2.5 As a reader, believe me when I say I want nothing more than to be a girl who likes things, (don’t ask how this coexists with my self-identificatio2.5 As a reader, believe me when I say I want nothing more than to be a girl who likes things, (don’t ask how this coexists with my self-identification as a hater and a proud one at that, I won’t have an answer for you.) so going into my first Claire Keegan, I was expecting to fall head-over-heels.
This story reminded me quite a lot of ‘Stoner’ by John Williams, which has a similar kind of “vibe” as this, but while Stoner’s mundanity was somehow page-turning, ‘Small Things Like These’ bored me between the occasional quotable line.
Before reading this, I had just finished Dara Horn’s segment about “Righteous Gentiles” (people who rescued Jews from the Holocaust) from her book ‘People Love Dead Jews,’ and in this, she writes, “The shame [of needing to be saved from the Nazis] is only highlighted by the enormous difference in the experience for the rescuers and the rescued. For those rescued, it was the worst time of their lives, when their lives had the least significance. For the rescuers, it was the best time of their lives, when their lives mattered most.” And though I can recognize the moving symbolism and ties back to the experience of Furlong’s mother at the end, this quote was all I could think of as I read the novella’s final pages.
Several moments of poignancy in this short read packed quite the punch (who could deny that,) so I can see why people enjoyed it! This one happened to fall a bit flat for me, but if you’re someone who loves a good short story, especially when Christmas is involved, this could definitely be worth your time!...more
DNF at 75%, How I wish I loved this one as much as everybody else does!!
As Long As The Lemon Trees Grow is no doubt a very important story; anything tDNF at 75%, How I wish I loved this one as much as everybody else does!!
As Long As The Lemon Trees Grow is no doubt a very important story; anything that sparks awareness in people (especially young people) when it comes to tragedies in our modern world is a net positive in my eyes, so my issues lie solely in how this was written and executed.
I know this is YA so I’ll try to cut it some slack, but I found the writing here to be quite juvenile and downright cringy at times. Of course there are going to be books in the genre that lean a bit younger / towards middle grade, but our protagonist is 18 so that doesn’t exactly add up for me.
As for the romance… I’m so sorry but you’d have to try HARD to write something more corny. From the cookie cutter perfect love interest who can’t make a mistake to save his life, to the many declarations of love without any actual chemistry, to the fact that it took up sooooooo much of the story, I was sick of it.
The rest of the plot (sans the romance) I found to be lacking as well. The same few conflicts repeated themselves over and over with hardly any variation, and while I get that it probably makes for a more realistic depiction of the real life events the novel is based on, it’s very annoying to read.
I will say the plot twist was well-written and did surprise me (though I didn’t feel enough attachment to the characters to actually… care, unfortunately), and Khawf as a character was definitely one of, if not the most, compelling part of the book as a whole. Another thing I really enjoyed was how important religion was to these characters, and how they never strayed from it even when things like a blossoming romance could’ve gotten in the way of their values. That’s something I think we’re seeing a lot less often in YA as time goes on, and it was really refreshing to read as a young person who wants to be more religious!
Overall I didn’t HATE this, but the writing style and execution ended up not being my cup of tea, and that’s okay!! Life is too short to finish books you aren’t enjoying....more
2.5 Now, Edith Wharton is certainly a talented writer; I loved how atmospheric the setting was (especially while reading it as snow fell outside my wi2.5 Now, Edith Wharton is certainly a talented writer; I loved how atmospheric the setting was (especially while reading it as snow fell outside my window), the metaphors throughout the book, and the prose filled to the brim with gut-wrenching lines that I couldn’t help but annotate.
The story in general though? Safe to say it wasn’t my favorite.
Here’s the thing about tragic romances; I love them, they are quite possibly my favorite “trope” in literature, but the couple absolutely HAS to have tension and chemistry or it’s hard for me to care at all. The fact that the characters were in love was clear, I mean it’s written on the page, but I really wish there had been more visible passion between them.
If we’re talking big picture though; I don’t think the theme of the book has anything to do with romance, so is that criticism even justified?
Had I gone into this knowing it was less of a doomed romance and more of a commentary on how the societal rules and expectations can suffocate us, I probably would have enjoyed it more. In my defense, I had heard that the conclusion was quite explosive so I tried to know as little as possible going in to avoid spoilers; false expectations have little to do with the book itself.
SPOILERS
As for the ending; I enjoyed the irony of it and how the roles were reversed in the household, but also… what was that??
