Cassandra

I was excited to read a mystery centered around adult friendships and this was not it. This book was not at all a thriller and was barely a mystery and I didn't love either of the main characters. The audiobook production was fun though.

This book started off interesting but then became quite boring. Not to mention the main character becomes a bit much after a while the story was preachy and cheesy throughout.I liked the worldbuilding and I can tell it was written by someone who loves books but it wasn't for me.

I don't think I've ever felt more trapped while reading a book. Rashad does a good job writing out all the nuance that comes with loving someone who says they love you while also having ultimate power over you. Solenne flutters back and forth between feeling trapped and feeling special all wrapped up in the fact that she was fifteen when her life was decided for her. The ending wrapped up pretty fast. I'm not sure how the card Solenne played ended up reversing everything.

I really enjoyed this! As someone who reads a lot about MLMs, this was a refreshing perspective that focused more on pyramid schemes, the history behind direct selling and the people and legal actions that have allowed MLMs to flourish to what they are today.

I enjoyed this book! It had dark academia vibes minus the academia. There was a lot of worldbuilding and the amount of magical elements could get overwhelming at times but I loved the creativity and all the themes that were touched on in this book. The main characters in YA novels can be a hit or miss for me but Laura was such a funny character to follow.

This was a unique sort of family saga that explores the relationships between parents and their children. The story was set throughout California (and not just LA!) from the 1950s to the 1980s to present-ish day.

This is the first of Russell's books that I've read and I quite enjoyed it. The writing was beautiful and expansive and the way that magical realism was tied into the story was unique to say the least. This is a definitely a slower paced book, especially the first half. There was a lot of setup that took a lot of time and it caused the first part to drag. I didn't really understand what was going on until the second half of the book.

There were a lot of characters and a lot of threads to follow and the way that these threads were tied together felt rushed and unnatural. That being said, I enjoyed the setting (geographically not to mention it being set in an interesting time period) and I appreciated James Riding In's context and further education at the end.

Being from North Carolina and growing up hearing about The Lost Colony, I was intrigued by the premise of this book. Unfortunately it wasn't what I thought it would be. I was expecting a dual timeline and mystery with Eleanor Dare as a main character. While it does flip to Eleanor's perspective, the stayed in the present more often than not and mainly focused on the mother and daughter's relationship. I can tell story will feature a lot of beautiful character growth as the relationship between the mother and daughter grows, but its not for me at this time.

A slow-burn thriller with an interesting backstory. I loved learning a little about psychopaths and wish that the book focused on that aspect a little more. I also wish the backstory was a little more atmospheric. Throwing in Nintendoes and a colorful Macs helped to dress the scene, but the flashbacks to the 90s did not feel immersive and the characters felt flat in that regard. Once the dinner party got into swing the book read like a movie with interesting enough twists that kept me engaged. All in all, this was a good locked-room thriller and I'm excited to read more from this author.

A slow-burn thriller with an interesting backstory. I loved learning a little about psychopaths and wish that the book focused on that aspect a little more. I also wish the backstory was a little more atmospheric. Throwing in Nintendoes and a colorful Macs helped to dress the scene, but the flashbacks to the 90s did not feel immersive and the characters felt flat in that regard. Once the dinner party got into swing the book read like a movie with interesting enough twists that kept me engaged. All in all, this was a good locked-room thriller and I'm excited to read more from this author.

It was a lot of fun diving into the horse girl world! I still can't wrap my head around how unbelievably expensive the sport(?) is and the idea that some people participate in it solely because of the prestige. Overall this book was a page turner with interesting perspectives. I think that the different dynamics were presented thoughtfully. We see relationships between mother and daughter, sister and sister and different mothers living very different lives. That said, I don't think there was one loveable character in this story but that's okay. I loved the short chapters and different POVs but the ending wasn't my favorite. Overall, I loved getting sucked into this world.

This was a beautiful fairy tale full of Russian lore and I know that I didn't give it enough attention to fully appreciate it. There were a lot of characters, story lines to follow and terms that I got lost pretty early on. The book was so immersive that I can see myself giving the series another try in the future.

This book was a lot of fun and was exactly what I was hoping it would be. I would consider myself a casual fan of Bravo's Real Housewives but I recognized so many references and jokes. I laughed throughout and had to keep reading to figure out what was going on. The mystery wasn't that deep but I was happy to be along for the ride with these over-the-top characters. The reality series background is the perfect set up and I loved how the chapters were separated with cast interviews.

