kenzieburns's reviews
55 reviews

It's a Fabulous Life by Kelly Farmer

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lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

A lovely, sapphic retelling of It's a Wonderful Life. Loved getting to spend time with Bailey, Maria, and their friends in Lanford Falls. Now all we need is a movie adaptation and my queer little Christmas loving heart will be full.
The Christmas Swap by Talia Samuels

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

3.0

A solid, cutesy Christmas rom com!
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The Unmaking of June Farrow by Adrienne Young

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

3.0

The Diamond Eye by Kate Quinn

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

3.0

It took me about a hundred pages to get into this book, but once I was in I was hooked! I've loved most of the other things Kate Quinn has written, so this was an auto-buy for me as soon as I saw it. I can always count on Quinn to bring me a heroic war story, and I love her focus on women and how they contributed to the War. I loved the character development Quinn put into Mila throughout the novel. It was really rewarding to watch her grow into her own and stand up to her asshole "husband" Alexei. Some of the plot was a bit unbelievable, which knocked off a few stars. Specifically, the whole "marksman" thing, especially because we all know the FDR wasn't assassinated and we know Mila makes it back to Russia, so like I knew how it would turn out? Idk, I feel like the story could have been just as good without that whole weird little plot, but I see why Quinn added it to explain Mila's creepy stalker dude on the tour. Overall, a good novel that did well tieing together historical fact and creative license/fiction.
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We Are Not Like Them by Jo Piazza, Christine Pride

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challenging emotional sad tense medium-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

4.0

Required reading for White people. This book caused so many emotions in me: uncomfortable, angry, sad, annoyed, and so many others. I gave this 4 stars because while the message and emotion was there, the writing fell a bit flat at times. Like, I fully expected to bawl, but the prose just didn't move me like I expected it to, despite the tragic subject matter. For all the pros (if you can call them that) of this book, though: I thought the authors did a great job of showing "both sides" and the internal/external conflicts around race in the horrible situation Riley and Jen were in. When the tension came to a front in their friendship with the conversation in the car, I think the authors did well to make it not a complete resolution to the tension, and I also think they did well to "give credit" to both sides, both in that convo and throughout the book. I was equally frustrated with Jen's naïveté and Riley's refusal to call Jen out, and then in that convo I could really sympathize with both Riley's frustration and anger and Jen feeling like Riley didn't give her a chance by always hiding the "hard" parts from her. 

Above all else, I appreciated that this book made me wrestle with my biases. I think the authors did something important in
making it so that Kevin wasn't the "main officer at fault"
in the shooting, because it made me more sympathetic to Kevin/Jen, even though the whole point is that the system is broken and Kevin and all cops are as much at fault in being complicit in the system. It was hard to care for Jen as a character while knowing that truthfully she and Kevin are racist in their biases and complacency in the system. I also really appreciated Riley's perspective, especially for how it showed the intricacies of being a successful Black woman in a predominantly White world. I feel like, though I'll never fully and truly understand what it's like to be Black, I could gain more insight and understanding for the uphill battle that exists for Black people, especially Black women, in America. 
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Elektra by Jennifer Saint

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dark emotional tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

Honestly didn't wow me. The prose was beautiful, much like "Ariadne," but the story felt flat. Maybe it was because I've read 2 other books on the same myth previously ("A Thousand Ships" by Natalie Haynes and "Clytemnestra" by Costanza Castasi), but I didn't feel like this book brought anything new to the table. Also, I was expecting to have only Electra's POV, and I think that having the 2 other POVs was interesting but just really made me hate Elektra more. Like I really didn't like Elektra. She was so so focused on hatred for her mom over a man she basically never met. Also I just hate Agamemnon in general so her weird devotion to him just made me dislike her even more. Honestly this novel overall wasn't great after having already read 2 others on the subject, but if it hand been my first on the subject I might have enjoyed it more.
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Camp Zero by Michelle Min Sterling

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

2.0

This wasn't really my cup of tea. For starters, it was quite depressing, but I guess realistic future always is with the climate disaster being what it is. So, for the first half of this book I was depressed because I was like "ahh is this really what we'll be like in 25 years???" Then the second half was just trying way too hard to be feminist/woman forward. Like, I get it, the author is trying to say that patriarchal society and oppression of women can be compared to how the climate gets as bad as it is, but it just felt way too forced to be poignant in my opinion. Also, I would have appreciated if the three storylines converged a little sooner in the book, because right at the end it felt super rushed.

