petalpineink's reviews
117 reviews

Together We Rot by Skyla Arndt

dark mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix

3.5

YA horror about a creepy forest cult? Sign. Me. Up. 

This story had just the right features to suck me right in. Cults, moths, frenemies, missing person mystery. I really enjoyed the authors choices that made this a mysterious and creepy folk horror. It was just the right amount of dark and chilling for this kind of read. 

While I typically love a faster paced read when it comes to a mystery in the plot, I do wish this specific book took it a little slower and added a bit more fluff. Despite the speed of the plot, I did still get to know and care for the characters quite well. However, I think more character building (especially of the side characters), an elongated plot that reveals the mysteries a bit slower, and more of the authors prose would have made this book pop a bit more for me. 

Thank you NetGalley and Penguin Group for the ARC of this book.

Threads That Bind by Kika Hatzopoulou

adventurous mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix

4.0

Give me a YA fantasy mystery steeped in connections to Greek mythology and I am going to eat it up. I loved this book. I listened to this book on audio at work and barely got any work done (shhh🤫). 

I really enjoyed the world the author ha begun to build in this first book. Not going to lie, as happens with many fantasy series, it took me a bit to understand what was going on, as these reads tend to just drop you into the world and take off running, but once I got more familiar with the story after a few chapters, it was no struggle to keep up. I really loved how fast paced this book felt. Straight from the beginning I was thrusted into a story of mystery as main character Io is already investigating a strange occurrence that ends up being part of a much larger scheme than anyone was imagining. While diving right into the action did cause me to stumble at first, I prefer it as it caught my interest immediately and kept it through the story. 

I also loved the way the different descendants of the gods, Other-born, are written. I had a great time connecting which powers went to which greek mythology references (some were explicitly told in the story, some were not). 

This story was very creative and exciting and I cannot wait for the sequel already! 

Thanks NetGalley and Penguin Group for the ARC of this book. 

My Heart in Braille by Anne-Lise Nalin, Joris Chamblain

fast-paced

3.0

What a cute and beautifully illustrated graphic novel about finding your compass in another person. Follow along as Victor is metaphorically guided by Marie-Jo to see his worth and potential while Marie-Jo is literally guided by Victor to find her way despite her quickly fading eyesight. I would have liked to see Victor get his own story of chasing his own dreams versus tying his worth so fully to Marie-Jo, however, this really is just a snapshot of their time together, so one could overlook this flaw and assume there would be more to their story. Overall I enjoyed this fast paced read. 

Thanks NetGalley and Europe Comics for the ARC of this graphic novel. 

The Angel Maker by Alex North

dark mysterious

• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No

2.75

2.75 ⭐️

While I enjoyed the overall mystery too this read, I was left often confused by the disjointed timeline or unsatisfied with the lack of connection to any of their characters. While I typically love a read that doesn’t follow a chronological timeline, but I found myself struggling with this one often. I especially found it hard to keep track of characters as the author regularly referred to them with differing names (switched between first and last name a lot which got especially confusing as some characters shared last names). 

I also found it quite difficult to feel connected to any of these characters. I found myself not caring for any of them, which made it hard for me to truly enjoy the ending. Other than their connection to the mystery taking place, I found very little effort to make the reader understand the characters desires and motivations making them hard to care to deeply for in the height of conflict. Also, why the addition of detective Laurence Page? I feel like this character could have been completely removed from the story. 

I’ll give Alex North another shot, as I have several of their books on my TBR, but this one was not for me.

Thank NetGalley and Celadon Books for the ARC of this book. 

Where Echoes Die by Courtney Gould

mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No

2.75

By all means I should have liked this book. The plot was just what I look for in a book - a mysterious town with its secretive residents, indecipherable hints from a deceased character, things being not at all what they seem. But there was just something I can’t seem to put my finger on that kept me from truly enjoying this read. Maybe it was that I just was in the wrong mood when I read it? Though it might have been that I couldn’t connect to any of the characters? Overall this read slower for me than I would have like, and I had a hard time getting into the book. I’m honestly a bit confused why I didn’t enjoy this as much as I expected to, so I’d give this author another chance for sure before deciding if they are for me or not. 

