rubybereading's reviews
70 reviews

The Villain Edit by Laurie Devore

medium-paced

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

3.0

I meeeeeeeannn...Did she get the "villain edit" or was she an actual "villain"? Even as told by MC herself (as the whole story is from her pov), she's mean, arrogant, hard to get along with, hard to like, sees herself above everyone else, etc. The protagonist was antagonistic as hell! I really didn't like her and found no reason to root for her. I never felt sad when she did. And I never felt bad for her. She was rude and reckless and conniving for, at times, no logical reason-even to the end. I would've never been happy for her no matter how it ended. 🤷🏽‍♀️ Sorry. But that's what made this book interesting. Just like the "villain" in an actual reality show. They're the reason we watch, if we're honest with ourselves That's why this gets a decent rating for me, because it was realistic and felt relatable. It almost felt liKe we were really seeing the bts of a dating reality show. It was very well done in that regard.

Mickey Chambers Shakes It Up by Charish Reid

emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective 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? Yes

3.75

This was so cute! I loved Mickey's personality and her approach to life after, due to and in spite of the obstacles her health put in her way. I love free-spirited characters and love to see them win. This was also an adorable love story. Mickey and Diego balanced each other out very well. Her sunshine to his grumpy was well played, and I like how she still knew how to stand up for herself when he was doing too much. The only thing that kind of annoyed me was the constant comparisons to and conversations about the late wife. Mickey's better than me because I would've gotten tired of hearing about her. Idc how dead she is! But this book did remind me that I'm working on my compassion and l'm definitely a work in progress. Smh! Overall, I very much enjoyed this story and the last line was so cute and perfect. I swooned! 😍

The Bayou by Arden Powell

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

Dark. Eerie. Sad. Heartbreaking. Haunting. Spine-tingling. 

Enticing. Creepy. Addictive. Horrifying. Sexy. Sensual. Disturbing (!!!) AF and, at times, hard to get through but it was almost perfectly written. Even the slow parts were intriguing because the mood and atmosphere had already been set so well. It already had me in its grips wondering what's to come, and then OMG!! It was eerily "beautiful" (??), but so harsh and ugly. Darkly poetic without trying too hard. The first horror book that really kind of horrified me for real! Gothic to its core! I wasn't readv!! Wtf?? I'm kind of at a loss for words. This one, for sure, will sit with me for a while! And it's definitely not for the faint of heart! Smh!! 

TW: Suicide, gun violence/fatalities, internalized homophobia, child sexual assault, body horror (mild depiction), fatal strangulation, desecration of the Bible and Church/pulpit-ALL on page depictions.

The Poisons We Drink by Bethany Baptiste

challenging dark emotional tense fast-paced

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

3.75

*3.5 to maybe 3.75⭐️ (would round up to a 4-only by default--if partial stars weren't allowed, because rounding down to 3 feels too low)*

...It was good. It was action packed & entertaining. I loved the storyline, & had heart for the characters. I loved how the magical world intertwined with the real world & how it was interwoven into the story in a way that gave us time to learn, understand, and appreciate it. However, there were a lot of very ambitious plot points to the point where there was sometimes too much going on back to back, & it was a big plot salad of twists and turns and revelations and happenings. I was very confused by the end and could barely keep up with all the characters and all their 12 billion revelations. I just needed a little break from the plot twists. I felt dizzy and my head, legit, started to hurt. It was so much! This also made it feel way longer than it was (that's what she said). But, still, it actually was good. I doubt it's one of those books that will stick with me. In a year I'll probably forget I even read it, but I was entertained, so I'm not disappointed or anything. I wouldn't read it again, but I'd definitely watch if it got a screen adaptation.

A Murder to Remember by Brynn Kelly

emotional funny hopeful lighthearted tense 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

3.75

This was so cute and romantic!! I smiled through all their dialogue. Their natural connection was so adorable and their banter had me seeing heart eyes through the whole story! The way they protected and took chances for each other was couple goals. It was a little wordy, but it was so adorable that it was easy to look past that. This was so cute!! Idek what else to call it. It was just so cuuuuuuuute!!! 😍😍😍

How to End a Love Story by Yulin Kuang
Did not finish book. Stopped at 10%.

Just very bored. + I left the book club that was reading this. I may revisit it later though.

After You've Gone by Margot Hunt

emotional sad fast-paced

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

2.5

It was okay. Predictable than a m'er-f'er, but would probably make for a good filler audiobook to hold you for a few hours through a reading slump if you don't need anything too heavy. For that, it'll do. It was nothing special though.

Icarus by K. Ancrum

dark emotional 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

2.25

It was ok. A little weird, but I didn’t hate it. Didn’t love it either. The chapter structures made it hard, early on, to care about the MC. Then, by the time I probably should’ve, I was already so confused about how I felt about the whole thing in general, that it was even harder to care. The slow burn of it all was a little too slow. And some parts were kind of cringe. The tense and suspenseful climax at  the end was gripping, but it was kind of too little too late. And then the end gave too “happily ever after” for me. It felt corny. Plus it was all just so odd. Idk. I’m actually really confused about how to feel about it. The compassion I was able to garner for Icarus, since I do have a heart and he had a sad story but seemed to be a good person at heart, is the only thing that “saved” it for me. Otherwise, it was meh. Cool story though. I guess. Just not quite my cup of tea.

The Davenports by Krystal Marquis

emotional slow-paced

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

3.75

*Close to 3.75* Very much insta-lovey, had a whole lot of unnecessary love triangle activities, was very extremely (!!!) pickme-ish, and was very wordy to the point that it felt longer than it was. Yet and still...I was enthralled! I was surprisingly emotionally invested to the point where many points in the story were starting to piss me off. I just wanted everybody to grow some backbones and stop thirsting over these men! Jeez! 🙄! But, yeah, it was well written and a good read overall. Though the ending was a bit of a cliffhanger, it wasn't the obnoxious type. actually am interested in the sequel without feeling like I'm being forced into reading it. I appreciate that.

All Systems Red by Martha Wells

adventurous funny lighthearted tense 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? Yes

3.75

It was cute. I liked that it was simple—not overly unnecessarily complex just for the sake of being complex. It was just enough to be a proper introduction to this new genre of sci-fi for me. I enjoyed it enough to likely continue the series. Especially since I kind of want to be friends with Murderbot. 😊