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mitzee's reviews
339 reviews
Magic Has No Borders by Samira Ahmed, Sona Charaipotra
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
While I liked the desi fantasy stories based on south asian lore some of the short stories didn’t really grab my attention. There was so much content I kind of wonder if these should have been broken into separate volumes.
The ones where spirits/goddesses/gods come into present day situations were most engaging for me. Some of the ones where there’s growth and reflection born from sorrow and suffering began to blend into one another.
The ones where spirits/goddesses/gods come into present day situations were most engaging for me. Some of the ones where there’s growth and reflection born from sorrow and suffering began to blend into one another.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence
Minor: Sexism and Sexual harassment
We Hunt the Flame by Hafsah Faizal
adventurous
dark
emotional
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? No
4.5
A good story set in fantasy Arab lore. There’s the enemies to lovers trope and really drawn out tension that becomes romance.
One annoying thing about the audiobook is that there are two narrators and there is a name that they don’t pronounce in the same way.
Summary or highlight below for my own reference:
Wasn’t sure if Yasmine and Zafira might be more than friends at first. It seems like it’s a very close friendship love, rather than a romantic love
Also Altaydr is fun. Sad that they left him but seems like book two would have him come back.
One annoying thing about the audiobook is that there are two narrators and there is a name that they don’t pronounce in the same way.
Summary or highlight below for my own reference:
Wasn’t sure if Yasmine and Zafira might be more than friends at first. It seems like it’s a very close friendship love, rather than a romantic love
Also Altaydr is fun. Sad that they left him but seems like book two would have him come back.
Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury
adventurous
dark
sad
tense
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? It's complicated
3.75
I watched the film before reading the book, the book was immensely better than the movie though seeeing it play out first helped me better visualize the scenes and descriptions in the book.
This is a dark fantasy, a spooky read for autumn, about a sinister carnival that comes into town and claims people. I feel like I missed the reason or rationale for why they do what they do. It’s great for the ambiance but I had a hard time following a lot of it probably because I am more used to contemporary prose.
This is a dark fantasy, a spooky read for autumn, about a sinister carnival that comes into town and claims people. I feel like I missed the reason or rationale for why they do what they do. It’s great for the ambiance but I had a hard time following a lot of it probably because I am more used to contemporary prose.
The Sex Lives of African Women: Self-Discovery, Freedom, and Healing by Nana Darkoa Sekyiamah
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
4.0
Giving this book a high rating because it was so informative. The stories were diverse, some were relatable and some were inspiring. It was also sad to hear that sexual abuse and sexual assault be such a common occurrence for a lot of people.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Child abuse and Sexual assault
Minor: Infidelity
The Grandest Game by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
It leave you on a cliffhanger so there must be another book coming out! Okay so if you haven’t read any of the previous books in the series, the characters won’t matter much for you, and it will just be a story about people solving puzzles - which it mostly is.
A friend who had read this said she did not feel as engaged because the primary characters are no longer Avery and the Hawthorne brothers but I actually found this book and the characters to be very engaging. I liked that there were multiple storylines some with new and some with familiar characters. I did feel like there should have been more to this book though, it felt like just half a book.
A friend who had read this said she did not feel as engaged because the primary characters are no longer Avery and the Hawthorne brothers but I actually found this book and the characters to be very engaging. I liked that there were multiple storylines some with new and some with familiar characters. I did feel like there should have been more to this book though, it felt like just half a book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence
Moderate: Suicide
Minor: Bullying and Violence
The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches by Sangu Mandanna
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
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? It's complicated
5.0
A really lovely, cozy read about witches, found family, and a “coming of age” later in life. Relatively low stakes but still interesting and engaging.
Why are grumpy Irish men always so attractive? I guess they just are.
Summary of the story for my own records
Mika is a witch who is hired to teach some little kid witches how to control their magic. the kids live with the household help (housekeeper, gardener and his husband, and a librarian- an adopted person)and they are basically a big found family. The kids are all different races because apparently witches are cursed to become orphans at birth.
