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mayhemboundbookshelf's Reviews (600)
dark
emotional
funny
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I read this book as part of a traveling book club where each person involved gets to pick a book and then it gets circulated through 16 people. We are all reading each other's books and annotating them and reviewing them and having a general good time getting in each other's minds. This book was something I ordinarily may not have picked up for myself, so it was really fun to read it knowing I would be reading something that my friend really loved! Now, for the actual book review... I really had fun with this book. I really loved Leon's character - though his constant pet names were way overkill for me. Breaking with the concept that Demons are evil and God is good was a really cool pivot from what we expect. I also really liked Raelynn but some of the supporting characters were quite interesting too, (like Inaya!) and felt like we deserved more of them. Would love to hear more about Everly, too!
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Thank you Netgalley, Alex North, and Macmillan Audio for the chance to review this ALC. I really have to be in the right mood to start a thriller, because once I start, I know I won't want to stop because I'll need resolution. And let's just say, life's commitments were not happy with me when I started this book, because it held true... I did NOT want to stop listening. Not only was the story enthralling and left me spiraling over theory after theory, but the narration by Shane Zaza was impeccable. I felt connected to the characters and like I was trying to get in the head of the killer the whole time (unsuccessfully I might add). This book made me really think about how many people walk around completely unnoticed in their lives and how by looking the other way or not stepping in when we suspect someone needs help, we're doing a massive disservice to society as a whole.
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Thank you Lyla Lee, Netgalley, and Hachette Audio | Forever for the opportunity to review this ALC. I think it's especially important to read books written by voices that are not similar to your own - so this was a great read for AAPI month as well as leading up to Pride month. A sapphic romance that drew out all the emotions loaded with 2nd chances, complicated feelings about family and identity, and the challenges of being part of the LGBTQIA+ community and also being of Korean heritage. All that said, this was just simply put, a really good second chance romance. The narration was very well done, I was especially impressed by the narrator who voiced Gemma. This is sure to be a hit when it releases later this month!
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Thank you Chris Hoenigmann for an early read opportunity.
This was one of those books that while reading, you can’t really say you “like” it. It’s not the type of book you go to when you want to be uplifted. It’s the type of book you go to when you want to understand a human experience that may be different than your own, one that often leads to the loss of family, friends, and livelihood. Bowen’s Hollow was very real and very raw and honestly, very much a depiction of the nuances and specificity of addiction that you don’t often read outside of autobiographical accounts. But for me, that’s the intrigue and the reason to read it. You feel like you know the characters (probably because they’re reminiscent of someone you DO know), you’re rooting for recovery and rooting for a happily ever after, but you also can tell about halfway through, that you’re in for ups and downs and that you may not get the ending you want… but I do think… you will get the ending that makes sense, the ending that feels honest. Or, at least that’s the take of a girl who has spent much of her life around addicts in one aspect or another. Rock bottom is real, and sometimes a person doesn’t realize they’ve hit rock bottom until it’s too late.
This was one of those books that while reading, you can’t really say you “like” it. It’s not the type of book you go to when you want to be uplifted. It’s the type of book you go to when you want to understand a human experience that may be different than your own, one that often leads to the loss of family, friends, and livelihood. Bowen’s Hollow was very real and very raw and honestly, very much a depiction of the nuances and specificity of addiction that you don’t often read outside of autobiographical accounts. But for me, that’s the intrigue and the reason to read it. You feel like you know the characters (probably because they’re reminiscent of someone you DO know), you’re rooting for recovery and rooting for a happily ever after, but you also can tell about halfway through, that you’re in for ups and downs and that you may not get the ending you want… but I do think… you will get the ending that makes sense, the ending that feels honest. Or, at least that’s the take of a girl who has spent much of her life around addicts in one aspect or another. Rock bottom is real, and sometimes a person doesn’t realize they’ve hit rock bottom until it’s too late.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Drug use, Death of parent, Alcohol
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Thank you to Netgalley, Holly James, and Dreamscape Media for the opportunity to listen to this ALC. If you're fans of the Finlay Donovan series... trust me when I say... you'll LOVE this book. It had all the FD vibes with a little more of an adult vibe. There was all the excitement of murder, kidnapping, mystery and more combined with some forced proximity insta-love and what-ifs. The narration was phenomenal and only added to the already exciting story.
