ridreads's reviews
96 reviews

Shifted by Danielle Cancel

adventurous challenging 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

I love Owen, Asher, and Shara and I can’t wait to see what comes next in their story! 

It took me a few chapters to get fully invested, but I loved learning about the characters backgrounds. Each character is carefully crafted and the author took a lot of care in the details. I really enjoyed the circus/carnival setting at the beginning and think it’s a really fun and unique addition to a shifter romance! 

This is definitely not a slow burn! The spice really gets going at the beginning of the book and slows down in the middle. The majority of the spice is MM/MMM with the MF spice picking up towards the end. 

I don’t want to give too much of the story away, but if you love mate bonds, fantasy, friends to lovers, second chance, and why choose I highly recommend you check this book out on release day! 

A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas

adventurous emotional hopeful medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I’m not going to write some crazy long review because it’s been done to death with over 200k reviews on Goodreads alone.

I’ll just write my key thoughts:

• Everyone sucks for the majority of the book and it took me 20 chapters to care about anyone really at all, but once I got into it I found I didn’t want to stop reading

• Lucien is the best character

• Rhysand is a jerk

• Tamlin is fine, I’ve seen enough spoilers to know most people hate him and maybe after ACOMAF I’ll change my mind

• Feyre is super dumb, but she is 19 and illiterate so really I guess I shouldn’t be expecting anything from her

• Nesta - there’s so much hate for her and maybe I’ll feel different after future books, but so far I like how real she is

Watch her Breathe by Emily Klepp

challenging dark emotional fast-paced

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

4.0

Whoa! This one started off hot and heavy right from the beginning. I really liked the why choose and mafia stalker vibes. This was definitely one of the more intense novellas in the series. I really liked that Violet is a dark and twisty FMC and I was definitely surprised by how dark and twisty she was willing to get! I really enjoyed the ending to the series, but would love more happily ever after or bonus chapters from my favorite family. I just need more!

Watch her Bow by Emily Klepp

challenging dark fast-paced

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

3.0

A very quick read, I got through it in an hour or two. I really liked finally getting Kaia’s story since I have been waiting for it since book 2! This one wasn’t nearly as dark as some of the others and didn’t really get that dark until the final chapter. I do wish we could have gotten a little more out of Kaia and Rayne’s story as ~50 pages just wasn’t enough. I would have liked to see some chapters from Rayne’s perspective.

Dear Heart, You Screwed Me by Ashlee Rose

challenging emotional sad tense fast-paced

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

2.0

This story started out really tragic and definitely pulled at my heartstrings right at the beginning. I didn’t find any of the characters (main or side) to be really likable or relatable. 

There were also a lot of inconsistencies in the timelines and character traits that didn’t make sense with other things that were told. Continuity errors were pretty rampant and definitely took me out of the story as there were a few times where the characters were described as wearing particular things and then later scenes basically disregarded the outfits that they were wearing without any space in the timeline for a wardrobe change. 

There were also a lot of parts that felt over or underwritten. The time spent on certain areas of the relationships, work, etc. didn’t make sense or seem to make any difference in the story versus other points where we jumped ahead weeks or months at a time missing what felt like crucial moments or conversations. 

Overall, the whole book felt like a miscommunication trope, the characters (even the older ones) all felt really juvenile, and I wouldn’t really recommend it to anyone for the story. If you're just looking for something that's a quick read with a large age gap (20 years), best friend's dad, accidental marriage/pregnancy, good spice, and you're not concerned about the plot math mathing then you will probably enjoy this book. 

Twisted by Emily McIntire

challenging dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

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

4.0

I really didn’t think I would like this one as much because I’m not a big Aladdin fan, BUT I really loved this dark retelling. 

I really enjoyed how Yasmin found herself, discovered her strength to make her own decisions, and learned how to stand on her own two feet despite struggling with the loss of her father. Julian’s character development was the opposite of Yasmin’s and really focused on him learning how to put his trust in someone who loves him despite his own pain at the hands of the person who supposed to love him most. There were a lot of great twists that kept me guessing and interested until the end. 

I listened to this on Audible and really liked both of the narrators. They both did a really great job of embodying the characters. 

Watch her Burn by Emily Klepp

challenging dark emotional 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

GASP! The twists! I love, love, love Josie. The only thing I would want is more! More spice, more revenge, more of my favorite family. 

The Bourbon Bargain by Adrian R. Hale

funny lighthearted relaxing fast-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

5.0

Holy sugar honey iced tea! Decadent parties, old friends and old enemies, corporate espionage and more makes for a quick and easy read. The perfect addition to the Southern Gods series! 

I really enjoyed reading about all of the relationship developments. From our favorite instalove couple growing their relationship despite their rushed nuptials to our southern belle standing up for herself against her very own misguided monster mom. 

Some of my favorite things: 

• Alex - he’s the perfect best friend who always has the right things to say 
• The spice - it just keeps on spicin’! And Hayes really pushed at Paige’s boundaries helping her to explore and find her confidence 
• The groveling - although I think the groveling could have gone on a little longer, I do love a billionaire grand gesture 

The Marked Huntress by Tanja Longoria, Tanja Longoria

adventurous challenging medium-paced

4.0

This was my favorite book from the connected standalone series so far! I really enjoyed reading about the characters that have larger roles in the later stories. 

The author does a great job of conveying the fears and apprehensions Mellowic has as a human, and a hunter, when she finds she’s mated to an alpha. Though they have a bit of a rocky start, Mellowic is able to forgive Kaine and embrace the bond after she almost loses him to an attack on the pack. 

I always love a good fates mates and enemies to lovers story, plus a dash of terrible ex boyfriend drama thrown in is always sure to make things interesting. 

Watch her blush by Emily Klepp

challenging dark emotional fast-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

5.0

Wow! All the books in this series have been great, but this one is my favorite. The way that Milo protected her from the first moment that he saw her to the way that Daxton welcomed her into his family. Definitely read the trigger warnings for this one as there were some difficult parts to get through. I love how Stormy got away from her abusers, got clean, and found her happily ever after with a family who loves her.