imskylow's reviews
262 reviews

A Dowry of Blood by S.T. Gibson

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adventurous challenging dark 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? It's complicated

5.0

This book had me strapped in. I ate it up like a person starved. I listened to the entire audiobook in one sitting. I have nothing but great things to say about it. It's lyrical. It's moody and gothic. The prose had a lovely rhythm and the characters and relationship dynamics had me feeling all sorts of things. I didn't know whether to like him and accept that vampire life and culture is different from humans or to want him to die. The ending, however, left me incredibly satisfied and I loved how it tied everything together. Obviously, with how vague I'm being, I don't want to give much away but I definitely recommend this book. And if you like audiobooks, the narrator does a fantastic job reading. It's as if Constanza's is reading her own journal to you.
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Throttled by Lauren Asher

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emotional funny lighthearted fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

It was fine. It passed the time. Wasn’t revolutionary. Just average. I don’t feel the need to read the next book in the series. 
My Roommate Is a Vampire by Jenna Levine

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funny lighthearted fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.25

This book is very unserious and silly. I know the MMC is from a different era but I really don’t think he’d be that much of a doofus when it came to learning about modern life. If anything, he would just seem more reserved and refined. I dunno. Not the type of vampire book I’m into. 
Spoiler Alert by Olivia Dade

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challenging emotional reflective tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

It was fine. I guess I wasn’t vibing with the chemistry or something. Or maybe the audiobook narrator somehow bored me. Overall, I don’t think the story was all that punchy or thrilling. Felt like a normal relationship. There’s a 3 act breakup but you should already expect that from the synopsis. It exhausted me nonetheless.
The Misadventures of an Amateur Naturalist by Ceinwen Langley

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adventurous emotional mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

I actually really loved this book. It was written quite well and the audiobook was fabulous. I felt myself get shocked at the twists which is pretty unusual for retellings. Even though this is based on the beauty it’s written in a way that blooms away from the source material in an incredibly refreshing way. I felt deep emotions for the entire cast of characters. Very very good. 
Bite the Terror That Feeds by Penelope Barsetti

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Did not finish book.
Nope. No thank you. The issues I had with the first book are just amplified in this one. I could stand the characters less and less. When I could no longer find anything appealing about any of them I had to call it quits. 
Black Girl Unlimited by Echo  Brown

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Did not finish book. Stopped at 23%.
I’m sure this book is really powerful but as I am right now, I can’t convince myself to finish it. I was dragging my feet and taking too long to finish it. 
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When Women Were Dragons by Kelly Barnhill

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Did not finish book. Stopped at 51%.
I’m sure this book is powerful and that I could love it but at this stage of my life, I just can’t bring myself to complete it. It’s been such a struggle to get through. 
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UnWholly by Neal Shusterman

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

4.0

I liked this book. It didn’t have the same shock factor as the first one and wasn’t quite as emotional but I really enjoyed the concept of Cam and him questioning the validity of his existence. I think that could have been pushed a bit further on the spiritual side of it. Will Cam have his own soul in the afterlife or will he cease to exist so that all the boy’s he’s pieces of can become whole again? What I didn’t like was the very forced love triangle. I don’t think Cam needed to be in between that. His fixation on his crush felt contrived and silly.
I did like seeing how Conor has stepped up in his leadership role and the strain it obviously puts on him to do the right thing for everyone. It definitely wouldn’t be an easy task. Risa though, felt more careless in this book I don’t know that it felt believable to me.
The Fine Print by Lauren Asher

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emotional lighthearted 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

3.75

This book was alright. It wasn’t revolutionary by any means but I enjoyed it and how many nods it gave to Disneyland and Disneyworld. As someone who is a fan of Disneyland, I found it enjoyable. Now if only the actual Disney corporation could come to the same conclusion about their workers that Rowan had throughout the book. Castmembers deserve so much more than they’re given. Zarha’s ascension to her dream career felt a little forced though. I just can’t picture that happening. Do I think these two characters should actually date and end up together? No. I didn’t really feel like their chemistry or their attraction towards one another was very believable. Lauren Asher really had to spell out their devotion to each other. It was nice to pass the time at work though.

…also there’s a third act break up.