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daisiescaroline's reviews
57 reviews
We Had to Remove This Post by Hanna Bervoets
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
This book is probably the definition of a must read.
It’s such an interesting concept that plays with different ideas and influences without being to blatant or mysterious about it.
I can’t say too much without ruining it but the way it escalates and develops is such a good example of storytelling and it’s one of those books you can read in a couple of hours but leaves you with an immense book hangover.
The only thing I felt let it down for me was that I wish it was even just a little longer, I was left wanting just that little bit more to make it phenomenal.
Overall, it’s definitely worth the read and doesn’t leave the mind for a few days.
It’s such an interesting concept that plays with different ideas and influences without being to blatant or mysterious about it.
I can’t say too much without ruining it but the way it escalates and develops is such a good example of storytelling and it’s one of those books you can read in a couple of hours but leaves you with an immense book hangover.
The only thing I felt let it down for me was that I wish it was even just a little longer, I was left wanting just that little bit more to make it phenomenal.
Overall, it’s definitely worth the read and doesn’t leave the mind for a few days.
Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
I liked this book but it just felt a bit hollow if that makes sense? Reading it after reading Daisy Jones and The Six left it in a pretty disadvantaged place to start so it could have done a lot worse but I still felt a little underwhelmed by it.
The premise promised a lot more than it gave, for a book about a Malibu dream house going up in flames, I wanted the fire to represent more than a mediocre symbol for the main character to move on.
None of the characters were particularly groundbreaking or unique and I felt like I’d read all of them in different fonts before.
It wasn’t a bad book, just underwhelming and not a cat in sight.
The premise promised a lot more than it gave, for a book about a Malibu dream house going up in flames, I wanted the fire to represent more than a mediocre symbol for the main character to move on.
None of the characters were particularly groundbreaking or unique and I felt like I’d read all of them in different fonts before.
It wasn’t a bad book, just underwhelming and not a cat in sight.
I Want My Hat Back by Jon Klassen
emotional
funny
lighthearted
tense
fast-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 book is single-handedly the best piece of literature I have ever read.
I am not even have a tiny bit of a laugh, I was transfixed by the story and the characters and watching the realisation dawn on the bear.
The illustrations are top tier and I have never been so invested in a hat in my life.
The ending is flawless and comedic while being unnerving and I will never stop recommending this book to everyone I meet.
I am not even have a tiny bit of a laugh, I was transfixed by the story and the characters and watching the realisation dawn on the bear.
The illustrations are top tier and I have never been so invested in a hat in my life.
The ending is flawless and comedic while being unnerving and I will never stop recommending this book to everyone I meet.
The Spanish Love Deception by Elena Armas
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-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
This was a nice book. Just a nice book. There wasn’t anything heartstoppingly amazing about it but it was an easy and relatively quick read.
It was a really reader friendly romance, it done its job of being a lighthearted romance with a couple of nods to more serious issues so I can’t really complain on that front.
It just felt like it was trying to do too much. I was playing trope bingo at one point with the amount of popular tropes just being thrown in but I can see why people like it so much. The one thing that was missing was more of a crack, the crack was over so quickly and had little to no consequence or effect on the relationship- I needed more. If it doesn’t contribute then why add it?
There was cat slander as well which is a bit depressing.
It was a really reader friendly romance, it done its job of being a lighthearted romance with a couple of nods to more serious issues so I can’t really complain on that front.
It just felt like it was trying to do too much. I was playing trope bingo at one point with the amount of popular tropes just being thrown in but I can see why people like it so much. The one thing that was missing was more of a crack, the crack was over so quickly and had little to no consequence or effect on the relationship- I needed more. If it doesn’t contribute then why add it?
There was cat slander as well which is a bit depressing.
Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-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? No
4.5
I was expecting it to take me a lot longer to get into this book than it did. I loved the ambiguity of the dystopia and how the situation of the world wasn’t infodumped on me but just carefully built up through comments and background information.
It’s left a kind of echoey feeling in my mind about the bluntness of the truth behind the story, which I appreciate. I really enjoyed the non-direct confrontation of the moral issues in it while still having a balanced and well thought out story.
The only thing that I felt brought me out of the book was the characters in a way. I felt they were just a bit predictable in their personalities and I could tell the way their stories were going pretty quickly, but I’m also arguing with myself that maybe that was intentional.
Overall, I really enjoyed this book but there were no cats :(
It’s left a kind of echoey feeling in my mind about the bluntness of the truth behind the story, which I appreciate. I really enjoyed the non-direct confrontation of the moral issues in it while still having a balanced and well thought out story.
