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noellesmagicallibrary's reviews
407 reviews
The Moth Keeper by K. O'Neill
emotional
hopeful
4.25
A sweet story about friendship and finding your place in the world.
I liked the color choices and how the palette changed betweeen the night and day villages.
The story feels very inclusive. The MC struggles with feelings of loneliness and worth. Her friend has a physical disability and uses a cane. Another character is gay and has albinism. This is all important to the story and not thrown in there just to say the book has diversity.
I liked the color choices and how the palette changed betweeen the night and day villages.
The story feels very inclusive. The MC struggles with feelings of loneliness and worth. Her friend has a physical disability and uses a cane. Another character is gay and has albinism. This is all important to the story and not thrown in there just to say the book has diversity.
Deadstream by Mar Romasco-Moore
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
3.75
Deadstream is fast paced and creepy. I had fun reading this book but I couldn’t stop comparing it to another book I read (that I really loved) and this wasn’t quite as good. It’s not bad! I think if I hadn’t read the other one first I would have rated this one higher.
Teresa’s life has been becoming smaller and smaller. Ever since the accident that killed her best friend, she hasn’t been able to leave her house. Thankfully, she found a group of friends online and uses streaming as an outlet.
One night something weird happened during a popular livestream— there’s someone, or something, in the bedroom doorway! Things have been getting weirder ever since the chat told him to open the door.
Teresa watched it all happen live and managed to clip the video to share to her channels. She’s convinced this isn’t a hoax and she is determined to find the truth.
I loved the mix-media with use of the chats and text chains. It’s one of the reasons why the book was such a quick read (every book doesn’t have to be long and complicated, ya know?)
I also love love loved the queer representation in this story.
I found the title of this book to be so clever! Truly recommend this book to anyone who also enjoys queer/digital horror.
Teresa’s life has been becoming smaller and smaller. Ever since the accident that killed her best friend, she hasn’t been able to leave her house. Thankfully, she found a group of friends online and uses streaming as an outlet.
One night something weird happened during a popular livestream— there’s someone, or something, in the bedroom doorway! Things have been getting weirder ever since the chat told him to open the door.
Teresa watched it all happen live and managed to clip the video to share to her channels. She’s convinced this isn’t a hoax and she is determined to find the truth.
I loved the mix-media with use of the chats and text chains. It’s one of the reasons why the book was such a quick read (every book doesn’t have to be long and complicated, ya know?)
I also love love loved the queer representation in this story.
I found the title of this book to be so clever! Truly recommend this book to anyone who also enjoys queer/digital horror.
As Far as the Eye Can See by Christina Hagmann
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
3.5
This book was a bit confusing me to because the main character is a 12 year old girl, and I picked this book up thinking it was a middle grade book, but it didn’t read like I expected. It’s a bit darker. And I found it weird that the MC often referred to her parents by their first names.
*spoilers ahead
Emily moves into her mother’s childhood home after her grandfather passed away. The house is located next to a swamp with a mysterious past and her grandfather was locally known as the guy who probably murdered his wife.
Emily’s mother (Maggie) warns her to stay far away from the swamp but she feels a pull towards it. One night she leaves her bed to follow that strange feeling and finds a gigantic eyeball coming out of the swamp. This monster forces her to follow it’s commands to create chaos around town.
Her mother also has a history with the swamp and the things that live there. Maggie also doesn’t remember much about when her mother died.
Emily and her mother confide in each other and figure out the truth— when Maggie was younger, she told the Eye bad things about her mom so the Eye took her.
The two of them stand up to The Eye and it takes off like a spaceship.
*spoilers ahead
Emily moves into her mother’s childhood home after her grandfather passed away. The house is located next to a swamp with a mysterious past and her grandfather was locally known as the guy who probably murdered his wife.
Emily’s mother (Maggie) warns her to stay far away from the swamp but she feels a pull towards it. One night she leaves her bed to follow that strange feeling and finds a gigantic eyeball coming out of the swamp. This monster forces her to follow it’s commands to create chaos around town.
Her mother also has a history with the swamp and the things that live there. Maggie also doesn’t remember much about when her mother died.
Emily and her mother confide in each other and figure out the truth— when Maggie was younger, she told the Eye bad things about her mom so the Eye took her.
The two of them stand up to The Eye and it takes off like a spaceship.
Freshwater by Akwaeke Emezi
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
4.5
Akwaeke Emezi writes such beautiful stories. Freshwater is an expression of gender identity and spirituality. It was difficult reading Ada’s story at times but I’m so glad I did.
