kt2e56's reviews
106 reviews

Dead Silence by S.A. Barnes

dark mysterious tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

Took way too long to get to the good stuff then didn’t linger long enough once it got there. I also really didn’t care for the schmaltzy ending. When this book was scary though, it was good! I just wish it was like that more often because honestly, Claire is a boring protagonist to be our main POV. Everything she says and does is repetitive and everything outside of the Aurora was just not all that interesting.

If You Tell by Gregg Olsen

dark emotional tense medium-paced

2.5

Left way too many unanswered questions. There’s a lot of detail here (horrible, distressing detail) but substance is definitely missing and I think the lack of accountability for Shelly’s husband or the reliance on the cliche “She was just so beautiful and charming so nobody could ever say no!” when that is just so not true just feels lazy.

Boy Parts by Eliza Clark

dark funny tense fast-paced

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

3.5

The second book I have read from this author and while I definitely liked Penance a lot more, I do think this was pretty great. Irina is an awful fucking person but her descent into madness has for sure been one of the most interesting to read out of the crop of “unlikable and unreliable female narrator” books that have become super trendy these past few years. I think the satire here is really sharp and after reading some of the negative critiques of this book, I have to wonder what some of you were reading? Irina’s art not ACTUALLY being all that transgressive or interesting but rather dated and try hard is kind of the point here? Her internalized biphobia is also very much a point and is why the only woman she’s ever seriously dated dumps her? I think the book becomes a bit repetitive after a while and some characters should have been fleshed out more but idk this was seriously fucking sharp and a solid debut. 

Shift by Hugh Howey

dark emotional hopeful 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? It's complicated

5.0

Might be even better than the first?  This one I think was way more emotionally impactful for some reason. It’s a unique choice for an author to avoid a direct continuation of events in a sequel and instead give us a whole book about everyone but our heroine. Donald is a really interesting addition. I’m excited to see where everything goes next.

Cutting Teeth by Chandler Baker

dark funny 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? Yes

4.5

Some of the metaphors and imagery here are a little too on the nose but all in all, wow! This was such a fantastic, darkly funny read! The author did such a great job of giving us compelling characters that felt like real people instead of caricatures. The twists in the story genuinely had me wanting to read more. Can’t wait for the inevitable TV mini series adaptation.

Wool by Hugh Howey

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful 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? It's complicated

5.0

A really compelling and unique take on what could have been just another retread of some known sci-fi and dystopian horror tropes. Some genuinely lovely prose that I think brought a lot of emotion into this.

In the Cut by Susanna Moore

dark emotional tense fast-paced

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

2.5

I saw the movie for the first time recently and enjoyed it so was excited to read/listen to the book and unfortunately was disappointed. First of all: the voice actress is AWFUL. Truly just terrible. Her voices for Cornelius and Rodriguez are just so unbelievably racist (and pretty goofy tbh. Kinda takes any and all tension away from scenes with them) and her attempt at a brogue for Pauline was equally as offensive. This all really takes away from the story (which has some truly harrowing sequences) but in a way, so does the main romance. Maybe it’s because Mark Ruffalo is so naturally charismatic that he makes Molloy seem less awful in the movie but in the book he’s such a disgusting racist, misogynistic pig and I can’t believe someone who we’re lead to believe is intelligent (and who attempts to challenge other racist characters in the book) would ever put up with such a gross dude. Like surely it can’t JUST be lust!? C’mon girl! Stand up!

I will say that in terms of things I DID like, I mostly enjoyed the author’s writing style and I absolutely LOVED the ending. Probably one of the best (and most shocking) endings to a book I’ve read in quite some time. I also like that certain details I was confused about in the movie were explained here (like the significance of the tattoo). 

Survivor Song by Paul Tremblay

adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad 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? Yes

4.5

Wow. WOW. Just a gut punch nasty little horror novel that’s also so beautiful and intimate too. Insane to me that it was written (and published!!!!) literally MONTHS before COVID considering how much this book so accurately predicted about the government and citizens’ responses

The Night House by Jo Nesbø

dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-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

I’ll admit that I really didn’t know where this was going and wasn’t enjoying the first part but I’m REALLY glad I stuck with it. This was surprisingly touching although it had some really solid scares. I’m glad everything unfolds the way it does and I don’t want to say too much more and spoil anything because going in blind I think really enhanced my experience.

Goddess of Filth by V. Castro

dark fast-paced

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

1.5

The story sounded so interesting and unique so I was really excited to read it but unfortunately it was a rushed mess with massive plot holes, no real characterization of anyone (literally every character sounds the same and feels so bland and colorless) and an attempt at feminism that doesn’t really feel like feminism due to the mechanics of the supernatural at play. Also, I unfortunately did this as an audiobook which was a huge mistake because the voice actress is just atrociously bad. Her attempt at acting is what I’d do when reading a children’s book to my nephews but there’s no legitimate emotion there or attempt at characterization past whispering for some characters but screaming for others.