raenyreads's Reviews (345)

This is a really fun book, I think the quotes saying it's like a mix of Good Omens and The Long Way To A Small Angry Planet ring true. However, it's also not like any book I've read before and is quite unique in how it is structured.
I enjoyed the plot lines throughout the book and each character was loveable and interesting. It got a little bit confusing at times and that is my only complaint, but if you don't get stuck on the details then everything comes together in the end. I also think the trans representation and view point were really informative and engaging.
I really recommend this book.

Mystery novels aren't usually my thing, I bought this for my mam and wanted to read it so we could talk about it together. Therefore I can't comment on how true this is to the character of Miss Marple or whether any of these tropes are over done.

I didn't think any of the short stories in this collection were bad but I also wasn't blown away by any either. As always with short story collections, some grabbed my attention more than others, I enjoyed 'The Murdering Sort' by Karen M. McManus the most and it stands out in my mind the most after finishing the book. I also appreciated some of the authors bringing in more diversity to the stories. I think one of the biggest let downs of the book was how some stories had similar twists, though this may be hard to avoid when each author doesn't know what the others are writing.

Overall, it's a good collection but had no wow factor for me.

The hype around this book is unbelievable, but does it deserve it? Well, my answer is both yes and no... I'll start with the negatives so I can gradually get more positive! 

My biggest problem with this book was the writing. Some of the lines just made me cringe. I know the author has to convey how attracted to each other the main characters are, but sometimes it just sounded a quite juvenile to me. Other times, I thought the writing was fine, so it was a bit hit and miss for me.

The world building was interesting. Although most of the book took place within the school setting, we were given little hints about the wider world. I found it highly interesting and unique how the dragons interacted with humans and how their lore was set up in this installment, I'm sure we have a lot more to learn as the series goes on.

I thought the characters were well developed, even if the main character did have a bit of a plot armour problem at times. I really felt for some of the characters, so much that when the action picked up, I found I was worried for them, which is a great sign.

I felt the plot was the strongest aspect of the book. It never seemed to drag because there's always something happening. Some plot points were a bit predictable, but some twists took me by surprise, so I can't complain on that front. Even without the romance aspects, I feel the plot was interesting enough on its own.

That said, this book is romantasy, so clearly the relationship building is a big aspect of it. I'm a big fan of the slow burn trope, and I feel it was done well here. There was instant attraction, but the author did take the time to build the relationship up throughout the book. 

So, is it worth the hype? I'd say so. It has a lot of great aspects even if it wasn't perfect for me. It was also a great page turner, I read this in a matter of days as I just couldn't put it down. Overall, I'm rating it 4⭐️

I enjoyed Ali Smith's focus on word play in this book (even more so than her usual) and so really enjoyed the Curlew or Curfew parts. I think the historical parts went over my head a bit though. Overall it was still a fun quick read and a great edition to the series, I'm glad she decided to tackle the pandemic within the series.

A fun continuation to the series. I think I was a little less invested in this instalment compared to the first one but it was still fun. I think the lack of stakes and a lot of the deus ex machina trope is why this series is a bit middling for me but it's still enjoyable and I will be continuing.

This was a strong start to a series. I found each characters POV engaging and so there wasn't one which I found more boring than the rest. I thought the story was unique enough to keep me intrigued and I really liked the vibe of the whole book.
I listened to the audiobook and I think Nicola Coughlan did a really good job with it!

I'll admit YA isn't my usual preference but I'm a marine ecologist and so when I heard about a Spirited Away-esque book but with a kingdom below the sea I had to try it. It is very cute and I read this book very quickly as it's quite short.
However, I just feel like something is missing. Maybe it's because the enemies become friends/romantic a bit too quickly/easily for me or maybe it because I didn't really love the ending but overall this was just okay. I wished it had more references to the ocean considering the cover but I haven't reduced my rating as that's just a me thing.

I went into this just wanting a quick fun romance read and that's what I got and more. I have flew through both the books in this series and they are just a really fun time. I actually preferred this book to the first one as I felt it was a lot less predictable and so I was more intrigued to see where the plot was going. 
Only complaints are I would have liked a little more spice considering how much we were reminded that they had the hots for each other and also I wanted a bit more on the end to get more of an aftermath. Still a great book though.

Is this book amazingly written, highly emotional, and has meaningful content? Yes. Did it make me feel miserable? Also yes. I can't really explain it any other way. 
It's an amazing book and a real achievement for the author but I'd definitely recommend looking up the trigger and content warnings first as I was not expecting how sad this book was going to be.

This is a really fun little graphic novel. It started really strong but I feel it fell off a little in the second half and I was left wanting a bit more from it. I think I would have loved it more as a teenager maybe. Still a cute short read!