justine

DNF at 30%

the writing is not for me

sign here by claudia lux is a debut novel about a guy who works in hell and makes deals with people to sell their souls to the devil, in exchange for something they want. the setting sounds interesting bc it seems like hell went corporate & every day sounds like a v inconvenient day at work. some parts allude to the tortures of eternal damnation and sometimes it’s briefly described, but the setting isn’t scary at all (unless jager & pens that don’t work frightens you). 

the harrisons have their typical rich white family drama so it wasn’t all that interesting to me, but the morally grey (i know, how morally grey can you be if you’re in hell) peyote trip was my favorite out of all the characters and i enjoyed his pov the most as he makes his way up the corporate hell ladder + tries to get these people to sell their souls away by signing a contract on his tablet (lol).the chapters are really short for each pov and we spend a lot of time back and forth diff settings and diff timelines so it a little suspenseful & keeps you engaged.

although i enjoyed this read, there are some inconsistencies that i won’t be mentioning bc *spoilers* and some loose ends + weird & creepy behaviors by a certain character that i wish were explained and addressed. i’m glad i slept on this bc when i finished this book last night the ending gave me that high that you get when you finish a book and think about the events that happen after the ending and the character’s future, but now that i’ve collected my thoughts a bit more, i feel like this just had too much going on and too many side stories that didn’t really feel cohesive in the end. 

I did not expect the plot twist to be what it was and not much happens, unfortunately, so it wasn't really spooky or thrilling. However, I still enjoyed the story and the different POVs even though the writing was a bit weak.

such a cute story!

this was unnecessarily long.

Joan He is sooooo good at writing plot twists I literally feel so satisfied every time.

ahhhh this was so good and i thoroughly enjoyed this magical story. i wish we spent more time with each character but there's a lot of them so it's understandable that we don't.

this was a fun read! i wish we got more of the 'john tucker must die' aspect, because i felt a little misled by the synopsis lol

hanna alkaf is a master storyteller!

The story had potential but I personally didn't like the writing and how disconnected I felt from the characters. There was no chemistry between the MC and the love interest and their conversations felt dry and forced.

As much as I love when settings become characters themselves, this just wasn't for me.

Thank you to Netgalley for my copy.

this novella was a great way to revisit janloon and the green bone universe!! i loved the characters & how we were able to see familiar ones (and some of my favorite people!!) from the green bone saga. this felt like a long, warm hug from an old friend haha

I found the synopsis intriguing and I wanted to like this story but I can't bring myself to care for the characters at all :/

THANK YOU PENGUIN TEEN FOR MY e-ARC!
I really liked the illustrations and the art style, as well as the plot (I have a soft spot for witchy stories). I just wish it was executed better. The characters felt one-dimensional and the ending felt rushed.

I loved this book so much and Edward A. Mendoza's narration was amazing!!

There were many instances that brought me back to my own childhood memories and upbringing while reading this and it made me like the characters and the story even more. From the humor down to the superstitious beliefs, the Filipino representation felt so natural—so unforced. I also loved how some parts of Filipino history were touched on.

This was such a fun read and a well-balanced story, I'm definitely going to buy a physical copy and read this again!

jennette mccurdy talks about her struggles as a child actor and the emotional, physical, and mental abuse of her mother that led her to multiple eating disorders. this really was ‘heartbreaking and hilarious,' and i really loved the audiobook.
you hear and see countless stories of the horrific things child actors go through, but it truly is incredibly sad to hear what mccurdy went through. i do believe she inserts dark humor in the best possible way, which makes it feel like you're listening to a friend recount their story.
this felt so raw and powerful and i highly recommend this memoir.

this does heavily discuss eating disorders, body shaming, abuse, manipulation, grooming, death ( + ones i might have missed) so bear that in mind when picking this one up.

not going to rate this book because this was a hate-read. lol
this was better than faker and a little less annoying.
the amount of times the mc tried to push that her and li were “friends,” and the amount of unprofessional incidents that happened in this book after the mc kept saying how professional she is was so aggravating.

It's always a good time with Erin Entrada Kelly's characters.
I'm a huge fan of her writing and the way the characters are all unique in their own way. I honestly don't think I disliked any of her characters, even the bullies, because we're shown a lot of what goes on in each of the characters' lives. The small town setting and the feeling of ‘everyone knows everyone' was portrayed nicely and honestly made me think about my time in high school as I was the new kid my freshmen year in a small school where everyone knew each other since nursery/kindergarten.

my only wish is that we got to see more of the characters because the ending felt rushed and I really wanted more

this was suspenseful til the end! her writing style is straightforward which i really enjoyed since classics tend to lose me because of the lengthy descriptions and long expositions.

the only thing i hate about this is that frigid isn't a real book.

really wanted to read this because it reminded me of dae jang geum aka jewel in the palace and i loved that kdrama as a kid, and i just wanna say i am very satisfied :)))))

june hur's writing is incredibly vivid and immersive. i need more.

this was really slow and only picked up about 50-60% of the way. wish i liked this more, but it felt like nothing was going on for most of the story. the characters were not as compelling as i hoped they would be, and the setting was okay. overall felt meh.

this book was so insightful and so much fun. his humor translated so well i could hear trevor noah's voice in my head while reading this. you learn so much about his mother and his relationship w her as well.

here for the morally gray lesbians

I LOVED THIS! Such a cozy, comforting fantasy book about friendship and community. ugh the characters were amazing, esp sweet, sweet thimble

this book was beautiful. i listened to the audiobook and the author narrating their story was chef's kiss