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archaicrobin's reviews
616 reviews
The Honeys by Ryan La Sala
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
sad
slow-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
3.0
This book is WILD. It starts off very fast paced and I was immediately enthralled but then unfortunately you hit the middle portion which long, boring, and a little lost in my opinion. I think if the middle portion of this book was tighter I would have given this one a higher score but I really enjoyed the beginning and end of this one!
A cult horror fantasy with some gruesome scenes and interesting characters. If you can make it past the middle portion of this one it’s definitely worth it!
A cult horror fantasy with some gruesome scenes and interesting characters. If you can make it past the middle portion of this one it’s definitely worth it!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Bullying, Death, Gore, Violence, Grief, Gaslighting, and Dysphoria
This Wretched Valley by Jenny Kiefer
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
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
2.0
The premise for this novel was great, the execution not so much. The story is too slow, there are alternate timelines, and the characters are forgettable. This one took me forever to finish, even listening to it on the way back from Vegas and it wasn’t enough time. I’d recommend skipping this one unless you really want a supernatural survival horror.
The Last Days of Jack Sparks by Jason Arnopp
adventurous
challenging
dark
funny
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
The Last Days of Jack Sparks is a truly wild ride that I could not put down! Jack Sparks is one of the most selfish people on earth but also happens to be a social media star and journalist. While working on his new book to prove the supernatural isn’t real he finds himself entangled in some truly evil paranormal phenomena and his only way to survive is to come to terms with the fact ghosts are real and he’s an asshole.
I loved this book!! Full of interesting characters, a main character that you love to hate, and supernatural phenomenon told through a social media lense made this hard to put down for me.
There are so many elements going on, and I don’t want to give anything away but if you’re looking for a great supernatural horror novel with an unreliable narrator and dark humor pick this one up!! I’m still thinking about this book and probably will for a long time!
I loved this book!! Full of interesting characters, a main character that you love to hate, and supernatural phenomenon told through a social media lense made this hard to put down for me.
There are so many elements going on, and I don’t want to give anything away but if you’re looking for a great supernatural horror novel with an unreliable narrator and dark humor pick this one up!! I’m still thinking about this book and probably will for a long time!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Body horror, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Violence, Blood, Murder, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol
A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles
funny
hopeful
informative
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Very unpopular opinion here but I didn’t love this book. If you’re looking for historical fiction true to the times I would not recommend this one, but if you’re looking for historical fiction heavy on the fiction with feel good moments and a happy slice of life feel you might enjoy this one more than I did.
Despite the dark times in history, this book is lighthearted and goofy which was a very strange take in my opinion. You hear vaguely about people suffering outside the hotel but it’s always in a paragraph or side note and quickly gone, instead you get the Count’s privileged life in the Metropol hotel and his little dalliances as he ages and very, very slowly, begins to show growth.
I usually like my historical fiction to be dark and plausible, set in reality, and plot focused which is the exact opposite of A Gentleman in Moscow.
The Count is sentenced to live in a fictional hotel during the Russian Revolution due to a political poem he wrote years before. Historically speaking the Count’s predicament itself is incredibly fantastical considering the history of Russia at this time and realistically he would probably have just been killed, so right away you have to suspend disbelief and just go with it. What proceeds is more tongue in cheek commentary with heartfelt scenes between the Count and the guests of the Metropol which I found boring but if you enjoy lighthearted novels heavy on commentary maybe you’d enjoy it?
Another issue I had with this book along with its fantastical elements, was the pacing!
This book is way too long in my opinion, we spend about 300 pages setting the scene and only with the last 100 do things actually start to pick up plot wise. Instead a majority of the book centers around the Count’s interactions with guests, his philosophical ideals, what it means to be a gentleman, and random anecdotes about fine wood crown moulding and what wine pairs best with roasted duck. A Gentleman in Moscow is a character driven book with social commentary and tons of random anecdotes and tangents thrown in about Russia before the revolution but not much else. I see what the author was attempting to do with this one, but in my opinion it just didn’t work. This book could have been half the size and I think the impact would have been the same if not better, because I would not have had to drudge through pages and pages of fluff or irrelevance.
Along with the suspension of disbelief and the pacing I also wasn’t a huge fan of the characters. Alexander Rostov, the Count himself I found to be incredibly pretentious and selfish, always doing what benefits him or improves upon his image. I could not relate to him, even later in the novel when we FINALLY see some growth he had only slightly grown on me.
There is also a wide array of side characters which led to my other problem which was the female representation. We have young girl to provide Rostov with entertainment and new outlooks, a daughter type, we have beautiful woman whose sole purpose is to have sex with The Count basically the wife, and then we have the mother in Marina who is the hotel’s seamstress. The women are there but they’re not well crafted and they each represent a female archetype and no depth beyond what they are in relation to The Count.
With so many well crafted male characters why couldn’t we have multifaceted female characters? This lack of strong female characters for a majority of the book was another factor in my overall enjoyment of this novel.
In addition to all these reasons for my rating I also have the very personal review that this book is just plain BORING. Almost 500 pages and you don’t get answers to anything until the last 100, and when you do you’re so bored from all the fluff and random anecdotes that the twist and ending don’t really have much impact anymore.
