atlas_shruggs's reviews
239 reviews

Tender Is the Flesh by Agustina Bazterrica

challenging dark reflective tense slow-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

2.5

 I don't know if it was the translation or what but this just did not grab my attention in the way it probably should have. It also just felt very surface level, like it could have gone deeper into the mechanics of the world but just didn't. It felt like most of it was just gory for the sake of being gory, and instead of talking more about the moral implications of the cannibalism it just described the way the process worked.
The ending also felt very dissatisfiactory, I feel like it completely undid any character development.
The dialog was also very stiff and unrealistic, it mostly just felt forced and weird.
It was an interesting concept, but in the end I don't think it was explored as well as it could have been 

Brotherhood by Mike Chen

adventurous emotional funny hopeful lighthearted mysterious 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

 Ooooo yes, this was exactly what I needed and exactly what I wanted. A love letter to Anakin and Obi-Wan's relationship beyond master and apprentice with the air of a Clone Wars episode and the action of the prequels?? Absolute perfection. Though I felt the writing to be a bit off sometimes I feel wrong giving this anything less than 5 stars.
Obi-Wan and Anakin's relationship is so beautifully written and the depths of it explored as they figure out how the fit together as equals rather than master and apprentice. It has all the banter and jabbing that they usually have with the addition of their inner voices showing how truly they care for one another.
Something I was not expecting but absolutely loved was how this story went into Anakin adjusting to his mechanical arm and the disconnect he felt from the force when he first gets it. This wasn't mentioned in the films or the Clone Wars show but it adds so much to Anakin's journey.
I also found myself falling in love with Mill and Ruuk, the two other characters the story centers around. Ruug showed a unique insight into Neimodian culture while Mill showed a whole new side to the Force and gave the reader insight into Anakin's skill as a mentor.
Overall I highly recommend this book for any fans of the prequels or Anakin and Obi-Wan in general, it was absolutely fantastic. 

Him by Elle Kennedy, Sarina Bowen

funny lighthearted relaxing 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

0.0

 Dnf at 55%

Wow. Just. Wow. This is so very very clearly written by two straight women who only know how to write stereotypical, douchy guys who see women (or in Wes's case, men) as nothing but objects. And the way the relationship between Wes and Jamie is written they essentially just made a typical straight relationship and changed the pronouns.

Wes's clear biphobia was the last straw for me, as well as the way Jamie seemed to think bisexuality was an oh so complicated thing. He prides himself on being this accepting guy but when he realises he likes men and women his penis is all of a sudden complicated (yes he does say this in the book).

Another thing I hated is how fucking dude-broy they are. I will provide some examples:

"We take a moment to high-five each other" (page 26)

One girl is wearing a top that’s cut so low her tits are practically hanging out of it, and a spark of heat ignites my groin. Shi-it. That rack is spectacular. (page 126)

So I will not be forcing myself to finish this book, and will be trying my damndest to find some gay romance that is actually written by gay men.

Also did I mention that these two white, straight, cis women use a racial slur and the F-slur on page for no reason??? 

They Never Learn by Layne Fargo

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

Damn was this a good book. The female rage was beautifully well written and I found myself falling in love with the character development of both Scarlett and Carlie. I can also say I was quite surprised with the ending, even though the plot-twist midway through the book didn't surprise me much (but it was very satisfying). If you want to read pure female rage I cannot recommend this enough, but please look up trigger warnings before hand!

I also listened to the audio book narrated by Lameece Issaq and Eileen Stevens and I highly recommend it, I felt that they perfectly encompassed Scarlett and Carlie with their voice acting.

Golden Sparkle by 鈴丸みんた, Minta Suzumaru

emotional funny lighthearted relaxing sad fast-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

4.75

(Note: Please be aware before going into this that the main characters are both 15 and there are sex scenes featuring them).
This was so cute!! I've been on a bit of a BL binge (thanks for that gender crisis) and I saw this one at the comic store and the cover just looked so soft and romantic which isn't necessarily a vibe you see often in BL manga. And despite sounding pretty raunchy just from the description it was actually really soft and sweet. It was so sweet watching Gaku come to terms with his sexuality and I really liked the way the portrayed the internalized homophobia that a lot of BL stories have, as in Gaku was more worried about dragging Himari down with him than any hate he might face, which I think is a pretty realistic concern. 
Ok but Himari is so stupid and I love it. Like my man knows absolutely nothing about his body or sex and it's very concerning like jeez mate. He seems very naïve, but considering the characters are meant to be 15 I think that's pretty normal. 

FANGS, Vol. 1 by Billy Balibally

dark emotional funny mysterious fast-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

4.5

I didn't really know what to think of this manga at first, so I read it again a few days later and it shot up from "hmmm it's okay" to "omg I love this I need the sequel now". The art is gorgeous, the characters are amazing and I absolutely love En and Ichii's relationship. En is such an adorable character, I love how innocent he is despite having clearly had a very hard life, and I hope we get to learn more about him in the future. He also felt very realistic to me. Ichii is a bit harder to read I think, but I feel like when we get more of his backstory it'll be easier. Ichii is clearly a very caring person though and I think it's really clear that he and En love each other despite any conflicting emotions going on. 

MADK, Vol. 1 by Ryo Suzuri

challenging dark emotional funny tense fast-paced

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

3.0

This was....something. I suppose I sort of knew what I was going into once I picked this up, my friend told me about it and about a certain scene involving a certain demon's throat, and it sounded interesting enough. And it wasn't bad, I will be picking up the second volume simply because my friend leant that to me too, but I'm not feeling super committed to it. I felt like J was a pretty interesting character and I liked the art style (even though it was sometimes hard to see what was going on), and Fjord was drawn absolutely beautifully, but the story didn't really capture me. Also like, all the trigger warnings mates. 

Spy x Family, Vol. 5 by Tatsuya Endo

adventurous funny lighthearted 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

I loved how much we got to learn about everyone in this volume. For some reason I was not expecting Loid to actually work at a hospital but of course he does which I love. And the ex apprentice? I am concerned, I'm not super into a love triangle so I hope that arc doesn't drag on for too long. Anya and Yuri bonding was adorable as well. I didn't like the whole chapter with George Glooman though, it felt kind of out-of-place and disturbed the pacing.

Ice Planet Barbarians by Ruby Dixon

adventurous dark funny relaxing fast-paced

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

4.0

Soooo....ummm.... I was not expecting this to be four stars but alas, here we are. I ate this up in one day while travelling home from london, and my god it was an experience. I really liked it weirdly enough, as I went into this hoping for some half decent porn and maybe a plot in there somewhere. I was not expecting there to be so much plot. I was expecting no plot. But I actually liked the plot?? It was also less spicy than expected but oh well. I guess the only thing that really put me off was the pregnancy in the end, but I suppose most breeding kink novels will include pregnancy (unfortunately)

Spy x Family, Vol. 4 by Tatsuya Endo

adventurous emotional funny mysterious 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

4.25

You know I wasn't excepting to ever read about a plot to kill someone by strapping bombs to dogs, but here we are. Honestly this volume was so fun, Bond and Anya make such an excellent team and I don't think she could've gotten a better dog than him. I also love this series so much for how it deals with both silly and heavy subject matter. In one volume we got Damien burning Anya by saying she's an unfit pet owner for naming the dog Dog, and then Handler talking about the ugly and gruesome side of war. I can't wait to see where the story goes from here.