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jce's reviews
747 reviews
The Diablo's Curse by Gabe Cole Novoa
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.0
I loved Wicked Bargain, the first book in this series, and enjoyed this one as well. I loved Dami in the first book so I was really excited to get their story. I liked all the characters in this, though I wanted a little more Marisol, who occasionally felt like an afterthought. I didn't feel quite as engaged with this one as with Wicked Bargain, parts of it lagged a bit for me, but I still had fun reading it. While I think Wicked Bargain is great for junior high and up, I'd say this book is probably better suited to high school. This is a sure bet for YA readers looking for adventure and romance with some wonderful queer characters.
*ARC provided by NetGalley
*ARC provided by NetGalley
Chasing The Light by Alexis Hall
challenging
emotional
funny
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Will Watt's narration was wonderfully done.
Marius, the MC, is Edwin's ex. We hear a good deal about him in Waiting for the Flood, so I was interested to get to know him better. I think he's changed a good deal in the four years since he and Edwin broke up. In WFTF, it seemed like Edwin and Marius were two people who had drifted apart. I didn't get the sense that Marius was cruel or especially closed off. But the Marius we meet in Chasing the Light is practically wrapped in barbed wire. He hurts himself and the people around him, including Edwin. He is not a likeable character, but I did find him a relatable one. I know what it's like for discomfort to turn to prickliness, especially around family. I certainly don't think I'm as much of an asshole as Marius is, but I did understand many of his reactions. He's going through something that feels life shattering, and hates himself for the way he's handling it, and hates anyone who tries to offer him what he feels he doesn't deserve, what he tells himself he doesn't want. He's an interesting, infuriating character. I don't know if he's purposefully written as being neurodivergent, but there were definitely times his feelings about things reminded me of my own.
Chasing the Light is higher heat than Waiting for the Flood, as is Aftermath, the short bonus at the very end that mostly features Edwin and Adam. Chasing the Light also has a lot of those intricate details about a subject, as WFTF did with book binding and game theory, this time about living on a boat. And pierogi :) Again, I felt it gave the story a cozy aspect that I really enjoyed. Though Chasing the Light is certainly less soothing than WFTF, because Marius is who he is, I'd still classify it as comforting. I laughed a good deal during Chasing the Light and Aftermath.
I think my one slight disappointment with both novellas is that I wanted Leo and Adam, the love interests of the MCs whose POV we get, to be a bit less... perfect? I mean I love that both Edwin and Marius get these wonderful people to care for them. And I loved what we got of their characters. But I wanted them to have a few more flaws. And I actually loved that Aftermath shows us Marius is still very much Marius.
It is also worth noting that Marius has what I would classify as an eating disorder. I'm guessing this is listed in the CWs but I don't think my audio ARC had them.
I enjoyed this, and I'd recommend it, though Waiting for the Flood is still my favorite of the two.
*Audio ARC provided by NetGalley
Marius, the MC, is Edwin's ex. We hear a good deal about him in Waiting for the Flood, so I was interested to get to know him better. I think he's changed a good deal in the four years since he and Edwin broke up. In WFTF, it seemed like Edwin and Marius were two people who had drifted apart. I didn't get the sense that Marius was cruel or especially closed off. But the Marius we meet in Chasing the Light is practically wrapped in barbed wire. He hurts himself and the people around him, including Edwin. He is not a likeable character, but I did find him a relatable one. I know what it's like for discomfort to turn to prickliness, especially around family. I certainly don't think I'm as much of an asshole as Marius is, but I did understand many of his reactions. He's going through something that feels life shattering, and hates himself for the way he's handling it, and hates anyone who tries to offer him what he feels he doesn't deserve, what he tells himself he doesn't want. He's an interesting, infuriating character. I don't know if he's purposefully written as being neurodivergent, but there were definitely times his feelings about things reminded me of my own.
Chasing the Light is higher heat than Waiting for the Flood, as is Aftermath, the short bonus at the very end that mostly features Edwin and Adam. Chasing the Light also has a lot of those intricate details about a subject, as WFTF did with book binding and game theory, this time about living on a boat. And pierogi :) Again, I felt it gave the story a cozy aspect that I really enjoyed. Though Chasing the Light is certainly less soothing than WFTF, because Marius is who he is, I'd still classify it as comforting. I laughed a good deal during Chasing the Light and Aftermath.
