themoonwholistens's Reviews (698)

I loved that it went from the history of queer eye, its roots, and what it is now. I love this show with all of my heart and this just added to my appreciation of it even more. It made it feel even more real. It was also widly entertaining to just have JVN and the whole Five 5 blasting in my ear.

Such a refreshing and grounding read in the middle of my epic fantasy brain workouts...

— 4.5 —

DNF but I'm planning to pick this up again soon

so addictive!! I don’t know what it is about CH’s charcaters and writing that just makes me fall in love with her stories. This was such a good story and I just wish I read it earlier as a bookworm.

It is all parts entertaining, romantic and dealt with real life issues. honestly all i can say, IS I WANT MORE.

“She had a way of pouring everything of herself into what she did. When she fought, she was the blade. When she loved, she was the kiss. In that regard, she was far more … human than any I have known.”

I found myself being satisfied about so many things in this book.

Spoiler

TenSoon appearing out of nowhere when I thought he died did something satisfying to my soul and Mistborn heart.

Again, I found myself being so close to giving this book 4 stars but, as usual, Brandon Sanderson always pulls through in the end and proves why I have yet to give one of his books less than 5 stars. I don't care what others say about him because to me, he really is like THE author for me. I can honestly say that The Alloy Era is not a type of book I would probably be reading if I did not the Mistborn trilogy before and if Sanderson did not write it. No shade to any other authors, it's just that Sanderson can keep the elements of a fantasy series without making it too focused on said elements.

There is always SO MUCH MORE to his writing. Which remind me of a Kelsier quote: "There is always another secret,"

The Alloy Era series may be different, but it does have it's own perks and reasons to be loved. I have read the author's note at the start of the last book and Sanderson said that the evolution of the Mistborn has yet to reach what he has envisioned. . . for which I am so excited for.

If you need me, I'll be breaking my heart reading The Bands of Mourning so that I can move on and read The Dark Artifices and see what the hype is all about.

xx

do not underestimate this book. this is a book needs to have a warning sign (trust me...it's that good...more than yu can believe).

you will not be disappointed.

*ARC sent by the publisher -Simon & Schuster- for review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.*

ATTENTION! if you're interested in some afterlife, magical cyberpunk, Westworld meets Warcross goodness filled with rebel groups, high stakes plot, and captivating characters, that will leave you with something to think about-- I introduce this book to you :)

[5/13/21: Goodreads got glitchy again and deleted my review for this book so this is me reuploading it; would recommend you check out your review for this book to if you have left one]

my mind is completely REELING right now…

AHHHHH. I’m still trying to process what I just went through. There was really one page that I feel like I read 20 times and I-- the way this whole book ended had me questioning everything. It's not perfect but this was the good time I needed.

"Infinity was never built for you. It was built for dreamers."

It’s about being attached to what keeps you human and how different people see that; that in an era of technology filled with infinite possibilities… we need to remember that we are still imperfect… but that’s what makes us real.

I went from a 4.0 -> 4.25 for the sole reason that the ending just lives in my head rent-free

“I’m not sure destroying something we don’t understand is how we prove we deserve to survive.”

A lot of cultures believe that death is when you get to rest and live in peace, but what happens when you get to the afterlife and it isn't? It was cool to see that play out and I love the writing style in the sense that it really picks up the pacing and manages to build a world in a very short amount of time. It's really hard to do world-building, plot, and make people care for the characters all at once but boy WAS I HOOKED. I do think there could have been better world-building and more time spent on character relationships but given the span of the pages, I'm far from saying I didn't enjoy it. I audibly gasped at multiple scenes despite everything.

This is the most surprising book I have read so far this year (in the best way possible) and the first book I binged through in a while... and it was FUN. After all the recent books I read, this felt like a breath of fresh air. I loved what Akemi Dawn Bowman chose to focus on in the story and it played out so well in my opinion. It was wholesome but dreamy and we all need that kind of story sometimes.

“You don’t have to be special to be important.”

