Category: Reviews

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The Midnight Library by Matt Haig

Oh my, this was a beautiful book! So honest about all the secret regrets and things we hate about ourselves, as well as definitive lessons on how to let go and embrace the spectacular now. A wonderful lesson, for all age ranges, with no difficult language, and a short read. Everything you could want, packaged up nicely. 

I will confess, I had a hard time getting into the story of Nora and the confusing alternate dimensions were hard to wrap my head around, but I loved the story in the end. To see someone who genuinely didn’t want to be alive anymore and was looking for any way out suddenly realize that everything was perfect in her life just as it was a beautiful concept. I am a human, and as such, I have regrets. I think this book will touch other humans who also have regrets because it is a universal truth that we all have regrets. That’s my pitch, thank you for coming to my TedTalk. 

I loved the lesson, and I’ve been thinking a lot about it since I finished the book. We all wish we could have done something differently—taken that other offer, chosen something else, made that different decision. And, life is full of these small choices we make every single day to get to where we are right now. Sitting here, me, writing, you, reading, we both had to have made exactly the same decisions that we did in this life in another one to end up here. I know that doesn’t make sense, but I think you get the idea, right? 

Either way, just think about how your life would have changed entirely if you had done something minorly different—everything would be different. Now, this can be seen as an escape by many people, and for Nora, it is. She hates her life, feels like she’s let down everyone around her, has missed every opportunity, and made nothing of herself. Then, she has the chance to change herself, to live in an alternate dimension where she made a different decision at a certain point in time. 

For a time, Nora can’t believe her luck; this is exactly what she wanted! But is it, really? As she tries out the various different versions of herself, she finds that they all don’t feel right. They don’t feel like her; it’s almost as if she’s trying to live a life where she has to be someone she’s not. 

The lesson of the book is such an important one. We all feel like we regret so much about our lives, and wish we could do better, when in reality, there’s only one you, and you don’t realize how many things are going the way they’re supposed to be. 

Genre: literary fiction

Age: 12+

Rating: 8/10

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Reminders Of Him by Colleen Hoover

This book was a definite tear-jerker and I came close to letting a few fall once or twice (which is pretty impressive). I keep falling deeper in love with the stories from Colleen Hoover that I read and I have to confess, she’s been one of my favorites recently. I’ve read It Ends With Us, November 9, and Ugly Love, and, although this one isn’t my favorite (that’d be It Ends With Us, hands-down), it was definitely another affirmation of her heartbreaking, soul-crushing writing. 

I think I love CoHo books and have read so many of them because I love the love stories she paints. I think people connect with her characters and stories because she makes them real, she gives them faults, mistakes, and vices. She doesn’t paint them as angels with perfect histories and personalities. I love that Colleen makes them human because they are and it changes your perspective on love when you see imperfect humans loving each other and being happy. Maybe it gives hope to the rest of us or some form of comfort to see broken people in love. But I think, in a melancholy sort of way, it gives me just as much happiness reading CoHo as reading SJM because it’s so real whereas ACOTAR is so fictitious. 

The long-winded version of this is that not to put the two against each other, both of these excellent authors bring me serotonin whenever they come to mind. I loved this book and CoHo’s other books just as much as ACOTAR but in a different way. Reminders Of Him especially was such a heartbreaking story of a twisted, sad story punctured by the choice of forgiveness. I loved the gift that Kenna and Ledger gave each other, and the raw love they both felt for Diem. Such a beautiful story and a great CoHo book. 

Also, off-topic, but I found Verity in a bookstore I found (heeeaaaven) and I looked through it. Oooof! That’s been secretly on my list for a while but I think I’ll take it off permanently. I mean it was thrilling, but I don’t think I will ever be ready for that kind of book. There are just some books I can’t handle, and that’s okay! Sorry, Verity and Colleen. 

