I really struggled to get into The German Girl. The true-to-life historical aspects were haunting and the overall plot was solid, but the characters were a bit underdeveloped and the pacing was extremely slow.

Correa also made some really unusual choices when it came to talking about Jewish people in Germany during WWII and the Twin Towers tragedy. For most of the book, Anna just says her dad is 'gone' or 'missing'. It's not until at least halfway, when you piece enough together to realize he was at the Towers on 9/11. Correa doesn't use the term '9/11' at all. And in the Hannah narrative, she calls Nazis 'ogres', mentions red/black/white flags but doesn't say what they represent and never mentions Hitler by name. I don't even recall the word 'Jewish' used. It was definitely an unusual choice - this hesitancy to precisely define things. But it stuck in my mind, so I guess Correa succeeded there.

I think if the pacing had been tweaked, this would have been a 4/5. But as is, I'll give it a 3.

I have FINALLY read The Grisha Trilogy! I've read all of Bardugo's books out of order - the Six of Crows duology first, then Language of Thorns, and now these three beauties. It's a testament to her writing that it all made sense in the order I read them, although SoC did end up spoiling me on a couple of bits in this trilogy. Oh well...

I flew through all three books in two days - they're just that entertaining. It's YA fantasy, and does rely on some rather tired tropes, but was still really well written. The story features beautifully complex world building, character development, culture, language - I loved all of that detail.

The interaction between the characters Alina and Mal flowed really well - I enjoyed their banter. Bardugo excels at writing conversations between characters. I wasn't a fan of the Darkling though, as he was a bit flat. Perhaps a bit too much reliance on those YA tropes in his case.

The ending was very satisfying, and it left me wanting to reread Six of Crows. As a whole, I'll give the series 4/5.

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo is a beautifully written book. It's an engrossing page turner that I think is destined to become a classic.

Reid has created some remarkably deep characters. Evelyn is so complex - she is quite unlikeable, and yet I felt for her with all the crap she went through. It actually made me tear up at times.

The plot itself is a very revealing look at Hollywood, especially in this era of #metoo. I can easily imagine some of the old-school celebrities reading this book and seeing the sad truth in it. There is also a very strong LGBT sub-plot that I loved.

This book has been added to my list of great reads I recommend to everyone. So... go read it!

The Hearts We Sold is a young adult novel with some pretty heavy themes: PTSD, anxiety disorder, abuse. It's also a story about supernatural beings with a sci-fi bent - altogether a unique combination. And it's a stand-alone, which is refreshing for YA.

The characters were really well-crafted. The relationship between Dee and James was really sweet, and developed at a natural pace - no insta-love. Dee also managed to save herself and be her own hero, which was great.

Overall, The Hearts We Sold is solid. 4/5

I’ve never been a fan of sequels, but not for the reasons you may think. It’s not about quality, but about my faulty memory. I read the first book - Scythe - several months ago. So for the first few chapters of Thunderhead, I struggled to remember who all the characters were. But it eventually made sense again. But now I’m annoyed - why isn’t this a duology?! The third book is a year away?! And of course, the ending was a heck of cliffhanger. I’m crushed, guys.

Like the first book in the series, Thunderhead has a fantastic and unique plot. Humans no longer die naturally, so scythes kill to maintain balance. But with the events in this book, that balance has all gone to hell. So. Good.

Characterization was excellent - even the Thunderhead (the world-governing AI) seemed believable. And reading its musings as things got bad really upped the feeling of dread with each turn of the page. Plot twists were thrown out left and right, leaving me constantly questioning and wondering what would come next - I certainly didn’t see that ending coming.

I have a feeling the next book in this series is going to be epic - I just really hope it stops at a trilogy!

Have you ever seen that really old picture of a young girl in a forest, surrounded by fairies? When it was taken, the entire world debated if it was real. The Cottingley Secret is a really sweet contemporary novel that revisits the story behind the photo with a unique, time-jumping plot.

There are two different stories in this novel - Frances in 1917 and Olivia in 2017; they share a unique link that ties them together. Time-jumping in a novel can be problematic if not done well, but in this case Gaynor pulled it off.

It's a nice, light book with an absolutely gorgeous setting - that bookshop is my dream! And the bit of forest that Frances explores sounds heavenly. Most of the characters were pretty solid, although Olivia's fiancé was a bit flat. I suppose that was to be expected - he wasn't supposed to be likable. But I think it went a bit too far and made him into a caricature.

One bit that really hit me hard was the Alzheimer's subplot. Gaynor's approach was really well done. Her insightfulness and sensitivity make me want to check out her other titles.

4/5

This book has been sitting on my shelf for so long, I don’t even remember how I got it. But I’m so glad I finally read it - it’s fantastic.

Danny’s homelife sucks - her father is a verbally abusive a-hole and her mother is no help at all. 15 years old and afraid, she hides a super important side of herself: Danny is a girl stuck in a boy’s body. But all of that changes when she witnesses the superhero Dreadnought get shot down. As his last act, Dreadnought passes on his powers to Danny - and then dies. But Danny gains more than just superpowers, her outside now reflects her insides - she’s a girl! Danny may now have what she always wanted, but her troubles are far from over.

This story is a true eye opener. Daniels uses the superhero plot to explore the physical and mental abuse transgender people face in North America. Danny faces prejudice, disgust and violence as she tries to be her true self. It’s a heart wrenching and powerful wakeup call - we need to do better. Daniels’ character development, world building and plot are all strong - this book is really well put together from all angles. Combined with the powerful message within its pages, this book could not be any better. Read it.

I believe this is a series, and I’m itching to read the next book. But it also holds up well as a stand-alone. Have I mentioned that you need to read this? Because you really should.