Take a photo of a barcode or cover
daumari's reviews
1200 reviews
Don't Believe It by Charlie Donlea
dark
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
Partly on me because I couldn't get into the audiobook (the Caribbean accents were not the narrator's strong point), but I finally finished after getting a physical copy from my library. Can't edit in spoiler text on my phone (I forgot the syntax) but I did flag the weapon as suspicious fairly early and...the ending is very abrupt and a little unbelievable to me but oh well?
The Mark of Athena by Rick Riordan
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Ahhhhhh that cliffhanger. I should've brought the next book with me, but maybe I can check my local library's digital options... anyway, fascinating to see the whole gang all together as they figure out their dynamics when going to rescue an old friend. I'm very curious about what other effects happen to gods splitting between their Roman and Greek aspects.
Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI by David Grann
challenging
informative
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
5.0
It's funny, when I pull up the page the first "Readers also enjoyed:" title is James, our other Biere Library book club pick for this period (though our theme was bestsellers so... tautological conclusion). We read The Wager: A Tale of Shipwreck, Mutiny and Murder in summer of 2023, so I knew I liked David Grann's narrative nonfiction, but focusing on events that happened within the last 100 years meant he had much more direct sources to work from (versus 1700s records which I still think he used to great effect in The Wager).
REALLY compelling story. You can feel the sense of dread as people in Mollie's family start to die, and the frustration as Tom White comes in with his investigators and key potential witnesses also start to die (and then also in the third section where Grann steps out from behind the pen and talks about when he started researching the Osage murders the depth and how widespread they are beyond the Burkhart family, like staggering how many members of the community were killed and how complicit and casual the white people in their lives were about it. It makes me think about the lives we currently dismiss as acceptable collateral for greed and how we might look back on it a century from now.
just like... the number of people willing to get married and murder their spouses is astonishing. I can see why people thought "hey, this would make a great film".
REALLY compelling story. You can feel the sense of dread as people in Mollie's family start to die, and the frustration as Tom White comes in with his investigators and key potential witnesses also start to die (and then also in the third section where Grann steps out from behind the pen and talks about when he started researching the Osage murders the depth and how widespread they are beyond the Burkhart family, like staggering how many members of the community were killed and how complicit and casual the white people in their lives were about it. It makes me think about the lives we currently dismiss as acceptable collateral for greed and how we might look back on it a century from now.
just like... the number of people willing to get married and murder their spouses is astonishing. I can see why people thought "hey, this would make a great film".
The Son of Neptune by Rick Riordan
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
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
4.25
There's our boy! After an eight month timeskip (where he was asleep for some, training with wolves for another part), Percy arrives at the other camp which feels like it's entirely run by Ares Cabin. The quest this book is entirely west coast, going from the Bay Area up to Alaska so there's places I recognize. Love the expansion of demigods here.
Luck of the Titanic by Stacey Lee
funny
lighthearted
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
I adore Stacey Lee's YA novels because they're definitely what teenage me would've wanted: the ability to see myself in historical periods. The Downstairs Girl remains my favorite for the Georgia connections as I have actual ties there, but Luck of the Titanic really stretches itself to place a Chinese girl on the infamous boat. Lee was inspired by the six Chinese survivors of the Titanic (out of eight total- not a bad ratio considering they were almost certainly third class passengers; you can learn more in The Six documentary) but they were all men. So, our main character is a biracial British girl looking for her twin brother, a coal-digging seaman so she can convince him to revive their acrobatic act and join the circus in America as a means to avoid the Chinese Exclusion Act (which banned laborers but had a few exceptions, like students, teachers, and merchants and was also the reason The Six couldn't step off into America like the other survivors :/).
There's a lot of elements here that I should like, and I do think the sibling relationship and found family of Jamie's Johnnies (the other Chinese men aboard ranging from older Drummer slinging beats in the boiler room to the two kiddos Wink and Olly) are good. I'm a little skeptical on how Valora goes between pretending to be Mrs. Sloane in the first class section to going down to steerage and pretending to be another one of the guys. Very light romance, but definitely more focused on Valora trying to convince her brother to join her.
