Most of June was spent solving crime and if that isn't the best way to spend time, idk what is. Other than that, I ended the month with a fantasy series which could've been better but alas...On to the reviews!


👤 Jane Anonymous by Laurie Faria Stolarz ★★★

The beginning pulled me in right away with its fast pace and easy-to-follow writing, but the second half kinda lost the spark. The crucial moment was when I guessed the whole plot about halfway through and when the main character just REFUSED to see logic...

I knew immediately what the big twist was about and just kept waiting for everyone else to catch on. Not only that, but Jane would sometimes annoy me with her behavior. She started off as such a badass, and I was so disappointed in her unreasonable decisions later on and how she switched personalities to a more emotionally driven one.

In the end, I can't say I didn't find it intriguing. I binged almost the whole thing in one sitting, and yet, I expected more of that ending.


🔥 After We Burned by Marieke Nijkamp ★★★

If you liked We Were Liars, you might enjoy this too - a bunch of morally grey characters involved in a big fire where someone died. Who did it and what actually happened? Well, both books have interesting developments 😂

Personally, I enjoyed this to a certain point. There were too many characters and at one point their personalities merged a bit. The plot twists were actually really good and I was surprised by some of them and yet, I didn't really care that much about the characters, which made it a bit harder to appreciate.

There were some very heavy topics mentioned and I think it was handled in a nice way - we got to see lots of different, realistic reactions to horrible situations. I wish we got to see Eden a bit more, but overall, it was a decent read.


♟ The Escape Game by Marissa Meyer and Tamara Moss ★★★★½

If you love escape rooms, murder mysteries, solving puzzles, and listening to crime podcasts - this book is for you!

Besides all the wonderful puzzles (the escape room designs were so much fun!), I found the focus on building friendships a great decision. Instead of finding romantic pairings or something like that, the whole time it's all about these teens trying to understand each other and find common ground. All of the characters were likeable and unique which is a hard thing to do when you have 4 main characters and a bunch of other important people.

When it comes to the ending, I absolutely adored it. While I did suspect certain people, I hadn't guessed the whole truth nor the motive, so that was a nice surprise. There's definitely room for spin-offs, and I'm kinda hoping they happen 😂

 

🧪 Kinder Poison by Natalie Mae ★★★

The first book was slightly better and I gave it 3.5 stars because I saw the potential in it. Here's a quick overview:

💜 What I liked:

• Zahru - as a main character, I think she did her best. She tried to get out of trouble on her own and when that didn't work she accepted help. She's also a kind person who tries to help both animals and people whenever possible.

• That one specific plot twist near the end - trying not to spoil anything, but one character became far more interesting because of it 😂

• Magic system - it's very unique and I enjoyed the world-building far more than I thought I would

• The siblings - they are all different (and all are a bit spoiled, but that's to be expected from princes and princesses lol) and have wildly different opinions, goals, and lifestyles.

• The friendships - literally every character has (or had) lots of wonderful friendships where they supported each other through everything.


❌ What I disliked:

• The love triangle - honestly, I should've seen it coming, but the writing was so nice and there weren't any sappy scenes (or any sort of unnecessarily romantic interactions) so I didn't see it coming. Luckily, it's still just a "side plot" so it's barely mentioned but still...why?

• The pace - it felt like a really long introduction so the plot is sparse, and yet I somehow still wasn't bored? At least not yet.... 😂

 Then I read the second book and all the same problems persisted - plot going at a really REALLY slow pace and the stupid love triangle still going on. I was on the verge of reading the last book in the series but after reading a few negative reviews, I decided not to waste my time because it probably won't work for me. Overall, I still gave it 3 stars because it wasn't all that bad, it just didn't pull me in as much as I hoped it would.

💬 Have you read any of these books? I'd love to hear your thoughts! 💬