If you don't know what a 'magical girl' is, the premise of this book might sound kind of weird to you. But I knew exactly what a magical girl is, so wIf you don't know what a 'magical girl' is, the premise of this book might sound kind of weird to you. But I knew exactly what a magical girl is, so when I saw this book on sale in my Kobo store, I knew I wanted to read it!
Magical girl is a genre in anime and manga. You've probably heard of the most famous magical girl(s) of all -- Sailor Moon. My personal favourite magical girl is Cardcaptor Sakura. In this book, the idea of magical girls is made into a little bit of a parody, but in a good way. The main character (who I think is nameless; at least, I don't recall ever seeing her name mentioned) is a 29 year old woman self-proclaimed 'loser', with no job and drowning in credit card debt. She's on the verge of suicide one day when she encounters Ah Roa, a magical girl who tells our protagonist that she is also a magical girl. Quite possibly the most powerful magical girl of all. Ah Roa tells her that she is needed to fight against a terrible foe -- climate change!
This is a short little novella, which I personally would categorize as a 'cozy read'. It's nothing groundbreaking but it was just a lot of fun to read, and I actually read most of it at work because it was so easy to get through, and quite short. It doesn't take itself seriously. Just silly fun, without going into cringey or campy territory.
If you are, or were, into the magical girl genre and want a blast of nostalgia, this one is for you....more
A pretty cozy and decently fun read, but not particularly unique. I know, I know, you're thinking, "What do you mean, not unique? I just read the synoA pretty cozy and decently fun read, but not particularly unique. I know, I know, you're thinking, "What do you mean, not unique? I just read the synopsis and it sounds pretty darn unique to me!" Well, yes, it does sound very interesting. Elsy finds herself in the fictional town that is featured in her favourite romance novel series, and she's certain she's here to finish the series, because the author had died before doing so herself. Elsy wants to help these couples find their happily ever afters. But there's another person in the town who does not want her meddling with anything.
The reason it doesn't actually sound as unique as it does is because for most of the novel, Elsy is just kind of living her life and nothing she does seems to impact the story world greatly. Like, if you weren't told she's stuck in a book world, you wouldn't know she's in a book world. The story could just pass as a story of a woman whose car broke down in a small town and she's getting to know the locals as she passes time, waiting for her car to be fixed. I think I read another review where the reviewer said it felt like the magical-ness of the story didn't come through, and I think that's a good description of it.
The romance is also strangely paced. It felt like they went from strangers to lovers rather suddenly. I don't mean quickly -- it took some time. But when they decided they liked another, it was like a 180. I didn't feel any chemistry between the two at all.
However, the book's greatest strength is (in my opinion) its tone and atmosphere. It is humorous and written delightfully. It gave me all the cozy story vibes I sought for. And I always love books about books and people who love reading. In fact, many times Elsy talks about how it's so unfortunate people look down on romance novels, which definitely felt a bit like a 4th wall moment, haha, but yes, you can feel the love for books Elsy (and the author!) both carry.
I haven't read Poston's other novels, this is my first, so maybe her other ones are better. I recommend this if you are looking for a cozy romance, or a romance with a touch of magic in it, or just books-about-books....more
This is a re-read. I have been craving a 'comfort read', which for me usually means going back to some book I read when I was much younger. So, here wThis is a re-read. I have been craving a 'comfort read', which for me usually means going back to some book I read when I was much younger. So, here we are with Howl's Moving Castle, which I first read a few years after watching the animated movie. Loved the movie, and also loved the book (which I have a new copy of with the updated cover, and I think it is just so beautiful and whimsical!)
I read a lot of fantasy books and there's something about older fantasy novels, especially children's fantasy books, that feel so much more creative. I guess since it's for kids, maybe the authors feel they can go a bit crazier with their stories. I feel that way with Howl's Moving Castle. Some of the elements of the book are just so silly and unique, it makes it extremely memorable. The moving castle of course, is iconic. The door that leads to multiple worlds as well, including the very interesting scene where it's revealed the wizard Howl is actually from Wales -- yes, our Wales! -- and visits his nephews playing computer games. It felt so random! But also funny.
