careythesixth's reviews
793 reviews

Cassiel's Servant by Jacqueline Carey

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adventurous emotional reflective 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 was so much fun! I've loved this series since Kushiel's Dart came out 20+ years ago and this was a delightful and fresh return to the events of that book. I've always loved Joscelin and didn't know how much I needed this retelling until I read it. 

I'd welcome a full return to Terre d'Ange to explore old and new characters. This is one of my favorite fantasy worlds. 
The Cautious Traveller's Guide to the Wastelands by Sarah Brooks

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

2.0

I wanted to like this so much. The first third of the book set up a great premise. But it quickly became a slog. This was a structural mess and the story suffered for it. There needed to be at least *one* POV character who wasn't clueless. The Captain, Suzuki, the Professor, Elena, even one of the Crows. Instead, we're stuck with three people narrowly focused on their own agendas who manage to bumble into a larger story (but are still only interested in their own problems). 

There was so much unexplored potential in this book and it made me angry. The Wastelands Society, the Moscow Expedition, Artemis, the Captain's backstory, Suzuki's backstory, Roskov, the history of the Company, etc. Writing about it is pissing me off. None of the reveals at the end were earned because I wasn't given enough information to care and none of the POV characters had any agency. 

In conclusion, I'm mad because this should have been awesome and it wasn't. 
Bride by Ali Hazelwood

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emotional funny mysterious 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? Yes

3.5

3.5
I liked it more than I thought I would, but I still don't really like romances.
The Last Hour Between Worlds by Melissa Caruso

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adventurous challenging mysterious fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

3.5 stars
I liked the locked room and time loop of it all. I liked the world building. Some of the twists were fun. But the how and why was incomprehensible. And the romantic angst sometimes got too stupid to bear. Not sure yet if I want to read the sequel.
The Village Library Demon-Hunting Society by C.M. Waggoner

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

3.0

This was fun at times, but not what is advertised in the title. There isn't any demon hunting and there is no scrappy band of unlikely friends doing it. The main character doesn't so much investigate as come across useful information. The possessed cat plotline drops into nothing quickly. The twist regarding the internet wasn't earned - there's nothing to indicate that this isn't a pre-internet book until 3/4 of the way through. The end kind of just happens. I also had a really hard time with the yew branch thing. I don't know. I just mostly found this disappointing.
The Dead Cat Tail Assassins by P. Djèlí Clark

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Did not finish book. Stopped at 25%.
Maybe it's just that the audiobook is overacted. Or maybe that what's going on is telegraphed hard and early on, but I'm not feeling this one. DNF at 25%
The High King by Lloyd Alexander

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

4.0

When I was a kid, I just accepted the end of this series as horribly sad but didn't question it. As an adult, I'm pissed. Taran saves the kingdom, he's offered a reward that Dalban knows he won't take, and then what he ends up getting is magic disappearing forever, the Fair Folk leaving forever, his best friends leaving to frolic in the Summer Country for all eternity without him, and the task of building up the land from scratch. And after he eventually dies, people won't even know if he was ever real. I call bullshit. Gwydion is worse than Scumbledore.
The Castle of Llyr by Lloyd Alexander

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adventurous emotional hopeful reflective 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

4.0

Fflewddur and Llyan are one of my favorite pairs in all of fiction, full stop. That's why this book gets 4 stars. Llyan rules. 

However, I've always been bothered by the fact that this book is Eilonwy's story but not her POV. And that she needs saving in her own story when she'd been so capable in the first two books. 

Then again, this series as a whole is Taran's story. And this is a book about Taran's feelings for Eilonwy. And... it's the 60s. Women aren't real people yet, even in fiction (even though Eilonwy is generally pretty solid).
The Black Cauldron by Lloyd Alexander

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adventurous dark reflective 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

3.0

This is by far my least favorite of the series. Ready to move on.
The Book of Three by Lloyd Alexander

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

5.0

Revisiting books I haven't read in decades seems to be my jam right now. Rereading the Prydain Chronicles as a middle aged adult is a whole new experience.