Oh, these books are genuinely so fun and entertaining! I can’t get enough of them! It’s not even that anything extremely interesting or|| 3.5 stars ||
Oh, these books are genuinely so fun and entertaining! I can’t get enough of them! It’s not even that anything extremely interesting or cool is happening here, but the writing is just so addictive. The way the narrator talks about everything and everyone kind of makes me feel like I’m constantly listening to a gossip session about all the characters, and for some reason, I find it insanely fun! Besides, there’s also a pretty intriguing mystery aspect to these books that isn’t too obvious and does keep my guessing!
At the moment, Aria is sort of the only character I truly like and respect. None of the other girls seem to have any self-confidence and they let everyone walk all over them. It’s pretty pathetic. In any case, I do still like Spencer and Hanna’s chapters, because, despite their insecurities, I find them interesting and fun to read. There’s something very compelling about their messiness. With Emily there is no such luck, though, since she genuinely bores me to death.
Spencer has a lot of potential, if only she’d stand up to her parents, while also recognizing what a useless waste of space Wren has always been. If she recognizes that, maybe there is still hope for her and Andrew! When it comes to her and Melissa, though, I’m not sure which of them is actually most in the wrong. They can both be brutal and cruel to each other, and I have no idea which of them actually started it. With Hanna, I really want her to stop caring about her dad so desperately, since he doesn’t deserve her consideration; if you haven’t visited your daughter in four years, you’ve lost the right to call yourself a parent. I also want her to stop mooning over Sean, since he’s clearly not interested! They’re obviously not a good fit, and besides, she deserves someone who will adore her completely. When it comes to Emily, I don’t know what it is, but something about her just puts me to sleep. I can’t really find it in me to be interested in any of her plotlines. I did like Maya and Toby, but I just don’t care about Emily. I feel like both of them (and the storylines they brought) were wasted on a character as boring as her. Now, of course, that leaves Aria, who was my absolute favourite. I was excitedly waiting for all of her chapters, constantly wishing the next one would be hers. It’s clear that Aria was the least messed up out of the four, and that all of her problems stemmed from her dad’s affair (who deserves to die, by the way) rather than her own insecurities, such as was the case with the other three girls. Aria knows who she is, she knows what she wants, and she’s not afraid to go out and get it. I actually thought her and Sean were pretty cute too, and they’d definitely be a better fit than him and Hanna. Even still, I think she can do better, since she’s so smart and beautiful and charming.
This was a lovely and undoubtedly sweet romance. It’s about a rare, exceedingly humble beauty and a scarred, disabled war-hero in a cla|| 3.0 stars ||
This was a lovely and undoubtedly sweet romance. It’s about a rare, exceedingly humble beauty and a scarred, disabled war-hero in a classic beauty and the beast retelling in true historical romance fashion.
Philly and Arthur are both exceedingly gentle people, and so all of their interactions were incredibly soft. They were both insanely selfless, and were always preoccupied with making the other person as happy as possible. Philly adored Arthur, and Arthur seemed to think Philly hung the moon and stars. Their love for each other felt very genuine, and I especially liked how enamored Arthur appeared with her. He was protective and possessive, of course, but above all, incredibly grateful for and astounded by his luck to have gotten to marry a woman so beautiful and kind as Philly.
By heaven, but she was beautiful. More than beautiful. She was radiant. Glowing.
Nonetheless, the romance’s overt and excessive sweetness was a little overdone for my tastes. I had reached the maximum of my tolerance towards sugary sweetness at at least the halfway point, and I was desperately waiting for a modicum of angst or drama or some sort of intensity to come along. Granted, there was some suspense with regards to a creepy villain threatening their happily ever after, but the relationship itself was steadfast and rock-solid. They were so… healthy and communicative, it was almost a bit boring. Even more, Philly’s selflessness, naivety, and overall perfection reached certain heights during this book that I just did not deem believable nor did I find it very enjoyable. I honestly felt like I was reading about a Disney Princess, which, in all fairness, was very cute and nice at first, but after a while became a bit repetitive, and dare I say, even slightly annoying. It made her seem like a flat, empty shell of a human being; not real and without true emotions. I wanted her to lash out at east once or otherwise show a hint of tension or genuine feeling, but that never happened. She remained the perfect Work of Art from beginning to end.
Thank you to my dear friend Dab for recommending this book to me!...more
Oh my god, this was so incredibly good! This book had me completely gripped from beginning to end. The writing was so engaging in a suc|| 4.5 stars ||
Oh my god, this was so incredibly good! This book had me completely gripped from beginning to end. The writing was so engaging in a succinct yet powerful way, and the characters were woven so perfectly into the story, I simply could not stop reading for even a second! The pacing was also done in the exact right way. The book never gave too many details that would make the story start to feel like it dragged, but instead it always managed to say exactly what needed to be said for the reader to understand what was going on, what it meant, and how it must feel for everyone involved. Overall, it was such strong writing and I instantly fell in love with it.
I am struggling to provide a summary of this book considering it tells so many little stories of many different characters. I hardly think it’s possible to choose one of these stories and point towards it saying: “This. This is what the book is about.” Moreover, so many of these stories were more subtle, never fully fleshed out or even acknowledged, that it would be very hard to describe them in my own words. So really, if I were to attempt a summary, I honestly wouldn’t know where to look or where to begin, and the end-result would be incomplete and wrong anyway.
