zoeelizabethk's reviews
571 reviews

Heir to the Empire: The 20th Anniversary Edition by Timothy Zahn

adventurous mysterious medium-paced

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

4.0

I really enjoyed Heir to the Empire and feel stupid that I put this one off for so long! I don't tend to enjoy SW stories set in/post Empire, but I loved how many different settings we got and how vibrant everything felt. I do feel that Thrawn's characterization is rather bland - he's basically an Imperial Sherlock who is very rarely outwitted and I don't really feel as if I understand his motivations really. But, to be fair, we are seeing him always through other characters. I do hope his characterization improves, but I enjoyed all the other characters. I will definitely be continuing to see what happens and spend more time with our other characters. 

I listened to the audiobook narrated by Marc Thompson. My issue with every SW novel is the sometimes excessive background sound effects. It made it hard to hear at times. Marc does a great job overall, but his Han sounds SO different from Harrison Ford that I struggled a bit. It wasn't a big problem, I just never got over it. Overall though, I really enjoyed the audio narration!

Ahsoka by E.K. Johnston

adventurous mysterious reflective 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

I had a great time with Ahsoka, and just in general have always enjoyed E.K. Johnston's SW books. I really liked the time Johnston took to develop Ahsoka's character and moitvations, and to explore the fallout of The Clone Wars and the dangers of life in the new Empire. The narrative structure was a little odd maybe 60% in as we had a bit of a plot detour and also introduced some other brief POVs to fill in some gaps. I liked the POVs but felt that it detracted a bit from the primary action of this book. I really liked it though and want to read more from Johnston.

A Market of Dreams and Destiny by Trip Galey

adventurous mysterious 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

4.0

I absolutely adored the vibes and setting of A Market of Dreams and Destiny! I'm always chasing that magical setting a la Night Circus, and while this is very much it's own thing, this gave me a similar sense of wonder and magic with the setting. Galey did a really good job giving the Market character, thinking through the worldbuilding, and keeping the dark whimsical tone consistent throughout. 

I do feel like the second half of the novel got a bit twisty and Galey tried a little too hard here, and so I had more trouble following everything going on and that hampered my enjoyment a bit. I also just did not buy into the romance. It was absolutely an insta-love setup, and I wish there had been better development as this would have helped with stakes later on. 

I do highly recommend this if you're looking for a magical, historical English faerie-esque story. Don't think too hard about all the magic, and don't go in expecting loads of character work, but enjoy being immersed in the setting and magic and you'll have a great time!

Stone of Farewell by Tad Williams

3.0

DNF at 25%. There's nothing wrong with this or with Tad's writing, I've just not been in the mood for this kind of story at the moment and it wasn't holding my interest. I plan to come back to Memory, Sorrow, Thorn eventually and anticipate that I will enjoy it much more at a different time.

Check & Mate by Ali Hazelwood

hopeful inspiring sad 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

3.5

I quite enjoyed Check and Mate. It's Hazelwood's first YA romance, but the main characters are 18 and 20 and out of high school, so it's definitely in between most YA romance and Adult. I've read a few chess-themed books in the past, and while the plot wasn't super original, I had a really fun time with Mallory and Nolen and their relationship. Mallory's relationship with her family is quite complicated and I liked the various layers that Hazelwood explored here. While there was third act tension, I personally felt it was quite justified, but they both learned and the respect they have for each other saved it for me. 

Divine Rivals by Rebecca Ross

emotional sad 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? It's complicated

3.5

Divine Rivals was an emotional story of star-crossed lovers amidst war. I quite enjoyed Iris and Roman and their love story, but I'm a bit mixed on the execution.

Divine Rivals definitely has the feeling of a WWI style historical novel, but it is set in a fantasy world and there are gods involved somehow, and presumable driving the war. I found the worldbuilding pretty lacking, which doesn't always bother me too much, but ended up causing problems for me later on. I liked our characters, but I didn't quite buy into the star-crossed lovers kind of thing. I think it felt too real world and not mystical enough to work for me quite as well as it might for some other readers. It was also not aided by the way Ross writes time. Sometimes we really linger in moments, then we rush through days and in a sentence we're through the next day. So something about the way all that was written didn't quite gel for me.

To be fair, I've read some excruciatingly slow slow burns lately, so unfortunately Divine Rivals felt a bit rushed for me. It's not really the book's fault as this is written to a difference audience, but even without reading Ruthless Vows yet, I can tell that I would rather this had been a single 600 page book that wove the romance, character work, plot, and worldbuilding together more smoothly. I think for me that would make the war feel more harrowing, the danger more real, and the romance more earned.

I'm honestly pretty mixed on whether I want to read Ruthless Vows or no, which is sad considering that Divine Rivals was a highly anticipated read for me.

3.5 stars

Homeward by Angela Jackson-Brown

emotional hopeful sad slow-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? Yes

4.0

Homeward follows Rose Perkins in the early 60s as she navigates marriage, loss, infidelity, and the Civil Rights movement. I enjoyed the slow build of the story and how character focused it was and the focus on the reluctance of some communities to embrace the Civil Rights movement. Jackson-Brown does a really good job making you feel all of Rose's emotions and struggles and I felt very immersed in her story. My only complaint is that the book ended rather abruptly and I honestly would have loved more. 

The challenge for some people is going to be that this character work takes up about half of the book before we really get into the Civil Rights part of the story. I think the other challenge for some people will be that Homeward really focuses on the personal/familial impact of the Civil Rights movement and what the cost of getting involved was. I thought this was a great choice and done very well, but do not go in expecting an action-filled story of the Movement.

Jackson-Brown's writing was evocative and beautifully crafted. I'm definitely excited to try more of her work in future!

Thanks to Harper Collins Focus, Harper Muse, Harper Audio, and Netgalley for an audioARC of Homeward.

Knife of Dreams by Robert Jordan

adventurous emotional sad tense slow-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 love so much about Knife of Dreams. Egwene's arc in this book is absolutely fantastic, and I love all the Aes Sedai machinations and manoevering. I still don't love Perrin's plotline in this book. Faile's is fine, but Perrin's a struggle for me here. BUT we are moving onward and upwards. 

The Crew by Sadir S. Samir

adventurous funny fast-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

3.5

Overall I enjoyed The Crew. It's quite a unique feel in a book. It felt like an quest rpg in the sense of: To have X join your party, find X item. Now they have joined, continue on your quest. You have encountered a rogue boss battle. Prepare to engage. It also reminded me of Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy as there was a lot of meandering and silliness. It definitely has plot but it's not terribly focused (on purpose), so you’re just kinda along for the ride. The world and racial/class structure is fascinating, and the characters were vibrant, but I didn’t feel like the characters got a ton of development. For me too much of it was done for fun and giggles without delving much deeper, and when Sadir did pull in themes they felt a little too on the nose for me. Overall I would recommend The Crew to those looking for a unique and spirited adventure romp with cool worldbuilding. Go in expecting a wacky time and you'll enjoy the time.

 

As Long as the Lemon Trees Grow by Zoulfa Katouh

dark hopeful sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix

3.0

DNF at 60%.

I liked the story of As Long As the Lemon Trees Grow, but I sadly didn’t love the central romance here and didn’t find the characters very compelling. By 60% I could tell it wasn’t going to get any better for me most likely. Ultimately I think these were more issues with me as a reader as I’ve read a couple similar stories this year that were absolutely stunning. So I can’t help a bit but compare this to those. I think this will be great for a lot of readers and it is a really important perspective about the horrors of war and the terrible realities of the Syrian War.