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kaylasbewks's reviews
88 reviews
A Wizard's Guide to Defensive Baking by T. Kingfisher
adventurous
emotional
lighthearted
fast-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? It's complicated
5.0
stars ,, 5.0
cawpile ,, 10.0
want to read about dancing gingerbread-man golems fighting mercenaries? ,, this is your book!
i honestly can't express how much i loved this book. it was so fun 'n sweet and i cried, genuine sobs! this book was everything i wanted and more, it wasn't even on my tbr, i just saw the title and went,, yep, reading that now. the characters were fantastic,, and made me cry ,, the writing was impeccable (to the point of me forgetting where i was in real life for a hot minute) and the plot itself was so fun! would definitely recommend this! ,, definitely getting a physical copy noooowww ,, <3
cawpile ,, 10.0
want to read about dancing gingerbread-man golems fighting mercenaries? ,, this is your book!
i honestly can't express how much i loved this book. it was so fun 'n sweet and i cried, genuine sobs! this book was everything i wanted and more, it wasn't even on my tbr, i just saw the title and went,, yep, reading that now. the characters were fantastic,, and made me cry ,, the writing was impeccable (to the point of me forgetting where i was in real life for a hot minute) and the plot itself was so fun! would definitely recommend this! ,, definitely getting a physical copy noooowww ,, <3
Content Warnings
Graphic: War, Death, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Vomit and Grief
Minor: Animal death
Nineteen Claws and a Black Bird by Agustina Bazterrica
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
stars ,, 2.0
cawpile ,, 3.66
super disappointed !! there were only,, two(?) memorable sections in this book, maybe even one (and i just finished this). there was so much potential for almost all of these stories and the writing honestly showed great promise, which is why i'll still be checking out 'tender is the flesh'. a personal con ; i struggle to identify overarching metaphors in stories when left with no 'hints' which stood true for quite a few of these and therefore made them pointless in my eyes, so i couldn't even understand some of the stories, let alone enjoy them. bleh.
** was going to make a favourite to least favourite list but i'm looking at the story names and can't remember any of them. sob!
cawpile ,, 3.66
super disappointed !! there were only,, two(?) memorable sections in this book, maybe even one (and i just finished this). there was so much potential for almost all of these stories and the writing honestly showed great promise, which is why i'll still be checking out 'tender is the flesh'. a personal con ; i struggle to identify overarching metaphors in stories when left with no 'hints' which stood true for quite a few of these and therefore made them pointless in my eyes, so i couldn't even understand some of the stories, let alone enjoy them. bleh.
** was going to make a favourite to least favourite list but i'm looking at the story names and can't remember any of them. sob!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Child abuse, Suicide, Blood, and Pedophilia
Moderate: Abortion and Physical abuse
Toilet-Bound Hanako-Kun, Vol. 1 by AidaIro
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
stars ,, 2.0
cawpile ,, 4.0
i really enjoyed the art style and general plot in this volume !! those were the only positives. the sexualisation of the fmc (who is a child) was way too icky for me to ever consider continuing this series. there are so many ways to portray an innocent child longing for 'romance', and it's been done many times before - but this was just blatantly gross. if you don't think that,, go away !!
original thoughts ;
I really liked the art style and the general plot, I would've continued this series today if the MFC who is a child wasn't sexualised so often.
cawpile ,, 4.0
i really enjoyed the art style and general plot in this volume !! those were the only positives. the sexualisation of the fmc (who is a child) was way too icky for me to ever consider continuing this series. there are so many ways to portray an innocent child longing for 'romance', and it's been done many times before - but this was just blatantly gross. if you don't think that,, go away !!
original thoughts ;
I really liked the art style and the general plot, I would've continued this series today if the MFC who is a child wasn't sexualised so often.
Witch Hat Atelier, Volume 1 by Kamome Shirahama
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
stars ,, 4.0
cawpile ,, 8.28
this was a very bittersweet experience !! the art style was adorable, the characters were instantly lovable and the plot was extremely interesting,, but the plot was also heart-breaking. am i going to cry at some point during this series? probably.
original thoughts ;
This was very bittersweet. I loved the art style and the characters already seem loveable, I'm very prepared to have my heart broken here.
cawpile ,, 8.28
this was a very bittersweet experience !! the art style was adorable, the characters were instantly lovable and the plot was extremely interesting,, but the plot was also heart-breaking. am i going to cry at some point during this series? probably.
original thoughts ;
This was very bittersweet. I loved the art style and the characters already seem loveable, I'm very prepared to have my heart broken here.
Cat + Gamer, Volume 1 by Wataru Nadatani
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Oh my god. OH MY GOD.
This was the sweetest thing ever, I laughed so many times 'nd the fricking cats SO CUTE. Buying more right now.
This was the sweetest thing ever, I laughed so many times 'nd the fricking cats SO CUTE. Buying more right now.
