tvislife's reviews
373 reviews

Enjoyable little read! The main characters, while flawed and not “great people” per se, were what made this book good. 

Opal was a scrappy little asshole, and I loved her. The creepy little haunted house story, while interesting, just didn’t quite hit right for most of the book, but that was fine. I still had a good time, seeing how the little thief was going to save herself and those she loved from the evils of capitalism/house. 

Started so strong, but fell off a bit for me. 

Much like horror movies, I find that horror novels lose a lot of their “punch” when the monsters are revealed. Or in this case, when the creepiness is starting to become clearer / interacted with. The bits with the novel, and the creeping dread with the noises and finding the thing in the woods—fantastic. Everything after that—meh. I didn’t dislike it, but it could have been much creepier and better. I found myself bored by the end. 

Everyone thinks they know a lot about The Donner Party, but this book made me realize—I didn’t actually know a lot about the Donner Party! Haunting and endlessly compelling, I really think that anyone with even just a passing interest in the events that occurred should read this book. 

I’ve always thought of the tragedy of the Donner Party as a grave example of man’s hubris (which it is)—but god it’s so much more than that. The best thing this book did, by far, was take us through the events (for the most part) from the perspective of a young woman of the group, the recently married Sarah. It made the story so much more human, and tragic, and just so so heartbreaking. It made the story real in a way that it has never really been to me before, not just a little spooky story to bring up when someone mentions cannibalism. Sarah and her companions suffered more than I think anyone should have been able to endure—but endure they did, or at least they did as much as they could until the bitter end. 

I was very excited for this book, but it just didn’t live up to the hype for me. 

This book just got a bit too bogged down in politics. I struggled keeping some of the names / titles separate, mostly because I just didn’t care about them. There were men trying to gain favor with the king, and rules about what is/isn’t allowed in Inquisition-controlled Spain. I wasn’t super in to that! 

I did really love the dynamic between Luzia and her employer, how that changed, and the interactions she had with the other “competitors” with gifts. The interpersonal conflicts and small moments were much more interesting to me than the big “plot” that was going on. I still enjoyed myself, but not one of my favorites. 

Silly and entertaining, another hit by T. Kingfisher! It follows a widow, who (in the process of trying to escape her shitty family by stabbing herself with a sword) finds a man, who happens to live in said sword. 

I really liked these characters and the world that Kingfisher created! Halla was hilarious, and I loved that being “annoying and stupid” were her weapons against men—honestly she was so brilliant to appear dumb. I really liked her character, and I liked how devoted, yet exasperated by her, Sarkis was. Very cute little romance. 

My favorite Emily Henry book! 

I fell in love with these characters, which to be honest, rarely ever happens in a contemporary romance. Typically, the guy is either a douchebag, or the girl is insufferable. I am very happy to say this book had perfectly lovely leads! 

I really think this story and the characters were the strongest out of any of hers that I’ve read. Everyone felt fleshed out, and even though the stakes were small for a lot of the conflicts and plot points, I was fully invested in all of it. Just a highly enjoyable novel. 

I started and gave up on this book twice before finally hunkering down and finishing it this time—and I’m really glad I did! 

The first 50 pages or so feel unbearably juvenile to me—what was once charming and fun in The Martian just turned super lame for me, the humor did not work at all in my opinion. But once the story really got going, that got easier to ignore, and I really liked where the story went. There were a couple surprises that I really didn’t expect, and although it was science-heavy, it never felt bogged down in the science, and the plot just kept chugging along and kept me interested. I liked it, but I’ll never really love a hard-science sci-fi book like this. 

This series is perfect for all those romantasy lovers that love legit high fantasy. C.L. Wilson’s world-building, once again, is complex and interesting, so much more evolved than a lot of the romantasy novels that are popular right now. 

Once again we are following Ellie and Rain, and once again, I am in love with them. Ellie is such a sympathetic character, and I really felt for her in this second book. Rain is a bit less developed in my opinion, but I like the dynamic of their relationship, even with the extra drama thrown in this book. 

A truly delightful book, if only it wasn’t so confusing. It follows Tyll, a boy forced to leave home, who becomes a jester of surprising talents. 

The non-chronological storytelling, combined with the mystique and legend surrounding Tyll, made this so compelling and fun. It really reminded me of “Spinning Silver” by Naomi Novik (one of my favorites!), especially the other-ness and strange happenings that occurred around our main character. It was unclear from one scene to the next whether something supernatural was afoot, and Tyll was unknowable yet sympathetic, I could still picture the strange man as the beaten little boy. I really really loved his story. 

My main issue with this book was the politics. Maybe if I was German it would have been easier to follow, but the Winter King stuff and the wars meant nothing to me. Every time they mentioned a name or place I got more confused (and the authors writing style, while excellent for the sections on Tyll, was not conducive to me learning about the aristocracy in Prague). Unfortunately, those sections were actually pretty large and made up a good chunk of the book, which made it less enjoyable to me. Still, I loved Tyll, and am very glad I read this. 

When it comes to fantasy romance, I feel like you really can’t get better than C.L. Wilson. These books are so much more than just a romance, and I really like the special worlds she builds within her stories. 

While I was hesitant to like Rain (because the idea of a “tairn” and fey lord together was kind of a lot), he really really grew on me. I really liked the way magic worked in this world, the animosities the different magics created, and the way in which the characters interact. Honestly it felt super well-developed, and you can fully believe the plot and tension that exists within the story. I think sometimes romance authors make some bullshit plots, but this was believable and compelling. My only issue is that it really felt half complete, and seemed to end out of nowhere. But I suppose I will just have to continue!