adds
DNF 28%
Omg get over your hangups and just sleep with the guy already you angry girl.
I'm assuming the plot is the playboy reforms himself to fix the broken girl so they can fall in love. I'm more interested in playboy's sister. She seems super sweet and I bet there's something going on with her. But I'm not so interested that this is holding my attention.
DNF at 38%
The premise of a sexually-transmitted plague is pretty interesting and the writing was fairly good. I just couldn't figure out what this book was trying to be. Is it a zombie book? Maybe. Is it erotica? Definitely not so far. Is it horror or thriller? There were a couple scenes of tension, one of them pretty unnerving, but the rest of the time I just wasn't feeling it much.
I honestly got tired of everyone asking the main character what's going on, like she's supposed to know. She doesn't know anything either! Stop hounding her just because she leaves to go check on a friend or overhears something you all somehow slept right through.
There was no connecting with the main character either. In fact, I kind of disliked all the characters except for her brother-in-law. Everyone's either a stereotypical asshole, slut, or having a quarter life crisis. What a mess. I'm just going to hope they all die in the plague while the brother-in-law saves his wife and two kids and gets out of small town hell.
If you're going to refer to a man's penis as a “tool” during one of the many sex scenes, or mention him ejaculating pretty much straight into her “womb”, at least go all out and give readers the super-drama of her winding up pregnant. What a missed opportunity.
To me this book is straight up rape. If you're kidnapped, blackmailed, guilted, or coerced into any kind of sex act it's rape. It's ok though, the big bad motorcycle gang member with a huge dick is super hot so that makes it all alright. eyeroll
I'm surprised this book is rated so highly. Why???
I got to about 19% of the way in and realized I don't need to read this. The author even says not everything is 100% factual and I don't need to read a book that possibly sensationalizes Trump or anyone around him. These people are evil all on their own. There's no reason to exaggerate except to possibly cause a stir and make more money.
DNF at 27% because I lost interest due to the somewhat dated writing style. I bet the story really picks up right after where I left off too. That'd serve me right. But I'd already picked up other books holding my attention more so I'm setting this aside. Not going to rate this though. It's not a bad read. I just didn't click with it the way I wanted to.
DNF at 19%, but I was really done at 10%. I'd skimmed to see if it got any better.Ok, Sylvia Day took [b:Fifty Shades of Grey 10818853 Fifty Shades of Grey (Fifty Shades, #1) E.L. James https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1385207843s/10818853.jpg 15732562] and rewrote it. That's cool. All sorts of reviews rave that it's way better written than Fifty Shades, and I guess it is. Sort of.This is obviously erotica. Awesome. I'm totally here for the smut. The thing is is I need a decent story and characters. There will be no swooning from me when all I want to do is repeatedly throat punch the lead male character, Gideon Cross. This man is a lecherous boss in a position of power who will use and abuse his power because he thinks he's entitled to... well, everything. There's nothing sexy about sexual assault, which is what was continuously happening. No really does mean no. It doesn't matter what her body is telling you, pal.Cross said nothing until the car was on its way down; then he pushed the call button again and asked, “ Are you sleeping with anyone?”Um WHAT??? This is one of the first dialogue interactions they have and this is what he says? And when Eva asks him why the heck he's asking her:“Because I want to fuck you, Eva. I need to know what's standing in my way, if anything.”She tells him maybe she's not interested and from then on out no matter how many times she says no or pulls away he's trying to grope or kiss her. Just because the readers hear Eva's thoughts about how she finds Cross attractive her words and actions don't always show that. She's torn. But for all he knows she's not really fully interested. But he's not listening.It turns out Cross owns the building Eva lives in. Of course he does. But Eva finds out and is rightfully horrified. His reaction?“I accessed information you voluntarily made available to me.”“Not to you! Not for what you used it for! That has to violate some kind of privacy law.” I stared at him, more confused than ever. “Why would you do that?”He had the grace to look disgruntled at least. “So I can figure you out, damn it.”My skin crawled. Not only is Eva's livelihood in his hands, but so is her living situation. He's now pretty much completely able to cut her off and isolate her if he chooses. Or at least coerce. If you cajole someone into consent it's not really consent.The writing may be better than Fifty Shades of Grey in certain ways, but the story is just as abusive and disgusting and is nothing to emulate.Eva, run. Leave everything and run.
