This book was so much fun!!! I couldn’t put it down. The writing was great, and there were times where I was genuinely creeped out and glancing over my shoulder. More horror books should be written as sci-if, it added so much to the tension and story as a whole.

I really enjoyed the character interactions, and I liked the progression between Claire and Kane. 

The only reason the book isn’t 5 stars is because the ending felt a bit condensed, and I personally don’t like when media with creepy atmospheres end with a bunch of action. I wish we had seen more epilogue as well.

3 stars

This is my first book I’ve read by Nnedi Okorafor and with the things I’ve heard about her and the premise of the book, I expected a lot. Unfortunately although I did overall like the book, it did not live up to my expectations. Sometimes I was having a great time, others I felt like I was forcing myself to keep reading.

The things I liked:

The premise and setting. It was so refreshing to have an afro-futuristic dystopian! You could tell that Dr. Okorafor really put her heart into it. I loved the mythology aspects and the culture that’s seeped into the book.

The message: Dr. Okorafor does a great job handling upsetting topics such as rape, female genital mutilation, colorism, sexism, ethnic genocide, ect. She handled all these topics with such care and although it definitely made it a hard read at times, it was worth it.

What I didn’t like:

Writing: although the themes were definitely adult, the writing could’ve passed for YA. She is definitely a great writer, it’s just not the prose I expected from an adult book containing such a serious premise. Another problem was info-dumping, which there was quite a lot of. Dialogue felt pretty stiff at times as well, but that didn’t bother me much.

Characters: unfortunately, none of the characters really did it for me. I loved Luyu and the Vah People, but that’s basically it. Onye didn’t have much personality other than her anger and magic, Mwita would be my favorite and then the next second say something sexist, and her group of friends were so back and forth. 

The ending: it was so anticlimactic and everything is somehow resolved within the last 4 or so pages. It really made the whole 400 page book feel a bit pointless.

I don’t understand why she let her bio father live….all that build up and for what? It wasn’t even her that injured him, it was Mwita. Mwita’s death felt pointless and avoidable, as did Binta’s.

Although I had a lot of problems with this book, I am happy that I read it.

4.5/5 stars

This is definitely a new favorite thriller! I couldn't stop reading, and although I guessed the big plot twist a little bit beforehand, there were so many small twists along the way that were so much fun to discover. It's really amazing how the author was able to tie everything together, I don't know how she kept track of everything. 

I know some people didn't like the writing style but to be honest I was so engrossed in the story I didn't even notice lol. 

It took me awhile to decide on whether to give it a 4.5 or a 5, and ultimately I decided on a 4.5 because I found Jen's (the main character) revelations about certain spoiler specific things a bit repetitive at times. 

This book was an amazing reading experience, and one I will definitely remember.

I LOVED THIS BOOK!! I finished it in two days, I couldn’t put it down.

I loved our two main characters, and I don’t think I’ve ever related to a MC’s personality more than I did with Celine, and Bradley’s OCD as well. I loved them both so much and they were so cute together !!! And all of the side characters were great as well.

Definitely my new favorite YA. I loved the bisexual representation with Bradley as well!! 

Dual pov but there isn’t a different narrator for the main male character and I couldn’t stand it lol. Will try again digitally at some point

3.5/5 stars

The first half was definitely slow at times but the second half of the book was so much fun.

I liked Mari for the most part but there was definitely some moments where she got on my nerves lol. I understand what the author was trying to do to showcase Mari’s fear of bed bugs, but it was really tiring to have to keep listening to it over and over again.

Sammy and Yusef (is that how you spell it?) were cute characters. I really enjoyed Mari’s relationship with both of them.

I appreciated the commentary on gentrification and the criminalization of weed, but at times it felt incomplete.

One of my biggest gripes is how Piper is written. As someone who works in childcare, it’s drives me insane when an author obviously doesn’t research child development. Why is a 10 year old acting like a 7 year old?

Overall it was a pretty good read. This is my first Tiffany D. Jackson book and I’m excited to read more from her.

I really enjoyed this book but to be honest none of it felt like it made much sense. 

I couldn't put the book down at times, it was really engaging. 

Unfortunately, the ending was a total bust for me. The closer I got to finishing the more I could tell I wasn't going to like the ending. I understand what the author was trying to do with the ending and the reveal, but I don't think it was done well, nor did it wrap up all the questions about the events that happened. 

Jackal gets a 3.5 rating because although it definitely lost me at the end, I do think it was a pretty well written book for the most part and I really enjoyed reading it.

This book was well written, and it was my first book written in the interview format so I really enjoyed it. Although definitely entertaining, to be honest I wasn't emotionally invested in the book.

One thing that shocked me was that most of these characters aren't really likeable. After so much hype about the book and the love for the two main characters Daisy and Billy, I wasn't expecting that. They're all very entertaining yes, but not likeable.

One thing that irked me was how it kept being brought up how Daisy has certain privileges due to her beauty, but not once is her white privilege brought up. It wouldn't have taken much to acknowledge it, so it's frustrating for me as a woc. 

Overall, I enjoyed this book. I listened to the audiobook at 1.75x speed, and I've got to say, you HAVE to read this as an audiobook. The narrators did such a wonderful job and it really felt like I was watching a movie with how well they were acting out their characters.

I loved this book so much. 

I loved seeing the Asian representation, especially as a mixed Asian girl myself. 

I loved all of our main characters and their relationships with one another. The relationships felt real and progressed naturally. The book evenly put the spotlight on Gracie’s relationship with Sam and with Fangli, which I felt was a great touch. One of the main problems I can have with romance books is how centered they can be on just the romantic aspect. It was great to see all of Gracie’s relationships develop, even her friendship with the side character who’s name I unfortunately cant remember right now lol.

This book would’ve gotten 5 stars if not for the conflict towards the end of the book. It felt really unnecessary, and went against all the character development Gracie had. Thankfully it wrapped up quickly, but it felt like the end rushed a little.


Even though its a pretty lighthearted book, it had some heavy topics such as mental health, SA, men being SA’d, racism, ect. It didn’t dive deep enough for it to be a depressing book, but gave them enough spotlight that you know the author takes it seriously.

I loved this book and would highly recommend. And shoutout to the audiobook narrator! She was fantastic.

I think this is my book soulmate.

I adored this book and our three main characters. Rachel, Borne and Wick are so precious to me. I don’t remember if I’ve ever felt so connected to a book before.

The writing was beautiful and challenging, definitely took a while longer for me to read than most books do. I’ve never had so much fun annotating before.

This is such a memorable read and i cant wait to read more from this author.