weathersreadsgarbage's reviews
240 reviews

The Hunger by Alma Katsu

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

4.0

 Growing up in the PNW means that you're going to learn a lot about the Oregon Trail in school. It's always freaked me the fuck out. Something's already deeply unsettling about the Donner party, you know? There's a lonesome, isolated, damned feeling to them - and then Alma Katsu added supernatural elements. So naturally, I loved it.

This book is a slow burn sort of story. It's something where the biggest scares are in the what ifs and less in what's on the page. That's something I enjoy, but other people might not love it. I also feel that the supernatural element was brilliantly done. I wont go into it too deeply because of spoilers, but suffice it to say it's not what you think.

I think the biggest issue is that there's just too many characters in a fairly slim volume for us to care about. Too many narratives, too many time jumps, just too much of everything. I sort of wish we had stuck with following maybe three or four characters and left other things more nebulous.

All in all, I think Alma Katsu has one hell of a gift and if she sticks with this whole 'historical fiction but make it haunted' thing I'll be following her work pretty closely. 
The Queen's Fool by Philippa Gregory

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

3.0

The Virgin's Lover by Philippa Gregory

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

3.0

The Constant Princess by Philippa Gregory

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emotional informative medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

The Kingmaker's Daughter by Philippa Gregory

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

3.0

The Last Tudor by Philippa Gregory

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

3.0

Night Shift by Stephen King

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

4.0

A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas

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adventurous medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

The Patient by Jasper DeWitt

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dark mysterious slow-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

4.5

This was agonizingly slow to start off with and I got real worried about where things were going for a minute there but it definitely pays off. I flinched and curled into myself a bit at the big reveal and that’s not something a lot of stories can get me to do. 


The Lunchling by Jay Alexander

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

4.0

I don’t usually lean towards the conversational first person narrative style with anything (especially horror) but it was really nice in this silly little story. I loved the woodsy folk vibes a lot more and I’ll admit I got a touch creeped out. 

Knocking a point off for the ending though.  Series or no, it’s not a satisfying way to end things.