*read during the 2025 Trans Rights Readathon
*read during the 2025 Trans Rights Readathon
The Pink Agave Motel: & Other Stories by V. Castro
Did not finish book. Stopped at 40%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 40%.
I started this book 2 months ago and I finally admitted to myself that I’m not enjoying it.
I read through the short stories rather quickly and there were a few I liked (unfortunately I don’t remember which ones those are at this point)
Once I got to the Pink Agave Motel portion of the book I decided to take a break to read some other books. I picked it up again last night after 6 weeks and I continue to not love it.
I guess erotic-horror isn’t really my jam.
I read through the short stories rather quickly and there were a few I liked (unfortunately I don’t remember which ones those are at this point)
Once I got to the Pink Agave Motel portion of the book I decided to take a break to read some other books. I picked it up again last night after 6 weeks and I continue to not love it.
I guess erotic-horror isn’t really my jam.
It's Watching by Lindsay Currie
5.0
An absolutely delightful book about friendship, ghosts, and facing your fears. I found the story to be cute and a little spooky but a younger reader would probably think it's a bit scary.
Three middle school best friends spend Halloween night trespassing into the town cemetery in the hopes of capturing and image of the infamous White Lady's ghost. They run out of that cemetery, scare out of their minds to regroup at home.
Someone, or maybe something, followed them home. Could it be one of their classmates playing a trick on them or did they accidently let a ghost hitch a ride home with them?
In order to make all the weirdness go away the group gets help from a local ghost hunter. Together they help each other overcome some scary moments to solve their mystery.
Three middle school best friends spend Halloween night trespassing into the town cemetery in the hopes of capturing and image of the infamous White Lady's ghost. They run out of that cemetery, scare out of their minds to regroup at home.
Someone, or maybe something, followed them home. Could it be one of their classmates playing a trick on them or did they accidently let a ghost hitch a ride home with them?
In order to make all the weirdness go away the group gets help from a local ghost hunter. Together they help each other overcome some scary moments to solve their mystery.
Divining the Leaves by Shveta Thakrar
2.5
Oh man, I opened this book thinking I would love it, or at the very least have a good time reading a woodland fanatsy.
I struggled to read this. Actually forced myself to power through the second half of the book, literally skimming paragraphs to be done sooner.
Things I DID like:
- the descriptions of the trees and flowers. These parts were beautiful written but it slowed down the pacing
- the mythology. I didn’t know any of these stories and I generally like books that use myths
- the overall general vibe of the book. I liked the idea but not the execution.
Things I didn’t like:
- Nilesh. He is unbearable. I hated reading his chapters and my opinion on him didn’t change by the end of the book.
- the pacing. I thought the first few chapters worked well to set up the story but then it quickly lost steam.
- I won’t say I “disliked” Ridhi, but she was a hard FMC to love. I liked that she was a little eccentric, she was starting her own perfume business and she loved her family. But she also lacked depth and I was bored most of the time.
I struggled to read this. Actually forced myself to power through the second half of the book, literally skimming paragraphs to be done sooner.
Things I DID like:
- the descriptions of the trees and flowers. These parts were beautiful written but it slowed down the pacing
- the mythology. I didn’t know any of these stories and I generally like books that use myths
- the overall general vibe of the book. I liked the idea but not the execution.
Things I didn’t like:
- Nilesh. He is unbearable. I hated reading his chapters and my opinion on him didn’t change by the end of the book.
- the pacing. I thought the first few chapters worked well to set up the story but then it quickly lost steam.
- I won’t say I “disliked” Ridhi, but she was a hard FMC to love. I liked that she was a little eccentric, she was starting her own perfume business and she loved her family. But she also lacked depth and I was bored most of the time.
The House No One Sees by Adina King
4.5
I found this book to be devastating but hopeful. It's truly a piece of art.
I don't read poetry often -- honestly, sometimes I feel too dumb for it 😅 and I often don't want to ponder over what I'm reading for too long.
The House No One Sees utilizes verse to tell the story of Penny's childhood and prose for the present day narrative. This is a highly affective story telling tool that creates a more unique reading experience; it's not something I have seen often (not saying it doesn't exist but that I haven't encountered it).
There are A LOT of difficult topics including addiction, drug use, overdose, child abuse/neglect. Please proceed with caution if these topics could be triggering for you.
I was given a gift copy for review, all thoughts are my own.
I don't read poetry often -- honestly, sometimes I feel too dumb for it 😅 and I often don't want to ponder over what I'm reading for too long.
