keepcalmblogon's reviews
177 reviews

Shadow Coven by S. Isabelle

adventurous mysterious tense 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? No

4.0

Shadow Coven was greatly anticipated after having loved The Witchery! Although this book takes place in the summer after The Witchery, it still feels autumnal to me—probably because of the witches! This book has the cast mostly separating off into their own subplots: Thalia, Logan, and Trent head back to Thalia’s hometown to solve the mystery of missing witches, Jailah teams up with her ex Veronica to fight the suppression of baby witch powers, and Iris, Matthew, and Bex discover what exactly their connection to each other is and how to use it.

This book is unique in that there isn’t really an overarching plot for the entire crew, but I still liked how it ends up tying up loose ends from subplots in book one. Overall, I think there were very good conclusions for everyone’s individual storylines, and while there was closure, there is also enough set up for possible future stories! Four stars!

For She is Wrath by Emily Varga

adventurous mysterious fast-paced

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

5.0

You had me at Pakistani Count of Monte Cristo retelling! This was a Macmillan Audio pick I knew I needed! This book came on my radar months ago, and I was practically feral for it! The Count of Monte Cristo was a favorite book, and Guy Pearce movie, of mine growing up.

First of all, I love a gender swap—let's go FMC out for revenge! I love a woman’s wrongs, we do them right! I also love the subplot of two down and out prisoners, betrayed by the emperor, finding allyship and then friendship with each other. Noor is the voice of reason to Dania’s rage, and I really feel like that worked so well, as opposed to something like inner turmoil; Dania never questions her actions and instead has meaningful conversations with her friend.

I was waiting for Mazin’s actions to make sense and got a good amount of cookie crumb clues throughout that when we finally got the reveal, it felt so good, and rightly shook Dania!

I loved the romance, it wasn’t shy and had plenty of tension from the past through the present. 

Also, the big twist in Dania’s betrayal story was absolutely perfect, I did not see that coming! And the end resolution was powerful with strong messaging. All I want now is a Noor story! In the end, this book was five stars!

I enjoyed Safiyya Ingar’s narration and was excited to see that I knew them from TV!

Strangers in Our Hearts by Bri Eberhart

adventurous emotional tense medium-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 think it’s safe to say that the dystopian genre is making a comeback! Bri Eberhart’s sequel novel in her Strangers series, Strangers in Our Hearts, turns the world upside down in a dystopian nightmare, complete with a corrupt government and brainwashing radio waves. Bri pulls no punches in her sophomore novel; there is heartbreak, grief, and loss aplenty, raising the stakes substantially for her Chaos Crew. I recommend this book and series to anyone who loved The Darkest Minds or Divergent. Four stars for mutant mayhem and starcrossed love!

Januaries: Stories of Love, Magic & Betrayal by Olivie Blake

adventurous emotional funny inspiring medium-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

This is the second anthology I’ve read this year, so I’m feeling my short story era! Januaries was a Macmillan Audio pick and it did not disappoint–I absolutely love Olivie Blake! 

Short stories are fun because they often pack a punch and are easy to digest. I also appreciate that if there was a story that was not for me, I have something to look forward to after it’s over, which was the case for Monsterlove–definitely an interesting take, but it was not for me.

All of the short stories in this book center around love, magic, and/or betrayal–because sometimes betrayal or love is served with a side of the other! This collection runs the gamut of fairy story to dystopia and odds and ends in between–speculative fiction and Greek mythology included!

One of my favorite stories, The Animation Games, is a tale of love, betrayal, and magic all rolled together. It was at times funny, heartbreaking, and inspirational. It was also incredibly violent, but in a fun way with a good amount of magic and ghosts!

In the end, this book was five stars, and I think there are stories in here for everyone. I love that when I listen to a Blake book I usually get some of my favorite narrators, including Steve West and David Monteith.

The Indian Card: Who Gets to Be Native in America by Carrie Lowry Schuettpelz

informative reflective medium-paced

5.0

The Indian Card: Who Gets to Be Native in America was a Macmillan Audio pick, and I need everyone to read this book. This book is completely indescribable in the insight Carrie Lowry Schuettpelz frankly shares on Native American self and political identity in the United States. It is honestly hard for me to talk about the impositions on Native Americans because it frustrates me on their behalf, and yet I recognize my white, American, privilege. This book would be perfect for anyone on a journey of decolonizing one’s mind—which is so important for living in our world today.

