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solaria's reviews
60 reviews
Here Comes the Sun by Nicole Dennis-Benn
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
WHAT THE FUCK WHAT THE FUCK WHAT THE FUCK WHAT THE FUCK WHAT THE FUCK?
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Body shaming, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Trafficking, Religious bigotry
Moderate: Bullying
Mullumbimby by Melissa Lucashenko
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
I can't decide on a rating 😵💫
Memphis by Tara M. Stringfellow
I think the way the book handled the relationship between Joan and Derek at the end was clumsy but overall a solid read. The writing towards the end overall was very disappointing and left a lot to be desired. Despite this, it had some really engaging moments throughout, I couldn't put it down. I thought the constant switching of perspectives was interesting.
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Domestic abuse, Racism, Rape
Moderate: Gun violence, Racial slurs, Police brutality, Murder, Abandonment
Minor: Sexual content, Medical content
Iron Widow by Xiran Jay Zhao
Did not finish book. Stopped at 35%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 35%.
The conflict is so confusing and I had no idea what was happening most of the time in any fight scene. How the society functions or the details of the conflict were either not explained or explained so poorly that I was still lost.
Zetian is an annoying main character because she has no flaws and everyone else does. There is absolutely no nuance to the feminist ideas the book tries to discuss. In the end, despite the books attempts to present Zetian as a feminist warrior who cares for the women around her, she ends up projecting her own internalised misogyny onto other women. Instead of looking at the issue with a bit of introspection, she writes off any other woman as "dumb" or "complicit" in the system instead of realising that they're *all* victims of the patriarchy. Idk, I just didn't care to read another 200+ pages of Zetian blaming everything but herself or failing to consider other perspectives alongside a poorly developed scifi world that I couldn't wrap my head around.
Zetian is an annoying main character because she has no flaws and everyone else does. There is absolutely no nuance to the feminist ideas the book tries to discuss. In the end, despite the books attempts to present Zetian as a feminist warrior who cares for the women around her, she ends up projecting her own internalised misogyny onto other women. Instead of looking at the issue with a bit of introspection, she writes off any other woman as "dumb" or "complicit" in the system instead of realising that they're *all* victims of the patriarchy. Idk, I just didn't care to read another 200+ pages of Zetian blaming everything but herself or failing to consider other perspectives alongside a poorly developed scifi world that I couldn't wrap my head around.
Afterlove by Tanya Byrne
dark
emotional
hopeful
sad
medium-paced
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.0
It's a case of liked the concept, didn't like the execution.
The first act was good although I wish it built up a little more tension as it somewhat felt like the first act and second act were apart of two different books.
The second act was very messy. It was paced poorly and very rushed. It felt like the author realised she didn't have enough pages to tell the story she wanted to so a lot got cut or blended together. The new characters that were introduced felt really basic as a result, they didn't get enough room to develop properly. I wanted to know so much more about them. I also hated how short the chapters were in the second act and how many breaks there were in most of these chapters. It just broke up the story for no reason when I felt it didn't need to.
Spoilers ahead
Look, I know Ash fell in love with Poppy but I wish the author talked about how much she missed her family and friends more. I mean, she had been living with her family for her whole life and been friends with Adara for her entire school experience - and yet we only really get one liners about how she misses them. We get paragraphs about how much she misses Poppy which was nice but she only met Poppy a few months ago. I liked Poppy but still, a little more depth to Ashana would've been nice.
The first act was good although I wish it built up a little more tension as it somewhat felt like the first act and second act were apart of two different books.
The second act was very messy. It was paced poorly and very rushed. It felt like the author realised she didn't have enough pages to tell the story she wanted to so a lot got cut or blended together. The new characters that were introduced felt really basic as a result, they didn't get enough room to develop properly. I wanted to know so much more about them. I also hated how short the chapters were in the second act and how many breaks there were in most of these chapters. It just broke up the story for no reason when I felt it didn't need to.
