loischanel's reviews
312 reviews

A Kind of Spark by Elle McNicoll

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adventurous challenging emotional inspiring fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

Brilliantly written juvenile fiction novel and a perfect resource for understanding how autism manifests differently in neurodivergent people. It has lovable characters and a happy ending.
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A Girl Like Her by Talia Hibbert

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emotional funny lighthearted tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

Very perceptive, accessible writing style. Very spicy content. Loved the character development even though Evan's story arc felt a bit contrived and seemed too desperate to pull on my heartstrings and make me want to deify him. Loved the autism rep; the focus of the story wasn't about the perils and challenges of living with autism but rather it was about the life of an autistic woman who loves comics as she navigates life and love.
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The Electricity of Every Living Thing: A Woman’s Walk in the Wild to Find Her Way Home by Katherine May

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challenging emotional funny informative reflective medium-paced

3.5

An eye-opening account challenging the many misconceptions surrounding autism. This memoir tells of the experience of an autistic woman who has struggled with social interactions all her life, completely unaware of her neurodivergence. Her only solace is walking and so at the age of 38, she decides to go on a walking journey across the English South-West coast hoping to find herself. Told with eye-opening honesty and picturesque language.
On the Edge of Gone by Corinne Duyvis

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adventurous challenging informative fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

Young Adult Apocalyptic Science-Fiction - On the edge of gone is a fast-paced disaster novel set in the Netherlands during the year 2034 when a comet hits earth, devastating all of Europe. Denise and her mother luckily find shelter on a generation ship bound for space. Lots of action, birracial and autism rep.
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon

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adventurous challenging hopeful reflective tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.0

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Assembly by Natasha Brown

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challenging dark reflective sad slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

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The Hemlock Cure by Joanne Burn

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adventurous dark mysterious 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

3.0

loved the vibrant imagery of the writing but the language felt a bit too soft and unexciting. thought it was interesting how synesthesia is explored in this book (the main character see scents as colours) the queer representation was too cursory, but at least it had a happy ending and ended up being a strong comfort read in my opinion.
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Abolition. Feminism. Now. by Erica R. Meiners, Gina Dent, Beth E. Richie, Angela Y. Davis

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informative fast-paced

4.25

Written by the collective radical voice of four influential scholars and activists, Abolition. Feminism. Now offers effective insights into the links between abolitionism (modern-day organizing to resist carceral systems) and feminism. It is a self-described genealogy that catalogues initiatives past and present that have worked in opposition to policing structures in the West that have failed to address and in many cases have compounded the global issue of gender violence. 
Earn Me by Nia Arthurs, Sylburn Arthurs

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emotional tense fast-paced

2.0

Disappointing :/ it felt very rushed. I liked the brooding nature of the story but the execution was skeletal. It lacked in depth for me. The time shifts occur haphazardly, Doc was a boring, plot device of a character and the ending was utterly devoid of anything even remotely linked to originality. I was hoping for a raunchy erotic fiction novel but the sex scenes were so poor, it was a convoluted tangle of limbs that left me feeling bored.
Rachel's Holiday by Marian Keyes

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challenging emotional funny sad slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

Cleverly written and incredibly funny. Reads quite problematic in places but a touching comfort-read.
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