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3.83 AVERAGE
3.83 AVERAGE
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
this book was a ???
challenging
dark
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
“Now touch me here.”
She would take my hand, lead me from room to room, and, pretend that by touching a cushion, a picture in its frame, the stem of a silk rose woven between the spokes of a dining chair, I was arousing her.
So we exhausted ourselves, dissolving into one another and then further, into a reflection from the bookcases in the lamplight, the smell of a perfume called Anaïs Anaïs. I dreamed of the fold of a velvet curtain, the inside of a cup, the long white curve of her back as she knelt in front of me. A bird sang confusedly in the middle of the night. Everything ran together. On my way downstairs to collect the post the next morning, I would stand still suddenly and say “Katherine” to myself, just to feel that quick lurch of excitement, like something alive inside, you get when you know that in the next instant you are going to be happy.”
I should have loved this but it just didn't work for me at all. The supposed plot for this is really compelling, but the actual book is more a collection of loose anecdotes that don't really add up to much, with no foundation or tension. Also not sure if this is more indicative of the fact I wasn't enjoying it, but the first chapter (especially the prologue!) has the best language/prose by far and it just deteriorates as it goes on.
She would take my hand, lead me from room to room, and, pretend that by touching a cushion, a picture in its frame, the stem of a silk rose woven between the spokes of a dining chair, I was arousing her.
So we exhausted ourselves, dissolving into one another and then further, into a reflection from the bookcases in the lamplight, the smell of a perfume called Anaïs Anaïs. I dreamed of the fold of a velvet curtain, the inside of a cup, the long white curve of her back as she knelt in front of me. A bird sang confusedly in the middle of the night. Everything ran together. On my way downstairs to collect the post the next morning, I would stand still suddenly and say “Katherine” to myself, just to feel that quick lurch of excitement, like something alive inside, you get when you know that in the next instant you are going to be happy.”
I should have loved this but it just didn't work for me at all. The supposed plot for this is really compelling, but the actual book is more a collection of loose anecdotes that don't really add up to much, with no foundation or tension. Also not sure if this is more indicative of the fact I wasn't enjoying it, but the first chapter (especially the prologue!) has the best language/prose by far and it just deteriorates as it goes on.
challenging
dark
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I'm not smart enough to know what happened, but I read it anyway for the prose. Half the sentences contain some form of figurative flourish that's both exhausting to read and rewarding to imagine.
A complex and fascinating novel. The three protagonists take part in some sort of magical ritual which shapes, and mishapes, the rest of their lives and their relationships. In the meantime they create another myth, perhaps based on the original, perhaps not. It is constant interweaving of the real and the possibly fantastic and the observed fantastic. It is also a story of lives shattered and reshaped by a youthful decision.
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Wow, what a waste of time. This too-clever narrative is full of a rabbit-hole of small anecdotes, if you can call them that, that add up to a whole bunch of nothing. The author is obviously making love to the thesaurus. I know I am not the most highbrow reader, but I feel like I can tell when the pretense is trumped up, and in this case it certainly is. A few bits made me smirk but if that's all the nice things I can say about 200 pages I might as well have played bejeweled for 8 hours.
dark
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes