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typedtruths's Reviews (1.8k)
I was so excited to try this little novella because Nico was my favourite character in [b:Love Fortunes and Other Disasters|22718710|Love Fortunes and Other Disasters (Grimbaud, #1)|Kimberly Karalius|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1420318561s/22718710.jpg|42233020]. Unfortunately, Karalius has a very unusual way of letting her stories unfold and I found it difficult - again - to completely understand what was happening in certain moments. Nico, though, definitely made up for it - for the most part. He’s so adorable! I just love him. Martin is a little peculiar and was much harder to get a read on but I became quite fond of him by the end of the story. I definitely ship these two characters. Hopefully, we’ll see more of them as a couple in the sequels!
3.5 stars
Okay, before you see the lower rating and get angry, can I just say that those last few chapters broke my heart. I cried. And cried. I literally balled me eyes out. But the rest of the book was a little… lackluster? Look, I adore Tyler Oakley. I haven’t been a fan for as long as a lot of readers have been, but I still eagerly awaiting his videos each week and stay up way too late rewatching the classics. He makes me laugh. I love how raw and real his style is, and how he doesn’t bullshit with us viewers. I wanted to see more of that in his book, but it got off to such a rough start and I cannot lie or pretend I loved every minute of it. .
For the most part, I don't feel that this added that much to Tyler's story. I knew a lot of these anecdotes already and I just… I don’t think the had quite as much meaning as they should have? I don’t feel like I understand Tyler more than I did before which was (for me), the main reason I decided to read this book. When I read Connor Franta’s memoir last year, it tore my heart to shreds. It was inspiring and beautiful. It made me reevaluate things in my life and I just didn’t get such strong feelings from this book like I wanted to - apart from the last two chapters or so which made me weep.
I will say that it was very well-written for someone who is not a writer and actually makes their living from talking. It was set out in linear fashion which always works best for memoirs, IMO. I would have liked to read it in a physical copy to see the pictures set out more clearly but that’s hardly the book’s fault. I’ve heard that the audiobook is fantastic though so maybe I’ll reread it that format.
Overall? Binge was undeniably hilarious in parts, but missing something that I cannot put my finger on. If you don’t watch Tyler Oakley’s channel, you should. He’s a YouTube icon for a reason… and he
Okay, before you see the lower rating and get angry, can I just say that those last few chapters broke my heart. I cried. And cried. I literally balled me eyes out. But the rest of the book was a little… lackluster? Look, I adore Tyler Oakley. I haven’t been a fan for as long as a lot of readers have been, but I still eagerly awaiting his videos each week and stay up way too late rewatching the classics. He makes me laugh. I love how raw and real his style is, and how he doesn’t bullshit with us viewers. I wanted to see more of that in his book, but it got off to such a rough start and I cannot lie or pretend I loved every minute of it. .
For the most part, I don't feel that this added that much to Tyler's story. I knew a lot of these anecdotes already and I just… I don’t think the had quite as much meaning as they should have? I don’t feel like I understand Tyler more than I did before which was (for me), the main reason I decided to read this book. When I read Connor Franta’s memoir last year, it tore my heart to shreds. It was inspiring and beautiful. It made me reevaluate things in my life and I just didn’t get such strong feelings from this book like I wanted to - apart from the last two chapters or so which made me weep.
I will say that it was very well-written for someone who is not a writer and actually makes their living from talking. It was set out in linear fashion which always works best for memoirs, IMO. I would have liked to read it in a physical copy to see the pictures set out more clearly but that’s hardly the book’s fault. I’ve heard that the audiobook is fantastic though so maybe I’ll reread it that format.
Overall? Binge was undeniably hilarious in parts, but missing something that I cannot put my finger on. If you don’t watch Tyler Oakley’s channel, you should. He’s a YouTube icon for a reason… and he
[b:The Hating Game|25883848|The Hating Game|Sally Thorne|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1467138679s/25883848.jpg|45762345] meets [b:Getting Wild|30652772|Getting Wild|Sarah Barrie|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1466389552s/30652772.jpg|25424355]. Fun and cute. I loved Seth.
Review copy provided by Sky Pony Press for an honest review.
• Oakley was a fantastic protagonist. I loved that she was gutsy but shy, withdrawn and a little awkward. She was unsure about a lot of things and when she got nervous she babbled. A very relatable and loveable character.
