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Previous thread: January
Because I will not be able to read as many books
as I did last year because of my busy schedule.
These reading wrap-ups will be
more in-depth than the ones I posted last year.
So enjoy~!
I read 4 books this past month.
FEBRUARY READS:
Final Rating: 5 Stars
Summary: Delilah Green thought she was past feeling like an outcast in her small town of Bright Falls after escaping to New York to achieve her dream
of being a full-time photographer whose main focus is queer feminine rage. She also doesn't take romance seriously, preferring to have one-night stands over real feelings. But when her step-sister Astrid and her evil step-mother, convince her to come back to Bright Falls to photograph Astrid's wedding with a large wad of cash, Delilah begrudgingly agrees. After all, her career is still in the beginning stages and she is struggling to get known. What she doesn't expect is to find Claire, Astrid's childhood friend, irresistible upon returning to town.
Claire Sutherland hasn't had a good lay in ages. With her absentee ex-husband constantly leaving her 9-year-old daughter disappointed and her having to pick up the pieces.
Along with running her family's shop, she hasn't had much time to think about herself. But when Delilah Green walks back into town looking different from how she looked ages ago, Claire finds her unrecognizable and beyond gorgeous. She starts to flirt with her until the ball drops and to her horror she realizes who Delilah is. Her best friend's sister, who Astrid would kill her for even thinking of in that way. But there is more, all of Astrid's friends-hate her husband. Even Delilah cannot stand the douche bag of a man. The bridesmaids, Claire & Iris along with the unwilling Delilah team up to break off the engagement. And along the way Delilah and Claire make a Friend with Benefits deal because they both know that this cannot last beyond the wedding because Delilah's life is not here and Astrid cannot find out as well.
But can you really be friends with benefits when there is far more to it than just lust?
-----------------
Review: I am not a romance reader, I tend to favor YA romance simply for the fact that it isn't over-saturated with intercourse. But surprisingly this book was not overwhelmingly focused on that aspect. I went into this book with an open mind hoping that it would blow my mind...and it did. I was not expecting to fall so hard for Delilah as a character or Claire. But by the end of the book I found my heart breaking alongside theirs and I just really wanted them to live happily ever after. Not to mention the attempts to end the wedding was a fun extra thing to keep the plot rolling and Delilah & Astrid's strained relationship was apart of the story I didn't expect to rip my heart out. This story literally grabbed my heart and did not let go of it until the very end. I was so invested in this relationship, more than most I've read about. I absolutely loved this story. And it wasn't overly sexual like most adult romances are-something I also really appreciated about it because it focused more on the actual romance aspect. I can't wait to read the second book.
Rating: 4.5 Stars
Summary: Jen & Riley have been best friends for ages, Jen is finally pregnant after years of failed attempts and Riley is about to make it big in her career as a news anchor. But their friendship is tested when Jen's, Police officer husband, shoots and kills an innocent unarmed black boy. Riley is tasked with covering the story as one of the only Black women on the news team. While Jen and her family face the consequences or her husband's actions.
--------------------
Review: This story was very relevant given the continuing fight against police brutality in America and how so many cops get off scot-free without any consequences.
This book pulled at my heartstrings and was beyond upsetting in more ways than one, not just because of how real it is, but also because the authors did a fantastic job at putting the harshness of reality into words and devastating you with how none of this is right. I also want to say, that this book also did a great job of challenging both the main characters in different ways. Jen had so many disgusting thoughts throughout but they also made me question my own thoughts as I read along. Riley also had her moments where her thoughts made you question certain things. But I imagine both sides are things that people of both races have struggled with personally. I know Jen felt too real for me, and it was upsetting for me but that was good. This book really made me think harder and feel hard. It makes it all the more upsetting when you know this is shit that happens on the daily here. The only reason it's not a 5 stars is that I feel like the ending was too happy...it didn't feel legit to me.
Rating: 2 Stars
Summary: This is the 9th volume in the Tokyo Ghoul series so I will just give you a summary of the series in general. In Tokyo, Ghouls are a very real and scary threat.
They can pass as humans but they are not humans. They feast on human flesh to survive and are stronger and more lethal than humans. They are at the top of the food chain so to speak. Our main character, Ken Kaneki, was an ordinary college student until a violent encounter with a femme fatale Ghoul send shim to the hospital where a life-saving transplant is done. Only Ken wakes up a completely different person. He's now a half-ghoul half-human hybrid. He doesn't fit in on either side but now navigate through life this way but things are far more complicated than he originally thought.
----------------
Review: Not much to say on this one. I just genuinely found it super boring because it focused heavily on the cops that are trying to eliminate the Ghouls. I do not care about the cops in the slightest, so this volume dragged and was so beyond boring for me.