Spoilers ahead
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Grief, Car accident
Minor: Sexual content
Rules for Vanishing by Kate Alice Marshall
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-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? It's complicated
4.0
WTF ?!?!?!?!?!??!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Blood
Minor: Body horror
I'm Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy
challenging
dark
sad
tense
fast-paced
4.5
One of the most horrific books I ever read. Jennette is such a brilliant writer though. It's a weird mixed feeling I have about this book because the content was so horrendous but I couldn't put the book down. I read it in just over one day.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Body shaming, Cancer, Child abuse, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Alcohol
Moderate: Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Sexual harassment
The Lesbiana's Guide to Catholic School by Sonora Reyes
Did not finish book. Stopped at 15%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 15%.
Look, I really want to like it for the plot. I went to a Catholic school as a queer girl so I thought I'd connect with this book a lot. Unfortunately, the corny and cringe lines are too much for me to bear. There are way too many pop culture references and the whole Etsy business side plot is so rushed. It's not Yamliet's fault, she's just a teenage girl and her thoughts definitely reflect that. I normally allow cringe lines in YA fiction anyway because there's no way around it, but some of these are absolute stinkers that have made me need to pause the book and take a moment to process.
It also seems like a very "tell don't show" book so far which is something I don't particularly like in heavy doses. I wish there was more depth to why Yamliet thinks what she does. The things that have happened so far are too melodramatic for my liking. Maybe I'll come back to this book at some point.
It also seems like a very "tell don't show" book so far which is something I don't particularly like in heavy doses. I wish there was more depth to why Yamliet thinks what she does. The things that have happened so far are too melodramatic for my liking. Maybe I'll come back to this book at some point.
Loveless by Alice Oseman
emotional
funny
hopeful
relaxing
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Africa Is Not A Country: Breaking Stereotypes of Modern Africa by Dipo Faloyin
challenging
funny
informative
medium-paced
Prior to reading, I had very limited knowledge about the African continent. Whatever knowledge I did possess was informed through school fundraisers and throwaway comments about how disadvantaged the "country" was. This book was a match made in heaven, as it targets that exact rhetoric that was drilled into me during school.
This book is bursting at the seams with personality. It's packed with witty humour, insightful personal reflections from Faloyin as a Nigerian person and cracking analyses of the stereotypes surrounding Africa that disadvantage the people within it. This book sets the record straight - Africa is not a homogenous continent filled with "primitive" people destined for poverty and suffering. Africa is a continent that was devastated by oppressive colonial regimes that saw thousands of ethnic groups merged into 54 poorly-designed countries and left to deal with the effects of colonisation. I loved how it compared the historical (which for some of these countries is less than 50 years ago) and the modern-day context within these countries. One might assume that covering 54 countries in one book is a very big task, but Faloyin doesn't bite off more than he can chew. He focuses on specific examples and case studies that he's clearly researched thoroughly and well-versed in to ensure that he doesn't cover the politics or history of specific countries he's not familiar with.
My favourite parts of this book were the focus on the white-saviour complex in television, film and charities. The creative liberties that were taken, such as the intro to Chapter 2 being written like a screenplay or a later chapter providing a satirical guide on "how to make a movie about Africa" were brilliant! I can't wait to see what Faloyin writes next because this is an absolutely phenomenal debut novel.
This book is bursting at the seams with personality. It's packed with witty humour, insightful personal reflections from Faloyin as a Nigerian person and cracking analyses of the stereotypes surrounding Africa that disadvantage the people within it. This book sets the record straight - Africa is not a homogenous continent filled with "primitive" people destined for poverty and suffering. Africa is a continent that was devastated by oppressive colonial regimes that saw thousands of ethnic groups merged into 54 poorly-designed countries and left to deal with the effects of colonisation. I loved how it compared the historical (which for some of these countries is less than 50 years ago) and the modern-day context within these countries. One might assume that covering 54 countries in one book is a very big task, but Faloyin doesn't bite off more than he can chew. He focuses on specific examples and case studies that he's clearly researched thoroughly and well-versed in to ensure that he doesn't cover the politics or history of specific countries he's not familiar with.
My favourite parts of this book were the focus on the white-saviour complex in television, film and charities. The creative liberties that were taken, such as the intro to Chapter 2 being written like a screenplay or a later chapter providing a satirical guide on "how to make a movie about Africa" were brilliant! I can't wait to see what Faloyin writes next because this is an absolutely phenomenal debut novel.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Genocide, Violence, Police brutality, Colonisation, War