val_theburrowofstories's reviews
353 reviews

adventurous funny lighthearted fast-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? No

4.0

I usually do some annotations about every audiobook I listen to, but sadly this one caught me in the middle of a reading slump and all I wanted was to just finish this even when I had waited so long for it. So I remember the feeling that I really enjoyed it and it was fun, but I can’t remember very well everything that happened since my mind wasn’t in the right place.

Still this is a 4 ⭐ for me!

I understand that Percy must obtain 3 letter of recommendation (?) from 3 different Gods.

In this book, he had to get back a Chalice because this one God lost it and he needs it to serve the Gods, besides the Chalice gives immortality to a mortal.

I love that I got to see Percy and Annabeth again 💙

Finale by Stephanie Garber

Go to review page

adventurous medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

I feel like I was a completely different person reading each book because I loved the first one, I tolerated the second one, and this one I just hated.

The Caraval world would’ve been a better place if Tella would’ve really died in the first book lmao that was my true enemy in the whole trilogy, once we started to get her pov it was a nightmare because the girl is incredibly insufferable and stupid! I found her sweet in the first book, up until the point the girl literally made her sister suffer making her think she was dead, that was so damn cruel. She never really cared for Scarlett and I’ll fight anyone who says otherwise because I have proof! lol. At least she met her mother and had a taste of her own medicine because the woman is just like her. I never cared for a second for Dante/Legend on his own or in a relationship with Tella, honestly they both could do better.

It was such a relief when I got to Scarlett’s pov. I kept going for Scarlett and Julian but this was just not good for me, the author managed to ruined even their relationship a bit.

The first book was so especial and magical, and then the other two just didn’t feel magical at all. Maybe it also helped that the main character there was Scarlett and at least her brain cells work.

To be honest at some point I just decided to take this with humor and laugh at everything because it was all just so ridiculous and messy. The author tried to include many different things from this world in the last book and it just didn’t work for me.

I’m reading my annotations and I’m laughing at how ridiculous this book was and how stupid Donatella is but at the same time she makes me so mad because she’s annoying as fuck.

The way I kept going hoping Evangeline would appear, but I only got to meet Jacks who is annoying and you just pity him.

And I’m stubborn as hell because the only reason I read this was to then read OUABH when I knew damn well that I didn’t need to, but here I am writing this. Now I’m thinking that the next trilogy cannot be as bad as this one so I’ll read it, even if everyone seems to dislike the third book.

But, after Finale I just decided to take a break. Actually I think this might have been one of the reasons why I’ve been in a reading slump for 2 months!??? omg

I’m just so glad it’s over, take your 2 ⭐ and goodbye forever!

Dare to Lead: Brave Work. Tough Conversations. Whole Hearts. by Brené Brown

Go to review page

informative reflective medium-paced

4.0

Brené Brown books might be the only self help non fiction books I actually enjoy and learn something. I’ve DNF many that are just words and words without meaning anything at all, but the author here makes her point with few words and good examples.

I love listening to the audiobook and writing down my own conclusions with my own words, it helps me to remember, it helps me to think how I can change as a person. I know this book is aim at leaders of companies mainly, but I think this is actually important and helps you to learn, grow and view the world differently.

I think I would like to have a copy of the own book some day to read it again and annotate in it.

The Section 3 in Part 1 is the best section in the whole book because it has so many teachings and reflections, I wanted to write down everything!

Content Warnings

The Wedding Crasher by Mia Sosa

Go to review page

funny lighthearted 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

4.0

This book has been in my TBR for a couple of years now, and I read The Worst Best Man last year so I knew I wanted to read everything from the author and I was in a romance mood so that's why I picked up this book!

I love how Mia Sosa writes her books, I love how funny they are, I love the romance, I love the representation on Brazilian culture!