It could be because we hardly get to know Mattie and her thought process throughout the book, but that shit really seemed to come out of nowhere and I know this is a low blow; but why tobogganing into a tree??? Wasn’t there a pond like 2 miles away?? Just drown or something, sledding into an elm tree isn’t going to work out very well.. clearly. Who knows, maybe all 19th century couples were crazy like that; you just had to be there!
I might say that Ethan Frome could do with an extra 100 pages, but then again; Giovanni’s Room, another tragic love story with deeper themes, is around the same length and managed to pack a far greater punch in my opinion. Oh well. Despite my issues with the story and pacing, (I was a little bored the first half, I can’t lie) I enjoyed Wharton’s writing and the general themes quite a lot. Definitely looking forward to reading more of her in the future, I guess this just wasn’t a hit for me!...more
Picture this; it's a sweltering summer day in June and when you first step outside, the warmth envelopes you in a cozy, sun kissed hug. It’s nice, rigPicture this; it's a sweltering summer day in June and when you first step outside, the warmth envelopes you in a cozy, sun kissed hug. It’s nice, right? That is, until the warm embrace morphs into a claustrophobic straight-jacket of overwhelming heat which leaves your sweating, sunburnt self wishing you'd never stepped outdoors. Aaaand that’s exactly how I feel about this book!
It’s safe to say I had high hopes since I know soooo many people adore it, and I’ll admit this started off very strong! The fish-out-of-water trope was intriguing, the setting and imagery was promising, and Piper’s characterization was so funny and well done in my opinion. But unfortunately by the halfway point, this initial charm had worn off and I was impatient to finish the book.
My biggest issue with It Happened One Summer was the constant gender essentialism that’s forced down the readers throat every 30 seconds, especially in the sex scenes. “He’s so manly” “His cock was so… male” “She’s so feminine and tiny” “He’s so big and strong and masculine” LIKE PLEASE SHUT UPPPPPP. I could gather from the cover that this is a straight romance, and did not need the reminders! That shit always makes me soooo uncomfortable and puts a bad taste in my mouth, it’s so fucking weird and tainted my reading experience greatly. Any time someone refers to a vagina as someone’s “femininity” I get nauseous, and this was no exception!
The progression of the romance in this book also struck me as quite strange. I’m not sure if this was intended to be enemies to lovers, but the pacing from one to the other felt odd and lacked feeling. We know Brendan loves Piper, but why?? The thing he talks about most and what initially drew him to her was sexual attraction, and while there’s nothing wrong with that… it’s not enough to call love. Their tension was obvious, and I enjoyed that aspect, but when they went from sex to thinking about marriage and children within a few chapters, it caught me off gaurd. My opinions on Brendan are complicated in general; I enjoyed how communicative he was and thought he was a good guy (which is sadly rare in this genre…), but his character lacked development, especially when you compare him to Piper. There’s nothing (that’s a lie) I hate more than a hollow love interest and while I think some depth was attempted, Brendan felt sooo shallow.
And those sex scenes???? Maybe it was because I listened to this as an audiobook, but having the words “she took his sack and juggled him gently” spoken into my ear was a somewhat traumatizing experience. I’ll admit, I’m not a huge smut reader so my opinions on it are not educated and completely subjective, but I usually end up enjoying “bad” smut more than “good” smut because when it’s bad, it is SO funny. This shit had my stomach hurting and tears rolling down my face from laughter; it was honestly my favorite part of reading this and I don’t regret it at all.
Overall, this was promising… until it wasn’t. I wish I enjoyed it more, but sadly it wasn’t a hit for me :/ I’m glad certain aspects of it were memorable though, and I have a feeling I’ll look back and laugh about this quite often in the future....more
1.5 You know what, maybe I’m the bad guy. Could it be that I just don’t know a good book when I read one? Perhaps I have a desperate need to hate all 1.5 You know what, maybe I’m the bad guy. Could it be that I just don’t know a good book when I read one? Perhaps I have a desperate need to hate all things popular… Or maybe, just MAYBE, a truly awful book has once again paved its way to fame and a TV adaptation! Why? I have not a clue, but here we are again trying to make sense of it all.
Not to judge a book by its cover, but by looking at the title and summary alone you can pretty (pun intended) much tell what fuckery you’ll find on the inside, and I honestly respect that transparency! We have our teenage-girl-with-quirky-name who’s been ignored by her two childhood friends all her life until one fateful day she ditches the glasses, grows a pair of tits, and suddenly they both want her! Due to this newfound horny-teenage-boy attention, Belly has “turned pretty” and now has to choose between them! Isn’t that every girl’s summer dream? Every night I lie awake praying that one day I’ll have two douchey immature male specimens fawning after my douchey immature self, all in a beach house during the summer! What a life that must be.
