themoonwholistens's reviews
698 reviews

// RECEIVED AN ADVANCE READER COPY FOR REVIEW //

“I felt his smile. It was wonderfully comforting.”

This book got me shaking at how cute the couples are :)


plot:

The writing style was simply enchanting and very descriptive. It had a really good start which I found essential, especially for fantasy books, to be able to get the attention of their readers. It had the detail that fantasy books call for. I enjoyed the story a lot because aside from the fantasy or historical aspect, it was also very amusing and not boring. It did not really have the very strong fantasy vibe I was expecting at the start of the book.

Though it was a creative idea to make the plots at different eras, it was one of the things I thought was unnecessary for the book. I think I would have enjoyed it more if they stuck to the earlier eras. The back and forth of eras did not appeal to my reading style.

And from what I remember, we were not even given a specific date. . .

it was merely written as "present time" so I imagine it in the contemporary world.

It was not a bad portrayal however, words were chosen carefully to fully depict to the readers the timeline.


Aside from that, the other elements in the story fit the theme perfectly for me. What I like with historical fiction is how they can show us a different side to things. It made me see the life of novelty differently.


characters:

“There was love, and teasing and all the reassurances that I remembered. It made me want to cry all over again.”

i love the relationships of the characters because they were mostly relatable.

some of my favorite tropes were here so I may be a little bias hehe

“I was just a girl, in love with being in love.”

I cannot get over the couples in the story !!! They were so cute.

there were prominent familial relationships which I always like seeing in fantasy books because this very different world suddenly makes it more relatable in a way that a lot of people are familiar with, the aspect of family.


themes:

As I said earlier, though I like most of the themes that were in this book and they fit the fantasy genre, there were still some themes that I was not a fan of which was the main reason for my 3-star rating.


overall:

It was mostly an enjoyable read and I had a really hard time rating this because it had one of the most enchanting writing styles I have come across but the plot just really did not call out to me. Historical Fiction readers might love this since i the writing style seemed genuine and had a little bit of everything.

// Received an advance reader copy in exchange for a fair review //

",each of them consumed with their own uncertainties, their own dramas, yet for the first time realizing that they didn't need to face the future alone."

I would describe this book in one word as, "cute'.

I loved the whole family and staying together aspect of the book but the book was just not enough to grab my attention for too long and actually be able to enjoy the overall plot. The beginning of the book was not at all that interesting to me and might have contributed to the fact that I couldn't focus every time I came back to reading this. The writing style was sweet and all but not enough to really capture me, as I said before.

The characters are one of the strong points here though because I actually found them pretty relatable andI liked how in the last part, the author was able to portray how important staying together should be. Speaking of, the book did have a good progression and development when compared to the end because it ended up having a much clearer focus.

Nothing stood out to be too much here except for the fact that it was pretty much focused on Christmas (hehe). It gives me a lot of those sweet and cold Christmas-y vibes and I have to say that this book would be good read during the month of December.

This was an okay read, nothing too bad or too good, but I think readers would be able to appreciate this more when they are in the mood for something to sweeten and warm them up during the cold weather.

// Thanks to Amberjack Publishing and Netgalley for the ARC to review //

“this a story of a man who thought he was a bird and the woman who helped him find his humanity again”

Oh gosh the writing was so beautiful <3

It had a very strong start that built a really solid foundation for the events that happened throughout the book as it progressed. It destroyed my heart a bit in the process as well, but it's all good.

The writing, plot, and setting of the story made it feel like a classic. And those were mostly the vibes I was getting as I read it. It's very rare that I encounter stories like these since they are really hard to pull of and this was pulled of beautifully even though this is not within the genre or the stories that I would normally read.

“because the problem with the rich is that they must own everything”

“the poor are so often denied the luxury of a quick death”

It explored the realities of the social hierarchy which I do not think is seen very much in YA and NA books (the genres I mostly read).

It had very strong characters. My favorite thing about relationship that the male and female MC was how they were both strong individually but still admitted to the fact that they need each other.It is also a very rare thing to see both love interests as "strong" in a book since it is usually just one or the other. I liked how they developed and how they showed how they got to the point that they were in the end.