I loved this book! I requested this book because the description sounded interesting but I didn't realize that Witness 8 was part of a larger series. I can't wait to read the rest of this author's backlog. I also haven't read a lot of police procedurals or crime novels but this was a great introduction to the genre. I loved the pacing, the different POVs and the balance of detective work/shenanigans and courtroom drama.

This book had a wonderful start but dropped off for me at Part 2. The women continue to make stupid decisions that make no sense and it felt like they were playing catch-up the entire time. 

I will read anything that Janice Hallett writes, but The Examiner may be my favorite of hers (right afterThe Appeal). This book was so easy to become immersed in and I love how easy it is to forget that one woman is writing all of these different characters! They each have a unique voice and the mystery kept me on my toes until the very end. I did not like Jem until the end of the book when she has a very heartfelt moment.

I liked how this book touched on so many different topics - racism, classism, climate change, consumption and politics. Unfortunately, I feel like the scope was too big and it caused the story to suffer. The story meanders, the characters are unlikeable and over-the-top and the commentary is pretty on the nose. Nothing new is really said, but the book reads like a movie, which was nice for the summer.

This book was very fun and goofy, if not a little unbelievable. I had trouble connecting with Margo at the beginning because she was making such big decisions based on spite? But I enjoyed her growth and this book made me laugh out loud a couple of times. My only other critique is that things seemed to get a little too perfect for Margo at the end. I'm all for a happy decision and I loved seeing Margo succeed but the ending felt a little rushed. All in all, I loved this unique book.

I have mixed feelings about Darling Girls. I liked the mystery and suspense of the book. I especially loved the short chapters - they helped move the story along and also made the hard chapters *a little* easier to swallow. I had trouble connecting and feeling much of anything for any of the characters beyond Alicia. The writing also felt uneasy with certain chapters being a lot cheesier than others (a confession and a some of the relationships come to mind). Overall, it was an okay read.

Oye is a hilarious coming-of-age novel, following Luciana as she navigates her senior year on top of changing family dynamics between her mom, grandmother and sister. This was such a fun and touching debut with an interesting format. The story is told through a series of one-sided phone calls from Luciana to her older sister, Mari, who's away at college. Humor and family stories are woven throughout the book, making it engaging (and hilarious) from start to finish. I will be recommending this book to everyone this summer!

Diva follows Maria Callas, the world-renowned opera singer, and her whirlwind romance with Aristotle Onassis. This is the kind of historical fiction that I adore. I learned so much about Maria Callas, Aristotle as well as his future wife, Jackie O and her sister. What I really loved about this story was Daisy Goodwin's writing. The story was captivating and dramatic without being salacious or over-the-top.

3.5

Cotugno does a great job setting a scene. Between the too-big house in LA, trendy restaurants and clubs and jetsetting locations, I felt like I was watching a reality show. This was both good and bad - sometimes I wasn't excited to pick this book up for escapism but most of the time I didn't really care. The stakes didn't seem high and the story never really took off for me. I liked the multiple viewpoints but I felt like there were a few too many and they didn't really add to the story or add a useful perspective.

This was a quick and funny read that I'd recommend to my friends who enjoy reality tv. The writing was good and I found myself laughing A LOT.

Thank you Harper Perennial and NetGalley for the ARC.

I loved this book! I loved the plot, I loved the characters, the settings and the pacing. And this book is funny! I really enjoyed Amber as a main character. She wasn't perfect and knew it. She was cool but she didn't take herself too seriously. I also appreciated how a relationship of hers ended, it felt true to real life. I really loved that the book was set in Vegas. Because of the show, Hacks, it was easy for me to picture Amber, Grace and Dot running around the glamorous town.

An absolutely terrifying, dark, well-written horror/thriller.

This book was dark. DARK. If you're into psychological horror books, Sundial is a good, disturbing choice. The characters are deep, dark, and twisted in their own ways. There's so much that happens in this book that it's impossible to talk about it without spoiling it or sounding creepy as heck. I'm glad I didn't read too many reviews before starting this one, because I wouldn't have picked it up otherwise. This was a good step (way) outside of my comfort zone.