The House No One Sees utilizes verse to tell the story of Penny's childhood and prose for the present day narrative. This is a highly affective story telling tool that creates a more unique reading experience; it's not something I have seen often (not saying it doesn't exist but that I haven't encountered it).
There are A LOT of difficult topics including addiction, drug use, overdose, child abuse/neglect. Please proceed with caution if these topics could be triggering for you.
I was given a gift copy for review, all thoughts are my own.
Slayers, Every One of Us: How One Girl in All the World Showed Us How to Hold On by Kristin Russo, Jenny Owen Youngs
emotional
reflective
5.0
Although I've known about this podcast, Buffering, I hadn't listened to it yet. After reading this book I have moved it up way up on my to-be-listened list.
I came into the Buffy fandom in my early twenties once it was streaming on Netflix and I was immediately hooked -- like I dressed up as Buffy for Halloween that year.
I loved revisiting Buffy through the lens of Jenny and Kristin and learning about their personal lives. You two had NO right making me tear up so many times. And because I hadn't listened to the podcast before, I didn't know there were songs. Buffy themed songs!!! They are incredible and I instantly added it to my Spotify list.
If you have the chance of listening to the audio it is for sure the way to go. It's narrated by Jenny and Kristin and some of the songs are included.
The physical copy has some super cute doodle and chord sheets (which I believe is also available as a pdf with the audio)
Thanks you x1000 to St. Martin's Press, Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for the advanced copies to read/listen. All thoughts are entirely my own.
I came into the Buffy fandom in my early twenties once it was streaming on Netflix and I was immediately hooked -- like I dressed up as Buffy for Halloween that year.
I loved revisiting Buffy through the lens of Jenny and Kristin and learning about their personal lives. You two had NO right making me tear up so many times. And because I hadn't listened to the podcast before, I didn't know there were songs. Buffy themed songs!!! They are incredible and I instantly added it to my Spotify list.
If you have the chance of listening to the audio it is for sure the way to go. It's narrated by Jenny and Kristin and some of the songs are included.
The physical copy has some super cute doodle and chord sheets (which I believe is also available as a pdf with the audio)
Thanks you x1000 to St. Martin's Press, Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for the advanced copies to read/listen. All thoughts are entirely my own.
Mother Doll by Katya Apekina
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
3.5
Mother Doll is not the usual type of book I would read but I saw the synopsis and it piqued my interest and I had accepted an ARC on NetGalley. (I didn’t get around to reading it before it was published and eventually listened to the audiobook from my library instead).
I think it was the better option for myself anyway. I probably would have struggled reading the ebook.
The narrator is amazing! She has a distinct voice for these characters and a wonderful Russian accent.
The story starts off with Zhenia and her husband talking crap about their friend’s decision to have kids and how great it is to have a childfree life. So of course you know what’s going to happen next.. Zhenia gets pregnant. She never wanted kids before but now she’s found that she does. Her husband hasn’t changed his mind and their relationship eventually deteriorates.
Zhenia doesn’t have a good relationship with her own mother and they’re both very bad at communicating. She’s always been closest to her babushka and she isn’t dealing well with her grandmother’s declining health.
One day she receives a call from a stranger who tells her that he’s been speaking with her great grandmother. Her DEAD great grandmother, Irena. Through this medium, Paul, she tells the story of her life as a teen living through the Russian revolution.
Initially, the writing style confused me. I was so lost when the first scene with Irena was presented. But this slowly made sense, and the audio narration was very helpful.
I liked the historical fiction aspect with the Russian revolution but I didn’t like Zhenia too much — she’s selfish and horrible at communicating.
I think it was the better option for myself anyway. I probably would have struggled reading the ebook.
The narrator is amazing! She has a distinct voice for these characters and a wonderful Russian accent.
The story starts off with Zhenia and her husband talking crap about their friend’s decision to have kids and how great it is to have a childfree life. So of course you know what’s going to happen next.. Zhenia gets pregnant. She never wanted kids before but now she’s found that she does. Her husband hasn’t changed his mind and their relationship eventually deteriorates.
Zhenia doesn’t have a good relationship with her own mother and they’re both very bad at communicating. She’s always been closest to her babushka and she isn’t dealing well with her grandmother’s declining health.
One day she receives a call from a stranger who tells her that he’s been speaking with her great grandmother. Her DEAD great grandmother, Irena. Through this medium, Paul, she tells the story of her life as a teen living through the Russian revolution.
Initially, the writing style confused me. I was so lost when the first scene with Irena was presented. But this slowly made sense, and the audio narration was very helpful.
I liked the historical fiction aspect with the Russian revolution but I didn’t like Zhenia too much — she’s selfish and horrible at communicating.