blewballoon's reviews
598 reviews

Bombshell by Sarah MacLean

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adventurous lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This didn't quite work for me as much as I would have hoped. I realized I wasn't really in the mood for this type of romance after I had already started, but I wanted to finish because I have a physical copy of the 2nd book in the series that I got at a book swap with high recommendations. 

I think I might have still enjoyed it more if I hadn't listened to the audio. It's not that the narrator has a bad voice, but I think I just don't like their timing and line delivery. It gives the whole book a quippy and sarcastic tone, which isn't untrue to the text, but pushed it a little too far maybe. 

The romance went from "oh no, I must resist, I simply cannot have her" to
sexual activity in a closet
abruptly without a good character explanation for why. What changed? Much of the remaining romance outside of the spicy scenes was the FMC making incorrect assumptions, the MMC being a martyr, and "communication" that involved leaving big gaps of information, which all proved to be a bit frustrating. 
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Spellmaker by Charlie N. Holmberg

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adventurous tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

I read the previous book as an ebook and listened to this one as an audiobook. I enjoyed this entry more, and I wonder how much the audiobook narration contributed to that. Overall I think this is a pretty good YA historical fantasy duology. It doesn't rely heavily on the typical YA fantasy tropes or historical romance tropes, but you do get the good stuff that both genres have to offer. 
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The Hollow Dead by Darcy Coates

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adventurous dark mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Another fun entry in this series! There were some big reveals in the last book that were sort of close to what I had theorized might be going on, but this one introduced even more layers to the mystery! It's nice to read a series that feels like it's moving forward at a good pace. I wonder if Darcy Coates watched the Jenny Nicholson Evermore video, which I recommend if you enjoy the setting of this book. 
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The Twisted Dead by Darcy Coates

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adventurous dark funny tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

I forgot how much fun this series is. As I've said before, it's sort of like a combo of The Ghost Whisperer and Buffy the Vampire Slayer. I was impressed with the plotting in this one, events flowed into each other and looped back around in satisfying ways. I really like the trio of main characters, so watching them go on a mini road trip was a treat. 
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A Scandal in Mayfair by Katharine Schellman

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adventurous emotional mysterious tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

My absolute favorite historical mystery series does it again!! This installment gave me all my favorite things about the series and I'm delighted! So far I'm 2/5 for solving the mysteries ahead of time, which I think is a good balance! I do actually think the mystery element of this series is done quite well, but I'm really here for the characters and I was so happy to have all my favorites back in action. Honestly considering re-reading the series just because I love it so much. 
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The Pairing by Casey McQuiston

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Did not finish book. Stopped at 16%.
Casey McQuiston is a great writer and there is some excellent humor here. Unfortunately, I'm having a hard time connecting to the main character and the entire premise is just making me uncomfortable and putting me in a bad mood. There is nothing wrong with casual sex, but here it feels self destructive and selfish and it's difficult for my demisexual heart to enjoy. I can see how this will work very well for lots of readers, but I'm having a bad time due to my own tastes so I'm gonna bail. 
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Out of the Blue by Jason June

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emotional funny lighthearted fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

There were things I liked about this book. One is that it was refreshing to have a male main character/love interest who didn't have "hard planes of abs" for a change. I think there's been a lot of progress in terms of having romance novels with female leads that are a larger size, but I feel like there's still a big lack of the same for male leads. Another is that I like that the story concludes essentially that
friends and family are just as important, if not more than, a month long romantic relationship. Although, I do feel like the rest of the text didn't really support that conclusion since it spent a lot more time developing the romantic relationship than any others.
 

Unfortunately, I also disliked aspects of the book. I had seen that the reviews for this weren't great, but I tried to go in optimistically. I have to admit that the negative reviews are probably justified. The book did give me the vibes of reading merperson AU fanfic written by an inexperienced young author. I read The Spells We Cast by this same author and thought it was well written and very enjoyable, so maybe they have improved a lot. It does seem like this was a fun project for the author, so I'm happy they shared it.
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Can't Spell Treason Without Tea by Rebecca Thorne

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lighthearted slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

If you liked Legends & Lattes, you will probably like this. The story is basically the same, but with a few tweaks. There are two main characters who are already a couple at the start of the book. There are books and tea instead of coffee. There aren't as many magical races of people; it doesn't feel tied to the D&D universe and feels more like a generic fantasy. I loved Legends & Lattes and I'm happy to have more of a good thing, but I did feel like this wasn't quite the same level of quality. I found the prose to be awkward in parts, especially the dialogue, and even the audiobook narrator seemed to struggle with the phrasing despite trying her best. I also got a bit frustrated with how much the narrative had to repeat and over-emphasize things without trusting the reader to interpret for themselves; a case of telling vs showing. In theory this book is full of stuff I really like, I adore cozy settings and good people, and yet I was cynically annoyed sometimes with the book's tone and wasn't properly suspending my disbelief. Maybe I was just cranky?
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Where the Dark Stands Still by A.B. Poranek

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adventurous dark hopeful mysterious sad fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

I admit I bought this based on the cover, and I can happily say that the cover matches the tone and quality of the book very well. I would recommend this to fans of Howl's Moving Castle the Studio Ghibli film (not the book it's based on), but the atmosphere is somewhat darker and less fanciful. I would also compare it to Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik, but the writing felt closer to the characters and easier to submerge into. I listened to the audiobook and I thought the narrator did a great job of  handling the complex pronunciations and reflecting Liska's positive attitude in the face of danger and horror. 
I expected the ending, but I hoped I might be wrong. The epilogue offers a small glimmer of hope.
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Spell Bound by F.T. Lukens

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adventurous funny hopeful lighthearted fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

What a fun and wholesome book! I definitely recommend this to YA readers, but as an adult reader I also had a great time. I was pretty confident I'd enjoy this, since I enjoyed In Deeper Waters by the same author. If you enjoy the Heartstopper comics and light fantasy, you would probably enjoy these books as well.
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