karessa_proctor's reviews
133 reviews

Part of Your World by Abby Jimenez

adventurous emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.75

- This felt like a romcom in the best way
- I enjoyed how this book could be very serious but also pretty cheesy at times. I laughed and I cried. It handled serious topics well. 
- There could never be a better book boyfriend than Daniel Grant. 
- At times I think the✨magic✨ of it all through me off but some of it was cute. 

The Murder on the Links by Agatha Christie

mysterious 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? It's complicated

3.75

Plot got a little complicated at points which made it just a bit hard to follow but overall it’s a very good book that keeps you interested. 

The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie

mysterious reflective slow-paced

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

4.0

For this being her first Hercule Poirot book, it was really good but certainly not the best one. A few two many red herrings but this is worth the read! 

The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie

adventurous mysterious reflective fast-paced

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

4.75

Hercule Poirot you are sassy and I love it. I got hooked right from the beginning and it was a great ride. I have to say, I did guess who the kill was but it only made me have that great “I knew it” moment. 

The Perfect Son by Freida McFadden

dark mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

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

4.25

Maybe the perfect son was the friends we made along the way… either way this book was basically about how the real danger is being a boy mom. I did really like it. I would give it a 9/10 since it is your typical fast paced,  easy to read, and very entertaining Frieda book. Can’t believe I didn’t guess the main plot twist. 

Not sure is this is a spoiler so warning:
- Docking a point because the epilogue was not as good as her usual epilogues and it bummed me out lol. I don’t even consider it a “twist” it was kinda just like.. duh? Your kid is insane. 

Fallen Grace by Sadeqa Johnson

emotional hopeful inspiring reflective tense fast-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? It's complicated

5.0

It’s amazing that in such a short story I was able to feel so much. Maybe it’s because I read the “House of Eve” but I think this was such an amazing story overall. As someone who comes from a religious background this perfectly portrays how hypocritical that world can be. I audibly gasped but then was like… that feels right. Do yourself a favor and read this!! 

Normal People by Sally Rooney

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

3.75

This book was so complex that the way I felt by it is also complex. I love it, I hated it, I cared deeply for the characters, but then I hated the characters. It was disturbing sometimes and beautiful the next. It was a very humanizing experience. I think this is my Roman Empire. 

At first I was like… why would the author write it like that (if you know you know) and then when I got to understand the story more I realized that the lack of quotation marks that make you reread the paragraph makes you understand how miscommunication shows up in the book. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny, Physical abuse, Classism

If Beale Street Could Talk by James Baldwin

challenging dark emotional informative sad tense medium-paced

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

4.5

A heartbreaking tail of what racial injustice was like in the 1970’s for Black Americans. While the injustice happens to one specific character the story clearly explains how this act of injustice towards a person hurts their spouse, parents, friends, and community as a whole. The injustice of one is an injustice for all. 

While explanations and the experiences of the woman in the story are very clearly written by a man, I think this is an accurate portray of what real people suffered from. I also appreciated how complex and imperfect the characters were, it made them more real and human. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia, Racism, Rape

The Coworker by Freida McFadden

emotional mysterious reflective tense fast-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? It's complicated

3.75

Another easy to read, fast-paced, and entertaining book that is expected from this author. Like a lot of her books it starts out with a seemingly predictable plot but then you guessed it…. a twist or two!!! I know this about this author but it still leaves me shook every time. She keeps me glued to the book. 

While I did enjoy the book I have constructive criticism. The first few chapters were a LOT of turtle talk and less substance building for the story. I feel that the word turtle was used when she could have just written “figurine”, “cupcakes, “plush” or anything else. I also feel that overall this one is a bit less “thrilling” than her other books. There were still twists and shocking moments but in comparison to her other books this is a bit more vanilla. If I had read this first I think I would give it a 4/5 but for this one I will give it a 3.75/5. It is still worth the read!! 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Bullying, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Suicide attempt

Minor: Cursing, Infidelity

The 1619 Project: A New Origin Story by Nikole Hannah-Jones

emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense slow-paced

5.0

- Truly loved the use of real person examples. I think it really tied in how structural racism has personally harmed people/families/communities to this day
-I’ve been studying this topic for years and still learned so many new things from this book 
- Reads like a textbook so I recommend reading the physical copy while listening to the audiobook