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lynseyreads_'s reviews
412 reviews
A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas
4.0
I enjoyed it, but it wasn’t impactful enough to be 5 stars for me.
I’m enjoying this imaginary world and how it lives alongside our human world, and I’m really liking the characters Maas has created in Prythian. Actually, I really liked the characterization she created even in the human world, for the brief time that we live there. Rhysand, Alice, Lucien, and Nesta are my favorite supporting characters.
My biggest critiques would be 1. the lack of variance in the writing and 2. Feyre. Repeated qualifiers like “purred” and “growled,” and recycled descriptions like “feline,” “supine,” and “serpentine” were OK until they weren’t. Feyre is tricky for me. She is dynamic, but also frustratingly dependent on everyone around her and makes everything more complicated.
Overall, I’m looking forward to the rest of the series.
I’m enjoying this imaginary world and how it lives alongside our human world, and I’m really liking the characters Maas has created in Prythian. Actually, I really liked the characterization she created even in the human world, for the brief time that we live there. Rhysand, Alice, Lucien, and Nesta are my favorite supporting characters.
My biggest critiques would be 1. the lack of variance in the writing and 2. Feyre. Repeated qualifiers like “purred” and “growled,” and recycled descriptions like “feline,” “supine,” and “serpentine” were OK until they weren’t. Feyre is tricky for me. She is dynamic, but also frustratingly dependent on everyone around her and makes everything more complicated.
Overall, I’m looking forward to the rest of the series.
A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas
5.0
Feyre finally steps into her power and is way less annoying in this book than she was in ACOTAR. Some of my favorite characters (Rhys, Nesta, Lucien) continue to be developed and it’s super satisfying. Scenes like the Weaver, Summer Court, and the ending are also satisfying. Excited to keep reading this series.
Black Cake by Charmaine Wilkerson
4.0
Having a hard time rating this one, which makes sense since it took me almost 2 months to finish. I’m somewhere between a 3 and a 4, and struggling round up or down.
There are emotions and stories from this book that will stick with me, but at about 200 pages I felt like I was done. At 300 I was just determined to finish, and at 350 I kept saying “will this book ever end??” There wasn’t much plot left in the last 180 pages or so, and so many characters had been added that I was just reading hoping to hear more from/about the characters I most cared about.
Which sounds like it wasn’t well written, but it was! The last 15 pages or so answered some questions I had been carrying since the early pages of the book. Some answers were less satisfying than others…
Also, the premise is that Eleanor is sharing a recording with her two children, but very little of the book is actually her speaking. It made me confused how much Byron and Benny knew vs. how much I knew as a reader.
There are emotions and stories from this book that will stick with me, but at about 200 pages I felt like I was done. At 300 I was just determined to finish, and at 350 I kept saying “will this book ever end??” There wasn’t much plot left in the last 180 pages or so, and so many characters had been added that I was just reading hoping to hear more from/about the characters I most cared about.
Which sounds like it wasn’t well written, but it was! The last 15 pages or so answered some questions I had been carrying since the early pages of the book. Some answers were less satisfying than others…
Also, the premise is that Eleanor is sharing a recording with her two children, but very little of the book is actually her speaking. It made me confused how much Byron and Benny knew vs. how much I knew as a reader.
Fresh Ink by Lamar Giles
4.0
Listened to this audiobook through the lens of a middle grades reading teacher. I will definitely be using many stories in this book as read alouds for my 6th/7th graders. My favorite stories were “Superhuman,” “Catch, Pull, Drive,” “Don’t Pass Me By,” “Meet Cute,” and “A Boy’s Duty.”
Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin
5.0
I love this book so much. No, I am not particularly into video games. Yes, that video game description *almost* deterred me (the cover is just too beautiful to resist though!), so no, you *don’t* need any appreciation or knowledge of video games to enjoy this complicated and lovely coming of age story.
I loved the writing, the character relationships, and Gabrielle’s skill of hinting/sometimes downright telling us a plot point and then letting it unfold. The parallels she draws between game play and life is very thought provoking.
Are you reading it yet?!? Okay last thing. While the plot is very different, I felt vibes similar to _The Heart’s Invisible Furies_ (John Boyne), and even _Daisy Jones and the Six_ (TJR).
You know it’s a REALLY great book when your heart is still with it after moving on to your next book.
I loved the writing, the character relationships, and Gabrielle’s skill of hinting/sometimes downright telling us a plot point and then letting it unfold. The parallels she draws between game play and life is very thought provoking.
Are you reading it yet?!? Okay last thing. While the plot is very different, I felt vibes similar to _The Heart’s Invisible Furies_ (John Boyne), and even _Daisy Jones and the Six_ (TJR).
You know it’s a REALLY great book when your heart is still with it after moving on to your next book.
Horrid by Katrina Leno
4.0
Giving this book 4 stars because I am positive that my middle schoolers will be absolutely spooked. The house Jane and her mom move into following her father’s death is not a ~vibe~.
Considerations for younger readers include some cursing (mainly the F word, but it’s not obnoxious) + mental health + familial death/grief + generational trauma.
Considerations for younger readers include some cursing (mainly the F word, but it’s not obnoxious) + mental health + familial death/grief + generational trauma.
Everything Sad Is Untrue by Daniel Nayeri
5.0
Such a sweet, honest, and wise book that examines family relations, cultural differences, the nuance of memories, and lots of quality poop stories.