underscorelsa's Reviews (186)

Idol, Burning

Rin Usami

4.5

emotional reflective fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

I have a lot of thoughts about this one. It’s been a while since I last cried with a book and wow, reading the epilogue and the author’s notes just did it for me.

I personally am a kpop stan, and I do rely on a lot of these people and this one hit hard. The fan space is totally realistic, how fandom works and how it feels when something like this happens. I wish I could make my parents read this book for them to understand me better.

I’ll write a better review in the future, but wow, really. Really good book.

The Curator

Owen King

2.5

adventurous mysterious slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: No

I overall felt pretty meh about this book. I enjoyed the world and the atmosphere in it, but that's about it, and I feel very sad about it. The premise sounded great, but the book just didn't live up to it. This could have easily been 200 pages shorter and I still felt like there were a lot of things unexplored and unanswered.

Also, um, can someone please explain the ending to me? I felt so lost, really.

The Silence of Bones

June Hur

3.0

adventurous mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

An Affair of Poisons

Addie Thorley

DID NOT FINISH: 10%

Yeah, not for me. I tried to get into it but there was too much going on and I wasn't interested in any of it. Except for the magic system, I guess. But seeing some of the other reviews as well, I don't think this is going to end well for me and I'd rather spend my time on another book.

Los Irregulares de Nanking Road

Silvia Aliaga

4.25

adventurous medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Complicated

Flaws of characters a main focus: No

menudos plot twists chaval, estoy flipando. me ha encantado la historia y los personajes.

An Unwanted Guest

Shari Lapena

3.75

mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

That was definitely interesting. I really liked the story, but the reveal fell a bit flat for me. I didn’t expect it, but it still wasn’t life-changing if that makes sense.

But almost 4 stars because, again, I really enjoyed the book as a whole.

The Scum Villain's Self-Saving System: Ren Zha Fanpai Zijiu Xitong (Novel) Vol. 2

Mo Xiang Tong Xiu

4.0

adventurous funny medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Okay, I have A LOT of thoughts about this one and I need to let it all sink it for a minute. I liked the first tome better for sure, but I did not dislike this one.

Summary: you are BOTH the assholes.

The Sun Is Also a Star

Nicola Yoon

4.0

emotional funny hopeful lighthearted reflective 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: Yes

Such a cute and amazing read 🥹🥹 I almost cried, ngl. I love stories about destiny, and “coincidences”, and woven storylines. I feel like this book did that very well.