rubybereading's reviews
70 reviews

The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches by Sangu Mandanna

funny inspiring lighthearted reflective medium-paced

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

3.75

Very adorable! I enjoyed the story and a lot of it resonated with my own life so I appreciated that. It was a little wordier than necessary and kind of droned on for a bit in the middle, but even that didn’t bother me. I was never bored. It was so heartwarming and cozy and pleasant. Though some of the themes were pretty heavy, the whimsical nature of it kept it light enough so that it was still a very feel good story.

The Kaiju Preservation Society by John Scalzi

adventurous funny lighthearted fast-paced

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

4.0

This was such a fun read. If it wasn’t for the fact that I have to work and also, you know, parent or whatever, I would’ve ate this book up so quickly! It was just a good time! The plot was interesting, the world-building was simple but still thorough enough to support the story and was well thought out, and the characters were believable and likeable. Some of it was a little redundant and it got slightly boring around 55%, but it picked back up quickly and redeemed itself by the end. And even though it was mostly lighthearted and fun/simple, it was still action packed, adventurous, had a little drama and even a few heartfelt moments. I plan to eventually read more of the writer’s work because one thing I really appreciated about the book is that I could tell he was an actual fan of the genre and the themes in the story. Idk if it was necessarily super well researched in the traditional sense, but I could tell he enjoyed this type of content as a fan of it himself, and that added a certain element to his writing style that I think made it better. It was a good read! And funny too!

Butter by Asako Yuzuki

challenging dark emotional informative inspiring mysterious reflective relaxing sad slow-paced

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

5.0

I was going back and forth on whether to give this 5 stars or not, but my son told me to stand on it, so I’m standing on it. This book initially came onto my radar last summer when I was looking for something to fulfill the “food-related” book prompt in a reading challenge I’m doing, but it was only because it was a book club pick that I ended up doing it and I’m so glad I did. I adored so much about this book. First, the food. Omg! The way they described cooking and eating and how those simple acts, that we perform daily, engages and interacts with all the senses was immaculate. And as someone who already loves butter, especially, it made me want to eat it straight out of a bowl like it was ice cream. Lol! Omg! I was in heaven listening to it. I also think that made it even better. This was an audiobook listen for me, and the way the narrator’s accent and tone played into it almost felt sensual. Don’t judge me, but it did! Lol! It was so satisfying. It was tf sublime! My God!! Smh! That set the tone for the whole book for me. There wasn’t much they could do to ruin it for me after that. I already love to cook, and this gave me so many new menu ideas to try and I can’t wait! There was actually a time back in my early 20s that I considered going to culinary school (Johnson & Wales, specifically, since I was living in Charlotte at the time), and this made me want to consider it again. That’s what the vivid food descriptions did for me. And I wasn’t taught how to cook growing up. I became “self-taught” in my late teens/early 20s (via Food Network, google, and mostly trial and error) at the behest of my boyfriend at the time and have loved cooking ever since, so those parts of the story really resonated with me. Plus I just loved it!  Lawd! Anyway, aside from that, this was the first book in a while that I cared about the characters in the way I did with this one. I felt a similar level of compassion I’d feel for myself or a friend that I love. Idk if it was the mommy/daddy issues, the struggles with weight and body image, or the issues they confronted with regard to self-reflection, self-discovery, self-acceptance, and self-confidence, but I saw a lot of myself in them—ALL 3 of the main female leads, Rika, Reiko, and even the “villain”, Kajii. I saw so much of myself, my friends, and siblings/aunts/cousins in them, and it was surprisingly very comforting. It was by no means a perfect composition, but I thoroughly enjoyed and appreciated the reading/listening experience. I want to buy a physical copy for my collection now.

No Longer Human by Osamu Dazai

dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

I didn’t enjoy reading this, but I respect it. The main character was very unlikeable and infuriated me at times, but he was also very damaged and broken and had been through so much as a child that I couldn’t help but feel empathetic towards him. His notebooks showed a high level of vulnerability, but it lacked a certain level of self-awareness in my opinion. I do know from my own experiences and from dealing with loved ones who suffer or have suffered from debilitating depression that it’s hard to see things for how they truly are and that you can develop a tendency to lie to yourself in order to cope with some of the realities of your existence. The fact that he felt he couldn’t relate to other humans, though, was actually one of the most relatable things about him. Still, this book left a sour taste in my mouth. It was hard getting through some of it and reading about the self-destructive choices he made and the way he nonchalantly and dismissively affected the people in his life in some extremely horrible ways. This book could be very triggering for many reasons, but that’s kind of what makes me respect it more. It’s a raw and uncut depiction of how mental illness can manifest in someone’s life, and is told in a very unapologetic manner that really does make him more honestly “human” than most people would feel comfortable admitting.

