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beckykphillips's reviews
366 reviews
Nicked by M.T. Anderson
adventurous
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Nicked based on an actual heist in 1086 for the body of Saint Nicholas as a plague swept through the town of Bari. Nicephorous is a monk who dreams of Saint Nicholas, and quite reluctantly agrees to go steal Saint Nicholas' bones with Tyun, a famed thief, and his companion, the dog-faced man, Reprobus. What follows is a high stakes and high seas heist for the ages.
This book was a fun read and was very cinematic - I could see how this could all play out in a movie. The depth of the main characters and their backstory was fun, as well as the lush descriptions of everything from ships to crypts. As a side note, never have I been more grateful for the dictionary feature on my kindle as there were several very specific words that I'd never seen before! I also very much enjoyed the Saint Nicholas moralism stories that are peppered in throughout the book and then seeing how it connects with the main story.
Thank you to NetGalley and Pantheon for the advanced copy.
This book was a fun read and was very cinematic - I could see how this could all play out in a movie. The depth of the main characters and their backstory was fun, as well as the lush descriptions of everything from ships to crypts. As a side note, never have I been more grateful for the dictionary feature on my kindle as there were several very specific words that I'd never seen before! I also very much enjoyed the Saint Nicholas moralism stories that are peppered in throughout the book and then seeing how it connects with the main story.
Thank you to NetGalley and Pantheon for the advanced copy.
How Y'All Doing?: Misadventures and Mischief from a Life Well Lived by Leslie Jordan
emotional
funny
hopeful
fast-paced
5.0
This was such an incredibly lovely memoir and I really enjoyed how Leslie read it, I don't think I'd want to experience it in any other way. Throughout the book, he sings a bit, and his intonation in general is just so perfect. The ending made me incredibly sad that he passed so soon, he is truly a lovely human being and I appreciated going back in time with him for a bit. I highly recommend the audiobook to anyone who was even a passing fan.
Evocation by S.T. Gibson
adventurous
dark
emotional
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? Yes
4.0
This was such a fun book - really enjoyed getting to know Rhys, Moira, and David and seeing their relationship deepen and evolve. I don’t think I’ve experienced another book where polyamory is explored so tenderly and in this way and I really enjoyed it. Mixing in rituals and secret societies made it even more fun and I just love anything S. T. Gibson has to offer!
Revenants by Mel C. Bell
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
I fully understand that this is a novella, however, there was just too much going on for any of the characters or plot points to get the development that was needed to flesh out the story.
Revenants starts off with a zombie horde coming for the cabin that Maddie and Pa live in and things just go off from there. In the span of a few pages, Pa is dead and Maddie realizes that she's likely the product of her dad raping her mom, who had died by suicide several years previous. I felt like that was a lot to drop in without any additional exploration. I think if this could be developed further or expanded there is definitely something there, but as-is, was a tough read for me despite its brevity.
Thank you very much to NetGalley and BDA Publishing for the advanced copy.
Revenants starts off with a zombie horde coming for the cabin that Maddie and Pa live in and things just go off from there. In the span of a few pages, Pa is dead and Maddie realizes that she's likely the product of her dad raping her mom, who had died by suicide several years previous. I felt like that was a lot to drop in without any additional exploration. I think if this could be developed further or expanded there is definitely something there, but as-is, was a tough read for me despite its brevity.
Thank you very much to NetGalley and BDA Publishing for the advanced copy.
The Most by Jessica Anthony
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
The Most truly punches above its weight - a slim 140 pages, but the portraits of our two main characters are incredibly detailed. The novel volleys between Kathleen (Kathy) and Virgil, a married couple with two kids who recently moved to Delaware in the 1950s. Kathy skips church on a hot Sunday in November and spends the whole day in the pool while Virgil golfs with his work buddies. While the premise may sound banal, The Most is anything but. We are treated to intimate portraits of both Kathy and Virgil and how they've come to this juncture in their life. As the story unfolds, we learn that they could not be more different people - Kathy was a driven, competitive tennis player, while Virgil floated along in life and only snapped out of it after his impending marriage.
They both have fucked around, but will they find out?
The writing in The Most is incredible, you get such a good sense of the struggles of the times and the societal pressures put on Kathy...and how they are not really put on Virgil. I also love a good open-ended ending and will be pondering how these two will live their lives after confronting all of their many questionable decisions. The only thing I didn't quite jive with was the references to Sputnik, but I'm hoping that will mesh more on a re-read.
Thank you very much to NetGalley and Little, Brown and Company for the copy.
They both have fucked around, but will they find out?
The writing in The Most is incredible, you get such a good sense of the struggles of the times and the societal pressures put on Kathy...and how they are not really put on Virgil. I also love a good open-ended ending and will be pondering how these two will live their lives after confronting all of their many questionable decisions. The only thing I didn't quite jive with was the references to Sputnik, but I'm hoping that will mesh more on a re-read.
Thank you very much to NetGalley and Little, Brown and Company for the copy.
The God of the Woods by Liz Moore
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
The God of the Woods starts out at a summer camp in the summer of 1975 when Barbara Van Laar, the daughter of the wealthy family who owns the camp and the surrounding estate, goes missing. Through three decades and eight different perspectives, Liz Moore unfurls a masterful, multi-layered mystery that explores the impact of class and privilege.
When I started out, I had a hard time keeping track of the cast of characters and how everything and everyone intersects. On the face of it, there is a lot going on, but I quickly eased into the flow and the world of Camp Emerson and the Van Laar Preserve. The character development throughout the story was very well done - I enjoyed seeing through Judyta and her struggles as she comes into her own as an investigator. Delving into Louise's background and how her story ended was particularly satisfying. Although TJ wasn't a perspective character, she was one that I found myself thinking about the most and how integral she was overall to the Van Laar children.
