larabreanne's reviews
476 reviews

Expectation a novel by Anna Hope

challenging slow-paced

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

3.5

The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison

challenging dark sad slow-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

2.5

I found this book really disorienting, and I wonder if it would have been easier to understand if I read it on paper vs audiobook. Even once I understood the structure, and that the book was being told from different perspectives (which was neat), it was still confusing to me.

Foe by Iain Reid

adventurous challenging mysterious tense slow-paced

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

2.75

I like the ideas… but not the delivery. And the vibe I’m getting from reviews is that all the author’s books are like this, so I think his writing is just not for me!

But I am at 8 books read in the last 16 days so I’m happy about that - I needed to catch up.

The Last House on Needless Street by Catriona Ward

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

4.25

Really impressive twists and turns - this was not at all the book I thought it was going to be (a fun horror book). It was very heavy, though, and I’m really glad there was an afterword.

Let's Talk About Love by Claire Kann

medium-paced

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

3.0

Indigenous Media Arts in Canada: Making, Caring, Sharing by Dana Claxton, Ezra Winton

hopeful informative inspiring slow-paced

4.25

I took 56 pages of notes (that’s not an exaggeration).

Don't Look for Me by Wendy Walker

dark mysterious tense fast-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

3.5

Good escapist read. But also about grief.
I liked one of the twists a lot. 3.5 ⭐️

Finding Me by Viola Davis

challenging dark emotional inspiring medium-paced

4.5

Bright Young Women by Jessica Knoll

challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective sad 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

4.5

4.5 stars. Jessica Knoll is SO GOOD and it’s so satisfying to find an author whose writing you always enjoy (3 for 3.) I loved that the name of the killer was never said. I loved the framing of this book and the way the unsympathetic (and evil) characters were written.

Foster by Claire Keegan

hopeful sad fast-paced

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

3.5

This was really well done but FAR too short (I understand that it was a novella, but usually with novellas I still feel like they’re the right number of pages. With this one, I did not.) I took off a star for the length.