DNF at 47%. I just do not care a tinker's damn what happens to these characters. I'm not invested in them at all. I want to be, but I can't because this book is like Swiss cheese there are so many plot holes. It's too distracting.
There would be no plausible reason to have a war over reproductive rights. Wars are fought over money. Strip away all the crap and it always comes down to money in some way. If you want me to believe otherwise about this war then there needs to be sufficiently explained world building. Otherwise, who's making the money off of kids being unwound? Half way into a book it should be laid out how the hell we've gotten to where the story starts so things start to make sense. I still have no idea why the world is this way and I'm finding nothing worth keeping me reading to maybe find out if Shusterman ever sufficiently develops anything. How did we get from Roe v. Wade to unwinding kids in what seems to be just a few decades or less?
People don't want to be forced to keep random ass babies dropped on their doorstep. Society would shift in response to storking laws to say the least. The middle class communities portrayed would probably develop neighborhoods with security cameras and a guard watching them so someone can't plop a baby down at someone's door without getting caught. We already have gated communities where guards patrol on golf carts. But security isn't stepped up in the future in seemingly well-off areas? What kind of America IS this? I can't accept that this is just the way it is, and I think there would be large swaths of people who would never accept this either.
I can't accept that killing off teenagers to use them as transplant fodder is fine with both the pro-choice and anti-choice side of the abortion debate. The book uses the term “pro-life” to try to excuse chopping people up for their parts because the parts never really die, but I'm using the accurate real world wording. The premise of Unwind is interesting. It could be a poignant discussion while still being entertaining, but the reasoning for it is absolute bullshit, and again, there's not enough world building or even decent characters to explain how society has broken down so much. People just go about their normal lives the same way we do today. The suburban American dream nuclear family is happily having kids, until they decide to off them for being difficult teenagers. Just, WTF IS THIS HEARTLESS SHIT?!
This is probably my favorite in the Off-Campus series closely followed by The Deal, then The Mistake, and I honestly probably could have skipped The Score (sorry Dean). While this is an easy read, it's not as fluffy and doesn't quite follow the same format as the others. Tucker is patient and reliable. Sabrina is incredibly driven and focused. Two levelheaded main characters make for somewhat more mature writing. Even the humor was a different caliber and I laughed fairly often and terribly hard at times. Tucker is one of the best book boyfriends ever and I'm glad I know someone a lot like him.
If reading about some womanizing asshat is your thing then have fun with this, but I'm not down. I don't need another book where the male MC is a creep and ends up insta-reformed by someone with The Magic Vag which seems like where this is going.
3% in and we already have:
...always make sure hook-ups drive themselves so they don't need anything else from me when I'm ready to dispose of them.
Once they've spread their legs in my bed it's adios for good.
I just finished Star-Crossed and I'm so exhausted. Done-in. Emotionally drained. I've just been on one tempestuous journey, and it wasn't always very easy to keep going but thank god I did.
I almost gave up on this book at least 3 different times. I was seriously so frustrated with how awkwardly hard it was trying. Having them perform Romeo and Juliet while reading Lolita at the same time? C'mon now, really? So disgustingly obvious I almost couldn't take it. Yet there was this little voice that kept whispering about how much I was liking Kaitlyn and Will Tennant's interactions. It kept saying, “Who is Mr. Tennant? What will he do?” I will be honest that I skimmed a lot just to get the gist of things and get right back to Kaitlyn and Mr. Tennant.
For me, Will Tennant made this book. Kaitlyn may be the main character and did the most evolving, but I silently saw everything from Will's perspective even while it's Kaitlyn's voice guiding and telling the story. He's my age so I easily put myself in his shoes. I've even had someone years younger than I am make an impressive attempt to woo me into a fling with more confidence than someone their age should rightfully posses. It was disconcerting for me to say the least. I also totally understand how some people and relationships can transcend societal barriers. Some people just connect and the rest almost pales in importance.
Both Kaitlyn and Will had a lot to figure out internally. Different kinds of growth spurts haphazardly come throughout life. There's no guidebook on how to grow up and sometimes it hits hard and devastates while it's happening. So yeah, Will made me cry. I literally started bawling for him I couldn't even see to keep reading. It surprised the hell out of me how much I empathized with his pain.