I don't know if it was because I was a little tired when I was reading this, but this time around I felt a bit confused at the end with all the secret identities and whose curse needed to be broken by who, etc. I can't remember if I actually kept it all straight in my head the first time I read it, but this time, I did get a little muddled. Still, I got the gist of it so I guess that's enough. It didn't foul my experience of this book.
This is a wonderful, fairy-tale like story and it's not hard to see why it's a considered a children's modern classic these days....more
I feel like I read a different book from everyone else ... I found this third installment to be, for the most part, pretty boring and I had to push myI feel like I read a different book from everyone else ... I found this third installment to be, for the most part, pretty boring and I had to push myself to finish.
For the first 75% of this book, I would say not much really happens. Celaena is training her magic with new character Rowan. Another new character, a witch named Manon, is in training with her new wyvern. So, yeah, for three-quarters of this book, it's basically just training sessions. And personally, I hate reading about characters training, for anything. I just find it really boring, so it doesn't help that the vast majority of this book is just training. It felt like an endless training montage.
The last quarter of the book actually became very interesting and was far more engrossing; however, it wasn't enough to make me suddenly disregard the tediousness of the first 75%.
I still find Celaena to be an insufferable person. I know, she's supposed to be this tough, no-nonsense, hardened assassin; but she's really kind of just a bitch. The new character Rowan is kind of just a male version of her, and of course, is her new love interest. Manon, another new character, is also kind of like Celaena in terms of personality except she's on the opposite side of the war from her.
I think this book improved a lot from Throne of Glass, but somehow feels a step backwards from Crown of Midnight (which I quite enjoyed!) so I am perplexed as to what happened here ... Might take a bit of a break before I try book four....more
I had no idea what this book was about before I picked it up. I borrowed this from the library when I saw it was available because I bought 2.5 stars.
I had no idea what this book was about before I picked it up. I borrowed this from the library when I saw it was available because I bought Allison Saft's other book, A Dark and Drowning Tide, and as it hasn't arrived yet, thought I'd check out this other novel first. This book felt Bridgerton-inspired. It is set in a fictional Regency-era world, with elements of magic. There is also a Lady Whistledown-like character, Lovelace, who has a scandal sheet. Our main character is Niamh, a seamstress who can enchant her clothing creations with magic to make one more invisible, or with emotions so that when people look at you wearing the clothes, they feel happy etc. It's a romance between her and the Prince Christopher, known as Kit.
So for the first half of the book (or maybe even as much as 2/3), I have to admit, I was really bored. I just didn't really click with the story. It felt like Niamh was just sewing all the time? (Ironically, in the last half or third of the novel, I started to wonder why Niamh wasn't sewing when she was constantly fretting about the wedding coming up soon. It was like the closer the wedding approached, the less she sewed haha). And I didn't understand why all these royal higher ups were hanging out with the seamstress all the time, recreationally.
The story did eventually grow on me and I find I did become quite invested in Niamh and Kit's relationship. It was a slowly developing relationship that felt organic, and I was definitely rooting for them at the end. I found their relationship quite charming and sweet. There's a bit of spice in this book, but it's very, very mild. Probably because it's a YA book.
The ending was as expected when it comes to the romance portion of the book, but also felt kind of dissatisfying. (view spoiler)[There was the big problem of the country's coffers being near empty, which is why Kit had to marry the foreign princess Rosa in the first place and secure her large dowry. And when Kit marries Niamh at the end, everyone's kind of 'Oh well, we'll figure out some other solution to the money problem'. (hide spoiler)] Also there was this thing about Niamh's hair having a white streak in it, to indicate how using her magic enchantments in making her clothes will shorten her life span. The more white it becomes, the closer to death she is. But it had no bearing on the plot at all, which was puzzling.
All in all, I probably would have given this novel a lower rating for the beginning, but it did get better. I think overall, it was an alright story but there's better romantasy or Regency-era novels out there....more
2.5 stars, but I'm going to round down, sadly. Probably more like a 2.25 or something like that, but I hate getting into quarter stars.
I thought this 2.5 stars, but I'm going to round down, sadly. Probably more like a 2.25 or something like that, but I hate getting into quarter stars.
I thought this book was a sci-fi book and it is labeled as so, but after finishing reading this, I don't think this was really sci-fi at all ... The story is a coming of age novel about a girl named Adina who believes she is an alien sent to earth to report on humans. Whether or not Adina is really an alien is not very clear; it could go either way. For what it's worth, I don't think she is one. The story is really about Adina's life, from birth to about 40 years old. Small town girl who moves to New York. Her friendships. Her relationships. Her career/job.
I feel a little misled, thinking that it was a sci-fi novel, but it's more literary fiction. I don't mind that it wasn't really sci-fi, but this book was only just "okay" for me. There were certainly many scenes that I found a little thought-provoking or interesting. But there were also a lot of scenes I felt kind of 'meh' about it.
The story is divided into 4 parts (I think? Or was it 5?) And each part is made up of many short scenes in Adina's life. I really do mean short. Often times just a paragraph long. The entire narration feels detached as well. It feels like you're just getting bits and pieces of Adina's life. And sometimes these short scenes felt kind of random and not really related.
Beautyland touches on themes of humanity, loneliness, relationships, and how we all connect to one another. I think it achieves its goals, but it just wasn't the most interesting novel for me, personally. I think if you enjoy coming of age stories that are more literary in nature, you will probably like this? But if you are looking for an actual sci-fi novel, this is not it....more
This is a retelling of the life and story of Hera, the Queen of the Greek gods. This will cover all the main 'events' of her life. Of course, the GreeThis is a retelling of the life and story of Hera, the Queen of the Greek gods. This will cover all the main 'events' of her life. Of course, the Greek tales of the gods and goddesses of Mount Olympus have tons of versions and aren't always consistent with the details, so this is just one version (as the author points out in the intro). I do believe there's some smaller details that are completely fabricated by the author, but for the most part, it is a retelling of her life -- no fancy twists here.
I am no expert on Greek mythology and am a very casual dabbler in it, so a lot of Hera's life is 'new info' to me. I do know that historically she's presented as a vindictive, vengeful wife of Zeus. And you know what -- she's the same in this book too, haha.
Constantly trying to take down her husband Zeus, kill his offspring, dismissive of humans, not a very good mother to her children ... It would be damn hard challenge to try to make Hera look good. The author doesn't try to redeem Hera in any way, but rather, she tries to explain why she is the way she is. I think she did a good job of explaining her female rage. It was an interesting read for sure and I enjoyed it a lot. If you know anything about Greek mythology at all, it's full of drama for sure. And if you enjoy a book about a woman's wrath, well, this is a good read for that.
I think the book lost its way a little bit near the end, or the last quarter or so. It was still interesting because I find ancient Greek tales endlessly interesting, but it started to feel like it was less focused on Hera and more on just telling you a bunch of stories where Hera is kind of involved in some way. Basically, the story seemed to have a bit of difficulty in transitioning from scene to scene, or event to event, near the end. It felt almost more like a collection of tales, if you know what I mean.
Overall, a solid read. Hera is a well known Greek goddess but one that hardly anyone says they are a fan of. I think this novel, ironically, humanized Hera and made her understandable, even though obviously a lot of her actions are terrible. I solidly recommend this to anyone interested in Greek mythology!...more
Finally read Jane Eyre, which had been on my bookshelf forever, and then I actually donated my copy 5-6 years ago, thinking I was never going to read Finally read Jane Eyre, which had been on my bookshelf forever, and then I actually donated my copy 5-6 years ago, thinking I was never going to read it. Then recently, I went and got a new copy because my friend said it was so amazing and I was in the mood to read some classics.
I wish I read it earlier -- it definitely is very good and a very memorable story. Beloved as a classic romance novel, I do find it a bit odd that it is labeled as such. I hope I'm not going to be skewered for thinking this, but this didn't strike me as a romance novel, though I will still label it as one on my Goodreads shelf because it seems popularly known as one. Of course, Jane and Mr Rochester's relationship is a big portion of the story but after finishing this book, I don't know if I would have labeled it as a romance.
The story is more about Jane's life (and indeed, Wikipedia also labels the book as a Bildungsroman novel; a story about a character's life from childhood to adulthood). The book starts with ten year old Jane and goes through her life living with her aunt, then at boarding school, then as a governess for Mr Rochester's home, and finally, living with a missionary. To me, this is a story about a girl seeking love and approval. It was wonderfully written with beautiful prose. I felt immersed in Jane's life; her successes and her triumphs were mine as well.
