Reviews

I cannot claim to be a writer without also being a reader. Here is a collection of reader reviews of the books I’ve binged. To stay even more up-to-date with what I’m currently reading, add me on Goodreads.

Danielle Brown 7/10/18 Danielle Brown 7/10/18

“The Upside of Unrequited” by Becky Albertalli • Book Review

“I have to admit: there's something really badass about truly, honestly not caring what people think about you.”

★★★ (3.3 / 5) Don't be fooled. This is not your average teen romance. In fact, I'd say the romance takes a backseat in a coming-of-age story more about Molly's maturing relationship with her sister—and with herself.

While a few elements lacked the depth I was hoping for, Molly's spunk kept me entertained page after page, and the story opened a window into a beautiful family that is worth looking at. I would recommend this for a light, summer read.

Danielle Brown 6/30/18 Danielle Brown 6/30/18

“Flawed” by Cecelia Ahern • Book Review

“To be courageous is to feel fear within, every step of the way...It takes courage to overcome, but it takes extreme fear to be courageous.”

★★★ (2.8 / 5 stars) Maybe because dystopian novels are my favorite, I'm more critical of them. I am hoping the sequel, Perfect, redeems this duology, but to put it bluntly, Flawed left me bored and disappointed.

Celestine North, our main character and narrator, was hard for me to connect with from the start, and while she suffered traumatically, she did very little for me to like her.

Danielle Brown 6/20/18 Danielle Brown 6/20/18

“Eliza and Her Monsters” by Francesca Zappia • Book Review

“You found me in a constellation.”

★★★★ (4.5 / 5 stars ) I'm usually the type of person who says she devours books. But this book devoured me. To me, this was a whole new contemporary novel.

Basic plot structure felt familiar but everything about the characters and the experiences they went through felt entirely fresh. Here's a breakdown of how this novel made me feel…

Danielle Brown 5/31/18 Danielle Brown 5/31/18

“Ace of Shades” by Amanda Foody • Book Review

“People do not play this game to win, my dear. They play this game not to lose.”

★★★★ (4 / 5 stars) All around, I really enjoyed this novel. Foody's captivating descriptions of the City of Sin consumed me as I fell in love with Levi (and the rest of the cast) page by page.

My main qualm with the novel is how prissy Enne started out. Her personality irritated me quite a bit, and while my first thought was, "Why couldn't we have had this story with inverted gender roles?" Enne's arc and growth satisfied me in the end.

Danielle Brown 5/10/18 Danielle Brown 5/10/18

“Alex, Approximately” by Jenn Bennett • Book Review

“Sometimes you have to endure painful things to realize that you're a whole lot stronger than you think.”

★★★★ (3.8 / 5 stars) Overall, this was a really enjoyable story for me. There were things I really enjoyed about the story and the characters, and the author's writing style felt smooth. But there were still predictable plot points and some elements I wish had been different.

Keep reading if you don't mind spoilers and if you want to see all my thoughts on this Young Adult contemporary novel.

Danielle Brown 6/10/17 Danielle Brown 6/10/17

“Everything, Everything” by Nicola Yoon • Book Review

“We can have immortality or memory of touch. But we cannot have both.”

★★★ (3 / 5 stars) While the romance was sweet and several characters were realistic, I had hoped for more details and intricacies and definitely felt like the very ending left me hanging.