Anna
I am sad that I have not read Around the World in 80 Days earlier. Jules Verne was my favorite author from the school reading program, and nonetheless, I skipped this novel. When I read the book, I felt like I was traveling the world with Passepartout and Mr. Fogg, and it motivated me to play the story-based game again, which has the same name as the novel and based mostly on the Jules Verne novel but slightly modified.
What else can I say? At the novel's beginning, I could not build my opinion about Mr. Fogg as he was relatively passive and did nothing. I enjoyed reading about the crazy adventures of his servant. But later in the book, Mr. Fogg did not disappoint me and became my top favorite character in this story.
It is one of those books that makes you hungry for adventures and motivates you to buy a ticket to an unknown yet unexplored country.
When I grabbed the book I was honestly suspicious that I won't like it. I did not enjoy the Fine Print much as I didn't like Rowan and Zahra dynamic at all but I liked all characters in Terms and Conditions. Positively surprised.
There are some spicy scenes but I felt that the author took quite a good time to develop a relationship between characters :)
The Spell of Winter novel started relatively slow for me, and I found the book rather dull. I was even thinking of DNFing it, which I rarely do, as the plot, characters and story were not so exciting, but after page 50, it got more interesting. I have started to understand the characters better; the plot was getting more exciting, though the type of romance in this book is not my cup of tea. This novel could be perfect for a rainy autumn day.
“The Tempting Little Thief” was a challenge for my patience. I usually don't enjoy this genre, but I hoped it would improve. By page 25, my optimism vanished when the characters had already slept together without knowing each other. I assume their chemistry was purely based on their appearance. Such an early spicy moment made me believe there would be more focus on spice than the plot.
While the middle had some interesting moments, by page 500, I was absolutely lost. I struggled to connect with the characters; their personalities were shallow, and their actions made no sense.
This book differs from the young adult novels that John Green was writing before, but I enjoyed it nevertheless during my travels. I listened to his audiobook, which he has also voiced.
I learned a lot about tuberculosis and how big the issue is. John Green made the book informative, educational, and emotional by introducing Henry and sharing his and other tuberculosis victims' stories.
I knew that Christopher Reeve played Superman and that he got paralyzed while horseback riding. But nothing more. In this book, he has shared the story of the dreadful event and his life after the accident, how he was fighting and keeping his spirit up, going through ups and downs. In between chapters, he was coming back to his younger years and sharing more stories of his career life. It is a pretty inspiring and motivational read.
It took me 10 chapters not to feel absolutely lost. Somewhere in the middle I started liking the letters and had a vague idea of what is happening but still at the end of the book I have no idea how the world functions, how they time travel and who they are. The writing style is beautiful but I don't like getting lost in a book :(
John Green is one of my favorite writers, and I aim to read all his books. After Paper Towns, I read “Looking for Alaska,” his first novel, and I loved it!
It is a well-written young adult book, where characters deal with guilt and loss, and the author emphasises the importance of friendship and the harm of idolisation. It is an excellent book for young adults, but it was banned from the school library because the reader can encounter curse words and mild sexual references; however, it is not new for teenagers and is not the book's main topic.
Did I like the Water Moon? I wanted to like this book, but it was an okay book for me. I did not feel any emotions after reading the book. I liked the idea and the concept, but I was not engaged with the story, and the characters were one-dimensional. I would give 3.75 stars.
The book cover is gorgeous, though.
After hearing about Paper Town on the vlog brothers so many times, I finally read the book and enjoyed it! It is a young adult novel about school teenagers dealing with issues at home and within themselves.
There were lots of funny stories that made me laugh, and sad moments that touched my heart. Side characters were also perfect and I loved the reference to the Mountain Goats; I knew that John Green loves this band, and I was happy to see that he has mentioned them in the book :)
I “read” World War Z by listening to it on Audible. It was my first audiobook, which I finished and enjoyed thoroughly. I might listen to more audiobooks after that. The quality of the audiobook is perfect, and the writing style is also impressive. I felt like I was watching an apocalyptic epic movie! There were many characters with their stories, and in the audiobook, each new interview was read by a different person.
What I liked the most is that in World War Z, I could hear stories from all over the world, as each country dealt with the crisis differently, and you could see the whole picture of the world facing zombies. When I was watching “The Walking Dead,” I always craved to know how the outbreak started and how people dealt with the situation not only in the USA but in other countries; now my curiosity is satisfied :)
I got the 1990 copy of The Circle of Friends, and I loved it. As it is slow-paced, it took me three months to finish.
The storytelling is gorgeous. The author slowly introduces characters and their stories, and all protagonists develop beautifully throughout the book. My favorite characters are, of course, Benny and Eve, and even Nan's story made me stop to think about her situation. There are a lot of side characters that complete the universe, but I had trouble keeping track of them. However, that's more of a me-problem.
The movie that was made in 1995 is also worth watching, but first read the book :)
“Never Lie” is my first novel from Freida McFadden, and I am so excited that I found another author whose books I enjoy so much. It is hard to write a review for this thriller and mystery novel, but I can assure you there are a lot of secrets, twists, and mysteries. The atmosphere is slightly spooky, but it is perfect for this occasion.
