sarai0410's reviews
322 reviews

A River Enchanted by Rebecca Ross

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adventurous 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

4.5

4.5 ⭐ There is no reason that this should have sat on my shelf for so long without being read (cough cough, February 2022 BoTM..) considering how much I loved it. While the first 20-25% is a little slow in getting to the plot, I loved exploring the island of Cadence and being introduced to our main characters - once we started to learn more about Sidra and Torin, I was pleasantly surprised to find that they were a big part of the story with Jack and Adi! While some of the plot lines and twists were predictable, it didn't detract from my enjoyment at all. It's not often that I will pause a book that I am loving because I just don't want it to end, but I did just that with A River Enchanted in the last 50ish pages. After that cliffhanger, I am so excited to move into the sequel A Fire Endless. 
The Novice by Taran Matharu

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adventurous medium-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

While I don't typically read from the Young Adult age range, I picked this up on a whim and can say that I did like it for the most part. In terms of age appropriateness, this felt way closer to Middle Grade than YA, despite the MC being 15 years old - the characters read much much younger, in both dialogue and through their actions. I enjoyed the first 35-45% of the story - the world-building and characterization at the beginning was interesting and had a good pace, but once I got to the 50% mark, the pacing changed drastically and everything became very 'telling, not showing' - also Fletcher's decision-making and thought processes felt more juvenile than any average 15 year old boy. 

Overall, I think this is a good story for a (very) young audience, but more so for fantasy-beginners as many of the actions and characterization could seem cheap/underwhelming for any reader that has read more than a handful of fantasy novels. 
Everyone This Christmas Has a Secret by Benjamin Stevenson

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funny mysterious 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

5.0

STEVENSON 👏 NEVER 👏 MISSES 👏

Each installment of The Ernest Cunningham Mysteries has been the easiest 5 stars for me and Everyone This Christmas Has a Secret is no different. Intriguing, quick-witted, genuinely hilarious and 'LOL' worthy, this novella is the perfect holiday mystery. I hesitate to say much because I think it's best to go into these books/the whole series blind for the best experience. 

In keeping with an accidental theme—my first case involved a full stop, my second a comma—this may well be the first mystery ever solved by Comic Sans.

Some detectives, perhaps, solve crimes like fireworks: one lit fuse exploding everything at once. I solve crimes like a ten-car rear-ender on a bumper-to-bumper freeway: one car slams into another, and another and another, all the way up the line. 
The World of Critical Role by Cast of Critical Role, Liz Marsham

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emotional informative inspiring medium-paced

5.0

I started watching Critical Role during the pandemic lockdown and quickly fell down the rabbit role into pure obsession; a decision I don't regret for even a second. I'm writing this review as the cast is close to completing Campaign 3, released their 3rd season of The Legend of Vox Machina on Amazon Prime, in production for The Mighty Nein animated series, and right before the release of their own TTRPG game system Daggerheart - The World of Critical Role was release just 4 years ago and the cast and crew have accomplished an incredible amount of things in such a short period of time, and yet their mission has shined through it all - community, compassion, and love for the game and one another. 

I'll fangirl over Critical Role for as long as they are around, which will be a very very long time <3
Good Morning, Midnight by Lily Brooks-Dalton

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emotional reflective sad medium-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

4.0

Quiet and contemplative, Good Morning, Midnight is unique within the dystopian sub-genre in it's calm recounting of the past, exploration of what the future could hold, and gentle examination of loneliness. 

Dystopian is not a sub-genre that I lean into, and truthfully this book was a cover bye for me, so I went in almost completely blind, with semi-low expectations. Thankfully, I was pleasantly surprised. The characters, side-characters included, were compelling and their isolation and wavering hope and happiness came through the pages. The twists at the end, while gentle and quiet, hit me hard and rounded out the book in a way I wasn't expecting. 

We study the universe in order to know, yet in the end the only thing we truly know is that all things end—all but death and time. It’s difficult to be reminded of that… but it’s harder to forget.
A Mirror Mended by Alix E. Harrow

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adventurous hopeful sad fast-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

Remarkable - utterly remarkable. 

My lips peel back from my teeth as I look up at her, not fearless but pissed enough to do a good impression. “Oh, please, you’re just the bad guy. The villain, the evil stepmother. You’re the Wicked Witch of the East, bro.” She opens her mouth, but I interrupt, entirely unable to resist. “You’re going to look at me and you’re going to tell me that I’m wrong? Am I wrong?”

When you save someone, sometimes they save you right back.
Dinosaur Sanctuary Vol. 5 by Itaru Kinoshita

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informative lighthearted fast-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

Dinosaur Sanctuary is a 5 ⭐ series for me - every volume knocks it out of the (dino) park. Early in the series, I fell in love with the park-dinos and I am officially attached to them. I love seeing their lives and personalities evolve. I have no idea what the projected timeline is for Volume 6's English publication, but I will be (im)patiently waiting to read more. 
Jujutsu Kaisen, Vol. 21 by Gege Akutami

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dark fast-paced

3.0

The surprise
Maki
appearance and Panda moments saved this one. Otherwise I have no idea what is going on anymore. 
Jujutsu Kaisen, Vol. 20 by Gege Akutami

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dark medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

I know I'm in the minority, but I really don't enjoy Yuta's character. 
Spear by Nicola Griffith

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adventurous 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

4.0

For such a short book, it absolutely packed a punch. In under 200 pages, Griffith constructed a beautiful work with rich, diverse characters. While I know just the basics of Arthurian legend, the writing pulled me in and made me want to know more and make the connections from the traditional myth and this retelling.