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mitzee's reviews
354 reviews
The Final Strife by Saara El-Arifi
adventurous
emotional
medium-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? It's complicated
5.0
Another great Saara El-Arifi book and Afro-centered fantasy. The enemies tofriends to lovers trope may not be new but I felt this particular relationship was refreshing. Loved this book by the end and I can’t wait to read the next.
Including a summary for my own records:
Anoor is the daughter of The Warden of ___ something? Except she is not really her daughter. As a baby she was swapped out for a baby from a lower class (class is based on the color of one’s blood) called Dusters. Anoor comes from the ruling class, called Embers
Syla is an Ember, raised by Dusters, one of The Stolen. Fourteen babies stolen by The Sandstorm, a group of rebels/revolutionaries, who would be raised to fight and compete in the trials that would determine the next Warden of ____ and overturn the government from the inside.
Syla and Anoor end up striking a deal with each other - Syla helping Anoor compete in the trials and Anoor teaching Syla how to use runes. All the while Syla knowing more than Anoor does about who the other is.
Including a summary for my own records:
Anoor is the daughter of The Warden of ___ something? Except she is not really her daughter. As a baby she was swapped out for a baby from a lower class (class is based on the color of one’s blood) called Dusters. Anoor comes from the ruling class, called Embers
Syla is an Ember, raised by Dusters, one of The Stolen. Fourteen babies stolen by The Sandstorm, a group of rebels/revolutionaries, who would be raised to fight and compete in the trials that would determine the next Warden of ____ and overturn the government from the inside.
Syla and Anoor end up striking a deal with each other - Syla helping Anoor compete in the trials and Anoor teaching Syla how to use runes. All the while Syla knowing more than Anoor does about who the other is.
The Devourers by Indra Das
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
I feel like this is an “important” book but not one that I found enjoyable. There were parts of it that were more interesting, like the story between Seera and Jevoudon, but overall I was not that into it. There was passion, mystery, magic or lore, all things that I work want in a story, there’s just wasn’t any one character that I liked or was “rooting” for.
Summary so I can remember what I read:
Theres a story within a story in this book. The “outer” story begins between professor, who is the main narrator at times, and Israel, who is called “The Stranger” until the end of the book. They kind of have a triste, the Stranger claims to be a half werewolf. He needs the professor, Alok, to transcribe his story. The whole thing between Alok and Israel is pretty hot, graphic and steamy at the end but everything leading to that felt really tense and awkward. Maybe it’s a cultural thing?
Israel tells a story/tale/lore of three gods who were traveling though ancient India. They are shape shifters and take the form of white European men but dressed unlike Europeans. Don’t really know what they were doing in India other than traveling around on foot, being wolves sometimes (their “first form” and eating ppl then shape shifting back into humans.
One of them, Fenrir, decides he wants to make a baby so he rapes a woman named Seera (telling her it’s a blessing and generally being a white cis dude about the rape). He goes back to his bros and is challenged by one because he has sex with a human, instead of each other. Offended god challenges him to a fight and so they fight then the third one, Jevoudon, shows up and finishes it by killing Offended God (because he likes Fenrir). Anyway at this point Fenrir runs away or something? Maybe Jevoudon leaves Fenrir. And Seera ends up finding Jevoudon.
They travel together, he slowly shares who he is with her, he knows what Fenrir did to her. She on the other hand travels with him because she is looking for Fenrir to… I dunno, give her a piece of her mind? I honestly don’t know. They end up really bonding and when they finally do find Fenrir, they are both pissed at him.
Anyway, fast forward and Seera ends up having the baby, which is Israel, half human, half something else. In between Israel’s story telling there’s a lot of awkward courting between him and Alok and then at the end a lot of graphic sex.
In the end, Israel takes Alok back to the island where he was born where they proceed to have a lot of sex but also Israel finds and eats his parents? And then somehow Israel eats Alok vice versa and they are all one person by the end of the book. I don’t fucking know.
Summary so I can remember what I read:
Israel tells a story/tale/lore of three gods who were traveling though ancient India. They are shape shifters and take the form of white European men but dressed unlike Europeans. Don’t really know what they were doing in India other than traveling around on foot, being wolves sometimes (their “first form” and eating ppl then shape shifting back into humans.
One of them, Fenrir, decides he wants to make a baby so he rapes a woman named Seera (telling her it’s a blessing and generally being a white cis dude about the rape). He goes back to his bros and is challenged by one because he has sex with a human, instead of each other. Offended god challenges him to a fight and so they fight then the third one, Jevoudon, shows up and finishes it by killing Offended God (because he likes Fenrir). Anyway at this point Fenrir runs away or something? Maybe Jevoudon leaves Fenrir. And Seera ends up finding Jevoudon.
