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sand_between_pages's Reviews (734)
adventurous
dark
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
I am not even sure where to start but HERE IT GOES!
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Finishing The Stand just feels so spectacularly amazing. I have spent three months alongside Frannie and Stu and Tom and Glen and Nick and I am just not even sure what to do with myself now. Cue massive, massive book hangover!
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Reading this book during the Covid-19 pandemic actually enhanced the read for me. Reading about the start of the superflu in The Stand felt so eerily similar to life in 2020 and gave me chills. Luckily, Covid-19 is nothing like The Stand flu ;).
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When you look at this book bare bones, this is a story of good versus evil. It's pretty blatant. What starts as a book about the plague quickly becomes a book about which side will prevail in a post-apocalyptic world - good or evil?
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I found this book to be extremely character-driven. Some parts were slow and some were fast, but I relished both. The strong characters endeared me further to the story and had me so emotionally involved that I know the book will stay with me for a long time. At times, King has been criticized, for his lengthy descriptions. I mean, this book is over 1300 pages. But I savored his writing and appreciated the amount of detail he gave - the scenes in my head were nicely painted by King's artistic writing.
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Should you read this? Yeah. Yeah you should.
.
Finishing The Stand just feels so spectacularly amazing. I have spent three months alongside Frannie and Stu and Tom and Glen and Nick and I am just not even sure what to do with myself now. Cue massive, massive book hangover!
.
Reading this book during the Covid-19 pandemic actually enhanced the read for me. Reading about the start of the superflu in The Stand felt so eerily similar to life in 2020 and gave me chills. Luckily, Covid-19 is nothing like The Stand flu ;).
.
When you look at this book bare bones, this is a story of good versus evil. It's pretty blatant. What starts as a book about the plague quickly becomes a book about which side will prevail in a post-apocalyptic world - good or evil?
.
I found this book to be extremely character-driven. Some parts were slow and some were fast, but I relished both. The strong characters endeared me further to the story and had me so emotionally involved that I know the book will stay with me for a long time. At times, King has been criticized, for his lengthy descriptions. I mean, this book is over 1300 pages. But I savored his writing and appreciated the amount of detail he gave - the scenes in my head were nicely painted by King's artistic writing.
.
Should you read this? Yeah. Yeah you should.
emotional
reflective
sad
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
dark
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Thank you so much to William Morrow for this ARC! Being a huge No Exit fan, Hairpin Bridge is one of my most highly anticipated novels of 2021!
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"If you mean to hurt a wolf, you pick an area that's advantageous to you. You don't crawl face-first into its dark, dripping den and challenge it to a debate."
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So where to even start? As goes most thrillers, I do not want to reveal too much in my review and thus spoil. If you enjoyed No Exit, I suspect you will enjoy Hairpin Bridge. it is really twisty, suspenseful, and full of atmospheric writing that I find very unmatched in the world of thriller authors. This isn't a book you want to snack through either, it is GORY and gross - but that only added to the aura of the novel that I feel like Adams sets up so well.
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Similar to No Exit, I read this book in a little over a day - I just couldn't put it down! This is basically all I want when I read a thriller: an elevated heart rate and a tidy ending. So why did I knock it down a star? Frankly, I am confused. I am not positive I really know what all happened - I'd almost benefit from reading it again to fill in some of the gaps - things I missed as I raced through to the end.
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That being said, Taylor Adams is definitely one of my go-to thriller authors and this is one you really do not want to miss!
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"If you mean to hurt a wolf, you pick an area that's advantageous to you. You don't crawl face-first into its dark, dripping den and challenge it to a debate."
.
So where to even start? As goes most thrillers, I do not want to reveal too much in my review and thus spoil. If you enjoyed No Exit, I suspect you will enjoy Hairpin Bridge. it is really twisty, suspenseful, and full of atmospheric writing that I find very unmatched in the world of thriller authors. This isn't a book you want to snack through either, it is GORY and gross - but that only added to the aura of the novel that I feel like Adams sets up so well.
.
Similar to No Exit, I read this book in a little over a day - I just couldn't put it down! This is basically all I want when I read a thriller: an elevated heart rate and a tidy ending. So why did I knock it down a star? Frankly, I am confused. I am not positive I really know what all happened - I'd almost benefit from reading it again to fill in some of the gaps - things I missed as I raced through to the end.
.
