I've read, and loved, Traci Chee's previous book, The Reader, though I still need to continue the series, so I was extremely excited when my request I've read, and loved, Traci Chee's previous book, The Reader, though I still need to continue the series, so I was extremely excited when my request for an advanced copy of this book was approved. The synopsis seemed like exactly my sort of thing, and I couldn't wait to dive in!
I adored this book, and it kept growing on me more and more as I went on, and as the story shifted forms. Each time the story shifted, I found something new to love, and I loved how it was ever-changing, keeping me on my toes and constantly guessing what could possibly come next. This carried an aura of fairy tales whilst still feeling a step apart from other fairy tale style stories or retellings I've read before.
I also really enjoyed how many creatures and monsters and spirits were involved in every page of this book, and I thought the footnotes giving some of them quick explanations were a nice touch. It allowed curious readers to learn more about the creatures on page without bogging down the writing and storytelling with possibly repetitive introductions to creature after creature. I honestly really loved how small a role humans seemed to play in the story overall, and that so many of the characters seemed imbued with magic somehow, either through being a spirit themselves or having some connection to them. It made the story feel richer overall, and I loved meeting them all, whether they were names I had encountered in other stories before or not.
Miuko's journey was also an intriguing one, and I found it so hard to decide what to wish for for her, in terms of an ending. Did I want her to free herself of the curse, a dream she so determinedly clung to? Or did I want her to embrace this new side of herself, even if it came at the cost of her humanity? The answer to this was ever-shifting, as Miuko's journey proceeded and more information came forth, about both options. Miuko herself wavered on this specific decision many times as well, and I found this internal journey a perfect complement to the external one she was taking alongside it. The villain also played an intriguing role, even if, as time went on, he became a clearer and clearer villain. I enjoyed the fuzziness around his morality at first, (view spoiler)[and part of me still wishes the book had perhaps followed the route of them joining up, not to necessarily burn the world down and remake it, but rather for both of them to find their wishes in each other. I wished for this less and less as the story went on of course, and it became clearer that the villain was not redeemable, but I definitely could have seen this side of the story as well, from some parts at the beginning. (hide spoiler)]
Overall, I absolutely loved this book, and cannot wait to pick up a copy for myself when it releases. If you love magical spirits, strong-willed heroines, and tricky side characters that aren't quite human, this is a perfect read to start off 2022 with! ...more
This book wasn't truly on my radar until it was revealed to be the Illumicrate book for December, and then as time went on, I found myself getting morThis book wasn't truly on my radar until it was revealed to be the Illumicrate book for December, and then as time went on, I found myself getting more and more hyped for it. I'd see videos of people loving it, saw the gorgeous Illumicrate copies arriving, and by the time mine showed up, I wanted to dive right in. Storytel had an audiobook available of this, and with all the Christmas present wrapping there was to be done, I decided that to read the book in that format. It was a great choice in hindsight, because I really enjoyed the narration of this story, and it was light enough that it was easy to follow, even while wrapping frustratingly shaped gifts.
Magic seemed to unfurl slowly in this book, revealing a bit more of itself with each and every page, until we had a full-on magical mystery on our hands. I loved seeing these little glimpses of magic and power as we, and Robin were introduced to this new, dangerous world. The pacing of these revelations seemed to perfectly align with Robin and Edwin getting to know each other, big reveals lining up with big jumps in their closeness. It worked perfectly for me.
The magic itself was also quite intriguing, from how it was used by others to how it was treasured by Edwin. I also loved how the magic was done, and how preciseness lined up with how much magic one had to spare. There were harsh limitations to this magic as well, especially for those who had very little magic, like Edwin. The descriptions of magic, and it's various uses within the story, were also wonderful, and I loved seeing both the how and the why of different types of spells, and how different characters applied magic differently.
However, the thing that drew me into the story the quickest was the dynamic and relationship between Edwin and Robin. There was so much banter, and then so much soft pining and angst, and it all drew me in so much faster than the story itself originally did. I loved watching them tackle the mystery together, and how it brought them closer and closer. I can't wait to see what the rest of the series has in store for them, though it does seem like the next book will have different main characters (which I'm actually quite excited for!)
Overall, I greatly enjoyed this, and have already started recommending it to people I know would love it. I can't wait to read what's next!...more
I was ecstatic when I received an email asking if I wanted to read and review the latest McQuiston novel. I loved Red, White, and Royal Blue, just likI was ecstatic when I received an email asking if I wanted to read and review the latest McQuiston novel. I loved Red, White, and Royal Blue, just like everyone else, and even really enjoyed One Last Stop, even if less people loved that one. Also, I was curious what McQuiston's YA debut would read like, and how it would compare to the other two.
