kayaj's reviews
521 reviews

Behind Her Eyes by Sarah Pinborough

dark

2.25

meh. suspense was good, ending was bad, middle was long.

All the Dangerous Things by Stacy Willingham

dark mysterious medium-paced

4.25

 

All The Dangerous Things shows several small streaks of brilliance. I have read (too many) thriller books, and the best kind is when you’re shocked by the ending. However, after closer inspection, you realize that the clues were laid all along for you to figure out all the different twists. It’s just a matter of hiding them cleverly enough that you didn’t quite connect the dots until it was too late.

We follow Isabelle, who hasn’t stopped searching for her son Mason ever since he disappeared from his crib a year prior. She’s lost friends, family, even her husband in pursuit of the truth. She hasn’t slept properly for a full year, only subsisting on the bare minimum needed to survive. As a last-ditch effort, she teams up with a podcaster who begins unearthing truths about her childhood that cause Isabelle to begin to question herself. And not at the least because she’s forgotten one important detail: she’s a sleepwalker.

now this is what i call a solid thriller.

It’s not overly high-stakes the way some thrillers are (Behind Closed Doors and Survive The Night come to mind). However, it does an incredible job of sowing seeds of doubt in your mind, in stealthily ramping up the tension, until you realize that your breaths have shortened and you’re completely unsure what to believe.

As we dive into Isabelle’s fragmented childhood memories, as well as reports of what happened the night Mason went missing, we begin to suspect her. But it’s not just her who is unreliable and complex. Almost every character in this book is entwined with this story one way or another, and none of them are perfect. I believe the author comments on this in her foreword but All The Dangerous Things really comments on the pressure mothers face to be perfect. Everything they do is judged, and they’re immediately regarded as terrible humans if they do not feel endless love and joy towards their child at all times. This book does a truly excellent job at drawing aside the curtain and reminding us as a society that there is a difference between taking care of a child properly and lashing on moms for the little things, the little feelings.

That being said, this is a twisty little jewel of a book! It has a steady pace that balances great reveals with excellent foreshadowing. It takes the psychological route instead of the suspenseful one, while keeping you on the edge of your seat. I cannot recommend this book enough if you’re looking for a new thriller!

So that’s it! I’m not sure how my next thriller read will top that in terms of intricate characters and fantastic twists but hey, you never know! 

Lost in the Moment and Found by Seanan McGuire

emotional reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes

5.0

The Grace of Kings by Ken Liu

fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Maame by Jessica George

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

Maame is a book I was terrified of reading. Simply put, I rarely ever reach for literary fiction. I find the highs to be about halfway up a mountaintop, while the lows are the Grand Canyon. However, occasionally one literary fiction book comes along and hits every emotion on the spectrum in the best of ways. In case you haven’t caught on yet, Maame was that book for me.

We follow Maddie, a woman whose mother spends most of her time in Ghana, leaving Maddie the only person to care for her dad with Parkinson’s disease. When her mother finally returns home, Maddie jumps at the chance to move out into the great wide world of London, England, and take risks like she wasn’t able to before.

This story is tragic and joyful, relatable and clever. It deals with racism and family, being torn between cultures and worlds. Maddie’s family is Ghanian, and so many of the white people she’s around fail to understand that part of her. George writes with raw honesty, and Maddie is a character that you desperately want to root for. You’re cheering her on as she experiences the new, and you’re heartbroken by the things she’s heartbroken by. Now that’s powerful writing.

If you’re like me and worried that you’ll be bored, don’t be. Every event has a purpose and that is to flesh out Maddie’s character arc. And guess what? It works. I truly am surprised with how invested I ended up being in this little story full of big thoughts. Also, I cried so there’s that.

Overall, this is a standout debut for 2023! A huge thank you to the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

When No One Is Watching by Alyssa Cole
Did not finish book.

it didn't grab me!

Seoulmates by Susan Lee

medium-paced

• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

 

Seoulmates really, really, really made me want to reread XOXO by Axie Oh. Or Once Upon A K-Prom by Kat Cho. It’s not a bad book…it’s just a bit repetitive.

We follow two ex-best-friends named Hannah and Jacob who reconvene one summer and try to fulfill a bucket list of things to do before Jacob has to go back to Korea. Since he’s, you know, an up-and-coming K-drama star!

I really loved how Hannah learned to love her Korean heritage, whether it was through appreciation of Korean food or love of K-dramas. At the same time, she doesn’t deny her American environment and the way that it has shaped her. Watching her balance these two truths of her identity was so impactful to watch.

I enjoyed aspects of Jacob and Hannah’s relationship! They had some really sweet moments, and I loved how their friendship was such a central part of their romantic relationship.

One of my issues with this book is that I felt like the perspectives didn’t match up. For example, Hannah would act a certain way when we’re reading from her perspective. Then when we’re reading about her from Jacob’s perspective, she acts differently. I don’t know if it’s a me thing or what but I just felt like the characters had personalities that were completely dependent on who POV I was seeing.

