lolajoan's reviews
943 reviews

A Chill in the Flame by Piper C.J.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 28%.

I would have sworn this was a self-published book, not the zillionth book from a "bestselling" author. It's so poorly written and poorly edited! The timelines are inconsistent, the characters are flat, and there's been a lot of times I've thought "You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means." The spicy scenes have been gratuitous and not at all sexy, and the plot couldn't be moving more slowly. Sorry not sorry, I'm not wasting my time on this.

Blood Over Bright Haven by M.L. Wang

adventurous dark medium-paced

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

4.25

I love a magic system that makes some sense and has physical rules, which this definitely does. The characters and relationships are complex, the descriptions are vivid, and it mostly makes sense. My only complaint is that around halfway through there was a stretch where it was both anxious and tedious - I knew what was going to come next and it was stressful but also I just wanted it to get over it. I'd have been happier if that had been a little tighter and snappier through there. 

Ghosts by J.M. Frey

emotional funny sad fast-paced

5.0

A bittersweet story about Bev and Kin. Clever and funny and touching, like all of the series. 

Everything for Everyone: An Oral History of the New York Commune, 2052–2072 by Eman Abdelhadi, M.E. O'Brien

challenging informative inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.0

Not my usual thing (I don't generally love interview-based books) but an interesting thought experiment of near-future speculative fiction that goes straight through dystopia to a possible utopia. 

Spoonbenders: A hilarious and heartwarming family drama, a BBC Radio 2 Book Club pick by Daryl Gregory

adventurous emotional funny lighthearted mysterious medium-paced

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

4.5

An absolutely fun and charming romp about a very strange family. The characters are not super deep but have clear history in their relationships which is nice to see. This would be a really fun miniseries I think. The pacing is a little bit uneven, there were times where I felt like it was kind of boring and not going anywhere and then other times that I couldn't put it down.

The Life Impossible by Matt Haig

hopeful informative reflective 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? Yes

4.0

Sweet and charming, but a little to much proselytizing for my tastes. But it's lovely, and was a fun way to mentally revisit my honeymoon trip to Ibiza a million years ago. 

Altered Carbon by Richard K. Morgan

dark mysterious slow-paced

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

3.0

Took me a long time to get through. The premise is obviously very unique and interesting, but it's extremely gory with a lot of torture, and also a lot of explicit sex that's not exactly the nicest.  

Nightbitch by Rachel Yoder

challenging emotional reflective medium-paced

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

4.25

I have mixed feelings about this. I kind of feel like it could have been a short story, I'm not sure it needed to be quite so long. It's intense stuff, but I found it a little too pushy. Like, yeah, motherhood is a ride, but it doesn't need to be quite sooooo much. But I really appreciated that the husband wasn't treated as a villain - their relationship is actually pretty admirable. I found the ending very satisfying though.

Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr

adventurous challenging emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring mysterious reflective sad 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? It's complicated

5.0

Absolutely wonderful. Everyone who loves anyone or anything should read it.

The Witching Hour by Anne Rice
Did not finish book. Stopped at 24%.

Tedious, misogynistic, boring, just blah. It has no business being so incredibly long. I think I'm spoiled by all the wonderful creative bright and shiny feminist-forward witchy novels of the 21st Century but I just cannot waste my life on something this bland and miserable.