• The romance actually played an important part in the plot and wasn't just there to attract more readers. Carson was an huge part of Oakley's recovery process and their relationship developed both consistently and realistically - which is always a bonus!
• Carson. He is just fantastic and such a sweetie. Those dates he planned were simply perfect and he genuinely cared for Oakley. None of that douchebag, alpha-male, tortured-bad-boy, completely-controlling thing going on here. *fist pump* #relationshipgoals
• Oakley's depression from her brother's death wasn't romanticised.Its one of my biggest pet peeves to see mental or physical illnesses - such as depression, PTSD or cancer - used as an accessory to make a character "saveable" and thus "more attractive".
• I didn't understand Oakley's anger towards her mother. She didn't seem like a bad parent too me, just a withdrawn one, and how can you really blame her for that after watching her son waste away from cancer?
• The plot didn't have a lot of action so the beginning was a little slow-going. There were, however, plenty of twists and emotional drama - without it being the sort of unnecessary, petty, annoying kind of drama - to keep you entertained.
• Dillon was a douchebag. I don't understand why Carson was friends with him.
• I wasn't a fan of how casually the rescue of the injured animals for Jo's jobs were handled. Obviously I am not an expert in marine veterinary but do they really allow random people to come out and help when the life of an animal is at risk?
In the end, I caught myself becoming emotionally attached to the characters in this book and I throughly enjoyed it. Oakley and Carson were fantastic characters and their romance was incredibly sweet. I certainly recommend this if you are a fan of cutesy beach romances with a lot of emotional drama to get involved with.
• Oakley was a fantastic protagonist. I loved that she was gutsy but shy, withdrawn and a little awkward. She was unsure about a lot of things and when she got nervous she babbled. A very relatable and loveable character.
• The romance actually played an important part in the plot and wasn't just there to attract more readers. Carson was an huge part of Oakley's recovery process and their relationship developed both consistently and realistically - which is always a bonus!
• Carson. He is just fantastic and such a sweetie. Those dates he planned were simply perfect and he genuinely cared for Oakley. None of that douchebag, alpha-male, tortured-bad-boy, completely-controlling thing going on here. *fist pump* #relationshipgoals
• Oakley's depression from her brother's death wasn't romanticised.Its one of my biggest pet peeves to see mental or physical illnesses - such as depression, PTSD or cancer - used as an accessory to make a character "saveable" and thus "more attractive".
• I didn't understand Oakley's anger towards her mother. She didn't seem like a bad parent too me, just a withdrawn one, and how can you really blame her for that after watching her son waste away from cancer?
• The plot didn't have a lot of action so the beginning was a little slow-going. There were, however, plenty of twists and emotional drama - without it being the sort of unnecessary, petty, annoying kind of drama - to keep you entertained.
• Dillon was a douchebag. I don't understand why Carson was friends with him.
• I wasn't a fan of how casually the rescue of the injured animals for Jo's jobs were handled. Obviously I am not an expert in marine veterinary but do they really allow random people to come out and help when the life of an animal is at risk?
In the end, I caught myself becoming emotionally attached to the characters in this book and I throughly enjoyed it. Oakley and Carson were fantastic characters and their romance was incredibly sweet. I certainly recommend this if you are a fan of cutesy beach romances with a lot of emotional drama to get involved with.
The One Memory of Flora Banks was a fascinating but largely tiresome story. I found the idea of exploring the life of someone who struggled with a legitimate amnesia condition - particularly a type of amnesia (anterograde) which I was largely unfamiliar with - instead of using it as a cheap trope like we see in soap operas and poorly written mysteries to be such a clever idea. This is an condition surrounded with so much ignorance and stigma so giving it the attention and research it deserves was an impressive feat. I found Barr’s portrayal of the condition truly wonderful. It provided with so much more understanding than I had before. Unfortunately, Flora’s amnesia was by far the best aspect of this story.
Flora herself was not the most engaging protagonist. I think this has to do with the fact that she was only physically seventeen; on a mental-level she is still technically only ten-years-old. Due to this, her dialogue and inner monologues felt way too juvenile for a YA book. I completely understand how necessary this was and looking back, I do see how this helped convey the ways in which Flora’s amnesia affected her day to day life. At the same time, it did make it difficult to relate to Flora in any significant ways. However, I won’t deny that her decision to travel by herself was impressive and downright admirable. In some aspects, I do think she was quite the brave character; though whether this was simple her childish naivety or conscious bravery remains undetermined.
