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geraldine's reviews
319 reviews
Pomegranate by Helen Elaine Lee
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
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
4.0
The Hacienda by Isabel Cañas
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
solid book and solid mystery. however was juana not justified in killing her brother and his wife? they sucked and she was doing the world a favor there
Never Lie by Freida McFadden
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
i usually read my book club books the weekend before the meetup, and then realized that i absolutely had no time to do that so thought "i'll read it before bed" and then blitzed through it in two days. crazy
very fast paced and quick read!! engaging the whole time and i loved the descriptions of the house. tricia keeps saying "ohh this house is creepy i don't want to buy it" and the more she described it the more I wanted her to buy it
spoiler time:
the "twist" made me literally say "what the helllll" outloud like.... what the hell LMAO
the whole time i was like, ok, ethan being EJ seems way way way way too easy so i'm going to assume they're different people, and i did get that the body under the floor was not adrienne immediately because I remembered the jeans comment, but i kept thinking "if ethan isn't EJ and the body clearly isn't adrienne then it feels like their has to be a fourth person involved in this murder situation aside from adrienne EJ and luke??" and, well,
don't really feel like the twist would hold up on a re-read tbh, but honestly thought it was insane but in a fun way. but honestly i kind of respect her for going full balls to the wall on this one because it was so fun. solid 2.5 book in quality but i had sooo much fun at the end !! what the hell!!!
genuinely hyped for my book club for once i want to hear their thoughts sooo bad
very fast paced and quick read!! engaging the whole time and i loved the descriptions of the house. tricia keeps saying "ohh this house is creepy i don't want to buy it" and the more she described it the more I wanted her to buy it
spoiler time:
the "twist" made me literally say "what the helllll" outloud like.... what the hell LMAO
the whole time i was like, ok, ethan being EJ seems way way way way too easy so i'm going to assume they're different people, and i did get that the body under the floor was not adrienne immediately because I remembered the jeans comment, but i kept thinking "if ethan isn't EJ and the body clearly isn't adrienne then it feels like their has to be a fourth person involved in this murder situation aside from adrienne EJ and luke??" and, well,
don't really feel like the twist would hold up on a re-read tbh, but honestly thought it was insane but in a fun way. but honestly i kind of respect her for going full balls to the wall on this one because it was so fun. solid 2.5 book in quality but i had sooo much fun at the end !! what the hell!!!
genuinely hyped for my book club for once i want to hear their thoughts sooo bad
Everyone In This Room Will Someday Be Dead by Emily Austin
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
despite trying to go to sleep at 7:30pm and being tired enough, i couldn't fall asleep until like 1am and so instead i read this entire book in my bed. quick read! very tense.
Siege and Storm by Leigh Bardugo
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
i cannot express how much i truly do not care about YA love triangles. solid YA otherwise though
The Quiet Tenant by Clémence Michallon
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-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? No
2.5
really really difficult to suspend disbelief for the entirety of the book. bits of it ring true but the main premise is complete nonsense as you read. like it's just really a HUH moment the whole time.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Kidnapping
Moderate: Rape and Sexual assault
A Wind in the Door by Madeleine L'Engle
adventurous
mysterious
tense
fast-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? It's complicated
i was possessed (thought too hard about andré holland as mr jenkins casting in the wrinkle in time movie. WHAT COULD HAVE BEEN...!!!!!!!!!)
why does meg call him the r-word?????? i was so taken aback by this. i didn't remember this at all
still, formative book as a child
why does meg call him the r-word?????? i was so taken aback by this. i didn't remember this at all
still, formative book as a child
Dirt Creek by Hayley Scrivenor
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
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
3.0
Was originally going to rate this a 3.5 but after thinking about it in the car AND half writing this review I think a 3 is more fair.
i did genuinely like a lot of it! i thought all the different character perspectives worked really well, even the "we" perspective. i thought all the characters and their reactions felt very real, especially constance, hers was the most harrowing and affecting to me. the voice of the book just really worked for me and i was engaged the whole time
however,
look. i said all the characters and reactions felt real, and i did mean that. and with that said i hated sarah. she was well written and felt like a real person i could meet! and i hated her. her and her cop buddy manipulating their suspects in order to arrest them, getting mad when people wouldn't talk to them without lawyers or without a warrant, misrepresenting the confidence of DNA evidence... really gross stuff.
i mean, to an extent i do think you're supposed to recognize that they're flawed individuals just like the rest of the cast, like... it's not like constance is perfect and the book knows that and expects you to realize that as well. but with sarah... she talks about how her exes (or women she expressed interest in that didn't go farther!) all hated that she was a cop and how her ex tried to get her to pull away from it, and she just dug in further and viewed it as an intrinsic part of herself.
plus the whole segment with her and amira's breakup and domestic violence... you can't remove this from the statistics that cops are much more likely than the general population to abuse their spouses/partners. when sarah was thinking "what if she tells my superiors" this was all i could think about! and it IS domestic violence even if it isn't in the same way that lewis's father terrorizes his family.
