Isabel
I don't know if this is a 5-star for everybody but this book sure is for me.
I'm biased and I admit it because as soon as I started reading this I connected it to McDanno and it was the end for me. I loved H50 and never had crossed to another type of relationship in media that was quite close to Steve and Danno. But right from the gate, you get their exact dynamic in this book.
One seemingly unaware dude that drives his partner crazy with the amount of trouble he gets dropped on and how much affection they share all the time. Said partner is kinda short tempered but smart AF and has a huge heart. Both of them share mutual respect, understanding, and undying love for each other, but one of them is gay and in love with the other one, and the other one is straight and dating.
Throughout the book their relationship takes form and they hit every single one of my needs from friends to lovers relationship. They have a yearning, they have good understanding and lots of dialogue, they are loyal and respect each other's boundaries and they always put each other's needs first. And when they finally get together there's no drama, no shit, no second guessing, they're it.
I'm picking up the whole series and I will be reading other books by Mary Calmes too.
I finished Silver Under the Nightfall last night and I really enjoyed it!
They don't exactly change a lot of what's established about vampires, but some of them have different powers and stuff. The plot starts interesting but it's predictable and by the end some aspects are a little underdeveloped.
What really shines in this book are the characters. Our protagonist is a lovely human being deeply stubborn and flawed with a lot of self esteem issues and a huge capacity for love.
Rin wrote this in a way that right from the beginning I felt emotional about Remy and his life, it was hook, line and sinker for me because of his characteristics and background.
His love interests are delightful in different ways and their dynamic is a little Sunshine protector - Sunshine - Sunshine protector.
They're all marked by the horrors of life and trying to be their best versions anyway.
There's some miscommunication and past secrets but they talk, and they apologize when they fuck up and that honestly made their relationship so good for me. Lack of accountability in a romance really takes me out of it, and here it doesn't happen because they talk, even if they make mistakes.
There's smut, but Rin Chupeco wrote this in a teasing/snippet way that didn't feel annoying or disgusting, but I did enjoy their banter and foreplay way more than the sex itself.
Idk if this was inspired by Castlevania but the trio is really similar in some ways and I like that.
All in all it was a solid book even if it had some inconsistencies and I'm definitely picking more books from Rin Chupeco, I like their writing.
I saw this book today in a video from a content creator and what called my attention to it was the Booktoober saying how much representation this book had and how some aspects of it were usually not talked about in mystery thriller, and to be honest I was intrigued there.
I listened to this audiobook in one sitting.
The cast and sound effects were on point, all the voices were good and it was a huge part of me enjoying it so much.
But the writing in this is good. It's not flowery or convoluted, it goes straight to the point but it is smart in the way it feeds you clues. I never felt I wasn't supposed to guess what was happening, it was like the author wanted me there, even if I saw what was going to happen before the protagonist.
I do like the representation in it. I like the fact it is pointed out more than once racism, xenophobia, and misogyny in our society and most important in the justice system.
But honestly what hooked me from the start was the characters. I know many reviews state they didn't like El, but I did. I loved her relationship with Martín, and him personally. Her friendship with Sash, Nathalie, Tina, and Ayaan was complicated and somewhat shaky but I also could feel what the writer intended when doing the connections.
Yes, the last quarter is less credible and developed but it doesn't take the brights spots of the book for me, it is a solid 4 stars, and I will read her next book.
YES, FINALLY!
I've been reading a lot of books trying to mix things I love: detective books and queer people being happy and in love and finally, and I had so many misses, but I finally found one that is good, no hang-ups!
Okay, maybe some hang-ups.
The story is predictable, the characters have some common stereotypes and the cases basically solve themselves and end up a little too neat for my taste.
But, there's chemistry, the writing is fun and fast-paced, the details are strong and make the story more interesting and there is a connection to another series I read that made this even more enjoyable.
Really solid book as far as romance goes, and I plan on finishing the series.
YES, FINALLY!
I've been reading a lot of books trying to mix things I love: detective books and queer people being happy and in love and finally, and I had so many misses, but I finally found one that is good, no hang-ups!
Okay, maybe some hang-ups.
The story is predictable, the characters have some common stereotypes and the cases basically solve themselves and end up a little too neat for my taste.
But, there's chemistry, the writing is fun and fast-paced, the details are strong and make the story more interesting and there is a connection to another series I read that made this even more enjoyable.
Really solid book as far as romance goes, and I plan on finishing the series.
I'm dnfing this.
There were a lot of problems with the writing, from the fact it was dual POV and it would JUST CHANGE, with no division between their flow of thought and actions, to the very stereotypical portrait of lesbians, and the lgbtq+ community, to the open transphobic comments. Apparently, it gets worse and there are a lot of trigger warnings and more upsetting content. All around a shit show.
This wasn't bad, but it also wasn't what I wanted from it.
There's a sense of emotional manipulation in this that I don't like, that nothing is what seems but in a cheap way. I kind of like the magic system, and I kind of like Adam, Vic and his family, Sue, Argent, and Silver, but I don't think I will keep reading the series. It has potential but is misused.
FREAKING FIVE STARS.
Look, I had a terrible week, and today I saw a friend saying they were picking this up, and it was the first day of PRIDE MONTH and I was like, BLACK AND QUEER LOVE AND JOY? HELL YES.
And oh my god, I may not be cohesive about this but, this was everything I've been searching in romance books for a while.
Characters are fully developed and delightful to read, the story feels like something you could live, or hear from someone close, it feels fleshed out and palpable.
The prose is well-written and feels real, and has some beautiful moments. Chencia really knows how to balance playfulness and feelings and serious discussions about gender and gender roles, patriarchal society, homophobia, and race.
