lifeonasofa's reviews
231 reviews

Everything I Know About Love: A Memoir by Dolly Alderton

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emotional funny hopeful lighthearted reflective slow-paced

3.0

Content Warnings

Fence, Vol. 3 by C.S. Pacat

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lighthearted 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

Fence 3 🤺 Review

“I don’t need a makeover. I have amazing fashion sense.”
“Wearing black jeans and a black tank top all the time?”
“I wear other things!”
“Like what?”
“Sometimes I wear a black t-shirt” - C S Pacat

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5 Stars

I’ve really enjoyed the premise and the STUNNING illustrations throughout this series. But this is HANDS DOWN my favourite volume! 😍

The plot really picked up, I found myself fully immersed and can’t wait to see where the series goes. The characters really came into their own, and I love their relationships with each other. 💥

Please tell me this is also a#the slowest burn romance ever cuz Seiji was giving VIBESSSS! 👀

Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus

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emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Lessons in Chemistry 🧪 Review

“It’s just that we tend to treat pregnancy as the most common condition in the world—as ordinary as stubbing a toe—when the truth is, it’s like getting hit by a truck. Although obviously a truck causes less damage” - Bonnie Garmus 🍼

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5 Stars

This might be my first 5 star read of the year…might be…I feel a lot of pressure 😂 I didn’t expect to adore this book as much as I did. A mash up of historical, contemporary and female fiction, I won’t lie…it’s not a book I would’ve picked up had it not been for all the hype. 👀

But I’m a sucker for a well written character and Elizabeth Zott truly is THAT woman. I hate to compare books…but she gives Evelyn Hugo a run for her money and that’s saying A LOT! I felt like I knew Elizabeth Zott, I went from being unsure, to obsessed with her and was just so hopeful for her vision of the future. 🥺

The plot was surprisingly strong too! 1960s feminism and chemistry - nice! There are some darker themes so I advise checking out TWs. But whilst I felt heartbreak and anger at times, the humour also tickled me, the words inspired me and I felt such warmth from the story too. 💕

I listened to the audiobook, and I highly recommend - the book blends itself really well to audio. An applause for the narrator, I was fully submerged in her storytelling. Also, I found out this is being made into a series! So bravo Bonnie for a successful debut novel! 👏🏻

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The True Love Experiment by Christina Lauren

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funny hopeful lighthearted relaxing 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

4.25

“Last week I considered going jogging in flip-flops just to remind myself how sex sounds” - Christina Lauren 🩴

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 4.25 Stars

I ADORE Fizzy. So much. She’s one of my favourite female characters so far in romance. She’s just so unapologetically herself. It’s refreshing having late thirty year olds finding love 💕

The whole ‘I want you but can’t have you’ thing has always been a hit with me, but add in Connor having to watch Fizzy date numerous men in their work environment. Top tier 🔥

I adored their banter, they just seemed to click without having to change. I was DESPERATE for them to get together and it really didn’t disappoint. Such a cute couple 🥰

Not a fan of the random miscommunication bump, but I can forgive it. I also would’ve liked a bit more from the dating show, because it was the perfect set up. Low key want a book featuring season 2 with Isaac please 👀

Great summer holiday read ☀️

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The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab

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emotional hopeful sad slow-paced

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

3.75

The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue ✨ Review

“Books, she has found, are a way to live a thousand lives--or to find strength in a very long one” - V E Schwab 📖

⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 3.75 Stars

This was a beautiful story, I can see why it is so well loved. It felt like a poem or a love letter. I really was sucked into Addies life. V E Schwab is just magical with words. ✍🏻

I struggled for a good 20% as it was just pretty slow, with not much going on. I’m not sure I would’ve pushed through if I didn’t have the audiobook. But out of nowhere I just fell in love with Addie, I couldn’t let her go. ❤️‍🩹

The plot isn’t anything mind blowing and it definitely was longer than necessary. But I just felt so many emotions, heads up to check TWs! Henry was top tier, we waited a long time for him but his character was great. 👀

Moments of this book felt like something special and other moments felt lack lustre. The ending, for example, was a perfectly heart wrenching bundle of words. Yet it was thrown off, mainly due to Luc’s character being so underdeveloped, I don’t think it hit the way intended for me. 🙈

I get the hype, it’s like nothing else I’ve read. It deserved to be perfect…

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Northranger by Rey Terciero

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hopeful mysterious relaxing 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? N/A

4.0

Northranger 🌾 Review

Release Date: 6 June 2023 🌈

Thank you to @harperalley @harper360uk @thirdrex @ndgoarts for sending this Advanced Copy across. I LOVED sitting outside in the sunshine with this graphic novel over the Easter holidays. ☀️

Described as a spooky and swoony queer teen romance, I started this as soon as it came through my door 😂

Set on a Texas ranch, Cade finds himself falling for the ranch owners mysterious son. A big fan of horror movies, Cade discovers there may be spooky secrets surrounding his handsome crush. 👻

