maggers94's reviews
161 reviews

Big Bad by Chandler Baker

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

3.5

Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman

dark emotional funny inspiring lighthearted mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.5

At first I wasn’t really feeling the audiobook of this. The narrator just wasn’t doing it for me, but the story itself I quite liked, and Eleanor grew on me a lot as a character, much like she did for everyone she met. I also thought it was going to take a much different route with her and Raymond as a romantic partnership than it did, and I actually really liked how it focused on Eleanor’s story instead, so they had a natural progression of friendship with a somewhat open end. It was overall really enjoyable.

Brother by Ania Ahlborn

challenging 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

5.0

Brother has been on my TBR for a while with super high expectations based on reviews, so I’d almost put it off worrying that it wouldn’t live up to how I’d built it up in my mind. It definitely delivered because I couldn’t put it down. I think because I went in knowing some background, I was worried it’d be too much gore and not a lot of substance, but I found the plot really balanced and the horror aspects never felt overdone. Michael was a compelling character, and the flashback portions that focused on Reb were intriguing. Part of me also worried that I would struggle to get through it if it was to dark, but the writing does a good job of managing the build-up to the final moments to keep it fast-paced and not too heavy. Overall a solid quick read

Broken by Karin Slaughter

dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

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

4.5

I’ve enjoyed all the Will Trent series so far and this was no exception. This was probably the least gory of the Karin Slaughter books I’ve read thus far, which I definitely appreciate. In general, I think this series does a great job of building the characters stories and making you invested. They could easily be formulaic crime dramas, but instead they’re well written with interesting cases and relationship dynamics that keep you engaged with the series. The crossover with the Grant County series was also pretty well done, and I’m already looking forward to seeing what happens with Will and Sara in the next book. Even though I find Lena pretty unlikeable I’m almost hoping we’ll get more follow-up on where she goes next too. Overall, solid addition to the series.

It Waits in the Woods by Josh Malerman

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

4.0

The Berry Pickers by Amanda Peters

challenging emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad 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

5.0

This was incredible, especially as an audiobook. The narrators were fantastic, and the entire last hour had me in tears in a way few books do for me. I loved the audiobook so much, I’ll be picking up a physical copy to keep. Joe and Ruthie’s stories will be with me for a very, very long time.

Ankle Snatcher by Grady Hendrix

dark funny lighthearted mysterious 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

3.0

The Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon

challenging dark inspiring reflective slow-paced

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

3.75

Probably a 3.75. I think I would have enjoyed this much more had I read a physical copy rather than listened to it on audio. The story is interesting, but at times I’d find my mind wandering away from the story in some of the lulls. I think historical fiction just isn’t audiobook material for me, so I may give this another chance in the physical form in the future

The Pram by Joe Hill

dark funny mysterious 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? Yes

3.75

Please See Us by Caitlin Mullen

dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-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

3.75

I’m a little conflicted on this. I went into it expecting it to be a little more of your standard thriller, but that’s not at all what it is really. I liked the writing style and the use of multiple perspectives/first and third person narration, but I just found the overall plot somewhat slow. It just never really sucked me in how I expected. It’s writing throughout is very, very good, but I think I went into it in the mood for something completely different and wasn’t in the right mindset to really enjoy this as much as I thought would