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Sophia (Bookwyrming Thoughts) (530 KP) rated The Girl King (The Girl King, #1) in Books

Jan 23, 2020

<b><i>I received this book for free from Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.</i></b>
<h2><strong>I wanted to like this book.</strong></h2>
In fact, I wanted to love <em>The Girl King</em>. Sisters! Rivals! Betrayal! Family! War! Mimi Yu's debut smells of an action-packed adventure with sibling rivalry, magic and court politics that would be hard to put down. Bonus points for #OwnVoices.

<h2><strong>But much disappointment has occurred.</strong></h2>
Bookwyrms, much disappointment has indeed occurred. I spent loads of time deciding if I should continue trekking my way through <em>The Girl King</em> or calling it quits. Eventually, at 50% through, I decided to call it a day because we don't have time for books that aren't enjoyable.

<h2><strong>We're not going to talk much about the problems involved.</strong></h2>
"Slipskin" feels awfully weird for a shifter/werewolf influence, bookwyrms. Sure, it's "slipping" out of one's "skin" and into another "slipping" into another "skin." But is it just me, or do I think of something gross and slimy at the thought? 🤔

And let's not get started with "pink." I legit thought of newly born babies.

<a href="https://vickywhoreads.wordpress.com/2018/12/22/arc-the-girl-king-by-mimi-yu/">Vicky from Vicky Who Reads</a> has this covered in more detail in her review. (I guarantee you her post is 100x more professional.)

<h2><strong>I didn't connect with anything in <em>The Girl King</em>.</strong></h2>
Sure, I went to at least halfway through the book, but it was a whole lot of back and forth reading between this book and another one. I didn't care about the storyline or the world, even though I could relate to some of the cultural influences included. Despite enjoying Lu's fierceness, I ultimately didn't care about Lu or any of the other characters involved. I found myself interested in continuing the book at some points, but at the same time, I didn't really care.

<a href="https://bookwyrmingthoughts.com/the-girl-king-by-mimi-yu/"; target="_blank">This review was originally posted on Bookwyrming Thoughts</a>

Kudos

Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2534 KP) rated Penne Dreadful in Books

Aug 2, 2019 (Updated Aug 2, 2019)

This Debut is Anything but Dreadful

Tessa Esposito has had her life turned upside down. Her husband has been killed in a car accident, leaving her a widow at 30. However, she is about to get another shock. Her cousin Gino, a cop, stops by to visit and drops the bombshell on her – the police don’t think the accident was an accident at all. Instead, they think it was murder. And he suggests that someone at Slice, the local pizza parlor where Dylan had lunch most days, might be responsible. After all, he was last seen alive leaving the restaurant. Tessa loves to cook, and Slice just happens to be advertising for a cook, so she snags the job, hoping to get a clue about what really happened to her husband. But her co-workers don’t seem to happy to see her. Is she going to be able to get anything out of them?

With Tessa’s husband being the victim, this book starts out with a more somber tone. Some events try to lighten it, but it didn’t quite work for me. After a bit of time to set up the characters and plot, things take off, and the book becomes impossible to put down. Tessa must unpeel the layers like an onion, and each new layer has a twist that kept me hooked until I reached the end. The suspects are all strong, and Tessa is a sympathetic lead character. It is easy to understand everything she is going through. The potential series regulars have a little room to grow, but that’s because they weren’t on the page too much. That’s what sequels are for, right? I did find some inconsistencies in the timeline late in the book, but nothing that ruins the plot at all. My biggest complaint is how much Tessa’s love life was a sub-plot; it’s something that should have been held until at least the next book in the series in my opinion. The book has some delicious sounding recipes at the end, including Tessa’s prize-winning tomato sauce. Overall, I really enjoyed this book and I am looking forward to seeing what happens to Tessa next.