I was also surprised to find our main character dies! I probably should've expected that given again, all of the Chinese survivors were male, but girl had multiple opportunities to get on a boat for rescue and refused
There's a lot of elements here that I should like, and I do think the sibling relationship and found family of Jamie's Johnnies (the other Chinese men aboard ranging from older Drummer slinging beats in the boiler room to the two kiddos Wink and Olly) are good. I'm a little skeptical on how Valora goes between pretending to be Mrs. Sloane in the first class section to going down to steerage and pretending to be another one of the guys. Very light romance, but definitely more focused on Valora trying to convince her brother to join her.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Racism, Death of parent, Classism
Minor: Death, Sexual assault
The Lost Hero by Rick Riordan
adventurous
funny
mysterious
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
4.25
This is a thicker book than previous PJO entries (and Kane Chronicles, though I am reading by series instead of publication per my server readalong) and it feels like the plot has grown up with the reader, as our protagonists are teenagers and not tweens (for that reason, I'll use my ya tag instead of children), rotating between three perspectives instead of a first person voice. Looking forward to learning about another aspect of demigod life.
By the Book by Jasmine Guillory
lighthearted
relaxing
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
It was cute! Fairly low stakes considering the source material. I picked this up because I thought it was a new Jasmine Guillory, panicked when I saw Goodreads said it was book 2, and then relaxed when I realized Meant to Be is kind of an anthology series in that each book isn't necessarily connected to others and they're romance novel retellings of Disney fairytales.
I had that realization after I'd read about a third, thinking "wow, this REALLY leans hard on the Disney version of Beauty and the Beast huh" when it turns out that's the point! Fluffy, one fade to black implied sex scene (after I realized this was Disney sanctioned I wondered how spicy the Mouse would allow for), and instead of a romantic rival Gaston's equivalent is a work enemy.
I had that realization after I'd read about a third, thinking "wow, this REALLY leans hard on the Disney version of Beauty and the Beast huh" when it turns out that's the point! Fluffy, one fade to black implied sex scene (after I realized this was Disney sanctioned I wondered how spicy the Mouse would allow for), and instead of a romantic rival Gaston's equivalent is a work enemy.
The Serpent's Shadow by Rick Riordan
adventurous
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Overall: the Kane Chronicles are fun! I like having dual narrators with different personalities, and the way magicians interact with the Egyptian pantheon is interesting compared to PJO's demigods and Greek pantheon.
The Throne of Fire by Rick Riordan
adventurous
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Egyptian mythology/history is a rich vein, and Riordan continues to dig out ores (like the thing when King Tut's father decided to go monotheist for Aten and then Tut restored Amun-Ra and the pantheon etc.) This one felt like it took longer but it's also a longer book in general. Still enjoying the dual narrators.
Vilest Things by Chloe Gong
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
I initially checked this out from the library's new section in December, only to realize it was a book 2 after opening it. So, I digitally checked out Immortal Longings to get through and started this New Year's Day, only to not be able to renew as someone had a hold, whoops. I returned it partially finished, and in February it showed up again so here I am!
I'd say this is maybe a 3.25-3.5, maybe, and my month long gap hindered my perception I think. The consequences of body jumping catch up to Anton and Calla as the plot moves outside of San-Er to greater Talin. The end of this is a cliffhanger so I guess this isn't a duology? I do wish the secondary characters had more to do (like Bibi's presence felt like a Stormlight Archive interlude where it's nice to meet someone new but fairly disconnected in the book even if they're important in a future volume).
I'd say this is maybe a 3.25-3.5, maybe, and my month long gap hindered my perception I think. The consequences of body jumping catch up to Anton and Calla as the plot moves outside of San-Er to greater Talin. The end of this is a cliffhanger so I guess this isn't a duology? I do wish the secondary characters had more to do (like Bibi's presence felt like a Stormlight Archive interlude where it's nice to meet someone new but fairly disconnected in the book even if they're important in a future volume).
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, War, Classism
Minor: Child death, Gore, Sexual content