"We are. But will you pick up every one of those weapons, and use them against her? What will you accomplish? You will be just like her, and if you
"We are. But will you pick up every one of those weapons, and use them against her? What will you accomplish? You will be just like her, and if you succeed you'll have done no more than change the name of the tyrant. Nothing will be different."
My favorite volume of the series so far.
Breq and her team have improved Athoek Station's environment under Anaander Mianaai's name, but nothing can last for long. When representative of the Tstur Mianaai, who destroyed Garsedd, appears on the horizon, along with two mysterious characters appear — a Presger Translator in port, and a ship in the slums — AIs and Radchaii will need to unite to protect as many Athoeki as they can.
Ancillary Mercy, moreso than any novel of this trilogy, is an ensemble piece. Every key character in the novel is key to plot development and to finding a way to resist Mianaai, not just Breq, and it is this that I think is most impactful. No character can resist an imperial system without the backing of all around them. Leckie's trilogy concludes with a focus not on something even so simple as what makes an AI human, but on the unity between a non-human and a human group to find space in an imperial system; not on something so simple as overthrowing the system, but on saving as many beings as can be saved in one small pocket. Leckie's value for life is excellent.
CAST ➽ Breq "Who do you think you're talking to, tyrant?" I asked. "What is there that I don't know about obeying you? Or about human lives depending on ships and stations? And what sort of gall do you have, lecturing me about keeping human lives safe? What was it you built me to do? How well did I do it?" Oh, Breq. Breq gets a few moments in this book of character break, which we haven't quite gotten the chance to see so far, and I really loved following her. But it's also this book where we get real moments of intimacy with her and other characters — particularly Seivarden, Mercy of Kalr, and (on a significantly more big-sister level) Tisarwat. The scene wherein (view spoiler)[Ship holds Breq through Seivarden (hide spoiler)] made me genuinely emotional.
➽ Seivarden Vendaai "You should not dare even to mention her, let alone in such terms. Do you dare claim to be just, to be proper, to be acting for the benefit of citizens? How many citizens' deaths have you caused, just this one of you, just in the last week? How many more will there be? Athoek Sta-tion, who you will not speak to, puts you to shame. Justice of Toren, what little is left of her, you will not acknowledge, but she is a better person than you." How I feel about Seivarden... she's my version of a problematic white boy fave. This book sees her needing to grapple with some of her cultural elitism and devaluing of other people's feelings via her relationship with Ekalu, in a way that I really enjoyed. She also continues to fight with her addiction in a really productive way. Her character arc through this series has been beyond wonderful, and I'm really happy to have gotten the chance to follow it.
➽ Tisarwat "Just who is Lieutenant Tisarwat?" "One of those knives," I replied, guessing at Tisarwat's reaction to the question, which I could imagine, but without Ship I could not see, "that's so sharp you cut yourself on it and don't realize it until later. And once again, if you hadn’t come in angry and shooting people, quite a few citizens might have told you so." The family baby is a baby no longer. Tisarwat rapidly grew within this book to perhaps my favorite character of the series; she's ruthless in her protection for those she loves. Her engagement with the AIs this book is wonderful and I hope I get to see her cameo in a Radch novel sometime soon.
➽ Ship | Mercy of Kalr “And maybe it isn't that ships don't love other ships. Maybe it's that ships love people who could be captains. It's just, no ships have ever been able to be captains before.” The ship Breq now pilots has become a character all on her own, in keeping with the legacy of her captain. And good for her! To follow the love of this second ship for her crew and captain is wonderful, and her communication to Breq through Seivarden has something dreadfully romantic to it.
➽ Sphene I leveled my gun. Braced myself. Sphene's voice said, in my ear, “I’d just like to say, Cousin, that what you're doing is incredibly stupid. I don't think you're stupid, though, so I suspect you've entirely lost your mind. It makes me wish I'd gotten to know you better.” Sphene is my favorite new character of this novel and there is competition. What a mean little ship. Her friendship with Translator Zeiat is wonderful — I did some research and ao3 agrees with me — and her odd pseudo-respect for Breq is also a delight.
➽ Translator Zeiat "What fun! Are there more verses?" "Nine hundred and ninety-eight of them, Translator," I said. "We're not cousins anymore," said Sphene. A Presger Translator who is not Translator Dlique. (She's shocked, too!) I loved Translator Zeiat, and found her such an unbelievable delight. The chaos gremlin of my heart. And for those of you who really love the Translators... have you read Translation State yet?
➽ Station For a character who speaks so little in the novel, Station's impact is huge. To follow its resistance was beyond delightful. I'm so proud of how far it's come.
There's a delightful ensemble cast beyond this as well. I particularly enjoyed our time with Ekalu, whose relationship with Seivarden is a delightful source of development for them both. Mercy of Kalr's human crew of Amaats, Bos, and Kalrs has several key characters, including Kalr Five, lover of china and tea; Bo Nine, friend to Tisarwat; Amaat Four, and Amaat Two.
