Books to fall for

Mini Reviews: Beastly Bones, The Song of Achilles, To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before

Kat Impossible34 Comments

I love telling you guys how I feel about books! That is pretty much why this whole blog exists, so that I can rant and rave about all the things I am passionate about. However, sometimes I don’t have that strong of an opinion about my last read, or I simply don’t think it warrants a full review. That is why I took a page out of my good friend Marie’s book and am introducing mini reviews on the blog! That in no way means that there won’t be any more full length ones in the future, but every now and then I am just going to do a cumulative post of some of my recent reads with only a short summary of my thoughts.

Click on the covers to get redirected to Goodreads!

Beastly Bones by William Ritter

Beastly Bones (Jackaby, #2)Beastly Bones is the sequel to Jackaby, which I read and loved not very long ago. I legit ordered this one right after I finished the first book and have no regrets. This time around I enjoyed the mystery of the case a little more, as it seemed less predictable. We are now getting farther into the characters’ backgrounds and are starting to uncover some secrets as well as an overarching plotline for the rest of the series. As much as book-to-book cases would work for this format, I am kind of glad there’s also something more than the people connecting the story throughout the series.

The only reason I am docking one star is because I was frustrated with how little faith or interest Jackaby and Rook showed in each other’s investigation techniques. It took them forever to solve something they might have realised far quicker if they had listened to one another. They do acknowledge that mistake by the end, so I feel like it shouldn’t happen as much in future parts.

Fazit: 4/5 stars! A worthy sequel and … dragons!

The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller

The Song of AchillesFolks, I have to be real with you, I feel bad because I didn’t love this as much as apparently everyone else in my immediate friend circle did. I adore Greek Mythology, I like a good slow-burn gay romance, I am ALL for books that make the unreal seem real, but still … the book didn’t click with me the way I hoped it would.

First of all, it took me forever to really get into the story. I felt it was too slow, until it finally picked up some pace around the halfway point. Then I wasn’t too happy with a certain cheating plotline … but ultimately, while I know this is mainly a love story and rightly so, I felt like this would have just been utterly confusing in terms of names, places and events for people who are unfamiliar with Greek Mythology beforehand.

Having said that, The Song of Achilles is definitely quality content and a beautifully devastating story that will hit you right in the heart! I understand every single person who was emotionally distraught by the end of it, because so was I. 

Fazit: 4/5 stars! Takes you right to Ancient Greece!

To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before by Jenny Han

To All the Boys I've Loved Before (To All the Boys I've Loved Before, #1)This is another book everyone kept screaming at me to read and I actually had a signed copy for a while (that traveled with me through all of Canada), so I have no idea what took me so long. The only thing I do know is that the trailer was the thing that finally got me to pick it up for real and I am so grateful for that! To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before just made me all mushy and soft inside.

It has all the things I love in a YA contemporary, from pretend relationships to letters to adorable love interests to a strong focus on family – I honestly couldn’t have asked for anything more! I adored the characters and was excited to read a book with an Korean-American MC.

I don’t know what to say other than I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this book and once I started reading it, I couldn’t put it down. I literally finished it in one swoop and stayed up until 2 AM to do so. Very few books have managed to make me want to miss out on precious sleep.

Fazit: 5/5 stars! A perfect YA contemporary with a more than promising Netflix adaptation that I cannot wait for!

So, how are you all feeling about the mini reviews? Do you like them or do you prefer the longer format? (Again, I am not giving up on regular reviews!) Have you read any of these books and have thoughts on them? Let’s talk!

34 thoughts on “Mini Reviews: Beastly Bones, The Song of Achilles, To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before”

  1. I love mini-reviews! I think I should write more of them because people seem to love them 🙂 The trailer for TATBILB has convinced me to pick the book up sooner too. Ergh I neeeeddddd to read it!!!

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    • Aaaah, I am so happy you like them! I feel as if I can get across the point just as well with these short reviews as with the ones where I keep repeating the same thing over and over in a longer format. That’s not to say that I don’t also think that we sometimes NEED those longer ones, but … for each book something different, right?
      And YES! READ IT! IT IS SO FREAKING CUUUUTE ❤

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  2. I’ve been writing a looot of mini reviews (for myself, mostly), but I never post them, because I feel like they’re too short? I may just have to follow you guys’ example and publish them, anyway, bc I actually love reading them. 💓

    I felt similarly about TSOA, actually!! I’m glad I’m not the only one who was a tiny bit underwhelmed. And I can’t waaait for TATBILB’s adaption, I really need to finish the series.