One thing that this book did well was describing the perspective of current (and many moren
Starling House by Alix E. Harrow

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

4.0

A perfect book for October! Just the right amount of creepy, magic, and whimsical. I loved the way that Harrow was able to integrate magic and real life in this novel; it was just the right amount of "otherworldly" (or Underwordly, if you know you know;) to scratch the fantasy/magical realism itch, but not so much as to think it was entirely unbelievable. I think it's hard to toe that line between set in the current day and set in fantasy land, and this author was able to balance elements of both really well.

 My one gripe with this book was that it didn't need to be as long as it was. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed the length and all the twists and turns the story took, and I was happy to spend as much time as possible immersed in Eden with Opal and Authur, but it got to a point where it felt like the length was detracting from the story. There was just so much to keep track of, and so many plot points happening to the same people (Opal and Authur). I think the author could have very easily dealt with this sense of overwhelm by splitting the book into parts, which I was surprised didn't happen anyways. Breaking down the parts I think there should be next, so spoiler warning!  I think the parts could be very easily deliniated with Opal's development throughout the novel.
  So, the first part could be Opal doing things for the money, cleaning Starling House and giving Bane information as she slowly grows closer to/more fond of Authur. This part would end with Bane playing her cards/showing up to Jasper's school and Opal and Jasper having the big fallout. The second part would be Opal's unraveling as a thief/liar and her new dedication to Aurthur/the house. This part would end with Opal's betrayal of Authur/being there taking pictures for Bane in the basement and finding out about the sword and the Beasts and everything. Then the third part would be focused on Bane's moves against Opal and Authur, with the "couple" making a somewhat united front against her before Authur turns everything over to save Opal at the police station. The last part would be the Underland part and stopping Eden's "bad luck". In the frame of the "this is a history of Starling House" theme, you could even have the parts labeled as like "Background", "Early life in Eden", "Conflict in the House", things like that, or maybe something more cryptic as to not give away the history thing until the end.
 

To end on a positive note, another thing I feel the author did really well was write complicated relationships. The dynamic between Opal and Jasper was beautiful and messy and heartwrenching, and Harrow did a great job of capturing the complexities of sibling bonds in the absence of a parent figure. Also, the relationships between Opal and Bev and Charlotte were equally well-written. As a reader, I could tell Bev cared about Opal, but Harrow wrote their dynamic in a way that made it entirely believable that Opal thought otherwise, or at least refused to believe that Bev cared about her because she's so independent, etc. And, of course I was here for the
gay subplot!!
Finally, the building of the relationship between Opal and Authur was wonderfully written, and just drawn out enought to frustrate the hell out of me, which I think was the idea given how frustrated they were with each other all the time. 

Overall, this was a really good book that was just a bit too long and disjointed to get a full 5 stars from me. I definitely enjoyed it loads, and would highly recommend everyone read, especially during spooky season!
Weyward by Emilia Hart

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emotional reflective slow-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

4.0

What a beautifully written novel centering on girl power! This is a real slow build, but had a fair amount of action. I was equally invested in each of the three main characters storylines, and thought the author did a good job of dedicating equal space to each. Major trigger warnings, though, for rape, assault, domestic violence, and suicide attempts. The author tackled some really heavy subjects, but I do think it was done with grace. I saw one review that said this book wrote all the men as bad guys, which I think it did, but I think that was kind of the point. I was so frustrated with Violet's situation, especially with how her father reacted to everything and made everything her fault. It was frustrating because I was like "dude that's your daughter!!" But I think the relationship between father/daughter in that storyline really served to emphasize the trope of "hysterical women". Like, Rupert already had an idea of what Violet would be like based on her mother, and he never gave her the chance to be any different, like he just wrote her off from the start. All this to say, I wasn't really mad that men were the villains in this story. And Kate! Her growth was beautiful is all I can say. I loved growing with her and watching as she came into her own. A beautiful storyline that is a testament to the strength of battered women. All around good book that tackled some tough subjects with grace, and the magical element was a plus for me!
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What Lies in the Woods by Kate Alice Marshall

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

4.0

A slightly above average thriller! I was equally enthralled and perturbed by this book, though usually at different times. It was a one-day read for me, but there were definitely some plot points that I think were a bit too complicated. Like, there were like 7 threads of mystery to unravel, which was engaging but also I felt very confused as they were unrovelling together. I think the author could have had the climax of the book come a bit earlier, or lengthened the end to tie together some of the loose strings a bit better. While I did call the one villain
Cody!
I did NOT see the other plot twist coming! Some parts of this book were definitely not for the faint of heart, what with a human skeleton in the woods and the gore of multiple deaths and stabbings. 
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