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tashasbooks's reviews
440 reviews
Foul Lady Fortune by Chloe Gong
4.0
Foul Lady Fortune expands on the universe that was set in the previous duology with better characters and romance.
Rosalind Lang almost died after the events that took place in These Violent Ends. She is saved, but in doing so she now has the ability to heal from all wounds and doesn't age. She uses her power to become a Nationalist assassin, under the code name Fortune. With a Japanese invasion looming and strange deaths taking place in Shanghai, she is assigned to spy with another Nationalist spy, Orion Hong. Orion and Rosalind have to pretend to be married to infiltrate a Japanese newspaper, but they discover there is more than meets the eye with their mission and each other.
I really enjoyed this! I felt the plot was MUCH better than the previous duology. I felt more immersed in this book and it was easier to catch my attention. It's definitely a switch from the previous series, with less focus on gangs and more on the politics of the current climate. You have lots of spying from all sides, as the Japanese, Communists, and Nationalists all have different motivations in the city. I found that setting pretty interesting, but I will say there are some strange inconsistencies. Orion is the famous son of a Nationalist leader in Shanghai, but is able to start working at a foreign newspaper under cover without any suspicion? I just think there were some plot holes in that regard.
Despite that, I found the romance much more believable and I liked how it grew over time. It is very slow-burn and they truly don't exactly get together. There is lots of banter as they don't like each other at the beginning, but over time they grow and learn more about each other. If anything, I'm really excited to see how that pans out in the next book. I will be picking up the sequel and I'm excited to finally get to the novellas as well.
Rosalind Lang almost died after the events that took place in These Violent Ends. She is saved, but in doing so she now has the ability to heal from all wounds and doesn't age. She uses her power to become a Nationalist assassin, under the code name Fortune. With a Japanese invasion looming and strange deaths taking place in Shanghai, she is assigned to spy with another Nationalist spy, Orion Hong. Orion and Rosalind have to pretend to be married to infiltrate a Japanese newspaper, but they discover there is more than meets the eye with their mission and each other.
I really enjoyed this! I felt the plot was MUCH better than the previous duology. I felt more immersed in this book and it was easier to catch my attention. It's definitely a switch from the previous series, with less focus on gangs and more on the politics of the current climate. You have lots of spying from all sides, as the Japanese, Communists, and Nationalists all have different motivations in the city. I found that setting pretty interesting, but I will say there are some strange inconsistencies. Orion is the famous son of a Nationalist leader in Shanghai, but is able to start working at a foreign newspaper under cover without any suspicion? I just think there were some plot holes in that regard.
Despite that, I found the romance much more believable and I liked how it grew over time. It is very slow-burn and they truly don't exactly get together. There is lots of banter as they don't like each other at the beginning, but over time they grow and learn more about each other. If anything, I'm really excited to see how that pans out in the next book. I will be picking up the sequel and I'm excited to finally get to the novellas as well.
The Taking of Jake Livingston by Ryan Douglass
dark
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
The Taking of Jake Livingston tackles hard themes in a horror and high school setting, but I'm not entirely sure this was for me.
Jake has felt like a loner for a long time, due to the fact he can see ghosts. It's not a fun power, and he often sees people dying over and over and ghouls leeching off people's sadness. When a next door neighbor is murdered, he realizes an angry ghost beyond the veil is terrorizing his town and Jake's life, with the intention of possessing him.
I have mixed feelings, I felt like the character development was well done. You can't help but root for Jake, due to the discrimination he faces and the society he lives in. Sawyer (the murderous ghost) is doing everything he can to destabilize Jake's life and it works. Overall though, I found that I liked his character and his overall motivations and decisions made sense. Jake grows into himself and gains confidence, as well as finally learning to make friends and rely on them.