Unfortunately I am not well educated on the literary merit of this book, but as a casual reader (rather than as a scholar), I found this be a captivating read. I do like reading 'historical' novels that were actually written in the time it is set in. If you enjoy classics, you will definitely enjoy this too....more
It's been hard to decide how to rate this book, I hovered between a 2 and a 3 ... then thought to go middle of the road and pick 2.5 ... but I ended uIt's been hard to decide how to rate this book, I hovered between a 2 and a 3 ... then thought to go middle of the road and pick 2.5 ... but I ended up with 3 stars for 'I liked it'. Just like with Garber's other book series, Once Upon A Broken Heart, I feel Caraval is mostly atmosphere and style, with little substance beneath the surface. But for some inexplicable reason, I still generally enjoyed the read. Which is why my review below probably feels weird and disjointed, as I grapple with all my complaints while trying to explain "BUT I actually still liked it" because I don't think I fully understand it myself.
Caraval refers to a traveling, magical show/game that mysteriously appears every once in a while. I think it is like a traveling carnival. Maybe. First complaint was -- what the heck is Caraval? They say it's a game, but also gives the impression that every year it's something slightly different. Caraval is the entire world of this story but this story world seems to be shakily built. This year, the game has 'abducted' Donatella Dragna and her sister, Scarlett Dragna, is determined to find Donatella and win the prize -- a wish granted. You must be invited to attend Caraval, either as a player or an audience member. How they can observe I have no idea, because Scarlett and other characters are all living within what I want to call the Caraval village and disappearing into secret tunnels and stuff, and there's no hidden cameras or anything. But anyway, Scarlett has wanted to participate in Caraval for seemingly forever, but it is not turning out the way she thought it will.
But the thing with Caraval, like Once Upon A Broken Heart, is that it creates an atmosphere and I think that's what I enjoyed. The plot was nonsensical if I really thought about it, but I decided not to think too hard about poking holes through the plot and found I enjoyed the story much more. Garber writes in a somewhat lyrical way and a lot of the similes she uses honestly doesn't make much sense (example: "Perfume wafted from it. It smelled like the middle of the night." or "Someone screamed. As hot and bright as fire.") But they create a certain atmosphere and I think that's what this author emphasizes more than anything else: setting a mood.
There is a romance in the story which was all right. It's a pretty typical YA romance, and I'm thankful it wasn't an instant love situation.
There's also the character named Legend, who is the Caraval ... master? Showrunner? He's a very mysterious guy who is also the antagonist. You don't see him much in the book, though Scarlett does constantly wonder which character is Legend, since he could be anyone. So that was a bit of fun and mystery as I was constantly wondering which character might secretly be Legend.
I recommend this book to people who love YA and stories with a good atmosphere. Especially if you kind of like the carnival/circus vibe (again, Caraval is neither of those things, but it's the closest thing I can think of to describe it). Don't read if you need a well fleshed out world or characters because I don't think Caraval fits that bill....more
I listened to this as an audio book and it was a great listen! The story takes place in the South and the narrator does a fantas3.5 stars, rounded up.
I listened to this as an audio book and it was a great listen! The story takes place in the South and the narrator does a fantastic Southern accent for all the characters (or maybe she is Southern, and does a fantastic PNW accent as a narrator, I don't know, haha). This is a fun story about a small town and its townspeople.
Lula Dean starts the Concerned Parents Commitee and bans several books from the library. Lula starts a Free Little Library to share the books she deems appropriate. They're all things likeThe Art of Crochet and The Southern Belle's Guide To Etiquette though, stuff nobody really wants to read for leisure. A young girl named Lindsey brings a bunch of banned books to the Free Little Library and takes the dust jackets off of Lulu's approved books and puts them on the banned ones, thus swapping the books.
The story then follows many different townspeople as they borrow the books and discover what they are really reading and in some cases, how it changes their lives. Of course, as this is all happening, the drama between Lula and her eternal rival from her high school days, Beverly, fire up as well as they both make a bid to become mayor of the small town.
