Not sure how to interpret this book, but I am in love with Ishiguro's writing.Not sure how to interpret this book, but I am in love with Ishiguro's writing....more
I can't really rate this since these are both unfinished novels.
I have tried to read Sanditon years ago and dnf'ed it. The Watsons I have finally read I can't really rate this since these are both unfinished novels.
I have tried to read Sanditon years ago and dnf'ed it. The Watsons I have finally read and enjoyed it. Emma seemed like an interesting character....more
I tried so hard to finish this book but I can't read this anymore.
The way Islam was mixed with fantasy was too much for me. Either ShaDNF at page 267.
I tried so hard to finish this book but I can't read this anymore.
The way Islam was mixed with fantasy was too much for me. Either Shannon Chakraborty doesn't know anything about Islam or she wrote all of the misinformation on purpose.
Firstly, this is a personal gripe of mine but I hate it when authors write religious main characters but make them non-practising religious people. I understand that there are many religious people who are like this but Amina al-Sirafi constantly told the reader that she was trying to be better but we never see her actually try to be better. She drinks, steals, kills and even (view spoiler)[marries a demon which didn't make any sense to me because demons exist in Christianity and not in Islam. When Amina asks Raksh if he is a djinn he says "not a djinn, no. Though it's a bit hard to explain; your language no longer have a good word for what I am. I used to be worshipped as a god." (hide spoiler)]
Second, I know this is a fiction book but mixing Prophet Suleiman's story with fantasy did not sit well with me. Chakraborty also mentions faes and different creatures throughout the book and I don't understand what she was trying to do here? Are there also vampires in this universe? I was so lost on the world building.
Third, on chapter 5, there is a small part about slavery. Amina says that some people believe that slavery is allowed in Islam but she believes it can't be allowed because she has seen how terrible it is. Slavery was a reality at the time. Freeing slaves is encouraged in the Quran. I have never read or heard anyone say that it is permissible to "sell your own kids to enhance your lives". I found that part confusing and I wondered what the author was really trying to say.
I tried to forget that this book had anything to do with Islam and I tried to imagine the MC non-muslim so I could at least enjoy the story but islamic themes are the main focus of the story. They are all written from a westernized view so I can't make myself finish this book anymore.
I loved the writing. It was so atmospheric and everything was so easy to picture. I would love to see a movie *3.5*
I don't know how to rate this book.
I loved the writing. It was so atmospheric and everything was so easy to picture. I would love to see a movie adaptation for this. I also felt every frustration and sadness Abitha felt.
But Samson was such a letdown. He fell flat next to Abitha. I only wanted to learn more about her throughout the whole book.
It also dragged in the middle. It could have been a shorter book.
I still think this is worth a read if you like an atmospheric horror book with a great main character....more
This is a very slow-paced atmospheric book about fantastical cannibal horses that come from the sea.
I loved the atmosphere and the horses. The charactThis is a very slow-paced atmospheric book about fantastical cannibal horses that come from the sea.
I loved the atmosphere and the horses. The characters were interesting enough but since this is a YA book the main character annoyed me at times. There is also a slow-burn romance but the main focus of the story is -in short- the nature. I could feel the love these two main characters had for the island, the horses, the sea. Even though everyone else tried to get away and find better lives in the mainland Puck and Sean loved living in the island.
This book wasn't for me but I still appreciated the atmosphere and I lowkey want to ride a horse now lol...more
It's nice to finish a trilogy but weirdly enough this didn't feel like the last book of a trilogy. It felt like a filler book.
Everything wraps up*3.5*
It's nice to finish a trilogy but weirdly enough this didn't feel like the last book of a trilogy. It felt like a filler book.
Everything wraps up in the last 100 pages, Apollo's POVs were unnecessary and if I was a Jacks fan going into this series I would be so upset that Apollo had more scenes than Jacks.
There were also so many unanswered questions. (view spoiler)[what happened to Aurora, Luc and Marisol? Why was LaLa even a side character she literally added nothing to the storyline (i guess she might be the next trilogy's mc but I felt nothing towards her) What was the point of the apples??? Jacks just could have said he loved them at the end and I would have been fine with it but he cryptically says "i don't need them anymore" WHY? I wanted closure with the Luc, Marisol story. I wanted to learn more about the Valors. (hide spoiler)]
The overall explanation was a bit weak for me. I know it is a fairytale-esque book and fairytales usually have pretty simple storylines but I felt like this story was leading to a more complex ending than it was.
