Wow, this was a lot of fun. The story is a bit confusing, I have to admit, but the super pretty art makes up for that.
Monstress takes place in an altWow, this was a lot of fun. The story is a bit confusing, I have to admit, but the super pretty art makes up for that.
Monstress takes place in an alternate steampunk-style Asia, focusing around multiple characters. There's Maika, our morally grey heroine. Plus her cat Master Ren, her younger friend Kippa, and her friend / maybe girlfriend Tuya. On the other side, we have the power couple Sophia and Atena.
This comic is well-written, well-paced, and entertaining as all hell. Monstress also hits all my main points for great work - it's driven by women, many of them women of color and many of them lgbtq, full of antiheroes and corrupted power, and all wraps up with themes about discrimination. Antiheroines are my thing, and Maika is a great one.
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Especially with her equally ambiguous cat companion and adorable fox-girl adopted daughter.
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And in terms of gorgeous art, I'm really not sure you can do better. I could stare at the panels all day. Sana Takeda is so talented. I'll definitely be on the lookout for more by her - and eagerly anticipating the next volume.
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There is one major flaw - the plot is so confusing. It took a couple hours and copious notes to figure out those plot notes at the beginning of my review. If you're reading this graphic novel for this first time, I would suggest looking through my basic spoiler-free plot notes below.
The plot is slightly convoluted, but I'll try to give a basic overview. On the left side of the continent, the human Cumaea forces are trying to take over major city of Zamora, led by the Inquisitrix and general Sophia's mother Yvette - the betrayer of protagonist Maika's mother. On the right live the Dusk court of the Arcanics, children of the Ancients and humans, ruled by an Ancient - the queen of wolves.
There's some interesting mythology surrounding the gods here as well. We find out that Ubasti, the mother of cats, banished the old gods herself - but may have left one behind in our world.
VERDICT: A great graphic novel that I'd highly recommend!!
Some spoilery plot notes so I can keep this all straight (view spoiler)[Atena is secretly working for the resistance with her brother Resak Maika took a fragment of a mask The commander of the tents is maybe one of the monsters as well? Maika is also a halfwolf Their cat betrayed Maika to the dusk court in exchange for freedom Yvette wanted the mask to reawaken power of the shaman, while Maika's mother was unsure. (hide spoiler)]...more
Read this on audiobook with my girlfriend for our road trips this summer and it was a very peppy choice. That's a joke.
The Project follows a slow sedRead this on audiobook with my girlfriend for our road trips this summer and it was a very peppy choice. That's a joke.
The Project follows a slow seduction into a charity group called the Unity Project from the perspective of two sisters, older sister Bea several years prior and in third person and aspiring journalist Lo current and in first person. My thoughts on this are complicated, but essentially, I think this is a slow build to an excellent payoff, completely worth every second. The middle of this book is exceptionally slow, mostly taken up by a compelling round of development for co-leader Casey, former doctor Foster, and finally the Unity Project's leader, Lev. While Bea's narrative is often more distant, Lo's is a close first, and she proves an often-frustrating main character, one who due to her own previous issues struggles intensely with a need to belong. This is very purposeful and well-done, but difficult to read. I do think Courtney Summers is a great writer, but I wondered a bit if further editing on Lo's character arc could work out some of the pacing issues.
The last 15% of The Project is easily the highlight of the book, absolutely wild but so satisfying as a narrative conclusion. It plays well off everything we know about Lo, everything we know about Bea, and so many hints we've received earlier in the book.
This book feels good on paper: an emotional premise, eerie writing, representation, and an excellent ending that ties into thematic ideas. I only wantThis book feels good on paper: an emotional premise, eerie writing, representation, and an excellent ending that ties into thematic ideas. I only wanted more ensemble cast, and maybe a bit less of whatever was going on with the romance.
We Were Restless Things follows the mysterious death of Link Miller by drowning… in the middle of the woods. In various ways, they all hurt from this: Noemi as she grieves for the boy she had feelings for, Amberlyn as she grieves her brother, Gaetan as he grieves his best friend, Lyle her friend, and new kid Jonah as he tries to find a place in their group.
The indisputable best part of this book is the amazing imagery. This book was eerie and the more fantastical chapters are wonderfully written. They remind me of the best of Maggie Stiefvater.
