bookswithlydscl's Reviews (639)

The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet

Becky Chambers

4.5

adventurous emotional funny hopeful lighthearted reflective relaxing medium-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

I love Becky Chambers' writing and love some cosy scifi that truly focuses on people and relationships.

Traumaland

Josh Silver

2.5

challenging dark mysterious tense slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: Complicated

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

2.5*

I am very much an outlier for this book. The premise is so strong but sadly the writing style and characterisations didn't work for me. I did truly appreciate the portrayal of mental health in this book and for a YA story was darker and more psychologically intriguing than I expected but aside of that I wasn't won over. The main character didn't work for me and I found it very slow and difficult to get into.

Slow to start but I think the pacing and Black Mirroresque craziness will work really well for a lot of readers, unfortunately at this time I wasn't one of them but I think that may be more about me than anything!

Thank you to NetGalley and Oneworld Publications | Rock the Boat for a digital review copy of "Traumaland" in exchange for my honest and voluntary review.

One Perfect Couple

Ruth Ware

3.25

adventurous dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

3.25* - enjoyed it overall - gameshow gone wrong and a destination thriller. great holiday reading but not one of Ruth ware's strongest

Dream Count

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

DID NOT FINISH: 24%

I just wasn't feeling any kind of interest or attachment unfortunately

Midnight From Beyond the Stars

Gabino Iglesias, Kenneth W. Cain, Chelsea Quinn Yarbro, Samantha Kolesnik, Tim Curran, James Newman, Ronald Kelly, Janine Pipe, William Meikle, Lee Murray

4.0

adventurous challenging dark funny mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

a really strong collection overall, a few duds but mostly great quality writing. good variety on the theme but very long so dip in and out.

The Psychopath Next Door

Mark Edwards

3.5

dark mysterious tense

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

3.5* - solid thriller, a fun and crazy read

Then She Was Gone

Lisa Jewell

1.5

challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

I just hate read this to tick off a reading challenge prompt. Highly obvious with twists choreographed from minute one and I hated basically everyone. most characters were barely sketched out and even the core cast felt generally one dimensional.

wish I was more invested but alas, I just didn't care.

The Last Action Heroes: The Triumphs, Flops, and Feuds of Hollywood's Kings of Carnage

Nick de Semlyen

4.25

adventurous funny informative lighthearted fast-paced

great fun and worth it for the scathing commentary of steven segal.

The Dark Angel

Elly Griffiths

4.0

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

a new location but still the same Ruth and Nelson drama and a good mystery overall.

Human Remains

Jo Callaghan

4.5

challenging dark emotional funny informative mysterious reflective 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

4.5*

what an ending!

Loved this instalment of the series. The case in Leave No Trace was a lot darker compared to this one but the thing I love about this series is that all the core stories are intriguing and absorbing mysteries to solve. What keeps getting better and better are the interpersonal relationships and the development of Lock and oh boy did we get some developments here.

roll on book 4!

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