I also wanted more from the romances. All of the relationships felt surface level to me.
That being said, I love Stephanie Garber's easy-to-get-into writing and her atmosphere is so well done. My favourite thing about this trilogy is the main character, Evangeline. She is unlike any other YA fantasy MC I have read. She is hopeful and such a romantic which I found very endearing.
Overall, I would give this series a 3.5 stars and recommend it to people who love fairytales and want to get more into the fantasy genre. It is easy to read and it has very little world building....more
I honestly don't know why I picked this book up since I don't like exorcisms or satanic horror books in general. I liked the focus of childhood best fI honestly don't know why I picked this book up since I don't like exorcisms or satanic horror books in general. I liked the focus of childhood best friends. Everyone needs a best friend like Abby. But I wanted this to be either more campy and fun or dive more deeply into the themes. Like toxic friendships....more
I am really enjoying this trilogy but I feel like I still don't know enough about Jacks to truly love the romance. I love Evangeline and how pure she I am really enjoying this trilogy but I feel like I still don't know enough about Jacks to truly love the romance. I love Evangeline and how pure she is but I find it odd that she keeps forgiving Jacks even though he doesn't do anything to deserve her forgiveness. Maybe not reading the Caraval trilogy first was a mistake in my part. I might have known Jacks a lot better maybe?
The ending was very fun and I am looking forward to read the last book. I am just hoping for more romance....more
"What's the one thing we haven't tried to stop whatever this is between us?" "Murder?"
I am not a huge fan of small town romances but for better or wors"What's the one thing we haven't tried to stop whatever this is between us?" "Murder?"
I am not a huge fan of small town romances but for better or worse I loved being in Knockemout.
I didn't love the rest of the trilogy like I loved the first book but I still liked the setting and the interactions between all of the characters.
Not going to lie, I expected much more from Lucian and Sloane's book but alas, I found the relationship development here non-existent. In one chapter they 'hated' each other in the next they were ready to be together forever. For once in my life I wanted more flashbacks. At least we could have seen how they were like when they were teenagers.
Lucian said way too many unforgivable things to Sloane to be so quickly forgiven like that. I expected his grovel to be fun but we didn't have that either.
I also don't understand why Lucy Score keeps putting a mystery in her books. Are there readers who actually like the mysteries in her books? I usually skim read those parts because I know it is going to be solved in one page at the end of the book and that was the case here.
Even though I wanted more from the romance (and less from the mystery) I still love these characters and their heartwarming interactions. (that snowball fight in the beginning was so cute) It really feels like I get transported to a small town for a few days.
This series gives me the same vibes as Gilmore Girls for some reason and even for that reason alone I would highly recommend it. Well, at least the first book....more
This is so clearly written in the 80s that I am not surprised it is very outdated. There are so many problematic scenes that I don't know where to staThis is so clearly written in the 80s that I am not surprised it is very outdated. There are so many problematic scenes that I don't know where to start.
- The very stereotypical jewish characters were laughably bad. The author actually describes Susie as "plump but at least she doesn't have the classic jew nose and hair". These are secondary characters but still very close to the main character. Susie doesn't accept Tom's proposal just because she is insecure about her looks and what does Tom say when she tells him that he is so beautiful but she is plump and probably going to be "fat in 10 years" and she also needs glasses most of the time??? He says "I never said you were beautiful. I never thought it. I said that you were you. HOW DOES SHE ACTUALLY MARRY THIS GUY I HAVE NO IDEA.
- The evil fiance being into eugenics. This plot point was so messed up it was actually funny to me.
- The main character, Anna was absolutely perfect. When I say perfect I mean she is absolutely a robot. She has zero flaws and the only emotion she feels is happiness. She is happy even when she has to go to England because of war and has to work as a maid in a completely foreign country where she knows none of the customs. She never struggles because she is just so lovable by everyone and she is a hardworker. The only questionable thing she does is falling in love with the Earl who is supposed to marry the eugenics girl. But falling in love with someone else's fiance is never questioned in this book so no worries.
- The hero Rupert is a creep and I don't understand how we are supposed to like him. The first time they meet is when he stumbles upon her when she is having a bath in a river. He knows that she is a maid and does not go away but actually watches her............. There is a scene where he implies that he wants her to stay in his bedroom at night. He has a fiance and he is her employer at this point. At least she had enough sense to run away from him at that scene. How was I supposed to like this guy and root for them when the only "romantic" scenes were where Rupert was being a creep?