Like I said, this was fun and fast paced. At first I wasn't sure if I liked how it seemed like every chapter focused on a different townsperson, but as the book continued, all the characters' stories intertwine to make up a larger, overarching plot. It starts off as a bit of a comedy but as the story continues, it does take a darker turn.
This book touches on tons of hot-button issues of the present day: banning books (of course), homosexuality, parental rights, antisemitism, slavery, racism, etc. I understand all these topics are kind of related to banning books, since these are all the topics Lula wants to ban. I think the book did a pretty good job, but it was a lot of topics to cover, so it felt a little bit like it was trying to do too much.
It's a short read/listen (only 10 hours) but somehow, near the end, it felt like it was overstaying its welcome a bit. Regardless, the journey was fun and I would recommend this to anyone to try, especially if you enjoy books with ensemble casts of characters....more
I received this book kind of mistakenly because I forgot to skip my Owlcrate YA sub for the month of July. I had wanted to skip July because originallI received this book kind of mistakenly because I forgot to skip my Owlcrate YA sub for the month of July. I had wanted to skip July because originally, this book didn't sound that interesting to me -- a Snow White retelling. I used to be really into fairy tale retellings when I was younger, but not really now. Well, anyway, like I said, I forgot to skip so I have the book now, and I thought, whatever, I'll read it. The Owlcrate special edition is gorgeous, the best looking edition of this book by far, in my opinion, so it did call out to me a bit. And honestly? I'm pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed it. Yes, it definitely feels like a YA book, and it's not perfect, but I was into it enough that I read it fairly quickly.
This is a loose telling of the Snow White story, except it's about a princess named Eve. She is not mentioned to be the 'fairest in the land' or anything like that. She's been raised to be a fighter, in hopes of one day defeating the mysterious Knight, who traverses the land in his moving castle, granting people's wishes but always exacting a terrible price. I know, that doesn't sound like the Snow White story at all, haha, but it definitely has all the elements of the traditional fairy tale, just retold in a massively different way.
This is by no means a perfect story -- I found Eve to be too brash for my liking, and the romance between her and Nova (the love interest) felt forced. I didn't get why they liked/loved one another at all. I also didn't feel particularly emotional about the trials and tribulations everyone had to endure because of the Knight ruining their lives. It was always like, Oh the Knight killed a family member of mine or something like that, through a botched wish, and I just thought, Yes, yes very sad, moving on.
But! I did really like this book despite all that. I think a lot of it came down to knowing it's a Snow White retelling and wondering how the author is going to inject elements of the fairy tale in when the premise of this story feels so different from it to begin with. I was intrigued! While I wasn't mesmerized by the characters of the story, I thought the plot itself was fun and interesting, with good pacing. Like I said earlier, I read this pretty fast (for my standards, anyway, haha, took me about 3 days) because we never lingered on a scene too long. The plot kept moving. It is a story that does not overstay its welcome.
If you like fairy tale retellings and/or young adult fantasy, this is a good book to try!...more
I listened to this as an audiobook and it was so good, and fun to listen to. I think loads of people had a crush on Tom Felton growing up, watching hiI listened to this as an audiobook and it was so good, and fun to listen to. I think loads of people had a crush on Tom Felton growing up, watching him act as Draco Malfoy in the Harry Potter films, by far his most well known work. These days, I am not sure what he is up to, though I know he is still in actor. Well, I feel like I'm all caught up on his life now, haha! Tom Felton narrates well and I love listening to him read his own book and hearing him chuckle at some of his own memories. He acts out a lot of the dialogue and does a not bad American accent (when he is imitating someone who is American). Honestly, just loads of fun listening to him talk.
He talks about his family, how he got into acting, his early career as a child actor and of course, his time in the Harry Potter films. He also talks about his time post-Potter and I had no idea he kind of spiraled a bit and was doing way too much smoking and weed, and alcohol too. Had an intervention, went to rehab, everything. He's very optimistic in tone and looks forward to what his future has in store. My favourite part was the Closing section actually, where he goes through some of his favourite times he has been mistaken as other famous actors.