Also, the fact that this story has a romance subplot which plays a large role in moving the story forwards did make me feel quite uncomfortable at times. Drake is an arsehole - there is no debating it - but that wasn’t what bothered me so much. It was the fact that we were reading about a ten-year-old sending suggestive emails - and debating whether to send naked pictures of herself - to a boy who was mentally much older than her. It was just… *shudders*. I don’t know how this situation was meant to work or to come across to us readers but I don’t think I was the only one that felt incredibly awkward about the entire situation. It came across like Drake was taking advantage of Flora’s innocence and I could not get invested in that.
With that being said, it was the plotline that let this book down so much. Despite being a shorter read, I was often bored out of my mind. I do not think there is any way I can say this without it seeming insensitive to Flora’s condition but holy shivers, this book was so darn repetitive. I know that the author repeated certain sentences or sections over and over again to show what it is like being in Flora’s head - when she literally needs to go through these facts every couple of hours herself - but it does not make for an easy read. It made the plotline so stilted and jarring. We had to run through the same scenario twice over - at least - before we moved on, and man oh man if I had to read the sentence I kissed Drake on the beach one more time, I was honestly going to fling the book across the room. The phrases be brave, I am seventeen years old, and I have a brother were constantly repeated throughout the whole story and it was tiring. I know that it conveyed its point about Flora’s memory but it was just not enjoyable to read.
Upon discussion at my book club, I also realised how much I felt this plotline showed all the wrong aspects of Flora’s life. I wanted more about her relationship with her brother. I wanted to follow them together in Paris or for her to fly to Paris instead of Svalbard. I wanted the epilogue to be the prologue and we start the story from there. The entire plotline revolving around Drake was not the best use of this concept in my opinion. He was not worth our time and while the ending did provide for some clever twists and turns that were entertaining (and definitely had me on my toes), I would happily have had him deleted from the story if I was Barr’s editor. I just think that this particular plotline was not what this story needed.
I did really like the Norwegian setting, though. I think I said that already but it is worth repeating. I love the Arctic!
Overall?
The One Memory of Flora Banks did a fantastic job of portraying anterograde amnesia but did not write a book that I was able to enjoy as a whole. Flora was a juvenile and often naive protagonist who I struggled to connect with. The plotline, especially the Drake romance, was boring and made me feel uncomfortable at times. I did really love the setting but I think that Barr could have written a much stronger story if she followed a different plotline.
Flora herself was not the most engaging protagonist. I think this has to do with the fact that she was only physically seventeen; on a mental-level she is still technically only ten-years-old. Due to this, her dialogue and inner monologues felt way too juvenile for a YA book. I completely understand how necessary this was and looking back, I do see how this helped convey the ways in which Flora’s amnesia affected her day to day life. At the same time, it did make it difficult to relate to Flora in any significant ways. However, I won’t deny that her decision to travel by herself was impressive and downright admirable. In some aspects, I do think she was quite the brave character; though whether this was simple her childish naivety or conscious bravery remains undetermined.
Also, the fact that this story has a romance subplot which plays a large role in moving the story forwards did make me feel quite uncomfortable at times. Drake is an arsehole - there is no debating it - but that wasn’t what bothered me so much. It was the fact that we were reading about a ten-year-old sending suggestive emails - and debating whether to send naked pictures of herself - to a boy who was mentally much older than her. It was just… *shudders*. I don’t know how this situation was meant to work or to come across to us readers but I don’t think I was the only one that felt incredibly awkward about the entire situation. It came across like Drake was taking advantage of Flora’s innocence and I could not get invested in that.
With that being said, it was the plotline that let this book down so much. Despite being a shorter read, I was often bored out of my mind. I do not think there is any way I can say this without it seeming insensitive to Flora’s condition but holy shivers, this book was so darn repetitive. I know that the author repeated certain sentences or sections over and over again to show what it is like being in Flora’s head - when she literally needs to go through these facts every couple of hours herself - but it does not make for an easy read. It made the plotline so stilted and jarring. We had to run through the same scenario twice over - at least - before we moved on, and man oh man if I had to read the sentence I kissed Drake on the beach one more time, I was honestly going to fling the book across the room. The phrases be brave, I am seventeen years old, and I have a brother were constantly repeated throughout the whole story and it was tiring. I know that it conveyed its point about Flora’s memory but it was just not enjoyable to read.
Upon discussion at my book club, I also realised how much I felt this plotline showed all the wrong aspects of Flora’s life. I wanted more about her relationship with her brother. I wanted to follow them together in Paris or for her to fly to Paris instead of Svalbard. I wanted the epilogue to be the prologue and we start the story from there. The entire plotline revolving around Drake was not the best use of this concept in my opinion. He was not worth our time and while the ending did provide for some clever twists and turns that were entertaining (and definitely had me on my toes), I would happily have had him deleted from the story if I was Barr’s editor. I just think that this particular plotline was not what this story needed.
I did really like the Norwegian setting, though. I think I said that already but it is worth repeating. I love the Arctic!
Overall?
The One Memory of Flora Banks did a fantastic job of portraying anterograde amnesia but did not write a book that I was able to enjoy as a whole. Flora was a juvenile and often naive protagonist who I struggled to connect with. The plotline, especially the Drake romance, was boring and made me feel uncomfortable at times. I did really love the setting but I think that Barr could have written a much stronger story if she followed a different plotline.
3.5 stars
Follow Me Back has left me very, very conflicted. I am struggling to find what I want to say about it. On one hand, I genuinely found this story incredibly engaging. I could not put it down; to the point where I even got a little snappy at my mum for trying to talk to me while I was reading it. I was just so immersed, so worried and emotionally invested in the characters, that I did not want to stop. However, the plotline was definitely the best part of the story. I was often frustrated by the characters, and I struggled with Geiger’s negative portrayal of fame and fandom.
Like I said, the plotline was absolutely addictive. Eric’s fear for his safety was palpable and bleed onto the pages. I was flipping the pages in a flurry to see how the story would end. I wanted answers and could barely take a breath in my anticipation to get to them. I love that Geiger was able to perfectly capture that sense of urgency, especially because that is something a lot of mystery stories have been lacking for me recently. I also loved that the plot focused on online friendships and catfishing… well, kind of. I think Geiger did an absolutely, utterly brilliant job at showing how everything can be twisted when it is done through a screen, even if it was originally meant to be innocent. Eric’s entire POV was fascinating because of this. I loved seeing how his relationship with Tessa bloomed from that initial interaction and the unfolding twists and reactions on both sides which resulted from the moment. I do not know what to say too much for fear of spoiling it but I think this is the first time I have ever read such an honest, realistic online relationship. I have read a billion “falling in love with an online friend even though you do not ‘really’ know them” stories before but this put a twist on that which I truly enjoyed seeing playing out. The plot was definitely the most enjoyable aspect of this story. It kept me engaged throughout the entire story and I cannot wait to see how the sequel will develop this storyline.
Tessa was a pleasant protagonist. While I did not connect with her on a major level, I did think her agoraphobia was pretty well-done. I would love to read a review from someone with agoraphobia though, so if you know of one, link me up, please! What I loved about Tessa’s mental illness was that it was never shied away from. It was actively present in all of her scenes, which is realistic. It is a massive part of her life. I liked we got to see her in therapy and attempting different therapeutic techniques, like desensitisation and journalling. I also think this is honestly the first book I have read where the protagonist did not have a healthy support system to help them through their issues. While that was hard to read about at times, I loved that Geiger did not shy away from it. Not everyone is lucky enough to have people in their life that understand; some people’s parents and partners are incredibly unsupportive or even triggering, so it was good to see something different being portrayed.