I think I struggled most with the plot. For some reason, it took me a while to feel invested in this book. The plot was pretty jumpy from point to point, and it never felt fully realized and very rushed, especially the end! I also wish we had more development from other side characters, with the majority of this book focusing on Jake and Sawyer's perspectives. I think the ending didn't really make sense? Like as a whole, a LOT of things weren't wrapped up and there were consequences that were never really explained. Overall, this book tackles heavy themes and I would recommend that anyone reading this checks CWs.
Jake has felt like a loner for a long time, due to the fact he can see ghosts. It's not a fun power, and he often sees people dying over and over and ghouls leeching off people's sadness. When a next door neighbor is murdered, he realizes an angry ghost beyond the veil is terrorizing his town and Jake's life, with the intention of possessing him.
I have mixed feelings, I felt like the character development was well done. You can't help but root for Jake, due to the discrimination he faces and the society he lives in. Sawyer (the murderous ghost) is doing everything he can to destabilize Jake's life and it works. Overall though, I found that I liked his character and his overall motivations and decisions made sense. Jake grows into himself and gains confidence, as well as finally learning to make friends and rely on them.
I think I struggled most with the plot. For some reason, it took me a while to feel invested in this book. The plot was pretty jumpy from point to point, and it never felt fully realized and very rushed, especially the end! I also wish we had more development from other side characters, with the majority of this book focusing on Jake and Sawyer's perspectives. I think the ending didn't really make sense? Like as a whole, a LOT of things weren't wrapped up and there were consequences that were never really explained. Overall, this book tackles heavy themes and I would recommend that anyone reading this checks CWs.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mass/school shootings, Violence, Racism, and Gore
Mary: An Awakening of Terror by Nat Cassidy
3.5
I'm still not entirely sure how I feel about this book lol. It is definitely very strange, and there were parts I enjoyed and others that I did not.
Mary has spent most her life away from the family and hometown she was raised in. After being fired from her job and suffering from peri-menopause (according to her doctors), her aunt calls her and asks her to move back to her small hometown to essentially provide hospice care to her dying aunt. With nothing tying her to the city, Mary decides it's time for a change. However, more and more weird things are happening to Mary. She finds herself writing in a notebook without knowing, unable to look into the mirror without it distorting her figure, and seeing dead women in her dreams.
From what I've seen, a lot of reviewers liked the beginning of this book, but did not like the ending/latter half to the book. For me it was the opposite, it took me a while to really get interested in the book. I do think it was a lack of connecting with the main character and that might just be the difference in ages but I do think it was more of a personal thing rather than how Mary was written. Honestly I was just waiting for the horror to truly kick off and something meaningful to happen in the plot.
Then the plot definitely picks up and I loved the gruesomeness and haunting that occurred. I loved the development of Mary and how things spiraled towards the end. I will say there is one plot twist regarding one character that I found out of nowhere and there was not a lot of hinting towards that at all. I absolutely loved the ending itself and found it to be satisfying. It's definitely a strange book with things I liked and things I didn't. Overall, it was just so hard to get immersed, but I did like it towards the end when the plot picked up.
Mary has spent most her life away from the family and hometown she was raised in. After being fired from her job and suffering from peri-menopause (according to her doctors), her aunt calls her and asks her to move back to her small hometown to essentially provide hospice care to her dying aunt. With nothing tying her to the city, Mary decides it's time for a change. However, more and more weird things are happening to Mary. She finds herself writing in a notebook without knowing, unable to look into the mirror without it distorting her figure, and seeing dead women in her dreams.
From what I've seen, a lot of reviewers liked the beginning of this book, but did not like the ending/latter half to the book. For me it was the opposite, it took me a while to really get interested in the book. I do think it was a lack of connecting with the main character and that might just be the difference in ages but I do think it was more of a personal thing rather than how Mary was written. Honestly I was just waiting for the horror to truly kick off and something meaningful to happen in the plot.