Rating: 4 Stars
Summary: Maddy did it. That's the name of the podcast that is covering what happened all those years ago when a good chunk of Springville high school students died on prom night. Who is Maddy? She was an unsuspecting white-passing nerdy girl who was outcasted for most of her life for the way she dressed and acted like she had come straight out of the 50s. Never having fit in, you think one fateful day when people figured out she was mixed wouldn't change anything. But unfortunately, it did. The hate thrown her way intensifies and this time it's more racially motivated. Maddy already the outcast who suffers at the hands of her hateful father who wants nothing more than for her to be the perfect "white" daughter, but now she is becoming the main target of everyone in her school. Maddy has another secret though...she can move things with her mind. With everything becoming a mess in her life, it's odd that she seems to finally be opening up. When the most popular guy in school, Kendrick, who is also dating one of the most popular girls in school, asks Maddy out to the first integrated prom. Maddy starts to come out of her shell. She blossoms into herself and becomes stronger as the days pass. But when a cruel prank ends in tragedy Maddy's powers come to their full potential and chaos reigns.
If you couldn't tell-this is a Carrie retelling.
----------------------
Review: I love TDJ as she's one of my favorite authors of all time. This was the last book I needed to read to finish her backlog. With that being said, this was not my favorite work of hers. I appreciate her take on the classic horror, and because I know the origins of the story I had a feeling of dread in my stomach throughout the entire story.
I think TDJ has a fantastic writing style and really knows how to build suspense and this book proved that once more for me. With that being said, she missed some stars for me with this one because some aspects of the story seem rushed. In particular, Maddy & Kendrick, their relationship felt super rushed. Not to mention the ending-I was so pissed with how some people survived when they shouldn't have survived. But I also want to say I feel like some of the development of some characters was too rushed-like with Wendy in particular. I think the timing was messed up a bit in this story-which sucks because I think this is the first time I've felt this way about a TDJ book. I did, however, like the incorporation of a podcast to tell part of the story.
Currently Reading: The Wicked Remain by Laura Pohl & The House Across The Lake by Riley Sager
What do you think?
What'd you read this month?
Any recommendations for me?
Have you read any of these?
Any questions for me?
Tagging:
@seungfloral @Yuzuru @mudd @Hakunama_Tata @ManduBun @ApinksBadPanda @MK3AM
Because I will not be able to read as many books
as I did last year because of my busy schedule.
These reading wrap-ups will be
more in-depth than the ones I posted last year.
So enjoy~!
I read 4 books this past month.
FEBRUARY READS:
Final Rating: 5 Stars
Summary: Delilah Green thought she was past feeling like an outcast in her small town of Bright Falls after escaping to New York to achieve her dream
of being a full-time photographer whose main focus is queer feminine rage. She also doesn't take romance seriously, preferring to have one-night stands over real feelings. But when her step-sister Astrid and her evil step-mother, convince her to come back to Bright Falls to photograph Astrid's wedding with a large wad of cash, Delilah begrudgingly agrees. After all, her career is still in the beginning stages and she is struggling to get known. What she doesn't expect is to find Claire, Astrid's childhood friend, irresistible upon returning to town.
Claire Sutherland hasn't had a good lay in ages. With her absentee ex-husband constantly leaving her 9-year-old daughter disappointed and her having to pick up the pieces.
Along with running her family's shop, she hasn't had much time to think about herself. But when Delilah Green walks back into town looking different from how she looked ages ago, Claire finds her unrecognizable and beyond gorgeous. She starts to flirt with her until the ball drops and to her horror she realizes who Delilah is. Her best friend's sister, who Astrid would kill her for even thinking of in that way. But there is more, all of Astrid's friends-hate her husband. Even Delilah cannot stand the douche bag of a man. The bridesmaids, Claire & Iris along with the unwilling Delilah team up to break off the engagement. And along the way Delilah and Claire make a Friend with Benefits deal because they both know that this cannot last beyond the wedding because Delilah's life is not here and Astrid cannot find out as well.
But can you really be friends with benefits when there is far more to it than just lust?
-----------------
Review: I am not a romance reader, I tend to favor YA romance simply for the fact that it isn't over-saturated with intercourse. But surprisingly this book was not overwhelmingly focused on that aspect. I went into this book with an open mind hoping that it would blow my mind...and it did. I was not expecting to fall so hard for Delilah as a character or Claire. But by the end of the book I found my heart breaking alongside theirs and I just really wanted them to live happily ever after. Not to mention the attempts to end the wedding was a fun extra thing to keep the plot rolling and Delilah & Astrid's strained relationship was apart of the story I didn't expect to rip my heart out. This story literally grabbed my heart and did not let go of it until the very end. I was so invested in this relationship, more than most I've read about. I absolutely loved this story. And it wasn't overly sexual like most adult romances are-something I also really appreciated about it because it focused more on the actual romance aspect. I can't wait to read the second book.