Admittedly, it did take me longer to get into this book at first, even though I did end up enjoying it a lot later. It felt quite derivative at first, like the John Green novels that the MC sometimes joked about, and it reminded me a lot of other books I had read before. Another big difference is that for most of the book, the main character and love interest don't really interact, since this book is about finding that love interest after she's disappeared. It makes for a much different dynamic and romantic set-up than the other two, and you learn a lot about the characters from past events, rather than new ones.
There's also a large cast when all the friends are accounted for, and it took a while to figure out who everyone was, and what they were like, because the MC mainly spends time with new characters, or by herself solving the mystery. So while the cast is as large as McQuiston's other books, the main character feels more isolated, and I didn't enjoy the story as much because of it. I also found myself frustrated by Chloe every once in a while, but I also get she's a teenager who's suddenly wrapped up in a mystery (and is slowly getting more and more obsessed with it), so some of her reactions and choices were logical from that frame.
However, as this book continued on, I found myself enjoying it more and more. Chloe became less isolated and the side characters started playing a larger role, and I found I enjoyed them a lot. I also feel like there were some important discussions going on about queerness and religion, and how it isn't as black and white as it's made to seem. There's plenty of bigotry and homophobia due to the religion present in the book, which is tough to read about at points, but I think the book handled it well in the end, and was able to isolate extremism from religion as a whole. I also like the angle the book took on the hometown, and how the characters learned that it wasn't all bad, just because a few parts of it were really messed up. It became about finding love and joy in where you are, where you can, and seeing how that can change your perspective.
I definitely feel like I would have been more obsessed with this had I been 15-17, so in that sense, I feel like this is a great book for the group it targets. I overall did still really enjoy it, and can't wait to see what the rest of the world thinks when it officially releases!...more
I was honestly super excited for this book, since I loved The Worst Best Man, but this just wasn't it for me. I couldn't get into the premise, and it I was honestly super excited for this book, since I loved The Worst Best Man, but this just wasn't it for me. I couldn't get into the premise, and it felt a lot more flimsy when compared to that of this series' first book.
The main issue I had with this book overall was that it never really grabbed me. It usually takes me days, if that, to finish a cute romance because of how swept up I got into it, but I found myself going days, or even a week, in between sporadic reading bursts of this book. At some point, I hit 65% and realized I still just wasn't into this story or these characters, and it just became so hard for me to finish. If this hadn't been an ARC, I probably would have DNFed it.
I think a lot of this book is probably to blame for my lack of interest. I never got behind the relationship between Solange and Dean, and while there were some cute moments, I overall just didn't feel it. The premise also felt weak overall, with so many fake dating schemes just spiraling out of control (not in a fun way). There were also a lot of odd scenes here and there that almost felt thrown in, and were either so out there I wasn't into them, or so cringy that it ruined any relationship growth that happened during it. The ending also just put the final nail in the coffin, and while I feel like it could've been a cute ending for different characters, it just didn't fit Dean and Solange and didn't properly show the growth they technically went through during this book.
While I wouldn't say this book put me off of other books Sosa might write, as I did really like Worst Best Man, I'll definitely be a bit more wary going into them. ...more
My opinion of this book is a weird one, because up until the very end, I was largely disappointed by this finale. I blame this largely on the pacing oMy opinion of this book is a weird one, because up until the very end, I was largely disappointed by this finale. I blame this largely on the pacing of everything, and had this been fixed, this book could have very easily been a 5-star finale (which is very tough to do!)
Another big issue going into this one is that due to the second book, I went in only really invested in Anton and Jude. I'd grown disinterested in the other POVs, so a lot needed to happen in this book to make me fully invested in every aspect again. And I had high hopes, since the second book ended with so much chaos happening, but with all the characters in the same place again. Unfortunately, the first 25% of this book is them once again being split up and trying to team back up (sort of, it's more that certain individuals want to save other certain individuals, and it turns out they all happen to be in the same place that they need to be saved from). It picked up once again after, when they're teamed up and have a solid plan, but when that plan unravels... the team splits up again. This constant splitting up means that over the course of this series, the group doesn't actually spend all that much time together, which makes some of their intense positive feelings about each other ring false, except for the few pairings or trios that did spend the majority of the books together (Illya and Ephrya, Anton and Jude, Ephyra and Beru, Beru and Hector, Hassan and Khepri). It was only those relationships that ever felt like they had any strength to it, especially since when the groups got larger, they couldn't stop fighting. We didn't see any true camaraderie until the final few chapters, which is where I started to really love this book.
