ravensandlace's reviews
562 reviews

Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne Collins

5.0

Title: Sunrise on the Reaping

Author: Suzanne Collins

Genre: YA Dystopian

Format: own hardback book

Series: The Hunger Games (#0.5)

Star Rating: 5 stars

tw: parental loss, murder, blood, loss of infants, animal abuse, poisoning, animal death, assault, drugging, arson

Yet another book that has destroyed me, and I have no idea how to even begin to write this review. I truly struggle with writing about books I love because words just escape me. I know we all wanted Haymitch’s games, but at what cost? The cost of our sanity? Our joy? Ever since I finished this book, my heart has been breaking, and I keep thinking about poor Haymitch and everything he went through. I'm pretty sure this book put me in a huge slump. It took at least three Danielle Steel books just to get over the slump. 

So the book is about Haymitch and how he won his games. While I know Haymitch went through some shit, to put it lightly, I didn’t realize just how much he truly went through and just how much he lost. I know that every Victor loses something in the Games, but that man seems to have lost every single thing. Between the Games and after, I was a sobbing mess. 

I enjoyed seeing some familiar cast of characters. While the situations they were in sucked, it was nice to see some familiar faces. I also appreciated that we got some answers. I had some questions about a few characters and what had happened to them, so it was nice to get some things answered.

Overall, I don't have much to say, but this book ruined me in the best way. I still think about it quite a bit. Words cannot express how much this series means to me. I will forever cherish this book and this series. It’s a book and a series that everyone should read. 

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

5.0

Title: The Hunger Games
Author: Suzanne Collins
Genre: YA Dystopian
Format: own paperback book
Series: The Hunger Games (#1)
Star Rating: 5 stars

tw: parental loss, poverty, starvation, extreme grief, child abuse and neglect, murder, whipping, blood, injury

I’m just going to add to my original review. So this one won’t be as long as I’ve said all I’ve needed to say in the previous review. I’m just going to list the things I love about this book and some things I noticed in this reread.

I've always loved the bond between Katniss and Prim. I would do anything for my siblings, just like Katniss.

I’m absorbing so much more in this reread than in others. I’m actively paying attention to all the details. It’s wild how, every reread, you find something new in a book.

I can’t imagine having to think that every action someone does to you is either selfish or for personal gain and not simply because they are doing it out the goodness of their heart. The amount of paranoia must be exhausting.

I have never been more in love with this series than I am right now. This was the perfect time to read this series especially considering today’s political climate. I’m glad we have these books as a reminder.

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I am so excited that this book is on Kindle Unlimited! I had been wanting to read this series again for forever, especially when the movies came out. It's one of my favorite series in the world after Harry Potter . I don't think any series will be able to top them.

So onto the actual review. I absolutely loved this concept. This dystopian society that sacrifices kids. Dear God, that sounds awful. Okay, lemme rephrase. I do not like the fact that children were sacrificed in an arena where people bet on who would live and who would die. I liked how original the concept was. (Okay, well I have to take that back, too. Stephen King actually wrote a book/graphic novel similar to this. He wrote it before The Hunger Games so I guess it's not super original....ANYWAY).

I adored Katniss. She had to grow up so fast, it broke my heart. She lives in District 12, which is basically the worst district. They are a coal mining district. It's totally unsafe and people starve and it's just not a good time. Katniss has learned to survive and keep her family alive by hunting (which is crazy illegal btw).

It's the 74th Hunger Games. Basically what this means is every year, each districts (there are 12) have to send one boy and one girl to the Capitol so compete in a bloody free for all deathmatch. They have to do this because of the rebels that tried to attack the Capitol. This was the punishment.

Katniss volunteers as tribute. A boy named Peeta is chosen as a tribute as well. I won't go into all the details but it's a fight for survival in the Hunger Games. And Katniss discovers that there is more to trying to survive.

I just can't express how much I love this series. The first book really sets the tone for some pretty intense action. I also love that it is in first person through the eyes of Katniss. She sees things in black and white. There is no grey area with her. And I love that. It's highly refreshing to see a smart and strong female character. I also love that she has emotions as much as she hates showing them. She slowly understands that it's completely okay to show emotion. I think that is something that we all can learn. 

We Used to Live Here by Marcus Kliewer

4.0

Title: We Used to Live Here

Author: Marcus Kliewer

Genre: Horror

Format: hardback library book

Series: NA

Star Rating: 4 stars

tw: hunting, animal found in poor condition, freezing to death, homophobia, stabbing, parental death, assault on a dog, murder, blood

If you only read one horror book, you need to read this one. This book was so damn good! It had horror. It had a psychological aspect. It had the creep factor. It had everything. I promise it’s not too scary, so this would be the book for anyone who wants to dip their toes in horror. But for real, I cannot get over how great this book was. It was everything I needed in a horror book and then some. 

