rubybereading's reviews
70 reviews

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense 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? Yes

4.25

4.25

A STRONG 4.25*!!...To be fair, I 1: JUST started reading again after many years of not reading, so I feel like a brand new reader again, like I'm back in my teens. 2: this is my first fantasy book (like, EVER...literally in life), so I have no context or previous experience with this genre to base my opinions off of. You know what I mean?? Like, I didn't grow up listening to mariachi. So if I randomly hear mariachi, I couldn't tell you if it's good mariachi. I can only tell you if I liked it because it made me do a little two-step or bounce a shoulder or something. Ya know?? & 3: I had been puffing or sipping throughout the majority of my reading experience with this book, so that probably influenced my enjoyment of it. Lol! Idk, but I DID enjoy it!

But anyway, Chiillileee!! Ok, for this to be my first ever fantasy read, I'm definitely not disappointed. It was so good! I actually want to read more fantasy and I did NOT expect that.

Since I'm typically only interested in "urban" romance dramas, family dramas, or thrillers, this book was a test for me to try something new and outside of my comfort zone, and I'm glad I did!

***{This whole paragraph has 'light' spoilers! The next ones do not'***

I thought Rayan and Lettle's love story was beautiful. Furi and Yeeran's felt rushed though. One day Furi still hates her and then suddenly there's mutual sexual tension, they smash, and now they're in love! Idk. Neither one felt like the types to fall in love like that, especially given the start of their relationship.

As far as the plot, a lot of it was a little predictable, but I still got hit with a couple of whammies. Lol! I did feel like there were too many twists and turns thrown in at the end, but I chose to just read it like a movie at that point (since that's how a lot of big reveals happen in movies). I do think the book should've been a little longer in order to hash all of that out a little smoother.

Overall, I really enjoyed the book--especially from like 60-the 90% mark. That portion of the book almost made it a 5* read for me. That is the portion I puffed the most while reading, though-to be fair. Still, I'm looking forward to the next

installment.

Before I Let Go by Kennedy Ryan

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challenging emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective sad tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Oh. My. GAWD!!! This was soooooo tf goooooDUH!! So real and raw and SO well written! Where do I even start?? Trying to go into detail would do this book NO justice. This book, damnit, had me on a WHIRLWIND of emotions damnit! I laughed. I cried. I shouted. I cussed at least 4 different characters out! I hurt. I was happy one minute, sad the next, furious at other times. I might’ve even been scared a time or 2. Lmao! What’s some other emotions?? I’m sure I had them! I’m legit sad it’s over. I feel like I’m going through withdrawals! I had to keep reminding myself this is FICTION and I don’t know these ppl! What is wrong with me?? Damn you, Kennedy Ryan! Damn you for writing this and making me feel so strongly. I’m definitely looking up her other books and saving up for my next haul. Just take ALL my damn money! 😩

The Devil Wears Scrubs by Freida McFadden

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lighthearted medium-paced

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

2.75

It was fine. I didn’t hate it. I didn’t love it. I could take it or leave it. It was slightly offensive but also slightly funny. I chuckled once or twice.
This is my 2nd Freida McFadden book (The Perfect Son was the 1st one). Also, both were audiobooks and both were the only ones where I didn't hate something about the narrators, so that's a plus. I'Il probably do a physical or ebook next time, though, for a little variety or to see if I'll officially become a fan. So far, she seems to be a good choice when you need a quick hit that's not too intense and doesn't make you think too hard. They’re fine. Whatever. Lol!

Blood at the Root by LaDarrion Williams

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dark emotional informative mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

3.25

Edit: moved this down from 4 to 3.25 stars. I initially rated and reviewed as soon as I was done with it because I was pleasantly surprised that I ended up enjoying the story despite its flaws. But, after sleeping on it, I can’t stop thinking about how annoying it was. The over the top use of AAVE, the repetitive use of “lowkey”, “I swear to God” and “hella”. The excessive Black pop culture references. Etc etc etc. I also did not like the main character at all and wished he would just stfu sometimes. I hated how he talked to Alexis (his love interest), his grandma, and basically everybody he interacted with. He was not likeable at all. I literally hated the first half of the book. The 3rd quarter was meh. It only got good in the last 25%. That was enough for me to no longer hate it. So I still don’t feel comfortable going less than 3 stars, because there were some strong points and a lot of potential. I do not, however, plan to read the next installments. This one was a little too cringey for me. Even if I do, it will definitely NOT be via audiobook. The unnecessary pauses with quick inhales in the middle of sentences was too distracting for me. It was literally every other sentence—sometimes 2 to 3 in ONE sentence. I thought he would get more comfortable and natural with the flow of his words by the end and stop with the dramatic pauses, but he never did. I had to listen to an entire 15 (?) hours of that! Omg it irritated my soul! Anyway, the original review is still unchanged below.

