nerdybookster's reviews
678 reviews

Lady Tan's Circle of Women by Lisa See

adventurous challenging emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective tense fast-paced

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

4.5

This was a really quick read. I loved the way we are shown that the lives of  "privileged" women in 15th-16th century China was not all that much better than that of their working class counterparts. If anything it was more restricted. Girls forced to bind their feet and maintain a 100% blemish free face in order to be able to marry, only being permitted outside of the family's compound to move into her husband's, having to answer to her mother-in-law at all times, even if it would cause harm. I'm glad we've moved away from that. 

I adored the way Yunxian helped her family however she could, knowing the risks she took. Especially when she basically stood up to the most powerful man in her entire country. She proved that women were more than just ornaments to be gawked at. I wholeheartedly recommend this. 

Pond Water by Rian Mileti, Brenda FireEagle Biddix

challenging dark 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

2.5

I didn't know what I was getting. This book left a lot to be desired. It rushed through the plot. Many places could have used a lot more development. They just jumped from scene to scene with kind of...no sense of direction.

A Lady for a Duke by Alexis Hall

adventurous challenging emotional funny hopeful tense fast-paced

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

4.75

This was amazing. I loved the way he told the story. Both the Duke and Viola deserved so much better than what they got in the beginning. I loved reading the history of Gracewood and his friend and the reveal for him and how he must have felt the same kind of love the whole time. I'm proud of Viola for leaving her comfort zone and trusting that the people around her won't hurt her. She got the man of her dreams in the end. Very well written and I'm reasonably sure Lady Marleigh and Miranda de Vere are now my favorite characters. 

Poems of Hate by Various Poets

adventurous emotional funny fast-paced

3.5

This one was really an entertaining read. I didn't know what I was expecting but I found it rather enjoyable for such a short thing. Would definitely recommend to any poetry fans. 

Sackett's Land by Louis L'Amour

challenging mysterious slow-paced

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

2.5

It was....well, it was. I was not particularly impressed by this. I don't know if it is the genre or the theme. Now I've enjoyed books set in the 14th-16th centuries in the  past, but this one was just blah. It seemed a little bit too easy for Sackett. People just trusted him without really knowing him at all. I didn't understand that. I'm not going to continue the series. It just was not for me. 

Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult

challenging dark emotional informative inspiring reflective tense medium-paced

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

3.5

I was talking to someone in a Discord about banned and challenged books and we got talking about this one, which was recently removed from several libraries. I can understand why people wouldn't want it in schools,  but I also think people should read it. I felt for Peter and Josie the whole time and I am convinced that Jordan was right and it is what is now called cPTSD

The Book Eaters by Sunyi Dean

fast-paced

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

2.5

I wasn't particularly invested. It was okay. I was interested in the storyline, but I think a lot could have been changed to make it better? The just aggressive way the 'eaters thought of anyone who wasn't an 'eater (and some who were) was appalling. They looked down on humans as a lesser sort of creature that was not particularly worthy of their empathy or something? I don't know. It just rubbed me the wrong way. And how instead of trying to sort out what to do with Mind Eaters, they just abused the power they had and basically turned them into weapons. I've already put the book up for sale on Pango. I know full well I will not ever reread it. 

Stranger Things: Flight of Icarus by Caitlin Schneiderhan

adventurous emotional funny informative inspiring reflective fast-paced

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

4.5

I adore Eddie Munson and couldn't wait to get my hands on this book. While it did ignore a few character profile things hinted at in the show, it wasn't actually all that bad. I loved learning so much about my favorite metalhead.

The Christmas Orphans Club by Becca Freeman

emotional reflective tense fast-paced

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

2.0

I didn't care for this book at all. Hannah was way too obsessed with making things the way she wanted them to be/stay rather than enjoying the growth of her relationships.

Witches of the Dead Kingdom by Ash Oldfield

adventurous challenging emotional hopeful inspiring reflective tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I did like that we started out immediately with Gwydion stuck in a pickle. Of his own doing. He knew full well what he was doing when he went into the woods. I adored the novel. The story itself was amazing. I loved every minute of it. We start with Gwydion fab Don, whom we know is a powerful sorcerer of some sort, trapped in some sort of chains made of water or something. 

After that, we are sent to Annwn. Here we are introduced to another character who will play an intriguing role in the story. A human who is stuck in Annwn because his mother was pregnant with him when she died. It was an interesting take on a portal fantasy.

He grows up there, not really ever leaving the family estate until he does by accident when someone on the mortal side opens a portal in their sleep. We then follow him as he learns the ways of the human world he would have come from and how to get back home again. 

There were some parts I did not understand the inclusion of, such as grandma and the leader of another part of the Otherworld. As far as I could tell, aside from throwing a few of the characters into unrelated chaos, they served no other purpose. You could have replaced grandma with anything and Erin still probably would have just left. She didn't seem like the kind of person you could tie down for any amount of money. 

I am curious to see where the flirtation between Louisa and Gil is going. That was just strange to have been included. I'm looking forward to the second book there to see if it is continued or left behind. In that same light, I kind of also now want to know why Gwydion was trapped in the first place and what he plans to do now that he's free. Is he going to try to take over Annwn or something? Is he going to seek revenge? The world may never know. 

I did rather enjoy how protective the King was of the child that didn't belong to him in any way. How Arawn would make sure Motoki was safe no matter what, even though he had no kind of bond or tie to him other than he had married Motoki's mother. That was nice to see. 

Overall I gave this book a 4/5. It was really interesting, but lacked something to give it that final star. Maybe if we had gotten a little more on the relationship between the cousins or a better explanation of Louisa's powers (or lack of) then I would have been more inclined. j