this book was so amazing! i'm usually not a fan of books that follow movies or tv shows but the baking competition element of this was very unpredictathis book was so amazing! i'm usually not a fan of books that follow movies or tv shows but the baking competition element of this was very unpredictable and addicting. i also loved that the main character was flawed and said some mean things that later she realized was wrong. it was just refreshing to see someone who makes mistakes and how she still emerges from her struggles with strong friendships by her side. one of my only gripes is the love triangle in this felt lackluster because i was really only rooting for her to get back with her ex.
it was so sweet to be enveloped in this world where shireen's whole family and friend system were not only accepting of her weight but also her sexuality. the main character still experienced some racism and fatphobia but i loved that she had a support system and even a judge within the baking competition that could act as her mentor. overall the cast of characters, writing and pace of this book were excellent!
i am now desperately craving some donuts..... and a trip to ireland...more
i'm gonna really need blurb writers to dial back using the word "sexy" if there's only one fade to black scene but this was cute!! i'm admittedly stili'm gonna really need blurb writers to dial back using the word "sexy" if there's only one fade to black scene but this was cute!! i'm admittedly still getting my feet wet in the witchy genre because it feels like an extension of urban fantasy and i typically find the use of magic alongside current lingo pretty cringe.
this book's writing, however, was incredible. the descriptions were so realistic of the small town and i loved the flow of the writing. but then any time any of the characters open their mouths, it's as if it's another author completely. the dialogue for every character is so long-winded and unrealistic, which could be difficult to get through but in the end wasn't a dealbreaker for me to not be able to enjoy it.
also the game/challenge elements of this story had the potential to be so exciting, but the scenes went by so fast with very little explanation that they were hard to picture or grasp the importance of.
i did like the relationship in this book and would consider reading more by this author in the future, but this book wasn't quite my cup of tea. possibly because the whole book hinges around this group of friends sitting around this small town all hating this one loser dude enough to want to get payback on him (hence the title), and i just firmly cannot relate to letting a man take up so much of my mental capacity....more
wait omg i forgot i read this, i need to circle back and review. i definitely downloaded this as a joke on stuff your kindle day because the title waswait omg i forgot i read this, i need to circle back and review. i definitely downloaded this as a joke on stuff your kindle day because the title was entertaining but was surprised when i started it that it was lowkey well written!! not the greatest thing ever penned but i expected to open this, cringe and delete, but i read the whole thing. was it entirely unrealistic? absolutely. but what is christmas without delusional fiction escapism?...more
once i get over that this is lesbian porn written by a man, i do think it had a really sweet and funny plot. there's four more volumes and i'm excitedonce i get over that this is lesbian porn written by a man, i do think it had a really sweet and funny plot. there's four more volumes and i'm excited to see where it goes because i liked the characters in this so far. not much else to say other than this is almost exactly what you think it is based on the description haha...more
i was sent this book free from the authors but my opinions are my own!
3.5 stars
any book inspired by the parent trap is an automatic add to my tbr, andi was sent this book free from the authors but my opinions are my own!
3.5 stars
any book inspired by the parent trap is an automatic add to my tbr, and i thought this was an original rendition. two kids with an elusive father who inspired them to become artists meet at a nyc summer camp for art prodigies and they realize they share that father and go on a mission to find him? consider me along for the ride.
other than this book having a fun, realistic, non-cringy writing style to represent teengers, this is my favorite book i've read with biracial representation. you get the unique perspective of both sides: one character who's white passing but a lot more connected to their chinese culture, and the other who looks more chinese but grows up in a white family and community having to grapple with that distance from his culture. a lot of the microaggressions these characters experienced and the growth they had to go through was emotionally tugging, and it showed so much nuance without having to outright explain it to the reader. it was just so clever to me, and i liked being in their heads and understanding their worlds.
some of the reveals in this felt anti-climactic and only skimmed the surface despite the emotional deepdive that other topics take, which felt odd. also, i found the pace slowed down in the second half. but those were really my only two comments about this book. highly recommend if you're looking for a book that revolves around art or coming of age alongside your long-lost sibling....more
i found this book unread at the bottom of my kindle library, which means i must've paid money for it back around 2017 so i was curious what it was. thi found this book unread at the bottom of my kindle library, which means i must've paid money for it back around 2017 so i was curious what it was. the author describes this as a novel that gives a glimpse into LGBT history, and i would agree it paints a vivid picture of a troubled young woman who is tormented by her sapphic desires in a society that demonizes same sex attraction.
what the author didn't warn the reader about is the insane quantity of slurs that are thrown around in this. it's rough because i can tell that so much research went into this and it's very arguable that "it's just the way people talked back then!" but this book is quite frankly a slur dictionary. no matter what it was--race, ability, sexuality--these characters not only comfortably used slurs frequently in dialogue, but the main character's narration casually referred to people in derogatory terms even in her own head. and not once was it challenged or questioned.
as much as i thought this was interesting because it was a very detailed account of wartime and being gay in the mid-20th century, i really can't recommend it because of how insensitively these characters talk about anyone who isn't in their white, able-bodied friend group. and there's 4 more books in this series?? no thanks....more
this book was so sweeeeet. the main character and her friend group felt like a realistic girl friend group, and i loved the setting of this and the cothis book was so sweeeeet. the main character and her friend group felt like a realistic girl friend group, and i loved the setting of this and the coming of age progression of the plot. it always makes me feel a bit warm to read stories of tentative first love between two girls and any positive reception from family members and friends, so i appreciated it for that....more
I spent so much of this book confused about the structure and all the random plot points that never could seem to come together, and once I reached thI spent so much of this book confused about the structure and all the random plot points that never could seem to come together, and once I reached the acknowledgments and saw this is based on a comic and not Julie's original character/story, I had an aha moment. I was really sad I wasn't enjoying this as much as Julie's other books but now that I realize this is a tie-in book and not something completely original, I feel less bad that I didn't love it.
