lermonysnickers's reviews
263 reviews

Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins

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challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-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

5.0

I actually don't like this book, but I understand that that was the point. It's supposed to be bleak and uncomfortable and gut you to realize that all the characters you love have become different people. And I hate the ending. It was the right ending for the story and the only conclusion that could be genuine but it still sucks that this is the best it can get for these characters after what they have been through. Mockingjay does not hold back on the real effects of war and oppression and how that trauma destroys people. If you're not up for that, then this book won't be for you.
Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins

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challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-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

5.0

Broken Throne by Victoria Aveyard

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Did not finish book. Stopped at 40%.
I didn't like the first 2 novellas and I just feel like I've spent too long in this universe reading the series straight through. That being said, this is the only VA book I haven't finished, so odds are high I'll pick it up again in the future.
Onyx Storm by Rebecca Yarros

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adventurous mysterious fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

This gets a higher rating than the print book because the narrator was good enough to make me feel things the words alone couldn't.
Onyx Storm by Rebecca Yarros

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adventurous emotional mysterious fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

Reading this book feels like a mad lib you complete while drunk and throwing darts at a board to pick which words to fill in. The primary purpose this book serves is to retcon the shoddy worldbuilding midway through the series and none of it makes any sense. It's better than Iron Flame, but not by a lot.
The Dew Breaker by Edwidge Danticat

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emotional hopeful informative slow-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

2.5

Rating this slightly higher than the novel because the narration style added to the text and made reading it slightly more bearable.
The Dew Breaker by Edwidge Danticat

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emotional hopeful informative slow-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

2.0

This book was absolutely not for me, but I had to read it for a class. I honestly believe it would've worked better in terms of continuity and connections between the characters if it had been written as a novel instead of as overlapping short stories. Overall I was not impressed.
Ruthless Vows by Rebecca Ross

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adventurous emotional hopeful mysterious tense 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

5.0

This was the perfect narration for this book! I'm new to audiobooks and haven't heard one with multiple narrators before but I feel like it was done flawlessly between the actual POV changes and the switches while reading off the letters. Truly enhanced the reading experience!
Ruthless Vows by Rebecca Ross

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adventurous emotional hopeful inspiring tense 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

5.0

Wow I was not expecting to love this since the first book wasn't fully my taste! I had horrible anxiety throughout this entire book because I was constantly worried something was about to go horribly wrong. But it's all okay! I definitely liked the pacing better than the first book since it was a little faster and I'm also fully invested in Iris and Roman at this point.
Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins

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adventurous challenging dark emotional sad tense 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

4.75

I rated the book 5 stars, but I have to knock the narration down for a couple reasons. 1) I'm really tired of books told in first person establish that the main character is canonically from a real world region and then not have the audiobook narrated by someone with that region's accent. Katniss is well established to be from Appalachia (WV area), and I was greatly disappointed to not hear that reflected in the narration. 2) there was just something really lackluster about the narration style. It didn't seem to match the urgency of the narrative during a lot of key moments. Still a great story, but this audiobook isn't the best reflection of it or Katniss.