lucashearn1's reviews
58 reviews

Tear by Erica McKeen

dark mysterious sad medium-paced

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

3.25

Unfortunately it took me until part two to really start to click with Tear. Very well written, I could feel everything as it occurred.

Dead Silence by S.A. Barnes

adventurous dark emotional hopeful 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

4.25

Huge sucker for sci-fi horror. I liked how it kept me guessing. The characters were pretty decent. I’ll definitely check out her other books.

The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood

challenging dark sad slow-paced

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

4.0

Lowkey kind of a bummer. I mean it’s written well and it’s an interesting take on some sort of alternative history, but kind of a drag. Those poor women. Wasn’t a huge fan of the historical notes part at the end.

Off Season by Jack Ketchum

dark tense fast-paced

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

3.25

Damn! That was an absolute splatter fest. Really reminded me of The Hills Have Eyes or Wrong Turn. There’s not much of a plot, mostly very graphic scenes of violence, so if that’s off putting to read I’d avoid this. It also takes like 100 pages to actually start in on the action. The characters are pretty bland and come off as sexist caricatures, but you still are rooting for them because they’re living a nightmare. Pretty good for what it is and achieves its goal of making your stomach turn. 

The Loop by Jeremy Robert Johnson

dark mysterious tense 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

3.25

Some really good ideas. I feel like it didn’t hit the heights it could have. Huge fan of the design around the implant monster thing. Very grounded but also extremely alien. Lots of bummer stuff happens and it’s quite graphic in its depictions of violence.

Sunbringer by Hannah Kaner

adventurous 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

4.25

I was a little worried that the follow-up wasn’t going to live up to the first book. I was proven wrong. We delve a bit deeper into the world and the mythos around the gods and some of our characters. There isn’t one perspective that I didn’t find entertaining. And while some of the gang is split up this time around it all ties together nicely. I’m curious to see if this will be an ongoing series or if she hopes to tie it all up in one more book. Now we wait.

Such Sharp Teeth by Rachel Harrison

funny lighthearted mysterious 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

3.25

I finished this last night. It’s a super short read, that goes by very quickly. It’s pretty funny, the main character is a little scamp. The werewolf transformation scenes were well done. I was a little meh on the whole romance subplot, but I think it fit well within the confines of the story.

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson

adventurous dark mysterious 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

4.75

As a huge fan of the David Fincher adaptation I’m really glad I gave this a shot. I honestly think they’re pretty on par with each other. Who knew when you have a great story and a great filmmaker, that you can make a great adaptation.

I really liked getting more in the head of the characters. Lisbeth in the movie was a cool character, but there is additional weight added here with her internal thoughts. Im super excited to read more of the series, I’m completely blind to the rest of it.

Starve Acre: A Novel by Andrew Michael Hurley

dark mysterious slow-paced

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

3.0

Interesting little semi folk tale. Would you call it a folk tale? It definitely feels like it has those folk tale elements. It doesn’t really explain anything, which is fine, mostly just sprinkled some context clues about the surroundings while also drip feeding the lead up to Ewans death.

Apt Pupil by Stephen King

dark slow-paced

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

3.5

Haven’t read anything this grim in a long time. There’s no good guy, no redemption, it just slowly devolves into the characters becoming more detestable. I felt gross after having finished it. Still a quite compelling story, invoked some emotions.