writingpen
Every individual story wasn't necessarily 5 stars, but as a collected work it's definitely worth it. I really enjoyed the little pieces of information Hobb included with each story. It was also a good intro to her other pen name.
Once again, an awesome entry to the Saga of Recluce. I tore through this book wanting to know what happened next. I liked that there was a hint of social issues without it being shoved down your throat.
This book has high excitement etc., but the way the groundwork for the twist is just annoying.
I enjoyed the prose but I felt there was an over dependence on tropes. I also wasn't fond of the way race was handled in this novel. It felt very stereotyped.
I really really wanted to like this more and didn't. It felt too rushed like the story didn't have time to breath. Plus the comic is based on a semi-popular trope. I enjoy the-“everyone of this subgroup now has powers” dealy. But I've seen it enough times to want the story give me something unique and different. That or have really interesting characters. In short, an okay read but nothing special.
This book meets my expectation of having a fun murder mystery thriller. It did its job and I didn't guess the twist correctly. That being said, it's just okay. I won't be desperately hunting more books by this author.
Disclaimer: I have read books in this series before and enjoyed them. I've never considered them high literature but they were good popcorn. This review reflects a drop in quality, I didn't accidently pick up this book and not understand the genre.
I'm pretty sure one of the following happened:
A) Stuart Woods does not quarantine well.
B) A ghost writer was involved and all parties assumed the book would be bought regardless because Barrington is basically a brand name
C) Stuart Woods is out of ideas and secretly wants this series to end.
D) Some combination of the above.
This book was a hot pile of mess. The book had the characters travel incessantly, on at least one occasion to their detriment. Additionally, I'm getting tired of Barrington's approach to his love life. Just once I want a lesbian to turn him down or something.
All the cleverness of previous books is gone. Instead of lawyer skills and buying things out from under his enemies, we get a weird amount of gunfire and death. He's not James Bond. I felt like I was reading a real estate guide combined with a spy novel. I probably won't be picking up another book in this series unless it gets really good reviews.
I'm tempted to round my score up, but it just wasn't a 5 star experience for me. The characters didn't utterly shine like they did earlier in the series and the mystery just didn't grab me enough. Maybe there were too many chess pieces being moved around? I think the series may be about to go in another direction and this is the “transition” novel. Which is okay! I still read it utterly filled with glee during the BEARS and liked that Armstrong showcased the different kinds of romantic and platonic relationships people can have. The characters continued to show growth and plot reflected the natural consequences of the choices characters made.
This was...interesting? I liked the fun alternate history. A lot of times alternate history focuses on war/ politics whereas as this largely avoided that. I liked the interplay of the siblings, but I wish we had gotten a little more Jefferson. I felt like a decent amount of plot focused on him, but I never felt like I properly knew him as a character. Overall, a decent page turner but it lacked the punch of Crazy Rich Asians.
That was amazing. I will simply list things that were awesome
- The passage of time felt smooth and natural. I never felt confused.
- Acknowledging that interacting with your ex can be awkward without turning them into the enemy
-Holy crap Anden!
-The subtle plot threads that pay off chefs kiss
-I never felt like the pages were wasted. Lee fully justifies the book length.
-Family priorities shifting over time.
-Was that a Hamilton reference?
- I love Jaya, so much.
A nice fluffy delight. It deals with things like friendship, reciprocity and sexuality. I also like the way it handles trauma. You don't recover in one day from spending your life in fear. The plot was sometimes slightly convoluted, but overall a good read. I would recommend it for someone who wants something cute they don't have to spend absurd amounts of time overanalyzing.
This is a book that could have been more. It had a lot of hints of greatness but an inability to commit. Maybe the author isn't fully confident with action scenes ? That being said, the prose is readable and it's not a doorstop. It's nice quick read, just not sure how well I'll remember the plot 6 months from now.
An incredibly fun page turner that had lots of features I enjoy. These include: Little pieces of news media etc. at the start of every chapter, kilts, a focus on friendship and a bad guy who makes sense. Without getting too spoilery, basically the bad guy has motivations and plans that makes sense. He isn't just cackling evil and screwing over Kenna for no reason. I also appreciated that the book acknowledged large scale consequences of people randomly turning into animals rather than microfocusing only on Kenna. #TeamLion.
Over all I enjoyed the overall plot and I feel like hints were well placed. I plan to use this book for one of my reddit bingo squares and I'll probably end up buying at least one of sequels the next time I have some fun money.
This book is an okay murder mystery/ thriller. It just didn't excite me or make me go “wow!” It had one fun twist on who the murderer was, but otherwise it just wasn't that great.
Trigger warning: Read with caution if sexual assault and abusive relationships are hard for you to read.
This was mildly interesting but I am very much so not the target audience. It felt very niche.
This book wasn't perfect, but it certainly made me giggle. Also, I always appreciate when people experience consequences for their actions. My one major complaint is the explanation for how the fake letter from affair chick got published. It just felt over complicated and like maybe the plot was was originally more fleshed out but got edited out? It felt like a b-plot that got deleted but conclusion stayed.
This book raised some interesting questions and did some semi-decent societal change worldbuilding. The prose was also very readable, which my poor tired brain rather appreciated.
Unfortunately, the story left something to be desired. Almost none of the narrators were likable which left me no one too root for. It also felt like every competing plot took long to pay off because too many stories were competing. In addition, I find it vaguely uncomfy /weird that a book so focused on gender completely ignores the queer community. How do gay dudes stay employed etc? Are they all just working from home since commuting is dangerous? Are transgender people just banned from transitioning? Also, are activities like plays and concerts just not a thing anymore? Usually those sort things aren't even halfway done at 7pm. If these were even remotely answered in the book, it was too subtle for me to notice.
Well then.
This book could have been 5 stars if it was written rather differently. The concept is cool and there were moments that I was going “what next, what next” But the duel timeline just didn't work in some ways. And the end almost felt like it had too many twists. The book went SUPER INTENSE slow slow SUPER INTENSE sloooow and then TWIST UPON TWIST. Basically, I wanted the story but felt like the story was hidden from me, in favor of marital melodrama. I don't regret reading and I wouldn't mind reading something else by the author. But I'm not sure that re-read this one.
This concept has potential but it felt very low effort, look at pretty lady. It could have used more energy on world and character building.
I feel like I read someone else's high, but it was pretty and I enjoyed myself. Does it's job of being memorable.
I will fully admit this book is kinda dumb and requires a certain level of suspension of disbelief. But man, is it fun. I enjoyed the flashbacks that slowly give you insight into the friend group the story focuses on. Also the “evil plan” at the center is just the right amount of dumb. So, if you want some murder and like flashbacks, this is the book for you. The pay off at the end was amusing and I only had one main complaint. how did he not feel the nut?? It was a squishy cheese cube.
I picked this book for a reading challenge after I saw it on one of those book lists. I went in with really high expectations and was pumped to start reading it. Unfortunately, this book just didn't hit the spot for me. The prose was odd, though that may be because it's translated? Also, the book constantly felt like it was supposed to be a funny book but the comedy felt very hit or miss. And the author kept trying to add a mysterious subplot with a different kind of font that read like a sheep becoming a pagan. I would say the book had a decent beginning and end but the middle was a bit of a slog. This book could have been shorter and still done everything it was trying to.