Sorry for the late update, I meant to post something while I was out and about road-tripping Namibia, but I’m afraid posts of constant updates and stuff I’m reading are going to be indefinitely paused. Since we set out from Cape Town, the internet had been spotty at best and downright tricky like hell at worst. We haven’t been able to get internet on the boat, so I’ve only been able to do all my classes and internet work whenever I’m at a cafe or restaurant. So, I’ll be posting this review, as well as my other ones and the road-tripping post all at the same time. 

This isn’t going to make a dent in my updates (I will continue to remember and jot down the stuff I want to post about, as well as write down the books I need to review) but it will cut down on my posting regularly. Bear with me over the next few months especially as I post erratically and frantically. It’ll be fun crossing the Atlantic Ocean, but not for you guys! 

Genre: fiction, romance, Y/A

Age: 14/15+

Rating: 7/10

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A Court of Frost and Starlight by Sarah J. Maas (ACOTAR Book 4)

So, I think it’s pretty obvi that I’m in love with this series by now, and I think it’s so cute to look back on my posts of ACOTAR and the first few books that are full of my skepticism of the series. Even though that was barely more than a month ago, my opinion on this series has changed so much, especially where my ranking of the books falls.

I know that the main reason for books in general is the plot, but I would like to contest this with my one piece of evidence: romantic fantasy. This is a genre I am entirely making up because it is the one I belong to. It’s essentially people who love both romance and fantasy books, especially if you combine the two. I don’t think people who read romantic fantasy read it because of the plot or factual accuracy. In fact, if you look at the majority of the (made-up) genre, there are a ton of plot holes (nice intended, huh?) and questionable choices. I can’t count how many times I’ve read something questionable in a romantic fantasy book and 100% agreed with it, but wouldn’t have stood for it IRL. And, by questionable, I mean lines said by a character or comments from the author that would not have flown very well in the actual world; slightly misogynistic or toxic things I would be quick to call out in the real world but find myself sighing and getting heart-eyes when I see them in romantic fantasy books.

The point I’m trying to make is that romantic fantasy books can get away with, or, more accurately, are praised for, a lot of things other genres aren’t. I think this is because romantic fantasy readers have a couple of screws loose, but I don’t want to get into that discussion. The thing I want to focus on is that one of those screws loose in my own brain was discovered while reading this book.

If you’ve read this book, you’ll know that it has virtually no plot. If ACOMAF wasn’t already, like, six years long, the 200 pages of A Court of Frost and Starlight would have probably been added on to the end of it. But, although that reason for the book’s existence is plausible, I think SJM made this book its own thing for a very specific reason…for all the screws-loose-romantic-fantasy-readers like me to die over, of course!

Question: Have you ever fangirled/boyed/othered so hard over something/one that anything it/they do(es) is cute to you? That would be a “yes” over here, and specifically over ACOTAR.

As I said, my opinion of the series has changed over time and pages, but the biggest thing that has developed is my undying and extremely unreasonable fandom love for the series and characters. I think romantic fantasy readers like myself have a few screws loose because we absolutely adore scenes in books that are devoted to our favorite ships or friend groups. For me, good ship material of Feysand trumps any plot or worldbuilding of Prythian any day. Period.

Romantic fantasy readers love to throw their books across the room when the guy everyone hates (echem, Tamlin) enters the room, giggle uncontrollably when characters start catching feelings or laugh their asses off over a dad joke from our comfort characters. All of these are things I do regularly when reading but were definitely in high amounts while reading ACOFAS. The book is just SJM making hella good fanfiction for all the Feysand, Azlain, and (debatably) Nessian shippers. I loved the book because I am a supporter of all of these ships, and I stand by it when I say that this is probably the best book in the series. I think that’s proof enough that a screw’s loose, right? Someone send help!

