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undervmountain's reviews
272 reviews
A Dowry of Blood by S.T. Gibson
dark
reflective
fast-paced
4.0
This story reminded me a lot of the vibes of Interview With The Vampire, to the point where I felt they could almost be set in the same world. It stays wholly original though, with Constanta, a female narrator, telling her story of becoming a Vampire, and being trapped with her Queer family by their sire.
Travelling across Europe through it's turbulent history, Constanta meets Magdalena who joins their small family, and then Alexi. With each new addition their sire becomes more controlling, and their struggle to choose between what they feel is their love for him and the need for their freedom.
I did think that the last section, switching the story to Alexi, was not needed. The tone seemed to change, the writing more juvenile and while I enjoyed hearing of their futures there was something about it that didn't quite fit in with the rest of the book.
Travelling across Europe through it's turbulent history, Constanta meets Magdalena who joins their small family, and then Alexi. With each new addition their sire becomes more controlling, and their struggle to choose between what they feel is their love for him and the need for their freedom.
I did think that the last section, switching the story to Alexi, was not needed. The tone seemed to change, the writing more juvenile and while I enjoyed hearing of their futures there was something about it that didn't quite fit in with the rest of the book.
The Light Between Worlds by Laura E. Weymouth
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
5.0
This book reminded me of my favourite childhood books, but was utterly heartbreaking. I've often wondered how the Pevensie children of Narnia went home and just continued their lives after so many years away from home, and this follows a very similar vein, but after the three siblings come home after years in a fantasy Kingdom that was torn apart by war, they can never be the same again.
Evelyn, or Ev, was such a raw, heartbreaking character suffering from depression after being torn away from the world she saw as home. I was surprised by how dark this book got, not shying away from self harm and suicidal ideation. Most of the memories of the world they travelled to and the joys and horrors they witness there, is told by Ev, as Phil doesn't remember the world as well as Ev does. While that world was torn apart by war and friends and foe slain, Ev saw only the beauty.
The second half of the book, Phillipa, or Phil takes over the story. She's a few years older than Ev, living in America but travels home. I enjoyed her part of the story more, as she described the world that London had become after the war and the National Gallery she worked at in incredible detail.
The ending is just perfect, without leaving me with unanswered questions. I was so, so sad to leave but at the same time I felt like the character's stories were told and it was time to leave.
Evelyn, or Ev, was such a raw, heartbreaking character suffering from depression after being torn away from the world she saw as home. I was surprised by how dark this book got, not shying away from self harm and suicidal ideation. Most of the memories of the world they travelled to and the joys and horrors they witness there, is told by Ev, as Phil doesn't remember the world as well as Ev does. While that world was torn apart by war and friends and foe slain, Ev saw only the beauty.
The second half of the book, Phillipa, or Phil takes over the story. She's a few years older than Ev, living in America but travels home. I enjoyed her part of the story more, as she described the world that London had become after the war and the National Gallery she worked at in incredible detail.
The ending is just perfect, without leaving me with unanswered questions. I was so, so sad to leave but at the same time I felt like the character's stories were told and it was time to leave.
The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde
dark
reflective
slow-paced
3.0
Even if they're as fabulous as a fruit cake, men just cannot stop getting stuck three quarters of a way through a book. And then they just start listing things. Pages and pages of things. This happened with Lolita too, and I'm oddly fascinated by what causes it.
The rest of the book is just fine. I felt the story concentrated more on men having conversations and not the gothic horror or it all, making me feel strangely detatched from the story. Although this chronicles decades of Dorian's life, I never felt that change and had to scramble to work out his age from clues in the story.
I did like the ending, although I nearly never got there. This finally picked up the gothic horror aspect this freaky painting finally wanted, and Dorian made quite frankly the stupidest decision possible, but that finished the story off well and didn't leave me with any questions.
The rest of the book is just fine. I felt the story concentrated more on men having conversations and not the gothic horror or it all, making me feel strangely detatched from the story. Although this chronicles decades of Dorian's life, I never felt that change and had to scramble to work out his age from clues in the story.
I did like the ending, although I nearly never got there. This finally picked up the gothic horror aspect this freaky painting finally wanted, and Dorian made quite frankly the stupidest decision possible, but that finished the story off well and didn't leave me with any questions.
