jordanlgilbert's reviews
592 reviews

'Tis the Damn Season by Kimi Freeman
Did not finish book. Stopped at 12%.

The writing wasn’t great and neither were the characters, just wasn’t interested in continuing.

Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros

adventurous dark funny tense 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? Yes

4.25

Did I love the writing? Maybe not.

Did I still have a wildly good time reading it? ABSOLUTELY.

Dark Corners by Megan Goldin

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

3.5

I had a lot of fun reading this one! The second about the fictitious true crime podcaster from Night Swim, this was a quick and twisty read. I guessed pretty much every twist, but had a lot of fun on the ride, but I think there was some information that felt unnecessarily repetitive that I wish had been edited out in favor of some more character development of Rachel. But overall really fun and clever and I'd recommend! (esp so we can discuss thx!!)

Better Living Through Birding: Notes from a Black Man in the Natural World by Christian Cooper

adventurous funny inspiring reflective medium-paced

4.75

This was astounding. Most of us know of him from one viral video, but I think we should all know him for the wildly interesting life he's had (and hopefully will now that he has his own show!). I never thought I would care about comics or birding, and yet they way he weaves both in with stories from his life had me mesmerized (and bonus that he's hilarious!). This book reads like a hike through the forest, and I highly recommend it!

Pineapple Street by Jenny Jackson

emotional funny tense fast-paced

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

3.75

I thought this was fun and wild and messy and I couldn't stop reading. Probably not for everyone, but definitely for the dramatic ones.

You Just Need to Lose Weight: And 19 Other Myths about Fat People by Aubrey Gordon

challenging informative fast-paced

4.25

A short book that covers a lot of ground, I think it's a great reference on a number of topics!

And if you haven't listened to Maintenance Phase, do so posthaste thx!

Between Us by Mhairi McFarlane

emotional lighthearted reflective medium-paced

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

3.25

This was an interesting one, definitely marketed as romance but very light on the romance, heavy on the "investigating your screenwriter boyfriend who wrote your secrets into his show and might be a liar and a cheat" and tbh I love an amateur sleuth moment so I was here for it.

A Most Agreeable Murder by Julia Seales

funny lighthearted mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

This was so fun and was such a quick read! A mystery with some possible ~romance~ that despite being locked room with not a ton of characters that could be guilty, kept me guessing until the very end. A little cheesy but in a fun way, a great weekend/beach read!

How to Hide an Empire by Daniel Immerwahr

challenging informative slow-paced

3.75

Covered A LOT of info, super well written. Definitely will be returning to this one!

The Golden Spoon by Jessa Maxwell

dark mysterious fast-paced

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

3.0

A fun, kind of forgettable locked room mystery of a Great British Bake-Off vibe baking show. It had a couple good twists but overall I think it was missing something.