natesfairytale's reviews
25 reviews

Iron Widow by Xiran Jay Zhao

adventurous challenging emotional hopeful inspiring sad 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? Yes

5.0

 First of all, the chapters have titles, which is making it gain so many points. 

Wu Zetian is so brave and passionate. In a world where everyone is against her, she keeps revolting. She never gives up and fight for what she believes in. She struggles in this world because she is blunt and struggles to make allies. But when she does, they would do a lot for her. She keeps getting herself (and her ‘friends’) in trouble but that’s what makes her interesting. She is smart and she thinks a lot, which makes her dangerous to her enemies. I am in love. 
Another thing that I liked is the way the story is not centred in an imaginary place that is just another USA. There was a lot of moments where the book felt very close to our own world, with subjects like gender or sexuality.

How Yizhi sexuality is easier because he is a rich city boy, for example. One moment that marked me was the butterfly scene, with the non-binary butterfly which kind of starts a lot of reflexions in how Zetian saw the gendered way the world works.

I also loved the moments Yizhi talked about love and how it’s infinite.

I never saw it that way and it was a very pretty way of talking about it. I usually hate love triangle, but it was so well written, and it felt so natural to have them getting together in this way. I love how Li Shimin is kind of a mirror of Wu Zetian. And Gao Yizhi complete this duo so well, like you can see that for Zetian and Shimin to be a balanced match, they need Yizhi. 

Finally, I kind of whish some past conversations and actions were discussed more, but the book felt so well constructed that I don’t even mind it that much. It’s a series too, so I hope it will be discussed in the future books. 

Heartstopper Volume 1 by Alice Oseman

emotional hopeful lighthearted medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes

5.0

Lies We Sing to the Sea by Sarah Underwood

adventurous tense slow-paced

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

3.75

It was a good book. I enjoyed it. I liked the half retelling half what happened next trope of this book. The characters had flaws but they were nice.The secondary characters should have been more presents. I feel like it could have been shorter at time. Like there were some repetitions that weren’t useful. And I think some other part should have been more developed, like how the characters came to each decision. I didn’t like the fact that Leto cheated on her first love interest. Like I get the love triangle (not a fan), but if you want your main character to hesitate between two characters, don’t make her chose one and kiss the second two hours later. Also, the character being bi (or pan or queer, or whatever you choose to identify her) makes it like the author buys into the bi people are cheaters thing. And I was very uncomfortable with that. Again, she can hesitate between two, or even be poly. But if she hesitates, don’t make her cheat. And if she is poly, make her talk about it with her love interests. 

All the Bright Places by Jennifer Niven

emotional reflective sad 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

4.0

 It was a beautiful but sad story. First thing first, you should check the Content and Trigger Warnings. It contains talk of suicide, death, and violence (that’s at the top of my head). Now, if that’s something that doesn’t stop you from reading a book, you should read it. 

The end was heartbreaking, but the story was touching. I loved seeing Violet and Theodore evolved and learn to know themselves and each other. We see the story through their eyes, it’s a dual point of view. Thus, we feel their hate and sadness, their happiness and hopelessness. And so, I hated a lot of the other characters. I’m trying to stay spoiler free, even though the books been out for a while now. But know that some people shouldn’t be parents. I know it’s a book, but still. And I wish other characters could have done more. They were just kids, and they shouldn’t have had to deal with half of what they did. And if only they had a little more help, a little more people to count on… That might have changed some lives. 

I feel like I should end this with a ‘if you feel anything like Finch, please reach out to someone’ but we know it’s easier said than done. But if you have that one person you can trust, please try to reach out to them. Because I’m pretty sure this world is better with you in it. 

Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo
Did not finish book. Stopped at 11%.

I liked the story, but I didn't liked the writing. I couldn't explain it, I just couldn't get into the story.