annaki_laila's reviews
162 reviews

Aristotle and Dante Dive Into the Waters of the World by Benjamin Alire Sáenz

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emotional hopeful reflective sad fast-paced

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

5.0

Impossibly, it's even better than the first book. Beautiful, just so beautiful.

Content Warnings

The Little Stranger by Sarah Waters

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mysterious slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

A gothic novel that forgets it's supposed to be a gothic novel. The first third is promising, the supernatural elements begin to appear and the suspense is there. Then halfway through, the narrator swiftly becomes unlikeable as he initiates a relationship with one of the main characters (with an age gap of over a decade and some generally uncomfortable vibes). The relationship should've been a subplot at most, but it begins to take up far too many pages, and as it continues the narrator just gets more and more selfish and irritating. I began skim-reading some parts at this point because there were so many pages of stuff that was annoying and unrelated to the whole supernatural plot. Having finished the book now, I can safely say that the relationship being romantic was unnecessary. Whatever overarching points about class were being made (which weren't as strong as I thought they'd be based on the blurb anyway) could've been made with the relationship being purely platonic. Anyway!! Rant over, save your time and probably just don't read this book, or read it with lowered expectations, because it really doesn't contain much 'gripping' or 'chilling' content like the blurb describes.

Content Warnings

Girls of Paper and Fire by Natasha Ngan

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dark hopeful 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? No

4.5

Content Warnings

The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams

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reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

Content Warnings

Truthwitch by Susan Dennard

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Did not finish book. Stopped at 21%.

I was under no illusion that this book would be amazing because it's one I bought a while ago and therefore probably not to my current tastes... but I am surprised I couldn't finish it. I barely care for the characters and the exposition doesn't flow nicely which is really crucial in high fantasy, and the style of writing is just a bit bland.

The Hidden Life of Trees: What They Feel, How They Communicate by Peter Wohlleben

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informative relaxing slow-paced

4.0

Trick Mirror: Reflections on Self-Delusion by Jia Tolentino

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hopeful informative reflective medium-paced

4.5

Beloved by Toni Morrison

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dark emotional slow-paced