The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
I remember when I first read this book, that after a couple of chapters I wasn't sure if to continue the story. Charlie's voice seems juvenile and I wasn't sure where it was going, but the ending delivered an emotional, harrowing truth that Charlie hadn't come to terms with through the story.
Re-reading it knowing the ending, I could pick up on a lot more clues and I had a lot more sympathy for autistic-coded Charlie as he tried to navigate his way through high school relationships, as some of his experiences mirrored my own.
I waited for the re-read before reading the 20 Years Later letter, exclusive to this edition, and I'm glad I did. It's a perfect addition that I desperately wanted, and a true love letter to the fans of this book as well.
Re-reading it knowing the ending, I could pick up on a lot more clues and I had a lot more sympathy for autistic-coded Charlie as he tried to navigate his way through high school relationships, as some of his experiences mirrored my own.
I waited for the re-read before reading the 20 Years Later letter, exclusive to this edition, and I'm glad I did. It's a perfect addition that I desperately wanted, and a true love letter to the fans of this book as well.
Floating Hotel by Grace Curtis
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
5.0
Floating Hotel is part sci-fi, part mystery and part vignette, as you move from character to character, slowly piecing together the mystery happening aboard the Grand Abeona Hotel, a futuristic spaceship. This probably has the most POVs I've seen in a story, but as the majority of characters only appear from their own perspective once, this really works.
Each character comes from different walks of life, they're different ages, from different places and are various genders and sexualities and this made the story so interesting to read from each perspective. There were characters I really grew to love other the course of their chapters, and I was sad when their moment started to close.
I was worried when we hit the final chapter with no answers, but chose to trust the author. I made the right decision, as everything came to a close without feeling rushed, finally putting all the pieces together to make a complete picture. Frontier is very high on my want to read list after this!
Each character comes from different walks of life, they're different ages, from different places and are various genders and sexualities and this made the story so interesting to read from each perspective. There were characters I really grew to love other the course of their chapters, and I was sad when their moment started to close.
I was worried when we hit the final chapter with no answers, but chose to trust the author. I made the right decision, as everything came to a close without feeling rushed, finally putting all the pieces together to make a complete picture. Frontier is very high on my want to read list after this!
Stardust in Their Veins by Laura Sebastian
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
I've recently found that if I fall in love with the characters, a book could basically be terrible and I'll still rate it higher. I read Castles In Their Bones twice, so when I got to this I'd become attached to the triplets, and wanted to see where they would go after the shocking events at the end of the first book.
While Beatriz travels to Bessemia, Daphne stays in Friv, and this story focuses more of them coming to terms with losing Sophie and preparing for what will happen next, so this story doesn't move forward much at all, for such a big book.
This is pure filler, with a few small events changing the course of the story, but I do wonder if this would have worked better as a duology. However, I appreciated the time spent with Daphne, Beatriz and new POV Violie, and I'm interested to see what will happen in the third book.
While Beatriz travels to Bessemia, Daphne stays in Friv, and this story focuses more of them coming to terms with losing Sophie and preparing for what will happen next, so this story doesn't move forward much at all, for such a big book.
This is pure filler, with a few small events changing the course of the story, but I do wonder if this would have worked better as a duology. However, I appreciated the time spent with Daphne, Beatriz and new POV Violie, and I'm interested to see what will happen in the third book.
That's Not My Name by Megan Lally
emotional
tense
fast-paced
5.0
They call me hell
They call me Sta-cey
They call me Her
They call me Jane
---------------
I've been reading less and less young adult thrillers these days, as the majority of them are just... not good. I decided to pick this one up due to the surprisingly high community rating, and was rewarded with a gripping, emotional story that I flew through in a few days.
This is a dual POV, told from a girl who believes her name is Mary, picked up by her father after an accident triggers amnesia, and Drew, whose girlfriend Lola disappeared one night, leaving him the prime suspect of the investigation. There was a constant question of if Mary really was Lola, and who this father figure really was.
I really liked the ending. The story stays grounded in reality throughout, making this feel like something that could really happen, and the emotional scenes were so well written it made the characters stand out and feel like real people. This is the author's debut, and I'm so excited to see what she writes next.