That being said, Taylor Adams is definitely one of my go-to thriller authors and this is one you really do not want to miss!
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
"Living, in itself, is a risk, with only one guaranteed outcome. And we get up each day, and we make our toast and kiss our spouses or kids or parents or cats or dogs and go to work or school and come home to yet another pile of laundry. We do all these things with no guarantee that we'll even make it through the day."
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Frickin' Frick! I frickin' loved me some Frick Island and will be venturing on to read as much Oakley as I can!
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This book is a slow build, but don't give up on it. At the 50% mark, I could barely put it down, racing toward the end needing to know what was up with Piper, what happened to Tom, and what was go become of Anders' venture to seek the truth. Don't know what I'm talking about? Well, it's all very mysterious on Frick Island and you will really just have to read and found out for yourself ;)!
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This is mostly a light-hearted read with some definite sad moments, but you won't be left sad at the end. There is also a strong air of mystery, humor, and swoony feels. I was charmed by Piper and Anders and felt deeply connected to the characters and their stories. This is absolutely one I recommend to those who just love a good story!
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Frickin' Frick! I frickin' loved me some Frick Island and will be venturing on to read as much Oakley as I can!
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This book is a slow build, but don't give up on it. At the 50% mark, I could barely put it down, racing toward the end needing to know what was up with Piper, what happened to Tom, and what was go become of Anders' venture to seek the truth. Don't know what I'm talking about? Well, it's all very mysterious on Frick Island and you will really just have to read and found out for yourself ;)!
.
This is mostly a light-hearted read with some definite sad moments, but you won't be left sad at the end. There is also a strong air of mystery, humor, and swoony feels. I was charmed by Piper and Anders and felt deeply connected to the characters and their stories. This is absolutely one I recommend to those who just love a good story!
dark
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
WELL DAYUUUUM!
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Thanks SO much to Random House for this e-arc! GUYS - I couldn't put this book down, I basically abandoned all of my other current reads to dive into Joe's brain and I was THOROUGHLY CREEPED OUT AND ENTERTAINED!
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Admittedly, this is my first Kepnes. I watched the first two season of You on Netflix so I am familiar with the story, but now after reading You Love Me, I definitely want to go back and read You and Hidden Bodies. What makes this book so good? I really felt like I was in Joe's brain. Like I had to remind myself that JOE DIDN'T WRITE THIS BOOK constantly. I also felt on edge the entire time, knowing how insane and edgy Joe is...
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The twists in this book are solid and a few I really didn't see coming. We kinda swing all over the place and this maybe could have been a bit shorter, but overall I super super enjoyed this one!
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Thanks SO much to Random House for this e-arc! GUYS - I couldn't put this book down, I basically abandoned all of my other current reads to dive into Joe's brain and I was THOROUGHLY CREEPED OUT AND ENTERTAINED!
.
Admittedly, this is my first Kepnes. I watched the first two season of You on Netflix so I am familiar with the story, but now after reading You Love Me, I definitely want to go back and read You and Hidden Bodies. What makes this book so good? I really felt like I was in Joe's brain. Like I had to remind myself that JOE DIDN'T WRITE THIS BOOK constantly. I also felt on edge the entire time, knowing how insane and edgy Joe is...
.
The twists in this book are solid and a few I really didn't see coming. We kinda swing all over the place and this maybe could have been a bit shorter, but overall I super super enjoyed this one!
emotional
informative
sad
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
DARN YOU KRISTIN HANNAH! My heart is sobbing, I need a large glass of water, and I am proud to be a female! (If none of that made any sense, let me explain that those are my three most prominent thoughts after finishing The Four Winds just now...)
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The Four Winds is a compelling, emotional, and heart-tugging tale of America during the time of The Great Depression. As a history buff, of course I am familiar with this time (and am thankful I didn't live in the 1930s), but what I wasn't as familiar with is how severe human suffering became during this decade. I don't know if I could fully process how devastating life was and how little help there was even though "this is America!". I didn't realize the extreme classism that existed, the discriminatory attitudes toward the migrants, and the severity of the depression on The Great Plains. Hannah told a story (albeit fictional), that honestly taught me so much. Her author interview explained how her goal in her historical fiction writing is to bring women to the forefront and highlight their stories rather than always just reading about men, and it made me love her even more. Elsa and Loreda were brilliant female protagonists that I know I will think of long after finishing this gem of a book.