My major problem with this book was its portrayal of fame and fandom. Tessa was meant to be a major of Eric (who is a famous musician), but I did not think that her passion, her true fangirl, shone through much at all. I know that it is difficult to tackle this subject in a YA book because the majority of us readers belong to at least one fandom, we are fan(girl)s ourselves. The release of books like Geekerella - that have shown us that fandom life can accurately and positively be written into a story - has set the standard high. I understand that but I was still disappointed. Eric’s POVs were a little hard to read because they seemed to perpetuate the myth that fangirls are rabid, obsessive and neurotic. I absolutely despised how he looked down on his fans. He stated multiple times that he’d be surprised if any of his fans even listened to his music; he assumed that they were only fans because of his good looks and Instagram filled with shirtless selfies. He goes on about this throughout the entire book and it is reiterated by his Twitter feed… but I personally call bullshit. I am a pretty avid Tumblr user and fangirl - yes, even of a music group - so I have a lot of interactions with other fans. I have never, ever meet a single fan who has was as involved in a fandom to the extent Eric’s fans were because of the person’s looks alone. No way! I know that a lot of fans are drawn to a person by their looks originally - I’ll even admit to that - but they stay and continue to contribute to the community so extensively because of their passion for their music/movies/books. All of Eric’s fans are portrayed as shallow, almost childish and simple, and have (seemingly) no interest in his music. I did not appreciate this and found it really hard to see past it. I understood Eric’s position. I feared for his safety and understood his apprehension but it went too far and I think it did a disservice to fans everywhere.
Overall?
Follow Me Back was such a thrilling read. I enjoyed the mystery. It had such a sense of urgency that I could not put it down. The writing and the characters were pleasant enough, and I was impressed by Geiger’s portrayal of Tessa’s mental illness. The only thing that let it down for me was how they portrayed fame and fandom life. I think it was quite inaccurate and kind of insulting.
Review copy provided by the publisher for an honest review.
Follow Me Back has left me very, very conflicted. I am struggling to find what I want to say about it. On one hand, I genuinely found this story incredibly engaging. I could not put it down; to the point where I even got a little snappy at my mum for trying to talk to me while I was reading it. I was just so immersed, so worried and emotionally invested in the characters, that I did not want to stop. However, the plotline was definitely the best part of the story. I was often frustrated by the characters, and I struggled with Geiger’s negative portrayal of fame and fandom.
Like I said, the plotline was absolutely addictive. Eric’s fear for his safety was palpable and bleed onto the pages. I was flipping the pages in a flurry to see how the story would end. I wanted answers and could barely take a breath in my anticipation to get to them. I love that Geiger was able to perfectly capture that sense of urgency, especially because that is something a lot of mystery stories have been lacking for me recently. I also loved that the plot focused on online friendships and catfishing… well, kind of. I think Geiger did an absolutely, utterly brilliant job at showing how everything can be twisted when it is done through a screen, even if it was originally meant to be innocent. Eric’s entire POV was fascinating because of this. I loved seeing how his relationship with Tessa bloomed from that initial interaction and the unfolding twists and reactions on both sides which resulted from the moment. I do not know what to say too much for fear of spoiling it but I think this is the first time I have ever read such an honest, realistic online relationship. I have read a billion “falling in love with an online friend even though you do not ‘really’ know them” stories before but this put a twist on that which I truly enjoyed seeing playing out. The plot was definitely the most enjoyable aspect of this story. It kept me engaged throughout the entire story and I cannot wait to see how the sequel will develop this storyline.
Tessa was a pleasant protagonist. While I did not connect with her on a major level, I did think her agoraphobia was pretty well-done. I would love to read a review from someone with agoraphobia though, so if you know of one, link me up, please! What I loved about Tessa’s mental illness was that it was never shied away from. It was actively present in all of her scenes, which is realistic. It is a massive part of her life. I liked we got to see her in therapy and attempting different therapeutic techniques, like desensitisation and journalling. I also think this is honestly the first book I have read where the protagonist did not have a healthy support system to help them through their issues. While that was hard to read about at times, I loved that Geiger did not shy away from it. Not everyone is lucky enough to have people in their life that understand; some people’s parents and partners are incredibly unsupportive or even triggering, so it was good to see something different being portrayed.
My major problem with this book was its portrayal of fame and fandom. Tessa was meant to be a major of Eric (who is a famous musician), but I did not think that her passion, her true fangirl, shone through much at all. I know that it is difficult to tackle this subject in a YA book because the majority of us readers belong to at least one fandom, we are fan(girl)s ourselves. The release of books like Geekerella - that have shown us that fandom life can accurately and positively be written into a story - has set the standard high. I understand that but I was still disappointed. Eric’s POVs were a little hard to read because they seemed to perpetuate the myth that fangirls are rabid, obsessive and neurotic. I absolutely despised how he looked down on his fans. He stated multiple times that he’d be surprised if any of his fans even listened to his music; he assumed that they were only fans because of his good looks and Instagram filled with shirtless selfies. He goes on about this throughout the entire book and it is reiterated by his Twitter feed… but I personally call bullshit. I am a pretty avid Tumblr user and fangirl - yes, even of a music group - so I have a lot of interactions with other fans. I have never, ever meet a single fan who has was as involved in a fandom to the extent Eric’s fans were because of the person’s looks alone. No way! I know that a lot of fans are drawn to a person by their looks originally - I’ll even admit to that - but they stay and continue to contribute to the community so extensively because of their passion for their music/movies/books. All of Eric’s fans are portrayed as shallow, almost childish and simple, and have (seemingly) no interest in his music. I did not appreciate this and found it really hard to see past it. I understood Eric’s position. I feared for his safety and understood his apprehension but it went too far and I think it did a disservice to fans everywhere.