Genre: adult fantasy, romance

Age: 15+

Rating: 10/10

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A Court of Wings and Ruin by Sarah J. Maas (ACOTAR Book 3)

Ok, so after the emotional rollercoaster of As Good, As Dead, I wanted to head right back into ACOTAR, which I had been unceremoniously interrupted from by my sister. I had already read ACOTAR and ACOMAF, but I had only gotten about a hundred pages into A Court of Wings and Ruin before it was quite literally ripped out of my hands.

So, I headed back to finish GGGTM while my sister tore—ick—through ACOTAR. She’s since finished the series and has already gone through a few other books on my bookshelf. I’m going to have to be careful going forward to make sure she doesn’t damage them any further and doesn’t read any of my favorites.

Anyway, I picked ACOWAR up again and I loved getting lost in its seven hundred and some pages. I love a good, long book that has a plot line I can just lose myself. It’s always so unsatisfying when you invested in a book and then it just ends. So, I loved the length of the book and I got to feel super immersed in the story. I think ACOMAF is my favorite, but I do love the other books so far (I’m currently on A Court of Frost and Starlight).

ACOWAR picks up exactly where the others leave, with Feyre in Tamlin’s talons (quite literally) and Rhys and the inner circle back in the Night Court. They eventually are reunited and I get a lot of material of my favorite couple and friend groups all in Velaris. I loved all the growth that happens, as well as the rise of one of my all-time, hands-down, glasses-raised favorite ships: Nessian. I. Love. NESSIAN. And I love the material we get of them in ACOWAR. Although they’re still at the enemies stage of the enemies-to-lovers, I think the majority of them together will be enemies. I’m honestly not complaining, as I love their banter and rivalry. But I fell off my chair hard when that scene with the king happened. I was basically speechless and I had to silently and internally scream when that happened.

One of my many simping reactions from reading a Nessian scene/reference/allusion/any-fricking-thing! #NessianIsSuperior

Anyway, I loved the book and the extra material on all the ships and friend circles. I swear, these books make me smile, laugh, cry, and question my existence all at the same time. And, I’ve almost thrown one of them across the room, though I make a rule not to do that unless it’s a soft surface.

Genre: adult fantasy, romance

Age: 16+

Rating: 10/10

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As Good As Dead by Holly Jackson (GGGTM Book 3)

Alrightie-o! I’m finally finished with this series, and it was a banger! I am super proud to say that this was my first ever murder mystery and I loved it. It’s not that I am against murder mysteries or thrillers as a genre in books, I just had never picked up a murder mystery book until GGGTM.

This series was recommended by, a round of applause, BookTok. I have gotten nearly all of the books on my TBR from BookTok and I’m not ashamed of it. BookTok has a lot of books that I love, but I do take books there with a grain of salt, as some people have a different taste from me. I don’t mean to sound pretentious, but I value great writing in books as well as a banger plotline. That’s why I loved books like GGGTM, but I do know that a lot of the books on BookTok aren’t that way. Sorry, BookTok, but I do have a little bit of dignity.

Anyway, I loved this book, even though it gave me even more anxiety than I already have. If I had to rank the books in GGGTM, this wouldn’t be the top (it’d probably be Good Girl, Bad Blood), but it’s definitely not bad at all. It was a hard read though because I had gotten so invested in the series and I loved Pip, and, in this book, it’s super difficult to watch my girl fall apart bit by bit. Especially at the very end when…Aha, you thought! Nah this is a family-friendly page with absolutely no spoilers because I am a nice person.

Back to the point, I got a lot of the feels this third time around with Holly Jackson. Pip went through it hard, and the end was super sad. I, like, 1000% never shed a tear at anything in books. I swear, I’ve read The Song of Achilles, The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, and other tear-jerkers and didn’t even bat an eye. Don’t get me wrong—they’re super sad books and I felt the emotions—they just didn’t trigger the tear glands. I only really cry in movies, but, astonishingly, I have shed a few tears during some books. I can’t remember exactly the ones I did, but I get emotionally attached to books, okay? And I’m just emotionally unstable in general, so sue me!

