ashykneesreads's reviews
79 reviews

Babel by R.F. Kuang

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious 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

5.0

My Year of Rest and Relaxation by Ottessa Moshfegh

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dark funny medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

I found myself underwhelmed by this book. I think the concept of the book is much funnier than the actual delivery of it, at the end of the day there’s only so much you can do when the entire point is to do nothing for an entire year. It was enjoyable and I did laugh but I didn’t tear through it like I did Lapvona, it took me a rather long time and I kept on dipping in and out of it. I love an unhinged woman but I feel as though Moshfegh could’ve taken it further.

The Vegetarian by Han Kang

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dark emotional sad medium-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

4.25

I tore through this in a day and loved every second. The story (albeit short) is in 3 parts, each focusing on a different person who has a connection to one young woman. We start with her apathetical husband who chose to wed her simply because she was plain. His opening monologue explains that she wouldn’t need wooing as she was content with the ordinary and had been their entire marriage. That is until she has a dream and decides to throw away all the meat in the house and eat a vegetarian diet. This is outrageous to everyone around her and she spirals into mental illness as she suffers with what society places upon her. It’s a beautiful exploration of desire and each character is rich and understandable.

Poems of the Decade: An Anthology of the Forward Books of Poetry by Various

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0.25

english a level traumatised me innit

Carol by Patricia Highsmith

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emotional hopeful sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Oh my golly gumdrops. This book enraptured me. I loved every second of it. I watched the film and called it my favourite of all time and then the book just added this other layer of depth to it with Therese’s narration. It was marvellous.

I'm Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy

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challenging emotional funny hopeful informative reflective sad medium-paced

5.0

This book was absolutely phenomenal. They way in which McCurdy was able to write about her past in such detail shows incredible personal strength. The childhood part of the book was especially gut wrenching as the way she narrated it almost seemed as though a little Jennette were explaining everything to you. It was such an eye opener on so many levels, the acting industry, fame, mormonism, eating disorders and recovering your mental health. When I reached the end I felt weirdly proud of her just to be able to survive. I laughed out loud on many occasions but a lot of this was bittersweet, if you didn’t laugh you’d cry. I would highly recommend this book to anyone able to withstand a meticulous look into suffering with anorexia, bulimia, OCD, child abuse and substance abuse.

Lapvona by Ottessa Moshfegh

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dark funny fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This book was absolutely crazy. The first half was so grotesque and surreal in the acts depicted and the second half gave way to a more subtle darkness explored through corrupt characters and their choices. The novel is named after the medieval village it is set in called Lapvona. It’s hard to try and describe the plot and I think you’ll have a better experience going in without knowing anything. What I will say is that Moshfegh’s writing style is stunning and the way she switches perspective in the middle of a passage effortlessly worked so well. The characters she creates are so complex and I feel as though I could write essays about each of them. So many interesting themes are discovered but the main focus is corruption, in the church and in the class system. The Lord of Lapvona, Villiam, is eccentric and cruel and incredible to read about. He’s almost archetypal in his portrayal as he seems so incredibly vapid, forcing his servants to ‘entertain’ him at any given moment.

All this being said, some of the actions read about here are so vile and I felt sick reading this book multiple times. I was asking myself the entire journey if the period meant they could be blamed for certain actions, how acts of cruelty and sexual abuse were interpreted back then and now. This book was weirdly refreshing and felt like squeezing a spot. You know it’s gross but you just can’t bring yourself to look away. Moshfegh definitely made up for the strange acts in the second half though and it was just enrapturing. Each character’s arc was so fascinating and they all had so much intrigue. I loved this book and it’s strangeness and it’s complexity. It made me question everything and had me analysing details. If it weren’t so outwardly vulgar the depth in this novel could be suitable for use in A-level English or something similar. That being said the grotesque aspects are intentional and they do serve a purpose, as said previously to force the reader to assess the morality of the situation and consider how far society has progressed.

The only thing I’m mad about is that I don’t have a physical copy to scribble in and write all my analysis. There’s symbolism and motifs that were just amazing.

Massive, massive trigger warnings present though.

5 stars.

Content Warnings