The only thing that I felt brought me out of the book was the characters in a way. I felt they were just a bit predictable in their personalities and I could tell the way their stories were going pretty quickly, but I’m also arguing with myself that maybe that was intentional.
Overall, I really enjoyed this book but there were no cats :(
Address Unknown by Kathrine Kressmann Taylor
emotional
informative
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.5
There’s not a lot I can say about this book other than how sad it is to see a representation of a decayed friendship like that.
I really liked the letter format and how the gaps in time played with the escalation of Martin’s views as well as the ambiguity of the ending.
A simple book but it leaves an echoey feeling after.
I really liked the letter format and how the gaps in time played with the escalation of Martin’s views as well as the ambiguity of the ending.
A simple book but it leaves an echoey feeling after.
American Psycho by Bret Easton Ellis
dark
tense
slow-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
5.0
I hate that I liked this book so much. It’s been on my to buy and read list for a good couple of years but I could never be bothered to actually do anything about it. I’m so glad I read it though.
Ignoring the content, I loved the writing and narrative style and it was so easy to keep reading it and wanting to attempt to follow the thoughts and semi-disjointed story.
The actual content and characters were presented so well, in a way that as much as I probably shouldn’t have enjoyed it, I definitely did.
There weren’t any cats but honestly, I wouldn’t want them in it anyway.
Ignoring the content, I loved the writing and narrative style and it was so easy to keep reading it and wanting to attempt to follow the thoughts and semi-disjointed story.
The actual content and characters were presented so well, in a way that as much as I probably shouldn’t have enjoyed it, I definitely did.
There weren’t any cats but honestly, I wouldn’t want them in it anyway.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Child abuse, Cursing, Drug use, Gun violence, Hate crime, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Sexual assault, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Gore, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Body horror, Body shaming, Death, Homophobia, Kidnapping, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Rape, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, and Violence
Collided by Lauren Asher
emotional
hopeful
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? It's complicated
4.0
This book was just a solidly good book. I didn’t enjoy it as much as throttled but I still loved it and had a great time reading it.
I really liked the characters and the dynamics they had with eachother and the people they developed into by the end. Liam was actually really well developed which I enjoyed and I felt like his development was well paced and done.
The movement of the relationship was well paced which I loved and I felt like it was a realistic growth of feelings but fun enough to still love.
My only issue is that it didn’t grab me as quickly as I know it could have based on Asher’s other books.
Overall, a decent read but there was a dig about cats at the end which I didn’t appreciate.
I really liked the characters and the dynamics they had with eachother and the people they developed into by the end. Liam was actually really well developed which I enjoyed and I felt like his development was well paced and done.
The movement of the relationship was well paced which I loved and I felt like it was a realistic growth of feelings but fun enough to still love.
My only issue is that it didn’t grab me as quickly as I know it could have based on Asher’s other books.
Overall, a decent read but there was a dig about cats at the end which I didn’t appreciate.
Throttled by Lauren Asher
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
My new appreciation of Formula 1 is definitely one of the reasons I loved this book but it’s not the only one. It was such a fluid read and was just so easy to fall into and watch the romance grow and come together.
The best thing about it was the balancing of the stages, there was enough build up, conflict and pay off which I was so happy about.
It’s definitely a comfort read for me just because of how comfortable I was with all of the characters and the story in general. There weren’t even any characters I particularly disliked or felt weren’t adding to the story, so I don’t really have a complaint.
The only thing I felt was missing was a bit more hatred tension because I’m a sucker for enemies to lovers even though that wasn’t an involved trope rip.
No cats but there were fast cars.
The best thing about it was the balancing of the stages, there was enough build up, conflict and pay off which I was so happy about.
It’s definitely a comfort read for me just because of how comfortable I was with all of the characters and the story in general. There weren’t even any characters I particularly disliked or felt weren’t adding to the story, so I don’t really have a complaint.
The only thing I felt was missing was a bit more hatred tension because I’m a sucker for enemies to lovers even though that wasn’t an involved trope rip.
No cats but there were fast cars.
Love, Locked Down by Beth Reekles
emotional
funny
fast-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
It was a decent book. I wish there’s more I could say but I just wasn’t massively fussed on it, it was an easy read and nothing too heavy but just alright.
I really liked how everyone linked together in little ways and how the stories were easy to flick between and keep track of, it was just enough of everything without being overwhelming. There were obviously some characters I was more invested in and some that I could care less about but that’s not surprising.
Overall it was alright, an easy read and an okay romance but with no cats :((
I really liked how everyone linked together in little ways and how the stories were easy to flick between and keep track of, it was just enough of everything without being overwhelming. There were obviously some characters I was more invested in and some that I could care less about but that’s not surprising.
Overall it was alright, an easy read and an okay romance but with no cats :((