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Thank you Ana Holguin, Hachette Audio | Forever, and NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to this ALC. This was a really fun one for me. I loved the combination of journalism and athletics along with sort of accidental celebrity. The pairing felt new and definitely not overdone which is hard to come by in romance these days. The narration was also quite well done and engaging with me feeling connected to the characters through the narration. All in all I really enjoyed this.
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Thank you to the publisher, author and NetGalley for the chance to read this ARC. Ok ok ok, was this a real romance… nah not really… it was a love story, but hardly a romance. And to be honest, while I liked the FMC and many of the supporting cast, the MMC was hard to adore given his frequent significant missteps. They would for sure have been deal breakers for me. That all aside. I liked the focus on breaking glass ceilings and found the plot interesting but I did not feel any sort of swooniness for the MMC.
adventurous
hopeful
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Thank you Karen Booth, Netgalley, and Harlequin Audio for the opportunity to listen to this ALC. While I cannot call myself a F1 Racing fan, I do call myself a fan of women breaking into industries that don't welcome them and shattering norms and expectations. I love when we get a romance book that overlaps with female empowerment and self-discovery and this book had all of that. On top of the entertaining story, the audio production was perfect. The narration by Talon David was very well done and engaging. We all know the narrator makes or breaks an audio book and in this case, Talon definitely made it!
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Anyone who reads my reviews of banned books knows by this point that they all start pretty much the same way... banning books is stupid... if you are a proponent of book banning, well then I think you are ALSO stupid. And I am not apologizing for that.
This book was so damn hard for me to read... I found myself in incredible amounts of emotional pain. I am the child of a now deceased addict. My father OD'd and died about 18 months ago and I spent my entire life wishing beyond measure that things were different. Reading this book, knowing my own father, was essentially one of the male characters who did such awful things, and knowing that I have children who someday may be faced with the pressures that led Christina/Bree to the decisions that she made gives me immense pause. All that to say - did I enjoy reading this book, not even for one single second. I in fact, hated reading it... but it's important, and I do believe that access to books like this will save lives. I think it can be just as much a tool for parents, to open discussions on some really tough topics, as it can be a tool for kids to identify what their future could tragically look like should they head down the wrong path. Banning this book does an absolute disservice to the lives it could change.
This book was so damn hard for me to read... I found myself in incredible amounts of emotional pain. I am the child of a now deceased addict. My father OD'd and died about 18 months ago and I spent my entire life wishing beyond measure that things were different. Reading this book, knowing my own father, was essentially one of the male characters who did such awful things, and knowing that I have children who someday may be faced with the pressures that led Christina/Bree to the decisions that she made gives me immense pause. All that to say - did I enjoy reading this book, not even for one single second. I in fact, hated reading it... but it's important, and I do believe that access to books like this will save lives. I think it can be just as much a tool for parents, to open discussions on some really tough topics, as it can be a tool for kids to identify what their future could tragically look like should they head down the wrong path. Banning this book does an absolute disservice to the lives it could change.
emotional
inspiring
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
Thank you so much to Katie Sturino, Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for the chance to listen to this ALC. So much of this was so relatable to me. I've always struggled with accepting my body and been hit hard by comments people would make... I remember being in high school and someone asking another girl why the guy I was dating wold ever date a fat girl like me when he had so many other options. I wasn't skinny... but I wasn't what I'd look back on now and think someone would call fat. But, that destroyed me. That, and the toxic comments from relatives really ate away at me. Forget bathing suits... they were a NIGHTMARE. So to listen to this book was really quite refreshing. I loved that the MC really not only became accepting of herself, but also accepting of the perceived flaws of her eventual love interest. While some characters were AWFUL, I think that was very much intentional.