Eve was a great main character. I saw so much of myself in her. She had anxiety and was a people pleaser, like I am. There were times when I just wanted to shake her and tell her to get it together, but because she was just like me, I was a little more understanding. You didn’t realize she was slowly losing it until it was too late. You get sucked into it with her. I truly enjoyed being in her headspace. She was just amazing,  and I believed everything she said. 

Thanks to my psychology degree, I was able to guess the twist. It also helped that I had just recently read an article about the twist. It wasn’t about the book, but just something that is related to the twist. If you know about rare psychological diagnoses, you might be able to guess too. Although the book works very hard to keep you guessing. Even until the very end, I was second-guessing myself, and I wasn’t sure if I had truly guessed what was happening. 

Overall, I enjoyed this book quite a bit, and I can’t wait to own my own copy of this amazing book. I still think about it a lot, even though I read it months ago. It was just the perfect introduction to my horror journey. I can't wait to see what else this author has up their sleeve.  

The September House by Carissa Orlando

4.5

Title: The September House

Author: Carissa Orlando

Genre: Horror

Format: hardback library book

Series: NA

Star Rating: 4.5 stars

tw: death, blood, ghosts, wounds, dead birds, burnings, alcoholism, abusive/toxic relationship, child abuse, drugging, missing children, death/murder of children, body horror, mental illness resulting in hospitalization

This was such a wild book. The main character, Margaret, was so surprisingly chill about how her walls were just bleeding. Like, I would freak the heck out if my walls started bleeding, but she was just so chill. I know that’s such a weird thing to start a review with, but this fact has stuck with me throughout the whole book, and I think about it a lot. Your walls are bleeding, and you’re just like, eh, oh well. The fact that the book started with that, too, is what sold me. 

While writing this review, I noticed that I guessed the twist and didn’t even realize it. I had put it in my notes and then thought nothing of it for the rest of the book. That didn’t hinder my enjoyment of the book at all. I enjoy being proven right. I guess in a way it seemed kind of obvious, but maybe that’s because I’ve watched so many horror movies and games. 

Besides being a horror book, this book had some pretty tough family dynamics. When houses are haunted, they feed off that discord, so I’m not surprised that Margaret’s house was so haunted. Margaret’s daughter, Katherine, had so much anger at her childhood with an alcoholic dad. She treated her mom so horribly because of it. Which, to an extent, I understood, but at the same time, it grated on me quite a bit. But then again, I’ve never had to deal with alcoholism, so I am in no position to judge Katherine and the way she directed her anger.

The only reason I gave this book 4.5 stars instead of a full five was the ending. Without spoiling anything, the ending didn’t fit the way the whole book was. It was too happy. Normally, I don’t mind a happy ending with a horror book, but I felt this one would have been better off with a bit of a rougher ending. 

Overall, this was a good book! I enjoyed it quite a bit. The haunted house trope is one of my favorites in horror, so I knew I would enjoy this book quite a bit. So if you like haunted house tropes in your horror books, then this is the book for you! Just don’t mind the bloody walls. 

Death's Obsession by Avina St. Graves

5.0

Title: Death’s Obsession

Author: Avina St. Graves

Genre: Dark Romance

Format: ebook

Series: NA

Star Rating: 5 stars

tw: stalking, death, dubcon, anal, double penetration, impact play, breath control, mental illness, emotionally and physically abusive romantic relationship (not with MMC), prescription drug use, alcohol and drug abuse, sibling death, parent death, cancer (off screen), PTSD, depression, anxiety, hallucinations, dissociation, traumatic events, suicidal ideation, attempted suicide (off screen), recording of sexual intercourse without consent, depiction of a violent car crash

*these trigger warnings can be found in the front of the book

So I originally was reading this book for a friend. They wanted to know if this would be considered too dark for them. I was taking great notes and everything and then I got sucked ino the story and completely forgot my mission. Which happens a lot. Just like the title, I was so obsessed with this book.

This was one of the most beautiful and profound books I’ve ever read. This book explored grief and survivor's guilt in a fantastic way. My heart bled for Lilith and how much she struggled with life after losing her loved ones. I just wanted her to be okay. While I’ve never had to deal with survivor's guilt, I have dealt with my fair share of grief. Both were done so well, and I appreciated how, even though Liltih was struggling, she had good days. Grief is linear. Some days you have good days, and sometimes you have bad days. 

Letum is right up there with Diesel as a great book boyfriend. He went a little overboard with the stalking and making Lilith lose her mind a bit, but I easily forgave him. He truly wanted to help Lilith heal. Who can fault him for that. I know I can’t. I have no idea what that says about me as a person, but truthfully, I’m fine living in my delusional world in which I’m okay with fictional men stalking women. 