- Rupert's 80 year old uncle was molesting the maids throughout his whole life and Rupert's fiance is the only one who thinks this is disgusting but we are supposed to feel bad for the uncle........ Was there really a time when being a molester was fine if he didn't go "too far"??????? What am I actually reading???
There were more weird things happening but these were the main problems I had with the book.
It was very readable and I felt like the secondary characters were fleshed out well so I'm giving this a weak 2 stars instead of 1....more
How can you make a book about bargaining with faes boring? Instead we got agriculture, blatant feminism and badly dealt domestic abuse.
there are some How can you make a book about bargaining with faes boring? Instead we got agriculture, blatant feminism and badly dealt domestic abuse.
there are some spoilers in my review if you actually care to read this book!
This book is 400 pages long; the first 200 pages is the blurb, the next 100 pages is the sisters trying to get rid of the man by making a deal with the fae and making things worse, the last 100 pages is the most boring rescue mission of all time. (I still think the way she rescued the girl made no sense whatsoever.)
I am actually offended by the fae origins here. I also don't understand how these sisters can be the heroes since they literally messed everything up (even messed up the fae realm). And she has the nerve to get mad when the fae accuse her. (How dare the proper lady be the villain instead of the fae woman?? The audacity of these fae folk)
Poor Jack. He was the only sensible character here but he is turned into a very minor side character since this is supposed to be a Feminist book and men should support the heroine while never questioning her choices because that's what real men do. (this man's kid was kidnapped by the fae because of her wife and sister in law and he doesn't even question it.) And why not throw into a F/F kiss since this is a Feminist book?
I am trying so hard to find something I enjoyed so I don't give this book a 1 star rating but unfortunately, I didn't even like the writing style. It was too wordy, and the pacing was so freaking slow.
This book is for people who love historical fiction but want a bit of magic.
I'll just go and reread Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries to cleanse my brain....more
I have only read Mistborn and Skyward by Brandon Sanderson before this so I can't say I know anything about his Cosmere universe. I don't even know whI have only read Mistborn and Skyward by Brandon Sanderson before this so I can't say I know anything about his Cosmere universe. I don't even know who Hoid is.
BUT!
I loved this book. The characters were lovable. The narration was so much fun. The seas of spores were so interesting, and the little romance we had was adorable.
So what more can I want from a Princess Bride inspired story?
Brandon Sanderson calls this an adult fairytale but in my opinion it doesn't read like a fairytale and it is more YA than adult.
This might be the only book I loved about pirates. For some reason no one captures the right tone when it comes to pirates. That being said, this reads more like pirates for YA readers. So don't expect this to be a dark pirate read but more of an adventure story that takes place on the sea (that is not actually a sea).
If you like epic fantasy from Sanderson this might not be for you. But if you are looking for a fun, kind of a cozy fantasy, this is a must read....more
How can a main character make every wrong decision ever throughout the whole book? I understand that she is nineteen but she has no sense whatsoe*2.5*
How can a main character make every wrong decision ever throughout the whole book? I understand that she is nineteen but she has no sense whatsoever. She doesn't even care about the price she pays since she gets what she wants at the end anyway.
I loved the historical setting with dragons. A woman scholar going on a different country to research dragons? Sign me up. I blame Emily Wilde for expecting something more from this.
This is written like a memoir which is fun as an idea but in execution it is dreadfully boring. I wanted more dragons, more intrigue and less annoying characters.
I know it is very realistic for a group of privileged people to go to a small town for an expedition and not care about any of the culture or poor people there but wow this made me mad. Disrupting their daily lives is one thing but having the audacity to look down on the people and not even care to get to know their culture and even see them as human beings? I wish the fantasy aspect of the book was having good mannered and kind privileged people as main characters.
Since I did enjoy the setting and one character (poor Jacob... I wish he had someone looking out for him) I still liked this book. But this could have been an easy 5 star book for me if... well, if it was exactly like Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries, I guess....more
"I have no idea who you are or what you're capable of. Your dreams, your fears---" "My dream is to be with you. And my biggest fear," I said, my voice "I have no idea who you are or what you're capable of. Your dreams, your fears---" "My dream is to be with you. And my biggest fear," I said, my voice low and ragged with emotion. "Is losing you."
