linneahbt's reviews
261 reviews

When He Was Wicked by Julia Quinn

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

3.0

I won't say I didn't enjoy this. But it wasn't... romantic? Which I thought was the point...?
On a Quiet Street: An absolutely gripping and totally addictive psychological thriller with a heart-stopping twist by Carla Kovach

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dark mysterious tense fast-paced

4.25

This was indeed gripping! I thought it was a really unique structure and the pacing was excellent - just as I was done with vague hinting another piece of the puzzle was revealed. A fun vacation read!
Five Survive by Holly Jackson

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dark mysterious tense fast-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

I liked this! The ending was a total surprise to me, I am usually pretty good at figuring things out as I go and I didn't quite put all the pieces together for this one. Good pacing and tension.
Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982 by Cho Nam-joo

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reflective 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

3.75

It's hard to be a woman.

I liked meeting Jiyoung in present day - would've liked more of it. I liked the flash back and chronological storytelling. I liked the facts and real learning interspersed with her story.
I was frustrated by so much of it (I think that was the point).
A Grief Observed by C.S. Lewis

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emotional reflective slow-paced

4.0

Puts words to the overwhelming senselessness of grief and the long, slow process of rebuilding.
The Making of the Atomic Bomb by Richard Rhodes

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dark informative slow-paced

5.0

The first 70% of this book can be a slog - dense, detailed information about every single discovery in physics over decades. Political drama. Too many people.

But the last two chapters. Some of the most compelling, painful, awe-inspiring writing I have ever read. Every detail that felt "too much" at the beginning culminating in an incredible picture of the destructiveness of war. The horror of the reality of what had been done and the potential that was unleashed. 

I have no previous knowledge of physics and this made things difficult for me throughout much of this book - this is why it took me 9 months to read it - but every second was worth it.
How Far We Go and How Fast by Nora Decter

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emotional 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? Yes

5.0

Grief is so isolating and lonely and confusing and consuming and this encapsulates all of it. How do you carry on when a person you love leaves you? The best way you know how.
Does Coffee Cause Cancer?: And 8 More Myths about the Food We Eat by Christopher Labos

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funny informative slow-paced

3.0

Interesting concepts. Wondering why it needed to be a love story.
I Will Find You by Harlan Coben

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

4.0

I thought this was a fun read. A really interesting premise and good pacing.
the FBI agents were a little too good to believe, so almost TOO tense...?
Garden of Stones by Sophie Littlefield

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emotional reflective sad 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

4.5

I love an historical fiction about the "secret" parts of history - the parts we're afraid to talk about or pretend don't happen. I love a story about motherhood and daughterhood. I love a light mystery and when justice is served and when it isn't.