Take a photo of a barcode or cover
juan_adhd_reading's reviews
125 reviews
The Sacrifice by Rin Chupeco
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
I think I liked this one a bit better that the Girl From the Well. It was really action packed and high paced, and there was a twist at the end that really took me by surprise! The island setting provides an excellent atmosphere for the eerie tropical horror of this story. Really short and fun! Would recommend.
The Last Bloodcarver by Vanessa Le
adventurous
emotional
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? No
4.0
This was awesome! It's like Nina Zenik from Six of Crows lived in the post-industrial world of Legend of Korra. It was really amazing to see how the author's own experience as a medical practitioner influenced her world and character-building. Although I'm not a med student, I did receive a course on bioethics, and was able to catch a lot of the same principles on the Heartsoother's tenets. I really like how the magic system follows some basic principles of conservation of mass and energy, plus having the need to study anatomy and the many complex paths and connections throughout the human body. It felt really grounded, yet it was also fantastical.
The story is told through the lens of a refugee, and her family having to leave their home due to persecution and an ongoing war. We see her having to hide her gift, the many prejudices society has against her people, and the overall inequality that's rampant in a city that prides itself in "progress". And though she is mad at the city and its people for all the harm that she's endured, she never loses her empathy, and her desire to use her gift to heal and make the world better. She was truly and admirable character, and I so wish to learn more about her.
That ending broke me! I can't believe it was left as a cliffhanger like that. I can't wait for the sequel!
The story is told through the lens of a refugee, and her family having to leave their home due to persecution and an ongoing war. We see her having to hide her gift, the many prejudices society has against her people, and the overall inequality that's rampant in a city that prides itself in "progress". And though she is mad at the city and its people for all the harm that she's endured, she never loses her empathy, and her desire to use her gift to heal and make the world better. She was truly and admirable character, and I so wish to learn more about her.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence, Physical abuse, Racism, Xenophobia, Trafficking, and Kidnapping
Moderate: Grief and Medical trauma
A House with Good Bones by T. Kingfisher
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
5.0
If I discovered anything about myself this year is that I'm a sucker for hunted house stories. I adore T. Kingfisher! This book was so creepy and wonderful. As with "What moves the dead" and fungi, in this story, I learned a lot about bugs and roses, and now I also have the irrational fear that my grandmother will hunt us after death to nag us about our eating habits and the gnarly states of our rooms, lol. Anyway, if you loved Alex Easton you will also love Sam Montgomery! Kingfisher has a knack for writing the straight-headed sarcastic character that is suddenly hurled into a magical, haunted, terribly impossible scenario. It was an amazing book, highly recommend it!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Racism
The Girl from the Well by Rin Chupeco
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
Me and Earl and the Dying Girl (Revised Edition) by Jesse Andrews
emotional
funny
lighthearted
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
It was fine. I really liked the format of the book, and how sometimes it changed to a script, bullet notes, etc. I think the way it’s written made it incredibly easy to read and finish quickly. I mean, it’s probably one of the fastest books I’ve read this year, and it provided a well needed break from the fantasy books I was reading before.
The thing is, I didn’t really liked the characters that much. And I get that Greg is not supposed to be a good protagonist, because this is at its heart, a subversion of the typical John Green sickly girl YA romance. But still, it kind of got tiring and a bit cringy at times. I think whether you like this book or not depends a lot on whether you find Greg funny. I didn’t really get it. His jokes were really childish and gross, more something I would expect from a 12 year old, but maybe I’m just getting too old for this kind of YA. Idk. Some of the jokes were borderline racist, homophobic or misogynistic in some way, which some might say it was the culture at the time, but is still no excuse.
Anyway, I still suggest giving it a chance, especially if you’re a fan of John Green but are looking for something different. I’m still gonna watch the movie, see how that goes.
The thing is, I didn’t really liked the characters that much. And I get that Greg is not supposed to be a good protagonist, because this is at its heart, a subversion of the typical John Green sickly girl YA romance. But still, it kind of got tiring and a bit cringy at times. I think whether you like this book or not depends a lot on whether you find Greg funny. I didn’t really get it. His jokes were really childish and gross, more something I would expect from a 12 year old, but maybe I’m just getting too old for this kind of YA. Idk. Some of the jokes were borderline racist, homophobic or misogynistic in some way, which some might say it was the culture at the time, but is still no excuse.
Anyway, I still suggest giving it a chance, especially if you’re a fan of John Green but are looking for something different. I’m still gonna watch the movie, see how that goes.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Cancer and Drug use
Minor: Biphobia, Body shaming, Homophobia, and Toxic friendship
Mort by Terry Pratchett
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
I can’t believe I haven’t read anything by Terry Pratchett before. This was so amazing! The world building alone is just something to marvel at, and I can’t wait to learn more about the Discworld and its many peculiarities.