That said, I do want to point out that this book genuinely made me feel so many emotions! I had very strong opinions on all of the characters, of all the things that happened in the past, present and future, but also of the social issues that were raised.
For example, I genuinely felt so much pain for the McCulloughs; I think what happened to them embodies the worst fears of any parent thinking about adopting or of those who have already adopted a child. To live with the fear that your child can be taken away like that… Just because someone thinks they have a claim on a child they abandoned due to some irrelevant blood-connection. It’s devastating and terrible and unjust. A parent is someone who takes care of their child, who nurses them, who loves them, who provides for them, who will never ever think of leaving them. Being a mother is more than giving birth to someone.
It came, over and over, down to this: What made someone a mother? Was it biology alone, or was it love?
Although I had intense feelings about them all, I think there was really only one character I truly felt an immense dislike towards, and I am willing to bet not many readers will think the same on this as me: The person I had a distinct distaste towards was Mia. Her ungrateful, fanciful and irresponsible attitude bothered me, but it was mostly her hypocrisy that made my skin crawl. First of all, I genuinely believe Mia was a bad mother. I don’t care how she tried to justify it, whether it was due to her “artistic spirit” or her young age, but she never ever did what was best for her daughter in those early years. She never chose to take care of her daughter properly, and instead continued to choose to live the life of a starving artist, as if she didn’t have a whole child depending on her! She dragged that child from place to place, never staying somewhere for more than a few months, never letting her daughter set up roots anywhere, forcing her to be forever lonely and homeless. And really, this would be enough reason for me to dislike Mia, but it was her superior attitude, despite her own many flaws, that distinctly bothered me. She acted like she was a great mother, a great person, this pinnacle of wisdom and goodness, when she was anything but. She was aimless, she was irresponsible, she was selfish, but, like I said earlier, she was also insanely hypocritical. She had a very strong opinion on the adoption case of the McCulloughs (her own actions even being the sole cause for why Linda and Mark now had to fight to keep their adopted child), and she argued this by saying that a child should be raised by her “real” mother and that the “real” mother deserved to raise her child, but she never, not even once, mentioned (to herself or anyone else) the very real fact that she stole her own child away from her father. Did she simply think this sentiment does not apply to fathers? Is she truly that unfair and cruel? Because it’s important to note that her daughter’s father desperately wanted to raise this child, but Mia just took her from him; she stole his child. And she never thought she did a single thing wrong. The hypocrisy! It baffled me.
And yet here was Mia, causing poor Linda such trauma, as if she hadn’t been through enough, as if Mia were any kind of example of how to mother. Dragging her fatherless child from place to place, scraping by on menial jobs, justifying it by insisting to herself — by insisting to everyone — she was making Art. Probing other people’s business with her grimy hands. Stirring up trouble. Heedlessly throwing sparks. Mrs. Richardson seethed, and deep inside her, the hot speck of fury that had been carefully banked within her burst into flame. Mia did whatever she wanted, Mrs. Richardson thought, and what would result? Heartbreak for her oldest friend. Chaos for everyone. You can’t just do what you want, she thought. Why should Mia get to, when no one else did?
Of course, I also had very strong opinions on all of the other characters and plot points; some positive, some not, and some… unsure, but I won’t bore anyone with going into details about all that. It doesn’t really matter what my own specific opinions were anyway, the only thing that really matters is that this is the type of book that invokes those strong emotions about its characters and its plots. I felt everything while reading this: indignation, sympathy, suspense, anxiousness, endearment, unsurety, pity, all of it… And isn’t that the best kind of book? A book that makes you feel intensely and makes you form strong opinions about its content? For me it is. And that’s why I loved this!...more
This was very unlike what I expected it to be, or at least, parts of it were. The book is divided into two parts, and the first part di|| 3.5 stars ||
This was very unlike what I expected it to be, or at least, parts of it were. The book is divided into two parts, and the first part did fit exactly what I thought the whole book would be like. We see Dr. Watson and Mr. Holmes meet, we see Watson being in awe and wonder at Holmes’ peculiar and genius personality, we see Holmes get involved in a mysterious and strange murder-case, and finally we see him easily solve the case with his own brand of deduction skills. Opposingly, the second part completely abandons these two characters and dives into the past to give a detailed, intricate and tense backstory of the murderer and why he has decided to commit his crimes. It is only at the very end that everything is tied back together again and we find out the full story at the same time as Dr. Watson.
Personally, I thought the first part was a little simplistic and nowhere near as smart or distinctive as I thought it would be. I wished we could have seen more of Sherlock’s actual deduction work, but considering the story is narrated by Watson, and he only gets short and simplified summaries of Sherlock’s deductions after the fact it has already taken place, this wasn’t the case at all. It was still fun and easy to read, but not as special as I was hoping it to be.
