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abinthebooks's reviews
978 reviews
Persuasion by Jane Austen
3.0
ORIGINAL RATING 4 STARS, BUT BROUGHT DOWN TO 3 STARS
(If this is your favorite Austen this isn’t a personal attack against you, it’s just my personal thoughts)
Alright, it’s finally time to sit down and talk about my thoughts. This classic wasn’t necessarily bad, but I didn’t really get the feelings that Pride and Prejudice just give me. I even watched the 2009(?) adaption of this book and it was ok, but it just felt really bland.
Anne was ultimately a very boring character who we were told was a reader and had much opinions on things, but really Anne is just a character that doesn’t read a lot and doesn’t have much of a free will thought process. I get it, I really do. Women weren’t aloud to have their own thoughts, but Jane Austen had really shown me in Pride and Prejudice that she can write strong willed and independent characters. The entirety of the Bennet family are feminists in their own way, even Lydia who went against societies norms and fought for what she thought she loved. Or Kitty who had her own opinions, even when Lydia told her what to do.
But in this novel, we didn’t really see any of that strong willed feminism. Of course Jane Austen isn’t going to write every book the same, but Anne felt like she didn’t have that backbone that even Lydia or Kitty or God even Mrs. Bennet could have. She just lacked a personality, and while we did see the pining for Captain Wentworth, that was really the only thing that made me continue following Anne as a character.
I also hated the Elliot’s, a lot. Each and every one of them (albeit Anne Who I just thought was a bit lackluster). If their is one thing that Jane Austen has done to me in Pride and Prejudice and Persuasion it’s that she had persuaded (wink, wink. I’m so punny) me to hate and dislike a lot of her characters. And it’s totally intentionally. And it makes her brilliant. Jane Austen had an idea here. Create a family, similar to the Bennet’s, who only care about class and money. But see with the Elliot’s, Austen ventured out further and made us hate this family entirely more.
The Elliot’s are all annoying, pretentious as fuck, and gave me a headache. But for the Bennet’s, I still enjoyed that aspect of them because the Bennet’s still had redeeming qualities. Even Lydia, Who is...a challenge to like. But with the Elliot’s I found no redeeming qualities. And I find myself praising Austen for this whilst also being annoyed. If I didn’t like Elizabeth, at least I could have fallen back on her family or Mr. Darcy (although I love Lizzie) But here, I didn’t love Anne at all. And I didn’t have her family to fall back on because I didn’t like her family either.
Captain Wentworth was an ok hero, although he can never live up to Darcy. I’m sorry Wentworth stans, The pining in here was the only thing that saved him as a character for me.
Anyways, this was definitely not my favorite classic, but it wasn’t bad if that makes sense. I just will probably never reread this, or at least I won’t until maybe I’m old enough to appreciate it more? I think I’m a little young for Persuasion since these characters are Austen’s oldest and most mature, so maybe when I’m older I’ll give this a reread and see how I feel.
3 stars
* * *
A few days later (in Sponge Bob’s way of saying it ofc)
If their is one thing this book taught me, its that Jane Austen is very very classist.
Still review to come. Abi write a god damn review.
* * *
I really know how to feel about this book. On one hand, I did really enjoy this. On the other, I feel as though Persuasion was rushed, and definitely not Austen at her best. I will continue to think about this, and write a longer review in a few days, but right now this is a 4 star
Review to Come
* * *
Prereading thoughts:
Mr. Darcy is my husband, but will Captian Wentworth become my 2nd? We shall have to wait and find out.
Also, this is my 2nd Jane Austen, and I'm beyond excited!
(If this is your favorite Austen this isn’t a personal attack against you, it’s just my personal thoughts)
Alright, it’s finally time to sit down and talk about my thoughts. This classic wasn’t necessarily bad, but I didn’t really get the feelings that Pride and Prejudice just give me. I even watched the 2009(?) adaption of this book and it was ok, but it just felt really bland.