This one had to grow on me. At first, I was bored and a little annoyed. It was very preachy at the beginning. Near the middle, it felt like too much of a history lesson and I felt like the author was using the college setting as a crutch. But then I realized it’s because a lot of ppl ARE uninformed about traditional Pan-African spirituality and so it was necessary to add the info (though it felt like a plea to be accepted, and I’m like “who cares if they don’t?? Be you!”). Even though I just wanted to get it over with, I did start to appreciate the representation and the inclusion of historical figures in ancient Pan-African spirituality. Then, in the last 10 or so chapters, it got SO good! Especially the last 10-25%. The revelations were revelating! I was like, “whaaat??….oh sh*t…*gasp*” like every other minute. Lol! I can appreciate the book now. It still doesn’t feel like it’s for me, but who it is for is a good one for them! I’m not mad at it!

Side note: this was another audiobook—only my 4th ever, with the 1st one being only a month or so ago—and I don’t think audiobooks are for me. Something about the narrators always annoy me and distracts me from the story, making it less enjoyable. So, this one gets extra credit because I ended up enjoying it even though the narrator annoyed me. He kept doing this thing that a lot of dramatic actors do where they pause and do a quick inhale in the middle of sentences—usually before the last word or last few words—for emphasis or dramatic effect or something?? Idk, but he did it EXCESSIVELY throughout the ENTIRE BOOK (!!!) including some parts of sentences that made no sense to do it. Like at the beginning of chapter 33 where he says he smelled the scent of “sausage, scrambled eggs and…*quick inhale* bacon”. He did this LITERALLY the whole time, and it annoyed THE CRAP out of me. I wish I had gotten a physical copy instead, because I did end up enjoying it despite the distracting acting style of the narrator. That was why it was bumped up to 4 stars. Otherwise, it probably would’ve been a 3.

The Gilded Ones by Namina Forna

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adventurous dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious sad 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

5.0

OMG!! Wow wow wow!! This was intense. This took me almost a full month to finish because I was reading a few other (very much LESS intense) books at the same time. Turns out, those other books served as perfect palate cleansers in between all the heavy subject matters, plot, and character treatment and especially character BUILDING of the more relevant characters of the book. This book shocked me!

I thought it was going to be very mid based on the first few chapters. Midway through, I was intrigued and enjoyed the story, thinking it was a very solid book that still left much to be desired. So, I paused reading this for a few days (a few separate times) and instead spent those times starting and or finishing a few other books that were, again, much less

"intense". Maybe I'm a lightweight. Idk. But this book was A LOT for me (first it was the colorism shoved down our throats in the first chapter, the plot jumps throughout, and then the torture and treatment the girls were going through, the heavy subject matter, the gore, etc). I ended up deciding to finish it JUST to get it over with so I could move on (since I'm trying NOT to DNF any books). And then, MY GOD (!!!). Somewhere after the halfway point, it took me to a whole nother REALM! This book turned me every which way but loose gotdamnit! And it left me wanting MORE! This book could've and probably SHOULD'VE been twice as long. That's part of my only slight criticism: there were time lapses throughout the story where the reader is just given the basic gist of what happened during the lapses instead of making it a part of the plot. The whole "telling us instead of showing us". It would've been nice to be able to read more of the character growth, experiences that enhanced her abilities, growth in strength and self-esteem, etc. Instead, there were multiple points in the story where we're told days, weeks and even months went by and something significant happened or occurred to the main character, and then the story would just continue from there. I would've preferred reading about it in detail, and definitely would not have minded if the book was even twice as long in order to do so. And I would've had to be literally peeled away from the pages! That would've made this book perfect! Still, it's a 5* for me! Having the palate cleansers and the short breaks definitely made this a better read for me though. Nonetheless, 5 star! 5 star! 5 star!!

Content Warnings

Tender Beasts by Liselle Sambury

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dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced

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

2.0

"2stars" is kind of generous, but I didn't completely hate it, so less than 2 didn't seem fair.