I wish I could say that our lovely MC, Belly’s unfortunate name was her only crime against humanity, but in this first book alone she has several on her hands. I’ll try to cut her some slack in the “pick-me girl” department since shaming teen girls for chasing the male gaze is just another way of putting each other down, and when you grow up surrounded by boys; I get it! However, that is where my leeway ends with this recycled America Singer of a main character because my GOD, Belly is insufferable in every sense of the word.
Somewhere between her begging to be treated as an adult while behaving like a child, her animosity for her mother (who did nothing), and the weeks she led on Cam in order to make C*nr*d jealous, the waters of my rage against this girl began to boil! And that’s not even it!! If I were to list everything this girl did that made me want to punt her halfway to Mars, we would be here all day. The only (temporary) relief to my suffering came at the end when FINALLY C*nr*d told her what she deserved to hear, it’s the only time I’ll ever cheer for that douchey immature male specimen, he spilled!
Of course, this consolation only lasts about 5 minutes before Belly starts making out with him, because that’s obviously the best way to comfort someone that has verbally stated that they want nothing to do with you and also just found out their mom has cancer, right? According to Belly and the tone of the book itself, apparently so!
The discussion surrounding consent in this book is actually appalling, almost to the point of being funny. We of course have Belly kissing C*nr*d when he’s clearly distressed and had rejected her the day before, but we also have Jeremiah kissing Belly even after she tried pushing him off, AND we have Belly going on a whole rant about asking for consent being “weird”. Not to be a Karen on the tl, but is this seriously the bullshit we want pumped into kids brains? I honestly wish I didn’t read it because now every time someone buys it, (usually girls 12-16, I work at Barnes and Noble) I want to throw it out the window instead of giving to them!
When all is said and done, this is a poor excuse for a YA novel. Unless you’re like me and enjoy hate reading things solely to critique them, you should stay far away! On that note, I must return to reading the second book (spoiler alert: it’s even worse)....more
The thing about me and this book was that I simply did not care! None of the characters stood out to me, the plot was relatively nonexistent, and by tThe thing about me and this book was that I simply did not care! None of the characters stood out to me, the plot was relatively nonexistent, and by the end I wanted it to be over so I could read something more enjoyable.
“Interesting” is probably the kindest word I can use to describe Daisy Jones & The Six. I was intrigued since it’s certainly a cool concept for a book, and the format was very unique, but while I think this was executed perfectly… I still didn’t like it for the most part. An issue I have with TJR is that her books are too perfect, too produced, and too polished for my liking. Yes, it feels like you’re listening to a real celebrity interview… but let’s be honest here, those are always perfect, produced, and polished! Not exactly my cup of tea. It seems like you never get to the grit and rawness of the human condition with her books; all the characters felt very surface level to me and blended together to the point where I could hardly distinguish them from each other, even at the end. Another concern that comes with an interview style book like this, is that it’s nearly always going to be 100% tell and close to 0% show which was the case here. Everything that happened was presented to you on a silver platter; there was no subtlety or further thinking for the reader, all of it was right there in front of you and that annoyed me a bit.
I’d be interested in reading some of TJR’s books that aren’t about fictional celebrities since she does have some beautiful lines and is a talented writer. I’ll admit, this was inherently not the book for me, and I (shamelessly) only read it because it was popular. I’m not interested in real celebrities and their “real” drama, so why would I be interested in fictional celebrities and their fictional drama? Yes, these characters felt like real stars! Yes, the storyline seemed relatively realistic! And you still could not pay me to care! I think the upcoming show has a lot more potential to be amazing, so I’ll consider tuning in when that comes out, but for now I’m very… meh about this....more
Possibly the worst autism “representation” (if you can call it that) I’ve ever seen in a book, and I had to DNF for the sake of my mental health (at tPossibly the worst autism “representation” (if you can call it that) I’ve ever seen in a book, and I had to DNF for the sake of my mental health (at the cost of my grade since I had to read this for school). In an interview, our lovely author even said, AND I QUOTE “i did no research for curious incident … imagination always trumps research.” If you are even thinking of writing a novel with a main character who is marginalized in a way you are not, you need to do your fucking homework.