It is so wrong of me to want a Christian in my life since he... tortures and kills people.
I ask this everytime I finish one of the Twisted books but I ask again, HOW IS THIS NOT A MAFIA ROMANCE?
Anyway, I didn't really love the first 3 books but I am happy that I finished this series because this book had the "touch her and you die" hero I wanted. Christian is the best love interest in this series and I don't know what that says about me. He is the anti-hero, morally grey character -whatever you want to call him- but did I still love him? Sure. What I need from a hero is not roses and pretty words. I want him to be obsessed with the heroine and Christian was definitely an obsessed hero from start to finish. So how was I supposed to not root for him?
My only complaints about this book are the length and of course the third act break up. This book is nearly 600 pages long and it really didn't have to be that long. There were many things that could have caused the break up near the end but the reason was so stupid to me. (view spoiler)[Like who actually cares if Christian did a through background check on Stella? It was all public records and he didn't stalk her or anything. If I had the ability to do a background check like Christian I would definitely do it to every guy I thought about dating or liked. I thought the break up would be about him torturing and killing people but I guess that doesn't concern Stella. (hide spoiler)]
Even though I don't really have any strong feelings towards any of the couples in this series I still loved the epilogue and all the other scenes the 8 of them hung out with each other.
Was Christian worth reading the first 3 books in this series? To be honest, he kind of was. He knows how to make a girl feel special.
5 stars for Christian 3 stars for the book soooo 4 stars?...more
I haven't read the Caraval trilogy but since everyone has been raving about this I had to give it a chance.
Not knowing Jacks's backstory might have beI haven't read the Caraval trilogy but since everyone has been raving about this I had to give it a chance.
Not knowing Jacks's backstory might have been better since I didn't know whether I could trust Jacks or not, and it was so much fun!
This book was very fast paced and interesting. I was scared it would read like a fairytale -since I don't like fairytale-esque books- but it was more fantastical than whimsical in my opinion.
Evangeline is not a naive but a hopeful main character and I couldn't help but love her even though she did make some stupid mistakes.
One thing I found lacking was the secondary characters. I wanted more from Prince Apollo and his brother. That being said, Marisol was a very interesting side character. Her complicated relationship with Evangeline was so fun to read about.
I am looking forward to reading the next book since I am so curious how the romance will play out, and also the mystery is more complex than a typical YA fantasy....more
First of all, I have to say I am not the target audience for this. I rarely like high fantasy and I don't carWesternized chinese history with shamans.
First of all, I have to say I am not the target audience for this. I rarely like high fantasy and I don't care for fantasy that is heavily inspired by real history. Put in the fact that I love romance in my fantasy... I knew going into this that I was out of my comfort zone. BUT I love reading out of my comfort zone and find a new favourite book, and I went into this book with an open mind.
I expected something along the lines of Attack on Titan and what I got was... a westernized look of chinese history with a wattpad level of writing. I loved the ideas here but the execution was very lacking. I was scared of the trigger warnings this book has but since the writing and the characters were lacking the dark atmosphere was not successful.
The characters were all over the place. I knew no one even after reading 500 pages. Rin acted in a certain way in one chapter and acted completely like a different character in another scene. The relationship dynamics were also inconsistent. They were friends in one scene and in the next they were enemies. There was no development or dialogue to make the friendships feel sincere.
I didn't care who lived or died because I felt nothing reading this book except for maybe frustration because there was so much potential but R.F. Kuang does not have the ability to write this story.
2 stars for the potential because I loved the idea of shamans....more
I need to read more japanese fiction since I love the soothing writing japanese literature generally has.
This*3.5*
Melancholic, touching and beautiful.
I need to read more japanese fiction since I love the soothing writing japanese literature generally has.
This one was about a world where the Memory Police dissapeared objects... and more. The dissapearences might be small like harmonicas or pretty big like living creatures, birds and roses.
The story is not plot-driven. It was more of a sociological and psychological read.
I loved the first half. The writing is beautiful. The japanese culture and the setting were interesting. But the second half dragged and I found myself skimming a little to finish the book. The ending was perfect for the story and overall I found the book interesting and melancholic in a beautiful way so I'm rounding my rating up to a 4....more
"If not for him you could be halfway around the planet by now. What price do you put on love, Devon Fairweather?" She knew that answer by heart. "*3.5*
"If not for him you could be halfway around the planet by now. What price do you put on love, Devon Fairweather?" She knew that answer by heart. "No price. There isn't one. Love doesn't have a cost. It's just a choice you make."