Highly recommend, especially if you love Harry Potter because there's a huge section on that and there's lots of behind-the-scenes tidbits, fun trivia, that sort of thing, that I'm sure a fan would love discovering....more
This was disjointed and seemed all over the place. At one point I thought it was a story about ghosts. Then I thought it was a mystery. I thought it wThis was disjointed and seemed all over the place. At one point I thought it was a story about ghosts. Then I thought it was a mystery. I thought it was a story about a house and how various characters were connected to it. Then I thought it was a historical novel about Native Americans. Then I thought it was a character study on alcoholism.
By the end, I don't really know what it was about. It also felt like I was reading a textbook at times, and I found myself skimming those sections where the character (or is it the author?) tried to educate on some historical fact.
There's certainly parts that I found interesting. For example, I found the trip the female characters Jane, Allison and Genevieve, took to some sort of psychic getaway camp fun to read. But on the whole, the interesting parts of the novel were far and few.
I don't know who I would recommend this book to, as the story felt completely unfocused....more
I listened to this as an audiobook and like the first Bridgerton book, it is wonderfully narrated by Rosalyn Landor again. A really great performance I listened to this as an audiobook and like the first Bridgerton book, it is wonderfully narrated by Rosalyn Landor again. A really great performance once again.
Onto the actual story, this one follows Anthony Bridgerton. Due to the death of his father when Anthony was younger, Anthony believes that he, too, will die young. As he approaches that fated age, he believe it's time for him to find a wife, any wife, sire an heir or two, then wait for death.
He courts the beautiful Edwina Sheffield, but she will not wed unless she has the approval of her older 'spinster' sister, 22-year old Kate. And unfortunately for Anthony, Kate hates Anthony.
This is a real 'enemies to lovers' romance story that feels realistic. The relationship between Anthony and Kate is slowly built up, and feels quite natural for two people who began not liking one another. It is also refreshing that they don't fall for one another just because they're hot or whatever. Well, Anthony is described as being quite handsome, but it's made clear that Kate isn't some great beauty (she's not ugly either, just not super gorgeous).
I really enjoyed listening to this book! The only thing I didn't like as much was that ... Anthony is kind of a dick for a chunk of the story. He makes it clear that he wants to find a wife, but not fall in love. It's just that, sometimes he was just really mean about it. It made for a weird romance where sometimes I was rooting for Kate and Anthony to be together and sometimes I just wanted Kate to just leave him. Of course, by the end, he basically redeems himself, but still....more
If you want to read about a woman who seems to be spiraling, this is for you. Not sure why but I love reading a story about people getting a little unIf you want to read about a woman who seems to be spiraling, this is for you. Not sure why but I love reading a story about people getting a little unhinged as their life falls apart.
Death Valley is about a woman whose husband has some sort of chronic illness and father is on the brink of life or death at the hospital ICU. She, herself, is a novelist and appears to be struggling to write her next novel. She flees to the California desert where she tries to find respite at a Best Western. She ends up going on a hike where all kinds of crazy shit happens, such as entering a giant cactus and seeing her father as a child, talking to rocks, writing letters to rabbits, etc. and other delusions.
This was a good read. I wasn't blown away by it or anything, but I liked it. I found the writing style/character voice kind of humorous despite the obvious sorrow our main character is going through. I thought it was especially poignant how, when she was lost in the desert, injured and dehydrated, possibly dying, she realized her strong desire to persevere and keep going. She wanted to live.
Overall, I liked the book, even the absurd moments in it. ...more
This is my first Stephen King novel! I have always wanted to try one but I didn't want to read a horror one (horror isn't my favourite genre, I'm incrThis is my first Stephen King novel! I have always wanted to try one but I didn't want to read a horror one (horror isn't my favourite genre, I'm incredibly picky with horror books), so my sister recommended this because she knows I love time travel stories.
This one is about a man named Jake whose friend Al reveals to him a secret time travel "rabbit hole" as he calls it, that leads to exactly one place in time, in 1958. When you come back through the rabbit hole to 2011, you can see what changes may have happened due to meddling with history, but if you go back to 1958, time "resets". Because it only leads to that one year, Al wants to try to do some good and change history, and the closest major historical moment to 1958 is the the assassination of JFK. He wants to save JFK, come back to 2011 and never go back, therefore never resetting the timeline. However, Al is too old and terminally ill now and unable to, so he asks Jake to do it for him.
