shidoburrito's reviews
1535 reviews

Everything is Tuberculosis by John Green

emotional informative sad medium-paced

4.0

 I always love listening to John Green read his own books. This was a very quick listen, but very informative. While following the life of Henry you are also drawn into facts about the history of tuberculosis as well as the injustices of people suffering from it today when we have the capacity and know-how to wipe it out. But just like anything these days, it's all about keeping the poor, poor and the rich, rich. 

The Eyes Are the Best Part by Monika Kim

dark emotional reflective fast-paced

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

4.75

Starting out, I thought to myself This isn't horror! but just be patient, it gets there. Just like Ji-won, you gotta work up the courage to face eating the fish eyes, and then after that you too will not get enough of this book. Especially if you're in your angry feminist phase (is it perimenopause or feminism LOL), like me! TW: Disgusting, sexist, misogynistic, abusive, cheating men are in this book.
But the ending? Chef's kiss. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Cannibalism

We Solve Murders by Richard Osman

adventurous mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? N/A
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

I've never read anything by Richard Osman before. It was decidedly fine. A regular murder mystery with slightly quirky characters and enough of them were rich so that you could fly around the world to different places on wild goose chases. The characters were also fine. I didn't hate it. I didn't love it. The only characters I had any sort of feelings for were Steve (a sweetie) and Rosie (funny and strong). 

Didn't impress me enough to delve into any more of his books. I don't even know how this one got on my TBR list? I'll stick to my funnier murder mysteries.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Violence

Minor: Drug use

Someone You Can Build a Nest In by John Wiswell

adventurous dark emotional hopeful fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

It's gushy, it's gory, it's squishy and slimy and elastic and oozing, it's Shesheshen! And she is a monster (I pretty much pictured like a slime monster in my mind?) that is growing a heart while she's falling in love. And it's full of disgusting and sweet moments and plenty of people are getting eaten. A romantic tale as old as time, ya know?

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Gore, Cannibalism

The Haunted Forest Tour by Jeff Strand, James A. Moore

adventurous dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? N/A
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

You want a horror book with all the monsters and creatures and horrific deaths? Written and set up like a summer blockbuster from Roland Emmerich in the 90's? Excellent, you'll enjoy this book! Think of those tour Jeeps in Jurassic Park, but instead of dinosaurs it was almost every type of monster and demon from fairy tales and movies, chomping down on the tourists after their bus breaks down in the middle of the forest.

The ending was a little tough and the most gruesome part, but all in all, I had fun listening to this audio book!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Torture

Don't Let the Forest In by C.G. Drews

dark emotional mysterious sad medium-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

3.75

 A very dark book full of bleak, poetic language painting the gloomy scene as if straight from a wicked fairy tale. I must say I did enjoy the ace representation! The ending was befitting of this disturbing book. Have fun! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror

Rogue by Julie Kagawa

2.0

Ugh, OK, we get it already. Should she listen to her dragon side and pick Riley (no, he's stupid), or her human side and pick Garrett (yes, and when he dies, just go be with Riley, problem solved). Also, once I realized how often the author used a simile (like, once per paragraph), I started to go a little nuts. They weren't even GOOD similes. So a drastic drop in my rating of this series. The novelty of dragons being able to turn into humans has worn off and all I'm left with is incredibly dull teen angst with a Twilight complex. Blech.

Big Hero 6, Volume 2 by

4.0

Much better than the first volume! Pretty much concludes the series like the movie, but Callaghan's daughter is much younger.

The Fangirl's Guide to the Galaxy: A Handbook for Girl Geeks by Sam Maggs

3.0

A nice guide for girls starting to identify as a geek, nerd, or otaku. I've been some of those terms for a while now, and working on others, so most of it wasn't new to me. But it has some great interviews with women in the nerd culture, and a great section about feminism in the nerd world.

I appreciated the chapter on fanfiction and that no matter what you write, no matter what the rating, if you write it for yourself and not others, you are doing it right. Makes me happy!

Hell House by Richard Matheson

3.0

I can tell when a book is scaring me when I have a restless nights of weird dreams and foreboding feelings. This book did that. The atmosphere just gets steadily darker and darker as the characters slowly decline into madness and begin to doubt themselves. It really gets to you!

BUT, my major complaint is the author's portrayal of the female characters. Yes, this book is getting up there in years, having been published in the 1970's. And while all the characters were never lovable, especially as their deepest secrets and fears were brought to light, the female characters in particular were portrayed rather poorly. No one was able to stand up for themselves. All of their hauntings and fears were sexual. Edith's only reason for being there was because she simply couldn't LIVE without her husband for a week without breaking down and had to stay by his side. And her greatest fear was discovering she was in fact a lesbian? Oh horrors! She also mentions how she and her husband rarely, if ever, have sex: he because of crippling polio, her because of a sexually abusive father. Remind me again why you can't live without your husband?

Anyway, despite the book actually being scary, and a great page turner, the sexism brought my rating down a bit. So if you don't mind a good, classic, whiny, dependent female character, but want something spoopy, then this book is for you!