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A New York Tate of Mind
A New York Tate of Mind
In which this reader and explorer reviews books, muses on literary (and other) matters, and shares some of her adventures.

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My 1-5 rating system:
1 = I did not like it and would not recommend it.
2= It was fine. Read it if the subject matter interests you.
3 = I enjoyed it and would recommend it.
4 = I really liked it, and think you should read it!
5 = One of the best books I've read.
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Review: Chronicles of Alice series
4/5 stars Alice, Red Queen, and Looking Glass, by Christina Henry (2015, 2016, 2020) Describe Alice in 140 characters or less. Christina...
tatedecaro
Mar 10, 20224 min read


Review: Mouthful of Birds
2/5 stars Mouthful of Birds: Stories, by Samanta Schweblin (2009) Translated from Spanish by Megan McDowell (2019) Last year I read...
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Feb 15, 20222 min read


Review: Redemptor
3/5 stars Redemptor (Raybearer Book #2), by Jordan Ifueko (2021) This is the second book in Ifueko's duology, and since I have a terrible...
tatedecaro
Feb 9, 20222 min read


Review: Stardust
2/5 stars Stardust, by Neil Gaiman (1997) First of all, I'm not tagging this as YA fiction. Gaiman didn't initially write it to be YA...
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Jan 27, 20223 min read


Review: The Grisha Series
3/5 stars (some of) The Grisha Series, by Leigh Bardugo (2012 - 2016) TW: Graphic violence, Allusions to rape Of the seven books in this...
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Jan 21, 20224 min read


Review: The Deep
5/5 stars The Deep , by Rivers Solomon (2019) Decades back, pregnant African slaves were thrown from slave ships into the ocean. Their...
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Dec 29, 20212 min read


Review: Pet
1/5 stars Pet, by Akwaeke Emezi (2019) UGH. I really didn't enjoy this book. I'm so confused by all the praise it has received (including...
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Dec 24, 20212 min read


Review: The Ocean at the End of the Lane
5/5 stars The Ocean at the End of the Lane, by Neil Gaiman (2013) "Grown-ups don’t look like grown-ups on the inside either. Outside,...
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Dec 13, 20212 min read


Review: Conjure Women
3/5 stars Conjure Women, by Afia Atakora (2020) An impressive debut of historical fiction, the book is set on a large plantation in the...
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Oct 12, 20212 min read


The Book Thieves 2022 Line-Up
My book club, The Book Thieves, met last night to choose all of our books for 2022, and I'm excited to share the list! If anyone is...
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Oct 8, 20214 min read


Review: The Kingdoms
4/5 stars The Kingdoms, by Natasha Pulley (2021) Kingdoms is a very cool and complex Victorian-era/Georgian-era time travel book of...
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Sep 24, 20212 min read


Review: Long Division
2/5 stars Long Division, by Kiese Laymon (2013) This one's a thinker. The book is two separate but very intertwined stories. One starts...
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Aug 6, 20212 min read


Review: The 7½ Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle
5/5 stars The 7½ Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle, by Stuart Turton (2018) I enjoyed this book SO MUCH! It is as thrilling as it is confusing,...
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Jul 21, 20213 min read


Review: Once Upon a River
3/5 stars Once Upon a River, by Diane Setterfield (2018) This book is a mythical fairy tale of magical realism. Suspenseful at times,...
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Jun 30, 20212 min read


Review: Southern Reach Trilogy
3/5 stars overall Southern Reach Trilogy: Annihilation, Authority, & Acceptance, by Jeff Vandermeer (2014) Rating this was tough because...
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Jun 25, 20213 min read


Review: The Near Witch
3/5 stars The Near Witch, by V.E. Schwab (2011) This is Schwab's first novel, originally published in 2011, then republished in 2019...
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May 6, 20212 min read


Review: The Ladies of Grace Adieu
3/5 stars The Ladies of Grace Adieu, and Other Stories, by Susanna Clark (2006) Favorite quote from the book: “The governess was not much...
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Apr 26, 20212 min read


Review: Piranesi
5/5 stars Piranesi, by Susanna Clark (2020) This book was such a fun mystery to unravel, and just a gorgeous story to dive into. If...
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Mar 29, 20212 min read


Review: House in the Cerulean Sea
3/5 stars The House in the Cerulean Sea, by T.J. Klune (2020) This book combines the magic (and, more specifically, Ministry of Magic) of...
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Feb 25, 20212 min read


Review: Nothing to See Here
4/5 stars Nothing to See Here, by Kevin Wilson (2019) My one-sentence review: This book is a rollicking good time! But I'll say more... I...
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Jan 29, 20212 min read

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