Take a photo of a barcode or cover
4.18 AVERAGE
4.18 AVERAGE
adventurous
emotional
funny
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
It's hard to praise a book you only really enjoyed 20% of.
The protagonist isn't as an off-putting bellend as reviewers but did encapsulate to me the offputtings of toxic masculintiy and the tragedy and irk that comes with it. Your Jack the Lad archetype whose traits worsen with the power of money.
There's a plot and an ending but rather this feels like flickering moments. If readers come in expecting Madeline Miller and the like, they will be sorely disappointed. But that doesn't make the book bad.
The narration was nice and I'm sure excellent parrallels can be made between Irish history and Ancient Greek history, though it does also feel gimmicky.
Readers should also not come in ecpecting heavy focus on a play or humour, it's just not that. It's more a darker Del Boy. I was personally reminded of Boys from the Blackstuff in its explorations.
The protagonist isn't as an off-putting bellend as reviewers but did encapsulate to me the offputtings of toxic masculintiy and the tragedy and irk that comes with it. Your Jack the Lad archetype whose traits worsen with the power of money.
There's a plot and an ending but rather this feels like flickering moments. If readers come in expecting Madeline Miller and the like, they will be sorely disappointed. But that doesn't make the book bad.
The narration was nice and I'm sure excellent parrallels can be made between Irish history and Ancient Greek history, though it does also feel gimmicky.
Readers should also not come in ecpecting heavy focus on a play or humour, it's just not that. It's more a darker Del Boy. I was personally reminded of Boys from the Blackstuff in its explorations.
adventurous
emotional
funny
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
funny
reflective
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Really great book. Loved the style of writing. Loved the imagery. The multiple story lines, the complex characters. The way things are shown and not said. The ending was sad but in a way that fit in with the rest of the book. If he had a happily ever after with Lyra it just wouldn’t have made sense. Also loved the little Euripides epilogue. I think where it fell short for me was that a) it’s really sold as comedic and the start was a bit but not really after the first 80 pages (but this then leads into different themes so not really a criticism I just like comedy) and b) that the context is quite so jarring. I think that the change in tone after the heartlessness of the start feels a bit confusing but maybe that’s just me. Anyway I still devoured it and would recommend
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I picked this one up because I say it tagged as “funny” on here and I wanted something light. Reader, this book positively Drips with tragedy from the opening pages. At no point did I think this book would end well. I loved every minute of it.
Our main character, Lampo, is a shit, the sort that you both love and hate. You can’t feel indifferent to him. You want him all the while to make different choices, ones that would end well, but he wouldn’t be himself if he did. He’s not likeable, but he is lovable. He alone couldn’t carry the novel, but paired with his friend Gelon, they can together. Gelon provides the heart (for much of the novel), where Lampo provides a filter that attempts humor, but that humor really just highlights the tragedy.
These two (at Gelon’s behest) plan to stage plays by Euripedes by the only people who know the lines – starving, beaten Athenian prisoners of war held in a large quarry like a prison. This leads to the sorts of themes you expect – what do stories mean to us, how do we connect across the lines of war, how do we deal with grief and suffering, and the suffering of others. But they’re handled with care, and at times in fresh ways.
“With care” might not always appear the case, because of Lampo’s narration. He takes the piss a fair amount, refuses to take things seriously (in narration, he often truly does), and consistently values the wrong thing. But his growth over the course of the story sells it, to where the climax, for as much as tragedy is palpable throughout, still feels in doubt.
In the beginning, it reminded me a great deal of The Blacktongue Thief, another book written with an Irish accent and voiced by a character who’s along for the ride but provides a more lighthearted veneer to proceedings by being a bit of a shit (and by not driving the plot, allows it to be surprising). But his growth, his taking the reins of the story, is what really elevates the book.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes