jkpiowa's reviews
730 reviews

The Centre by Ayesha Manazir Siddiqi

dark mysterious tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

Jackal by Erin E. Adams

dark emotional mysterious sad tense 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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Gore, Racism, Kidnapping

Vampire Menstrual Syndrome: The First Cycle by S.C. Hunter

funny mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

What Feasts at Night by T. Kingfisher

dark funny mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

Babylon's Ashes by James S.A. Corey

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious 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

5.0

Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett

adventurous mysterious tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Both main characters are kind of awful, but I didn't despise them and I enjoyed the story quite a bit. I will probably pick up the second book and see if I like it as much. It did seem a bit longer than necessary. 

The Kiss Quotient by Helen Hoang

emotional lighthearted medium-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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Sexual content

The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka

dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

This is WEIRD. Personally I read it as a analogue to queerness and "coming out", but it seems critique of this story is very undecided over what exactly Kafka was trying to explain. Regardless, it is sad, complex, and weird. 

Ejaculate Responsibly: A Whole New Way to Think About Abortion by Gabrielle Stanley Blair

challenging informative reflective

Some good information and some good arguments. A little simplified, but that is probably intentional for the audience the author is targeting. 

Beefcakes by Katana Collins
Did not finish book. Stopped at 15%.

Not for me. There is an intro "I bet you're wondering how I got here..." monologue which felt lazy. And some lines were just not written well.