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mweis's reviews
1104 reviews
My Darling Dreadful Thing by Johanna van Veen
5.0
*I received an eARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.*
I went into this book almost solely because of the cover but I quickly became hooked by the story. In the vein of Atwood's Alias Grace or Collins's The Confessions of Frannie Langton, our main character is a young girl being evaluated to see if she stands fit for trial for some gruesome event that we find out about as the story progresses.
The narrative structure here did a lot to add the creepy atmosphere and sense of tension as the story builds. There were a couple of reveals that had my jaw on the floor too, like even when the shape of the "twist" was expected, the details were most definitely not.
I loved the "case episodes" sprinkled in that show Roos in the present timeline speaking to the doctor evaluating her. I also really appreciated that this take on the was it real or was it mental illness trope didn't demonize mental illnesses. We also see sprinkles of historical Netherlands which were really fascinating to me. There were references to the Nazi occupation, and the wealthy young widow, Agnes, is Indonesian so we see reference to Dutch colonies too and the history nerd in me loved those details.
This was dark and gothic and sapphic and everything I didn't know I needed it to be, but wow will I be recommending it all spooky season long (and beyond). I cannot wait to see what van Veen writes next!
I went into this book almost solely because of the cover but I quickly became hooked by the story. In the vein of Atwood's Alias Grace or Collins's The Confessions of Frannie Langton, our main character is a young girl being evaluated to see if she stands fit for trial for some gruesome event that we find out about as the story progresses.
The narrative structure here did a lot to add the creepy atmosphere and sense of tension as the story builds. There were a couple of reveals that had my jaw on the floor too, like even when the shape of the "twist" was expected, the details were most definitely not.
I loved the "case episodes" sprinkled in that show Roos in the present timeline speaking to the doctor evaluating her. I also really appreciated that this take on the was it real or was it mental illness trope didn't demonize mental illnesses. We also see sprinkles of historical Netherlands which were really fascinating to me. There were references to the Nazi occupation, and the wealthy young widow, Agnes, is Indonesian so we see reference to Dutch colonies too and the history nerd in me loved those details.
This was dark and gothic and sapphic and everything I didn't know I needed it to be, but wow will I be recommending it all spooky season long (and beyond). I cannot wait to see what van Veen writes next!
Sir Callie and the Dragon's Roost by Esme Symes-Smith
4.0
*I received an eARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.*
I love a story that tackles what comes after the win and this is exactly that. In Sir Callie and the Champions of Helston, Callie is allowed to become a page and the bad guy is banished from the kingdom but in this sequel we see how progress is often followed by an oppositional backlash. The story is still full of hope but I love how this book shows young readers that progress isn't linear and that healing is a journey. I also love the way the events of this book can be used to explain some of the real-world politics of today in a way that children understand.
While I still personally have a preference for shorter middle grade books, I did find the pacing of this one more consistent throughout than I did the first book. I also love the introduction of neopronouns and the way Symes-Smith writes characters finding "their words" when it comes to pronouns and labels.
I love a story that tackles what comes after the win and this is exactly that. In Sir Callie and the Champions of Helston, Callie is allowed to become a page and the bad guy is banished from the kingdom but in this sequel we see how progress is often followed by an oppositional backlash. The story is still full of hope but I love how this book shows young readers that progress isn't linear and that healing is a journey. I also love the way the events of this book can be used to explain some of the real-world politics of today in a way that children understand.
While I still personally have a preference for shorter middle grade books, I did find the pacing of this one more consistent throughout than I did the first book. I also love the introduction of neopronouns and the way Symes-Smith writes characters finding "their words" when it comes to pronouns and labels.
This Ravenous Fate by Hayley Dennings
2.75
*I received an eARC and an audio review copy via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.*
I wanted to love this so badly. It's sapphic vampires in a 1920s alternate NYC with a friends to enemies to lovers romance. On paper, it was going to be a new favorite read. Unfortunately, while the ideas are all there, I think this needed another round of edits.
I like a lot of what this is doing thematically. Dennings is able to pull in a lot of conversation related to race and class and wealth and privilege, which are all relevant to today but were also big topics of conversation during the Harlem Renaissance. In that respect and in the way Dennings was able to build a believable historical Harlem that had vampires, I was completely sold.
That being said, there were some writing choices and plot/pacing choices that left me feeling pretty meh about this book. For one, I mostly listened to the audiobook which might have caused me to notice it more than I would have if I read the ebook, but there was a repetition of "character name said" that became grating and made the conversations sound stilted. Though in some cases it felt necessary because the audiobook narrator didn't differentiate much between the voices. I also found some of the plot development felt a bit stilted. There were moments were a person's reaction felt super out of left field and then there would be something in the text indicating what changed to cause that reaction and I would have rather seen the event than been told about it later. I also found the ending incredibly rushed and rather disappointing despite what should have been a major cliffhanger.
