Aleen Simms

DNFed @ 19% because of constant, casual fatphobia.

Actually really liked the character development!

What if The Sisterhood of the Traveling pants but a series for adults and the jeans are a car?

Okay, it's not the most unpredictable book out there. I spent the first third wondering if it would be worth it because I could see at least the broad strokes of where it was going. By the end, I was reluctantly on board. I'll read the sequel for sure.

I didn't like the first book all that much, but people said that the series gets better so I read this one.

Over 600 pages and very little happens. This could have easily been cut in half to reduce the amount of repetitive internal monologuing. The consent is still questionable and it was in desperate need of an editor and internal style guide.

I have the third book checked out and ready to read, but I think I'll move on with my life.

It was predictable but fine, if a bit repetitive, until the last third. The end especially was a real head scratcher, and the consent during some spicier scenes was questionable. 

Needed a transgender sensitivity reader.

I wanted to love this, but I had to force myself to finish it. It just never grabbed me for whatever reason.

Some parts felt a little long, but I forgive it.

I'm a sucker for sentient books and snarky secondary characters.

I loved the first book in the series but the second two fell flat(ish) for me. The writing is beautiful but could have used more intense editing; some parts were really repetitive. My biggest gripe is that the author seemed to tell me what the characters were feeling instead of showing me, which made them all feel less than three-dimensional.

Well-written but predictable. A lot of telling, not so much showing relationship development.

Two stars because:   Jonah follows Clara and she's fine with it. Clara falls on her head and Jonah doesn't take her to a hospital. IT WAS A HEAD INJURY. Disfigurement = monstrous = gross (yes I know one of the points is that he's the only one who sees himself as a monster but ugh)

I was never quite sure why I should care about any of the characters.

The writing was not for me. Reading felt like work, like every sentence was crafted to hold attention with no rest or space for the reader.

People rarely “said” anything. They screamed. They cried. They whispered. They corrected. They quipped. They hypothesized.

This series was good, but I wish the books were a bit longer so the relationships could have time to develop a little more believably. It seemed like people went from mortal enemies to best friends in the space of a breath and I often wondered how that switch was flipped.

content warnings for transphobia, homophobia, racism

This book has no right to work so well, but it's just lovely. Probably more like 4.5 stars, and I might change my mind later, but right now I'm still enchanted and giving it the full five.

Probably more along the lines of 4.5 stars but it gets rounded up for great queer characters, strong women, and excellent world building. Some aspects were far too predictable, but others took me by surprise so perhaps it all comes out in the wash.

Probably closer to 3.5 stars. It could have used some editing to cut it down a bit and there were a couple of plot points that could have been tied together better, but this was an enjoyable read overall!

Therrik needs a therapist, not a girlfriend.

Gets an extra star for nostalgia

I wanted a light, fluffy read. And this was. It does, however, contain an off-handed transphobic slur and I therefore can't recommend the book. The word was out of context and could easily be replaced with dozens of other non-bigoted terms.

Didn't read it all. Was interested in the history of the food pyramid I grew up with; stopped reading at how to interpret scientific studies.

If I try to delve into reading studies, I might come back for help.

Haven't tried fermenting yet, but found the photographs and step-by-step instructions useful for learning.

This book is incredibly angsty and it involves cheating, neither of which are my cup of tea. But the writing is beautiful and the whiskey metaphor is well-employed throughout the novel, so I stuck it out. I'm glad I did, but I'm ready to move on to something far more lighthearted now.

Meandering and boring.