joinreallife's reviews
1379 reviews

Oh this was so much fun. I'm a big fan of Osman on Taskmaster and House of Games and so forth as I watch British panel shows often on Youtube. I'd been hearing a lot of buzz about this, and I just really enjoyed the reading experience. Zipped through it in a few hours, laughed out loud at several points, just a note-perfect cozy mystery for me. The pacing worked well, the twists and turns were many but not to an annoying degree, and I was always kept guessing. The characters have strong found family vibes, which is so rare to find with pensioner-age leads. (Or maybe I'M just not looking in the right places.) Also really scratched the itch for me as I've recently been rewatching Murder, She Wrote. The balance of strengths of the four members of the Thursday Murder Club is so great, and I'm especially impressed with Elizabeth and all of the knowledge and connections and tenacity from her former life as [REDACTED]. Joyce is such a warm presence, Ibrahim has that psychological insight, and Ron is the tough guy. I love them. And I love their interplay with Donna and Chris, the police detectives. My one qualm is all of the commentary on weight, which edges close to fatphobia for me, but not enough for me to ding the book too much.

Looking forward to the next mystery with the Thursday Murder Club in the fall!

Sarah MacLean truly does not miss when it comes to steamy scenes. And the cover is absolutely stunning. That said, this one was solid but wasn't my favourite. I'm glad that I happened to have read "The Day of the Duchess" earlier this year, because it had been nearly 5 years before that since I'd read one of the books with this group of characters. So I at least had some familiarity that I think - like with many romance "series" - is helpful but not essential. I just never really clicked with Sesily and Caleb as a couple. I found myself more curious about Imogen and Peck (truly can't wait) and the escapades of the other Belles than any of the drama with the two of them, which is not a great sign in a romance. I do think this is probably down to personal preference though, because I'm not a person who really enjoys a ton of angst and Caleb especially is nothing but. And I know it's an historical romance and expectations around chivalry and safety and whatnot were different, but I just couldn't get over Caleb never, not once, actually listening to Sesily and truly hearing her. (Okay, maybe in the last 5% of the book...) There were a few things that felt a little artless that I was surprised by because it's not really a problem I typically have with MacLean's books, specifically the CONSTANT calling Caleb an "American." It made the "reveal" not very reveal-y to me because I kept thinking, "This is really annoying, obviously there's a reason people call him the American more than his name, or that wouldn't be happening."

Overall, I think this is going to be a good option for folks who either are super familiar with the previous and related series OR people who are more into the angstier tropes. Still an enjoyable time!

Ugh. I wrote a lot of profanity in the margins of this book, so I think that pretty well sums up how I feel.

Man, my classically-paced, retelling, sapphic pirate loving ass really enjoyed this. Admittedly, I have never read the source material BUT I have seen both Muppet Treasure Island and Treasure Planet several times, so I feel like I've got the requisite knowledge to make a comparison.

Action, adventure, betrayal, found family, tragedy, treasure, and love. Following Xiang as a main character was such a treat, she is the perfect protagonist, infinitely curious and bringing us along to explore new worlds with her. The development of her relationship with Anh is just cute as kittens. The found family vibes are strong here, and I'm always looking for more books with those. Now I want more stories about the whole crew going on more adventures, or their backstories, and I'm bummed that won't be happening.

I would say anyone who is really attached to the source material and is looking for a beat-for-beat, character-for-character retelling, this is not going to be that. But how boring would that be? Just read Treasure Island then.

One of the most poignant aspects of this book is how much real and personal history is infused into the story. Lee includes several notes at the end of the book, sharing how one of the woman pirates who is portrayed was a real person, and arguably the most successful pirate who ever lived. Lee also discusses her own family history, especially related to Vietnam and the atrocities there during the "war." (In the story, the family of pirates that Xiang joins is from Vietnam, similarly fleeing unrest and conflict.) I truly don't believe that books need to actively teach you something - this is a debate that perpetually pops up, especially when it comes to YA titles - but I always appreciate the opportunity to pause and consider who decides what books and stories become "classics" and which stories are lost to time. This is a feature not only of A Clash of Steel, but also of the entire remixed classics series, and I'm thankful for that.

Thanks to Feiwel and Friends/Macmillan and Netgalley for the advance access to this book. I can't wait to handsell it.

Man, I'm really disappointed I didn't like this one more. Then again, I guess I'm glad that there enough queer books out there that I don't have to pretend it worked for me just because it's the only rep. That's a deserved feeling, just like the straights.

There were a number of things I really enjoyed about it. I liked seeing two Jewish MCs, which feels rare in traditionally published romance, and some of the dialogue was clever or made me chuckle. It hit several tropes/pain points that just made it a really not enjoyable reading experience: the kind of fetishization or fixation that Noa already has for Lilah made me a bit uncomfortable, the extremely unfounded jealousy that Noa exhibits when introducing Lilah to her friends. The invasion of privacy in Lilah snooping in Noa's phone was really just a bridge too far for me, as someone who has experienced that particular invasion.

Ultimately, I guess I'm just not really sure who this book is for. I didn't ever really feel the chemistry as the relationship building was sacrificed for the sake of this side plot to kind of evoke the feeling of being in a B-movie, but there was still a shocking level of intensity to the point that Lilah had invited Noa to France with her after they'd kissed once and they were having a screaming match on their first actual date? I don't know how I'm supposed to root for a relationship where the two romantic leads have zero trust for each other from day one. It also didn't quite thread the needle of romcom and B-list horror film. I get the intention, but I don't think the impact quite hit the mark. But even though I can't think of who the audience for this book is, I'm 100% sure it exists and wish it the best.