They travel together, he slowly shares who he is with her, he knows what Fenrir did to her. She on the other hand travels with him because she is looking for Fenrir to… I dunno, give her a piece of her mind? I honestly don’t know. They end up really bonding and when they finally do find Fenrir, they are both pissed at him.
Anyway, fast forward and Seera ends up having the baby, which is Israel, half human, half something else. In between Israel’s story telling there’s a lot of awkward courting between him and Alok and then at the end a lot of graphic sex.
In the end, Israel takes Alok back to the island where he was born where they proceed to have a lot of sex but also Israel finds and eats his parents? And then somehow Israel eats Alok vice versa and they are all one person by the end of the book. I don’t fucking know.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Sexual content, Violence
Moderate: Death of parent, Murder
The Crescent Moon Tearoom by Stacy Sivinski
Did not finish book. Stopped at 29%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 29%.
As others have said, it was too slow. I had other holds at the library that became available as I was reading this and decided to abandon it for now and maybe come back to it later.
Rewitched by Lucy Jane Wood
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
medium-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? Yes
3.5
I’ve been on a cozy, witchy read kick lately and this is my third (after The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches, and A Dark and Secret Magic). For me this was earning a 3-3.5 rating to start out because while I did like the coziness of the whole thing, Bella’s attitude toward life I found to be quite annoying. Still I preserved and when more characters were introduced and a bit of mystery I was more willing to ignore how she approached things and/or keep a more open mind.
The story has good autumn vibes and takes place in October, leading up to Halloween (similar to A Dark and Secret Magic). It’s a cozy read but something about the MC was annoying to me.
Including a summary for my own records
Bella (Belladonna) works in a bookshop, and has for a very long time, lives in a flat with her best friend Ari (Ariadne) and cat Jinx. The whole premise is that Bella was born a witch but has not really been embracing that side of her, not studying magic (from her grimoire), and using her magic for little dumb things, and she has been watched this whole time by the coven’s council. So every witchy person (witchy folks as they are called in the book) has an assessment at age 30 and the coven decides if they get to keep their power or return it back to the coven - like it is a finite resource? I guess I didn’t really pay attention to that explanation - and Bella failed her assessment. She complains that is unfair and nobody told her they would be watching but I felt like she didn’t even seem to enjoy being a witch, she hid it from everyone (even her best friend who she loves) and rarely used it for anything good or meaningful.
So there are two coven sisters who basically run the coven - a good cop, bad cop situation. Good cop tells her that there’s a stipulation in the book that she can get a second chance if she gets tutored by someone (and this person can’t be someone she knows and can’t be someone on the council) so that adding her to a guy who was excommunicated for murdering his brother.
They meet and she finds that Arty (Artorious) is actually a nice old man and doesn’t believe that he could have done it. Eventually (after half her lessons) she asks him about it and he says he can’t really remember doing it but he can see it happening. This is revealed while Bella and Rune (her assigned protector and soon to be love interest) are with him. They dig into his mind and watch the thing play out live, the two leaders of the coven were the ones who killed him and Bella’s grandmother. Also learned that Arty and the Coven Sisters are siblings so they killed their own brother and blamed it on their other brother.
The story has good autumn vibes and takes place in October, leading up to Halloween (similar to A Dark and Secret Magic). It’s a cozy read but something about the MC was annoying to me.
Including a summary for my own records
Bella (Belladonna) works in a bookshop, and has for a very long time, lives in a flat with her best friend Ari (Ariadne) and cat Jinx. The whole premise is that Bella was born a witch but has not really been embracing that side of her, not studying magic (from her grimoire), and using her magic for little dumb things, and she has been watched this whole time by the coven’s council. So every witchy person (witchy folks as they are called in the book) has an assessment at age 30 and the coven decides if they get to keep their power or return it back to the coven - like it is a finite resource? I guess I didn’t really pay attention to that explanation - and Bella failed her assessment. She complains that is unfair and nobody told her they would be watching but I felt like she didn’t even seem to enjoy being a witch, she hid it from everyone (even her best friend who she loves) and rarely used it for anything good or meaningful.
So there are two coven sisters who basically run the coven - a good cop, bad cop situation. Good cop tells her that there’s a stipulation in the book that she can get a second chance if she gets tutored by someone (and this person can’t be someone she knows and can’t be someone on the council) so that adding her to a guy who was excommunicated for murdering his brother.
They meet and she finds that Arty (Artorious) is actually a nice old man and doesn’t believe that he could have done it. Eventually (after half her lessons) she asks him about it and he says he can’t really remember doing it but he can see it happening. This is revealed while Bella and Rune (her assigned protector and soon to be love interest) are with him. They dig into his mind and watch the thing play out live, the two leaders of the coven were the ones who killed him and Bella’s grandmother. Also learned that Arty and the Coven Sisters are siblings so they killed their own brother and blamed it on their other brother.
