middleagedbookworm's reviews
120 reviews

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling

adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted mysterious tense fast-paced

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

5.0

I get the hype.. a few decades late to the game, but better late than never! Love love LOVED!!

Recitatif by Toni Morrison

4.0

The Sun Down Motel by Simone St. James

dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

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

4.75

Loved the second half of the book even better than the first. The quality of writing in the first half was lacking a little. Took off a quarter star because of that and also because the character Carly annoyed me a bit. Can’t adequately explain why. Also, I feel like the character Heather was not fully fleshed out. There was a lot unexplained about her. Overall though, a very solid book with some great scenes. I was definitely hooked from the beginning. This was way better than The Book of Cold Cases in my opinion. Not sure I will read another Simone St. James book. From what I have heard, this is her best. 

Bunny by Mona Awad

challenging dark funny mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

It is as weird as everyone says it is. I had some LOL moments, as well as a lot of feelings of reverence for Ms. Mona. She is undeniably talented, but I feel like the book could have been 25-50 pages shorter. There were also some parts that were just a little bit too weird and difficult to understand. There is also an “open to interpretation “ ending, so if you don’t like those, then steer clear of this one. Overall, a fun & wild ride that I’m glad I got to experience. 

The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson

dark mysterious sad tense slow-paced

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

2.5

Not for me. The Netflix show is one of my all time favorite series, but the book was wildly different. Actually, they are nothing alike except for the general theme of the story. 

Caught Up by Liz Tomforde

emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted 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

4.25

Overall, a really fun, sweet, sexy romance… and I loved it, for what it is… buuuuuttt, the amount of times he says (thinks about) her “thick thighs” was overkill. Also, it got just a little too sappy for me at the end. But besides those two things, super hot spicy scenes, super sweet guy, fun lead female! 

The Whisper Man by Alex North

dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad fast-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? It's complicated

5.0

What a freaking amazing book. Perfect, in my opinion. I read a library copy, but I am buying one for my personal library. OMG!!! What an amazing read!!!

Indigo Ridge by Devney Perry

lighthearted 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? It's complicated

3.5

Home Before Dark by Riley Sager

dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

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

5.0

What a wild and fun ride. I loved Final Girls as well. This may propel me to become a Riley Sager completionist. He is so creative! 

The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

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

5.0

A new favorite book of all time!! I will re-read this every year during spooky season. I will be buying the physical copy, but I don’t think there is a better way to read it then listening to Neil Gaiman perform it himself on the audio version. Absolutely flawless. Can’t wait to read more by him!!