Then the plot definitely picks up and I loved the gruesomeness and haunting that occurred. I loved the development of Mary and how things spiraled towards the end. I will say there is one plot twist regarding one character that I found out of nowhere and there was not a lot of hinting towards that at all. I absolutely loved the ending itself and found it to be satisfying. It's definitely a strange book with things I liked and things I didn't. Overall, it was just so hard to get immersed, but I did like it towards the end when the plot picked up.
Crown of Starlight by Cait Corrain
adventurous
emotional
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
EDIT: I do not support or condone this author's actions. I will leave my initial review while removing the star rating.
Crown of Starlight was an endearing Greek retelling of Ariadne and Dionysus that is steamy and set in space!
Ariadne is the Crown Princess of the empire of Crete, a violent and oppressive world that her father, Minos, is the leader of. Cretans take pleasure in violence and her father is no exception. When her brother is born as half-bull with cannabalistic tendencies, Minos looks him the in Labyrinth underneath the palace. Each year, Crete requires sacrifices from Athens in order to punish Athens and feed Ariadne's brother, the minotaur. She is sick of the violence and wants out, leading her to make a deal with Theseus to take her with him if she helps him beat the minotaur. This leads to Ariadne lost, alone, and injured when Dionysus finds her and introduces her to hedonistic debauchery. The only way to keep herself safe is to hide from her father on Olympus, which means marrying Dionysus.
What an interesting world (solar system??) to adapt the Greek myth to! I found that they were able to translate the original ancient setting to a space setting very well. There was a lot of Info dumping in the first few chapters, rather than instead of learning over time. This did bug me at first, but once I was used to the author's writing style, I was able to learn about the world and enjoy it. Truly, I don't think the setting really added much to the story, like I felt like the actual plot and character growth could have been transplanted into a modern world or Ancient Greece. It was fun to read Greek gods in space though, with added blaster guns, coms, and spaceships!
There is a bit of modern language in this book, which was a little jolting at first. However, it kind of makes sense since this is technically a futuristic world where modern slang would have been picked up. But things did throw me off occasionally, like when holodramas are watched called "The Housewives of Troy."
Ariadne was a very strong character who spends a lot of time healing and developing. She is raised in a very puritiancil and patriarchal society, and is forced into expectations of remaining pure. Once she leaves Crete, she has to heal from that trauma and learn for herself who she is and what she wants. I really did enjoy her perspective and found that she was not a one-dimensional character. Dionysus on the other hand was also just an amazing character. He truly is one of the best love interests I've ever read in a book and my favorite part. He is always looking for fun and is not very serious most of the time. But he is also very sweet and perceptive of Ariadne's needs. Dionysus just has such a confident and vibrant persona, and honestly seems a bit Cardan coded (Cruel Prince) to me. Based on the broody, dark love interests I normally read about, it was SO FUN to have such a silly and charismatic love interest.
Their romance was the true highlight of this book. Dionysius is so tender to Ariadne and helps her face her trauma and find who she is and what she wants. It is definitely a slow-burn, as it takes time for Ariadne to face her anxiety and shed the expectations that were always placed upon her. The anticipation pays off, and their romance was so raw and beautiful, not to mention spicy!
I was very surprised how accurate Greek mythology was in this book, at least to my knowledge of the myths. Of course some liberties were taken, but I found it to be a pretty accurate retelling. Another thing that was detailed in the author's note was her interpretation of the original myths of Dionysus. Over time, he has been reduced the God of Wine and Parties. The author makes a great deal to note that Dionysus also was a patron of marginalized people and rebellion, and did not have a defined gender or sexuality. I think this book seriously made Dionysus so much more than how is normally depicted in Greek myth retellings and I really loved that.
This book was just a delight! The ending was perfect and I'm happy that it wrapped up into a standalone. I'm very excited for when this officially releases so that I can buy the physical copy and have that on my bookshelves.
Thank you to Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine/Del Rey and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!
Crown of Starlight was an endearing Greek retelling of Ariadne and Dionysus that is steamy and set in space!
