You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Scan barcode
takarakei's reviews
486 reviews
The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson
adventurous
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Phew I did it! I've finally started this series. Overall I thought this was good, but as the first book in what I've been told is an epic series there's a lot of setup done here for the future. I don't know if I fully like the way Sanderson does his world-building, which tends to be mentioning things several times before explaining what they are (but I just keep thinking I've missed the explanation when I haven't). It also felt rather slow in parts, and I'm not sure if it really needed to be this long (yeah I know pray for me cause they only get longer from here). I do immensely enjoy the characters. The ending is a wild ride and I'm excited for the rest of the series (I just think we could've gotten there faster) because I see the potential for where this could go.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Slavery, Violence, and War
Moderate: Death, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, and Injury/Injury detail
All About Love: New Visions by bell hooks
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
4.5
I will be buying this for everyone I know :)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Misogyny, and Sexism
Moderate: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, and Grief
Minor: Addiction, Death, and Suicidal thoughts
A Love Song for Ricki Wilde by Tia Williams
adventurous
hopeful
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
4.0
I'm gonna say I feel like if you liked The Seven Year Slip you might also enjoy this book and vice versa!
It was super fun to be reading this right into actual leap day in 2024, it added just that little bit of extra magic! I liked that this was a romance, but there was more complexity to the storyline than just romance. It gave the characters depth, and also became a love story to Harlem! I'm a sucker for a musician love interest. Even though I caught on pretty early to what was happening there were still surprising parts. If you've read Seven Days in June, there's also a little tidbit tie in to that story (although I want to note overall this book was less dark imo). I really enjoy Tia's writing and I will continue to read her books.
It was super fun to be reading this right into actual leap day in 2024, it added just that little bit of extra magic! I liked that this was a romance, but there was more complexity to the storyline than just romance. It gave the characters depth, and also became a love story to Harlem! I'm a sucker for a musician love interest. Even though I caught on pretty early to what was happening there were still surprising parts. If you've read Seven Days in June, there's also a little tidbit tie in to that story (although I want to note overall this book was less dark imo). I really enjoy Tia's writing and I will continue to read her books.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Hate crime, Racism, and Suicide
Moderate: Cancer, Death, and Grief
Minor: Drug use, Miscarriage, and Fire/Fire injury
A secondary (but important) character's suicide is depicted and discussed.
The Vampire Lestat by Anne Rice
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Slightly better than book 1 cause Lestat is just quite the character. The middle is SOOO slow, but the ending is REALLY good. TBH I had to look up a chapter summary on reddit which gave me life and the ability to finish this. Only really stuck with it cause I was reading it with friends so that we can watch the Queen of the Damned movie together :')
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Death, Blood, and Murder
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Incest, Violence, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Slavery
Right on Cue by Falon Ballard
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
This is probably the most boring romance I've read. I've read one other book by this author and I also didn't care for that female MC in that book (but at least in that one the guy was interesting). These were just like the two blandest people with no personality. Truly do not understand what these people liked about each other. Insta-attraction, but it's also kind of second chance romance?? (they knew each other briefly as teenagers). They are “enemies” 🙄 (at least in her mind) based on a dumb teenager thing that happened and Emmy has held this grudge since then (like please get over yourself!). She just like decides things and jumps to conclusions which is why she “hates” this guy to begin with. Then they’re just f'ing (literally to get over how much she dislikes him, her solution is just to have sex with him) and all of a sudden are in love cause the sex is so good? I’ll be honest I skimmed the latter 50% of this. The third act break up was also incredibly infuriating, not even miscommunication because she just AGAIN overhears PART of a conversation bc she is dumb and just leaves without the full context and then ghosts him! Besides them being on a movie set together it's not even like a "celebrity romance" in any of the good way that trope usually allows either.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Grief, Death of parent, and Abandonment
Minor: Alcohol
The City We Became by N.K. Jemisin
One MC is sexually harassed/propositioned and nearly sexually assaulted. This happens on page but no actual assault or rape occurs.
adventurous
mysterious
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
4.5
First of all - I read this in combination with the audiobook - which is FANTASTIC! Absolutely phenomenal narration AND sound design/effects, it was almost like listening to a graphic audio dramatized version! So I can't recommend the audiobook enough (especially if you are someone who listens to SFF audio). Although I will note it was helpful to be reading along at parts due to the effects.
