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xrider's reviews
16 reviews
They Both Die at the End by Adam Silvera
3.0
The concept and over all idea was great. A good chunk of the characters were also done well enough despite the short period of time you have them. I enjoyed seeing the strings attached by the brief life’s in the brush of seconds but overall it still felt like it was missing things. Bits and pieces that even though the book is designed to show the last day of someone felt unbalanced. Someone’s last day can essentially be covered in 3 words or 3,000 but in this case it just felt kinda *shrug* if that makes any sense to anyone other than my own brain.
Babel by R.F. Kuang
dark
informative
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
5.0
I don’t think I ever given a dark academia 5 stars even though I tend to love them.
Literally the most minor thing I can fault is the pacing around the 40-45% mark slowed a bit feeling dull but it lasted a blink of an eye compared to the rest of the book that tiny bit wasn’t enough to dampen it. And that’s me attempting to be super picky since I hate giving 5 stars because others give them so freely.
It was so well done. The world building, the writing, the characters, the conflict, and yes even the ending. I read this in just under 12 hours. Not only that but I read it in one sitting. Well less sitting as I found myself pacing the hall almost the entire read. My phone claims I walked close to 24k steps in the process.
Literally the most minor thing I can fault is the pacing around the 40-45% mark slowed a bit feeling dull but it lasted a blink of an eye compared to the rest of the book that tiny bit wasn’t enough to dampen it. And that’s me attempting to be super picky since I hate giving 5 stars because others give them so freely.
It was so well done. The world building, the writing, the characters, the conflict, and yes even the ending. I read this in just under 12 hours. Not only that but I read it in one sitting. Well less sitting as I found myself pacing the hall almost the entire read. My phone claims I walked close to 24k steps in the process.
Weyward by Emilia Hart
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
2.0
I was so excited for this book. Witches, different timelines, strong women, and dark trama. That’s all my cup of tea
I was disappointed. I honestly almost DNFed it but swapped from reading to an audiobook so I could finish it while working since I didn’t have the heart to sit and read it.
I love historical fiction and even don’t mind seeing characters flint in and out of different timelines but this one just didn’t flow. It almost jumped too much.
There were so many parts that felt unfleshed out. Too many holes and questions that even if I got creative could find a way to tie it up evenly.
I love descriptive writing but it felt like we were getting so much just fluff without purpose
I loved the idea of the storyline where they were all tied together but the way it was splayed out for us was just lacking.
Overall there were bits and pieces I enjoyed but more in the theory of it but as a whole unfortunately it was just missing more.
I was disappointed. I honestly almost DNFed it but swapped from reading to an audiobook so I could finish it while working since I didn’t have the heart to sit and read it.
I love historical fiction and even don’t mind seeing characters flint in and out of different timelines but this one just didn’t flow. It almost jumped too much.
There were so many parts that felt unfleshed out. Too many holes and questions that even if I got creative could find a way to tie it up evenly.
I love descriptive writing but it felt like we were getting so much just fluff without purpose
I loved the idea of the storyline where they were all tied together but the way it was splayed out for us was just lacking.
Overall there were bits and pieces I enjoyed but more in the theory of it but as a whole unfortunately it was just missing more.
Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros
2.0
I had taken a break from reading for awhile only to come back and have this book so highly recommended so I gave it a shot. It was such a let down. The writing felt so sloppy, incomplete, and dull. There was a lot of tell not shown. So much dialogue that really it was hard to get a grasp of other characters. Most characters felt fairly flat and were hard to either support or hate through the whole book. The plot was the only saving grace of this book but even that could have been strung along better.
The Atlas Six by Olivie Blake
3.75
Few notes before jumping in. I made the error of starting this originally as the audiobook. I paused and went back to read it as it was much easier to process that way. I also went in completely blind. It was a rec with no info and I opted to keep it that way till the first page.
Onward
This was one of those moments I could use decimals on a Star. Give it rather a 3.5-.7 rather than the full 4. It was slow getting into. With it being mainly character focused you didn’t have a plot to pull you through but rather the writing. I personally really enjoy this style of writing. For some it may be too much of a word salad and there were definitely some parts where I did want it to pick up pace a bit instead of describing the same thing in a few different ways but the writing is done well enough the majority of the time to keep pulling you through.
With it being a character based book the attempt of diversity was there and it was mostly accomplished. There was however the same baseline where most the characters were difficult to get into until a bit further into the book. For the most part every character feels like a ‘I’m the best with no weaknesses’ bit (well minus Libby and Tristan even they tho had several moments of exception) and each had such an arrogance to them it almost took too long to get into a character. I believe I saw someone else say that once you get past the first chunk it gets easier to get hooked. I agree since this is around the part it gets easier to picks sides with the characters.
I feel like all these feels super negative hold on
Onward
This was one of those moments I could use decimals on a Star. Give it rather a 3.5-.7 rather than the full 4. It was slow getting into. With it being mainly character focused you didn’t have a plot to pull you through but rather the writing. I personally really enjoy this style of writing. For some it may be too much of a word salad and there were definitely some parts where I did want it to pick up pace a bit instead of describing the same thing in a few different ways but the writing is done well enough the majority of the time to keep pulling you through.
With it being a character based book the attempt of diversity was there and it was mostly accomplished. There was however the same baseline where most the characters were difficult to get into until a bit further into the book. For the most part every character feels like a ‘I’m the best with no weaknesses’ bit (well minus Libby and Tristan even they tho had several moments of exception) and each had such an arrogance to them it almost took too long to get into a character. I believe I saw someone else say that once you get past the first chunk it gets easier to get hooked. I agree since this is around the part it gets easier to picks sides with the characters.
I feel like all these feels super negative hold on