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Was this depressing? Yes. If you've read any reviews on this book, that is a consistent theme. And although there are so many devastating events, this book is also very much full of hope. Hope for a better America, hope for American's women, and hope that love will persevere, even in the hardest of times.
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If reading/listening, please read Hannah's author notes as it adds a lot of context to the book, deals with the relevance of today's America (living in this pandemic), and strives to explain why she wrote this book.
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Thank you so much to Macmillan audio for this ALC - this is stunningly narrated and brought the story to life!
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The Four Winds is a compelling, emotional, and heart-tugging tale of America during the time of The Great Depression. As a history buff, of course I am familiar with this time (and am thankful I didn't live in the 1930s), but what I wasn't as familiar with is how severe human suffering became during this decade. I don't know if I could fully process how devastating life was and how little help there was even though "this is America!". I didn't realize the extreme classism that existed, the discriminatory attitudes toward the migrants, and the severity of the depression on The Great Plains. Hannah told a story (albeit fictional), that honestly taught me so much. Her author interview explained how her goal in her historical fiction writing is to bring women to the forefront and highlight their stories rather than always just reading about men, and it made me love her even more. Elsa and Loreda were brilliant female protagonists that I know I will think of long after finishing this gem of a book.
.
Was this depressing? Yes. If you've read any reviews on this book, that is a consistent theme. And although there are so many devastating events, this book is also very much full of hope. Hope for a better America, hope for American's women, and hope that love will persevere, even in the hardest of times.
.
If reading/listening, please read Hannah's author notes as it adds a lot of context to the book, deals with the relevance of today's America (living in this pandemic), and strives to explain why she wrote this book.
.
Thank you so much to Macmillan audio for this ALC - this is stunningly narrated and brought the story to life!
emotional
informative
mysterious
sad
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
“Truth is a strange companion. It devastates one moment and enthralls the next. But it never deceives. And because of that, in the end, it comforts.”
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I AM OFFICIALLY A SUSAN MEISSNER FAN! (Well I was before, but this book seals the deal!)
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Secrets of a Charmed Life absolutely broke my heart and then put it right back together again!! The last 100 pages were such a whirlwind after a solid-built foundation.
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This is the story of sisters, Emmy and Julia, who reside in London during the outbreak of World War II. Meissner depicts what life was like in London during the Blitz (a piece of the war I was less knowledgeable about), how children were fostered in the English countryside during the duration of the war, and what life was like for the survivors of the war. You will absolutely root for these main characters and be moved by their stories; I was so emotional. The plot moves along very nicely and the character development is deep and relatable.
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This is a very solid hist fic book with beautiful prose and heartfelt meaning.
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I AM OFFICIALLY A SUSAN MEISSNER FAN! (Well I was before, but this book seals the deal!)
.
Secrets of a Charmed Life absolutely broke my heart and then put it right back together again!! The last 100 pages were such a whirlwind after a solid-built foundation.
.
This is the story of sisters, Emmy and Julia, who reside in London during the outbreak of World War II. Meissner depicts what life was like in London during the Blitz (a piece of the war I was less knowledgeable about), how children were fostered in the English countryside during the duration of the war, and what life was like for the survivors of the war. You will absolutely root for these main characters and be moved by their stories; I was so emotional. The plot moves along very nicely and the character development is deep and relatable.
.
This is a very solid hist fic book with beautiful prose and heartfelt meaning.
mysterious
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
Thank you so much to Libro.FM for the ALC of The Good Sister by Sally Hepworth - this audiobook knocked it out of the park!!
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Twin sisters, Fern and Rose, had a rough childhood. Dad isn't in the picture, mom is selfish and neglectful, and the girls grow up fending for themselves. Fern is a person with autism, and has spent much of her life relying on her sister to help her navigate the world. Fern has always found solace in the library and spends much of her time buried in books, adhering to a daily routine that makes her feel safe.
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I really loved that most of this book is told from Fern's PoV. We alternate perspectives but Fern is definitely the protagonist. I was rooting for her throughout the read and I love how Hepworth wrote her. I loved the autism rep with not one, but two characters. This book is definitely twisty, and the way that it unraveled kept me at the edge of my seat! I would label this a domestic thriller, but erring more on the side of some serious family drama!! Additionally, the narration is excellent! This was easy to follow and engrossing.