Overall?
Follow Me Back was such a thrilling read. I enjoyed the mystery. It had such a sense of urgency that I could not put it down. The writing and the characters were pleasant enough, and I was impressed by Geiger’s portrayal of Tessa’s mental illness. The only thing that let it down for me was how they portrayed fame and fandom life. I think it was quite inaccurate and kind of insulting.
Review copy provided by the publisher for an honest review.
2.5 stars
Love Charms and Other Catastrophes was… unexpected in many ways. I enjoyed the first book in this series to a certain extent but companion sequels can be either a hit or a miss. In this case, I think keeping Karalius’ debut as a standalone would not have been such a bad idea! I just did not connect to the characters as much as I would have liked and I really, really struggled to get on-board with the romance.
I think my entire problem with this story stems from my problems with the romance. While I was not a die-hard Fallon and Sebastian shipper in Love Fortunes and Other Disasters, their romance was still entertaining and it weaved into an overarching plotline that captured my attention. In this, however, Hijiri and Ken’s relationship was just… odd. I understood Love’s need for Hijiri to take over the love-charm making in Grimbaud. I can even see why Love believed making her fall in love would consequently help her to understand her own heart and make her a stronger love-charm maker in return, but I didn’t quite understand how that translated into bringing Kenato into her life. I really did not like the fact that he was in love with her before they had officially met. His affection for her felt entirely fake. How can you love someone without knowing them? I never for a second believed that Ken’s love or even personality was genuine… which is obviously a massive problem. Why would I want to ship Hijiri with - what we are led to believe is - a fake/charmed boy? It didn’t make sense to me and even now, after finishing this book about five minutes ago, I still have no idea what Love was trying to achieve by putting Ken and Hijiri in this situation. It probably didn’t help that I was just not a fan of Ken in general. He was defined by his love for Hijiri and that bothered me. I think I could have warmed up to him more if he was actually lovable as a character but that was just not the case.
Hijiri’s obsession with her “small heart” did not help this. All it did was confuse me further! Was it meant to be a metaphorical/literary thing or did she truly believe her physical heart was literally smaller than average and, hence, it was stopping her from falling in love? If that’s the case, why the heck would she think that? I understand she had never fallen in love before - or even been interested in a boy - but she’s a teenager in high school… that’s hardly a big deal! You’ve barely meet anyone or been exposed to that many types of people at that age. You haven’t even had the time to pursue your career path or find out about yourself at that age (and I feel qualified to say this not as a judgy adult reader but a teenager myself). I just did not understand why Hijiri was so caught up on this and so adamant she was unable to fall in love.
If the romance and Ken’s characterisation had not been so messy, the plotline could have made the overall storyline really shine. It was silly and random at times but I did really enjoy the whimsicality of Grimbaud and I am still in love with the idea of its magical system (which we got to explore in much more depth this time around). The competition storyline would have been right up my alley if there had been apt levels of suspense and tension but sadly, it was a little underwhelming for the most part. While the competition was not as frightening or deadly as the Triwizard Tournament, it was still crucial to the town’s recovery and I would have liked to see Karalius capture the almost terror-like emotions of being involved in such a crucial competition like Rowling did. The pressure on Hijiri to win the competition and not allow another Zita-like charm maker gain influence in her town did not quite translate onto the page as I would have liked. It would have also been good to explore how Hijiri’s anxiety affected her performance in the competition and to focus on really making sure readers felt her desperation. The final round was incredibly disappointing. I would have liked that to been expanded on and not have been quite convenient as it felt. I did like that the charm-making aspects answered some of my questions from the first book as well.
Overall?