Nami struggles with complicated feelings about the new world that she is in. She's relatable, makes mistakes, and feels entirely human. She isn't a pushover and constantly questions everything and you're just going to be trying to figure out what's going on the whole time that there's no time to build theories. And either way, you're probably going to be wrong xD

I really thought the plot was going to go one way and then it didn't and my brain is still in disbelief T_T

“So next time, don’t think about being anyone other than who you are. Because our ability to control our consciousness? That’s the most human thing in the world.”

At first, I thought that this had one of my least favorite magic systems, what I like to call: “just because” magic systems. This means when some people have powers “just because” they have them without any background or structure/origin but turns out that wasn't the case and I actually found the concept of their "powers" to be quite original. I do think there were some missed chances on creating more complexity but I really was just in it for the fun.

The writing style has its humor and is easy to get through while still possessing nuance. The way character relationships and dynamics were written was compelling enough that I couldn’t put this book down. It explores different mentalities and reactions when it comes to war — which is always one of my favorite themes in fantasy because there are so many views and discussions that can be derived from it — mixing that with a science fiction story about the afterlife... *chefs kiss*

There were nuanced discussions on human belief and having to question “good” and “evil”, and whether certain actions can be justified.

"Maybe the world could be like that too. A mixture of ideas. A placed where we could all coexist."

I’m trying to avoid spoilers but I like that we saw how Nami's mindset gradually grew into what it was and it wasn’t something that was just dumped.

There were a few and very specific times when I thought that Nami’s beliefs didn’t match her actions, like when she’s willing to take down certain people when a few pages ago she was against the idea and so I just found that quite odd. Her mind just kept shifting but it was in very select circumstances and I do get why it was written like that. Again, it made her human and entirely relatable. I usually like more descriptive writing and there were times when it was cheesy... but there was a point where I stopped caring about the cheesy one liners.


may I also bring your attention to: a SLOW BURN ROMANCE THAT DOESN’T FOCUS ON THE ROMANCE!! the “romance” wasn’t even necessarily a subplot or anything, it was literally just there but at the same time it wasn’t, if that makes sense... just how I like my fantasy

↣ If you’re someone who likes stories of science fictional rebel groups… honestly the whole atmosphere of this book reminds me of Star Wars if it was set in the afterlife rather than in space... you’re gonna enjoy this one. Especially if you’re looking for Sci-Fi that doesn’t have too many new terms to familiarize yourself with, I think this is a good place to start. ↢

just... OHMYGOD YOU GUYS.... THIS BOOK.

The fact that it's about dreamers longing for a place to belong... a theme I am so in love with, I was there for everything from beginning to end. My heart is literally broken right now and I am SHAKING to get the next book.

“I wonder if infinity is enough time to heal a broken heart.”

...I truly wonder. Sorry for the long review, hehe.

— 3.75 —
⇢ content warnings// (Death, Gun Violence, References to Torture, Threat)

✧ you can find this review and more on my blog ✧

*ARC sent by the publisher -Penguin Teen/Penguin Random House Canada- for review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.*

You know what… the most accurate analogy for this book really is Attack on Titan but it make it mecha Sci-Fi set in a dystopian era inspired by historical China. By that, I mean the vibe with how vulnerable it can be but also violent, and how the lore is made to be.

I do think the writing style could have been a tad more whimisical and nuanced because this one really is in your face with the themes it tackles. Not saying that it's bad but those are just my preferences. There is more telling rather than showing and in the end, it did bother me a bit even though I enjoyed a lot of other aspects in the book. It does focus more on Zetian’s journey and her own development than the romance.

“He will not kill me. He does not get to make me a statistic.”

as a uni student that is endlessly tired, this flew by way too fast (in a good way). the amount of things that happened in the span of 50 pages is just crazy. we're also going to pretend that this didn't take me 3 million years to start reading because I got the ARC 5 months ago.

