Maggie
❣️ big huge thank you to netgalley and penguin random house children's/labyrinth road for allowing me to read an electronic advanced readers copy of this in exchange for an honest review ❣️
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i read this back on it's website in like ... 2017 ??
to have it in paperback is so cool and i love this story!! i hope the second book/third as well can get funded and printed!!
i feel like a traitor for saying this,, but i liked the lost hero better,
like hazel, frank, and percy are amazing and i love their dynamic
but this literally almost put me in a slump for the second time
so i have to give it a 4/5
still an amazing storyline
excited to read the rest and finally finish this series !
3.5 in all honestly but i rounded down because it just didn't leave what i think is a lasting impression
good story i just wish the characters were a bit more developed, more fleshed out, and their motivations and growth shown more
didn't expect to relate so hard to the body image, bullying, and religious aspects of the book so that was a pleasant surprise.
it was good. but that was it.
this book pissed. me. off. in the best and most intended way possible.
i am filled with rage that only this type of topic can induce in me. topics like bodily autonomy, biological sexes, gender identity, objectification of women drive me crazy. and sometimes its easy to forget about it. sometimes its so easy to let the rabbit inside of you just forget about all those troubles that people are going through because hey you're not going through them right now and why start a fuss and this is the easiest and quickest and quietest way of thinking. fuck. that.
this book pissed me off in the way that i needed to be pissed off. not because of the plot or the writing or the characters. these were all so top tier that i'm actually in shambles now that i know i will never bare witness to their story again (unless i inevitably reread this).
no. this book pissed me off because everyone was ~in~ on it. everyone. there was no one silas could turn to ~truly~ because everyone was the bad guy. society was the bad guy. society will either break you into the perfect man fearing wife or they will call you crazy as they burn you. i am a wreck after reading this. i am filled with rage. its not fair. i feel like a child screaming at whomever will hear. its. not. fair.
i could write a full dissertation on why this book carved out a little hole in my chest and will live their for the rest of my days. i will not. i will, however, continue to be filled with rage as we mark today as the 2nd year anniversary of roe v wade being overturned. i will continue to fuel my rage this november. i will rage. i will burn. i will gnash my teeth like mary and ellen and do what i can as the rabbit in my chest continues to thump. i am unwell.
i thought that i had blindly given this 5 stars out of nostalgia,,
rereading this i saw that this is just as good as i remembered,, rose colored glasses be damned
I had the absolute pleasure of receiving an ARC of “Grave Mistakes” by Kitty Curran in exchange for an honest review. “Grave Mistakes” follows Molly Dade, a sixth grader in the small town of Roehampton, Maine who has a supernaturally extraordinary family. Her mother? A ghost. Her twin? A poltergeist. Her little sister? A zombie. It's only Molly, her older brother, and father who are still around in the land of the living. But that doesn't mean the ones who aren't alive aren't still around too! They are a perfectly normal family. Or at least Molly is trying to make them be.
This book is heartwarming, exciting, and mysterious at parts. But if I had to think of one word to describe this book it would be: convenient. Middle grades are never (necessarily) going to have the depth and complexity that adult or even young adult books have but this really fell flat in terms of plot, characterization, and pacing. Let's break down each one of those.
First plot: I actually really enjoyed the plot. The majority of the book is Molly and Marty (her twin poltergeist) trying to figure out who is responsible for cursing the Dade family which has already resulted in two family deaths. It's a pretty big deal because it looks like whoever it is is targeting the rest of them now, a year after the first incident. This book is 100% plot motivated and I think that's a strength of this book. It has an interesting, intriguing hook and it keeps readers wanting to figure out what happens next. However, there were a lot of plot holes and loose strings that don't necessarily NEED to be wrapped up, but also don't really need to have been in there at all. Without spoiling too much, there's just a ~lot~ of useless red herrings used in this book. And for what reason? Nothing came full circle.
Secondly: the characters. The characters in this book were charming when they had a chance to show themselves but because the book is so plot heavy you really don't get to see the characters shine much and even when they do you are desperately left wanting more. Some character's motives seem completely out of character in moments and then back again. I don't know if this makes sense but bear with me: the characters act like characters. Not people. Also the character of Marty (remember he's a poltergeist) is weirdly un-fleshed out for a character that gets used so much. Readers are told that he cannot be seen by anyone but Molly, being his twin, can sense him. Great, fine, love it. But that means you can't have lines like “his gaze” or “as he craned his neck around”. Make it make sense.
Lastly, the biggest gripe I have with the book: pacing. I'm just still amazed that there is a three week gap between chapters and readers are supposed to believe that nothing important or worthwhile happens in those weeks? It's really mind boggling that choice. But besides that, there's really no rhyme or reason when chapters end. Sometimes multiple chapters will feature the same event or action whereas (like said before) there will be multiple time jumps between chapters. I don't know if it's a middle grade thing or if it's just poor pacing but chapters don't always have to be the same length. Ya know?