A Dark and Secret Magic by Wallis Kinney
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
4.0
To clarify, I really liked the story but struggled with the concept of liking a book translating to a 5 star rating (which I feel like need to be enjoyable and important).
I enjoyed the “cozy read” feeling at the start: a lot of witchy autumn in a sleepy town vibes and imagery. There was also a sense of mystery that slowly unraveled and led to more dangerous situations. However there were a lot of tropes that kind of made the book feel predictable like the romance with a love interest who is perfect.Hecate also felt like a Mary Sue, she just instantly had great power and used it perfectly when it was the most urgent. there also seemed to be a lot of times when Hecate would just lose consciousness and it felt like lazy writing since it wasn’t explained why that happened. I also don’t think it was really explained why Hecate and Miranda had beef?
The fact that her sisters stood behind her was nice, and jt wasn’t like a horrible sibling situation in the end. Although it is never really explained why her sisters have her carrying so much of the load, which seems like the author was just creating drama for nothing.
I enjoyed the “cozy read” feeling at the start: a lot of witchy autumn in a sleepy town vibes and imagery. There was also a sense of mystery that slowly unraveled and led to more dangerous situations. However there were a lot of tropes that kind of made the book feel predictable like the romance with a love interest who is perfect.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death of parent
Magic Has No Borders by Samira Ahmed, Sona Charaipotra
adventurous
emotional
medium-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? No
3.5
While I liked the desi fantasy stories based on south asian lore some of the short stories didn’t really grab my attention. There was so much content I kind of wonder if these should have been broken into separate volumes.
The ones where spirits/goddesses/gods come into present day situations were most engaging for me. Some of the ones where there’s growth and reflection born from sorrow and suffering began to blend into one another.
The ones where spirits/goddesses/gods come into present day situations were most engaging for me. Some of the ones where there’s growth and reflection born from sorrow and suffering began to blend into one another.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence
Minor: Sexism, Sexual harassment
We Hunt the Flame by Hafsah Faizal
adventurous
dark
emotional
sad
tense
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? No
4.5
A good story set in fantasy Arab lore. There’s the enemies to lovers trope and really drawn out tension that becomes romance.
One annoying thing about the audiobook is that there are two narrators and there is a name that they don’t pronounce in the same way.
Summary or highlight below for my own reference:
Wasn’t sure if Yasmine and Zafira might be more than friends at first. It seems like it’s a very close friendship love, rather than a romantic love
Also Altaydr is fun. Sad that they left him but seems like book two would have him come back.
One annoying thing about the audiobook is that there are two narrators and there is a name that they don’t pronounce in the same way.
Summary or highlight below for my own reference:
Wasn’t sure if Yasmine and Zafira might be more than friends at first. It seems like it’s a very close friendship love, rather than a romantic love
Also Altaydr is fun. Sad that they left him but seems like book two would have him come back.
Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury
adventurous
dark
sad
tense
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? It's complicated
3.75
I watched the film before reading the book, the book was immensely better than the movie though seeeing it play out first helped me better visualize the scenes and descriptions in the book.
This is a dark fantasy, a spooky read for autumn, about a sinister carnival that comes into town and claims people. I feel like I missed the reason or rationale for why they do what they do. It’s great for the ambiance but I had a hard time following a lot of it probably because I am more used to contemporary prose.
This is a dark fantasy, a spooky read for autumn, about a sinister carnival that comes into town and claims people. I feel like I missed the reason or rationale for why they do what they do. It’s great for the ambiance but I had a hard time following a lot of it probably because I am more used to contemporary prose.
The Sex Lives of African Women: Self-Discovery, Freedom, and Healing by Nana Darkoa Sekyiamah
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
4.0
Giving this book a high rating because it was so informative. The stories were diverse, some were relatable and some were inspiring. It was also sad to hear that sexual abuse and sexual assault be such a common occurrence for a lot of people.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Child abuse, Sexual assault
Minor: Infidelity
The Grandest Game by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
adventurous
mysterious
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? Yes
4.75
It leave you on a cliffhanger so there must be another book coming out! Okay so if you haven’t read any of the previous books in the series, the characters won’t matter much for you, and it will just be a story about people solving puzzles - which it mostly is.
A friend who had read this said she did not feel as engaged because the primary characters are no longer Avery and the Hawthorne brothers but I actually found this book and the characters to be very engaging. I liked that there were multiple storylines some with new and some with familiar characters. I did feel like there should have been more to this book though, it felt like just half a book.
A friend who had read this said she did not feel as engaged because the primary characters are no longer Avery and the Hawthorne brothers but I actually found this book and the characters to be very engaging. I liked that there were multiple storylines some with new and some with familiar characters. I did feel like there should have been more to this book though, it felt like just half a book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence
Moderate: Suicide
Minor: Bullying, Violence