And I want to end this review with a few quotes that just made me feel absolutely insane: ➽ (view spoiler)[There's a reveal that Breq was the AI to Iran Tetrarchy saint Seven Brilliant Truths Shine like Suns, which I enjoyed. (hide spoiler)] ➽ (view spoiler)[
"Please, Tisarwat," I replied, after a three-second pause, "don't do that. Don't say things like that. Don't say to me, What if Lieutenant Awn hadn't been Lieutenant Awn, as though that might have been something good."(hide spoiler)] ➽ (view spoiler)[
"Varden's suppurating cuticles," said Seivarden. "Lieutenant, I don't think I've ever heard anyone say that outside a historical drama." "They say that in historical dramas?" Seivarden seemed nearly as shocked by that as by the shuttle disaster Basnaaid had just told her about. "It makes you sound like the dashing hero of an entertainment." "The heroes say that in historical dramas? What is the world coming to?"(hide spoiler)] ➽ (view spoiler)[
"Usurper," replied Sphene, with an eerily bright smile. "If I were to punch you in the face right now, or maybe throttle you for a minute or two, would that affect this extremely stupid agreement with my cousin? I want to so very much, so much that I'm not sure I can put it into words for you, but Justice of Toren will take it very badly if I endanger Athoek Station." "Can I be a cousin, too?" asked Station, from the wall console. "Of course you can, Station," I said. "You always have been."(hide spoiler)]
Jade Legacy is perhaps the single best series conclusion I have read in my entire life, to what is now my favorite fantasy series ever written. If youJade Legacy is perhaps the single best series conclusion I have read in my entire life, to what is now my favorite fantasy series ever written. If you enjoy heists and schemes, family drama, and geopolitics in your fantasy, you absolutely need to be reading this immediately.
I’ve already articulated what works best about this series in my reviews for Jade City and Jade War, but to highlight a few aspects that only work better here – Jade Legacy leans even further into geopolitical drama. The dynamic between Ayt Mada and Shae continues to be beyond compelling. I really respect that Fonda Lee saw the complexity of their dynamic; it would have been easy to make the conflicts into the far more wooden dynamic between Hilo and Ayt Mada, but we get something so much better. And the twenty-year scope of the novel is simply impressive.
Particularly, I adored the characterization of the three children: Niko (only son of Lan), Ru (stone-eye first son of Hilo and Wen), and Jaya (their daughter). Ru in particular is just a fabulous character. And I loved how they parallel their parents – Niko is just like Shae with a bit of Lan and Hilo, Ru is a bit of the Lan of the three, very much like Wen but the favorite of Hilo; and Jaya is, to me, just like Hilo.
Oh, and the ending. Satisfying, hopeful, devastating, pitch-perfect for this series. These characters are destroyed, and changed forever, but I know they'll stay in my head forever.
Here’s what’s going on in The Girls I’ve Been: A girl gets trapped in a bank robbery with her two friends. But this isn’t your typical survival story,Here’s what’s going on in The Girls I’ve Been: A girl gets trapped in a bank robbery with her two friends. But this isn’t your typical survival story, and she’s no ordinary target. She manipulates. She plays games. And she’ll stop at nothing to come out of this not just alive, but on top. How’d she get this way? Well, that’s for her to know and you to find out.
The book excels in terms of quality of the writing, in terms of suspense, and in terms of character work, but the latter two each thrive off the backbone of a much more key dynamic: the pacing of information. Tess Sharpe excels at holding back just enough and giving just enough that we gasp at every page, but still need more.
“Dual timelines in a suspense YA book done well” is a phrase I was not expecting to be using in any reviews anytime soon, but here we are: These are some of the best backstory chapters I’ve had the pleasure of reading recently. Every backstory chapter adds to the story, develops the characters, or plays up intrigue. By a hundred pages in, you can’t get enough.
It’s been a while since a suspense novel has messed with my head like this, has kept me up at night, just wanting to read one more chapter. When I finally got near the end, I at one point squeaked so loudly I almost woke up my roommate. Ridiculous? Yes. But you’ll understand.
I woke to find her lying next to me, quite dead, with her throat torn out. The pillow was shiny and sodden with blood, like low-lying pasture
I woke to find her lying next to me, quite dead, with her throat torn out. The pillow was shiny and sodden with blood, like low-lying pasture after a week of heavy rain. The taste in my mouth was familiar, revolting, and unmistakable. I spat into my cupped hand: bright red. Oh, for crying out loud, I thought. Here we go again.
In Prosper’s Demon, a man lives his life exorcising demons. The demons, naturally, have not taken well to this.
I've read one novella by this author before, and both have left me feeling as if my brain had just gone through a blender. They each feature snarky characters. More importantly, though, they focus on excellent twists.
My only criticism would be a few passages that felt a little bit male gazey. But otherwise, this novella was excellent, and I’m excited to read more.
I was in close quarters with some representative specimens of the most dangerous creature in the history of the world, the white man in a suit
I was in close quarters with some representative specimens of the most dangerous creature in the history of the world, the white man in a suit.
Sympathizer is one of the many books I’ve read for class this year and it’s taken me months to review it because it's just. so. good.
This book’s unnamed narrator is a spy for North Vietnam in the South who ends up going to America on the last plane out. So yes, Sympathizer is a spy story, but not anywhere close to a tone you’ve read before: this is a slow-paced story of black humor mixed with deep-running generational sadness, all wrapping into a story about identity. Trauma of memory, collective memory, erasure of memory, appropriation of memory, and a strange undercurrent of dark humor, featuring an anonymous and possibly-unreliable narrator who is just so compelling.
This is one of the most interesting books I’ve read this year and I am honestly so happy I got to read it. Here we go.