Love Charms and Other Catastrophes was a mostly disappointing companion/sequel. I think the idea of this romance was a little too weird for me. Ken was not a particularly likeable character due to his intense instalove for Hijiri. It made their entire relationship feel one-sided and off. The plotline was fun but I would have liked it to have been way more intense and tension-filled. I think I enjoyed the first book as a whole a lot more and am so glad that Karalius has decided to move on from the Grimbaud world in her next book.
Love Charms and Other Catastrophes was… unexpected in many ways. I enjoyed the first book in this series to a certain extent but companion sequels can be either a hit or a miss. In this case, I think keeping Karalius’ debut as a standalone would not have been such a bad idea! I just did not connect to the characters as much as I would have liked and I really, really struggled to get on-board with the romance.
I think my entire problem with this story stems from my problems with the romance. While I was not a die-hard Fallon and Sebastian shipper in Love Fortunes and Other Disasters, their romance was still entertaining and it weaved into an overarching plotline that captured my attention. In this, however, Hijiri and Ken’s relationship was just… odd. I understood Love’s need for Hijiri to take over the love-charm making in Grimbaud. I can even see why Love believed making her fall in love would consequently help her to understand her own heart and make her a stronger love-charm maker in return, but I didn’t quite understand how that translated into bringing Kenato into her life. I really did not like the fact that he was in love with her before they had officially met. His affection for her felt entirely fake. How can you love someone without knowing them? I never for a second believed that Ken’s love or even personality was genuine… which is obviously a massive problem. Why would I want to ship Hijiri with - what we are led to believe is - a fake/charmed boy? It didn’t make sense to me and even now, after finishing this book about five minutes ago, I still have no idea what Love was trying to achieve by putting Ken and Hijiri in this situation. It probably didn’t help that I was just not a fan of Ken in general. He was defined by his love for Hijiri and that bothered me. I think I could have warmed up to him more if he was actually lovable as a character but that was just not the case.
Hijiri’s obsession with her “small heart” did not help this. All it did was confuse me further! Was it meant to be a metaphorical/literary thing or did she truly believe her physical heart was literally smaller than average and, hence, it was stopping her from falling in love? If that’s the case, why the heck would she think that? I understand she had never fallen in love before - or even been interested in a boy - but she’s a teenager in high school… that’s hardly a big deal! You’ve barely meet anyone or been exposed to that many types of people at that age. You haven’t even had the time to pursue your career path or find out about yourself at that age (and I feel qualified to say this not as a judgy adult reader but a teenager myself). I just did not understand why Hijiri was so caught up on this and so adamant she was unable to fall in love.
If the romance and Ken’s characterisation had not been so messy, the plotline could have made the overall storyline really shine. It was silly and random at times but I did really enjoy the whimsicality of Grimbaud and I am still in love with the idea of its magical system (which we got to explore in much more depth this time around). The competition storyline would have been right up my alley if there had been apt levels of suspense and tension but sadly, it was a little underwhelming for the most part. While the competition was not as frightening or deadly as the Triwizard Tournament, it was still crucial to the town’s recovery and I would have liked to see Karalius capture the almost terror-like emotions of being involved in such a crucial competition like Rowling did. The pressure on Hijiri to win the competition and not allow another Zita-like charm maker gain influence in her town did not quite translate onto the page as I would have liked. It would have also been good to explore how Hijiri’s anxiety affected her performance in the competition and to focus on really making sure readers felt her desperation. The final round was incredibly disappointing. I would have liked that to been expanded on and not have been quite convenient as it felt. I did like that the charm-making aspects answered some of my questions from the first book as well.
Overall?
Love Charms and Other Catastrophes was a mostly disappointing companion/sequel. I think the idea of this romance was a little too weird for me. Ken was not a particularly likeable character due to his intense instalove for Hijiri. It made their entire relationship feel one-sided and off. The plotline was fun but I would have liked it to have been way more intense and tension-filled. I think I enjoyed the first book as a whole a lot more and am so glad that Karalius has decided to move on from the Grimbaud world in her next book.
Sometimes all you need at the end of a long day is an easy breezy contemporary read to fly through and By Your Side was exactly that. While it was not the most complex of storylines or the even the most charming romance, it was undeniably fun and enjoyable. I have heard legendary things about West’s contemporaries before and even if this book didn’t quite meet those expectations, I can still see why her stories are so well-loved.
