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sapphistoire's reviews
215 reviews
The Falling in Love Montage by Ciara Smyth
3.5
I think I’m gonna tackle this review a bit differently to how I normally go about them. I’m going to start with things I liked about this book and then move onto the things that weren’t exactly my cup of tea.
First of all, I really enjoyed Saoirse and Ruby – the two main characters. To me they felt very real – Saoirse is dealing with some quite difficult things in her family life and is so scared about letting people in due to her past relationships, and Ruby is a romantic with a big heart who cares so much about her family. They worked so well together (despite all the miscommunication and secrets) and their romance was so fun to follow. I can’t speak for the portrayal of dementia in this book, but I think it was great that it was touched upon, because I don’t think I’ve read a book before that tackles the subject, so to me that was very refreshing.
I also loved Saoirse and Oliver’s rivals/friendship relationship that was going on through the book. Seeing them text each other and Oliver’s contact names being changed to ridiculous ones was so sweet and funny and I really, really enjoyed how their friendship grew. I loved how they slowly opened up to each other throughout the book and that Oliver always had Saoirse’s back despite their differences. I also really loved Barb and I wish we’d gotten to see more of her because she was absolutely hilarious!
Of course, I have to mention the plot! I love a good, cheesy Summer fling romance book and I’ve read so many straight ones in the past (I’m looking at you Morgan Matson), so this book was right up my alley. I especially love ones where the main characters create a list of things to do throughout the Summer and check off each one as they go along, and this book had exactly that, with each activity corresponding to a different rom-com. I must admit, I don’t watch many rom-coms (unless they’re gay) so a lot of the references went right over my head (but that’s a me problem, not a ‘the book’ problem), but I still found it to be so much fun. I especially loved when they stole the swan pedalo and went skinny dipping (the headline in the newspaper the next day cracked me up!).
Finally, I know a lot of people have mentioned this about the book, but I’m so grateful that the author used the word ‘lesbian’ frequently throughout the book. I know in so many f/f novels the author shies away from using ‘lesbian’ or ‘bisexual’ or any other word that denotes someone’s sexuality, instead just opting for saying ‘likes girls’ – and that’s fine, no one has to label their sexuality if they don’t want to. But finally seeing it said several times, and in such a positive way, in this book made me so happy!
However, there were a couple of minor things that did lead to me subtracting a star. The first is the lack of Hannah and Izzy. For two characters that played such a huge role in Saoirse’s life, and character development, I wish we saw more of them. Also, the sort of reconciliation with Hannah felt very rushed to me, and I wish a little more time was spent on it. Also, justice for Beth! She was so sweet the whole way through, and I understand Saoirse’s misgivings, but I wish there was some forgiveness and some understanding at the end because Beth deserved so much better! The aspect I liked the least, however, was the writing style. For some it might work, but for me I didn’t love the casual-ness of it and the constant fourth wall breaking was just irritating at first. I think if I’d read it when I was slightly younger I may have appreciated it more.
Despite these minor points, I would highly recommend this book and if it doesn’t get made into a movie (with an Irish cast and set in Ireland) I will be so mad!!
First of all, I really enjoyed Saoirse and Ruby – the two main characters. To me they felt very real – Saoirse is dealing with some quite difficult things in her family life and is so scared about letting people in due to her past relationships, and Ruby is a romantic with a big heart who cares so much about her family. They worked so well together (despite all the miscommunication and secrets) and their romance was so fun to follow. I can’t speak for the portrayal of dementia in this book, but I think it was great that it was touched upon, because I don’t think I’ve read a book before that tackles the subject, so to me that was very refreshing.
I also loved Saoirse and Oliver’s rivals/friendship relationship that was going on through the book. Seeing them text each other and Oliver’s contact names being changed to ridiculous ones was so sweet and funny and I really, really enjoyed how their friendship grew. I loved how they slowly opened up to each other throughout the book and that Oliver always had Saoirse’s back despite their differences. I also really loved Barb and I wish we’d gotten to see more of her because she was absolutely hilarious!
Of course, I have to mention the plot! I love a good, cheesy Summer fling romance book and I’ve read so many straight ones in the past (I’m looking at you Morgan Matson), so this book was right up my alley. I especially love ones where the main characters create a list of things to do throughout the Summer and check off each one as they go along, and this book had exactly that, with each activity corresponding to a different rom-com. I must admit, I don’t watch many rom-coms (unless they’re gay) so a lot of the references went right over my head (but that’s a me problem, not a ‘the book’ problem), but I still found it to be so much fun. I especially loved when they stole the swan pedalo and went skinny dipping (the headline in the newspaper the next day cracked me up!).
