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heydarianpaige's reviews
244 reviews
What the River Knows by Isabel Ibañez
My review will be withheld until SMP/Wednesday Books responds to the reasonable demands of the boycott.
Not in Love by Ali Hazelwood
4.75
Ali Hazelwood is back again and this time with an erotic romance instead of a romcom and I loved the slight change in story tone with this one! We all know I’m self proclaimed Ali Hazelwood trash, but I genuinely think she’s just been getting better and better as a writer as she progresses in her career.
This still has some of the fun and Ali Hazelwood-isms you’d expect but just with a little less of a silly goofy overall tone and while we still have our rudely large man MMC, we don’t have a teeny tiny oh so dainty FMC for once which was also a nice change. For those that call her a one note author that repeats the same characters every time in different settings, this is the one to point them towards to prove them wrong.
Also Rue and Eli are my babies and I love them.
Thank you to Berkley for providing me with an e-ARC!
This still has some of the fun and Ali Hazelwood-isms you’d expect but just with a little less of a silly goofy overall tone and while we still have our rudely large man MMC, we don’t have a teeny tiny oh so dainty FMC for once which was also a nice change. For those that call her a one note author that repeats the same characters every time in different settings, this is the one to point them towards to prove them wrong.
Also Rue and Eli are my babies and I love them.
Thank you to Berkley for providing me with an e-ARC!
Out On a Limb by Hannah Bonam-Young
5.0
Stooop!🥹 I feel like I’m the last person on my corner of the internet to finally read this one and it deserves all of its hype. It’s simultaneously so sweet and heartwarming but also so real with its characters. Accidental pregnancy plots aren’t something I gravitate towards but it’s not a hard pass for me like it is for others. Although I would dare say this is one that might win over some that are against the pregnancy trope. Easily a 5 star read.
Leather & Lark by Brynne Weaver
3.0
This has a similar vibe to Butcher and Blackbird (obviously) and some of the same fun but it just didn’t quite hit the same. On paper this ought to be more of my cup of tea (love a good marriage of convenience plot line) but I think the first book is just hard to top. The plot and pacing wasn’t as good imo, and I’m not going to lie the smut was not my jam made me cringe and wanna crawl out of my skin (this could be largely in part to having it an an audio format while multitasking).
Funny Story by Emily Henry
4.5
Okay despite all the chortling in this book, this is another hit from Emily Henry for me. I love the premise and these characters, and as always this was full of the heart and emotion you expect from an Emily Henry read. It hasn’t dethroned Beach Read as my favorite from her, but it has given Book Lovers some competition for the #2 spot. Thank you to Berkley for the e-ARC!
This Could Be Us by Kennedy Ryan
4.0
Kennedy Ryan thinks her incredible writing gives her a free pass to put me through the emotional wringer again… and she would be correct tbh.
The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath
3.0
This was my first re-read of this since either middle or high school and this time I did the audiobook narrated by Maggie Gyllenhaal (which was phenomenal). The writing is incredible and the fig tree analogy has haunted me since I first read it. But it’s not without faults or flaws.
Tangled Up In You by Christina Lauren
4.75
I was so pleasantly surprised by this book! I’m a huge fan of Tangled and it’s one of my favorite movies period (not just a Disney favorite) so I am slightly biased. But, I had honestly expected this to just be a fun, silly, kind of throw away read. I was really surprised by how well done this was. It was fun, a little corny (in a good way), romantic, sweet, and surprisingly a little adventureful (idk if that’s a proper word or just a girls scout cookie but imma use it anyways). This was a surprisingly realistic rendition of the beloved animated film and I think is a perfect for classic romcom lovers and the Disney Adults.