...Idk. The ending kind of saved it, but I just really didn't enjoy this. It was too long, for one, and very monotonous throughout a good chunk of the middle. Just past the halfway mark, realized that I did not care at all who the murderer was. I didn't like any of the characters, and I was extremely bored. This book was very boring. Its only saving grace is that it was an absolutely NOT predictable at all, and the ending twists were very creative. That saved it from being a complete dud for me. Still, I wasn't entertained at all. Despite all of that, I do want to give the author a second chance. I can tell she's a good writer. This one just wasn't for me.

The Perfect Son by Freida McFadden

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dark sad slow-paced

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

3.25

3.25

This book was a lot and a whole lot of nothing at the same damn time! It was a very quick read, but somehow also too long. It’s weird. And it was HELLA predictable, but also kind of riveting too! I’m perplexed! Lol! This is my first Freida McFadden book, so I didn’t go in with any preconceived notions, so I also wasn’t disappointed. It was SUPER basic though. This would be a good starter thriller for someone who has never read thrillers or rarely watch thriller movies. It’s simple enough but keeps your attention too. One of the only real gripes I had was how Olivia was written. She didn’t have a 16 year old’s “voice”, you know?? Like, what 16y.o. girl calls a 16 y.o. boy “devastatingly handsome”, or says shit like, “the temperature has dropped precipitously overnight”, or “my parents are surely sleep…as evidenced by the lack of light”?? Like, what?? Then when she wanted the young characters to sound young, she kept having them talk about how they used to be “tight”. Lol! You can tell a late-middle-aged woman wrote this. No offense! I’m no spring chicken my damn self. But still. Also, it took way too long to go into detail about why Liam was off in the head. That dragged on forever. Still, I didn’t mind the book. I’d definitely read more from her. It’s a solid 3.25 stars, even with its flaws, simplicity, and predictability. I’m not mad at it!

Black Buck by Mateo Askaripour

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dark tense medium-paced

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

0.25

I hated it. It wasn't funny. It was way too long. The plot was all over the place. The writer was trying WAY too hard, and just ended up with a cringy and corny badly convoluted story that I only finished because I forced myself to. The only grace I can give is that it was via audiobook and I'm not a huge fan of audiobooks, so that may have swayed my opinions. I doubt it though. I also have a physical copy that I bought by accident and, when I tried that instead, I still cringed at his writing style. I finished it as an audiobook and was just hate-listening by the end of it just to see how bad it got. Smh! I want to say so much more, but I don't want to be offensive due to race based commentary (even though I'm Black and was highly offended by a few things in the book-things I'm assuming I was supposed to relate to??.)

I only bought this book because it was on a few lists of suggested Black authors, and now I hate everybody who made every list this was on. I'm salty. I want my 11+ hours back. I'm just glad the audiobook was free and the physical copy was only like $5. I still want my $5 back, hoe! Ugh!

Listen for the Lie by Amy Tintera

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dark funny mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

Um...I'm conflicted. I almost gave this a full 5* (I mean, technically I did, but that's because 4 wouldn't have been fair, and goodreads doesn't do partials). But anyway, I loved this book. I loved the banter between Lucy and some of the other characters. Her inner thoughts and the dialogue was funny. I loved the dark humor & dry humor. I liked the twists. And I LOVED Grandma! I had no complaints about the book...until the big reveal. And I'm disappointed. Unless there's a sequel that reconciles it for me, I'm bothered. Lol. Because I feel like they're going to get away with it! Again! I don't want to say too much more and spoil it (because that could be about literally ANYBODY). And that's also another thing I liked about it. It kept us on our toes. didn't even attempt to predict it, because it was written that well. But, yeah, the ending still disappointed me.

A STRONG 4.75 though!

The Mayor of Maxwell Street by Avery Cunningham

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Did not finish book. Stopped at 18%.

DNF'd (for now) at page 92. It's not a bad book. So far seems like it'll be at least a 3.5-4 star for me. However, I ended up starting 2 other books with book clubs on the fable app-Listen For The Lie & Faebound-and those 2 have kept my attention longer and have kept me wanting to go ahead and finish them. I WILL come back to this one before the end of the month or next month at the latest, because I actually was enjoying it so far, even though the real action hadn't started yet.

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rubybereading's reviews 70 reviews

rubybereading's reviews
70 reviews