olivialandryxo's reviews
810 reviews

Snowed Inn (With a Demon) by L.E. Eldridge

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lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

This was supposed to be cute—and it was, occasionally—but mostly, it was just boring. Though the smut was good, there was way too much lore for such a tiny book, and the cheesy writing probably could’ve used another round of edits. (I’m not generally one to comment on that sort of thing, but the fact that there were random first-person sentences in a third-person book… not great. And quite distracting.)

Representation:
  • bisexual protagonist
  • lesbian side character

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Unhinged by Vera Valentine

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fast-paced

2.5

I’ve made a few questionable 3am decisions in my life so far, but this. This one takes the cake. It’s been over 12 hours since I finished reading and I still have absolutely no clue what the hell I read.

The wildest part is that it wasn’t inherently terrible. It wasn’t good, either, but it was just. There. And so unbelievably bizarre. I’ll never look at a doorknob the same way again.

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Cruel Seduction by Katee Robert

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dark emotional tense 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? No

4.5

Katee has done it again. I started this book not particularly attached to any of our four protagonists, and ended it loving and rooting for all of them. Each one felt distinct in their personality and motivations, and watching them initially clash and then eventually come together was a wild but intensely fun ride.

Honestly, the whole book was a wild ride. Olympus is falling apart at the seams, and I’m so very concerned for all of my favorite characters. I said in my Radiant Sin review that I have absolutely no idea what state things will be in by the end of the series, and that’s still true. It’s true and it’s terrifying, and I want more but the next book is SO. FAR. AWAY. :’)))

Representation:
  • three bi/pansexual polyamorous protagonists (includes one Black man & one Black disabled man, with a permanent limp in one leg)
  • sapphic polyamorous fat protagonist
  • various queer side characters, some of which are of color (includes bi/pansexual, asexual, polyamorous & nonbinary rep; also includes Black & Korean rep)
  • sapphic relationship (f/f)
  • achillean relationship (m/m)
  • MMFF open polyam knot

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King of Pride by Ana Huang

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emotional funny hopeful lighthearted medium-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

5.0

[second read, November-December 2023]
I’ve now read the whole Twisted series and all of the Kings books thus far, and so I can confirm: Isa and Kai are Ana’s best couple. They’re my favorites, they’re my babies, they’re the couple to beat. But honestly, good luck with that.

I’m manifesting their wedding in King of Sloth SO HARD. PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE.

[first read, July-August 2023]
I’ve been shipping these two since their very first interaction in King of Wrath—my ship senses were tingling, the gears in my brain spinning—so this was absolutely delightful, from start to finish. If not for my reading slump, I would’ve easily devoured it in a matter of hours. It might be only my second Ana Huang book, but as far as I’m concerned, Isa and Kai are her best couple, no contest. 💜

Updated theories for the rest of the series include Sloth being Sloane’s book (she’s totally gonna fall in love with Xavier) and Envy being Christian’s. Not sure about either Gluttony or Lust.

Current ranking of the series:
  1. King of Pride (by a LOT)
  2. King of Wrath (go to hell Dante)

Representation:
  • Filipina-Chinese protagonist
  • Chinese protagonist & side characters
  • Brazilian side character

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A Clash of Steel: A Treasure Island Remix by C.B. Lee

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adventurous emotional hopeful tense 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? No

4.5

A thrilling tale of pirates, found family and first love that I can't recommend enough. I tend to enjoy most historical fantasy novels purely because I love the genre, but my favorites are always the ones that tell history's lesser-known stories. With this book, C.B. Lee did exactly that, and it was fantastic.

And oh my god, these two baby lesbians are absolutely adorable. They are now my daughters, I have taken them under my lesbian wing and will protect them at all costs.

Representation:
  • sapphic Chinese protagonist
  • sapphic Vietnamese love interest
  • full Asian cast (includes Chinese, Vietnamese, Nepalese, Korean, Thai & Arabic rep)
  • sapphic main couple
  • achillean side couple

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I Kissed Shara Wheeler by Casey McQuiston

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emotional funny hopeful lighthearted mysterious medium-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

4.5

I might not have the same deep love and intense attachment to this book as I do Casey’s adult novels, but I did still really enjoy it. This book is a collage of elements from other YA books I’ve enjoyed—the bittersweet feeling of high school ending from The Summer of Everything, the academic rivals to lovers slow-burn that may or may not have been simmering all along from Today Tonight Tomorrow, the self-discovery and acceptance of so many other queer stories—while still being its own unique thing.

It’s a story of ferocious girls and cinnamon roll boys and yet another iconic group of disaster queer friends, the sort of group Casey excels at writing. It’s a story of teens being messy, teens being teens, in the final moments they have before becoming adults; of all the stages of queerness and trauma and healing and love, of love in so many different forms and expressions. And it’s beautiful. It’s fun, it’s important, and it’s so very beautifully done.

It might not be a book I love with enough fervor to call a favorite, but nonetheless, I know I’ll be thinking about it for some time. Casey’s books tend to have that effect.

Representation:
  • bisexual protagonist
  • sapphic love interest
  • Black gay dyslexic side character
  • Black queer nonbinary side character
  • Black bisexual side character
  • other queer side characters (includes lesbian & nonbinary rep)
  • sapphic main couple
  • lesbian side couple

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King of Wrath by Ana Huang

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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

3.5

This was a great introduction to Ana Huang’s writing. I liked the story, I really liked Viv, and I had fun roasting Dante in my Kindle annotations whenever he did something to annoy me. Which was often. (But, by the end, he was tolerable. Mostly.)

Would’ve been 4 stars if not for the weird feel of the pacing. The first 20% felt rather fast, and then the middle section was a bit of a slog to get through.

Current theories for the rest of the series include Sloth being Luca’s book, Envy being Christian’s and Gluttony being Sloane’s. I’m not sure about Lust yet.

Representation:
  • Chinese protagonist & side characters
  • Filipina-Chinese side character

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Crash Into You by Roni Loren

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

2.5

Jace was the best part of this book and he was barely in it. Everything else, despite seeming interesting at first, just got more and more bland as I kept reading. I grew more and more disconnected until eventually I stopped caring. Extra half star for Jace, and also because the antagonist was someone extremely unexpected.

I’m kinda curious about a few of the other books in this series, especially Jace’s and Kelsey’s, but I don’t think I’m all that interested in reading more from Roni Loren.

Also, to all the readers who tagged this book as lighthearted, enough so to get it officially labeled that way… what the actual hell. I don’t even wanna know what y’all consider dark.

That being said, definitely check the content warnings on this one. It can be a lot.

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The Gargoyle's Captive by Katee Robert

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emotional hopeful 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

4.5

This could’ve potentially been a five star read if I wasn’t so deeply uncomfortable over Bram’s loincloth. And if there was more Ramanu. Still a fun time though.

Current ranking of the series:
  1. The Demon’s Bargain (Team Ramanu forever)
  2. The Kraken’s Sacrifice/The Gargoyle’s Captive (Kraken had better characters but Gargoyle had better smut)
  3. The Dragon’s Bride (I’ve kinda forgotten about it ngl)

Representation:
  • nonbinary side character that uses they/them

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Where Dreams Descend by Janella Angeles

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Did not finish book. Stopped at 26%.
It’s me, hi, I’m the problem, it’s me.

I was so excited to start this book, and although a few things had me a bit confused, I was enjoying it. But I’ve been in a reading slump on and off for most of the year so far, and this month, it really hit me hard. So for now, I’m putting this down and giving myself a break. Maybe I’ll pick it up again later and end up loving it; that’s happened before. There’s certainly nothing wrong with this book.