delllannney's reviews
308 reviews

A Fate Inked in Blood by Danielle L. Jensen

tense slow-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

2.0

HALLELUJAH, I FINALLY FINISHED THIS BOOK.

Look, I don’t know if it was the slow pacing, the flat characters, the slowest burn romance, the predictable ending, or just my general reading mood, but this one absolutely wasn’t for me. I was mind-numbingly bored for the first 65% of this book. It took me 6 days to read 250ish pages (if you know me, you know I’m a 300 pages every 2-3 days kind of gal) and I had absolutely ZERO motivation to pick up my Kindle and keep reading. Tear inducing and not in the good way.

I didn’t like the FMC, Freya, at all…. Like not at any point in the book. I liked the MMC, Bjorn, sometimes? Maybe? I guess? But by the end even that small modicum of respect was gone. None of the characters made choices that made sense, or they changed their minds constantly, or just lied?? I don’t know. Truthfully, I just didn’t connect with any of the character work here. By the end I couldn’t even find it within myself to try and care what happened to them. I also think Freya needed more development as the main character of this series. She’s supposed to be this badass warrior who secretly trained her whole life, but the only time she’s actually competent is when she’s in some Gods-induced rage? So Bjorn has to swoop in and save the day? Idk, the math ain’t mathing.

A few positives:
- DLJ is an amazing world builder. Just like in her Bridge Kingdom series, I loved the setting and the visuals she gave to help me picture the layout of the land, the movements of the people, and the various plot developments. That aspect is very well done. Highlight of the book for me.
- Vikings? Cool.
- Tension is good (albeit mildly infuriating) and the 🌶️ is pretty good when the time comes.

House of Sky and Breath by Sarah J. Maas

Go to review page

emotional mysterious tense slow-paced

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

3.0

I enjoyed myself reading this in the same way I enjoy myself reading all SJM books. She has a great voice and style, she writes lovely amazing wonderful characters, and of course the last 100 pages of every book are always insane. However… I feel like absolutely nothing happened in this book. I was 700 pages in and wondering “is my book missing chapters?” It felt like they had spent the entire book just walking around talking to various people. I understand the need for this book to be character development heavy in order to set up meaningful interactions and plot points for the next book, but I ended up dragging myself through a good portion of this one.

⚠️SPOILERS AFTER THIS POINT⚠️

Seriously, I’m warning you. ‼️

I loved Ruhn in this book. So much. His giant well of feelings and growth and the entire situation with Agent Day was phenomenal. A huge bright spot in this book for me.

I did not enjoy the Emile storyline. It felt unnecessary because, as it turns out, it actually was unnecessary lol. I didn’t connect with the characters or understand how all or even any of it was relevant to the plot as a whole.

And on today’s episode of <i>Danika Is A Liar</i> (season 15 episode 8)….. Are we even surprised any more? The whole “omg I can’t believe my best friend kept this big giant secret from me” thing is a little overplayed at this point IMO😭

AGAIN, SPOILERS AHEAD:
I had the ending for this one spoiled for me not once, not twice, but THREE times (two of those by the publisher and one of those pretty soon after the release date 🙃). I really feel like knowing the ending was a detriment to me here. Because I knew the “big reveal” that everyone was so excited over, there was no payoff for me after reading 800 pages. I was so happy to see all of our ACOTAR friends, but knowing the ending + slow plot <b>≠</b> super fun and exciting reading experience for Delaney.

ALL OF THAT SAID, I am SUPER excited for HOFAS. This one might have been slow, but the set up for the next book is great. I think we’re in for a fun one!

Powerless by Lauren Roberts

Go to review page

adventurous 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? Yes

2.0

Well. I have…. Thoughts.

I was so excited for this book. I’ve seen it all over bookstagram & booktok and I couldn’t wait to jump in! Sadly, this booksta darling missed the mark for me.

I’d like to preface this review by saying that this book WAS quite entertaining. It’s an enjoyable read, but I really feel like there are some major issues here. Another thing to keep in mind: this is Lauren Roberts’ first book, so there is, of course, room for improvement!

Let’s start with what I liked: 1) The characters. The MMC, Kai, felt dynamic and jumped off the page at me on multiple occasions. The FMC grew on me as the story went on, and the side characters had just enough detail that I cared about them, but not too much that it was overkill. 2) Banter and tension. Kai and Paedyn have GREAT banter. They’re perfectly funny and flirty and ferocious & I loved the dialogue between them. 3) The ending. I’m intrigued! The last 75ish pages were action packed and set up a great opening for the next installment in the series. 4) Ease of reading. As I said earlier, this was an enjoyable read. It reads quickly and kept me interested.

However, I don’t think there was an original storyline/plot point anywhere in this book. The entire book feels very….. “inspired”….. by the popular dystopian novels of the 2010s, which is great — I love those books — but my issue comes when there are exact scenes portrayed in the exact same way. I noted 3 scenes in the first half of the book alone that were identical to scenes from Divergent. Parts of the Trials, like the interview portion leading up to the competition, were very similar to the press appearances in The Hunger Games. I just wanted more originality? It felt like reading every other YA fantasy I read in middle school. I understand taking inspiration, but the similarities were WAY too similar. For me personally, the pacing was off in the middle 300 pages. I wasn’t a fan of the writing style either - it was very choppy and disjointed. Then there’s also a love triangle that I REALLY wasn’t a fan of… 😅

TLDR; not original, & not for me.

Same Time Next Year by Tessa Bailey

Go to review page

4.0

Chase Me by Tessa Bailey

Go to review page

3.0

Snowed In by Catherine Walsh

Go to review page

emotional funny hopeful reflective relaxing 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

5.0

WONDERFUL! AMAZING! I AM OBSESSED!

This was my second book from Catherine Walsh and I can say with confidence that her voice might be one of my favorites in the romance space. Her books are unbelievably readable — super fun and filled with banter but still emotional and rooted in romantic reality — and always leave me with aching cheeks from smiling so big and so often.

I read and loved Holiday Romance last year, so coming in to the 2023 season of Christmas reads, I knew Snowed In had to be on my list. And of course, it did NOT disappoint! I really, really loved this. ADD THIS TO YOUR HOLIDAY TBRs NOW. I demand it!!

Mad Honey by Jennifer Finney Boylan, Jodi Picoult

Go to review page

emotional mysterious tense medium-paced