catreadsitall's reviews
593 reviews

Babel by R.F. Kuang

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challenging emotional informative 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? Yes

5.0

I am a mess

Ruthless Vows by Rebecca Ross

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adventurous 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? Yes

4.75

"Write me a story where there is no ending, Kitt. Write to me and fill my empty spaces."

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5/5
Spice: 0.5/5

What To Expect:
✔️ Gods and Goddesses
✔️ Divine war
✔️ Enchanted typewriters
✔️ Lyrical writing
✔️ Enchanting romance

What It's About:
Following the attack in Avalon Bluff, Iris and Roman have been separated. Iris finds herself back in the city of Oath, determined to find Roman and bring him home. Roman, however, is behind enemy lines, with no memory of his life before he woke underground in the home of a god. Iris and Attie once again venture to the front lines of an increasingly desperate war, in the hopes of reporting the truth and finding a clue to Roman's whereabouts. Meanwhile, Dacre builds his forces and moves ever closer to the destruction of Oath.

General Thoughts:
Once again, the love story is everything in this book. The yearning and the choices that Iris and Roman have to make are the heart and soul of the story, and contrast so beautifully with the destructive relationship between Dacre and Enver. I adore the side characters and the writing style is just so lyrically beautiful. This time, we focus a little less on Iris and Roman's relationship and more on their individual struggles. The war that's happening becomes very much front and centre, along with the difficult choices that have to be made. It made things a little less charming for me, but still such a satisfying read.

What I Enjoyed:
Roman and Iris and their relationship oh my god. Possibly one of the most romantic duos to have graced my eyeballs. There's not even any spice and they absolutely slay me. Also, the letters. Thank god the letters made a return I was so very worried about those typewriters lol.

What I Struggled With:
You know how there's sometimes a single word that just really niggles at you? I suppose since this was an audiobook read for me, perhaps it was a little more pronounced, but excessive use of the word limned. Just, everything can't be limned with gold, you know!? At times things required a little too much suspension of disbelief (Iris and the Museum heist) but, in general, no complaints here!

Absolutely loved this duology. I know it's only early Feb, but these are going to be some of my favourites of the year I just know it!

Queens of Mist and Madness by Lisette Marshall

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adventurous emotional funny tense fast-paced