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davinareads's reviews
848 reviews
In Every Generation by Kendare Blake
adventurous
emotional
funny
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? It's complicated
3.5
For all the Buffy lovers out there. Bit hard if you never read or seen Buffy to catch up on
Like
- Has a way of drawing you back in constantly throughout
- It's a funny read which was unexpected
- In a way it sucked me back to high-school YA read that I liked
- Easily loveable characters and I liked the cheesiness of it
Dislike
- If you never read or seen Buffy then you'll feel like you're missing something. Famous past characters and places that probably meant something but flew past my head
- Sometimes the characters decision making skills and actions left me questioning why they did that
Like
- Has a way of drawing you back in constantly throughout
- It's a funny read which was unexpected
- In a way it sucked me back to high-school YA read that I liked
- Easily loveable characters and I liked the cheesiness of it
Dislike
- If you never read or seen Buffy then you'll feel like you're missing something. Famous past characters and places that probably meant something but flew past my head
- Sometimes the characters decision making skills and actions left me questioning why they did that
Roses, in the Mouth of a Lion by Bushra Rehman
emotional
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? It's complicated
4.0
A book that did an amazing job in showing the life of an Pakistan-America growing up in a traditional Pakistan family.
Like
- Loved the culture and religion shared in this book
- There were tender moments throughout and I enjoyed reading how Razia grew up. The expectations she has to live by because she's Pakistan and how that contrasts with what she wants
- I like how we followed our main character from childhood to her teenage years and it showed her character growth
Dislike
- Ending was very rushed and sometimes Razia can be a little too ignorant
Like
- Loved the culture and religion shared in this book
- There were tender moments throughout and I enjoyed reading how Razia grew up. The expectations she has to live by because she's Pakistan and how that contrasts with what she wants
- I like how we followed our main character from childhood to her teenage years and it showed her character growth
Dislike
- Ending was very rushed and sometimes Razia can be a little too ignorant
Can't Look Away by Carola Lovering
emotional
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
Wouldn’t have labeled this as a thriller novel but more of a dramatic love story that I am obsessed over
Like
- From the start I couldn't put down this read. Instantly sucked in and I wanted more
- Great story telling and the way it was written flowed very well. Really liked how I saw Molly's, Jake's and Sabrina's point of view and how their stories intermingle together
- Excellent character development and I liked the pacing of the book that showed this
- It was a tragic love story that was beautifully written
Dislike
- Not really a thriller which is what most people were expecting. Expect more of a love story with a bit of thriller thrown in
Like
- From the start I couldn't put down this read. Instantly sucked in and I wanted more
- Great story telling and the way it was written flowed very well. Really liked how I saw Molly's, Jake's and Sabrina's point of view and how their stories intermingle together
- Excellent character development and I liked the pacing of the book that showed this
- It was a tragic love story that was beautifully written
Dislike
- Not really a thriller which is what most people were expecting. Expect more of a love story with a bit of thriller thrown in
White Horse by Erika T. Wurth
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
A book that started out rough to me and continued to be rough
Like
- The concept of the story was interesting but needed more work to it
- I liked the atmosphere created
Dislike
- The writing is on the very weak side to me and what brought the rating way down. A lot of repetitive text and some questionable editing was done. Not sure if everything written had to be there
- I do not care if you swear but if I see the repetitive use of the same swear word - shit in this case - I do a bingo game of "is it used in this chapter". I think only a handful of these short chapters, shit wasn't used.
- The characters are in their 35-40 range and I would have not gotten that. The way, they spoke made them sound much younger with me thinking they're not older than 25
Like
- The concept of the story was interesting but needed more work to it
- I liked the atmosphere created
Dislike
- The writing is on the very weak side to me and what brought the rating way down. A lot of repetitive text and some questionable editing was done. Not sure if everything written had to be there
- I do not care if you swear but if I see the repetitive use of the same swear word - shit in this case - I do a bingo game of "is it used in this chapter". I think only a handful of these short chapters, shit wasn't used.
