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sarah2438's reviews
1094 reviews
Saga, Vol. 3 by Brian K. Vaughan
4.0
Whoopsies might just binge this entire series between chapters of The Scarlet Letter. (Unhinged or genius?)
Big Swiss by Jen Beagin
2.0
I was intrigued enough to see where it was going but not enough to enjoy the journey.
The First Bright Thing by J.R. Dawson
Did not finish book. Stopped at 22%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 22%.
You gotta do better than this if you're gonna compare your book to The Night Circus.
I'm bored. The twist is obvious. The plot to stop WWII is laughable. And the circus itself is kinda cringe-- I think it's cool to have a safe space for everybody, but they talked about how there's a game booth where everyone wins a prize, and the game where you hit something with a hammer to ring the bell is rigged so everyone will win by their 3rd try. Come on. That's not being inclusive, that's just defeating the entire purpose of carnival games.
I'm bored. The twist is obvious. The plot to stop WWII is laughable. And the circus itself is kinda cringe-- I think it's cool to have a safe space for everybody, but they talked about how there's a game booth where everyone wins a prize, and the game where you hit something with a hammer to ring the bell is rigged so everyone will win by their 3rd try. Come on. That's not being inclusive, that's just defeating the entire purpose of carnival games.
The Pairing by Casey McQuiston
4.5
Oooh I really enjoyed this one. I devoured it in 24 hours and it would've been faster if I wasn't trying to be a responsible adult going to bed at a reasonable time. I LOVED Kit and his half of the novel was incredible. If everything had been from his POV, this would've been 5 stars. But while I liked Theo, I just didn't like them quite as much as Kit. Especially at the beginning, they were VERY bitter. Not saying they didn't have a right to be, but it started to get annoying and I'm glad their attitude took a turn when it did. Beyond that, I just resonated with Kit's poetic voice more. I'm glad that Theo's half was first because I still liked their voice and didn't know what I was missing yet. The story itself was a lot of fun, and I enjoyed fantasizing about these destinations while I ignored the grey sludge outside my window. McQuiston does such a good job with the sensory details, and this includes descriptions of the food. Oh my goodness, the FOOD! My mouth was watering. And I just adored the meaningful connections our MCs made on their journey through Europe.
Any other critiques I have are very minor-- I think McQuiston tends to use a lot of Millennial slang that can be a little cringe, and even though I think it's sometimes done ironically, the cringe remains. (Slay!) And similarly, the idea of a bodycount competition across Europe was just not my vibe. This is where I reveal what a wet blanket I am-- it's so dangerous to just go home with random people in Europe. I just kept thinking, this is how you get yourself in a bad situation.
But all of these complaints are pretty nitpicky, and they're overshadowed by a seriously fun romance and story. I absolutely recommend this one and I will be purchasing my own shelf trophy to transfer my annotations.
**Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the free eARC in exchange for an honest review!**
Any other critiques I have are very minor-- I think McQuiston tends to use a lot of Millennial slang that can be a little cringe, and even though I think it's sometimes done ironically, the cringe remains. (Slay!) And similarly, the idea of a bodycount competition across Europe was just not my vibe. This is where I reveal what a wet blanket I am-- it's so dangerous to just go home with random people in Europe. I just kept thinking, this is how you get yourself in a bad situation.
But all of these complaints are pretty nitpicky, and they're overshadowed by a seriously fun romance and story. I absolutely recommend this one and I will be purchasing my own shelf trophy to transfer my annotations.
**Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the free eARC in exchange for an honest review!**
To Sleep in a Sea of Stars by Christopher Paolini
Did not finish book. Stopped at 14%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 14%.
I'm plowing through some of the oldest books on my TBR to see if they're worth the wait. This one, like several others, is not. I should've known it wouldn't be for me (how often do I actually like sci-fi?) but I was pulled in by the beautiful cover. I finished Part 1 (130 pages!) and I'm completely disinterested. This one's been on my TBR for 5 years. Farewell, friend.
The Lies I Tell by Julie Clark
4.0
Read this if you support women's wrongs.
I love a morally grey character, and Meg is exactly that. Though the financial / white collar crime details got a little tedious, I was still able to follow them, and I say that as someone completely financially illiterate. The ending didn't have as much of a climax as I wanted, but it was still satisfying in its own way. I'd recommend this one.
I love a morally grey character, and Meg is exactly that. Though the financial / white collar crime details got a little tedious, I was still able to follow them, and I say that as someone completely financially illiterate. The ending didn't have as much of a climax as I wanted, but it was still satisfying in its own way. I'd recommend this one.
The Daughter of Doctor Moreau by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
Did not finish book. Stopped at 33%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 33%.
I'm so tired of mediocre reads and this looks like another one. I'm a third in and don't care. Occasionally pretty writing does not make up for lack of plot.
Darling Girl by Liz Michalski
Did not finish book. Stopped at 33%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 33%.
I'm bored and I don't see things improving from here.
Run by Blake Crouch
1.5
I'm not sure why I was able to request this on NetGalley when it was actually published in 2011, but here we are. Blake Crouch is one of few sci-fi authors I read, and I'll admit that his books are still pretty hit and miss. The newer ones are at least entertaining, but I noticed when I read Pines that he was falling into a lot of classic pitfalls indicative of a new writer. Unfortunately Run experienced a lot of those same issues. The title is quite apt because that is literally all that happens in this book. It was non-stop action with no real consequences. I don't feel that we ever got a satisfying resolution, and character development was non-existent, especially for women. I couldn't tell you a single thing about Dee except that she cheated on her husband. Jack is a very boring action figure of a man. The more I think about this book, the more I realize that there wasn't a single thing I liked about it. Even the action scenes were boring, and I remember wanting to DNF halfway through but I persevered for the sake of my NetGalley percentage. Sigh. Just disappointing. I hope Crouch's true next novel is in line with how his writing has progressed, because looking back is not the answer.
**I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.**
**I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.**