smashmo's reviews
295 reviews

Alanna: The First Adventure by Tamora Pierce

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adventurous lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No

3.0

I've heard people rave about Tamora Pierce's works so I thought I'd give them a try. No one I saw mentioned if you can jump in at any series so I started at the beginning to be safe. 

This book was exactly in the middle. I didn't hate any characters but I wasn't rooting for them either. There was some cool magic but because Alanna doesn't like to use magic or care about it we don't learn much in this book. The setting was what you'd expect with not anything really standing out. 

The end was by far the best and is what would peak my interest in continuing on. The Bazhirs, the Black City, and the mystery of the Old Ones and their ruins were intriguing. 
Voyage of the Frostheart by Jamie Littler

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adventurous hopeful lighthearted 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

This. Is. ADORABLE!

I heard a Booktuber talk about it as a cross between Legend of Zelda and Avatar: The Last Airbender and I knew I had to give it a go. I was still skeptical because middle grade fantasy can border on being too whimsical for my taste, but this was so perfect!

I really have very few complaints. Cute characters, a fun setting, an interesting magic system, and plenty of mysteries waiting to be solved in the next installments. 😀 

The illustrations were also such a great addition and I need them in more adult fantasy books!
The Three-Body Problem by Cixin Liu

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challenging mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

I'm a character driven reader so lack of strong characterization, combined with lots of hard sci-fi explanations, made the overall story feel somewhat flat. 

I did enjoy the 3rd part the best, especially where we start getting all the explanations; they were extremely creative and fun to think about. 
Once More Upon a Time by Roshani Chokshi

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adventurous hopeful lighthearted fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No

3.25

Cute. The humor wasn't to my taste, but the story and chatacters were fine. Perfect little fairy tail ending too. 
Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl

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challenging inspiring reflective slow-paced
Piranesi by Susanna Clarke

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mysterious slow-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? Yes

4.0

Very slow and weird but once I found the rhythm of the writing and got oriented in the world I found the story to be intriguing. I was worried it would end differently than how I hoped but it was spot on. 
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K. Rowling

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adventurous dark funny lighthearted medium-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? Yes

5.0

The Kingdom of Back by Marie Lu

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adventurous hopeful medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No

3.75

Listened on audio
Nothing But Blackened Teeth by Cassandra Khaw

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dark mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes

1.5

I wanted to like this book SO badly, but I couldn't. 

The characters fell flat and it makes no sense any of them are friends. They all seemed to "secretly" hate each other, so why hang out? There were also events and dialog that never seemed to go anywhere or serve much purpose.
Ex: doors and hallways being rearranged, the floor being mysteriously new, the repetition about how perfect Phillip is. And WHY did they set up/light 100 candles in one room just to play their game in another? What was the purpose of switching rooms?!


The story would have been much better served by actually making me care about the people and relationships and even going more in depth with Japanese mytholgy and history. 

Some points for the decent atmosphere and a descriptive scene that had me thoroughly grossed out. 
Verity by Colleen Hoover

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dark fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes