mirandalikesbooks's reviews
40 reviews

Big Swiss by Jen Beagin

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dark funny
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Absolutely loved this book.

Greta acts with whim and impulse and indeciveness. Her emotional detachment from her life made this a book where you couldn't predict the next sentence as you followed along a stream of consciousness. It was cool to be so intimately connected to a character - I feel like I knew every single little thing that crossed Greta's mind over the course of the novel.

This style was irreverent and light while also discussing serious mental health themes. 

I've never read anything like it in the best way possible; it's an amazing read.

Also - who doesn't love a story with messy relationship drama? 

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The Good Sister by Sally Hepworth

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3.5

This book is easy to binge - the momentum of the book keeps your attention. I didnt stop reading until I was finished. 

I've never read a book with a clearly autistic main character (though I wish Hepworth would have actually said "autistic"), and it was an interesting POV. As a secondary plot line, I liked the romance in this. However,
the pregnancy seemed like a convenient hook for the story versus a natural progression.


My only real issue with the book was how much the themes and vibes felt exactly the same as the other book I've read by this author. 

Overall worth the read!
Darling Girls by Sally Hepworth

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challenging dark emotional hopeful sad tense 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

4.5

Maybe the best thriller I've read all year! Miss Fairchild was the perfect villan. I read like 200 pages of this in the middle of the night on the edge of my seat. 

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People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry

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emotional funny hopeful lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.25

I love Emily Henry and this book is no different! I like how the characters have growth outside of their roles in a relationship. As always, the dialogue is witty and fresh.
I also like the twist on the classic with the female lead chasing after the male lead in the finale.


This is only a minor spoiler:
My only issue with the plot was the reason the characters weren't getting together initially - like you're clearly in love. It seems a bit far fetched that you haven't tried getting together any time in the last 10+ years.


Overall, I loved it!
Funny Story by Emily Henry

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emotional funny hopeful lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes

4.25

Who doesn't love roommates to lovers???
The One by John Marrs

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dark emotional hopeful mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No

3.0

Interesting to read all the couple's stories come together. Science discovering your genetic DNA match is very black mirror. It's a cool premise that the author fleshed out well. It stays a middle of the road book for me though because the dialouge lacked depth and flow.

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Hot Copy by Ruby Barrett

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emotional lighthearted fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

Pros: good sex scenes and the stereotypical gender roles were swapped.

Cons: dialouge lacked natural rhythm at times. Corrine's mood swings from kind/loving to borderline abusive behavior were jarring. This happened often. And the fact that Wesley knowingly lets her get away with this behavior is annoying. Richard was a caricature of inappropriate bosses. I think book needed a stronger editing eye. 

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The Guest List by Lucy Foley

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dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No

3.25

I liked this! A straightforward who done it. It was fun. I guessed some of the twist, but this book had twists to spare. 

The private-school friends were unbearable. Their bro behavior was appropriate for the characters, but I still didn't like them. There was a lot of casual sexual harassment and misogyny which isn't my favorite theme for a book. 

All together, this book kept me coming. I flew through the last 100 pages. 

to me, it seems unlikely that Will could be the cause of all the problems for all the main characters. but the mutual hatred for Will made for a fun killing scene.

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The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab

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adventurous emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Really good read! I think the author expertly navigated telling a story that spanned 100s of year. I was invested in Addie's journey. She made me want to go experience new things. 

I thought her relationships with Luc and Henry were a little underdeveloped. I kept wondering if she would have cared about either man if they weren't the only ones who she could form a relationship with. Also the abundance of one-sentence paragraphs was a bit distracting. 

Overall, I would definitely recommend this if you like a sprinkle of fantasy, romantic scenes, strong female characters, or art.
My Government Means to Kill Me by Rasheed Newson

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challenging emotional funny hopeful informative sad
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

I really liked this book! Trey, the POV character, is loveable in his flaws. You definitely end up rooting for him. I learned a lot about gay history and black history through the footnotes. I liked the footnotes and definitely missed them when I switched to the audiobook format!

My issue with the book is it feels as if some of the plot threads weren't fully fleshed out. I also think the ending was ABRUPT. 

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