Schuettpelz does not hold back in her call outs of “f-ed up” situations, which I absolutely admired because why would we beat around the bush of ugliness? Sometimes, the data and numbers did lose me a little, and I’d have to go over them again, but she is admittedly into data, and numbers have not historically been it for me. My favorite parts of this book were the anecdotes that Schuettpelz recorded from individuals from around the country and in various tribes, one being a First Nations woman. Schuettpelz peeled back the layers of intricacies of US federal law and tribal law, revealing hypocrisies, racism, and the effects of colonization on Native American tribes’ own cultures. 

As you can imagine, this book had no “answers” per se, but it presented data and perspectives I think are important. And that’s honestly such an understatement.

I recommend this book to absolutely everyone. I listened to the audiobook, narrated by Amy Hall, a new to me narrator with quite a few titles under her belt, and do recommend it for audiophiles as well.

Hip-Hop Is History by Questlove

hopeful informative reflective fast-paced

5.0

Hip-Hop is History was a Macmillan Audio “bonus” book, and I was so excited to read it because I know The Roots from Jimmy Fallon (I’m a huge fan!), and having grown up through the 90s I also have a healthy love of hip-hop! Reading this book definitely uncovered how little I actually know about hip-hop though? To be fair, I don’t know the history of a lot of music, but I do love learning history! So this book was really enlightening and entertaining. Some bits kind of went over my head, like when Questlove would list artists, albums, and release dates, that kind of stuff isn’t easy for me to absorb on the fly. But the events, while often entertaining, could also be heartbreaking. In the Epilogue, Questlove sums up, “So much of hip-hop is a reflection of pain, even the joyful parts…It was trauma music...I’m not sure that I want there to be any more hip-hop in 2123. I want it to truly be history. Breakbeats are evidence of how we were once broken, and I want nothing more than to bring about a healing.” This book was absolutely five stars, and I recommend it to any music and/or history enthusiast. Questlove narrates it himself, which adds a conversational tone that also is revealing in his pauses, breaths, scoffs, and laughs–-like music.

Perfume: The Story of a Murderer by Patrick Süskind

dark tense medium-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

5.0

Perfume was such a unique book in that we follow a murderer with no sense of guilt or morality while he creates amazing perfumes with near supernatural skill. I actually love historical fiction, so the setting of 18th Century Paris and other French locales was enjoyable, and the imagery of the scents, sights, and feel of the dirty city and people were really well-done. This book about scent, something that I think can be hard to visualize, especially of an unfamiliar odor, was masterfully evocative of that sense; it was truly pleasurable simply to read those descriptions. This book is so hard to describe plot-wise, not for lack of plot but because the plot isn’t exactly what the book is about? If I were to describe the plot, you might want to read this, but this book is more about the experience of reading it than hearing a story. In the end, it was definitely five stars for me!

The Witchery by S. Isabelle

adventurous dark mysterious medium-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

4.0

I read The Witchery two years ago and thoroughly enjoyed it! There was Black girl witches, allegory, symbolism, found family, a touch of romance, and queer rep. I was impatiently waiting for book two to release, Shadow Coven, and never got around to writing my review for book one. So of course, when Shadow Coven released this year, I had to reread The Witchery! I enjoyed it as much the second time around and definitely recommend it for anyone who enjoys magical realism, magic schools, cursed towns, hauntings, and the above-mentioned content! It’s also a perfect fall read for that back to school feel and witchy realness—four stars!

The Near Witch by V.E. Schwab

adventurous mysterious medium-paced

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

5.0

The Near Witch was everything I expected from V.E. Schwab’s debut book! It was witchy, haunting, mysterious, and bittersweet. This book is full of small-town witch vibes; a stranger comes to call, the wind whispers, quite literally, through the trees, children go missing, and a past murder is revealed. There is also a YA romance that is sweet, yet risky. This edition of the book also has the short story The Ash-Born Boy and that’s truly a must-read for anyone who likes a character’s prequel story for why they are the way they are! This book was five stars for me!

How to Help a Hungry Werewolf by Charlotte Stein

funny fast-paced

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

3.5

How to Help a Hungry Werewolf was a Macmillan Audio pick and something that is usually outside of my usual read, but it just looked so funny I had to choose it!

I immediately knew I was right that it was funny! The banter between Cassie and Seth was reminiscent of Buffy and Gilmore Girls—the small town, autumn vibes were especially Gilmore-esque! This baby witch and werewolf’s chemistry is perfect, and yet I wasn’t a huge fan of their spicy scenes as they felt obligatory and transactional instead of romantic and steamy—at least until the end when their feelings are fully revealed.

I was disappointed the raccoon on the cover didn’t enter until 69% through, in chapter 21! He was my favorite character!

I enjoyed the narration by Yael Rizowy! In the end, this book is 3.5 stars.