Ariadne is the Crown Princess of the empire of Crete, a violent and oppressive world that her father, Minos, is the leader of. Cretans take pleasure in violence and her father is no exception. When her brother is born as half-bull with cannabalistic tendencies, Minos looks him the in Labyrinth underneath the palace. Each year, Crete requires sacrifices from Athens in order to punish Athens and feed Ariadne's brother, the minotaur. She is sick of the violence and wants out, leading her to make a deal with Theseus to take her with him if she helps him beat the minotaur. This leads to Ariadne lost, alone, and injured when Dionysus finds her and introduces her to hedonistic debauchery. The only way to keep herself safe is to hide from her father on Olympus, which means marrying Dionysus.
What an interesting world (solar system??) to adapt the Greek myth to! I found that they were able to translate the original ancient setting to a space setting very well. There was a lot of Info dumping in the first few chapters, rather than instead of learning over time. This did bug me at first, but once I was used to the author's writing style, I was able to learn about the world and enjoy it. Truly, I don't think the setting really added much to the story, like I felt like the actual plot and character growth could have been transplanted into a modern world or Ancient Greece. It was fun to read Greek gods in space though, with added blaster guns, coms, and spaceships!
There is a bit of modern language in this book, which was a little jolting at first. However, it kind of makes sense since this is technically a futuristic world where modern slang would have been picked up. But things did throw me off occasionally, like when holodramas are watched called "The Housewives of Troy."
Ariadne was a very strong character who spends a lot of time healing and developing. She is raised in a very puritiancil and patriarchal society, and is forced into expectations of remaining pure. Once she leaves Crete, she has to heal from that trauma and learn for herself who she is and what she wants. I really did enjoy her perspective and found that she was not a one-dimensional character. Dionysus on the other hand was also just an amazing character. He truly is one of the best love interests I've ever read in a book and my favorite part. He is always looking for fun and is not very serious most of the time. But he is also very sweet and perceptive of Ariadne's needs. Dionysus just has such a confident and vibrant persona, and honestly seems a bit Cardan coded (Cruel Prince) to me. Based on the broody, dark love interests I normally read about, it was SO FUN to have such a silly and charismatic love interest.
Their romance was the true highlight of this book. Dionysius is so tender to Ariadne and helps her face her trauma and find who she is and what she wants. It is definitely a slow-burn, as it takes time for Ariadne to face her anxiety and shed the expectations that were always placed upon her. The anticipation pays off, and their romance was so raw and beautiful, not to mention spicy!
I was very surprised how accurate Greek mythology was in this book, at least to my knowledge of the myths. Of course some liberties were taken, but I found it to be a pretty accurate retelling. Another thing that was detailed in the author's note was her interpretation of the original myths of Dionysus. Over time, he has been reduced the God of Wine and Parties. The author makes a great deal to note that Dionysus also was a patron of marginalized people and rebellion, and did not have a defined gender or sexuality. I think this book seriously made Dionysus so much more than how is normally depicted in Greek myth retellings and I really loved that.
This book was just a delight! The ending was perfect and I'm happy that it wrapped up into a standalone. I'm very excited for when this officially releases so that I can buy the physical copy and have that on my bookshelves.
Thank you to Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine/Del Rey and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!
Crown of Starlight by Cait Corrain
4.5
Crown of Starlight is a captivating and steamy Greek retelling of Ariadne and Dionysus set in space!
Ariadne is the Crown Princess of Crete, an oppressive empire led with by her father Minos with cruelty and violence. She abhors her role in the family and the treatment of her half-bull brother, Astarion, who is locked under the palace in the Labyrinth. Each year, Crete requires sacrifices to be sent from Athens to be fed to Ariadne's brother. This year, her father is making her responsible and in charge for watching over the sacrifices. Ariadne decides she will help Theseus to fight back and leave the oppressive society she lives in. Everything doesn't go according to plan, and Ariadne is lost, injured, and alone when Dionysus finds her. She is introduced to his debauchery and shies away from it, but he offers her a way to stay safe in Olympus if she marries him.