Overall, I feel A Gentleman in Moscow does not thrive as a historical novel but if you’re looking for a character driven commentary set in a real place with fantastical elements maybe you’ll enjoy this, but for me it was boring, unoriginal, and pretentious and that’s ok because not all books are for all people.
Despite the dark times in history, this book is lighthearted and goofy which was a very strange take in my opinion. You hear vaguely about people suffering outside the hotel but it’s always in a paragraph or side note and quickly gone, instead you get the Count’s privileged life in the Metropol hotel and his little dalliances as he ages and very, very slowly, begins to show growth.
I usually like my historical fiction to be dark and plausible, set in reality, and plot focused which is the exact opposite of A Gentleman in Moscow.
The Count is sentenced to live in a fictional hotel during the Russian Revolution due to a political poem he wrote years before. Historically speaking the Count’s predicament itself is incredibly fantastical considering the history of Russia at this time and realistically he would probably have just been killed, so right away you have to suspend disbelief and just go with it. What proceeds is more tongue in cheek commentary with heartfelt scenes between the Count and the guests of the Metropol which I found boring but if you enjoy lighthearted novels heavy on commentary maybe you’d enjoy it?
Another issue I had with this book along with its fantastical elements, was the pacing!
This book is way too long in my opinion, we spend about 300 pages setting the scene and only with the last 100 do things actually start to pick up plot wise. Instead a majority of the book centers around the Count’s interactions with guests, his philosophical ideals, what it means to be a gentleman, and random anecdotes about fine wood crown moulding and what wine pairs best with roasted duck. A Gentleman in Moscow is a character driven book with social commentary and tons of random anecdotes and tangents thrown in about Russia before the revolution but not much else. I see what the author was attempting to do with this one, but in my opinion it just didn’t work. This book could have been half the size and I think the impact would have been the same if not better, because I would not have had to drudge through pages and pages of fluff or irrelevance.
Along with the suspension of disbelief and the pacing I also wasn’t a huge fan of the characters. Alexander Rostov, the Count himself I found to be incredibly pretentious and selfish, always doing what benefits him or improves upon his image. I could not relate to him, even later in the novel when we FINALLY see some growth he had only slightly grown on me.
There is also a wide array of side characters which led to my other problem which was the female representation. We have young girl to provide Rostov with entertainment and new outlooks, a daughter type, we have beautiful woman whose sole purpose is to have sex with The Count basically the wife, and then we have the mother in Marina who is the hotel’s seamstress. The women are there but they’re not well crafted and they each represent a female archetype and no depth beyond what they are in relation to The Count.
With so many well crafted male characters why couldn’t we have multifaceted female characters? This lack of strong female characters for a majority of the book was another factor in my overall enjoyment of this novel.
In addition to all these reasons for my rating I also have the very personal review that this book is just plain BORING. Almost 500 pages and you don’t get answers to anything until the last 100, and when you do you’re so bored from all the fluff and random anecdotes that the twist and ending don’t really have much impact anymore.
Overall, I feel A Gentleman in Moscow does not thrive as a historical novel but if you’re looking for a character driven commentary set in a real place with fantastical elements maybe you’ll enjoy this, but for me it was boring, unoriginal, and pretentious and that’s ok because not all books are for all people.
The Cement Garden by Ian McEwan
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I have no idea what list I got this book off of, and I’m not sure how to even describe it. A lot of reviews compare this to Flowers In the Attic and I would agree, but I’d say it’s a milder version.
Four siblings lose both parents suddenly and tragically a year apart, and instead of seeking help decide to hide their mother’s death by encasing her in cement in the cellar. With two teenaged siblings Jack and Julie, and two you get kids Sue and Tom, the siblings take on a weird familial relationship that begins to delve into incest territory.
While disturbing I still found this less disturbing than Flowers in the Attic but still haunting. I don’t see this novel for everyone and I’m not even sure how I feel about it but if you’re open to weird, disturbing, literature why not?
Four siblings lose both parents suddenly and tragically a year apart, and instead of seeking help decide to hide their mother’s death by encasing her in cement in the cellar. With two teenaged siblings Jack and Julie, and two you get kids Sue and Tom, the siblings take on a weird familial relationship that begins to delve into incest territory.
While disturbing I still found this less disturbing than Flowers in the Attic but still haunting. I don’t see this novel for everyone and I’m not even sure how I feel about it but if you’re open to weird, disturbing, literature why not?
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Incest, Grief, and Death of parent
Camp Slaughter by Sergio Gomez
adventurous
dark
funny
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Every summer I like to read a slasher for Summerween season and this year o finally read Camp slaughter. As the title suggests, this one is gorey, gruesome, and has a low survival rate for its characters.
I love summer slashers so this was a fun one that actually had characters with some background development, still minimal, but a lot for a slasher.
