summerfalkenrath's reviews
14 reviews

She Gets the Girl by Alyson Derrick, Rachael Lippincott

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emotional funny hopeful lighthearted medium-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

4.5

This book was fun, entertaining, serious, and well written. It's the kind of book I hope that I write and make people feel the way it made me feel. At first I was probably going to give 4 stars because I was pretty positive I knew how it might go and how it might end but I was pleasantly surprised by how things moved and flowed with the plot. There was really nice character development for both characters! The narrarators for both perspectives in the audiobook were talented and easy to follow. It was a nice easy read and lovely queer piece to enjoy!
The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune

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adventurous emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted mysterious sad tense medium-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

5.0

If I could give this book more than 5 stars I absolutely would! This was a book I went into completely blind (I have a bad habit of not reading the back of books don't come at me y'all), and was enamored throughout the entire thing! This was everything I wish had come from the Miss Peregrin series that I never felt super compelled to finish reading. I immediately put in a hold to get the next book asap from the library. I listened to this book via audiobook and the narrarator was phenomenal at portraying emotion, voicing each character distinctly, and made it feel like I was there the entire time. Several parts had me chuckling out loud while I listened and it felt very nostalgic of how Lemony Snicket books made me feel as a kid. It was so clever, thought out, and genuinely so amazing. The relationships were very organic and I could easily feel like I was in Linus's life. It was a book that had me staying up until 3am to finish it up and it is my absolute favorite book I've read in 2025 so far. 
Answers in the Pages by David Levithan

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funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

Levithan has always been one of my favorite authors and this book didn't disappoint! I wish so many people could read this book. It was such an amazing and satisfying story about the importance of Queer visibility for the youth and how the books with gay and queer characters need to be there for the youth to know they aren't alone. I loved seeing the characters growth as they went through the process of understanding what the book proposed to be banned was really about. It was amazing to see the kids GET IT because I know from experience that kids are so kind and willing to love those around them. They get tainted with bigotry because of their parents. It was refreshing to see how specific adults ended up feeling at the end of the book, giving me hope that the more I stand my ground about my queer rights and visibility as well as those around me, then people will see past their bigotry to know that we are full of love and deserve all the love. 
I Was Born for This by Alice Oseman

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adventurous emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective sad tense medium-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

5.0

 Absolutely adored this book! Going into it, I felt a LOT of second hand embarrassment about how truly FANGIRL Angel and the other fangirls were. But that's mostly steaming from when I myself was a fankid and hyper focused and involved in fandom and bandom. So in that way, I could also relate to Angel quite a bit and understood how she felt with the grappling of what else was there besides this band she loved? It was great getting the duel perspective to see what was happening from Jimmy as well. Two sides of the same coin when it comes to not knowing what you want. I really enjoyed the character development that happened and the way the characters met and interacted with each other. It was certainly not what I was expecting and that made me love it even more! I kept guessing in my head what would happen next or how their meeting would happen and I was always pleasantly surprised to be wrong. With this, I think I've finally completed reading all of Oseman's currently published work and I cannot wait for more. 
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Gwen and Art Are Not in Love by Lex Croucher

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adventurous emotional funny hopeful inspiring 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

5.0

 This book was everything I wanted it to be! I was so in love with all of the characters and they were all very well rounded and had realistic flaws, habits, desires, and doubts. It made me laugh very often and I was always intrigued by where things were going in every single chapter. There was not a moment of slowness and I was so eager to keep listening ASAP whenever I had to pause for life. Both narrators were very talented and great at portraying the emotions of the whole cast. I felt like the actions of each character felt very realistic and was very happy that a lot of common tropes were evaded during this book. I'm very excited to read more from this author in the future! 
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Shatter the Sky by Rebecca Kim Wells

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

4.0

I don't think I ever would've read this book if it weren't for book club. It felt pretty predictable at first and felt a lot like a love child of Sabriel and The Hunger Games but make it Game of Thrones. The pacing (probably due to the way it was narrarated) felt slow at first and I ended up listening at 1.5x speed in order to stay focused and intrigued. I was expecting to give this closer to 3 stars but the last quarter of the book had me quite surprised and intrigued by how events started turning around and playing out. I didn't know it was a series going into it and it left a decent cliff hanger at the end. Looking forward to reading the sequel later in the year, but not an immediate Next Read. 
Mortal Follies by Alexis Hall

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adventurous emotional funny hopeful inspiring mysterious medium-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? No

4.5

I am not normally one for regency romances. I have enjoyed watching Bridgerton and quite lovingly consider Kiera Knightley's P&P one of my favorite movies. But otherwise I don't really read books as such. This was a delight to read and I loved all of the different aspects happened through it. I very much enjoyed the narration perspective and how Robin came into play during the events of the book. The steamy parts were delightful but not quite as detailed as I expect most romance books are (again I don't read many). I was very intrigued by the magic of this world and how it was used. It was a very satisfying book and I'm excited to read more from this Author!
Let's Get Burgers by Ash S

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funny hopeful lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? N/A
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

5.0

omg such a silly and cute read! I love simple panel comics and this was a joy to read during such a terrifying time in the world. I'd give my left kidney for Knife or Cheddar. 
Gearbreakers by Zoe Hana Mikuta

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adventurous challenging dark emotional tense 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? It's complicated

3.5

I've been wanting to read this book for a while and it was pretty great! I liked the concept of what Gearbreakers do and how the resistance is working to take down the mechas. I was intrigued right away at the end of Sona's first chapter when you see her real intention of trying to dismantle and hurt the system from the inside. I listened to this via audiobook and I think that's what made me knock down a star. Both narrarators were great, but they were very similar in style and it took me a long time to differentiate between the two. I also had a really hard time understanding when listening the difference between present time and flashbacks during the first quarter of the book. I struggled a bit with the pacing, feeling like there was a lot of ""and suddenly!"" moments. I do understand that during apocalyptic war survival, there will be a lot of stuff like that happening, but I feel like sometimes it happened so quickly not only to the characters but to the reader as well and I felt confused and would have to rewind to make sure I didn't miss anything. the book ended with an intense cliff hanger that basically requires you to read the next book. I personally don't mind that about books, but I know it's a turn off to others. I hope to check out book 2 in the future!!
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Sorcery and Small Magics by Maiga Doocy

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adventurous challenging emotional funny inspiring mysterious tense medium-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? It's complicated

5.0

I am in sheer awe of how awesome this book was. I could not consume it fast enough but simultaneously desired so badly to slow it down and take my time. I listened to it from the library but will be purchasing a hard copy to read asap. I like that there were some cliffhanger elements to the book, but not a huge one that leaves me upset (just kidding I'm very upset I have to wait for a second book to be released). The Magic system in this book was so fascinating and enticing! It was clear and concise while also being available to explore a variety of options.