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tien's reviews
3860 reviews
A Day in the Death of Dorothea Cassidy by Ann Cleeves
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
3.75
Murder in an Irish Pub by Carlene O'Connor
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
relaxing
fast-paced
4.0
I love this series even if sometimes the FMC annoys me a bit but she is a formidable woman! Siobhán O’Sullivan is the eldest girl out of 6 siblings and has been taking care of her family since their parents' deaths. The family runs a busy bistro and these days, Siobhan holds a full time job as a garda. In this particular instalment of the series, it is a locked room mystery which ended with the classic reveal in a room full of suspects and witnesses. A classic whodunit set in a small Irish village. This village is full of quirky characters but we didn't particularly see many of them in this book. There were some but only those directly involved with the mystery. In fact, there was less of the protagonist's personal life in this one that earlier novels - maybe the first 3 books were still setting up to get to this point? In any case, I am looking forward to continuing the series.
Crimson Reign by Amélie Wen Zhao
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
It was a bit of a struggle at first trying to remember who's who as it had been a number of years since I read book 2. I did remember the ending though so that helped a lot as this book opens not long after that ending. I'll try to keep this review as vague as possible to avoid spoilers.
I am surprised at just how fast a read this turned out to be. It is a pretty hefty tome at near 500p but it was page flipping and the prose was just very easy to read. While I enjoyed the pace and the satisfying ending, there were just a couple of things that needled me. <i>Hint: Ana's decision about her & Ransom; argh, stop it already, there is no need for any more conflicts that aren't really conflict. [insert eye rolls]</i>
Actually, it's Lin's story in this novel that I truly loved. Her returning 'home' and finally finding herself and her place in the world.
I am surprised at just how fast a read this turned out to be. It is a pretty hefty tome at near 500p but it was page flipping and the prose was just very easy to read. While I enjoyed the pace and the satisfying ending, there were just a couple of things that needled me. <i>Hint: Ana's decision about her & Ransom; argh, stop it already, there is no need for any more conflicts that aren't really conflict. [insert eye rolls]</i>
Actually, it's Lin's story in this novel that I truly loved. Her returning 'home' and finally finding herself and her place in the world.
"A sparrow's winbeat may cause he biggest storms... Be the sparrow, Ko Linnet."
Bullet for a Star by Stuart M. Kaminsky
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
The Mammoth Book of Roaring Twenties Whodunnits by Mike Ashley
adventurous
dark
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
4.25
I'm not usually a fan of short stories as I find that I'm usually left dissatisfied. However, this book was a whole load of fun! Maybe it was the setting - I mean, they don't call it the 'Roaring Twenties' for no reason. I also enjoy a good whodunnit (thanks to reading Christies in my childhood). I loved a few of the stories in this collection that prompted me to look up the authors. Majority of the stories were pretty good and some were just meh. I'm actually not familiar with 99% of the authors whose stories are collated in this book so it was a good venture. Although I am a little disappointed that of half a dozen authors I looked up to add to future TBR, I could only find 2. Yes, even with GR extensive catalogue, these authors were just not there.
If you're curious, the 2 I found and added to TBR were Marilyn Todd & Hulbert Footner
If you're curious, the 2 I found and added to TBR were Marilyn Todd & Hulbert Footner
Spellsinger by Alan Dean Foster
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Saints and Misfits by S.K. Ali
Did not finish book. Stopped at 11%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 11%.
Didn't expect it to have a dark side and I'm just not in the mood for this.
Do check CW before starting!
Do check CW before starting!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Rape
The Clockmaker's Daughter by Kate Morton
The novel begins quite promisingly as I do love the prose. It is poetic and just beautiful in description of setting and especially, of feelings. The first hundred pages went by rather quickly but then I had to go back to work and I found that even 50 pages of this after work was a bit of a slog. It was just so wordy and the atmosphere weren't particularly cheerful so I had to switch to something lighter.
While there were so specific timelines on either side of past and present, the story itself is told from a myriad number of people within these two time settings. They are all important as they each play a role in tracing history or the truth hidden that's been hidden in time. All these characters were interesting but I also had to work hard to remember who's who! This tome is almost 600 pages!
This author is a bit hit and miss with me so while I do love her writing, I don't really like her 'twists'. She seems to know just how to get to the heart of things that truly hurt. It's a heartwrenching ending though hopefully a light is coming to shine upon it. And yes, there's another thing, some things are just left hanging...
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
I was his muse, his destiny. And he was mine.
It was long ago; it was yesterday.
Oh, I remember love.
The novel begins quite promisingly as I do love the prose. It is poetic and just beautiful in description of setting and especially, of feelings. The first hundred pages went by rather quickly but then I had to go back to work and I found that even 50 pages of this after work was a bit of a slog. It was just so wordy and the atmosphere weren't particularly cheerful so I had to switch to something lighter.
While there were so specific timelines on either side of past and present, the story itself is told from a myriad number of people within these two time settings. They are all important as they each play a role in tracing history or the truth hidden that's been hidden in time. All these characters were interesting but I also had to work hard to remember who's who! This tome is almost 600 pages!
This author is a bit hit and miss with me so while I do love her writing, I don't really like her 'twists'. She seems to know just how to get to the heart of things that truly hurt. It's a heartwrenching ending though hopefully a light is coming to shine upon it. And yes, there's another thing, some things are just left hanging...
Dead in the Water: My Forty-Year Search for My Brother's Killer by Penny Farmer
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
3.0
Pilu of the Woods by Mai K. Nguyen
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
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