I think my one slight disappointment with both novellas is that I wanted Leo and Adam, the love interests of the MCs whose POV we get, to be a bit less... perfect? I mean I love that both Edwin and Marius get these wonderful people to care for them. And I loved what we got of their characters. But I wanted them to have a few more flaws. And I actually loved that Aftermath shows us Marius is still very much Marius.
It is also worth noting that Marius has what I would classify as an eating disorder. I'm guessing this is listed in the CWs but I don't think my audio ARC had them.
I enjoyed this, and I'd recommend it, though Waiting for the Flood is still my favorite of the two.
*Audio ARC provided by NetGalley
Waiting for the Flood by Alexis Hall
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
This is a wonderfully gentle and lovely novella. This was my first time reading this updated edition, but my fourth read overall. I first read it during election night in 2020, when I needed comfort and companionship, and it was perfect for that task.
I find this a little tricky to review, because it now has so many parts, and the new bonus novella, Chasing the Light, does have its own entry on Goodreads. But I think it makes sense to review the whole kit and caboodle here, as it all comes as one package.
I adore Will Watt's audio narration, so I was thrilled to listen to him narrate this. He did a fantastic job, though there were a few occasions in Waiting for the Flood when I couldn't tell which MC was speaking while they were having a conversation because they did sound somewhat similar.
This is a book with a good deal of ambling conversation, it feels very authentic but occasionally struck sort of an odd note for me. On the one hand, it does add to the cozy nature of the book and give us insight into the characters, on the other hand, for such a short book, there's rather a lot of it. And while I found all the stuff about book binding and etymology captivating, I admit I was a bit lost during some of the game theory bits. Some of the jokes were also lost on me. But, actually, that did make me feel more like it was a real conversation I was just listening in on.
I adore both MCs in Waiting for the Flood. There's only one featured side character, but I loved her as well. It's just a really soothing book. One of my top comfort read recommendations.
Bonus recipes!! I'm such a sucker for recipes, and these are written in the voice of the characters, so they are great fun. My favorite kind of bonus material.
The second, new novella is Chasing the Light. Again, the narration was wonderfully done for this portion. Marius, the MC, is Edwin's ex. We hear a good deal about him in Waiting for the Flood, so I was interested to get to know him better. I think he's changed a good deal in the four years since he and Edwin broke up. In WFTF, it seemed like Edwin and Marius were two people who had drifted apart. I didn't get the sense that Marius was cruel or especially closed off. But the Marius we meet in Chasing the Light is practically wrapped in barbed wire. He hurts himself and the people around him, including Edwin. He is not a likeable character, but I did find him a relatable one. I know what it's like for discomfort to turn to prickliness, especially around family. I certainly don't think I'm as much of an asshole as Marius is, but I did understand many of his reactions. He's going through something that feels life shattering, and hates himself for the way he's handling it, and hates anyone who tries to offer him what he feels he doesn't deserve, what he tells himself he doesn't want. He's an interesting, infuriating character. I don't know if he's purposefully written as being neurodivergent, but there were definitely times his feelings about things reminded me of my own.
Chasing the Light is higher heat than Waiting for the Flood, as is Aftermath, the short bonus at the very end that mostly features Edwin and Adam. Chasing the Light also has a lot of those intricate details about a subject, as WFTF did with book binding and game theory, this time about living on a boat. And pierogi :) Again, I felt it gave the story a cozy aspect that I really enjoyed. Though Chasing the Light is certainly less soothing than WFTF, because Marius is who he is, I'd still classify it as comforting. I laughed a good deal during Chasing the Light and Aftermath.
I think my one slight disappointment with both novellas is that I wanted Leo and Adam, the love interests of the MCs whose POV we get, to be a bit less... perfect? I mean I love that both Edwin and Marius get these wonderful people to care for them. And I loved what we got of their characters. But I wanted them to have a few more flaws. And I actually loved that Aftermath shows us Marius is still very much Marius.
It is also worth noting that Marius has what I would classify as an eating disorder. I'm guessing this is listed in the CWs but I don't think my audio ARC had them.
Again, in Aftermath, there is some conversation that seems sort of unnecessary? There's another chunk of game theory math stuff (expecting my invite to Mensa anytime) that only bothered me because it went on for so long and it's such a short story. And then there's a big section about Edwin's family that felt oddly out of place? I think for me it just didn't offer a lot that I didn't get in WFTF. I didn't dislike it, I just found it odd to devote so much space to both of these conversations when it's such a short story.