I really loved the spicy scenes, even though I’m going to complain we didn’t get enough. I am a greedy girl, though, and I want all the spicy scenes. But I felt that they were more than spicy scenes. They felt like they were healing for Lilith. I felt like every encounter helped to heal a little bit. It made my heart so happy to know she was healing. I truly felt like Lilith was my friend. I felt connected to her in a way I don’t often do with main characters. 

Overall, this was a great book, as you all might have been able to guess from my glowing review! It was my first five star read of 2025, and hopefully, it will set off the year to be a great one in terms of reading. I can’t wait to read more books by this author, and I highly recommend this book. 

The Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon

4.5

Title: The Frozen River

Author: Ariel Lawhon

Genre: Historical Fiction

Format: eARC

Series: NA

Star Rating: 4.5 stars

A special thank you goes to Netgalley and Doubleday Books for providing me with a copy of this book. Please know that this does not influence my rating or thoughts on the book itself.

tw: dead body, birthing scenes, gender disappointment, rape, child loss, assault, use of herbs to cause miscarriage, hanging, blood, assault, sexism, classism, vomit, stillborn, humane killing of farm animals, arson, illness, castration 

I’m going to come right out and say it. This book was fantastic! Everything about it was so good! Ariel Lawhon simply does not miss. I knew going in that I was going to like this book, even though it’s about American history and I’m not the biggest fan of American history. Martha was a fantastic main character. She was an older main character, too, which is something you don't see a lot of. She was such a badass and had a nonsense approach to her life. I strive to be just like Martha when I’m older.

One of the best things about this book, to me anyway, was that it was based on a real person. Martha Ballard was a real midwife in 1800s America. And come to find out, she is Clara Barton’s great aunt. Clara Barton was a nurse during the Civil War and was one of my niche interests in middle school. I was so obsessed with learning everything I could about her. So it only makes sense that I would be enamored with this book and with Martha.

While the book does have a plot, which is Martha trying to figure out what happened to a man who was killed. I think the true plot was getting to know Martha, her history and why she does what she does. You get to know one of America’s greatest midwives. That’s a title I am bestowing on Martha because I think she is simply amazing and deserves more recognition. 

I know this review is short, but I feel like this is one of those books where you want to form your own opinion about. I think this is a great book if you want to start learning about American history. I also highly recommend this book if you love strong, older MCs. In all honesty, I recommend any of Ariel Lawhon’s books. She simply does not miss. 

The Secret History of the Rape Kit: A True Crime Story by Pagan Kennedy

4.5

Title: The Secret History of the Rape Kit

Author: Pagan Kennedy

Genre: Nonfiction

Format: eARC

Series: NA

Star Rating: 4.5 stars

A special thank you goes to Netgalley and Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor for providing me with a copy of this book. Please know that this does not influence my rating or thoughts on the book itself.

tw: sexual assault, racism, sexism, crimes against children, victim blaming, violence, guns, stalking, police brutality, STIs, animal abuse 

I confess I didn’t know much about the rape kit going into this book. It’s unfortunate even to have such a kit, but I’m glad it exists. However, the road to get this kit sucked and even after the kit was invented, there was so many issues thanks to useless police and understaffed hospitals. The book just infuriated me from the get-go. Not because the book was bad, but because just all the issues the founder had to deal with. 

I think one of the most interesting things that Marty Goddard, the founder of the rape kit, did was get help with funding for the rape kit from Hugh Hefner and the Playboy mansion. Something about that is almost ironic, considering what we know about Playboy. If you don’t know, I’ll fill you in briefly. Hugh Hefner was not a nice guy. There was a lot of abuse that happened in the Mansion, and a lot of assaults.

It's also incredibly disgusting how awful the police were, but I’m not surprised. They truly were god awful in the 70s and 80s. I have no idea how crimes were even solved back then, with the way the police force was so corrupt. The way they treated rape victims was deplorable although it’s not much better today honestly. I was aghast almost the entire time reading this book but I can honestly say I wasn’t surprised by the police and the way they were so resistant to implementing the rape kit. 

Overall, I learned a lot from this book. I do wish that the author had stuck with just talking about Marty and keeping her story in the forefront. The author inserted parts of her story about sexual assault that she dealt with. Which I felt for her but I just wanted to learn more about the rape kit and get more information about that. I was not surprised by the contents of this book. Police in the 70’s and 80’s were awful. Rape victims were treated horribly. Even Marty dealt with horrible things, you will learn a lot from this book, but you will also be very mad the entire time you read it.  