Anne was ultimately a very boring character who we were told was a reader and had much opinions on things, but really Anne is just a character that doesn’t read a lot and doesn’t have much of a free will thought process. I get it, I really do. Women weren’t aloud to have their own thoughts, but Jane Austen had really shown me in Pride and Prejudice that she can write strong willed and independent characters. The entirety of the Bennet family are feminists in their own way, even Lydia who went against societies norms and fought for what she thought she loved. Or Kitty who had her own opinions, even when Lydia told her what to do.
But in this novel, we didn’t really see any of that strong willed feminism. Of course Jane Austen isn’t going to write every book the same, but Anne felt like she didn’t have that backbone that even Lydia or Kitty or God even Mrs. Bennet could have. She just lacked a personality, and while we did see the pining for Captain Wentworth, that was really the only thing that made me continue following Anne as a character.
I also hated the Elliot’s, a lot. Each and every one of them (albeit Anne Who I just thought was a bit lackluster). If their is one thing that Jane Austen has done to me in Pride and Prejudice and Persuasion it’s that she had persuaded (wink, wink. I’m so punny) me to hate and dislike a lot of her characters. And it’s totally intentionally. And it makes her brilliant. Jane Austen had an idea here. Create a family, similar to the Bennet’s, who only care about class and money. But see with the Elliot’s, Austen ventured out further and made us hate this family entirely more.
The Elliot’s are all annoying, pretentious as fuck, and gave me a headache. But for the Bennet’s, I still enjoyed that aspect of them because the Bennet’s still had redeeming qualities. Even Lydia, Who is...a challenge to like. But with the Elliot’s I found no redeeming qualities. And I find myself praising Austen for this whilst also being annoyed. If I didn’t like Elizabeth, at least I could have fallen back on her family or Mr. Darcy (although I love Lizzie) But here, I didn’t love Anne at all. And I didn’t have her family to fall back on because I didn’t like her family either.
Captain Wentworth was an ok hero, although he can never live up to Darcy. I’m sorry Wentworth stans, The pining in here was the only thing that saved him as a character for me.
Anyways, this was definitely not my favorite classic, but it wasn’t bad if that makes sense. I just will probably never reread this, or at least I won’t until maybe I’m old enough to appreciate it more? I think I’m a little young for Persuasion since these characters are Austen’s oldest and most mature, so maybe when I’m older I’ll give this a reread and see how I feel.
3 stars
* * *
A few days later (in Sponge Bob’s way of saying it ofc)
If their is one thing this book taught me, its that Jane Austen is very very classist.
Still review to come. Abi write a god damn review.
* * *
I really know how to feel about this book. On one hand, I did really enjoy this. On the other, I feel as though Persuasion was rushed, and definitely not Austen at her best. I will continue to think about this, and write a longer review in a few days, but right now this is a 4 star
Review to Come
* * *
Prereading thoughts:
Mr. Darcy is my husband, but will Captian Wentworth become my 2nd? We shall have to wait and find out.
Also, this is my 2nd Jane Austen, and I'm beyond excited!
The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
4.0
*4.5
I don’t really know how to write reviews for classics, it’s such a hard thing to do. Everyone else is putting pretty words and pretty quotes in their reviews and I’m just like “should I just review it like a normal book???” Anyways beside my internal monologue, I feel like 99% classics are 300+ pages of deep thoughts, pretty writing, psychological meanings, and highly unlikeable or very likable characters. And that’s really what The Great Gatsby was. I don’t really know what my expectations were going in, but I feel as though they were exceeded.
This story was so beautiful and so melancholic. I cannot believe I enjoyed Gatsby as a character as much as I did. He was captivating but from the moment we see him first introduced, he’s very lonely and sad. I really sympathized with him the entire time, and I loved his character arc. (Also btw, Gatsby isn’t the narrator of the story which really surprised me but I ultimately agree with the decision not to make him the narrator, he definitely would have concocted it into a love story).
Also Fitzgerald’s writing is bewitching. His prose is utterly stunning, and his metaphors are absolutely incredible. I couldn’t stop tabbing pages of The Great Gatsby because I kept finding so many pretty quotes. It was also so interesting to read about the thrilling night-life of the 20s, especially New York City at the time. I had to stop reading at times because I was laughing so hard at how utterly ridiculous these characters were, and their ideals and values (because they were party people ya know?)
