You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
notesbynnenna's Reviews (513)
3.5 stars
This book made me remember how much I enjoy historical fiction. The Dark Days Club revolves around Lady Helen, a young lady living in the Regency era. Shortly before her debutante ball, Helen begins to develop certain abilities. Soon she learns that there's a whole underground world in London, full of demons and the people that protect the innocent. When Helen discovers this world, she struggles with the societal expectations for a young woman of her breeding, and the powers she has to combat evil and make the world a better place.
I had a bit of a slow start with this book. Since I knew that magic was involved, I kept waiting for that aspect to appear in the plot. That said, the beginning of the book really sets the historical context, and I enjoyed that. I love reading descriptions of fashion and style in books, which are happily quite plentiful in this novel.
In addition to the normal struggles of growing up and reconciling the person that you're expected to be with the person that you want to be, Helen has magical abilities that she didn't expect and doesn't necessarily want. As you can imagine, being a woman in this time period was very limiting. I love that even before she discovers her powers, Helen fights against societal norms and wants to be independent. I thought Helen was a strong, intelligent character, and even when I didn't agree with her decisions, I was rooting for her.
Although it took a while for the magical elements to emerge, I thought they were pretty compelling, particularly in the way that they interacted with more normal aspects of life. However, I have some questions about the world that Goodman created, which will hopefully be answered in Book 2. I thought certain words were a bit overused and some of the dialogue made me question if people ever really spoke like that. Despite a few qualms and the slow start, I was engaged by this story and really curious to read about how Helen would fare with her powers. I'm looking forward to picking up the next book in this series when it comes out!
This book made me remember how much I enjoy historical fiction. The Dark Days Club revolves around Lady Helen, a young lady living in the Regency era. Shortly before her debutante ball, Helen begins to develop certain abilities. Soon she learns that there's a whole underground world in London, full of demons and the people that protect the innocent. When Helen discovers this world, she struggles with the societal expectations for a young woman of her breeding, and the powers she has to combat evil and make the world a better place.
I had a bit of a slow start with this book. Since I knew that magic was involved, I kept waiting for that aspect to appear in the plot. That said, the beginning of the book really sets the historical context, and I enjoyed that. I love reading descriptions of fashion and style in books, which are happily quite plentiful in this novel.
In addition to the normal struggles of growing up and reconciling the person that you're expected to be with the person that you want to be, Helen has magical abilities that she didn't expect and doesn't necessarily want. As you can imagine, being a woman in this time period was very limiting. I love that even before she discovers her powers, Helen fights against societal norms and wants to be independent. I thought Helen was a strong, intelligent character, and even when I didn't agree with her decisions, I was rooting for her.
Although it took a while for the magical elements to emerge, I thought they were pretty compelling, particularly in the way that they interacted with more normal aspects of life. However, I have some questions about the world that Goodman created, which will hopefully be answered in Book 2. I thought certain words were a bit overused and some of the dialogue made me question if people ever really spoke like that. Despite a few qualms and the slow start, I was engaged by this story and really curious to read about how Helen would fare with her powers. I'm looking forward to picking up the next book in this series when it comes out!
This is a spoiler free review of both The Wrath & the Dawn and The Rose & the Dagger.
I cannot lie, these books were disappointing reads for me. The story is supposed to be a retelling of A Thousand and One Nights, but in the first book, I didn't find anything new or inventive about the story. I kept waiting for the author to put her own unique spin or perspective on the story, but it never happened. Instead, these books featured some YA tropes that tend to drive people crazy, including instalove (seriously, it takes the main character like 1-2 days to go from utterly vengeful to completely in love) and melodrama. I thought the main characters, Shazi and Khalid, were one-note, and I particularly expected better from our heroine.
I was really disappointed by the first book, but I decided to pick up the second anyway. The first one ends so abruptly and I wanted to know what happened next and how the author would change the storyline. Plus, I was hoping that the second book would be an improvement upon the first.
I did fare slightly better with the second book and I'd give it an extra half star for plot development because at least the plot finally deviated from A Thousand and One Nights. Still, a lot of the issues I had with the first book are prevalent in the second one. Sometimes I wanted to shake the characters and ask them why they were making the exact same mistakes they made in book one! Then, the main plot point of book one is resolved way too neatly and we get this other subplot that's confusing and kind of appears out of nowhere. You know at the beginning of this paragraph, I was willing to give a half star for the plot, but now I think I've convinced myself to take it back...
