midnightrose_reads's reviews
315 reviews

emotional funny hopeful lighthearted reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Funny Story is the newest book by Emily Henry. It’s equal parts laugh out loud funny and heartbreaking. I absolutely loved it, and it’s another five star read from an auto buy author!

Content Warnings

The Familiar by Leigh Bardugo

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dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

The Familiar is a beautifully told dark historical fantasy set in the Spanish Golden Age. Leigh Bardugo is a remarkable storyteller who proves with every release why she’s not only one of my favorite authors, but an auto-buy author as well!

Content Warnings

Magnolia Parks: Into the Dark by Jessa Hastings

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dark emotional funny hopeful lighthearted sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Magnolia Parks: Into the Dark is the emotional conclusion to B.J. and Magnolia’s story. I loved this book, but with that being said, this wasn’t a five star read like the other books in the series for me. I felt like the other books in this series flowed much better due, in part, that they weren’t as long as this book is. It’s tricky when your contemporary is over 500 pages to keep the flow of the book snappy and dynamic. I love long epic fantasy novels, but with contemporaries I tend to prefer trimly edited books.

Content Warnings

No Exit by Taylor Adams

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dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

A solid thriller that I’m not surprised at being very popular. I found this one more compelling than his latest release, The Last Word.

Content Warnings

Unmissing by Minka Kent

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dark mysterious sad tense fast-paced

Loveable characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Another wild thriller ride from Minka Kent! Narrated by Carly Robins and Jane Oppenheimer.

Content Warnings

An Education in Malice by S.T. Gibson

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dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.75

An Education in Malice by S.T. Gibson is a standalone sapphic dark academia retelling of Carmilla.

It was mostly an enjoyable read for me even though some things bothered me about the plot. Specifically the lack of urgency on the part of DeLafontaine, Laura and Carmilla to dispatch an out of control vampire on the college campus sooner in the narrative. Instead DeLafontaine introduces them to vampire society (specifically Carmilla who she’s turned earlier in the story; with her human companion Laura in tow), Laura goes for Thanksgiving break to San Francisco to spend time with her friend’s family, and DeLafontaine holds these private poetry readings between Carmilla and Laura. There doesn’t seem to be a sense of urgency until towards the end of the book to prevent more murders of the student body which I found bizarre.

Content Warnings