When I got around to the second part of this book I was honestly quite mystified and confused. At first, I didn’t have a clue as to what was happening or what I was even reading. However, once I started to realise that I was reading the backstory to the crime of the first part, I became more interested and eventually found myself very intrigued. It was actually a really good story that tug on my heartstrings more than once. I especially found myself feeling the highest respect for John Ferrier and his perseverance in wanting to protect his adoptive daughter against the horrors of Mormon culture and against having to become one of the many brides in a polygamous harem. He would rather die than have his little girl be tied to these monsters, and it was admirable to say the least. Jefferson Hope, of course, also acquired my respect for all that he did and I honestly couldn’t help but feel that the men who were murdered didn’t quite get enough compared to all that they were guilty of. I’d have wished to see them die more gruesomely if it were up to me. All in all, it was actually quite a tragic story with no happy ending for any of the good people involved.
All this said, I do think it is important to note that I believe this is one of those very rare cases where the tv adaptation is far better than the original text. I mean, the BBC’s Sherlock is seriously one of my favourite tv series of all time, while this was certainly not one of the best books I’ve ever read. Sure, it was still really good, and all the credits for the premise of the story and the idea of the characters should go completely to this, so I am glad I have read it, but still, the BBC’s adaptation just does it so much better. Therefore, if you’re only interested in exploring one version of Sherlock’s adventures, I’d recommend watching that instead. For die-hard fans (like me), however, this felt like an extra little bonus to read!...more
Everyone always says that the books are really different from the TV show, so I thought it would be interesting to check this out. Howe|| 3.5 stars ||
Everyone always says that the books are really different from the TV show, so I thought it would be interesting to check this out. However, although I can see that a lot of the relationships, for example, will turn out very unlike the TV show, this first book was extremely similar plot-wise to the first few episodes, so it was all a little predictable and repetitive for me. That said, I think things will become completely separate later on in this series, so I might just keep at it to get to that point. Because I have to say I do find these books very entertaining. They’re a little trashy, but in a fun and addictive way.
Personally, my favourite chapters were definitely those by Spencer first, then Aria, then Emily, and then Hanna. -Spencer is a character that is very realistic in how much pressure and loneliness she feels. She works so hard, but her parents will never truly acknowledge or love her, always favoring her sister over her, and that understandably breaks her heart. It’s why I kind of understood why she felt it was okay to steal her sister’s boyfriends the way she did… Even though, of course, it shouldn’t be. Besides, her and Wren were honestly kind of cute, even though I actually want her with Andrew. I know he doesn’t have many scenes and he hardly even exists in the TV show, but still. He just seems so utterly adorable and his unrequited crush on Spencer is truly precious. I hope she will start to notice him in the next books, because I know he would be the sweetest boyfriend to her. -Aria’s gentle and quirky yet confident personality was genuinely nice to read, and I personally like her best out of the four girls. I really want to find out what happens to her next: I hope she’ll eventually dump creepy Ezra for good (who was honestly much worse here than in the TV show) and she’ll find a good guy in the end. Maybe Noel has potential? Even though he seemed to be quite dumb so far. -Emily is a sweetheart, but she’s a little too passive and therefore kind of boring. I want to care about her, but so far I don’t really. Her swimming is not something I care about, and her relationship with Maya hasn’t really sparked an interest in me yet either. -With Hanna, I do feel pity and sympathy for her struggles and self-loathing, but I genuinely do not like the person she is right now. That said, Sean deserves to get kicked in the groin for what he said to her and he needs to be knocked off his high-horse so badly. I want to see that happen in the future!
Lastly, I just want to quickly mention that all of these parents are the literal worst. Emily’s parents are racist bigots, Aria’s father is a cheating groomer, Hanna’s mother is a distant workaholic, and Spencer’s parents are cold, unloving and abusive. They all made my blood boil.
'Pretty Little Liars' series: 1. Pretty Little Liars - 3.5 stars 2. Flawless - 3.5 stars...more
A sad, yet interesting, and undoubtedly clever story! I was deeply intrigued by the mix of emotions and characteristics we got to see h|| 3.5 stars ||
A sad, yet interesting, and undoubtedly clever story! I was deeply intrigued by the mix of emotions and characteristics we got to see here, and especially by the way they impacted everyone’s choices, prejudices, and future.
Oh my god, this was so good! I liked the first two books a lot, but this was truly a million times better!
We’ve left the silly romance|| 4.5 stars ||
Oh my god, this was so good! I liked the first two books a lot, but this was truly a million times better!
We’ve left the silly romance plot behind entirely, and instead, this book only focused on giving us an intricate, well thought-out, and intriguing murder mystery that gets solved in the most tension-filled way! I love that each little piece gets revealed slowly and surprisingly, but that every single reveal still made so much sense afterwards. I was shocked by a lot of them, but nothing felt random or forced; there were always clues that could be pointed at, even if you didn’t see them at first!
P.S. When it comes to Sloane, I feel like a mother hen protecting her chick. I want to wrap her up in a warm blanket, tell her everything will be okay, and snarl at anyone who dares to come too close.
Well, what can I say? It’s not like I hadn’t been warned this book would be bad. I had. And those people were right. I should have list|| 1.5 stars ||
Well, what can I say? It’s not like I hadn’t been warned this book would be bad. I had. And those people were right. I should have listened. It’s as simple as that.