Long short story, I wanted, and was expecting, a lot more from this series. If you're looking to read an exciting retelling, I'd have to recommend that you look elsewhere.
I cannot lie, these books were disappointing reads for me. The story is supposed to be a retelling of A Thousand and One Nights, but in the first book, I didn't find anything new or inventive about the story. I kept waiting for the author to put her own unique spin or perspective on the story, but it never happened. Instead, these books featured some YA tropes that tend to drive people crazy, including instalove (seriously, it takes the main character like 1-2 days to go from utterly vengeful to completely in love) and melodrama. I thought the main characters, Shazi and Khalid, were one-note, and I particularly expected better from our heroine.
I was really disappointed by the first book, but I decided to pick up the second anyway. The first one ends so abruptly and I wanted to know what happened next and how the author would change the storyline. Plus, I was hoping that the second book would be an improvement upon the first.
I did fare slightly better with the second book and I'd give it an extra half star for plot development because at least the plot finally deviated from A Thousand and One Nights. Still, a lot of the issues I had with the first book are prevalent in the second one. Sometimes I wanted to shake the characters and ask them why they were making the exact same mistakes they made in book one! Then, the main plot point of book one is resolved way too neatly and we get this other subplot that's confusing and kind of appears out of nowhere. You know at the beginning of this paragraph, I was willing to give a half star for the plot, but now I think I've convinced myself to take it back...
Long short story, I wanted, and was expecting, a lot more from this series. If you're looking to read an exciting retelling, I'd have to recommend that you look elsewhere.
2.5 stars
This is a spoiler free review of both The Wrath & the Dawn and The Rose & the Dagger.
I cannot lie, these books were disappointing reads for me. The story is supposed to be a retelling of A Thousand and One Nights, but in the first book, I didn't find anything new or inventive about the story. I kept waiting for the author to put her own unique spin or perspective on the story, but it never happened. Instead, these books featured some YA tropes that tend to drive people crazy, including instalove (seriously, it takes the main character like 1-2 days to go from utterly vengeful to completely in love) and melodrama. I thought the main characters, Shazi and Khalid, were one-note, and I particularly expected better from our heroine.
I was really disappointed by the first book, but I decided to pick up the second anyway. The first one ends so abruptly and I wanted to know what happened next and how the author would change the storyline. Plus, I was hoping that the second book would be an improvement upon the first.
I did fare slightly better with the second book and I'd give it an extra half star for plot development because at least the plot finally deviated from A Thousand and One Nights. Still, a lot of the issues I had with the first book are prevalent in the second one. Sometimes I wanted to shake the characters and ask them why they were making the exact same mistakes they made in book one! Then, the main plot point of book one is resolved way too neatly and we get this other subplot that's confusing and kind of appears out of nowhere. You know at the beginning of this paragraph, I was willing to give a half star for the plot, but now I think I've convinced myself to take it back...
Long short story, I wanted, and was expecting, a lot more from this series. If you're looking to read an exciting retelling, I'd have to recommend that you look elsewhere.
This is a spoiler free review of both The Wrath & the Dawn and The Rose & the Dagger.
I cannot lie, these books were disappointing reads for me. The story is supposed to be a retelling of A Thousand and One Nights, but in the first book, I didn't find anything new or inventive about the story. I kept waiting for the author to put her own unique spin or perspective on the story, but it never happened. Instead, these books featured some YA tropes that tend to drive people crazy, including instalove (seriously, it takes the main character like 1-2 days to go from utterly vengeful to completely in love) and melodrama. I thought the main characters, Shazi and Khalid, were one-note, and I particularly expected better from our heroine.
I was really disappointed by the first book, but I decided to pick up the second anyway. The first one ends so abruptly and I wanted to know what happened next and how the author would change the storyline. Plus, I was hoping that the second book would be an improvement upon the first.
I did fare slightly better with the second book and I'd give it an extra half star for plot development because at least the plot finally deviated from A Thousand and One Nights. Still, a lot of the issues I had with the first book are prevalent in the second one. Sometimes I wanted to shake the characters and ask them why they were making the exact same mistakes they made in book one! Then, the main plot point of book one is resolved way too neatly and we get this other subplot that's confusing and kind of appears out of nowhere. You know at the beginning of this paragraph, I was willing to give a half star for the plot, but now I think I've convinced myself to take it back...