Christopher is so obviously a collage of every autism stereotype Mark Haddon could jam pack into one “character” and its genuinely depressing that people will read this and think his depiction is in any way realistic. If anyone would like to join me in throwing this poor excuse of a novel into a bonfire, I’m free anytime this week!...more
I know it’s because I didn’t read Shadow and Bone, but reading this felt like picking up the second book in a series; and bDNF 71% So this is awkward!
I know it’s because I didn’t read Shadow and Bone, but reading this felt like picking up the second book in a series; and being thrown headfirst into a fantasy world with little explanation for different terms, places, or names, isn’t my idea of fun! While there’s nothing wrong with that in theory, I don’t think Six of Crows should be definitively labeled as a standalone series. I read fantasy for plot and worldbuilding (great characters are a bonus) and if neither are compelling or seamless, it greatly impairs my ability to enjoy the book. At the end of the day I just didn’t care enough to find out what happens and for the most part, it was a chore to turn the page.
Time to drag your favorite characters; I’m sorry but six was too much for me to care about any of them as individuals! I also hated how they all had a love interest (this is a greater issue in YA as a whole though), and I wish at least a couple of them could’ve been on their own yk? I will say that Nina and Matthias were cute together, but Kaz was an annoying piece of work who doesn’t deserve Inej or Jesper, and Wylan was just kinda there? A lot of the banter was funny (if a little forced imo) but I didn’t feel much for any of them, and found myself wishing there were 3-4 characters instead. Four of Crows doesn’t have the same ring to it though, so I get it!
I might return to this series in the future, perhaps after reading Shadow and Bone (which many have deemed mediocre at best so I’ll be honest, probably not), but overall I was pretty disappointed and I wish I could’ve loved it as much as everyone else seems to!...more
DNF 90% This was sooooooo booooringgggg I’m (not) sorry, I literally could not get through the last 30 pages because nothing was happening. The age gaDNF 90% This was sooooooo booooringgggg I’m (not) sorry, I literally could not get through the last 30 pages because nothing was happening. The age gap also made me uncomfortable (yes I know it’s a sign of the times stfu), but I appreciate the happy ending that us sapphics so rarely get (yes I skipped to the last page to see it). Anyway, movie is better!! Go watch Carol ...more
1.5 It’s been months and I still can’t stop thinking about this book and how much its existence & popularity enrages me, so maybe I will write a revie1.5 It’s been months and I still can’t stop thinking about this book and how much its existence & popularity enrages me, so maybe I will write a review soon idk...more
2.75 If every romance novel was written with the emotional intelligence, character depth, and sparkling wit, of Emily Henry’s prose; I would be a very2.75 If every romance novel was written with the emotional intelligence, character depth, and sparkling wit, of Emily Henry’s prose; I would be a very happy reader. ‘People We Meet On Vacation’ ticks so many of my boxes for a solid romcom: easy banter? check. lovably imperfect characters? check. wonderful writing? check. romantic chemistry? … … that’s okay, how about swoon-worthy sexual tension? … no? … maybe a third act conflict(s) that wasn’t blown out of proportion? … well then, we have ourselves at a crossroads.
I wanted to love this so badly, and for the first 100 or so pages, I was definitely sold. I mean come on; when a book makes you genuinely laugh out loud and smile from ear to ear while reading, it has to be good! And it was… until it wasn’t. Something about Poppy and Alex’s banter, while brilliantly written and funny, felt too distinctly platonic for me to “ship” them (if we’re using 7th grade terms). I was definitely rooting for them to regain their friendship, but they had been in each other's lives for so long that their connection seemed closer to familial than romantic to me. Suffice to say: those sex scenes were rather awkward to read.
Another thing that pissed me off about this book was finding out the reason why our protagonists ended their friendship. Do I understand? Yes. Was I expecting something more dramatic after reading 90% of the book before finding out it was THAT and was therefore underwhelmed? Also yes. And come onnnn now, did we REALLY need that present-day third act conflict? I don’t think so!
Thankfully from what I’ve seen, people tend to love either Beach Read and Book Lovers or PWMOV, and since Beach Read was one of my favorite romance experiences I have hope that I’ll be a fan of Book Lovers (and Happy Place when it comes out)! Emily Henry is such a talented author, and I’m really happy I read this even if it didn’t live up to my expectations.
“It’s possible that all those little moments that meant so much to me never meant quite the same thing to him. It’s possible that he didn’t reach out to me for two full years because, when we stopped speaking, he didn’t lose something precious the way that I did.”