The point I’m trying to make is that I teared up a little bit and had a therapy session with my reflection around the end of the book. That’s the feels I went through. I loved the ending, but after the emotional rollercoaster that was going up and down up until the very end, I was just super glad everything worked out. I really just needed an emotional break from that whole series for a while, but I loved it all the same. A great ending to a great series that helped spark my interest in murder mysteries.

Genre: murder mystery, thriller

Age: 14+

Rating: 8.5/10

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Good Girl, Bad Blood by Holly Jackson (GGGTM Book 2)

I….actually have a valid reason for this read. For those who haven’t read my last review, you probably don’t know that ACOTAR is a five-book series, and I planned to read the entire series before moving on. Even though I read AGGTM about a month ago, I didn’t have the other two books in the series, and when I did, the vultures swooped.

My sister has been cast as the villain recently, as all the books I’ve recently bought, it feels like, have been snatched up by her. On top of that, the most horrifying bit is that she doesn’t respect books. I’ve explained books need to be treated well, you have to use bookmarks with my books, and absolutely no dogearing pages! But, she’s basically a psychopath; she breaks spines!! I can’t say no to her because she’ll just roll her eyes and call me eccentric—which, for the record, I am—and then everyone will hate on my love and respect for books. Guys, I’m seriously in the booklover minority over here. Please save me!

Anyway, I got GG, BB and immediately, my sister stole it, as she had also read GGGTM. Then, when I got the third book, As Good As Dead, she also stole that one! Now, basically, the entire series has cracked spines and curling pages, and I feel super uncomfy reading them. I still read GG, BB, but I kept thinking about the fact that I will be warier about letting people, ehem, my sister read my books.

So, back to the important part of this, the review; I definitely like this series and I liked this book a lot. As I stated in my previous post about GGGTM, I’m absolutely not a murder-mystery type. I do enjoy the thriller, who-did-it vibes, don’t get me wrong. But, this was the first murder-mystery book I read, and actually loved it.

The book follows Pip, obviously, the young, determined, sleuth who takes on local disappearances and murders. But, this time around, Pip is trying to leave her detective days behind her. After the horror and threats last time, she won’t put her loved ones at risk again simply in the pursuit of truth and justice. However, a close friend’s disappearance has her breaking her rules and following the clues.

Pip comes into contact with dangerous people, and by the end, she’s been tested and thrown off her feet by what she witnesses. I hope AGAD continues with her tough story and the comfort characters around her (I heart Ravi Singh!).

Genre: Y/A fiction, murder-mystery, thriller

Age: 13+

Rating: 8/10

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A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas (ACOTAR Book 2)

I am officially in love with this series. I have a lot of new things to tell you guys, both in the book, my relationship with this series, my opinions, and what has actually been going on in my life. The latter of these I plan to cover in the Holiday review post I plan to make in the next few days—don’t freak out if it’s later than that; I think we’ve established “the next few days” is code for “whenever I freaking feel like it.”

Either way, back to the book review. Guys. Guys. That is the only word I have left in my vocabulary apparently. I know that I shouldn’t write reviews right after I’ve finished a book because my emotions are too raw and there’s a possibility they’ll cloud my actual rating of a book. Like, I could have really loved a book initially and given it a relatively high rating, but then I realized that I didn’t actually like it as much as I remembered.

That danger is always present, but I feel the threat of not having a raw enough memory of the book just as acutely, if not more. I would rather give a generous rating to a book that may not be my ultimate favorite than forget how much I fell in love with a book and give a horrendously lousy review because of my crap memory. Besides, I trust my memory enough that I don’t think I would forget if I didn’t like a book and give it a high rating.

That’s my reasoning in case you were wondering how I go about reviewing. Anyway, back to this wonderful book. This book was absolutely amazing, but I feel like reading it was a rollercoaster. The book itself is really long (620-something pages), but the way I went about reading it was a little hair-brained.