I guess my last complaint(?) is that I WAS JUST KIND OF BORED OKAY.

yeah uh.

I feel guilty for saying this (and yet I didn’t feel an ounce of guilt whaling on Parisa earlier this year smh*) but I just didn’t feel invested in anything that was happening. This is one of those dreaded purgatory books, where nothing is overly wrong, but not really right either. Like, the plot was fine. The characters were fine. The romance had some sweet highs. It’s definitely a book I’d recommend to people who enjoy a cute romance! 

How to Survive Your Murder by Danielle Valentine

dark mysterious fast-paced

 

How To Survive Your Murder was shockingly enjoyable. From the moment I found out that the main character, Alice, loves horror movies (and immediately began referencing them with abandon) I knew that this was going to be a gem. I read this in a day and did not predict that ending!

okay so, hang with me because this premise might be a tad complicated.

We follow Alice Lawrence, who adores her older sister Claire, her best friends, horror movies, and a certain Wesley James Hanson III*. On Halloween night, Alice witnesses her sister Claire’s murder, and her life goes to pieces. One year later, she’s preparing to testify against the murderer as the sole witness in the trial when she’s knocked out by a Sidney Prescott lookalike. Suddenly, she’s back on that fateful Halloween night, and she only has until midnight to prevent her sister from being murdered, and discover who the true murderer is.

*am I the only one who immediately thinks of richard gansey iii

THIS WAS SO GOOD.

Look. I just recently read Riley Sager’s Final Girls and I wanted a slashing good time, but instead I got a rather boring story with occasionally interesting moments. How To Survive Your Murder was what I wanted Finals Girls to be. It’s thrilling, brutal, and fast-paced. You don’t see everything coming. Best of all, it is 100% aware of its cliches but accepts them head-on.

I just need to add in how I loved that Alice and her friends were planning on making a podcast combining true crime cases and horror movies??? Like, I would have downloaded those episodes so quickly audiobooks would have never stood a chance.

Ahem. Anyways, I liked how they pointed out aspects of how BIPOC are treated both in criminal cases and in horror movies. It added a sense of awareness that I really appreciated.

One of my favorite things about this book was how unexpected the twists were. I usually hate how YA books can sometimes be more focused on romance, and the characters make stupid decisions for no reason. And yeah, there were a couple of dumb decisions made during this book, but I never felt like they were too terrible.

While I didn’t see the ending coming, I definitely felt like it was a bit…out of nowhere? There’s a little bit of foreshadowing, and perhaps I might pick up on more of it if I reread the book, but I just couldn’t really reconcile the sudden changes in certain characters that I was seeing. 

Belladonna by Adalyn Grace

adventurous mysterious medium-paced

4.75

 

Belladonna is tinged with poison, dripping in gothic splendor. It’s a book that revels in painstakingly revealing its layers, twisting around haunted ghosts and abandoned gardens and manors full of secrets. Our main character Signa is unapologetically herself, and every character in this novel feels as if they were crafted from the Victorian era (in the best way possible). So of course, I adored this.

Belladonna follows a girl named Signa Farrow, who has always had a tumultuous relationship with Death. She can see ghosts, and talk to Death himself in extreme circumstances. So when Signa moves in with her only remaining family members, she’s shocked to find the ghost of a woman who needs her to solve the mystery of how she died. Especially because it looks like Signa’s cousin might die of the exact same thing. 
 

Okay, I admit it’s a little concerning that I chose this particular GIF after ending the [previous sentence with murder. BUT this book truly has so many of my favorite things. We have a gothic manor, ghosts, Death, a murder mystery, a female character who simultaneously enjoys dressing up while not fitting in…the list goes on and on. And somehow, Adalyn Grace pulled off every single trope with such ease that I can’t believe she wrote a pirate duology before (although that is certainly on my TBR now).

THERE’S LITERALLY TOO MUCH TO TALK ABOUT.

I have so many notes that aren’t actually notes and just me highlighting because of emotions I guess. Anyways, from the start of this book, I really loved Signa. She’s not afraid to be feminine and loves feminine things while still wanting to be free from the constraints of society. It’s a perfect balance.

Also, the plot??? I had whiplash??? There are so many twists and turns to this story, I never knew what to expect next. Like how did Adalyn Grace write this incredibly atmospheric paranormal story and somehow stack a mystery with twists that I didn’t predict on top of it? This is just such a well-plotted story that is paced immaculately. I guessed nothing and was absolutely blindsided by that cliffhanger of an ending. I cannot stress enough how good of a YA fantasy this book actually is. It truly breathed new life into the genre for me.

And if that’s not praise enough, can we just mention the characters??? Each and every one of them felt fleshed-out and purposeful. I mean, Signa’s cousin Percy might have given me slight Mr. Bingley vibes and Lord Everett definitely got the short end of the stick but that’s okay. Even the ghosts were fun characters*.

*thaddeus is my FAVORITE. remember that.

now uh…i have a slight complaint???