Dean and Solange are characters that you cannot help but for in love with them. As long as personality goes, I am literally Dean and yeah my type would be someone like Solange, so I understand him so much. But if I were in a relationship with either of them I would be so lucky lol

Honestly I think I enjoyed the first half a lot more but then the very last chapters were so damn funny and good with the tias and what happened in Las Vegas.

This is also a 4 ⭐ in its own way.

I had such a good time listening to the audiobook while I was trying to be productive doing other things. I loved both narrators, they really brought the characters to life.

Content Warnings

The Rose Code by Kate Quinn

Go to review page

emotional medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

The way I made so many notes on this book and I barely remember what happened, can't remember the character's names and I finished this in one day even though I found it kind of boring?? I think I found the audiobook kind of addictive because of the narrator or maybe it was the writing idk

Osla, Beth and Mab.

What I found interesting is how there's mention of Prince Phillip of Greece and that he was dating one of the main characters.

I felt so sorry for Beth because she grew up with this abuser mother but at the same time she made me so mad!! I can't stand people like her.

By 20% I knew this was kind of boring lmao but I just kept going.

I don't like it when the story is going back and forwards and it was annoying here.

I feel like Osla could've been the one with a more interesting storyline because she was dating the Prince, but suddenly Mab took the focus with her husband and then Beth was supposed to be a bigger main character in the end with her finding a traitor, but I just didn't care about any of the girls to be honest.

Omg Beth is actually such a f*cking terrible friend I had forgotten about this!! After all the girls did for her!! Because

she knew where the freaking bomb was going to hit and she knew both her friends, including the husband and daughter of one of them, were going to THAT place and she said nothing about it??

This book is called The Rose Code, and that freaking code just mattered in the very last chapters lol

By half of this book this was a 3 star, but now I think this might be a 2 stars which for me means it was just okay. And honestly I felt bad because I saw that half of the ratings are 5 star for this book lmao HOW and WHY.

Content Warnings

Legendary by Stephanie Garber

Go to review page

adventurous mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

Caraval I enjoyed. Legendary felt more like a task and just the bridge between the 1st and 3rd book. Sadly, Legendary is following the trend of: the 2nd book is worse than the 1st one. Especially when I don't like Tella as much as I did Scarlett (i mean not that I loved her, but I liked her). Besides not much was going on, but it was a 3 ⭐ while I was reading it so I won’t change that because I remember it was entertaining at least.

I think that the magic of Caraval was also how it was an event that only happened once a year and that was the first time of the girls there, but now it turns out there’s going to be another one just 3 days after the last one?

I wish we got more from Scarlett and Julian here, I really liked them in the first book, but this time it was from Tella’s pov and oh I do not like this girl… besides the romance there was wayyy better than this thing between Tella and Dante.

I'm going to say it. I don't care how many times Tella is like "I love my sister, our bond if special, there's no one like her, I love her more than anything" GIRL STOP. You don't show it or prove it AT ALL. You barely think of her for more than a second, you barely consider her. So yeah... You think you're protecting her but to me you're just thinking about yourself all the time...So, of course Scarlett doesn't know the truth, AGAIN. Then Tella got mad at Scarlett because in the conversation SHE was eavesdropping she realized Scarlett didn’t tell her an important thing, as if Tella tells her everything (she doesn’t tell her a single thing). Tella only goes to Scarlett when she needs something from her. She’s very impulsive and never thinks before she acts, she’s jumping from one thing to the next without thinking about the consequences, she doesn’t think about anyone but herself…

These girls have both daddy issues and mommy issues, they could not catch a break. I did not understand a thing about the mother and did not care to be honest.

I was SO excited when Jacks appeared because I know he’s the main character of OUABH (which I haven’t read yet), I was hoping to see Evangeline too here or in the next book but that didn’t happen.

The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab

Go to review page

adventurous dark reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

I’m not going to lie, when I think back to this book I finished almost a month ago I just think how this was boring and it was not the masterpiece I was expecting, and that just makes me sad. It was a disappointment. I don’t even remember most of what happened, just that it was slow as fuck and didn’t go nowhere. When I finished it I thought I would give it 3 stars but I feel now that I was being generous, so 2 ⭐ for my rating.

