randi_jo's reviews
358 reviews

Heartstopper Volume 2 by Alice Oseman

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emotional lighthearted fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.5

Disgusting. So cute and sweet and thoughtful that I feel like I need to pig-wallow in garbage just to feel human again. Ugh.
What Lies in the Woods by Kate Alice Marshall

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dark mysterious tense slow-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

4.5

SCREAMING CRYING THROWING UP. I HAVE NERVE DAMAGE FROM THE WHIPLASH OF THIS BOOK'S ENDING. I CAN'T TURN OFF CAPS LOCK OR ELSE I CAN'T READ WHAT I'M TYPING FROM ALL MY TEARS OF FRUSTRATION.

READ THIS IF:
- YOU WERE A NATURE GIRLY/BOY WHO LIKED TO MAKE POTIONS AND LOVE THAT FEELING OF NOSTALGIA
- YOU LIKE TO TRY AND GUESS THE CRIMINAL BUT WANT TO BE WRONG CONSTANTLY
- YOU HAVE EYES

DO NOT READ THIS IF:
- YOU'RE A COWARD

Only thing keeping me from giving this 5 stars of perfection is that the middle of the book didn't keep the tension very high, and parts made me dislike MC more than I should've. BUT THE ENDING RAMPED UP MY ADRENALINE SO HIGH I AM NOW GOING TO RUN 5K THANK YOU.
Heartstopper Volume 1 by Alice Oseman

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hopeful lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Hello. Title is misleading - my heart is still beating, but unfortunately it now beats for this series. Getting book 2 immediately. Thanks.
Light from Uncommon Stars by Ryka Aoki

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challenging emotional inspiring 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

Hello, I am crying. I know very little about the violin world, but this novel made it so easy to see and imagine every scenario and evoke every emotion without losing you in jargon. Just. . . so gorgeous. Lan and Shizuka's relationship was so perfect, with their own problems to start but their ability to communicate was so refreshing and wonderful. I hope they save the galaxy.

10/10 would recommend to literally anyone.
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Fallen Hero: Rebirth by Malin Rydén

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adventurous mysterious medium-paced

4.0

Can't wait to continue this series.  I'm really enjoying the mystery behind the MC, even though I have done inkling I want to know the full extent of their creation. 8/10 would kick Harold again. 
A Dead Djinn in Cairo by P. Djèlí Clark

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adventurous mysterious fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

I love this entire universe that's been created and even the short stories feel like they're deeply immersed in the lore and society. Siti is my spirit animal.
The Surgeon by Tess Gerritsen

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dark slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.25

Some things age badly, and this was one of them.
The murder plot in itself was interesting (the calling card, motives, etc.), but I guess the world of 2024 really is a lot different in terms of progression, not only for women, but for victims of sexual assault and police brutality, than it was in 2001.

My 3 main complaints with this one are:
  1. The heavy push on a gender binary; men are this way and women are that. (steak is a masculine food?)Heaven forbid you're neither of those, but okay, okay this was 2001. But this led to the underlying tone that
    all sexual victims are women and that their assailants are all men
    . This really rubbed me the wrong way.
  2.  Police brutality was . . . prevalent? And treated as "normal". A guy literally stomps on the neck of a black man during a house arrest (the man is not even the one they're out to arrest) and it's seen as unnecessary force, but that's just how that detective is. What. Also
    Rizzoli literally shoots a man 3 times in anger, kills him, and then is upset that her partner doesn't lie for her to say that he had a weapon, then has the gall to be mad that her only reprimand is to be put on DESK DUTY. No I don't care that the man was a predator, that doesn't justify shit.
  3. Every character is incredibly unlikable, especially Rizzoli and Moore. And no, I don't think literally doing her job was any kind of redemption for Rizzoli.
In the Dream House by Carmen Maria Machado

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challenging informative sad slow-paced

4.0

I liked the different approach to this memoir through the use of second person and by dissecting this part of her life through the lens of different book genres/tropes/fandoms.

As for the subject matter itself, domestic violence awareness in LGBT spaces and outside of them is such an important topic - something that's finally becoming more and more talked about in more and more domains/communities. There are parts that are difficult to listen to (nothing gore-y or heavily violent), but for me I think I'm more sensitive to depictions of emotional and verbal abuse and Machado's recounting of her situation was so vivid and heartbreaking.

I think I'll probably listen to this again in the future.
Exhalation by Ted Chiang

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challenging informative reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? N/A
  • Strong character development? N/A
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

4.5

I really enjoyed the stories in this one, almost equally as each one felt like it had it's own point to make and a unique setting. I think 'Exhalation' is now my favorite version of a dying world.

As for the audiobook, I think the performers did great (the baby-ish voices for the digients were actually fabulous even though I tend to have a dislike for weird voice acting in audiobooks lol).
The Salt Grows Heavy by Cassandra Khaw

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dark emotional fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

I can't say I disliked this one, even though the prose reminded me of Edgy Grimdark Fanfiction, it was a short story about monsters - and love. I think the gore effect is extremely lessoned by the puffed up prose, which, if you're not a gore fan makes it more palatable in a way? Still a fun read though.