Tania

C'est un recueil intéressant et original. En lisant l'avant-propos, je me doutais que ça serait un livre orienté vers des fins disons pas toujours roses. Plusieurs effectivement m'ont laissée sur une sensation désagréable, ce qui n'est pas un reproche. Au contraire! Certaines de ces nouvelles donnent froid dans le dos car on sait que l'humanité pourrait se diriger vers ces idées, ou quelque chose d'équivalent. Ça m'a fait penser à un autre recueil québécois de nouvelles d'anticipation/horreur que j'ai lu, “D'autres mondes”.

Mais j'avoue que mes préférées restent celles dont la fin est quand même chouette: “Libellules” que j'ai trouvée touchante; “Chlorose” qui me rejoint puisque je suis une éternelle optimiste qui déteste avoir mal lol; et “Pax” pour mon petit côté revanchard.

Dernière note: la dernière nouvelle, qui est de Rich Larson, me semblait familière et pour cause: je viens de lire (en juin) son recueil de nouvelles “Tomorrow Factory”, que j'ai aussi apprécié.

D'ailleurs, je conseille vivement à toutes les personnes qui ont aimé ce recueil-ci, de lire le recueil de Larson (traduit sous le nom de “La fabrique des lendemains”) et l'autre recueil québécois dont j'ai mentionné plus haut.

Funny and often accurate!

Plus 2.5 étoiles, mais pour les chats, on va arrondir à 3. :)

J'aime bien les cozy mysteries en général, mais là, j'avoue avoir été déçue. Je me suis même ennuyée par moments!

Ce que j'ai aimé: les chats, évidemment. Je n'avais pas réalisé qu'on aurait des chapitres écrits du point de vue des chats, ça a été une belle surprise. J'ai aussi apprécié l'environnement. J'aime les maisons d'hôtes, ça m'a donné envie d'aller passer du temps dans l'une d'entre d'elles!

Ce que j'ai moins aimé: la répétition. Puisqu'on a des sections du point de vue des chats, et d'autres du point de vue de Josie, on a des éléments qui se répètent. Logique que les chats se disent entre eux les indices qu'ils ont découverts, mais pour le lecteur qui vient de le lire... meh. Et c'est sans compter les persos humains que se rencontrent pour encore répéter ce que nous, on savait, mais pas untel personnage.

Parlant de personnages justement, il n'y aucun que j'ai vraiment aimé. Je dirais que mes préférés sont les chats, mais même eux, j'ai été déçue. Encore une fois, trop de répétitions. Quant à Josie, le personnage principal, je l'ai trouvée... fade? Clichée? Je ne l'ai pas trouvée si sympathique que ça. Pas plus que sa mère et Millie. Et pas Mike non plus. Lui, en fait, il m'énervait. Et Josie m'énervait quand je la voyais pas si indifférente que ça au charme de Mike. Je me doute que dans le prochain tome, l'autrice va approfondir leur relation, mais j'aimerais mieux pas.

En ce qui concerne le meurtre et l'enquête, c'est un mélange. J'ai apprécié en général, assez pour me questionner sur l'identité de l'assassin. Mais je n'ai pas été happée.

Bref, une histoire quand même charmante, un peu trop classique, même en faisant parler des chats. Mais l'atmosphère est quand même plaisante et je vais probablement donner une chance au tome 2.

Une belle bd pour montrer tout en douceur le chemin de la politique. Peut-être même un peu trop doux par moments! J'aurais aimé creusé plus, toutefois je dirais que cette bd a rempli sa mission.

Wonderful anthology! I've liked the first one and the second didn't deceived me. Honestly, all the stories are good. Those few that I've liked less are still 3 stars for me. The majority are 4 stars. Here are my favorites:

Thibauld's Tale, by Edward Willett. That was fun! I need to read his serie!

The Cancellation, by Bryan Thomas Schmidt. A nice sci-fi detective story. Another one I would like to read his serie.

I Hid in the Bathroom When the Aliens Arrived, by Lisa Foiles. Funny, a bit absurd, yet touching.

The Lost Cipher of Dr. John Dee, by Lisa Kessler. What started as maybe a fantasy adventure mixed with an investigation turned into nice dialogues with touching moments.

Salvage, by Carrie Vaughn. From what I could see, it's the shortest story here. A sci-fi investigation that leans on the touching side rather than the adventurous one. I think that one is my ultimate favorite.

A Murder in Eddsford, by S.M. Stirling. Another sci-fi detective story, but more of the steampunk side, in a dystopic future. Another serie to read one day!

Overall, a solid anthology.

C'était bien, facile à prédire, sauf la dernière twist de la fin à propos du cadeau de Noël pour Laurel. Je ne m'y attendais pas et j'aime mieux ça que l'autre option qui m'était venue en tête.

