baileys_books's reviews
239 reviews

Half a Soul by Olivia Atwater

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adventurous funny hopeful lighthearted 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? Yes

4.5

Howl’s Moving Castle meets Pride and Prejudice in a sweet, fun little regency fairytale with a nice dusting of class consciousness and anti-monarchy moments. 
Monstrilio by Gerardo Sámano Córdova

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challenging dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

A delightfully weird and macabre exploration of grief. And just about everyone is at least a little bit gay! 
Faebound by Saara El-Arifi

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

3.0

I really, really wanted to like this. Alas. 

The pros: incredible worldbuilding. The lore, the creation myths of humans, elves, and fae, the politics, and especially the magic were all fascinating. And the obeah! Some of the best animal companions yet, and they’re sassy and fun! (I’m on a real talking animal companions kick, y’all). 
The diversity is exquisite and unforced, both racially and with a plethora of genders and disabilities. It’s all handled with dignity and grace, and makes the world even more vibrant and enticing. 

The cons: the two main characters. They’re half-sisters, and clearly their idiocy and complete lack of insight and depth came from their shared mom, because holy fuck. They were INFURIATING. Neither of them seemed to undergo any personal growth, or ever even own up to their (many, MANY) mistakes, with exception for continually rolling around in the guilt of things that weren’t actually their fault. The fact that the book ended
with Lettle mad at Yeeran for the same thing she was mad at her about in the beginning is so fitting for her complete lack of emotional maturity and growth.


I’ll still read the sequel, because I care about some of the other characters, but holy fucking lack of critical thinking and big picture worldview. I cannot stand them, but particularly Lettle. 
Also, Yeeran’s romance seemed to come out of nowhere. She really went “enemy… but hot? Mm yes, love of my life.”

Where the Dark Stands Still by A.B. Poranek

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

4.5

Howl’s Moving Castle meets Polish folklore in this beautiful book about sentient woods, angry old gods, vengeful spirits, betrayal, and embracing one’s potential. And there’s a talking cat! Everyone knows I love a good animal companion. 
Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik

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adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious 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

4.5

Spinning Silver was such a delightful fairytale reimagining. While I’d expect nothing less from our fanfic Queen Naomi Novik, it was so fun to see her flex her character work. With six POV characters, three of them being our leading ladies, it could’ve been very easy for the POVs to get muddy and too same-y. Novik did such an amazing job of creating unique voices for each character to where it was immediately evident whose POV we were in every time it switched. 
The world was so magical and fantastical while still being very well fleshed out. Our three main characters were all drastically different, and all learned to embrace their strengths to work together against the two antagonists - Chernobog and the Staryk King. Despite being based on already existing fairytales, nothing felt derivative or cheap. The story was unique and enchanting, many of the characters were very sweet (particularly Wanda and Steppon), and there were some incredibly beautiful moments. 

My only gripe was the romance: there was none.
Two of our main characters end up married to some of the “villains”, and neither of the romances felt earned or realistic. They either could have been left out entirely, or needed more
 
Yield Under Great Persuasion by Alexandra Rowland

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adventurous 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

4.25

I never knew how much I needed to see “Goblin” as an endearing pet name, but I’m so sold. Tam is the grumpiest, most self-loathing and untrusting man who has found himself stuck in a rut. Through the meddling of some delightfully crude gods, and his infinitely patient “enemy-with-benefits” Nicolau, Tam is able to confront his long-standing abandonment issues and learn that he’s worthy of love. 
There’s angry sex, angry avoidance of sex, SO many dick jokes, and the reluctant acceptance of being goddess-chosen. 

Tam really is a mean little goblin, but I saw so much of myself in him and genuinely loved to see the growth he had to drag himself through. It wasn’t easy, and he wasn’t perfect by the end, but got so see how many people loved him and were ready to fight him about it. 
Running Close to the Wind by Alexandra Rowland

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adventurous funny lighthearted fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This book was exactly what it was advertised to be: Incredibly gay, incredibly goofy, incredibly adorable. 

Our Flag Meets Death meets The Great British Bake Off in this fun pirate romp across the seas as the main characters navigate their fraught relationships with each other, the dangerous ocean during serpent breeding season, the annual pirate island cake competition, and their plot to undermine the most powerful nation in the world and open up the seas to common sailors and pirates alike.  

At times the absolute quirkiness of this book almost started to rub me the wrong way, but it was elegantly balanced with some mediations on religion and politics, and some shockingly emotional moments about finding worth in yourself as you are. 

Absolutely recommend if you need a fun palette cleanser filled with queer, polyamorous pirates and adorable blue glowing dogs. 
Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas

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adventurous challenging emotional hopeful 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

This was such a sweet, affirming, beautiful story. It’s so enjoyable to watch Yadriel and Julian’s relationship develop, and Mari is an excellent balance to the two of them. Perfect to read around Halloween, as a beautiful celebration of queer love and familial acceptance and support. 
For She Is Wrath by Emily Varga

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adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful tense medium-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

4.0

This was a loud and satisfying moment of female rage and revenge packed into a Pakistani re-telling of the count of monte cristo with a heavy dose of djinn magic. I loved that Varga didn’t shy away from letting Dania get violent and brutal in her revenge. 
The pacing was a little off, and it made the ending feel very rushed. It could have benefitted from being a bit longer. 
I also think it could have been even better as an adult book rather than YA, which would have given it room to explore some of the darker themes and brutality a little more. Overall I really enjoyed it, though!
The Fireborne Blade by Charlotte Bond

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

4.5

This was a quick, exciting take on dragon hunting with a satisfying twist. Bond managed to pack so much story into such a short book, and still gave us intriguing world building in the form of academic records. 
This one’s for all the lady knight lovers out there.