I guessed the ending for this, but I ultimately wasn’t too mad because I really really liked this overall. I think I reread this in a few years I’ll definitely appreciate just as much, probably more to be honest. Overall, definitely worth the read.
- I know I’m supposed to hate Daisy but I don’t exactly, there were times where I laughed at her and sympathized with her character. Tom however…
- You know what Tom? Screw you, you sucked and you definitely didn’t deserve Daisy
- Just me arguing with fictional characters, nothing to see here
Ok I’m done (:
I don’t really know how to write reviews for classics, it’s such a hard thing to do. Everyone else is putting pretty words and pretty quotes in their reviews and I’m just like “should I just review it like a normal book???” Anyways beside my internal monologue, I feel like 99% classics are 300+ pages of deep thoughts, pretty writing, psychological meanings, and highly unlikeable or very likable characters. And that’s really what The Great Gatsby was. I don’t really know what my expectations were going in, but I feel as though they were exceeded.
This story was so beautiful and so melancholic. I cannot believe I enjoyed Gatsby as a character as much as I did. He was captivating but from the moment we see him first introduced, he’s very lonely and sad. I really sympathized with him the entire time, and I loved his character arc. (Also btw, Gatsby isn’t the narrator of the story which really surprised me but I ultimately agree with the decision not to make him the narrator, he definitely would have concocted it into a love story).
Also Fitzgerald’s writing is bewitching. His prose is utterly stunning, and his metaphors are absolutely incredible. I couldn’t stop tabbing pages of The Great Gatsby because I kept finding so many pretty quotes. It was also so interesting to read about the thrilling night-life of the 20s, especially New York City at the time. I had to stop reading at times because I was laughing so hard at how utterly ridiculous these characters were, and their ideals and values (because they were party people ya know?)
I guessed the ending for this, but I ultimately wasn’t too mad because I really really liked this overall. I think I reread this in a few years I’ll definitely appreciate just as much, probably more to be honest. Overall, definitely worth the read.
- I know I’m supposed to hate Daisy but I don’t exactly, there were times where I laughed at her and sympathized with her character. Tom however…
- You know what Tom? Screw you, you sucked and you definitely didn’t deserve Daisy
- Just me arguing with fictional characters, nothing to see here
Ok I’m done (:
Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare
1.0
Reread
So...yeah. This is my most hated book of all time. No lies, no exaggerations, no fucks given. Honestly why the fuck were trees wasted on this??? Like honestly fuck you Shakespeare. Sink further into your damn grave and go die further.
I didn’t want to reread this book. I hated this with my whole entire existence the first time I read it, but we had to read it for my class with West Side Story (still haven’t finished yet, although that will probably be a 2 star) to compare and contrast them. (Comparing and contrasting retellings are a fucking joke). Why we couldn’t just read These Violent Delights instead, I couldn’t tell you.
I just HATE this book. I hate the characters, I hate the romance, I hate how pretentious everything is, I HATE it.
I laughed, I laughed when these characters died. I smiled and said, “THANK FUCKING GOD, YOU ALL DESERVED IT”.
In conclusion, fuck you.
0 stars
***
Read this when I was 12 and understood most of what was going on. FUCKING HATED IT, and I still hate it and will never read this ever again. God, I hate this book with a fiery passion
So...yeah. This is my most hated book of all time. No lies, no exaggerations, no fucks given. Honestly why the fuck were trees wasted on this??? Like honestly fuck you Shakespeare. Sink further into your damn grave and go die further.
I didn’t want to reread this book. I hated this with my whole entire existence the first time I read it, but we had to read it for my class with West Side Story (still haven’t finished yet, although that will probably be a 2 star) to compare and contrast them. (Comparing and contrasting retellings are a fucking joke). Why we couldn’t just read These Violent Delights instead, I couldn’t tell you.
I just HATE this book. I hate the characters, I hate the romance, I hate how pretentious everything is, I HATE it.
I laughed, I laughed when these characters died. I smiled and said, “THANK FUCKING GOD, YOU ALL DESERVED IT”.
In conclusion, fuck you.
