thebookfellow's reviews
87 reviews

adventurous challenging medium-paced

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

3.5

What makes you, you? Is it the body that you walk around in or is it the memories that you hold and the experiences that you’ve had?

Welcome to Forever takes place in a futuristic world in which memory editing has become the norm. Death is essentially a thing of the past, as your memory stream can just be uploaded into a new, healthy body. But when the protagonist, Fox, wakes up in a rehabilitation centre for those with damaged memories, he doesn’t remember how he got there. He is informed by the staff that he was caught up in a terrorist attack and that his husband, Gabe, didn’t survive the attack and his memory stream was lost.

The novel explores Fox’s journey trying to piece together his fragmented memory, and grieving for the husband he thinks is lost forever. As time goes on, he starts to remember things that he wishes would stay forgotten.

Personally, I really enjoyed the beginning of the novel, learning about this interesting new world in which humans could never really die. I found Fox to be a likeable narrator, and I enjoyed the cast of characters that Tavares brought together. I especially liked Kadhija, the pioneer/ CEO of the memory editing business with her sparkly god-complex. I also loved seeing such a huge amount of LGBT+ rep in the novel, something that I think is still lacking in Sci-Fi, so kudos to the author for trying to queer up the genre!

Where this book fell down for me was the constant shifting between POVs and also the lack of impact some chapters had on the whole story. Early on in the book, the narrative shifts from first person to third person and I was so disorientated I had to put the book down for a few days before coming back to it.

By the end of the novel, I was feeling a bit deflated. The different layers of memory streams, the different characters who were actually the same character, and the contradicting motives all culminated in me feeling like I was just not smart enough to understand the book. This was compounded by an ending which fell really flat for me. I won’t add spoilers here, but I will warn you that if you’re looking for an emotional payoff at the end of a book, this isn’t the title for you.

Overall, I liked the concept of the novel and I thought it was well-written and woven together but ultimately it was just too confusing for me. I’m grateful to NetGalley and Titan Books for allowing me to access an ARC copy.

Lean in to Love by Catherine Lane

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lighthearted fast-paced

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

2.75

I received an ARC copy of this book from the Publisher via Netgalley and this is a voluntary review.

The premise of this book really interested me as it was set in the Hollywood hills and included two lesbian couples - what’s not to like?

I think it’s clear to see how much research the author put into fleshing out her characters and giving realistic detail to their jobs and hobbies like working on a TV set, pottery and being a pastry chef. Although the relationship between the two main characters was touted as enemies-to-lovers, I don’t think there was enough ‘enemies’ in there to really fit this trope. Despite this, I found their relationship quite sweet, once they both got out of their own way and ‘Leaned In To Love’.

I do feel like the other relationship, between bartender/ aspiring actress Maya and megastar London did pull focus from the main romance quite a lot. I found both of these women to be unlikeable, and their motives were confusing. Even after finishing the book, I’m still not totally sure what Maya’s intentions were for that relationship and if she ever had feelings for London. I also thought that their timeline was on hyperspeed. Obviously, we’ve all heard of U-Haul lesbians but this really took it to another level.

Overall, it wasn’t exactly my cup of tea and I think it could benefit from some streamlining of the plot, but it was fun, fluffy and easy to read.

I Kissed Shara Wheeler by Casey McQuiston

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funny lighthearted mysterious 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

One Last Stop by Casey McQuiston

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funny lighthearted mysterious fast-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? No

4.75

Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver

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challenging emotional reflective medium-paced

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

5.0

Incredibly written, with over 500 pages and not a single word that isn’t completely necessary. Magnificent.

Content Warnings

Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert

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hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective medium-paced

4.0

I enjoyed Elizabeth Gilbert’s overly earnest take on the magical nature of creativity.

Brazen by Julia Haart

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informative inspiring medium-paced

3.5

The first half of the book, learning about her life inside the Orthodox Jewish community, was really interesting. The second half once she was in the 'real' world started to seem a bit farfetched and melodramtic, it was difficult to finish.

Content Warnings