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unsuccessfulbookclub's Reviews (916)
adventurous
emotional
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Just such a warm hug of a book with extremely believable characters and excellent relationship building and tension. Steamy, sweet, real. UGHHHHH SO GOOOODDDD
Content Warnings
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Grief, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Drug abuse, Abandonment
emotional
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
The only thing I wanted was more!! This is so sweet and steamy and such a deep backstory for both characters with just 53 pages. Would def read more from Alivia!!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Death, Grief
emotional
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Surprisingly unproblematic for its time. Is it enthusiastic verbal consent at all times? No. Is it a bodice ripper? Definitely not. Clare and Gareth had great chemistry and this was way funnier and sweeter than I expected!!
The vibe is much more A Knight’s Tale or Princess Bride - as in the characters act in a pretty modern way for it to be the 1100s, but I was cool with that. A pleasantly surprising Hissy RoNo from the 90s! I especially enjoyed how headstrong and independent Clare was as well as the running jokes about their wedding night. I liked how Gareth was more than he appeared and also how Clare and Gareth grew to respect each other and eventually fall in love. I also thought the commentary on virginity was quite refreshing.
The vibe is much more A Knight’s Tale or Princess Bride - as in the characters act in a pretty modern way for it to be the 1100s, but I was cool with that. A pleasantly surprising Hissy RoNo from the 90s! I especially enjoyed how headstrong and independent Clare was as well as the running jokes about their wedding night. I liked how Gareth was more than he appeared and also how Clare and Gareth grew to respect each other and eventually fall in love. I also thought the commentary on virginity was quite refreshing.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Sexual content, Violence
Moderate: Blood, Death of parent, Murder
Minor: Abandonment
Anti-fatness (several comments as to the health/body size of a young boy)
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Gun violence, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Pregnancy
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Death, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexual assault, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Blood, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, War, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Rape, Vomit
emotional
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Super spicy sapphic (only 20 pages!!)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
challenging
emotional
informative
reflective
slow-paced
ain’t i a woman by bell hooks is a foundational feminist text that grapples with the history of racism and sexism in the U.S. from colonial times up through the first wave (white) feminist movement. It’s essential reading for anyone seeking to understand our current landscape.
hooks dissects the multiple types of oppression at play for Black women throughout American history and the ways in which white men used sexism to align with Black men and white women used racism to align with white men, ultimately keeping the racist, capitalist, patriarchal power structure in the U.S. at play through the years.
I really really wish this book were still in print because I could not find a new physical copy to buy anywhere and the ebook at my library had a multiple-month hold…so I ended up listening to this. The message is good, solid, I just personally need to read nonfiction with my eyes when possible because I like to highlight and review passages.
If you have read hooks’ other works, be ready for a denser academic text with far more original sources in the form of quotes and speeches from historical figures than her “mass market” work. The writing is more complex and detailed than her “self help” books and that’s because this was her thesis. In the introduction, she actually talks about why her other books are written in a more straightforward and less academic manner, but if you’re looking for deeply researched feminist theory and history? This is the book.
👍🏻Recommended! This is a foundational feminist text for a reason. If you are interested in feminism, social justice and anti-racism, this is a must-read.
⚠️⚠️⚠️CW: graphic descriptions of slavery, seggsual assault, t0rture, racism, racial slurs. This is not light content. It is not censored or softened.
emotional
hopeful
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Quick and spicy. I loved that the MCs are married and older! (In their 40s). Kinks in this: voyeurism, exhibitionism, light D/s, public sex
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
dark
emotional
hopeful
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
An Unconditional Freedom is the third and final installment in the Loyal League series and perhaps the slowest moving plot while also being the most stressful to read? In this book, we follow Daniel, a free Black man who was training to be a lawyer when he was abducted and enslaved, and Janeta, a free Afro-Latina woman from Cuba who is the daughter of an enslaver and his second wife.
The stress in this book comes from all sides. First, Janeta starts out in this story working for the Confederacy (!!!). We are in her head so we know how she begins to understand the truth of her existence and the world around her but it is so painful to read - for her, but also because she is supposed to be working with Daniel as a Union operative…
…and Daniel is dealing with intense PTSD due to his time being enslaved as well as a VERY STRESSFUL job. He trusts no one, which is great because he really shouldn’t trust Janeta. Like at all.
This is a rare slow burn where I was really worried this couple was going to get together before *I* was ready. I spent so much of the book wondering how Alyssa Cole was going to bring these two people together and get me on board with it. And she succeeded, but not a page too soon!!
👍🏻RECOMMENDED! I have so much more to say about this series as a whole - look for a deeper dive/series review from me soon as I digest. That said, I enthusiastically recommend this book. These are not light reads but they are important ones. Alyssa Cole’s emotional labor cannot be overstated, nor can the talent she displays in this series!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, War
Moderate: Sexual content