But honestly though, it’s not as if this book didn’t have potential. It definitely did. I think the premise truly was very cool and intriguing, and even the plot itself could have been good. But all of that potential was simply wasted on piss-poor execution.
Firstly, the writing was very dull and lifeless; it didn’t have a hint of charm to it. The pacing was horrendous as well; there were way too many completely irrelevant and unnecessary descriptions, and nothing ever seemed to happen. All they did was walk around and search for something, but there was no action or suspense to be found. It was super slow and boring.
The characters were also insanely superficial and felt more empty than I could have ever thought possible. Their relationships all felt completely random and meaningless as well; nothing held even a hint of depth or intrigue. It was all so… worthless. useless. vain. insubstantial. vacant. boring.
Speaking of relationships, there is also romance in this book, and even though I think it was supposed to play a big part in the story, I didn’t actually feel any romance during the whole book. There’s supposedly a love triangle going on, but one of the guys was already in love with her from the very beginning (which felt like the biggest form of insta-love, but apparently he fell in love with her before the book even started and chose to let her go for power, yet the main characters doesn’t get to know or understand that until the very end??), and the other one apparently fell in love with her throughout the book, but I never would have guessed, since he didn’t act like it whatsoever. This dude was not in love. He simply wasn’t. I don’t care if the book tells me he was, I don’t believe it. Thus, all in all, both of these stories had to be the worst romances I have read in a while, cus neither of them actually gave me any romance…
Last but not least, there’s a supremely predictable twist at the end where our main character gets betrayed, but I swear, you have to be the blindest person on the planet to have not seen that one coming. It was obvious from the beginning that a certain someone could not be trusted, so I definitely did not care for that reveal. It was all very anticlimactic and underwhelming.
Long story short, I still think this could have been a good fantasy book. But only if someone else had written it....more
The plot here was definitely an improvement from the first book. It was much more hands-on; we actually got to see The Naturals in acti|| 3.5 stars ||
The plot here was definitely an improvement from the first book. It was much more hands-on; we actually got to see The Naturals in action rather than them just sitting in a house, babbling about how special they are.
The murder mystery was actually very intriguing and I felt super curious from the very beginning about what truly happened. The resolution and reveals were good too; I didn’t feel disappointed or underwhelmed at any time.
Furthermore, I was also very intrigued to find out more about some of the characters’s histories. Especially Dean. That guy has been an enigma from the start, but his past was clearly very dark, disturbing and haunted. I was hooked on every little scrap we got about him. I honestly feel like he would have been a much more interesting main character than Cassie… His past, his coping mechanisms, his fear, his repressed anger, but also the way people around him seem to care so deeply about him and want to do anything to protect him; it’s all so much more complex and meaningful than anything Cassie has to offer as a main character.
Nonetheless, despite the positives this book had to offer I still can’t get past that horrendous love triangle. Seriously, the love triangle was still as stupid as ever. There was just zero reason for either boy to be obsessively in love with this random girl, but somehow they still are. It was also obvious from the start which of the two boys Cassie would choose, so it wasn’t particularly exciting to watch the development in that department.
Also, am I the only one who was actually insanely curious about the reason why Michael and Dean hated each other so much? Deep down they clearly did care about each other, but for some reason they choose to mask it by a lot of animosity and mistrust. Why? They’re both nice guys, so it’s not like either of them really had a reason to be enemies with the other based on principle, so something must have happened in the past. But what is it? Is it truly just that dumb reason Michael gave; about Dean repressing his anger? That would be such a silly reason to me…
Sloane is probably the most likable person in the group to me. She’s the most socially inept but obviously has the best intentions. There’s nothing more endearing to me than a socially awkward genius trying to make sense of other people’s emotions through statistics and logic. She’s always trying to help and comfort, but just isn’t very skilled at doing it right.
I genuinely think all of the members of The Naturals are sweet people in their own way, but the only exception to that is Lia for me. She is just so freaking annoying and entitled. Her relationship with Dean and Michael are both so weird and I hate the way she takes all of her frustrations out on Cassie whenever something goes wrong with either of them, especially when it comes to Dean. Like, calm down, girl. That boy is not some sort of precious china doll you need to protect at all costs. Get a hobby or something and stop obsessing about a guy like your whole life depends on it. It’s even more embarrassing and pathetic since Dean clearly doesn’t care that much about her in return; he’s more interested in Cassie’s well-being and it’s painfully obvious. I’m not sure whether the book will ever try to make Michael and Lia a thing, but I sure hope not. Lia’s priority has always been Dean, and Michael deserves better. Just like it’s also obvious that Michael would never look twice at Lia if Cassie gave him a shot. Putting these two together in the end would thus be supremely unsatisfying.
Anyway, long story short, this was a very fun, engaging, suspenseful and mysterious story that managed to have me hooked from start to finish! The silly love triangle is dumb, but the plot itself was actually surprisingly good.
This was a simple story with not much meat to it, but it was still pretty fun and entertaining. People say it’s kind of like a YA Crim|| 3.0 stars ||
This was a simple story with not much meat to it, but it was still pretty fun and entertaining. People say it’s kind of like a YA Criminal Minds, but I really think it wasn’t anywhere near that quality to be even remotely compared to it. The actual profiling the characters do here isn’t particularly extensive or cleverly put together, but I am willing to give credits for the effort. I mean, the execution really isn’t anything special, but I like the idea.
The main mystery plot was pretty interesting and kept me hooked at trying to figure it out. The reveal was a little awkward, though. I get why the author chose to go this route because it was shocking and impactful, but it was also very dumb since it seriously made me question all of “The Natural” kids’ abilities. The whole point is that these kids can perfectly read people and catch serial killers, but none of them noticed anything off about the killer living right under their noses? They’re clearly not very good at something they’re supposed to be super talented at… It’s a little embarrassing. Truthfully, all this book did with that was show their complete and utter incompetence.
Of course, there’s also an instant love triangle that comes straight out of nowhere. Cassie doesn’t truly know either boy, but she’s inexplicably drawn to one of them and the other is inexplicably drawn to her. In the end, she has two boys fighting over her even though she has the non-existent personality of a cardboard box. It’s the same old, same old. It’s very clear that Michael is just an obstacle, though; I’m willing to bet Cassie is going to end up with Dean. Michael is fun and flirty and actually shows interest in her, but Cassie doesn’t think or care about him like she does Dean, who is broody and self-loathing and tries to fight his attraction to her at all costs. Michael would be the obvious choice for any well-functioning, normal person, but it’s always the Dean-types who get the girl in books, so I am pretty sure this series won’t be any different. That said, I really don’t dislike either of the boys, and I kind of just want both of them to be happy, so I hope the author will find a way to make them happen.
When a girl gets dropped into a field surrounded by four Victorian houses, she is asked to choose one of them to stay in forever. She d|| 2.5 stars ||
When a girl gets dropped into a field surrounded by four Victorian houses, she is asked to choose one of them to stay in forever. She does get to visit each one before making her choice, but none of those visits go particularly well…
Her choices are: The House of Content, The House of Lust, The House of Obsession and The House of Euphoria.
Honestly, I thought the idea behind this story was pretty cool, but the execution was a little lacklustre for me. The only truly creepy house was The House of Obsession, while the others were definitely weird but not that awful. I feel like all of these houses could have been a lot scarier or at least more interesting, but they just weren’t....more
I have to admit that I am honestly quite baffled by this book’s popularity. I mean, it wasn’t super bad, but it surely wasn’t great eit|| 2.5 stars ||
I have to admit that I am honestly quite baffled by this book’s popularity. I mean, it wasn’t super bad, but it surely wasn’t great either. I was all just very... mweh.
First of all, the mystery itself is quite preposterous and far-fetched. In fact, the actual reveal of the murder is so convoluted that the book basically needs to shove aside all the facts it has stated before to make it make sense. It is revealed in the end that basically everything was a misdirection and that every single witness was lying. Like, okay?? I guess I’m supposed to be shocked by that, but all it really did was make me feel like the whole book was a waste. After all, there was no real mystery in the book, because there was no way you could have figured it out. All the evidence seemed to point towards an impossible crime, because, it turns out, it really was impossible! The crime simply did not happen that way. So, we spend all this time trying to figure out a mystery that was never going to be solved! Instead, we got a big “SIKE!” moment where we’re told everything isn’t as we thought it was. I don’t like ‘mysteries’ that end like that; it feels like a major cop-out, and basically absolves the author from actually having the explain the murder in a smart way. Honestly, I prefer a well thought out murder mystery over a silly plot-twist any day.
Now, when it comes to the writing, I have to say I’m having mixed feelings. On the one hand the writing was simple and straight-forward, which made it very easy to follow along with. On the other hand, however, the book was structured in a way that I found very repetitive and monotonous. The characters lacked any depth whatsoever, and everything had a very cold or sterile feeling to it. There is also no action or even a hint of suspense going on here, and instead the whole thing took on a very methodical note. It was a giant listing of evidence after evidence, only for it to later be revealed that all the “evidence” was nothing but lies and misdirection! What on earth have I spent all this time reading it for then??
The main character, Hercule Poirot, also got on my nerves for some reason. He was a very pretentious little man, who was thriving on his so called ‘intellect’, willing every person to acknowledge how smart he was. He didn’t do or say anything interesting, and was painfully unhelpful the whole way through, but did keep on asking people things like “isn’t it obvious”, when in reality, it really was NOT obvious, because the whole thing was frustratingly ridiculous and insanely coincidental!
Also, I was kind of surprised by all the casual racism and sexism displayed in this book. It was even more frustrating since these prejudices were actually used as evidence to either condemn or absolve suspects in the whole murder investigation. Like, how can I take this mystery seriously when racism/sexism is used as a serious investigative method? They called their prejudices “the Psychology” to give it an air of being scientific, when in reality, it was nothing but offensive rubbish. For example: They reason that the murderer must be a woman because no man would be hysterical enough to stab a man twelve times. They also reason that the murderer cannot be an Englishman because they are not crass enough to stab people. Instead, the Italian man is suspected because he has the temperament and vulgarity for it! Like, really??? I’m supposed to take this investigation seriously in any way?? I think not....more
This story had a great build-up and I really liked the way it was structured. The book was constant|| 4.0 stars ||
Well, damn. That was pretty creepy.
