book review – Page 48 – Amy Leigh Reads

I Believe in a Thing Called Love Review

May 11, 2020May 11, 2020by amyleighreads3 Comments

*SPOILERS BELOW*

31145133 Desi is a senior in high school who has achieved everything she has set her mind to, she is valedictorian of her class, she has many extracurricular activities and has her mind set on Stanford but she’s never had a boyfriend. In fact, she’s a known disaster in romance, a clumsy, stammering humiliation magnet.

I think this was supposed to be a fun, light, fluffy contemporary romance but I just found it to be a little silly and cringey to be honest. Desi, even though she is portrayed as being quite smart and switched on is woefully naïve and immature at times. Choosing to keep her interview a secret from Luca and continuing with her list and her plans even after they are together was almost frustrating to read.

I think the plot was too predictable as well. Like we knew Luca was going to end up finding the list and would break up with her and still she never really dwelled on her actions and accepted how wrong she was keeping this whole scheme a secret. Even going that step further and trying to manipulate him into getting back with her at the prom really demonstrated how little she had grown over the course of the story line.

I really liked Desi’s friends, I think they really shone in this book. They are both supportive of Desi and call her out when they know she is going too far. We are given a little background into their friendships and how they came to be so close and I appreciated the dynamics between them, it felt realistic.

The overall premise of the book was quite unique and entertaining. I liked that we are given some cultural diversity with the Korean culture. I am quite the fan of K Dramas myself so it was quite fun to get the references to the different shows thrown in there as well! You are kind of on the edge of your seat throughout the book just waiting for that other shoe to drop, and when it does the drama definitely ensues.

⭐️3/5 A tad too immature for me!

Reviews

Stalking Jack the Ripper Review

May 6, 2020May 6, 2020by amyleighreads1 Comment

40727470._SY475_ Seventeen-year-old Audrey Rose Wadsworth was born a lord’s daughter, with a life of wealth and privilege stretched out before her. But between the social teas and silk dress fittings, she leads a forbidden secret life. Against her stern father’s wishes and society’s expectations, Audrey often slips away to her uncle’s laboratory to study the gruesome practice of forensic medicine.

I liked Audrey. She was at times I think a little too full of herself, especially when she decided to sneak out onto the streets at night and try to catch the killer herself. Even though it was a way to rebel from her father and his quite stringent rules she did just want to save the women and prevent any more deaths. She is very self-motivated and I liked the way she didn’t conform to society’s expectations and did what she was interested in. She does evolve over the course of the story line and becomes more self-assured, actually standing up to her father and initiating the kiss with Thomas.

Thomas was quite an enigmatic character. He’s very aloof and comes across quite arrogant yet charismatic at the start of the book. I like that we gradually get to see him open up and express his feelings to Audrey in an almost offhand way, making jokes and shamelessly flirting. We learn more about his family and the reason why he is so adamant about learning all he can from Jonathan. I can appreciate the subtle nod to Sherlock Holmes with his character and I really enjoyed the banter between him and Audrey.

I didn’t really think the love triangle was necessary, other than introducing another character for Audrey to suspect. I guess Blackburn was necessary to drive the plot along but I didn’t really see a point to his character. After Audrey declared she no longer trusted him he didn’t really make any more impact on the story, I am hoping we get to see a bit more of him in the rest of the series though because I actually quite liked him.

The fact that the book didn’t shy away from becoming too gruesome definitely kept me engaged. It goes into pretty grim details about what happened to each of the murdered women and the autopsies they performed. It gave the book a sense of realism in a way and added much needed depth to the plot. The mystery aspect was a little bit predictable but I was entertained and eager to read on and figure out who was Jack in the end.

⭐️3/5 stars Gruesome, dark yet still quite charming!

Reviews

Wayward Pines Series Review

April 29, 2020April 27, 2020by amyleighreads3 Comments

Since I pretty much marathoned these three books in a couple of days I figured I would do a review of the series as a whole instead of individual reviews for the each book.

