Daisy Darker by Alice Feeney

Ebook provided by NetGalley for review. Thank you.

4/5 stars

Daisy Darker was never supposed to live long. Born with a broken heart that has almost killed her four times. The youngest of three sisters Rose and Lily clearly resent her. She's so much younger than them and her condition meant homeschooling of a sort for her and boarding school for them. Their parents are divorced, their mother finds them an inconvenience and their father loves his orchestra more. All are struggling financially.

That's where Grandma Beatrice comes in. A wealthy author with a sizable inheritance and a hunch that she's going to die soon. Beatrice calls the family to a get together at her seaside house. The tide comes in, the house is cut off and things start to get weird.

I read this in a single day, partly because I was waiting for someone but partly because it was mysterious and engaging and the suspense kept me reading.

My only big criticism is that some of the chapters were overly short and were split for no good reason.

Stef Out x

Full Disclosure by Camryn Garrett

Ebook provided by NetGalley for review. Thank you.

5/5 stars

Simone is a normal teenager... Mostly. Her thoughts of boys and the development of future relationships are coloured by the fact that she is HIV positive and has been since birth. She's chill about it, mostly, and she looks after her health but it's not something she likes to be open about. The last time she tried, to a girl she had a crush on, it went badly and she felt that she had to leave her last school.

Now, things are looking up at her new school, she has two new best friends and a role as student director for the school's musical, Rent. Simone is passionate about musicals and Rent holds extra meaning personally since it's about the AIDS epidemic that killed friends of her two dads.

Through the musical Simone starts to bond with, and then fall for, Miles. But someone isn't happy about the blooming relationship and Simone starts to receive notes threatening to out her.

I did guess the culprit but I never would have guessed their reasoning and it added a much needed extra layer of depth. I loved Simone's friends and how casual their representation is! Lydia is bi and Asian, Claudia is asexual and a lesbian. Simone herself is Black (so is Miles) and bi questioning, not surprisingly prior experience has somewhat tainted that.

Overall I loved this, loved the characterisation especially Simone, the relationship she had with her dads was beautiful, they were so supportive!

Stef Out x

All the Stars and Teeth by Adalyn Grace

Ebook provided by NetGalley for review. Thank you.

5/5 stars

Amora is the princess of the island kingdom of Visidia. She is also a practitioner of Soul Magic and training to be a High Animancer - Master of Souls. One final public demonstration will prove that she's fit to rule but then it all goes wrong and she's thrown in jail. Fearing execution she flees with mysterious pirate, Bastian. He'll help her if she will help him reclaim his stolen magic.

As they journey across the sea, along with an unexpected hitchhiker, Amora learns that her father, the King, kept her in the dark about the problems that the kingdom is having and now she feels that it's up to her to put things right.

I thought the world-building was simple yet effective, and the magic system was intriguing, but it was the overall storytelling that really got to me. The way we gradually got to know the characters and their motivations. I do feel like the romance side of things went a little too obvious when there was another choice that may have been more interesting... Overall I enjoyed it and I immediately borrowed the sequel from the library (4/5 stars: great overall but ending felt rushed and incomplete).

Stef Out x

All Of This Is True by Lygia Day Penaflor

Ebook originally provided by NetGalley for review. Thank you.

3/5 stars

So I originally started reading this in 2018 as a NetGalley eArc. I ended up marking it as Did Not Finish at 20%. At the time I struggled to connect to the characters and the formatting of the ebook wasn't working in those early stages (I presume this was fixed for official release?). I later found a paperback in a charity shop without realising it was the same book. Then this month it just so happens that it fit one of my reading prompts that I'm doing, the word "All". Even then I didn't connect that I'd previously attempted it until I went to Goodreads to mark it as "currently reading".

The way the book is laid out is unusual. We have video transcripts for the characters Miri and Penny, complete with a video graphic style header for the show "The Whole Truth". Then we have Soleil whose journal entries are being serialised in a newspaper. Lastly there are extracts from Fatima's new book, some scenes of which will cause deja vu.

