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apollo0325's reviews
394 reviews
The Ballad of Black Tom by Victor LaValle
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Loveable characters? No
1.5
I love seeing modern takes on Lovecraftian/cosmic horror in a vast array of media because people can take this literature that is chest deep in racism and xenophobia and class to breathe it new life. I had high hopes for the Ballad of Black Tom, but I think it falls into the inherit problems of Lovecraft’s work.
The character motivations are messy and confusing and/or characters are simply one dimensional with no substance and simply lets the story happen to them. The vagueness can be effective, but I felt in the Ballad of Black Tom, it didn’t work in its favor. This story didn’t scratch the cosmic horror itch I was hoping, and it’s probably been one of my most disappointing reads of this year alongside the Last Tale of the Flower Bride.
It’s very short though so that’s a plus.
The character motivations are messy and confusing and/or characters are simply one dimensional with no substance and simply lets the story happen to them. The vagueness can be effective, but I felt in the Ballad of Black Tom, it didn’t work in its favor. This story didn’t scratch the cosmic horror itch I was hoping, and it’s probably been one of my most disappointing reads of this year alongside the Last Tale of the Flower Bride.
It’s very short though so that’s a plus.
Untethered Sky by Fonda Lee
adventurous
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.5
ANOTHER ABSOLUTE BANGER FROM FANTASY QUEEN, FONDA LEE!!!!!
Fun, exciting, and wild, Untethered Sky is a short story examining bravery, camaraderie, and nature vs nurture. It was sort of a character study, but honestly, this felt like it could have been a companion novel to an existing series. Fonda Lee’s world-building is complex but accessible and her characterizations are equally complex and nuanced.
Fonda Lee, I will literally buy anything you release. Don’t ever stop writing.
Fun, exciting, and wild, Untethered Sky is a short story examining bravery, camaraderie, and nature vs nurture. It was sort of a character study, but honestly, this felt like it could have been a companion novel to an existing series. Fonda Lee’s world-building is complex but accessible and her characterizations are equally complex and nuanced.
Fonda Lee, I will literally buy anything you release. Don’t ever stop writing.
This Thing Between Us by Gus Moreno
dark
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
First, I'd like to say the length of this novel saved this from being a DNF for me. I almost DNF'd midway through part one, but I said fuck it, it's only a 6 hour audiobook and I decided to keep going. I'm glad I did. This book encompasses such a specific angle of grief that isn't explored enough in literature especially under the lens of psychological horror/body horror/cosmic horror (of sorts).
I won't lie, the beginning is VERY slow because it's setting up Thiago's relationship with Vera, his mental state at her loss, and what life was like with her. However, after part one, we really get a grasp of what this novel is going to be in a way. I kept seeing people online pitch this book as one about grief and a "haunted Alexa" but babes, the haunted Alexa part is maybe 10% of the novel within part one and mentioned later on. I'd pitch this book as a psychological horror examining grief and how one deals with loss as someone basically loses their grip on reality (psychosis). Thiago is someone who is absolutely stricken with bad luck 100% of the time, and you learn this very quickly in part one. It makes this book all the more tragic.
If you're sensitive to animal death/violence especially with dogs, please cautiously read this book. It doesn't occur until part two, but everything snowballs very quickly after that point.
The ending was simultaneously confusing and tragic. I knew Thiago was succumbing to his grief, but it was really unclear as to what was actually happening to him. That's more of a me problem + listening through the audiobook. NGL, I also kind of hate the idea that people's tragedies/fates are inescapable, especially when it is based on generational trauma. It makes it feel like there is no hope at all and instead you should just die to save the people around you. It's a very hopeless ending, but that's also my interpretation. Others may feel differently! I think the open ending allows the reader to draw their own conclusions on what was going on with Thiago.
This book was brutal, unsettling, and tragic. The audiobook narrator was also FANTASTIC. I loved his narration. I'd read another book with him narrating it for sure.
I won't lie, the beginning is VERY slow because it's setting up Thiago's relationship with Vera, his mental state at her loss, and what life was like with her. However, after part one, we really get a grasp of what this novel is going to be in a way. I kept seeing people online pitch this book as one about grief and a "haunted Alexa" but babes, the haunted Alexa part is maybe 10% of the novel within part one and mentioned later on. I'd pitch this book as a psychological horror examining grief and how one deals with loss as someone basically loses their grip on reality (psychosis). Thiago is someone who is absolutely stricken with bad luck 100% of the time, and you learn this very quickly in part one. It makes this book all the more tragic.
If you're sensitive to animal death/violence especially with dogs, please cautiously read this book. It doesn't occur until part two, but everything snowballs very quickly after that point.
