toris_stories1's reviews
138 reviews

Velocity Weapon by Megan E. O'Keefe

adventurous mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.5

4.5 stars - So...I have to admit that I haven't read that many sci-fi books, but this book lit a fire under me to make it a genre I consider on a regular basis. This book was SO entertaining! There were several twists and a lot of mysterious elements. Many times, I had no idea what was going to happen next. (Which I love FOR REAL - please fool me.)

My only complaint would be that the middle of the book kind of dragged for me personally. In my opinion, about 100 pages or so could have been cut out and this book would have read a lot more smoothly. But my goodness, the ending was so good! (How dare I be left in this suspense!? 🙃)

Considering this is book one in a trilogy, the author really built up a story with amazing complexity. I am definitely excited to continue this series...like starting right now. 😂

Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir

adventurous challenging emotional tense medium-paced

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

5.0

After a literal 5 months of listening to this book on audio, I FINALLY finished it. Why did I not finish this sooner? I loved it. It gave all the feels. ❤️ Some parts of this book gave me straight up anxiety. Many parts made me laugh. And of course as is my specialty when reading, I cried like a few times.

It was a sci-fi and it is very scientific at points, however, this didn't deter me from it. I think the author did a good job at making the concepts very digestible. (Or maybe I'm just 85%-95% pure nerd? The jury is still out.) 

I do highly recommend the audiobook though because it illustrated some of the books concepts very well and I was able to fully immerse myself in the story. Also I thought the ending was perfect. 🥰

Reaper by Will Wight

adventurous dark tense 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? N/A

4.0

Tress of the Emerald Sea by Brandon Sanderson

adventurous funny inspiring lighthearted 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? N/A

5.0

5 frickin stars, hands down!! This book was so whimsical. It made me laugh out loud. It made me go "Awww!". Made me tear up a lil bit even. 🥹 The character development was well done. The little twists were unexpected. The quotes in here were often deep and profound, too. Checked all my boxes. This book took me on an adventure and I never wanted it to end.

Perfection. Please read it. This will probably be a favorite of mine for a while. ❤️

The Kiss of Deception by Mary E. Pearson

adventurous emotional 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

5.0

A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas

challenging dark emotional tense medium-paced

• 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

3.75

3.75 stars - Had to sit on this overnight just for clarity of thought. I cannot sit here and say that I didn't enjoy this book because I literally flew through half of it in about two days. I was up until all hours finishing it even during the "lose an hour" time change. (Extra coffee for me today, for sure.) This was absolutely enjoyable and entertaining. The character growth was done well and I enjoyed a certain redemption aspect (iykyk). I am really interested to see the repercussions of some of the characters' actions, so I will likely be picking up A Court of Mist and Fury here in the near future.

Now for my more negative opinions:
The MMC hardly speaks to the FMC the whole book, I swear, but they LOVE one another. Seems legit. 🙄
Fire Night just made me laugh, it was so weird. 
So many possessive Alpha males sheesh.
Also for a few chapters, the FMC is treated as a plaything/pawn in a game which made me quite uncomfortable. I didn't find it necessary to advance the plot and it tainted my view slightly. I got the reasoning at the end, but it was just a weird add in my opinion.

TLDR: Overall, decent read. Had some weird aspects, but not a bad one to pick up if you are in the "romantasy" mood.

Lore Olympus: Volume Six by Rachel Smythe

challenging emotional lighthearted 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

4.0

Icebreaker by Hannah Grace

slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No

0.25

First DNF of 2024 - This one just wasn't believable to me in the slightest and not my vibe. When I was college aged, we didn't talk/act like this so maybe I'm too old for it.(Also...the nicknames omg. Anastasia = Stas/Stassie? Sabrina = Brin? My personal least favorite...Henry = Hen 😂)

Lore Olympus: Volume Four by Rachel Smythe

lighthearted 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

5.0

The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson

adventurous emotional funny tense 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

5.0

Oh. My. Goodness. 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
I cannot even formulate the words to write a review right now. I am speechless (and that's saying a lot). 😂