While I enjoyed how the mystery played out, some of the false directions felt off right away. In particular, the threads on TJ and Vic being involved nefariously, which made it less believable for me and took me out of the story a bit. I also didn't fully understand where the fear with Bear and his grandfather was meant to go and it felt slightly unresolved. However, the final turns were well built up and the ending was incredible satisfying.
Overall, I would definitely recommend this to anyone looking for a layered mystery and is willing to dive into a full cast of characters. Thank you very much to NetGalley and Riverhead Books for the advanced copy.
When I started out, I had a hard time keeping track of the cast of characters and how everything and everyone intersects. On the face of it, there is a lot going on, but I quickly eased into the flow and the world of Camp Emerson and the Van Laar Preserve. The character development throughout the story was very well done - I enjoyed seeing through Judyta and her struggles as she comes into her own as an investigator. Delving into Louise's background and how her story ended was particularly satisfying. Although TJ wasn't a perspective character, she was one that I found myself thinking about the most and how integral she was overall to the Van Laar children.
While I enjoyed how the mystery played out, some of the false directions felt off right away. In particular, the threads on TJ and Vic being involved nefariously, which made it less believable for me and took me out of the story a bit. I also didn't fully understand where the fear with Bear and his grandfather was meant to go and it felt slightly unresolved. However, the final turns were well built up and the ending was incredible satisfying.
Overall, I would definitely recommend this to anyone looking for a layered mystery and is willing to dive into a full cast of characters. Thank you very much to NetGalley and Riverhead Books for the advanced copy.
The Memo by Lauren Mechling, Rachel Dodes
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
The Memo is a cautionary tale combo of the grass is always greener and be careful what you wish for. We follow Jenny as she receives a life changing memo after she goes back for her college reunion. The memo is supposed to help Jenny usher in a new life by righting all of her past mistakes and poor decisions, getting her back on the #girlboss track she was destined to be on.
Maybe because I’ve already had these sorts of daydreams and have been working on feeling fulfilled with where I am and not what could have been, the book just didn’t hit for me. The entire time I found myself frustrated with Jenny for giving up on her friends and the objectively other good things in her life. I cringed as she followed the memo directives and further isolated herself from her loved ones that had stuck by her all this time.
Thank you very much to NetGalley and Harper Perrenial for the advanced copy.
Maybe because I’ve already had these sorts of daydreams and have been working on feeling fulfilled with where I am and not what could have been, the book just didn’t hit for me. The entire time I found myself frustrated with Jenny for giving up on her friends and the objectively other good things in her life. I cringed as she followed the memo directives and further isolated herself from her loved ones that had stuck by her all this time.
Thank you very much to NetGalley and Harper Perrenial for the advanced copy.
Leather & Lark by Brynne Weaver
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Bury Your Gays by Chuck Tingle
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
tense
fast-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? Yes
5.0
If you are even horror-curious, get yourself this book and settle in for an incredible ride. Bury Your Gays is Chuck Tingle's second horror novel, after Camp Damascus (which was also fantastic and I also highly recommend). It centers on Misha Burns, a closeted screenwriter, who has just been nominated for an Oscar for his live action short. Despite his success, he finds himself fighting with the studio executives over their desire to have him kill off two gay characters in his TV show. Things...go haywire from there. Along the way, we meet his partner, Zeek, and his best friend, Tara.
This is one of the best horror books I have ever read - you get a sampling of everything here, we get ghosts, we get body horror, we get creepy aliens, bad robots! Most importantly, a incisive commentary on the intersection of queer culture and capitalism. The real enemy is unchecked capitalism and monetizing trauma.
I listened to this as an audiobook, and the narration is outstanding. André Santana voices the majority of the novel and truly brings it to life. There are a few scenes that are also written as screen plays and we get some guest narrators from the likes of Mara Wilson and T. Kingfisher, which was a real treat.
Thank you so much to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the advanced copy.
This is one of the best horror books I have ever read - you get a sampling of everything here, we get ghosts, we get body horror, we get creepy aliens, bad robots! Most importantly, a incisive commentary on the intersection of queer culture and capitalism. The real enemy is unchecked capitalism and monetizing trauma.
I listened to this as an audiobook, and the narration is outstanding. André Santana voices the majority of the novel and truly brings it to life. There are a few scenes that are also written as screen plays and we get some guest narrators from the likes of Mara Wilson and T. Kingfisher, which was a real treat.
Thank you so much to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the advanced copy.
Hip-Hop Is History by Questlove
emotional
informative
medium-paced
5.0
I truly cannot think of anyone better as a guide to 50 years of Hip-Hop than Questlove. He provides not only an incredibly detailed history of the genre, but also makes it personal to him and his relationship to Hip-Hop. Among many of the incredible anecdotes, one of my favorites was that Questlove found J. Cole’s iPhone in 2013 in the parking lot of a gas station across from a McDonald’s in Montauk. He tells the history in 5 year cycles spanning the very beginning in the 70's up through 2023. His thesis throughout is that "history is about cycles - ideas are born, run their course, and die or give way to afterlife."
Even though I would consider myself more of a casual fan, I learned so much and this book has made me want to start delving back into the beginnings and everything that I have missed in between. I highly recommend for anyone with an interest in the genre, you will end up learning so much and coming out with a new appreciation for Hip-Hop and Questlove.
Thank you to NetGalley and Farrar, Straus and Giroux for the advanced copy.
Even though I would consider myself more of a casual fan, I learned so much and this book has made me want to start delving back into the beginnings and everything that I have missed in between. I highly recommend for anyone with an interest in the genre, you will end up learning so much and coming out with a new appreciation for Hip-Hop and Questlove.
Thank you to NetGalley and Farrar, Straus and Giroux for the advanced copy.