Jade City by Fonda Lee
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
DNFed at 65%
This was way too slow for me. The characters didn't feel fleshed out, I didn't care for any of them, the women were wrote as some kind of separate species (didn't pass the Bechdel test either, not a surprise there) and the MMC was quite literally just a brat. I didn't want to DNF this as it's been loved by so many, but I truly couldn't get myself to read another page. The 'heart-wrenching' moments had absolutely no impact on me either, so I wasn't interested in the plot or characters themselves and I didn't even feel emotionally impacted. Bleh!
This was way too slow for me. The characters didn't feel fleshed out, I didn't care for any of them, the women were wrote as some kind of separate species (didn't pass the Bechdel test either, not a surprise there) and the MMC was quite literally just a brat. I didn't want to DNF this as it's been loved by so many, but I truly couldn't get myself to read another page. The 'heart-wrenching' moments had absolutely no impact on me either, so I wasn't interested in the plot or characters themselves and I didn't even feel emotionally impacted. Bleh!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Violence, Suicide, Murder, Gun violence, Drug use, Sexual content, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Hide by Kiersten White
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
First one star of 2024! 🎉
This book was not enjoyable at all.. to be fair I did laugh a couple times but that was because I felt like I was going insane. The characters were flat, their relationships with one another felt meaningless and rushed, every stereotype under the sun was chucked in there too alongside other overused horror tropes. The writing was just baffling, the perspective jumps were jarring and ruined any chance of tension + the reader is literally told the entire backstory and origin of the threat through letters. The characters don't find anything themselves and instead luckily run into someone who can tell them everything! The primary villain is cartoonish and so annoying it makes my brain explode, the 'others' are not even in the book so that's wonderful. The plot itself felt obvious too. I want to cry.
..Apologies for the disorganised 'review', it's almost 1am and I just needed to get all my thoughts out so I could sleep without my brain exploding. <3
Rated using the CAWPILE sytem. :3
This book was not enjoyable at all.. to be fair I did laugh a couple times but that was because I felt like I was going insane. The characters were flat, their relationships with one another felt meaningless and rushed, every stereotype under the sun was chucked in there too alongside other overused horror tropes. The writing was just baffling, the perspective jumps were jarring and ruined any chance of tension + the reader is literally told the entire backstory and origin of the threat through letters. The characters don't find anything themselves and instead luckily run into someone who can tell them everything! The primary villain is cartoonish and so annoying it makes my brain explode, the 'others' are not even in the book so that's wonderful. The plot itself felt obvious too. I want to cry.
..Apologies for the disorganised 'review', it's almost 1am and I just needed to get all my thoughts out so I could sleep without my brain exploding. <3
Rated using the CAWPILE sytem. :3
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide, Gun violence, and Misogyny
Moderate: War and Child death
Penpal by Dathan Auerbach
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Wow. The first half of this book was phenomenal from the writing to the characters. I really appreciated the fact that the MC's mother made reasonable & safe choices rather than the idiotic ones you usually see in horror media - I actually liked the way her character was written the whole way through. The atmosphere and writing at the beginning was amazing, I was genuinely creeped out for the first 50-75% of the book but unfortunately towards the end, (as the MC grew up) , it began to fall flat for me.
I do believe that the ending itself was well done, it was consistent and logical.. and I was extremely close to crying, but the build up fell too far into the typical horror cliches for me. Overall, I'm glad I read this book because of the first 50-75%... wow.
Rated using the CAWPILE system. :3
I do believe that the ending itself was well done, it was consistent and logical.. and I was extremely close to crying, but the build up fell too far into the typical horror cliches for me. Overall, I'm glad I read this book because of the first 50-75%... wow.
Rated using the CAWPILE system. :3
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death and Stalking
Moderate: Kidnapping and Pedophilia
All Boys Aren't Blue by George M. Johnson
emotional
informative
fast-paced
5.0
I think the majority fear becoming the minority, and so they will do anything and everything to protect their power.
This memoir was fantastic. The experiences shared were insightful, educational, and full of emotion. The author was extremely vulnerable, which added a heartwrenching layer to this book. When I discovered that this book has been banned in 29 school districts (USA), I was honestly baffled, but it did make me read this book, and I'm so glad I did (even if I cried a handful of times). I will forever recommend this book to anyone and everyone. I've shared a couple of quotes throughout that stuck with me.
As a Black queer person, I've died hundreds of times. Will likely die hundreds more times before my physical death. That is the lesson of death, though - from death comes rebirth. A rebirth in thinking, in processing, in living.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism, Sexual assault, Homophobia, and Sexual content
Moderate: Drug use and Alcohol
Lumberjanes, Vol. 1: Beware the Kitten Holy by Grace Ellis, ND Stevenson, Shannon Watters
adventurous
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Super cute first volume! Loved the art style & especially loved the characters + their dynamics. Cute cute cute.
Rated using the CAWPILE system :3
Rated using the CAWPILE system :3