Recent Reads Mini Reviews

More mini reviews from books I’ve enjoyed to varying degrees over the last few weeks!

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A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman

Rating: ★★★★★
Release Date: July 15, 2014

We always think there’s enough time to do things with other people. Time to say things to them. And then something happens and then we stand there holding on to words like ‘if’

And another win from Fredrik Backman, who is quickly becoming a favorite author! A Man Called Ove is a heartwarming story filled with charm and care. Ove is a grump with a heart of gold who is a staunch rule follower and hard worker who’s always ready to help others – even if he argues with them the whole time. This is a story about community and how those around you become family and I loved every second of it. The humor is smart and effective, and Backman’s writing style continue’s to be everything I could ask for – the subtle repetition, the non-linear timeline, the flashbacks are all used perfectly to help the story flow and never feel stagnant in this small-town story.

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Miss Meteor by Tehlor Kay Mejia & Anna-Marie McLemore

Rating: ★★★★☆
Release Date: September 22, 2020

Another win from both Anna-Marie McLemore and Tehlor Kay Mejia. Miss Meteor has all the atmosphere, magic, and wonder you’d expect from these authors. We see Chicky and Lita come back together and grow their friendship along some of the best supporting characters I’ve read in a while – Chicky’s three older sisters and friends Junior and Cole (who is my absolute favorite and I love with all my heart) – as they fight to help Lita win the Miss Meteor crown. Seeing Lita and Chicky both really embrace their identities at the end of the story was my everything. And I thought all of the friendship moments during pageant prep and the romances we see were all stellar. The reason this gets 4 stars instead of 5, is that while I thought the beginning was strong, and the last 1/4 was five star perfection, I found the middle of the story to be a little slow for my liking. But overall, I highly recommend Miss Meteor if you’re a fan of either author’s previous work, I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.

Trigger warnings for racism ( specifically against the Latinx community) homophobia and transphobia.

I received a copy of the book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

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Vicious by V.E. Schwab

Rating: ★★★★★

Release Date: September 24, 2013

A new favorite and I honestly shouldn’t have expected anything less. I honestly don’t even what I can say about this book that hasn’t already been said by thousands of other people, but just to reiterate all of their points: this is a fantastic story about moral complexities, superpowers, and who is a villain and what being a villain means. Victor Vale is one of my new favorite characters and I loved seeing how all the other characters interacted with him. Sidney, Mitch, and Eli are all great characters too – all complex and layered beyond belief. Serena was my least favorite, which I don’t think is an unpopular opinion. The non-linear plot was perfect and helped create the tension and unease the permeated the divide between Victor and Eli. I just loved it all so much and I am both nervous and anxious about book 2.

I received a copy of the book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

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Beartown by Fredrik Backman

Rating: ★★★★★
Release Date: April 25, 2017

“Everyone has a thousand wishes before a tragedy, but just one afterward.”

I can confidently say that Fredrick Bakman is one of my favorite authors. I don’t know how it happened, but I’ve completely fallen more and more in love with his stories with each I’ve read. Beartown is a tragic story of smalltowns, assault, and how we teach boys that being good at sports absolves them of everything. I honestly don’t know if I have the words to accurately descibe that made this book so wonderful. I loved Maya and her family – her parents are both so strong and supportive, and her little brother Leo is precious. The story was especially heartbreaking because while I could guess at who the ‘bad guy’ was going to be, it wasn’t really clear and we got to know the team (most of whom I really loved)) for half a book before everything turned on it’s head. There was so many characters I fell in live with and seeing them deal with everything- with such raw emotions and struggles was both devastating and wonderful to see. A new favorite book and a new favorite author.

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What are some of the book you’ve read recently?