Mini Reviews: Ward Against Death, Everything Everything, A Boy Called Cin

Here's a collection of mini reviews I was supposed to write forever ago but just got around to recently (why am I like this). In the case for most of these, I read them a year or two ago so the details are a bit fuzzy, but I did make sure to comment on things that really stuck out to me in particular.

My Thoughts

Ward Against Death

I was really excited to get a review copy of Ward Against Death from Netgalley because I’ve had the second book, Ward of Darkness sitting on my bookshelf for a couple of years. I never got around to it because I hadn’t read the first book. I took this opportunity to finally start the series, and I’m glad I did! I feel like I don’t read a lot of books with male narrators so I found that oddly refreshing. I also loved how Ward was also a booknerd, and a little bit awkward. I really liked how Celia was such a kick-ass character. The plot was a bit slow at times and confusing at times. The ending in particular with the final battle was honestly a little hard to follow with all the different things happening at once. I also feel like the world-building was lacking, but the plot was interesting enough to make up for it. Overall, the Ward Against Death was an intriguing read. While it wasn’t my favorite novel, I will probably pick up the second book sometime since I already I have it. I think fans of urban fantasy will enjoy Ward Against Death!

Actual rating: 3.5 stars 

Everything, Everything

It's taken so long for me to review this that the movie adaptation has already came out. But better late than never, right? *sweats nervously* Even though it’s been awhile since I’ve read Everything, Everything, it has stuck with me a lot. Usually, I tend to forget the plot of a novel after a couple of months of reading it, but I think the uniqueness of Everything, Everything is what made it so memorable for me. Looking back at the notes I took while reading, I’m really taken aback at all the highlights and comments I made. Some of the things I wrote have me laughing because apparently at the beginning of the novel I wrote “oh my. Don’t ship, don’t ship. Abandon all shipping”. I have a feeling I wrote that because I was already totally shipping Maddy and Olly even though we had just met him. Everything, Everything really hits the mark when it comes to friendships, relationships, and family dynamics. I absolutely loved Olly and Maddy. Both of them are such great characters and their relationship was so cute and precious. I would’ve have given this 5 stars, but the plot twist was a bit too predictable. Despite that, I really enjoyed the ending and its open-endedness. It marked the beginning of Maddy’s new life, and I really wanted to read more. Overall, Everything, Everything is a beautiful novel about self-discover, love, and freedom. I highly recommend it to lovers of contemporary and romance.

Rating: 4.5 stars 

A Boy Called Cin

I really enjoyed a Boy Called Cin! I was initially interested in it since it's an ownvoice novel featuring a trans and non binary character! I was a little bit wary of the age difference at first because I'm not a fan of that trope. Usually it's a bit of a hit or miss for me, but I felt like it worked well in this novel since the main focus was on the characters' sexuality/Tom's dysphoria and how it impacted their relationship. I actually really enjoyed how their ages played a role in their relationship dynamic (Cin and Tom are so cute together, tbh).
The novel is cute, but kind of slow at the same time. A Boy Called Cin is very character centered rather than plot driven which is why it seemed to be a slower read. It definitely focuses a lot around the characters's struggles, and the novel brings up a lot of conversations regarding gender dysphoria. Also, I loved the sex positivity in this novel. The sex scenes weren't graphic, but Cin and Tom had fun experimenting with each other and talking about what works and what doesn't (consent is sexy, everyone!).
Overall, A Boy Called Cin is a great novel that touches on important lgbtqia+ topics, with wonderful characters and a super cute, feel good romance. I highly recommend this to anyone looking for lgtbq+ reads and anyone looking for a quick romance novel.
And incase anyone is interested, here's a link to an ownvoices review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1512038044?book_show_action=true

Rating 3.5 stars