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jennastopreading's reviews
502 reviews
Right on Cue by Falon Ballard
funny
lighthearted
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
Thank you to the publisher for allowing me access to an eARC via Netgalley!
January is traditionally the slumpiest month of the year for me both book wise and personal life wise, and I am so glad that I had this little ray of sunshine in my pocket to cheer me up! RIGHT ON CUE is the Ballard's third novel, and what a fun ride they've all been. I knew that this one would be perfect for me to read when I needed a pick me up.
4 things I loved about this book:
1. The book taking place on a movie set was pretty unique to me as a reader. I don't recall ever having read one before! Along with the setting, some lovely side characters were introduced (Sam being my favorite).
2. The FMC Emmy felt very down to earth and humble. Throughout the story, when she messes up, she admits it. She's never too proud to own her mistakes.
3. The MMC had a unique softness to him that made my heart swell. Any man that not only says, "You can trust me" but PROVES it with his actions is a winner in my book.
4. The third act break up (while in itself is trope-y) was not constructed in a way that made me want to pull my hair out. This breakup made sense, and I sympathized with both Grayson and Emmy.
This book was a bit steamier than I typically prefer, and while I don't knock stars off for steam in romance novels (unless it's terribly overdone), I still like those reading my reviews to be aware. The main reason I didn't give this one 5 stars is because I felt the ending was far too rushed - I wish the story were another 15-20 pages longer! I guess of all things to complain about, this isn't the worst, since I'm basically saying that I loved the characters so much that I wanted to see more of them.
Overall, another knockout from Falon Ballard, and she will remain on my auto-read list!
January is traditionally the slumpiest month of the year for me both book wise and personal life wise, and I am so glad that I had this little ray of sunshine in my pocket to cheer me up! RIGHT ON CUE is the Ballard's third novel, and what a fun ride they've all been. I knew that this one would be perfect for me to read when I needed a pick me up.
4 things I loved about this book:
1. The book taking place on a movie set was pretty unique to me as a reader. I don't recall ever having read one before! Along with the setting, some lovely side characters were introduced (Sam being my favorite).
2. The FMC Emmy felt very down to earth and humble. Throughout the story, when she messes up, she admits it. She's never too proud to own her mistakes.
3. The MMC had a unique softness to him that made my heart swell. Any man that not only says, "You can trust me" but PROVES it with his actions is a winner in my book.
4. The third act break up (while in itself is trope-y) was not constructed in a way that made me want to pull my hair out. This breakup made sense, and I sympathized with both Grayson and Emmy.
This book was a bit steamier than I typically prefer, and while I don't knock stars off for steam in romance novels (unless it's terribly overdone), I still like those reading my reviews to be aware. The main reason I didn't give this one 5 stars is because I felt the ending was far too rushed - I wish the story were another 15-20 pages longer! I guess of all things to complain about, this isn't the worst, since I'm basically saying that I loved the characters so much that I wanted to see more of them.
Overall, another knockout from Falon Ballard, and she will remain on my auto-read list!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content and Cursing
Moderate: Grief and Death of parent
Minor: Alcohol
Firekeeper's Daughter by Angeline Boulley
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
I bought this book the year that it released, and my biggest regret with it is waiting so long to read it. Honestly, what was I doing?!
I don't know what I thought this book was going to be about, but I had no idea..I just had no idea. I didn't know the depth of content matter, the breadth of the subjects covered, the raw pain my heart would feel as I listened with a knot in my throat. Both the story and the narrator chilled me to my core. If you can access this on audio, I recommend it - I loved hearing her speak the languages I don't speak.
My heart broke with Daunis from start to finish, and my eyes were opened to so much more than I could ever describe. This book will be a lot for sensitive readers, and I have a hard time thinking of it as Young Adult - mostly because the MC is more mature than pretty much any character I've ever read...
It's January 25, and I'm calling it - this will be the most important fiction book I read this year.
I don't know what I thought this book was going to be about, but I had no idea..I just had no idea. I didn't know the depth of content matter, the breadth of the subjects covered, the raw pain my heart would feel as I listened with a knot in my throat. Both the story and the narrator chilled me to my core. If you can access this on audio, I recommend it - I loved hearing her speak the languages I don't speak.
My heart broke with Daunis from start to finish, and my eyes were opened to so much more than I could ever describe. This book will be a lot for sensitive readers, and I have a hard time thinking of it as Young Adult - mostly because the MC is more mature than pretty much any character I've ever read...
It's January 25, and I'm calling it - this will be the most important fiction book I read this year.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence, Murder, Xenophobia, and Drug abuse
Moderate: Death of parent, Vomit, Rape, Cursing, and Violence
The Getaway List by Emma Lord
Did not finish book. Stopped at 16%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 16%.
Totally abhorrent MC. I think my YA era is over.