The plot makes sense and all the questions that happen during the book are honest questions and discussions.
There's no conflict that doesn't lead to dialogue, and everything is faced with maturity and copious amounts of love from everyone involved.
The banter is IMPECCABLE and the smut is great, I don't even care about smut usually because it's usually bad, here it isn't.
I swear to you the only bad thing about this book is that it ENDS.
Dfn at 50%
The idea is interesting and I wanted to read this both because of the amputee representation and the borderline representation, but this fell apart. The characters are poorly constructed and they act without any rhyme or reason, they're a very unlikeable bunch, and there's so much casual racism in this that I have no idea how this was a nebula winner.
Dnf.
I started loving this, the characters were funny, seemed to have depth, and were interesting and well-rounded but this soured so much before the end.
Spoilers ahead:
But I didn't look at the tags so I didn't know there would be cheating in this. Personally, I'm very against cheating, in real-life situations, I still know it happens and in some cases, it's more or less frowned upon. And while it's not my favorite trope or plot device I can stand it when there are compelling arguments from the cheater's perspective, and the matter is addressed as it is, without anybody involved pretending it wasn't what it was. The first thing is real here, one of our main characters has been in a committed relationship with a man for the past 10 years, and she loves him as her best friend, but she is a lesbian, and she needed to experience it to realize her true feelings. What bothers me is the book trying to pass her betrayal as something simple as "neglecting to mention some details" when she actually betrayed and lied to 2 different people, her boyfriend and the other main character in this book. Throughout the whole book said character acts like a jerk but is always left out of the rook on the account of being brilliant, smart, and groundbreaking when she is often rude, unprofessional, and an asshole.
And I just can't with that, they're not teens, they're 30's women for god sake, that ain't cute.
This is one of those books that take a long time to get you hooked, but it's good to read nonetheless.
The concept of Jade being used as something to give you powers wasn't strange for me, for I have read other Chinese novels with it as a magical element. It's a very solid read and I will continue the series.
Very solid ⭐⭐⭐⭐
This was exactly what I needed it to be.
The book is fast paced, well written, has strong and smart characters, that made me care and root for them, and the conclusion was very satisfying.
For a brief moment I thought the end would let me down but I was mistaken, because the author had it all well planned out. I will continue with the series.
I wish Goodreads let us give half stars to books because this is a 2.5.
This wasn't a good reading experience at all, this was a chore, this was suffering and frustration while living inside the head of a person that was really childish, ungrateful, and arrogant. I know trauma can do a number on people but the journey is not consistent with the character itself from past books, all the prerogatives set in book one regarding pack and shifters are thrown out of the window because of the protagonist, so much so that she alludes to that fact herself but doesn't repent.
Andrea went from the best novella until now to my least favorite character in this universe, when she was one of my favorites.
The first time I started reading this I didn't really care for it, I thought the prose was beautiful, but it wasn't enough to keep me interested and I dropped it for several months. Yesterday I picked the audiobook and listened to it from the beginning and I finally understand the hype around it.
As I said the writing here is really beautiful, the work is really well crafted and the romance is delightful in its yearning. And I think it really accomplishes what it sets out to. It's a love story told in letters, and the time travel part of it is good in a way that leaves you itching for more in-depth descriptions. I did see the twist coming and was thrilled by it.
I read this because I saw a tweet that mentioned Hench when talking about “unsettling easy distinctions between heroes/villains through narrative moments of unbearable intimacy” and this is precisely what Hench was. This is a 4.5 for me.
In the age of superheroes, few works invite us to talk and think about what the world would really be if they existed. What would be the consequences to normal people, to the everyday human, and how that impact would mold our society? Hench does all of this and more.
There's a great depth of analysis in this book, a great representation of a disabled protagonist and other characters, a great bisexual representation that is never shamed, and the whole LGBTq+ gets their moments too. We have POC characters that aren't stereotypical or forgetful.
If all of that isn't enough, Hench has great humor moments, but it's not a book for you if you're squeamish because the gore is present a lot, and there are also lots of triggers. There are also lovely and warming moments that give us comfort and make us fall in love with the characters and their relationships.
Last but not least Anna. She is a great protagonist for me, she captivated me and made me root for her for the entirety of this book. I am already a villain girl, but Anna makes it easy, not only because there's so much good in her that she's better than most heroes, but because she's loveable and funny and so so lonely and precious it hurts. I'll be waiting for the second book to pass more time in her presence.
If you're looking for an in depth character analysis of a person who's been through heavy trauma caused by captivity, captor bonding, Stockholm Syndrome and how that changes a person this is the book for you.
If you're looking for a good detective, investigation and procedural book this ain't it.
Through out the whole book I felt like the writer decided to focus on the main protagonist and forgot the rest. Jude has depth, but this story doesn't. Most of the plot doesn't make sense, the twists are way predictable and the big case they build throughout the book is just a reflex of Judy herself.
It's not always that a book lives up to the hype for me, but this one did. 4.5 Stars
Not because the writing is incredible, even though the Audiobook IS, but because it is good enough to grab you and keep you hooked until the end, and maybe it is incredible in that sense.
Pip isn't the most intelligent character I've ever had, but her flaws don't outweigh her purpose. Better than that Ravi is one of the few MMC that I haven't been put off in a long time. He's sweet and loving and by the end, I was rooting for them, just because they both deserved something genuinely good.
I'm usually on top of mysteries, so the first big twist didn't catch me by surprise, but the second and all that it entailed did, which is another reason for this being a high rating. I think it is one of the few books that a lot of people will be surprised by and that's a huge merit.
The thing I liked the most about these books was the meeting with Ravi's parents. Not because of the sappiness, but because they were owned and they got it, it is hopeful and I am a believer at the heart.