Beattz

Daindreth' Assassin was a great entry novel in a series. We got ample time with each of the major players, seeing their personalities, what drives them, as well as what keeps them awake at night. Pretty standard medieval type setting, with glimpses of empiric opulence. We've been introduced to a magic system, however, for the most part, our characters are flying by the seat of their pants in that arena, or should be. There's a couple of times Amira, the FMC, seemingly has a bit more knowledge than the text would support or suggest, but there's a whole lot more for her to grow into.
There's budding relationship between the FMC and MMC at times had me screaming because the yearning was so strong. I'll definitely be picking up book two.

This book was exactly what I wanted it to be. The last couple of “ro-monster” books I've read fell a bit flat, either in character development, or rushed (non-existent) plot, writing that was “just okay.”
Not

The second installment of the Dungeon Crawler Carl series took us on an adventure through the third level of the Borant Corporation's Earth-wide life-or-death game. Carl and Princess Donut find themselves on a floor with civilization- opportunities to purchase upgrades and equipment from merchants, and by interacting with the local NPCs, obtain quests. They also get to choose their race and class, that will define them and their abilities for the remainder of their time in the dungeon.
I enjoyed this book well enough. Not as laugh out loud funny to me as the first, but some of that is to be expected as the series continues and the stakes get increasing higher. I preferred the second quest to the first, and wish it had been given the same amount of time and attention, instead of feeling a bit rushed. Carl's setting himself up to be a major player not just in the game, but outside of it as well, and I'm looking forward to seeing how that part of the story progresses.

Stunned. Floored. Flabbered.
I want to get this insanely beautiful novella tattooed on my skin in its entirety. My only regret was that I wasn't able to read it all in one sitting bc, well, life. It's meant to be taken all in at once. Sat in, surrounded by. Changed with.
I was very pleased to have made the decision to go in blind - I had not read the blurb, only going in based on vibes, recommendations, and a love of short fiction. So I will not tell you details here, and will suggest (strongly) that you do the same.
I will absolutely be purchasing a copy of this book. I will be reading it over and over again.

4.5 Stars

Paladin's Grace was 100% a peer pressure read. There's at least 3 other T. Kingfisher books I would have picked up before starting yet another series.
At least my friends have taste. I had a great time reading this. The main characters were so realistic and relatable and absolutely adorable and I loved them and the yearning was excellent. Honestly though, I think my favorite character was Bishop Beartongue, and I really hope she'll be included in the coming installments.
Not a perfect 5 stars, just because the plot felt a bit disjointed. There was the thing that you thought was going to be the major storyline, then at the 60% mark, you get whammied with something completely different. Not bad, just a bit awkward.

This was my first Blake Crouch book, and it was pretty good. I liked the story well enough, the characters were were fairly well defined and relatable. The multiverse concept I think was handled well/uniquely, if a little clunky in bits. Far better, in my opinion, to be more heavy handed, than overly complex and alienating. I was totally with the story until the very end, but for a book with stakes this high, a “happy ending” felt really out of place to me. It was too neat. We were dealing with infinite possibilities/potential outcomes and divergences, and to have it all work out felt lackluster.

This installment of the Singing Hills Cycle left me wanting more. We got such elaborate tales in the first two, with the “current events” taking a background role, that I wasn't expecting it to be completely reversed in Into the Riverlands. Of course, you understand why in the end, but part of what I love about this series, the art of storytelling, was largely missing. I'm hoping to get that back in book 4.

This book has been marketed as having cozy vibes, and when compared with other cozy fantasy books, I guess I can see that it checks some of the same boxes, but honestly, at no point in this adventure, did the word “cozy” come to mind.
I liked it well enough, but there was nothing groundbreaking here. The longer the story went on, the more convinced I became that I wasn't going to get what I wanted out of it. And I was correct. That being said that was some cool back story stuff that I did enjoy a whole lot.

Bride was my first Ali Hazelwood novel. Upon chatting with friends, I got quite the education about Reylo fanfic and its many iterations. At first I didn't think it fit. But the longer we chatted and I recalled details of the story, they were absolutely correct.
I don't say this as a disparagement. I really quite liked the story and the characters.
As per usual, my complaints fall within the realm of editing. There was a spelling error in my copy. A couple of scenes (not even spicy ones) that didn't make anatomical sense. Overall, it felt clunky. But in the end, the plot and the cast were able to fill in the gaps. I might not rush out to get any more of her books right away, but I'm excited to see what Mate brings us in the fall.

This was unsatisfying. I'm bummed because I loved the first two so much. I was 80% of the way through the book before anything really happened. Then what happened happens and that's great and all, but it just wasn't enough. This volume definitely felt much more like a set up for a conclusion than a conclusion itself.
That being said, the setting, the characters, the story are very well written, and still entertaining. It just felt hollow next to how full to bursting the other volumes in the series were. Like. I still have no idea why Gladys had any chapters at all. It was pure filler content. And I know this was loosely based on historical figures and all, but the fact that Mungo never really got a comeuppance was an incredible letdown. I wanted to see that man flayed for what he put Languoreth and Lailoken through. But alas...

