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110 reviews
Crystal Clear by Lou Nova
This is the first book I've read where I could recognize myself in the main character very well. I haven't read many books with autistic rep yet but it felt SO GOOD to see a character with similar traits as I do! I finally felt like I actually fit in with Nik.
I loved seeing Nikolai and Constantine work out their relationship and it was so nice to see an autistic character be loved so unconditionally and not have all their traits be treated as burdens. I was so happy Con was so willing to advocate for Nik's needs when he wasn't always able to do it on his own.
The crystal magic was beautiful, though sometimes I was a little confused about what each crystal was for since I'm not too familiar with them at the moment. The dragon lore was interesting and I enjoyed learning new things about the world.
I had some issues focusing at times (because of other things than the book), which also caused me to have some difficulties picturing the surroundings. I kept picturing an old castle and city like many fantasies are placed, but then some situations seemed to be much more modern and have modern items.
The queer rep was so good and not done as a box to tick off. All the characters had a meaning and their sexualities and gender identities being revealed didn't feel forced, but were meaningful to the characters' relationship growing.
I was missing August in the middle of the book. I feel like he was kind of dropped off for a while even though he was so important to Nik.
I loved the main romantic plot but felt a little lost on the subplot with the politics. I'll definitely be reading the next part when it gets published, I hope to have a few things (crystal) cleared out there!
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
Thank you to the author for the opportunity to be an ARC reader!
"Every single day he wakes up and nobody understands him. But he can't reply, because he doesn't want to fumble his way through this conversation more than he already has and create an argument that shouldn't be."
This is the first book I've read where I could recognize myself in the main character very well. I haven't read many books with autistic rep yet but it felt SO GOOD to see a character with similar traits as I do! I finally felt like I actually fit in with Nik.
I loved seeing Nikolai and Constantine work out their relationship and it was so nice to see an autistic character be loved so unconditionally and not have all their traits be treated as burdens. I was so happy Con was so willing to advocate for Nik's needs when he wasn't always able to do it on his own.
The crystal magic was beautiful, though sometimes I was a little confused about what each crystal was for since I'm not too familiar with them at the moment. The dragon lore was interesting and I enjoyed learning new things about the world.
I had some issues focusing at times (because of other things than the book), which also caused me to have some difficulties picturing the surroundings. I kept picturing an old castle and city like many fantasies are placed, but then some situations seemed to be much more modern and have modern items.
The queer rep was so good and not done as a box to tick off. All the characters had a meaning and their sexualities and gender identities being revealed didn't feel forced, but were meaningful to the characters' relationship growing.
I was missing August in the middle of the book. I feel like he was kind of dropped off for a while even though he was so important to Nik.
I loved the main romantic plot but felt a little lost on the subplot with the politics. I'll definitely be reading the next part when it gets published, I hope to have a few things (crystal) cleared out there!
Check & Mate by Ali Hazelwood
3.5
It was very much what I expected, but I couldn't get into it that well. Chess apparently is not my thing AT ALL and as dramatic as many of the matches were supposed to be, they didn't really do it for me.
I had a good time reading a fade-to-black romance for once, though I was not too fond of the main characters that much. Mallory did have a nice redemption arc, I'm glad she could realize how messed up her role in the family had become. I loved the friendship arc too!
I didn't end up liking this couple too much, I feel like they wouldn't last for very long after the book ends. There are so many difficult differences to navigate and they tend not to communicate very well.
I didn't really enjoy having so many TikTok references and some brand mentions felt very pointless ("on my iMac" for example) and could've been generalized to not feel so dated.
I loved how the misogyny of the chess world was shown and handled in the book, Hazelwood has a great record of showing real issues in romances since the characters are way more than just here to fall in love.
In short: it's a good book, just not my style and setting.
I had a good time reading a fade-to-black romance for once, though I was not too fond of the main characters that much. Mallory did have a nice redemption arc, I'm glad she could realize how messed up her role in the family had become. I loved the friendship arc too!
I didn't end up liking this couple too much, I feel like they wouldn't last for very long after the book ends. There are so many difficult differences to navigate and they tend not to communicate very well.
I didn't really enjoy having so many TikTok references and some brand mentions felt very pointless ("on my iMac" for example) and could've been generalized to not feel so dated.
I loved how the misogyny of the chess world was shown and handled in the book, Hazelwood has a great record of showing real issues in romances since the characters are way more than just here to fall in love.