Noemi is asexual. This arc was by far my favorite in the book; she processes her sexuality in both healthy and unhealthy ways, depending on the time. The way her feelings about herself and more specifically, how people would perceive her, impacted her relationships hit me hard. When this came up between her and Jonah, it originally struck me as a romantic arc, but it’s really not; the focus remains on her development. I wanted a bit more out of her ending, if anything.
Some very solid positives over here. Unfortunately, this was not a perfect reading experience for me.
First of all, it’s a book that in structure does not pick up until around 50%. Until then, these characters are essentially just getting to know each other. This isn’t technically a problem. On its own.
But besides Noemi, none of these characters feel as if they have a significant or resonant character arc. Who are these characters? I don’t feel as if I quite know. But We Were Restless Things left me craving… more from its ensemble cast.
As we’re talking about the characters, I want to bring up romance. The dynamic between side characters Amberlyn and Lyle (yes, this is sapphic content) is solid and sweet. The other romantic dynamics… were another area. Noemi is, over the course of this book, technically lusted after by three different guys, one dead. Both of her romantic arcs are… frustrating.
Jonah and Noemi are a well-written couple, except when the premise of their relationship is so fundamentally unromantic. Yes, I understand that two stepsiblings who know each other from childhood are very different from two people who meet for the first time at seventeen. I get that. But as someone who has a stepbrother, one, this entire trope is just nasty, and two, this book uncomfortably leans into that element of siblinghood. (view spoiler)[At one point, essentially, Noemi feels guilty about not wanting to sleep with Jonah, and when he traces the words I love you into her hand, she replies “stepbrother”. This… felt so incredibly uncomfortable.
Just. I don’t know. If you’re going to do a romance between step siblings, which I would generally encourage against it has been done so many times you are not doing something new, there is no need to point it out like this. (hide spoiler)]
On a more positive note, it’s interesting that this book that was comped to The Raven Cycle also contains two main characters whose relationship is not based on kissing, though for very different reasons. It’s one of those accidents that would still make a wonderful essay about parallels.
To be completely fair to this book in criticizing it, I think I partially have shifted in what genres I prefer over the past couple of years. Had I read this at seventeen, high off my Raven Cycle phase, I’m fairly sure I would have enjoyed my experience far more. So if that’s you… this might very well be worth a try. It’s well-written, and though I wanted more from four of the five leads, they’re all likable.
This had some good parts. I just do not think I was the target audience.
4 1/2 stars. When you are a teenager, it is very easy to fall into the trap of believing you must settle for the love you can get, rather than love yo4 1/2 stars. When you are a teenager, it is very easy to fall into the trap of believing you must settle for the love you can get, rather than love you deserve. If someone chooses to date you, especially if you are just a little less popular, just a little less Good, you choose them, even if they treat you badly and take you for granted at every moment. And it is very easy to convince yourself that ditching your friends for your significant other is some kind of justifiable act because you're doing it all for LoveTM, the important thing. When that action is described, it is easy to make it sound ridiculous. But there is a core of low self-esteem to the act of leaving friends for a partner, and it is more common than we talk about.
or, another way to put this: someone want to tell me why the last chapter of this made me cry on my bed at 10:00 p.m.?
I mean, I don't know exactly what else to say. The illustration here was very very beautiful, done in stunning black and white. I constantly need these discussions of toxic relationships between sapphics in graphic novel form, also thank you for my life @ this cover designer, and the publisher for providing me with this excellent arc.
Here’s the thing: these teachers forget that I have to make hard decisions every day.
With the Fire on High is all over the place on purpos
Here’s the thing: these teachers forget that I have to make hard decisions every day.
With the Fire on High is all over the place on purpose — we get brief chapters that are simply glimpses into Emoni’s character, and then get to continue on with the journey simply knowing more about her. This has the impact, of course, that it’s not a very plot-driven book. But for a story this character-driven, it is a brilliant choice.
Sometimes, focusing on what you can control is the only way to lessen the pang in your chest when you think about the things you can't.
Emoni Santiago is a senior in high school, considering the rest of her future with limited options: after all, she is the single mother to a child she had three years previous with her ex-boyfriend. But with the help of her grandmother, her best friend, a new boy at school, and a new cooking class, she might have further places to go.
Emoni, as a heroine, is instantly compelling: strong, brave, but also at times vulnerable. She is unsure of her readiness to participate in either her dreams or in emotional openness, but also full of ambition. Some of the arc of this book comes in her learning to lean into her vulnerabilities, and risk things for her future happiness.