*i see now that what i read elsewhere - that the next book will be a prequel is incorrect. that there will be a 4th installment. which is what i had thought after reading all the author's notes, but a (unfortunately not thorough enough) search of the internet lead I me astray. can you believe it??
So, the review stands, but i am very much looking forward to how this story really ends.

Lavash at First Sight is a star-crossed lovers rom-com, all based around two rival families in the Armenian packaged food game. It takes a trip to a conference in Chicago, and a chance at a spot in a Super Bowl ad, for the younger generation, and our protagonists, to uncover what really happened between their parents all those years ago.

I wanted to love this book. I cajoled people into a buddy read with me - and in the end, it was pretty underwhelming. Everything thing about it was fine. Just fine. Standard character arcs, foreseeable outcome. A bit more “insta-love” than I really prefer. The bones are all there, I just wish an extra 25-30 pages had been used to give the story more life.

Radium Girls was an in depth look at the women that changed the face of occupational safety standards, workplace compensation laws, and quite literally being the force behind understanding the long term impacts and effects of radium exposure. This book focused on the women themselves, and their journeys as they started to fall ill, struggle to get a diagnosis, fight to be listened to, and demand justice for the lies they were told while doing their jobs as dial painters to the best of their abilities. It's a tragic story, and an important one. A timely reminder that no one will fight for your rights if you don't. Stand up, and be heard.

The Night Ends with Fire was a unique take on the Mulan story. Faced with a future married to an abusive merchant, Hai Meilin makes a desperate grasp for freedom, posing as an illegitimate son of her father and enlisting in the army on the eve of war. On her way out the door, her stepmother passes to her a jade necklace that once belonged to her mother, dead now many years after a bout of madness. There's more than meets the eye to this piece of jewelry though, and as secrets begin to be revealed, Meilin worries that she will meet the same fate as her mother in short order.
I wanted to like this book more than I did. It was pretty heavy handed and clunky when it came to the main character's motivations, at the same time, contradicting itself later on. Meilin thirsts for power and recognition and position in the army, challenging herself to rise through the ranks to get to a place of equal footing and acknowledgment, but then when strategy and politics come into play (a natural progression of such a station) she easily and, to me, strangely, says that such things are beyond her and should be left to the men? There's also a bit of a love triangle, and that's not my favorite trope. I like it enough to see how the story is going to continue to play out, at least at this point. It has an interesting magic system, and I hope it goes into more lore in the next volume.

Paladin's Strength, Saint of Steel, book 2, follows Paladin Istvhan as he travels in pursuit of the Smooth Men. Along the way he meets Clara, a woman who nearly matches up to not only his stature, but his sense of duty and found family. They decide to temporarily team up for the journey and over time, fond feelings begin to grow. But there are secrets between them that once uncovered, might drive a wedge between them for good.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I didn't get the same sense of endearment for the characters in this novel as opposed to the first, I think because so much emphasis was placed on their size and strength and ability to power through. But that being said, the characters were well developed, intricate persons in tight situations with a deadline and real consequences, which is really most of what I want in a story. A solid entry to the series and the world of the White Rat, and I look forward to continuing.

This book is damn near perfect. A sweeping tale that somehow blends both samurai historical fiction and futuristic technology all wrapped up with an element based magic system. It should be too much. But instead, it's awesome.
One of this biggest things I appreciated in the world building was the commitment to the culture in the text. It seems a small thing when pointed out, but by using the Kaigenese words for times and distances as opposed to just saying hours or miles, etc, it kept me well seated in the story, and it's something I want other fantasy authors to do more often.
I don't want to go into any details on plot because I don't want to give anything away, but I want as many people as possible to go and read this book and be as moved and awed and shocked and inspired as I was through each and every chapter. My only disappointment is that the set up in the final chapter will never be realized, as Wang has decided to leave the Theonite world behind. I know they have their reasons, but I can still be sad about it.

Lolita is definitely the most unique and technically near perfect book I've ever read. Alongside the thick prose and flowery language is lain the most astute and in depth study of pedophilic abuse. A war of opposites viciously and irrevocably entangled. What the foreword says is absolutely correct- for all of its lack of detail, it could not be more obscene.
When you break it down into its components, they're all masterfully executed. It's beautifully written, the characters are three dimensional, the plot of the descent to madness is palpable. It's obviously well researched and thought provoking. It borders on appalling satire a la A Modest Proposal, being instead a cautionary tale urging us from the outset to be better parents, teachers, citizens, humans and to see what lurks beneath the surface of both predator and prey in order to break the cycle of violence.
I understand from the perspective of HH's obsession why we didn't get to see more of who Delores really truly was, only his distorted perception of her, I just wish the novel had added that element of humanity back in so at the end of 300 pages I didn't feel so entrenched in his mind as to feel HH's crimes were my own.

This is as advertised lol. The first one had more “sting” to it for sure, but it is definitely “in kind”. If you liked the first one, you'll dig this one too.

I'm a sucker. I know it. You know it. And that's okay. These men couldn't be more fictional if they were actually made of ink. But you know what? I don't care. It's nice to read about emotionally mature men.