sometimes_samantha_reads's reviews
244 reviews

A House with Good Bones by T. Kingfisher

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adventurous mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

What an interesting premise! I enjoyed the idea of a Southern Haunting. The ending was a bit odd but it was still very fun. I like the slow unraveling of the issues and trying to put the pieces together as we went. 

I was not super thrilled with the narrator. I think the voice for Sam was fine. But the mom and grandma voices were odd because they had a British kind of accent and not a North Carolina accent like they should've had.also the guy voice was an ick. It had nothing to do with the plot itself but at time is made it hard to be immersed.
We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson

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dark mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

I was drawn by the strange cover. I felt like tye story was hard to follow because it was very vague at points but overall thought the idea and premise of it was interesting.
Run, Rose, Run by Dolly Parton, James Patterson

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emotional funny hopeful mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

The book was ok. I'm not super into country music but I do like Dolly Parton and I've read James Patterson before so I wanted to give it a try. I often thought AnnieLee was extremely naive and obtuse. I also thought she was unrealistically lucky. We didn't figure our what her mysterious past was until over 90% of the way through the book and I was frustrated when it kept getting brushed off. It made her character and the entire plot line feel shallow. The whole mystery was also completely dissolved in two chapters at the end of the story and had a neat and tidy happy ending that seemed rushed and out of place after everything. I wanted to like this book but I was pretty disappointed.
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The Storyteller: Tales of Life and Music by Dave Grohl

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funny hopeful informative inspiring lighthearted reflective medium-paced

4.0

As a fan of the Foo Fighters and Dave Grohl this was an enjoyable book. I really enjoyed the audiobook narrated by the man himself with music snippets throughout. The timeline jumping was mostly easy to follow. 
A Court of Mist and Fury (2 of 2) by Sarah J. Maas

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adventurous dark emotional funny mysterious tense 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

Nesta, Rhys, Mor, Lucien, and Jurian's voice actors are spot on! The others were a little iffy at times. The audio mixing is a little bit funky sometimes too. This is a re-read for me so I'm rating the story itself a 4, but some of the voice acting bothered me as I listened again.
Two Twisted Crowns by Rachel Gillig

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adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful tense 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

5.0

Just as great as book one!
The Radium Girls: The Dark Story of America's Shining Women by Kate Moore

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dark emotional informative inspiring sad tense slow-paced

4.5

The writing felt a little bit slow at times, but the story overall was shocking, intriguing, and sad. I'm glad something was learned from these ladies, but so much more should've been done for them sooner. A very interesting read.
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Stamped from the Beginning: A Graphic History of Racist Ideas in America by Ibram X. Kendi, Joel Christian Gill

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challenging emotional hopeful informative reflective sad tense medium-paced

5.0

Loveless by Alice Oseman

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emotional funny hopeful lighthearted reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

Very cute book! I was buddy reading with some friends. It's not my normal genre but I enjoyed the humor and remembering my first few college years (god... I'm out of college now...)

All of the flustered feelings and mistake making wad relatable. The miscommunication trope is a pet peeve of mine so it made some chapters harder to read than others but overall, I enjoyed it! 
Why Fathers Cry at Night: A Memoir in Love Poems, Recipes, Letters, and Remembrances by Kwame Alexander

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emotional hopeful reflective fast-paced

3.5

I always enjoy listening to poetry read aloud by the author. Thisnwas an enjoyable book to play in the car on my way to and from work. This was my first time reading Kwame Alexander outside of the Crossover series. The poems in the 4-6 parts weren't my favorite, but still good.