The nuances played into the plot (specifically, not in the book as a whole) were well-done in my opinion. It never felt like it was dragging or lagging at any point in terms of the plot progression. It’s fast-paced and just my vibe. I thought it was going to be all fun and games… but Xiran Jay Zhao has guts….. and you know what, we respect the grind. If you know, you know.

It does get gritty and violent so fair warning.

Zetian and the Poly Power Trio are the Kings and Queen of being morally grey. She definitely is that kind of character that you need to get used to at first because she’s so undeniably herself in every page. But after that moment passes, you realize that this, THIS is that badass female character we all needed. I could see Zetian, Shimin, and Yizhi raising debates about morals again though.

”The only utterly good people in the world are either naive or delusional.”

It’s not too heavy on the Sci-FI (don’t worry, friends) but still great on the world-building and details. Which I think was a strong point of the story. I am so IN LOVE with the way the society was set-up and the “magic system” or whatever you like to call the way the technology works, it was perfectly mixed in equal parts magical and scientific. Which was what made it perfect for my taste. I say with no exaggeration that it was a lot more thought out than I expected it to be. You can really see that the author knew what she wanted to do with the world-building and it was executed effectively in my opinion. It’s safe to say that the tech system might be my favorite aspect.

”The entitled assholes of this world are sustained by girls who forgive too easily.”

I always say that dialogues can make or break a book for me and although there were lines that were smooth (like butter hehe) there were some that were just too cheesy. I feel like the character relationships could have been more flushed out or arranged to be more satisfying. Especially since the poly relationship was one of the biggest reasons I read the book, I can’t ignore it.

I do wish we got more build up towards her relationship with Yishi and Shimin before things happened but I get that, in a way, it gave way to the world-building. I just wished that there was a balance between the two and the character dynamics is the biggest reason for my lowered rating even though I enjoyed the book. You should also be aware that most of the romance doesn’t really play into it until after the half-way point. It would have been nice to see more background with the Iron Widow-Iron Demon dynamic because I really would have loved more. I do have to say….. that when it happened, it was still worth it even just for a millisecond (we are so starved of healthy Poly relationships lmao). It just makes my feelings about the ending that more all over the place and makes me both anticipate the next book and have mixed feelings about the character relationships in this one.

“Perks of refusing to play by the rules: you don’t have to choose between the boy who’d torture a man to death with you and the boy who welcomes you back with pastries.”

I just…. wow. I really did not think XJZ would actually go with that ending. I acknowledge that it objectively has its imperfections but I also do not care about them.

↣ Recommended if you want some Mecha Attack on Titan style Sci-Fi that’s a little dark and with some morally grey but vulnerable and strong characters. And a Poly Power Trio on the side. ↢

I rest my case.

— 3.75 —
⇢ content warnings// misogyny & femicide, mention of rape, violence, sexism, sexist microagressions, murder, torture, interrogation, physical and emotional abuse, alcoholism, suicidal ideation, blood and gore depiction


⤜ pre-read review ⤛

my heart is in pieces and my mind is somewhere else and my emotions are everywhere. thoughts incoming in a few hours.

----------------------
4/27/21 update: i also found out that this is historical fantasy or historically inspired... if I wasn't already in before, I am 100% in now.

----------------------
pilots and pacific rim. those are my key words when it comes to sci fi books now i guess.

ALL THESE ASIAN INSPIRED SCI FI BOOKS ARE MAKING ME FEEL ALIVE.

ohmygosh she has 2 boyfriends and those boyfriends are also boyfriends. I'M SO INTERESTED. I NEED THIS.

april 10 2021: DO YOU GUYS SEE THIS COVER? BEAUTIFUL.

12/03/20: I'm reading this. I'm claiming it. Do yourself a favor and anticipate this east asian mecha story with some healty poly rep with me

“Then let me be the Queen of Monsters.”

I bow down to 1 monarchy.

