katiemack's reviews
1288 reviews

I flew through this one, which is now my second-favorite Emily Henry (after People We Meet on Vacation). Flaky love interests are a pet peeve of mine, usually, but the way Henry describes Miles doesn’t centralize his flaws; rather, she incorporates them to make him lovable and perfect for Daphne. The vulnerability they both share works really well here too, and I absolutely adored all the side characters (besides Daphne’s dad, but that’s kind of the point). 

I received an eARC of this book from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

The scope of this novel--covering three generations' worth of family history and trauma--is vast, so naturally there are so many topics to cover that it would be impossible to go into depth about all of them. Despite my knowing this, however, I was disappointed that the novel didn't quite deliver on that front. Nonetheless, I'm impressed Khong's storytelling and enjoyed the distinct voices of the three characters (Lily, May, and Nick). 

I received an eARC of this book from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

I cringed when I read that Theo would be losing his memory but was pleasantly surprised by the way that resolved. This was an okay read, but the characterization is weak; ultimately I found myself rooting more for ex Sam than for Ellie… 

I received an eARC of this book from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoy this world and the characters, but for some reason it took me a while to get into this. Maybe it's because of things happening in my personal life; maybe it's because of the more fragmented POVs, or maybe it's because there's less Kissen in this volume. (She's probably my favorite character.) Overall, though, the story progresses in intriguing ways--and the ending made me excited to read the next installment. 

The worldbuilding in this completely drew me in! The plot stalls in places, but overall it's exciting--and the abrupt cliffhanger (while mean) makes me eager for the next installment. The themes of found family, belonging, and trauma brought about by Othering makes this stand out in a sea of mediocre/whitewashed YA fantasy debuts.

I found the first 60% of this book slow and tough to get through. (The audiobook narrator's male voices are indistinguishable, which didn't help.) There's some excitement toward the end, though, and I enjoyed learning more about Jewish history and culture in this particular period. 

I'm conflicted on this one. On one hand, I love a good multigenerational family saga, and this analysis of the inner workings of the Barnes family fits that. On the other, I found parts of this overwrought, uneven, and tough to get through. By the end, though, I was glad I had read it and appreciated the differently stylistic choices. 

 I received an eARC of this book from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

This is a fun mystery that I wish had been fleshed out more, but I enjoyed the alternating POVs between Annie and Frances via excerpts from Frances' diary (though, truthfully, I preferred the diary entries to the present-day vignettes). 

I received an eARC of this book from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

This is the type of book I would have devoured as a teenager, so in that respect I think it works for its intended audience. But there's a healthy amount of emotional cheating (that turns into physical cheating at one point), and that's a real sticking point for me. Still, the whole angsty "fated mates" aspect makes sense here and leads to a (somewhat) realistic ending. 

I received an eARC of this book from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

This was a slow start for me--the flowery/poetic language threw me off--but I ended up enjoying David and Cecilia's love story. The realistic queer rep is also fantastic (would pledge my life to Sam Grey).