staxreads's reviews
52 reviews

Never Lie by Freida McFadden

challenging dark mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No

3.75

Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett

adventurous challenging emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring lighthearted mysterious reflective relaxing sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated

3.75

Under the Whispering Door by TJ Klune

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

4.75

This is certainly not a lightheaded read. Proceed with caution. 
In hindsight I probably picked the wrong time to read this book. However, in a weird way I enjoyed this immensely. 
A very heavy theme, but it was handled with such beauty and kindness. With wonderful character developments. Important life lessons and messages. One to really get you thinking on such a deep and spiritual level. 
So much love, sadness and grief wrapped up in one book and one that will stay with me for a very long time. Tj klune has done it again and I will forever be amazed by his attention to detail and wonderful way with words.
I know that he isn't to everyone's tastes. I'm not one to simply dismiss an authors work due to their personal views and opinions as this is something that we are all entitled to and whether we agree or disagree, this does not negate the fact that he really has a beautiful way with words and story telling. 

Sorcery and Small Magics by Maiga Doocy

adventurous challenging emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted mysterious reflective relaxing sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

⭐⭐⭐⭐
I had been struggling to understand if I liked this book for at least 50% if the story, not because I haven't enjoyed it, I just found the magic system to be a bit nonsensical and contradictory. That being said, the author really knows how to keep the reader interested with the loveable main characters and generall charming feeling surrounding the story. I loved following Leo and Grimms journey.

Sybilla was also a lovely, charming character and I hope that she features again in the next book. I would also hope that Jayne and her group make an appearance again as they all seem to have so much more of a story to be told

Up until the last quarter of the book I had a rough idea that I was only going to score this a 3.5 or 3.75 star read. Mainly due to the slightly slow start and my indifference on the magic system. I had also thought that I probably wouldn't bother to continue the series. However, the last quarter of the book redeemed it and I will d finitely keep an eye out for the sequel when it becomes available. 

All in all, it was a fun and loveable read. You may just need to push through the first few chapters. 

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective relaxing sad 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? No

5.0

It was suggested that I read this book and after having heard many different opinions where people either absolutely love it, or completely dislike it. I went into it with a fairly open mind, knowing that it may not be for me. Upon starting it, I knew it was going to take a bit more concentration as there are various periods of time that the story is set in and it doesn't always follow them in a linear line. I have not been ones to tab books before however I feel that this is definitely the sort of book that could easily be tabbed, if just to keep track of the different dates. It only took me a few chapters to get used to the writing style and the concept of the timeline. After that I was hooked. It was a wonderful story, one of which I'm sure will stay with me for a long time to come and I will likely keep this as a reread. I can see why this book isn't for everyone though. However for me it was perfection. I thoroughly enjoyed every single page.

The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune

adventurous emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted mysterious reflective relaxing sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

An absolutely beautiful story form start to finish. 

Four: A Divergent Story Collection by Veronica Roth

adventurous challenging hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes

4.0

The Midnight Library by Matt Haig

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring lighthearted mysterious reflective relaxing sad tense medium-paced

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

4.5

Rage by Stephen King, Richard Bachman

dark emotional 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? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Elevation by Stephen King

adventurous emotional hopeful inspiring lighthearted mysterious relaxing sad fast-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

3.5

A very quick, short read. You can definitely see the difference from his older work to this more recent novel. I think it was a nice comparison reading 2 of his books, from different ends of the scale, side by side. Whilst pet sematary was dark, twisted and scary, this was sweet, mysterious and charming. 

It was the perfect length. I think I would have struggled to continue this book had it been a longer novel as the storyline didn't really have enough for it to be a longer story.