Scan barcode
nikkitewes's reviews
440 reviews
The Unmaking of June Farrow by Adrienne Young
emotional
hopeful
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
Tiananmen Square by Lai Wen
3.0
I received the audiobook arc of Tiananmen Square through Netgalley. I'd like to first thank Netgalley and Spiegel & Grau by Spotify Audiobooks for the audiobook.
Tiananmen Square follows the life of Lai Wen in Beijing during the 1970s and 1980s. The reader follows Lai through her relationships in school, at home, difficult times, and then when she leaves to go to college. Once at college she befriends a group of students who go to Tiananmen Square to protest. Lai is forever changed by that found family group and the things that they witnessed there.
I enjoyed that this book felt very much like a memoir. It read like a first hand account of Lai's life. You could sense her innocence and naivete towards the beginning and she starts to truly become her own person towards the end. I especially enjoyed the found family aspect in this book. Once she goes to college and she breaks away from her high school boyfriend. I feel like that is where she starts to find herself more and come out of her shell.
I struggled to get into this book in the beginning because it was hard to decipher how old Lai was and what point of her life we were at in the book. There were times that it felt like we lingered for longer than necessary at specific points and then other points in her life that I felt as though there were not enough details. I really think that this novel could have been narrowed down some. I would have really loved to see it start when she was in college and give us details of that aspect more. I felt like the protests and the scenes from Tiananmen Square were lacking.
Tiananmen Square follows the life of Lai Wen in Beijing during the 1970s and 1980s. The reader follows Lai through her relationships in school, at home, difficult times, and then when she leaves to go to college. Once at college she befriends a group of students who go to Tiananmen Square to protest. Lai is forever changed by that found family group and the things that they witnessed there.
I enjoyed that this book felt very much like a memoir. It read like a first hand account of Lai's life. You could sense her innocence and naivete towards the beginning and she starts to truly become her own person towards the end. I especially enjoyed the found family aspect in this book. Once she goes to college and she breaks away from her high school boyfriend. I feel like that is where she starts to find herself more and come out of her shell.
I struggled to get into this book in the beginning because it was hard to decipher how old Lai was and what point of her life we were at in the book. There were times that it felt like we lingered for longer than necessary at specific points and then other points in her life that I felt as though there were not enough details. I really think that this novel could have been narrowed down some. I would have really loved to see it start when she was in college and give us details of that aspect more. I felt like the protests and the scenes from Tiananmen Square were lacking.
The Red Grove by Tessa Fontaine
3.5
Thank you to Netgalley and Brilliance Audio for the audiobook of The Red Grove. All thoughts and feelings expressed are my own.
Luce has spent most of her life in the protective community within the Red Grove. There have been generations of women who have lived here and felt protected from the outside world. She's been told that no harm can come to her within the grove. Luce believes it and she has no desire to ever leave. Luce's mother, Gloria, is more free spirited than her and feels stifled by the grove community. Gloria is a "seer" and takes clients from outside of the community. One day, one of her clients dies, suspicious things start happening, and then Gloria goes missing. Luce goes on a mission to find out what happened to her mother and uncovers secrets about the very community she has devoted her life to.
I loved that this was told in a dual timeline between the founding members of the community and Luce who is being groomed to become the next leader of the grove. There were some parts that you got to see Gloria's thoughts and feelings about early motherhood and I really felt that. I also love that Gloria never quite bought into the whole grove community. She was my favorite character.
Luce is definitely at the brink of adulthood, and still so naive. Her mother wanted so much more for her than the grove community. She wanted her to be able to experience life before she decided that she wanted to stay. I loved that because I felt the same as I was reading this. I really loved this family. I wish that we got to see a little more of the Red Grove community. I think the book focused so much on the family, that it took away from how creepy the community truly was.
Luce has spent most of her life in the protective community within the Red Grove. There have been generations of women who have lived here and felt protected from the outside world. She's been told that no harm can come to her within the grove. Luce believes it and she has no desire to ever leave. Luce's mother, Gloria, is more free spirited than her and feels stifled by the grove community. Gloria is a "seer" and takes clients from outside of the community. One day, one of her clients dies, suspicious things start happening, and then Gloria goes missing. Luce goes on a mission to find out what happened to her mother and uncovers secrets about the very community she has devoted her life to.
