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seastheday's reviews
79 reviews
Mistborn: The Final Empire by Brandon Sanderson
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
It took me a second to find my footing with the magic system. It’s incredibly unique, which I love. There’s a small piece in the back that you can flip to if you don’t understand what power a certain metal provides.
Personally, I re-read the passages where the magic system was introduced to the audience. First through a main character & then again when other characters teach someone learning the magic system & its limitations. I only did this to be completely sure I grasped the magic system.
However, it is constantly added on to and expanded. The world building is top notch.
I loved all the characters. I hope we get more of Breeze in the next book. I think he’s hilarious.
At its core this is a found family book, with the ultimate heist- toppling a dictatorship.
The only drawback in my entire experience of this is that I figured out the MAIN issue/problem/finale unveiling as soon as the first foreshadowing about it was dropped. That was too easy to pick up. If you read this or read it, please lmk if it was easy for y’all too.
Personally, I re-read the passages where the magic system was introduced to the audience. First through a main character & then again when other characters teach someone learning the magic system & its limitations. I only did this to be completely sure I grasped the magic system.
However, it is constantly added on to and expanded. The world building is top notch.
I loved all the characters. I hope we get more of Breeze in the next book. I think he’s hilarious.
At its core this is a found family book, with the ultimate heist- toppling a dictatorship.
The only drawback in my entire experience of this is that I figured out the MAIN issue/problem/finale unveiling as soon as the first foreshadowing about it was dropped. That was too easy to pick up. If you read this or read it, please lmk if it was easy for y’all too.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Slavery, Violence, and Murder
Moderate: Police brutality and Classism
Minor: Grief and Abandonment
The Mask Falling by Samantha Shannon
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Each book continues to convince me that this series will be one of my all time favorites. The world-building is unparalleled. It’s all seamless. There are no frivolous scenes are sentences. Everything means something & it still remains cohesive without plot holes.
There are many characters but they are all so defined, multifaceted and have backstories (for the most part). The characters that come and go are some of the most lovable, but they truly had to grow on you as they grew on Paige.
Paige has about 1000 lives it seems. Shes so adept with people, able to make the best of any situation & somehow squeeze all the information out that is needed. I am constantly worried for her wellbeing. I don’t think she had a moment where she wasn’t sick or gravely injured.
The title of the book hits you & hits you hard. And then again. And again. I left with the last forty pages saying “WHAT ELSE IS GOING TO HAPPEN, MY GOD”. There is situation after situation & Samantha Shannon doesn’t give you a chance to think about any of it. You look back and stop and say who and why?? How?? Good or bad? How many people did she just deal with? How much foreshadowing or plot development paid off?
Read this book.
Read this book.
I can’t stop thinking about it.
There are many characters but they are all so defined, multifaceted and have backstories (for the most part). The characters that come and go are some of the most lovable, but they truly had to grow on you as they grew on Paige.
Paige has about 1000 lives it seems. Shes so adept with people, able to make the best of any situation & somehow squeeze all the information out that is needed. I am constantly worried for her wellbeing. I don’t think she had a moment where she wasn’t sick or gravely injured.
The title of the book hits you & hits you hard. And then again. And again. I left with the last forty pages saying “WHAT ELSE IS GOING TO HAPPEN, MY GOD”. There is situation after situation & Samantha Shannon doesn’t give you a chance to think about any of it. You look back and stop and say who and why?? How?? Good or bad? How many people did she just deal with? How much foreshadowing or plot development paid off?
Read this book.
Read this book.
I can’t stop thinking about it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Violence, Trafficking, Grief, and Murder
Moderate: Gore and Kidnapping
Minor: Vomit and Alcohol
Animal Farm by George Orwell
4.5
I didn’t get to read this in high school. I read a million books but this one just slipped through my curriculums cracks, I guess. Nearly ten years later I am dying for my AP English Lanuage / AP English Literature teachers to dissect it with me right now.
Napoleon making everyone “equal” at first is the first step to his misinformed regime. He “tried” to make sure all the animals were literate. But barely any of them were. So he was about to re-write history and laws throughout the years. He fear-mongered all the animals with the past human owners (Jones) when the animals were resentful of new rules/laws imposed. He gas-lighted them on events that they personally witnessed. They got rid of the ever-faithful Boxer for disagreeing with them in the end. Again, taking advantage of the fact that most animals couldn’t read. Then N used Snowball as first an adversary yet, it was N’s plans S wanted to enact. Then N used Snowball as a continual scapegoat.
This story is something that is similar, repeatable & reflective of society as a whole. It is based off of the Russian Revolution but the tactics used are littered throughout history and other dictatorships.
I see why this book keeps getting put on banned lists
Napoleon making everyone “equal” at first is the first step to his misinformed regime. He “tried” to make sure all the animals were literate. But barely any of them were. So he was about to re-write history and laws throughout the years. He fear-mongered all the animals with the past human owners (Jones) when the animals were resentful of new rules/laws imposed. He gas-lighted them on events that they personally witnessed. They got rid of the ever-faithful Boxer for disagreeing with them in the end. Again, taking advantage of the fact that most animals couldn’t read. Then N used Snowball as first an adversary yet, it was N’s plans S wanted to enact. Then N used Snowball as a continual scapegoat.
This story is something that is similar, repeatable & reflective of society as a whole. It is based off of the Russian Revolution but the tactics used are littered throughout history and other dictatorships.
