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dododenise's reviews
394 reviews
Aces Wild: A Heist by Amanda DeWitt
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
This was a weird book. It was a heist, but a very underwhelming heist. Maybe I’m used to the kind of heists from fantasy books that are a lot more epic and intricate.
I did not like Jack, and his whole plan of revenge seemed a little too unreasonable to me. I did, however, really like the other characters. They were very fun and my highlight of the book. And we love a lot of ace representation.
The ending was a bit disappointing as well. I thought, after the rest not being that epic yet, the finale would be more mind blowing than it ended up being.
I think I can summarise this book by falling a little flat.
I did not like Jack, and his whole plan of revenge seemed a little too unreasonable to me. I did, however, really like the other characters. They were very fun and my highlight of the book. And we love a lot of ace representation.
The ending was a bit disappointing as well. I thought, after the rest not being that epic yet, the finale would be more mind blowing than it ended up being.
I think I can summarise this book by falling a little flat.
Lose You to Find Me by Erik J. Brown
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
I don’t know about this one. For most of this book, it did not do all that much.
Tommy was annoying. Gabe wasn’t that great either. Ava, Al, and Willa were legends. I like that the book decided to subvert the initial expectations and went the route I wanted it to go, so that is definitely a big plus for me. Yet, most of this book just was not that exciting, and sometimes even tiring and annoying.
Tommy was annoying. Gabe wasn’t that great either. Ava, Al, and Willa were legends. I like that the book decided to subvert the initial expectations and went the route I wanted it to go, so that is definitely a big plus for me. Yet, most of this book just was not that exciting, and sometimes even tiring and annoying.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic relationship and Death of parent
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury
Bloom by Kevin Panetta
4.5
Very sweet graphic novel and it turned out to be more serious than I expected it to be. There were lot of identity crisis and toxic friendship themes which I did not expect in a book that was advertised to me as the wholesome baking romance (although that is also what it is).
Content Warnings
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury and Toxic friendship
The Red Scholar's Wake by Aliette de Bodard
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
That was a whole lot of meh. This book did nothing good, but also nothing really bad. I ended up dragging myself through this book. Since there was nothing truly bad about it I didn’t want to dnf it.
I tried, but I ended up not caring about anything. Not the characters, the relationships, the plot, or world building did anything exciting. I did not care about any of it. The world building was severely lacking. It was way too vague for me and I don’t think I really understand how this world works. The main relationship was doing the steps, but the meat all around it was missing, so it did not make a whole lot of sense to me and I did not feel anything for them. You cannot tell this kind of love story and not fill it with a lot for if you want it to blossom into the interesting relationship this kind of trope provides. The plot was boring. At no point was I invested.
Perhaps I should have stopped reading this book, but I also knew I was still hoping the book would get to me. The right tropes are there for me to like it, but in the end the execution was not doing it for me.
I tried, but I ended up not caring about anything. Not the characters, the relationships, the plot, or world building did anything exciting. I did not care about any of it. The world building was severely lacking. It was way too vague for me and I don’t think I really understand how this world works. The main relationship was doing the steps, but the meat all around it was missing, so it did not make a whole lot of sense to me and I did not feel anything for them. You cannot tell this kind of love story and not fill it with a lot for if you want it to blossom into the interesting relationship this kind of trope provides. The plot was boring. At no point was I invested.
Perhaps I should have stopped reading this book, but I also knew I was still hoping the book would get to me. The right tropes are there for me to like it, but in the end the execution was not doing it for me.
What If It's Us by Adam Silvera, Becky Albertalli
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
This really wasn’t all that great. For two of the OG queer YA authors to collab I hoped for more. The two main characters were just lacking for me. I didn’t like them all that much, especially Arthur. Their chemistry was mediocre. The moment they found each other I stopped rooting for them.
And then there’s the endless Harry Potter references… Oh has that aged poorly.
And then there’s the endless Harry Potter references… Oh has that aged poorly.
Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation: Mo Dao Zu Shi (Novel) Vol. 2 by Mo Xiang Tong Xiu
3.0
This took me so much longer than it should have.
I love Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji, but the plot with all the political intrigue and other characters are doing very little for me. Are 20 pages of character focused content really worth reading the entire book?
I love Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji, but the plot with all the political intrigue and other characters are doing very little for me. Are 20 pages of character focused content really worth reading the entire book?
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Violence, and Blood
More Happy Than Not by Adam Silvera
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
I almost stopped reading the book in the beginning but then Thomas showed up and I was hooked. Aaron is not an easy protagonist, and I never really liked him. What I thought most when reading this book was “Thomas and Genevieve deserve better”.
This book does a surprising amount with the number of pages it has. Yet, as someone who enjoys speculative fiction and dystopia I do wish the mind altering aspect of the story was explored more beyond the scope of what it could and could not do for Aaron.
This book does a surprising amount with the number of pages it has. Yet, as someone who enjoys speculative fiction and dystopia I do wish the mind altering aspect of the story was explored more beyond the scope of what it could and could not do for Aaron.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Dementia, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, and Alcohol
Minor: Sexual content and Pregnancy
Stage Dreams by Melanie Gillman
adventurous
hopeful
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.5
Pretty cute. Love that this comic gave minorities in US history a story. I would’ve loved some more depth though, both in the plot and the characters.