jamie_reads_stuff's reviews
210 reviews

Flawless: Lessons in Looks and Culture from the K-Beauty Capital by Elise Hu

informative reflective medium-paced

4.0

This is a good primer for those who are interested in K-Beauty and a thoughtful analysis of beauty standards in capitalism. Its well-researched, but I do wish that this book could’ve gone a bit deeper 

Black Water Sister by Zen Cho

adventurous dark mysterious 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

3.75

The pacing was absolutely all over the place but I did enjoy the themes and the supernatural side of the book!

A Fire Endless by Rebecca Ross

adventurous emotional hopeful mysterious slow-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

The middle did drag a tad but overall it was very enjoyable!!

Immortal Longings by Chloe Gong

adventurous dark 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

3.75

Parts of this book dragged for me but the world building and the characters are definitely interesting!!

American Spy by Lauren Wilkinson

adventurous mysterious reflective slow-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

4.25

In addition to being a great spy thriller, I really enjoyed the writing and the characters a lot. I liked the conflicts between having an ideology and not standing for any at all. I don’t know if I love the idea of having a deceased historical figure be a central character intermixed between real and fictional events (especially since it sounds like his death is still impacting events in Burkina Faso today), but it was a really fun time overall!

Lady Tan's Circle Of Women by Lisa See

emotional informative inspiring slow-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

3.5

A River Enchanted by Rebecca Ross

adventurous emotional mysterious 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

A fun fantasy book with Scottish lore! It does deal with difficult themes but I really enjoyed the characters and the world building

Banyan Moon by Thao Thai

emotional hopeful reflective sad slow-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

Its an emotional depiction of motherhood and inheritance. Super sweet to read even when it was difficult at times

Jade City by Fonda Lee

adventurous challenging dark mysterious tense slow-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

3.75

Ambitious in terms of scale and intrigue, Jade City was definitely filled political intrigue. However I do think it was a little long and stretched out far

Persuasion by Jane Austen

challenging emotional reflective 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

Very character driven and sweet! But it definitely meandered a lot more and I wish the plots tied together a bit better