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kaerene's reviews
460 reviews
Daughter of the Moon Goddess by Sue Lynn Tan
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-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? No
4.0
I want to give Daughter of the Moon Goddess five stars, and I was going to, until the chapters after Xingyin leaves the Jade Palace (IYKYK). I didn’t feel like Xingyin recapping the previous 14 hours of a 15 hour audiobook to a certain character felt relevant. There were some moments of those chapters that needed it for reconnection but it was too much.
Aside from needing to cut some chapters at the end, I truly enjoyed this book. The writing is beautiful. The way that Sue Lynn Tan describes the places in her book and what Xingyin is experiencing is almost like prose and is extremely profound. I don’t think I’ve read or listened to anything like it before. I also loved the plot and got heavily invested while listening and would make comments to what other characters were doing or saying. AND! Part 4’s plot twist?! The way I screamed when that twist was revealed. Mind blown.
Aside from needing to cut some chapters at the end, I truly enjoyed this book. The writing is beautiful. The way that Sue Lynn Tan describes the places in her book and what Xingyin is experiencing is almost like prose and is extremely profound. I don’t think I’ve read or listened to anything like it before. I also loved the plot and got heavily invested while listening and would make comments to what other characters were doing or saying. AND! Part 4’s plot twist?! The way I screamed when that twist was revealed. Mind blown.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Violence, Blood, Grief, War, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Bullying, Gore, Death of parent
Flamer by Mike Curato
emotional
funny
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Hana Khan Carries On by Uzma Jalaluddin
emotional
funny
hopeful
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? It's complicated
4.0
I liked Hana Khan Carries On. This book has great characters, a very different plot from her other two books, and a compelling story. I’m also a sucker for rivals/enemies to lovers so I knew that I would enjoy that aspect of the plot.
My two complaints about Hana Khan was that I feel like the summary on the back of the book does a terrible job of setting up the reader for the family secret plot point. Like I expected Rashid to be involved with said secret, waited for him to be in on it when it was revealed and he was not. NGL, I was a little disappointed when my favorite side character from Uzma’s other two books aka Masood didn’t show up in this book. 🤣 Just thinking about reading a scene where both Masood and Rashid are hanging out together just makes me laugh. 🤣
My two complaints about Hana Khan was that I feel like the summary on the back of the book does a terrible job of setting up the reader for the family secret plot point. Like I expected Rashid to be involved with said secret, waited for him to be in on it when it was revealed and he was not. NGL, I was a little disappointed when my favorite side character from Uzma’s other two books aka Masood didn’t show up in this book. 🤣 Just thinking about reading a scene where both Masood and Rashid are hanging out together just makes me laugh. 🤣
Hijab Butch Blues: A Memoir by Lamya H
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
I really enjoyed Hijab Butch Blues. I liked how each chapter of the Lamya’s life and memories related to a prophet from the Quran. I really appreciated how every chapter (each with its own prophet and memories) was weaved differently from the last, making it seem like it was fresh. I especially loved Nuh’s chapter with the bad dates and preserving to find the good ones.
The Next Best Fling by Gabriella Gamez
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
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
4.5
Outright hated one of the characters (IYKYK) but really enjoyed The Next Best Fling! My best friend recommended this to me since the main character and I are very similar (can confirm; we both are obsessed with books and will share that passion with anyone and everyone lmao). I liked the plot, loved the love interest and the inner dialogue of the main character. It got a little old when the aforementioned hated character was mentioned or thought about too much but other than that, loved it.
Yaqui Delgado Wants to Kick Your Ass: The Graphic Novel by Meg Medina
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Lunar New Year Love Story by Gene Luen Yang
emotional
funny
lighthearted
sad
fast-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
4.0
I really enjoyed reading Lunar New Year Love Story. I loved all of the side characters, especially Val’s grandma, Bernice and Jae’s uncle, Yunsang. They were absolutely hilarious. My first of two complaints about the book was that I didn’t feel like we had a lot of time with Jae and Val and to see their relationship and their attraction grow more. (But I also understand that it’s a graphic novel and we can’t get too into it.) and my second complaint is the mom (and other family member reveals) subplot which felt really disjointed at times. All in all, loved it and I would definitely read it again.
The 7½ Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
The Pros: the writing style is very simple to read, the book is set at an /almost/ dilapidated 1920’s mansion, the murder mystery ground hogs day plot line was incredibly intriguing and kept me going for 75% of the book. I didn’t see the final twist right at the end and it fascinated and annoyed me at the same time.
The Cons: You don’t actually get to solving the mystery and putting in all the pieces together until you’re 75% into the book. It’s too dang long. You get to host 4 or 5 and then flip into someone else on the same day and it just got really old especially when those hosts didn’t find out anything. I predicted one of the plot twists. I felt like the end was rushed and if we didn’t spend so much time stumbling along with a few hosts, it didn’t have to be rushed.
The Cons: You don’t actually get to solving the mystery and putting in all the pieces together until you’re 75% into the book. It’s too dang long. You get to host 4 or 5 and then flip into someone else on the same day and it just got really old especially when those hosts didn’t find out anything. I predicted one of the plot twists. I felt like the end was rushed and if we didn’t spend so much time stumbling along with a few hosts, it didn’t have to be rushed.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Child death, Death, Drug use, Fatphobia, Gun violence, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Grief, Murder, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Rape, Self harm, Classism
Hide: The Graphic Novel by Kiersten White
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I tried reading the novel of Hide earlier in the year and didn’t like the third person perspective for all of the characters (14+ people). The narration didn’t have defined moments of where the change in POV happened and it ended up becoming really confusing. The graphic novel was very similar but was slightly clearer than the novel (but not by much). Like with the novel, I felt like I was still missing something from each character but could not tell you what. The characters just felt incredibly unfinished and didn’t have a lot of depth to them. I also loved the concept of this book, 14 people get chosen to compete in a reality tv show set in an abandoned amusement park, but I don’t think it was fully executed well.
I definitely enjoyed the art and thought it helped tell the story a lot better than the original.
I definitely enjoyed the art and thought it helped tell the story a lot better than the original.
The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman
Did not finish book. Stopped at 23%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 23%.
Couldn't really get into it. The humor was very dry which just didn't really translate well for me. I might try the audiobook later in life.