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lilradridinghood's reviews
434 reviews
A Song to Drown Rivers by Ann Liang
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
This is not a romantasy book like I expected. The most fantastical part of the story is how beautiful Xishi is, besides the fact that it becomes a ghost story for the last twenty pages. And I definitely wouldn't call this a romance novel.
Xishi is chosen to use her beauty to charm the king of a neighboring kingdom in order to spy and bring the kingdom down. Because of the premise, I tried not to be too annoyed at everyone talking about Xishi's beauty. However, that doesn't excuse how obsessed she is with the looks of Fanli, the advisor training her. The feelings between them feel so shallow. He has no personality, and I have no idea what they like about each other besides their appearance. Then he's entirely out of the picture once she starts spying.
While she's in the palace, none of Xishi's successes feel earned. It all feels too easy. The only reason she can succeed at all is because the king, Fuchai, is incredibly stupid. I still liked him more than Fanli though. In fact, despite Fuchai being a terrible person who is quick to punish his subjects with the death penalty, I still kinda wanted Xishi to be with him because he's at least somewhat interesting.
I kept reading out of curiosity because I wanted to see if it would really be devastating in the end. And yes, there are four pages that are really good and beautifully devastating. The rest, however, is just devastatingly awful.
Xishi is chosen to use her beauty to charm the king of a neighboring kingdom in order to spy and bring the kingdom down. Because of the premise, I tried not to be too annoyed at everyone talking about Xishi's beauty. However, that doesn't excuse how obsessed she is with the looks of Fanli, the advisor training her. The feelings between them feel so shallow. He has no personality, and I have no idea what they like about each other besides their appearance. Then he's entirely out of the picture once she starts spying.
While she's in the palace, none of Xishi's successes feel earned. It all feels too easy. The only reason she can succeed at all is because the king, Fuchai, is incredibly stupid. I still liked him more than Fanli though. In fact, despite Fuchai being a terrible person who is quick to punish his subjects with the death penalty, I still kinda wanted Xishi to be with him because he's at least somewhat interesting.
I kept reading out of curiosity because I wanted to see if it would really be devastating in the end. And yes, there are four pages that are really good and beautifully devastating. The rest, however, is just devastatingly awful.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Blood
This Time It's Real by Ann Liang
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
The romance in this book is so heart-seizingly cute. I love the development of the main characters' feelings and friendship. Ann Liang is really great at writing complex YA female leads. I love how Eliza has goals outside of the romance. She is serious about pursuing writing as a career, and she has an old friendship she wants to maintain.
XOXO by Axie Oh
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
It was cute, but not enough to make my heart flutter. I think the problems that were brought up with the main characters' relationship were kinda just ignored in the end with no real solution. I wish Jaewoo did more to be considerate of Jenny. I also had mixed feelings about Jenny's roommate because she was really rude for a while.
Sunny Song Will Never Be Famous by Suzanne Park
Did not finish book. Stopped at 6%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 6%.
Cannot handle the secondhand embarrassment
The Unstoppable Wasp: Built on Hope by Sam Maggs
informative
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
3.5
I really loved this at first and was planning to give it five stars, but I don't like the pacing. The last 20% is entirely plot-focused, and I preferred the character-focused parts of the novel. The actual plot related to the AI assistant is predictable and not very interesting. However, I was interested in everything else going on in Nadia's life--and there is a lot.
I loved getting a deeper look into Nadia's thoughts because she has so much going on in her mind. The prose has a very lively tone, but it's not annoying the way some YA novels with more immature protagonists can be. I really love Nadia, and even though she doesn't always make the best decisions, she is trying her best to take care of herself. This books talks a lot about her bipolar disorder and how she needs to be mindful of it.
The book explains everything you need to know, so you don't have to read the comics first. It does spoil some things from the comics though, and it might feel like a lot of infodumping if this is your first introduction to the characters. As someone who did read the comics, I found the character explanations to simply be a nice recap, and I loved seeing Nadia spend more time with her chosen family.
I loved getting a deeper look into Nadia's thoughts because she has so much going on in her mind. The prose has a very lively tone, but it's not annoying the way some YA novels with more immature protagonists can be. I really love Nadia, and even though she doesn't always make the best decisions, she is trying her best to take care of herself. This books talks a lot about her bipolar disorder and how she needs to be mindful of it.
The book explains everything you need to know, so you don't have to read the comics first. It does spoil some things from the comics though, and it might feel like a lot of infodumping if this is your first introduction to the characters. As someone who did read the comics, I found the character explanations to simply be a nice recap, and I loved seeing Nadia spend more time with her chosen family.
The Night Ends with Fire by K.X. Song
Did not finish book. Stopped at 34%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 34%.
Very repetitive and in-your-face when it comes to the main character's ambition and supposed greed. I wanted to root for her at first, and the side characters like Sparrow seemed fun. But I just stopped caring. I feel like I would like it if it just said less and let the readers observe the protagonist's character themselves.
The Blood Orchid by Kylie Lee Baker
adventurous
hopeful
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? It's complicated
5.0
I did like the first book more, but I still have to give this five stars because the last hundred pages or so were SO. GOOD.
It was good before then too, but I just prefer the palace intrigue of the first book over this quest that takes Zilan to different places. I also went into this book with my opinion of Zilan's cousins already soured, so it took a while for me to actually like them again.
But I do love Zilan all throughout this book. Her background of poverty remains an important part of her character, and it makes every moment of triumph feel earned. There's also another character who adds some unexpected personality to their party. This was a really great book and a FANTASTIC conclusion to this duology.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Blood
Ghost Roast by Shawnelle Gibbs, Shawneé Gibbs
Did not finish book. Stopped at 11%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 11%.
I feel like I'm too old to be reading about someone who cares that much about high school popularity.
MeSseD Vol 1: Follow the Flush, Volume 1 by Jay B. Kalagayan
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
I think the art is really cool, but there's not much of a plot. I see a potential plot happening with the allicroc treaty, but not enough happens in this first volume to grab my interest. We just get to see Lilliput's encounters with monsters and people in the sewer. The dialogue is lacking since main character doesn't really speak in full sentences.
Sandali by Mikey Jimenez, Mikey Marchan
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.75
The first two and the very last story didn't really do anything for me, but I liked everything else. My favorites were Cosplaya' Hata' and Present. One is about a cosplayer who runs into his former bully, and the other is about two coworkers talking and reminiscing while outside a Christmas party. It's really great to see these moments in the characters' lives, and to see what the creators were able to accomplish within so few pages.