Initially, I suspected someone to be the murderer, but it felt too good to be true, and I was not left disappointed. I finished the novel in 3 days and highly recommend it if someone enjoys a fast-paced, exciting thriller :)
“The House of Leaves” was indeed an exciting read. It is full of mysteries, secret messages, and puzzles. The story and the characters need time to unravel and understand the meaning of events. There are humorous but also traumatic ones. In general, it is an excellent book and makes you reflect on some topics that are brought up in the book.
Please never read it in electronic format. The book itself is a masterpiece and should be read in book format.
“The Dragonfall” was a good read about dragons and humans battling for the best place to live. The universe has its own unique rules, which is exciting to read about. There is even a glossary at the end of the book for any words that are unclear to the reader.
I wish I had felt more excitement after the book; after all this book has a perfect formula: magic, dragons, heist, mystery, and love. The male protagonist is portrayed as quite attractive, of course, but my favorite protagonist is still Arcady, who is gender-fluid btw; I admire their personality and way of thinking. However, I did not feel a strong chemistry between the two main protagonists, but I was relieved that there was not so many spicy scenes as well. The modern romantasy is not my favorite genre.
Overall, I enjoyed reading the book, but need a break before starting the second book.
“The Safekeep” made me feel all kinds of emotions, starting with boredom and disappointment and ending with excitement and joy.
At first, I felt bored because I did not like the protagonist, Isabel, and found her rather dull and cold. However I was hopeful that she will show her other personality and develop as a character, and I was not disappointed. I could not put the book down and was constantly thinking about what would happen next.
The book explores many issues, such as grief, loss, family dynamic, sibling relationship, the complexity and darkness of the post-war real estate situation, exploration of sexuality, and acceptance of love as it is. There is for sure romance and spice in the book, but I found the romance more tense, more sensual, and occasionally sad.
I highly recommend this book and appreciate how the story has unfolded, focusing not only on love and romance but also on several other important topics.
“Birdy” is an interesting read. It took me a while to get through, and I was confused in the beginning why main protagonist was acting in a weird way. However, this book requires some patience and it is worth keep reading.
I enjoy reading older books; they have a unique charm in their characters and stories. There is a lot of references to birds, which made me feel rather nostalgic, as I was a bird owner in the past.
I also noticed that the author touched on a few topics related to sexuality, although it is not the central theme of the book. For a novel published in 1979, I think that was quite brave.
The main focus of the book is on the struggles of two young characters coping with the consequences of war, which is not so easy to read about but it is important to understand.
I decided to read American Gods because I was too impatient to finish the TV series and heard that the book differs from the TV show. The book is medium-paced, full of twists, adventures, jokes, and mini-stories in between. I love all the characters, villains and heroes, Gods and humans. I sympathized with Shadow, our main protagonist, who almost died too many times, and I even stopped counting how many.
The book might start slow, but it takes some patience. There will be twists and surprises, but it ends satisfactorily.
What can I say about this book? It was, in a way, entertaining, but it is not the book that I would read again or continue reading other books in the series. I listened to a two-hour podcast about this book, so I am not sure if I was already biased.
Besides, I may be too old for this book, but the romance in this book is too toxic and immature for me. Also, having a “spicy” scene early in the beginning felt too soon. Anyway, all the interactions between Rowan and Zahra were ridiculous. The descriptions of spicy scenes were not spicy but rather silly and always made me laugh. Am I alone in that?
All scenes in the book when Rowan was acting as a boss gave me a rage attack, as the way he was treating his employees was so illegal: asking them to work 12 hours a day, decreasing their wages, having no medical insurance or really limited insurance, not allowing to take vacations, so mistreating them. All of that made me despise him; despite his “attractive” appearance and how he treated Zahra, I don't know; he was mostly disrespectful. For example, he was not asking her if she had time for a date; he was just “Tomorrow, my place, 7 pm”. Come on!
Well, it could be better, but it was very easy to read.
The book grabbed my attention from the very first chapter. It took some time for me to understand how the magic works in this universe, and the picture of the spellograph on the cover was really helpful. The magic system is quite unique, unlike anything I've seen before.
I appreciated that the book didn't focus on romance so much, even though I liked Thomil a lot. I enjoyed witnessing the main protagonist's growth and her struggles. Seeing that she's not without flaws and can listen and adapt her perspective.
As a feminist, it was soooo difficult to read how men treated women in this universe, but I understand that this is a central conflict of the book.
Overall, I devoured this book in a couple of weeks and enjoyed it fully.
I think I've discovered another wonderful author whose books I truly enjoy.
The book or novella is a fairytale retelling and the story is told from a different perspective. This is my first time reading this type of book and I was positively impressed by it.
I loved the main protagonist; the Toadling is sweet and brave, though it takes her some time to open her heart and trust others, tells her perspective of the famous “Sleeping Beauty” to a knight. There is no spice in this book and the story was more focused on Toadling, rather than on the romance.
I wished I could read more, but novellas are usually quite short anyway.
While waiting for Sanderson's fifth book of the Stormlight Archives, I chose the Skyward series to fill my waiting time, and I was not disappointed. This series made me so happy that I could not stop reading books. I am sad that the series has ended, though the Skyward Legacy announcement gave me joy, knowing that I will read more about Spensa's adventures!