This story had a great build-up and I really liked the way it was structured. The book was constantly teasing me with little hints about what happened and about who Verity and her husband really were, but still never gave me enough information to loose its suspense. It kept me hooked and guessing throughout the whole thing.
SPOILERS: I’m actually very curious about what other people who read this think about the main question this book leaves us with: Did Verity kill Harper or was she telling the truth in her final letter to Jeremy? I think I’m leaning towards her telling the truth in some way (even though her telling the truth would still make her insane for writing a book in which she talks about her dead daughter like that) but I’m honestly not sure what to think, so I’d really like to know other people’s opinions and thoughts on the matter!
Also, was I the only person who was expecting Lowen or Jeremy to be a little more sinister than they ended up being? I was constantly waiting for Lowen to go absolutely insane. I was constantly thinking things like: What happened with her mom? Was Lowen imagining everything with Verity? Was she seeing things that weren’t there? Would she do something creepy in her sleep? But nothing happened there. I also kept waiting for it to be revealed that Jeremy had been a manipulative psychopath all along. But that never happened either. Or maybe that did happen and we can interpret the story in a different way: Maybe we could say that since Jeremy knew about the manuscript all along that he could have possibly orchestrated the whole thing… I definitely didn’t trust him and many things he did do not make sense when you think about them. So maybe it was all his plan. Maybe. That would have definitely been creepy as hell, though. But oh well, I guess we’ll never really know anything for sure....more
Why on earth did no one tell me this was the most boring book in existence?? I feel lied to by all the hype.
This book is about a group || 2.0 stars ||
Why on earth did no one tell me this was the most boring book in existence?? I feel lied to by all the hype.
This book is about a group of little rich boys who go to a posh boarding school, but who are somehow all completely obsessed with finding a Welsh king who died ages ago. This search pretty much takes over their entire lives, and nothing is more important to them than finding this dude because of…. reasons??? Literally what in the hell is that plot?? It is so ridiculous. And it was so boring.
Oh, and I almost forgot, but there is also an insane plot about a girl who is predestined to kill her true love if she were to kiss him, but instead of that leading to her staying away from the guy (like any reasonable person would do) she goes out of her way to get to know him. Because… reasons??? Sure. Ok.
There is also an unnecessary love triangle brewing, because of course there is.
The friendship between “The Raven Boys” was sooo weird as well. Gansey was like… their leader?? And the other boys jumped around him, lapping at his feet; sort of like dogs trying to get the attention of their master. It was so odd.
The writing style was also excruciating. The pacing was the slowest thing imaginable, and it dragged so much. It was also strangely confusing?? I felt like I was reading about nothing while simultaneously being bombarded with information… Does that make sense? I don’t know, but that’s what it felt like.
In all fairness though, I do have to say that this book got better near the end. The first half was literally just the worst because NOTHING HAPPENED, but I honestly believe the book didn’t really begin until it was about halfway in. So, honestly, once the book really got started it was… okay. Not good! But just okay-ish…...more
Well, this was definitely very… unexpected. I went into this expecting something scary, or, at the very least, I thought it would contai|| 3.5 stars ||
Well, this was definitely very… unexpected. I went into this expecting something scary, or, at the very least, I thought it would contain some sort of thrilling mystery. What I got, however, was something quite the opposite from that. I would even go so far as to say it felt rather mundane.
The premise itself is weird, though. It’s about a man who continues to gradually lose weight, even though his physical appearance remains unchanged. This keeps going, until eventually he will become completely weightless. This sounds like it could be quite the mystery, right? Well, I suppose it is, but we never get any resolution for it. The main character kind of just accepts his fate, and we never find out why this whole situation was even happening. Thus, it doesn’t feel scary or mysterious. It felt… normal. Which was an interesting route for this story to go on, but I wouldn’t necessarily say it was a bad one. It was still interesting and I felt myself wanting to keep reading. There was some sort of beauty in the main character’s acceptance of his fate, and with that; his acceptance of eventual death.
What I liked about this most of all was the writing. The prose was so incredibly pleasant to read, and it had me completely engrossed. Even when the story itself wasn’t all that much to fawn over, the writing still managed to keep me engaged the whole way through.
All in all, this was not at all what I was looking for when I decided to pick this up, but I’m not disappointed. I loved going on this journey with our main character, and I loved seeing the final decisions he made and the true connections he made with some unlikely people. I might even call it beautiful....more
This is a mystery thriller set in a world where the dating scene has been altered forever: a gene has been discovered that can match so|| 3.5 stars ||
This is a mystery thriller set in a world where the dating scene has been altered forever: a gene has been discovered that can match someone with the one that was made for them. This discovery has brought out a lot of joy and love for those finding their soulmate, but there is also a darker side to this development. This dark side is explored through the stories of five different people who have all taken the test to find their DNA match.
First, we have Mandy, who has been left by her husband when he found his DNA match, and who is now afraid she will never find love again. This fear is enhanced even further when she finds her own match, only to discover he has recently died. She still feels the pull towards this deceased man, and in her attempts to feel close to him she becomes more and more ensnared with his grief-stricken family.