I started A Court of Mist and Fury a few days after Christmas, but it was extremely slow going in the beginning. This was because I was getting back into the rhythm of school, i.e. falling back underwater in paperwork. So, I started the book but only made it about 50 pages in before we went on vacation for New Year’s. I knew then that I would have plenty of time to get into ACOMAF, and, sure enough, I immediately began tearing through the book.

However, I had lent my sister ACOTAR a few days before, and, boy, she literally inhales books. I have never met someone who reads faster than her or my other sister, and I began to feel very stressed as the pages between us got smaller and smaller, even as I tried frantically to read more. It was a losing battle, and she managed to finish ACOTAR before I finished ACOMAF. Therefore, on New Year’s Day, I found myself staying up late to finish the book.

Even as I write this, my sister’s sitting next to me already halfway through ACOMAF. I have no idea how we’re going to manage the next three books in the series. Just what I needed: added stress in my book as well as reality. Thanks a bunch, Cleo, love you.

Either way, I absolutely loved this book, despite trying to speed ahead. I am officially Rhysand’s property, and I ship Feysand until my dying days. I’ve also already started A Court of Wings and Ruin, so I’m totally ripping on Tamlin and the rest of those @-holes. I’m also so into the Inner Circle vibes (Cassian, my baby) and I love the whole friend group. I totally also ship Cassian and Nesta (what’s their couple’s name?).

But, the whole vibe of the book is so awesome, and I get warm fuzzy feelings just thinking about Feyre getting her bad beotch energy back on. She absolutely deserves how she’s come so entirely into herself and I love Rhys for helping her do that.

Genre: adult fantasy, romance

Age: 16+

Rating: 10/10

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A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas

OMG! I have been waaaaiting for this! Bring the beat in—because I’ve finally bought and read the first book in the A Court of Thorns and Roses Series by Sarah J. Maas (amen to the goddess of fantasy). 

This book and the entire series have been on my list for so long, and I’m ashamed that I’ve never read SJM before now. She’s a staple in the fantasy, faerie, and Booktok realms. But, as soon as I saw this book at a second-hand stall in a market, I leaped for that sh!t. You should’ve seen it—I became like the wind for this book!

Anyway, I bought it about a week ago and had to finish my current read before I could start reading. And, honestly, I encountered a stressful problem when I began reading A Court of Thorns and Roses. 

Okay, don’t get too angry at me—especially because I already proclaimed my undying love for Ms. Maas—but, when I started ACOTAR, I…wasn’t…really…into it? I know, I know, hear me out!! It was just a little too hard for me to follow the worldbuilding and there wasn’t as much *spice* as I had hoped there would be…until there was. Then, about a hundred pages in, it got pretty good and my expectations were met well and truly by the end of the book. I honestly have been so hyped up for this series that I thought it wouldn’t be what I wanted it to be. 

But, between Tamlin and Rhysand (“Feyre, darling” = *screaming uncontrollably*), I found my peace in out-of-this-world handsome High Lords that have a particular fondness for one mortal girl. I also have a soft spot for Feyre, even though I got a little bit of Pick Me and grumpy vibes from her. We’ll have to see how well she holds up in the next books if she’s even in them. I hope she is, as well as Nesta, who I feel like I’ve heard she will be. 

I also know it’s still early to be picking sides, but I wanted to share my process of which team I’m on. At the beginning of the book, to my despair, I was simping hard over Tamlin. I mean, he’s literally BLONDE—how pathetic is that? But, what can I say: I have a soft spot for doomed, bad boy High Fae! Either way, I was wondering if he was endgame…until we met my love Rhysand. I know this man(?) is questionable and morally pitch black—pun intended—but boy, does he get that fire going?! I am a total goner for him and I can’t wait to see him and Feyre in the next books because I think they end up together. 

So, please, please, please send me the rest of the series for Christmas! I know you guys are not always appreciative of my reviews, but I will step up my game if you send me the rest of this series as a Xmas present—also the rest of my TBR would be much appreciated! Thanks, love you guys, and Happy Holidays!! Mwah!

