racheljennetti's reviews
93 reviews

The Assassin's Blade by Sarah J. Maas

adventurous dark emotional hopeful sad fast-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

Still a fantastic story in the novella, but wasn't my favorite. I have a feeling that she will come back into play farther into the series, but I'm so excited to read more. Poor Celeana.

House of Earth and Blood by Sarah J. Maas

adventurous hopeful mysterious 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? It's complicated

4.0

I love Sarah J Maas' writing style with all my heart, and I appreciate her strong female characters and love how dynamic Bryce is.

That being said, if I were Bryce, I would not tolerate the lies. But alas, Hunt is a cutie, so I get it. Not going to lie, I literally paused when that twist popped up, did a lap around the room, and had to sit there with the words for a minute before continuing.

Lehabah was such an icon. Her lines will live on in my head. She was such a fun character, and I really understand her hype.

I will just end with: the vacuum is iconic and I get it. Pop off, queen.

Galatea by Madeline Miller

dark emotional informative fast-paced

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

4.0

I love this short story. It’s taken me a while to get my hands on it, but Madeline Miller has done it again.

This might retell a centuries-old story of a prayer being answered and marble made into flesh, but the story’s point remains true.

While we are no longer in the year of Barbie, I feel like this would have been a fantastic addition to drive the point home. 

Galatea never asked to be human, but who of us have? She is a shell of what her husband wished her to be. Having had a child and served her purpose in her husband’s eyes, he sees no qualms in whisking her away to a ward under the watchful eye of doctors after she dares to try to escape, to use her chance to live the life that was given to her by an Olympian.

While I don’t want to spoil this story, I think it was an extremely well-written story that was easy to read in a single sitting.

Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros

adventurous medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.5

I really, genuinely tried. Multiple times. I don’t know what it is. It just felt like a bunch of tropes mixed together. It may just not be for me. Maybe I’ve been spoiled by Samantha Shannon’s Priory of the Orange Tree, but I just don’t know.

I know many other people loved it, and I totally respect that. Maybe if I read this in high school, I would have loved it. But for now, it’s a DNF, officially. Sorry guys 💔

The Secret History by Donna Tartt

challenging dark mysterious reflective sad slow-paced

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

3.5

This was... okay. I can tell Tartt is a fantastic writer, and I understand the story. I love the concept, and the aesthetic, and if this book had a clearer buildup, I think it would have been my favorite book.

My main issue with this book is that it felt unrewarding. We know Bunny dies from the first line in the book so we're not spoiling. But, halfway through the book, we figure out how he died, and then we go back to before he died. I feel like if that paragraph was taken out, I'd like it a lot more. It just felt so anticlimactic. I went back and went "wait, did they just say that?"

I have a few pages left but honestly, I do genuinely see this book being a modern classic. I just think I'd like a bit more intensity. I like it when a book makes me gasp or emote while reading, but I never really got there in this book.

I do not think this is a bad book by any means, I just think the story wasn't such an amazing buildup for me. I completely respect anyone who loves this book, and it is written with a beautiful tone and a very clear vibe I can picture in my head.

I also feel like Julian isn't in this book a lot. I feel like he was built up to be so pivotal in the beginning, and then we don't see him for like, 200 pages. That might just be me, though.

3.5/5 - I just think this book by her wasn't for me, but I am going to try the Goldfinch!

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

4.0

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

4.0

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

5.0

The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho

5.0

Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare

5.0