The Midwife of Auschwitz by Anna Stuart

5.0

Title: The Midwife of Auschwitz

Author: Anna Stuart

Genre: Historical Fiction

Format: Kindle Unlimited

Series: Women of War (#1)

Star Rating: 5 stars

tw: antisemitism, assault, sexism, birthing scenes, sexual assault, death, infanticide, a very graphic scene of infant murder, kidnapping, rape, holocaust horrors

I have read a lot of Holocaust books over the years as it’s one of my favorite genres to read. I’ve read a lot of the stories from Holocaust survivors. Each book is graphic in some way. It’s unavoidable with a topic like the Holocaust. But this book was probably the most graphic Holocaust book I’ve ever read. I enjoyed it, don’t get me wrong, but wow, it was hard to read at times. I am someone who can handle a lot of things, as one of my favorite movies is Texas Chainsaw Massacre 3D, but with this book, there were a couple of times I had to stop reading and digest what was happening. This book is not for the faint of heart. 

I had so many feelings while I read this book. Mostly anger, but I did feel a lot of despair as well. I was so mad at the injustice of everything. Ester and Ana went through so much, and my heart hurt for them. I found out in the back of the book that Ana was based on a real person. There was a midwife in Auschwitz who helped deliver over 1,000 babies. So finding that out made all the emotions I felt even stronger. 

I was rooting for the main characters so damn hard. Every chapter was a month in their lives. I wanted them to keep holding on just a little longer. Just make it though that next month and the month after that. I just wanted them to keep going. I needed them to keep going. I would have been devastated if anything had happened to the main characters. I was so attached to them and their stories. 

Overall, this was a powerful book and one that will stick with you for a very long time. This didn’t sugarcoat how horrible the Holocaust was. The book shows the absolutely depravity that the Nazi’s stooped too. It shows how willing they were to take what they considered subhuman life, no matter the age. I highly recommend this book as I feel it’s very important, especially in today’s world. 

The Night Guest by Hildur Knútsdóttir

4.5

Title: The Night Guest

Author: Hidur Knutsdottir

Genre: Horror

Format: hardback library book

Series: NA

Star Rating: 4.5 stars

tw: toxic relationship, medical misogyny, blood, open sores, family loss, multiple injuries, infidelity, graphic animal death, vomit, drugging, dead bodies

This book haunted my feed for weeks. I couldn’t escape it at all. I saw it all over Facebook and Instagram. So I put it a hold at the library, and when it finally came through, I eagerly devoured this book. It was fantastic! So I guess I am proof that well placed ads will work. Because this is the second book that has haunted me to the point that I read it. I also appreciated that this book was short. It didn’t overstay its welcome. 

Idunn was a great main character. She was such a badass. She didn’t tolerate any shit espeically from doctors. I apologize for the swearing, but it’s the only way I can convey just how amazing she was. She demanded they help her and not excuse her very real problems. We love to see this! She didn’t even let her own family try and gaslight her. I just appreciated her determination to figure out what exactly is going on. 

While I had some theories, I was so wrong on all of them, but I was so glad I was. The ending was much more interesting than anything I could have come up with. That’s one of the reasons I love thrillers and horror so much. I love trying to figure out what is truly going on. I also don’t mind when I’m wrong. It shows that I don’t always know everything. 

Overall, this short book was awesome, and I’m completely obsessed with it. It had the right amount of dread and intrigue that kept me coming back for more. You never truly knew what was going on; you were just along for the ride. I highly recommend this book, especially if you need a quick horror book.  

The Radium Girls: The Dark Story of America's Shining Women by Kate Moore

4.5

Title: The Radium Girls

Author: Kate Moore

Genre: Nonfiction

Format: own paperback book

Series: NA

Star Rating: 4.5 stars

tw: parental death, radium poisoning, horrific injury from radium poisoning, blood, death, stillborn, graphic pictures included in the book, spousal abuse

I have been fascinated with the radium girls since I read a book about one of them from Coffee and Thorn. I truly did not know anything about them until I read that book and then I wanted to read all about them. Hence why I found this book. I think they are incredibly brave and what they went through was absolutely horrific. But I never realized just how awful their lives truly were, and the companies they worked for? Terrible! I have never been more disgusted while reading a book.

What truly boggled my mind was how often all these girls were dying. And how horribly they were dying. The number of ailments they had was a lot, and it was frustrating to read that nobody was putting the dots together or the doctors outright refused to. The companies they worked for disgusted me. I was so angry. The entire time I read this book, they actively denied they were dying due to radium poisoning. It’s sickening. But of course, I can't be too surprised. Cooperate greed at its finest. Even as I am writing this review, I can’t help but feel so angry. 

I learned a lot from that book, though, and that is always a goal when I read nonfiction books. Because of the radium girls, OSHA was formed. OSHA essentially makes sure your workplace is safe or as safe as it can be, depending on what you do. It is nice, in a way, that their sacrifice was not in vain. I know that those girls would be happy to see others not suffer while working.

Overall, I think this is a book everyone should read. It’s pretty graphic, but I think that’s a good thing. It shows just how awful the radium girls suffered and how we need to make sure nothing like this ever happens again. It will make you feel grateful that you don’t have to deal with that. A must read for everyone, in my opinion.