J'ai aimé la fin, pas de porte ouverte. J'ai particulièrement apprécié l'épilogue, qui était émouvant.

Pas un coup de coeur, mais je ne dirais pas non à un autre roman de Lisa Jewell.

It was a cute, fun, sexy, touching novel. Probably too idealist and optimist, but after reading the author's last note, I understand her need for escapism.

I read it because I've seen the trailer of its adaptation. Many changes from what I could see, but I still can't wait for the movie!

Une relecture. Je l'avais aimé la première fois et je l'ai tout autant apprécié la seconde. J'ai pu même prendre plaisir à voir les petits détails qui mènent au revirement final (que je n'avais pas vu venir).

C'est sûr, il ne faut pas trop s'attarder sur les invraisemblances. Pour ma part, ces derniers me font surtout sourire. C'est surtout pour la relation entre Sarah et Nico que j'aime ce roman.

Pour les gens qui veulent une lecture pas compliquée, avec un mystère quand même prenant.

What a fun and imaginative little book! It made me laugh a few times and I find the illustrations quite nice. For fans of kaijus/monsters, whether they are super monstrous, true heros that protect us or really silly and not quite useful!

Magnifiques contes, dont seulement quelques-uns j'avais lu une version ou entendu parler. La deuxième partie est spéciale, l'auteur prend une direction plus documentaire. J'aurais aimé plus de contes, mais je ne peux pas dire que je n'ai pas aimée. Par contre, je ne peux pas m'empêcher de penser à Bernard Werber et sa trilogie des fourmis: a-t-il lu ce livre?

More a 3.5* Beautiful stories, most of them dystopian and, well, depressing. Even those that have a not so bad ending are still imbued in fatalism (except for 2-3 stories).

Still, I can't say that I didn't appreciate it. Rich Larson is a wonderful writer. I wouldn't mind reading other works from him. Just... not when my mood is down lol!

Again, the Monday Night Anthology doesn't disappoint! It's always fun to see how a prompt can bring so many kind of stories. There's something for everyone in there!

On a personnal note, I'll say that my favorites are Strange Hydrangeas, In This Life And The Next, The Sewing Basket, The Blue Clover Café and None The Less Immortal.

Can't wait for Dome Sweet Dome!

J'ai lu de magnifiques critiques, donc je m'attarderai pas trop. Ce qui m'a surtout frappée, c'est que personne n'ait jamais diagnostiqué Keiko comme étant autiste. J'ai fais vite des recherches et j'ai vu qu'au Japon, c'est moins connu. Mais quand même, c'est surprenant.

J'ai aimé cette petite incursion dans le monde du konbini. J'ai aimé Keiko et j'aurais aimé que les gens la comprennent. J'ai moins aimé Shiraha. Je comprends certains de ses arguments et je sympathise avec lui, mais en même temps, j'avais l'impression qu'il se servait de son état pour abuser les gens autour de lui.

Pour finir, j'ai aimé la fin. J'en aurais pris plus, mais je comprends que ça finisse là.

Peut-être plus un 21/2, mais je ne peux pas mettre un 3.

Les dystopies... j'ai souvent de la difficulté avec. Ça vient quelques fois trop me chercher émotionnellement. Je ne peux pas dire que c'est un mauvais livre, loin de là. J'ai même assez accroché au personnage principal pour vouloir savoir comment ça allait finir. Mes moments préférés ont été ceux que Griz passent avec John Dark. Et j'ai aimé la fin (avec tout de même quelques interrogations).

Par contre, c'était un livre très lent. L'histoire est en fait un grand monologue de Griz (qui écrit son histoire dans un livre, à l'intention d'un ami imaginaire). Même les dialogues sont rapportés par le narrateur.

Mais ça, ça peut passer. Je peux livre des livres plus introspectifs. Mais encore un fois, la dystopie... ouf. J'ai été à maintes fois fâchée et indignée par certains événements et révélations (pas les deux twists de la fin, non, ça j'ai aimé). Un exemple: juste le début, quand la chienne est volée, ça m'a mis en rogne!

Ceux et celles qui ont mis des 5 et 4* ont tout a fait raison de le faire. J'ai lu les critiques et je ne peux pas leur donner tort. (À part peut-être celle qui dit que ce livre était une lecture plaisante et que ça pouvait être lu à partir de 12 ans. Whaaat?) J'avais aimé le résumé, mais finalement, je n'étais pas le bon public.

Sweet and touching, with funny bits here and there.

Magnifique. Elk est une artiste tellement talentueuse, quand on regarde ses œuvres, on a l'impression d'être dans un rêve ou un autre monde.