Now could I explain the dynamics of all that happens in this book? Absolutely not, it's one of those books where you just have to accept the concepts that are being presented to you without a lot of questioning. I mean, people becoming the embodiment of cities? weird concept. You just gotta go with it! Along the way you'll get discussions of race, art, and what it means to "belong" to a place.
If you're a NYC area person I def think this is an interesting read! Very NYC-prideful. I personally am NOT from NYC or know all that much about it, so I couldn't pick up on if there were any inaccuracies in any way, but Jemisin has lived there for a long time and did a lot of research so I trust that she got it right. I really enjoyed all the little history bits of information thrown in about the city.
There's no one out there really writing SFF like Jemisin, and I am very excited to continue with this series.
Now could I explain the dynamics of all that happens in this book? Absolutely not, it's one of those books where you just have to accept the concepts that are being presented to you without a lot of questioning. I mean, people becoming the embodiment of cities? weird concept. You just gotta go with it! Along the way you'll get discussions of race, art, and what it means to "belong" to a place.
If you're a NYC area person I def think this is an interesting read! Very NYC-prideful. I personally am NOT from NYC or know all that much about it, so I couldn't pick up on if there were any inaccuracies in any way, but Jemisin has lived there for a long time and did a lot of research so I trust that she got it right. I really enjoyed all the little history bits of information thrown in about the city.
There's no one out there really writing SFF like Jemisin, and I am very excited to continue with this series.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Homophobia, Misogyny, Sexual assault, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Police brutality, Abortion, and Colonisation
This Wicked Fate by Kalynn Bayron
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Unfortunately I think I would have liked this sequel more if I was a mythology girlie. But I'm not, and I'm not really familiar with the base mythology so I was missing that connection.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Grief, and Death of parent
Moderate: Violence, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Child abuse and Emotional abuse
This Could Be Us by Kennedy Ryan
Soledad spends most of the book then reforming her new life and working on deprogramming the BS her ex said to her. There were some beautiful quotes and I really enjoyed reading about the self-discovery journey Soledad goes on to find her true self. I already had 'all about love' by bell hooks on my TBR for this month and this book made me even more excited to read it! It's definitely Soledad's book, she has most of the pov chapters, but we do get some from the perspective of Judah...
& Judah is a dream of a partner, really the epitome of a supportive man who has no ego, and just wants the best for Soledad. This is a fairly slow burn (not the slowest I've ever read, but def slower than most romances I read) which I honestly appreciate! He's a divorced dad with two autistic sons (he is friends with his ex and they have split custody). The author notes that she has an autistic child and did lots of research on the many varied experience of people with autism, and their families. I think there's a lot of care given to this subject.
I think my only qualm with this book is while I understand why there's so much focus at the beginning on Soledad's ex - I wish there was slightly less, and that might have allowed for a bit snappier pace.
Thank you to netgalley and Forever books for this ARC!
Soledad's ex cheated on her, was emotionally abusive, put her down, and there's one small scene of minor physical abuse (like a wrist grabbing situation that leads to some bruising)
emotional
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? It's complicated
4.25
Going into this knowing nothing, but having read the first book in the series, I was quite surprised by the first part of the book being our MC Soledad dealing with a very dramatic ending to her marriage. The author makes you immediately dislike her husband and you're not at all sad with what happens to him. This is a big deal because it's a life-altering event for Soledad and their 3 kids, and she is left to pick up the pieces of their life. There is great emphasis on Soledad's relationships with both her best friends (cameo of Yasmen from book 1!) and her sisters who really hold her down. This was super relatable to read about the close bonds of women.
