lindsaygp_reads's reviews
52 reviews

Fireborne by Rosaria Munda
Did not finish book. Stopped at 40%.

Just didn’t really grab me at all. I was halfway through the first book and there just wasn’t anything that felt… critical or pressing or important enough to keep going.

Heavenbreaker by Sara Wolf

adventurous dark mysterious tense slow-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

3.25

I started this audiobook feeling really pumped because you’re pretty immediately thrown into the action and the brutality of a post “true” AI war, sci-fi, spaceship world. 

But beyond that first chapter or so, the world seems to kind of zip by, and I frequently got a lost in who things are happening to and at what point they are happening in the timeline as the story and POV jumps around with little to no warning. 

I enjoyed the idea of “getting lost in the spirals” sickness and how the public doesn’t know <spoilers>the riders are using their enemies nerve fluid to continue their sporting event, also the using every bit of the rider even when brain dead is straight up horrifying and I hate it.  

I think my biggest issue is that our FMC only wants one thing… well, 2 things: she wants to bring down her father’s house and she wants to die. But because the Synalli wants nothing and no one, it makes her nearly impossible to relate to. She spends just about the whole story refusing connection, refusing kindness, and just generally wishing she was dead which is fine for a starting point, but gets old pretty quick. 

I will say, I liked the ending and it did have me actually screaming “what the f***?!” As I was not expecting the cliffhanger—

I thought and kind of wished that they would have actually had her die, become part of the mech system, and then worked from the behind with the next rider— but her surviving and being captured by the higher government is still an interesting move.

A very different book than what I’m used to, this is so NOT a romance, what little romantic moments there are were pretty flimsily built, but it was mostly enjoyabme. Kind of slow, pretty disjointed, but I’m glad I finished it.

Empire of Storms by Sarah J. Maas

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious sad tense 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? Yes

4.5

This one was hard to get into, but once I did it was a lot of fun. I feel like this series took WAY too long for the witches to become fully relevant or worth caring about. Ffs Let Dorian and Chaol be gay together. After finishing it, this may be the strongest of the books so far. The army of information laid out in all of the books so far has finally paid off, the witches feel monumental and important, the relationship building and breaking, the love between Rowan and Aelin, and all of her fucking (annoying ass) scheming— it feels heavy and heartbreaking, really beautiful and so goddamn sad. In true SJM fashion, the last 4 chapters feel big enough emotionally to have been the whole book and I am unwell.

Queen of Shadows by Sarah J. Maas

adventurous dark emotional inspiring sad tense 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? Yes

3.5

I enjoyed the second half of this book a lot more than the first, especially the revenge plots. Lysandra’s character building in this book was most excellent and probably my favorite. Asterin’s story was heartbreaking.

Heir of Fire by Sarah J. Maas

adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-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

3.25

There were a lot of really interesting story lines going throughout this book that I enjoyed. I think the relationship building and the romantic pieces were very sweet and moving. The moves to show how evil

the king

really is feels like it’s finally becoming clear, especially by the very end where I was straight up unwell. I’m just gonna say it, I don’t get the Chaol hate and I think Rowan is boring.

He should have been her Obi Won and the romance feels weird.

This one is a little lower in my ToG read for all of the back and forth to fay-ree lands that happened that ultimately didn’t feel very important. Also, Manon feels sort of shuffled in without any importance placed upon her whatsoever and her chapters felt very out of place. The perspective was interesting, but it felt disjointed.

Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas

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? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

The story feels like it’s really taken off and I’m enjoying the direction! It’s definitely darker than I expected and I love that I can’t trust that characters that I love will be safe. 

The Bridgertons: Happily Ever After by Julia Quinn

lighthearted relaxing slow-paced

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

2.0

Read this just for Violet’s novella! Sweet if a little boring. I wish it provided more context for who Violet is outside of her children.

A Court of Wings and Ruin by Sarah J. Maas

adventurous dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

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

3.5

This was a reread! It’s not my favorite of the series but is still interesting and provides fun context for the world, the lore, and the familial relationships which I very much enjoyed.

A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas

adventurous dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad 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

5.0

This was a reread! I love this book. It is sweet, romantic, so goddamn sad, loving, all while providing a sturdy amount of emotional whiplash. — Literally went back and listened to the graphic audio because I love it so fucking much. I’ve read it 3 times in less than a year. Come on.

A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas

adventurous emotional hopeful inspiring tense 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? Yes

3.75

This was reread because I love it. It’s accessible, fun, and sets up the world in a somewhat tropey but generally very cool way. — Literally went back and listened to the graphic audio because I love it so fucking much. I’ve read it 3 times in less than a year. Come on.