I have a lot of feelings about this book but let's break it down to this.
Did I enjoy myself: yes, but mostly a “love to hate it” situation
Would I re-read it: no thank you
Would I recommend it: no thank you
I'm disappointed in this book because it could have been really good. I think that even children's books can be good. Even groundbreaking. But this read more like a chapter book for an elementary school student than a middle grade.
this is quite literally the best book ive read this entire year and i could write a dissertation on how much i love it
first of all, i s belle is my new auto-buy author. i didnt even UNDERSTAND the whole auto-buy author thing until i started reading i s belle because hot DAMN there is like crack in these
i love horror but the bury your gays trope is a little toooo prevalent in most horror stories. zombabe is literally if queer people existed in horror stories and actually had happy endings (shocking. i know.).
babe simmons and dude marsh mean so freaking much to me and i will not stop thinking about their love story and depth of their affection for one another for at LEAST 4-5 business weeks.
this really does have every major trope i love: slow-burn, “everyone feels this way about their best friend” trope, zombie-ism as a metaphor for not only homosexuality but also generational trauma, best-friends-to-lovers, found family, queer main cast AND queer side characters, horror!
i will not stop thinking about this book. read it. please.
best book of 2024 prediction.
i said it in an update status for this book but i'll say it again in the final review:
this was fun. definitely ya. definitely not groundbreaking. definitely published in the 2010's. it was entertaining but im not necessarily on the edge of my seat to read the rest immediately.
definitely recommend!!
quick, to the point, addictingly binge-able.
the ending was the only weak part but it was still a solid read!
this is beyond a doubt the best romance book ive ever read... not that ive read a lot...
jacob maddox has ruined men for me and yours truly has ruined romance books for me. nothing. will. ever. compete.
5 stars. no. 6 stars. no no!! TEN stars!!
what a completely tone deaf book for the society this came out in.
this is a “night at the museum” (but in a mall) meets a glorified active shooter situation.
i really hated:
-the fact that clayton's character was so underdeveloped. yes, i know he's the psycho who did all this. but the FACT that we didn't know until the very last chapter WHY he snapped, it made it all hard to not think there was a something much bigger in play only to be dissapointed.
-the fact that hudson's character was so red-herring-ish. seriously. ALL book i kept wondering when hudson was gonna turn on jo and the others. there were so many examples of him being shading but closing the door from the theatre, conspiring against summer, the weirdly revealed seizure disorder are just a few.
-the fact that it was not every poorly written. i've heard of great premise but terrible execution but this the complete opposite. this is terrible premise with the best execution it could have possibly had. i was genuinely anxious while reading and wanted to know what happened next. i think the chapters were very well spaced and paced out and each little insert between chapters came together so nicely at the end.
it's a 2.5 for me, luv.
what a terribly lackluster ending to a book that cold have been amazing....
ok let me break it down.
i found this book on a whim and got it and read it quickly after release. i knew little to nothing about the story or author once i began (my preferred way of reading). i read it and was left thinking “why?”.
it's never good for a reader to be left asking that question but ESPECIALLY when a book has as much promise as flowerheart.
highlights/pros:
-LOVE the flowery magic
-love how the magic had a voice/personality
-the romance had its moments (especially considering childhood friends to lovers is my weakness)
-the relationship between clara and her father was heart-touching and amazing
questions i still have:
-why did the magic have a voice but no one else's apparently did??
-why is the council so “”"”bad””””??
-why is the mom in it for like a hot minute but then not mentioned again or brought back up again?
-why did xavier have to lose his magic??
-why??????
im so disappointed. i hope this doesn't put me in a reading slump !!
this is delightful. so cute. the art is wonderful. hilarious story. absolutely delightful.
the ending was a little disappointing only because it felt a little rushed but I know there's a sequel coming so hopefully that soothes the disappointment.
but o. m. g.
this book was everything i ever wanted. and more.
tons more.
i really can't sing it's praises highly enough. everyone needs to read this book. non queer people because it should shed some light into what the world looks like from a queer kids perspective. and queer people because it should help heal the inner child within you to see such wonderful representation done in a freaking middle grade book!
i'll end it with a quote:
“he told me that people are not the sum of their mistakes, but the steps they take to grow”
this book was amazing. easily the best middle grade ive ever read.
better than percy jackson.
if you liked southern book clubs guide to slaying vampires (which i did as well) then you should really check this one out!!!
oh..... my..... grapes......
im literally going feral PLEASE READ THIS BOOK DUOLOGY PLEASE OH PLEASE DEAR GOD
im sorry but i think i just dont get it
very sad way to start pride month
art is BEAUTIFUL though!!
this was definitely... something.
good but not terribly great.
i'd recommend but not in any rush.
it's fanTASTIC representation but at times, seems a bit clunky and forced.
definitely absurdist but not in a terry pratchet or douglas adams kind of way more like a gen z tries to write a murder mystery where the resolution might just be the friends we made along the way.
i liked it.
but i won't remember any of it in a year.