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theoddduckling's reviews
57 reviews
You're the Problem, It's You by Emma R. Alban
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
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? No
5.0
Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
The Serpent and the Wings of Night by Carissa Broadbent
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
The Mime Order by Samantha Shannon
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-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? No
5.0
A brutal, fast paced follow up to The Bone Season. Samantha Shannon expands the world of Scion, taking readers deeper into the dark underbelly of the London Citadel and its clairvoyant population.
Now that Paige Mahoney is back in London, she must decide whether to return to her old life as mollisher for the charismatic Jaxon Hall. But how can she when she knows the truth about Scion?
But the influent of the Rephiam goes deeper than anyone could have imagined, and Paige begins to wonder if she didn’t escape one form of slavery only to find herself in another.
Now that Paige Mahoney is back in London, she must decide whether to return to her old life as mollisher for the charismatic Jaxon Hall. But how can she when she knows the truth about Scion?
But the influent of the Rephiam goes deeper than anyone could have imagined, and Paige begins to wonder if she didn’t escape one form of slavery only to find herself in another.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Physical abuse, Violence, Blood, Trafficking, Murder, Gaslighting, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Slavery
Minor: Suicidal thoughts
Tethered by Elayna R. Gallea
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
One Last Stop by Casey McQuiston
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Women and Monarchy in Macedonia by Elizabeth Donnelly Carney
challenging
informative
medium-paced
4.0
Mister Magic by Kiersten White
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
The Spirit Bares Its Teeth by Andrew Joseph White
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Mors vincit omnia.
Sixteen-year-old Silas Bell knows there are only two things about him that matters: the girl he looks like on the outside and his violet eyes. His violet eyes mean he can talk to the dead. That the world sees him as a woman means he'll be forced to marry one of the Royal Speakers before his seventeenth birthday.
Even after decades of tutors teaching him to how to walk and talk like every other proper young lady, how not to fidget, not to flap his hands, to sit quietly and endure the noise, the lights, the uncomfortable clothes - things that everyone else seems to handle just fine - Silas knows any marriage he would find himself in would be nothing short of torture.
So, he concocts an escape plan: dress like boy, get an official Speaker's seal and set up a surgery practice far from London. It's risky, if he gets caught, it's a death sentence. But when his escape attempt goes horribly wrong, instead he is diagnosed with a mysterious illness called Veil Sickness and sent to Braxton's Sanitorium and Finishing School.
All is not as it seems at Braxton's. Girls leave and are never heard from again and spirits are breaking through into the real world. Silas must solve the mystery of what's happening before consequences more dire than an unhappy marriage come crashing down.
The Spirits Bares Its Teeth is a biting commentary on patriarchy and the harm it inflicts on women, the insidious nature of both current and Victorian medical practices, and the cruel treatment of trans people, both historically and today. Unflinching and brutal, Andrew Joseph White does not shy away from the gruesome details of life as a trans man in Victorian London, of a woman labeled "crazy", or the barbaric surgery practices of the day.
This book is a fast-paced, dark, gut-wrenching roller coaster ride. It reaches inside, grabs you by the heart and doesn't let go.
Sixteen-year-old Silas Bell knows there are only two things about him that matters: the girl he looks like on the outside and his violet eyes. His violet eyes mean he can talk to the dead. That the world sees him as a woman means he'll be forced to marry one of the Royal Speakers before his seventeenth birthday.
Even after decades of tutors teaching him to how to walk and talk like every other proper young lady, how not to fidget, not to flap his hands, to sit quietly and endure the noise, the lights, the uncomfortable clothes - things that everyone else seems to handle just fine - Silas knows any marriage he would find himself in would be nothing short of torture.
So, he concocts an escape plan: dress like boy, get an official Speaker's seal and set up a surgery practice far from London. It's risky, if he gets caught, it's a death sentence. But when his escape attempt goes horribly wrong, instead he is diagnosed with a mysterious illness called Veil Sickness and sent to Braxton's Sanitorium and Finishing School.
All is not as it seems at Braxton's. Girls leave and are never heard from again and spirits are breaking through into the real world. Silas must solve the mystery of what's happening before consequences more dire than an unhappy marriage come crashing down.
The Spirits Bares Its Teeth is a biting commentary on patriarchy and the harm it inflicts on women, the insidious nature of both current and Victorian medical practices, and the cruel treatment of trans people, both historically and today. Unflinching and brutal, Andrew Joseph White does not shy away from the gruesome details of life as a trans man in Victorian London, of a woman labeled "crazy", or the barbaric surgery practices of the day.
This book is a fast-paced, dark, gut-wrenching roller coaster ride. It reaches inside, grabs you by the heart and doesn't let go.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Deadnaming, Gore, Misogyny, Transphobia, Forced institutionalization, Medical content, Dysphoria
Moderate: Body horror, Physical abuse, Sexual violence
Minor: Miscarriage, Pregnancy
Mortal Follies by Alexis Hall
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
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? It's complicated
3.25
Full of quipy lines, plenty of Shakespearean flourishes, and Regency drama, Mortal Follies tells the story of one young woman’s quest to know herself, find love, and survive the marriage mart.
None of these things go the way Miss Mitchelmore plans and when she finds herself the target of a curse, survival becomes a much more literal problem than she anticipated. But the cynical and mysterious (and mockingly named) Duke of Anadale, Lady Georgiana, steps in the save the day more than once. And this the two women find themselves thrown together on an adventure that will test them both to their limits.
The story, told through the framing device of a mischievous sprite recently exiled from Oberon’s court, starts as a fun period romance romp, but takes a turn for the serious that the narrator’s tone does not reflect. The narrator’s tone remains flippant and wry even as the events get darker and far more serious. This made it difficult to feel as though there were any real stakes for the characters and no real weight to the plot. Event at the end of the book rush to a conclusion that could have benefited from a few more pages to build tension and make the main characters struggle.
All in all, I found the tone of the book mismatched to the events, making for a discordant read.
However, this book begs to be performed. I truly think it would be better served as an audiobook book at least, if not a stage show. The narrator’s voice was funny, cutting and a bit Shakespearean. Performing this as a play would lend a separation between the narrator and the main characters in a way that would serve this story well and make it something spectacular.
None of these things go the way Miss Mitchelmore plans and when she finds herself the target of a curse, survival becomes a much more literal problem than she anticipated. But the cynical and mysterious (and mockingly named) Duke of Anadale, Lady Georgiana, steps in the save the day more than once. And this the two women find themselves thrown together on an adventure that will test them both to their limits.
The story, told through the framing device of a mischievous sprite recently exiled from Oberon’s court, starts as a fun period romance romp, but takes a turn for the serious that the narrator’s tone does not reflect. The narrator’s tone remains flippant and wry even as the events get darker and far more serious. This made it difficult to feel as though there were any real stakes for the characters and no real weight to the plot. Event at the end of the book rush to a conclusion that could have benefited from a few more pages to build tension and make the main characters struggle.
All in all, I found the tone of the book mismatched to the events, making for a discordant read.
However, this book begs to be performed. I truly think it would be better served as an audiobook book at least, if not a stage show. The narrator’s voice was funny, cutting and a bit Shakespearean. Performing this as a play would lend a separation between the narrator and the main characters in a way that would serve this story well and make it something spectacular.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault, Gaslighting
Moderate: Death, Death of parent
Minor: Slavery