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mayhemboundbookshelf's Reviews (599)
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
I read this book as part of my Banned Books series and tandem read via audio and paperback. This was a good one to read in paperback because while I'm not usually an annotator but it was helpful to be able to highlight certain passages in this book that I want to go back to over time. This book had a lot of perspectives that were eye opening to me but also many that I have thought about previously. For me the value in this book comes largely in challenging myself, asking myself if i'm doing enough, or what I could do differently to make sure the approach I take to feminism is inclusive and impactful.
emotional
reflective
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Thank you NetGalley, Melissa Weisner, and Bookouture Audio for the opportunity to listen to this audio arc. I thought the narration was incredibly well done by Greg Lockett, Lauryn Allman and the production was clear. The actual story felt reminiscent of Lucy Score’s Knockemout series in the best of ways. This was a book that I’m so glad I stumbled on because I loved the story flow and the characters and while I did guess some of the twists I didn’t guess them all. I can’t wait to see how the next book in the series comes together!
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I listened to this in audio because I’ve been wanting to pick it up for quite a while and heard the audio was amazing. Which… I sort of agree with. The story was amazing, the characters were gripping and the plot kept me pressing play constantly. The female narrator had a bit of a weird lilt in her voice that sort of lost my attention and didn’t feel quite as engaging as the male narrator which was a bit of a bummer but overall it was really well done.
This writing style wasn’t for me but the book concept is beautiful. I plan on giving it another shot after editing and publication.
Thank you #MacAudio2025, Netgalley, Maria Z. Medina, and Ana Osorio for the opportunity to review this audio arc. I'd like to start with how impressive the narration was for this one. Ana did a beautiful job making this feel immersive and intense and the quality of her voice was incredibly engaging. To be honest though, I think that's a large credit to why I kept going with this book. It's not that anything was wrong with it necessarily, but I found myself struggling to follow the storyline at many times, and it resulted in me having to go back and re-listen to quite a few sections. Typically, this would turn me off enough to DNF, but I really was enthralled by Ana's performance, so I continued listening. Overall, the concept was very interesting with this book, but it turns out, it wasn't a great fit for me
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Thank you #macaudio2025 , Netgalley, Susan Dennard, and Caitlin Davies for the opportunity to review this audiobook! I loved how the author peppered in nostalgic tinges like BSB and X-Files, and how these teenagers really felt like teenagers. They weren't trying too hard to be grown up, but were still acting like they were figuring themselves and their lives out and getting into adolescent trouble. They felt real to me. Now of course, then you mix in the occult themes and the drama and age-appropriate romance (glad there was some lgbtq rep as well!), and it rounds out the story quite nicely! There was mystery and tension and gasps and laughter. I really enjoyed this. The narration was also quite engaging. Caitlin Davies did a great job bringing this story to life and definitely created a vibe that made me keep pressing play.
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I read this book via Libby audio as part of my efforts to read banned and challenged books and have meaningful discussions around the reasons for their challenges. In my research after reading, I came across this quite helpful resource : https://americanindiansinchildrensliterature.blogspot.com/p/banning-of-native-voicesbooks.html?m=1 which I encourage you to explore.
As for why this book was banned - what I’ve found is that it was challenged and banned due to its inclusion of mature themes and content, including drug use, violence, sexual assault, and language. Are all of those things in this book…they sure are. And that’s why it’s important to have real world conversations between parents/guardians, and children as well as educators and families and really determine what is appropriate for individual readers, rather than make blanket challenges and bans that limit access to literature.
As for the actual book itself, I really enjoyed the is book. I found myself so drawn to the cultural themes and how immersive Daunis’ character development was and how the differing cultures she was born from shaped her identity and her place in society. This book was rife with trauma, resilience, identity discovery, and conflict. It was engaging, and entertaining while also highlighting very real issues like drug abuse, sexual assault, and in some ways the very real issue of native women and girls being disregarded by society when they are victims of violent crime or go missing. Highly recommend this book - for me - this is an older middle grades and up appropriate read but will warrant conversations.
As for why this book was banned - what I’ve found is that it was challenged and banned due to its inclusion of mature themes and content, including drug use, violence, sexual assault, and language. Are all of those things in this book…they sure are. And that’s why it’s important to have real world conversations between parents/guardians, and children as well as educators and families and really determine what is appropriate for individual readers, rather than make blanket challenges and bans that limit access to literature.
As for the actual book itself, I really enjoyed the is book. I found myself so drawn to the cultural themes and how immersive Daunis’ character development was and how the differing cultures she was born from shaped her identity and her place in society. This book was rife with trauma, resilience, identity discovery, and conflict. It was engaging, and entertaining while also highlighting very real issues like drug abuse, sexual assault, and in some ways the very real issue of native women and girls being disregarded by society when they are victims of violent crime or go missing. Highly recommend this book - for me - this is an older middle grades and up appropriate read but will warrant conversations.
emotional
funny
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Thank you #macaudio2025, NetGalley, and Mazey Eddings for the opportunity to listen to this ALC. This was a Black Cat x Golden Retriever through and through and it was such fun. I appreciated that it used humor to tackle realities of being a woman in media and that it didn’t shy away from the fact that people have pasts and that sometimes we do stuff that we do later actually regret. The story itself was entertaining and at times emotional, the characters were endearing and the end was a great payoff. The narration was so well done, I really felt like the voices fit, the vibes fit and it felt like I was right there in the mix with these people.
adventurous
reflective
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Thank you #macaudio2025, Jen Williams and Netgalley for the opportunity to listen to this ALC.
I wanted to badly to love this book, the concept sounded so interesting and unique and the cover was absolutely stunning but truth be told, the characters felt barely two-dimensional, the banter wasn't there, and the narration tried to do a bit too much for me. It felt almost over-acted/over-performed which is typically not the impression I get from Macmillan Audio productions. For me, this one was a miss.
I wanted to badly to love this book, the concept sounded so interesting and unique and the cover was absolutely stunning but truth be told, the characters felt barely two-dimensional, the banter wasn't there, and the narration tried to do a bit too much for me. It felt almost over-acted/over-performed which is typically not the impression I get from Macmillan Audio productions. For me, this one was a miss.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I feel like it's only right to start this review with a very honest disclosure of... I am NOT a dark romance/dark romantasy/dark fantasy kind of girl. This book was a pretty large step outside my comfort zone. I picked it up because someone I trust read it and raved about the badass FMC and talked about her sassy tone and that was a vibe I was totally into. Ok now that we've gotten that out of the way... I absolutely loved this first book in the trilogy. I cannot believe that JW is a first-time author. This book is written with such poetic language and pacing that there were moments that took my breath away. I loved and hated the characters, I spiraled and theorized for every single page and I found myself having a hard time putting this book down. I cannot wait to see what's to come for Mirielle and all those she crosses paths with in the rest of the trilogy.
*Note I read this as an early un-edited ARC so some content may change before publication.
*Note I read this as an early un-edited ARC so some content may change before publication.