gossamer_lens's reviews
1414 reviews

Memories of Amisi by potchimew

lighthearted mysterious fast-paced

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

2.75

If I rated this based on my enjoyment I would rate this a solid 4... but given the incompleteness and lack of any development or conclusion.... I just cannot recommend this to anyone and feel absolutely bummed by it... so less then a 3 it is. *Sigh*

Imaginary Borders by Xiuhtezcatl Martinez

informative inspiring reflective fast-paced

4.75

Really enjoyed this book. A lot of great food for thought. The highlighting of hobbies/joy interweaving with important activism work was refreshing and beautiful. I definitely want to read this again physically so I can think a bit more on certain sections. 

The Perfect Storm by Time Princess
Did not finish book. Stopped at 37%.

I just cannot with how trusting and dumb the main character is. It is also dumb how all the sudden she is hanging with Vane... Like? What? Nobody is "tough" and "pirate". They are all just dumbies and I don't care what happens to anybody. Also the writing is just so vapid and repeats things over and over. 

Heartstopper Volume 5 by Alice Oseman

emotional hopeful inspiring fast-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

5.0

Love love love!

Heartstopper Volume 4 by Alice Oseman

emotional hopeful lighthearted relaxing fast-paced

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

5.0

I just love Nick, Charlie and crew. No thoughts, just love. 

The Obelisk Gate by N.K. Jemisin

challenging dark tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

I picked this up in ebook format, and man oh man am I glad I read this not as an audiobook. There is something about the author's writing that is rather clinical and the narrator they work with just makes it feel doubly so. I think the first book could have been a 5 star for me if I had read it not as an audiobook. 

This books POV was a little less intriguing and a little less gripping then the first book. But I really liked one of the POV additions and I'm very interested to see where things go... this book suffered the middle book trilogy case of feeling like a carrier to get us from point A to point B. That said it didn't suffer mightily for it, it just lacked the something that could have put it at a 5 star. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death

Moderate: Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, Medical content, Grief, Stalking, Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail, Classism

Minor: Cannibalism

Prompted, Issue 02: Reedsy's short story review by Reedsy Ltd

fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? N/A
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? N/A
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

3.0

Average rating of all 12 short stories was 2.92. Two stories were a full 5 stars for me. Would really love to read more of Laura Jarosz!

Betsy-Tacy by Maud Hart Lovelace

funny lighthearted relaxing medium-paced

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

3.25

a cute and charming collection of stories featuring childhood friendship.

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Content Warnings

Minor: Child death

Forever . . . by Judy Blume
Did not finish book. Stopped at 16%.

I just don't care at all for these self assured teenagers who think and feel like adults (I literally had to Google if they were seniors in high-school or college). There is no tension, no joy in their romance. It is quick and rather painless and I just don't emotionally connect with this compared to the reality of my own teenage experiences. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Sexual content

The Optimist's Daughter by Eudora Welty
Did not finish book. Stopped at 2%.

The author reads this audiobook... She is in no way a professional narrator so I don't want to be harsh. But her accent (American southern), pacing, and a lisp makes this audiobook very tough for me to take in. I will definitely miss things if I read this way. So I'm dnfing to get a print version.