I am a little conflicted about this book.
On one hand, I loved how uniquely it talked about family trauma, tradition and motherhood. How it paralleled the British empire. The ideas about the book eater and mind eater origins. The writing was very atmospheric and I loved how the books were served like human food. It was not just about a mother trying to protect her son but also had politics and deeper reflections on raising children but specifically raising girls. It even talked about the impact of books that we consume as kids or even when we are much older.
I loved ALL of that. It was so well thought out and interesting. But sometimes it just read like a -as Jarrow said- "a low budget action movie." And I hated those parts. I didn't want this book to be an adventure story. I wanted it to be fully philosophical and dived deeply about the origins of eaters. I wanted to see the Collector. I wanted to see Salem and Devon talk. I wanted more pshilosophical and fantasy talk.
I know that would make the book for a specific audience and the author wanted to make the book more exciting, I suppose. But in this case, the book felt like it was trying to be two things at once. It wanted to be a serious book AND a low budget action movie at the same time. This is already for a specific audience. No one who is looking for a fun adventure story going to like this book because it is too deep. No one who is looking for a deep story going to like this book because it has too much action. So even though I was confused why this book had such a low rating when I first started the book, at the half way point I knew why. Because it is trying to be two conflicting things at once.
I am still looking forward to reading more from this author because I loved her ideas and her writing. But I hope she will find her footing with her next book....more
This book is about so many things. Loving stories, how growing up changes your relationships even with your sister, grieving and finding your soulmateThis book is about so many things. Loving stories, how growing up changes your relationships even with your sister, grieving and finding your soulmate.
I can't believe this is the adult romance I absolutely loved from Emily Henry. I didn't connect with her two other books like I connected with this one.
I loved that the main characters were the city loving people rather than the smalltown people even though smalltown romances are so popular this year. This was about the cold, career-obsessed woman rather than the sunshine character. Even though I absolutely adore grumpy x sunshine romances this grumpy x grumpy romance was perfection. It talked about the classic tropes and made the characters and the situations more realistic. But not too realistic that it didn't feel like a romance novel.
The grief in Beach Read was the main thing I loved about that book, so I wasn't surprised that Nora's grief was handled so well here.
I have seen people complaining about the sister relationship here but to me it was so well done. Relationships with any of your family members are always so complicated. I think Emily Henry captured that complexity. The fact that Nora always put her sister first in her life the only way she knew how was so touching and beautiful.
As for the romance, this has the best banters I have read in awhile. The way Nora and Charlie interacted made me believe that they were soulmates pretty early on in the story. This book was maybe more focused on the sister relationship and Nora's character development but her relationship with Charlie was so beautiful and so easy to root for. I loved how they understood each other so perfectly.
I'm so happy to say that I finally have a Emily Henry book that I love....more
"I tell you a single sad story and your defenses weaken that easily? Against me? You lovely little fool, you're going to get yourself killed."
I k*3.5*
"I tell you a single sad story and your defenses weaken that easily? Against me? You lovely little fool, you're going to get yourself killed."
I knew I would find Cyrus more interesting than Kamran (though I have to say Kamran's change in appearance definitely made him more interesting in this book) but what I didn't expect was to ship Kamran with Miss Huda??? I mean don't get me wrong the few scenes they have Kamran is acting like a spoiled kid but I still felt something could happen between them and I am invested.
Aside from the romance subplots this book didn't really have a plot going on but I still had fun. I do love Tahereh Mafi's writing and characters. It also helps that her books are so easy to read. This book is 400 pages long but it reads like 200. Especially because all of this book takes place in 2 days. Maybe even less than that.
I am having fun with this series but I wish she didn't decide to make this a 5 book series. I think this is going to stretch out way too much. I heard the third book also takes place in a few days.
I am still planning on finishing the series -like I said I do love Mafi's writing- but I don't think I will be buying the physical copies even though they are so pretty.
a spoilery P.S but I have to comment on the scene where she cleaned Cyrus' injuries with HER TEARS??? lmao And the very dramatic love confession from Cyrus was a bit too much. But again, I'm having fun lol...more
Loading...
