idk_indigo's Reviews (723)

This was such a cute little book, and even though there was plenty of spice it still felt fluffy. The friendships she has with all the hockey boys is really heartwarming & so cute! Obviously, I love me some girly queen bestie time with the homegirls, but I guess boys can be friendly too...

I found myself perplexed with Aaron a lot of the time; on one hand, any character who is, like, that bad (ie., continuously tries to fuck shit up for the FMC at all times) is a bit of a writing red flag for me. Nobody is going that out of their way just to be a menace, like at some point the victim-always mentality is just silly. But also, Aaron is a man so, like, it makes sense to me.

The therapy aspect of the book was weird/interesting/kinda just felt thrown on, but obviously love me a self-actualized FMC queen! The eating disorder component was also... eh to me, but I love that it's a component of the book because mental health in romance is so slay!!! 

Oh and side note but where the fuck is this taking place? Like, obviously it's in LA, but... where? They talk about driving to Malibu which like yeah could be anywhere; no mention of 405 traffic, plus they talk about being pretty close to the 5, but also they regularly go out to WeHo for parties/dancing... it for sure has to be North of the 2 (because rich kids), but also can't be too far away from UCLA, but also doesn't seem to be lots of hills & absolutely no mention of parking being difficult, so I'm just like... where does this take place? Geographically it just doesn't make sense to me. It is okay, though, because it's a work of fiction.

I have seen people complain about the lack of accuracy regarding figure skating. I know nothing about figure skating (except that it's pretty) so like honestly it didn't feel off to me at all. The trick with this is to just not know anything, it works pretty well methinks. What did feel off is why a school in LA would be known for ice sports? And also called Maple Hills, like? But like whatever. Also, call me jealous (green is my color, anyway), but I could not watch my partner figure skate with another man like that shit is sooo intimate. 

Overall loved the vibes. Hated Aaron but also I think I would've at one point talked shit about people with Aaron. But then I'd feel guilty about it when he said some shit about his best friend/teammate/skating partner was

unlovable because she was adopted

. That shit's kinda weird ngl. Also, where tf did Ryan go? 

This is such a beautiful story; I loved the cultural aspect, especially learning about Caribbean foods & recipes, as well as the discourse about black cake and other 'colonizer foods.' I thought it was so beautifully woven, and the central familial story was interesting & mysterious while still being domestic. The one thing that I had a slight issue with was the representation of the 2 LGBTQ+ characters, especially because they were both women. I loved it tho!

I loved Ten Doors of January soooo much, but the MC of this book was kind of... annoying. There are only so many times you can remind the readers how poor someone is, how much they've had to strive for their place, how "lying comes so easily" to them before I'm like okay ya I get it let's move on. I enjoyed the majority of it, but the conflict resolution was lacking. I enjoyed it tho. Arthur is slay 

This wasn't as good as the 1st book (nor was it as steamy, very sad). As other reviewers have mentioned, Persephone just makes a few too many dumb decisions for me to empathize with her. Plus, she gets drugged at least 3x throughout the course of this story, that's just tooooo much for me. I do like the ending, and I appreciate Seph bringing a naivety/fresh perspective to the world of the gods (with Apollo & trying to help him be a slayer person, or like god/being). 

I also don't understand with Dmitri couldn't just, like... not publish the story about Apollo? She only sent him an email with the article, but are there not like rounds of editing/approval that must take place before an article is sent to print? No you know what, speaking of her job in general, how is she an intern (been there <1 year) and she's already writing front-page pieces? Is this because of her notoriety what with being Hades's lover? Even before then, she had the article of Hades publish in the 1st book too, I just can't seem to comprehend how on earth she's able to jump from 1st-year intern to that in, like, what, a few months? Wild. Suspension of disbelief & all, but I can imagine Greek gods & goddesses fucking before I can imagine climbing the corporate ladder so quickly. They don't even know she's a nepo baby either!!! I just couldn't stop thinking, like "There is no way she's able to move up like that," esp in a field so overly saturated as investigative journaling!! So jelly, slay tho girly queen power obtain that bag (& that dick!)

