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liblibby's reviews
236 reviews
Witchcraft for Wayward Girls by Grady Hendrix
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-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? It's complicated
5.0
Definitely check content warnings before diving in. But this book is sooo, so good.
I kind of can’t believe a childfree man wrote this book. He obviously had some really incredible sources that he turned to when it came to the experience of being pregnant, going through a pelvic exam, delivering a baby, and being a teenage girl at all.
There wasn’t a single moment of this book where I wasn’t absolutely hooked. Nothing was boring. There were no lulls. My favorite Grady Hendrix book I’ve read so far.
I kind of can’t believe a childfree man wrote this book. He obviously had some really incredible sources that he turned to when it came to the experience of being pregnant, going through a pelvic exam, delivering a baby, and being a teenage girl at all.
There wasn’t a single moment of this book where I wasn’t absolutely hooked. Nothing was boring. There were no lulls. My favorite Grady Hendrix book I’ve read so far.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Racism, Forced institutionalization, Medical content, Medical trauma, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Pedophilia, Sexism, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence
Be Ready When the Luck Happens by Ina Garten
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
5.0
I loved this book so much. I saw myself in a lot of Ina’s story and it gave me so much hope and excited for my future.
I Hope This Finds You Well by Natalie Sue
funny
mysterious
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? Yes
5.0
I loooved this book. I read it SO FAST! Which—I recently learned is something that authors find offensive? But I just mean I was hooked from the get-to and I ignored so much of my life so that I could crawl into this book and live there for a while. The plot twists were GLORIOUS and made me giddy.
Now, I am basically allergic to what I call “depressed single girl” books and I was worried that was what this was going to be (like, My Year of Rest and Relaxation or Luster, for example). But there was so much humor and lightness around it all that it kept me from becoming depressed and I was never confused about Joleen’s motivations.
To me it gave Fleabag—a woman trying her best with misguided (but hilarious to the audience) coping mechanisms just trying to survive in the wake of trauma.
Five stars. I loved it so much. Also the office setting was impeccable.
Now, I am basically allergic to what I call “depressed single girl” books and I was worried that was what this was going to be (like, My Year of Rest and Relaxation or Luster, for example). But there was so much humor and lightness around it all that it kept me from becoming depressed and I was never confused about Joleen’s motivations.
To me it gave Fleabag—a woman trying her best with misguided (but hilarious to the audience) coping mechanisms just trying to survive in the wake of trauma.
Five stars. I loved it so much. Also the office setting was impeccable.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcoholism and Grief
Minor: Bullying, Cancer, Domestic abuse, and Death of parent
Lady Tan's Circle of Women by Lisa See
challenging
informative
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
This book is so unlike what I generally read. I tend to stay away from books that take place in fantasy worlds or ancient history or cultures just because it's hard for my brain to take in a story and character development while also understanding this world that's being created--essentially from scratch, to me. That's why I generally stick to stories that are rooted in something similar to my world. This book took place in 1400's China and I'm really surprised that I picked up on it so quickly.
It took me a long, long time to read this book just because I found myself Googling everything. I rarely had a reading session that didn't end in falling down a Google rabbit hole. I learned so much and really enjoyed giving this story my full attention.
This story follows Tan Yunxian from her birth until her mid-life. She was a real person who was born into an elite family and eventually raised by her grandparents--doctors, who trained her in the ways of medicine. Even though women doctors were practically nonexistant at that time.
This book follows her--her deep, longstanding friendship with the local midwife, and all the other women who come alongside her in her life.
I have one main complaint about the book and one 1/2 complaint which contains a spoiler--I'll start with the first. The book is called Lady Tan's Circle of Women but she doesn't even gather her circle of women until the last 40 pages of the book. I wish this book had been named something like "Lady Tan: Women Doctor" or something like that. Because I was looking for female camaraderie and I feel like that really didn't even happen in a satisfying way until the end. And Tan Yunxian lived to be in her 90's--so it's not like she didn't have any more life to draw from.
My last complaint is, honestly, rooted in my 21st century sensibilities:
So much of this book was dedicated to pointing out the inhumanity that women were experiencing at this time in this part of the world. From footbinding to the class system they must live by to the way they're raised to not even look up at the world around them, to the ways so many women were sold into sex work whether they wanted it or not. So much of the book is focused on that, that you expect that when Yunxian is finally at a station where she can make a change to any of it, she would. But she doesn't. She breaks her daughters' feet. She buys concubines for her husband. She even helps a man be sentenced to torture and decapitation because of something that her mother-in-law forced him to do... She's kind to the women around her. She eventually writes a book to help women care for the health of the people in her household--which is no small thing. But I was so disappointed in her character. That being said, I realize that she's a real person who really lived in a world so completely differently from mine. I can not judge her at all. But if there was no interest in addressing these issues, I sort of wish the author had handled the topics differently.
It took me a long, long time to read this book just because I found myself Googling everything. I rarely had a reading session that didn't end in falling down a Google rabbit hole. I learned so much and really enjoyed giving this story my full attention.
This story follows Tan Yunxian from her birth until her mid-life. She was a real person who was born into an elite family and eventually raised by her grandparents--doctors, who trained her in the ways of medicine. Even though women doctors were practically nonexistant at that time.