She ends up falling in love with the whole family and they love her back. Then she learns they have been lying to her the whole time: the witch who they worked for was not actually traveling but had died and the adults buried her in the back yard. But they did that because they knew what was in her will and didn’t want to have to give up the kids.
The reveal is that Mika’s caretaker (like her mom or parent, but didn’t actually raise her) was actually the twin sister of the witch who had died - I basically guessed that. Primrose (Mika’s caretaker) pretended to be her sister (Lily) and fired the lawyer who had been poking around and threatened to come to the house (which meant he’d have to execute Lily’s will if he thought she was dead)
Everyone was happy in the end.
Why are grumpy Irish men always so attractive? I guess they just are.
Summary of the story for my own records
Mika is a witch who is hired to teach some little kid witches how to control their magic. the kids live with the household help (housekeeper, gardener and his husband, and a librarian- an adopted person)and they are basically a big found family. The kids are all different races because apparently witches are cursed to become orphans at birth.
She ends up falling in love with the whole family and they love her back. Then she learns they have been lying to her the whole time: the witch who they worked for was not actually traveling but had died and the adults buried her in the back yard. But they did that because they knew what was in her will and didn’t want to have to give up the kids.
The reveal is that Mika’s caretaker (like her mom or parent, but didn’t actually raise her) was actually the twin sister of the witch who had died - I basically guessed that. Primrose (Mika’s caretaker) pretended to be her sister (Lily) and fired the lawyer who had been poking around and threatened to come to the house (which meant he’d have to execute Lily’s will if he thought she was dead)
Everyone was happy in the end.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse, Sexual content, and Death of parent
Minor: Death
The Majesties by Tiffany Tsao
Gwendolyn and Estrella are sisters in a rich Chinese family living in Indonesia where they are part of the elite upper class. They have money from business dealings and benefit from the corrupt government that allows them to stay in a higher class level from everyone else
Throughout the book we see the two sisters grapple with growing up in this lifestyle and doing what’s expected of them: starting their own lucrative businesses or taking over the family’s. And also the expectation that they will get married (to others in their same class) and expand the family fortune.
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Not the type of story I would usually read but this was one of the selections from the Storygraph Reads The World challenge. It was slow and depressing but I also felt the urge to keep going as each mystery and story unfolded.
The narrators sister Estrella is really the main character here. I did get kind of confused at the end but will include that in the spoilers.
This part is mostly a summary for my own memory
The narrators sister Estrella is really the main character here. I did get kind of confused at the end but will include that in the spoilers.
This part is mostly a summary for my own memory
Gwendolyn and Estrella are sisters in a rich Chinese family living in Indonesia where they are part of the elite upper class. They have money from business dealings and benefit from the corrupt government that allows them to stay in a higher class level from everyone else
Throughout the book we see the two sisters grapple with growing up in this lifestyle and doing what’s expected of them: starting their own lucrative businesses or taking over the family’s. And also the expectation that they will get married (to others in their same class) and expand the family fortune.
Everything is centered around money (which, as an American born Chinese person, seems like it’s a pretty consistent thing for all Chinese families to want regardless of what country you live in). The fact that Estrella ends up dating a rich guy (Leonard) from a more successful family, is something that Estrella and Dol’s parents (Estrella calls Gwendolyn “Dol”) think is great for the whole family.
Estrella basically gets guilted into this marriage by everyone around her and feels like she loves this guy despite him being a giant walking Red Flag. Things just get shittier for her after they get married.
Eventually her husband “finds god” and starts to threaten going public with all the corruption and both families strong arm Estrella into poisoning him. Once he’s dead Estrella sees how corrupt the family is and she ends up poisoning the whole family in the same way at their patriarch’s birthday bash.
Estrella basically gets guilted into this marriage by everyone around her and feels like she loves this guy despite him being a giant walking Red Flag. Things just get shittier for her after they get married.
Eventually her husband “finds god” and starts to threaten going public with all the corruption and both families strong arm Estrella into poisoning him. Once he’s dead Estrella sees how corrupt the family is and she ends up poisoning the whole family in the same way at their patriarch’s birthday bash.