In his time in California, he is viewed as a half-breed of the “Oriental and Occidental”; in his time in the-newly communist Vietnam, parts of his confession are edited out with a blue pencil, not good enough for his new commandant. Parts of any story, be it Vietnamese or American, are edited out. He must remove the human parts, the flaws, stick to a narrative that appeals to one group — the happy but quiet immigrant or the repenter for all his American ways. So how can he find an identity that does not push him out?
He is a man caught between two identities and two competing ideologies that both seem increasingly flawed: everyone wants to find a side to blame for this war. The identity of war is what dictates its representation. Vietnam, the bad war, is a tragedy for America, but only for America; in Vietnam, the Term ‘American War’ invites Vietnamese to think of themselves “as victims of foreign aggression,” rather than an oftentime perpetrator and invador of Cambodia and Laos. As a reaction, Nguyen wishes to work towards a more inclusive memory of war; this is a part of the struggle for a collective memory, where our competing views can be brought towards the ‘reassuring style of American pluralism.’ He wishes to remember the forgotten of war, the marginalized, the minor, the women, the environment. And just as essential to this is art: art endures, and art requests that we remember.
“After the official memos and speeches are forgotten, the history books ignored, and the powerful are dust, art remains.” -Just Memory
We create resignation to the horrors of the world via our art, resignation to the fact that our side is, indeed, right. Instead of a thing we come to terms with via art, memory becomes an industry “ready to capitalize on history by selling memory to consumers hooked on nostalgia.” Just memory and just representation is only possible when the demonized and marginalized can “seize industries of memory.”
Without that representation of our identities, without a just memory of a war, how can we find our identities?
Nguyen sums it up perfectly: “our ambivalence about war’s identity simply expresses ambivalence about our own identities.” The ethics of memory are such that without just memory, without a just view on war and a just representation of war, our own identities — especially the identities of the marginalized — will be forfeit. And it is this dynamic of identity that Nguyen criticizes throughout The Sympathizer. And this is the ultimate power of his work — to put a cynical lens onto a land of war, an industry of memories meant for no one but white men, and come out with some grain of hope, that in the face of nothing, we can find something.
So overall, The Sympathizer is a question about representation. When dominant cultures so often corrupt representation to fit their preferred narrative, when the Sympathizer finds himself viewed through lenses rather than for himself, how can he find an identity of his own?
My SECOND pick for fivestarathon was a resounding success, simultaneously keeping me away from homework in my postcolonial lit class for another three weeks and forcing me to build a mental shrine to Viet Thanh Nguyen. I loved it: sorry for writing such a long review, because I wrote a ten-page paper on this. I’d really recommend this.
“Are you badly hurt?” “Hideously,” said the king, without sounding injured at all. “I am disemboweled. My insides may in an instant become my o
“Are you badly hurt?” “Hideously,” said the king, without sounding injured at all. “I am disemboweled. My insides may in an instant become my outsides as I stand here before you.”
Attolis, the new king of Attolia, is a pawn. He is lazy, unloved by his wife, and there to be a victim, unaware of the political machinations of his court. At least, that’s what his guard thinks of him; they love their queen, of course, but do not love their king. This includes Costis, his newly appointed guard, who hates him. With a clever point of view shift to a new character, this book is a clever and eerie ride.
This series feels so classic, like something everyone would’ve been obsessed with ten years ago. I hope people will still obssess over it now.
So what do people always praise about this series? Because item #1 is the plotting, and item #2 is the character work. I second both.
I’ve been thinking a lot about why the plotting of this series is so great, and it’s because Megan Whalen Turner is so good at planting and payoff. If a plot element shows up in the beginning of the book, it will be become a part of the book further on; within the world, with political elements, with character elements. Element after element is used for plot twists and it is always so satisfying and compelling.
And perhaps even more importantly, the character work here is fucking incredible. Gen is a fantastic mastermind. Costis is an impressively likable character, especially as he’s just shown up. Gen and Irene are one of the most endearing couples I have ever read about. Also, I absolutely love and adore the dialogue. It’s glorious and adds so much to these characters.
So why only four stars? You know, this has gotten the hype of being the best book in this series, and I have to admit, I’m not sure it lived up to that. One of my absolute favorite parts of The Queen of Attolia was the development of Irene; her slow character arc, the growing relationship between her and Gen. This book… lacked Irene. Okay, she’s there plenty, but I LOVE her and she was not in this book enough. Costis is a really interesting character and I really loved the growing relationship between him and Gen, but I admit, I was disappointed by the overall smaller scale of the plot twists and the action.
I do really like that this series is becoming primarily the story of small but powerful players within a very large world, but the shift was surprising, especially as the narrator, Costis, drives very little of the plot. It’s an interesting plot device, but as a result, I found myself losing focus on action within the middle. But this worked pretty well, because we’re so invested in the characters involved in the action.
And when it comes down to it, I really enjoyed this. It’s such a fun classic fantasy; I feel reminded of old Kristin Cashore and Tamora Pierce in the best way. It is a fantastic read and I cannot wait to get to the next book.
I genuinely think about this book all the time, and I just need to say that this is the most upset I’ve been by an end
“One flesh, one end, bitch.”
I genuinely think about this book all the time, and I just need to say that this is the most upset I’ve been by an ending to a book in several years. When I completed it I started yelling audibly and my roommate, who was also awake, I believe may have become genuinely concerned for my sanity. Gideon the Ninth looked at me and said I could make her worse, and then it did, and it’s incurable. The gay people at my college own four collective copies of this and we pass it around to first years like a mini cult indoctrination and you now the worst part? It works.