What an interesting world to revive greek mythology in! I was curious how loose the retelling would be considering this all takes place in space and there are communication tablets, starships, and blaster guns. Honestly, the first couple pages were an info-dump and it took me a second to truly feel immersed in the world because you learn it all at once instead of over time. It was an interesting world (solar system??) for the actual greek myths but they merged the ancient setting with the space setting well. I do think it wasn't essential to the plot, like I felt like this story could be told really in any setting and the space part of it wouldn't really have an effect on the plot.
The language is very modern, which took me a second to also get used to. I guess it almost makes sense in this context since it is technically farther in the future and they would have adopted a more modern language. There's definitely some modern parts of it here and there like them watching holodramas titled, "The Housewives of Troy."
I loved Ariadne as a character, she heals and grows so much in this novel. In Crete, it's a very puritanical and patriarchal society, so she feels pushed into a mold and that she must maintain her innocent status. Dionysus really helps her to be who she wants to be, do what she wants to do, and to disregard people's expectations of her. Honestly, my favorite part of this book was him and the romance. He is one of the best romantic interests I have read in a book. He is very Cardan coded (Cruel Prince) and just loves to have fun and is anything but serious most of the time. Dionysus is also extremely sweet and perceptive of Ariadne's needs and truly has just his own vibrant and confident persona. One of my FAVORITE love interests in a book!
Their romance is sweet and Dionysus is so tender and respectful of Ariadne. It's very much a slow-burn romance as Ariadne has to get past her anxiety and previous trauma and accept the love that Dionysus offers her. The anticipation pays off when they finally get together and just thinking of them makes me smile. It was a beautiful romance and the highlight of this book.
Surprisingly, the greek mythology feels very accurate (at least to my understanding of the myths). The author really did a good job of incorporating all of the different facets of the myths that are well-known and genuine to the original story. There are obviously some changes here and there, but the author note at the end was really impactful. This author wanted to portray Dionysus as more than just the God of Wine and Parties, but closer to the original myths as patron to marginalized people and how he took both genders as lovers with his gender never exactly labeled.
This book was truly such a delight. I am so excited for when this releases and I can get a physical copy on my shelves. Thank you to Random House Publishing - Ballantine/Del Rey and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!
Ariadne is the Crown Princess of Crete, an oppressive empire led with by her father Minos with cruelty and violence. She abhors her role in the family and the treatment of her half-bull brother, Astarion, who is locked under the palace in the Labyrinth. Each year, Crete requires sacrifices to be sent from Athens to be fed to Ariadne's brother. This year, her father is making her responsible and in charge for watching over the sacrifices. Ariadne decides she will help Theseus to fight back and leave the oppressive society she lives in. Everything doesn't go according to plan, and Ariadne is lost, injured, and alone when Dionysus finds her. She is introduced to his debauchery and shies away from it, but he offers her a way to stay safe in Olympus if she marries him.
What an interesting world to revive greek mythology in! I was curious how loose the retelling would be considering this all takes place in space and there are communication tablets, starships, and blaster guns. Honestly, the first couple pages were an info-dump and it took me a second to truly feel immersed in the world because you learn it all at once instead of over time. It was an interesting world (solar system??) for the actual greek myths but they merged the ancient setting with the space setting well. I do think it wasn't essential to the plot, like I felt like this story could be told really in any setting and the space part of it wouldn't really have an effect on the plot.
The language is very modern, which took me a second to also get used to. I guess it almost makes sense in this context since it is technically farther in the future and they would have adopted a more modern language. There's definitely some modern parts of it here and there like them watching holodramas titled, "The Housewives of Troy."
