landenemily's reviews
51 reviews

Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid

emotional hopeful lighthearted fast-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? Yes

4.25

Compelling and oh so awkward. Drama filled to the very last page. 

The Restaurant at the End of the Universe by Douglas Adams

funny lighthearted fast-paced

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

4.0

Quick and fun read. 
Fun planetary twist at the end. 
Always a challenge to suspend my need for logical order and intricate world building. Always a wild read. 

Disappearing Moon Cafe by Sky Lee

dark lighthearted mysterious slow-paced

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

3.25

Compelling, often funny. 
Told through numerous points of view, this is written beautifully. 
Found the plot to be all over the place, though enjoyable. 
Um, so much incest due to family secrets and cultural expectations of reproduction. Wild. 

Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult

challenging emotional mysterious slow-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

3.0

Read for book club. So this was outside of my usual realm of book selection. 
Part two was fantastic. 

The Spoiled Heart by Sunjeev Sahota

dark informative medium-paced

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

3.5

Heavy, relevant, skewed. 
Enjoyed the story here, heavy but satisfying ending. 
Narration jumped between characters quite frequently and was confusing occasionally. 
Love an unreliable narrator, leaves the story open to interpretation and imparts how different everyone experiences the world. 

The School for Good Mothers by Jessamine Chan

emotional sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Devastated, I’ll won’t soon forget this book. 
All too close to the reality of the expectations of women during motherhood, this was compelling and far too realistic for comfort. 

The year in the school had some slow points and got quite repetitive, I found myself itching to get to the next part. 

Universal Disorder by Bernice Friesen

emotional funny sad 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

4.5

Captivating and quick, I was left feeling cautiously optimistic. 
Awfully insightful into disordered thinking and a strong reminder that you never know what’s going on in someone’s head. 

The Daughter of Time by Josephine Tey

informative mysterious fast-paced

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

3.0

Much of the historical intricacies were lost on me, this is my own lack of interest/knowledge in the area. 
Fun presentation, loved the writing style and manner of inquisition into the mystery.  

The Lola Quartet by Emily St. John Mandel

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

Serious page turner. Whipped through this one in an evening. Love the differing perspectives and weaving story. Always a fan of Emily  St. John Mandel’s work. 
This one was suspenseful and sad, woven beautifully to paint the fall out from 10 years ago. 
After having read many of her novels, I love the Mandel-verse.

The Memory Police by Yōko Ogawa

hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

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

5.0

This is not science fiction. This book moreso uses a dystopian concept to explore loss, and how we can continue to live life after losses. 

No great explanation of the events, and the plot kind of faded out. This is one of the books strengths. Devastating and I loved the whole thing.

At a loss for words after this one. Beautifully written, and had me contemplating what is left after loss, and how we are never really whole again, but must go on nevertheless. Thinking about loved ones I’ve lost with fondness, as their memory is what I have left and I am oddly grateful to get to experience loss.