Gosh I’m not even going to read my notes, I’m so tired with all the books I have to review that this is not worth it to make a well written review lol there’s hundred of those loving and hating this book already.

It just makes me so mad that I didn’t love this, that I felt like her “bisexuality” was not represented correctly and was just something the author added so she could add it to the sell speech, the fan art is so pretty and the narrator is amazing, but that didn’t save this book.

That “romance” she had with Henry? I did not feel it at all. And I hate that this Darkness was obsessed with her and wouldn’t let her in peace, it would’ve been sooo much more interesting to read about her falling in love with Luc but for real and if he was a bit different, but well. The ending was predictable too, I was just like “wait this is when I’m supposed to cry?”

Content Warnings

The Two Towers by J.R.R. Tolkien

Go to review page

adventurous slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.5

I remember being so invested when they were looking for the hobbits and then when Pippin and Merry were with the Ents because that was fun, but there was a battle and my mind could not focus on the audiobook, I had no idea what was going on from that point.

Besides, I don’t know how many times I fall sleep while listening to this especially the second we got back to Frodo and Sam, it was just so damn boring… it’s so slow and nothing was happening.

So, this is 2.5 ⭐ for me and I’m being generous.

Anyways, I really love the narration by Andy Serkis.

Content Warnings

Caraval by Stephanie Garber

Go to review page

adventurous mysterious medium-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

4.0

I’ve been waiting for months to get this trilogy in Libby and I’m so happy I ended up really liking it!

This might be the 10th audiobook that I’ve listened narrated by Rebecca Soler and she never disappoints.

Scarlett and Donatella Dragna are two sisters who live with their abusive father in the Isle of Trisda. The girls have always dreamed of leaving and being free, and the opportunity finally presents itself in the name of Julian Marrero when this boy comes to the island and offers them to take them to Caraval, this magical place where they can play the game and if they win they can ask for anything they want.

I really liked the sisters, but especially Scarlett because I feel I would be more like her in this whole situation. I loved seeing her romance with Julian and how she had to learn to trust him. I did not expect that many plot twist and surprises in the book, especially in the end I was loving that. I was having such a great time with this book.

By the end we got so many emotions and information that just convinced me this is a 4 ⭐

Content Warnings

The Sun and the Star by Rick Riordan

Go to review page

adventurous emotional funny hopeful 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

4.5

One word to describe the whole book is CUTE. Which is funny considering this is a Nico Di Angelo story, but his relationship with Will is just so cute, they’re my babies, I want to protect them from everything and I loved them from the very first pages 🥺💛

This book is basically Nico’s quest to go to Tartarus and save “the one who calls his name” and Will knew it was going to dangerous for him to go too because he’s a son of a Apollo and needs the sun, but that would not stop him and he goes along. I loved seeing both of them protecting each other, their strength, their determination, their loyalty, their love 🤧

I know sometimes their dialogue and nicknames could seem cheesy, but to me it was just so cute and sweet and funny. They’ve been together for a year and I was so happy that we got to read some stories between them at the beginning of their relationship (the moment they knew they liked each other, how one asked the other on a date, their first kiss). There were moments where I could’ve cried of how cuteness and how happy and proud I am of them 😭❤️

As always, even the smallest appearance of Percy and Annabeth makes me happy, and is so cheesy and funny that their only advice for them on Tartarus was that they would be okay because they had each other lmao but it’s true! That’s how Percabeth survived after all.

This is so coming of age, so cute, being proud of who you are and loving who you want, coming out... I feel like this book can be SO important for so many kids out there who want and need someone to feel related and safe. And this book is perfect for that.

I’m going to miss Nico and Will so much, this is easily a 4.5 ⭐ for me.

Content Warnings

More...

val_theburrowofstories's reviews 353 reviews

val_theburrowofstories's reviews
353 reviews