lolajoan's reviews
930 reviews

The God of the Woods by Liz Moore

adventurous dark mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

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

5.0

A gripping story, well-written and engaging. The pacing is perfect - for the first half the mystery deepens as more complications, red herrings, side stories and characters are introduced, then it's skillfully brought down to a satisfying conclusion. Excellent.

William by Mason Coile

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

3.75

Creepy and clever but not life changing. 

Listen for the Lie by Amy Tintera

dark funny mysterious tense fast-paced

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

4.25

And exciting page-turner that made me stay up way too late to finish it. There's nothing life-changing or incredibly deep about it but the characters are fun and the author does a great job of ramping up the tension as the book goes on.

We Unleash the Merciless Storm by Tehlor Kay Mejia

adventurous tense fast-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? It's complicated

4.0

Fun and exciting, with an interesting setting, but not the best-written stuff I've read. Enjoyable though. 

One Dark Window by Rachel Gillig

adventurous dark emotional 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

3.75

A fun page turner with some interesting ideas and world building. Overall I enjoyed it, but had a few complaints: it's got a lot of cliché tropes; the mythology is kind of confused and I'm not sure it'll really hold together; it needed a much better editor to make sure that the appropriate vocabulary was being used rather than just pretty-sounding words and phrases that don't really mean what they're intended to. That said, I may still read the sequel. 

All the Colors of the Dark by Chris Whitaker

dark emotional hopeful mysterious tense fast-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

4.5

A gripping page-turner about some very tough topics, but with lovable characters and some beautiful moments and descriptions. 

This Strange Eventful History by Claire Messud

challenging emotional informative reflective sad medium-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? Yes

4.5

This takes almost a century of family history and distills it into vivid chunks that are easily digested. The writing is clear and lyrical, and the characters are sympathetic even when they're not being likable. There are parts where it gets rambly with paragraph-long sentences, but I'm pretty sure it's on purpose to reflect the current pov of that section. It reflects on family, country, religion, death, etc. without being overly preachy or saccharine.

When Among Crows by Veronica Roth

adventurous dark hopeful mysterious fast-paced

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

4.5

Not life changing, but a well written fast read featuring lots of Polish folklore and some very charming characters. I wonder if it'll turn into a series; I'd read more about these people. 

The Feast Makers by August Clarke

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring reflective tense fast-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

OMG i love this series so much. 

In Winter I Get Up at Night by Jane Urquhart

reflective sad slow-paced

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

4.0

I can see why it was longlisted for the  Giller but also why it wasn't shortlisted. For the first half or so I thought it was a brilliant piece of art. It's a bittersweet examination of the beauty and loneliness of a small life. Emer has been to only a few places, has known only a few people, and her life has had just a few main defining events, but there's a deep richness to her observations of the world around her and the people she knows. The descriptive passages are beautiful and heartbreaking. But by the end I was disenchanted by two things. One is the extreme convenience of the fact that two of the very few people she knows just happen to be thinly veiled fictionalizations of extremely important and powerful men. One, I could swallow, but two is too much. The other is the offhanded way she deals with serious issues of racism (and to a lesser extent, homophobia). I feel like if you're going to bring those big issues into your book you should deal with them, or else just leave it out rather than mention it in an "oh yes, what a shame" way.