Category: 2 1/2 stars

AN EDUCATION IN MALICE by S.T. Gibson – Review

AN EDUCATION IN MALICE by S.T. Gibson – Review
Posted February 12, 2024 by Tammy in 2 1/2 stars, Reviews / 38 Comments

The nitty-gritty: Angsty, immature characters, overly-dramatic dialog and secrets revealed too soon add up to a disappointing story. It seems February is the month of disappointments, as yet another one of my highly anticipated 2024 releases failed to impress me. I had high hopes for An Education in Malice, especially after loving the author’s last […]

STARS LIKE ACID by Marissa Lupe – Review

STARS LIKE ACID by Marissa Lupe – Review
Posted September 29, 2023 by Tammy in 2 1/2 stars, Reviews / 23 Comments

The nitty-gritty: An ambitious SF dystopian tale with plenty of interesting characters and situations gets bogged down under some basic writing mistakes. I badly wanted to love Stars Like Acid, especially since my review copy came directly from the author. And the reviews on Goodreads are mostly rave reviews, so I’ll admit my expectations were […]

OCTOBER ANIMALS by Nicholas Day – Review

OCTOBER ANIMALS by Nicholas Day – Review
Posted April 28, 2023 by Tammy in 2 1/2 stars, Reviews / 14 Comments

The nitty-gritty: An atmospheric setting and the promise of an intriguing story couldn’t make up for the scattered plot and over-the-top prose. October Animals is a short novella (or perhaps even a novelette) that I really wanted to love, but unfortunately, it didn’t work that well for me. The story is rather convoluted, and I […]

MOTHERED by Zoje Stage – Review

MOTHERED by Zoje Stage – Review
Posted March 3, 2023 by Tammy in 2 1/2 stars, Reviews / 21 Comments

The nitty-gritty: Zoje Stage’s latest should have worked, but too many disconnected elements made for an overall confusing and lackluster thriller. I had high hopes for Mothered, since I’ve had such good experiences with Stage’s other books, but unfortunately this didn’t completely work for me. The premise is great: a woman struggling to pay her […]

IN EVERY GENERATION by Kendare Blake – Review

IN EVERY GENERATION by Kendare Blake – Review
Posted January 6, 2022 by Tammy in 2 1/2 stars, Reviews / 29 Comments

The nitty-gritty: Inconsistencies, info-dumps and ridiculous situations made this Buffyverse novel a disappointment. Some spoilers ahead, because I just can’t review this book without them. Every time a new Buffyverse book comes along, I can hardly wait to jump into it. And every time, I feel dissatisfied by the experience. In Every Generation is the […]

DOCILE by K.M. Szpara – Review

DOCILE by K.M. Szpara – Review
Posted March 12, 2020 by Tammy in 2 1/2 stars, Reviews / 25 Comments

This review contains spoilers! The nitty-gritty: Szpara tackles some big ideas in this edgy, sometimes shocking dystopian, but the lack of concrete world-building, uneven pacing and dubious character motivations left me a little cold. I don’t usually do ranty reviews, but once in a while I read a book that simply demands one. Docile is […]