Jude and Cardan’s dynamic just gets me every time. I feel every confusion, every hope that Jude feels and I .... *screams out my window*



You know…. the moment when the title + the broken crown + the serpent all clicked in my pea brain MY HEART TURNED INTO A COMPLETE MESS ALL OVER AGAIN

— overall thoughts: 4.5 —
*All of my reviews are as spoiler-free as possible unless stated otherwise*

I find it so rare for a series to consistently get better per book but surprisingly this series does. I don't know when I started liking Cardan this much since I hated him at first. He literally turns into a cinnamon roll whenever Jude is around now.

I know Fae’s are such an overused concept at this point but the writing is just so entrancing and addicting. For a fantasy revolving around magic it always goes back to how magic is never always the answer.

I WILL KEEP SCREAMING ABOUT JUDE AND CARDAN EVEN UNTIL THIS FAE HYPE DIES DOWN.

There’s this (not so) little thing called ~character development~ that I think was executed so well throughout series but most especially in this last installment since we get to see the product of all the blood, sweat, and plot twists. What’s so great about the characters in general is that they are all flawed and it’s actively shown just how flawed they are. It’s stated plain and simple in the titles themselves: “The Cruel Prince” but it makes for a very effective tool to get the readers intrigued and makes for layers that Holly Black was peeling off at all the right moments.

“A king is not his crown.”

Cardan is much less the toxic prince that I could not stand in the first and much more like the King that he’s supposed to be. And hello? Cardan asking about the mortal world? Who is this man and what happened to “the wicked king”? I’m kidding I love the version of Cardan that has grown into power so much more. He makes a great king and we love him for it.

Like his dynamic with Jude makes me cheer them on every second of every page. We love a badass heroine and it’s my favorite thing about Jude but how Cardan deals with it and accepts that about her… I don’t know there’s just something about it. I love a well written unlikeable character but sometimes I just need to read about someone who obviously strives for good, no matter how many obstacles come their way.

And can we talk about that slow burn? It’s there and we are living so much for it. And I have to say that this might be one of my favorite slow burn romances in fantasy. The angst, pacing, anticipation, the little moments here and there…

“I think of his riddle. How do people like us take off our armor?
One piece at a time.”

It reminded me of the Katniss x Peeta heartbreak I went through when Peeta went kinda nuts.

Most of our characters are noble at heart but even though they make mistakes I never think “that was stupid” it was more “that makes sense” because of the flow of the plot. The reason for the conflict is not because the main characters were making stupid decisions but actually because we live in an imperfect world and people sometimes think about themselves a little too much.

That was so vague and but what I mean is: it didn’t feel like the author was making conflict just for the sake of conflict.

The character development doesn’t even stop at Jude and Cardan because all of the characters have so much depth to them even though I’m only now being aware of how short these books are. They are all layered and even though there are times when they do get trope-y, I never feel like their personalities are confined to the expectations that we have of that certain trope. Even to the most minor of characters.

If they are named. They have depth.

“I told you once that I am what you made me. But I am not only that. You raised me to be uncompromising, yet I learned mercy.”

I definitely pegged Taryn as that quiet and humble character, and Cardan as the broody bad guy but he’s actually a good guy type of characters, but I never expected them to do what they did.

This series is just so addicting from it’s characters to a plot that just makes sense and will keep you guessing. I also feel that it is more urban fantasy than high fantasy compared to most fae stories.

The series wrapped up so nicely but more Cardan wouldn't hurt...

If you still haven't read this book this is a sign to go do it. If you didn't like the first book... there's a 99.9% chance that you might like the second and third book more if you are into adventure, urban fantasy, and well-written casts.