I really enjoyed this novel, it was a different way of handling time travel than most stories these days. Wanting to know if Jake was able to pull off this major change in history is what kept me hooked onto this book. He's a pretty smart guy too, and incredibly (maybe suspiciously?!) resourceful and good at making himself look like he belongs in that time period. Hidden in this novel, there is actually a romance too! Jake falls in love with a woman named Sadie in 1958, and it is actually a very touching and sweet relationship. Along the way, Jake also finds himself endearing himself to the 1958 lifestyle, while keeping his 2011 sensibilities.
I only have two complaints about this book. The minor one is there is no reason (none that I could find anyway) that explains why Jake would agree to do this for Al. Him and Al aren't even THAT great of friends. I'm still not sure why Jake also felt this strong urge to save JFK's life. It just seemed like a very flimsy explanation -- his friend wanted him to do it, so he did.
My 2nd complaint, and the more major one, is that the pacing of the book can be a bit challenging to endure. There's large sections of the novel where Jake is just living 1958 life as a teacher and it's ... a little boring.
The ending was bittersweet but satisfying. I am interested in watching the TV mini series they made of this book in 2016 now, so I guess that's what I'm off to do next!...more
I listened to this audiobook on a whim and I am surprised ... I really loved this! I'm a casual fan of the Bridgerton Netflix TV series, and sometimesI listened to this audiobook on a whim and I am surprised ... I really loved this! I'm a casual fan of the Bridgerton Netflix TV series, and sometimes-reader of romance books, wasn't really expecting too much out of The Duke and I except maybe a decently pleasant listen. But wow, the narrator was really good. The book has a lot of dialogue and the narrator acted it all out, with different voices for different characters, and I was sucked right in! Even the non-dialogue parts were spoken out loud very well, it never sounded monotone or anything like some other audiobooks can be. I found out later that the narrator is an award winning audiobook narrator and I'm not surprised; she was very good. I'm not sure I would have loved it the same if I had read the novel out on paper, but as an audiobook -- it was amazing.
I don't really remember the nitty gritty details of season 1 of Bridgerton (the TV show) very well, but I do believe this book is much more fleshed out in not only characters but plot as well. Like the show, Daphne and Simon pretend to court one another to get everyone else to leave them alone, but end up actually falling in love. There is a very big part of the story where Simon does not want to have children but Daphne does -- I can't remember if the show had that plot point, or if it did, if it was as big a deal as it was in the books. But like I said, I felt the characters were much more dimensional and fleshed out in the novel than the show.
Anyway, I am excited to continue the series and I certainly want to continue them on audiobooks, if it is the same narrator for all of them. I usually listen to a book when I have chores or errands to do, but with this book, I was so engrossed I found myself sometimes putting it on and doing nothing but laying on the sofa to listen to it!...more
This is my first audiobook that I completed in full! I've always wanted to get into audiobooks but I have trouble focusing on someone reading a story This is my first audiobook that I completed in full! I've always wanted to get into audiobooks but I have trouble focusing on someone reading a story out loud to me, but I think I've got the hang of this now. On this audiobook specifically, I thought the narrator Elizabeth Evans was quite good, she does read in a pretty 'dramatic' voice where everything sounds really intense, but I guess Sarah J Maas does tend to write in a pretty intense voice as well. She's really good with doing different voices for different characters and keeps it consistent, which I was impressed with as well. It's my first audiobook so maybe I'm just easily impressed though, haha.
Anyway, I didn't like book one of this series (gave it 1/5 stars) because I thought the plot was poor and I did not like the main character Celaena. But I am continuing on because Sarah J Maas' books have always been a bit hit or miss with me, and I thought maybe this one is a miss but the next one will be a hit? I do like her books, overall. I'm glad I gave the series another try. I still don't like Celaena, I find her to be the equivalent of an internet edgelord in personality, but at least she actually does assassin-y things in this book, unlike the first one we're simply told she is the best assassin in the world but never kills anyone. But she's more tolerable for me here.
The plot though, is where this book shines because I felt like it was more coherent than the previous book's tournament plotline, and the romance in this book was more focused between Chaol and Celaena. This whole book just felt better and is more in line with what I expect from a good YA novel. The story is very action packed and there is a lot of character development and growth that happens. I feel a true sense of adventure reading/listening to this book.