All in all, I very much enjoyed this whole package. Will Watt did an excellent job with the narration. I would absolutely recommend it.
*Audio ARC provided by NetGalley
I find this a little tricky to review, because it now has so many parts, and the new bonus novella, Chasing the Light, does have its own entry on Goodreads. But I think it makes sense to review the whole kit and caboodle here, as it all comes as one package.
I adore Will Watt's audio narration, so I was thrilled to listen to him narrate this. He did a fantastic job, though there were a few occasions in Waiting for the Flood when I couldn't tell which MC was speaking while they were having a conversation because they did sound somewhat similar.
This is a book with a good deal of ambling conversation, it feels very authentic but occasionally struck sort of an odd note for me. On the one hand, it does add to the cozy nature of the book and give us insight into the characters, on the other hand, for such a short book, there's rather a lot of it. And while I found all the stuff about book binding and etymology captivating, I admit I was a bit lost during some of the game theory bits. Some of the jokes were also lost on me. But, actually, that did make me feel more like it was a real conversation I was just listening in on.
I adore both MCs in Waiting for the Flood. There's only one featured side character, but I loved her as well. It's just a really soothing book. One of my top comfort read recommendations.
Bonus recipes!! I'm such a sucker for recipes, and these are written in the voice of the characters, so they are great fun. My favorite kind of bonus material.
The second, new novella is Chasing the Light. Again, the narration was wonderfully done for this portion. Marius, the MC, is Edwin's ex. We hear a good deal about him in Waiting for the Flood, so I was interested to get to know him better. I think he's changed a good deal in the four years since he and Edwin broke up. In WFTF, it seemed like Edwin and Marius were two people who had drifted apart. I didn't get the sense that Marius was cruel or especially closed off. But the Marius we meet in Chasing the Light is practically wrapped in barbed wire. He hurts himself and the people around him, including Edwin. He is not a likeable character, but I did find him a relatable one. I know what it's like for discomfort to turn to prickliness, especially around family. I certainly don't think I'm as much of an asshole as Marius is, but I did understand many of his reactions. He's going through something that feels life shattering, and hates himself for the way he's handling it, and hates anyone who tries to offer him what he feels he doesn't deserve, what he tells himself he doesn't want. He's an interesting, infuriating character. I don't know if he's purposefully written as being neurodivergent, but there were definitely times his feelings about things reminded me of my own.
Chasing the Light is higher heat than Waiting for the Flood, as is Aftermath, the short bonus at the very end that mostly features Edwin and Adam. Chasing the Light also has a lot of those intricate details about a subject, as WFTF did with book binding and game theory, this time about living on a boat. And pierogi :) Again, I felt it gave the story a cozy aspect that I really enjoyed. Though Chasing the Light is certainly less soothing than WFTF, because Marius is who he is, I'd still classify it as comforting. I laughed a good deal during Chasing the Light and Aftermath.
I think my one slight disappointment with both novellas is that I wanted Leo and Adam, the love interests of the MCs whose POV we get, to be a bit less... perfect? I mean I love that both Edwin and Marius get these wonderful people to care for them. And I loved what we got of their characters. But I wanted them to have a few more flaws. And I actually loved that Aftermath shows us Marius is still very much Marius.
It is also worth noting that Marius has what I would classify as an eating disorder. I'm guessing this is listed in the CWs but I don't think my audio ARC had them.
Again, in Aftermath, there is some conversation that seems sort of unnecessary? There's another chunk of game theory math stuff (expecting my invite to Mensa anytime) that only bothered me because it went on for so long and it's such a short story. And then there's a big section about Edwin's family that felt oddly out of place? I think for me it just didn't offer a lot that I didn't get in WFTF. I didn't dislike it, I just found it odd to devote so much space to both of these conversations when it's such a short story.
All in all, I very much enjoyed this whole package. Will Watt did an excellent job with the narration. I would absolutely recommend it.
*Audio ARC provided by NetGalley
In Memoriam by Alice Winn
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
Almost certainly going to be the best book I read this year.
Finn Jones Was Here by Simon James Green
adventurous
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
medium-paced
4.25
This Day Changes Everything by Edward Underhill
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
This was so CUTE! Such an enjoyable read with a lovable cast of characters and a super fun premise. Pacing was perfect and it made me laugh a few times. Both lighthearted and emotional. Just all around a great read. I think young readers will adore it.
*ARC provided by NetGalley
*ARC provided by NetGalley