15034320 Pines I thought was a nice introduction to the characters, the plot and the premise. Even though you really aren’t given a lot of information about what was happening at Wayward Pines and whether or not Ethan was insane, there was just enough twists and turns to keep me engaged! It established the setting very well and there was an overall foreboding sense of confusion that contrasts well with the pristine facade of the town. I thought the plot was very fast paced and the overall premise very original and intriguing! ⭐️3/5 stars

19438157._SY475_ Wayward I think did a good job going more in depth with the backgrounds of the different characters and explored the status quo of the town. We learnt a lot more about how these people ended up in Wayward Pines and how the whole operation came to be. I like that the focus isn’t completely on Ethan and we are given a few different point of views. The murder investigation was a nice plot point utilised as a way for us to learn alongside Ethan who was trying to fight against David’s regime and who was a loyal supporter. I was still highly invested in the book and really eager to pick up the third and see after the abbies are let into the valley how their story was going to conclude! ⭐️3/5 stars

20423680 The Last Town I thought was a great ending to this series! This was definitely faster paced and had much higher stakes than the previous two books. I was on the edge of my seat throughout the course of the plot and just knowing that everyone wasn’t going to survive made the story more realistic in a way. There was this underlying tone of helplessness, especially after we find out about the food situation and I honestly had no idea how they were all going to survive. The ending though is really what swayed me and ultimately won me over! I thought it was a fantastic conclusion that left me with just the right amount of satisfaction! ⭐️4/5 stars

Reviews

Every Heart a Doorway Review

April 28, 2020April 27, 2020by amyleighreads3 Comments

25526296 Didn’t quite live up to the hype….

This book revolves around a school that takes in wayward children who have travelled to different worlds and have stumbled back to reality and can’t cope.

This book just didn’t quite gel with me personally. I went into it only really knowing that everyone absolutely loves this book and you don’t really get a lot of negative reviews but it didn’t quite live up to my expectations. Even though the book is quite short I thought it would go into a lot more details about the different worlds and the adventures that each of the children had whilst they were there and how it contrasts to the current world.

There wasn’t really any point in time where I was invested or all that engaged in the story. I think the development stage was a tad rushed and I wasn’t really settled into the plot at any point. I was definitely intrigued and once the murders started occurring I was eager to figure out who was behind them, but the pacing and the structure of the story felt a little fractured I guess.

I wasn’t all that attached to any of the characters either. They were all very diverse and distinct and had a voice and a story of their own but it was never to the point where I was developing any emotions or commitment to them. They all felt a little one dimensional to me as well, and again I think it was just due to the length of the book and that underdevelopment factor.

The premise is definitely original and now that I read this book and I understand kind of how it has been written and the purpose of the story I think I will enjoy the rest of the series. As a high/epic fantasy reader it just wasn’t fleshed out enough for me. I am used to a lot more world building and magical elements which this did have just not to the extent that I was expecting.

⭐️3/5 stars promising, needs a bit more oomph!

Reviews

Ninth House Review

April 27, 2020May 3, 2020by amyleighreads3 Comments

43263680 Galaxy (Alex) Stern has had a rough start at life, but she has been given a second chance and has an opportunity to attend Yale and is enveloped into the mysterious world of the nine secret societies that have been thriving there for hundreds of years.

It was a little too info dumpy at the start of the book. For those first hundred or so pages it was really a struggle to get through. It was slower paced and there are just so many dates, code names, characters, rules and regulations as well as all the magical elements woven in as well. It was a lot more rooted into the historical elements of the houses and it kind of bored me.

Alex I didn’t quite connect with for the first half of the book. She was just too mysterious I guess, we didn’t know a lot about her and she had too many secrets. She is a definitely a flawed character and being out of her element and thrust into the Lethe house and trying to live up to the expectations that are heaped upon her forced her out of her comfort zone. As she is learning about everything so are we, there is just a lot of information to wade through in a short amount of time. I did enjoy her development over the course of the story line though. She gains a lot more confidence in herself and really has had to come to terms with her past and everything that happened with Hellie in order to move on with her future.

I liked Darlington and I wish he was around for more of the plot. He was a nice contrast to Alex and even though he exudes that rich, know it all persona he has had to work hard to get to where he is now. Dawes started out as a quite innocuous character, I didn’t really think she would have much of an impact on the plot but she was like the dark horse of the story. She saved Alex’s life multiple times and stood up for her on multiple occasions as well when it came to the Dean.

Like I said the start of the book was a little bit slow and was quite hard to get through. However, once I was settled into the story and the investigation about Tara’s death began the pacing definitely picked up and the action intensified. There were some great twists and turns thrown in and I appreciated how much Leigh Bardugo went in depth with the different houses, I just wish maybe she only would of focused on a couple at a time and expanded upon them as the series continues.

⭐️3/5 stars a very slow build!