Long short story, I wanted, and was expecting, a lot more from this series. If you're looking to read an exciting retelling, I'd have to recommend that you look elsewhere.
I've had this on my TBR for ages and I'm very glad to have finally read it. Even better, since I waited so long, the full trilogy has been published and I was able to jump straight from the first book to the second. But I'm getting ahead of myself...
Kelsea has had a rather lonely, isolated childhood, but she's always known that it was her destiny to be queen one day. Shortly after her 19th birthday, the Queen's Guard arrive to escort her to the royal castle so she can assume her throne. However, the road is not an easy one, since both her uncle, the regent, and the witch queen of Mortmesne are trying to kill her. And, even though she's been groomed for the throne, there's still so many secrets that have been kept from her.
This was entertaining and full of adventure. I really liked Kelsea as a character. She's strong, tough, determined, and not afraid to speak her mind. In Kelsea's world, there are many sexist notions about what a woman should do and how women act. Kelsea constantly pushes against those boundaries and strives to be a great ruler for all her people. One thing that I'm not sure how I feel about though- there's quite the fixation on Kelsea's physical appearance and descriptions of how plain she is. It seems like an obsession, which somewhat makes sense when I think about the insecurities we all have, the things we constantly wish we could change. But still, it felt odd how frequently it was mentioned and I wished that focus would have been placed on Kelsea's other qualities.
Originally I thought this was set in the past, but then I realized it's set in the future, which was a fun twist for me (but again, if I'd read the synopsis, I would have known that!). It's pretty fascinating to consider a world after this one in which society has somewhat regressed. However, there are things that don't change, such as the factors that motivate people, whether it's greed, religion, ambition, duty, or something else.
This world also features magic, which I love. I think this first book did a really good job of setting up this world, and hooking me into the story. Aside from Kelsea, there are other great characters, like the Mace, and I got the sense that we've only scratched the surface of his background.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Minutes after finishing it, I'd already started reading the second book- that's how engrossed I was! As I write this, I'm currently in the middle of book 3 and I can't wait to find out how the story ends.
Kelsea has had a rather lonely, isolated childhood, but she's always known that it was her destiny to be queen one day. Shortly after her 19th birthday, the Queen's Guard arrive to escort her to the royal castle so she can assume her throne. However, the road is not an easy one, since both her uncle, the regent, and the witch queen of Mortmesne are trying to kill her. And, even though she's been groomed for the throne, there's still so many secrets that have been kept from her.
This was entertaining and full of adventure. I really liked Kelsea as a character. She's strong, tough, determined, and not afraid to speak her mind. In Kelsea's world, there are many sexist notions about what a woman should do and how women act. Kelsea constantly pushes against those boundaries and strives to be a great ruler for all her people. One thing that I'm not sure how I feel about though- there's quite the fixation on Kelsea's physical appearance and descriptions of how plain she is. It seems like an obsession, which somewhat makes sense when I think about the insecurities we all have, the things we constantly wish we could change. But still, it felt odd how frequently it was mentioned and I wished that focus would have been placed on Kelsea's other qualities.
Originally I thought this was set in the past, but then I realized it's set in the future, which was a fun twist for me (but again, if I'd read the synopsis, I would have known that!). It's pretty fascinating to consider a world after this one in which society has somewhat regressed. However, there are things that don't change, such as the factors that motivate people, whether it's greed, religion, ambition, duty, or something else.
This world also features magic, which I love. I think this first book did a really good job of setting up this world, and hooking me into the story. Aside from Kelsea, there are other great characters, like the Mace, and I got the sense that we've only scratched the surface of his background.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Minutes after finishing it, I'd already started reading the second book- that's how engrossed I was! As I write this, I'm currently in the middle of book 3 and I can't wait to find out how the story ends.
Joint review for The Invasion of the Tearling and The Fate of the Tearling
----
3.5 stars
After reading the first book in the series, I dove right into book 2 and then book 3. Now that I’ve finished the trilogy, I can say that overall, I did like the series. I think the character arc for Kelsea, in particular, is pretty great to witness. The world building was strong in the first book, and it was wonderful to delve deeper into the history of this world in the remaining two books.
