juliana_reads's reviews
347 reviews

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense slow-paced

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

4.5

A damn good fantasy. Book two truly left off right where book one ended, and I was satisfied by the ending. My biggest “issue” was that the author’s prose was often repetitive (e.g. “limned in red” or relying heavily on the em dash) and I couldn’t stop noticing. One plot line was a bit predictable, but that also may have been my fault because I googled what each tree looked like so I could visualize better, and I should not have looked up

Taxus.

Once I did that I connected the dots. Oops!

Content Warnings

Cruel Seduction by Katee Robert

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dark emotional mysterious tense fast-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

3.5

I think this was the weakest of the series so far, because it served only to set up the next big part of the Olympus storyline and had four POVs (so not a lot of forward movement). Pandora especially felt underdeveloped to me. But I still ate it all up! I love this series.

Content Warnings

Give Me Butterflies by Jillian Meadows

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emotional funny lighthearted 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? It's complicated

5.0

I debated whether I would give this 5 stars because there were a few little things that I picked at, but honestly this was such a good book that I just let them go. I screamed with delight, I swooned, I cheered for the protagonists…and there were a bunch of museum nerds too!

Content Warnings

Lore Olympus: Volume One by Rachel Smythe

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dark fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.0

Really beautiful graphic novel, but hard to follow? Like I have basic but solid understanding of mythology but I felt dropped in the middle of a story with no context. Also did not realize there would be an on page r*pe, even with the content warnings.

The fact she was a virgin made it even worse.

I got this from the library with volume two so I am going to give it another try.

Update 1/23/24: tried volume two, couldn’t get past the first few pages. The more I think about it the more I am disappointed by volume one, so I am dropping the rating down.

Content Warnings

Do Your Worst by Rosie Danan

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adventurous funny mysterious fast-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

4.5

I loved this! I thought it was funny, spicy, and the dash of folk magic was a nice touch. One thing I struggle with in enemies-to-lovers is that sometimes they are cruel to each other.

Riley’s comment after they were intimate was way too mean, even if it was for the curse.

Otherwise I blew through this book and enjoyed it.

Content Warnings

One Dark Window by Rachel Gillig

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dark mysterious tense

Strong character development? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

My Roommate Is a Vampire by Jenna Levine

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funny lighthearted fast-paced

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

4.0

Such a silly book I couldn’t help but love it. One of those books you really can’t take too seriously. It had me laughing out loud enough to confidently recommend it as a fun, light read for spooky season.

This Winter by Alice Oseman

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4.0

Nick and Charlie by Alice Oseman

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emotional reflective medium-paced