This book was brutal, unsettling, and tragic. The audiobook narrator was also FANTASTIC. I loved his narration. I'd read another book with him narrating it for sure.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Death, Violence, Grief, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Racism, Suicidal thoughts, and Alcohol
Minor: Abandonment and Classism
If you are sensitive to animal death / viscera, I would not recommend this book unless you feel okay going in knowing it WILL be descriptive and detailed. The body horror in this one is also very well described.
not necessarily a spoiler but to be safe, sticking it here. The book can also be interpreted as a psychosis/psychological break of the protagonist.
As Long as the Lemon Trees Grow by Zoulfa Katouh
challenging
emotional
informative
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
Recommended by Anne Marie 😊
I had a really great time with this book. Not in the sense of a carnival great time but more like watching a war documentary that was well researched and constructed narratively.
This book had been teetering at a 3 for me until the twist which had me going :O “what the fuck” and it was set up very well to the point where these small details would be overlooked until the reader re-reads or recalls those moments. The structure of the story was well thought out and made for a really engaging story about a young woman struggling to balance her life, her family, and her love and loyalty for her country. Katouh does an amazing job of really placing the reader in Salama’s shoes. You hope for her survival and joy very early on.
Here are the few qualms I had with the book but they also contain spoilers. Here goes -
Khawf played on a very annoying type of character that I really don’t care for in almost any media which is your omniscient voice of reason/conscious. For most of the book, I felt he could have been fulfilled by an actual person. HOWEVER, the major plot twist would not have worked had we not had Khawf. Khawf showed us the hallucinatory state Salama was in, and it sort of forces us to not question anything as far as Leila goes. I can sort of forgive Khawf’s existence as a character because of this, but the idea that he just stops existing outside of Syria almost immediately was a little… lazy. It would have been more impactful had we seen Salama confront Khawf rather than speak to him as if they were old friends. Throughout the entirety of the book, he terrorizes her and while yeah that’s a good representation of fear itself, it feels lazy to have him just peace out once she’s on her way out. It didn’t feel closed off enough for me.
This one is a personal pet peeve of mine and not necessarily a ‘negative’ but I straight up cannot handle a character that constantly references shit unrelated to the moment as an anxiety coping mechanism. I know it is a valid coping mechanism to think/verbalize things to calm down, but in an audiobook, it is irritating. I think in book form, it may not have come across as annoying, but I listened to the audiobook so… yeah. Again, VERY personal nitpick.
Not a qualm but still a spoiler: I’m so glad they made it out :(
Glad I read this book though! It’s probably one I’d be happy to recommend to others.
I had a really great time with this book. Not in the sense of a carnival great time but more like watching a war documentary that was well researched and constructed narratively.
This book had been teetering at a 3 for me until the twist which had me going :O “what the fuck” and it was set up very well to the point where these small details would be overlooked until the reader re-reads or recalls those moments. The structure of the story was well thought out and made for a really engaging story about a young woman struggling to balance her life, her family, and her love and loyalty for her country. Katouh does an amazing job of really placing the reader in Salama’s shoes. You hope for her survival and joy very early on.
Here are the few qualms I had with the book but they also contain spoilers. Here goes -
This one is a personal pet peeve of mine and not necessarily a ‘negative’ but I straight up cannot handle a character that constantly references shit unrelated to the moment as an anxiety coping mechanism. I know it is a valid coping mechanism to think/verbalize things to calm down, but in an audiobook, it is irritating. I think in book form, it may not have come across as annoying, but I listened to the audiobook so… yeah. Again, VERY personal nitpick.
Not a qualm but still a spoiler: I’m so glad they made it out :(
Glad I read this book though! It’s probably one I’d be happy to recommend to others.
The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea by Axie Oh
hopeful
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
3.25
Heard a lot of good things about this one, but I don’t think it hit quite as hard as I had hoped. The pacing was VERY fast, but this story suffered the most from having waaaay too many characters for such a tight story with some convoluted plotting here and there and some middling world building.
It was a quick read though and the narrator’s voice definitely fit the tone of the novel; she was pleasant to listen to. Wasn’t a bad book considering how fast I read it. I wish the romance had developed more as I felt they only had a couple of mediocre interactions before there were some sudden declarations of love.
It was a quick read though and the narrator’s voice definitely fit the tone of the novel; she was pleasant to listen to. Wasn’t a bad book considering how fast I read it. I wish the romance had developed more as I felt they only had a couple of mediocre interactions before there were some sudden declarations of love.
Ghost Music by An Yu
Did not finish book. Stopped at 36%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 36%.
Right now, not really for me. Will try to revisit in the future though!
