Sarah
So beautiful that it hurt. I almost wish I had read this in a single day, but I worry that would have been too destructive for me. This was a hard-hitting reflection on grief that I felt so strongly. When I put the book down, I had tears in my eyes and my chest hurt. The feeling of loss steadily builds over time until we hit a painful crescendo on the last page. Elegy, Southwest is very meandering and it took me a little to settle into the writing style. I struggled with the lack of quotation marks at times, which isn't usually something that bothers me. The stream-of-consciousness narrative also took time to adjust to, but it really fit the story.
As an aside, I highly recommend checking the trigger warnings (Storygraph usually has them listed) if there are any topics you struggle to read. There is one scene in particular that I think may be triggering for some (feel free to DM me if you want/need specifics!).
disclaimer: I received an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for review consideration.
We Used to Live Here gives House of Leaves vibes, but not nearly as chaotic. If you need your books to follow a logical trajectory and don't like being left in the dark – don't read this book. What starts off as more of a psychological thriller quickly turns into more of an existential horror novel. I can't discuss much without delving into spoiler territory, and I honestly recommend going into this cold. I'd seen a few people discuss it, but picked it up without reading the blurb or any reviews and feel like that's the way to go.
I did enjoy following Eve's story. I've seen some people say they don't find her believable, but as someone who has had severe anxiety I found her immensely relatable. I wish we had gotten more time with Charlie because it was difficult to connect to their relationship and I really only felt invested in Eve.
I liked the little breadcrumbs of clues we were fed throughout the novel. Having to keep a morse code translator and google translate pulled up on my phone definitely gave me an interesting reading experience. My only complaint is that the morse code got a little messed up on the kindle version – both on my phone and the kindle itself. Anytime there were 3 dots in a row, they turned into an ellipsis.
After consulting with someone who had already read the book (because my translations were coming out as gibberish and I couldn't tell whether it was supposed to be a puzzle or not), I realized what was happening and was able to translate more accurately for future words. The only exception being one long word where I could not figure out where to break up the dots. If I hadn't had someone to ask, I probably would have completely missed out on this aspect until looking it up after finishing – which would be a shame, because I did feel like it added to the experience.
I did find myself creeped out to the extent that at one point I did have to stop reading at night so I could finish during daylight instead. It really didn't help that I was home alone. I don't think everyone would find this scary, but I definitely did. It so tracks for me that this started on r/NoSleep, it absolutely feels like the kind of story you would follow through a stranger's postings online, wondering what was real and what wasn't.
I did feel like the ending was a little abrupt, but then again I think that's part of the point. We're told no one ever escapes -- so why would Eve be the exception? I'm really intrigued to see how this translates to the screen! Part of me thinks it would be better adapted as a mini-series (wouldn't it be fun to delve more into the asides?), but I hope the movie is good.
WAIT WHAT THE FUCK
–
I grabbed this audiobook from Hoopla on a whim because the book was on my TBR and I couldn't stop playing Balatro but still wanted to read. I was immediately impressed by the production here. This is one of the best audiobooks I've ever listened to. Such a Bad Influence is in part an epistolary novel, with Reddit posts and podcasts and emails. These sections have a full voice cast, which I found incredibly immersive! I do think this is miscategorized as a thriller and that readers looking for a lot of action will be disappointed. The book is really more of a character study with a mystery at its center. I was still completely captivated with it and finished it in just two sittings. I've already recommended the audiobook to several people and will probably keep thinking about this book for a while!
This was a cover buy for me – I kept seeing this beautiful edition at my local bookstore and decided to grab it. Bull Moon Rising was my first Ruby Dixon and definitely won't be my last! This was a cute fun read and I really liked the characters. I did find Aspeth a little obnoxious sometimes, but as a whole I did really like this. Looking forward to the next installment and will be checking out some other Dixon books in the meantime!
With a unique format that I won't spoil, Emily Austin has woven a beautiful story about two very different sisters who grew up under less than ideal circumstances. She touched a lot on the despair and monotony of being stuck in your small hometown. Side note — this book made me cry TWICE and learning that Austin listened to the album Stick Season while writing it really made sense to me. As a queer woman also living (mostly against my will) in the conservative rural already I grew up in, I related to a lot of what Sigrid was feeling.