I was worried going into this book as a lot of people are when going into books like these but it was pulled off quite nicely for the plot.

// Thanks to Amberjack Publishing and Netgalley for the ARC to review //

“Real secrets weren’t sweet nothings you whispered in your arm candy’s ear.”

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I am such a sucker for stories with good characterization.

I just need to say that even though I was not a fan of the plot and all at first, the characters really intrigued me and I was very much pleased with their development by the end of the book.


~ the plot did not intrigue me enough at first which I think was mainly due to the fact that I expected whose plot revolved more on, literally, "The Art of Escaping". I expected it to deal with different issues and topics and sadly, that was not what I got.

It felt like your typical modern teenage story at first. It started slow but was also able to pick itself up about halfway. It was greatly amusing though and I believe that it is something that would appeal to younger teenagers since it seems like this was the target audience the author had in mind while writing this.

I'm not saying that the actual plot wasn't good, but it was not the plot that I was looking for.


~ I love the characterization. I thought that the characters would also be following the steroetypical template. Every character had a life in them, no matter how ridiculous thir names sounded or how absurd they were acting.

Our main character, with a snarky attitude, seemed to be against the world or have the world against her and I can't help but feel sorrow for her, but not pity, which I think is a very fine line that a lot of authors forget was there in the first place.

I felt bad for her without pitying her, so she still appeared strong, in a way, to me.


~ the excerpts before each chapter was a big part of what gave the whole story depth and meaning. It tied together the story more and the chapter titles were really creative for the writer.

They honestly balanced out the ridiculousness that might have been happening in the plot itself and put the plot on the right path again. They were most certainly not random and you can understand how the author put a purpose to each one that was placed there.


~ the writing style was not bad, I just don't think it was meant to appeal to me. It had a light tone, which was unexpected, for me, because of the title. It had good morals and things to relate to, while still being able to maintain a decent amount of creativity.

I was ready for some hardcore-heart-pounding book. It is a potentionally good coming-of-age story and this is something that those along the lower end of the age range should try picking this up.

// Received an advance reader copy in exchange for a fair review //

"So, look for a door. Theres always a way out. There's always a new path. But you can't find it if you stand still, you know what I mean?"


I thought this was going to be super cliche. . . but it started out pretty different than usual. IT was a very unusual start that left me impressed and really kept me reading.

While the plot in general is kinda cliche, the style of how it was written is pretty unique, appreciated the little twists of. . . well. . . everything to be honest. The character-to-character interactions are pretty cute and I enjoyed them a whole lot. But, I felt like everything was happening too fast, in a way.
I love the idea of having a book that 'helps you forget about your ex',,,, i am amused by the whole idea of it.

This had a very anticipating and intriguing writing style.

Appropriate for teen and YA readers who are in need of a romantic read. XD


"I don't know how this story goes or how it ends. . . but i want to find out,"

// Thanks to Atthis Arts, LLC and Netgalley for the ARC to review //

“No matter what their differences were, in shape, size, or how they came to be in this place, everyone felt rather certain that their futures would be interwinded somehow.”

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overall
~ As Told by things is a compilation of short stories from different authors, but still revolving around the same theme: the fact that each story is told from the perspective of an inanimate object.

I found this to be really intriguing once I actually started reading it. But as usual, the problem I always encounter with books like these is that there are always those stories that you LOVE but then there are those stories that are just meh.

And I would always need to put these things into consideration when rating and reviewing the books.

some of the stories were just uninteresting for me, but others had emotion packed in every page. There were stories that just got me thinking of how they can be related to how people feel if they were in the place of those objects. It made me really consider the objects as people while I was reading the story and it really made me so much more aware of the people around me.

Sometimes the people we don’t notice that much are the ones who notice the most

writing style
~ most of the writing were descriptive enough

Even though there were some stories that were not my favorite, they still kept me reading to find out what was the object for that story. It also helped that most of the stories were actually pretty unique and were written creatively for me.

