spellbindingtomes's reviews
356 reviews

Here After by Amy Lin
Did not finish book. Stopped at 26%.

The author's experience hit me too hard. I had to dnf this for my mental health. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Grief

Midnights With You by Clare Osongco

emotional reflective sad tense fast-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

5.0

𝘞𝘩𝘺 𝘥𝘰𝘦𝘴 𝘪𝘵 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘴𝘩𝘦'𝘴 𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘢𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘮𝘦, 𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘮𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘢 𝘯𝘰𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘦? 𝘛𝘰𝘰 𝘈𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘯, 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘐 𝘢𝘭𝘸𝘢𝘺𝘴 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭 𝘥𝘪𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘵. 𝘐'𝘮 𝙨𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜-𝙚𝙡𝙨𝙚 𝘦𝘯𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘵𝘰 𝘯𝘰𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘦, 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘐 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘯𝘰 𝘳𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦 𝘍𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘰.

𝘐'𝘮 𝘢 𝘯𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨. 𝘐'𝘮 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘨𝘩𝘰𝘴𝘵𝘴.

What a breathtaking debut!! Clare writes a stunning story about inherited pain and the courage it takes to break free from it. This emotional story follows Deedee, a Filipino-American teenager grappling with unspoken family history, as she finds unexpected connection through secret late-night driving lessons with Jay, her enigmatic new neighbor who harbors his own familial wounds.

Clare's writing is devastatingly beautiful. At the heart of this story is Deedee, who is trying to navigate being the perfect daughter for her strict mom while yearning to chart her own course. Deedee and her mom have such a complicated relationship. Though their scenes were painful to read and gave me so much anxiety, Clare depicted the generational trauma and the complexity of family relationships with such grace and authenticity 🥺😭

𝘚𝘩𝘦'𝘴 𝘨𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘮𝘦 𝘢 𝘨𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘐'𝘮 𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘧𝘶𝘭. 𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘴 𝘮𝘦 𝘩𝘶𝘳𝘵𝘴, 𝘵𝘰𝘰. 𝘉𝘰𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘦.

I loved seeing the relationship between Deedee and Jay develop. It was slow and natural, just two young people gradually learning to trust and understand each other despite their reservations. But this isn't just another teen romance. Midnights With You grapples with weighty questions about identity, duty, and the courage required to confront long-buried truths. What sets this book apart even further is its unflinching exploration of how family history shapes us without necessarily defining us. 

Clare Osongco is an author to watch. I'll definitely be reading whatever she writes next! 💖

What to expect:
- complex family dynamics
- right person, wrong time
- coming-of-age
- intergenerational relationships
- Filipino-American rep

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Grief, Car accident, Death of parent, Toxic friendship, Abandonment

Blood Over Bright Haven by M.L. Wang

dark emotional 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? Yes

5.0

🌟♾️

𝘐’𝘮 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘳𝘪𝘥𝘪𝘤𝘶𝘭𝘰𝘶𝘴 𝘪𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘥𝘦𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘤𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘭𝘥 𝘪𝘴 𝘴𝘰 𝘥𝘪𝘴𝘨𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘭𝘺 𝘶𝘯𝘤𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘭.

𝘐𝘵’𝘴 𝘮𝘶𝘤𝘩 𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘪𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶’𝘳𝘦 𝘢 𝘨𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘪𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘶𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘣𝘦 𝘰𝘯𝘦.

What a reading experience this was. Coming off my love for Sword of Kaigen, I jumped into this one with very high expectations. Chapter 1 had me totally invested, but then the pacing and the plot was a bit slow. I kept setting it aside for other books. It wasn't until around the 40% mark, that the story completely captured me and wouldn't let go until the final word.

Looking back, I now appreciate that the initial slow pace served such a crucial purpose. Those early chapters meticulously constructed the magic system, established the deep-rooted tensions between the people of Tiran and the Kwens, and laid out the intricate mechanics of siphoning. All of this background was absolutely necessary—without it, the emotional gut punches and complex conflicts of the latter half wouldn't have hit me with such force. Switching to the audiobook was a game-changer, too. Moira Quirk's narration was spectacular, giving voice and emotion to all the frustrating twists and turns.

Sciona's character arc was so well done. My initial dislike of her feels intentional in retrospect—her self-centeredness made her difficult to root for. But witnessing her worldview shatter transformed her completely. As the first female mage, Sciona constantly battled against the expectations and judgements from her male colleagues, forever having to prove her worth in a system designed against her. This pressure sadly manifested in her early treatment of Thomil—her biases against Kwens reflecting the same prejudice she herself faced. Her journey from privileged ignorance to painful awakening makes her growth all the more powerful.