There aren’t enough sonnets for friendship. Not enough songs for the kind of love not born of blood or body but of time and care. They are the ones we choose to laugh and cry and live with. When lovers come and go, they are the ones who remain. We are each other’s constants.
Soledad spends most of the book then reforming her new life and working on deprogramming the BS her ex said to her. There were some beautiful quotes and I really enjoyed reading about the self-discovery journey Soledad goes on to find her true self. I already had 'all about love' by bell hooks on my TBR for this month and this book made me even more excited to read it! It's definitely Soledad's book, she has most of the pov chapters, but we do get some from the perspective of Judah...
& Judah is a dream of a partner, really the epitome of a supportive man who has no ego, and just wants the best for Soledad. This is a fairly slow burn (not the slowest I've ever read, but def slower than most romances I read) which I honestly appreciate! He's a divorced dad with two autistic sons (he is friends with his ex and they have split custody). The author notes that she has an autistic child and did lots of research on the many varied experience of people with autism, and their families. I think there's a lot of care given to this subject.
I think my only qualm with this book is while I understand why there's so much focus at the beginning on Soledad's ex - I wish there was slightly less, and that might have allowed for a bit snappier pace.
Thank you to netgalley and Forever books for this ARC!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Sexual content, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Body shaming and Cancer
Minor: Ableism, Physical abuse, and Death of parent
A Master of Djinn by P. Djèlí Clark
This wasn't the best thing I've read, but the world is interesting. I could've used a glossary at parts because sometimes I felt the world-building relied a bit too much on prior knowledge of Egyptian history - particularly when it came to the political history of the more recent setting of early 1900s Cairo. I wish I could say I learned a bit more history, but for me it was hard to tell what was fantasized and what was not (besides the obvious Djinn). The mystery is a bit predictable. I liked Fatma as a main character, and her obsession with suits. I would probably read more in this world if the author wrote it, if the plot-line followed something a bit different.
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Reading the novella 'A Dead Djinn in Cairo' is highly recommended before reading this. It was written before hand and does some introduction of character relationships and world-building which is helpful to know before reading A Master of Djinn.
- Sapphic
- Egypt in 1912
- but make it steampunk
- mystery
- other worldly beings (Djinn, Angels, Ghuls)
- a dapper main character obsessed with 'menswear'
This wasn't the best thing I've read, but the world is interesting. I could've used a glossary at parts because sometimes I felt the world-building relied a bit too much on prior knowledge of Egyptian history - particularly when it came to the political history of the more recent setting of early 1900s Cairo. I wish I could say I learned a bit more history, but for me it was hard to tell what was fantasized and what was not (besides the obvious Djinn). The mystery is a bit predictable. I liked Fatma as a main character, and her obsession with suits. I would probably read more in this world if the author wrote it, if the plot-line followed something a bit different.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Violence, and Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Racism, Slavery, and Colonisation
Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
"We believe the one who has the power. He is the one who gets to write the story. So when you study history, you must always ask your self, Whose story am I missing? Whose voice was suppressed so that this voice could come forth? Once you have figured that out, you must find that story too. From there, you begin to get a clearer, yet still imperfect, picture.”
This is not my typical kind of read, but I did think it was well done for the most part. Particularly the beginning stories were very lush and I think there's some extremely important perspectives to be gained by reading this book. As the quote says - there are many sides of history to be told and many perspectives are often left out. Towards the ending few stories I was a tad less engaged with, perhaps these were more familiar stories to me and that's why? Having the family tree at the front was very integral to be aware of how people were related. For sure an important read!!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, Violence, and Colonisation
Moderate: Addiction, Drug abuse, Drug use, Rape, Police brutality, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Homophobia, Sexual content, and Excrement