jrayereads's reviews
399 reviews

 Rating: 4 stars

Format: Physical book, Audiobook

Genre: Literary fiction

Wow, what to even say about this book? It was visceral and bizarre and sensual and cathartic. The writing was punchy and evocative. The underlying tension in the prose and in the protagonist’s restless languor kept me locked in. It took me about 15% of the way to get really invested, but once I was, I couldn’t stop thinking about this story. I was dreading what she would do to bring about the excitement and change she so badly desired and how she would potentially blow her life up along the way.

Though I am a true hater of cheating as a plot device in books, the broader discussions about monogamy, parenthood, menopause, sexuality, aging, all from the perspective of a hilarious and anxiously unhinged middle-aged female protagonist made it work for me. The cheating (and fantasizing about cheating) didn’t just feel like a cheap way to manufacture conflict and it was the foundation of many of the themes of the book. July wove a satisfying complexity into the protagonist’s inner monologue that provided depth and purpose to sexual content that might otherwise have felt shocking for the sake of being shocking. 

I swapped between the physical book and audiobook and I would recommend the physical book. The audio is read by the author and I thought her performance was okay, but she has a dry quality to her delivery that made some sections less impactful. 

Some people could easily find this book pretentious or “too much” but I loved it in all its horrifying, yet so real, weirdness. 

 

Rating: 3 Stars
Format: Ebook
Genre: Horror, Fantasy

I was really impressed by the writing and the overall tension built throughout this book, but ultimately the ending didn’t land for me. The realization of what was going on about 50% or 60% in was really satisfying and I was excited to see where things would go from there, but the ending just didn’t make me feel anything for the characters or the world. I can see why people really love this though. 

I recommend knowing as little as possible going into this book and reading it in one sitting, if you can. 

Also am I dumb or did the entirety of the piano player character lead to nothing? Did I miss how he was important? 

Rating: 3 Stars

Format: Ebook, Audiobook

Genre: Fiction, Contemporary Fiction

There is something so lovely about a book that follows a woman who, after her husband dies, finds a renewed purpose and passion. Stories following older women whose lives do not revolve around serving their husbands and families feel rare, so this was refreshing to see.

While I liked Venetia I felt disconnected from her for most of the book. We get flashbacks sprinkled in and more explicitly character history towards the end, but for the first 50% of the book I didn’t understand why she seemed so indifferent to Hawk’s death. And, even with the very late context given, I didn’t feel satisfied by her character arc. I was definitely more interested in Liberty and Kite as characters. They both had clearer motivations and more personality and life to them.

This was very low stakes and cozy, occasionally leaning into mundane. It’s the kind of book that my grandmother would love. Not bad at all if you’re looking for a palette cleanser. 

 

 

Rating: 4 Stars

Format: Ebook, Audiobook (both available through Kindle Unlimited)

Genre: Historical Fiction, Literary Fiction, Asian Literature

I really enjoyed this exploration of the Korean experience in 1930’s Japan. Miyoung was a lovable protagonist that I was rooting for. I appreciated the detail put into developing her as a character and I liked getting to follow her throughout different stages of her life. I didn’t know a lot about this period of history in Korea/Japan and felt like I was learning a lot. The ongoing discussion of identity and culture and the tension between loving one’s home but feeling like you have to hide parts of yourself to fit in was so interesting. The personal connection the author had to the story made it so sweet to read. 

The only issue I had was the simplicity of the writing. It wasn’t bad at all, but it was very straightforward and plain and that occasionally made me feel detached from the characters and the tension that existed between Miyoung and the rest of the world. While I felt connected to Mijoung, I felt like parts of Mijoung’s family didn’t get the same development and I felt disconnected from them, especially Hojoon and the sister she lives with. The dialogue was sometimes stilted and there were some missed opportunities to imbue personality into the conversations between the characters.

This isn’t a perfect book but I was invested from the beginning and always rooting for Miyoung. If you like historical fiction and Asian lit, I would definitely recommend this.

 

This was pretty good! The gothic atmosphere and spooky boarding school with a creepy forest outside vibe was EXCELLENT. I thought the characters were interesting and I liked the fantastical/horror elements. The twist at the end was solid as well.

My biggest issue was with the writing. Sometimes the prose was beautiful but other times it was clunky and took me out of the story instead of enhancing it. I think that will improve over time and I will definitely be checking out this author’s next book.

I swapped between the audiobook and the ebook and I wouldn’t recommend the audiobook unless it’s your only option. Andrew and Dove are supposed to have Australian accents and it was lowkey painful to listen to the narrator attempt it. 