Genre: adult fantasy

Age: 15+

Rating: 9/10

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If We Were Villains by M. L. Rio

Wow. Okay, so I just finished this book yesterday, and I have many thoughts about it. Firstly, I absolutely loved reading it. The angsty, art academia and theatre vibes quickly became a favorite, but I also loved the friend group. Secondly, the Shakespearean references and decoding were such an interesting and captivating draw for me. Shakespeare is definitely a great way to narrate a story, as there are so many different characters and feelings within the plays. And thirdly, the ending had me absolutely convinced that there needs to be a sequel. I have to know what happens! It’s bad enough that the very last two pages are as cryptic as they are; at least give me something else to continue this story.

Now, I can’t give too much away about the ending, but I can say that it is one of my favorite cliffhangers of all time, including in movies, books, and other media. It’s just so darn open-ended. Like, there are a thousand theories that I could come up with about where the ending leads to. But, none are the top ones because they all seem plausible. I’ve never been so delightfully confused!

This book is probably for an older audience, as some language and actions were for older people. Also, it does require at least a basic understanding of Shakespeare, or some knowledge about his famous plays and plotlines. I don’t have a great understanding of him, but I have read A Midsummer’s Night Dream, Rome and Juliet, and Othello. I’m also a little familiar with the general characters and hazy plotlines of Macbeth, Hamlet, Twelfth Night, and others. So, unless you know about Shakespeare or have read one or two of his plays, I suggest deepening your understanding or looking up the plays mentioned in If We Were Villains. ‘Cause, there are a lot of them!

But, aside from those small bits—advanced Shakespearean and some adult scenes—I think EVERYONE SHOULD READ THIS BOOK! Of course, I say that about every book, but with this one, I seriously think that, whatever your favorite genre, you’d definitely love this book!

Genre: literary fiction, murder mystery, romance, dark academia (is this a genre? I hope it is)

Age: 14+

Rating: 8.5/10

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Beach Read by Emily Henry

OK, I wasn’t looking for an emotionally intense book after Where the Crawdads Sing, so I picked out this popular BookTok book that everyone is saying is such a cutesy little rom-com. I haven’t read anything by the author before, but this book as well as her other one, People We Meet On Vacation, which is also on my list, is supposed to be pretty good.

I also wanted some beach vibes to get me excited for summer here, as I’m rarely ready for all the heat around the Holiday Season. But, as soon as I started reading, I knew this one would wreck me. I read this book in a day and a half, and boy, was I crying that night. I have an embarrassing video locked on a device that remains confidential of me crying and holding the poor book.

Can you honestly pick up an enemies-to-lovers, beach-themed book and expect yourself to have a safe emotional detachment from it? NO. It’s like an unwritten rule that enemies-to-lovers books rule your soul while you read them. Combined with that beachy, The Summer I Turned Pretty vibes, and bam, I was a goner.

Beach Read follows our broke, struggling, and mentally unstable protagonist January Andrews as she moves to a small beach in Lack Michigan following the death of her father, which she is still coming to terms with. There, romance writer January finds herself procrastinating her writing so much and in such a confused and unstable place, she eventually strikes up a deal with the devil.

Agustus Everett detests romance and happy endings. As a writer of bleak and “coldly h0rny” fiction, he and January have been enemies and rivals since they attended university together years ago. Gus has also moved to the same small town on the beach, and, coincidentally, finds himself, neighbors, with January.

The two are less than thrilled to find themselves in such proximity, but, they spend more time together and eventually begin to work together and help each other out of their quarter-life crises.

The intimacy and vulnerability of this book were perfect, and I loved the tropes and begrudging sexual tension. My sister prefers enemies-to-lovers in fantasy and high stakes, but I kind of like the contemporary ones like Beach Read.

Genre: romance, fiction

Age: 13/14+

Rating: 10/10