Secondly, there is Christopher; a psychopath turned serial killer who has set himself the challenge to kill 30 women without anyone ever finding out who did it, and most importantly, why. However, he soon finds out that the thrill of the kill is no longer as alluring when he meets his DNA match. Going out to kill has become a chore, a chore that keeps him away from the one person who makes him feel normal… yet he still can’t seem to stop himself.
Jade is a woman who has found herself in a rut with no bright future in sight. She decides to travel to the other side of the world to be close to her DNA match, only to learn everything she knew about him was a lie. She is swept up in a world of grief and sorrow, only to find out the biggest lie was yet to come.
Nick is happily engaged to the love of his life, Sally, and he has never felt the need to see if the grass is greener on the other side. This all ends, however, when Sally pulls the rug right out from under him and demands they both take the test to see if they are each other’s DNA match. The results do not only show they were not made for each other, but Nick is also surprised to find out his own match is a man. Given the fact he has never considered himself gay or bisexual, he decides to leave his match alone and continue his relationship with Sally. That is, until the pull of his soulmate becomes too much to bear and he can no longer escape the truth; he has found the love of his life, but it’s not Sally.
Lastly, we follow the creator of the test and inventor of the matching-gene, Ellie. She is a high-powered woman who doesn’t let anyone get a peek behind her sky-high walls. She took the test herself ten years ago, but never found a match; that is, until the day that she gets a notification that her match has finally been found. When she first meets him, she is charmed but doesn’t feel any of the fireworks she is supposed to feel. Nonetheless, she is so sure of her own research that she convinces herself to open herself up to him and she falls head over heels in love. She has let down her walls completely, but that might turn out to be the biggest mistake she ever made.
Overall, I thought the premise of this book was extremely intriguing and the execution was very well done. It had a message it wanted to portray, and it surely succeeded in doing so. I won’t say what it was, since that would be quite a spoiler, but it was definitely interesting. I was immediately hooked by these five stories, and although it hit a little bit of a lull in the middle of the book, it ended, once more, with me on the edge of my seat, desperately wanting to find out what was really going on and what would happen next. I did have one major point of critique though, and that is that I wished we could have had a little more depth to the emotions behind the characters. I would have been able to feel more for them and their stories if the writing had been more emotionally charged and if the characters had had more details to their personalities....more
Aww, this was pretty cute! It wasn’t amazing or anything, but it was definitely fun and sweet. I have to say I especially liked the fir|| 3.0 stars ||
Aww, this was pretty cute! It wasn’t amazing or anything, but it was definitely fun and sweet. I have to say I especially liked the first half though, as the relationship started to bore me a little bit after Lemon and Atlas really got together.
The build-up was so good and they had amazing chemistry. They didn’t fall into bed with each other immediately, which I appreciated, but I still wish the “getting to know each other” stage could have gone on for even longer; I just loved that part so much that I wanted a lot more from it still.
I think something that really helped my enjoyment here was the fact that Lemon and Atlas were both very likable. Atlas had that gentle giant vibe going on, while Lemon was a precious little spitfire; they were opposites in some ways, but they were extremely similair in the way they always want to take care of everyone.
I really felt they fit together well, and I especially adored their banter and the admiration they had between them. They were just so good for one another, and it made me feel happy to see them find each other. They had a very lighthearted and teasing relationship, which was just right for them.
If you read the blurb for this one, I think you’ll immediately know it this will be for you or not, because it tells you exactly what to expect and delivers exactly that! Also, the side-plots and the mystery were actually pretty decent too (without taking up too much page-time), so that was a nice bonus!
All in all, this wasn’t anything profound or deeply emotional, but I wouldn’t call it superficial either. It had the exact right vibe for what you’re looking for when you pick up a book like this!
Wow, this one was so different from all the previous books. I almost felt like I was reading an entirely different series, even though || 4.0 stars ||
Wow, this one was so different from all the previous books. I almost felt like I was reading an entirely different series, even though it did have a lot of familiarities that made me enjoy it even more.
The biggest change from the rest was that this book actually seemed to have a real plot. It had an on-going mystery, and was plenty action-packed while also pretty ridiculous. It wasn’t anything serious, and you do have to suspend a certain amount of disbelief, but I genuinely had lots of fun seeing Jory turn into some sort of super detective or secret spy. He did all this crazy stuff and I just found it so enjoyable. I also found it oddly funny. Like, seriously, I do not know if this was meant as a comedy, but I laughed out loud multiple times.
Jory cracked me up and some of his actions just made me giggle. I truly love this character so much: I don’t know what it is about him, but I think he’s hilarious and just so… great. He always does exactly what he wants, and is pretty iconic about it, but he still has his heart in the right place, and often tries to help other people. His mindset isn’t selfish in any way, but he’s not a doormat either. He does what’s best for him and he does so in a way I find extremely entertaining.
“I love you, Jory. I love your good heart and your kindness and the way you bring out the very best in everyone you meet. I need you, because without you I’m empty and mean.”
Also, this might come as a major surprise, most of all to me, but Sam did not annoy me in this book. It seemed like he genuinely got himself together now: he was loving, caring, protective, possessive, obsessive, adoring, and, best of all, he. did. not. fuck. up. once. This man finally decided to fight for Jory the whole way through, and he constantly stood by him. Even while Jory was running around, doing all this hilariously insane shit, Sam loved him through all of it. It seems like he truly realised that Jory was it for him, and that he was never going to let him slip through his fingers. It’s how it should have been all along, but I’m not complaining about Sam finally getting there now.