Deeply emotional, often funny, this is absolutely my favorite novel from Emily Austin so far.
i loooove this series, so i was very bummed that this book didn't work for me. on a technical level, there were more than a few typos. there is a lot of DMing and the structure of that didn't really work visually on either my kindle or my phone because the lines were so awkwardly placed. they also used emojis that were not visible on my kindle so i mostly just guessed what they were. occasionally i would check on my phone because they showed in the kindle app, but that was more work that i wanted to put in. i also didn't love the use of modern slang at first, but it definitely grew on me over the course of the book.
it also takes soooooooo long to get to the spice, which is not typical of this series. the first sex scene was around 80% in, and there's only a second briefer scene. the pacing was also an issue for me with how drawn out everything is, only to be solved in what felt like a matter of seconds.and speaking of how it was solved! i'm really not fond of the fact that Ranar actually sold his family's shop and that Sumi is going to continue working for the corporate overlords we all know are bad. the natural outcome to me would be for them to combine efforts and for Sumi to work in the family shop so that Ranar can step back from that piece of it. but what do i know! i guess this is better!
i tried to persevere because i do adore this series, but this one really didn't hit for me. hoping the next one that comes out is more my cup of tea.
i ended up skimming a lot of this after reading the first couple chapters and realizing it wouldn't be anything groundbreaking. there are a handful of things i found helpful, but this was largely a regurgitation of most of the financial advice already out there.
if you don't already understand feminism 101 and/or if this is your first finance book, you may learn something new. otherwise, this is just a run of the mill financial advice book tied in white cishet feminism. while the book acknowledges intersectionality, those sections are more about facts than about how those who are marginalized may need to navigate finance differently.
the self promotion gave me a bit of an ick too. i understand authors promoting their own work, but it felt disingenuous for her to dissuade readers from using professional investing help while suggesting her own course as an alternative.
As a hypochondriac, the typical response when I'm panicking is to acknowledge it will end. At some point, I will cease to be convinced that I have a brain tumor, or a stomach ulcer, or some degenerative condition of the nerves, and so at some point, the bad thing will end. When something bad is actually happening, it's easy to underreact, because a part of you is wired to assume it isn't real. When you stop underreacting, the horror is unique because it is, unfortunately, endless.
I'm glad I went into this knowing to expect a slow literary novel. I think classifying this as a horror novel alone does it a disservice — there are horrifying aspects but to me they are secondary to the internal lives of these characters and their relationships. Readers going in with the wrong expectations may not be happy about what they find.
I find it ironic that I purchased this while waiting for visiting hours to start at the hospital where my dad had been admitted after having a stroke. I was deep in my anticipatory grief; he had already been diagnosed with advanced bladder cancer. Once at the hospital, I only made it 7 pages before he threw a tantrum because he wanted his vape. I couldn't really blame him. Then I didn't pick this up again for almost two years.
Since my dad's passing — especially during the first year — grief horror has been instrumental to my healing. At the time I bought this, I didn't realize how relevant it would feel. Armfield did a fantastic job conveying the overwhelming numbness and even the frustration one feels during these periods of anticipatory grief. The mundane world feels like it no longer matters. Who cares about emails when you're losing someone so important? Why won't my loved one listen to me when I know how to help them? Miri pushes for help and answers, while Leah knows something inevitable is coming.
With a slow start, Our Wives Under the Sea is propelled by a slowly mounting feeling of dread. I entered the novel confused, frustrated at the lack of clarity. As things built, I understood the feelings Armfield was trying to convey. Although an entirely different situation than my own, I felt deeply connected to Miri's emotional journey. This is more personal essay than book review, but I hope I've gotten across how much this book meant to me. While I see why this wouldn't work for some, I think Julia Armfield is an incredibly talented writer and I look forward to picking up more of her work.
my average for these stories was a mean of 3.14 (median of 3), but i'd give the collection as a whole a 3.5. there was enough in here that really got me thinking. i was excited to be introduced to new worlds and to see glimpses of ones i had already read from before. this has definitely amped me up to read more of Jemisen's books. i just wish i had loved more of these. i still highly recommend the collection, the ideas in here are just amazing.
