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ciara_g's reviews
317 reviews
The Auction by LovesBitca8
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Kala by Colin Walsh
3.75
[Trigger warning: Dog fighting]
Kala follows three childhood friends, Helen, Joe and Mush, who reconnect back in their hometown, where their friend mysteriously disappeared years earlier.
I liked the premise of the story but personally, found it a bit too slow paced and the characters disjointed. Not my favourite read.
Kala follows three childhood friends, Helen, Joe and Mush, who reconnect back in their hometown, where their friend mysteriously disappeared years earlier.
I liked the premise of the story but personally, found it a bit too slow paced and the characters disjointed. Not my favourite read.
What You Did by Claire McGowan
3.0
What You Did follows a group of college friends who reunite after twenty years and I’m going to start off by saying, psychological thriller, she is not. I think I might have enjoyed this story a whole lot more if the main narrator, Ali, wasn’t a total twat. Everything she did, said and thought from her past to her present was infuriating and to avoid ranting too much, I won’t even go into the fact that it is her literal profession to support rape survivors.
As well as that, the multiple narrators, timeline-jumping and vague storyline made this feel like a bit of a slog. I didn’t predict the plot twist but personally, it didn’t have much of an impact as we had very little context to the why [oh, and Ali’s a fucking idiot].
As well as that, the multiple narrators, timeline-jumping and vague storyline made this feel like a bit of a slog. I didn’t predict the plot twist but personally, it didn’t have much of an impact as we had very little context to the why [oh, and Ali’s a fucking idiot].
Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë
4.0
Wuthering Heights is one of the few books that I studied in school and still truly enjoy [thanks to ✨trauma✨] and I devoured every delicious word of this reread.
Emily Brontë (at the time, writing under the name Elias Bell) first published Wuthering Heights in 1847 and the fact that it continues to be a banger of a story almost two hundred years later is all the reasons that you need to read it.
Admittedly, the language is confusing but it actually forces me to slow down and really appreciate what I’m reading.
Heathcliff walked so every. single. one. of your morally-grey book boyfriends could run.
Emily Brontë (at the time, writing under the name Elias Bell) first published Wuthering Heights in 1847 and the fact that it continues to be a banger of a story almost two hundred years later is all the reasons that you need to read it.
Admittedly, the language is confusing but it actually forces me to slow down and really appreciate what I’m reading.
Heathcliff walked so every. single. one. of your morally-grey book boyfriends could run.
Natural Selection by Elin Hilderbrand
3.0
Natural Selection was a really quick (almost abrupt at times❗️) read that follows FMC, Sophia as she continues on with the holiday to the Galapagos, despite her partner “J.P” ditching her en route.
Honestly, my expectations were higher than they should have been. An easy short read, but there’s a lot more interesting ones out there.
Honestly, my expectations were higher than they should have been. An easy short read, but there’s a lot more interesting ones out there.
Exile by Aimée Walsh
4.0
A slower paced read with colloquialised language and gritty themes of loneliness, friendship and party culture.
Exile follows FMC, Fiadh, a young woman from Belfast who loves a party. On the cusp of adulthood, exams finished and life stretching out before her, she goes out for a night on the town where everything changes [and in typical Irish fashion, the rumour mill and “shame” follow her into her new life despite physically leaving the country].
Another gorgeous example of Irish literature. Well worth the read.
Exile follows FMC, Fiadh, a young woman from Belfast who loves a party. On the cusp of adulthood, exams finished and life stretching out before her, she goes out for a night on the town where everything changes [and in typical Irish fashion, the rumour mill and “shame” follow her into her new life despite physically leaving the country].
Another gorgeous example of Irish literature. Well worth the read.
The Christmas Party by Kathryn Croft
2.5
Narrators, Billie Piper and Avita Jay MADE this book.
Other than the incredible acting by the narrators, The Christmas Party was a jumbled mess of inconsistent storytelling, unsurprising twists and confusing timelines. It took me almost half of the story to settle in and identify the characters and at around the three quarter way point, it felt like plot twist after plot twist were being fired one after another, with little time to digest.
I liked the premise; a friend group getting back together after drifting apart following a traumatic event, but there were so many details left out and context skimmed over that it didn’t really fulfil expectations.
A quick read with excellent narration.
Other than the incredible acting by the narrators, The Christmas Party was a jumbled mess of inconsistent storytelling, unsurprising twists and confusing timelines. It took me almost half of the story to settle in and identify the characters and at around the three quarter way point, it felt like plot twist after plot twist were being fired one after another, with little time to digest.
I liked the premise; a friend group getting back together after drifting apart following a traumatic event, but there were so many details left out and context skimmed over that it didn’t really fulfil expectations.
A quick read with excellent narration.
The Survivors by Caroline Mitchell
3.0
I read this book solely because it was based in Doolin and being from the area, I’m always interested in how seeing how authors choose to describe it (Spoiler: Not much description beyond the stereotypical hills/colourful cottages/dangerous roads). And I wholeheartedly agree with the roads being bloody treacherous (there isn’t a death every month like in this story, but they’re certainly windy).
I’m a huge fan of psychological thriller but this was just soo predictable. I got no joy from anticipating the majority of the “twists and turns”
It’s got good reviews but wasn’t my cup of tea.
I’m a huge fan of psychological thriller but this was just soo predictable. I got no joy from anticipating the majority of the “twists and turns”
It’s got good reviews but wasn’t my cup of tea.