i also felt comparing sarah hurting amira with shel's drunk driving and esther's subsequent death rang false and left a bad taste in my mouth. i get the message of "sometimes tragic accidents happen when you make an emotional mistake" and how this can change the course of your life, but comparing "sarah getting mad that amira doesn't like that she's a cop, and then shoving her into a nightstand and hurting her" and "shel being triggered by seeing someone involved in her horrific trauma, a friend calling her a liar about it, drinking and then accidentally killing someone with her car" are apples and oranges. sarah wanted to shove amira out of anger. shel didn't want to kill a child. like yes i don't think sarah wanted amira to hit the nightstand and actually get physically hurt, but she did consciously choose to put her hands on her?? i mean i suppose you could make an argument about drunk driving, about it being always dangerous (and you would be right), but it's not a pointed, directed choice against a single person. i'm not even really arguing about either circumstance being in the book but the book directly calling a comparison between them feels so nasty to me.
thestorygraph only note: i do wish i had a better book club so we could actually discuss a book like this. i think there's a lot to discuss!!
the three stars really are for everything else not in my spoiler section. i really genuinely liked the rest, the story, the writing style, the characters...!
i did genuinely like a lot of it! i thought all the different character perspectives worked really well, even the "we" perspective. i thought all the characters and their reactions felt very real, especially constance, hers was the most harrowing and affecting to me. the voice of the book just really worked for me and i was engaged the whole time
however,
look. i said all the characters and reactions felt real, and i did mean that. and with that said i hated sarah. she was well written and felt like a real person i could meet! and i hated her. her and her cop buddy manipulating their suspects in order to arrest them, getting mad when people wouldn't talk to them without lawyers or without a warrant, misrepresenting the confidence of DNA evidence... really gross stuff.
i mean, to an extent i do think you're supposed to recognize that they're flawed individuals just like the rest of the cast, like... it's not like constance is perfect and the book knows that and expects you to realize that as well. but with sarah... she talks about how her exes (or women she expressed interest in that didn't go farther!) all hated that she was a cop and how her ex tried to get her to pull away from it, and she just dug in further and viewed it as an intrinsic part of herself.
plus the whole segment with her and amira's breakup and domestic violence... you can't remove this from the statistics that cops are much more likely than the general population to abuse their spouses/partners. when sarah was thinking "what if she tells my superiors" this was all i could think about! and it IS domestic violence even if it isn't in the same way that lewis's father terrorizes his family.
i also felt comparing sarah hurting amira with shel's drunk driving and esther's subsequent death rang false and left a bad taste in my mouth. i get the message of "sometimes tragic accidents happen when you make an emotional mistake" and how this can change the course of your life, but comparing "sarah getting mad that amira doesn't like that she's a cop, and then shoving her into a nightstand and hurting her" and "shel being triggered by seeing someone involved in her horrific trauma, a friend calling her a liar about it, drinking and then accidentally killing someone with her car" are apples and oranges. sarah wanted to shove amira out of anger. shel didn't want to kill a child. like yes i don't think sarah wanted amira to hit the nightstand and actually get physically hurt, but she did consciously choose to put her hands on her?? i mean i suppose you could make an argument about drunk driving, about it being always dangerous (and you would be right), but it's not a pointed, directed choice against a single person. i'm not even really arguing about either circumstance being in the book but the book directly calling a comparison between them feels so nasty to me.
thestorygraph only note: i do wish i had a better book club so we could actually discuss a book like this. i think there's a lot to discuss!!
the three stars really are for everything else not in my spoiler section. i really genuinely liked the rest, the story, the writing style, the characters...!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief
Moderate: Child death, Domestic abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, and Car accident
Dune Messiah by Frank Herbert
challenging
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
i liked when paul's wife called him a beta cuck
has paul ever heard the phrase "self-fulfilling prophesy"??????????
has paul ever heard the phrase "self-fulfilling prophesy"??????????
Open Throat by Henry Hoke
emotional
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
look, i only read this book because the summary made it sound insane but now that i've read it, every single summary seriously misrepresents both the story and the tone
things the summary accurately reflects:
a) the story is about a mountain lion
b) who lives in LA below the hollywood sign
some of the rest is partially accurate but some is not even close. truly baffling???? based on the summaries i thought i would hate it but also have fun reading it and i can honestly say i did neither.
compelling though. the writing style i think will be hit-and-miss for people but it worked for me
things the summary accurately reflects:
a) the story is about a mountain lion
b) who lives in LA below the hollywood sign
some of the rest is partially accurate but some is not even close. truly baffling???? based on the summaries i thought i would hate it but also have fun reading it and i can honestly say i did neither.
compelling though. the writing style i think will be hit-and-miss for people but it worked for me
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death
Moderate: Gore
there is more about piss than you would expect