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august_ambrosia's reviews
50 reviews
Atonement by Ian McEwan
5.0
GOOD BOOK!! very nice descriptions and such.... read this for lit class but like. it was rlly interesting either way. wouldnt have normally picked it up n glad i got to read it :) definitely see how it is a classic.
ok edit because i'm deep-diving into this and i think we are SLEEPING on robbie. what A GUY!!!!!!!!!!!!! how he is Turner the entirety of part 2 EXCEPT when he's talking about cecilia. she brings him back to himself.... good lord. and "he wanted a father, and for the same reason, he wanted to be a father. it was common enough, to see so much death and want a child. common, therefore human, and he wanted it all the more. when the wounded were screaming, you dreamed of sharing a little house somewhere, an ordinary life, a family life, connection." ROBBIE YOU DESERVED BETTER i know this is briony speaking in his voice so he might've been an absolute shitbag in real life BUT I WANT TO BELIEVE IT!!!!
ok edit because i'm deep-diving into this and i think we are SLEEPING on robbie. what A GUY!!!!!!!!!!!!! how he is Turner the entirety of part 2 EXCEPT when he's talking about cecilia. she brings him back to himself.... good lord. and "he wanted a father, and for the same reason, he wanted to be a father. it was common enough, to see so much death and want a child. common, therefore human, and he wanted it all the more. when the wounded were screaming, you dreamed of sharing a little house somewhere, an ordinary life, a family life, connection." ROBBIE YOU DESERVED BETTER i know this is briony speaking in his voice so he might've been an absolute shitbag in real life BUT I WANT TO BELIEVE IT!!!!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Child abuse, Animal death, Child death, Violence, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Abandonment, Adult/minor relationship, Sexual assault, and Medical content
Once Upon a River by Diane Setterfield
5.0
5/5!!! good book!!!! nice story!!!!
very beautiful writing - i normally read words very quickly and had to consciously slow down because i was skipping information. the descriptions were so dense and cleverly constructed and honestly, realistic? i love realistic fiction. this felt like a true campfire story. or, i suppose, one that would be told at an inn.
i love stories about stories. i loved how the multilayered mystery was handled!! i loved the dialogue, how natural it felt, how setterfield gives a crowded effect to a room and adding us into the story by having in-world listeners. i loved the handling of racism and disability! i loved the women, i loved jonathan, i loved margot, i loved joe. i loved basically everyone
i thought this book was just.. really clever. very clever idea, great execution. finished it in one day because i was so hooked. will read again + have already recommended (and will continue to do so).
very beautiful writing - i normally read words very quickly and had to consciously slow down because i was skipping information. the descriptions were so dense and cleverly constructed and honestly, realistic? i love realistic fiction. this felt like a true campfire story. or, i suppose, one that would be told at an inn.
i love stories about stories. i loved how the multilayered mystery was handled!! i loved the dialogue, how natural it felt, how setterfield gives a crowded effect to a room and adding us into the story by having in-world listeners. i loved the handling of racism and disability! i loved the women, i loved jonathan, i loved margot, i loved joe. i loved basically everyone
Spoiler
except victor. and robin. but i felt quite bad for robin. i suppose he was written to be always.. evil. evil was in his blood, literally. i did absolutely adore robert though. what a man..!! what a lovely father.i thought this book was just.. really clever. very clever idea, great execution. finished it in one day because i was so hooked. will read again + have already recommended (and will continue to do so).
Nettle and Bone by T. Kingfisher
5.0
LOVED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! woahhhh this book was good. every part of it was interesting while also feeling like filler - which i love. slice of life trumps OTT action any day.
give me more 30-year old emotional and sturdy and down-to-earth women!! please do not be fooled by the length of time it took me to read this, i was hooked from the first page & life simply got in the way. needless to say i enjoyed every second & it felt like something straight out of a dnd campaign. there's so many women, all unique and powerful in their own way and this book is so explicitly feminist without feeling... forced. it Works. it all just works.
the action made sense, the tasks made sense, the dialogue made sense, and the end scene felt beautifully tied up and bittersweet in a hopeful way. this felt like the untold story of the princess's sister. and boy was i listening. t. kingfisher writes emotion in such an understated but powerful way and i simply cannot get enough of it!! i will be reading more of their books and i strongly recommend this one.
give me more 30-year old emotional and sturdy and down-to-earth women!! please do not be fooled by the length of time it took me to read this, i was hooked from the first page & life simply got in the way. needless to say i enjoyed every second & it felt like something straight out of a dnd campaign. there's so many women, all unique and powerful in their own way and this book is so explicitly feminist without feeling... forced. it Works. it all just works.
the action made sense, the tasks made sense, the dialogue made sense, and the end scene felt beautifully tied up and bittersweet in a hopeful way. this felt like the untold story of the princess's sister. and boy was i listening. t. kingfisher writes emotion in such an understated but powerful way and i simply cannot get enough of it!! i will be reading more of their books and i strongly recommend this one.