- The characters are in their 35-40 range and I would have not gotten that. The way, they spoke made them sound much younger with me thinking they're not older than 25
Wade in the Water by Nyani Nkrumah
emotional
sad
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? It's complicated
5.0
From the first few chapters, I was ready for my heart to break and break it did
Like
- Set in 1982 where race is a majour issue in how one was treated, we follow 12 year old Ella - a black, unloved and beautiful individual- as she navigates an unfair life laid out for her
- It was emotional historic fiction read with topics touching on self love, racism, religion, and being a voice to stand up for what is right
- I loved the characters and one of the most complex characters would have to be Miss St. James. The way she was raised in a white farm family hating blacks to how she is trying to rewrite who she was. It was fascinating to read and I enjoyed her contrast with Ella's
- Just perfection in a book. It was short but well written with amazing pace
Like
- Set in 1982 where race is a majour issue in how one was treated, we follow 12 year old Ella - a black, unloved and beautiful individual- as she navigates an unfair life laid out for her
- It was emotional historic fiction read with topics touching on self love, racism, religion, and being a voice to stand up for what is right
- I loved the characters and one of the most complex characters would have to be Miss St. James. The way she was raised in a white farm family hating blacks to how she is trying to rewrite who she was. It was fascinating to read and I enjoyed her contrast with Ella's
- Just perfection in a book. It was short but well written with amazing pace
On Gin Lane by Brooke Lea Foster
emotional
mysterious
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? Yes
4.0
Took me a while to get into it but when I did, it was an enjoyable read
Like
- This book balanced between 3.5⭐️ to 4⭐️ to me but I rounded it up to 4
- Amazing character development where I ended up loving Lee. She started out as someone who I wasn't a fan of but grew into a strong individual
- The story does pick up, it just took some time
- Loved the ending
Dislike
- The start was slow and wasn't that interesting. It felt like a girl with money and no purpose in life following her fiancee around
- The writing at times felt janky where it didnt connect smoothly
Like
- This book balanced between 3.5⭐️ to 4⭐️ to me but I rounded it up to 4
- Amazing character development where I ended up loving Lee. She started out as someone who I wasn't a fan of but grew into a strong individual
- The story does pick up, it just took some time
- Loved the ending
Dislike
- The start was slow and wasn't that interesting. It felt like a girl with money and no purpose in life following her fiancee around
- The writing at times felt janky where it didnt connect smoothly
The House of Eve by Sadeqa Johnson
emotional
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
A solid start all the way to the very end. Just perfect
Like
- Easily loveable characters who showed what life was like growing up in the 1950s when one is a young women and black
- It showed the struggles stacked up against our main characters based off of their skin colour and what sacrifices they are willing to take.
- A great historic read that was emotional and moving
- The plot moved at a steady pace and the writing was perfect making this a quick read
- An ending that wrapped everything up nicely
Like
- Easily loveable characters who showed what life was like growing up in the 1950s when one is a young women and black
- It showed the struggles stacked up against our main characters based off of their skin colour and what sacrifices they are willing to take.
- A great historic read that was emotional and moving
- The plot moved at a steady pace and the writing was perfect making this a quick read
- An ending that wrapped everything up nicely
You Never Know by Connie Briscoe
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
A main character that doesn't really do much
- It was less than 300 pages
- Part of Part 3 did get my attention but it was too short
- The characters in the book were hard to like. Especially the main character. Felt nothing towards her and she felt very useless
- A lot of loose ends
- The ending to me, was horrible. Very weak
- Just didn't like this read
- It was less than 300 pages
- Part of Part 3 did get my attention but it was too short
- The characters in the book were hard to like. Especially the main character. Felt nothing towards her and she felt very useless
- A lot of loose ends
- The ending to me, was horrible. Very weak
- Just didn't like this read
The Laughter by Sonora Jha
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
One of the strongest plot twist/ending I have read in a while
Like:
- This was a meh read for me until the very end where I did not see it coming at all. Very unexpected and I was shocked bumping my rating from a 3 to 3.5⭐️
- It did get better the more I read and I liked how we got the antagonist POV
Dislike:
- Took some time for me to get into it
- Wasn't a fan of the voice used. I think it was written like this to be on theme of an old white man telling a story but I didn't really like it
Like:
- This was a meh read for me until the very end where I did not see it coming at all. Very unexpected and I was shocked bumping my rating from a 3 to 3.5⭐️
- It did get better the more I read and I liked how we got the antagonist POV
Dislike:
- Took some time for me to get into it
- Wasn't a fan of the voice used. I think it was written like this to be on theme of an old white man telling a story but I didn't really like it
Jollof Rice and Other Revolutions: A Novel in Interlocking Stories by Omolola Ijeoma Ogunyemi
emotional
informative
medium-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
4.0
Like the book title says, it was a read with interlocking stories
Like:
- I loved the characters in this book and how all of the short stories were small pieces to one another
- A very strong start that got me hooked in right away. It was well written - except one chapter where the styling changed, however I understand it was done for a specific reason - making this an easy read
- The culture shared with book was amazing as well and we got a slice of life women's lives inside and outside if Niagara
- Enjoyed how it ended as well
- Big fan of the cover too! It's different and really stands out with the abstract style
Dislike:
- The ending two chapters were a little aloof to me causing me to drop a star
Like:
- I loved the characters in this book and how all of the short stories were small pieces to one another
- A very strong start that got me hooked in right away. It was well written - except one chapter where the styling changed, however I understand it was done for a specific reason - making this an easy read
- The culture shared with book was amazing as well and we got a slice of life women's lives inside and outside if Niagara
- Enjoyed how it ended as well
- Big fan of the cover too! It's different and really stands out with the abstract style
Dislike:
- The ending two chapters were a little aloof to me causing me to drop a star