0 stars
***
Read this when I was 12 and understood most of what was going on. FUCKING HATED IT, and I still hate it and will never read this ever again. God, I hate this book with a fiery passion
Sweet Dandelion by Micalea Smeltzer
5.0
”I want to stop feeling so lost. How do I find myself again? Show me the way.”
I absolutely adored this story so so much. I loved just following Dani, from seeing her doing everyday, mundane things to her huge amounts of characters growth throughout the story. The romance wasn’t even really the part of the story I was most concerned about, I just loved Dani and seeing her learn to live again. This story was so so good, and I literally read it in two sittings. I cannot wait to read more from this author, this is definitely one of my favorite books I’ve read this year.
5 stars
I absolutely adored this story so so much. I loved just following Dani, from seeing her doing everyday, mundane things to her huge amounts of characters growth throughout the story. The romance wasn’t even really the part of the story I was most concerned about, I just loved Dani and seeing her learn to live again. This story was so so good, and I literally read it in two sittings. I cannot wait to read more from this author, this is definitely one of my favorite books I’ve read this year.
5 stars
The Evolution of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin
5.0
This second installment to the Mara Dyer trilogy was SO good.
The story was interesting and inthralling, the characters were better, the development was great, and the SEXUAL TENSION! Can we talk about the sexual tension?
I was blushing and getting MAJOR butterflies from reading the steamier scenes in this book!
I’m highly anticipated for the sequel, and I really enjoyed this.
The story was interesting and inthralling, the characters were better, the development was great, and the SEXUAL TENSION! Can we talk about the sexual tension?
I was blushing and getting MAJOR butterflies from reading the steamier scenes in this book!
I’m highly anticipated for the sequel, and I really enjoyed this.
The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin
4.0
4.5 ⭐️
This book was SOOOO GOOD.
Ok yes ‘The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer’ has flaws, but I still REALLY enjoyed this book.
It was thrilling, captivating, mysterious and jus plain right weird.
I loved the story so much. It was so weird and absolutely obscured and nothing like I’d ever read before.
I really like the characters too. Mara is such an unreliable narrator and such an odd person. But I still loved her character. I also really liked Noah’s character. And their ‘powers’ were so odd and interesting.
Look I’d give this book a 5 stars but their were definitely flaws and moments where I cringed so hard I thought I needed an exorcism. But I still loved the story and characters most of the time so my rating is quite high for that. Also for my enjoyment just because this but was so unique.
Definitely recommend if your looking for a slightly trashy paranormal romance, or a creepy, thrilling, suspenseful story.
This book was SOOOO GOOD.
Ok yes ‘The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer’ has flaws, but I still REALLY enjoyed this book.
It was thrilling, captivating, mysterious and jus plain right weird.
I loved the story so much. It was so weird and absolutely obscured and nothing like I’d ever read before.
I really like the characters too. Mara is such an unreliable narrator and such an odd person. But I still loved her character. I also really liked Noah’s character. And their ‘powers’ were so odd and interesting.
Look I’d give this book a 5 stars but their were definitely flaws and moments where I cringed so hard I thought I needed an exorcism. But I still loved the story and characters most of the time so my rating is quite high for that. Also for my enjoyment just because this but was so unique.
Definitely recommend if your looking for a slightly trashy paranormal romance, or a creepy, thrilling, suspenseful story.
Mile High by Liz Tomforde
DNF at 25%
The amount of ick I got from this. . .I think I need to stop reading about straight people.
The amount of ick I got from this. . .I think I need to stop reading about straight people.
Next of Kin by Hannah Bonam-Young
3.0
I liked this, but I just felt like something was missing from it. I enjoyed the co-parenting, and the healthy communication and relationship between the two main characters, and I also enjoyed the friendships the heroine has in here. I also liked the siblings that our hero and heroine are fostering. But again, something just felt missing for me. I felt like the plot was moving too fast, and the characters weren’t fleshed out enough for my taste.
But, this wasn’t a bad story at all. It was a nice palate cleanser, and a very quick read. It just wasn’t the best romance I’ve ever read. I feel like if this was longer, and spent longer building on personal character growth & pacing I probably would have enjoyed this a little more. Not terrible though, just pretty middle of the road.
