goody_reads's reviews
242 reviews

Bluejay by Megan Stockton

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dark tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated

5.0

This was a whole mess. In the best way. 

3 guys, stereotypically average, find their way to a creepy show they found on a gore site. 

It’s gross and bloody. And Noah is weak and obnoxious in all the worst ways. 

The dogs do not die. Neither does the cat. 
Pen Pal by J.T. Geissinger

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challenging dark emotional medium-paced

4.0

This one almost lost me. 

I’d say 🌶️🌶️🌶️ but then it just got repetitive after awhile and I didn’t feel like the plot was moving forward. 

About 80% through there was a great plot twist and I sped through the ending. 

Would recommend if you’re looking for a story about love, loss, grief, and a lil smut thrown in. 
The Drowning Kind by Jennifer McMahon

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adventurous challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This is a really haunting story about family, secrets, grief, guilt, but also about a literal haunted house. 

There’s a great POV shift between decades. Female forward. LGBTQ characters.  There are characters with disabilities but they do spend a lot of time trying to cure them. 

The setting is a character in itself and adds a great element to the story. 

Would read more from this author. 

Happy book #100 this year to me!!!
The Woman in Me by Britney Spears

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fast-paced

4.0

If you grew up in the era of Pop Princesses and Boy Bands you need to read this. 

I wish it was longer and more detailed. I wish she called out everyone who wronged her and we decided as a society to punish them publicly. 

Her father is a horrible man but her mother and sister? Snakes. Gold digging snakes. I don’t care that they were abused too. Snakes. 

I hope she and her kids can live happily at some point. Privately and happily. 
Village of the Dolls by Johnathan Rand

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fast-paced

4.5

A story about a dad and his two kids going to pick up their mom from Wisconsin but their car breaks down along the way and they come upon the village of the dolls. 

Really liked this story but would have liked more detail about the house and dolls themselves. With more of the creepy scenes. 
Dinosaurs Destroy Detroit by Johnathan Rand

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fast-paced

4.0

This was cute. 

The premise is that every 50 years a portal into the past opens for a week. Some kids go exploring and take a trinket on their way out. 

This of course causes havoc in the present and they have to fix everything before the city gets destroyed. 



The Cottage: A True Haunted House Story by Jess Breitling

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fast-paced

3.0

This was fine. It read very dryly though with little emotion from the characters or for the reader. 

A family moves into a cottage. They think it’s haunted. So they move. 

That’s about it. 
When Kids Can't Read-What Teachers Can Do, Second Edition: A Guide for Teachers 4-12 by Kylene Beers

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3.0

Her other books are much better. This reads like a total textbook. 

That being said there are some great resources in here. No digital resources that I can find though which is odd because it’s 2023 and there are handouts in here that need to be editable. 
Big Bad by Chandler Baker

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fast-paced

4.0

This was a pretty quick read centering on wolves. 

It was good. I would have liked more about the situation and less backstory about Rachel’s education.  

But overall it was a good spooky story. 
Best of Luck by Jason Mott

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dark fast-paced

5.0

The idea of luck is a complicated one. It’s a fast, interesting read including a pair of best friends, one doing well and another having the worst year of his life. 

Who is to blame for all your bad luck? 

Gore.