mariana_bookish's reviews
97 reviews

City of Ghosts by V.E. Schwab, V.E. Schwab

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny lighthearted mysterious fast-paced

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

4.0

The Shining by Stephen King

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-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

Never Split the Difference: Negotiating as if Your Life Depended on It by Tahl Raz, Chris Voss

adventurous challenging funny informative inspiring slow-paced

5.0

 

In Never Split The Difference; Chris Voss, a former FBI hostage negotiator,reveals the nine key principles that will help you succeed in any situation. Whether you’re trying to get a  raise in salary or to convince your mom to take you to the bookshop, his techniques will help you get what you want. 

It teaches you how to understand other people’s feelings and how to get them talking. In that aspect, I think it could be really useful for my fellow introverts because hell, sometimes we don't know what to talk about or how much to talk. This book’s like magic. 

This is not a book about using other people without any sense of morality. It’s about being truly empathetic and to use this empathy as a tool to better communicate with your counterpart.

"One can only be an exceptional negotiator, and a great person, by both listening and speaking clearly and empathetically; by treating counterparts -and oneself- with dignity and respect; and most of all by being honest about what one wants and what one can, and cannot, do"

It was useful, entertaining; at times funny, and quite didactic too. Anyone who wants to learn how to better communicate with people should read this book. 

 

Inferno by Dan Brown

adventurous challenging emotional funny informative mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

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

5.0

 

It was an interesting book to read, especially after the pandemic. I’ve learned a lot about Italian art, history and Dante.  Dan Brown describes almost every piece of art mentioned, but It would be great if you google them since it helps you to connect a bit more with the story.  

Inferno is not just about the mystery surrounding Langdon but also about science, ethics, art and the future of humanity. It might seem a bit slow at the beginning but it’s totally worth it, especially towards the ending, uff those last chapters were quite intense.

 

Letters to a Young Poet by Rainer Maria Rilke

hopeful inspiring reflective slow-paced

4.0

The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood

emotional funny lighthearted 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? It's complicated

3.0

The Woman in Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware

mysterious tense medium-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? It's complicated

2.5

The first part of the book was good but the second half of it was really boring. I didn't care about the characters at all and there was too many mentions of what people's accents were like, which was completely unnecessary.

"I do think it's one's responsability to wring every ounce of sensation out of life, don't you? Otherwise, without that, it's just a short, nasty, and brutal interlude until death"

 

"We all have demons inside us, voices that whisper we're no good, that if we don't make this promotion or ace that exam we'll reveal to the world exactly what kind of worthless sacks of skin and sinew we really are. Maybe that's true. Maybe mine just have louder voices"

"Now almost always is the right time. What feels like prudence is almost invariably cowardice"

Verity by Colleen Hoover

dark mysterious sad tense fast-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

3.0

One word: TWISTED

Verity is the exact definition of wicked. Every single character was insane, from the 5- year-old kid to the main character and the love interest, they’re all completely out of their minds.

Now don’t get me wrong, if you wanna write a really disturbing book with dislikable characters and dark vibes, then by all means, go ahead, but please give me an ending with a proper closure.

I get that Colleen Hoover doesn’t typically write these kind of books so hats off to her for writing such disturbing things. 

A really fast-paced but somewhat disappointing book with, let's admit it, an amazing cover.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Child death, Death, Murder, Child abuse, Grief, and Mental illness

Minor: Abortion

A Kingdom of Flesh and Fire by Jennifer L. Armentrout

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny 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

3.0

Código Dinero: 4 Pasos para hacer que tu dinero trabaje por ti by Cristian Arens

informative inspiring reflective slow-paced

3.5