d+ (2 stars). Archives — Moon and Coffee

April 29, 2022

Parasitology (Parasite, Symbiont, and Chimera) by Mira Grant

Where do I begin with the Parasitology series by Mira Grant? The Parasitology series – or the Forced Evolution series – consists of Parasite, Symbiont, and Chimera. All three books are thick monsters. So rather than talk about them individually, I wanted to cover the entire series in one post. It makes it a whole lot easier.

And to be quite frank with you?

Despite the fact that the books are about 500 pages each? There isn’t much to say about them individually. Parasitology as a whole, though? That’s another story.

January 4, 2022

When Night Breaks by Janella Angeles

Second books in a series/trilogy/duology usually fall in one of two categories: exceeding the magic captured in the first book or falling short of expectations, leaving readers unsatisfied. Unfortunately, When Night Breaks by Janella Angeles lands in the latter category. Look, my friends, I adored Where Dreams Descend, but I can’t say the same about When Night Breaks. The final book in the Kingdom of Cards duology disappointed me. So now I’m left asking:

Where did it all go wrong?

February 12, 2021

Say No to the Duke by Eloisa James

Yeah, no. Say No to the Duke disappointed me. Actually, disappointment is putting it lightly. I was actually pretty excited going into this book. It had an interesting premise and I saw a few friends on GR rated it 4 or 5 stars. I’ve never read any of Eloisa James’ books before, so this was a first. Not exactly a great introduction to a new author, ya know? But wow this book fell flat.

At least The Duke and I by Julia Quinn was entertaining and I enjoyed the ride up until That Scene. But Say No to the Duke? Let’s go through the pros and cons, shall we?

February 2, 2020

Flash Review: Girls Made of Snow and Glass by Melissa Bashardoust

C-/D+ | This is such a disappointing book. I actually threw this into my DNF shelf but after drinking iced coffee, I decided to just finish the rest of the book because I was so close to finishing it. I’m only writing this right after I finished reading the book cuz it’s like almost 9pm here in Manila and I’m still on the coffee high. Will this review make sense??? Idk !!

You know what the saddest thing is? I was REALLY enjoying this book. I was in love. But then NOTHING was happening plot wise. Yes, I am all for character driven stories, but if I’m at 40% or something into the book, I should already see ACTION. Instead, about 55% of the book is introductory stuff with nothing major happening. Then when the plot does occur, it just is so ridiculously rushed?

Both Mina (the Queen/Stepmother) and Lynet (Snow White) are interesting characters who did feel alive (Mina more so than Lynet which is lmao), but at the same time, they weren’t fully fleshed out enough. Mina did feel more fleshed out, but wow Lynet just felt bland.

The character motivations thus felt super — idk, subpar. I didn’t and couldn’t believe them, especially Lynet. I didn’t feel like Lynet was in danger at any moment because she had such quick control over her magic which is just ridiculous to me.

Overall, Mina was a better written character but even she suffered at the half way point. The jump between past!Mina POV and present!Mina POV was just a whiplash. It helped because at least it was easier to understand her motivations, but lord after the halfway point when the action happened, I just cringed. Her emotions just didn’t feel REAL and it’s such a shame because I did enjoy Mina’s backstory.

The worldbuilding was also lacking.

The entire thing just felt rushed and wow I’m honestly sad that I didn’t like this book.

December 29, 2019

Flash Review: The Cult Called Freedom House (Sophia Rey #1) by Stephanie Evelyn

D | I don’t mind reading books with gore and dark topics so it’s not even the contents of the book itself that dropped this down to this grade. If anything, it’s the fact that this book reads like a rough draft. It’s simply an outline. There’s absolutely no substance what so ever in this book. The only reason it’s not getting a lower star rating (or none at all) is because the author did a good job depicting how cults work and what they do to their members. Aside from that, this book was a straight-up disappointment. I should have expected it when I saw how short the book was, but I was at least expecting something more than a rough draft getting published somehow.

August 26, 2019

Book Review: The Weight of a Soul by Elizabeth Tammi

C-/D+ | While the premise was good and interesting, the execution was unfortunately mediocre at best. The story drags on and on. The characters are boring. Although grief and denial are explored here, it was difficult to feel anything because things felt dry, flat, and stale. This book might be called The Weight of a Soul, but there’s little weight or soul in this book.

Where did it all go wrong?

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