Emoni’s passion for cooking is so incredibly well-written and I genuinely think it should be used as an example of how to write passion. We are so in deep with her love for cooking that we immediately root for her to live her dream; we see her talent and see her potential and see how much she wants it, but we also see the obstacles in her way, and it just makes us want it more for her. I genuinely rooted for Emoni to become a chef on a level I barely feel for like, will-they-won’t-they romantic couples. (Emoni x happiness otp.)
I really liked Malachi, Emoni’s endearing bad-boy-exterior-good-boy-interior love interest. I love that Emoni doesn’t take his shit and keeps her role in the narrative; this romance is not her character arc, but one part of her development into someone more willing to participate in emotional vulnerability. It is so about her. That is not as common as it should be for female characters, even leads. Emoni’s grandmother, father, and best friend each felt like very fully-realized characters as well, and I loved seeing their interactions.
Maybe it’s more than just a tale of two cities; it’s a tale of two neighborhoods. On the one hand, people are scared to come over here because they say this part of town is dangerous, “undeveloped”, and a part of me thinks, good, keep out, then. But everyone knows that the good things like farmers’ markets, and updated grocery stores, and consistent trash pickup only happen when outsiders move in.
What I loved most about this book is the deep and enduring respect it gives Emoni’s dreams. It’s a book that explores cultural identity, and Afro-Latina identity, responsibility, and motherhood, and the social alienation that comes with teen parenthood. And within all that, it still allows itself to dream.
Every day it seems ‘Buela is stepping back, not just giving me full rein in Babygirl’s life, but also in my own. And I know I should love the freedom, but I don’t think I’m ready for all the safety nets to be cut loose. Doesn’t she know I still need her? That I still wish someone would look at the pieces of my life and tell me how to make sure they all fit back together?
The thing is, I wrote this whole review and I don't think I'm saying this right. I don't think I can properly articulate what makes this book so good. Except for this: It is a book that is enduringly real but still hopeful, and for that, it will stay with me for a long, long time.
this cover is the gayest thing i've ever seen in my life, it even perfectly represents the fashion style of 97% of the sapphics I know Including Myselthis cover is the gayest thing i've ever seen in my life, it even perfectly represents the fashion style of 97% of the sapphics I know Including Myself...more
I read this book six years ago now, and it still sticks in my head, both because it's so good and because I think it's potentially the lowest-rated boI read this book six years ago now, and it still sticks in my head, both because it's so good and because I think it's potentially the lowest-rated book I've ever loved so deeply. This is a book about the attempt to find relationships and connections when in circumstances where it is hard to develop either, and how that can lead both to unhealthy behavior and to real love — it simply depends how it is expressed.
Don’t look at the average rating yet. We’ll talk about it.
Never Contented Things follows two foster siblings who are in love, or so they think – no, this is not romanticized – and their journey after one makes a deal with faerie. So, yes, the first half of this book is deeply fucked up, but that’s the point: we see these characters hit their lows and we are forced to empathize deeply with the situation they’ve been put in. Josh and Ksenia’s relationship is based on intense codependency, one where they have been forced into a mutual relationship based on necessity; the narrative does a frankly impressive job of showing this while still sticking in what the characters actually feel about each other. By 50% through, you’re rooting for both of their characters (in very different ways) but actively rooting against their relationship. Also, you are very fucking terrified of the faeries.
The reason this probably shouldn’t be a five is that I actively did not enjoy reading the first 20%, and indeed struggled with a lot of this book – you read because you’re almost too horrified and scared for these characters to look away. I do get why the average rating is somewhere around a 3. It’s not a fun novel.
This novel was also marketed, as I believe my reviewer friend Acqua pointed out, somewhat poorly — Never Contented Things is asking for a very certain type of reader, I think leaning older teen and new adult demographic, and is certainly not a book that should be placed on read now on Netgalley. I also have noticed that a great percentage of the bad ratings are readers who DNFed this and rated it one star, which is perfectly fine — it’s just that this has dropped the rating pretty damn far.