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Feel free to message me for trigger warnings :)! Sally Hepworth knows how to write a great book !!
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Twin sisters, Fern and Rose, had a rough childhood. Dad isn't in the picture, mom is selfish and neglectful, and the girls grow up fending for themselves. Fern is a person with autism, and has spent much of her life relying on her sister to help her navigate the world. Fern has always found solace in the library and spends much of her time buried in books, adhering to a daily routine that makes her feel safe.
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I really loved that most of this book is told from Fern's PoV. We alternate perspectives but Fern is definitely the protagonist. I was rooting for her throughout the read and I love how Hepworth wrote her. I loved the autism rep with not one, but two characters. This book is definitely twisty, and the way that it unraveled kept me at the edge of my seat! I would label this a domestic thriller, but erring more on the side of some serious family drama!! Additionally, the narration is excellent! This was easy to follow and engrossing.
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Feel free to message me for trigger warnings :)! Sally Hepworth knows how to write a great book !!
emotional
sad
fast-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
OH MY FREAKING HEART!
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So I am cruising along in my November 9 read, enjoying myself, but wondering why people are SOO SOO into this book and then BAM! And then BAM BAM BAM! And the BAMs are what wrecked me, what charged me, and what made November 9 one hundred percent a 5-star read!
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It's really impossible, for me, not to love something as emotionally-charged as this novel. It's readable, compulsive, and it made me feel every single feel there is to feel. I was rooting for Fallon. I was rooting for Ben. I just felt such a deep connection to these characters and to their story <3.
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Easily my new favorite CoHo!
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So I am cruising along in my November 9 read, enjoying myself, but wondering why people are SOO SOO into this book and then BAM! And then BAM BAM BAM! And the BAMs are what wrecked me, what charged me, and what made November 9 one hundred percent a 5-star read!
.
It's really impossible, for me, not to love something as emotionally-charged as this novel. It's readable, compulsive, and it made me feel every single feel there is to feel. I was rooting for Fallon. I was rooting for Ben. I just felt such a deep connection to these characters and to their story <3.
.
Easily my new favorite CoHo!
dark
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book isn't over until it's over!
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I've been strongly anticipating Riley Sager's fifth novel, Survive the Night, ever since it was announced - so a huge thank you to Dutton for the ARC!! What got me? The title. It's eerie, thrilling, and fills me with all the anticipation!
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This is a wild, wild ride full of twists, turns, and very eerie vibes. We have an unreliable narration, but it is done in a clever and unique way - so even though I feel this is overused in thrillers, it didn't bother me in this book. Sager is very atmospheric - I felt like I was alone in the car - with a stranger - on a stretch of dark, cold highway, afraid for my life. I got very strong No Exit vibes which thrilled me as I so LOVED No Exit. But the fear pumping through me while I was reading is what kept me turning the pages, I just HAD to know what was going to happen!
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I thought a lot of the book was going to be predictable, so I am happy to say that I didn't end up predicting a lot of the twists. There were parts that I felt like... oh is that it? But a new twist would re-ramp up my excitement.
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I'm not sure where Survive the Night fits in to my Sager novel ranking, but I believe it to be one of his better stories. I really enjoyed this book!
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If you love thrillers, don't skip Survive the Night!
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I've been strongly anticipating Riley Sager's fifth novel, Survive the Night, ever since it was announced - so a huge thank you to Dutton for the ARC!! What got me? The title. It's eerie, thrilling, and fills me with all the anticipation!
.
This is a wild, wild ride full of twists, turns, and very eerie vibes. We have an unreliable narration, but it is done in a clever and unique way - so even though I feel this is overused in thrillers, it didn't bother me in this book. Sager is very atmospheric - I felt like I was alone in the car - with a stranger - on a stretch of dark, cold highway, afraid for my life. I got very strong No Exit vibes which thrilled me as I so LOVED No Exit. But the fear pumping through me while I was reading is what kept me turning the pages, I just HAD to know what was going to happen!
.
I thought a lot of the book was going to be predictable, so I am happy to say that I didn't end up predicting a lot of the twists. There were parts that I felt like... oh is that it? But a new twist would re-ramp up my excitement.
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I'm not sure where Survive the Night fits in to my Sager novel ranking, but I believe it to be one of his better stories. I really enjoyed this book!
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If you love thrillers, don't skip Survive the Night!