I did feel like the pacing slows down over the next two books. Also, as a few new perspectives are introduced, the main storylines felt a bit convoluted, especially in the final book. While I didn’t always agree with what was happening, I did enjoy the journey these books took me on and I appreciate the world that the author built.
----
3.5 stars
After reading the first book in the series, I dove right into book 2 and then book 3. Now that I’ve finished the trilogy, I can say that overall, I did like the series. I think the character arc for Kelsea, in particular, is pretty great to witness. The world building was strong in the first book, and it was wonderful to delve deeper into the history of this world in the remaining two books.
I did feel like the pacing slows down over the next two books. Also, as a few new perspectives are introduced, the main storylines felt a bit convoluted, especially in the final book. While I didn’t always agree with what was happening, I did enjoy the journey these books took me on and I appreciate the world that the author built.
Joint review for The Invasion of the Tearling and The Fate of the Tearling
----
3.5 stars
After reading the first book in the series, I dove right into book 2 and then book 3. Now that I’ve finished the trilogy, I can say that overall, I did like the series. I think the character arc for Kelsea, in particular, is pretty great to witness. The world building was strong in the first book, and it was wonderful to delve deeper into the history of this world in the remaining two books.
I did feel like the pacing slows down over the next two books. Also, as a few new perspectives are introduced, the main storylines felt a bit convoluted, especially in the final book. While I didn’t always agree with what was happening, I did enjoy the journey these books took me on and I appreciate the world that the author built.
----
3.5 stars
After reading the first book in the series, I dove right into book 2 and then book 3. Now that I’ve finished the trilogy, I can say that overall, I did like the series. I think the character arc for Kelsea, in particular, is pretty great to witness. The world building was strong in the first book, and it was wonderful to delve deeper into the history of this world in the remaining two books.
I did feel like the pacing slows down over the next two books. Also, as a few new perspectives are introduced, the main storylines felt a bit convoluted, especially in the final book. While I didn’t always agree with what was happening, I did enjoy the journey these books took me on and I appreciate the world that the author built.
2.5 stars
I started out loving this, but by the end, I was kind of tired of it. At the beginning of the book, Quentin, our main character, discovers that magic is real. He applies to and is accepted at a magical college named Brakebills, and the book takes off from there.
I will say that the writing in this book is really great, which is what kept me going, even when I found the plot a little boring. Quentin started to grate on me, however. He is often complaining, perpetually unsatisfied, and makes some pretty dumb decisions. The book takes place over the course of several years, so I was hoping we’d see Quentin grow up a bit, but that doesn’t really happen, at least not in the first installment of this series.
The magical system is interesting and seems a lot more technical than other magical worlds that I’ve read about. I felt that the book’s pacing was a bit strange and it seems like we fast forwarded through some of the more interesting times (when Quentin was in school) and spent too long on scenes where nothing was happening.
I was hoping to really love this book, but in the end, I wasn’t blown away. I think I’m to blame a bit. I read the book in short spurts over a few weeks, but I think I would have had a better reading experience if I’d read it in longer sittings. I wasn’t eager to read the rest of the trilogy after finishing book 1, but then I talked to a friend who told me that books 2 and 3 do get better. That gave me some hope, so I may decide to continue this series at some point.
I started out loving this, but by the end, I was kind of tired of it. At the beginning of the book, Quentin, our main character, discovers that magic is real. He applies to and is accepted at a magical college named Brakebills, and the book takes off from there.
I will say that the writing in this book is really great, which is what kept me going, even when I found the plot a little boring. Quentin started to grate on me, however. He is often complaining, perpetually unsatisfied, and makes some pretty dumb decisions. The book takes place over the course of several years, so I was hoping we’d see Quentin grow up a bit, but that doesn’t really happen, at least not in the first installment of this series.
The magical system is interesting and seems a lot more technical than other magical worlds that I’ve read about. I felt that the book’s pacing was a bit strange and it seems like we fast forwarded through some of the more interesting times (when Quentin was in school) and spent too long on scenes where nothing was happening.
I was hoping to really love this book, but in the end, I wasn’t blown away. I think I’m to blame a bit. I read the book in short spurts over a few weeks, but I think I would have had a better reading experience if I’d read it in longer sittings. I wasn’t eager to read the rest of the trilogy after finishing book 1, but then I talked to a friend who told me that books 2 and 3 do get better. That gave me some hope, so I may decide to continue this series at some point.