3 stars
But, this wasn’t a bad story at all. It was a nice palate cleanser, and a very quick read. It just wasn’t the best romance I’ve ever read. I feel like if this was longer, and spent longer building on personal character growth & pacing I probably would have enjoyed this a little more. Not terrible though, just pretty middle of the road.
3 stars
Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo
5.0
SEPTEMBER 16th 2019
⭐️4⭐️
REVIEW TO COME
_______________________________
OH MY FUCKING GOD! MY MIND IS BLOWN!
Six of Crows is one of the best, (if not the best) YA fantasy I’ve ever fucking read. I can not tell you how much I enjoyed this book, nor can I tell you how much I appreciate it.
We follow our main character Kaz Brekker the criminal mastermind in the fantasy city of Ketterdam. It’s the number one city for trade, trouble, and tricks. (All T’s lmao). He had his group of people in his Crow gang (hence the title. And their is also six people in his little group), and they caused trouble around the city.
Kaz is offered like 30 million kertz (I think that was there currency. I wasn’t paying all to much attention for the first 100 pages of this book. I’ll get into that later), and Kaz being the villain he is (jk he’s my fucking husband and no one can hurt him), decides that he is going to seek out this mission for the money. He comes up with his crew of 6.
Inej (my child, and we Stan and ship her with Kaz for the rest of our mother fucking lives), Nina (my baby), Matthias (we don’t really Stan him that much), Wesley (WE FUCKING STAN HIM), and Jesper (who we also Stan). They all owe Kaz a sort of payment or debt in some way to Kaz or someone else, so Kaz is basically blackmailing most of them.
We learn some significant details about why we’re going on the adventure (which I won’t spoil for y’all), and the characters set off onto their heist to the Ice Court.
I’m just gonna say it right now, I FUCKING LOVED ‘SIX OF CROWS.’ And here is why. (I have way to many reasons but imma narrow it down to 3.)
The characters in this book were OUTSTANDING. I wish I could give Leigh Bardugo a standing FUCKING ovation. Her character descriptions, depth, and development (Look their all D’s lmao) is astonishing. I remember trying to read ‘Shadow and Bone’ (also Leigh Bardugo) And DNF’ed it for the same reason here. Except it was be opposite. I couldn’t get into her characters. In this book I think that the characters are so flawed out and written so well, and I just grew attached to them all. (Even though I still don’t love Matthias lmao)
While the world can be confusing at times, I thought the world building was still phenomenal. Since this duology is a spin-off of ‘The Grisha Trilogy’, the world wasn’t as thawed out as it was in their because you are usually expected to read that series first. But I didn’t. And again, I got confused but I think the world building was exquisite.
I LOVE THE 3RD PERSON IN THIS BOOK! It’s crazy to me. 1st person is usually my go to, and when I see or start reading a book in 3rd person I internally groan. But, IT WAS DONE OUTSTANDING. This book wouldn’t have been as good in 1st person. The way Leigh Bardugo switches from characters in 3RD PERSON IS SO INSANE! I just-I-I think I would have loved ‘Shadow in Bone’ if it was in 3rd person and I can’t believe I’m saying that. I loved the way Leigh Bardugo took 3rd person POV and twisted and turned it into her own and I absolutely loved it.
I’m gonna say something though. The first 100-150 pages are a bit hard to get into a bit confusing. But, I SWEAR TO GOD THEY GET BETTER.
Also, we have 2 badass female leads and 4 badass male leads and I LIVED for it.
And finally, I LOVED HEARING THE BAD GUYS STORIES! We always hear about the good characters in stories. We always hear about the princess that needs saving, or the badass GOOD female heroine, and we never read about THE BAD characters. And I loved doing something new with this book. It was refreshing and enjoyable reading about the villains and why the way they are. What possesses them to do these things. Why are they doing these things. HOW did they do these things. I think Leigh Bardugo also did an amazing job of telling us a short backstory within 10-15 pages. We got subtle glimpses into the characters pasts, but it was enough to make us UNDERSTAND why they do the things they do, and what their going through and I just loved learning these things. Reading about the ‘bad guys’ and villains was refreshing and new. Something I usually don’t read about.
