bibliokayla's reviews
214 reviews

If It Makes You Happy by Julie Olivia

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funny hopeful lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

What It's Like in Words by Eliza Moss

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challenging dark sad tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

I'm torn with how I feel about this one. I really didn't enjoy it while I was reading it, and it felt like a chore to pick it up. I started it in May, got to 15%, and set it down until November because I immediately couldn't stand Him.

It’s hard to understand how this man got his hooks into Enola in the first place. He’s a dick to her right off the bat, she initially thinks he is unattractive, he’s rude to her friends the first time she ever sees him… He gave immediate red flags, without any redeeming qualities to shroud them. I was reminded of Genevieve Wheeler's Adelaide, but with a FMC that you aren't sure you like in the first place.

What kept me reading wasn’t their relationship but wanting to find out what happened in her childhood

with her father

to which she kept flashing back. Unfortunately, I thought that reveal was anticlimactic.

I had hoped that there would be more connections between her father and Him to explain her bizarre attachment to Him, but we are really left guessing and filling in the blanks ourselves. I would have loved more concrete flashbacks of what her father was really like at the end of the book, as well.

I may not have enjoyed the experience, but I suspect I'm going to keep thinking about the final few pages of this book. I don't want to reread it, but I am left with questions that might be answered with a reread.

How many memories of her mother were actually of her father? How many times did I think she was talking about Him but was really remembering her father? Did she actually kill Him? What was the "body" at the end? Did she push her father?

Maybe I'll update the review at a later date.

I wouldn't recommend this as a foray into LitFic, but for my established LitFic pals, you may like the storytelling style and misdirection.

Thank you to Henry Holt & Co and NetGalley for this eARC.

Content Warnings

The Marriage Hex by Sarah Blue

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fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

I want to start with I did like this and find it highly consumable and entertaining. I read it in less than 24 hours and was interested in it enough to read in only two settings.

BUT the story felt like it was missing some pieces. (See spoilers)

My gripe with the story is that there was a lot of referencing what happened at the orphanage after Violet left. What did Silas find in the basement? I thought that there would be an emotionally intimate moment between them where they talked about this at some point. I was sure it would happen before they started getting along again and would serve as a turning point. Silas’s personality is also very different from when he was younger (which Violet points out) and this would have been a great opportunity to explain why.

I also felt that their demeanor towards each other changed rather abruptly. They were dead set on being pissed at each other and loyal to their respective groups and then suddenly that changed. I was surprised there wasn’t a slower shift while they regained trust.

I think the book could have used another 50 pages or so to flesh out some of those gaps.

All of that said, I will probably read the next book in the series when it comes out.

A Witch's Guide to Fake Dating a Demon by Sarah Hawley

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lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

I’d recommend this to people who are looking for a low-stakes, comforting fall read. There is character development and there are problems happening, but the overall tone of the book is very lighthearted.

Evil Eye by Etaf Rum

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challenging emotional hopeful inspiring sad tense slow-paced