I see why this book keeps getting put on banned lists
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Gaslighting, and Classism
Moderate: Bullying, Death, and Alcohol
Minor: Gun violence
Life's Too Short by Abby Jimenez
emotional
funny
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
I couldn’t put this book down. The story is heartbreaking and loving and grounding and it felt like the inside look at someone’s real life. I love the depth each character gets. It’s not just the two main characters. Everyone gets an outward impression & then a deeper understanding to them. I appreciated the care AJ took with portraying physical and mental health. I think the portrayal of addiction could’ve been handled better. It was the
The Happy Ever After Playlist by Abby Jimenez
emotional
funny
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.0
I read this book at the right time, I think. I adored it. Jason was so dumb for not being clear about Lola.
The Song Rising by Samantha Shannon
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
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
Samatha Shannon doesn’t miss. This has rapidly become one of my favorite series.
TSR was probably one of her darkest books that I’ve ever read. I only haven’t read the rest of THM or A Day of Fallen Night. However, I really doubt the darkness of this book will be beaten.
Despite that dark parts, there is so much character development. Foreshadowing, motifs, and character emotions are all so incredibly nuanced. The characters are lovable but frustrating. Even the characters you should hate I still like due to how interesting they are. This of course is excluding Nasheria & a couple of her loyalists.
The writing is skillful & makes the action packed story so fantastic.
I highly recommend this series as well as this book. She once said in an interview that this was the most difficult book she’s ever written. I understand why, but it’s worth the read.
TSR was probably one of her darkest books that I’ve ever read. I only haven’t read the rest of THM or A Day of Fallen Night. However, I really doubt the darkness of this book will be beaten.
Despite that dark parts, there is so much character development. Foreshadowing, motifs, and character emotions are all so incredibly nuanced. The characters are lovable but frustrating. Even the characters you should hate I still like due to how interesting they are. This of course is excluding Nasheria & a couple of her loyalists.
The writing is skillful & makes the action packed story so fantastic.
I highly recommend this series as well as this book. She once said in an interview that this was the most difficult book she’s ever written. I understand why, but it’s worth the read.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Torture, Violence, and Trafficking
Moderate: Death, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Vomit, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Sexual content
Somewhere Beyond the Sea by TJ Klune
emotional
funny
hopeful
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? It's complicated
4.0
This was much more intense than the first book. It’s riding on the brink of”” “cozy” fantasy. I almost DNF’d it because the beginning felt so bleak compared to what I was expecting. The story did vastly improve after the first major even in the story. This is how it became a 4 star book. The children grew up a smidge (since book 2 doesn’t take place far after book 1) & you could see how Linus’ personality/parenting changed the children for the better. I loved the growth of Zoey Chappelwhite. She carried this story on her little back with her wings out!
I recommend this. Stick through the tiny bit in the beginning & it will return to the normal silly programming of THOTCS.
I recommend this. Stick through the tiny bit in the beginning & it will return to the normal silly programming of THOTCS.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism
Moderate: Child abuse
Minor: Emotional abuse, Grief, and Death of parent
The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
I think this was decent. The writing was rather elementary. And you could see the twist from miles away based on the context “clues”. But the clues were so loud they used a megaphone. Like seriously. How was this the number one book last year? Like the first twist was obvious & the next one was a fun surprise.
It was solid thriller. Just based a lot on a guy with a misogynistic view of life.
It was solid thriller. Just based a lot on a guy with a misogynistic view of life.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug abuse, Drug use, Violence, Suicide attempt, and Murder
Moderate: Gun violence, Misogyny, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, and Medical trauma
Minor: Sexism, Stalking, Car accident, and Death of parent
Iron Flame (2 of 2) [Dramatized Adaptation] by Rebecca Yarros
adventurous
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I like parts of this book so much. I hate how whiny Violet is though. Xaden is trying to give her as much truth as he can- as much as it is safe. He is trying to protect hundreds, maybe thousands of people from mind readers like Dain. And Dain already betrayed her once. There is so much foreshadowing in this book that it’s hard to pay attention to what is happening at the current moment. And on top of all of that, the fight scenes are written so poorly. It is a skill RY needs to work on badly. Where tf was her editor when that was printed???
It still had great romance scenes, dragon intrigue as well as comedic relief. Tarin & Anarna are very cute. I love all the side characters. This book has very high-highs and very low-lows, which is why I rated it a three.
It still had great romance scenes, dragon intrigue as well as comedic relief. Tarin & Anarna are very cute. I love all the side characters. This book has very high-highs and very low-lows, which is why I rated it a three.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Physical abuse, Torture, Violence, Death of parent, and War
Moderate: Medical content, Grief, and Murder
Minor: Classism
Iron Flame (1 of 2) [Dramatized Adaptation] by Rebecca Yarros
adventurous
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
I like the diversity.
There is so much that happens at every turn. It’s incredibly action packed. Some say this is book is too much and unnecessarily long. I believe those people are more there for the romance than the entire story- which is fine. It’s just why others most likely were upset about so much action. There is a decent amount of listing and romance. However, Violet is incredibly irritating for her trust. Over and over and over!!! WE GET IT VIOLET.
Honestly, this book reminds me of ACOMAF. It’s long, has multiple action-packed events with the main character learning her powers & feeling lost in her lust vs love vs jealousy.
I recommend this book. It’s fantastic to hear the dramatized adaptations. The regular audiobook is horrendous.
There is so much that happens at every turn. It’s incredibly action packed. Some say this is book is too much and unnecessarily long. I believe those people are more there for the romance than the entire story- which is fine. It’s just why others most likely were upset about so much action. There is a decent amount of listing and romance. However, Violet is incredibly irritating for her trust. Over and over and over!!! WE GET IT VIOLET.
Honestly, this book reminds me of ACOMAF. It’s long, has multiple action-packed events with the main character learning her powers & feeling lost in her lust vs love vs jealousy.
I recommend this book. It’s fantastic to hear the dramatized adaptations. The regular audiobook is horrendous.