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meg_'s reviews
515 reviews
The Seven Year Slip by Ashley Poston
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
This was fine, but really forgettable for me. Ashley Poston is somewhat hit or miss for me and I feel like this one leans more toward the miss side. I think the concept as a whole was interesting, but I didn't love some of the elements of the time jumps and the resulting arc of the characters. The one piece of the story that I enjoyed was the exploration of grief after the death of our main character's aunt. Her aunt's story as a whole felt really important and was the most valuable part of the book for me.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Suicide, Grief
Killer Instinct by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
This was alright! I enjoyed it more than book one because it felt more realistic and the plotline/mystery was much more interesting to me. It's still not something I loved, but it was a quick and interesting read.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Torture, Violence, Kidnapping, Murder
Know Your Newlywed by Hillary Nussbaum, Heather Taylor
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
This was a super cute lighthearted read! It was short and sweet. No complaints!
Belladonna by Adalyn Grace
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
This was fairly decent as far as plot goes, but I really didn't like the subplot romance. The plot related to the poisonings and our main characters special abilities was really interesting and kept me engaged. The romance however, left me feeling uneasy knowing that we are talking about a teenager dating an immortal extremely old being who first "met" her when she was a baby. Very weird vibes that kind of ruined the book for me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
Moderate: Terminal illness, Vomit
The Naturals by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
mysterious
tense
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
3.0
I'm still not sure how I feel about this after finishing it! I do think the story was fast paced and engaging, but I also found it to be a bit weird in terms of the plot, subplots, and relationship dynamics. First, I found this to be oddly scary and graphic for a YA novel. Like it was unexpectedly descriptive about really scary torture and murder, and yet the main character felt the need to narrate at the beginning that they don't curse? These two things seemed really oddly juxtaposed.
Next, the love triangle-esque sub plot was extremely weird to me. While this wasn't a huge element of the plot, it definitely was a big part of the subplot to the point that it was uncomfortable, because again, the book is about serial killers in general and is regularly interrupted with chapters from a serial killer's perspective. It just felt super weird to jump from those chapters about the serial killer straight into a chapter about our main character describing how she hasn't had any romantic interests until coming to the Naturals program and been kissed so many times since being there. The vibes were super weird and off.
Lastly, the characters and dynamics between them felt very superficial and not well developed or thought out. In particular, the female side characters were super flat and only seemed to have one dominant personality trait referenced repeatedly.
The thing that makes this a 3 star read over something lower, is that I do feel the plot twist was interesting and the plot as a whole leading to that point and twist was well paced. I will say that with the caveat that I am someone who almost NEVER picks up mystery/thriller books so my gauge for a good plot twist may be wayyy off compared to others, but overall I found this to be fast paced, and easy to read with a good/twisty ending.
Next, the love triangle-esque sub plot was extremely weird to me. While this wasn't a huge element of the plot, it definitely was a big part of the subplot to the point that it was uncomfortable, because again, the book is about serial killers in general and is regularly interrupted with chapters from a serial killer's perspective. It just felt super weird to jump from those chapters about the serial killer straight into a chapter about our main character describing how she hasn't had any romantic interests until coming to the Naturals program and been kissed so many times since being there. The vibes were super weird and off.
Lastly, the characters and dynamics between them felt very superficial and not well developed or thought out. In particular, the female side characters were super flat and only seemed to have one dominant personality trait referenced repeatedly.
The thing that makes this a 3 star read over something lower, is that I do feel the plot twist was interesting and the plot as a whole leading to that point and twist was well paced. I will say that with the caveat that I am someone who almost NEVER picks up mystery/thriller books so my gauge for a good plot twist may be wayyy off compared to others, but overall I found this to be fast paced, and easy to read with a good/twisty ending.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, Torture, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Death of parent, Murder
Moderate: Child abuse
Daydream by Hannah Grace
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
This was cute! Nothing super unique or outstanding about it, but an enjoyable quick read. I will say there is basically no plot whatsoever, but I found the characters to be sweet and not overly cringey/annoying so it gets 3 ⭐️
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Misogyny, Toxic relationship
The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
This was interesting, but definitely was nothing close to what I was expecting and it felt like I got lost in the plot a bit because it went all over the place very suddenly about halfway through. I think I was expecting this to be more romance forward and it definitely was not. It felt more like a science fiction category book with a romance subplot. The time travel was really interesting in the beginning and vague enough for me to follow with ease and as the story went on it felt like everything went off the rails in an effort to make the plot more intense, which felt pretty unnecessary to me.
