Jenny
Added to list2022 52 Book Club Challengewith 51 books.
Added to list2021 52 Book Clubwith 58 books.
The Secret of Secrets felt familiar and uncomfortable at the same time—which is a tricky balance, and Dan Brown mostly nails it. It took me a little while to settle into the multiple storylines and shifting POVs, but once everything clicked, I literally couldn’t put it down. From that point on, the book is fast-paced, relentlessly tense, and driven by that classic “I need to know what happens next” momentum that Brown does so well.
What really sets this novel apart from his previous work, though, is the subject matter. Beyond the puzzles and high-stakes race to the finish, the exploration of human consciousness and the implications of advancing science in this space genuinely had my mind reeling. I found myself wanting to pause just to Google things and go down research rabbit holes—which, to me, is a sign the book is doing something interesting.
It’s still very much a Dan Brown thriller, but it asks bigger, more unsettling questions than usual. Not a perfect book, but a gripping and thought-provoking one. Definitely worth the read.
The Secret of Secrets felt familiar and uncomfortable at the same time—which is a tricky balance, and Dan Brown mostly nails it. It took me a little while to settle into the multiple storylines and shifting POVs, but once everything clicked, I literally couldn’t put it down. From that point on, the book is fast-paced, relentlessly tense, and driven by that classic “I need to know what happens next” momentum that Brown does so well.
What really sets this novel apart from his previous work, though, is the subject matter. Beyond the puzzles and high-stakes race to the finish, the exploration of human consciousness and the implications of advancing science in this space genuinely had my mind reeling. I found myself wanting to pause just to Google things and go down research rabbit holes—which, to me, is a sign the book is doing something interesting.
It’s still very much a Dan Brown thriller, but it asks bigger, more unsettling questions than usual. Not a perfect book, but a gripping and thought-provoking one. Definitely worth the read.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️✨ (4.25 stars)
This is a sharply written memoir and exposé that completely reshaped how I think about Facebook as a company. The book is packed with genuinely shocking revelations—from the deliberate targeting of emotional vulnerabilities in 13–17 year olds for marketing, to Facebook’s refusal to meaningfully intervene when its platform was being manipulated in ways that fueled real-world violence, to its deeply troubling relationship with China and its lack of urgency around rampant sexual harassment.
I was particularly stunned by the descriptions of Sheryl Sandberg and her behavior toward women employees, which challenged the carefully cultivated public image I thought I understood.
What surprised me almost as much as the content of the book were some reader reactions aimed at the author. The courage it takes to document and share these experiences in such detail cannot be overstated—and the clarity with which the author lays out these issues makes a compelling case for why Facebook users (and the public at large) deserve to know what’s happening behind the scenes.
Ultimately, this book is not just an indictment of one company, but an eye-opening look at how massive public corporations repeatedly escape meaningful accountability.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️✨ (4.25 stars)
This is a sharply written memoir and exposé that completely reshaped how I think about Facebook as a company. The book is packed with genuinely shocking revelations—from the deliberate targeting of emotional vulnerabilities in 13–17 year olds for marketing, to Facebook’s refusal to meaningfully intervene when its platform was being manipulated in ways that fueled real-world violence, to its deeply troubling relationship with China and its lack of urgency around rampant sexual harassment.
I was particularly stunned by the descriptions of Sheryl Sandberg and her behavior toward women employees, which challenged the carefully cultivated public image I thought I understood.
What surprised me almost as much as the content of the book were some reader reactions aimed at the author. The courage it takes to document and share these experiences in such detail cannot be overstated—and the clarity with which the author lays out these issues makes a compelling case for why Facebook users (and the public at large) deserve to know what’s happening behind the scenes.
Ultimately, this book is not just an indictment of one company, but an eye-opening look at how massive public corporations repeatedly escape meaningful accountability.
This was a solid three-star read for me for most of the book, mainly because I didn’t find the writing especially strong or the story as compulsively unputdownable as romantasy favorites like ACOTAR or Fourth Wing. It wasn’t until about 87% in that something really clicked—and at that point I very willingly sacrificed sleep to find out how it ended.
I never quite felt as emotionally invested in the FMC or MMC as I have in other series, though several of the side characters were absolutely delightful (especially the pet fox, a fellow thief and rascal side character and some of the Fae sidekicks, who stole the show). I also struggled with some inconsistencies in the writing—most notably how the FMC’s obsession with rescuing her brother dominated the first third of the book, only for him to be barely mentioned afterward and how the world-building historical construct that motivated the MMC and will propel the story into the next book in the series was so completely opaque until the very end.
These were ultimately minor annoyances, but they kept the book from stacking up against the best in the genre for me. That said, the ending won me over enough that I’ll definitely be picking up the next book in the series.
This was a solid three-star read for me for most of the book, mainly because I didn’t find the writing especially strong or the story as compulsively unputdownable as romantasy favorites like ACOTAR or Fourth Wing. It wasn’t until about 87% in that something really clicked—and at that point I very willingly sacrificed sleep to find out how it ended.
I never quite felt as emotionally invested in the FMC or MMC as I have in other series, though several of the side characters were absolutely delightful (especially the pet fox, a fellow thief and rascal side character and some of the Fae sidekicks, who stole the show). I also struggled with some inconsistencies in the writing—most notably how the FMC’s obsession with rescuing her brother dominated the first third of the book, only for him to be barely mentioned afterward and how the world-building historical construct that motivated the MMC and will propel the story into the next book in the series was so completely opaque until the very end.
These were ultimately minor annoyances, but they kept the book from stacking up against the best in the genre for me. That said, the ending won me over enough that I’ll definitely be picking up the next book in the series.