atlas_shruggs's reviews
239 reviews

Akame Ga Kill!, Volume 2 by Takahiro

dark emotional funny mysterious tense fast-paced

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

4.0

Weirdly enough the second volume provides the reader with much more information than the first volume. Not only do we get introduced to the concept of teigus and the golden rule, that if two wielders of teigu meet in battle only one of them will survive, but we also get a glimpse into the back stories of Akame, Leone and Sheele. I do genuinely really like how they handle Tatsumi's grief as well, how his anger turns into his desperate search to bring his friends back to life and eventually to his acceptance that all he can to is avenge them and carry their legacy.
It also introduces two of the most hated people in the series, Seryu and Esdeath. Despite having watched the anime multiple times, reading their scenes made my skin itch, I hate them so much. 

The Fiddler by Herman Melville

emotional informative medium-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

I do not think Melville's writing is for me. This story was shorter than Bartleby but I still found it just as dull, if anything Bartleby was more entertaining. I may yet change my mind once I discuss him in class however.

Bartleby the Scrivener by Herman Melville

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 a very strange little story, I honestly cannot tell you what was going on for most of it or if there is any symbolism hidden in there, I just thought it was a bit odd and the writing did not really stick out to me.

Akame Ga Kill!, Vol. 01 by Tetsuya Tashiro, Takahiro

adventurous dark emotional funny tense 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? Yes

4.0

The Purloined Letter by Edgar Allan Poe

funny informative slow-paced

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

3.0

This read very much like a Hercule Poirot story, a very classy detective mystery with a man with a French accent. It was really wordy and a bit confusing, but I did read it very quickly so perhaps I would like it more if I took my time with it. I definitely would not mind reading more of Poe's Dupin stories.

The Cask of Amontillado by Edgar Allan Poe

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

4.0

Now this is the Poe I know. The writing is eerie and creepy, it makes your skin crawl but you cannot pull your eyes away from the page. I think I like Poe best when the main characters are bad people or people doing bad things, he just writes it so well.

Theogony, Works and Days by Hesiod

informative fast-paced

2.0

I thought Theogony was interesting, it brought up a bunch of myths I was already aware of which was fun and listed some gods and goddesses I had never heard of before. But it was essentially just a list, a long list of names and events in a weird order that I will never remember.
Works and days was... Fine. For the most part it was just a sort of "how to live" guide, but then in line 369 Hesiod mentioned that "one who believes in a woman believes in cheats and deceivers" and he lost me after that.

Ion by Plato

funny medium-paced

2.0

This was just really really confusing. I am confused. Sokrates is an asshole, Ion is an idiot, and I never want to read this again.

Arnaldur Indriðason deyr by Bragi Páll Sigurðarson

dark funny tense fast-paced

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

3.0

Þessi bók var.....spes. Ég pældi svona tuttugu sinnum í því hvort ég ætti að hætta að lesa hana, en ég ákvað að halda áfram og sjá hvert þetta myndi fara. Ég hataði eiginlega allar persónurnar í þessari bók, Heba og Friðborg voru fínar en allir aðrir frekar hræðilegir, Tómas og Uggi mega alveg brenna í helvíti mín vegna. Það að ég hataði þá svona mikið sýnir greinilega að Bragi Páll er mjög góður penni og er það líka greinilegt í gegnum alla bókina.
En Jesús minn hvað þetta var ógeðslegt. Og fyndið. Og ég bjóst ekki við því að þetta yrði svona meta.

Rappaccini's Daughter by Nathaniel Hawthorne

emotional mysterious sad fast-paced

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

3.0