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kinzo103's reviews
40 reviews
Black Shield Maiden by Jess Hendel, Willow
adventurous
dark
hopeful
inspiring
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
I really loved this book, it was exactly what I wanted it to be and it surpassed my expectations. I loved the characters, I loved the growth, I loved the care taken to build this world in a (I hope?) historically accurate way.
My only complaint with this story is how long it takes to feel like anything is really happening with the main plot. Such great care is taken to establish the setting that the beginning felt a bit slow. As someone who really enjoys reading historical fiction, I didn't mind it too much. Also, a lot of that world building is describing the MC's experience of life pre, during, and post being kidnapped by slavers, which is not only important to the story but also important to illustrate for anyone not familiar with the subject, like myself.
Once I hit 70%, I literally couldn't put it down. I have so much love for the core group of characters and the way they come together and fight for each other. A great take on found family, even when you find them in the worst ways imaginable. I loved how many strong, resilient women are in this story, and the way that two cultures come together in the most unlikely circumstances.
I also appreciate that this book doesn't really hand feed the reader information. There are details and elements of the story that connect and the authors don't explicitly explain it, there is an expectation that the reader will figure it out. This isn't an overly-easy read, which made it more enjoyable.
My only complaint with this story is how long it takes to feel like anything is really happening with the main plot. Such great care is taken to establish the setting that the beginning felt a bit slow. As someone who really enjoys reading historical fiction, I didn't mind it too much. Also, a lot of that world building is describing the MC's experience of life pre, during, and post being kidnapped by slavers, which is not only important to the story but also important to illustrate for anyone not familiar with the subject, like myself.
Once I hit 70%, I literally couldn't put it down. I have so much love for the core group of characters and the way they come together and fight for each other. A great take on found family, even when you find them in the worst ways imaginable. I loved how many strong, resilient women are in this story, and the way that two cultures come together in the most unlikely circumstances.
I also appreciate that this book doesn't really hand feed the reader information. There are details and elements of the story that connect and the authors don't explicitly explain it, there is an expectation that the reader will figure it out. This isn't an overly-easy read, which made it more enjoyable.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Death, and Slavery
Moderate: Misogyny, Sexual assault, and Racism
Minor: Child death and Pregnancy
We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson
dark
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This story is very exemplary of Shirley Jackson’s writing. This is a different twist on her common themes of class identities, ostracism, and public persecution. I appreciated the elements of the burden of domesticity, agoraphobia, and obsessive compulsive thinking. Jackson has a distinct way of writing about people that adds to the tone of the story but can feel like it’s adding a lot of words with no plot advancement, and this story definitely had that element. While it felt very slow initially, things picked up about 30% of the way and I really enjoyed the character exploration throughout.
Chain-Gang All-Stars by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah
dark
informative
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
I know this book is satirical, but this Hunger Games version of the American carceral institution has a certain 'uncanny valley' quality to it, because it is so close to true but not quite. It took me a while to finish this book because it is quite bleak, but that is not a knock on this book, it's just a truth of the subject matter.
Adjei-Brenyah's writing style here is brutally direct and representative of said subject matter. You read something horrible and then it's on to the next thing because thats just the way it is when you're trapped in a brutal system. This book mocks any idea of prison being a rehabilitative program, and questions our goals of punishment and how the current system contributes to recidivism.
I really appreciated the way that references are cited throughout the story. It was a great reminder that this isn't just a story, that these horrors are based in fact and very much connected to our reality. This book should be required reading.
Adjei-Brenyah's writing style here is brutally direct and representative of said subject matter. You read something horrible and then it's on to the next thing because thats just the way it is when you're trapped in a brutal system. This book mocks any idea of prison being a rehabilitative program, and questions our goals of punishment and how the current system contributes to recidivism.
I really appreciated the way that references are cited throughout the story. It was a great reminder that this isn't just a story, that these horrors are based in fact and very much connected to our reality. This book should be required reading.
The Bad Ones by Melissa Albert
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This book was dark and delicious, I read it in a single day.
This story is a lovely exploration into sinister magical realism and lite body horror. The Bad Ones feels like a perfect fit into the cult fanaticism of powerful teenage girls a la The Craft and Jennifer’s Body.
I really enjoyed the back and forth between timelines and the slow progression into the MC coming to understand that she wasn’t alone in her body, I also really enjoyed the way that the prologue was used to set up questions and give hints that we slowly resolved throughout the rest of the book.
This story is a lovely exploration into sinister magical realism and lite body horror. The Bad Ones feels like a perfect fit into the cult fanaticism of powerful teenage girls a la The Craft and Jennifer’s Body.
I really enjoyed the back and forth between timelines and the slow progression into the MC coming to understand that she wasn’t alone in her body, I also really enjoyed the way that the prologue was used to set up questions and give hints that we slowly resolved throughout the rest of the book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder and Death of parent
Minor: Mass/school shootings
The Witch of Colchis by Rosie Hewlett
adventurous
dark
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
If you like having your heart shredded while being immersed in the world of Greek mythology, this is the book for you. It is always very enjoyable to explore a version of the stories of the great heroes where the glory and power of men are nothing without the machinations of the women previously left in the background, and this book does this painfully well. Rosie Hewlett writes in a way that is straightforward and beautiful without feeling overly flowery or excessive.
Much like Circe and Ariadne, the story of Medea is not a kind one. I don't think I've ever wished for a happy ending for any character more than I wished one for her. Hewlett carefully weaves the human experiences of loss, trauma, and greed into the established mythology in such a way that Medea, the scary powerful witch, feels incredibly relatable. Ultimately this isn't just a story about a powerful woman, this is a story about a girl who is never shown love and clings to it wherever she can find it, which leaves her vulnerable and incredibly easy to manipulate. While her acts are misguided and reprehensible, her thoughts are explored in such a way that it was impossible for me not to empathize with her and understand her.