1.5 ⭐️
I loved the concept – 25 chapters for 25 days, a horror advent calendar. We start with our protagonists on December 1st and follow them in real time, day-by-day. The first half of this book really worked for me. I didn't want to stop reading and having to wait for the next day amped up the anticipation so much. But then it fell off.
In the afterword, the author says that they came up with the concept of an advent horror before thinking about the plot. I think that becomes clear the deeper we get. As we move further along with the family, it no longer feels like a full day is passing between chapters. We're supposed to believe Adam has dragged himself along for days with a gunshot wound -- in the snow, in the cold. He is barely able to cling to consciousness, yet he's able to get to his family and help to save them. Completely unrealistic!
At one point, the youngest daughter (who I believe is somewhere around 9 years old) thinks to herself “only to see it dissolve right in front of them like a fata morgana in a desert.” I'm 32 and had to look up fata morgana; I'm not saying I have the best vocabulary but I am saying a child is not thinking the words ‘fata morgana' to herself.
Things just felt increasingly far-fetched as the book went on. The tension was good in places, but for the most part I didn't feel very invested in the family's story. None of them felt like real people to me, and the unrealistic elements sapped a lot of my emotional investment. I got to the point where I truly dreaded picking it up daily and wished it was over. I only kept the advent schtick going because I had gotten this far, so I might as well keep it up.
I feel bad tearing this to shreds but the writing was just... not good. I think a lot of these elements would have been amusing on the big screen (so bad it's good, etc.), but having to read it took out any enjoyment I could have had. I'm not sure why it started good but fell off so badly – I think the author probably needed to spend more time plotting things out and putting more heart into the story. In the end, we're not even left with a villain or a motive. I'm glad the ending wasn't a happily-ever-after copout, but I was still left deeply dissatisfied with the time I spent on this novel.
Definitely not a new favorite, but there were some standouts in this collection. The Last Rung on the Ladder in particular had me tearing up at the end. I have to give King credit, because even the stories I didn't like were compelling enough for me to zip through them. Sometimes I can struggle with his writing, but it really worked for me here. I did find myself unsatisfied with some of the pieces and as always the fatphobia (etc.) is rough, but overall I did find it worth reading. My average rating for these stories came to 2.74 stars.
Jerusalem's Lot - 3.5 ⭐️
Graveyard Shift 4 ⭐️
Night Surf - 2 ⭐️
I Am The Doorway - 4 ⭐️
The Mangler - 4 ⭐️
The Boogeyman - 3 ⭐️
Gray Matter - 3 ⭐️
Battleground - 2 ⭐️
Trucks - 2 ⭐️
Sometimes They Come Back - 3 ⭐️
Strawberry Spring - 3 ⭐️
The Ledge - 2 ⭐️
The Lawnmower Man - 2 ⭐️
Quitters, Inc - 2 ⭐️
I Know What You Need - 2 ⭐️
Children of the Corn - 3 ⭐️
The Last Rung on the Ladder - 4 ⭐️
The Man Who Loved Flowers - 2 ⭐️
One For The Road - 2.5 ⭐️
The Woman in the Room - 2 ⭐️
Found a lot of the tidbits in this genuinely helpful but I did have to skim a lot, especially toward the beginning. The constant celebrity name-dropping and self-advertising became tiresome very quickly. I've seen a lot of reviews saying he has essentially stolen and/or consolidated a lot of previous work in the field, but can't speak to that myself. I'll definitely be going through and working on a lot of the exercises, but I also plan to pick up some books by Tony Buzan (who other reviewers have recommended). There really is a lot to take away here, just be prepared to slog through some parts and focus on what you feel like will be most beneficial to you.
oh my god i love Murderbot
–
All Murderbot wants is to stay away from humans and watch their soap operas. Unfortunately, some wonky things start happening and they're forced to work with their human team to figure out what's going on. I really enjoyed this! Murderbot's dry sense of humor made me love them and while I wasn't super invested in the plot, this was incredibly readable and fun enough to get through in just a couple sittings. This is pretty “soft” sci-fi, so I think those who aren't deep into the genre will still enjoy it.