It's been a long time since I've read The Hunger Games books ... Anyway, I had no idea there was a prequel novel released until the movie came out! GuIt's been a long time since I've read The Hunger Games books ... Anyway, I had no idea there was a prequel novel released until the movie came out! Guess I've been living under a rock. Here I am, finally reading it.
So I want to preface this by saying I did like it, overall, but I have to admit, the pacing was quite slow. Certain parts felt boring. And you know, having read the previous trilogy, it's a bit repetitive to read about yet another Hunger Games tournament. Although, the actual tournament in this book is only 1/3 of the story. The first 1/3 was okay, the second part was the tournament and the last third overstayed its welcome.
I liked Coriolanus as the main character, even though he was the antagonist in the original trilogy. You can see he had the seeds of villainy from the beginning -- ambitious, concerned with reputation, his family name, not the greatest of friends -- but dressed up more positively. I think the best way to sum him up, is a quote from the movie (yes, I eventually watched it, haha): "We all do things we're not proud of to survive." If you didn't already know the story of this character from the original, you might never suspect the path Coriolanus eventually ends up on. But then also, the ending might shock you with how sudden he "switches" to being a bad guy.
I also enjoyed the romance aspect of the story. I really liked the idea of the mentor falling in love with his doomed Hunger Games tribute. (view spoiler)[But it was strange to me how the end of the novel kind of threw their relationship away abruptly. I don't mind that there was no happy ending with them and that they both kind of turned on one another. But what was weird was how abrupt and sudden it happened! He spends most of the novel in love with Lucy Gray, but then at the very end, when he was ready to leave Panem with her, he decides that actually, living as a poor person isn't going to be that great and he'd rather go back to the Capitol, even if it's without her. Lucy Gray, I guess, realizes that Coriolanus indirectly but purposely killed his friend, and rightfully feels nervous around him now. They part on terrible terms, both ready to kill one another. Like, I don't know, that just seemed like a huge 180 from their original feelings for one another, and for it all to happen over the span of what? 10 pages? It was so fast. (hide spoiler)]
Anyway, it was a good read but I didn't fall in love with this as much as I did with The Hunger Games. ...more
Two stars for "it's okay..." Picked this up with my Aardvark book subscription as it sounded very interesting, even though I am not normally a thrilleTwo stars for "it's okay..." Picked this up with my Aardvark book subscription as it sounded very interesting, even though I am not normally a thriller reader. People in the Aardvark community talk about how great it is and I wanted to read a genre I don't normally pick up. Unfortunately, I didn't find it very exciting. It was a bit of a dud for me.
This book takes place in the near future, the 2050s, where 'designer babies' is commonplace and hereditary diseases and disorders are almost a thing of the past, as most people will simply select an embryo without it (though many diseases can be cured/fixed as well). Babies can be created from any two people's cells, as the cells can be reprogrammed to become an egg or a sperm -- kind of like stem cells but taking the concept even further. So, any two people, even same sex people, can have a child together.
I love the concept for this book but already what bothered me was that many, many of the concepts and technology in this book are simply too advanced to realistically happen by 2050. But ok, maybe that's just a petty thing to complain about on my part because what do I know about how fast tech can develop? I kept reading anyway.
This story is very fast paced and you can read this in one or two sittings for sure. It is easy to read and get into. Unfortunately there is also a lot of exposition --like, a LOT of it -- which made certain parts kind of boring. Often times, this is when someone wants to explain how a certain piece of science works, and I just really feel it can be done much more creatively, but instead, it was just a character just explaining it all like a lecture. This also happens near the end of the novel, when one of the characters is being interrogated and the character just explains the last few years in big walls of paragraphs. It was just a bit boring at times when written in this way.
I feel like there's a lot of potential with this story and lots of ideas and concepts that can be explored. But whenever there are questions of identity; of parentage; of success and potential; or anything like that, brought up, the author answers her own questions quite quickly and leaves little room for discussion between the characters, and little room for deeper thought between the author and the reader.
The characters themselves are also not very memorable. The villain is so villainous that by the end he is a complete caricature.
This isn't a bad book, it just kind of missed the mark for me and that makes me a bit sad because I see a lot of potential....more
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