Mr. McCane

Okay, so I’m going to tell you right now, this book will not be for everyone. I have been seeing a lot of critical reviews and people who have claimed to DNF. I have read all of her books, so let me tell you what I think. My aim is to be as objective as possible. Spoiler free. They marketed this book as an enemy-to-lovers story and a book about Hell. And although this is present, it’s more like a backdrop. This is more of a dark academia that takes place in Hell. So let me make this clear: this is not a romance story.

The main characters are Alice and Peter. They are both PhD students who study analytic magic at Cambridge University. Their advisor dies in a horrible freak magic accident. Instead of mourning like you and I would have done, both Alice and Peter used magic to enter Hell to bring him back. They need his recommendation so they can get good jobs.

Both main characters are a little unlikable, but they will grow on you. And, to be completely honest, the professor is unlikable also; he didn’t grow on me. There were villains in Hell that I liked, and there were some that I didn’t like so much. However, the plot is outstanding; I enjoyed its magic system, and I felt like it was easy to read. And no, you do not need to read Dante’s Inferno (Dante Alighieri), Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland (Lewis Carroll), The Bell Jar (Sylvia Plath), or The Wasteland (T.S. Eliot). So just relax; everything should make sense in context.

I think most people who have an issue with this book probably dislike R.F. Kuang’s version of Hell. I think many people expected it to look different and felt like this Hell was boring. But this is Alice and Peter’s Hell. In this world, Hell looks different to everyone. It depends on who you were and what your life was like. So, this is Hell for nerds. Take that into consideration before jumping into this book. Check your expectations.

There are parts in this book that drag. But if you have read this author’s other books, then you should expect some backstory. Every book in The Poppy War Trilogy dragged at some point, and so did Babel. You should also expect this from Dark Academia. Yellowface didn’t drag, but that was literary fiction. R.F. Kuang did what R.F. Kuang does. Although I predicted the ending, I still enjoyed it. I actually enjoyed it a little more than Babel. With that being said, I’m giving this book 4.25 stars.

I wanted so bad to like this book. I am a real life Black Detective who has spent the last 15 years assigned to the Crimes against Children's unit. I was immediately sold on this book when I found out that Alex Cross was also black. I'm thinking, finally I can read a book with a detective that looks like me. But no, it was immediately obvious that the writer was white. The story is supposed to have taken place in the 90s.

It was like the author kept trying to remind us that Cross is black. The dialogue between black people was horrible. At one point there was dialogue involving a young black teen. The author tried to use ebonics. It was so bad that I didn't even understand what she was saying and I was born and raised on the south side of Chicago. At one point Cross referred to himself as the n-word (with the ER) to a black woman. We don't talk like that James Patterson. You could've at least used the a at the end.

Someone also called Cross's girlfriend/killer a n-word lover. It's the 90s James, not the 60s.

Then there was the cross burned in the yard by the KKK

Yo, this book is freaking incredible, and right on time for me. I literally just finished it. So, you are getting my unedited reaction. So, first, I knew nothing about this book. For my birthday, someone gave me a Barnes & Noble gift card. Needing a break from biographies, I looked for a different genre. I saw this colorful book cover, and seeing that it had several books in its series, I gave it a shot. I then purchased the audiobook as well, because that’s how I like to read. Man, this book was everything I needed and is a contender for my book of the year so far. So what is this book about? Let me tell you. No spoilers.

So the concept sounds ridiculous. A guy named Carl is standing outside trying to grab his ex-girlfriend’s cat, who had gotten out. He’s wearing his boxers and his girlfriend crocs. Suddenly, a force crushed every building on the planet, killing everyone inside. The only people that survive is whoever was outside. So, in a nutshell, aliens have farmed Earth to create an intergalactic game show. Whoever didn’t die from the building collapse has to take part in a game show. They have to survive a 20 floor dungeon trying to kill monsters and each other until they’re the last one standing. This is apparently a super game show that is watched by trillions of species from multiple universes. It feels like you’re playing a video game. It sounds crazy, I know, but the way it’s executed is awesome and I loved every minute. The narrator, Jeff Hays, made the book. He’s the voice of all the characters, but none of them sound the same. Please don’t read it without the audio. My favorite character, of course, is the cat, Princess Donut. I can go on and on about this, but I won’t. I’ll just say this. This book is so good that I have already picked up the next two in the 7 book series. The entire book had me laughing. I recommend this book to everyone, except children and people who are sensitive to immature men's humor. I needed that laugh. Easy 5 out of 5.

This was my 2nd Riley Sager book, 1st being, “Home Before Dark”. I was excited about this one because

1. It’s extremely popular in the book community.

2. It’s listed as a Dark Mysterious horror.

3. Loved the book cover.

As usual, I dove in without checking the summary. I followed along with the audiobook while reading the hard copy.

The beginning of the book was a bit slow, and I had issues with parts of the narration. No offense to Christine Lakin and Dawn Harvey, but I wasn’t impressed with the voice acting for Kit McDeere. I did, however, enjoy the voice acting of Lenora Hope (well, at least Lenora from the past).

I found it difficult to connect with the characters, but since I was determined to finish for the bookclub, I pushed through. I’m just not a fan of murder mystery tropes involving rich people.

The second half of the book contained several plot twists (I guessed two of them). While not my favorite, it certainly wasn’t the worst book I’ve ever read. This was a gothic style mystery about some nasty, privileged rich people. It’s good for what it was, just not what I was looking for. I expected a horror, but none came. I enjoyed Home Before Dark slightly better.

I understand that in this country, books like this are an acquired taste. People like to imagine that the people who live in low-income neighborhoods are lazy and expect everything to be handed to them. But in all actuality, that’s often not the case at all. Those are often the people who not only have to work ten times harder, but will also experience the worst America offers. That is the case with this memoir by Curtis Jackson (50 Cent).

50 Cent talks about how hard it was growing up on the south side of Jamaica, Queens. We learn about his drug-dealing mother, street life, incarceration, drug dealing, how he got shot, his beef with rapper Ja-Rule, and how he made it in the rap industry.

I first read this book in 2005, when it was first released, and I thought it was the best thing ever. But that was during his prime after the Get Rich or Die Tryin and The Massacre albums. He also had the Get Rich or Die Tryin movie releasing the next month. I was a superfan, and he couldn’t do anything wrong.

After reading hundreds of books, I can now say with confidence that although the writing wasn’t great, it was still one hell of a story. He did a lot of telling instead of showing, and we really didn’t get a chance to know the real Curtis Jackson. But he still gives us a lot. Definitely worth the read.

What I enjoyed most was his honesty. But I also liked when he talked about jail, Ja-Rule, and his rap career. I recently read one of his other books, “Hustle Harder, Hustle Smarter,” and that one was way better. Soon, I will read “The Accomplish” and “Playground”, which I own. I give this one 3.75 stars.