None of This Is True by Lisa Jewell
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Writing a "negative review" is not something I typically do, but I feel like I need to explain my 2 star rating on this seemingly beloved novel (4.17 stars with 275k ratings at the time of this writing). But I picked this book at the beginning of January with high hopes that I would start off the year with a bang of a thriller/mystery, and because of the mostly positive feedback on this one, I was sure it would be a knock out of the park for me. But oh, how wrong I was...
For starters, I was insanely bored for the first roughly 270 pages of this book. In hindsight, I should've DNF'd around the 50 page mark, but I think I had FOMO - and it felt too soon to DNF a book I got for Christmas. I was hoping there was a method to the madness, some reason for the slow buildup, so I trusted the process and waited for the "big twist" promised.
What a break of my trust 🫠Because I pretty much guessed every aspect of the twist. I found none of it to be surprising, I found none of exciting, I just thought it was...meh. My jaw didn't drop, my mind didn't twist, I was just thinking, "Thank goodness this is over."
I saw another reviewer write that Jewell spent 300 pages trying to convince us of one narrative, 50 pages convincing us of another narrative, and then another 20-30 of convincing us that the second narrative was not true, and honestly, that's about right. It felt like whiplash but at the end, I still felt like..meh. I was not excited about anything except that I was finished reading it.
I do believe I would've enjoyed it more on audio, but what's said and done is said and done. On to the next!
For starters, I was insanely bored for the first roughly 270 pages of this book. In hindsight, I should've DNF'd around the 50 page mark, but I think I had FOMO - and it felt too soon to DNF a book I got for Christmas. I was hoping there was a method to the madness, some reason for the slow buildup, so I trusted the process and waited for the "big twist" promised.
What a break of my trust 🫠Because I pretty much guessed every aspect of the twist. I found none of it to be surprising, I found none of exciting, I just thought it was...meh. My jaw didn't drop, my mind didn't twist, I was just thinking, "Thank goodness this is over."
I saw another reviewer write that Jewell spent 300 pages trying to convince us of one narrative, 50 pages convincing us of another narrative, and then another 20-30 of convincing us that the second narrative was not true, and honestly, that's about right. It felt like whiplash but at the end, I still felt like..meh. I was not excited about anything except that I was finished reading it.
I do believe I would've enjoyed it more on audio, but what's said and done is said and done. On to the next!
This Must Be the Place by Maggie O'Farrell
Did not finish book. Stopped at 35%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 35%.
Was listening on audio and could not keep up with all of the characters. Some of the stories I was invested in, others, not at all.
This Close to Okay by Leesa Cross-Smith
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
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
I received this book in a giveaway shortly after it published and my biggest regret surrounding it was waiting so long to read it.
This book is mostly set in Louisville, KY, the city I spent the first 23 years of my life in, and this helped me connect to the story right out the gates, but the characters and their soul did the rest. Tallie has to be one of the most uniquely intriguing fictional women that I've ever read. She's emotionally intelligent, kind hearted, independent, and successful. In another life, maybe I could be more like her when I grew up. On a rainy night in October, she stops when she sees a man about to jump off a bridge into the Ohio River, and in turn, her world changes forever.
Instead of calling 9-1-1 or giving up, she brings the man she affectionately starts off referring to as "Bridge" into her home, and he makes his way into her heart. As a reader, this was a lyrical story of respect, connection, and mutual adoration unfolding between two strangers. As Tallie and Bridge get to know one another, and the layers of the onion of each of their stories are peeled back, I grew more and more attached to both of them.
A fantastic story by Leesa Cross-Smith that left me with goosebumps and a lump in my throat. I will absolutely be reading more of her work in the future!
This book is mostly set in Louisville, KY, the city I spent the first 23 years of my life in, and this helped me connect to the story right out the gates, but the characters and their soul did the rest. Tallie has to be one of the most uniquely intriguing fictional women that I've ever read. She's emotionally intelligent, kind hearted, independent, and successful. In another life, maybe I could be more like her when I grew up. On a rainy night in October, she stops when she sees a man about to jump off a bridge into the Ohio River, and in turn, her world changes forever.
Instead of calling 9-1-1 or giving up, she brings the man she affectionately starts off referring to as "Bridge" into her home, and he makes his way into her heart. As a reader, this was a lyrical story of respect, connection, and mutual adoration unfolding between two strangers. As Tallie and Bridge get to know one another, and the layers of the onion of each of their stories are peeled back, I grew more and more attached to both of them.
A fantastic story by Leesa Cross-Smith that left me with goosebumps and a lump in my throat. I will absolutely be reading more of her work in the future!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Mental illness, Racism, Suicidal thoughts, Infidelity, Suicide attempt, and Infertility
Moderate: Pregnancy, Sexual content, Child death, and Medical content
Minor: Cursing and Miscarriage
You Shouldn't Have Come Here by Jeneva Rose
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
1.0
This was atrocious in every way. I’m glad I paid $0 for it.