This book follows her--her deep, longstanding friendship with the local midwife, and all the other women who come alongside her in her life.
I have one main complaint about the book and one 1/2 complaint which contains a spoiler--I'll start with the first. The book is called Lady Tan's Circle of Women but she doesn't even gather her circle of women until the last 40 pages of the book. I wish this book had been named something like "Lady Tan: Women Doctor" or something like that. Because I was looking for female camaraderie and I feel like that really didn't even happen in a satisfying way until the end. And Tan Yunxian lived to be in her 90's--so it's not like she didn't have any more life to draw from.
My last complaint is, honestly, rooted in my 21st century sensibilities:
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Infertility, Miscarriage, Rape, Blood, Medical content, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Classism, and Pandemic/Epidemic
Napkins and Other Distractions by M.A. Wardell
emotional
funny
hopeful
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
I just finished this one (like 12 minutes ago). It’s been on my shelf for ages and I hate that I didn’t pick it up before now because I loved it soooooo much!
There was (a lot) more sex in this romance than I’m used to (probably falls into the “smut” category?). And usually I’m kind of not into too much of that but I Was SO IN LOVE with these characters.
It’s an opposites attract, workplace romance. I will say that one character has OCD that leans heavy in the germaphobe/ cleanliness direction. As someone who doesn’t experience that, I couldn’t tell you if it’s a realistic portrayal or not. But if that’s something you live with, I do think it could potentially be triggering since we kind of go into the mind of that character quite a bit. So proceed with caution.
Other than that, I want to read everything by this author! He knows his characters so well and makes you love them quickly.
There was (a lot) more sex in this romance than I’m used to (probably falls into the “smut” category?). And usually I’m kind of not into too much of that but I Was SO IN LOVE with these characters.
It’s an opposites attract, workplace romance. I will say that one character has OCD that leans heavy in the germaphobe/ cleanliness direction. As someone who doesn’t experience that, I couldn’t tell you if it’s a realistic portrayal or not. But if that’s something you live with, I do think it could potentially be triggering since we kind of go into the mind of that character quite a bit. So proceed with caution.
Other than that, I want to read everything by this author! He knows his characters so well and makes you love them quickly.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness and Sexual content
Wild Eyes by Elsie Silver
emotional
funny
lighthearted
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I’m always surprised at how even a slow reader like me can just plow through these Elsie Silver books. They tend to be about 100+ pages longer than the average romance but they never feel like they’re lagging or taking too long. In fact, it feels like she gives these characters the attention they deserve.
Skylar Stone is a country music legend and in the middle of a breakdown when she finds her way to a small Canadian mountain town to work on her next album.
With nowhere else to stay, she sleeps in West’s bunk house and she finds the safety and serenity she’s never known as a child star turned superstar. 10/10!
Skylar Stone is a country music legend and in the middle of a breakdown when she finds her way to a small Canadian mountain town to work on her next album.
With nowhere else to stay, she sleeps in West’s bunk house and she finds the safety and serenity she’s never known as a child star turned superstar. 10/10!
What I Ate in One Year (and Related Thoughts) by Stanley Tucci
reflective
relaxing
slow-paced
5.0
Sadly finished this book today. Between the cost of hardcover books and how much I was enjoying it, I tried to make it last as long as possible.
I loved this book at this particular time in my life when I am very much drawn to simplicity.
It might not make sense to hear about a year in the life of a Hollywood A-Lister and all his celebrity friends with multiple vacations and fancy restaurants is focused on simplicity.
But at the end of the day he does what we all do—comes home, makes spaghetti for his family, laughs at his children, pours wine for friends, scrubs the dishes, and goes to bed.
I loved this book at this particular time in my life when I am very much drawn to simplicity.
It might not make sense to hear about a year in the life of a Hollywood A-Lister and all his celebrity friends with multiple vacations and fancy restaurants is focused on simplicity.
But at the end of the day he does what we all do—comes home, makes spaghetti for his family, laughs at his children, pours wine for friends, scrubs the dishes, and goes to bed.
Out On a Limb by Hannah Bonam-Young
emotional
lighthearted
fast-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? It's complicated
5.0
I don’t think it’s a spoiler at all to say that my favorite part of this book is that there is no frustrating break up scene in the 3rd quarter
The Fastest Way To Fall by Denise Williams
funny
inspiring
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
4.0
LOVED THIS! I read it so fast. Britt’s gets an assignment to write about this new body positive fitness app. Wes is the incredibly hot, body positive coach assigned to her. It’s a strangers to friends to lovers.
I loved it because it was incredibly sweet and clever with a LOT of heart. Not the spiciest book, maybe I’d give it 2/5 🌶️.
I loved it because it was incredibly sweet and clever with a LOT of heart. Not the spiciest book, maybe I’d give it 2/5 🌶️.
Mrs. Quinn's Rise to Fame by Olivia Ford
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
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 a sweet cozy read that asks really big questions! I loved the characters and their love for one another. The flashbacks were heartbreaking but nothing scary or anything like that.
Content Warnings
Minor: Forced institutionalization, Death of parent, and Pregnancy