The reason this is, for me at least, a five, is that it is frankly one of the most emotionally cathartic novels I’ve ever read. Here are just a few things we should talk about in regards to this book: ➽gender as it plays into self-image ➽the idea of only loving what you want to see in someone ➽the fact that one of the plot points is essentially about the mortifying ordeal of being known and it made me cry ➽rape culture and the way in which Ksenia’s character has closed herself off due to being an unspoken victim ➽the degree to which the narrative works against romanticization of self-harm ➽the narrative’s focus on healthy love as not something revolving around ownership ➽the sheer tenderness of loving someone as your best friend before your crush and being willing to sacrifice a lot for them simply because you love them without it mattering how or whether they love you back ➽the idea that no matter what your past is you can always find your way out.
I’m going to really unpack all of these in further depth because I honestly just… have so many feelings about this. But if you’re already intrigued and want to avoid any possible spoilers, please do just go read it yourself! Seriously. It’s one of the most wonderfully well-written narratives I’ve had the pleasure of reading, go buy a copy, etc.
Ksenia is a character who projects, to the outside world, being very comfortable in her identity. Actually, she dresses androgynously to the point where characters mistake her for a boy (also, every description of her outfits within this book made me cry she’s such a legend). But inwardly, she’s not there for herself at all, not yet.
There’s a plot point in this book involving Ksenia’s inner selves being captured into tiny bodies and being used to create the upstairs of her and Josh’s house (it’s terrifying and I’m such a fan of it). And neither she nor Josh can get more than two steps on the stairs to the upper floor. This makes sense, given that Josh doesn’t want to see who she really is; it’s just that she doesn’t want to see who she really is either. The truth is that Ksenia is dealing with a lot of trauma from being sexually assaulted, something she has refused to allow herself to truly process because no one has given her the space to process what happened to her.
You’re still real enough that I love you.
We need to talk about the sheer fucking power of the other main relationship in the book, between Ksenia and Lexi. Lexi is Ksenia and Josh’s friend; she’s black, has had a steady boyfriend, and has grown up in a fairly stable environment. To some degree, she has historically been Josh’s best friend. But she also loves, and has always loved Ksenia.
There is something very wonderful to me about the way in which this relationship is conveyed. The reason Ksenia is willing to trust Lexi is because Lexi respects her boundaries and does not see her as a sexual object; that’s not anything Ksenia is willing or even able to give at this point. The two of them love each other as friends do and also as lovers do, but they’re willing to fight for each other whether the other loves them back or not. And though they eventually self-actualize and define how they love each other, they put each other’s boundaries first.
Okay, bear with me. When Josh attempts to seduce Lexi into the faerie world, there’s a moment where she walks up Ksenia’s stairs and tells her she’s not afraid of what’s inside and Ksenia subconsciously lets her, because Ksenia wants to let her in. There’s this one line Lexi says to Ksenia during this scene that is just… the most tender thing I’ve read in my entire life, and you don’t even think they’re going to be a thing at this point, but I fully teared up. It’s a scene 50% of the way through and I am in love with it. So there’s that.
I think I tend to be really sensitive to the idea of saving yourself for another person, or love solving personal problems. Which is why I so deeply appreciate the degree to which the narrative works against romanticizing Ksenia’s self sacrificing nature, even when it is technically what saves the day. Ksenia is someone who cares deeply about other people partially because she struggles to value herself on a deep level and considers herself on a lower level than other people, but this is written as a clear part of her characterization, not as a factor of just how in love she is with Josh or with Lexi. Like… chef’s kiss.
I also think using sapphic love as a force for good in any literature is, on some level, a revolutionary decision. Even in literature of today, queerness is so often framed as baggage, something that makes it harder to live a full and fulfilling life. In this book, queerness is a pathway to (subtextually) identity and (textually) to healthy love. That is such a major shift.
But what’s perhaps even more meaningful about this book is that it ultimately decentralizes romance as a path to recovery, while still emphasizing that anyone can come out alive from a traumatic past. Ksenia and Josh spend much of this book in a toxic relationship that each believes will on some level save Ksenia, or fix her. Josh’s approach to love is one tied in with ownership of identity, with owning who Ksenia is as a person. And without hitting you over the head, while still allowing the audience to connect their own dots, Never Contented Things subverts that narrative time and time again, allowing its characters to grow without romantic love as a savior.
Look. I know I’ve gone on about this book for a very long time at this point, but the main point is: I don’t think I’m going to be able to get these characters or these ideas out of my head for a very, very long time. This was so scary and so wonderfully cathartic and I know I’ll be reading Sarah Porter’s next book.