I didn't dislike the book, but I also didn't love it, hence the 3 stars.
I didn't dislike the book, but I also didn't love it, hence the 3 stars.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Racism, Murder
All This Twisted Glory by Tahereh Mafi
adventurous
emotional
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
3.0
I really love the level of yearning within this series and this installment did not disappoint in the slightest. I loveeeee Cyrus and the extent of his yearning and I loved getting to learn more about the reasoning behind his actions within this book. I will say that the angst within the relationship is a bit difficult to fully understand because its SO intense and the backstory within that relationship didn't feel fully fleshed out but I think that would be my only critique. Really looking forward to the next book in the series!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Torture, Injury/Injury detail
The Serpent and the Wings of Night by Carissa Broadbent
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This was such a fun, fast paced, and action packed read. There was so much here to love! From the plot, to the character dynamics, to the romance, it was all super enjoyable to read.
While the plot twist felt fairly predictable, the plot as a whole was so well done and kept me interested throughout. I loved reading about the Kerjari, the different trials, and the unique ways that these trials were tackled by our main characters.
I also loved the different relationship dynamics. In particular, I really enjoyed reading about Vincent and Oraya's relationship and the complexity in that, knowing how objectively Vincent is horrible but with Oraya there's this constant tension of knowing he loves her, while also not knowing how conditional that love may or may not be.
And obviously, the banter and romance was fun! To me, this was the least interesting part of the book and there were elements that felt overdone (ex the constant repetetive phrases and "there she is" moments) BUT it was also still really fun. I especially love the element of their relationship where it truly felt like they were safe with one another despite all of the reasons they likely should not feel safe with one another. I
've already jumped into book 2 and can't wait to get as enthralled as I did with the first!
While the plot twist felt fairly predictable, the plot as a whole was so well done and kept me interested throughout. I loved reading about the Kerjari, the different trials, and the unique ways that these trials were tackled by our main characters.
I also loved the different relationship dynamics. In particular, I really enjoyed reading about Vincent and Oraya's relationship and the complexity in that, knowing how objectively Vincent is horrible but with Oraya there's this constant tension of knowing he loves her, while also not knowing how conditional that love may or may not be.
And obviously, the banter and romance was fun! To me, this was the least interesting part of the book and there were elements that felt overdone (ex the constant repetetive phrases and "there she is" moments) BUT it was also still really fun. I especially love the element of their relationship where it truly felt like they were safe with one another despite all of the reasons they likely should not feel safe with one another. I
've already jumped into book 2 and can't wait to get as enthralled as I did with the first!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Violence
Moderate: Self harm, Sexual assault, Murder, Injury/Injury detail
The Match by Sarah Adams
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
2.0
I told myself I would never read another book by this author after "Cheat Sheet" but I accidentally checked this out from the library without realizing it was the same author. Similarly to other works by this author, this book and the overall writing left a lot to be desired in my opinion. The writing and the characters themselves very clearly seem immature and juvenile.
The characters feel very flat and completely lacking in any type of depth or development and the same would go for the plot. It is definitely a fluffy, easy to read romance, but because the characters are so underdeveloped and don't feel like real people it makes it hard to say its enjoyable.
The characters feel very flat and completely lacking in any type of depth or development and the same would go for the plot. It is definitely a fluffy, easy to read romance, but because the characters are so underdeveloped and don't feel like real people it makes it hard to say its enjoyable.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Medical content