Josh
This book is one of those that while I do think it has some glaring issue's I ended up liking tremendously. The first problem for me is that the plot felt like it became rushed towards the end and overall was pretty anti-climatic. The second is that while the concept is quite interesting with Dora and largely handled really well it does feel like there are times where she has greater access to her emotions and feelings then necessarily makes sense.
Enough complaining though! I am a sucker for the witty banter and while there are instances where it's more meanspirited in this novel then I typically would go for, I found myself having a good laugh seeing wit's collide! I also enjoyed the relationships over all, from the cousins, the friends, and the romance. Speaking of the romance, I was skeptical given how short the book is, but I did quite enjoy how it unfolded. Also a positive for me with some of the criticism on the class system, albeit this is touched on fairly lightly.
Overall, a whimsical fast read that I had a great time with and I look forward to continuing the series.
This memoir very much reads as the author trying to work through and process their own feelings about everything that's transpired and what it means for them to be Korean at this stage in their life. Because of that is has a raw authenticity to it that given the reviews obviously resonates with a large number of people.
The book doesn't work for me though based on my own feelings towards how I was raised. It's very hard for me to see lines like “there was no one in the world that was ever as critical or could make me feel as hideous as my mother, but there was no one not even Peter, who ever made me feel as beautiful” and chalk that up as being overly devoted or “small criticisms”. That to me crosses the line of devotion and if criticism tears you down to that degree, then is it actually small? This and many other examples just spoke to me in an incredibly negative way that was always in the back of my mind, through all the heartwarming moments and the bittersweet.
Much like the second part of Little Women (The Good Wives) I didn't enjoy the story as much when everyone was going their own ways rather than the story being centered on family. This one even more so though because not all of the boys are interesting and the plot felt like it was very meandering during sections.
The plot lines that I enjoyed though, I did so immensely, so it evened it out some. Definitely the weakest of the trilogy though imo.
The rating for this was much closer to Little Women than I anticipated. Given that I had never heard of Little Men, nor had my wife, it seemed to me that the book must not have been able to live up to the prequel.
I was pleasantly surprised, because while the same criticisms certainly are still there so are a great number of the strengths that I enjoyed. Jo was always my favourite, her school for boys is quite amusing and filled with some characters I can't help but root for. It doesn't quite measure up to Little Women as there are some characters that don't really serve any purpose, but it's very close.
After reading this I looked at some of the reviews as I was curious what some of the common criticisms are. I saw things like the book is old fashioned/traditional in terms of the family unit (it is), that the morals are very on the nose (they are), and that it can be preachy (it can be).
They're all valid criticisms that I also see, yet, part 1 for me was an easy 5 stars. I was just enthralled with the families dynamics, the characters, and the familial love radiated off the page. Part 2 I didn't enjoy as much because some of that coziness is lost with them going their own ways, but overall I had a good time with this. I look forward to continuing with Little Men cause Jo was always my favourite anyhow.
I have very mixed feelings about this book. It's highly derivative to the point if you've read any YA dystopian fantasy of any kind...you'll likely know exactly where it's going and how it's going to end. For me as well with YA, one of the biggest pet peeves I have is how relationships and romance will be shoehorned in to advance the plot...but hey at least it's kicked up a notch with a love square! Triangles are so passé.
I don't want to sound like I hated this book though cause that's not the case. As I said mixed feelings. I love a good story about throwing off the yoke of oppression and confronting the powers that be. Plus superpowers in the mix that are passed down through blood? I'm there for it. To see those that are considered less than because of their blood rise up and show the silvers that they aren't inferior or as weak as they think. That's a story that I wanted and still want to read. The ending, while predictable, did a lot to bolster my hopes for this series as we moved beyond the love square that was so stifling in the majority of the novel.
I'll be continuing on for at least one more book because the potential is definitely there.
I enjoyed the short stories, but when it comes to the full length novels my enjoyment consistently waned over each book. This is the second book where nothing much of consequence really happens. It's unfolding so slowly and I find that my interest in the overarching plot just hasn't been there. It doesn't help that I find the writing to be very clunky in the last couple novels and at times even hard to follow.
I much preferred when it was a story about a Witcher slaying monsters, growing and coming to terms with his humanity. That's not what the series is in the end though and I think that this is where I'll get off the ride.
“This hurts too much to touch with words.” This quote from the book sums up this entire series. If you've read the first two then you already know what the series is and this is a fitting conclusion to it.
The only other thing I could really say is that I thought this book was the most flawed of the three, but simultaneously the best among them. This was easily my book and series of 2022.
The problem I often have with stand alone novella's and short stories is quite simply the length. It doesn't allow for the type of character development or plot progression I prefer. This novella also falls in that category and I just find I wanted more. I personally thought the stakes were too high and the discussion on good, evil, and hate to grand to be condensed to fit in under 200 pages. I did enjoy the characters and thought they were rather well developed for the page count, but some of the moments that are meant to hit hard, didn't land for me emotionally.