In short: it's a good book, just not my style and setting.
Love on the Brain by Ali Hazelwood
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
It is a thoroughly enjoyable and fun experience! This was exactly what I needed right now: easy to read and a successful woman as a lead.
I enjoy Hazelwood's writing style and this book kept me engaged throughout. I loved the main characters and the side characters were either very lovable or interesting! I love that there are usually queer side characters (without a coming-out arc), I would love to see more of them too!
At first, I was unsure of Levi, but he might be my favorite book-boyfriend now! His black cat gets him extra points too. Every once in a while I was so mad at how oblivious Bee is, but it was a fairly important detail for some of the plot.
There is a tendency for the MMCs to be described as big all the time, which can get quite repetitive, but it was toned down in this compared to The Love Hypothesis, for example. I liked Bee's health issues and how she embraced her style, even when discouraged by the dudebros around her.
I enjoyed the plot twists, I immediately caught on to one of the revelations, but was surprised by the big twist! I knew something was up but couldn't figure out who was behind it all.
I like how Hazelwood includes real issues in her books, most women already know the struggle we go through, but maybe someone who doesn't get it will learn how messed up things still might be.
I enjoy Hazelwood's writing style and this book kept me engaged throughout. I loved the main characters and the side characters were either very lovable or interesting! I love that there are usually queer side characters (without a coming-out arc), I would love to see more of them too!
At first, I was unsure of Levi, but he might be my favorite book-boyfriend now! His black cat gets him extra points too. Every once in a while I was so mad at how oblivious Bee is, but it was a fairly important detail for some of the plot.
There is a tendency for the MMCs to be described as big all the time, which can get quite repetitive, but it was toned down in this compared to The Love Hypothesis, for example. I liked Bee's health issues and how she embraced her style, even when discouraged by the dudebros around her.
I enjoyed the plot twists, I immediately caught on to one of the revelations, but was surprised by the big twist! I knew something was up but couldn't figure out who was behind it all.
I like how Hazelwood includes real issues in her books, most women already know the struggle we go through, but maybe someone who doesn't get it will learn how messed up things still might be.
A Crown of Ash and Silver by B.C. FaJohn
Did not finish book. Stopped at 20%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 20%.
Not for me at this time. Didn't have the brain for fantasy.
Beautiful writing but I need something lighter and easier right now.
Beautiful writing but I need something lighter and easier right now.
The Serpent and the Wings of Night by Carissa Broadbent
The writing style was my cup of tea and kept me engaged throughout. This felt easy for me to read and I blasted through about 200 pages in a day. Usually, fantasy takes a bit for me to catch up on the world, but in this, I caught on immediately and the information about how the world works felt nicely spaced and was told when necessary.
I loved the inspiration from Hunger Games, while the trials had some familiarity (a bonus for me) it was still fresh and original!
The plot was intriguing and had me hooked from the beginning. I was worried the book would feel unnecessarily long, but everything in it felt important to include and I would have read even more! I loved the uncertainty, twists, secrets, surprises, and THE BETRAYAL! I had a few guesses of what would happen and some of them were correct, but I was shocked!
The slow burn enemies to lovers arc, YES PLEASE! This was so well written, and everything felt reasonable to me. The Spice was STEAMY. My only complaint is the one-time use of "wet folds", I despise that term.
adventurous
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
I loved this story and can't wait to read the second part!
"This was not the stare of a panicked child who didn't know what she was doing. This was the stare of a creature who understood she was confronting death itself, and still chose to spit in its face."
The writing style was my cup of tea and kept me engaged throughout. This felt easy for me to read and I blasted through about 200 pages in a day. Usually, fantasy takes a bit for me to catch up on the world, but in this, I caught on immediately and the information about how the world works felt nicely spaced and was told when necessary.
I loved the inspiration from Hunger Games, while the trials had some familiarity (a bonus for me) it was still fresh and original!
The plot was intriguing and had me hooked from the beginning. I was worried the book would feel unnecessarily long, but everything in it felt important to include and I would have read even more! I loved the uncertainty, twists, secrets, surprises, and THE BETRAYAL! I had a few guesses of what would happen and some of them were correct, but I was shocked!
The slow burn enemies to lovers arc, YES PLEASE! This was so well written, and everything felt reasonable to me. The Spice was STEAMY. My only complaint is the one-time use of "wet folds", I despise that term.