When I was looking through my Goodreads TBR and spotted this book, I noticed that there’s another thriller with the same title, by a different author (The Girl Before by J.P. Delaney). After a brief internal struggle, I chose the book by Rena Olsen because the synopsis sounded a lot more interesting to me.
At the beginning of this novel, police storm into Clara’s house, arrest her husband, and take her into protective custody. Her husband tells her one thing before he’s dragged off: “Say nothing.”
I hadn’t read a good psychological thriller in a while and I thought this was pretty great. The pacing is steady, slowly and carefully giving you pieces of the puzzle until you’re able to put together the big picture. Clara was a pretty fascinating character. The book is told from her first-person perspective, so we are really in her head as she tries to figure out how to handle her husband’s arrest. Also, the narrative moves back and forth between the present and the past so that we see how Clara ended up where she is today.
It’s a fascinating look at the human mind, and the ways in which we can convince ourselves that something is the truth, or is a lie. It’s a dark and thought-provoking read, which is just the way I like my thrillers.
At the beginning of this novel, police storm into Clara’s house, arrest her husband, and take her into protective custody. Her husband tells her one thing before he’s dragged off: “Say nothing.”
I hadn’t read a good psychological thriller in a while and I thought this was pretty great. The pacing is steady, slowly and carefully giving you pieces of the puzzle until you’re able to put together the big picture. Clara was a pretty fascinating character. The book is told from her first-person perspective, so we are really in her head as she tries to figure out how to handle her husband’s arrest. Also, the narrative moves back and forth between the present and the past so that we see how Clara ended up where she is today.
It’s a fascinating look at the human mind, and the ways in which we can convince ourselves that something is the truth, or is a lie. It’s a dark and thought-provoking read, which is just the way I like my thrillers.
It’s about this couple, Sutton and Ethan, who seemingly have a picture-perfect life. That all starts to unravel when Sutton disappears. Suspicion immediately falls on Ethan, but as secrets are revealed, it’s difficult to tell who’s the victim and who’s the perpetrator.
I do like a good domestic thriller, but I found this one disappointing. The characters were so one-dimensional and cliché, and the plot felt scattered. The dialogue was also pretty cringey.
Right away, we know that the husband is no-good and mysogenistic. All signs are pointing to him, but it’s too obvious and you know he didn’t do it. Also, Ethan and Sutton are supposed to be writers, but I did not for one second believe that they were good writers. It seemed like Ethan was only a famous novelist because of his good looks and charm.
Back to the scattered plot. I felt like there was a lot happening in this book, but most of it was not purposeful. It seemed like the author just threw some things in because she could.
Ok, I’ll stop complaining now, but this wasn’t nearly as good as I was hoping it would be. On to the next one!
I do like a good domestic thriller, but I found this one disappointing. The characters were so one-dimensional and cliché, and the plot felt scattered. The dialogue was also pretty cringey.
Right away, we know that the husband is no-good and mysogenistic. All signs are pointing to him, but it’s too obvious and you know he didn’t do it. Also, Ethan and Sutton are supposed to be writers, but I did not for one second believe that they were good writers. It seemed like Ethan was only a famous novelist because of his good looks and charm.
Back to the scattered plot. I felt like there was a lot happening in this book, but most of it was not purposeful. It seemed like the author just threw some things in because she could.
Ok, I’ll stop complaining now, but this wasn’t nearly as good as I was hoping it would be. On to the next one!
I definitely enjoyed The Lunar Chronicles series. I thought they were fun, entertaining fairytale retellings. Heartless didn’t quite live up to The Lunar Chronicles for me, but I still thought it was a fun read.
It’s all about the Queen of Hearts, and shows the journey of how she went from a young girl with hopes and dreams, to the villain that we know from Alice in Wonderland. Our protagonist, Cath, is a bit annoying and privileged, but becomes more nuanced as her character develops.
I really like the way that Meyer writes her retellings. She has a great balance of putting her own spin on the story, while weaving in elements from the original story that are fun to spot.
It’s all about the Queen of Hearts, and shows the journey of how she went from a young girl with hopes and dreams, to the villain that we know from Alice in Wonderland. Our protagonist, Cath, is a bit annoying and privileged, but becomes more nuanced as her character develops.
I really like the way that Meyer writes her retellings. She has a great balance of putting her own spin on the story, while weaving in elements from the original story that are fun to spot.