They were diverse in a way that the stories were meant to be humorous with some philosophical ideas here and there.

I also find it to be pretty cool to have some insight to what everyday things could be thinking about. They were interesting topic. This is also a topic that my dad and I talk about, which made it that more intriguing.

There were objects that never came to my mind but it was just as fascinating to read.

// I received an ARC of this book on a read-to-review basis //

"Is there something you've dreamed of doing for a long time? Why haven't you done it?"


This was a good book okay. Despite the bright colors in the cover there were some parts that also hit those deep moments. And the writing of the romance between the two MCs was very unique.

It's just that, well. . . I'm not a fan of the writing style. It didn't grip me and the only thing that was keeping me going was the plot (it wasn't that unique).

BUT what I really liked was the theme of this book as well as the characters in it. The characters were just lovable that I was okay with reading through the whole thing just because I loved the characters (I'm that kind of reader). The theme and the air of the book is also a bit refreshing and light and it worked out great for me when I was reading this book.

The questions were too much if you ask me. Maybe abut 20 questions would have been okay?? But 36?! I think that's a tad bit too much. I have never been a fan of books that had too many "questions" or "reasons" for the book to happen and what not because when it is too much, the writing will also seem rushed. Sadly, this is also why happen in this book. For the first 26 questions it was still going great but for the last 10 or so that's when the writing started to feel rushed.

The romance did seem pretty long and prolonged if you know what I mean? I actually wanted to see the two main characters interact more in real life rather than just fall in love but you know, that might just be me.

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Thank you to Quarto Publishing Group, Lincoln Publishing Group and Netgalley for sending me an ARC

This is generally like an illustrated version of "Silent Night". The color and patterns of the illustrations worked really well with the lyrics that were posted. I gave this 3 stars for the sole reason that it was nothing more than that. Despite that, the book is something that would be great as a present gift to a child during Christmas.

// RECEIVED AN ADVANCED READER COPY //

I am terribly sorry for the late review

“He found her. Smiling, he raised driftwood as if toasting her — and in that second, to her, after the long, lonely summer, he might as well have hung the moon”


I don't know what made me so nostalgic while I was reading this, if it was that everlasting summer vibe, the characters that made it all too real or the love and friendship I felt while reading this. This might be one of the easiest 5 star ratings that I have ever given. I did not know what to expect at the start of reading this book but I did not expect for it to be able to paint a picture in my head. Very little books do this to me and almost all the time it is what keeps me from giving that 5th star. So I was really pleased when the author's writing did it so easily for me.

It's written in a diary style and it was simple enough, which made it easy to follow the timeline of the events that were going on. The characters were written well, not at all one-dimensional and extremely relatable (Casey is that typical best friend though HAHA). The love story was very intriguing (HEHE). And overall it was a wonderful thing to read in the summer heat when you just miss your friends and want to feel a bit closer to them. It definitely made me want to call the squad and run away together and have our own camp on some jungle-beach.

It's not heavy and is very enjoyable, though you might not cry, you will surely feel something.

// Received an advance readers copy in exchange for a fair review //

"Now that I had experience being a hero, as good as it felt, it didn't seem all that important to be one anymore."


WooOOAaaAHHhh!!!!

I am amazed at this book.


First of all, the theme and the moral of this book is my favorite thing here. It's mostly about being yourself and fitting in, in a world that pushes you to do otherwise. It's about finding yourself, finding a place (or a person) to call home, hope and friendship.

The plot may not be for me but I have to commend it because it is very unique, which also makes it very intriguing. It would be a very good read for middle grade readers, and as well as for people who are looking for a young, easy, unique read.


The character depth and the character development are uh-mai-zing. You can see just how Elsie Mae's view and perspective of everything changed from the very first page.

This made reading the last few chapters a bit nostalgic feeling.


I have to keep saying unique because that is what this is. It just really is so very unique.


This book is something that I needed in my life right now and I definitely recommend to every teenager out there in the world who could possibly be reading this.



P.S.
Henry and Huch <33 (they are too pure for this world)