Veiled Skies by Jessica Santi
The writing style is very descriptive and beautiful, every once in a while, it was a bit much for me, but that's completely a personal preference. There are quite a few gory scenes, with detailed descriptions and they were so well written it almost made me sick.
The pacing is somewhat slow for a long time, but absolute mayhem ensues for the last few chapters. This is not necessarily my favorite way of pacing, but it works well for this story.
The plot twists are intriguing, I managed to guess a few along the way, but I still got surprised! The ending is a rollercoaster of emotions and I was so stressed for them. The betrayal and secrets had me hooked, I definitely want to know where this goes next!
I loved the setting and mystery behind the fog. Deming's growth was great, and I liked how her trauma was handled. And our dark and mysterious fae prince? I might be in love.
I loved the casual bisexuality and beautiful nonbinary character rep!
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
I had a great time with this book!
"I did not mean to offend. The duality of your spirit was a surprise, we in Laey so rarely have interactions with those who walk both paths.”
The writing style is very descriptive and beautiful, every once in a while, it was a bit much for me, but that's completely a personal preference. There are quite a few gory scenes, with detailed descriptions and they were so well written it almost made me sick.
The pacing is somewhat slow for a long time, but absolute mayhem ensues for the last few chapters. This is not necessarily my favorite way of pacing, but it works well for this story.
The plot twists are intriguing, I managed to guess a few along the way, but I still got surprised! The ending is a rollercoaster of emotions and I was so stressed for them. The betrayal and secrets had me hooked, I definitely want to know where this goes next!
I loved the setting and mystery behind the fog. Deming's growth was great, and I liked how her trauma was handled. And our dark and mysterious fae prince? I might be in love.
I loved the casual bisexuality and beautiful nonbinary character rep!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Violence, Panic attacks/disorders, and Gore
Moderate: Death, Mental illness, Death of parent, and Murder
Minor: Stalking and Vomit
The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood
I decided to read this after loving Love Theoretically so much, and I was not disappointed!
I really loved the hypotheses at the beginning of the chapters, gives a sense of what to expect and builds excitement for the chapter!
The professor/student dynamic took me a little while to warm up to, but it was done well and not creepily. (Both characters being actual adults really helped with that.)
The characters were strong and felt well-rounded to me, I liked the growth and how everyone was pushing Olive to be confident in her work (as she should!).
I was annoyed by Anh's pushiness regarding PDA, but I'm glad they talked through it in the end. I didn't enjoy how much Olive felt she needed to hide from Anh and lie to her. I did like the friendships otherwise and loved Malcolm, for example.
I love a good fake dating trope and was once again given what I hoped for. Somehow this managed to be a slow burn and full of action simultaneously. I actually forgot this was going to be spicy, until halfway through I remembered and started waiting for it. Ali's spice did not disappoint once again!
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.5
The STEMinist series strikes again!
She wished she could expire on the spot. She wished she could crawl outside her body and this cafe, melt in a pool of sweat, and seep between the tiles on the floor, just vanish into thin air. But all these things were currently beyond her skill set, so she fixed a weak smile on her face and looked up at Adam.
I decided to read this after loving Love Theoretically so much, and I was not disappointed!
I really loved the hypotheses at the beginning of the chapters, gives a sense of what to expect and builds excitement for the chapter!
The professor/student dynamic took me a little while to warm up to, but it was done well and not creepily. (Both characters being actual adults really helped with that.)
The characters were strong and felt well-rounded to me, I liked the growth and how everyone was pushing Olive to be confident in her work (as she should!).
I was annoyed by Anh's pushiness regarding PDA, but I'm glad they talked through it in the end. I didn't enjoy how much Olive felt she needed to hide from Anh and lie to her. I did like the friendships otherwise and loved Malcolm, for example.
I love a good fake dating trope and was once again given what I hoped for. Somehow this managed to be a slow burn and full of action simultaneously. I actually forgot this was going to be spicy, until halfway through I remembered and started waiting for it. Ali's spice did not disappoint once again!
Twisted Love by Ana Huang
3.0
I was close to DNFing this one, multiple times. I really wanted to know what happens plot-wise, but I hated hearing Alex describe his "cool gaze", Ava's "petite frame" and the word choice of "Slippery folds".
I stuck through for the plot, but I'm not too sure if it was fully worth it for me. I enjoyed the complexity of the characters' trauma, and how they dealt with their issues. I like Alex's possessiveness to a certain extent, but in the end it got icky for me. (And tbh only in fictional characters, IRL he'd be not only the biggest red flag but a red banner.)