The ending itself is what brought this book to 4 stars, rather than 3. I really enjoyed how it all went down, and it gave me back the same intense emotions as the ending of book 1 did. While the resolution to the overarching problems could've been better woven into the rest of the book, instead of one side character just spouting the solution on their deathbed, the solution itself did a good job of tying the story together, and further tying the characters themselves together as well. There was also enough sacrifice and change that it didn't feel just, miraculous that they ended up winning. It was a solid ending to the story overall, and I especially loved the extended epilogue. While it was an overall happy ending, it wasn't too perfect of a happy ending, and it showed how much work the world and characters still had to do, while still giving them some peace and respite after the hard events of the book.
Overall, there was a lot of potential in this series, and while I did enjoy it a lot overall, issues with pacing and character relationships (more so in the overall group rather than on an individual level) made the series not as great as I'd hoped. Anton and Jude were excellent, though, and their ending (and the lead up to it) made me cry so many times. I'll definitely be trying whatever this author writes next, and hope the issues I had with this series are resolved a bit more!...more
I haven't read either of these author's other books, so I was going into this one fully based on premise. It seemed an interesting one, and I always rI haven't read either of these author's other books, so I was going into this one fully based on premise. It seemed an interesting one, and I always really enjoy stories centered around competitions or 'games', as long as they're done well, of course.
This book definitely delivered. The competition remained the focal point of the story the whole way through, with all the POVs either focused on winning the competition or somehow trying to stop it. A story is always stronger when the characters are willing participants, or don't spend the entire book trying to simply escape the captivating setting they've found themselves in, and in this book, each and every character seemed invested and willing to participate, if on their own terms.
I really liked the cast of characters that this book had, even if it took me a while to like some of them. While all the POVs are fairly dominating personalities, it still ended up working together really well. I also like that the authors really stuck with the darkness of the competition and the idea of raising your kid to kill other kids later, and you could really see how that childhood impacted the characters. They were willing to kill if it meant the progression of their own goals, whatever that happened to be. The motivations of the characters themselves were also so varied that it never felt like you were reading the same thoughts and feelings over and over, as everyone had their own reasons for wanting to win and be the last one standing.
One thing I want to note is that I have been seeing this book being advertised as LGBTQ+, and while this is true in a sense, it's not a large part of the story at all. One character makes a few references to the fact that he's bi, and appreciates another guy in an aesthetic sense, but none of the relationships (past or present) in the story are queer (that we know of yet), and the character who is bi doesn't have a relationship in this book (nor seemingly even a love interest for later books). So while this is definitely not a straight cast, I wouldn't recommend it to someone specifically looking for a queer book.
In the end, I did really enjoy this, and I can't wait to see what happens after that mess of an ending. I'm certainly invested now!...more
While I did enjoy this, it just didn't quite live up to my expectations from the first book, unfortunately.
The main thing that this book suffers from,While I did enjoy this, it just didn't quite live up to my expectations from the first book, unfortunately.
The main thing that this book suffers from, for me at least, is unbalanced POVs. It's very hard to get a multi-POV book where all the various POVs are just as interesting, but this wasn't even close. At some point I really only cared about Anton and Jude (or, those were by far more interesting than the others), and I was lucky they both had their own POV so at least 2/5 remained interesting. I think their dynamic and romance was just a lot more interesting than what the other characters had going on, and the plot they were following also held my interest more than that of Hassan, Ephyra, and Beru. While overall I can appreciate what was happening with each individual character, and the paths they were going down, I really was only able to connect with Jude and Anton. Ephyra, Hassan, and Beru were definitely interesting, but felt almost farther away, in terms of me connecting with them. I liked thinking about what was going on, but it didn't make me feel as much.
I did enjoy when they finally started coming together again, which was another downside of this book. I loved that in book 1, the groupings of these characters kept on switching, and we got to see them slowly grow together at different moments. In this book, they're much more isolated overall, being stuck with the same group of people the entire time. It isn't until the very end that they start grouping up again.
However, I did really like how the plot was furthered in this book, and how the overall picture of it seemed to grow much clearer in this book. We had gods and prophets and the secrets kept between them, and there were just enough twists and reveals to keep you fully invested the entire time. These twists also didn't just come out of thin air, and I loved seeing the build-up of it releasing into a massive revelation that changed the shape of the story each time.
Overall I enjoyed this, and while I am still excited about the final book, I hope it fixes the balance of characters a bit more....more
This book was a lot, and not in a good way. It's kind of disappointing because I felt like it had a really strong start, but it just didn't follow thrThis book was a lot, and not in a good way. It's kind of disappointing because I felt like it had a really strong start, but it just didn't follow through for me (or followed through way too much).
I love betrayals in thrillers, especially when they keep you so unsure of the side characters around the MC (and sometimes even unsure of the MC themselves), that you also have no idea who to trust, and what's going to happen next. This book definitely achieved that, but unfortunately, it just kept on going beyond that. It overshot the mark of 'uncomfortably aware of how untrustworthy everyone is' straight on to 'I can't even keep track of it all anymore, so what does it even matter.' It was here the book fully lost me, as the confusion could've made me enjoy the book even beyond the other issues I had with it.
