galacticvampire's Reviews (366)

This has to be the weirdest book I've ever read. When you think you've got the hang of it, you start questioning if it is an elaborate gaslighting campaign or if the protagonist really is going insane, and both options are completely possible!

Bunny explores mainly female relationships, the passive aggressiveness of those who just aren't quite friends but need to feign politeness, the need to prove yourself better, worthy, not like other girls. And it does so in the most bizarre way possible.

It's, at the same time, overwhelming and cathartic, and I couldn't have had a better experience with it.

I might've been able to pull through it if the narration wasn't so bad, it made a plain story sound weird in a bad way.

This isn't a terrible book I just should've looked it up better before letting the hype convince me to try it out, there isn't a single thing happening there that interests me.

(also, they just start of disliking each other because of... reasons? And then all of a sudden they're desperately horny for each other)

Path of Vengeance had the mission not only of wrapping up its duology story, but the entire phase II of the high republic. And I think this ended up convoluting the flow more than it was necessary. 

I really like the story we were given, and the tense mood through the entire thing was surprisingly good, considering that by now I had read what happened on Dalna two other times. Whenever we were following Yana or Marda, it felt like a sequel to Path of Deceit (even though Marda's fanatical internal monologue was infuriating to read), and there are a lot of incredible moments, like

the characterization of Planet X.

But woven in the middle of this it was an attempt to tying the knots of other stories, and I don't like how it was executed. 

The first 30% of the book were trying to recap the battle of Jedha, not from a new pov (which would've worked), but summing up scenes we had already seen in other media. If it was assuming a public who's following it all, it was boring, but if it was for those who only read Parh of Deceit, it was confusing!

Even the addition of Matty and Oliviah, while I enjoy both characters, was unnecessary and could've been told from one of the path's povs. (Like the Mother!! I can't believe we didn't once got to know her better) 

Overall, I'm really excited how all of this will tie to Phase III, and appreciate how messy the internal workings of the path were shown to be, but wish the end product was a little more streamlined.

The romance was fun and believeable, and I like the world building we got. The idea of Olympus as a modern high society works well enough and The Spicy Parts were well written and don't sound unrealistic nor too over the top.

I did have an issue with the clear attempt to frame this as a "dark romance" when in reality the narrative was terrified of anything slightly problematic.

I appreciate the inclusion of often lacking points like consent and queerness, but it often felt like at least once in every Hades POV there was an explicit disclaimer going over how he's a total feminist.

(Also, the ending is the biggest cop out I've ever read exactly because at the same time doesn't allow the main girl to have agency nor anyone to actually do something morally dubious ever)

She Drives Me Crazy hits all the important spots regarding teen romances: the couple is cute, there's high levels of drama about simple things, and most characters are completely messed up emotionally.

Scotties's arc is particularly rough to follow. She's still feeling the aftereffects of a toxic relationship and is quite insecure. And makes the most insane decisions. It's, at the same time, easy to sympathise with her and a struggle not to want to throttle her.

While the fake dating came from a very dubious set up (it could almost be read like black-mail) I really liked their dynamic and relationship. Irene is interesting and balances well the task of being both the initially unlikable popular girl and the actually deep overachiever. It's a cliche trope but it works.

The antagonists are probably the weakest point of the story. I kept waiting for some nuanced characterization about why both exes were horrible but nothing really came. It ends up being quite cartoonish. 

(We don't even really know how one of them was a toxic girlfriend. They just throw the word around and say how it made Scottie feel, but we never have a clear action of her being this terrible)

All in all, this book would be great if it was deeper, but this wasn't really what it set itself to be.

I appreciate that this book was really self aware and allowed itself to be very tongue-in-cheek about how silly monster romances can be.

However. The insta-love was way too literal for me to let it slide (fated mates and whatnot) and the frequent use of the pet name "wolf daddy" almost made me dnf.

Also, the male lead was a total wimp but they were trying really hard to convince me he was this dangerous and animalistic alpha wolf.

I was enamoured by the concept of The Fifth Season from the first time I heard about it years ago, added to overall praise for the series, I was coming with high expectations.

And it delivered. Everything and more.

The execution not only lives up to the concept, but surpasses it. The suspense isn't there to pull the rug from under your feet in a gotcha moment, it's carefully crafted into the story, where the reveals are satisfying and spark the need for more, even when you caught what the foreshadowing was trying to tell you.

The world is so rich and complex that the initial struggle to follow what was going on (including the recurrent second person pov) has an immense pay-off. The feeling of wonder didn't leave me for a second.

I'm very much on the transition from YA to Adult Fantasy, so the very real darkness and grittiness surrounding everything was unexpected, but I couldn't have picked a better book to make me fall in love with the genre.

This is a story about Pain. This is a story about Grief. This is a story about enduring them and surviving them, because you have no other option.

Nora and Charlie might be one of my favorite romance couples. There's no stupid third act fight For No Reason Other Than a Climax, they actually talk, and I LOVE how they slowly warm up to each other (the flirting here was 👌🏻👌🏻🤌🏻)

Many plot reveals and/or mysteries were quite predictable, but this didn't hamper the enjoyment: Book Lovers is fun, light, and hits the nice balance of making you cheer for the couple without it getting too sappy.

Oh. wow. Ok. 

These Violent Delights is an extremely complex and nuanced story. On the surface it is simply a dark academia about two boys' toxic relationship, but with every layer, with every detail, you see more and more of their bare bones. 

This is fucked up ok? It deceives you and manipulates you just as much as the characters did one another. The level of psychological turmoil and, to some extent, mild gore, really surprised me. 

I felt the story took a little while to get going, wasn't feeling it as much in the beginning, but this exact build up ends up making a lot of sense with how their relationship works out. 

The setting is really interesting and the narration is phenomenal, guiding you through Paul's messy logic and you almost feel yourself following it, no matter how twisted it is. 

The book hits every point on its mood and atmosphere, and it's probably one of the best crafted psychological thrillers I have read. 

Before the "no plot, just vibes" definition blew up John Green was already doing it. Are the vibes good? Sure. Did I want more plot? Sure.

This book can be very anxiety-inducing. Aza's internal monologue is bleeding with her OCD, which is both interesting and absolutely dreadful. She can't stop the spiral of her own thoughts, and is very easy to slide down on it as well.

I have some issues with how the relationships around Aza were handled, and the ending was kinda underwhelming. It really had potential to develop everything more, but I also recognise this wasn't the main goal.

But the relevant point is that the book is also relatable. It's honest and doesn't shy away from the ugly parts. This isn't the often-seen romanticisation of mental illness, simply a reminder that it is part of human beings, who are complex and real beyond their condition.