Heres where I get confused In the end I THINK Estrella and Dol are actually the same person?! Dol seems to be the made up identity that Estrella has for herself and it seems to go WAY back into childhood. I did not care to go back and actually figure it out though because the whole book is depressing AF and I don’t need that right now. Give me fairies, elves and magic.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Murder
Minor: Domestic abuse
The Creative Act: A Way of Being by Rick Rubin
But I agree that this book didn’t need to be so long, hahaha. It would be great if there was a cliffs notes version for those who just wanted the lunchables version and then this version for those who want the full buffet.
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
4.25
There are concepts in this book that aren’t necessarily new, it’s always nice to hear more than one person say/confirm them:
- Don’t do art for money. Think about your art and your money separately. If you make money making art that’s great but it shouldn’t be your driving force if you want to make your art pure/great.
- Ideas exist in the ether. Some people are better tuned into receiving them. And sometimes the ideas come to fruition because it was the right time for it. Just because you thought of it first maybe it wasn’t the right time for the idea.
- Related to the previous: Those people being the most sensitive to pulling these ideas out of the ether are also sometimes the people most sensitive to life in general.
- I also like the preface he gives at the start: you don’t have to listen to any of this advice, take what you like, leave what you don’t like or doesn’t make sense to you.
But I agree that this book didn’t need to be so long, hahaha. It would be great if there was a cliffs notes version for those who just wanted the lunchables version and then this version for those who want the full buffet.
Starling House by Alix E. Harrow
adventurous
dark
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Similar to the previous book I read from Harrow (The Once and Future Witches) I felt like this book was only okay and was more style than anything. It had a great set up but the resolution wasn’t very satisfying.
It took about halfway through the book to get to truly fantasy - which was what I was mostly interested in. Then it was mired in a lot of reality, just not where I was hoping it would lead.
Summary with spoilers for my own reference:
Opal and her brother Jasper are homeless “kids” (I think Opal is 20 something) who live in a small Kentucky town. They were never wealthy but their mom died about 12ish years ago in a car accident in the winter.
Opal takes a job cleaning this old beat up mansion, and was hired by some guy whose parents used to own the land but he had abandoned them and returned when they died. The house seems haunted but nothing bad happens to Opal.
She’s saving up the house cleaning money to send her brother to a private boarding high school. Opal and Arthur (the haunted house owner) have a strange relationship in which he tries to keep to himself and seems tortured in some way.
Eventually Opal is propositioned by some lawyer lady working for the power company who want to buy the land the house is on to mine it for coal. They start to give Opal money for pictures or notes/info about the house. being an opportunist she goes along at first but then she starts to feel bad and Arthur keeps doing nice things for her like giving her a wool coat and his old car, etc.
When she starts to pull back from the power company they threaten her and her brother. Anyway that’s the most boring part. The more interesting part is what happens with the house. It seems to be alive and seems to be the fulcrum of some mysterious power. All the previous homeowners and caretakers had dreamed about the house and were drawn there. They ended up taking the last name Starling.
It seems like the house is alive in its own way and brings people to it. It has whatever they seem to need. The lore is that the original owner and builder of the house was a woman who was to get married to a man and on their wedding day he died mysteriously and she inherited everything. Then she built this house. Arthur’s parents were there and fought back demons and monsters that came from the depths of the house. Like it was at the Hellmouth in Buffy and Arthur didn’t want to take this on but he ended up doing it when his mom and dad were killed by these beasts.
In the end we learn that the original owners soul was trapped in a river under the house and her imagination had created those monsters, the beasts that she cared for. And that the only thing that really happens is that the homeowners dreams cause the things. I don’t know how or why exactly it didn’t really make sense why her beats continued to exist and needed to be cut down and nobody ever tried doing something different. That’s where the book falls apart I feel and I was a bit disappointed at the end with the outcome. Opal basically figures it out, saves Eleanor (or puts her soul to rest) and saves Arthur and saves the house and the town and everything is fine.
It was a NICE ending but not what I was hoping for.
It took about halfway through the book to get to truly fantasy - which was what I was mostly interested in. Then it was mired in a lot of reality, just not where I was hoping it would lead.