They call me Sta-cey
They call me Her
They call me Jane
---------------
I've been reading less and less young adult thrillers these days, as the majority of them are just... not good. I decided to pick this one up due to the surprisingly high community rating, and was rewarded with a gripping, emotional story that I flew through in a few days.
This is a dual POV, told from a girl who believes her name is Mary, picked up by her father after an accident triggers amnesia, and Drew, whose girlfriend Lola disappeared one night, leaving him the prime suspect of the investigation. There was a constant question of if Mary really was Lola, and who this father figure really was.
I really liked the ending. The story stays grounded in reality throughout, making this feel like something that could really happen, and the emotional scenes were so well written it made the characters stand out and feel like real people. This is the author's debut, and I'm so excited to see what she writes next.
This Day Changes Everything by Edward Underhill
adventurous
lighthearted
fast-paced
5.0
This story reminded me so much of my fave, Dash & Lily, while still being a completely unique story in it's own right. With the two main characters both being Queer teens, this felt like a modern update of that story, even stopping by one of Dash & Lily's favourite bookstores.
This has all the chaotic fun I want from a contemporary romance, where the bigger focus was on finding the locations in Abby's favourite book so she could get gifts for Kat, making the romance feel like it was progressing naturally.
I really loved the characters, and discussions about what makes people Queer and who can use that label felt so authentic. The moment Abby and Kat finally talked was uplifting and honest, and Kat has a way of just stating facts that I immediately loved, she's a character I'd love to see in a future story.
This has all the chaotic fun I want from a contemporary romance, where the bigger focus was on finding the locations in Abby's favourite book so she could get gifts for Kat, making the romance feel like it was progressing naturally.
I really loved the characters, and discussions about what makes people Queer and who can use that label felt so authentic. The moment Abby and Kat finally talked was uplifting and honest, and Kat has a way of just stating facts that I immediately loved, she's a character I'd love to see in a future story.
Cell 7 by Kerry Drewery
emotional
tense
fast-paced
4.0
British Dystopia is easier to connect to for me, being a Brit, and is usually more grounded in current day politics, with a heavier focus on the people, and not the action. This is a good example of this, a twist on what might have happened had the death penalty never been abolished, and had twisted into a TV event.
This is a fast paced story with quite a few characters to keep up with, showing the realities of the severe class divide, as votes are only restricted by how much money you can spend. Martha is from a poor area, one step away from complete homeslessness, and I related to her character.
The ending was emotional and extremely stressful, it had me flipping through the pages to find out the fate of Martha and what happened the night Isaac's cruel father was murdered. But the ending scenes made me feel like the next book could end up being a repeat of the first book, and I'm worried I will be bored by it.
This is a fast paced story with quite a few characters to keep up with, showing the realities of the severe class divide, as votes are only restricted by how much money you can spend. Martha is from a poor area, one step away from complete homeslessness, and I related to her character.
The ending was emotional and extremely stressful, it had me flipping through the pages to find out the fate of Martha and what happened the night Isaac's cruel father was murdered. But the ending scenes made me feel like the next book could end up being a repeat of the first book, and I'm worried I will be bored by it.
Good Girls Don't Die by Christina Henry
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
4.0
This had such an interesting idea, putting three women in different iconic movie and book situations, but I felt it really struggled with the smaller page count, and the ending was pretty lacklustre. I liked the idea of it so much though that I flew through the pages.
A cosy murder mystery set in a small town, a cabin in the woods slasher horror and a dystopian maze runner fight to the finish is a lot of fit in a 300 page book, and while it didn't quite manage to get it perfect, each story was vividly told, and I quickly connected with each of the three women who find themselves in each place.
The ending was very, very weak and I found myself wishing it wasn't quite so obvious what was happening. There was some funny moments, and I enjoyed the women finally meeting and discovering how they connected, but overall I wish this book was longer, with a very different ending.
A cosy murder mystery set in a small town, a cabin in the woods slasher horror and a dystopian maze runner fight to the finish is a lot of fit in a 300 page book, and while it didn't quite manage to get it perfect, each story was vividly told, and I quickly connected with each of the three women who find themselves in each place.
The ending was very, very weak and I found myself wishing it wasn't quite so obvious what was happening. There was some funny moments, and I enjoyed the women finally meeting and discovering how they connected, but overall I wish this book was longer, with a very different ending.