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naisdayz's reviews
33 reviews
The Fine Print by Lauren Asher
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
Rowan Kane I will find you
Good Girl, Bad Blood by Holly Jackson
challenging
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.5
Where Sleeping Girls Lie by Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé
dark
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I'm going to write a proper review on this later, but I just finished it and need to get some of my thoughts down.
Where Sleeping Girls Lie is, no doubt, a very important story. Men are assholes.
The execution fell a little flat for me, though. First and foremost, it's too long. Period. This could have easily been 150-200 pages shorter without losing anything significant. I shouldn't have to die from boredom while reading hundreds of pages without anything majorly relevant.
There were also many repetitions and overexplanations written down, which reminded me a lot of fanfictions I used to read (alias books that haven't been edited properly).
Some examples:
"The local town was close enough to the school that it didn't take them long to get there."
"It was weird that Sade didn't recognize her at first, given that she saw her on a regular basis. She realized that not only was this the first time she had seen Persephone on a weekend, but also the first time she had seen her out of uniform, which probably explained how long it took to figure out it was her in the first place."
Despite this, it also underexplains actual important stuff. I wish things would have been discovered rather than showed to us. Sade could have also used a few more brain cells, honestly -e.g. how come she didn't try the uv lamps earlier?
Once it does actually get going, it gets really intense and twisty fast, which I enjoyed. The author did a good job describing the grief and trauma Sade is going through.
There were also some really beautiful quotes in here (I'll quote some later).
Where Sleeping Girls Lie is, no doubt, a very important story. Men are assholes.
The execution fell a little flat for me, though. First and foremost, it's too long. Period. This could have easily been 150-200 pages shorter without losing anything significant. I shouldn't have to die from boredom while reading hundreds of pages without anything majorly relevant.
There were also many repetitions and overexplanations written down, which reminded me a lot of fanfictions I used to read (alias books that haven't been edited properly).
Some examples:
"The local town was close enough to the school that it didn't take them long to get there."
"It was weird that Sade didn't recognize her at first, given that she saw her on a regular basis. She realized that not only was this the first time she had seen Persephone on a weekend, but also the first time she had seen her out of uniform, which probably explained how long it took to figure out it was her in the first place."
Despite this, it also underexplains actual important stuff. I wish things would have been discovered rather than showed to us. Sade could have also used a few more brain cells, honestly -
Once it does actually get going, it gets really intense and twisty fast, which I enjoyed. The author did a good job describing the grief and trauma Sade is going through.
There were also some really beautiful quotes in here (I'll quote some later).
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Violence, Death, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual assault, Suicide, Blood, and Death of parent
Minor: Lesbophobia
The Rabbit Hutch by Tess Gunty
Did not finish book. Stopped at 40%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 40%.
Initially really enjoyed this, but seemed to drag on eternally. Just felt like a chore to pick up after a while, the only thing that kept me going was that I really wanted to know how it ended, but not even that could drown out the boredom I felt.
The Reappearance of Rachel Price by Holly Jackson
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
The Reappearance of Rachel Price was one of my most anticipated reads this/last month, but unfortunately didn’t live up to those expectations.
The first half of the story was very gripping. I really wanted to figure out more about this fucked up family, and the secrets they each kept. After a while, it just started dragging and feeling repetitive, though. While there are a lot of layers to the actual mystery, the ending felt very easy.
I also didn’t understand why we needed that forced romance between Ash and Bel. A subplot where Bel forms an actual connection to another person without pushing them away would have been more interesting. Bel only really stopped pushing him away during their last two interactions or so.
Speaking of, I found Bel to be quite insufferable at times. I understand that she has trust issues etc after her past, but some of her behavior was just that. Insufferable.
The first half of the story was very gripping. I really wanted to figure out more about this fucked up family, and the secrets they each kept. After a while, it just started dragging and feeling repetitive, though. While there are a lot of layers to the actual mystery, the ending felt very easy.
I also didn’t understand why we needed that forced romance between Ash and Bel. A subplot where Bel forms an actual connection to another person without pushing them away would have been more interesting. Bel only really stopped pushing him away during their last two interactions or so.