Summary with spoilers for my own reference:
Opal takes a job cleaning this old beat up mansion, and was hired by some guy whose parents used to own the land but he had abandoned them and returned when they died. The house seems haunted but nothing bad happens to Opal.
She’s saving up the house cleaning money to send her brother to a private boarding high school. Opal and Arthur (the haunted house owner) have a strange relationship in which he tries to keep to himself and seems tortured in some way.
Eventually Opal is propositioned by some lawyer lady working for the power company who want to buy the land the house is on to mine it for coal. They start to give Opal money for pictures or notes/info about the house. being an opportunist she goes along at first but then she starts to feel bad and Arthur keeps doing nice things for her like giving her a wool coat and his old car, etc.
When she starts to pull back from the power company they threaten her and her brother. Anyway that’s the most boring part. The more interesting part is what happens with the house. It seems to be alive and seems to be the fulcrum of some mysterious power. All the previous homeowners and caretakers had dreamed about the house and were drawn there. They ended up taking the last name Starling.
It seems like the house is alive in its own way and brings people to it. It has whatever they seem to need. The lore is that the original owner and builder of the house was a woman who was to get married to a man and on their wedding day he died mysteriously and she inherited everything. Then she built this house. Arthur’s parents were there and fought back demons and monsters that came from the depths of the house. Like it was at the Hellmouth in Buffy and Arthur didn’t want to take this on but he ended up doing it when his mom and dad were killed by these beasts.
In the end we learn that the original owners soul was trapped in a river under the house and her imagination had created those monsters, the beasts that she cared for. And that the only thing that really happens is that the homeowners dreams cause the things. I don’t know how or why exactly it didn’t really make sense why her beats continued to exist and needed to be cut down and nobody ever tried doing something different. That’s where the book falls apart I feel and I was a bit disappointed at the end with the outcome. Opal basically figures it out, saves Eleanor (or puts her soul to rest) and saves Arthur and saves the house and the town and everything is fine.
It was a NICE ending but not what I was hoping for.
The Palace of Eros by Caro De Robertis
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
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? It's complicated
3.75
A tough one to rate because I want to give the book points for having strong and loving sapphic and intersex characters, but I also don’t know if a lot happened. So giving it a high three star rating for being something I at least enjoyed reading.
Below are notes for myself. These notes contain spoilers.
There weren’t really any major plot points that happened. I think I was also trying to relate the story of Eros and Psyche to what I had read in Lore Olympus, not sure if that helped or prohibited me from best understanding the relationship.
The first third of the book was sad and depressing. Just the regularly old patriarchal BS of selling your daughters off, rape, etc.
The second portion was a lot of sapphic sex in the dark with secret gods and a vacation from real life (living in the palace, unlimited food, sex, and hobbies - just being really fucking unbothered - a real fantasy) but in the last third Psyche seems to long for the complications of other people again and her head gets the best of her (I assume that’s the story behind Psyche).
She wants to talk to her shit sisters because she forgot how shit they are, I guess. And when they come to the palace they are petty PoS. Finally Psyche does something kind of stupid - instead of being honest I mean - and tries to spy on Eros in their bed and fucks it all up. But in this story everything ends well. Not quite a Greek tragedy.
Below are notes for myself. These notes contain spoilers.
There weren’t really any major plot points that happened. I think I was also trying to relate the story of Eros and Psyche to what I had read in Lore Olympus, not sure if that helped or prohibited me from best understanding the relationship.
The first third of the book was sad and depressing. Just the regularly old patriarchal BS of selling your daughters off, rape, etc.
The second portion was a lot of sapphic sex in the dark with secret gods and a vacation from real life (living in the palace, unlimited food, sex, and hobbies - just being really fucking unbothered - a real fantasy) but in the last third Psyche seems to long for the complications of other people again and her head gets the best of her (I assume that’s the story behind Psyche).
She wants to talk to her shit sisters because she forgot how shit they are, I guess. And when they come to the palace they are petty PoS. Finally Psyche does something kind of stupid - instead of being honest I mean - and tries to spy on Eros in their bed and fucks it all up. But in this story everything ends well. Not quite a Greek tragedy.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Rape and Kidnapping