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emilywemily6's reviews
259 reviews
The Vampire Knitting Club by Nancy Warren
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
I guess you could say I enjoyed this book? I honestly feel very indifferent about it. Paranormal? It had very weak vampire and witchy components with limited backstory. Mystery? All clues were circumstantial and not very intriguing. Cozy? Yes, it gets points for being cozy at least. I didn’t really like the main character, Lucy, because she lacked personality and depth. In some ways she is absurdly trusting and in other ways she trusts no one. She has a couple love interests introduced into this story but they don’t have a lot of personality either. This felt mediocre and even though it was a short read I feel no compulsion to continue the series.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Murder
Moderate: Bullying and Blood
Minor: Medical content, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
A Torch Against the Night by Sabaa Tahir
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
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? No
5.0
This author can do no wrong, especially with this series. I enjoyed this book just as much as the first one. The writing is beautiful, the characters are nuanced and full of turmoil, and I was on the edge of my seat through all the twists and turns that were both unexpected and yet fit the character arcs exactly.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Physical abuse, Racism, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Grief, Murder, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Moderate: Sexual harassment
Minor: Slavery
Can't Spell Treason Without Tea by Rebecca Thorne
adventurous
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
I find that I am really enjoying cozy fantasy! I feel like this book was a strange blend however of cozy/slice of life living as extremely high stakes with perilous scenarios. The author straddles the line of cozy and high fantasy and I kind of wish she had picked one or the other. I generally enjoyed the characters, the setting, and the magic system. I do feel like a bulk of the relationship was the two main characters having a similar disagreement over and over again and their resolutions got tiring to read. I am intrigued and excited to read more about this story and hope for more character growth and lore of this world.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Cursing, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Medical content
Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton
adventurous
hopeful
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
I really enjoyed this book. I read it after reading Dragon Teeth and was delighted to hear mention of Cope and Marsh towards the beginning of this story! The science behind this book is fascinating and pretty realistic from my uneducated perspective. And while the philosophical discussion from Malcolm felt a little overdone, it was very interesting to think about the implications of scientific discoveries on the wider world, especially when we can’t foresee the entire impact they have. The growing sense of dread and unease was spot on, and while it is slower than modern thrillers I was still entranced. I hated reading incorrect medical scenarios though- it takes a day or two for infection to set in, then another day or two for the infection to turn septic/systemic, so why did Malcolm’s wounds turn septic in like 6 hours?? Besides that, this book felt well thought out.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Death, Gore, Violence, Blood, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal cruelty and Medical content
Minor: Classism
Dragon Teeth by Michael Crichton
adventurous
hopeful
informative
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
This was my first Crichton read and I enjoyed myself! It delves into a niche moment in history known as the Bone Wars and I was fascinated by how close to reality that portion of the story was. I feel like I learned a lot about the beginnings of modern paleontology and our first exposures to dinosaur bones. This story morphed into more of a Wild West story, and while it kept me on the edge of my seat, it stressed me out a lot. Wild West books aren’t my favorite. The stakes were high and I couldn’t finish fast enough for some closure. While written well, the ending/character arcs felt a little unfinished, and I wish Crichton had had the opportunity to finish this book while alive. There is some era-consistent racism towards native Americans as well as other stereotypes represented in the book, but it felt more like it was being true to the time period than trying to promote such viewpoints. Overall, this was an educational and intriguing read with some harrowing moments that kept me engaged.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racism, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Grief, Murder, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Moderate: Cursing, Vomit, Religious bigotry, Abandonment, and Alcohol
The Sock Project: Colorful, Cool Socks to Knit and Show Off by Summer Lee
funny
informative
medium-paced
4.5
A great resource for someone wanting to knit socks! This book is great for a beginner knitter wanting to start knitting socks or for someone who has only knit a few socks and wants to grow their skills. The patterns are also good for a seasoned sock knitter looking for something interesting but not too difficult to knit. Summer Lee’s voice is found throughout this book and is hilarious. There are tips and tricks also thrown in throughout the book that are good for a beginner sock knitter to learn, though I didn’t learn much new info about knitting socks due to my experience.
Mrs. Quinn's Rise to Fame by Olivia Ford
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
This was a nice cozy read! If you have watched The Great British Baking Show this intentionally feels very similar- almost too similar (I kind of wish the baking show in the book was a little bit different/more original). There were two main storylines in the book, the past secret that Jenny has and the baking show. Her secret was pretty obvious early on and took a long time to actually reveal itself. The secret was also brought to light and somewhat resolved at the end of the book too. You get to see a little bit of the aftermath of the baking show ending, which was nice. Just a nice cozy read with some atmospheric descriptions of Jenny’s baking, if you like that kind of thing!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief and Pregnancy
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship and Infidelity
Carrie Soto Is Back by Taylor Jenkins Reid
hopeful
inspiring
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
I really enjoy TJR’s historical novels and this one is no exception. I really loved learning more about tennis and seeing multiple timelines tell the story of Carrie Soto. The dynamic audio was also really immersive to listen to! Carrie was unlikeable (on purpose) but occasionally she did/said things that were so egregious that I would have set boundaries and cut her out of my life, and yet her closest friends stuck around for her. She did have character growth towards the end of the book, but it felt like such a stretch compared to where she was at just prior to that turning point since she had little to no growth for the majority of the book. The romance was pretty subtle, which was nice that it didn’t overpower the rest of the story. Overall, not my favorite by this author, but I still really enjoyed it. I think the high emotions from the game play-by-plays bumped this book up in rating just a little bit for me, I definitely felt emotional a couple times throughout this book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying and Cursing
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Grief, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Cancer, Death, Misogyny, Sexual content, Medical content, and Alcohol
The Comfort of Ghosts by Jacqueline Winspear
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
I adore Maisie Dobbs and I am sad that this is the last in the series. The main mystery was resolved a little earlier in the story than usual, leaving room for a small secondary mystery as well as a lot of reflection and introspection. The stakes were also not as high as previous books. You take a journey through all the prior happenings in the series.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Grief
Minor: Death, Drug abuse, Miscarriage, Torture, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
If We Were Villains by M.L. Rio
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
Even with my limited Shakespeare knowledge, I still really enjoyed this book. Though I feel like a true thespian would get a lot more out of this book and recognize many intentional parallels the author drew to Shakespeare’s work. I hope to revisit this book in the future when I am more acquainted with his body of work. This novel felt theatrical and dramatic but in a way that is realistic to collegiate theater students. I found the overall descent into madness fascinating and I was intrigued by the characterization of the entire cast. I wish there was more depth/backstory to some characters though, like Richard especially. I also loved the idea of Macbeth by the lake and Romeo and Juliet in the middle of a ball! I didn’t particularly like the ambiguous ending because of how I feel the characters would have likely acted; I’m not convinced the ending honors how I feel the characters would have acted, but overall I could see the character progression and understand if not agree with their choices. The course of the mystery was pretty predictable but that made it satisfying.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Death, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, Murder, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Addiction, Drug abuse, Drug use, Infidelity, and Sexual content
Minor: Body horror, Eating disorder, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Blood