carolinekreads's reviews
374 reviews

Mixed Signals by B.K. Borison

funny lighthearted fast-paced

4.5

SWOON!! This was so freaking cute!! This is a kicking your feet romance with the sweetest MMC ever! I do have a few complaints that I will overlook, but only because I just love this town too much at this point and I can’t get enough of the way B.K. Borison writes love. If you’re looking for low stakes romance, this is a great one to pick up. 

Parable of the Sower by Octavia E. Butler

dark reflective tense medium-paced

4.0

Dark. Please check trigger warnings, because the amount of on page violence was extremely uncomfortable - albeit reasonable within the scope of the story being told. I don’t think I realised how dark this could be, despite having read Kindred, which was equally dark. This book was written in 1993, and the parallels between the current state of the world and this story are disturbing. There’s intentional exploration of societal collapse, inequality, economic disparity as well as religion, spirituality, and human connection. I would say my primary take away was the importance of community and the inevitability of change. I think this is a story that needs to be read multiple times throughout the years, because different perspectives and life experiences could really change the lessons being learned. It’s absolutely worth the read. It’s just not a book for someone who’s not in a stable mental state; I would say it really destabilised me, so I’ll be bypassing the sequel for now.

Fable for the End of the World by Ava Reid

dark tense medium-paced

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

3.75

A soft tribute to The Hunger Games. It was a very quick read for me. Once I picked it up, I was immediately engaged and read it all the way though. This was a dystopian, sapphic romance with some sci-fi themes. I really liked this plot, themes (sensationalised violence, climate change, fascism, and the objectification of women) and world. The characters were well written and for the first time, in very many Ava books that I’ve picked up, not frustratingly limited; it was refreshing. The pacing was noticeably uneven throughout and things lulled in the middle, but I wasn’t too upset about it because the time was used for some relationship development between the characters - although there still wasn’t enough development to fully sell me on their love. The ending was very rushed and jarring, but I do think this left wiggle room for a book two. I would definitely pick it up if it’s written. Overall, a solid story, albeit trying to cover too many topics to be as explosive as it could’ve been, but absolutely worth the read.

Thank you to HarperCollins for the ARC provided via NetGalley! 

In The Weeds by B.K. Borison

emotional lighthearted slow-paced

4.75

The sweetest! I loved this story. The characters felt so real; they were relatable and memorable. The emotional connection, chemistry, and conflicts were written well and the story was so cute. Overall, a sweet romance. B.K. Borison continues to write some of my favourite MMCs, she  really knows how to write a wholesome love. 

Under Loch and Key by Lana Ferguson

3.5

Sweet. I think I’m getting a little tired of the instalove romances and this one gave me that energy. I did think the monster aspect was fun, so I kept reading. It was fairly steady paced and generally predictable, but still enjoyable.

Deep End by Ali Hazelwood

1.0

Dumpster fire. It’s an absolute no and the standards are in hell. Much like Not in Love, Ali books that are more preoccupied with spice rather than plot are just boring and not enjoyable. I didn’t like the characters and felt no particular way about them at any point in the book - the development was absolutely abysmal. There was no romance; if anything, we spend more time talking/obsessing about the casual side character in the story that it’s a wonder she’s not the FMC. The plot was mediocre. The pacing was choppy. Is “kinky” even in the room with us? There’s a slight possibility that I’ve read too much depraved shit that skewed my perception of kinky, because this book was SO vanilla. I just don’t understand why anyone is saying it’s kinky and makes me wonder if we read the same book. Overall, this really over promised and under delivered. It’s not worth the hype and entirely anticlimactic, I’m sorry.

Variation by Rebecca Yarros

3.5

A sweet yearning romance with a twist. I had a lot of fun reading this one, it wasn’t just a romance, it took a deep dive into some interesting family dynamics that were woven well into the story. The pacing was steady, the writing was clear, and the plot was very Nicholas Sparks coded. 

Us Dark Few by Alexis Patton

3.25

Unexpected. I have to say, I didn’t really know what I was getting into when I picked this up. It reminded me of The Hunger Games, but also The Maze Runner. The plot was interesting, but the characters were extremely flat (there’s a romance subplot that gave a little too instalove for me). I can’t say I was invested, but I guess I was invested enough to finish the book? It was fine enough to not put down. The twist in the end took me by surprise, and now I need to know what happens next. 

Not Another Love Song by Julie Soto

lighthearted

4.0

So sweet and wholesome. I think anyone with any familiarity with music/instruments should turn their brains all the way off for this one, because it’s not realistic. The characters were so sweet, the plot was fun, and the pacing was lovely. I found it very endearing and would absolutely read more Julie Soto stories. 

Order of Swans by Jude Deveraux
Did not finish book. Stopped at 30%.

DNF at 30% 

I don’t know where to start with this, because I don’t think I understood what was going on. The characters felt strange and came across as inconsistent. I don’t know what the plot was, because the writing was really disjointed; it was like a bunch of scenes put together to create a story, but there wasn’t a story being told (example for perspective: I went to work, walked into a kitchen, met someone, read a book, etc.). There was no world building beyond us being told what’s happening, zero showing was involved. The narration is bizarre, where it’s jumping around perspectives and none of the characters had any distinct voice to make this a reasonable approach. The only redeeming thing about this is the audiobook narrator, Alexandra Hunter. I’m putting this one down permanently. It’s not for me. 

Thank you Harlequin Audio for the ARC via NetGalley.