mildlyjulie's reviews
1118 reviews

The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett

reflective slow-paced

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

3.0

So I liked this; I did not find it riveting. The first part felt slow and I had a hard time getting into it. I think family sagas aren’t my thing because I tend to like faster paced plot-driven stories rather than character-driven. The second half picked up and I read it a lot faster. I think also more actually happened in that half of the book, with dialogue instead of just description. The underpinnings of race and identity were well done and thought provoking.

The Burning Room by Michael Connelly

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 enjoy these for what they are. 

The Right Swipe by Alisha Rai

lighthearted medium-paced

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

2.0

Meh. Cute but so one-note. There’s almost no meaningful character development or discussion outside of boy/girl stuff. 

The Black Box by Michael Connelly

emotional mysterious fast-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? Yes

3.0

American Spy by Lauren Wilkinson

slow-paced

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

1.0

I found this dull and boring. Very slow, the plot seemed to be an anti-plot. Allegedly things happened yet it felt like nothing of substance happened. The moments of excitement were few and far between and also happened too fast then returned to quiet boringness. How do you make a boring spy book?!!


<Spoiler>:The sister’s death was revealed very late, and it turns out the dude was there, and she just ran herself off the road? With this man in the car who it turns out is creepy and bad? And then the whole thing was dropped and never brought up as suspicious?

Sam & Ilsa's Last Hurrah by Rachel Cohn, David Levithan
Did not finish book.

Ugh. See, I do hate David Levithan. I made it through the Dash and Lily books rolling my eyes at the stupid Dadh chapters. Even with Rachel Cohn I couldn’t manage this one. I hated all of these characters. I made it halfway through this dumb book and big surprise nothing had happened yet.

You Deserve Each Other by Sarah Hogle

funny lighthearted medium-paced

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

3.5

Weird, funny, and sweet! 

The Jefferson Key by Steve Berry

adventurous 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

Quite a ride! (I had a hard time keeping track of who was who.) 

The Bookshop on the Corner by Jenny Colgan

lighthearted medium-paced

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

4.0

 This book was about the character. There were no men, no romance for almost half the book. Hurray! It focused on HER, what she wanted, her struggles, her triumphs.
I loved all the book stuff, I loved all the Scotland stuff. I am a little devastated that a lot of the books described in the story aren't real!
The romance stuff was nice-it wasn't over the top. But it did kind of take over the meat of the story about her and the book van, which disappointed me. 

The Flatshare by Beth O'Leary

hopeful lighthearted medium-paced

• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

What a delight. A well-developed plot and characters! Romance! Serious issue dealt with appropriate gravity! Overall really well done. I wish the whole genre was this well done. 

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Content Warnings

Minor: Emotional abuse