Ok, so, I've read this book a bit as a challenge because a friend read it and was one of the few people who loved it. She was curious about what I would think about it because a) we both love LGBTQ+ books and b) we're both on the ace spectrum. She told me that even thought it wasn't written as such, she thought there was ace representation there.

So there. I've read it and unfortunately, I didn't like it. It was, in fact, a very frustrating book. Also, SPOILERS ahead. I don't want to hide them or hide all my review.

Again: SPOILERS! You've been warned.

I've read many other reviews, the good, the bad and the middle, and I think the first biggest mistake that has been done is the marketing. Although the author herself said that it wasn't “a cute, conventional F/F romance”, it was still projecting that romance. If the blurb and résumé have been different, had put more emphasis on Brooklyn's questionning journey, maybe people would have been less shocked and disappointed.

I do agree with my friend about the ace representation and I think some people loved this book because of this. But strangely enough, I'm kinda mad about it. Again with the marketing: it wasn't summarize that way. If Brooklyn had said “Oh! I love you, but I don't like doing more than kissing, I think I'm on the ace spectrum!”, it would have been better. But we, readers, just assume that she's maybe ace. The only sexualities discussed here are straight, gay and bi. Which kinda pissed me off.

As for the bi stereotypes that I've seen people discuss in the reviews, I'll take their word. I've known a bit about those stereotypes, but not enough to really have an opinion. It didn't feel biphobic for me, but as I was reading examples in the reviews... it does look bad. I'm also a bit pissed at the bad representation of polysexuality. That Zoe and Carlos want to be in an open relationship, okay. But Zoe should have put a bit more boundaries with her other relationships. Like, when she and Brooklyn begins to make out, Brooklyn is a bit insecure and asks about Carlos, but Zoe simply said not to worry about it. She shouldn't have brushed off her concern like that. She should have had a conversation with Brooklyn. Not everyone want to be part of a polysexual/poylamorous relationship and we see that Brooklyn isn't at ease with it since she's jealous of Carlos.

And, really, even Zoe and Carlos aren't that open: Zoe says that Carlos would be happy she's not hooking up with a boy and later, admits that she doesn't want Brooklyn to see other people. That's not how poly works...

Since we're talking about Zoe, I didn't like her. I know some people didn't like how Brooklyn treated her at the end, that she was a straight girl using a bi one to experiment. But I would like to point out that when Brooklyn said she wasn't sure, Zoe simply asked her if this or that felt good, Brooklyn said yes, so Zoe said to simply enjoy and not think about it. And when it was too much for Brooklyn, Zoe was pissed off. I think we have here a character who thinks too much (Brooklyn) and one not enough (Zoe). For Zoe, if Brooklyn liked it, there should be no problem. But of course, it doesn't work that way. Again, if the book had been more ace and biromantic oriented, the story could been very different.

But it wasn't and I didn't like Zoe. I didn't like how she pushed Brooklyn to go beyond first base with her, I didn't like her simplistic way of thinking. And I didn't like she never apologize for making Brooklyn uncomfortable, for pushing her. For not understanding her. I'm repeating myself, but the way Brooklyn questions herself and says it to Zoe (Have you never had a crush, but realize you only wanted to do platonic stuff with them?), it's a very ace thing to say. And unfortunately, Zoe brushed this off. I was really, really, pissed at her. For someone who is supposedly open-minded about sexuality, she appeared the opposite.

Now, a word about Brooklyn: I liked her. My two stars are for her, because the book itself felt more like a one star. I think I'm going to be in the minority here since I've seen many people who disliked her. Do she appears a bit whiney? Yes. Does she lacks communication skills, big time? Also yes. Many problems could have been resolved if she talked about them. But a thing that I didn't read on reviews (maybe on others that I haven't read): Brooklyn appears to be an introvert in a family of extroverts. Yes, she loves the musicals, the shows, etc, but she says herself that she doesn't like to be at the center of attention.

And that can be really crippling sometimes. Sure, it's easy to say “she should communicate more! Why didn't she said anything?”, but seriously, can you say you haven't been at that place? I know I was. It's easy to say, harder to do. And the sad thing is when she tries to speak up, like when she's with Zoe and making out, they often don't listen to her.

For me, Brooklyn is an insecure introvert who questions everything in her life: her sexuality, her place in her family and in Allendale. I just wanted to hug her. Sidenote on those who said that at the end, she ends up with a boy and stays straight: I didn't see it that way. When Russel says that she doesn't like girls, Brooklyn clarifies and says that she doesn't know, she just doesn't like Zoe that way. But she doesn't completely close the door on liking girls. And even if she says to Russell that one day, they could maybe go on a date, but not now, it's not a done deal. I understand the frustration of people to have a “bi” girl going out with a guy at the end. But I didn't see it that way. I saw a still questioning girl who is a little less insecure.