Rating: 4.5 Stars
Summary: Jen & Riley have been best friends for ages, Jen is finally pregnant after years of failed attempts and Riley is about to make it big in her career as a news anchor. But their friendship is tested when Jen's, Police officer husband, shoots and kills an innocent unarmed black boy. Riley is tasked with covering the story as one of the only Black women on the news team. While Jen and her family face the consequences or her husband's actions.
--------------------
Review: This story was very relevant given the continuing fight against police brutality in America and how so many cops get off scot-free without any consequences.
This book pulled at my heartstrings and was beyond upsetting in more ways than one, not just because of how real it is, but also because the authors did a fantastic job at putting the harshness of reality into words and devastating you with how none of this is right. I also want to say, that this book also did a great job of challenging both the main characters in different ways. Jen had so many disgusting thoughts throughout but they also made me question my own thoughts as I read along. Riley also had her moments where her thoughts made you question certain things. But I imagine both sides are things that people of both races have struggled with personally. I know Jen felt too real for me, and it was upsetting for me but that was good. This book really made me think harder and feel hard. It makes it all the more upsetting when you know this is shit that happens on the daily here. The only reason it's not a 5 stars is that I feel like the ending was too happy...it didn't feel legit to me.
police brutality/death/racism/racial slurs/pregnancy struggles
Rating: 2 Stars
Summary: This is the 9th volume in the Tokyo Ghoul series so I will just give you a summary of the series in general. In Tokyo, Ghouls are a very real and scary threat.
They can pass as humans but they are not humans. They feast on human flesh to survive and are stronger and more lethal than humans. They are at the top of the food chain so to speak. Our main character, Ken Kaneki, was an ordinary college student until a violent encounter with a femme fatale Ghoul send shim to the hospital where a life-saving transplant is done. Only Ken wakes up a completely different person. He's now a half-ghoul half-human hybrid. He doesn't fit in on either side but now navigate through life this way but things are far more complicated than he originally thought.
----------------
Review: Not much to say on this one. I just genuinely found it super boring because it focused heavily on the cops that are trying to eliminate the Ghouls. I do not care about the cops in the slightest, so this volume dragged and was so beyond boring for me.
gore/violence
Rating: 4 Stars
Summary: Maddy did it. That's the name of the podcast that is covering what happened all those years ago when a good chunk of Springville high school students died on prom night. Who is Maddy? She was an unsuspecting white-passing nerdy girl who was outcasted for most of her life for the way she dressed and acted like she had come straight out of the 50s. Never having fit in, you think one fateful day when people figured out she was mixed wouldn't change anything. But unfortunately, it did. The hate thrown her way intensifies and this time it's more racially motivated. Maddy already the outcast who suffers at the hands of her hateful father who wants nothing more than for her to be the perfect "white" daughter, but now she is becoming the main target of everyone in her school. Maddy has another secret though...she can move things with her mind. With everything becoming a mess in her life, it's odd that she seems to finally be opening up. When the most popular guy in school, Kendrick, who is also dating one of the most popular girls in school, asks Maddy out to the first integrated prom. Maddy starts to come out of her shell. She blossoms into herself and becomes stronger as the days pass. But when a cruel prank ends in tragedy Maddy's powers come to their full potential and chaos reigns.
If you couldn't tell-this is a Carrie retelling.
----------------------
Review: I love TDJ as she's one of my favorite authors of all time. This was the last book I needed to read to finish her backlog. With that being said, this was not my favorite work of hers. I appreciate her take on the classic horror, and because I know the origins of the story I had a feeling of dread in my stomach throughout the entire story.
I think TDJ has a fantastic writing style and really knows how to build suspense and this book proved that once more for me. With that being said, she missed some stars for me with this one because some aspects of the story seem rushed. In particular, Maddy & Kendrick, their relationship felt super rushed. Not to mention the ending-I was so pissed with how some people survived when they shouldn't have survived. But I also want to say I feel like some of the development of some characters was too rushed-like with Wendy in particular. I think the timing was messed up a bit in this story-which sucks because I think this is the first time I've felt this way about a TDJ book. I did, however, like the incorporation of a podcast to tell part of the story.
gore/racism/violence/bullying/police brutality/misogyny/abuse/religious abuse
Currently Reading: The Wicked Remain by Laura Pohl & The House Across The Lake by Riley Sager
What do you think?
What'd you read this month?
Any recommendations for me?
Have you read any of these?
Any questions for me?
Tagging:
@seungfloral @Yuzuru @mudd @Hakunama_Tata @ManduBun @ApinksBadPanda @MK3AM
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