Author: piperreads

Anxious People by Fredrik Backman

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Rating: 4/5

TW: Depression, Suicide

“They say that a person’s personality is the sum of their experiences. But that isn’t true, at least not entirely, because if our past was all that defined us, we’d never be able to put up with ourselves. We need to be allowed to convince ourselves that we’re more than the mistakes we made yesterday. That we are all of our next choices, too, all of our tomorrow.”

Looking at the title of the book, you probably think it will an educational book how anxiety and how it packs people but this book is so much more than that. I literally couldn’t put it down once I started. If books where an unlikely group of characters come together and bond, then this book is right up your alley. The majority of the takes place in a bank robbery gone wrong and the underlying plot revolves around the hostage negotiation. I know that this plot sounds familiar but the way that Backman distracts you from what is really is incredibly good.

From the witty and blunt dialogue, well written and fleshed out characters, and a plot that seems overdone but the spin that he put it on made me laugh and cry at the same time. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone!

The Guest List by Lucy Foley

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Rating: 4/5

Not only do I love a good mystery, I love the surprises that come along the way and this book was definitely packed with them. I didn’t intend to read this book until I heard others talking about how good it was so I decided to check it out. I couldn’t put it down once I started! I was totally spooked by the island and wouldn’t want to be on a island like this anytime soon.

At first, I didn’t know if I was gonna finish it because of how many different characters came into play and not many of them were like-able. But, once I got deeper into the book, the more invested I became more invested. I believe a lot of that has to do with Foley’s writing as I actually felt like I knew the people even if they weren’t very like-able. Hannah and Olivia were my favorites because they were the most like-able out of everyone.

By the end of the book, I was so invested that I didn’t want it to end. This was one of the most satisfying mystery books that I’ve read and I understand why the Goodreads Award as it deserved that. So if you’re looking for a good mystery then I would definitely check this book out.

The Infinity Courts by Akemi Dawn Bowman

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Rating: ★★☆☆☆

Genre: Fantasy, Sci-fi, Diverse, YA

At first glance, I thought I was really going to enjoy the book. From the cover, the premise, and what I had heard about it were hyping me up. Sadly, this is one of those books where it didn’t live up to the hype which is always a bummer.

First, it took me awhile to figure out exactly what was going on and how everything was connected. Nami is the main character and while in the beginning, I did enjoy her character, the more the story progressed the less interested I was in her journey. In addition to that, I couldn’t connect to any of the characters and felt like they could’ve used more development. They were there and that was it.

The concept and world-building were very enjoyable and I found the theme of morality interesting because I am drawn to things like that. But, the lack of character development and Nami’s inner dialogue really pushed me away from truly enjoying this. It felt repetitive and I started to find her annoying especially because of her reckless decisions she made.

So sadly, this doesn’t get a good rating from me and it sucks because I was really hoping to love this book.

Asian Readathon 2021

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This month, I will be participating the AsianReadathon and I’m quite excited to do so. It’s an entire month devoted to books written by Asian writers and I am doing this in the goodreads server and it’s going to be a lot of fun!

I will be reading the following books for the Readathon:

1) These Violent Delights by Chloe Kong

2) Opium and Absinthe by Lydia Kang

3) The Serpent’s Secret by Sayantani DasGupta

4) Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi

5) The Infinity Courts by Akemi Dawn Bowman

I will be reviewing these books in addition to the others that I have on my list for my tbr so I’m excited for the month of May to start!

May TBR

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At first I was trying to decide what I would post about but after some thinking, I decided that I wuld post about my upcoming tbr for the month of May. I’m very excited to start these books.

May TBR:

  • Practical Magic by Alice Hoffman 
  • Divine Blood by Michael Beck 
  • Cinderella is Dead by Kaylon Braylon 
  • From Ash & Blood by Jennifer Armentrout
  • A Kingdom of Flesh & Fire by Jennifer Armentrout
  • The Crown of Gilded Bones by Jennifer Armentrout
  • Prodigy by Marie Lu
  • Champion by Marie Lu 
  • Crown of Feathers by Nikki Pau Preto 
  • Those Violent Delights by Chloe Kong 
  • The Song of The Marked by S.M. Gaither 
  • The Beautiful Ones by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
  • Anxious People by Fredrick Backman 
  • Namesake by Adrienne Young 
  • Shattered Kingdom by Angelina J. Steffort 
  • Opium and Absinthe by Lydia Kang 
  • The Serpent’s Secret by Sayantani DasGupta
  • Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi 
  • The Infinity Courts by Akemi Dawn Bowman 

So there is my TBR for next month! I will be reviewing each book here and sharing my thoughts and I’m excited for y’all to read them.