atlas_shruggs's reviews
239 reviews

Jokes for the Gunmen by Mazen Maarouf

challenging dark emotional sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? N/A
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? N/A
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

3.0

Jokes for the Gunmen - 5 stars | Matador - 3 stars | Gramophone - 5 stars | Cinema - 4 stars | Bisquits - 3,5 stars | Joke - 2 stars | Angel of death - 2 stars | Other-People's-Dreams Syndrome - 4,5 stars | Aquarium - 3,5 stars | Portion of Jam - 3 stars | Curtain - 1 star | Juan and Ausa - 2 stars
I went into this short-story collection wanting to learn more about Palestine and their history and though I did learn about the mental effects of the war, it wasn't exactly what I was expecting.
I didn't know this was surrealism which was the biggest mistake I made before starting to read. I thought it was stone-cold realism, which the first story seemed to confirm, but the more I read the stranger the stories became.
My favourite stories were "Jokes for the Gunmen", "Gramophone" and "Other-People's-Dreams Syndrome". The first two were very based in realism and were exactly what I was looking for. They gave a stark glimpse into the war, especially Gramophone.
The third of these stories was more surreal than the other two, but I liked the writing and the concept was very interesting.

The Titan's Curse by Rick Riordan

adventurous dark emotional funny mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Perfect, this is perfect. It balances the humour and seriousness so well and you can really tell that the series is getting darker and the stakes higher. So many gods feature in this story and I feel it adds so much depth to the world as they aren't depicted as these one-dimensional stereotypes but rather as realistic characters with their own wants and values (I especially loved Dionysus and Ariadne).
The true power of Kronos and his army is on full display here whereas before they seemed a bit gimmicky. Now they pack a punch, to the point of actually capturing Artemis.
Percy's character growth is also very evident in this book, he has clearly turned into a moody, embarrassed teenager who blushes every time he looks at Annabeth, but he's also a lot more responsible than he was. He's a good leader and seems to have grown a braincell or two during his adventures.

Spy x Family, Vol. 7 by Tatsuya Endo

adventurous funny lighthearted relaxing fast-paced

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

4.0

Now I feel like this was definitely another filler volume with a lot of little stories that let us get more familiar with the side characters. I loved it, don't get me wrong, I really liked getting to know Damian a bit more as well as getting more of Franky (love me some Franky). The final chapter set us up for some serious hijinks in the next volume as well which I am very excited for.

The Sea of Monsters by Rick Riordan

I'll be honest, I was excepting to like this more than I did. I suppose it doesn't hold the same nostalgic value that The Lightning Thief does, or maybe I just took too long reading it. Whatever the reason this did not quite reach the five stars for me, but that's not to say that it's not a fantastic book. I had an absolute blast reading this, I fell in love with Tyson all over again, my sweet little baby boy I will protect him with my life. And I absolutely loved the development of Percy, Grover and Annabeth's friendship, it's such a perfect relationship. I think it was just a little too fast paced, they kind of skimmed past a lot of the action weirdly enough. I am however very excited to see how the show adapts this book, I think it'll be very fun.

Boyfriends, Volume One by refrainbow

funny hopeful inspiring fast-paced

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

5.0

This comic is lovely, absolutely lovely. I absolutely ate this up and left no crumbs. It made me feel all warm and fuzzy inside. The art is so crisp and clean, the character design is wonderful and I legit giggled pretty much every page. When I found out Goth was trans I almost cried. I would've fucking loved to read this when I was a teenager, but instead I will indulge myself and read it now.

What Feasts at Night by T. Kingfisher

dark funny mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

"Blessed Virgin, why must you keep sending me innocent monsters?"

This is such a wonderful continuation of Alex's story and I absolutely loved it. It delves so much deeper into Alex's mental state and their experiences in the war, as well as really immersing the reader in Gallacian culture. Alex continues to be an absolutely hilarious narrator, a complete idiot and very aware of it and about as socially awkward as you can get. The folklore woven into the story was also so interesting to me, and I personally liked the slow-burn, except maybe for the fact that everything got resolved in the last 20 pages. I suppose it is hard to make a slow-burn horror novella but I feel that T. Kingfisher did a very good job with this one. Sure this sequel was not nearly as action-packed as the first book, but I feel that it was very atmospheric and focused more on the way folklore can affect cultures as well as exploring the characters themselves.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, and Alcohol

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Murder, and War

Spy x Family, Vol. 6 by Tatsuya Endo

funny hopeful lighthearted relaxing fast-paced

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

4.0

I have two words. Underground tennis. *Underground*. *Tennis*. This series is so fucking wacky man and I am living for it. The whole tennis mission was absolutely ridiculous, even more so when fucking *snipers* got involved. Nightfall isn't really my favourite character but I am really impressed by her talent as a spy. How them being spies resulted in them being good at tennis is beyond me but whatever.
The chapter with Anya and Becky was absolutely adorable, they're such good friends and I love them so much. I had the biggest smile on my face when they got the matching key chains.
Not my favourite volume so far, but this series is still absolutely perfect.

Oedipus the King by Sophocles

challenging dark emotional sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

 This is definitely one of my favourite Greek plays. From the beginning you can feel the tension building, the way it's written makes it such a visceral experience. I listened to the audiobook which I highly recommend, and my heart ached for Oedipus. I felt his pain so deeply and connected to him in a way I haven't with any other characters in the Greek tragedies, which I wholeheartedly attribute to Sophocles' phenomenal writing and Michael Sheen's heart wrenching performance. It made me uncomfortable, it made me sad, but most of all it made me pity Oedipus. Despite all he did to try to prevent the prophecy he played right into it, showing the inevitability of fate as well as the immense cruelty of the gods 

The Dyskolos by Menander, Carroll Moulton

slow-paced

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

2.0

 This was okay, not very funny, not very entertaining, but not the worst Greek work I've read (looking at you Works and Days). The writing was alright, but it wasn't my favourite. Overall pretty meh. 

Sofðu ást mín by Andri Snær Magnason

emotional hopeful inspiring fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? N/A
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? N/A
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Vá. Ég hef aldrei elskað svona mikið af sögum í smásagnasafni. Andri skrifar svo fallega, um svo flókna en samt svo einfalda hluti. Ég bjóst ekki við miklu af þessu safni en ég mæli eindregið með því að allir lesi þetta, þessar sögur eiga við alla. 

Randafluga: 4 stjörnur
Rex: 3,5 stjörnur
Sofðu ást mín: 5 stjörnur
Lególand: 5 stjörnur
Wild Boys: 4 stjörnur
Hamingjusaga: 4,5 stjörnur
2093: 5 stjörnur