spacerkip's reviews
261 reviews

adventurous hopeful lighthearted medium-paced

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

4.5

A cute story with some very cute bunnies.

From an art standpoint, I loved the visuals of this novel. There were a lot of original and unique fantasy creatures. The bunnies were adorable. The use of colored pencils made everything look soft and smooth, especially during the dream sequences. And everytime a character reacted to something by making bug eyes with no mouth, I did in fact lose it.

The story is also fun and insightful. Embracing the full spectrum of your emotions - both the "good" and the unpleasant - is a constructive message for the targeted age bracket. The three main characters bounced well off of each other, and they informed a well-balanced group dynamic.

I'm looking forward to seeing where this series goes in the future!

All Systems Red by Martha Wells

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dark funny tense fast-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? Yes

5.0

Content Warnings

The Empire of Gold by S.A. Chakraborty

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challenging hopeful 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? Yes

5.0

The only reason I didn't cry more was because I listened to the audiobook while driving and didn't want to die.

A satisfying end to one hell of a good series.

The Last Bloodcarver by Vanessa Le

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dark slow-paced

Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

2.0

A promising premise that turned out lacking depth. The use of medically-informed healing magic drew me in at the beginning, but wasn't enough to prop up flat characters, or to convince me I wasn't reading an unedited first draft. The introduction of a sudden (and I compelling) love interest two-thirds into the book drove me over the edge. I mostly skimmed until the end.

The Kingdom of Copper by S.A. Chakraborty

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adventurous tense

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

5.0

Knowing that there's still another book in the series was honestly the most stressful part of reading this. Watching all the different plotlines come together and knowing it all must go catastrophically wrong had me yelling in my car on multiple occasions. (I read this via audiobook on my daily commute. Apologies to those who thought I was road raging at them at red lights.)

I really fell in love with Ali as a character in this book. The timeskip provided him with the appropriate room to grow and come into his own as an active force, rather than a reactive one. I loved seeing him spark loyalty in those around him and rise as a leader. I think the author does wonderful job of showing how a character sees themself and internally justifies their own actions. You can follow the logic of a POV character and understand why they act the way they do, then switch POV and feel completely different about them once you see their actions from the outside.

I am once again going against my usual habits and picking up the next book as soon as I can. As soon as I finish some other library books...it is SO over for me.

Content Warnings

The City of Brass by S.A. Chakraborty

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adventurous mysterious 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? Yes

5.0

It's been a while since a book made me immediately run to borrow the sequel from the library. Vibrant and full of lively characters and well-crafted, multi-layered intrigue, I quickly found myself absorbed into this story and its world. I'm so glad I borrowed the physical copy my library had instead of the audiobook through hoopla. It was a lot easier to look up all of the names and words for clothing and architecture I didn't recognize, and my enjoyment was definitely richer because of it. I'm excited to see how our three protagonists (two protagonists and one antagonist? 👀) handle the fallout from the end of this book.

Content Warnings