I found myself thinking several times while reading that, I think I would have enjoyed it more in movie format then novella. Your mileage may vary though, if you tend to like stand alone novella's, body horror, and such. I will say if you are going to read it, know that a lot of it is written in dialect (Southern, some Creole, Gullah Geechee etc), so if that's not your cup of tea for visual reading the audio book may be the way to go. Personally, growing up in the South did help me on this front I think, but even then I did have to re-read sentences (particularly Gullah) and puzzle out what was being said. Anyhow, would put at 2.5 if half stars existed on this platform.
I thought City of Lies was good, especially for a debut novel, but I think the sequel and conclusion here is even better. There are two main elements of Hawke's writing that really stand out to me. The first is the world building. There are different cultures, languages, religions, magics, and races found in the novels that makes for a very interesting and real feeling world.
The second element is the characters. The representation in this book is amazing imo, because it never feels like a character is defined entirely by just one thing. They are fleshed out, nuanced and very representative of what you might find in a city. So you have among the cast non-binary, homosexual, mental illness, disability, religious belief (extremism and faith), with complex behaviors, emotions, beliefs, etc. The world feels lived in, in part because of how well the society and the people that make up said society are written.
It's not all praise though. The pacing felt very slow to me. I did think the book could have been quite a bit shorter and been better for it. The bigger issue I have though is you alternate between two POV characters and while they are distinct from a personality standpoint their narrative voice to me is very similar. The chapters are named after the POV so you can keep it straight that way, but if you removed their names it would be very hard to distinguish which character's perspective you're in depending on the chapter.
The other thing I dislike is just preference, but I've always preferred mysteries where you can deduce the bad actors, rather than getting surprise information out of nowhere. Be that as it may, a great second novel and would highly recommend to anyone that likes their Fantasy with a lot of politics and a mystery/thriller plot.
Some of the characters are starting to grow on me and that's the large reason for the increase. In particular I think a pretty good job is being done with Sorasa's character development. She went from being a character who was just barely on my radar in the last book, to being the character I actively root the most for. Quite enjoyable. I also still think Erida is one of the most intriguing characters and I really enjoy her as an antagonist. This is definitely a middle book though, because it's a whole lot of journeying and very little of anything else.
Last thought on it would be....holy cliffhanger ending.
When it comes to fantasy I would rank the factors that are most important to my enjoyment in order of importance as characters, plot, and then world building. There is a significant gap between 1 and 2, and 2 and 3 though.
This book hits solidly on 2 and 3. The plot is interesting and I wanted to keep reading to see how things would inevitably end up. It's also chalk full of world building. There are different cultures, biomes, races, languages etc. It is epic in scope in every sense of the word.
But, the characters don't really resonate with me, falling flat more often than not. The group dynamics here and there are interesting and/or amusing, but largely fall they missed as well. The most intriguing character I find is Queen Erida, but by the end of the book it started to feel like certain elements were/are going to be shoehorned into her plot line that I wasn't a big fan of so even that ended on a somewhat sour note.
I will read the next one though as the plot is interesting enough for that on it's own.
A nice third book in the story with Spensa yet again at the forefront. I know there have been complaints about the other characters largely being missing in lieu of her, but I don't mind this as I enjoy how well her character has been developed. I also greatly enjoyed M. Bot's development and the further questions presented on AI ethics. There are also some great new characters introduced in this book, so suffice to say I really enjoy the characters overall.
The Sci-Fi elements, well, while I thought the delver storyline was well written, it did feel a bit on the simplistic side to me. I've always preferred harder Sci-Fi though so your mileage may vary.
On the edition I read there is a blurb on the back by Joanne Harris that says “Some books you read. Some books you enjoy. But some books just swallow you up, heart and soul.”
I don't think this book could be summed up any better than that. It's a engrossing story that has an atmosphere that just sucks you in.
Overall I enjoyed the wrap up of the plot quite a bit and the action as always is top notch. But as I said in the first review that were just a couple POV and side characters that I could never really get interested in which makes parts of the story drag. Also some of the events that unfold feel very much like “cause the author wanted” rather than “this is consistent with the narrative, world and character”.
The original trilogy is a cut above, but even still, there are enough positives here that this series is definitely worth the read.
This go around in the universe established in The First Law trilogy we have the children of the characters from said trilogy and what's really compelling is watching these young people strive to make a name for themselves. The naivety some of them possess is quite amusing to witness. Nothing I quite enjoy more than watching ideals meet reality and buckling under that weight or in the rare case standing strong...but mostly it's the dashing of young people's dreams. ;)
The setting of this trilogy is pretty interesting as well. Beginning of an industrial revolution and all that entails for nobility/commoners is quite an interesting backdrop. But it's not all praise. I was disappointed with the plot. I was left wanting more, but not necessarily in a good way. The tension is built to the bursting point around several events, but the payoff was too quick and not very rewarding imo.
