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howlinglibraries's reviews
1681 reviews
Goblin Mode: How to Get Cozy, Embrace Imperfection, and Thrive in the Muck by McKayla Coyle
Did not finish book. Stopped at 23%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 23%.
I'm not sure how to describe what I expected from this book, but it wasn't this. There's nothing wrong with the book if it's what you're looking for, but the very literal steps (like going out and looking for mushrooms) weren't what I was hoping for.
Also, while I personally appreciated the author's political takes on capitalism, etc., I think it got a bit misguided at times. The book presents a sort of mindset that the wealthy have overtaken outdoorsy behaviors and the lower and middle class need to "take it back", which may be the case in some parts of the US (I truly don't know); however, as someone from the southeast (where outdoorsy adventuring is something that primarily belongs to the lower and middle classes), I couldn't help but feel like some of the author's mindsets came from a critically online sort of "twitter activism" perspective that didn't actually align with the real world as much as one might hope.
Also, while I personally appreciated the author's political takes on capitalism, etc., I think it got a bit misguided at times. The book presents a sort of mindset that the wealthy have overtaken outdoorsy behaviors and the lower and middle class need to "take it back", which may be the case in some parts of the US (I truly don't know); however, as someone from the southeast (where outdoorsy adventuring is something that primarily belongs to the lower and middle classes), I couldn't help but feel like some of the author's mindsets came from a critically online sort of "twitter activism" perspective that didn't actually align with the real world as much as one might hope.
Does It Hurt? by H.D. Carlton
Did not finish book. Stopped at 24%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 24%.
Idk, this is just the week of DNF titles for me, I guess. 😠This is fine, there's really nothing wrong with it (as long as you don't mind dark romance themes ofc), I just can't get into it. I'm definitely still down to try other books by this author, though, and I might even try this one again sometime!
Darkest Unsolved Mysteries: From The Netflix Series 'Unsolved Mysteries' by Edward Collins
Did not finish book. Stopped at 20%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 20%.
This book seems to be a collection of basic notes the author took while watching episodes of Unsolved Mysteries, without any editing or effort to compile things in a logical manner. Within the first couple of chapters, there were so many missing words, entirely grammatically incorrect sentences, and typos that I gave up. I normally don't mind when a book is missing a bit of editing, but if you're going to make cash off of describing episodes of a television series, at least make it legible.
Do You Still Talk to Grandma?: When the Problematic People in Our Lives Are the Ones We Love by Brit Barron
Did not finish book. Stopped at 20%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 20%.
DNF. It's not you, Brit Barron, it's me. This wasn't quite the book I was expecting going into it, and that's on me for not researching the author ahead of time.
Memento by Jay Kristoff, Amie Kaufman
fast-paced
5.0
Oh my gosh, this was incredible. I've been putting this novella off for ages because I wasn't ready to have nothing new left in the series, but I finally read it today and I totally should've picked it up sooner! I love AIDAN (even though it low key terrifies me lol) and I've always wondered what turned it into the system we see in the trilogy, so reading this and getting that insight was fantastic. The final page gave me goosebumps! Plus, it's been years since I read the main series and revisiting that world was even better than I thought it would be. ♥
✨ Representation: brief mention of a side character's Muslim faith
✨ Representation: brief mention of a side character's Muslim faith
Content Warnings
Moderate: Grief and War
Minor: Death of parent, Gun violence, and Death
A Feather So Black by Lyra Selene
dark
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
DNF @ pg 300
A Feather So Black was one of my most anticipated releases of 2024, and I'm so sad to say that it was quite the disappointment. This book had so many ingredients I love: dark fantasy vibes, political intrigue, fae folklore, romance, a brooding Shadow Daddy... and yet, none of those things were capable of overcoming the fact that this book is far too long, packed with filler material and repetitive internal monologue, and the chemistry between any of these characters is non-existent.
I made it through 300 pages of this book and it was an absolute chore to get that far. Once I accepted the fact that nothing happening in the final 200 pages was going to make up for how bored I was, I decided to throw in the towel. This story would have worked much better as a shorter novel (maybe 300-350 pages), and minus the singular slightly explicit scene I read by the point I left off, it should have been marketed as a YA fantasy novel. The characters read very young and aside from that one brief scene, the "spice" I keep seeing mentioned in this book's marketing and reviews was mostly absent.
I would definitely try a future release from this author, but I don't have any interest in picking this book back up or continuing the series at this time.
Buddy read with Misty!
Thank you to the publisher for the gifted copy! All thoughts are honest and my own.
Standard DNF rating/review disclaimer: I only mark DNFed titles as "read" and/or give them star ratings if I read enough of the book to feel justified in doing so.
A Feather So Black was one of my most anticipated releases of 2024, and I'm so sad to say that it was quite the disappointment. This book had so many ingredients I love: dark fantasy vibes, political intrigue, fae folklore, romance, a brooding Shadow Daddy... and yet, none of those things were capable of overcoming the fact that this book is far too long, packed with filler material and repetitive internal monologue, and the chemistry between any of these characters is non-existent.
I made it through 300 pages of this book and it was an absolute chore to get that far. Once I accepted the fact that nothing happening in the final 200 pages was going to make up for how bored I was, I decided to throw in the towel. This story would have worked much better as a shorter novel (maybe 300-350 pages), and minus the singular slightly explicit scene I read by the point I left off, it should have been marketed as a YA fantasy novel. The characters read very young and aside from that one brief scene, the "spice" I keep seeing mentioned in this book's marketing and reviews was mostly absent.
I would definitely try a future release from this author, but I don't have any interest in picking this book back up or continuing the series at this time.
Buddy read with Misty!
Thank you to the publisher for the gifted copy! All thoughts are honest and my own.
Standard DNF rating/review disclaimer: I only mark DNFed titles as "read" and/or give them star ratings if I read enough of the book to feel justified in doing so.
Melon Head Mayhem by Alex Ebenstein
4.0
This was fun! I love 80s throwback stuff in horror, and this really delivered with the whole "cursed video tape" vibe coupled with these weird, nasty little Melon Head creatures. I was a bit surprised with how fast the Melon Heads showed up in the story, because I feel like creature features don't usually get into the thick of it that fast, but it worked well with how it all played out.
I do wish there had been more backstory — I didn't love how little explanation was given for any of what was happening. This wasn't a new favorite, but it was a fun, messy, action-packed little novella that I had fun with. I'll definitely be checking out more books by this author in the future.
Thank you to the author and BookSirens for the gifted copy! All thoughts are honest and my own.
I do wish there had been more backstory — I didn't love how little explanation was given for any of what was happening. This wasn't a new favorite, but it was a fun, messy, action-packed little novella that I had fun with. I'll definitely be checking out more books by this author in the future.
Thank you to the author and BookSirens for the gifted copy! All thoughts are honest and my own.