teslacannon's reviews
212 reviews

adventurous dark informative 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? No

3.0

I read this without knowing it was apart of a series, but I like that it works as a stand alone.
I have a journalism degree and a background in news, so this did get me excited to picture myself as someone who could solve criminal cases. I’ve also taken a DNA test. I found the story plausible (as someone with no idea about genetics or cyber security) and compelling, and I liked how the pieces came together. Another pro, incels dying. I listened to the audiobook and the tone/character voices of this book are what I’d expect from a murder mystery. I’m not sure why it’s not higher for me.. could’ve possibly gone by a bit faster? The way it ended.. it just didn’t feel as clever as the rest of the book.

Beyond the Gender Binary by Alok Vaid-Menon

Go to review page

challenging emotional hopeful informative reflective fast-paced

4.5

A good balance between personal experience and information. I highlighted most of this book, either to reference or because I was moved by some beautiful sentences. I like the positivity in this book because the author believes we can do better as a society, and as individuals being true to ourselves. We can do hard things
Not a full five because there were some nuances that were glossed over. The point of this book is to be short, but I needed more depth and some citations wouldn’t have hurt.

The Total Money Makeover: A Proven Plan for Financial Fitness by Dave Ramsey

Go to review page

challenging hopeful informative reflective medium-paced

2.75

It took such a long time to get to the actual steps. The book included success stories, but I skipped over those because I wanted the actionable advice. It would get repetitive and while there was good information, I felt the investing step was the shortest part. I already have an emergency fund, no debt beside the house, and don’t want kids so the largest sections of the book didn’t apply to me. I live in conservative south Texas, so citing the Bible didn’t bother me but it seems to be an audience limiting choice. I grew up around poverty, so it seemed discouraging that you can’t move on to any step until you have all your necessary expenses covered, and if not just make more money somehow. That’s so complicated for some people and not even trying to invest or save before then seems like keeping them in the rat race.

Afterlife by Julia Alvarez

Go to review page

emotional reflective sad 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

2.25

Getting to the end felt a bit of a chore. I felt one plot line was sufficient, instead of including Estela. The writing was poetic and beautiful at times, but the characters didn’t feel that real to me.

The Maidens by Alex Michaelides

Go to review page

adventurous dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

3.5

3.5 I was interested the whole time and I didn’t guess the ending, but I feel like I needed more clues along the way to make the ending valid. I liked that I couldn’t trust anyone and that it tied in a little to the Silent Patient, but didn’t feel the second narrator was necessary. It didn’t make me feel anything for him and didn’t fulfill any sort of purpose for me. Oh, and the psychic guy… could’ve done without that bit.

And Every Morning the Way Home Gets Longer and Longer by Fredrik Backman

Go to review page

emotional sad fast-paced