// Buddy Read with Bopeep
because who else do I buddy read series with

PLOT: ★★★★☆
WRITING STYLE: ★★★★★
WORLD BUILDING: ★★★★☆
CHARACTERS: ★★★★★
THEMES: ★★★★★
PACING: ★★★★★
PAGE TURNER: ★★★★★

---------------
PRE READ:

I did not get the title of this book until I finished TWK AND MY HEART IS A MESS ALL OVER AGAIN.



instagram | blog | ko-fi | booksirens

I can't even find a quote that doesn't make me cringe. DNF 40%

out of all the (still) 4 and 5 star reviews for this book, i can't believe i'm one of those giving it 1 star

READ FOR: [you’re better off reading Skyward if you’re looking for a Sci Fi about a group of teenagers who work together and are like galactic space fighters]

*All of my reviews are as spoiler-free as possible unless states otherwise*

OVERALL: 1.5/5

-7/27/20-
NOTE: I opened up this book to give it another try so I think I can safely say and stand by my claim that after a year... my opinion has not changed.
--

Aurora Rising is practically The Breakfast Club set in space ((not in the good way)).

You have to understand that I tried SO HARD to like this book. And I REALLY wanted to… but…

*screams and falls on the floor*



First of all: this book sounded very appealing to me as I just came from reading another Sci-Fi book. I began this book expecting witty humor, a badass heroine, and interesting space explorations. Spoiler: that did not happen.

I DNFed this at 40%... at that point I was barely interested and I realized that the only reason I was still reading was because I was still waiting for the book to catch my interest. The multi-POV was not working and made everything feel rushed. It was breezing through scenes that I thought would have been great if they merely focused on certain parts more. If they actually described and built up the plot. It's like they tried to copy the writing in Six of Crows but resulted in making scenes pass by before the readers have absorbed what just happened. The witty comebacks and flawless chemistry was not there for me. I was willing to overlook how bland the writing was if the characters were at least compellingly written.

It was easier to read compared to the other Sci-Fi books that I have come across but it just was not what I was looking for. Sci-Fi is a great opportunity for rich world building and this book felt so flat.

Jay Kristoff and Amie Kaufman were authors that garnered my hype and attention because of The Illuminae Files (which I still plan on reading). This was my first book by this author duo and I was not impressed.


CHARACTERS: ★★☆☆☆
I needed the witty humor and character chemistry that makes a misfit group lovable to the readers. Sadly, The characters are fine and kind of consistent, they’re kind of relatable and they rub me the wrong way. And also can I just talk about HOW CLICHE and STEREOTYPICAL all of them were, *grimace*. I usually would not have seen this as a problem if they actually written well. The common problem of all of these characters: no build up. And they were all trying so hard to be witty but it was just cringey...

Aurora (AKA the resident chosen one)
She was the character that I was most looking forward to getting to know and I have to say was the one I was disappointed by the most. I found her annoying and was one of the most inconsistent characters.

One minute she’s pep talking herself and the next she’s literally on her knees, begging for Tyler to save her. When did the character development happen?? In between chapters??

I don't even know what else to say because... she was just the weakest character for me. Maybe she gets better by the end of the book but not at 40%. I stand by my opinion.

Tyler Jones (AKA the golden boy)
I love you Tyler Jones but I swear every time he came up in one of the other character's POV all they could talk about is how good he looks. Like, okay... I GET IT. I like when characters that look good and all that but saying it once is enough. I would rather read about how good he is at him being the Alpha. His character had so much potential but it was unfortunately wasted because all they could talk about was his dimples.

Scarlett Jones (AKA the princess)
I actually liked her character if in the most basic level. The idea of her character was great and I liked the idea of there being Faces or Diplomats in the squad. Scar was also one of the characters that interested me. However, she was never built up well and even if she intrigued me, I still couldn't get myself to care enough to continue on reading just for her.

Cat (AKA the unrequited love victim)
It's like they were trying too hard when it came to writing Cat. It felt like her character was forced into the story just to create that Star Trio and for there to be an unrequited love aspect. Also, a good 50% of her POVs was about how Tyler didn't like her the way she did because they were just "best friends". I'm usually all for the romance in fantasy but we barely even got to experience their friendship or just meer CHARACTER INTERACTION before we found out that, oh wow, she likes him!

Zila (AKA the weird one)
This girl confuses me. I would have been interested to see if she would have gotten a character development... but... she's just... I don't know what to say.

