Rating: 3/5 | My overall impression is that this book has a classic but compelling fantasy plot, but I wish everything had been more fully developed. There wasn't much world-building in the beginning and the characters are not very complex, but I can feel their potential. I hope that the second and third books in the series add to the world's depth more effectively and make the characters nice and round. However, the book's simplicity does make it a quick read. (Click the post to read more.)

Rating: 4/5 | I picked up this book because it contains one of my favorite quotes. In fact, I even chose it as a reading at my wedding (with a few omissions). I had high hopes that the rest of the book would contain passages as beautiful as this one, and I was not disappointed. Louis de Bernieres is a language artist. (Click the post to read more.)

Rating: 4.5/5 | This book was exactly the YA fantasy adventure I was looking for. It was exciting and fast-paced, with a captivating universe. The world-building did move quickly in the first chapter or two, but I know there are other books in this universe that chronologically precede Six of Crows, and I have not read them. I caught on fast enough, though. (Click the post to read more.)

Rating: 4/5 | As a general rule, I don't critique classics. I will, however, gladly offer commentary on my experiences reading them. I hadn't read anything by Kafka before, including "The Metamorphosis." Needless to say, Kafka is weird. (Click the post to read more.)

Rating: 5/5 | This book was not really comfortable, but it was important. In the story, which was developed after Picoult conducted extensive interviews with both Black people as well as former white supremacists, a white supremacist father goes after a Black nurse over the death of his baby. And the world lets him. (Click the post to read more.)

Rating: 4/5 | I adore this series so far. Of course I have loved every book out of the Percy Jackson universe, but The Trials of Apollo is proving especially delightful. It has the same energetic, youthful adventure as the others, and it always manages to teach me something new about mythology. But it is also absolutely hilarious. (Click the post to read more.)

Rating: 4/5 | This was an engaging, fast-paced book that kept me not quite on the edge of my seat, but certainly far from resting comfortably back in it. There weren't really any slow moments, and I was always eager to see what would happen next. It was a quick read without feeling shallow, and I truly enjoyed it. (Click the post to read more.)

Rating: 3/5 | Surprisingly, this was my first time reading Mark Twain; I somehow never crossed paths with him while I was in school. Going into the book, the only story I knew was the famous tale about Tom tricking his neighborhood friends into painting the fence for him—profitably. (Click the post to read more.)

Rating: 5/5 (obviously) | I have read (or listened to) the Harry Potter books many, many times. Countless times. I have no idea how many times. But I have never before experienced the story like I did during this re-read: listening to Jim Dale's audiobook performance while reading along with the breathtaking new illustrated edition. And I highly recommend. (Click the post to read more.)

Rating: 4.5/5 | This book was beautiful. As someone who loves language and all that comes with it (reading, writing, grammar, vocabulary...), a story featuring characters who also love language was both welcome and lovely. I read it in one day, and even though it is a translation from Japanese, every word seems to be selected with great care...as you'd expect. (Click the post to read more.)

Rating: 4.5/5 | I read Who Fears Death and was absolutely blown away. The Book of Phoenix did not disappoint me! It wasn't long, but it was excellent. I read it in a single day. (Click the post to read more.)

Rating: 5/5 | This book will change the way I see the world forever. It is a genre so different and yet so similar to those I have read before, but it made such an impression on me. I am going to read everything Nnedi Okorafor has ever written, because it will make my world better and deeper. How many books can you say have done that for you? Few for me. I cannot recommend it to you highly enough. (Click the post to read more.)

Rating: 5/5 | How can I critique Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and Sherlock Holmes? I can't. He is brilliant and timeless.I had a lot of fun making my way through these stories. In fact, I read a lot of them while I was running on the treadmill (not as hard as it sounds, haha). (Click the post to read more.)

Rating: 2/5 | This book did keep me on the edge of my seat, but I'm actually pretty upset that I spent time reading it. What a disappointment. It was set up to be a great save-the-world-from-apocalypse story, but instead I walked away feeling lectured. It makes you think, but it's also a bit hysterical. (Click the post to read more.)

Rating: 4/5 | I am somewhat torn on this book. I actually had two different friends (who don't know each other at all) tell me that they purposefully slowed down as they approached the end because they didn't want to finish it yet. I did enjoy and appreciate Pachinko, but I didn't quite get to that point. (Click the post to read more.)

Rating: 5/5 | This book offers a perspective on the refugee crisis happening today. It never mentions the nationality or religion of the characters by name, but these details can be easily inferred. And yes, it uses a magical element—the doors that transport you elsewhere in the world—but it's not a fantasy book. Instead, these magical doors serve as a device by which Hamid emphasizes the experiences of his characters: that "elsewhere" offers hope, but for a refugee, it's hard to feel welcome anywhere. (Click the post to read more.)

Rating: 5/5 | I worked at Barnes & Noble as a temp employee for last year's holiday season (which was awesome!). During one of my shifts, a coworker pulled The Final Empire off the shelf, shoved it at me, and said, "Read this." I am so glad that I listened! This was my first experience with Brandon Sanderson, but I have absolutely come to understand why he is such a fantasy powerhouse. (Click the post to read more.)

Rating: 4.5/5 | My sister bought me this book for my birthday so that I could read it on the beach during my honeymoon. I wouldn't really call it a "beach read," as it was heavy and complex, but it was definitely worthy of being read. (Click the post to read more.)

Rating: 4.5/5 | A fantasy book with a heroine who loves libraries and studies history. What more could you want? Harkness does a great job of keeping the witches/vampires/daemons thing far from cheesy. It took a while to set everything up, but as the story is quite complex, that wasn't terrible. (Click the post to read more.)

Rating: 5/5 | This book is one of the greatest dark horses of my life. My mother bought it for me many years ago, and I have re-read it several times since then. I also lend it to friends whenever I can, and they always love it as well. (Click the post to read more.)