The central plot point of this seems to be discussing this new book and the events that led to an attack on Jonah, the girls' friend. The kick off of everything is a book called The Undertow, written by local author Fatima Ro. Miri is a superfan who has a plan to get to know Fatima and become her friend. Her plan works but gradually everything changes. Not least of the changes is a secret that Jonah has been carrying with him that will turn them all upside down...

This was a very fast paced read and it drew me in but the characters aren't super likeable. Penny was the most "human" but there was a whiny quality to her and a lack of backbone to change her own situation, she was too much of a doormat. As soon as a certain event was mentioned in relation to a certain character I guessed the truth of what happened. It felt very naive of the other characters to assume what they did. It was fairly enjoyable but I won't reread, it's lost its mystery now.

Stef Out x

The Whole Truth by Cara Hunter

Ebook provided by NetGalley for review. Thank you.

2/5 stars

To start with I disliked the chapterless style and Adam's diary entries lacked distinction. I could tell when they started due to the date/time stamp but the end transition could be better.

On to the story. We have two unconnected cases, one of a college professor accused of sexual assault by her male student. The other a murder of a woman that may or may not be connected to a historic rapist.

Apparently this is the 5th book in the series based around DI Adam Fawley and to be honest you need to read the others. There's a who's who cheat sheet at the beginning but I soon forgot and the parade of surnames was a little confusing, also there were discussions about relationships etc that lacked context. Not to mention the bio mention of Adam's young son taking his own life. The writing itself was good enough that I may check out the previous books and hope they come together a little tighter than this one.

The storylines were decent though the assault case became a little convoluted by the end and it was hard to work out what the actual truth was, especially with the epilogue. Also there was an unfortunate throwaway comment at the rape clinic where one of the cops wonders how often they need the clothes to change into (after their own have been taken for evidence) in an XXL which felt very heartless because as well as demeaning the few male victims - the exact plot point of this book - it also dismisses the idea that some of the female victims being larger bodied. Rape doesn't just affect the thin.

Anyway, as for the murder case and its related bits, there was no proper conclusion. Crucial evidence was discovered and then the book ended with no solid conclusion. No arrest, no setting free of the wrongly accused. Nothing. Very disappointing.

Stef Out x

Yellowface by R.F. Kuang

Ebook provided by NetGalley for review. Thank you.

4/5 stars

I found this book very compelling and it drew me in but it's also one I personally found tricky to review.

June Hayward, a white woman, is a writer. As is her friend Athena Liu, a Chinese American. However while Athena's books have been bestsellers, June's book has struggled. But then Athena dies and June finds her latest unfinished books. June then inexplicably decides to steal it, finish it and publish it under the name Juniper Song. Her own full first and middle name that conveniently make her appear more ethnically ambiguous.

The book when released is an instant hit and the popularity inevitably leads to criticisms about the validity of a white woman writing about Chinese soldiers in the war. Subsequently the internet takes offence and tries to cancel her.

June wasn't particularly likeable but I guess she wasn't supposed to be. She tried to make too many excuses for her actions and as if once wasn't bad enough she then stole and took over a second piece of Athena's work!

I did enjoy reading this book and it made me think but I'm not sure of the overall point. Stealing is bad? Duh. Don't talk over the people that experienced something? Also seems clear, but neither of those feel like the whole story. *Shrug* Maybe I'm just being dense?

Stef Out x

Unscripted by Nicole Kronzer

Ebook provided by NetGalley for review. Thank you.

4/5 stars

I really enjoyed this book. It had a lot to say and some important themes and the characters were brilliant.

Zelda, her brother and her brother's new boyfriend are attending an improvisational comedy camp for two weeks in the mountains. Zelda's excited but when they arrive she discovers that she's one of only 5 girls which doesn't fill her with hope. Hope that diminishes further when, though she's cast in the top Varsity team, she's constantly the butt of the joke and being cast in parts such as "prostitute".

The situation is worsened by a coach who in the room is constantly criticising her work and giving her contrary advice, but outside, in private, is giving her compliments and kissing her.

I really enjoyed the story's progression and Zelda's gradual realisation of how wrong things were. I just would have liked a little more ending. Maybe an epilogue of them coming back the following year and things being so much better.

Stef Out x