Another case of me struggling to enjoy a book because I don't like the main character. Sera was angry and defensive a lot of the time. I get why. She Another case of me struggling to enjoy a book because I don't like the main character. Sera was angry and defensive a lot of the time. I get why. She was treated with disdain and mistrust because of her lowly seventh born status. She was held captive and has scars all over her body as a result of the evil magician draining her of her magic. I'd be angry too. As a Reader though, I need there to be qualities that will provide some balance so I can actually get behind a character. For me there were not. Plus the ratio of inner monologue to action as a way to move the plot forward was off. Others have enjoyed it so just a case of not for me....more
I'm such an outlier with many of these super hyped and popular romances. Some have cavemen types clubbing women over the head and dragging them back tI'm such an outlier with many of these super hyped and popular romances. Some have cavemen types clubbing women over the head and dragging them back to their caves where they can growl at them about their ownership status and the women gasp and whimper and tremble delicately in the strong possessive hands of their master. Some are beyond the realms of plausible even though they are contemporary romances as is the case with this book. Despite being a super intelligent STEM woman the main character acts like a bloomin' idiot and miscommunication/no-communication and withholding information plague us throughout most of the novel. I suspect I am meant to be on the edge of my seat waiting for them to clear the air by speaking from their hearts and professing their undying love etc. All that happens is that I crank up the speed. I had this on 2.3x within the first 30mins. TWO POINT THREE! Do you have any idea what they sound like at this speed? Let's just say the love interests should be named Alvin, Simon or Theodore (you're welcome for the earworm). I actually enjoy a good fake dating trope but this one made zero sense to me. ZERO! And is it just me or is Adam's height pretty much mentioned on every page? Olive and Adam were quite boring characters and the dialogue was clunky and cringe worthy at points. Yay for women in science but bummed I paid for this book....more
I really appreciated the representation but when the word 'Heist' is in the title I am expecting a lot more fun shenanigans than what was delivered inI really appreciated the representation but when the word 'Heist' is in the title I am expecting a lot more fun shenanigans than what was delivered in this YA novel. It was so great to see a full cast of asexual characters and the dynamics within the group were engaging. Essentially though there was a lot of sitting and talking and wondering how to get Jack's mum out of jail. Maybe if I hadn't been hoping for a casino heist in the style of 'Ocean's Eleven' I may have enjoyed this more....more
Read to 25%. Realise I have no idea what is going on. Start again. Read to 25%. RShortlisted for the Book Prize 2022
My reading journey with this book:
Read to 25%. Realise I have no idea what is going on. Start again. Read to 25%. Realise I still have no idea what is going on. Start again. Read to 25%. Realise I have no idea what is going on but solider on. Read to 70%. Realise I am losing the will to live because nothing about this book is engaging me.
1.5 rounded up to 2 for the good suspense writing in parts.
Well the start was so promising and then nothing much happened. I didn't enjoy the format w1.5 rounded up to 2 for the good suspense writing in parts.
Well the start was so promising and then nothing much happened. I didn't enjoy the format which was literally a novel length letter to a lawyer telling them about everything that had transpired up until the death of a girl under her care. There was a good sense of menace that was built up but I grew tired and a bit bored as the 'what is that noise?', "but I closed that door and now it's open, "I hear mysterious footsteps" stuff went on and on and on. I didn't enjoy the ending which I think was meant to be a series of shocking reveals but they felt a bit ho-hum and fell really flat for me. I see some very positive reviews so I guess it was a case of not for me....more
The narrator, Fallon, makes comments directly to us as Readers. One of them was something along the lines of 'I know you are thi*sighs*
Where to start.
The narrator, Fallon, makes comments directly to us as Readers. One of them was something along the lines of 'I know you are thinking all of this could be sorted if I just tell Chloe exactly why I am upset and how I feel'. And I answered her...out loud...in the mall... 'YOU THINK!'
I detest miscommunication/no communication stories that drag on and on. This one lasted the entire novel. That's 9 hours of my life filled with 'but she doesn't understand how hurt I am', and 'I have no idea what she is thinking but I will make assumptions based on no information other than what I have concocted in my head'. The pain. Why did I continue? Morbid curiosity. How long would the whinging and woe last. 9 hours as it turns out.
Confession.
It was more like 4 1/4 because after the first few minutes I knew nothing but double speed would get me through this.
I enjoyed Hotdog Girl, so so far I am 50/50 on this author....more
I'm giving this a 1.5 and rounding it up to 2 purely because I loved the talking plants.
Look, quite often when we go into a book our enjoyment is sigI'm giving this a 1.5 and rounding it up to 2 purely because I loved the talking plants.
