meeshreads's reviews
735 reviews

This is a pretty straightforward mystery with a little bit of a love story thrown in. I liked it fine, but it didn't feel super memorable. 

I liked this but not as much as Cultish. 

This book is a little too realistic. Set in a world where algorithms know everything about us, including mining dreams for data from a device marketed to help people sleep. A stressful life situation could manifest in an upsetting dream that lands you into a detention center "for observation." It's not a prison, but has plenty of similarities. Words and explanations mean nothing--the data doesn't lie. Sara is a sympathetic character, and I was really invested in her story, hoping she would be able to be released but also not seeing how it could be possible, with the way the center worked, where every tiny infraction incurs more time, the bureaucracy of the hearings, and of course the dream data that is never ending. 

A satisfying end to the series, this book is bloody, fast-paced, and full of horror movie references. I really loved going through this story with Jade, from the angsty teen in the first book, to the history teacher in this book, she is a badass, and I hope she is able to find a little bit of peace beyond the pages of this story. 

This is a well told story with great characters and a realistic setting. I really loved all the characters, wanting a happy ending for each of them. The audiobook was well read, and I was fully engaged in the narration throughout. The story is set in Alabama in the 60s, with race as a main theme, but it didn't feel extremely historical in the voice, I kept forgetting it was in the 60s, the situations and issues are still pretty relevant today, which is a bummer to realize. I really liked it overall. I don't feel the title really fits the book.

This book is a wild ride. Slightly predictable in the last third or so. The audiobook is well read, a one character perspective. The main character was sort of unbelievably unlikeable and naive, yet I couldn't stop listening. A fun and slightly unhinged book. 

I really loved this book. On the surface, it's a story of a couple, from the charming (or maybe creepy) way they meet, jumping ahead to years into their marriage. But it delves way more into what makes each of them who they are, from events in their childhoods (each traumatic in different ways) and before they meet (college/finding themselves). Are they a true match, or were they simply seeking in each other something they felt they needed when they met, both feeling alone in a big city? and is the person they each fell in love with the real person, deep down, or a facade of how they wished to present themselves and be seen? Are they still compatible many years later with a kid on the mix? The book has some really fascinating tangents about monogamy, love, relationships, etc, and these characters are realistic, flawed, believable, lovable. If you really love a complex and fast moving plot, this might not be for you, but if you like to dig deep into characters, psychology, and sociology, read it!! 

I liked this book, it started out strong, I was invested in the mystery, but as it went on the story lost me a bit. I enjoyed the characters, particularly the main narrator, Joe, but overall I don't feel that the book as a whole is super memorable.

This book is less about cults than it is about Maria, her family and experiences, and mental illness. It's silly in parts, the recipes throughout are funny, and it's a bit chaotic in structure, but it was a quick listen, and Maria reading it helped it all make sense. I particularly enjoyed her impressions of her mother. 

As a completely skeptical, agnostic, cult-documentary-obsessed human who believes all organized religions are basically a cult, I loved this book. It really got me thinking about the terminology and phrases we use in all sorts of scenarios and fandoms that is Cultish (like English), and the book was entertaining and informative. I'll be reading Amanda's other books, (&podcast!) I really liked her writing style (&narration of the audiobook) and perspective.