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hellcatjennie's reviews
51 reviews
The Seven Year Slip by Ashley Poston
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
lighthearted
fast-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
The Bloody Chamber and Other Stories by Angela Carter
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-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
5.0
Fragile Animals by Genevieve Jagger
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This is for weird girls, and weird girls only!
I am absolutely mind boggled that this is a debut novel, like what? Jagger does something I so rarely see done, she’s managed to reinvent the vampire genre into something beyond lust and the desire for immortality, instead it’s used as a device to assess her life and reflect on what’s causing her pain so that she may live her own life. Not to mention Noelle is most definitely autistic and being ADHD myself those two often get lumped together because the symptoms are so similar. It was refreshing to read from the point of view of a character that was unlike anything I’d ever read in fiction, originally unique without giving too much focus on unnecessary details, this is very focused on the human psyche and evaluating caustic detail. I admired how easily she weaves our main characters trauma into the story effortlessly, no less part of the story than the random turn of events at hand. Her prose is unmatched I could only ever dream of describing feeling as she does. Religious trauma is very prevalent throughout the novel, providing context for our main character’s actions and internal struggle to no longer be leashed by something she no longer necessarily believes in. I think we all suffer at the hands of our parents in one form or another, however we all have a parent in mind that made our journey from adolescence into adulthood a little less than spectacular. I personally have a lot of issues with my mother and this spoke to that heavily, in Fragile Animals we see Noelle’s mother as vain and impassive to her child’s need, very consumed by her own conception of self that she neglects any identity her child might have. It’s all too real and paints an already vivid picture of the long term affects a child might bear in life, suffering the consequences of a selfish parent. I can’t give this enough praise, you’ll have to read it for yourself and highlight all of its passages. The ending paragraph left chills down my spine, and reminded me that it’s so powerful to unburden yourself from your own guilt of simply living your life.
Thank you NetGalley, Genevieve Jagger, and 404 Ink for this ARC in exchange for a review!
I am absolutely mind boggled that this is a debut novel, like what? Jagger does something I so rarely see done, she’s managed to reinvent the vampire genre into something beyond lust and the desire for immortality, instead it’s used as a device to assess her life and reflect on what’s causing her pain so that she may live her own life. Not to mention Noelle is most definitely autistic and being ADHD myself those two often get lumped together because the symptoms are so similar. It was refreshing to read from the point of view of a character that was unlike anything I’d ever read in fiction, originally unique without giving too much focus on unnecessary details, this is very focused on the human psyche and evaluating caustic detail. I admired how easily she weaves our main characters trauma into the story effortlessly, no less part of the story than the random turn of events at hand. Her prose is unmatched I could only ever dream of describing feeling as she does. Religious trauma is very prevalent throughout the novel, providing context for our main character’s actions and internal struggle to no longer be leashed by something she no longer necessarily believes in. I think we all suffer at the hands of our parents in one form or another, however we all have a parent in mind that made our journey from adolescence into adulthood a little less than spectacular. I personally have a lot of issues with my mother and this spoke to that heavily, in Fragile Animals we see Noelle’s mother as vain and impassive to her child’s need, very consumed by her own conception of self that she neglects any identity her child might have. It’s all too real and paints an already vivid picture of the long term affects a child might bear in life, suffering the consequences of a selfish parent. I can’t give this enough praise, you’ll have to read it for yourself and highlight all of its passages. The ending paragraph left chills down my spine, and reminded me that it’s so powerful to unburden yourself from your own guilt of simply living your life.
Thank you NetGalley, Genevieve Jagger, and 404 Ink for this ARC in exchange for a review!
Lore of the Wilds by Analeigh Sbrana
adventurous
inspiring
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? No
3.75
Thank you Netgalley and HarperCollins for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
A cozy and adventurous read, a stellar debut novel from Analeigh Sbrana. I’m giving this a 3.75/5, while I really enjoyed this book I would’ve liked the pacing to be more consistent. There were too many chapters where I was left confused and feeling like I’d skipped something, or things happened so fast that I was never nervous when they were in danger, felt very YA while not being a YA novel. But despite those minor gripes, everything else was great, especially that cliff hanger at the end. I did not expect that, hats off Ms. Sbrana.
Lore is a human who works for her aunt and uncle in an apothecary shop wishing to discover magic. It opens with her grief of losing her parents and wishing she could do more for her village. The Fae are a cruel and arrogant people, who by all means look down on the humans as lesser beings. Shortly after an earthquake shakes her village, she is forced to leave it behind and thus she is thrust into the world of the Fae. What begins as a simple task of cleaning and logging books in a warded library she discovers a magical grimoire that later reveals to be a spell book. She is guarded by Asher who is a light Fae and is the only person that is kind to her, they develop a friendship and have a kindling of romance before Lore decides to run away with the grimoire so she can attempt to save her people. Now with the royal Fae on the hunt for her, she runs away with Asher who becomes more than a friend and they reach a village along the way, meeting Isla, Finndryl and Griph who take her in as their own. They embark on a mission after she rescues her friend Grey from a Fae queen who tells her what has become of their town and how women and children were stolen by the very Fae that had stolen Lore to clean the library under the guise of helping her people initially. They uncover the truth and much more along their journey of magic and justice.