I loved Ariadne as a character, she heals and grows so much in this novel. In Crete, it's a very puritanical and patriarchal society, so she feels pushed into a mold and that she must maintain her innocent status. Dionysus really helps her to be who she wants to be, do what she wants to do, and to disregard people's expectations of her. Honestly, my favorite part of this book was him and the romance. He is one of the best romantic interests I have read in a book. He is very Cardan coded (Cruel Prince) and just loves to have fun and is anything but serious most of the time. Dionysus is also extremely sweet and perceptive of Ariadne's needs and truly has just his own vibrant and confident persona. One of my FAVORITE love interests in a book!
Their romance is sweet and Dionysus is so tender and respectful of Ariadne. It's very much a slow-burn romance as Ariadne has to get past her anxiety and previous trauma and accept the love that Dionysus offers her. The anticipation pays off when they finally get together and just thinking of them makes me smile. It was a beautiful romance and the highlight of this book.
Surprisingly, the greek mythology feels very accurate (at least to my understanding of the myths). The author really did a good job of incorporating all of the different facets of the myths that are well-known and genuine to the original story. There are obviously some changes here and there, but the author note at the end was really impactful. This author wanted to portray Dionysus as more than just the God of Wine and Parties, but closer to the original myths as patron to marginalized people and how he took both genders as lovers with his gender never exactly labeled.
This book was truly such a delight. I am so excited for when this releases and I can get a physical copy on my shelves. Thank you to Random House Publishing - Ballantine/Del Rey and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!
The Final Girl Support Group by Grady Hendrix
dark
3.75
The Final Girl Support Group pays homage to the classic horror movies and their final girls in a thriller like pacing.
Lynnette Tarkington survived a massacre decades ago and has spent the time since living in isolation except for her support group with other final girls. She spends time with other final girls to try to piece together their lives as they are the only ones who understand what each other has been through. When one of the final girls is murdered, Lynnette realizes that someone is coming after the final girls and she needs to be one step ahead to save them all.
I'm not sure how I feel about this book. I did like it a lot at first and the overall plot, but I truly struggled with Lynnette as a character and reading other reviews made me realize that. It was really tough to read from her perspective because she kept making so many mistakes. It's really emphasized that she spent her whole life training for a moment like this and having observational awareness, but she really is unprepared and just keeps making mistakes. In general, all the final girl characters are pretty unlikeable. I actually haven't seen that many horror movie classics so the only connection I made was Marilyn was the girl from Texas Chainsaw Massacre, but supposedly all of the girls are representative of popular horror movie final girls.
I think that was the main part I didn't like about this book, but the overall story was very interesting and the plot was super fast paced! I would say it's more of a thriller rather than a horror book that just tends to be gory. There is a lot of gore, so that could bother a lot of people, but again it's more of a thriller and Lynnette trying to figure out who the killer is.
Lynnette Tarkington survived a massacre decades ago and has spent the time since living in isolation except for her support group with other final girls. She spends time with other final girls to try to piece together their lives as they are the only ones who understand what each other has been through. When one of the final girls is murdered, Lynnette realizes that someone is coming after the final girls and she needs to be one step ahead to save them all.
I'm not sure how I feel about this book. I did like it a lot at first and the overall plot, but I truly struggled with Lynnette as a character and reading other reviews made me realize that. It was really tough to read from her perspective because she kept making so many mistakes. It's really emphasized that she spent her whole life training for a moment like this and having observational awareness, but she really is unprepared and just keeps making mistakes. In general, all the final girl characters are pretty unlikeable. I actually haven't seen that many horror movie classics so the only connection I made was Marilyn was the girl from Texas Chainsaw Massacre, but supposedly all of the girls are representative of popular horror movie final girls.
I think that was the main part I didn't like about this book, but the overall story was very interesting and the plot was super fast paced! I would say it's more of a thriller rather than a horror book that just tends to be gory. There is a lot of gore, so that could bother a lot of people, but again it's more of a thriller and Lynnette trying to figure out who the killer is.