The Fifth Season by N.K. Jemisin

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad 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

5.0

This is the most conflicted I’ve felt for any of my “5 star” reads. I’m not even 100% sure how I feel about it. The plot was not really a “plot”, but it also was. A lot happened without a whole lot really happening. But so much happened! I spent pretty much the entire read fully engrossed. First of all, it was so well-written, and clever, and intentional with the choices. And it was uniquely constructed—almost frustratingly so. But I was pulled into the world almost immediately (mostly because I’m very intrigued by dystopian, apocalyptic stories), even though it was confusing as hell from the very beginning. And I had such an emotional attachment to the characters that I found myself crying at some of the oddest moments in their stories. I was so emotionally invested when I didn’t even necessarily like them that much at times. But I felt like I understood them. And I felt so much hurt for them. All I thought about in the couple of weeks that it took me to read this book was this book, and I haven’t stopped thinking about it since I finished it a few days ago. I even had dreams about it, y’all! 1 or 2 while in the middle of it, and at least one since I finished it. It feels like it’s in me. Lol! I know that sounds dramatic af, but it does. But I’m so bothered by it because I don’t have any closure. What I was hoping would get resolved by the end, doesn’t. And it ended in a way where you HAVE to continue to the next installment of the series. I loooooatheHUH(!!) when writers do that, but I also want to jump right into the next book—something I literally NEVER want to do. I’m not really a series finisher, but I can’t stop thinking about it and it’s making my stomach hurt. But that also makes me not want to go right to the next one because, if it happens again, I might go on a murderous rampage! 😀 The fact that I want to finish it almost made me give this like 2 stars. Is that weird? No, but really, giving it less than 5 felt almost blasphemous. Even when I was thinking “4.5” because of the ending, that made my stomach hurt too. So 5 it is. Smdh!

Slewfoot: A Tale of Bewitchery by Brom

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Slewfoot, babes, you owe me absolutely NOTHING! Ok? To be honest, this wasn’t a “true” 5 star read for me. However, it was the lone survivor of all the novels I tried to read (with my eyes) during the 2-3 month reading slump that I was in. And this ended up being the story that gave the final push that freed me! It was THAT good! Even when I went days—maybe even weeks (?)—not reading a page of any book, this was the one that stayed on my mind. I was intrigued and emotionally invested from the very beginning. I adored Abitha and loved her spunk and resilience. I loved that she was always true to who she was even when trying to play it down to avoid suspicion or repercussions. And, though there were a LOT of parts in the last third of the book that were extremely hard to get through, the ending redeemed it for me. Plus, again, it pulled me out of that annoyingly hellish reading slump, so it gets extra credit—just off principle! 4 stars became 5 for that reason alone. Idc idc idc! Plus f*ck yeah b*tch! People gotta learn who not to play with sometimes, ok?? You never know what anybody is capable of.

Shaken Not Stirred by Alma Katsu

1.5

As the final installment in a short-story trilogy, it just suddenly turned into a whole other story. A bunch of action and shoot 'em up bang bang scenes all out the blue, when the first 2 were pretty tame and dry—little to no action at all. Smh! This whole thing was weird. Mainly because the story didn't need to be a trilogy. It could've been a novella. It still would have been disjointed, but still. Idk. It was weak. As far as the plot and sequence of events, this made the CIA look incompetent and extremely gullible and stupid. And it made Russian spies look emotionally and mentally fragile. Also, it read very preachy and propagandistic. It was all over the place. It did serve a very specific purpose for me personally as a reader, but it won’t likely have any kind of impact in the long run—other than probably turning me off from ever trying another spy story. Damn.

On Enemy Ground by Alma Katsu

2.5

It was ok. This is the 2nd of a trilogy of short stories that, so far, doesn’t seem like it really needed to be broken up. Not much more happened other than showing a slightly softer side to the main character. But the way his arc is leaning doesn’t really make sense when you consider his brutish background. At least it’s short af if nothing else. Whatever. I was just trying to crawl through a slump. 🙄

The Vanishing Man by Alma Katsu

2.75

It was a fine enough intro to the short-story trilogy. Intriguing but very vague and felt a little predictable. It's a quick and easy read, though. It did end up being good for helping me drudge through the slump that I was in at the time.

Natural Selection by Elin Hilderbrand

slow-paced

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

0.25

Oh wow. This was so unremarkable that I literally forgot that I read this. It was short denna bih, but felt like it took 12 years to finish (from what I CAN recall). And now that I see that this was the last book I finished before diving headfirst into a depressing reading slump, I’m thinking this might be the culprit. And now I’m angry because I barely even remember reading the b*tch! 😡