 

Rating: 5 stars

Format: Audiobook

Genre: Nonfiction, politics, memoir

I now understand why this book has gotten such glowing reviews and why, post 2024 U.S. election results, it is being recommended so widely as essential reading. The construction of this “mirror world” where human beings are segmented into parts, reduced to brands, and exposed to systems and technology that are designed for exploitation and dehumanization was brilliantly conveyed. Klein covers a lot of topics here, but she does so deftly and with much-needed compassion. Klein speaks to several of the fears that many of us have on key social issues - social media, the emergency of AI, COVID-19 denialism and anti-vax sentiment, climate change, medical exploitation, conspiracy and misinformation. 

The use of the recurring theme of a doppelganger to discuss duplicity, self-partitioning, and disembodiment worked well and I appreciate the connections she drew between topics. This book gives you so much to think about and sheds light onto ways of viewing the world that confound so many of us that consider ourselves reasonable. An absolute must-read.

 

 Rating: 4.5 stars

Format: E-book (ARC, pub date 3/4/2025)

Genre: Literary horror, dystopian

WOW what a stunning and unexpected ride that was. 

This book feels very different from Tender is the Flesh, which for me was a really good thing. I liked her debut, but I felt like it lacked the subtlety that The Unworthy embodies so well. There are still disturbing elements and there is definitely upsetting imagery, but much less gore and gross-out sections than Bazterrica’s first book. Despite our characters living in the aftermath of the destruction of the entire world as we know it, The Unworthy feels much smaller in scope and tells you very little about the machinations of its world. I appreciated this about the story. I think for some stories that rely on keeping the reader in the dark, it's difficult to walk the line between trusting your reader to pick up on small details and draw their own conclusions versus revealing too much and risking beating your audience over their heads with The Point. This is definitely not a book that spells everything out for you, but that felt like a strength rather than a source of frustration for me. 

Bazterrica’s writing (and Moses’ translation) is phenomenal. She is so skilled at constructing an oppressive, suffocating atmosphere, both in her prose and what she does and does not choose to reveal about the main character and the world. We don’t learn much about this mysterious convent and their doctrine, but what we do learn about the different roles and the day-to-day of living there adds to the dread and desperation present throughout the book. Though the diaristic confessions of our unnamed protagonist felt slow at moments because it was occasionally unclear to me where things were going, I still thought it was very well paced and well structured. I’m a very character driven reader and I found the protagonist compelling and believable, even though for the first half of the book we know every little about her.

What keeps this book from being 5 stars, for me, is the ending. It felt a bit rushed after an entire book that had such excellent tension. I get why the ending had to be the way it was, but I still wanted more from the climax of the story. Even despite this, I was hooked the entire time.

I don’t think this book will work for everyone, but it completely gripped me and did not let me go. It’s one of those books that buries under your skin and stays there. I think I’ll be ruminating on this one for a while. 

 

Rating: 4 stars

Format: E-Book/Audiobook

Genre: Historical fiction, fantasy, sapphic romance

Alexa, play Triple Dog Dare by Lucy Dacus…

In a lot of ways this book reminded me of The Frozen River, which I adored. The wintry atmosphere, the drama and gossip of a small, close-knit town, the headstrong and capable midwife who gets into trouble by advocating for the women she helps. 

I loved Jean’s characterization and the relationships she built with the other characters. There was mystery and tension as Jean, alongside the audience, learns more and more about Muirin and her story. I loved how language was used as a narrative tool that both highlighted Muirin’s oppression by Tobias but also signified her opening up and becoming closer with Jean as she learned more English. Also the sapphic yearning??????? *Chefs kiss*

I do wish some of the fantasy elements had been woven in throughout the story instead of just being dumped on you at the end, but I still enjoyed the reveals and explanations that were given. The pacing is pretty slow but I didn’t mind it at all. The atmospheric prose and tension were enough to keep me interested. 

 

Based on what I’ve heard about this series I was expecting it to be much more brutal or problematic. Don’t get me wrong, this book has heavy themes and you should definitely proceed with caution if sexual violence, rape, slavery, pedophilia, or incest are triggering topics for you. There are very explicit, on page depictions of those things. It felt pretty obvious to me that the narrative was condemning these things, and there were even on page discussions of the morality of the characters and their actions. This is simply a world where slavery exists and each of the characters interacts with that system in a different way. But I get it if the disturbing content was too much for some people, because there are times where it was uncomfortable to read.

I wouldn’t consider this book a romance. Even if a romantic relationship develops between Damen and Laurent, the focus seems to be the worldbuilding and the political intrigue. I would squarely put this in the political fantasy category. You definitely shouldn’t expect any romance in this first installment. 

I thought the writing was just okay. It definitely felt like a fanfiction at times due to some of the more trope-y elements. My main issue was the pacing and the character development. The beginning dragged quite a bit and things didn’t pick up until maybe 50 or 60 percent of the way through when the political scheming became the main focus - which I enjoyed. The characterization is pretty shallow, but I have heard that the second and third books are better so I’m assuming that it improves over time. 

Overall this was just fine. I read it out of curiosity due to the discourse around the content of the book and thought it was okay. I’ll probably continue the series because they’re so short and because I’m curious to see how things develop.