𝘐𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘧 𝘢 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘷𝘪𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯: 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘣𝘦 𝘴𝘰𝘧𝘵, 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘯𝘰𝘳 𝘸𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘥 𝘪𝘤𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘉𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘩𝘢𝘮 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘥. 𝘚𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘨𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘛𝘪𝘳𝘢𝘯 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘩𝘢𝘥 𝘯𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘴𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘣𝘦𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘦. 𝙎𝙝𝙚 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙜𝙤𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙤 𝙨𝙝𝙤𝙬 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙢 𝙃𝙚𝙡𝙡𝙛𝙞𝙧𝙚.

Blood Over Bright Haven is everything I wanted in a standalone fantasy. This was such a timely, rage-inducing, heart-crushing read that deserves all the praise it's gotten and more. Please if this book isn't on your radar, go pick it up!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Infertility, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Vomit, Police brutality, Grief, Cannibalism, Religious bigotry, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, Classism

We Used to Live Here by Marcus Kliewer

dark mysterious tense slow-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, Homophobia, Mental illness, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Kidnapping, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Lesbophobia, Gaslighting

If You Could See the Sun by Ann Liang

adventurous mysterious 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? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Infidelity, Panic attacks/disorders, Kidnapping, Stalking

Dating and Dragons by Kristy Boyce

funny lighthearted fast-paced

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

3.5

This was a fun, lighthearted read. While slightly more cheesy than Kristy's previous book, Dungeons and Drama, this still managed to charm me with its quirky characters and cute premise.

I wasn't as thrilled or invested with the romance as I was with Dungeons and Drama. I didn't really buy into Quinn and Logan's chemistry. I thought the whole dilemma of the no-dating rule came off as too dramatic and could have easily been avoided with a group discussion amongst all the players. 

But I understand that this is the type of thing to expect in a YA novel and other readers may find that enjoyable, so take my review with a grain of salt! 

What really shines in this story is Quinn's grandma. She was by far my favorite and I so badly want to play pickleball with her!

Dating and Dragons is a perfect palate cleanser for readers looking for a quick and sweet entertaining story.

Thank you to NetGalley & Delacorte Romance for this ARC. 𝗗𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗗𝗿𝗮𝗴𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗽𝘂𝗯𝗹𝗶𝘀𝗵𝗲𝘀 𝗼𝗻 𝟭𝟮/𝟯𝟭!

What to expect:
🐉 friends to lovers
🎲 D&D references 
🐉 the best grandma wingman
🎲 forbidden romance
🐉 TTRPG live stream group

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Car accident, Toxic friendship, Sexual harassment

Patron Saints of Nothing by Randy Ribay

dark emotional mysterious sad 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

𝘐𝘵 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘬𝘦𝘴 𝘮𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘐 𝘤𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘤𝘭𝘢𝘪𝘮 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘺'𝘴 𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘶𝘯-𝘴𝘰𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘥 𝘣𝘦𝘢𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘴 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘢𝘭𝘴𝘰 𝘤𝘭𝘢𝘪𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘵𝘴 𝘱𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘵𝘺, 𝘪𝘵𝘴 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘣𝘭𝘦𝘮𝘴, 𝘪𝘵𝘴 𝘩𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺. 𝘛𝘰 𝘴𝘢𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘺 𝘢𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘤𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘪𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘮𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘢𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘰𝘧 𝘪𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘮𝘦.

I've had this book sitting on my shelf for the longest time and I'm so upset with myself for not reading it sooner. 

Randy Ribay writes a deeply moving story exploring identity and loss that follows Jay, a Filipino-American teenager seeking the truth behind his cousin's death in the Philippines. 

This absolutely blew me away. Jay's journey resonated deeply with me - from his raw grief, to his complex experience as a Filipino-American, to his relentless search to uncover the truth about his cousin's death. 

Randy's writing was incredibly captivating, pulling me in from the very first chapter. Jay's struggles with identity and grief was portrayed perfectly. The mystery surrounding his cousin's death created such a tense, haunting atmosphere that I found myself unable to put the book down, desperately following Jay's search for answers. His journey became my own - I felt every moment of his fear, shared in his anger and sadness, and by the end, his tears were mine too.

I cannot recommend this book strongly enough. Without question, it's earned its spot among my top reads of the year.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Bullying, Deadnaming, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Grief, Car accident, Murder, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, War, Classism

Arsenic and Adobo by Mia P. Manansala

funny mysterious fast-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Infidelity, Death of parent, Murder

Some People Need Killing: A Memoir of Murder in My Country by Patricia Evangelista

dark emotional informative sad medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Deadnaming, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Police brutality, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, War, Injury/Injury detail

Love and Other Conspiracies by Mallory Marlowe

funny lighthearted fast-paced

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

2.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Cancer, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Sexism, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Sexual harassment