Look, quite often when we go into a book our enjoyment is significantly affected by our expectations. This book did not meet my expectations so I did not enjoy it. This is not based on reviews or ratings but my own expectations for this novel based on it's blurb.
"The Alexandrian Society is a secret society of magical academicians, the best in the world...each decade, the world’s six most uniquely talented magicians are selected for initiation."
Was I wrong to expect the initiation would involve displays of magical capability in a competitive environment? Maybe, maybe not. I definitely didn't expect 90% of the book to be people sitting around moaning about who they trust and don't trust, or who should be eliminated or not, or who was more powerful or not, or how their magic worked or didn't, and which candidates they wanted to 'rub magical sticks' with or not.
It is such a shame because the beginning was so very promising and then the final 5 minutes piqued my interest again, but I can't see myself continuing on for fear of a repeat of the disappointment and boredom I felt with this book. Please read other reviews as there are lots of people who loved this. I did not....more
It's wonderful to have more transgender representation in books and especially by ownvoice authors. That being said, the main character in this book wIt's wonderful to have more transgender representation in books and especially by ownvoice authors. That being said, the main character in this book was quite an unlikeable young man. His fake personas grew annoying and the desperation to increase his following was pretty superficial. I also didn't enjoy the writing as there was simply too much 'this happened and then that happened and then I did this'. It is, however, an important story which is why I kept reading. One where a young man is not accepted by his parents as a boy and plans for conversion therapy are been hatched behind his back. I did not feel drawn into the story until about the 90% mark where there were about 20 minutes of emotional and moving writing. Overall, this was a miss for me and the content warnings need to be checked out.
CW: (view spoiler)[transmisia, homomisia, dead naming, threats of conversion therapy, parents withdraw from teens life, suicidal thoughts/ideation, in one of the stage productions a transgender character commits suicide after receiving some conversion therapy, Mis-gendering, Coming out, Gender dysphoria (hide spoiler)]...more
I am glad that this book has been enjoyed by other readers, however, for me it missed the mark. I was expecting a high s1.5 Stars rounded up to 2
Well.
I am glad that this book has been enjoyed by other readers, however, for me it missed the mark. I was expecting a high stakes survival thriller and it did not deliver. The characters were a bit on the dull side for me and my attention wandered frequently.
Thanks to Netgalley, the author and the publisher for a free audio copy in exchange for an honest review....more
Well that was very disappointing and quite frankly boring in parts.
The main character, Alix, was a muppet and there was far too much time spent on thoWell that was very disappointing and quite frankly boring in parts.
The main character, Alix, was a muppet and there was far too much time spent on thoughts such as "he is a bad guy but so very hot and I am drawn to him even though he kidnapped me but I can't stop thinking about him blah blah blah."
I will say that the concept of the book was really interesting. It just needed a jolly good edit and a less annoying main character.
1.5 Stars rounded up to 2 because the premise was good.
CW: (view spoiler)[Miles' mother committed suicide, blood, loss of loved ones, kidnapping, medi1.5 Stars rounded up to 2 because the premise was good.
CW: (view spoiler)[Miles' mother committed suicide, blood, loss of loved ones, kidnapping, medical experiments. (hide spoiler)]
Well that was disappointingly non-eventful. In the the first book the slow pacing made sense because there was some scene setting to do and relationships to develop. This book had no excuse for being so slow and boring. When the action sequences did occur they lacked tension and I felt like Juneau and Miles were underutilised. I prefer my heroines to flex their powers on the battlefield a lot more than what was displayed in this book. Underwhelming....more
How disappointing. This was an angsty enemies to lovers story for the majority of the book. There were some little snippets of good action but, horror of all horrors, the supposedly kick butt heroine is repeatedly rescued by the love interest! Moreover, he materialises out of nowhere! Lune's backstory is good and the premise interesting but the author chose to focus on developing the romance. A missed opportunity....more
CW: (view spoiler)[blood, sexual content, we learn mc's brother killed himself, death of loved one through shooting (hide spoiler)]
Well, there were brCW: (view spoiler)[blood, sexual content, we learn mc's brother killed himself, death of loved one through shooting (hide spoiler)]
Well, there were brilliant elements in here but unfortunately they didn't add up to anything great for me.
I'll set the scene for you. A woman fighting to keep her children safe in a dystopian world where her husband has disappeared. She embarks on a perilous journey, evading authorities at every turn, and then sets sail across treacherous oceans to find her husband. Sounds good right!
So why didn't I enjoy this?
