wordwoonders's reviews
862 reviews

Cruel Seduction by Katee Robert

challenging dark emotional hopeful tense fast-paced

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

 The way it's mapping out, it feels like every other Dark Olympus book is a hit for me, and by my count, this was a hit as well! But not without a side note, unfortunately. I absolutely loved the dynamics in this one, how Katee Roberts writes her polyamorous relationships and the fact that the books showcase that there is no one way to be in such relationships and it all boils down to what the people involved are comfortable with/agree on. The sex scenes were EXTREMELY hot, and I came to care for and root for every single character involved. The way they came to melt for each other with time hit me right in the heart.

Their motivations were clear (mostly) and even when you couldn't condone everything they did, you could see the drive and motivation behind it all. This book drives home how people are mostly a product of their circumstances and it might take them long (if ever) to break out and break free. But I wished we had more. Mostly of the characters coming together. It all felt rushed and like a lot was left to the reader's imagination and off the page. I was shown a little bit of how the relationships progressed and it was up to me to fill in the blanks. Especially between Aphrodite and Theseus where there was the most baggage, friction, and yes, hatred. I would have wanted to see the change be slower and more progressive.

All of that being said, I still enjoyed it immensely and would still recommend it if you are looking for a queer, polyamorous romance, with a good balance of tension and sweetness. 

Babel by R.F. Kuang

challenging dark emotional informative sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

I feel like it would be almost inpossible to read this book without having a visceral reaction to it. Especially if you come from a country that has a heavy history of colonialism, a country where language has been erased and culture has been stolen. But also when those things don't apply to you, such a reaction is just human. 

Babel will make you uncomfortable, it will make you squirm in your chair, it will feel suffocating with how heavy and real it is. The depiction of colonialism, its violences, both over and covert, the violence of the british empire especially, the dehumanization of people of color, the way they were either viewed as tools or as animals. It all weighted heavy on me, so much so that I had to take a couple breaks (a few days) away from the book because I kept needing to brace myself for it, and then when I did read, I read huge chunks at a time because I just knew once I put it down, picking it back up would be a game of will. Not because I don't want to read it, but because of how close to home it hits in ore ways than one. 

I also loved how central of a role language had in the book, and how that ties into identity, and the fact that it showcases the pivotal role language has in colonialism, and how language itself can be violent and violating. Silverworking in the book really drives that point home. I really enjoyed reading about that fantastical element in the book as well, how it ties everything together, and makes those concepts more concrete and tangible to people who might not have experienced them firsthand.

One thing I wish for at times though, is for it all to have been a bit more subtle and less in my face. And I don't mean that by that, that I wish there had been less racism and violence, because that part is extremely realistic and extremely important. But I wish I wasn't told how I must feel about it. Because the events themselves were enough to convey that, it felt a bit much at times that the author had to spell out  "This is BAD" for the reader, over and over again. The vile events would have been and WERE enough for me to feel that way.

Another thing that I couldn't help but have my attention be drawn to over and over again is how similar Robin and Rin (from the Poppy War) are, they follow the same archetype, at their core they were one and the same and followed a bit of the same path, so to say. Which makes me wonder if Kuang only know how to write the one type of protagonist or if it was that it felt right in both stories for the protagonists to be written the way they were. I'm really curious to read what she writes next, if only to see if she breaks out of this mold she has seemed to fit her characters and writing into.

Radiant Sin by Katee Robert

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

I started this series solely for the smut and romance but in this one I was WAY more interested in the politics and trying to figure out who is doing what and why is XYZ happening and where everyone's loyalties lie. There's nothing objectively wrong with the romance, I enjoyed it, I didn't mind it being there, but it just didn't pull me in like the ones in Neon Gods or Wicked Beauty did. 

Iris Kelly Doesn't Date by Ashley Herring Blake

emotional funny hopeful lighthearted medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

This is one of the most chaotic romance I have ever read, and not in a bad way. I loved how frustrating and infuriating it was, because that's how it is in real life as well. Miscommunication happens, people fight against their own wants and feelings, deny themselves a chance at happiness because they are scared, and so on and so forth. 

I also loved the anxiety representation, the way Stevie, while yes struggling because of it, she also and above all, struggled with how people viewed and treated her because of it, even the people who loved her and had the best intentions at heart.

And of course, the undeniable chemistry, the messiness of the romance, the grand gestures and quiet moments. Ashley Herring Blake will forever right some of my favorite romances, just because of how real she makes them, and the characters, feel.

Girl, Woman, Other by Bernardine Evaristo

reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

I had chills by the time I closed this book. I loved the ending and how full circle everything came, how all women and their stories were interconnected in some way or another. Now granted, it took me months to finish the book, and reflecting back, some stories are better than others, some stories more forgettable than others, but some of them carried a punch and left a long lasting impression on me. Definitely worth the read, if only for the wide range of experiences, opinions, and livelihoods it portrays.

Big Swiss by Jen Beagin

challenging dark funny reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

The Romance Recipe by Ruby Barrett

lighthearted medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

 This is the first book I finished since August, it took me...three? months? more? But it's me not the book. I actually really enjoyed it and I realized that at this point in time, sapphic romances are the only books that being me joy. 

All About Love: New Visions by bell hooks

informative reflective slow-paced

 This book was actually...lifechanging?? It made me put a lot of things into perspective. Read it, I beg. 

Hang the Moon by Alexandria Bellefleur

funny lighthearted relaxing medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

 Who gave Brandon and Annie the right to be this disgustingly cute? I did not expect to enjoy this one as much as I did and certainly not way more than the first and yet here we are.

I care about this friends’ group a ridiculous amount which has resulted in me reading all three books back to back. I’m eating them up and enjoying every second of it. 

Count Your Lucky Stars by Alexandria Bellefleur

hopeful lighthearted medium-paced

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

 Okay but this whole companion series was lovely, felt like a warm hug. And this one was no different. Estranged best friends to lovers is my kryptonite and this delivered.