    Wonderful post, Kat!! 🙂

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    • Thanks so much, Lily! And I’d definitely say “go for it!” with your own mini reviews. It lifts a lot of the pressure that comes with wanting to review everything you read haha

      And I am so glad to hear I wasn’t alone with TSOA as well. I felt bad because everyone around me loved it without bounds and hesitation, but it just didn’t hit home with me.

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  4. I just added TATBILB to my Top 5 Tuesday list for best summer reads! It’s great isn’t it! The Song of Achilles is next on my tbr list 🙂

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    • It really is a great summer read, even if it slowly moves right into Christmas haha
      And I hope you enjoy The Song of Achilles. I wish it had hit home with me a little more, but maybe it was just a mood thing. That happens, right?

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  5. I love mini-reviews, and find them so useful for some books because you can get straight to the point and leave it at that. Now, The Song of Achilles has been on my tbr list for ages. I love anything with mythology, especially Greek mythology, and I love exploring the what ifs. I do think the pacing of the book will initially make it harder to get into, but I’m ready to get crushed by this book.

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    • I am pleasantly surprised by how many people love mini reviews haha I guess I will keep them coming for the books I don’t have a paragraphs to say about 😉
      As for The Song of Achilles, I feel like everyone so far has been crushed by the end of the book, so it’s almost like a guarantee of feels for you!

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  6. Aww I loved SoA, but I think I understand why you didn’t love it as much! Like, some parts were definitely slower than others, and the cheating part wasn’t my favorite aspect either. Glad you got the feels from it though! 😉

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  7. Ah I totally understand where you’re coming from with Song of Achilles.TALBILB is such an adorable series and I couldn’t put it down either!

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  9. YAY mini reviews! I love reading reviews, whether they’re long or short, but I also love it when bloggers manage to do mini reviews of a couple books all at once because YAY more books to talk about 😀
    I am glad you found the Jackaby sequel worth it, that’s so great – also these covers are way too stunning, I really love them ❤
    I haven't read The Song of Achilles and not sure I will, as I'm not all too familiar with mythology and everything, but I'm really glad you ended up enjoying it.
    AND LARA JEAN AHHHHHHHHH. This book does make you all soft inside, doesn't it? I loved it so very much, the family vibes, the cute romance, all the cookies and everything, it is such an adorable book. I can't WAIT to see the Netflix adaptation 😀

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    • I think I might do more mini reviews at the end of the month from now on, because I always have some books I don’t know all that much to say about haha
      The Netflix movie is going to be soo great! I wonder if it will end differently than the book and whether they intend to make all the books or just the one.

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      • I can’t wait to read more mini reviews then 🙂 and we don’t always have loads to say about some books, but we still want to talk about them anyway, so that’s the perfect solution 😛
        I’m also curious – I hope it will have a definitive conclusion, because I don’t think they’re planning on making more than one movie… are they?

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    • I’ve heard so many mixed things about the sequel that I am really undecided about whether I want to go on, but I loved the first book. I think I might make it dependent on whether Netflix does another movie hahaha

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      • I loved the sequel, but the first and the third one more. I definitely do get why people don’t like it, but I had no problems with it. The third one is so good though, so I definitely do recommend that one! But then you’d have to read the second one before that haha

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      • Well, we will see. I don’t really feel super drawn towards reading the other books. Especially since I don’t think the fitting editions for mine are sold anymore, but we will see.

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  12. I’m so glad to see that you enjoyed The Song of Achilles! I have wanted to read that book for ages, as I adore Greek mythology. I just haven’t felt emotionally ready for it yet, but hopefully soon I will. Great reviews! 🙂

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  13. What I love about your mini reviews is that they’re actually mini. Whenever I try and write a mini review they tend to be as long as my normal reviews! 😀 I just have too much to say about the books I read.
    I’m glad you enjoyed all these books Kat, although it’s a shame The Song of Achilles didn’t connect with you as much as it did everyone else. I still think four stars is a good rating so you must have enjoyed most of it right?
    Also with the To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before film coming out I really need to re-read the first two books and get around to the third book. The fact that there’s an adaptation is pushing me to get to it again. 🙂

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    • Hahaha yeah, I was just sitting in front of my laptop thinking “don’t you dare go into detail, KitKat. You said these were mini reviews, so they better be!” Especially since my regular reviews aren’t exactly a mile long, I needed them to be super short.
      I did not enjoy the first half of Achilles. It was slow and honestly quite boring for me. It had its moments of course, but it was really only the second half that saved the book.
      The adaptation for the book really does help in getting around to reading it, right? I am glad I finally picked it up too.

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