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cailynreads's reviews
103 reviews
If Only I Had Told Her by Laura Nowlin
5.0
This novel is heartbreaking in the most beautiful ways. It takes us through a journey of pure grief, and how that journey can still lead us to new happiness.
We revisit the story of Finny & Autumn, from Finn’s pov. It is even more beautiful than before, but we know it does not get its “happy ending” so you can’t help but to feel great sadness while reading about true love. We get inside the head of Finn’s best friend. This part was by far the saddest for me. It helped me to appreciate the small things about life that ultimately are the biggest.
We finish with Autumn’s pov. This story taking a turn and becoming a story of hope and of healing. It almost is a “happy” ending after all.
I really pray for another book in this series. Im on the fence about if she would. She argued with herself about letting Finny die, but the new book wouldn’t be about Finn necessarily….
We revisit the story of Finny & Autumn, from Finn’s pov. It is even more beautiful than before, but we know it does not get its “happy ending” so you can’t help but to feel great sadness while reading about true love. We get inside the head of Finn’s best friend. This part was by far the saddest for me. It helped me to appreciate the small things about life that ultimately are the biggest.
We finish with Autumn’s pov. This story taking a turn and becoming a story of hope and of healing. It almost is a “happy” ending after all.
I really pray for another book in this series. Im on the fence about if she would. She argued with herself about letting Finny die, but the new book wouldn’t be about Finn necessarily….
First Lie Wins by Ashley Elston
adventurous
dark
hopeful
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
I finally see what all the hype is about!
First Lie Wins is a very mysterious novel. We don’t find out too much about any of the characters until the last quarter of the novel. But this adds a whole effect of never knowing what comes next.
It’s tense and thrilling and you find yourself sitting on the edge of your seat. I know that’s said often, but this novel defines that. Twist after twist. There are alternating timelines that help tell the story and it is perfectly done. Each blast from the past leading to the grand finale perfectly.
Absolutely LOVE the ending! I will be recommending this for years to come, but I have a feeling this will be one of those books that everyone will read.
First Lie Wins is a very mysterious novel. We don’t find out too much about any of the characters until the last quarter of the novel. But this adds a whole effect of never knowing what comes next.
It’s tense and thrilling and you find yourself sitting on the edge of your seat. I know that’s said often, but this novel defines that. Twist after twist. There are alternating timelines that help tell the story and it is perfectly done. Each blast from the past leading to the grand finale perfectly.
Absolutely LOVE the ending! I will be recommending this for years to come, but I have a feeling this will be one of those books that everyone will read.
The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This was very exciting. This was the first time I was able to guess the twist about halfway through, but I still enjoyed every page. I love the unreliable narrator theme in this book. It’s often done, but in a way where the narrator was guilty or they knew more than they led you to believe. This time she was unreliable to herself and that made the ending that much better. I was screaming at her a lot throughout the story, but it wouldn’t be psych thriller if I wasn’t, right? Can’t wait to watch the movie!
Annie Bot by Sierra Greer
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This was a quick, one day read for me (it was a rainy day off). I throughly enjoyed this story. The journey of the robot Annie to becoming more woman & to feel liberated is a storyline that sparked similar feelings as the movie Barbie. I could hear “I used to float, now i just fall down….” playing in my head during a lot of the pages in this book. Such a wonderful read!
The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton
adventurous
challenging
dark
hopeful
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-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
4.0
This book was quite a journey. I believe this is one of those books where the length plays a part in making you feel as though you are in the story. We meet several different characters, a new one each day. The plot twist was a good one, I just think the length was unnecessary. But as I said, i truly believe it was done on purpose to give a sense of never ending and being stuck inside the loop with the main character.
So glad to finally have read this after seeing it everywhere for a while.
So glad to finally have read this after seeing it everywhere for a while.
The Teacher by Freida McFadden
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Freida does it again with a jaw dropping psych thriller. She doesn’t stop shocking you until the very last word of the book. This is a book with an incredibly flawed character list, and all their flaws come together to make an insane story. When reading Freida you literally cannot trust anyone!
The Wishing Game by Meg Shaffer
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This book is a book I will be recommending for
YEARSSS to come. I wanted to take a break from thriller & horror and this is exactly what I needed. This book made me feel so inspired to face my fears & persevere.
It gave me hope that with enough bravery I can achieve my goals. It made me smile, it made me cry, it made me laugh. I highly recommend this book to anyone that reads, no other requirements.
YEARSSS to come. I wanted to take a break from thriller & horror and this is exactly what I needed. This book made me feel so inspired to face my fears & persevere.
It gave me hope that with enough bravery I can achieve my goals. It made me smile, it made me cry, it made me laugh. I highly recommend this book to anyone that reads, no other requirements.
Zero Days by Ruth Ware
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
While I am usually a big fan of Ruth Ware, this one left me racing to finish just so that it was over. It was very slow paced, which I typically don’t mind. Her books are slow paced then blow up at the end. This didn’t have that WOW factor for me. I predicted exactly what was going on in the first couple chapters of the book. This is definitely my least favorite of hers. With that being said, it still received a 3 star rating from me.