I think I overall liked having LGBTQ+ history and issues being the core of this book, even beyond just having a few queer characters, but it felt a little heavy-handed at points too. I like that our main character struggled with the morality of the situation he found himself in, and that the book tried to tackle the 'is it really a crime if the victim deserved it?' without leaning too far into victim-blaming, but sadly this dilemma was solved by just making the villain commit crimes against innocents too, thereby nullifying any potential for him to be empathized with.
I also felt mildly uncomfortable the entire time due to the many minor/adult relationships/romantic or sexual encounters in this book, and while the book sort of tries to wrap this up properly in the end, the middle either ignored the ramifications of it too much or weirdly worded it. It wasn't even until the end that the MC really admitted there was something wrong with these relationships, and his role as a victim in them, which can be fair enough on it's own. However, it's coupled with the main character's friends constantly talking about how he's reckless and constantly getting himself into these difficult situations (often being relationships/encounters with older men) that sometimes came off as victim-blamey, and this was never really reconciled. I definitely feel like this aspect was done better than in some other books I've read, but I still didn't like it.
Overall, this book was a wild ride, and I feel like it could've been a pretty good read if it just toned it down a little bit more. I'm generally able to suspend disbelief in these sorts of stories, but there's always that tipping point where I go 'oh come on, that's just too much now', and unfortunately this book shot straight past that....more
I honestly probably would have never tried this had it not been for a bunch of my friends enjoying, and in the end I'm glad I did!
I was definitely putI honestly probably would have never tried this had it not been for a bunch of my friends enjoying, and in the end I'm glad I did!
I was definitely put off at first by Piper, since she seemed so shallow, and I was honestly worried it was going to take a while for her to grow on me. However, right as I was sharing these worries with my friends, she began to show more and more depth, and I quickly became attached. I'm still surprised by how fast this switched for me. I ended up liking Piper a lot overall, even though some of the scenes at the beginning are still questionable, and I loved the growth and transformation she went through during this book, without the story necessarily focusing on Piper changing herself wholly as a person. She learned more what matters to her, without giving up the girly, sparkly aspects of herself.
The love interest, Brendan, was a bit grumpy and callous at first, but this quickly shifted too. I liked the dynamic between the two a lot, and how they both forced the other to open up to new experiences and ways of looking at the world. In the end, both Brendan and Piper were stuck in their ways/world views, and meeting each other and learning from each other caused both of them to open up more and grow. It was really nice to see as the book progressed. There were some miscommunication/hiding secrets that were frustrating at times, but for the most part this was actually okay in this one, and the climax + ending didn't annoy me as much as they sometimes do in romances like this. It felt overall more like a huge misunderstanding that wasn't wholly the fault of either party, which made their resolution at the end of book still feel real, rather than hollow and weak.
Overall, while this won't necessarily be a favorite romance of mine, I still did really enjoy this, and can't wait to continue the series!...more
This book felt like such a chaotic mess and it didn't work for me at all.
A large part of my dislike for this book stems from not liking the main charThis book felt like such a chaotic mess and it didn't work for me at all.
A large part of my dislike for this book stems from not liking the main character at all (not in the sense of 'wow she's so dislikable on purpose' but more just, not caring for her being the main point of view at all). I understand her intense survival tendencies and how that developed due to the trauma she faced, but it felt so overdone at points, and she also quickly lost all her planning skills? Like I did enjoy seeing how intensely she paid attention to how she walked, people around her, and her escape plans, but it all got thrown out of the window so quickly, and she sort of flipped as a character after that. She started just running around and accusing everyone, and I feel like at some point she stopped thinking and only started doing. In a sense, it was interesting to see how her carefully planned life and personality completely fell apart when things actually go wrong, but it was such a dramatic shift that it almost felt like two different characters.
I also felt like the plot itself was quite all over the place, and fell into the mystery/thriller trap of 'the only person the MC never even considered is actually the evil one.' Like I get that's a shocking twist, but at the same time that starts to become predictable in its own sense.
I do have to commend the book for it's absolutely disgusting descriptions of some of these massacres that stil vividly remain in my head. Didn't enjoy it at all, but it was well-written there at least.
I think I would have enjoyed this more had the side characters played a larger role, because I did like the larger idea of a final girl support group, but alas they do spend almost the entire book split it and it's mainly just Lynne, the one character in the group I didn't really care for at all.
I don't think I'll be trying another one of this author's books if they're anything like this, and honestly, I have a large enough tbr anyways,...more
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