Much like Circe and Ariadne, the story of Medea is not a kind one. I don't think I've ever wished for a happy ending for any character more than I wished one for her. Hewlett carefully weaves the human experiences of loss, trauma, and greed into the established mythology in such a way that Medea, the scary powerful witch, feels incredibly relatable. Ultimately this isn't just a story about a powerful woman, this is a story about a girl who is never shown love and clings to it wherever she can find it, which leaves her vulnerable and incredibly easy to manipulate. While her acts are misguided and reprehensible, her thoughts are explored in such a way that it was impossible for me not to empathize with her and understand her.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death
Kingdom of the Feared by Kerri Maniscalco
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
While the first book clearly had a plot that could be followed, the second book started to slide away from the plot, and this book was the final stage in leaving the plot behind to read on and on about how powerful and mysterious Wrath could be, how powerful and cold Emilia could be, and how much sex they could have. A disappointing end to a trilogy that had a promising start.
Almost any and all character development was discarded to instead focus on Emilia’s constant, CONSTANT, waxing poetic about Wrath. Almost all the side characters appear just to serve the minimally developed plot line and then immediately disappear until they’re needed again.
To be clear, there is a plot and it can be followed, but it feels very much like an afterthought to the sex and relationship. It is rushed and conveniently pieced together, occasionally being forced back to the forefront to remind readers that there is supposed to be a point to this story.
There are two plot lines that never got resolved? Or maybe they did and I missed it because, like most plot elements of this book, they got one or two sentences and then we returned to how hot, powerful, and mysterious Wrath is.
I originally rated this book, then left it, had time to reflect, and came back to lower my rating. I wanted to love this and I absolutely didn’t.
Almost any and all character development was discarded to instead focus on Emilia’s constant, CONSTANT, waxing poetic about Wrath. Almost all the side characters appear just to serve the minimally developed plot line and then immediately disappear until they’re needed again.
To be clear, there is a plot and it can be followed, but it feels very much like an afterthought to the sex and relationship. It is rushed and conveniently pieced together, occasionally being forced back to the forefront to remind readers that there is supposed to be a point to this story.
There are two plot lines that never got resolved? Or maybe they did and I missed it because, like most plot elements of this book, they got one or two sentences and then we returned to how hot, powerful, and mysterious Wrath is.
I originally rated this book, then left it, had time to reflect, and came back to lower my rating. I wanted to love this and I absolutely didn’t.
Iron Flame by Rebecca Yarros
adventurous
dark
emotional
sad
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? It's complicated
4.25
There are large parts of this book that feel like they directly mirror their inspirations. It feels like a mix of Eragon, Zodiac Academy, Lord of the Rings, etc., all in one. Everything was very predictable.
That being said, even knowing what was coming and feeling like I’d seen all of this before, this book still ripped my heart out and stomped it into the ground.
So MUCH happens in this book, I almost can’t believe that this was all one book.
My largest complaint is that Violet is supposed to be like their chosen one, the savior, and the best mind of her generation, but she takes SO LONG to put essential information together and to figure out her emotional issues. I often wanted to reach into the book and smack her.
That being said, even knowing what was coming and feeling like I’d seen all of this before, this book still ripped my heart out and stomped it into the ground.
So MUCH happens in this book, I almost can’t believe that this was all one book.
My largest complaint is that Violet is supposed to be like their chosen one, the savior, and the best mind of her generation, but she takes SO LONG to put essential information together and to figure out her emotional issues. I often wanted to reach into the book and smack her.
Kingdom of the Cursed by Kerri Maniscalco
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? It's complicated
3.75
I appreciate the way this book really brings the mystery into the story. Some of it was predictable but some of it, I really was not expecting.
I liked it less than the first book. There was so much going on so rapidly, it felt kind of clunky in its delivery. There were multiple parts where I had to go back and reread because I was confused on where the characters were or how much time had passed and I kept feeling like I was missing over skipping pieces that would keep the story more linear. By about 60% of the way through the book, I had just fully accepted that it felt a bit disjointed and kept moving.
Regardless, I do really like this story and I will absolutely be finishing the series.
I liked it less than the first book. There was so much going on so rapidly, it felt kind of clunky in its delivery. There were multiple parts where I had to go back and reread because I was confused on where the characters were or how much time had passed and I kept feeling like I was missing over skipping pieces that would keep the story more linear. By about 60% of the way through the book, I had just fully accepted that it felt a bit disjointed and kept moving.
Regardless, I do really like this story and I will absolutely be finishing the series.
Bride by Ali Hazelwood
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I loved it, I don’t care that it’s a silly little shifter-vampire romance book, I LOVED IT. Lock me up, guilty as charged! The FMC is funny and self-deprecating in a way that isn’t super annoying and I want more!
Wildfire by Hannah Grace
funny
hopeful
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? Yes
4.0
There’s something so special about taking side characters from the first book and making them the main characters of this book, and keeping the whole cast you already know and love.
The book pointedly worked around my least favorite part of romance books: miscommunication. I loved that the conversations felt more real because people weren’t being intentionally hard to communicate with as a plot device. The characters felt more real because they had some emotional intelligence. I have genuine love for all these characters, and I can’t wait for Henry’s story.
The book pointedly worked around my least favorite part of romance books: miscommunication. I loved that the conversations felt more real because people weren’t being intentionally hard to communicate with as a plot device. The characters felt more real because they had some emotional intelligence. I have genuine love for all these characters, and I can’t wait for Henry’s story.