I love how Seph is growing into her power, soooooo slay!! Yes queen tie Hades up in middle of the forest! We love it! Another one!! :P

Meg Sylvan, the narrator, is perfection. She reads Persephone's perspective so beautifully & I love her Hecate voice -- so wise, and so different from Seph's young, new goddess voice. Slay

PS I love Hades <3 pussy eating king 

Such a cute book! It was steamier than the 1st book in the series, which was about Piper, Hannah's sister. The audiobook was well done, but, the prologue with the back & forth text messaging was excruating to listen to & gave me such a massive headache that I almost DNF'd it; & mind you, this was <20 mins (3%) in. Once that part was over, it was smooooooth sailing (hehe) & the book was so lovely :) I loved Hannah's turn under the spotlight, that she got to become the star for once. And love me a reformed rake (is there a contemporary term for that? Fuckboy?) storyline, of course, and though it did make me occasionally want to roll my eyes, I loved the MMC overcoming his own insecurities about only being good for sex. Slay

This book was just so beautiful; a story about love & loss & grief. The first 1/3 of the book was, as other reviewers describe, very confusing. We don't figure out exactly who the narrator is until quite a ways through, though there are little hints here & there. We know he has some connection to the characters, and also that he is telling the first part of the story from a point in time where he is not yet born. I thought the reveal of him as the narrator was perfect. It was like a lightbulb moment. Very nice. 

The prose was beautiful, if a little bit disjointed; but honestly, I think it made the story that much more interesting, and also made sense if this is from the POV of an old man who was, in the first half, not yet alive; and in the second half, a small boy. The closing scene was a little bit ambiguous, and I think it may come across as unsatisfying. I'm not sure if I'm fully satisfied, but I'm not unsatisfied either, if that makes sense? As in, I think the story ended in a fine place. 

Simonopio as a character was sooooo cool; I loved him. I loved how nuanced he was, how little he bothered with others' expectations or beliefs of him. I loved the "adoption" storyline, and also the parallels between him as a young boy always running off & never being able to stay put in a bed or in a house; and Francisco, who was the same way but to a different degree. He was so lovable, and also so protective. And the fact that

he cared so deeply about Francisco Jr. that he "let him go" because he knew that it was the best way to ensure a fulfilling life for the little boy he loved so much... while also making the space for himself to stay in Linares; he knew that was where he belonged. I am so glad they made their way back to each other in the end!

Also, the opening few chapters of this book are so amazing; I started this book in December of 2021 (now February 2024, lol) & ended up DNF'ing it for various reasons (its slow pace, for example, bc oh my it is quite a bit sloooooooooooow). But I was drawn so much to the opening chapters that I just had to reopen it, and I'm so glad I did. What a beautiful story of brotherhood and of family! 

#proudmemberoftheSimonopiofanclub

I thoroughly hated the ending. Just because something is unexpected does not mean it's a good twist. Ugh. 

Also, heavy trigger warning for rape; such a meaningless & horrible scene that added nothing at all to the plot. Authors need to learn how to write about SA without being blech about it. Ew ew. 

Audiobook was confusing, hard to follow. All around meh. I'm annoyed. 

I may come back later & update my review because I am in quite a mood now. Maybe not. Dont know. I'm too upset about this stupid audiobook. 

Oh & also, I extremely hate when people say that they "knew all along" because that is not true and maybe that's the point of the ending bc

the killer is not who the other characters think it is

; but it's such a stupid saying that I don't want it in my books. Ugh

Such a cute and endearing book! I loved the audio narrator, she was amazing!

I wanted to like this as much as I liked One Day in December; unfortunately, it just wasn't there for me. The dead husband was so unlikeable, in both worlds, that I couldn't really bring myself to care about him. Lydia, Elle, & her mum were soo codependent that I lowkey hated their relationship too. It didn't feel like a healthy circle to me, especially since the relationships she had with other people (ie., her coworkers &... that's it) were almost nonexistent. I think it's one of those cases of show, not tell, because I kept hearing how much "they were all like a family" but I didn't really feel it at all. They felt just like friendly coworkers to me. The Croatia bit was also kinda weird & bordered a bit on stereotypical? Idk. I found myself annoyed by Lydia more often than not.