Now I agree with the masses; the plot twist was good. But can you really base an entire book around a single twist and fill the rest with, well, filleNow I agree with the masses; the plot twist was good. But can you really base an entire book around a single twist and fill the rest with, well, filler? My answer would be no, but here we are with the most popular mystery/thriller novel right now!
Don’t get me wrong, The Silent Patient wasn’t just 300 pages of nothing; it was 300 pages of nothing with some added sexism and mental health stigma! My favorite!!
This book has some of the worst written female “characters” (if you can call them that) that I’ve ever had the misfortune to encounter. The journal entry components read like Alex Michaelides has never met a woman before and considering Alicia is the focal point of the novel, I would’ve expected her to be a more compelling character. Truly unfortunate that she got the same one-dimensional treatment as the other women in the book, because this definitely had potential!
Speaking of the diary entries, am I the only one who thought that was a major plot hole? How was the journal not found when police searched her house after the murder? How was she able to bring it with her to the institution without anyone reading it? I mean there was a LOT in there that could’ve aided her in court, so it was a very surprising oversight to me. I know this is a bit nit-picky, but I also hate it when journal entries in books are unrealistically descriptive. How the hell is Alicia remembering and writing down every last word of these conversations? I think this can work if most or all of the story is told in that manner (like The Catcher in the Rye or Wuthering Heights for example), but it felt a bit hard to believe in this context. I do understand how important the diary ended up being in the end though, so it wasn’t a terribly big deal, I just enjoy complaining!
Speaking of plot holes, you mean to tell me that over 6 years have passed since this famous crime, and no one has tried to delve deeper into Alicia’s last painting? Furthermore, no one at The Grove thought to let her paint privately, because it would be “special treatment”?? I mean what kind of mental health institution is this; therapy is SUPPOSSED to be individual. Maybe it was intentional, but The Grove as a whole really pissed me off.
We have therapists using “borderline” as an insult, considering Alicia a lost cause and giving up on her fairly quickly, and even calling her an “uncommunicative bitch” and a “terrible example to the others” for being nonverbal. Again, I’m not sure if the tone of this book was supposed to condemn these remarks, but there was a lot of misinformation on mental illness and abuse sprinkled throughout as well, for example, "She had, in thirty years of extensive work with pedophiles, never met one who hadn’t himself been abused as a child. This doesn’t mean that all abused children go in to become abusers, but it is impossible for someone who was not abused to become an abuser. No one is born evil.” I hate to break it to you, but people are “born” pedophiles; it’s a false wiring of the brain. Not all pedophiles are sex offenders or even evil, and not all child sex offenders are pedophiles. Abuse isn’t always caused by past abuse and doesn’t always stem from a place of evil.
I really don’t think it’s too much to ask for authors to research serious topics before they write about them, but here we go again.
This story had so much potential, and I think Michaelides is great at constructing a good twist, but close to nothing else in the book sat right with me which really sucks! Better luck next time, folks.
There are certain books that I enjoy having read more than actually reading them, and that was definitely the case here. Crime and Punishment is objecThere are certain books that I enjoy having read more than actually reading them, and that was definitely the case here. Crime and Punishment is objectively brilliant, and the psychological journey it takes you on is memorable to say the least! But while I had fun analyzing this novel, getting through it in the first place wasn’t my favorite experience.
I think my main issue was that I didn’t care much about the the characters and other than Raskolnikov, was not very invested in what was going to happen to them. It doesn’t help that I’ve been in a bit of a reading slump the past couple months, so getting immersed in works as dense and monumental as Dostoyevsky’s has proven difficult.
That being said, it’s definitely easy to develop a morbid fascination with the main character’s mind, and following him throughout his psychological ruin definitely kept me reading. I was also pleasantly surprised by the women in this novel and the powerful voices they are given, especially a character who resorted to sex work and wasn’t written as a dirty or immoral (outside of Raskolnikov’s eyes).
In the end, I’m excited to reread this once I have the drive to fully dissect and appreciate this book! I still enjoyed Dostoevsky’s voice as a writer, and can’t wait to read more from him by the end of the year....more
(Bumped down to 2 after thinking more about how fucked up and unnecessary that “plot twist” was. The fact that people still love Evelyn after what she(Bumped down to 2 after thinking more about how fucked up and unnecessary that “plot twist” was. The fact that people still love Evelyn after what she did and how she told Monique is strange to me idk.)
Eh. I didn’t feel connected to any of the characters (in fact most of them were awful), Evelyn & Celia had zero chemistry, and everything felt so stale to me. I will say the storytelling was great at times and it kept me hooked but other than that… not good, you all lied to me!
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