kdickerson38's reviews
579 reviews

Reveal Me by Tahereh Mafi

adventurous dark mysterious tense fast-paced

4.5

• Novella- #5.5 in the series and can’t be read as a stand-alone.
• I just ate this up.
• I can’t get enough of Kenji and his POV. 
• I like that Adam and James were brought back into the story with this, and in a big way.
• Curious to see what will be covered from this in the 6th book of the series because unlike the other novellas, this one felt like it had critical information that’s necessary for the plot.
• Loved the continued burnout/mental health representation.
• Ends on an insane cliffhanger.

Defy Me by Tahereh Mafi

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

4.5

• Tropes/themes:
  • Flashbacks
  • Multiple POVs
  • Love at first sight
  • Soulmates
• 5th book in the Shatter Me series- shouldn’t be read as a stand-alone. 
• Now it makes sense why they named her Juliette- love that.
• Yay for Kenji’s POV 😁
• At first I didn’t like the flashbacks but they were pretty interesting.
• I like all the new powers that keep getting introduced.
• Even more great character development.
• A lot of jaw-dropping moments and twists.
• The big Ella/Evie moment… whoa.
• Very captivating and engaging writing as usual in this series.
• This one mayyy be my fav of the series so far.

Shadow Me by Tahereh Mafi

funny lighthearted mysterious tense fast-paced

4.5

• HALLELUJAH WE WERE BLESSED WITH KENJI’S POV 😍
• This was everything I was hoping it’d be.
• Obsessed with Kenji and I love how this gave us more knowledge of who he is and how he thinks/feels.
• I’m surprised at how much I loved this with it only being a novella.
• This story overlapped with scenes that already happened in Restore Me but not only did it not feel repetitive, it provided more insight to what went on during that chaos. 
• A great way to get me even more excited for the next book in the series.

The Hiding Place by C.J. Tudor

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

4.5

• Tropes/themes:
  • Dual timelines
  • Slow burn
  • Return to small hometown
• Dark, suspenseful, chilling, and creepy.
• Eerie setting/atmosphere.
• The first half of this book was extremely slow but I’m so glad I stuck it out because the second half of the book had me completely hooked.
• Captivating and engaging writing.
• Slowly unveiled what really happened back when the MC was a teen, but didn’t stop there as it tied into what was happening in present day.
• Twist after twist… for sure kept me on my toes.
• I actually liked this better than The Chalk Man.
• The MC was written as an unlikable character, yet I liked him lol.
• Kind of reminded me of a mix of Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn, Pet Sematary by Stephen King, and Stranger Things.
• The epilogue felt out of place and unnecessary.
• Content warnings:
  • Murder
  • Child death
  • Suicide
  • Bullying
  • Violence
  • Blood/gore
  • Bigotry and prejudice
  • Bugs
  • Cancer
  • Body horror

Restore Me by Tahereh Mafi

mysterious tense medium-paced

3.5

• Tropes/themes:
  • Love triangle
  • War/politics
  • Power
  • Self-empowerment
  • Miscommunication trope
• 4th book in the Shatter Me series- shouldn’t be read as a stand-alone.
• I feel like nothing really happened in this book until the very end.
• I HATE the miscommunication trope, ugh.
• This one was super slow-paced, especially compared to the other books.
• The plot twist at the very end is pretty insane though.
• I didn’t really like the continuous flashbacks to Juliette’s journal- they felt like fillers and some were repetitive of entries in previous books/novellas.

Ignite Me by Tahereh Mafi

adventurous mysterious tense medium-paced

4.0

• Tropes/themes:
  • Love triangle
  • War
  • Power
  • Trust 
• Did I mention that Adam is a little bitch boy? 
• Okay but Warner is so toxic in the beginning- he was so condescending and was gaslighting the shit out of Juliette.
• There were parts that were a bit dull and repetitive but the action of the war was really fun and engaging; I only wish we could have had more of that action.
• Some cringey love stuff going on.
• Even more character development; Juliette becomes more bad-ass.
• Quotes:
  • “I want a pocketful of punctuation marks to end the thoughts he’s forced into my head.”
  • “It’s not charity,” I snap. “He cares about me—and I care about him!” Warner nods, unimpressed. “You should get a dog, love. I hear they share much the same qualities.”

Fracture Me by Tahereh Mafi

adventurous tense fast-paced

3.0

• Tropes/themes:
  • War
  • Novella
• It would have been so much better to have Adam’s perspective when he was going through his testing.
• Made me dislike Adam more- he’s a little bitch boy- and love Kenji more.
• I usually don’t mind, and even enjoy, novellas that aren’t necessary to the main books but this added SO little that I almost feel like I wasted my time reading it. Very mid.
• Content warnings:
  • War
  • Violence
  • Gun violence

Unravel Me by Tahereh Mafi

adventurous inspiring mysterious tense medium-paced

4.0

• Tropes/themes:
  • Love triangle
  • Power
  • War
  • Identity
• Short chapters.
• Great storytelling.
• Love the writing style.
• Juliette was a bit whiny and annoying in this book but there was a lot of character development too.
• A lot of shocking twists.
• I can’t decide how I feel about Juliette and Warner or even Juliette and Adam- each relationship is both toxic and beautiful.
• Kenji is my fav character, hands down.
• Content warnings:
  • Violence
  • Gun violence
  • War
  • Child abuse
  • Kidnapping
  • Death
  • Sexual content
  • Suicidal thoughts 

Scythe & Sparrow by Brynne Weaver

dark emotional funny lighthearted mysterious medium-paced

4.0

• Third book in a series but can be read as a stand-alone
• Tropes/themes:
  • Friends with benefits
  • Small town romance
  • Fish out of water
  • Forced proximity
  • Hurt/care
  • Touch her and die
  • Happily ever after
  • Cameos
  • Found family
  • Tarot cards
  • Circus performing
• Dark rom-com vibes
• Funny, intimate, and even suspenseful at times.
• Love how this story interweaved with the stories in the first two books.
• Highly recommend the audiobook version.
• Not as much spice as the second book but I liked the spice that was present.
• The story never became dull to me, but it didn’t get me as engaged and excited as Leather and Lark did.
• I’m not a huge fan of when he had to leave and then started writing the letters but I enjoyed everything else.
• A great ending to the trilogy.
• The final scene eludes to a spin-off series.
• Content warnings: 
  • Gore
  • Murder/death
  • Serial killers/contract killers
  • Injury details
  • Graphic sex
  • Injured dog
  • Domestic abuse

Colorado Mystery Merge by Fleur Bradley, Brooke Craig, Rhonda Blackhurst, Mary Birk, Kerry Hammond, Amy Rivers, Meagan Dallner, Leanne Kale Sparks, Jenna Lincoln, G. P. Gottlieb, Ann Dominguez, Marie Sutro, Becky Clark, Linda Solaya, Melissa Robbins, Holly Harris, Donnell Ann Bell, Peg Brantley, Francelia Belton

funny mysterious fast-paced

4.0

• Tropes/themes:
  • Murder mysteries/whodunnits
  • Short stories
• A really fun concept- one main murder mystery to solve and a ton of unrelated murder mystery short stories that each gave a small clue towards solving the main mystery.
• A good variety of murder mystery short stories
• Suspenseful
• Entertaining
• My favorite short stories:
  • When Trouble Calls by Amy Rivers
  • Call Julie Before You Dig by Ann Dominguez
  • The Purgatory of Emily Gray by Fleur Bradley Visscher 
  • Sins of the Past by Leanne Kale Sparks
  • The Wrong Linda by Linda Solaya
  • For the First Time by Marie Sutro 

Special thank you to the author for a digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!