TW: discussion of rape and sexual assault, incest between foster siblings (criticized), codependency (criticized), parental neglect, some really terrifying body horror, death on page.
"...follows two rival overachievers who realize they may actually love each other over the course of 24 hours on the last day of senior year." what's "...follows two rival overachievers who realize they may actually love each other over the course of 24 hours on the last day of senior year." what's really ironic is this will be coming out... after my senior year. I won't be in high school anymore. that's terrifying. I hate it....more
“If you do this, Nedra, if you choose necromancy… I cannot follow you into that darkness.” “Oh, Grey,” I said, shifting my bag onto my shoulder
“If you do this, Nedra, if you choose necromancy… I cannot follow you into that darkness.” “Oh, Grey,” I said, shifting my bag onto my shoulder. “What do you know of darkness?”
This book looked like a generic, if fun, YA fantasy that just happened to have this really nice and intriguing cover. And then it turned out to be a story about a wonderfully crafted antiheroine falling into darkness in the face of relentless oppression, and then Really Doing That, and I was just shook. If you liked hero-to-villain arcs in books like The Young Elites and The Grisha Trilogy and want more of that nice slide to evil, you should be reading this. Actually...I have a feeling it might be even more hardcore later on.
How about I promo this book to you with one anecdote: (view spoiler)[at one point, a man shows up to Nedra trying to bring his wife back, and it’s revealed that he was the one who murdered her, and Nedra is like “fuck that” and allows her army of the dead to murder him while walking off. (hide spoiler)] Because I think about that a lot.
Okay, okay. Give the Dark My Love is an antiheroine origin story, but more importantly, it’s a book about losing your people and the grief of that - the horror of losing the people who have defined your humanity.
I mean, if you want to be sad for 300 hours, you will be over Nedra’s relationships with the people around her. Grey and Nedra’s romance is a sweet touch, perfectly geared to make you sad. I really loved Nedra’s family; there’s this one scene where she switches places with her sister to fool her mother, and it’s one of the most adorable and sweet things I’ve ever read. Ernesta in general is a great character, a delight in every page she’s in [and also canonically bi? which I love?] Master Ostrum is a great side character and ambiguous-support for Nedra and it’s fantastic.
Which only makes it more upsetting when her family is involved in the conflict.
“I love you, Nedra, but...” I didn't realize until that moment how the but cancelled out the love. Love could not exist when it came with conditions.
As the book goes on, Nedra is left feeling alone, unsupported, forced to do everything herself… and is driven to levels of unspeakable morals. And despite his best efforts, Grey’s refusal to allow her to be happy with her dark side drives them apart as well. The ending wasn’t unpredictable, but it was cool as fuck.
I will admit, I struggled with Grey’s point of view. It’s not the worst – he’s a compelling enough character. It’s just so clear that despite his not-insignificant impact on the narrative and its depiction of poverty, this book is not his story. In a book that is in every other way Nedra’s book, where Grey fills the role of a compelling love interest and no more, it feels odd and somewhat distracting to get his POV.
Oh, speaking of Grey, here’s another thing I absolutely adored: the fact that this book is, at its core, a story about the repression of lower classes. In this world, the north of Lunar Island has been left behind the economy of the wealthier south. So when a new plague spreads in the north, richer southerners assume it’s a disease based off the dirtiness of the north.
Not that this is a parallel to the real world or anything, but… this is a fantastic parallel to the real world.
It’s just overall a very strong book about necromancy and antiheroine-ism. The world doesn’t always give you fairness and sometimes, you need to wrest it back. Spirits don’t always want to come back. And even the villains have a point.
Also, can I just say… it really fucking goes there. Nedra is such a queen. The last hundred pages changed me as a person, obviously. But I also… there’s this one section in this book that I can’t stop thinking about because it was so deeply fucked up, and then the narrative just kept fucking describing everything. You’ll know what I mean when you get there.
Anyway, I absolutely loved this, and I cannot wait to get to book two - look out for my review here!
The point of a plot twist is to shock the audience. It is no longer shocking when the plot twist is plot-twisted out of.
This novella is one of GillianThe point of a plot twist is to shock the audience. It is no longer shocking when the plot twist is plot-twisted out of.
