to know more humans. The writing stood out to me even more with this one, with the descriptive language being so beautiful. I hope there are more of these books to come.