staceen's reviews
98 reviews

Romantic Comedy by Curtis Sittenfeld

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medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix

2.5

The writing was strong, and I liked the romance and the characters. But the settings, first at a cringey “SNL” show and then during COVID, really took me out of it. The email exchange was the strongest piece for me (very Rainbow Rowell Attachments) and the love story was sweet, but the amount of times someone put on or took off a mask is not what I want in my romcoms. 
Happy Place by Emily Henry

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

5.0

I love Emily Henry! She writes the smartest, funniest characters PLUS great premises, love stories, and settings. Harriet and her college best friends go to Maine every year, but this year they surprise her with her fiancé. They don’t know they’ve broken up. Sweet, sincere, and real. I will be rereading. 
Ugly Love by Colleen Hoover

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dark emotional sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

My first CoHo. It…wasn’t good. I figured with all the hype there had to be something behind it. That being said, I flew through it, and Miles was hot. 
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Counterfeit by Kirstin Chen

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adventurous lighthearted relaxing fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

 
A fun, quick read! The bulk of the text is Ava confessing to a detective her role in an elaborate fraudulent handbag scheme she was conned into by her college roommate, Winnie. I love how developed she was as a character. The writing was fast-paced and engaging.



One True Loves by Taylor Jenkins Reid

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emotional hopeful reflective medium-paced

3.0

This was cute, and one of my favorite of TJR’s What Ifs. Emma and Jesse are high school sweethearts living a whirlwind life traveling for their exciting jobs. When Jesse’s helicopter goes down, Emma moves back to MA to run her family’s bookstore, grieve her husband, and eventually move on. A surprise out of the blue leaves her with the hardest decision she’s ever made.
Molasses Murder in a Nutshell: A Nutshell Murder Mystery by Frances McNamara

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informative slow-paced
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No

2.5

I’m very interested in Frances Glessner Lee and the Nutshell Studies, and I thought this was a fun premise. Not a huge historical fiction fan, so otherwise, this wasn’t really for me. Set during the aftermath of the Boston Molasses Flood, a society lady helps solve a woman’s murder with the help of her medical examiner friend. I didn’t love how she was framed in the novel, like she was tagging along on Jake’s work, which he only allowed because he had a crush on her. Idk if that was true, but I didn’t think the author gave her enough credit as a professional. Again, maybe that was the case, but it just felt a little dismissive. 
Nothing More to Tell by Karen M. McManus

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adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No

3.0

This is the first Karen McManus I read, and while I liked it, it got a little muddy at times with too many suspects. Brynn is back at her old school to solve the murder of her former teacher for a true crime tv show internship. 
After I Do by Taylor Jenkins Reid

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emotional hopeful sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No

4.0

So weirdly, the whole time I was reading this, I was like, eh, it's fine, but I was SOBBING at the end, and that never happens to me. A couple who met and married young are struggling in their marriage. They decide to separate without contact for a year, during which Lauren (our protagonist) finds herself and grows closer to her family. The thing is, they are reading each other's email drafts, clearly, a relationship built on trust and respect. Cute but unmemorable.



What Lies in the Woods by Kate Alice Marshall

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challenging dark emotional tense medium-paced
  • Loveable characters? No

4.0

I really enjoyed this! Very dark, but it kept me guessing until the end. Some of the red herrings were hard to keep track of and at times, it felt a bit unfocused, but it was necessary for the payoff. 
Maybe in Another Life by Taylor Jenkins Reid

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emotional hopeful lighthearted fast-paced
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes

3.0

In a sliding doors scenario, a woman’s life splits off into two timelines. I really liked it. I especially liked the fact that none of the characters were evil or bad (except one)
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