I loved that this was told in a dual timeline between the founding members of the community and Luce who is being groomed to become the next leader of the grove. There were some parts that you got to see Gloria's thoughts and feelings about early motherhood and I really felt that. I also love that Gloria never quite bought into the whole grove community. She was my favorite character.
Luce is definitely at the brink of adulthood, and still so naive. Her mother wanted so much more for her than the grove community. She wanted her to be able to experience life before she decided that she wanted to stay. I loved that because I felt the same as I was reading this. I really loved this family. I wish that we got to see a little more of the Red Grove community. I think the book focused so much on the family, that it took away from how creepy the community truly was.
The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley
3.0
Thank you to Netgalley and Avid Reader Press for the e-book arc of this. All thoughts and feelings that I have expressed are my own.
I'm not going to lie, I have no idea how to properly review this book. It was a lot. A lot of characters. A lot going on. Some romance. Plot twists. It just felt like a lot dumped into a book, but then also not a lot happened until the last 15ish%.
I'm not going to lie, I have no idea how to properly review this book. It was a lot. A lot of characters. A lot going on. Some romance. Plot twists. It just felt like a lot dumped into a book, but then also not a lot happened until the last 15ish%.
Just For the Summer by Abby Jimenez
2.25
2.25⭐ because I liked the romance aspect but felt like trauma 🌽 🤢
The Other Side of Disappearing by Kate Clayborn
emotional
hopeful
reflective
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
3.0
I received this arc through Netgalley. Thank you to Netgalley and Kensington Books for allowing me access to this e-book.
The Other Side of Disappearing is the story of two sisters, their absent mother, a true crime podcast, and a romance. Jess is in her early 30s, and has always picked up the pieces after her mother. So much so that she's been raising her younger sister alone for over a decade. Jess is fiercely protective of her younger sister, Tegan, and is shocked and hurt when she finds out that Tegan has contacted a true crime podcast to help locate their mother. Reluctantly, Jess agrees to a month-long road trip with Tegan and the podcast crew. This road trip is one that will forever change all of their lives.
As the eldest daughter, I could truly empathize with Jess. I've never had to raise my siblings, but just some of those emotions that she had and that role she felt that she had to take on. I enjoyed the relationship between Jess and Tegan. I think that was probably my favorite thing in the whole book. This road trip for Jess was eye opening and life changing. She discovered more about herself and found love. I appreciated that. Adam was an adorable golden retriever and I have no real complaints about him.
I disliked the insta-love feel of this. Jess and Adam fell hard and fast and while I did enjoy them together, I wish that it had played out a little more after the road trip. I appreciated that she took time for herself afterwards, but that felt like almost an afterthought. I also felt like the ending with mom felt like more of an afterthought and seemed like it deserved a little more wrap up than it got.
The Other Side of Disappearing is the story of two sisters, their absent mother, a true crime podcast, and a romance. Jess is in her early 30s, and has always picked up the pieces after her mother. So much so that she's been raising her younger sister alone for over a decade. Jess is fiercely protective of her younger sister, Tegan, and is shocked and hurt when she finds out that Tegan has contacted a true crime podcast to help locate their mother. Reluctantly, Jess agrees to a month-long road trip with Tegan and the podcast crew. This road trip is one that will forever change all of their lives.
As the eldest daughter, I could truly empathize with Jess. I've never had to raise my siblings, but just some of those emotions that she had and that role she felt that she had to take on. I enjoyed the relationship between Jess and Tegan. I think that was probably my favorite thing in the whole book. This road trip for Jess was eye opening and life changing. She discovered more about herself and found love. I appreciated that. Adam was an adorable golden retriever and I have no real complaints about him.
I disliked the insta-love feel of this. Jess and Adam fell hard and fast and while I did enjoy them together, I wish that it had played out a little more after the road trip. I appreciated that she took time for herself afterwards, but that felt like almost an afterthought. I also felt like the ending with mom felt like more of an afterthought and seemed like it deserved a little more wrap up than it got.