Exosuit Kid (AKA the nerd)
I CAN'T EVEN REMEMBER HIS NAME. But honestly the character that was the reason there are 2 stars and not 1 star for this specific portion of my review.

Kal (AKA the tall dark [silver] handsome tough guy, the bad boy)
MY BOI KAL <3 I would have loved to know more about him and I was a slightly interested to see what would happen to him in the story. There was something mysterious about him but as usual, and maybe you're tired of hearing me say this, he was so inconsistent.


PLOT: ★★☆☆☆
There was nothing fresh about the plot and I never really like predictable plots unless they are done exceptionally well or just well (i.e. Renegades). My head was threatening to go back to another book slump if I actually continued on to finish the book. I read from another reviewer that the ending was glib and I'm not regretting any decisions I have made as of the moment.


WRITING STYLE: ★☆☆☆☆
I would have liked the writing style of the plot and the way the characters were written more if this was a Contemporary novel (one of the reasons it reminds me of The Breakfast Club). I didn’t think it matched the vibe that I was expecting from the book. Check the 'Characters' portion of this review for more of my feelings about the writing because I feel like you are going to get sick of me being redundant.


WORLD BUILDING: ★★☆☆☆
There was a lot of telling as book reviewers put it. For me, it felt like the world was just thrust upon the readers and everyone was expected to care about everything that was going on right away. I didn't think that the fact that humans have found other alien species were given enough focus. I was not even aware that this was an intergalactic sort of book. I thought everyone was human (Terran) when I was reading the synopsis.

It didn't feel to me that this book was set hundreds of years in the future.


THEMES: ★★★☆☆
AGAIN, more potential for great writing wasted. There were so many chances for political and moral topics to be tackled but they were just blown through. Great themes were merely acknowledged and touched that I'm even sure if the authors were aware that they could have expounded more on certain scenes to make the readers more invested. It honestly would have taken the book to another level if they were able to do it successfully.

PACING: ★☆☆☆☆
To be honest, it's not like nothing happened in the story, it was more like everything was being rushed and the most interesting scenes were not given enough thought. There were so many things that I found inconsistent and I'm just too tired to go back to list them all down. It can be very tricky to pace Sci-Fi books so I was willing to look past it at the beginning but I couldn't handle it in the end.

PAGE TURNER: ★☆☆☆☆
This book could have actually bored me to death if I finished it. The Sci-Fi genre is a chance to create gripping (literally out-of-this-world) stories and it saddens me a lot that this book was not able to live to my Sci-Fi standards.


I'm sorry if this review was a bit rushed, messy, and more of a rant review but I just want to build a bridge and get over this book.

P.S. whoever designed the cover is the true hero

instagram | blog | ko-fi | booksirens

currently: wanting my own Will Herondale complete with sarcasm

3rd read: Aug 6-25, 2020
Do I even need to leave a review? the fact that I've read this at least 3 times should already say how much I would die for this series.

Victorian Era? Check.
Urban Fantasy? Check.
A Plot that You Won't Get Tired Of? Check. (proven and tested)
A Slow Burn Romance? Check.
A Non-Toxic Love Triangle? Check.
Characters aside from the main trio to care about? Check.

I probably could have finished this within 2 days but I just wanted to drag it on because I want to spend as much time with my Golden Trio as much as possible.

2nd read: July 5-7, 2019

"It can be difficult to learn how the world truly is, to see it in its true shape and form. Most humans never do."

- Charlotte Branwell

It has been years since the first time I read this and my reading taste has definitely changed. I was a very different person when I read this first and I will keep from giving this a full review because it will always hold a special place in my heart.

"I believe in good and evil. And I believe the soul is eternal. But I don't believe in the fiery pit, the pitchforks, or endless torment. I do not believe that you can threaten people into goodness.

- Jem Carstairs

⟹ INSTAGRAM | BLOG | KO-FI | BOOKSIRENS ⟸