hailslynn's reviews
235 reviews

Tress of the Emerald Sea by Brandon Sanderson

adventurous emotional funny lighthearted relaxing medium-paced

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

3.25

As much as I didn’t like it, it’s not a bad book! It’s definitely a book I would could consider cozy fantasy, but when I read the description I was not expecting it to be the way it was. Sanderson did a great job of writing a fun fantasy book that is unlike most modern fantasies and creating a complex plot that has foreshadowing in places you least expect it. My biggest gripe is I HATED the way this narrator “speaks.” I don’t mind smugness, but it felt like it was every page and unnecessary a good chunk of the time. But it was a fun read, definitely for people who want a Princess Bride style read with whimsy and low stakes.

The Sunshine Court by Nora Sakavic

dark emotional mysterious sad tense 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? Yes

3.5

Listen if you’re reading this for the potential Andriel snippets, just read fanfic you’ll be happier that way. 

This isn’t BAD necessarily, but there is absolutely a reason why my brain turns to mush when I read this series. If you’re reading book 4, I’m assuming you’re used to Nora’s writing style already, so just expect same. 

I could have dealt without this, but I enjoyed remembering how fun the series is and made me want to reread it.

The Fifth Season by N.K. Jemisin

adventurous challenging dark mysterious 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

this book is so perfect i have literally nothing to say. no wonder why the whole series won three hugo awards in a row

Check & Mate by Ali Hazelwood

emotional funny inspiring lighthearted relaxing 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? Yes

4.5

There’s just something about Ali Hazelwood’s writing man 😭 I normally can’t read modern teen romances because the characters always seem so shallow and underdeveloped that I’m dnfing in a few pages, but oh my god Ali writes so good characters. I really appreciate her making her sluttiest character to date her YA protagonist in the book that has no explicit content. 

Ali does a really good job of making books feel extremely relatable while going off on a rant about a topic you have never had any interest in your entire life. Thank you Ali for making your nerdy books easy to understand for us peasants!!

Powerless by Lauren Roberts

adventurous emotional relaxing tense 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? Yes

4.25

Lauren, bestie, I’m gonna have some words next time I see you

The Familiar by Leigh Bardugo

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-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

4.5

“Fates can be changed. Curses can be broken.”

Leigh Bardugo is a mastermind, and you cannot convince me otherwise. UGH I’m going to be thinking about this book forever. 

The Familiar follows Luiza, a orphaned servant of a poor house, as she is manipulated by various individuals looking to gain political power during the Spanish Golden Age. While providing influence to those around her, Luiza is also hiding that she is Jewish from the Inquisition and is put in increasingly more dangerous scenarios.

She easily blew it out of the park with The Familiar. It’s so well researched, and you can tell she put her whole heart and soul into her craft while writing this book. It is HEAVY historical and light fantasy; the magic system is very simple and can very easily be taken out if Bardugo wanted to write a historical fiction book. Because of this, the book does seem extremely info dump-y for the first half of the book, but the information is vital as you come to understand the motives behind the characters you see Luiza interact with. 

The Familiar is very different than the Grishaverse and Ninth House but still maintains the brutality, politics, and other themes we know Bardugo loves to use. The most different part of the whole thing? THE ROMANCE BABY!!! Oh my god, it was so good. Think Phantom of the Opera meets Addie Larue (you know I cried with I mentioned Addie) with a kind of actually happy ending?

I had an overall GREAT time with this, and I’m so excited for the rest of the world to meet Luiza and Santángel!!

Chain-Gang All-Stars by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah

adventurous challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

oof. where do I start. 

Brutal, heartbreaking, thought provoking, tragic, beautiful. This book is so much and so little. Think gladiator style hunger games (the one time it feels like an accurate comparison) meets a not so far away dystopian future all wrapped up as a satire of the for-profit prison system. I can see this becoming a major contender as a modern classic with all its intricacies and rhetoric. I can’t say I’ll read again but definitely a book I’ll recommend when people want a book that’ll make them think.

Butcher & Blackbird by Brynne Weaver

adventurous dark lighthearted tense fast-paced

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

4.25

This is so so so fun. These characters have such fun banter and are so messy and fucked up and I loved every second. Definitely not a book to pick up if just getting into dark romance/erotica but so so fun if you’re looking for something new. Biggest gripe is that it follows the plot point roadmap EVERY. SINGLE. romance book follows, including my arch enemy the 3rd act breakup (even though this one was a bit different). Definitely did enjoy, and I’m excited to read the next one!

Where the Dark Stands Still by A.B. Poranek

adventurous dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

I’m too sad to talk about this right now


Edit 3/18:
“Of women, he’s heard it said: ‘She will be the end of me,’ or ‘She will be my undoing.’ None of that is true for Liska Radost. She is not the end of anything, but the beginning of everything. He has been dead a long time, and she is his resurrection.”

Okay so straightforward, book is pretty glacial at the beginning, especially if you’re unfamiliar with Slavic folklore, but it’s definitely one of those books that once you get past the world building, IT IS SUCH A DELIGHT. I’m not gonna repeat what everyone else has said of it being reminiscent of Howl’s Moving Castle (it definitely it), but if you love sassy male love interests, cool houses, found families, and creepy, whimsical forests, I definitely recommend you pick this up. The writing is very beautiful and well-crafted and I see myself reading whatever Poranek puts out next. It’s a pretty straightforward 4 ⭐️ read for me, and I can see it becoming a comfort read for me.

The Pairing by Casey McQuiston

5.0

Oh. my. god. The people who thought RWRB was spicy are going to swoon like a victorian lady over this. For starters: wow what a great exploration of queerness in the modern age. It’s so beautifully and realistically done. It shows the whole other world to queerness that many mainstream gay books today get wrong or leave out. It had me crying at so many times I’m so glad I read it on my kindle instead of a physical copy. Second: Their one liners are back and better than ever. It takes a lot of skill to have a memorable quote that people will forever associate with your book, and Casey continues to prove they've got the mind to do it. Here’s a handful of the ones I’ve decided are the ones for THE PAIRING:
1. Maybe [they] feel so familiar and so new to me now because I’d heard the beginning note but not the completed chord.
2. "Not every problem can be solved by sleeping with it." "Not with that attitude!"
3. "Nobody's straight on a European vacation."
4. Jack of all trades. Master of Cunt.
5. Being attracted to you that has always come from another place entirely. Or maybe everywhere at the same time.
6. Everywhere we go, I want to experience it entirely. All the way out to its edges.
7. It’s not slutty. Its European.

This book is so well crafted and researched; you can tell Casey put their whole ass, heart, and soul into this book. The characters are so raw and real I felt like I was making new friends as I was reading their story. Casey describes and visualizes like no other that it feels like you are on that food and wine tour sitting right next to Kit and Theo and placing bets with Fabrizio on when they would hook up again. Everything about this book was great and Casey remains my favorite author 🫶🏼 like it was ever a competition 😉 Sluts forever!