It doesn't help that while the character writing overall is still great overall, it doesn't fly nearly as high as the first trilogy managed. I felt like a couple of the POV characters feel as if they're missing the nuances and complexities that all of the characters in the first trilogy had. Be that as it may, the elements and characters that do click with me, do so at such a high level that I still find this book incredibly enjoyable.
It's heavily inspired by other popular middle grade fantasy like Harry Potter, but unique enough that it never feels completely derivative. There are a few pacing issue's imo, but overall I found it to be quite the well written, whimsical tale with a fun cast of characters. I look forward to seeing how the books progress after this introduction to the world and inhabitants of Nevermoor.
I don't read a whole lot of memoirs, but this one had everything I could ask for and more. As a comedian you'd expect the book to be amusing and while it is, it's also so much more than that. There is a significant difference between reading in a History book about apartheid and reading a first hand account. To put it simply and succinctly it's just an incredibly interesting accounting of his life. Part heartbreaking, part frustrating, and part inspiring. More than anything else though it's a love letter to his mother.
The only complaint I have is at times the time frame is a bit hard to grasp because the book is not told linearly and there is a lot of jumping around. This didn't bother me that much, but it is something to note cause I do see how that could be a major annoyance for others. I really enjoyed the casual writing style though as I felt it really captured his voice and felt very authentic. Highly recommend!
This book is interesting from an anthropological standpoint. I enjoyed learning about the customs and culture of the Igbo. However, as a novel this just wasn't for me. Each chapter is basically a small snippet of their lives before moving on in time in the next chapter to get another little window. Essentially it felt to me like a collection of short stories because of how it's structured and because it has no over-arching plot. There was just no tension, no buildup, just events that occur out of the blue and/or feel contrived.
The character side of things didn't have much on offer either as I personally found Okonkwo to be rather reprehensible. It is very difficult to empathize with a character who in most circumstances seems to be void of any empathy himself. It also was difficult to appreciate the culture at times because it was through his eyes.
I can actually see why it's often assigned to read in Highschool or University because there is an interesting conversation there to be had, but I can't say I personally enjoyed it as a story.
Not a scary book in the traditional sense, but definitely one that I found very unsettling and the tension runs high reading it. I don't think anyone writes crazy, quite like King does. He's written a lot of nasty bad guys, supernatural boogeymen and antagonists of other sorts in his time, but Annie is definitely up there as one of the most memorable and compelling to me. A bit over the top at times mind you, but overall she's what makes the book work.
If you love psychological horror then this is one I'd definitely recommend.
I'm not a big romance reader and they tend to fall into one of three categories for me. Those being cheesy, wish fulfillment/fantasy based or unhealthy relationships. This one falls into the cheesy category. This could very easily be a Hallmark movie if you toned down the sexual tension and relationship down slightly. So there are some romance tropes in there I don't really care for and some drama that I didn't really find interesting.
Yet, I gave this book 4 stars. The reason for that is I find the relationship dynamics absolutely hilarious. I am a huge sucker for sarcasm and quick witted humour and this book has that in spades. Not only does it have it in spades, but it's done so extremely well in my opinion. I don't tend to laugh out loud often when reading, but this novel legitimately had me chuckling and wearing a smile throughout a significant chunk of it. Nothing quite like a good laugh and for that, you get 4 stars.
I read this because I thought the premise sounded interesting. We get a lot of stories about poisoners in fantasy whether it be assassin's or what have you. It was interesting to me to see a premise about a family that proof's the chancellor's food and drink i.e. tests them for poisons before consumption.
In the end it wasn't quite what I expected as it was more of a mystery then anything else, but said mystery was interesting with nice world building and a few fantastical elements thrown in there. Nothing really blew me away, but I thought it was very solid.
Every once in awhile I'll read a book where I don't really understand the praise it has received. Typically even if I think a book's not for me, I can understand why it's well regarded. This is a case though where I don't get it. The prose is nice albeit long winded at times and I feel like Yanagihara has done a decent job capturing some of the behaviors that may be exhibited by people who have been abused. Some of the content is for sure heartbreaking and even I shed some tears.
Yet, I dislike this book considerably because of how sensationalist it is. How exaggerated aspects of it are and how contrived the story is. I couldn't help but feel as a I read it that Jude was suffering just for the sake of suffering. To me, it actually began to feel like the author was reveling in said suffering. I don't believe every story needs an uplifting message, but if your characters are going to go through trauma it does need to feel organic and that is where I think this novel fails as it comes off as very emotionally manipulative imo.
It's too bad, because there is a great novel in there under the mountain of melodrama.