corabookworm's Reviews (264)

Some thoughts:
1. Just so you know, this book is just a bunch of men talking about how sad and lonely they are and telling each other stories. 
2. Frankenstein. Bro. Even if she’s adopted, if you call her “Cousin” and compare your relationship to siblings, you SHOULD NOT marry her. (Especially if someone said they’d come kill her on your wedding night?? Like? Just don’t get married???) 

Jokes aside, this was a wonderful little classic and I really enjoyed reading it!!

While this book does have the flaws of any book written in the 1870s (lesbian love story written by a man ew), it's pretty damn good. This fast-paced mystery set the stage for both lesbian and vampire literature, and I highly enjoyed reading it. I recommend Carmilla if you want to try out a short, quick classic, or if you're a fan of Gothic books.

I honestly thought this book was 5-star worthy for the most part. The writing was fantastic, the historical elements interesting but not boring, the story fast paced, and the plot intriguing. The explicit sex scenes threw me off and, due to personal preference, lowered the rating of the book to 3 stars. But otherwise I really liked it! If you're looking for short, queer horror with elements of religion, romance, monsters, and history, this one's pretty damn good!

Honestly so confused about how to feel about this book. It was beautiful and unsettling and very very depressing, less horror than I expected, more about grief and loss than anything else. And just plain weird. I loved it. But also I'm sad now. And a little disappointed that there wasn't a full plot with an end to the mystery. It was more just vibes. Which I respect. But also rahhh.

(Might write a more sensible review later we'll see.)

Windup Pilots control giant robot deities under Godolia’s tyrannical rule, keeping order among the people of the Badlands. Eris is a Gearbreaker who destroys these Windups, while Sona is a Windup pilot trying to destroy Godolia from the inside. Unlikely alliance (and romance) builds between them as they attempt to take down the empire.

I think I forgot how to enjoy YA books. Don’t get me wrong, this book is fantastic! The worldbuilding is super interesting, the found family is ADORABLE, and all of the characters are so lovely.

But to me, the story just felt silly. The older I get, the more concerned I get about books like this. Like besties. Why are all these kids murdering people? Who let them do that? The conflict wasn’t as fleshed out as I wish it had been, and the romance just fell flat for me. It was so all-consuming for them, and it was cute, but like not excusing-mass-murder cute. I don’t know. Just felt weird. 

The sequel was solid, too. Godslayers felt like two complete books pressed into one (a whole new story began around the 50% mark) which made the whole thing feel like a trilogy.

But yay! Giant robots and lesbians! Cute found family dynamics!! If you like YA sci-fi, you’ll enjoy this one. It was just harder for me to enjoy it with my changing reading tastes.

Not horrible but very clearly the author's debut. I didn't vibe with the writing style or most of the characters and the constant chapter breaks made the story feel choppy. It did, however, have potential, and if Casati publishes again, I'll definitely give her next book a chance. The execution of this one just wasn't for me.

This book was really interesting! I loved how the author connected changing perspectives on Aphrodite to historical events and locations. It was especially fascinating learning about Aphrodite's roots in Eastern mythology and her shift to Venus and conflict with the Catholic Church. My only problem with this book is that sometimes I couldn't really tell what point the author was trying to make? Which might just be because I'm sick and tired and nonfiction is hard to read. But it sometimes felt like she was just listing facts without drawing any conclusions. Which I forgive, because, like I said, super interesting book! 

(ALSO: I loved all of the art included in this book so much. Wish more of it had been in color because it's all so pretty!)

Super super interesting and written in such a genuine (and funny!) voice. I loved it!