This novella is one of Gillian Flynn’s only works that is not a full-length novels, and at first, I was really liking it. The atmosphere is undeniably creepy. Her writing is undeniably solid. The lead, though in some ways kind of blandly Dark, has a sense of sarcasm to her narration that I admit to enjoying.
And then it threw me the first plot twist. And I thought it was amazing.
And then it threw me the second plot twist. And I swear to god I made this exact face: [image]
I mean, I really don’t have much to say about this. I fully admit that it’s a compelling story and hard to put down - I listened to the whole story in one sitting. But is an hour of my life really worth the absolute Zip Zilch Nada I got from this book? No. Okay, probably. But it’s not worth YOUR time....more
So this book apparently has not been announced yet, but it's being pitched as Wonder Woman in a West-African inspired world. also, it's about a girl wSo this book apparently has not been announced yet, but it's being pitched as Wonder Woman in a West-African inspired world. also, it's about a girl with no power trying to defeat her sister with power. sign me up....more
I loved this. I actually adored this. Everything about this fantasy commentary on misogynoir just hit exactly at the mark, and I devoured it in two daI loved this. I actually adored this. Everything about this fantasy commentary on misogynoir just hit exactly at the mark, and I devoured it in two days out of sheer enjoyment. I know I’ll keep Tavvia and Effie with me for a long, long time.
A Song Below Water follows sisters Tavia and Effie, the former of whom is a siren—a magical metaphor for misogynoir—and the latter of whom might be cursed.
This fast-paced YA fantasy novel has a fantastically creative premise, but the execution doesn’t take that for granted—instead, it pays attention to the humanity of each character. These two each feel so fleshed out. Tavia has a passion for song, a complex relationship with her father, a complex ex named Priam, and a loving relationship with care tutorial maker Camilla Fox; Effie has a job playing a mermaid at Hidden Scales fair, a long-term love affair with a coworker named Elric, and significant trauma with sprites. Their character quirks and interests make them each instantly compelling and a treat to root for. I particularly adored Effie, but each narrator resonated with me in different ways.
I think fantasy metaphors for racism and systematic oppression are both fantastically easy to get wrong and, when done right, can be stupendous. Morrow’s handling of this particular element is brilliant, and one of the best examples I’ve seen in recent years.
Overall, this book instantly grabbed me and was a treat the whole way through. I’m so excited to see more by Morrow, and to read the sequel!
I didn't know what to tell her. That I tried not to think about that kind of stuff, because it was painful, because I thought I could ever hav
I didn't know what to tell her. That I tried not to think about that kind of stuff, because it was painful, because I thought I could ever have it, but when I did end up liking someone, it always made me ache right down to my core. I realized pretty early on that the who didn't really matter so much. That anybody who listens to me, I end up loving them just a little.
Heartbreaking, hopeful, and impossible to look away from.
I think the narratives we are used to give men the agency, and it is so interesting to see the trend of women fighting back.
So what is this book? Sadie follows podcaster West McCray, a mid20s man investigating a two-sister disappearance for posterity. And in scenes throughout, we see Sadie herself, off to kill her sister’s murderer.
There’s not exactly a wide cast of characters for a novel, but Sadie makes up for it. Sadie is such a fantastic lead character; she’s out for a revenge, bitter and angry, a sexual assault victim, pansexual, grew up poor, and has a major stutter. I absolutely adored her, and watching her go further down this awful track was so horrifying.
There’s a really interesting element of this book where, at least in the arc copy, no one in the book really does anything beyond imply pedophilia until around 60% of the way through the book, when Sadie asks a man point-blank whether he's a pedophile. It’s a horrifying reality for Sadie; it’s a simple accepted fact of her life. And she attempts to push it down, but when the sentence is finally said, when Sadie finally calls it out, I winced so strongly. That element is just one facet of the horror of this book - that Sadie knows it's wrong, and yet she refuses to say it.
Courtney Summers does not shy away from the harsh realities of this world - the contrast between poverty and wealth, the idea that privileged people often get away with horrifying deeds, the lack of agency given to girls in our society. I really think the most accurate description of this is stark. I could not look away, but I think it was worth it. This will haunt me for a very long time.
You guys are always telling me this author writes vaguely shitty romance novels and is unbelievably overhyped... and yet this masterpiece exists? I caYou guys are always telling me this author writes vaguely shitty romance novels and is unbelievably overhyped... and yet this masterpiece exists? I call bullshit because this was masterful.
