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emilysquest's reviews
248 reviews
Everyone in This Room Will Someday Be Dead by Emily Austin
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Suicidal thoughts, and Religious bigotry
Biography of X by Catherine Lacey
adventurous
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
WOW.
All the Water I've Seen Is Running by Elias Rodriques
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
A Door Behind a Door by Yelena Moskovich
adventurous
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
Silence is My Mother Tongue by Sulaiman Addonia
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Rape
American Overdose: The Opioid Tragedy in Three Acts by Chris McGreal
4.5
A tragic, well-written, shocking-yet-not-surprising look at the systemic origins of the opioid epidemic and the repeated failures of every branch of every level of government in the face of big pharma's money.
Side note: The meta experience of reading a book published in late 2019, in which the FDA & CDC are prominent players and Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson get looks in, is pretty bizarre. McGreal doesn't assume any of these entities are unheard-of to his readers, but he also definitely does not usher them onstage as if everyone in the country has talked about Anthony Fauci on a daily basis for over a year and now there is a phenomenon of posting to Twitter with hashtags #TeamPfizer and #TeamModerna. Because that would be nuts! Of course people aren't doing that! What on earth!!
Side note: The meta experience of reading a book published in late 2019, in which the FDA & CDC are prominent players and Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson get looks in, is pretty bizarre. McGreal doesn't assume any of these entities are unheard-of to his readers, but he also definitely does not usher them onstage as if everyone in the country has talked about Anthony Fauci on a daily basis for over a year and now there is a phenomenon of posting to Twitter with hashtags #TeamPfizer and #TeamModerna. Because that would be nuts! Of course people aren't doing that! What on earth!!
Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
4.5
This book hits every lurid square in Gothic Fiction Bingo, and it’s extremely satisfying.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Gore, Incest, Infertility, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Cannibalism, Murder, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Rape
Bad Indians: A Tribal Memoir by Deborah A. Miranda
medium-paced
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Child abuse, Physical abuse, and Rape