But I agree that the way she thought Russell was gay (and also her ex-boyfriend Jason) was a bit homophobic. Not that she is a raging homophobe, certainly not, but she has certains bias. And for this, and her insecurity, I blame her family.

Now, we're going on the bad stuff. I disliked Zoe, but I hated Brooklyn's family. Except her uncle. But at the end, even he gets a dislike from me. And her mother... ouf. First of all, how can you push your child to be something they're not? She was so blind to Brooklyn's qualities and flaws and... everything about her I guess. We learn that Brooklyn isn't that talented on the singing or acting part. And yet, her mother encouraged her to audition to Juilliard? Think her piano skills and writing skills isn't that important? And when at the end, when Brooklyn finally let it out, her mother is like “sweetie, we've always been proud of you, whatever you do. You know that right?” and when she says, frankly no she doesn't know that because actions often times speak louder than words. I really like how Brooklyn expresses herself here.

What I like less is that although her mother look sad about his, and acknowledges that they are a bunch of “loudmonths” (extroverts for me) and that Brooklyn should just tell her to “shut up, like everyone else does” if she feels offended, she never apologize. She only says that she didn't know she felt that way. There's no “I'm sorry we hurt you”.

In a strange way, it was a family that appears quite open-minded, but that was kinda close-minded. Whose mother says to her daughter that she hopes she'll hook up with a girl? That is a bit disappointed when that daughter breaks up with her girlfriend? Brooklyn was right when she says to her family that they seem to exclude people who aren't artists. Sure, at the end, they say that they love Brooklyn, they will always be proud of her and she'll be a part of that family, even if she decides one day to become a teacher or whatever.

It was a too quick resolution. Brooklyn is happy and moves on. That didn't satisfy me.

Finally, the theatre stuff. I've read reviews that said that was on point. If that's the case, yikes! It wasn't at the same level than the family, but I also hated Allendale. The way the teacher humilates Brooklyn was horrible. The mentality, the snobbery, that wasn't for me. (Going back a bit at the mother: she had to call and ask for her daughter to be chosen. If you have to do that, it's because she isn't that talented. Yet, she pushes her in that direction. No wonder Brooklyn is feeling lost and insecure)

So yeah, I'm pretty sure I've forgotten stuff, but I think it's long enough.

J'avais adoré son « Chats du monde », il me fallait donc son autre livre. Et il est magnifique! Les chats (et autres animaux!), les paysages, la composition... tout est superbe. C'est un livre qui nous fait relaxer et même temps, nous donne envie de voyager.

Une lecture légère sans prise de tête. C'est sûr qu'il y a plein de trucs illogiques, qui m'ont surtout fait sourire et non soupirer. Je vois surtout ce roman comme une lettre d'amour au cosplay et la culture geek, avec un petit clin d'œil aux séries policières. Oh et je n'ai pas vu arriver la twist de la fin! Je dirais qu'il y a une petite tricherie de la part de l'autrice, mais je l'ai appréciée quand même.

Bon tome, que j'ai quand même un peu moins aimé que le précédent. Par contre, j'aime le rapprochement entre Nävis et Yannseï, de même que la possibilité qu'on revoit les Supras.

This a slow novel, full of feelings, dreams of the past, present and future. There's nostalgia and despair, but also love and hope. It's hard to describe this book since the story is, in a way, quite simple. It's the emotions and sensations that are important here. It's a book that makes you understand a bit more how immigrants feel, especially those who leave their country because of war. I wouldn't read it twice, but I'm glad to have read it.

Une histoire étrange. Les enquêtes d'Higgins ont souvent flirter avec le surnaturel, mais jamais autant que dans ce tome. C'était à la fois tordu et triste.

Une relecture, j'avais envie d'un truc rigolo et pas compliqué. L'histoire est aussi rocambolesque que dans mon souvenir, je l'ai (re)lue d'une traite! Vous voulez faire une pause dans vos lectures dramatiques, horrifiques et/ou psychologiquement épuisantes? C'est le roman parfait!

J'ai beaucoup aimé cette façon de sauter d'un personnage à un autre, tout en revenant sur certains d'entre eux. J'avoue qu'il y en aurait une couple dont j'aurais apprécié en savoir plus. Par contre, en général, j'aime cette petite fenêtre dans la vie des gens, style cliché Polaroïd.

What a beautiful and heartbreaking story. We see the consequences of prejudices and war. We learn that there are good lies and bad lies, and both also have consequences. We have many questions without answers and that's okay because that's life.

I love Annabelle, I love Toby, I love their connection. I hate Betty, which is normal I'm sure. But she's one of those who inspired one of these questions without answers and which Annabelle herself asked.

Why some people can be so mean?

It was a wonderful children book that, without being too graphic, don't sugarcoat life events, especially in the 40s.