I really adored Lore, she’s brave, self sacrificing and smart! You can really feel her passion for her people and her thirst for knowledge knows no bounds. The romance in this book is so frustrating because while she seems to focus her attention on Asher the first half of the book, he doesn’t seem to quite click into place for me as a romantic lead. He’s a nice guy but so so dull, which is intentional (I don’t want to spoil anything for anyone). Because we meet Finndryl and my oh my, I was feral for this man since the second he was introduced. I’m definitely partial to their relationship blooming into something more, their chemistry is just palpable and they have a genuine connection. Isla is more than likely my favorite character-from her style to her bright personality, she’s someone I definitely want to be friends with. I loved the curl care/locs mentioned in a medieval setting, that was cool to read in a fantasy novel as most are written by white authors and feature mainly only white characters, it’s refreshing to read diversity in this genre for once!
This was marketed as a cottage-core/love triangle and it surely delivered! I’ll be keeping an eye out for the second installment as I’m sure this will only continue to build into something spectacular.
A cozy and adventurous read, a stellar debut novel from Analeigh Sbrana. I’m giving this a 3.75/5, while I really enjoyed this book I would’ve liked the pacing to be more consistent. There were too many chapters where I was left confused and feeling like I’d skipped something, or things happened so fast that I was never nervous when they were in danger, felt very YA while not being a YA novel. But despite those minor gripes, everything else was great, especially that cliff hanger at the end. I did not expect that, hats off Ms. Sbrana.
Lore is a human who works for her aunt and uncle in an apothecary shop wishing to discover magic. It opens with her grief of losing her parents and wishing she could do more for her village. The Fae are a cruel and arrogant people, who by all means look down on the humans as lesser beings. Shortly after an earthquake shakes her village, she is forced to leave it behind and thus she is thrust into the world of the Fae. What begins as a simple task of cleaning and logging books in a warded library she discovers a magical grimoire that later reveals to be a spell book. She is guarded by Asher who is a light Fae and is the only person that is kind to her, they develop a friendship and have a kindling of romance before Lore decides to run away with the grimoire so she can attempt to save her people. Now with the royal Fae on the hunt for her, she runs away with Asher who becomes more than a friend and they reach a village along the way, meeting Isla, Finndryl and Griph who take her in as their own. They embark on a mission after she rescues her friend Grey from a Fae queen who tells her what has become of their town and how women and children were stolen by the very Fae that had stolen Lore to clean the library under the guise of helping her people initially. They uncover the truth and much more along their journey of magic and justice.
I really adored Lore, she’s brave, self sacrificing and smart! You can really feel her passion for her people and her thirst for knowledge knows no bounds. The romance in this book is so frustrating because while she seems to focus her attention on Asher the first half of the book, he doesn’t seem to quite click into place for me as a romantic lead. He’s a nice guy but so so dull, which is intentional (I don’t want to spoil anything for anyone). Because we meet Finndryl and my oh my, I was feral for this man since the second he was introduced. I’m definitely partial to their relationship blooming into something more, their chemistry is just palpable and they have a genuine connection. Isla is more than likely my favorite character-from her style to her bright personality, she’s someone I definitely want to be friends with. I loved the curl care/locs mentioned in a medieval setting, that was cool to read in a fantasy novel as most are written by white authors and feature mainly only white characters, it’s refreshing to read diversity in this genre for once!
This was marketed as a cottage-core/love triangle and it surely delivered! I’ll be keeping an eye out for the second installment as I’m sure this will only continue to build into something spectacular.
Lady Macbeth by Ava Reid
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Thank you to NetGalley, Ava Reid, and Random House Publishing Group for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
I’m impressed by Ava Reid yet again, a Macbeth retelling that actually managed to be new and exciting, sign me up! Did I mention there is a dragon? Macbeth, my lord, I am now your number one hater. My only complaint was that I wanted more towards the end for Lady Macbeth who in this version goes by Roscille or Roscilla. But such is life.
Dark and gothic as is all of her works, this proves to be a dazzling addition to her previous novels. I don’t want to go too into details about this already well known story, but Reid does a stellar job at reviving a much hated villainess’ story into something more than what we get from Shakespeare. She sweeps you off your feet with her gorgeous atmospheric writing, making you feel like you’re in Scotland, smelling the mildew and salty air whilst reading. I found myself highlighting so many passages as I’m sure many others will do once they get their hands on this wonderful novel!
I’m impressed by Ava Reid yet again, a Macbeth retelling that actually managed to be new and exciting, sign me up! Did I mention there is a dragon? Macbeth, my lord, I am now your number one hater. My only complaint was that I wanted more towards the end for Lady Macbeth who in this version goes by Roscille or Roscilla. But such is life.
Dark and gothic as is all of her works, this proves to be a dazzling addition to her previous novels. I don’t want to go too into details about this already well known story, but Reid does a stellar job at reviving a much hated villainess’ story into something more than what we get from Shakespeare. She sweeps you off your feet with her gorgeous atmospheric writing, making you feel like you’re in Scotland, smelling the mildew and salty air whilst reading. I found myself highlighting so many passages as I’m sure many others will do once they get their hands on this wonderful novel!
The Seventh Veil of Salome by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-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
4.0