Reviews by caseythereader | The StoryGraph

1.84k reviews by:

caseythereader

We Deserve Monuments

Jas Hammonds

4.75

challenging dark emotional funny mysterious reflective sad fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Thanks to Fierce Reads for the free copy of this book.

- WE DESERVE MONUMENTS is a knockout of a book. This book covers everything from the annoyances of being a teenager to generational trauma, and it's delivered in a story that's both beautiful and page-turning.
- I loved watching the relationships between the women of Avery's family untangle and grow. Hammonds doesn't gloss over how painful it can be to uncover family history, but also that love can still be buried under all of it.
- On top of all this, there's also an exploration of what it means to be young, Black and queer in the South today. I'll truly be thinking of this book for a long time to come.

Content Warnings

Never Ever Getting Back Together

Sophie Gonzales

4.75

emotional funny lighthearted fast-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

Thanks to Wednesday Books for the free advance copy of this book.

- NEVER EVER GETTING BACK TOGETHER is for those of us who watch The Bachelor and think, "I wish these women would date each other instead of this loser guy." It's the greatest premise.
- I loved watching Maya and Skye fight the reality show trope of women catfighting over a man. The two of them are a great pair and the relationship felt organic, even in the over-the-top setting.
- I do wish this book would have been a full-on adult romance novel rather than somewhere in the YA/new adult space. I kept forgetting they were supposed to be college aged and it muddled things a bit. Regardless, it was still great fun.

Content Warnings

I Want to Be Where the Normal People Are

Rachel Bloom

3.5

emotional funny lighthearted reflective fast-paced

Content Warnings

River Woman, River Demon

Jennifer Givhan

3.75

challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Thanks to Libro FM for the free copy of this book.

- RIVER WOMAN, RIVER DEMON had me on the edge of my seat. I love a thriller with a bit of a fantasy edge, and this book delivers as Eva tries to use her bruja powers to sort out the truth.
- Eva makes so many bad choices that I can see why some readers may not like this book. I’m here for hot mess women characters though, especially when it’s in a thriller that doesn’t center rich white people.
- When the answer was revealed, even though I had my suspicions about that character, I still felt a literal chill run down my spine.

Content Warnings

House of Yesterday

Deeba Zargarpur

4.0

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Thanks to Books Forward PR for the free advance copy of this book.

- HOUSE OF YESTERDAY is such a unique book, and it's also an emotional gut punch.
- I loved how the magical elements slowly unraveled the secrets of Sara's family in a way that kept me turning the pages.
- This book is not just a mystery, it's also an exploration of family - of both losing it and finding it - and how you can have both good and bad experiences within one family (or even both with one person).
- Please do check the content warnings on this one, as it's quite heavy for a YA novel. It's really worth it though if you can, for both the story and the representation of cultures and experiences we don't often see in books.

Content Warnings

The Falling in Love Montage

Ciara Smyth

4.5

emotional funny hopeful reflective sad fast-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

- Oh my goodness, I loved THE FALLING IN LOVE MONTAGE. This book is YA at its best: silly and sweet, but also tackling tough life events and complicated relationships.
- Saoirse is prickly and angry, and the book does a good job of showing us how her feelings can be valid, but also a bit overblown where she doesn’t have the full context.
- I also loved how this book was virtually free of homophobia. Maybe a brief mention, but not a central part of the plot at all.

Content Warnings

Bloodmarked

Tracy Deonn

4.75

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

- BLOODMARKED picks up right where LEGENDBORN left off, and we're right back in the thick of it with Bree and the crew as the situation rapidly deteriorates.
- This book not only expands the world of the first book, but also digs deeper into the effects of generational trauma while exploring possible ways to reclaim what was taken.
- There is also a major focus on consent in this book, in multiple forms, and what it means for different people at different levels of power to assert control.
- Amid grappling with these difficult topics and ideas, Deonn also delivers an absolute page turner with this book. I'm already counting down to book three!

Content Warnings

A Million Quiet Revolutions

Robin Gow

5.0

challenging emotional hopeful reflective sad fast-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

Thanks to FSG Young Readers for the free copy of this book.

- My official review of A MILLION QUIET REVOLUTIONS is as follows: 😭❤️😭❤️😭❤️
- Seriously, this book is so good. It’s heartbreaking but also hopeful. I wanted to hug Aaron and Oliver so tightly.
- I love how this book talks about how queer people and people of color have been simply wiped from so much of our history, and how empowering it can be to find yourself in the past, or to write yourself into history.

Content Warnings

Astrid Parker Doesn't Fail

Ashley Herring Blake

4.0

emotional funny hopeful lighthearted fast-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

Thanks to PRH Audio for the free advance copy of this book.

- I adore Ashley Herring Blake's women. They are messy and complicated and full of love. I love that there are real reasons for why they act the way they do, and not simply just to introduce obstacles into the plot.
- In particular in ASTRID PARKER DOESN'T FAIL, I loved that Jordan didn't fit neatly into a butch or femme stereotype. She wore overalls and had short hair and also wore bold lipstick. I'm here for expanding the kinds of queer women who appear in books.
- This series is so much about family, both blood relatives and found family, and how important those supports are. I already can't wait to see them all return for Iris' book.

Content Warnings

Half-Blown Rose

Leesa Cross-Smith

3.0

emotional funny reflective sad slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Content Warnings

More...