The Illustrated Man by Ray Bradbury
adventurous
challenging
fast-paced
3.5
It’s a fairly solid short story collection with some good, some middling, and few that weren’t necessarily bad but didn’t really add much to the collection as a whole. This was my first exposure to Ray Bradbury, and I think he does an excellent job of describing environments and physicality especially in The Long Rain.
I’m looking forward to trying more Bradbury after this one. Shout out to Derek for lending me his really cool, older paperback copy.
My favorite stories in no particular order:
The Rocket Man
The Fire Balloons
The Long Rain
The City
The Rocket / Zero Hour (I found these two to almost be thematically similar in the ideas of imagination and parental guidance/influence)
I’m looking forward to trying more Bradbury after this one. Shout out to Derek for lending me his really cool, older paperback copy.
My favorite stories in no particular order:
The Rocket Man
The Fire Balloons
The Long Rain
The City
The Rocket / Zero Hour (I found these two to almost be thematically similar in the ideas of imagination and parental guidance/influence)
Hide by Kiersten White
Did not finish book. Stopped at 71%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 71%.
I actively have disliked most of my experience with this book, but I think the 130+ minute chapter broke me in a way an audiobook or book has never done before.
Aside from the excessively long chapter(s), the pacing was fast but jarring and the spontaneous changing of POVs at the flip of a coin was even more jarring. Character motivations and internal monologues varied from over-explanation/exposition to Generic Character Trope #1. I disliked most of the characters except for Brandon and Legrand (?) and I found the unnecessary romantic subplot to be unnecessary. This book read very juvenile to me. If you asked me to give this an age audience, I would have said YA.
Brandon’s sacrifice was SO FUCKING STUPID. They realize that this game is NOT what they were told it is, yet they feel like the rules of that game still apply?? I may have missed a part where maybe they ran into Ian or the journal, but G O D that death was so frustrating. I stopped after that because how are you going to go in depth about how this sweet boy just wants friends and a family and people who love him for him and then KILL HIM LIKE THAT???? So fucking STUPID.
Generally speaking, I tend to give authors a second go if I didn’t like the first book I read of theirs but sorry Kiersten, it’s gonna be a no from me, dawg.
Aside from the excessively long chapter(s), the pacing was fast but jarring and the spontaneous changing of POVs at the flip of a coin was even more jarring. Character motivations and internal monologues varied from over-explanation/exposition to Generic Character Trope #1. I disliked most of the characters except for Brandon and Legrand (?) and I found the unnecessary romantic subplot to be unnecessary. This book read very juvenile to me. If you asked me to give this an age audience, I would have said YA.
Generally speaking, I tend to give authors a second go if I didn’t like the first book I read of theirs but sorry Kiersten, it’s gonna be a no from me, dawg.
Sea of Tranquility by Emily St. John Mandel
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
0.0
Edited review: So disappointing to see a great author tarnish their credibility by supporting Israel. Dropped rating from 3 stars to 0.
Edited review: Okay so after reading the wiki plot summary, now I understand what’s happening and I understood a lot more than I gave myself credit for.
Emily St John Mandel continues to write about the human experience in a very lyrical way. Her writing style shines and she easily puts you in the mind of the characters.
But I just didn’t care about anyone except maybe Olive? Especially during Olive’s recounting of quarantine. Even my caring about Olive wasn’t really that deep. I blasted through the audiobook because my Libby hold was only for a week, but I still struggled with it.
I still believe I may have felt differently about this novel if I had read it in a physical format, but idk. It was fine?
Original review: It doesn’t feel right putting a star rating on a book where I really had no clue what was happening. This is not a dig at the author, but the audiobook format may have not worked for my ADHD brain. I may revisit this novel in the future but in print form. Maybe I’ll better absorb information that way.
Edited review: Okay so after reading the wiki plot summary, now I understand what’s happening and I understood a lot more than I gave myself credit for.
Emily St John Mandel continues to write about the human experience in a very lyrical way. Her writing style shines and she easily puts you in the mind of the characters.
But I just didn’t care about anyone except maybe Olive? Especially during Olive’s recounting of quarantine. Even my caring about Olive wasn’t really that deep. I blasted through the audiobook because my Libby hold was only for a week, but I still struggled with it.
I still believe I may have felt differently about this novel if I had read it in a physical format, but idk. It was fine?
Original review: It doesn’t feel right putting a star rating on a book where I really had no clue what was happening. This is not a dig at the author, but the audiobook format may have not worked for my ADHD brain. I may revisit this novel in the future but in print form. Maybe I’ll better absorb information that way.
The Weight of Blood by Tiffany D. Jackson
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
I hope Maddy and Kenny live a good life together and Wendy finds peace in this world.
Fuck Jules frfr
Fuck Jules frfr