It started off by establishing a frighteningly feasible dystopia where everyone is microchipped so their activity and whereabouts can be tracked "for their own safety". Mim is told her husband has gone missing and she sets off with her two young children to find him. What follows is an incredibly boring trek across the country with a main character I did not like whose children were unpleasantly willful. There were only a couple of 'close calls' with police and even then they were pretty non-eventful. This is followed by a long stint at sea where she battles her attraction to the yacht's captain. What a missed opportunity! Why didn't the author keep up the dystopian elements? They ended up serving no point as it didn't feature much in the rest of the story. At 48% I was so close to DNFing but I kept thinking surely something interesting will happen. Alas, aside from one or two tense moments it did not engage me. I will say this though, the writing itself is simply stunning, hence my 2 stars....more
Well I am sorry to say this was not an enjoyable experience for me.
It was written in first person which, for the record, I have enjoyed before. However, the writing was so simple that this is what it felt like:
I thought about what I wanted to eat. I went to the fridge and opened the door. I looked through the shelves trying to find something I wanted to eat. I sighed when I saw none of it was vegan friendly. I closed the fridge door. I opened up the pantry door....
That was not a direct quote but gives you an idea of the style of writing. Also, nothing much happens. There is just a lot of thinking about what everyone else is thinking. Here is another example of what I mean but again this is not a direct quote:
I wonder if I should be kissing him. I don't even like him. I wonder if he likes me. I hope he likes me. What will people think of me kissing a guy I don't even like? Will my Quidditch team be mad?
I thought the author did an excellent job of portraying how big changes, like going to college, can make once solid friendships feel loose and fragile. Ellen and her friends were each trying to make sense of what their connection to each other would look like when they were in different colleges.
So the only positives for me were the Quidditch competitions, the excellent rep, and the portrayal of friendships.
I had hoped for more alchemy and action, and less relationship drama. I didn't feel invested in the relationships thaWell the last 10% was very good.
I had hoped for more alchemy and action, and less relationship drama. I didn't feel invested in the relationships that did exist and of course *dramatic pause* there was a love triangle. Another novel where a supposedly strong female character's story is largely controlled by the men around her. I did like the writing and Thea herself, it just didn't engage me enough until the final section. I am happy others have enjoyed this novel. Just not for me....more
Well this book was all over the show and never quite landed anywhere long enough for me to connect to the story.
The first third had quite a few info dWell this book was all over the show and never quite landed anywhere long enough for me to connect to the story.
The first third had quite a few info dumps which felt unnecessary and could have been blended better into the story. If you are interested in the Cold War aspect, then you will need to look elsewhere as it barely made an impact on the story aside from giving the kids a reason to see something in the sky. The part where the kids went missing and were trying to piece together what happened was okay, then the big reveal happened (which was admittedly really interesting) and I felt engaged, but then it quickly moved back to lots of 'telling'. The actual idea is very cool but it is delivered through lots of explaining. Sorry, not for me....more
CW: (view spoiler)[Yucky bloody medical experiments, racism, hints at sexually motivated attack, unwell parent, grandmother dies of cancer. 2.5 Stars
CW: (view spoiler)[Yucky bloody medical experiments, racism, hints at sexually motivated attack, unwell parent, grandmother dies of cancer. (hide spoiler)]
I really wanted this to be a deeper exploration of medical experiments conducted on people from lower socio-economic groups, and also on POC. It danced around the edges but never really went far enough to have the shock factor that I had been expecting. The writing is pretty good and there were some super creepy moments dotted in there but mostly it was dull. Just okay for me. ...more
Well I guess I might be in the minority for this one.
I won't say too much other than I just don't seem to be drawn into stories from these writers. IWell I guess I might be in the minority for this one.
I won't say too much other than I just don't seem to be drawn into stories from these writers. I can't quite put my finger on it but I suspect it is a bunch of little things that collectively prevent me from getting invested in the characters or the story itself. I liked the first section and then my mind just slowly drifted away from this story and towards funny You Tube clips of cats. I was also watching my own kittens chase leaves outside when I realised I hadn't absorbed the last 15 mins of the audiobook. To be fair frolicking kittens are incredibly entertaining. Just a case of not for me and I am sure lots of people will thoroughly enjoy this book....more
Well it was interesting in parts but not really the book for me.
I thought the last chapter that touched on how he handled the sweatshop accusations waWell it was interesting in parts but not really the book for me.
I thought the last chapter that touched on how he handled the sweatshop accusations was the most interesting.
It was just a blow by blow account of how a man aggressively created a very successful business. It didn't have heart and it wasn't inspirational....more
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