I cannot talk about the things about this book that make me genuinely crazy without getting into spoilers, so here is my short pitch: Lesbian necromancers in space, except the space part isn’t that relevant. In reality, it’s a And-Then-There-Were-None-esque murder mystery in which the two main characters are a buff lesbian with a sword and the most fucked up woman you have ever seen in your life. You will not solve the murder mystery. Gideon, the main character, makes the worst puns I have ever heard and it’s fantastic. I cannot even begin to explain how compelled I am by Harrow. No one in this book can be normal for more than ten seconds at a time. At least one meme will be quoted per book. I have never read anything more homoerotic in my life than the pool scene. I laughed. I also cried a lot. You should read it.
Here are a few more detailed thoughts that I can give: Tamsyn Muir is genuinely fantastic at crafting a building narrative. You do not know how invested you are in Gideon the Ninth until the hits start coming, and by then Muir is ready to hit you with a punch. The first half is solid and interesting, but the last hundred pages are fully the best hundred pages of any book I have read in my life. (And it helps that her action writing is fantastic.)
The main characters and side characters alike are so interesting. Harrow has the single most compelling backstory of any character I have had the delight of reading about. She has so many problems and I love her. Some highlights of the wider cast include Judith of the Second House; Ianthe and Coronabeth, incredibly abnormal twin heirs to the Third House; Palamedes and Camilla of the Sixth House, the latter of whom is honestly the most normal person in this book; and Dulcinea and Protesilaus, also normal people of the Seventh House. I am also obsessed with Gideon because she has just… the funniest narrative voice. Some examples?
“I need to be inside you,” Harrowhark bellowed over the din. “Okay, you’re not even trying,” said Gideon. “Did you know that if you put the first three letters of your last name with the first three letters of your first name, you get ‘Sex Pal’?”
Speaking of which I am. Embarrassingly invested. In the dynamic between Gideon and Harrowhark. I think about them all the time, by which I mean I’ve spent several days of my life consumed by thinking about them. I cannot say anything else at this time for legal reasons but just now that as if we are ever speaking I am pretending to be invested in our conversation but I am actually thinking about Gideon and Harrow.
“I’ve lived my whole wretched life at your mercy, yours alone, and God knows I deserve to die at your hand. You are my only friend. I am undone without you.”
Okay. Listen. I think there might be something wrong with me but this dynamic genuinely kills me. The desire in my heart for them to tenderly kiss on the lips is like a physical urge it’s tearing me apart. This might have been my joker origin story. (hide spoiler)]
about harrow:(view spoiler)[I think “born a war crime” is a genuinely fascinating allegory for childhood trauma. Harrow has essentially been carrying the guilt for seventeen years of knowing her existence means the death of 200 innocents, and she blames herself totally and utterly, but she does not have a choice in that. (hide spoiler)]
the twists:(view spoiler)[The true nature of lyctors genuinely haunts me I think about that reveal all the time. And also Dulcinea being Cytherea is truly a banger. I love Ianthe being duplicitous, I love how many moving parts there are to this book, I love that you don’t really suspect the right people and when you do it’s never for the right things. (hide spoiler)]
“I have spent your life trying to make you regret that you weren’t dead, all because—I regretted I wasn’t! I ate you alive, and you have the temerity to tell me that you’re sorry?”
HNNNG I just noticed the foreshadowing of this. Harrow I don’t know how to tell you this but in the next book she is going to fully on page say that all she ever wanted you to do was eat her. which is by the way one of the absolute craziest lines I’ve ever read in my life I cannot stop thinking about it. (hide spoiler)]
In conclusion. I think about this book all the time. I have been getting all of my friends to obsess over it and I think you should hop on this train, personally.
2 1/2 stars. This was… interesting, and also not my type of book, and kind of disappointing. I honestly think This Mortal Coil is bit of your typical 2 1/2 stars. This was… interesting, and also not my type of book, and kind of disappointing. I honestly think This Mortal Coil is bit of your typical plot-twisty-but-not-very-quality YA sci-fi, and although some things stood out, I just didn’t love it.
The obvious upside of this book is that it is just... really wild. The broad concept of worldbuilding is sort of terrifying — I mean, a disease that causes people to explode and leads those in the vicinity to try and eat them? Holy shit. Suvada is truly not afraid to get into the gore of the premise, meaning things get kind of hardcore — someone gets their ear bitten off? There are so many twists and reveals that I’m sure you’ll be surprised somewhere, including a twist in act three that I… okay, I did see it coming, but I liked it anyway.
The big problem here is that I just found this one very hard to connect with. You all know what a slut I am for character-driven stories, and while I actually liked the protagonist of this story, I never connected with her. I will fully admit that she is kind of a badass and this only makes it more sad that I didn’t connect with her.
I was also disappointed by the focus on the unnecessary love triangle. One of the love interests is just not even a bit necessary. I do not exaggerate, this book would barely even change if he weren’t a love interest. The other is just kind of bland. Like… he’s fine, I don’t hate him, but his characterization is nonexistent. He goes from Bad Boy to Soft Boy by the second as if he’s trying to hit every YA trope at once, and overall just reads bland.
So overall, this was interesting, but I don’t think I’ll be continuing. Something plot-driven and well-paced like this would’ve been enough for a standalone. But I can’t see myself obsessing over this, and that’s what I need from a series.
This is a book about learning to be yourself without needing someone else, and a book about loneliness, and a book that occasionally gets really fuckiThis is a book about learning to be yourself without needing someone else, and a book about loneliness, and a book that occasionally gets really fucking scary. It plays on your deepest fears. It's a page turner — I found myself turning pages so quickly that I got a full 100 pages through without even checking the page count. I am one of those people who obsessively checks page counts. What did this book do to me.
I feel like this is a book I really can’t say much about because it is one you don’t want to know anything about going in. But let’s try to write some crap.
This was such an improvement on Lauren James’ earlier stuff. Her writing has gotten a lot better for me, a lot more streamlined, a lot less romantic, and a lot more clever. I'm so ecstatic to see a writer whose debut I rated three stars write such a 10 / 10 book.
What really solidified this as a fave for me is the concious subversion of everything you expect. The plot is… not really what I expected, even though I had been told there were twists? I am particularly impressed by how subversive Romy’s character arc is. I mean, I know I talked about this up above, but she is so well developed and so fantastic. I cry a lot.
So some of you might know I love subversiveness and it’s basically the only thing I care about. Some of you might also know I love books that read as light and fluffy but have a crapton going on behind the surface. I feel like this review hasn't gotten all my thoughts across, but this book was just my cup of tea, and I'm so excited to continue reading Lauren James's work.
My name is Amber Reynolds. There are three things you should know about me: 1. I’m in a coma. 2. My husband doesn’t love me anymore. 3. Sometimes I
My name is Amber Reynolds. There are three things you should know about me: 1. I’m in a coma. 2. My husband doesn’t love me anymore. 3. Sometimes I lie.
And so begins one of the wildest thrillers I have ever read.
I really feel like this book is one you should go into blind. While I don’t think you’ll guess the twists - they’re not exactly obvious - knowing pretty much anything will make the book less of an enjoyable read. But holy crap, they are awesome. This is one of the first truly twisty thrillers I have ever read.
This book is not a character-driven one - it is driven primarily by plot. And yes, that might usually bother me, but the twists here are just… on another level. I absolutely loved how wild this book got, how out there, and yet how strangely believable.
I think the main reason this isn’t getting a five is because I didn’t think the first half was all that great. Lots of weird dream scenes no one can figure out. A lot of red herrings that led to nothing and which I think… could have maybe taken up less page time. A rape scene I thought was unnecessarily graphic and used for shock value. Seriously. But having finished, I am so ready to say it was totally worth it.
TW: (view spoiler)[two rape scenes, one date rape presumably involving drugs and one fairly graphic. Some parental emotional abuse. Miscarriage. Also, fire. (hide spoiler)]
There are three types of thrillers. There is the big ending twist, where a book of buildup leads up to one whodunit revelation. There is the obvious-tThere are three types of thrillers. There is the big ending twist, where a book of buildup leads up to one whodunit revelation. There is the obvious-twist-but-ability-to-guess-it-doesn't-really-matter-because-that's-not-the-point. And then there is the "so many twists, you cannot possibly guess all of them, or even half."
That's the category occupied by The Hanging Girl. And how.
I am not exaggerating when I say the entire book flips on its head around three times. If you guess even a fifth of the plot twists, you've done the impossible. And with so many twists, it is really difficult to guess the final outcome. I doubt you will, and even if you do, I highly doubt you will guess the how and why.
I've seen plenty of reviewers mention a few moments they found weak, and I have to say I'm not sure I noticed. Maybe I'm just less analytical than some. But I think the real reason behind my lack of notice comes from just how wrapped up I was in this story. Here's the thing: you are meant to enjoy this book, not analyze it. You are meant to find a kind of dark pleasure in the morally-shitty characters while also finding yourself lost in the dark atmosphere of the book. I don't think this is a book you're necessarily meant to question or think is the greatest thing ever holy shit; it's a thriller you're meant to race through and hang on every word. And you know what? I loved it.
I don't agree that this is a weak or thin thriller, though - far from it. The narrative around poverty and what it can drive people to do is well-handled without being heavy-handed. I also loved how the book made a clear connection between being marginalized and being less-than-elite; the fact that many people in non-privileged positions are queer and nonwhite is something I see erased a lot in fiction emphasizing class, and it was good that the book made a clear connection with privilege.
There's also a heavy focus on our lead character, Skye, who I absolutely adored. While I can't say I'd actually like her in real life, as a fictional character, she's written brilliantly. Her actions feel so highly motivated that I never found it hard to empathize with her. Even her decisions towards the ending felt real to me.
I honestly have very few complaints about this book; while I think the meta-narrative of the book is not pro-slutshaming, there are several moments of slutshaming that do go somewhat unchecked. There were also a few characters I thought had more potential: Drew and Paige are both incredibly intriguing characters and deserved much more development than they actually got. All that being said, though, this was a super interesting and entertaining read. I shot through it in only a few hours and I expect many will do the same.
2 ½ stars. I’m kicking myself for going into this expecting a fast-paced novel I’d rocket through. Because this book may be post-apocalyptic and all d2 ½ stars. I’m kicking myself for going into this expecting a fast-paced novel I’d rocket through. Because this book may be post-apocalyptic and all depending on The Twist [which comes like a third of the way through, by the way] but it is certainly not fast-paced. Basically, even though I appreciated things about Never Let Me Go, my reading experience of this was 99% awful.
