lowkeymarie's reviews
561 reviews

Beneath the Trees Where Nobody Sees by Patrick Horvath

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dark mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

Dinosaurs at the Dinner Party: How an Eccentric Group of Victorians Discovered Prehistoric Creatures and Accidentally Upended the World by Edward Dolnick

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funny informative lighthearted medium-paced

3.75

Thirsty by Jas Hammonds

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dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Someone in the Attic by Andrea Mara

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

This one was a bit slow to start and included a frankly silly amount of red herrings, but otherwise a very solid, enjoyable thriller.
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Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell

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challenging dark reflective tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

Amari and the Despicable Wonders by B.B. Alston

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adventurous emotional funny inspiring tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

After rereading book 2 and being a bit underwhelmed by it, this was a much needed return to form. It was funny, action-packed, full of tension and high stakes, and even made me tear up at the end, ngl.

There's another book (or two?) on the way and I'm very curious to see what direction Alston is steering us next, especially as this was a pretty satisfying conclusion to the story so far.
Dawn by Octavia E. Butler

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dark emotional mysterious 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

4.75

My first Octavia Butler, finally! I'm gonna need to sit with my feelings on this one for a while. But wow, I definitely get why Butler is so highly regarded. I will absolutely be continuing this series and reading more of her other works.
Allow Me to Introduce Myself by Onyi Nwabineli

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dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

The depth and complexity of these characters and relationships was truly spectacular. I will definitely be reading more from this author.
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Wildlife Anatomy: The Curious Lives & Features of Wild Animals Around the World by Julia Rothman

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adventurous informative lighthearted fast-paced

3.75

Bunny by Mona Awad

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dark 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? Yes

1.0

I can see why some readers enjoy this so much, but my god, this was insufferable. The pacing was awkward. The main character was flat and vapid. I found the repetitiveness of the prose irritating. Sometimes it felt like there were too many plot elements going on, but maybe that was just because I didn't care about any of them. I read this on Kindle, where I am a chronic over-highlighter, and I did not feel the urge to highlight a single damn word of this. 

(I really wish I had DNF'd but I needed to fulfill a prompt for my library reading challenge.)