First of all, I thought this was going to be a lot more paranormal (or whatever superhero books are. magical?)/non-contemporary based, but the parts that talk about her powers are soooo far and few in between, and the reason why she got powers and the forces of evil in the town were so convoluted. It felt like a bunch of random plot elements tied together with unrealistic jumps. Even though I liked the characters and the writing style, the story just did not make sense to me at all and was pretty rushed.
I think I would enjoy this more if I read the original comics because this book was so confusing and had me feeling like I was missing something. The characters were good one second then evil the next. It almost feels like a set up book to the second volume, but I'm really on the fence about if I care enough to want to know what happens next....more
i knew from the first few chapters of this book that i would really love it, and although it didn't end up topping the charts for me, i had such a funi knew from the first few chapters of this book that i would really love it, and although it didn't end up topping the charts for me, i had such a fun time reading this book! the main character and i have a LOT of similarities and so i was eating this up and laughing out loud, i felt so seen. i love a book that wraps it up in 300 pages but this felt a bit fast and therefore somewhat surface level, and for a book set at summer camp, i didn't get a whole lot of those scenes relaxing at the lake or doing crafts and whatnot. but this book was just SO enjoyable, i devoured it. hee-haw!!!!...more
withholding a rating and review because rocky is a good friend and i don't want to be biased but i'm mourning the preteen me who didn't get to read thwithholding a rating and review because rocky is a good friend and i don't want to be biased but i'm mourning the preteen me who didn't get to read this in like 2009...more
i almost DNFed this at page 250 but decided to stick it through, and i'm really sad this didn't live up to the hype for me. i think the storyline couli almost DNFed this at page 250 but decided to stick it through, and i'm really sad this didn't live up to the hype for me. i think the storyline could've been great (other than the fact that characters with kids is a really big turn off for me), but the writing absolutely decimated my enjoyment of this.
having read middle grade books by this author, it gave off the same energy where she was over-explaining everything to the reader. other than making the book pointlessly long and overwritten, it also felt really condescending and corny. there were other little things that i didn't like, like all the character banter and comebacks felt really contrived and i hated that the friend group called each other "sweetie" and "honey" CONSTANTLY. just so many little icks that added up over time that i almost couldn't do it.
i'm disappointed because i really really loved how to make a wish but this one was a total let down. i hope i'm not alone because it kinda feels homophobic to not love this as much as everyone else does lol...more
i so badly wish i could've read this when i was younger because i think i really would've appreciated the theme of hwho here is choppin onions????????
i so badly wish i could've read this when i was younger because i think i really would've appreciated the theme of having to adjust to change. but also as an adult, i really related to this and was comforted by it having also lost my childhood home i grew up in (although by much normal means of moving out rather than having it destroyed in a tornado). there were a lot of elements to this but i feel it balanced them well, and the plot points i thought i had predicted, i ended up being surprised by! this was a really sweet book that i'm so happy i read, and after reading two books by ashley herring blake this month, i intend on reading everything else she's published. love it...more
what a story to live in. i'm so happy i read this!!
casey once again proves their competency at writing found family stories. every single character inwhat a story to live in. i'm so happy i read this!!
casey once again proves their competency at writing found family stories. every single character in this jumps off the page and all of their conversations feel SO real. i'm not one for a mystery element in books, i'm just here for kissin', but this was a surprising page turner that had me invested in more than just the relationship.
i love that this book reads like a love letter to the lgbtqia+ community from the 20th century that helped pave the way to legalize and normalize queerness. and the backdrop of new york made me feel dying to go back. all the emotion in this was so vivid and yet so relatable with august steering the story. literally every element fell into place and i couldn't love it more.
if you've been putting this book off like i did because you thought you couldn't love anything more than casey's debut, stop it!!!! it's so, so worth it....more
i love elizabeth's writing, so so much. this book knocked it out of the park once again. from the format to the characters to the setting, this book ii love elizabeth's writing, so so much. this book knocked it out of the park once again. from the format to the characters to the setting, this book is lifelike and resounding. great exploration of heritage and family and different life experiences, and the first book i've read set in the dominican republic. if you liked the poet x, i highly recommend this....more
I tried to make it all the way through, I really did, but I either waited too long to read this sequel or it did not stack up to book one. IDNF at 75%
I tried to make it all the way through, I really did, but I either waited too long to read this sequel or it did not stack up to book one. I'm leaning toward the latter, because book one was SO expertly done with the enemies to lovers romance sprinkled throughout the plot, whereas this felt like a lot of plot with some now-awkward romance side plot that lacks the tension and angst of the first book. In the end, I found I didn't really care how this ends? Cas seemed so wishy washy betweens the "good and evil" sides to the battle that she was in that I didn't know what to root for, and ultimately it just made me lose interest since I feel like book one ended at a good enough spot to be a standalone on my shelf....more
this is one of those books where i didn't start crying until i finished the epilogue and closed the book. the ending waeveryone be quiet, i'm thinking
this is one of those books where i didn't start crying until i finished the epilogue and closed the book. the ending was a tiny bit muddled with the action, but other than that, i have zero complaints. i'm gonna miss mia and her triumphantness and mister kindly :c
mr. kristoff i am begging for a spinoff novel about cloud corleone
(view spoiler)[i'm not sure how i feel about a happy ever after with ashlinn, though. after everything, i'm still not quite on board with forgiving her and how they fell in love out of desperation rather than attraction? idk. (hide spoiler)]...more
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