If you have read this book and also follow my reviews, you know the topic of abuse is one I sort of talk about a lot. this book got it right. this book got it so, so right. So let’s talk about why.
→ character work ← I knew I would love Lily from the moment she stood up at her abusive father’s funeral and refused to speak. And oh boy, was I right. Lily works so well as a protagonist because she isn’t the archetype. She has been through abuse herself and she is so, so sure it would never happen to her. She would leave if even one thing happened. She would. ...But then she doesn’t. She reads as absolutely, totally real. And her character development? Fucking iconic.
→ friendship focus ← Something that really bothers me a lot in romances like this is that a romance tends to save the protagonist, and I think this book - despite marketing that made me concerned this trope would rear its ugly head - does the opposite. The lead friendship here between Lily and Alys is so 20/10 and so important. And even though there is a touch of romance, I think the book is very explicit about it not being healthy for Lily to jump right into a new relationship. I appreciate that a lot.
→ narrative treatment ← I think this is one of the only books I have ever read that actually seems to understand that abuse is a mortal sin. The wild thing is, aside from his moments of extreme rage, Rylin never appears to be that bad of a guy. He apologizes every time. He continuously seems to account for Lily’s feelings. But his actions against her are enough. There is no question in the narrative on whether she was being unempathetic: Lily was right to leave, no matter how he treated her in the aftermath. And I think that means a lot to me, how his character is nuanced but also irredeemable for Lily.
I mean, aside from these three things, everything about this novel was basically good - the writing is extremely clean and easy-to-read, there are some really really funny moments, the romance that does end up occurring is genuinely sweet, and it's overall a win - but on a personal level? I am destroyed. This book is not just good, this book is Fantastic. and that's my opinion. goodnight.
I have literally nothing to say about this book. there is no character arc and no real plot and no real resolution and no real romance. this novella hI have literally nothing to say about this book. there is no character arc and no real plot and no real resolution and no real romance. this novella had no arc, no... anything?
I don’t even think I can write a full review. this was just... not even a novella. maybe a decent short story but not a novella by any means.
✨me, trying to read novellas as fast as possible so I don’t feel like I totally failed at reading over break? it’s more likely than you think [buddyread with if I dislike this the review will shoot to the top of the page and I feel bad]...more
The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle is a thriller following an investigation into the murder of a girl who is murdered every singe night. The main cThe Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle is a thriller following an investigation into the murder of a girl who is murdered every singe night. The main character switches bodies every day in an attempt to get different points of view. And yes, it is wild.
So the thing I’ve seen praised about this book is that the plot is ridiculously complex, and it very much is. I am in awe over the tight plotting used in this book. This must have taken a very long outline and the complexity certainly makes this stand out. I think, however, that the marketing has been very focused on plot twists - I was only seriously shocked by a few twists reading this book, and I’ve already forgotten what, exactly, it was. The delight in this book is not in plot twists, but in seeing the full story come together. I will say that the actual ending, though I predicted parts of it, had enough surprises that it was still delightful.
As with many adult thrillers, I struggled to connect to or care about any of the characters. The lead character is almost completely lacking in personality, which makes sense given the entire theme of him being absorbed into bodies, but doesn’t work, as we’re led to believe that he is in constant danger of becoming something awful but never given details to notice or a reason to care. There’s a way of writing a compelling character with amnesia; high motivation, people around them we care about, etc, and this book doesn’t do a great job. I was mostly, however, really disappointed by the bodies Aiden switches into: almost every person he occupies is a dislikable person. Bell is quite boring and later revealed to be terrible, Mr. Collins spends his entire day in agony, Ravencourt is terrible (and for unrelated reasons his section was my absolute least favorite of the book). That’s just the first three, and I will not be going into the rest because they get much worse.
Something I really enjoyed about this book, however, was the message - this book is very focused on realizing the changeability of people, and though I never cared about any of these characters much, I did find myself believing in and enjoying the message. I think this message is probably the most daring the book ever gets.
..So I actually considered and came very close to rating this book a four star, but I found myself forgetting it very quickly. With a thriller of this type, I usually would have kept my rating a four no matter how much I forgot.
