shrayirene's reviews
525 reviews

Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West by Gregory Maguire

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adventurous challenging emotional sad tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

I had previously read this book many years ago, so I was curious if it was indeed as strange and offbeat as I remembered it. In fact, it is. 

While there are elements that are very interesting and you can see the threads that they used when writing the Broadway show, there are also so many crude and unnecessary bits that could have easily been excluded. 

I am interested in reading the rest of the series to see what Maguire does with the other characters. However, my biggest lingering question is how someone read this book and then created Wicked, my all time favourite Broadway. I can only assume that drugs were involved. 
Eight Winter Nights by Liz Maverick

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funny hopeful 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

3.0

I really enjoyed this fun, short Holiday romance that is surrounded by Hanukkah instead of Christmas. While the story is compressed into 8 days (after one unrequited year), I can look past the problematic 180 emotional turns with minimal friendship fallout (ie. things happened a little too fast, and a little too neatly). It was light, it was fun, it was a great holiday listen. 
Mistletoe Murders 3 by Ken Cuperus

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funny lighthearted mysterious tense 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

4.25

I'm so annoyed that I have to wait for a full year to find out what happens next! I was late on this bandwagon, so I was able to binge through the three books all at once, but now I have to wait! At least I know that there's another one coming because otherwise that cliffhanger would be cruel.

Such a fun listen while driving around to buy presents, wrapping them, or doing some Cmas baking.
Mistletoe Murders 2 by Ken Cuperus

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funny lighthearted mysterious tense 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

4.0

The time jump from the first instalment to this one was a little jarring, it felt like we must have missed a fair amount of story... but in the end it didn't have too much impact in the end. I loved the continuing slow reveal of Emily's story amid the mysterious deaths that she is investigating. Definitely worth the listen, and I really enjoyed the Canadian setting. It was a nice change from typical. 
Mistletoe Murders 1 by Ken Cuperus

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funny lighthearted mysterious tense 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

4.0

This was so much fun! This was my first dramatized audiobook, and it was delightful! Not to mention it was just the right length and intensity during a busy December. It also helped that Emily was sarcastic, a dedicated cat-mom, and a lover of wine - so it was easy to connect with the character :-) 

Am I going to immediately start #2 so that I can hopefully get more answers about her past? Yes, yes I am. I NEED ANSWERS!
The Woman with No Name by Audrey Blake

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adventurous emotional inspiring sad tense 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

4.5

This was such a great read, and I loved that the authors made a point to stay true to Yvonne's story. Not only did she have a huge impact on the underground resistance in France, but I think her story is such a great example of why we should listen to the limits that other people place on us. We get to decide what we are capable of. 
Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing by Matthew Perry

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challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad medium-paced

3.25

This one was a hard to rate. There were a lot of really interesting tidbits and had lots of poignant and thoughtful ruminations on life and human nature. However, it was also hard to read (or in my case listen to) Perry detailing his struggles. I was aware that he had substance abuse problems, but I was not aware that it had dominated so much of his life. And it was downright eerie and heartbreaking to hear Matthew's hopes and dreams for his future, in his own voice, knowing that he would pass away about a year later.   
Jasper Vale by Devney Perry

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adventurous emotional hopeful sad tense slow-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

I don't know what it was, but I had a really hard time getting through this one. I didn't like Eloise that much, especially at the beginning of the book, and it felt like a lot of threads/conflicts were left hanging with an out of nowhere climax to the story. 
A Court of Frost and Starlight by Sarah J. Maas

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emotional hopeful informative lighthearted fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

I really liked that we get to see a bit of normal life in Velaris, without a larger, epic conflict looming. I also enjoyed the multiple POV changes, especially from the new POV's. It'll be interesting to get into Nesta's head in the next book and see what the heck is going on there. 
Queen of Shadows by Sarah J. Maas

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adventurous challenging emotional funny 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

5.0

Second time through, this time listening to the audiobook. 

What I like about this series is that SJM keeps upping the anti. There's always more going on than you think, a bigger bad to fight, another layer of intrigue.