I don't think this is a bad book, but I don't think it met my expectations and I had some pretty major issues with the execution. Most of my issues can probably be chalked up to being a debut, so while I probably won't pick up the sequel/finale of this duology, I would be interested in seeing what Dennings writes after this.
I wanted to love this so badly. It's sapphic vampires in a 1920s alternate NYC with a friends to enemies to lovers romance. On paper, it was going to be a new favorite read. Unfortunately, while the ideas are all there, I think this needed another round of edits.
I like a lot of what this is doing thematically. Dennings is able to pull in a lot of conversation related to race and class and wealth and privilege, which are all relevant to today but were also big topics of conversation during the Harlem Renaissance. In that respect and in the way Dennings was able to build a believable historical Harlem that had vampires, I was completely sold.
That being said, there were some writing choices and plot/pacing choices that left me feeling pretty meh about this book. For one, I mostly listened to the audiobook which might have caused me to notice it more than I would have if I read the ebook, but there was a repetition of "character name said" that became grating and made the conversations sound stilted. Though in some cases it felt necessary because the audiobook narrator didn't differentiate much between the voices. I also found some of the plot development felt a bit stilted. There were moments were a person's reaction felt super out of left field and then there would be something in the text indicating what changed to cause that reaction and I would have rather seen the event than been told about it later. I also found the ending incredibly rushed and rather disappointing despite what should have been a major cliffhanger.
I don't think this is a bad book, but I don't think it met my expectations and I had some pretty major issues with the execution. Most of my issues can probably be chalked up to being a debut, so while I probably won't pick up the sequel/finale of this duology, I would be interested in seeing what Dennings writes after this.
Pansies by Alexis Hall
3.25
*I received an eARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.*
I don't know if I have an author that's more hit or miss for me than Alexis Hall. When I love his books, I adore them, but if I don't love them then I can't stand them. Here, we finally have a middle of the road book for me. I struggled with the beginning because I didn't realize this was going to be a second chance/former bully romance. Which I guess shame on me because it literally says that in the description, but I'm a simple human: I see an Alexis Hall book and I have to try it.
As it is, I think this is my second favorite book in this series, following [book:Glitterland|60754391]. Once I got over the childhood bully thing, I really liked both Alfie and Fen as main characters. As is typical of Alexis Hall characters, they are messy and dealing with hardships in their lives but the way they come together is quite lovely. I didn't love the third act breakup here, because I don't love third act breakups on principle, but it was blessedly short and did actually make sense.
While this is the last of the previously independently published books in this companion series to be republished by Sourcebooks, Hall is contracted to publish two more and I am intrigued to see where he goes next.
I don't know if I have an author that's more hit or miss for me than Alexis Hall. When I love his books, I adore them, but if I don't love them then I can't stand them. Here, we finally have a middle of the road book for me. I struggled with the beginning because I didn't realize this was going to be a second chance/former bully romance. Which I guess shame on me because it literally says that in the description, but I'm a simple human: I see an Alexis Hall book and I have to try it.
As it is, I think this is my second favorite book in this series, following [book:Glitterland|60754391]. Once I got over the childhood bully thing, I really liked both Alfie and Fen as main characters. As is typical of Alexis Hall characters, they are messy and dealing with hardships in their lives but the way they come together is quite lovely. I didn't love the third act breakup here, because I don't love third act breakups on principle, but it was blessedly short and did actually make sense.
While this is the last of the previously independently published books in this companion series to be republished by Sourcebooks, Hall is contracted to publish two more and I am intrigued to see where he goes next.
Suzume 1 by Makoto Shinkai, Denki Amashima
3.25
*I received an eARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.*
I adored the film adaptation of Suzume when I saw it in theaters, so I was really excited to see this volume of manga up on NetGalley. While I liked the art style here, especially the color pages at the beginning, I think if I hadn't seen the film I wouldn't have enjoyed this very much.
In this volume Suzume meets Souta, discovers a door to a new world and begins her adventure finding the keystone. Generally with adaptations, I find the screen version glosses over details from the book, but in this case I think the manga and movie follow each other pretty faithfully, which left me a little disappointed because I was hoping for more depth in the manga. I do think this was a gorgeous read and will likely pick up Vol. 2 when it's released, but until then I recommend watching the film!
I adored the film adaptation of Suzume when I saw it in theaters, so I was really excited to see this volume of manga up on NetGalley. While I liked the art style here, especially the color pages at the beginning, I think if I hadn't seen the film I wouldn't have enjoyed this very much.
In this volume Suzume meets Souta, discovers a door to a new world and begins her adventure finding the keystone. Generally with adaptations, I find the screen version glosses over details from the book, but in this case I think the manga and movie follow each other pretty faithfully, which left me a little disappointed because I was hoping for more depth in the manga. I do think this was a gorgeous read and will likely pick up Vol. 2 when it's released, but until then I recommend watching the film!