I liked Ava's friends and their shenanigans. I sort of want to read the next book for the characters and plot, but I'm pretty sure I can't handle another one with this specific writing.
I stuck through for the plot, but I'm not too sure if it was fully worth it for me. I enjoyed the complexity of the characters' trauma, and how they dealt with their issues. I like Alex's possessiveness to a certain extent, but in the end it got icky for me. (And tbh only in fictional characters, IRL he'd be not only the biggest red flag but a red banner.)
I liked Ava's friends and their shenanigans. I sort of want to read the next book for the characters and plot, but I'm pretty sure I can't handle another one with this specific writing.
The Woman in Me by Britney Spears
This was quite heartbreaking to read. I've been interested in Britney's story for a long time and wanted to know what was happening that we weren't allowed to see. The trauma she carries for wanting to do what she loves and support her family, just to be taken advantage of for decades is so hard to imagine.
The book is definitely written in Britney's style, you can hear her way of speaking through the text. In the beginning, there was a lot of recounting of how exactly an interview went and those sounded a bit like just video clips were written again instead of these memories being recounted. Given that, the experiences got much more personal soon after.
I've always felt awful about how Britney was treated through the most difficult times, by the paparazzi, the media, and even fans. I'm so glad she has had the strength to fight for her freedom even when it might have felt like the whole world was trying to control her.
Britney acknowledges her mistakes in not healing properly and keeping up with performances when hurt and heartbroken, but how could she have known better? She has been wronged by many people who were supposed to care for her, yet she hasn't given up on love and believing there's good in the world.
emotional
informative
sad
4.5
Even my parents acted embarrassed by me. But nobody seemed to understand that I was simply out of my mind with grief. My children had been taken away from me.
This was quite heartbreaking to read. I've been interested in Britney's story for a long time and wanted to know what was happening that we weren't allowed to see. The trauma she carries for wanting to do what she loves and support her family, just to be taken advantage of for decades is so hard to imagine.
The book is definitely written in Britney's style, you can hear her way of speaking through the text. In the beginning, there was a lot of recounting of how exactly an interview went and those sounded a bit like just video clips were written again instead of these memories being recounted. Given that, the experiences got much more personal soon after.
I've always felt awful about how Britney was treated through the most difficult times, by the paparazzi, the media, and even fans. I'm so glad she has had the strength to fight for her freedom even when it might have felt like the whole world was trying to control her.
Britney acknowledges her mistakes in not healing properly and keeping up with performances when hurt and heartbroken, but how could she have known better? She has been wronged by many people who were supposed to care for her, yet she hasn't given up on love and believing there's good in the world.
Rogue Protocol by Martha Wells
Murderbot has me both absolutely loving and terrified of space and robots.
I thoroughly enjoyed the third part of this series. Murderbot feels familiar and relatable to me, I swear that sounds worse than it is! I love seeing Murderbot's interactions with all the new transports and bots it comes across. Especially seeing it witness a new type of relationship between Miki and its humans was an interesting experience. Somewhat similar to being a human from worse conditions and seeing someone who has never experienced those bad things and has stayed 'pure' in a way.
I enjoy Martha's writing style and worldbuilding. Plotwise this part was quite similar to the previous Murderbot Diaries, but that's definitely what I enjoyed about it: something familiar to expect, yet new dynamics to navigate for some freshness too.
The ending left me slightly heartbroken and I NEED to know what's next!
adventurous
emotional
funny
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
I signaled Miki I would be withdrawing for one minute. I needed to have an emotion in private.
Murderbot has me both absolutely loving and terrified of space and robots.
I thoroughly enjoyed the third part of this series. Murderbot feels familiar and relatable to me, I swear that sounds worse than it is! I love seeing Murderbot's interactions with all the new transports and bots it comes across. Especially seeing it witness a new type of relationship between Miki and its humans was an interesting experience. Somewhat similar to being a human from worse conditions and seeing someone who has never experienced those bad things and has stayed 'pure' in a way.
I enjoy Martha's writing style and worldbuilding. Plotwise this part was quite similar to the previous Murderbot Diaries, but that's definitely what I enjoyed about it: something familiar to expect, yet new dynamics to navigate for some freshness too.
The ending left me slightly heartbroken and I NEED to know what's next!