Firstly, I adored the illustration style. The colours were beautiful. It blended itself well with the spooky atmosphere and also the age range of the characters/readers. 🖍️

TW: this story tackles mental health, grief, racism and homophobia - but all handled delicately and adding to the character development. I loved the primary focus on family and self acceptance as well as first love. 🥰

I’m so happy there are books like this widely available to teens now. As an adult, I’m not sure the spookiness was explored or used as well as I’d hoped - but it might be just right for the target audience. The romance side - spot on! The ranch setting - spot on! The cute summer romance - spot on! 💕

Content Warnings

Caraval by Stephanie Garber

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adventurous dark hopeful mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.25

Caraval 🎪 Review

“Dreams that come true can be beautiful, but they can also turn into nightmares when people won't wake up” - Stephanie Garber 🛌

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 4.25 Stars

A great buddy read with @char ! I’ve put this book off for so long due to the hype and it being out of my comfort zone. But I really want to read OUABH so we went in and I’m so glad we did! 😍

It was a super speedy read for me, which is a rarity these days. I was so intrigued throughout, it was a very unique read for sure. I can’t even compare this book to anything, it’s both magical and bizarre, both lovely and horrible. ✨

I connected with the characters from the get go, which again is rare for me in YA books. Both Scarlett and Donna were pretty well fleshed out, most of all I really liked the sister relationship. I really liked Julian from the start but didn’t know if we could trust him at all. 💕

I couldn’t give it a 5 star review purely because I did feel lost when the weirdness reached its climax. Clap for the author for creating such an air of chaos. As a reader I didn’t have a clue what was real and what wasn’t. I felt uncomfortable before things unraveled slightly. 🥴

Can’t wait to move onto Legendary! 🎠

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Really Good, Actually by Monica Heisey

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funny hopeful lighthearted reflective relaxing 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

Really Good, Actually 👍🏻 Review

“One day and it will surprise you how soon this day will come, but one day you will wake up and feel good. It won’t last long, but then you’ll have another day where you barely remember this abjection, and another, and another, until that’s just your life. But for now, it will be hard. This is the part that’s hard.” - Monica Heisey 💕

⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 3.5 Stars

This was like a chaotic podcast or diary, I really recommend the audiobook. It was a great listen on the way to work. Despite having some pretty sad themes, surprisingly, this book made me feel light and happy. It was like I was having a chat with a friend, maybe even myself 🤷🏻‍♀️

Heads up, if divorce is big in your life right now, some of the harder parts might hit close. But personally, as a nearly 30 year old - it’s almost comforting to read about others not having their life together yano? 🙈

There’s really not much plot here, but some decent character development. A good look at relationships, growing up, finding yourself, friendships, careers and hobbies in your late 20s. Also, a big clap for highlighting the importance of therapy 👏🏻

Overall, although I’m finding it hard to think of anything negative to say, it’s not a book I think I’ll remember, it was more a vibe ☺️

Content Warnings

The Legacy by Elle Kennedy

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funny lighthearted relaxing 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? No

2.5

The Legacy 💍 Review

“So it’s a pact? The living one eats the dead one? There’s a Swiss Army knife in the emergency kit” - Elle Kennedy 💕

⭐️⭐️💫 2.5 Stars

Was this book of novellas necessary 7 years after the original series? Nope. Did it deliver? Nope, in fact, I’d argue it took away from the loveable characters. But I DID still speed read the heck outta this 🙈

A super easy, fun and flirty read. Some funny moments, loved any interactions we got between the guys. Unfortunately, that was rare, the link binding them all was a doll? Sorry, what? 👀

Unfortunately, it just lacked substance…like either give us 400 pages of the steam and banter we loved or give us adult relationships that have progressed/fallen apart? Granted I’m not sure the later is achievable with only 80 pages per couple, I just don’t get the point of this book? 🤷🏻‍♀️

Content Warnings

These Infinite Threads by Tahereh Mafi

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adventurous mysterious medium-paced

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

2.5

These Infinite Threads 🐉 Review

“Alizeh was so powerful she claimed the devil as a friend, knew the sovereign of an enemy nation as an ally.” - Tahereh Mafi 💪🏻

⭐️⭐️💫 2.5 Stars

I tried. I didn’t get on with book 1 (This Woven Kingdom) but the ending made me give the sequel a shot. Whilst it was A LOT easier to read and more enjoyable in general…we still had very little going on. Again, an awful lot of pages for not a lot of story, it was like a day?! 🤦🏻‍♀️

Even worse than this…we lost most of the personality of Alizeh that I loved. Cryus felt like a Rhysand wannabe but it felt so forced and out of nowhere it was uncomfortable - not swoon worthy at all. Kamren still gave vanilla. And what happened to my man Hazan? Where did his mojo go?! 😭

Just like last time, this book has a 4.25 rating on goodreads so this is definitely just my opinion. If you loved book 1, you’ll adore this 😂

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lifeonasofa's reviews 231 reviews

lifeonasofa's reviews
231 reviews