*Favorite Characters*
Inej and Kaz or AKA the BIGGEST FUCKING SHIP OF ALL TIME
⭐️4⭐️
REVIEW TO COME
_______________________________
OH MY FUCKING GOD! MY MIND IS BLOWN!
Six of Crows is one of the best, (if not the best) YA fantasy I’ve ever fucking read. I can not tell you how much I enjoyed this book, nor can I tell you how much I appreciate it.
We follow our main character Kaz Brekker the criminal mastermind in the fantasy city of Ketterdam. It’s the number one city for trade, trouble, and tricks. (All T’s lmao). He had his group of people in his Crow gang (hence the title. And their is also six people in his little group), and they caused trouble around the city.
Kaz is offered like 30 million kertz (I think that was there currency. I wasn’t paying all to much attention for the first 100 pages of this book. I’ll get into that later), and Kaz being the villain he is (jk he’s my fucking husband and no one can hurt him), decides that he is going to seek out this mission for the money. He comes up with his crew of 6.
Inej (my child, and we Stan and ship her with Kaz for the rest of our mother fucking lives), Nina (my baby), Matthias (we don’t really Stan him that much), Wesley (WE FUCKING STAN HIM), and Jesper (who we also Stan). They all owe Kaz a sort of payment or debt in some way to Kaz or someone else, so Kaz is basically blackmailing most of them.
We learn some significant details about why we’re going on the adventure (which I won’t spoil for y’all), and the characters set off onto their heist to the Ice Court.
I’m just gonna say it right now, I FUCKING LOVED ‘SIX OF CROWS.’ And here is why. (I have way to many reasons but imma narrow it down to 3.)
The characters in this book were OUTSTANDING. I wish I could give Leigh Bardugo a standing FUCKING ovation. Her character descriptions, depth, and development (Look their all D’s lmao) is astonishing. I remember trying to read ‘Shadow and Bone’ (also Leigh Bardugo) And DNF’ed it for the same reason here. Except it was be opposite. I couldn’t get into her characters. In this book I think that the characters are so flawed out and written so well, and I just grew attached to them all. (Even though I still don’t love Matthias lmao)
While the world can be confusing at times, I thought the world building was still phenomenal. Since this duology is a spin-off of ‘The Grisha Trilogy’, the world wasn’t as thawed out as it was in their because you are usually expected to read that series first. But I didn’t. And again, I got confused but I think the world building was exquisite.
I LOVE THE 3RD PERSON IN THIS BOOK! It’s crazy to me. 1st person is usually my go to, and when I see or start reading a book in 3rd person I internally groan. But, IT WAS DONE OUTSTANDING. This book wouldn’t have been as good in 1st person. The way Leigh Bardugo switches from characters in 3RD PERSON IS SO INSANE! I just-I-I think I would have loved ‘Shadow in Bone’ if it was in 3rd person and I can’t believe I’m saying that. I loved the way Leigh Bardugo took 3rd person POV and twisted and turned it into her own and I absolutely loved it.
I’m gonna say something though. The first 100-150 pages are a bit hard to get into a bit confusing. But, I SWEAR TO GOD THEY GET BETTER.
Also, we have 2 badass female leads and 4 badass male leads and I LIVED for it.
And finally, I LOVED HEARING THE BAD GUYS STORIES! We always hear about the good characters in stories. We always hear about the princess that needs saving, or the badass GOOD female heroine, and we never read about THE BAD characters. And I loved doing something new with this book. It was refreshing and enjoyable reading about the villains and why the way they are. What possesses them to do these things. Why are they doing these things. HOW did they do these things. I think Leigh Bardugo also did an amazing job of telling us a short backstory within 10-15 pages. We got subtle glimpses into the characters pasts, but it was enough to make us UNDERSTAND why they do the things they do, and what their going through and I just loved learning these things. Reading about the ‘bad guys’ and villains was refreshing and new. Something I usually don’t read about.
*Favorite Characters*
Inej and Kaz or AKA the BIGGEST FUCKING SHIP OF ALL TIME