Speaking of, I found Bel to be quite insufferable at times. I understand that she has trust issues etc after her past, but some of her behavior was just that. Insufferable.
May Day by Jess Lourey
Did not finish book. Stopped at 50%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 50%.
May Day was a book I was pretty excited to read — a murder mystery, small town setting and funny/lighthearted narration? Count me in.
I finished a bit over half the book, and the more I progressed, the more I dreaded even opening it. While I really enjoyed the first quarter or so, I couldn’t connect enough to most of the characters (with the only exception being Mira), and especially not to Jeff. Therefore, I didn’t really care about his death, or who caused it, or whatever.
At some points, the book is also quite slow paced and drags a bit. Maybe I’ll give this book another try someday, or read another of the author’s books (since I do quite enjoy the writing style), but I’ll leave this one for now.
Thank you to Netgalley for providing a free copy of this book in exchange of an honest review.
I finished a bit over half the book, and the more I progressed, the more I dreaded even opening it. While I really enjoyed the first quarter or so, I couldn’t connect enough to most of the characters (with the only exception being Mira), and especially not to Jeff. Therefore, I didn’t really care about his death, or who caused it, or whatever.
At some points, the book is also quite slow paced and drags a bit. Maybe I’ll give this book another try someday, or read another of the author’s books (since I do quite enjoy the writing style), but I’ll leave this one for now.
Thank you to Netgalley for providing a free copy of this book in exchange of an honest review.
Romancing on Jeju by Hyun-Joo Park
Did not finish book. Stopped at 9%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 9%.
Though Romancing on Jeju provides an initially interesting premise, it failed to actually engage me enough. I couldn’t get into the writing style at all, it felt super monotone and lackluster. In turn, I couldn’t connect to the characters either, and couldn’t find myself caring enough about them or the story to actually finish this book.
(The DNF page numbers aren't accurate, but I already deleted the book from my eReader and don't know when I actually stopped reading.)
Thank you to Netgalley for providing a free copy of this book in exchange of an honest review.
(The DNF page numbers aren't accurate, but I already deleted the book from my eReader and don't know when I actually stopped reading.)
Thank you to Netgalley for providing a free copy of this book in exchange of an honest review.
Nothing More to Tell by Karen M. McManus
dark
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
3.0
I slung this down in two days while working, though it was one of those books that are fun to read despite not being the strongest plot-wise. It felt a bit all over the place, and the ending was very unsatisfying given that finding out who murdered Mr. Larkin was the entire premise of the book.
I really liked Brynn and Tripp together, though. I think the characters in this book were one of the main reasons I finished it so quickly.
I really liked Brynn and Tripp together, though. I think the characters in this book were one of the main reasons I finished it so quickly.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Alcohol, Toxic relationship, Gun violence, Panic attacks/disorders, and Alcoholism
Five Survive by Holly Jackson
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Holly Jackson's books will do it for me every single time, I swear. It's been a while since I didn't want to put a book down because it was just so gripping.
Whenever I thought I knew what was happening, I was proven wrong every time.Catherine Lavoy being the one to murder Red’s mom was SICKENING.
Oh, and fuck Oliver. I cant say that enough.
I was confused on why they didn't try checking the Walkie Talkie for bugs earlier since that seemed like one of the most obvious places to me, but it might have been one of those things that seemed too obvious. As in, irl I probably wouldn’t have realized that, either.
I wish there would have been an epilogue, though. (Or maybe I’m just sad it’s over lol)
Those fucking curtains are probably going to follow me until the rest of my life. What’s up with them?
Whenever I thought I knew what was happening, I was proven wrong every time.
Oh, and fuck Oliver. I cant say that enough.
I was confused on why they didn't try checking the Walkie Talkie for bugs earlier since that seemed like one of the most obvious places to me, but it might have been one of those things that seemed too obvious. As in, irl I probably wouldn’t have realized that, either.
I wish there would have been an epilogue, though. (Or maybe I’m just sad it’s over lol)
Those fucking curtains are probably going to follow me until the rest of my life. What’s up with them?
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence, Murder, and Violence