I would definitely recommend this book to people. It might not be easy to get through but do what you gotta do to keep going because I found it absolutely worth it by the end, faults and all.
I can't read any more. I can't spend every page hating every character. I just can't! I love sci-fi. I love space sci-fi. I freaking love sci-fi where a freaking planet is conquered. I don't care how much I want to read about Mars. I refuse to sit around gnashing my teeth constantly hoping it'll get better. Love triangles can take a hike; I hate them. Maybe this just isn't for me, which is why I don't really want to put a rating. Either way, from what I did read Chalmers is like the homicidal Holden Caulfield of Mars. Fuck them both.
Me: starts reading
Kindle: 8 hrs 5 mins left in book
Me: Hmm ok, I'll have to put this down for bed, but that's alright.
Kindle: 1% done
Me: If the rest of this is as good as the first 8 pages I'm in trouble...
Me: 5 am I didn't put it down. I don't regret my decision.
We Are the Ants is the perfect blend of the human condition, bittersweet nihilism, and tenacity of hope. I saw myself reflected in the cynicism and dry sarcasm of Henry, the main character. I keenly felt the paralyzing fear of choices through this book. I laughed until I almost couldn't breathe, got choked up, paced in circles around my house, and even woke someone up in another room with an uncontrollable cursing fit from the emotional roller coaster at one point. Whoops!
I can safely say We Are the Ants is 1 of my top 3 books this year.
Nope. Can't finish this. DNF at 17%. I'm all for literary smut, but I want my poetry to be teasing and my erotica to be sultry, not in-your-face crass. I don't want to feel like a voyeur or 3rd wheel into Leav and Faudet's relationship (or whatever is going on there). Reading this was like sitting on a couch while your friends have sex next to you and occasionally you get a foot to the head. I just don't need the mental images.
I'm convinced it's the artwork that kept me reading this series. It's SO beautiful. I was amazed at the expressiveness in some of the panels. It's enough to make you stop reading and just stare for a few seconds.
Koharu ends up in a polygamous marriage with a man who already has two wives. I don't have any issues with polyamorous relationships. I know people in healthy relationships with multiple partners. The thing is is you're not in a relationship with one person who's also in a relationship with 1 or more other people. Not in the kind of situation in this series at least.
It took quite awhile for the wives to start bonding and talking about how they deal with the tensions their relationship can cause. Throughout most of the first book this lifestyle is portrayed in a manipulative and abusive way more than I was comfortable with. Yes, I understand that there needs to be drama, tension, and humor to keep readers engaged, but I think these things could have been accomplished without the seemingly unnecessary unhealthy actions of the characters at certain times. This series may be aimed at men, but the story could have still progressed without manipulation and extortion of women. Then again, we haven't seen every motive as this series is till ongoing. Perhaps I'm looking for the best in characters when I shouldn't be. Remains to be seen.
I had to regularly keep in mind to look past the culture differences of gender roles. If you're able to do that then this series is rather engaging. Again, the art!
Well, that was much more delightful than I anticipated. I honestly thought I'd end up abandoning this because the blurb sounds out there for me. Wolf-men? This could go so badly... It was rather entertaining instead. The adventure is fun and the romance is sweet. The people aren't overly wolfy. Some fur, pointy ears, and slightly sharp teeth are no big deal. I was also rather fascinated with the world building and legends of the people. More stories Riggs, more stories!
This book can totally be read as a standalone. Anya is a character from the first book, but there's only one small reference that might make someone pause to decipher.
This is obviously not the kind of story where someone locks eyes with a dragon and ends up telepathically linked or some such. No, this is about science and study, but not in a boring way. This is still an adventure. Smugglers and murder and intrigue. Oh my!
Now in her older years, Isabella has decided to write a series of memoirs. I usually quite like memoirs. The people writing them tend to be interesting or they wouldn't have a story. Isabella has a story, and it's a good one. I just wish she wasn't so damn arrogant.
At times in the first half of the book she'd take us out of the story and talk to us, the readers, as if we're beneath her.
“You may think you see plenty of stars, friend reader, but you are wrong.”