kassidyreads's reviews
1055 reviews

Ship of Magic by Robin Hobb

adventurous dark emotional tense slow-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

5.0

Robin Hobb continues to impress me! I'll admit I wasn't sure about this book at first, but once I got to know the characters, I began to really enjoy the story. The characters really stood out! They have such strength and determination that I couldn't help but root for them! The magic and world-building were also fascinating. I can't wait to read the rest of the series! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Drug use, Misogyny, Slavery, Violence, Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Animal death, Rape, Sexual content, Blood, Death of parent

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Suicidal thoughts

Fledgling by S.K. Ali

adventurous dark medium-paced

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

3.5

I love dystopian books, so this one was right up my alley! It took me some time to get into since the first couple of chapters were really heavy on world-building, but once I got past that, the pacing flowed more smoothly. The concept wasn't unique, but I thought the author did a good job considering this was her first non-contemporary novel. My only issue was that there were too many POVs and I didn't fully connect with any of them. The characters' decisions didn't always make sense to me,

and Nada's death felt so random.

All in all, I look forward to seeing where the story goes in the sequel. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Death, Gun violence, Torture, Fire/Fire injury

Minor: Child abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Rape, Trafficking, Death of parent

These Deadly Prophecies by Andrea Tang

funny mysterious fast-paced

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

2.5

This was sort of like Knives Out but with magic. It was a decent, quick read. I liked the quirky writing style, though the ending was a bit underwhelming. Also, I still don't fully understand how the fortune-telling magic works. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Murder

Minor: Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Dementia

Onyx Storm by Rebecca Yarros

adventurous tense slow-paced

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

2.0

This book tries to be tough and badass, but the writing was so bad I had a hard time taking it seriously. While there was a lot of action, there was hardly any plot progression. I couldn't care less about anything that was happening. I still think there are too many side characters. At this point, I've given up trying to remember who they all are. Ridoc and Aaric were the only characters that stood out to me in this book. The rest of the cast hasn't made enough of an impact for me to remember them. Also, I agree with other reviewers that ending was stupid and confusing. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Sexual content, Violence, War

Minor: Chronic illness, Grief, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail

Assassin's Quest by Robin Hobb

adventurous emotional 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

3.5

This book was a struggle to get through! The plot involved a lot of travelling, which I found boring, and many of the characters that I liked in the previous books barely made an appearance. Fitz made so many stupid decisions, but I'm willing to forgive him since he was going through a lot. At least the character development was good, and I loved the relationships between Nighteyes, Fitz, and the Fool! Despite my mixed feelings for this book, I still really enjoyed the series!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Panic attacks/disorders, Violence, War

Moderate: Addiction, Drug use, Miscarriage, Rape

Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Infertility, Alcohol

Royal Assassin by Robin Hobb

adventurous emotional tense slow-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

5.0

This was so good! I loved it just as much as the first book! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Torture, Violence, War, Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Chronic illness, Drug use, Alcohol

Minor: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Rape, Grief, Pregnancy

The Thief by Megan Whalen Turner
Did not finish book. Stopped at 62%.

DNF @ 62%

This is incredibly slow and boring. I hate books that involve a lot of travelling and that is all that's happening in this book! I don't care about the characters at all. The only reason I got this far was because everyone says it gets better in the second half but I'm struggling so much I don't think it's worth it.

This Is Why We Lie by Gabriella Lepore

mysterious fast-paced

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

2.5

This was flat and forgettable. I felt like we never got to fully know the characters and therefore I didn't really care about them.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Infidelity, Death of parent, Murder

Minor: Drug use, Mental illness, Grief, Abandonment, Alcohol

I Am Number Four by Pittacus Lore

adventurous tense medium-paced

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

1.0

This was so basic a child could have written it.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Death, Violence, Fire/Fire injury

Heir of Fire by Sarah J. Maas

adventurous dark emotional tense slow-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 found this book far more boring than the first two. The pace was quite slow, and it felt like nothing happened for most of the book. I wasn't a fan of how cold and difficult Celaena was at the beginning. So many new characters were introduced! Manon and Abraxos were great! Everyone seems to love Rowan, but I honestly couldn’t stand him! I still love Chaol and Dorian! Things really picked up at the end, so I have hope for the next book!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Physical abuse, Violence, Grief, Death of parent

Moderate: Torture, Fire/Fire injury

Minor: Animal death, Drug use, Slavery