tiiiger35's reviews
54 reviews

House of Flame and Shadow by Sarah J. Maas

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adventurous dark tense medium-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

I really loved this entire trilogy & the final instalment was a perfect conclusion. 
I’m not always content with how authors wrap up their characters stories but Sarah J. Mass took her time giving everyone a purposeful conclusion. All 3 books were large, so I was impressed there were no loose ends. 
I was so pleased to have a small crossover with ACOTR, it blended perfectly, showing just how amazing Sarah J. Mass is at world building
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Skincare: The Ultimate No-Nonsense Guide by Caroline Hirons

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hopeful informative fast-paced

3.25

House of Sky and Breath by Sarah J. Maas

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adventurous dark tense medium-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

4.75

That very last sentence…*squeal* 
The cross over I’ve been hoping for. 
Buying book 3 immediately. 

I really liked this book & I’m fully invested in the characters now. I started this series straight after ACOTR, so it took me a little while to adjust. I also preferred Bryce in this book, she was much more likeable with Hunt by her side.  Dannika however, was more of a Pandora’s box than a “best friend”. 

People can criticise Sarah j.Mass & her books as much as they like, but her world building skills are amongst the very best out there.
The Yellow Wall-Paper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman

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dark sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? N/A
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

Published in 1892, Charlotte Perkins Gilman, perfectly creates a secret journal, of a young woman trapped by the patriarchy & battling postpartum depression, whilst spiralling in to psychosis.
I now better understand the old saying of “you’re driving me up the walls”. Isolated in confinement, prescribed by her doctor husband, she is left to obsess over this hideous, eccentric yellow wallpaper, in a room with bars on the window. The symbolism is striking, a prisoner of the time, like so many other women, controlled by their husbands, misunderstood & misdiagnosed. 
These 15 pages of struggle are based on the authors own experience of postpartum depression, where she also was prescribed “rest”. Sadly in 1935, she was diagnosed with breast cancer and chose to end her own life. In her suicide note she wrote, “choose chloroform over cancer”. Just as the end of the story is up for interpretation, so too is her suicide note. Many debate if she was finally freeing herself of the yellow wallpaper?
The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne

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

3.75

The infamous ‘scarlet A’. The subject is timeless. A woman, sentenced to bear more burden and shame, than a man, for a shared act. 

Quintessentially 19th century prose, very verbose. I’m sure one sentence was at least 10 lines, separated just by commas. It was a little off putting but, I settled in to the writing style eventually. For the detail & symbolisms alone, it was worth it. Only Tolstoy could do it better. 

Hester was strong & resilient, accepting her fate & never shrinking from her punishment. Her defiance of convention & independence as a single woman was light years ahead of her time. She inevitably found a sense of solace living as an outcast.

Pearl, never knew another way of life, thus, she had a strong connection to nature & an inner freedom & wildness to grow up away from the rigid Puritanism of the town. She was however, a slightly irritating child, prone to erratic behaviour & indulgent mood swings. Perhaps, this had something to do with her own mother, constantly worrying if she was a child of satan? A living symbol of her sinful transgressions. 

Predictably, the men are all judgemental, self righteous, egocentric and cowardly characters. The Minister Dimmesdale, was a weakling, who would rather privately suffer a life time of martyrdom, than admit to his sins. Chillingworth, the hidden ex husband, was spiteful & revenge driven, the catalyst to Hesters’ demise. 

Although the writing at times, dense, especially the awful prologue. **skip it** The overall content of a dramatic romance in a time of Puritanism was something refreshing to read about. It certainly projects the idea that confession is good for the soul, and that society has always had a dark tendency to judge & damn anyone. 

**As I was reading this, I kept thinking of the movie, ‘Easy A’ which I appreciate 10x more now.**
Magic Lessons: The Prequel to Practical Magic by Alice Hoffman

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adventurous dark emotional hopeful sad tense 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? Yes

4.75

As the final book in the series, the scene is set for were the first book ‘Practical magic’ begins, in that beautiful big house, on Magnolia Street, I’ve coveted since I was a girl. I loved the historical setting of the Salem witch trials & how the Owen’s family was connected to it. 

“Believe what the world shows you, and make no excuses. See what is right before you”. If only Maria had taken this advice to heart.

Marias’ naivety when it came to John Hathorne irritated me. Driven by teenage stubbornness, she blatantly ignored all signs pointing to danger, selfishly endangering her baby girl, Faith. She also disregarded her beloved familiar, Cadins’ warnings, leading him to an untimely death. Another innocent punished for Maria’s woeful ignorance. 

Perhaps, Faith was always doomed towards darkness with Maria as her mother? Stolen away at a young age & held captive by a God fearing woman, who despised everything Faith inherited. Her inevitable journey for revenge led her to dark magic. The wickedness growing within her, led to Keeper, her devoted familiars death. Another innocents life taken by blind ignorance. This continually happens to those surrounding the Owen’s women, innocents always suffer in one way or another. 

The story of the Owen’s women throughout the generations is heartbreaking and heart warming. I’ve come to love & appreciate them as a family. Alice Hoffmans’ world building skills are beautiful & remain a firm favourite of mines. 



Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert

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

3.75

Emma - Madame Bovary, is a complex woman, trapped in a life & a marriage she hates. She’s a dreamer, an idealist, a romantic who yearns for overzealous passions. She’s also naive, selfish, greedy, hateful & dishonest. 
Her husband, Charles, in comparison, adores her. She can commit no wrongs in his eyes, he’s eternally faithful, loving & loyal to her. He’s also completely blind to her wretchedness toward him & her unhappiness within their marriage. 

In context, women in the 19th century had so little autonomy & even less opportunities. I emphathised with Emma on that level. It’s clear she was a tortured soul, who was doomed to a life of unfulfillment & misery. She seemed to suffer from chronic depressions & mood disorders that weren’t understood back then. Driven by a desire to find a love so intense, that even her daughter was pushed aside. Yet, right under her nose, unwanted, were the 2 people who loved her endlessly. 

Cruelly, a part of me felt irritated Emma escaped the long term repercussions of her salacious & egocentric actions. Instead, Berthe was left alone in the world, destitute & unloved.
It’s one that will stick with me, but it’s a  sad story with a tragic ending. It must have been a scandalous read for its time filled with debauchery, infidelities, lust & betrayal. 
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Doll House by John Hunt

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dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

A
dark & menacing book that made my skin crawl at times. The intensity is anxiety inducing & the brutality, stomach churning. subconsciously I double checked all my doors & windows were locked & the closet empty before bed. It’s been a long time since a book had such a visceral & psychological effect on me. 

The pace is fast & delves in to the kidnapping immediately. The kidnappers, the ‘Jackal’ & the ‘Gorilla’ are barbaric monsters, who imprison girls, including the protagonist ’Olivia’, in pink rooms, fit for a ‘doll house’. Within these pink torture chambers the psychopaths inflict 5 years of rape, brutality & psychological warfare on their victims. 
These monstrosities of men clearly underestimate just how resilient the human psyche can be, even under extreme duress. Olivias strength & bravery were astonishing during her
escape & rescue of the other girls.

Once free from her own personal hell, it became clear the Jackals all consuming obsession would not relent, it was his driving force to get Olivia & the girls back. Freedom doesn’t come easy after such a soul destroying experience. However, Brutus the German Shepard becomes her saviour, in more ways than one. My only spoiler is the dog survives, I wanted to know this upfront. I hate doggy snuff books/films. 
The last part of the novel, is thrilling, the tension created by ‘Hunt’ was palpable. I can’t believe I got the identity of the ‘Jackal’ wrong. Up until the very last moment I thought I’d cracked it.
At times the writing can be a little repetitive & clunky but, overall, a good horror & thriller. I think the cover should definitely come with some trigger warnings. Although the rape scenes aren’t described the horror & gore is still there. 



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Found in a Bookshop by Stephanie Butland

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emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad medium-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

3.75

I felt like a hypocrite using a kindle, while quintessentially reading a love letter about physical books & book stores. “To a book lover, a book shop is not a place in the world, but a world in itself”. 

This story wasn’t quite what I expected, but it was lovely nonetheless. When I realised it was set during the pandemic, I wanted to put it down, what a mistake that would’ve been. 
The idea of “prescribing” books to people in a time of crisis & unknown was fascinating to me. To understand on a human level the comfort, escapism & advice a book can provide. The handful of characters diverse stories told via their emails to the store, solidify this idea. 

The author showed how something so huge & consuming as a worldwide lock down, doesn’t stop everyone’s insular worlds continuing on. One small bookstore with an idea, trying to help in their own way, highlighted how much goodwill & community spirit there was during such a terrible time. 

I now have a renewed love for books & the pleasure they bring. The author reminded me, how important it is to support book stores that provide a cherished place to hold all these wonders. 
I also have many new book recommendations presented throughout by the staff at ‘lost for words’ book store. 
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Flowers in the Attic by V.C. Andrews

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dark emotional sad 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

4.75

I can see why, when published in 1979 ‘Flowers in the attic’ had shock value. It certainly makes for uncomfortable reading with its dark topics, including the underlying theme of incest. 
I assumed a story about four children locked in an attic for years on end, would offer dull & lethargic pacing but V.C Andrews writing was compelling. I’d never read anything quite like it before. 

Taboo subjects aside, there’s betrayal, tragedy, tension & constant twists and turns. I was enthralled by the mother, how she turned from damsel in distress to villain. Poisoned by greed, her powers of manipulation & guilt were truly horrific. The Grandmother was evil incarnated, with her extreme religious views, her demonic, callous nature & sadistic tendencies for brutality, she made the ultimate evil sidekick. 

As is natures way, where there is dark, there is light to be found. The creativity of the children was magical, they turned that dingy attic in to a safe place full of colour and play. Their determination to survive despite their daily horror, gave them a sense of purpose. 
I wondered if Cathy & Chris were pushed in to a scenario that would never have occurred if they weren’t prisoners? or if their parents relationship & the shared bloodline, made it inevitable they were doomed to repeat family history?

I’m definitely reading the next book in this series. 
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