federicareads's reviews
260 reviews

Teddy by Jason Rekulak

mysterious tense 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

1.0

the premise was quite interesting, it reminded me of a short horror story i read a few years ago, but the plot-twist was so bad, it left me feeling quite upset. i don't think the transphobic comments were needed at all - they do not serve any purpose in the story and there was no critique of what was being said.

saying the child was 'brainwashed' and 'forced to transition' creates a dangerous narrative: the gender identity of the kid is questioned for fun and it becomes a final plot-twist to explain the poor structure of the novel. using this rhetoric can be extremely dangerous and harmful because there are real trans kids in our world who deserve to be loved and accepted by everyone around them.

i wonder what message this book was trying to send all along.. a waste of time, i wouldn't recommend reading this.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug abuse, Transphobia

Moderate: Racism

The Night House by Jo Nesbø

adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

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

3.5

i really liked the gory aspects and how the story unfolds and gets re-written each time. the writing was engaging and the story was easy to get into. nevertheless, the ending doesn’t feel like a real conclusion, there are certain aspects/plot points which in my opinion don’t work so well (for example, i did not enjoy the fatphobic comments), and the story itself is not very memorable.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore

Moderate: Fatphobia

Minor: Vomit

The Housemaid by Freida McFadden
Did not finish book. Stopped at 27%.

don’t love the writing and the story feels very predictable. so far i don’t feel any connection w the characters. i don’t see any reason in finishing this so dnf 

As Long as the Lemon Trees Grow by Zoulfa Katouh

adventurous challenging emotional hopeful sad tense 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

❤️❤️❤️🥲❤️‍🩹 i cried, i laughed, i felt so many emotions while reading this. these characters will stay with me for a while, salama especially🥹

The Holiday Switch by Tif Marcelo

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? Yes

4.0

When Haru Was Here by Dustin Thao

adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious 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? It's complicated

3.25

some good ideas but the execution feels all over the place.

North Is the Night by Emily Rath

adventurous emotional mysterious medium-paced

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

2.75

This book was a rollercoaster. The start was too slow, it took a while for me to get into it. I liked the focus on Finnish folklore, it was interesting to learn more about this topic, and this was probably the strongest element in the whole book. 

The antagonists felt like caricatures and not fully-developed characters. In this novel, most female characters are described as evil, treacherous, and scary. Lumi is described as a wicked witch. Kalma and Tuonetar are monstruous. The same cannot be said about the descriptions of male characters. It feels weird to see Tuoni, the god of the underworld, be described as kind and warm, when all the female characters are given entirely different treatment. Aina's arc is quite underwhelming and the love story is not convincing at all. In addition, the sapphic element is marginal - I wish it was given more space to blossom.

Another thing I want to point out is the unfair treatment given to Sámi people. They came into the story as background characters who are ruled by Lumi, daughter of Ajatar, the goddess who haunts the woods. Sámi people are indigenous people who have suffered (and still suffer today) repression, marginalization, assimilation and dehumanization. In this book, similarly to real life, Sámi people are not given a real voice. Their only representation seems to be Lumi who is described as a "nasty forest witch": she is the evil antagonist the mcs have to defeat. This characterization is both simplistic and  harmful. 

In conclusion, some aspects of this book worked, others didn't. The pacing felt weird at times and I wish women and Sámi people's characterization was treated with more care.

Arc kindly provided by the publisher. All opinions are my own.

Conditional Citizens: On Belonging in America by Laila Lalami

challenging informative medium-paced

4.5

beautifully written, gut-wrenching and extremely informative (i feel like i’ve learned so much about immigration in the us and how immigrants are treated). towards the end it felt less focused, so that is why i’m lowering my rating to 4.5. highly recommend if you’re interested in this topic!! 

Hunchback by Saou Ichikawa

adventurous informative reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

Hunchback is a short novel which focuses on disability, sexuality and the art of storytelling. Shaka Izawa, our protagonist, has congenital muscle disorder and spine curvature. She lives in a care home, spending most of her day studying and writing. Ichikawa mixes different genres and motives, taking inspiration from common tropes present in Japanese modern literature. I really enjoyed reading Shaka's thoughts and feelings, especially her critiques against our ableist society. Even though the book is quite short, it's very engaging. At times the experience can be uncomfortable (because of the in-depth description of sex scenes), but overall it's a thought-provoking read. Consider checking this out!  

Arc kindly provided by the publisher. All opinions are my own.

This Is the Year by Gloria Muñoz

adventurous emotional funny hopeful sad medium-paced

5.0

This book is about grief and loss, but also about hope. Juli, the protagonist, faces a lot of different struggles in her life, and we, as readers, can easily empathize with her. She's grieving her sister, who recently passed away, and trying to find her place in the world as a teenager. When a private space program recruits her, she feels she might have found the answer to all of her questions. Gloria Muñoz has crafted a novel that is gripping and hopeful. With beautiful prose, the author offers a poingnant and honest exploration of immigrants' exploitation and the damages of the climate crisis. Finding your place in this world, a world that puts profit over everything else, is more complicated than it seems. Highly recommend checking this out!

Arc kindly given by the publisher. All opinions are my own. 

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Content Warnings

Minor: Animal death, Death