However, the fatphobia in this book was utterly ridiculous. I found it rather disturbing to read such an absolute distate from the narrator and author for the fatness of the character he inhabits: Ravencourt is described as a “pig” and a “cow” over and over, and repeatedly described as “disgusting” with seemingly no regard for his humanity. The voyeuristic imagery of fatness is, exclusively and completely, meant to disgust and shock the audience. It is the main thread of a good 20% of the book. a few quotes are stated here, and this reviewer only got to the beginning of this section, at 20%, so can I just say: it’s like, five times that many. I found this incredibly distasteful from about the third comment on, and the near-constant repetition of this rhetoric had me wanting to put the book down. I'm really wondering what the authorial intent is here, and perhaps more importantly, how the author must interact with overweight people in his own life.
I also felt that rape was used as a plot device in a way that made me somewhat uncomfortable – SPOILER: (view spoiler)[a bunch of the book is told through the pov of a person who committed a rape approximately two hours before, and it’s criticized, but… the impacts on the victim are very much ignored. (hide spoiler)] This is a huge and very common issue in literary fiction, but I also hated it and it impacted my enjoyment of this as a thriller.
So… despite many good elements, I kind of just want to tell you to read The Westing Game instead. Nothing but respect for MY president.
TW: really intense fatphobia that the author really sounds like he agrees with, suicide, and rape.
✨Arc received from the publisher via Netgalley for an honest review. release date: 8 September 2018 ...more
No one wanted to believe their mistakes were preventable. If your future was foretold, then you weren’t accountable for it.
Enjoyable stan
No one wanted to believe their mistakes were preventable. If your future was foretold, then you weren’t accountable for it.
Enjoyable standalone fantasy is something to be thankful for!
So Beneath the Citadel is an enjoyable book about a fantasy heist: four criminals, and their maybe-ally on the inside, attempt to pull off a rebellion against the oppressive high priests ruling their city. But can they trust the allies they’ve picked? This is a supremely entertaining premise, and on the whole, I thought this book worked pretty well. It’s a fast-paced and entertaining romp, well-written. And Beneath the Citadel manages this fast pace without losing structure – the book keeps clear character motivation and thus a clearly established goal.
The world in which Beneath the Citadel takes place in is... functional. I genuinely think recent YA fantasy may have forgotten how important imagery is in drawing together a world - I just couldn't picture most of the locations or cities this took place in. They all felt just a tiny, tiny bit generic, as if the author had written them for functionality rather than placement. Which is fine! Seriously, it's fine. I do think the world as a whole needed to be cleared up with a map - is there a map in the physical final copy?
The characters, on the whole, work. I liked that there wasn’t much romance! One m/m romance is plenty of romance and was super fun. Cassa, the group’s leader, is driven to a fault, often stubborn and unable to admit her mistakes. Alys is the plus-sized and ace bisexual fortune teller of the group, quieter and occasionally insecure. Vesper was by far my favorite character: she is a girl in disguise, attempting to hide her memories and save her friends. And then there are the two final leads: Evander, Cassa’s ambitious and funny ex, and Newt, the group’s spy.
…okay, so I really really hesitate to call things overly derivative in terms of characters – that’s weird territory as a reviewer. And I actually don’t think this book, in and of itself, is a super derivative work; it distinguishes itself in both plot and characterization, for the most part. But …. when you’re comparing your book to Six of Crows, as this book's initial blurb did. You really cannot have a couple in the story in which one is a white gay guy who has a dead mother and a bad relationship with his father and a whole self-realization arc, and the other is a black bisexual guy who jokes to suppress his feelings, deals with nervous energy, has some past romantic tension with the lead character, and whose special talent is that he can – I shit you not – manipulate metal. I genuinely struggled to see these characters as something more than Jesper/Wylan fanfiction. This, to me, was deeply weird; I'm actually struggling to believe the author wasn't aware of this. I completely understand we all have character dynamics we like, which is totally fine; this is just way too much similarity.
Something else that I enjoyed about this book was the focus on the quality of memory, and on the power of memory as a weapon to control society. There’s something deeply terrifying about forgetting, about not being able to fight back because you cannot remember what someone has done to you. That’s fascinating and Destiny Soria leans into the horror of it well. I also enjoyed how much the book and narrative as a whole leans into change as a force of good: especially in our current world, the younger generation as a force for good is genuinely a compelling idea.
On the whole, this was a decent read but not a fantastic one. A solid three, just not more.
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