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woodsybookworm's reviews
149 reviews
1.0
I followed through and read the whole thing but overall the story felt clunky and cringe worthy. It started slow with the awkward exchange of Wyatt's niece being very overly involved in her uncle's sex lives - her pushiness throughout the novel was a little much as well.
Trista being so self sabotaging about her looks, repeatedly calling herself a cow, and her general demeanor not really acting as a match to Wyatt (who wasn't exactly a peach himself) was rough. The fact she literally agreed to have this strange man's baby after a ten minute conversation with his random niece that she JUST MET on the sidewalk - was all kinds of bizarre. The insemination process as well, huge red flags all around.
While I can definitely see this book finding its audience, I learned pretty quickly it wasn't for me.
Moderate: Body shaming, Fatphobia, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, and Pregnancy
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Not really horror, not really thriller, this book felt almost like a locked room mystery or the narrative of an escape room. I'm definitely going to be picking up some more books by this author.
Minor: Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Self harm, Suicide, Terminal illness, Grief, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, and Pregnancy
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Funny Little Town follows Casper who, after the death of his grandmother, decides to run away from his small Appalachian town to the sunny palm trees of Florida. Too bad he decides to take a detour for gas and finds himself stranded in the town of Bustagut, where ghosts linger and a shape shifting clown just wants to have a little "fun"
Everything happened so fast! I wanted to see more of Casper's ability to see and speak with ghosts, more of the chaos that is Button's the Clown, so of course now I can't wait for the continuation with the upcoming Happy Face.
Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Deadnaming, Death, and Grief
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
After the loss of his father, Riley, a middle-aged retired (disgraced) hockey player's life is flipped upside down. He already struggles with anxiety and depression but it's compounded when the loss of his father also brings the man he thought was the love of his life back into the small town he's all but escaped to, back into his bubble.
Adam is a retired (superstar) hockey player. Growing up in a rough household situation he made a name for himself as a hockey star - praised for his sports prowess, married his beautiful wife (now divorced but cordial), raised lovely kids - he has it all. Except, he recently discovered he's always actually been in love with his former best friend and colleague Riley - too bad he broke his heart (multiple times) and laughed in his face when Riley confessed to him.
This book was a lot. The grief was intense and prevalent throughout the story. Adam was an absolute monster to Riley when they were younger, which made the second chance romance a little tough to swallow - I just had to keep telling myself it was a work of fiction and to suspend my beliefs because there was no way Riley would have forgiven Adam or even spoken to him again had this been real life.
It was a good story but I still finished reading it thinking "no way this would work out in any situation other than a book"
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Their Monstrous Hearts follows Riccardo, a down on his luck novelist who gets a lucky break when his estranged grandmother Perihan passes away leaving behind her prized butterfly collection and massive Milan estate which includes a prominent but mysteriously locked greenhouse.
Jumping between multiple POVs never felt this good. I didn't find myself annoyed by all the jumps between characters or timelines - I was 100% locked in on the story at hand. It did feel like the mystery got a rushed conclusion and backstory that I wish would have been a little more fleshed out but it was still a great read.
I have a feeling this book is going to be divided into two categories - love it or hate it. Normally, the multiple POVs, the twists and turns, the disjointed storytelling, the rush to the conclusion would piss me off but for some reason everything about this book just worked for me. I want more from this author as soon as possible.
---SPOILER/NOT SO SPOILER BELOW 👇🏼---
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The ENDING!? The ENDING!? WHAAAAAAAAAT!!!!
Moderate: Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Torture, Blood, Vomit, and Murder
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
The Buffalo Hunter Hunter follows three narratives: Etsy's POV reading through her great grandfather's recently found journals in hopes of writing a tenure worthy piece on the subject, Arthur Beaucarne's POV as a pastor writing the tales of one of his more mysterious constituents, and Good Stab's POV as a Pikuni narrating the story of his life...and afterlife.
I enjoyed the setting, especially because I have been to the majority of locations mentioned in the novel and I think that helped a lot. Chief Mountain is just a stones throw away from the very place I call home, Glacier National Park is right in my backyard, and I've visited many of the towns mentioned in the novel as well.
The book, overall, was slow. It built off the historical setting, the locale, and the vibes for the majority of the novel with punches of gore here and there. I had expected a lot more vampire-ness(?) but it was more a story about human morals and generational guilt/trauma. It was good, but I just wanted...more.
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Death, Gore, Racism, Violence, Blood, Grief, Suicide attempt, Murder, and War
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Graphic: Death, Murder, and War