elizlizabeth's reviews
118 reviews

Beach Read by Emily Henry

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lighthearted relaxing fast-paced

3.5

This felt very... experimental. Like the book itself couldn't settle on one genre so at times it was very Romance, but other times it turned Contemporary. I'm not 100% convinced that these two belong together and I feel that it's partly because the book was trying to be "down to earth" while at the same time convincing us that true love exists and it's *here* -not that it can't be done (see: Good Place) but the execution felt clumsy to me.
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Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents: How to Heal from Distant, Rejecting, or Self-Involved Parents by Lindsay C. Gibson

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hopeful informative fast-paced

4.5

Clear and simple language to understand. Balances inner reflection with direct points of action.
Any Way the Wind Blows by Rainbow Rowell

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adventurous funny medium-paced

3.5

Of all the books in the trilogy, this one felt the most fanfic-y, I thought the character's plot lines would converge more organically but everyone's pretty much doing their thing. It was a bit frustrating that after so many chapters setting things up, the ending is like ten minutes long and some things don't even get explained/solved.
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The Managed Heart: Commercialization of Human Feeling by Arlie Russell Hochschild

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informative slow-paced

3.5

I don't know who this book is for because it shifts from very technical to self-help anecdotical which makes me doubt the generalizations made in this theory. There are some good points it touches upon and it is an in-depth ethnography, but at times I found it relied on stereotypes or assumed mutual understanding of values to get to the conclusions.
Good for her on raising the issue of commodified emotion tho, I can see how it paved some more modern studies. 
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Wayward Son by Rainbow Rowell

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adventurous dark tense medium-paced

4.0

It starts a little slow and oddly with a contemporary lit vibe rather than a fantasy one, but the last two thirds really picked up.
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The Princess Bride by William Goldman

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adventurous funny tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

Conflicting thoughts because the cynical approach of the "annotations" contrasts so heavily with the plot that it made me lowkey hate the annotator and wish Princess Bride were a real unabridged book I could read. As a satire it works really well and ages fantastically, I legit felt that a bitter little twitterman was commenting on an age old classic and ruining it in the process.
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Four Aunties and a Wedding by Jesse Q. Sutanto

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adventurous funny lighthearted

3.5

I think the plot was too convoluted, I would've read the hell out of a low-stakes comedy of errors with the aunties blowing things out of proportion but as it is, I had a hard time suspending my disbelief to truly enjoy the ride.
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Room by Emma Donoghue

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emotional tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes

4.5

Really enjoyed the narrating voice which must have been a feat to write because Jack is both evidently a child but also very mature for his age in a way that's believable given the context he had to grow up in. This could have very easily been a chronicle of an escape only, but the author weaved in some critiques to media and society that felt super poignant. Ending was good, I just felt that the pacing rushed a bit after chapter 4.
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Carry On by Rainbow Rowell

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adventurous funny medium-paced

4.5

Loved the world building for this, and would definitely like to know more about it. I like how the enemies to lovers developed because hilarious. Plus all the characters are so well rounded I fell in love with most by page 20.
Only disliked that the pacing was weird at times, esp when it halted everything to focus on Simon et Baz which were sweet scenes but maybe a better fit as annexes (or dare I say... fanfiction?)
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The Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue by Mackenzi Lee

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adventurous funny medium-paced
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Praise praise praise. This has everything I love in a story: gays, pirates, a himbo, a sinking church.. what more can you ask?
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