kizzia's reviews
1174 reviews

Just Stab Me Now by Jill Bearup

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emotional funny mysterious fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? N/A
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Brilliant fun to read, properly meta, and incredibly clever. I found Jill and this book via TikTok and it more than lived up to its promise.
The Colour of Mystery by Joy Ellis

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

3.5

Not as gripping as the first in the series and the ending is a bit weak but easy to read and moderately satisfying overall.
The Dream Weavers by Barbara Erskine

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dark emotional informative mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

I love how Barbara Erskine weaves strands of past and present, myth, magic and the modern day together to create spellbinding stories and this book is one of her best. I was entranced by the stories of Elisedd and Eadburg, and Bea and Emma and didn’t want it to end. 

I did get a bit cross at one point when something appeared to be happening because it was needed for the plot rather than plausible but it got satisfactorily explained after the fact and so didn’t spoil my enjoyment for any significant length of time. 

If you’re looking for something to disappear into, and leave the world behind for hours at a time, then this is definitely the book for you.
The Light Ages: A Medieval Journey of Discovery by Seb Falk

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challenging informative inspiring slow-paced

4.75

This book is well written, full of interesting facts, and also quite hard going if geometry and the mathematical elements of astrology are not quite your thing. I am incredibly glad I persevered and read it without worrying that I wasn’t understanding the complexities of the astrolabes and other scientific equipment being discussed since it was really not the point of the book at all. 

I loved how following John Westwyk’s life unfurled so much of medieval life as well as the science and - although I had long ago discarded the myth of the dark ages - was left with a new appreciation for just how much was going on in the period. 

This isn’t a book you’re going to zip through in a couple of days but it is absolutely worth taking your time and absorbing all it has to offer.
Strange Sally Diamond by Liz Nugent

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challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

This is a really well written book with a strong premise and gripping characters that is, for me, completely let down by the ending. The MC may be in a different place physically and have more knowledge but the emotional journey failed utterly. 

If you value “realism” in your endings then you’ll probably be absolutely fine with it but I am not. When the only two people who get “satisfactory” endings are a)
an abusive man
and b) a character who isn’t even mentioned until the last quarter of the book and the longest amount written about them is the final page (which feels like it got added when the editor went “you need something positive to finish with”) then it might need to be marketed a way that gives a more solid impression that, never mind happy, the ending you’re going to get isn’t even good.
An Aura of Mystery by Joy Ellis

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dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

I do enjoy mysteries with a supernatural element in them and this, with auras, ghosts and a wise woman teacher, hit all the right spots. It did get a little convoluted towards the end but was well paced throughout and I found Ellie a sympathetic main character. I'll certainly be looking out for the second in the series when it's released later this month. 
Wyrd Sisters by Terry Pratchett

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adventurous dark emotional funny inspiring fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? N/A
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

The Last Word by Elly Griffiths

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

3.75

Having read the first three of Elly's Harbinder Kaur series I picked up the fourth as soon as it was available and wasn't disappointed. Eminently readable as well as topical and full of excellently created characters, it might have a rather far fetched resolution but I had no trouble suspending my disbelief to enjoy it thoroughly. 
The Blazing World: A New History of Revolutionary England, 1603-1689 by Jonathan Healey

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dark hopeful informative reflective tense slow-paced

4.5

Given that before I listened to this book via audible my knowledge of the seventeenth century mostly revolved around the deposition and death of Charles I and then the Great Fire of London, with colour generated by the most excellent this book was a joyful eye opener. Well written, full of fascinating tidbits and tangents that included the perspective and experiences of the normal people living through it, not just the aristocracy, Jonathan painted a full and vivid picture of a tumultuous century. 

And the blurb isn’t wrong about the relevance to our lives today of what happened over three centuries ago. The unrest and the political posturing we see now is almost a mirror image of what happened then, never mind that the short lived republic and the restoration is key to understanding how our democracy, government and state functions today. At 529 pages there’s a lot of this book but I promise that it’s absolutely worth your time. 

The audiobook was read by Oliver Hembrough and I found his narration easy to listen to and his diction very clear.
Thin Places by Kerri ní Dochartaigh

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challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad slow-paced

5.0

I cannot overstate how wonderfully written this book is. The language, the shape of the sentences and paragraphs, the emotions pressed into the page by the ink that then explode through you as you read. 

Kerri’s words turned me inside out, flipped me upside down, held me in a state of awe and wonder, and then returned me to myself a slightly different person. 

This is one of those books that, if I had my way, I would make everyone read because not only is it timely and vital, it shows just how powerful the written word can be, when those words are shaped by skillful hands. 

Just read it. Please.