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All in Fiction
Rating: 4/5 | This was the conclusion I knew would be excellent, the reason I read the first two books. This one flew by faster than the first or the second did; I read it in less than 36 hours. (Click the post to read more.)
Rating: 4/5 | Wow. There is so, so much to unpack from this book. It was an incredibly poignant and purposefully uncomfortable look at so many things—marriage, love, parenting, friendship, race, manhood. I will be thinking about this one for a long time. (Click the post to read more.)
Rating: 3.75/5 | Here's the summary of how I feel about these books so far: Alina is super dumb and makes me want to punch her, but the magic system is really unique, and the plot has drawn me in. (Click the post to read more.)
Rating: 3.75/5 | I entered the world of Leigh Bardugo via the Six of Crows duology, which I loved. Friends promised that the Shadow and Bone trilogy wouldn't disappoint. The first book started slowly, but once it took off, it really drew me in. (Click the post to read more.)
Rating: 4/5 | Call Me By Your Name was lyrical prose at its best. Aciman has written a masterpiece that rings with emotion, youth, and passion, both the good and the bad. (Click the post to read more.)
Rating: 4.5/5 | At this point in the Ember series, I knew what I was getting into. I knew this book was going to grab me and not let go. And it didn't disappoint. (Click the post to read more.)
Rating: 5/5 | So often, the second book of a series is the most boring, or the most uncomfortable. It's the bridge between the excitement at the beginning and the end. I'm happy to say that this is not the case with A Torch Against the Night. It had some second-book elements, but it was done in a way that didn't make them feel tedious or painful. Instead, it's engaging, answers small questions while raising bigger ones, and draws you in so that you can't escape no matter what you do. (Click the post to read more.)
Rating: 4/5 | This book was really, really good. There was a good amount of world-building to do, so the first few chapters were complex and slower than the rest. But for good reason: Once I hit a certain point, I took off and never looked back until I hit the end of book 3 (only because book 4 isn't out yet). (Click the post to read more.)
Rating: 4.5/5 | I. LOVE. RICK. RIORDAN. Every time I read one of his books, I vow to be more critical and resist giving him yet another high-star review. I don't know why I do this. He never disappoints me. I am always entertained and even a bit moved. (Click the post to read more.)
Rating: 3/5 | This book was good, although it didn't blow me away. I love retellings and stories told by strong female characters, and this was both. I think perhaps if I were a mother, it would have resonated more with me. Nevertheless, it was an entertaining read and I encourage you to give it a shot. (Click the post to read more.)
Rating: 5/5 | This review is brought to you in partnership with "I may never recover" and "Why did that have to end?" That was SO BEAUTIFUL! I finished it at 6:30 AM (I'm an early bird) and subsequently dissolved into a puddle as I got ready for work—in the best way, of course. (Click the post to read more.)
Rating: 5/5 | This book was absolutely beautiful—like music. The characters were lovable and flawed, the language was lyrical, the metaphors and themes were perfectly balanced. I didn't want it to end!
Rating: 4.5/5 | Furyborn was a really great read. The universe is unique and intriguing, and the women are strong and relatively complex. I never felt like the story was dragging, and I definitely didn't want it to end. (Click the post to read more.)
Rating: 5/5 | Circe was excellent. Miller's use of language is masterful, the story is unique and attention-grabbing, and the combination of the two is powerful. (Click the post to read more.)
Rating: 4.25/5 | Lincoln in the Bardo is unlike any novel I have ever read. In fact, the format is entirely unique. But it's perfectly suited to the story (or, perhaps more appropriately, stories) Saunders spins. It left me feeling a little hypnotized, somewhat reverent, entirely intrigued, and hungry for more. (Click the post to read more.)
Rating: 4/5 | Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine had been on my TBR list for so long that when it was my turn to read it, I had completely forgotten that I'd been on the library waitlist. I'm so glad to have finally experienced Eleanor! I was charmed by her in the first few pages, and by the end, she had my heart. (Click the post to read more.)
Rating: 4.25/5 | The Last Equation of Isaac Severy was a masterfully done mystery. Somehow a relatively light read despite the dark subject matter, the book was really enjoyable and kept me guessing throughout. Jacobs' clues are perfect—some you pick up on right away and others are harder to spot—and I felt like I caught on exactly when she wanted me to. (Click the post to read more.)
Rating: 3.25/5 | This is your typical story featuring a girl who has lived her life as a misfit, was adopted because her parents "died in a car crash" when she was young, doesn't realize she has superpowers, gets to school to discover she has SUPER superpowers (hmmm...about those parents?), bands with a group of other misfits to solve a giant mystery...you know the type. That being said, as far as those stories go, this one was pretty good. So if those are your usual jam, you'll probably enjoy School for Psychics. (Click the post to read more.)
Rating: 4/5 | The Night Masquerade concludes the Binti trilogy, and I couldn't wait to read it. The first two books were engaging, entirely unique, and full of sociological depth. I was not disappointed by the third. It was an ending that I couldn't have predicted, although now it makes perfect sense. I felt like I grew alongside Binti, understanding her struggles and learning her lessons. (Click the post to read more.)
Rating: 4.5/5 | The City of Brass has absolutely everything you're looking for in the first book of a fantasy trilogy: a beautiful AU with rich history, languages, politics, magic systems, and longtime oppression; a willful female lead who comes from nothing to rise to badass-ness; a devilishly handsome, super strong warrior love interest who is maybe not the greatest person ever but oh gosh you love him; a corrupt but genius and conniving king who is hard to outsmart; and a young rebel prince who knows what's right and is bound to bust out of his shell soon to help save the world. (Click the post to read more.)