2.75⭐️

Thanks NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC of this read. 

Sorceline Book 2 by Sylvia Douyé

fast-paced

3.75

Man Made Monsters by Andrea L. Rogers

dark mysterious medium-paced

3.0

I had a hard time getting into and following this book, but to be honest, I think that was more me than the book itself. I hadn’t realized going into this read that it was more of an anthology style compilation of short stories, and short stories aren’t typically my favorite story format, so that was my fault for not realizing. That being said, there were several stories in this book that I liked. What I really struggled with is that each story is connected to another somehow and I found myself having a hard time seeing those connections and then hyper-fixating of that instead of letting myself become immersed in the story. I also felt that several of the stories were a bit to short or ended too abruptly for my personal liking - they didn’t let me get to know the characters as much as I liked, which is what I often struggle with when reading short stories. However, I do quite appreciate what the author was accomplishing by creating so many interwoven stories that not only touched upon supernatural themes, but of other man made atrocities, as the title suggests. 

Thanks NetGalley and Levine Querido for the ARC of this book. 

Those We Drown by Amy Goldsmith

dark mysterious 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? No

3.75

This fast-paced limited space mystery/thriller had me sucked in immediately. Mysterious disappearances while stuck on a cruise ship, yes please.

3.75 ⭐️

Things I Liked
The Pacing
This read felt more on the fast paced side to me. I liked how quickly it picked up and how it throws you into the first missing character mystery almost immediately. I felt they the plot moved along pretty quickly, which is what I generally like to read in a mystery/thriller. 

The Characters
We’re these characters relatable to me personally? Absolutely not. But I found my self enjoying reading about them and getting just the right amount of frustrated with their character flaws and how these flaws made them act in unhelpful ways. 

Things I Didn’t Love
The Modern Influencer Character Background 
I realize that the trendy influencer background is a main character point of this book, and that these characters are intended to be annoyingly unrelatable, but sometimes I was just too annoyed with them. I would have perhaps liked the influencer aspect toned down a bit, but overall it didn’t dissuade me too much from the rest of the book.

Overall, I quite enjoyed this book for a spooky October read. 

Thanks NetGalley and Random House, Delacorte Press for the ARC of this book.  

King Nyx by Kirsten Bakis

dark mysterious

3.25

Mysterious island, gothic thriller mystery, and a determined cast of women. The premise of this book pulled me in immediately

3.5 ⭐️

This story is told by Annie, a wife of late crypto-scientist and poor received writer Charles, as she recalls a story of her own - a story of mystery, murder, and the oppression of women. A majority of this book takes places on a dark and mysterious island, owned by the unseen Mr. Arkel. But as we soon find out, the people on this island may have the darkest secrets of all. 

I quite enjoyed this read, especially the characters Annie and Stella. I found that some of the plot pacing felt rushed, and the ending to the mystery was a bit quick to be fully satisfying for me, but overall, this read had me pulled in and guessing most of the way. A great read for spooky season. 

Thank you NetGalley and W. W. Norton & Company for the ARC of this book. 

To Shape a Dragon's Breath by Moniquill Blackgoose

• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

I cannot wait to see where this series goes from here! 

If your looking for your next dragon series, you found it. This book had me immersed and engaged. I found the beginning to take some effort to really get into, though I find that is the case for me with a lot of fantasy novels in the early world building chapters. And I wouldn’t change anything about it as the beginning does a great job at establishing the world as well as taking the time to establish the contrast between the main characters indigenous worldview and deep connection to dragons as compared to a colonial worldview and more oppressive and possessive connection to dragons.  

By the middle to end of this read, I was so engrossed in the relationships of the characters and where the plot would end up. I cannot wait for the next installment of this series as the ending left off suggesting that things are about to pick up speed and we may see a stronger culture clash that we already have explored. 

I highly recommend listening to this as an audiobook as narrator Charley Flyte did a great job bringing each character to life. 

Thank you NetGalley and Random House for the ARC of this book.