I’ve split this review into several parts, but my overarching opinion falls into one category: this book has clever ideas, but they’re not the focus. Instead, Never Let Me Go becomes a long list of memories. There is such a thing as taking show, not tell, too far - it’s when what you’re showing is beginning to bore the reader. Listen, if there are three thousand reveals or a deep character arc running through the book, we’re fine, but there are approximately two reveals and a bunch of character memories that failed to make me feel attached.
→ the characters ← I want to say that I like the idea of Cathy’s character. She has been so torn down, so forced to be one thing that she has never considered being anything else or finding a different path in life. It is awful and horrifying. And yet, two things: one, she has no character voice, and two, the focus is not on developing Cathy. That is absolutely fine. Unless you’re me and literally only care about character development.
→ the romance ← I’m so sorry, but this book did an utterly awful job with character chemistry. Tommy and Cath… I’m sorry, I just didn’t believe it. (view spoiler)[After spending an entire book screwing around and being just friends, they decide they’ve been in love for years because his ex girlfriend tells him they are. And then they start having sex and it is described so goddamn clinically. (hide spoiler)] They clearly care about each other, but where’s the romantic side to this? I don’t even really attach to them as best friends. Neither of them are all that likable or even all that relatable.
→ the worldbuilding ← A good idea, but I really don’t think this works when we see nothing about the rest of the world. I had sort of hoped the world would get expanded, we’d see the true context of normalcy juxtaposed to what the leads go through, and it just does not happen.
→ the morality conflict ← It’s as if authors of 2005 think they can bring up a topic, offer zero new insight into said topic, and hope the audience thinks about the book in the future. Which, okay, I admit this strategy can work. If you’re attached to the characters enough to feel your heart break in tandem. I was not.
→ the audio format ← I think, in general, listening to an audiobook of a book like this was a mistake. This is a book that required my skimreading technique. If I had read this in physical copy, I am quite confident I would have turned pages in a rush, read the whole thing in two hours skipping half the sentences, and liked it quite a bit more - I’m sure some of my thoughts would be similar, but the few reveals could’ve bumped this to a three or four at least. But by the end of this book… I was just waiting for it to end. I could no longer connect to Cathy because the book just needed to end. And that’s something to know for the future - about my reading style and about this book.
I don't know how to put this novella into words. Really, I don't. Maybe the best one is “mindblowing,” because I legitimately feel like KJ Parker justI don't know how to put this novella into words. Really, I don't. Maybe the best one is “mindblowing,” because I legitimately feel like KJ Parker just took my mind and threw it into the sun. Or maybe into a blender. How was this only 120 pages. How was this somehow the cleverest thing I've read in my whole damn life.
I really don't know how to describe this. It's existentialist. KJ Parker asks plenty of questions about gods and men here. It's surprising. I honestly didn't expect much of what happened here. The characters are interesting, both morally grey and funny.
While it isn't the main strength of this novel, I'm also really intrigued by this story's worldbuilding. Right now, we've only gotten scattered details of Mysia and the surrounding kingdoms, but a part of me is really curious what else is happening in this world.
I am not exaggerating when I say this is one of the best, most intriguing, most mindblowing books I've ever read. I feel like I just read art. Please read this.
You can justify anything, if you do it poetically enough.
this is going to be one of my favorite books of the year... almost definitely. I’
You can justify anything, if you do it poetically enough.
this is going to be one of my favorite books of the year... almost definitely. I’m saying that now on January 26th because I want you all to know. I genuinely cannot remember the last time I found myself so utterly engaged in a book.
Okay, so this is a drama set at a Shakespeare theater, in which a group of theater actors accidentally kill a man and deal with the fallout. Yay! Fun happy stuff. As the plays continue, their roles within this drama shift and switch, ironically mirroring their respective development, and they accidentally get way too involved in several plays as they are occuring.
Dark academia is actually such a compelling and amazing genre to me, always, but Shakespearean drama is perhaps the best dark academia pick out there. We have moral intrigue!! long soliloquys!! everyone knows who he is, but he still has plenty of speeches no one knows!! gay subtext used to its best degree!!
We cracked up. But we didn't really shatter until we came back together again.
The seven lead characters each fit into well-known archetypes: →Oliver - the lacking-type boy. →James - the good guy. →Alexander - the villain. →Meredith - the sexpot. →Wren - the ingenue. →Phillipa - the lacking-type girl. bi. I have no proof but definitely bi. →Richard - the dick himself.
The degree to which the character dynamics affect this plot is just so so amazing. There is a genuine actual love triangle, as in every branch has some weird tension. (Actually, I don’t know how to make a love dynamic of this friend circle. Help them.)
I don’t really know how to describe what made this book so completely enthralling. This isn’t a book focused on plot twists; I figured out most of the plot points here, actually, aside from a couple mini reveals. Yet every plot point, whether guessed or not, is satisfying, placed perfectly and used perfectly. This is a Shakespearean tragedy and on some level, we know how it ends. But it is completely impossible to get off the tracks.
“But that is how a tragedy like ours or King Lear breaks your heart—by making you believe that the ending might still be happy, until the very last minute.”
And you know what, this book would have been a five no matter how it ended, but the ending made me screech out loud. So there’s that.
I want to thank Chaima, Melanie, and Aleksandra for encouraging me to read this, because honestly... dear god.