If you read this book, you’ll know that one of the love interests is Death incarnate. And yeah, while I thought it was a little weird that Death knew Signa as a baby and then became a love interest later on…nevermind, it’s just weird. There’s definitely a reason for it, and I mean, this is a gothic story after all so I wasn’t overly bothered by it. It’s just something that’s weird to remember.

On that note, I thought that the romance was fine? I don’t know, I was hoping for a good slowburn full of angst and pining and this wasn’t really that. It’s definitely well-written, but my expectations were just a tad bit different from what this book is actually about (which is okay!) Also, I think that the familal relationships and friendships are just so entertaining and well-done that I almost preferred them to the romance. Anyways, I really liked the ending of the book with regards to the romance, I just wished that the actual journey there had been a little different!

To the Victorians, belladonna symbolized silence, falsehoods, and death. To me, it symbolizes a new favorite book of the year! 

Three Kisses, One Midnight by Sandhya Menon, Evelyn Skye, Roshani Chokshi

funny lighthearted mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

 

Three Kisses, One Midnight is so much fun. At first, I wasn’t entirely sure how I would feel about it, because anthologies and I…we fight like cats sometimes. But I can say without a shadow of a doubt that this story will absolutely sweep you away with its Halloween spirit and swoon-worthy romance!

first of all…THE DIVERSITY????

First of all, I love how you can tell which author wrote which story. We follow three best friends who each have a love potion that helps spark feelings that might already exist in their true loves. The catch? They have to be kissed by midnight after taking the love potion!

Onny is Filipino, Ash is Taiwanese, and True is Indian. I adored the Asian representation in these stories partially because I think that each author sprinkled in tidbits unique to their own cultures and experiences. It made it feel so much more special.

now let’s talk about individual stories!

First off, Apollonia “Onny” Diamante. I don’t know why everyone in this book has such romantical, whimsical names but besides Onny we have Byron Frost, Asher Lee, Aria “True” Tandon, and Orion. There’s also a Cassidy but that’s a little less whimsical in my mind*. Onny’s story has that rivals-to-lovers trope that I adore so very much. Most of the plot involves her hurrying to collect ingredients for the boy she believes to be her forever true love Alexander after her nemesis Byron Frost drinks the original potion. Also, the QUEEN Roshani Chokshi wrote this story and her prose literally never fails me. Ever.

*my most sincerest apologies to all Cassidys out there. in my defense, my name is kaya. you can’t get less whimsical than that

“Perhaps there really were blue-lipped ghosts resting in the shadows of forests, girls with autumn leaves for hair slipping behind buildings, or scarecrows waltzing across fields. It was the kind of magic that promised alchemy and wonder, where a kiss by midnight really could melt into true love…”

LIKE WHAT IS THAT. My Kindle was crying for me to stop highlighting every sentence like it always does when I read a story by Chokshi. Anyways, Onny’s belief in magic and her banter with the woefully dark and brooding Byron Frost made my day. So good. Okay okay, one more quote about Byron Frost and then I’ll leave it alone.

“Byron’s hair was so dark that it looked like a rare ink coveted by the same poet who’d given him his name.”

Asher Lee’s story was written by Evelyn Skye, and it’s been so long since I’ve read anything by her! I really enjoyed her Crown’s Game duology but never got around to picking up her other books until now.

Ash’s story was the absolute most wholesome thing I’ve read all year. He’s an artist who has been in love with his neighbor Cassidy for years, and yet they’ve never spoken. At least, not until she comes crashing through his fence on Halloween thanks to some rambunctious younger brothers and a chaotic basketball hoop. Both Ash and Cassidy are so adorable, that you can’t help but grin the entire time. I also love the connections to Onny’s story previously!

Finally, True’s story was more focused on her refusal to believe in magic or true love, as she attends Onny’s party with the intent of never using her love potion…until she meets a mysterious, kind stranger named Orion.

This was my first time reading anything by Sandhya Menon but I really enjoyed her writing style! True is a girl who’s had her heart broken before, and watching her slowly open up to Orion was adorable. Also, I appreciated some much-needed revenge on her stupid (a very eloquent word) ex-boyfriend. And I probably loved a certain magical element that appeared in all three stories the most in this one.

my final ranking, from least favorite to most favorite!

3. True’s story is my least favorite, although I still really enjoyed it! It’s the sort of story that would work better as a full novel, since there wasn’t any history between the main love interests.

2. Ash’s story is unbelievably cute, and the absolute epitome of next-door romance. I loved his love for art, and how he and Cassidy just clicked.

1. Onny’s story struck me the most as wildly romantic and magical, with just the right mixture of angst and sweetness. I was swept away for a few glorious pages into a love story borne on Halloween night, underneath the gleam of the moon and the fabled constellations. I absolutely adored it.

Three Kisses, One Midnight is the perfect collection of witchy love stories to beckon in the autumn season! They all made me laugh and smile and occasionally tear up. This comes out on August 30th, and a huge thank you to the publisher for an e-arc in exchange for an honest review!