yarnchickenreads's reviews
69 reviews

Painted Devils by Margaret Owen

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense 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

4.5

The Day of the Triffids by John Wyndham
Did not finish book. Stopped at 38%.

I had three basic issues:
1) The characterization and treatment of women did not age well
2) The blindness struck in the evening and before lunchtime the following day the world had collapsed.  My suspension of disbelief didn’t stretch that far
3) I found the main character to be not only unlikeable, but insufferable.  An upper class chap who knows everything, and watched the world burn with a brandy and a cigarette.  He didn’t get involved in working with anyone until he found a compatible upper class woman.  

Our Infinite Fates by Laura Steven

challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

This book is a dark YA fantasy romance where a pair of lovers find each other across lifetimes.  It is a story of reincarnation, love, hate, and murder.  They die together before their 18th birthdays in every life.  

Getting to know the characters is a slow burn across lifetimes, historical ages, genders, and cultures.  There is good LGBTQ+ representation as they are often born into bodies of the same gender.  The reason why they are trapped in the cycle eludes our protagonist, whose memory only reaches back a few lifetimes.  Their lover knows more, but won’t reveal the secrets.   The protagonist also has something more to live for in the current, present day life, which also drives the story.  

I gave this book four rather than five stars for a couple of rather abrupt plot points.  The first is the reveal of the reason why the couple is trapped in this cycle; there were no real clues along the way and it occurred in the space of one conversation.  The second was the resolution of the situation which again was quick, not foreshadowed, and somewhat convenient.  I did think the strengths of the book outweighed its weaknesses.  I enjoyed this book and recommend to readers who like a slow burn YA romance.

Trigger warnings for murder, torture, grief and loss, and illness.  There is also one intimate scene.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Torture, Grief, Murder

Moderate: Terminal illness

Spy x Family, Vol. 3 by Tatsuya Endo

emotional funny mysterious slow-paced

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

4.0

I’m still having fun with this manga series.  Great characters, well paced plot, wonderful art.  The family continues to gel and the humor is hitting more with me.  

Little Thieves by Margaret Owen

dark emotional mysterious sad 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

4.5

What a fun story! While I’m not usually a YA reader, this story was very well done.  Lots of subtlety, gray characters, and full of nuance.  Vanja begins as a pretty unlikeable character and grows throughout the course of the story.  The romance is well balanced with the overall story, and without insta-love or excessive angst.  The gods are interesting and their is a fun heist atmosphere throughout.

The audio narration by Saskia Maarleveld is well done.  I had a lot of fun with this book, and just checked out the sequel from my library.  I have a strong recommendation for anyone interested in fantasy with a side helping of romance.

Spy x Family, Vol. 2 by Tatsuya Endo

adventurous funny hopeful mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

With the set up of the first volume done, the plot continues to escalate.  The second volume is also delightful.  Great art, interesting characters, good story.  The only downside to me is that Yor, while a certified assassin badass, is so angsty about her roles as mother, wife, and employee.  

Wind and Truth by Brandon Sanderson

adventurous emotional 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

4.5

I finished this book as part of my back-to-back binge read of the Stormlight Archive series, so as always the boundaries between books can be a little blurry.  

I thought this was a strong ending to the first arc of the series and I do plan to continue on with the second arc when it is released in a decade!  While there is certainly more to take in as the story eventually progresses, I thought events and our characters came to a good resting spot.  Definitely unresolved issues, but no cliffhangers. 

I largely had none of the issues that many reviewers had with the story, with the possible exception of the humor.  There were many dad jokes that were hit and miss with me.  Occasionally worth an eye roll but nothing to really take me out of the story.

I give this a strong recommendation 

Rocky Start by Bob Mayer, Jennifer Crusie

adventurous emotional funny hopeful tense 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

4.0

I really enjoyed this book! Light thriller, romance, absurdist humor, and even some mystery vibes.  It is told primarily from the POVs of our main characters, Rose and Max, with a few chapters focusing on Poppy, Rose’s teenage daughter.  I really liked the fact that our main characters were solidly middle-aged.  It had a spice level of about 3🌶️.

I had a couple of minor criticisms.  There was some “girl talk” near the beginning of the book about Rose’s sex life or lack thereof that was just cringe-y, and the romance that bloomed between Rose and Max, while lovely and sweet, was pretty much insta love.

Aside from those quibbles, I really enjoyed my time with this book.  I’d absolutely recommend if the synopsis sounds interesting.  I’m looking forward to opening up the sequel 

Witch Hat Atelier, Volume 13 by Kamome Shirahama

dark hopeful mysterious slow-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

4.0

The story continues to grow more mature and darker.  The characters continue to struggle with the rights and wrongs of using magic.  The mystery around several of our characters deepen.  The art is extraordinary!  The plot continues to meander a bit, which brings my rating down to 4⭐️.  

How to Steal a Galaxy by Beth Revis

adventurous emotional funny fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

A great second installment in this novella trilogy.  The plot thickens, the stakes grow exponentially, and the main characters continue to yearn for each other while doing their jobs.  

A fun palette cleanser.  Recommend