January 2024 Mini Reviews - part 2
A League of Extraordinary Women #4
Published: 5th December 2023 by Piatkus
I received a copy of this e-book from the publisher via NetGalley. This in no way affects my review.
This was a bit of a mixed one for me - I've heard such great things about this series by Evie Dunmore, but I found it very. hard to get into, and almost gave up on it once I'd hit the 100-page mark and still didn't feel invested in the story. Seeing other reviews from people who have read the whole series did alleviate my worries about the previous books, however, as it seems that it has been a common feeling in this seeming more Historical-Fiction heavy than a Historical Romance. It certainly felt focused on the impact of colonialism on artifacts, rather than the budding romance between Catriona and Elias, and while this is something that I wholeheartedly support being called out, it felt a touch out of place within this kind of narrative. I did enjoy the ending and the full-circle moment for the Suffragist movement that is depicted, but the romance in this didn't create that same sense of satisfaction for me.
Survive the Night by Riley Sager
Published: 23rd December 2021 by Hodder & Stoughton
I received a copy of this e-book from the publisher via NetGalley. This in no way affects my review.
I feel like Sager has become somewhat of a veteran in the thriller genre, so while they're never something I normally gravitate towards, I thought this would be a safe bet, and I wasn't wrong! I really enjoyed that this took place in just one night (hence the title) as I think it was the perfect vehicle to allow the pacing to ramp up when needed, and provide a satisfying ending. I thought the context of Charlie's former friendship with her dead roommate was enough to be interesting, but didn't weigh the story down in detail, and the general vagueness of everything else about her life allowed for maximum mystery. I was hooked right from the start, and the tension felt palpable between Charlie and Josh in the car, and I didn't guess the twist at the end, which is always my mark of a good thriller.
Olga Dies Dreaming by Xochitl Gonzalez
Published: 6th January 2022 by Fleet
I received a copy of this e-book from the publisher via NetGalley. This in no way affects my review.
This was a very compelling novel - I didn't always love Olga, Pedro or Matteo, but their complexities as characters felt very real, and made me appreciate them as flawed humans, and well-developed narrators of this story. Gonzalez is ambitious in attempting to cover such broad topics as sexuality, politics, and love in their extremes in this novel, but she does so well, and I think it serves to portray the multifaceted nature of people, and of families in particular. Olga Dies Dreaming portrayed a side to New York that I haven't often come across in such a way that felt so authentic, and by the end of the novel, I felt that I knew these Brooklyners for much longer than just a novel's worth. The pacing of the story did feel off to me at times, and my engagement dipped at points, but this had me very intrigued by Gonzalez as an author and excited to see what she writes next!
Technically Yours by Denise Williams
Published: 5th December 2023 by Piatkus
I received a copy of this e-book from the publisher via NetGalley. This in no way affects my review.
I feel like Denise Williams is slowly becoming an author I can depend on for a solid romance that does the job - they're not always my favourite but they are inoffensive, well-written, and normally full of chemistry! I liked that this was centred around work, and featured a female main character who prioritised her career over anything else, and that the male love interest respected this, and believed in her talents too. I really enjoyed the flashback scenes of them interacting at work and clearly having so much chemistry, and this being mirrored in the present-day, as it made me root for them in an authentic way, with Williams providing readers with a good level of context and detail in their budding relationship. I didn't love how Cord stepped over the line and compromised her at work in an attempt to "protect" her, as that felt a bit dated, but overall enjoyable nonetheless.
3.5 stars
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