“Just coming home, walking in our bedroom and you’re sleeping all warm and safe in our bed… I just… I can’t breathe. My home is a sanctuary now, and I won’t give that up because you’re pissed at me. I don’t love anything or anyone as much as you. You’re my whole life.”
All in all, I enjoyed this so much. Jory is a character I truly adore, and I had so much fun with this particular story. The plot genuinely managed to capture my interest and kept me invested throughout. I don’t really have many complaints about anything here.
This was quite similar to the first book, minus the fact that Rory’s relationship with both Dane and Sam has changed drastically. Rory || 3.5 stars ||
This was quite similar to the first book, minus the fact that Rory’s relationship with both Dane and Sam has changed drastically. Rory is no longer working for Dane, and has, instead, been adopted by him as a little brother. I have to admit it all felt slightly over-the-top, but it was also quite cute. I definitely really like their dynamic and relationship. At first I thought it might turn into something romantic, but it is quite clear now that it won’t. And I’m okay with that, even though it’s a shame. When it comes to Sam, the change in their relationship is that they basically do not have one anymore. Sam barely even grovelled for his fuck-up in the previous book, and after Rory takes him back, it does not take him long to fuck up again. He then takes freaking months to try to get Rory back, and he does so in a way that exuded entitlement and arrogance. He just assumed Rory would take him back, no questions asked, and unfortunately, it turned out he was right. Rory forgave him, and henceforth began their biting relationship once more in which they mostly just argue and Sam is a bit of an arsehole. I was resigned to the fact that apparently Rory wanted to be in a relationship with a dickhead, and at least, I thought, Sam is all-in now. He does truly adore Rory, so much so, he is basically obsessed. No way is he going to fuck up again, right? WRONG. This book ends with Sam leaving Rory AGAIN. I legit felt like screaming. This man deserves to drown in dirt, he is the absolute worst. And I need Rory to stand his ground from now on and not take him back. Or at least make him reaaaally work for it. Because I am getting so pissed off with this Sam guy. Seriously.
“Promise me you won’t go anywhere,” he said, my face in his hands as he stared into my eyes. “I promise.” I smiled slowly. “Don’t leave me. I’ll hurt you if you try and leave me.” I smiled down into his eyes. “Yeah? You’ll hurt me?” “Jory,” his voice cracked. “Please, baby, I—” But my mouth on his cut him off as I kissed the worry right out of him.
Anyway, aside from Dane and Sam, we also see Rory interact with plenty of other people and, just like the previous book, I adored most of these scenes. Rory was so well-loved; it was very pleasant and engaging to read about him meeting all these people that instantly adored him.
The plot itself is still pretty insane, and although I genuinely do like Rory, I have to admit that it is utterly ridiculous how he treats all the many threats to his life. He genuinely does not seem to take it seriously in any way, and I don’t understand why, since he most certainly does not have a death wish, and it’s not like he’s stupid… So why?
This is a mystery, suspense, drama and romance all rolled into one, and it made for a very amazing whole. All the different aspects wer|| 4.0 stars ||
This is a mystery, suspense, drama and romance all rolled into one, and it made for a very amazing whole. All the different aspects were worked out well and added their own value to the overall story. It was intriguing, enthralling and truly managed to capture my interest as well as my heart.
I honestly cared about what I was reading here, and that was mostly due to the fact that I loved our main character, Charlie, so incredibly much. Charlie’s personality was complex and heart-breaking, and I couldn’t help but want to find out everything that had happened to him and see how he was feeling about it all. Charlie’s mental health issues were a big part of this story, and I thought it was very well-done. I got pissed off on his behalf plenty of times, and I genuinely felt like strangling everyone who kept dismissing him and refusing to listen to what he had to say as if he was nothing more than a paranoid lunatic. Charlie invoked a lot of sympathy from me, and I grew incredibly fond of him.
My immense love for Charlie was why I was really happy that after a while he at least had an ally in Takoda, who constantly stood by his side, thoroughly defended him and always had his best interest at heart. It was truly the type of love and care Charlie deserved, and I was so happy he finally got that, even if it was with someone who did not make the best first impression.. But I’m not going to get into that, since Takoda more than made up for his less than stellar introduction! His relationship with Charlie ended up being very sweet and gentle, which I loved.
The plot developed at a really nice pace and really managed to capture a feeling of suspense. I truly wanted to find out every single thing about what had happened to Charlie in the past and also about what was happening to him now. The mystery was always present in the story, and didn’t feel like it was just a tool to create drama or shock. It was all well-written and very interesting in nature.
My one real complaint with this book would be that I very much preferred the first half over the second. I’m not sure what it was that made my engrossment wane a little, but unfortunately that did happen. I felt a little less invested in the story and the characters at that point, whereas before, my investment levels were at a ten out of ten. Maybe it was just me or maybe the book truly went downhill.. Whatever it was, I wish I would have enjoyed this book equally the whole way through. But oh well. I’m still a big fan overall, and I thought this book was really great!...more
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