goatsrsexy's Reviews (604)

This was a super cute, fun YA read. The romance was sweet, though not the main focus. It was definitely more coming of age and dealing with family issues which I liked. I wish we'd seen more resolved with Arya's mom, I just felt so sad for her but overall the book did wrap up well. I watch a lot of Bollywood movies so it was fun to see the references but it's definitely not required knowledge for enjoying the book.

Thanks so much to Netgalley and Wednesday books for the advanced copy

This book was truly hard to get through. It's not that I didn't like it I loved it but it was very slow. I was ready to DNF at 40% but I just kept thinking of how many people I know who loved it, so I pushed through and I have to say I'm so glad I did. It was very worth it.

Okay first of all this was not a Christmas book at all and as a Jew I'm really not complaining but it's kinda weird how not Christmasy it was based on the name and the cover.

It was definitely a lot better than the last Tessa Bailey Christmas book I read, so that's nice. Honestly I enjoyed this quite a bit, I usually do enjoy romcoms about celebrities it's a fun trope imo. Would that be considered a trope? Doesn't matter.

Anyways, I think the instalust was a little much, I get the connection they had I do but they were a little too obsessed with each other a little too fast. And there were a lot of weird things going on like they built this guys kink up to be so bad I was scared tbh but then it was really anticlimactic lol. They were supposedly being live streamed like 18 hours a day but it felt like they weren't unless it was convenient for the plot in that moment. 

It's okay though because it was enjoyable and light hearted. But not a Christmas book don't let the name fool you. I liked the moms characters a lot.

I liked a few of these stories enough to bump the rating up a bit but all in all I just didn't find them engaging enough. For me, it shouldn't feel like a drag to read something so short

This was pretty silly and cute but I think it was a bit too long for what it was

I really loved this book. I wasn't sure about it at first, the first 20% or so was a bit slow for me until I kinda got my bearings, but after that I flew through it.

I loved the structure of this book, how each part was so different. I liked the questions in part 1 and part 3 blew my mind by essentially  giving the author the chance to pick apart and critique her own book, challenging any of the thoughts readers may have had before reaching this part. I have never seen a book do this before and I can imagine it was a controversial choice but I think it was the perfect way to close this book.

The story itself was a dark, sad, and painfully relatable love story. It also gave some interesting perspective on 'woke' culture and how western centric it is/can be. I'm certainly not saying I agree with every point made, but it was super thought provoking and I love a book that makes me think about things in a way I never have before.

I definitely see why this book has such mixed reviews, but for me it was a definite win and even a book I plan to revisit (which isn't something I do very often). It was truly interesting and unique. 

This was a fun light read. It was nice to see something from Ali Hazelwood that's a bit outside her traditional formula. I know it was YA but tbh I would've liked a bit more focus on the romance because I wasn't getting as much chemistry between them as I wanted.

Some of the story felt a bit far fetched but I'm okay with that because it was entertaining and cute with low conflict. Probably wouldn't read this again but glad I read it and excited to see what else Ali has in store for us.

I have some mixed feelings about this book. There were parts I really  enjoyed but other parts that gave me the ick lol.

I loved the main character, Everly, I thought she was sweet and well written. I really enjoyed the first part of the book where we get to see some of the first few reality show days of filming and how everything works. I really liked the hosts of the show and how joyful and supportive everyone was.

The love interest was not developed at all, I didn't think they had much chemistry and while I get how their feelings for each other could have developed I feel like we didn't actually get to see it happen, it just was, so I wasn't really feeling it. I skipped all the spicy scenes which is usually a sign I'm not feeling the romance and I definitely wasn't in this case. There was nothing wrong with it but tbh I think the book would've been better if it was just about Everly finding herself and her joy. 

Taking the romance out also would've helped with another issue which is that I felt this book was too long for what it was. 

Overall, I'm glad to have given it a chance and there are some parts I really liked, but it's not something I'd really recommend to romance readers. If you're looking for a book specifically about self love and growth and are willing to live with the lame romance you could be happy with this.

Advanced copy provided by Netgalley 

A short book (under 200 pages) that reads like an eery and poetic fairytale, this is a story about a young girl named Siss who befriends a girl named Unn the day before she disappears. The book depicts her grief, confusion, and psychological trauma at losing her friend incredibly well. I've seen some reviewers talking about how it seems unbelievable she'd be this distressed over someone she barely knew, and to that say those reviewers must never have been or completely forgotten what it's like to be a young girl with a special friend. To me this book and the feelings it described felt very realistic. 

The imagery and descriptions of the actual ice palace (a frozen waterfall) were hauntingly beautiful, and really felt what it must have been like to live in a small town in Norway like this. I found the lce Palace to be a very empathetic story, and I really liked the way the other children behaved towards Siss and how they all reacted to the gravity of Unns disappearance. 

I would definitely recommend picking this up if you're interested in reading a short gothic fairytale type of story set in the snow.

This was very sweet and enjoyable but SUPER light on actual plot