Listen. I really really liked this book. But I also cannot say that much about it. I cannot. It would not be safe. So this review will be short and swListen. I really really liked this book. But I also cannot say that much about it. I cannot. It would not be safe. So this review will be short and sweet! I hope. This book follows a couple who are hiding their identities. You know nothing about why, you know nothing about what happened - you just know they’re on the run. And you can feel the fear.
This is an incredibly slow-burn thriller that plays primarily with character dynamics and fear over who we can trust, and listen, I get it, that’s not everyone’s type, but that is my exact book taste in one paragraph.
I mean, I guess, here’s my list of why you should read this. ➽it was so fucked up ➽the slow pace really added dramatic tension ➽the characters were so compelling and 20/10 ➽loved the time skips ➽I think the narrative is so brilliant in how it misleads ➽the last 25% is brilliant and basically changed me as a person ➽PLEASE read this if you like thrillers
This would have been better had I not spoiled myself like an idiot. But okay, yeah, this was still fantastic.
And Then There Were None follows ten peoThis would have been better had I not spoiled myself like an idiot. But okay, yeah, this was still fantastic.
And Then There Were None follows ten people trapped on an island and picked off, one by one. This story is made far more interesting by the fact that all the people are quite shady. Among the number are several shady individuals. For example, there's General Armitage, who sent his wife's lover to his grave. And there's always Vera Claythorne, who may have contributed to the death of a young boy to help her lover. Everyone is shady, everyone is suspicious, and no one is totally innocent.
There's nothing about this book that totally blew my mind; the solution, while interesting, isn't mind blowing. What I liked about this story was how it messed with my mind. There are so many red herrings, and it's sometimes hard to tell which ones are genuine and such are fakeouts. It's hard to explain just how fast I read this. The characters are only decent, but the buildup of suspense and tension was fantastic.
4 1/2 stars. You know how I'm going to review this? Post my old thinkpiece on mental illness tropes in YA, and then proceed to go into how this book s4 1/2 stars. You know how I'm going to review this? Post my old thinkpiece on mental illness tropes in YA, and then proceed to go into how this book smacks it all down. Let's just call this a 5000 word essay on Why Francesca Zappia Is the Only YA Author I Trust With Mental Illness Narrative Framing Anymore. Seriously.
♔ MENTAL ILLNESS IS EXACTLY THIS.
You know what trope I hate? The curing trope. You know what trope I'm tired of? The everything's-fine-until-I-go-off-meds trope. This book smacks both of those tropes down into the abyss. Alex is not cured. She starts the book with schizophrenia, and she ends the book with schizophrenia.
You know what else I loved? The acknowledgement of Alex's agency. So many books about mentally ill people take away all their agency, turning the book into a parents-are-always-right extravaganza that feels disrespectful to mentally ill people themselves, especially those who are victims of parental abuse. I love that this book treats Alex like a fucking human being. I love that she's a reasonable person who happens to sometimes be unsure of what's real and not real.
You know what makes me want to cry? The fact that y'all cannot get the balance right between mental-illness-makes-you-quirky and mental-illness-makes-you-evil. And yet Zappia gets it so right. Alex and Miles are so human. They're not some goddamn props for a thinly veiled romance that's supposed to be more emo because mental illness!! real problems!! but really just feels disrespectful and gross. But they're also not these especially evil people. They feel like human fucking beings and I love that. Seriously, I love it and I have so much respect for Zappia for handling this well.
Obviously, I can't speak for the representation of schizophrenia being accurate. But I can definitely guarantee that it's empathetic. I would feel comfortable recommending this to any mentally ill person, and that's more than I can say for a lot of the books in this genre.
♔ THE BOOK ITSELF ROCKS
Aside from mental health handling, this is really just a fantastic book. First of all, the character work is fabulous. Alex is one of the greatest characters ever. She's so strong. I love that she's so aware of herself and constantly questioning what's real and what's fake. I love that she's not your typical written-by-gross-tropes mentally ill protagonist. I just love her.
And I loved the romance!! Miles, too, is a fantastically developed character. He's so weirdly dorky and offbeat. But he's also not the fake-quirky love interest you see in mental illness books sometimes.
Zappia's plotting is also quite well-handled. Made You Up is fairly exciting and twisty for a typical contemporary book. I really didn't expect many of the twists - a few didn't even pop into my mind as possibilities.
♔ THE ENDING FALLS.......... flat.
I did have mixed feelings on the ending. I don't think it's terrible - I just feel it's not built up well. Spoilers ahead, by the way. Alex checks herself into a mental health facility. Now this isn't a bad ending - I actually think it's a good thing for her future. I just don't think this is built up well. Because the book portraying the mental health center as bad the whole way through - Alex's mindset - and then switching at the last minute - the real truth - Alex's final decision feels quite false and almost like a bad thing. I also think we don't get the sense that Alex is getting worse until the very end. She has some quote about “not being able to tell anymore” but she hasn't been able to tell in years. It felt a bit half-assed.
I like that the narrative emphasizes how this was her choice, something she did to combat her own issues. Yay for emphasis on the agency of mentally ill people!! What I didn't like was the implication of “her mom was right all along.” Yes, her mom was right about her mental illness. Her mom was not right about forcing her into an psychiatric hospital. Whether that was a good decision or not, it felt to me that her mother was trying to control her, not help her get better.
