cleoreads's reviews
81 reviews

Honor by Thrity Umrigar

dark reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

Cleopatra and Frankenstein by Coco Mellors

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? Yes

4.0

The Bread the Devil Knead by Lisa Allen-Agostini

emotional hopeful reflective tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

finished in one day - could not put it down. 

The Sweetness of Water by Nathan Harris

dark reflective tense slow-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? It's complicated

3.0

Sweet Bean Paste by Durian Sukegawa

hopeful reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

Dust Child by Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai

emotional hopeful 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? No

4.5

wooow! i’ve been craving a book like this - everything i’ve been reading has been so meh. this gripped me from page 1 which surprised me cause i dnf’d this author’s first novel. so glad i gave her another chance. this book is  way better - still beautiful writing, but not as overwritten. 

All the Lonely People by Mike Gayle

emotional 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? Yes

3.5

Heart-warming. 

Betty: The International Bestseller by Tiffany McDaniel

challenging dark emotional reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

Beautiful writing but unnecessarily long - made it difficult to stay engaged emotionally to the characters.  

Dominicana by Angie Cruz

hopeful reflective sad 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? No

3.75

A Spell of Good Things by Ayọ̀bámi Adébáyọ̀

reflective tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

took me so long to get into it - felt like it didn’t get to the point. the last third gripped me, though.