Finally, I know a lot of people have mentioned this about the book, but I’m so grateful that the author used the word ‘lesbian’ frequently throughout the book. I know in so many f/f novels the author shies away from using ‘lesbian’ or ‘bisexual’ or any other word that denotes someone’s sexuality, instead just opting for saying ‘likes girls’ – and that’s fine, no one has to label their sexuality if they don’t want to. But finally seeing it said several times, and in such a positive way, in this book made me so happy!
However, there were a couple of minor things that did lead to me subtracting a star. The first is the lack of Hannah and Izzy. For two characters that played such a huge role in Saoirse’s life, and character development, I wish we saw more of them. Also, the sort of reconciliation with Hannah felt very rushed to me, and I wish a little more time was spent on it. Also, justice for Beth! She was so sweet the whole way through, and I understand Saoirse’s misgivings, but I wish there was some forgiveness and some understanding at the end because Beth deserved so much better! The aspect I liked the least, however, was the writing style. For some it might work, but for me I didn’t love the casual-ness of it and the constant fourth wall breaking was just irritating at first. I think if I’d read it when I was slightly younger I may have appreciated it more.
Despite these minor points, I would highly recommend this book and if it doesn’t get made into a movie (with an Irish cast and set in Ireland) I will be so mad!!
Don't Touch My Hair by Emma Dabiri
4.0
Amazing! I think everyone should pick this up! Four stars because the last chapter completely lost me with all the maths and coding, but that's a me problem not a 'the book' problem!
Flavor of the Month by Georgia Beers
Did not finish book.
Did not finish book.
I was so excited for this book because it sounded right up my alley but I was having to force myself to get through it and I just wasn't having a fun time. The writing style was something I really enjoyed about it but as for the rest of the book, it just felt too similar to other adult f/f romances I've read recently and I just felt my interest slowly waning. It's a shame but I'll definitely be looking into some of Georgia Beer's other works.
All Boys Aren't Blue by George M. Johnson
4.5
I honestly think that this should be mandatory reading for young teens! It was eye opening and beautiful and heartbreaking. It may have taken me almost a week to read it but that was only because I was busy because when I did pick it up I absolutely flew through it.
Things We Say in the Dark by Kirsty Logan
4.0
The best short story collection I've ever read - it makes horror very accessible. I deducted a star for the lack of trigger warnings which, in the case of this book I can kind of understand, but I also wish I had (Girls are Always Hungry When all the Men are Bite Sized felt very invasive and made me the wrong kind of uncomfortable and Watch the Wall, My Darling, While the Gentlemen Go By dealt with kidnapping and rape). This book does, however, feature many f/f relationships in throughout the short stories which I did really love.
Off the top of my head some trigger warnings (although this may not be all of them): rape, murder, death, invasive physical examinations, gore, emetophobia, abuse, kidnapping, insects (specifically, eating insects), human remains, pregnancy (not a trigger warning but a sensitive topic, so please tread carefully reading part two if it is for you).
Off the top of my head some trigger warnings (although this may not be all of them): rape, murder, death, invasive physical examinations, gore, emetophobia, abuse, kidnapping, insects (specifically, eating insects), human remains, pregnancy (not a trigger warning but a sensitive topic, so please tread carefully reading part two if it is for you).
The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead
4.0
The timeline switching confused me a lot at times but the ending completely completely threw me for a loop!
The Girl Next Door by Chelsea M. Cameron
2.0
Unfortunately this is the lowest-rated book I've read this year because this book is only just okay. I couldn't differentiate the two main characters, Jude and Iris, from any other romance book protagonists. They were so bland - Iris' personality was just owning a dog, and Jude's was being closed off and riding a motorcycle. There was absolutely no plot to speak of, which I normally don't mind because I love character driven books. However, the two main characters were too boring and there weren't any good side characters to save the book at all. To add to that, the writing was so lacking in emotions. Writing doesn't need to be flowery for it to be good but there were no complex sentences, no similes, everything was straight to the point, subject, verb, object, next sentence and repeat. Even the small town atmosphere was lacking, which was a real shame. I did, however, enjoy the pacing of the romance, but that's about it. I'm really sad that I was disappointed by this read as I was really looking forward to it but I'm sure there are many other f/f romance novels out there with much better characters and much better writing that you could read instead of this one.