Part of this is coming from my heavy dislike for Alex's mom; hence my dissatisfaction with how ending treats her character. Alex's mom is a trash person, and the book knows this. I love that the book knows this. Unfortunately, I don't think the book was willing to stick with it. I think Zappia didn't want to ruffle feathers, so she decided to go with “she had Alex's best intentions at heart.” Here's the thing: I don't think she did. And even if she did, I don't think it justifies her actions. I think she's an abusive parent looking for control. and I really wish Alex had gotten to tell her off more at the end as well.
But I honestly love this book with so much of my heart that I really want to just give it a five. It's just too good.
This was a BR with Romie, and again, I am SO SORRY for reading these last 170 pages without you. It was so great.
Actual rating: 2.5 stars. I realized this was going to be a mixed-feelings book from the beginning and I thought that all the way through. So here I aActual rating: 2.5 stars. I realized this was going to be a mixed-feelings book from the beginning and I thought that all the way through. So here I am with an exact middle-of-the-road rating.
TW: self-harm, sexual content, violent illness, pretty much everything imaginable? (this does not impact my rating)
Flynn is known for her intense psychology and her keen understanding of people. I don't deny those things are somewhat true. What I don't get is how you can take such a fabulous mystery idea and make the ending so obvious. Admittedly, I didn't totally anticipate the final twist. But it was my second choice for a solution. This book really failed to shock me, even with its eerie atmosphere.
I do have to give some props to Flynn for her character work. Our lead character, Camille, is definitely compelling; if I hadn't hated the writing so much, I'm sure I would've been even more invested in her. She's effortlessly interesting even when she's a terrible person.
Perhaps it's just that this is a debut novel, but I found Flynn's style extremely messy and disjointed. There's no denying she's talented; her descriptions are almost viscerally terrifying. But this 250-page book put me in a reading slump. I can't forgive that. I can't. I found this actively painful to read. The final 150 pages of Sharp Objects quite literally took me three hours to read. That's my average reading speed cut in half. I call bullshit.
There's one more issue picking at my brain: Gillian Flynn has a weird relationship with other women. I appreciate her dedication to terrifying lady villains. I don't disagree with her claim that we need good ones. I also don't think the fact that her female characters are all terrible should have bearing; all her characters are terrible people. It's a function of her work and her beliefs about humanity. (Different topic I'd also like to address.) However, this book has a defined misogynistic tone to it; in fact, every girl is either a villain or a bimbo. Or both. The only possible exceptions to this are Camille and Amma, and even Amma fits this trope; she's just got some development on top of it.
I think my problem with this book is that I can't tell what moral Flynn is going for: are women objects that get consumed, that love the attention of being ill? Or was that comment the work of an unreliable narrator?
The protagonist, Camille, is certainly not the most reliable of mouthpieces. We know that what she says about her experience with the football team towards the beginning isn't entirely true. You've all seen the quote; in one scene, a man says a 13-year-old girl being passed around to have sex with four senior boys is rape, and Camille calls his claim sexist. Camille later on says she had “never realized until now how young that is.” It's not a reach to say Camille was guarding herself by faking apathy. But was that Flynn's intention? I don't know. Not sure I want to, either.
VERDICT: Clunky writing killed an otherwise pretty good book. Even that ending wouldn't have really bothered me without that freaking writing. I'd recommend testing out her writing in this book before picking this up. I've heard from a few reviewers she improves, so don't judge off her other books. And good luck!!...more
The One Memory of Flora Banks is about Flora, a girl with anterograde amnesia, kissing a boy, Drake. But here's the difference: she remembers it.
I knThe One Memory of Flora Banks is about Flora, a girl with anterograde amnesia, kissing a boy, Drake. But here's the difference: she remembers it.
I know, I know. That premise sounds like a weird romantic drama. It sounds like instalove waiting to happen. It sounds like yet another book about love curing illnesses, because that's totally a thing that happens. And at first, I believed that too. For quite a bit of the book, Flora believed she was falling in love with Drake, and it was incredibly boring and problematic.
And yet this book narrowly avoids romanticization with a good ending. For quite a bit of the book, I was worried this would stray into “love cures illness” territory. But... love doesn't cure Flora's illness. Thank god.
SO, LET'S TALK ABOUT THE ACTUAL BOOK
The plotting is a major strength of this book. It's not particularly fast-paced, yet the book flies by in a breeze. Barr fills the book with dramatic tension. Some of the reveals are slightly predictable, but some are brilliant. A few twists towards the end absolutely blew me away. There are hints and clues along the way building up to reveals, and it was wonderful to follow Flora's journey.
Flora's character got my sympathy from the start. She's an unreliable narrator to some degree, but she's also telling us everything she knows, so she's not really unreliable. Her decisions and motivations seem surprisingly well-informed. She's not an annoying character with her forgetfulness, which frankly surprised me.
Emily Barr's disjointed writing style also made this story special. It's perfect for this kind of story, where we keep changing time and place. It enables you to get a good feel for Flora's head from the beginning. It's also particularly easy to read.
Honestly, without my worries over romanticization, this book is an easy four star. I do wish Barr had picked a different memory for Flora to catch on to, but I understand why she chose this one.
BRIEF SPOILER SECTION • From what I've heard, the twist kind of reminds me of Everything Everything's twist, except less offensive and less romancey. • Anyone else a little annoyed about Jacob dying? What was the point of that? It's just... depressing. • I loved that Paige came back!! I loved her speech to Flora so much. • I liked that the final scenes didn't get all creepy-horror-movie. It stays pretty sane, all things considered....more
Loading...
