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kimothay's reviews
50 reviews
What My Bones Know: A Memoir of Healing from Complex Trauma by Stephanie Foo
challenging
emotional
informative
reflective
fast-paced
5.0
Make Room for Love by Darcy Liao
emotional
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? Yes
4.25
Moon of the Crusted Snow by Waubgeshig Rice
dark
informative
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
I loved the cultural aspect of this book and found it super interesting to learn more about Indigenous (specifically Anishinaabe) culture and traditions. The look into their language and religious beliefs was very insightful and intriguing. I also enjoyed the main character, Evan, though I never felt particularly attached to any of the other characters. The storyline felt too prolonged and slow for the first 85% of the book, and the last 15% felt extremely rushed—especially the last couple chapters. I’m glad I read this book overall, but I probably won’t read the sequel.
Ribbonwood by Ruby Landers
emotional
funny
inspiring
reflective
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
5.0
This book had me hooked within the first 50 pages, and by the last 50, I couldn’t put it down. I loved the complex themes and characters, and the relationship development between Ollie and Lara was very sweet and mature. I’m a bit fan of slow-burns and the enemies-to-lovers arc, and this was both. Feminism and “girlhood” were two huge themes of the book, and the various layers of “women supporting women” were all beautiful.
SMALL TALK: 10 ADHD lies and how to stop believing them by Roxanne Pink, Richard Pink
emotional
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
5.0
I loved their first book, Dirty Laundry, and this was just as good (if not better, honestly). As a mental health therapist who works with a lot of ADHDers and is AuDHD myself, this book was incredible on so many levels. I absolutely love the emphasis that managing ADHD is not a matter of trying harder, doing better, or being less of anything—rather, it’s just a part of us that sometimes causes frustration and is other times beautiful. It was a great, balanced mix of empathy/validation and a challenging “kick in the ass.” I also appreciate that it’s very ADHD-friendly to read with lots of headers, clear paragraph spacing, bullet points, and straightforward questions.
Tales from the Café by Toshikazu Kawaguchi
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
I enjoyed this book a little more than the first one, though I think that’s partially because it takes me a while to connect with characters so being able to continue with some of their stories was helpful. I generally liked most of the stories, but like the first book, I thought they were all just okay. There weren’t any particular characters that jumped out or stories that left me in awe or anything. I also found the frequent reiteration of the rules annoying and repetitive. (However, I acknowledge that they’re separate stories and different characters so some of the repetition is due to that.)
A few positives, though: There were a few really impactful quotes that I saved, one story I particularly liked (Mother and Son), and I really love the concept of the time traveling before the coffee cools.
The Best Friend: 2.5/5
Mother and Son: 4.5/5
The Lovers: 4/5
The Married Couple: 3/5
A few positives, though: There were a few really impactful quotes that I saved, one story I particularly liked (Mother and Son), and I really love the concept of the time traveling before the coffee cools.
The Best Friend: 2.5/5
Mother and Son: 4.5/5
The Lovers: 4/5
The Married Couple: 3/5
Triple Sec by TJ Alexander
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
I’m a huge fan of queer romance novels and I was super excited to read this one since there’s non-binary and polyamory representation (neither of which are super common in romance books, and I personally resonate with both). I really wanted to love this book, but it was just okay to me. Despite being in her early 30s, the MC (Mel) came off as dramatic and immature to me. Bebe was a fun and lovely character, but I felt she lacked depth. Kade was my favorite character, and I would have loved for the cabin scenes to be longer and more detailed. The characters seemed relatively shallow and I felt the whole thing was very rushed. Honestly, I wish the first two parts of the story would have been 100 pages longer each. It was also pretty steamy which I typically enjoy, but unfortunately I didn’t feel like I knew or cared about the characters enough to really enjoy it.
What I will say, though, is that I loved the polyamory representation and depiction of a healthy ENM dynamic. I do think it was a bit heavy on “here’s what polyamory is and here’s some terms” rather than showing it through the characters and plot, but compared to most other queer romances, it was a great depiction. I also really enjoyed how the author didn’t make a massive show of Kade being non-binary.
Overall, it was okay. Great representation and the concept is so interesting, but it just fell really flat for me. I would recommend it for the representation and portrayal of polyamory (which is what’s keeping it at a 3), but the plot and characters alone would be a 2.5, unfortunately.
What I will say, though, is that I loved the polyamory representation and depiction of a healthy ENM dynamic. I do think it was a bit heavy on “here’s what polyamory is and here’s some terms” rather than showing it through the characters and plot, but compared to most other queer romances, it was a great depiction. I also really enjoyed how the author didn’t make a massive show of Kade being non-binary.
Overall, it was okay. Great representation and the concept is so interesting, but it just fell really flat for me. I would recommend it for the representation and portrayal of polyamory (which is what’s keeping it at a 3), but the plot and characters alone would be a 2.5, unfortunately.
Filthy Animals by Brandon Taylor
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This is my first Brandon Taylor read! Short story collections are usually not my favorite because I very much need detailed, direct character development to thoroughly get invested in a story. However, I enjoyed many of the stories in this collection and I’m interested to read more of Taylor’s work. This is definitely a dark read with lots of content/trigger warnings; however, since the main theme of the book is how humans seek connection but resort to violence, it was to be expected. I would have liked to see more character development or addressing of core problems, but overall, I enjoyed the collection. The standout for me was Anne of Cleves.
Potluck: 4/5
Potluck: 4/5
Little Beast: 4/5
Flesh: 3.5/5
As Though That Were Love: 3.5/5
Proctoring: 4/5
Filthy Animals: 3/5
Mass: 2.5/5
Anne of Cleves: 4.5/5
Apartment: 3/5
What Made Them Made You: 4/5
Meat: 3/5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Self harm, Sexual assault, Suicide attempt
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence
Minor: Eating disorder, Homophobia, Pedophilia, Racial slurs, Terminal illness, Grief, Outing
Before the Coffee Gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
This book was just okay. All four of these stories had some sweet or meaningful elements, but they were so short that I had a hard time getting invested in the stories. I’m definitely the type of reader that needs a lot of direct character development in order to get invested in a book; so, while I enjoyed most of the stories, I never felt particularly emotionally attached to any characters.
I found the first story to be a bit more trivial in comparison to the other three, and I thought Fumiko was mostly just whiny and dramatic. The second story was good, but again, I had a hard time feeling attached to the characters. If it were longer, I could totally see myself being more emotionally affected as Alzheimer’s/memory problems hit close to home. The third and fourth stories were my favorites, and I would read a full-length book of either of those in a heartbeat! Overall, I enjoyed the stories and loved a lot of the ideas, but I never felt especially attached to the characters and felt they weren’t long enough stories to get me fully engaged.
I found the first story to be a bit more trivial in comparison to the other three, and I thought Fumiko was mostly just whiny and dramatic. The second story was good, but again, I had a hard time feeling attached to the characters. If it were longer, I could totally see myself being more emotionally affected as Alzheimer’s/memory problems hit close to home. The third and fourth stories were my favorites, and I would read a full-length book of either of those in a heartbeat! Overall, I enjoyed the stories and loved a lot of the ideas, but I never felt especially attached to the characters and felt they weren’t long enough stories to get me fully engaged.