Autumn and Dax were both decent protagonists and I loved that the story was written from both of their perspectives (dual narration will always be my favourite). Dax had this almost irresistible quality about him that drew me in. He was obviously hiding a lot of inner turmoil and while this was taken advantage of to create some tension and conflict between him and Autumn, I still think that West did his story justice. He was a complex character with a sweet side that I enjoyed getting to explore. Autumn was not as enjoyable of a protagonist as Dax but she was is no way unlikable. I also wanted to point out that while the existence of a love triangle in this story was bothersome, the fact that it allowed us to explore the ‘protocols’ of dating someone comatosed was fascinating and worth it.
I also loved that Autumn was suffering from anxiety. I have heard some minor complaints that her triggers were never discussed - so it was unclear whether she had social anxiety or GAD, etc. - and while I personally could not relate to her ‘type’ of panic attacks, I don’t think this makes her representation less accurate. In fact, I found that it was a clever way of showing that the condition affects everyone differently. There is no clean-cut way to experience anxiety. I also really appreciated that she talked about taking medication which is - thankfully - something being openly discussed more and more in new releases.
Plotwise, I actually found it quite hard to get into this story. It just did not have a strong beginning. The entire first half - which is the part set in the library - was slow and kind of… awkward? Autumn and Dax’s interactions within this half were a little bumbly and while that was sweet in theory, the awkwardness was a little bit much at times. It probably didn’t help that I could not buy into the fact that they were locked in the library in the first place. Who the frick forgets their friend? But it was the stuff about the doors being locked and the computers being inaccessible and the lack of landline phones which bothered me the most. It did not seem realistic in the slightest. The second half was much more enjoyable and I found myself sinking into the story just as it was wrapping up… typical.
I do feel the need to point out that although the synopsis tells us that this story is about a girl who gets stuck in a library with a cute boy, there wasn’t anything bookish about this story at all. Personally, I was devastated! Our protagonist has no interesting in reading and our romantic interest was only interested in one book that he carried with him everywhere. I really wanted this to be a bookish romance, especially because that is how it is being pitched, but it had nothing to do with reading or books at all.
Review copy provided by the publisher for an honest review.
Autumn and Dax were both decent protagonists and I loved that the story was written from both of their perspectives (dual narration will always be my favourite). Dax had this almost irresistible quality about him that drew me in. He was obviously hiding a lot of inner turmoil and while this was taken advantage of to create some tension and conflict between him and Autumn, I still think that West did his story justice. He was a complex character with a sweet side that I enjoyed getting to explore. Autumn was not as enjoyable of a protagonist as Dax but she was is no way unlikable. I also wanted to point out that while the existence of a love triangle in this story was bothersome, the fact that it allowed us to explore the ‘protocols’ of dating someone comatosed was fascinating and worth it.
I also loved that Autumn was suffering from anxiety. I have heard some minor complaints that her triggers were never discussed - so it was unclear whether she had social anxiety or GAD, etc. - and while I personally could not relate to her ‘type’ of panic attacks, I don’t think this makes her representation less accurate. In fact, I found that it was a clever way of showing that the condition affects everyone differently. There is no clean-cut way to experience anxiety. I also really appreciated that she talked about taking medication which is - thankfully - something being openly discussed more and more in new releases.
Plotwise, I actually found it quite hard to get into this story. It just did not have a strong beginning. The entire first half - which is the part set in the library - was slow and kind of… awkward? Autumn and Dax’s interactions within this half were a little bumbly and while that was sweet in theory, the awkwardness was a little bit much at times. It probably didn’t help that I could not buy into the fact that they were locked in the library in the first place. Who the frick forgets their friend? But it was the stuff about the doors being locked and the computers being inaccessible and the lack of landline phones which bothered me the most. It did not seem realistic in the slightest. The second half was much more enjoyable and I found myself sinking into the story just as it was wrapping up… typical.
I do feel the need to point out that although the synopsis tells us that this story is about a girl who gets stuck in a library with a cute boy, there wasn’t anything bookish about this story at all. Personally, I was devastated! Our protagonist has no interesting in reading and our romantic interest was only interested in one book that he carried with him everywhere. I really wanted this to be a bookish romance, especially because that is how it is being pitched, but it had nothing to do with reading or books at all.
Review copy provided by the publisher for an honest review.