simonlorden's Reviews (1.38k)

A romance with magic, weddings, fashion, and queer main characters. I love bi4bi M/F couples okay.

A story of two Chinese girls, their friendships, and a love that is never acted upon. I liked it, but the most charming parts for me were the cultural differences - like needing an entry permit to visit some of the biggest towns, or the girls at the dorm putting their mosquito nets on their beds instead of the windows.

I received an ARC from NetGalley and this is my voluntary and honest review.

Adelaide and Victoria are mirror twins, each other's reflection. Adelaide is introverted, content to stay at home forever and play in the garden. Victoria longs for society, to be admired and noticed. And yet it's Adelaide who is chosen by a Lord who is moving to America, and Victoria is the one who tags along as the unmarried sister, insignificant.

Unfortunately, I didn't much like this book. In the first half of the book, Adelaide was so boring she made me want to cry. Yes, I get that she's shy and nervous, but there's nothing interesting in a character who stares numbly at people who speak to her. The second half was more interesting in a way, but very depressing - I'm not a big fan of asylum scenes.

The only part I really liked was the ending. The twist was kind of expected, but I felt it was wrapped up nicely. Wiffy is also a great character, I liked how she was truly Adelaide's friend and supported her in this world of men.

I like this author but this wasn't my favorite. Clem is clearly autistic and Rowley has poor eyesight, and it was interesting to see how they dealt with that at the time, but otherwise I wasn't really attached to either of them. I also wouldn't call this slow-burning.

I needed this, for closure.

Funny, romantic, a bit gorey, and gay. Friends to lovers. Grumpy and sunshine, but the sunshine is the vampire. Overall a fun little novella and I'll most likely read more by the author later.

I'm a little disappointed? This was okay as a book, but unsatisfying to me as the ending to the series. I would have loved at least a few more chapters on their lives after the war, reunions, more with Jane and Laurence and Emily, etc.

Napoleon is such an interesting character though, especially his relationship with Laurence. They're enemies, yet they respect each other, their values on dragons align, and they almost act like friends. 

Also Tharkay <3

I received an ARC through NetGalley and this is my voluntary and honest review.

Cyra's little sister, the one she's been protecting all their lives, has been murdered. Cyra doesn't grieve like she's expected to - instead of crying, she locks away her feelings, and focuses on facts and solutions. How can she find the one who killed her sister? Well, by infiltrating a support group for serial killers, of course.

I'd say this was a good one-time read. Cyra was an interesting character, and there were some twists at the end that I definitely didn't expect.  I also liked that her relationship with Mira wasn't perfect - in fact, the little sister is a bit exploitative. Still I felt like something was lacking to make me really invested. The male serial killers didn't have anything new to offer.

An exciting story with a rich and colorful writing style. I wouldn't say any of the main characters are good people (except maybe Ma), but they sure are interesting. Zhu is neither man nor woman, and Ouyang is a man, but society doesn't see him as one. They both have a goal in mind, and they'll hang onto it and follow it at any cost. I liked how Zhu managed to do all these impossible things through sheer force of will.

My first Darcie Little Badger book! A magical story of animal people, Native American/Lipan Apache stories and traditions, friendship, and the importance of protecting the animals of our Earth. Nina and Oli are both great characters, and I loved the coyote twins the most.