I think the only thing that bothered me with this one was how fast some of the characters died. We spent the majority of the book with these characters and for them all to die with most only getting a paragraph was rough for me. Also, a lot of the characters made very poor, very stupid decisions, or had no reactions at all making them super easy to kill. I get this is a slasher with dumb teens but at times it felt the decisions were just a little too stupid.
Despite my one issue I still greatly enjoyed this one, and loved the supernatural aspect that was interwoven with the slasher. I’m excited to see what happens in the next book in this series.
I love summer slashers so this was a fun one that actually had characters with some background development, still minimal, but a lot for a slasher.
I think the only thing that bothered me with this one was how fast some of the characters died. We spent the majority of the book with these characters and for them all to die with most only getting a paragraph was rough for me. Also, a lot of the characters made very poor, very stupid decisions, or had no reactions at all making them super easy to kill. I get this is a slasher with dumb teens but at times it felt the decisions were just a little too stupid.
Despite my one issue I still greatly enjoyed this one, and loved the supernatural aspect that was interwoven with the slasher. I’m excited to see what happens in the next book in this series.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Confinement, Death, Gore, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Cannibalism, Car accident, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Injury/Injury detail
Hawk Mountain by Conner Habib
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Hawk Mountain is one of the most heartbreakingly devastating book I’ve read in a long time. This one was hard to read but I also could not put it down because I had to know how all this tragedy ends. This is not for the faint of heart, it’s horribly sad and incredibly gruesome with visceral descriptions of gore.
If you want an emotional read, with LQBTQ characters, tons of heartache, and gorey imagery, this one is a must be prepared! I heard this one was messed up but I had no idea….. going into this one with little info is best!
If you want an emotional read, with LQBTQ characters, tons of heartache, and gorey imagery, this one is a must be prepared! I heard this one was messed up but I had no idea….. going into this one with little info is best!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Body horror, Bullying, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Homophobia, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Grief, Murder, Outing, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, and Injury/Injury detail
Burnt Offerings by Robert Marasco
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
If I could describe this book in one word it would be : sinister. This is not a haunted house book filled with ghosts and scares at every corner, instead this a slow burn gothic horror where the terror is gradual, insidious, and hardly noticed until it’s too late.
The Rolfe family decides to splurge and spend their summer at a grand but ramshackle estate in the country to relax and receive a break from city life. As they settle into the house strange things start occur and soon it’s clear the house is not right, and neither are its owners.
I absolutely loved this classic horror novel reminiscent of the old days when haunted house books were insidious, slow burns, that left you devastated at the end. This one is not for those looking for gore, fast paced narratives, or terrifying scenes. This is a haunted house book for those looking for a slow gothic horror that will have you entranced. Even though I was able to figure out the house’s intentions it did not make the horror any less terrifying. Love this one!
The Rolfe family decides to splurge and spend their summer at a grand but ramshackle estate in the country to relax and receive a break from city life. As they settle into the house strange things start occur and soon it’s clear the house is not right, and neither are its owners.
I absolutely loved this classic horror novel reminiscent of the old days when haunted house books were insidious, slow burns, that left you devastated at the end. This one is not for those looking for gore, fast paced narratives, or terrifying scenes. This is a haunted house book for those looking for a slow gothic horror that will have you entranced. Even though I was able to figure out the house’s intentions it did not make the horror any less terrifying. Love this one!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
Wylding Hall by Elizabeth Hand
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Wylding hall is a novella exploring the strange occurrences that occurred to a 70s folkband that stayed there to create their best selling album.
Written in documentary style the reader sees the mystery occur through multiple perspectives. I don’t know if I’d consider this a haunted house story, even though it’s marketed that way, I’d say this is more folk horror. You have a strange secluded village, ancient traditions and burial grounds, and an old manor built upon that burial site.
Overall I found this one interesting and entertaining but in my opinion it was very slow and not scary at all. The novella focused more on the band and their relationships more than the horror here. Very gothic feel but none of the scares.
Written in documentary style the reader sees the mystery occur through multiple perspectives. I don’t know if I’d consider this a haunted house story, even though it’s marketed that way, I’d say this is more folk horror. You have a strange secluded village, ancient traditions and burial grounds, and an old manor built upon that burial site.
Overall I found this one interesting and entertaining but in my opinion it was very slow and not scary at all. The novella focused more on the band and their relationships more than the horror here. Very gothic feel but none of the scares.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty
Mysterious Island: Catalina: The Strange Side of Catalina by Jim Watson
adventurous
informative
mysterious
fast-paced
3.0
I picked up this book about the murders, ghosts, and mysteries of Catalina last year and waited until our return trip this summer to finish! This is a great collection of local legends, lore, and mysteries for those interested in the dark history of the island or those looking to learn more about the paranormal occurrences.
As a SoCal local we vacation here for a weekend every summer and it was interesting read about all the spooky things that occurred on the island I thought I knew so well! If you’re interested in Catalina Island history and have an interest in the unexplained I’d say this is a fun, easy, and informative read.
As a SoCal local we vacation here for a weekend every summer and it was interesting read about all the spooky things that occurred on the island I thought I knew so well! If you’re interested in Catalina Island history and have an interest in the unexplained I’d say this is a fun, easy, and informative read.