It was fun, definitely very rom com vibes. If you can get over the cringier parts and deal with the stereotypical third act conflict, it’s pretty nice. I’d give it a higher rating if it weren’t for the fact that I constantly went from this is so cute I love it to this is kind of annoying, so it was pretty conflicting. Another problem I had was that the characters are like 16 but sound like immature 25 year olds. Definitely not a new favorite, but I still enjoyed parts of it. Also honestly, Dylan’s my favorite character, he’s hilarious. The side characters in general are really good and I really liked the friendships in it. 

And that's how you go on. You lay laughter over the dark parts. The more dark parts, the more you have to laugh. With defiance, with abandon, with hysteria, any way you can.

I loved it. Laini Taylor never disappoints. The writing, world building, characters and even the plot were top tier

(although I did guess the twist, it was still very enjoyable. I’m not even sure if it was meant to be unguessable)

. Very much a readers book, too. 
One of my favorite things about Laini Taylor’s writing is that she has a remarkable ability to describe emotions in a very vivid way so that you understand exactly how the character is feeling, and might even have felt that way before. This book definitely has that and it made the overall emotions in it so much better. Only thing I wish we got more of were descriptions of the city, because for all of Lazlo’s fascination it mostly just describes it at the start when he gets there and then focuses on how the shadow impacts it, so we don’t really get much positive perception of the real Weep

(dream one is a different story.)

Whoever told me that the duology was like one big book split in half was definitely right and I’m glad that I have the sequel on hand. Very excited to read it, although I’m probably going to read this one contemporary book I was gifted first because it’s set in New York City, where I am currently, so it’s fitting.
All in all, definitely a new favorite and inspires me to prioritize finishing Daughter of Smoke and Bone, which was great but not as good as Strange the Dreamer.

All I remember is that I felt like it was longer than it needed to be

"There's no such thing as karma. Or, if it does exist, it sure doesn't give a shit about people like me. Some of us were born to be used and discarded. We can't afford to simply go along with the flow of life, because nothing in this world has been created, built, or set up in our favor. If we want something, we have to push back against everything around us and take it by force."

10/5 stars
Ladies, gentlemen, and others, may I present one of my new top 5 favorite books! 
I'm obsessed. Obsessed, I tell you. I love everything about this book. I live for Zetian and Shimin, I love their rage filled selves so much, and Yizhi 🥺 Don't get me started on this cinnamon roll. 
If you love patriarchy smashing badass mcs, a cool & unique magic system based on qi (life force), bisexual icons, hilarious writing, or all of the above, this is the book for you. I will be bugging all my friends about it, because it’s unprecedented and unique, it’s a readers book, it’s all the good things. I also really appreciate the formatting (imo the only thing it lacked was a table of contents, especially since the chapters had, often funny, titles), particularly the fact that they included trigger warnings in the actual book. 
Also, I’ve been dedicatedly watching Xiran’s YouTube channel since her first (and very viral) video and I was very excited to read this book, and it exceeded my (already pretty high) expectations. It made me feel the whole spectrum of emotions and I just overall loved it. I need to get my hands on the sequel asap.

Not a new favorite, but still good. Honestly the writing is a lot more simple than I’ve gotten used to in the YA that I read, it feels a lot more middle grade for me. I still liked it though, Alina’s an endearing character and I cared about her. I’ll be reading the next two books, if mostly just because I want more of the Grishaverse world, and because I’m curious as to how she became a Saint (as we know from Six of Crows). Mal's... not my favorite, and I agree with a lot of the reviews criticizing him, but honestly I don't really care. I really like the magic system and the world, but it's Six of Crows that really made me fall in love with Grishaverse. 

First thoughts:

My heart 😫

This is officially a Magnus Bane stan account now, he’s iconic. 

That epilogue tho….

Actual review:a

I don’t even know how to explain the sheer scope of my emotions, but I’ll try my best. I was basically right in my review of Clockwork Prince, it was indeed heartbreaking and there was a lot of angst. This book is both sad, heartbreaking and melancholy. It took me a bit to get into but once I was hooked I was <i>hooked</i>.

Frankly, this was a lot darker than I expected, but I still enjoyed it. I think I have a (fairly?) high tolerance for reading about trauma and seeing the post effects of it, so I was able to deal. Definitely check the content warnings though. Even as someone who hasn't experienced these things and isn't a survivor, some scenes are intense. The way her flight, fight or freeze instincts are demonstrated is skillfully both emotional and gripping. 

The only real flaw of this book was the ending. Most of Part 4 (the book is split into four parts) felt unnecessarily dragged out. It seemed like she was trying to shove in a bunch of character development/reveals at the end and it was just hard to care because the rest of the book is so action action action that in comparison when you’re just having conversations between characters it’s dull. I did like the last chapter though, much appreciated. It felt like she was taking back the last bits of her power that her mother had over her. It also nicely wrapped up something that’s hard to do with, because being a trauma survivor is a lifelong battle and has repercussions for decades. 

All in all, I liked it even though it was darker than I like for my contemporary books (which for me are meant to be pure escapism, easy, cute, at most sad, but not straight up violent) and the ending was slightly annoying. Should’ve read this first and then Some Girls Do to feel better lol. Like, I thought Ruby’s mom was bad, but in comparison to Abby, she’s an angel. 

Song: Play With Fire by Sam Tinnesz

I love this book. I knew that it would be good, but it exceeded my expectations. This was my first time reading a sapphic contemporary romance and lemme tell you, it was so relatable it was almost painful lol. It definitely felt accurate to my own experience, and I appreciate that more than I can say. 
This book only had one flaw that went away, and that was that at first I had a bit of difficulty telling apart Ruby and Morgan’s inner voices, but by halfway through I could tell one sentence in who it was without having to check. 
It does have a third act conflict, but it was realistic and not just something stupid like miscommunication. Something that real, flawed human beings would do. 
I also enjoyed the family relationships, Morgan and her brother and parents, Ruby and her ex-step dad. Even Ruby and her mother, and though it was negative, I think that was done well. 
Also it’s just adorable and sweet and the last chapter owns my heart. I’ll probably read some other books by this author, because I like her style and approach to things. Definitely a new favorite. Also, it reminds me of a sapphic I'll Be There, so if you liked that you'll probably enjoy this.

Side note: I was listening to an artists I like new album (Tantrums - Xana) and it was the perfect soundtrack for this book.

I think a lot of people underestimate middle grade books, but when they’re truly well written, despite the target audience, they can give us all something to think about and reflect on. Neal Shusterman does this brilliantly in this series, with an outlook on life and death that makes me wish I had read it when I was younger. All in all, I really enjoyed this series (despite how long it took me to get through the second book, which suffers a bit from middle book syndrome). Highly recommend, for all ages. 

The characters are really what bring this story alive, otherwise it would be pretty dull. Very much a “no plot just vibes” kind of book. One of the many things I love about the Greenglass House books is the attention to detail when it comes to the interactions between people. Kate Milford tends to favor large casts of unique characters, so observing the relationships between them is one of the most prominent aspects of the story. There’s one scene where she describes how every character enters the room and where they decide to sit, and it feels like you’re getting just a bit of insight into them and their development. 
You can also sense that the characters have history with each other, which might be frustrating and confusing to some but for me it just added to the aura of mystery this book has. 
On top of that you never really know what’s going on or what peoples intentions are until the very end when it’s like all the little hints and puzzle pieces fall together to make one big picture of a cozy, mysterious and mildly unsettling story. 
I forgot how cozy Milford’s writing is, and I was happy to be back in the town of Nagspeake. All in all, very enjoyable and relaxing.