spaghettii's reviews
237 reviews

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

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.25

I cannot believe that yet again I did not realize a character was dead and not acknowledged by anyone but the narrator!! I figured it out when it was first alluded to that Thomas had hurt Dove. Also the pining actually hurt. This book was very tragic and I prefer to interpret the ending as a happy one because if it's not, it might just kill me.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Eating disorder, Gore, Homophobia, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Grief, Suicide attempt, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Lesbophobia, Injury/Injury detail

A House with Good Bones by T. Kingfisher

adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.0

Kingfisher definitely knows how to write an unsettling atmosphere,,,, the writing was very nice and kept me invested but I am beginning to think southern gothic is not a genre I like. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Bullying, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Mental illness, Racism, Blood, Grief, Cannibalism, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Injury/Injury detail

Annihilation by Jeff VanderMeer

adventurous dark inspiring mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? N/A
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

Very eloquently written while at the same time I would find myself having to re-read paragraphs describing minute details because I had zoned out. Admittedly, I am used to the YA writing style which is fast paced and not typically as detailed.
As a biopsych student I was intrigued. Even more so

when the conditioning wore off (not sure conditioning can be used this effectively and reliably irl but I liked that part of the plot anyways) and we found that the tower was alive because wtf is going on,,,

. I do see how the ending sections could be confusing as

the narrator becomes more unreliable and loses her grip while encountering some really weird shit at the same time. I still don't understand how she killed the surveyor when she was already shot and surveyor had military experience. At that point I briefly considered the parasitic fungus a cop-out but I fear there will be more to it than what we have seen in this book

. That being said, I was contemplating not reading the second book (Authority) but decided to start it on a whim. I actually like Authority better so far (@13%) and I think it gives more

closure and details that were lacking in Annihilation.

<-( no spoilers on Authority)

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Body horror, Cancer, Chronic illness, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Dementia, Grief, Medical trauma, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail

House of Striking Oaths by Olivia Wildenstein

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.0

I fear for Fallon's IQ

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Bullying, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Dementia, Kidnapping, Grief, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, War, Injury/Injury detail

The Z Word by Lindsay King-Miller

dark emotional funny mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Body horror, Bullying, Child death, Chronic illness, Cursing, Death, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Mental illness, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Transphobia, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Police brutality, Grief, Cannibalism, Medical trauma, Car accident, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, Pandemic/Epidemic

Icon and Inferno by Marie Lu

adventurous dark emotional mysterious 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

4.5

i did not appreciate that car explosion :/

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child abuse, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Torture, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Stalking, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Alcohol, War, Injury/Injury detail

Stars and Smoke by Marie Lu

adventurous emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

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

4.0

May have been unrealistic but was entertaining none the less

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child abuse, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Suicide, Terminal illness, Torture, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Kidnapping, Grief, Medical trauma, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Abandonment, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail

House of Pounding Hearts by Olivia Wildenstein

adventurous mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.0

Fallon is still dumb as hell but it's whatever 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death, Gore, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Murder, Injury/Injury detail

It Lasts Forever and Then It's Over by Anne de Marcken

dark mysterious reflective slow-paced

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

1.0

Maybe I'm not very intelligent because what was going on fr 😭

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Body horror, Chronic illness, Death, Miscarriage, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Blood, Dementia, Grief, Medical trauma, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail

House of Beating Wings by Olivia Wildenstein

adventurous mysterious tense slow-paced

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

2.5

Fallon is dumb as hell

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Bullying, Cursing, Death, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Dementia, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, Classism