Asta
This might've been okay if it hadn't dragged for half as long as it needed to OR if the supposedly kidnapped woman hadn't been stupid just to make the plot work.
She made her kidnappers food every day and didn't think to mix some pills into his food when she found out how to get to them? Or she could've just stolen the car when he was asleep??? Now I'm starting to wonder why I bothered finishing this....
Originally gave this five stars, but after reading about the controversy behind Hari's earlier work as a journalist (plagiarism among other things) decided to remove the rating altogether. Check out his Wikipedia of you haven't heard of his history!
This was a mesmerizing, beautiful read. Reminded me of Andy Weir's Project Hail Mary in a lot of ways, but with less action and jokes.
I rarely enjoy such slow, philosophical writing, but I guess bringing gender and it's nuances into the mix is what I needed to get me going!
Along with gender, or lack of it, Le Guin explored many interesting points about life on a frozen planet and what kind of cultural norms and taboos might grow in such environment and how an alien from earth arriving into the planet might find themselves facing those differences.
Based on this I look forward to reading more from the author.
An interesting look into the world of autistic women, felt relatable. I wish there had been less jumping around as now this felt more like a train of thought than a cohesive book. More editing, maybe?
It took me some time to get into the story, but once I did I was hooked! My favourite Wells story after The Murderbot Diaries, and well worth going into without looking at the blurb. I had no idea what was coming and it was a wild and interesting ride. The conclusion could've maaaybe used a bit more explaining, such as going a bit more into Constans' motives, but it's also nice to have something to ponder on myself.
A fascinating insight into a field of never considered before. If I or anyone close to me ever becomes a victim of a mass fatality event, Jensen is definitely the person I'd like to be working in the aftermath.
I did not expect to be so moved by this book, but am happily so as the author shows how kindness and respect can make a huge difference to those who's loved ones have been killed and their remains and possessions scattered in an explosion, a flood or a collision.
I found Jensen's dedication and mindset admirable, even if at times I wondered if he was just a bit too sure of his own righteousness.
Definitely a recommended read.
I loved this! I'm not a fan of horror but love scifi, and this had just the right amount of atmospheric dread to keep me on my toes without making my imagination run wild at night.
The combination of trauma, supernatural elements and survival instinct was spot on.
An interesting, different kind of thriller where a murder isn't in the forefront and women are in the lead. There was abuse, but not a single rape happened! Quality content, imho.
I kept trying to guess what is going to happen, which is a good sign. I listen to audiobooks while crafting or cleaning, and often the plots don't really get me that interested, but this one got me good.
There were some parts that felt like maybe the authors made a mistake, but with an audiobook it's hard to tell cause I can't go back to double check. The ending was a bit abrupt and felt like they couldn't actually quite figure out how to end the story so they made the villain crumble in an uncharacteristic way, while trying to shoehorn in the reasoning behind it. The main character stayed true to herself, however. She was flawed, but portrayed in a way that made me root for her.
The study of morale was interesting, but felt a bit stretched in parts. The question of whether the punishment should always fit the crime was made a sort of a central point, but felt really vague in context of the story, like it was an idea that the authors wanted to hang onto despite the story itself steering away from it.
I really enjoyed the alternating POVs and their separate readers, it made it easier for me to keep track of what's happening, and I think the readers did a great job.
This was too painful. I think it was on purpose, but the main character, Gemma, was so obtuse that I don't know what anyone around her saw in her, let alone gave her compliments about how smart and great she was. There was an attempt to make her quirky but she was mostly just selfish and childish.
I've been surprised about the lack of misogyny in these books, but in this one there was more than enough of it. Suddenly everyone was very bitter and hateful, and the same qualities that were praised in Anne in her youth were portrayed as something wicked in her children's friends. This was not enjoyable.
Mielenkiintoinen lähtökohta, mutta toteutus jäi mielestäni vähän ontoksi etenkin loppua kohti. Herättelee paljon kysymyksiä mutta ei anna valmiita vastauksia.
I never thought I'd enjoy a book full of politics, but here I am! A Memory Called Empire would've been a five star read if there had been more about the characters, as the book is now I feel like I didn't really get to know them, and the things happening to them didn't touch me much because of it.
I found myself fascinated with the culture and history of Teixcalaan and enjoyed getting to know some it's depths with Mahit.
Struggled to finish listening to this, kept giving it a change until the bitter end! The story was interesting and had potential to be good, I just didn't care for how it was written. Or maybe how it was narrated? It's hard to tell sometimes.
Osittain itselleni tuttua, mutta myös uutta tietoa vaateteollisuuden ongelmista ja mahdollisista ratkaisuista, tehokkaasti alleviivaten sitä faktaa, että suurin merkitys on kulutuksen vähentämisellä.
Kävi loppua kohden pitkäveteiseksi ja olisi ehkä voinut olla noin kolmasosan lyhyempi, en esimerkiksi koe että digitaalisia vaatteita olisi tarvinnut käsitellä juuri tässä teoksessa. (Digitaalisuus kun on ihan oma nykypäivän vitsauksensa!)
I rarely DNF something when I'm already so close to finishing, but I just didn't care what happened to Jack and Jill or whatever their names were. McGuire's writing writhers my soul by chewing the simplest of ideas and spitting it out for the reader to digest, and when a book is less than 300 pages long it really doesn't leave much space for actual content. I hated the characters, cared for them even less than I cared for anyone in the Every Heart a Doorway, and rolled my eyes numerous times at the supposed rebellion against gender norms. How the hell this series has won awards, I will never understand.
Very close to being a 5 star collection, I love the world Le Guin built with the Hainish series.
What kept it from that last star was the fact that the author's writing style, especially with descriptions, made my eyes glass over and mind wander so that I'd have to re-read pages or paragraphs multiple times before I finally managed to stay conscious while reading, or just gave up and continued without getting the details. I have no idea why that keeps happening but I had the same issue with every story (and with the author's other works) while going through the world building.
But the worlds! They were interesting, as we're their inhabitants, and especially the fantasy trope-like setup of Rocannon's World tickled my brain in a good way. I found the workings of the Planet of Exile interesting to ponder on and the people on City of Illusions fascinating yet distasteful.
Definitely a recommended read.
Tämä ei todellakaan ollut äänikirjaksi sopiva teos, minkä vuoksi en antanut tähtiarviota. Sen verran kiinnostava, että haluan lukea fyysisen version myöhemmin.