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barrowclift's reviews
17 reviews
Dracula by Bram Stoker, Bram Stoker
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
A tense, gripping novel, though I found its pacing towards the end oddly erratic. Nonetheless, I found it a surprisingly terrifying read.
House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski
challenging
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Deeply unsettling and enthralling. It's shockingly smart, and delicately weaves the entire length between the horrors of the house and horrors perhaps a little too close to home as more of Johnny's life is carefully revealed. This is a book of slow burning Lovecraftian dread, and I loved every minute of it.
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass and What Alice Found There by Lewis Carroll
3.0
It's at times irresistibly charming and at others oddly tiresome and boring. A classic "mixed bag" on this one, for me.
Brave Hearted: The Women of the American West by Katie Hickman
3.0
A captivating and strong start disappointingly runs out of steam once focus shifts away from telling stories of historical women to instead the broader narrative of the horrific destruction of Native Americans (with only light emphasis on the women in various tribes). That story is equally as important, but not what was promised by the book's title and first half, making the end product feel confused and distracted, as if it forget its own premise at the midpoint. Would have been better if that second half was spun out to its own novel where it could have gotten its own deserved attention; both halves would have been stronger for it.
The Invisible Hook: The Hidden Economics of Pirates by Peter T. Leeson
3.0
Despite the book's short length, it felt like many points were belabored or outright repeated throughout. There's so much interesting details here, I don't understand how with such a short length it could still feel like the whole thing was stretched thin like a student report.
Regardless, what's here is still fascinating, just be prepared for some frustrating repetition.
Regardless, what's here is still fascinating, just be prepared for some frustrating repetition.
Bitwise: A Life in Code by David Auerbach
3.0
A smattering of captivating industry stories muddled by a narrator who felt to me deeply unlikeable and made finishing the book sometimes difficult.