Fallen Thorns by Harvey Oliver Baxter
dark
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
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 was a very cute book! Despite the inherently dark fact that it is about a boy being killed and becoming a vampire, this was actually a really lighthearted coming of age story. I found it a bit cheesy at times, but in the way that receiving a bunch of compliments at once can sometimes feel cringy (is that just me 😅). Anyway, this book also has a very emphatic arc of the main character, Arlo, discovering his asexuality which is one of the strongest points of this book. I could relate to Arlo in a lot of ways which was one of the reasons why I really enjoyed this book. The other one being that all the characters genuinely love Arlo, and care for each other very deeply. If you’re a fan of the found family trope, I highly recommend this book. Also, one of the biggest highlights of this book is the character art scattered all throughout. It is gorgeous! I really wish more books included illustrations like this.
My main complaint would be the pacing. Given that most of the book is set on finding the person that killed Arlo, I would expect more tension, action and a bit more mystery. I took longer than expected to finish this book because of the pacing. However, the last 50 -ish pages where extremely action packed and much more violent and dark that the rest of the book. I think I would have rather more of the book to be written this way.During one of the last chapters there’s the death of a character that carries a strong emotional sucker punch. Personally, I think this could’ve been done better if we had explored more of this character, but it was still incredibly sad. Still, I am very excited for the continuation of this story, and also the prequel coming out soon about the supporting characters Ben and Casper (loved them!)
My main complaint would be the pacing. Given that most of the book is set on finding the person that killed Arlo, I would expect more tension, action and a bit more mystery. I took longer than expected to finish this book because of the pacing. However, the last 50 -ish pages where extremely action packed and much more violent and dark that the rest of the book. I think I would have rather more of the book to be written this way.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Physical abuse, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, and Cannibalism
Moderate: Addiction, Self harm, Sexual assault, and Sexual harassment
Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir
adventurous
challenging
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Wow! I am completely speechless. I have no idea how would a person would even think of this book, how they could even find the language to construct this world. But they did! And it was fantastic, rich and dark. I’ll admit I had a hard time getting into this book, but I am really glad the author trusts their audience. Trying to understand what the heck was going on was half the fun. Then we have Gideon and Harrow, who were each hilarious and lovable in their own way and as a pair. The last bit of this book was nonstop action that kept me at the edge of my seat, and I seriously cannot believe what I just read! I’m really excited for the next book in the series.
I Feed Her to the Beast and the Beast Is Me by Jamison Shea
dark
mysterious
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
So what if she’s the Devil? At least the Devil has a JOB. At least she’s ACTIVE in the COMMUNITY!
Seriously, this book had me stressed since before the supernatural things even started happening. This book was an excellent insight at the elitist and cutthroat world that is ballet. This book was filled with terrible characters and I LOVED IT!!! This was a villain origin story in which ambition may have gotten the best of Laure, desperate to climb to the top, to the point where she was willing to sacrifice her own soul (and even worse, her ability to dance!). I loved seeing everyone who was horrible to Laure get what they deserved, and watching Laure slowly become corrupted by her newfound powers. My only complaint would be the pacing, which was slow at times, but I’m really excited to see how the story escalates in the next book!
Seriously, this book had me stressed since before the supernatural things even started happening. This book was an excellent insight at the elitist and cutthroat world that is ballet. This book was filled with terrible characters and I LOVED IT!!! This was a villain origin story in which ambition may have gotten the best of Laure, desperate to climb to the top, to the point where she was willing to sacrifice her own soul (and even worse, her ability to dance!). I loved seeing everyone who was horrible to Laure get what they deserved, and watching Laure slowly become corrupted by her newfound powers. My only complaint would be the pacing, which was slow at times, but I’m really excited to see how the story escalates in the next book!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Self harm, and Blood
Moderate: Body shaming, Death, Toxic relationship, Violence, Toxic friendship, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
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
5.0
I have never cried as much with any book as this one, and this is not hyperbole. This was such a lovely story; beautifully written; and it was fantastic, sad, epic, everything I expected it to be and still managed to surprise me. It is probably one of V.E. Schwab’s best works and the reason she will forever be my favorite author.
I have nothing else to say for now, as I just have finished the story. Will probably come back soon to write a full review, but for now I feel completely satisfied and very hopeful about the ending. Highly recommend!
I have nothing else to say for now, as I just have finished the story. Will probably come back soon to write a full review, but for now I feel completely satisfied and very hopeful about the ending. Highly recommend!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, and War
Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Grief, and Abandonment
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Death of parent, Gaslighting, and Alcohol