bookswithlydscl's reviews
593 reviews

Much Ado About Nothing by William Shakespeare

emotional funny hopeful lighthearted medium-paced

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

4.0

The tragedies are my preferred plays but this is one my favourites from the more lighthearted plays. This bbc radio production is superb with an incredible full cast performance.

10 Minutes 38 Seconds in this Strange World by Elif Shafak

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring mysterious sad 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

4.5

4.5*

Another stunning piece of writing from Elif Shafak (my second by her). Sad, deeply moving, and full of love from untraditional sources. So very human and full of life even with death being its focus.

Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful reflective sad 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

This once came together beautifully in the end. Took a while for it to click but I'm so glad I read it.

1722 by Amy Cross

challenging dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

Pagans by James Alistair Henry

adventurous challenging dark funny mysterious tense medium-paced

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

5.0

Everything about this worked for me. The world building, the alternative history, the crime/ mystery / thriller aspect. Left me wanting more of this world!

Vaguely reminiscent of another 5 star favourite - the acts of the Assassins by Richard Bears

Scenes From A Tragedy by Carole Hailey

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.25

 4.25-4.5* overall

2 pilots are killed in a plane crash, we know immediately who caused the crash but not the why and the drive to uncover that truth sits at the heart of this story. To uncover the real story journalist Carly Atherton, (who's ex, Luke, was the other pilot) has to dig into the past of pilot Danny Taylor to figure out what caused him to fly the plane into the side of a mountain.

Along the way she meets Danny's narcissistic sister, Izzy and his wife, Grace and has to read between the lines to work out what the real truth of their family situation was all whilst being consistently beguiled by the charismatic and utterly unreliable Izzy.

Everything in this story keeps coming back to Izzy and I struggled so much with her character. It takes a lot for me to enjoy a book when a major character is utterly unlikeable but Carole Hailey has managed it with this one. The truth as it comes out explains so much why she is such a focal point and makes it all worthwhile but I really did struggle along the way. What helped a lot was the break in perspectives when we heard from Grace, from Carly herself and the journal articles which make up Carly's research work on ghost flights.

What also helped was the fantastic narration from the audiobook narrators. I felt that Eilidh Beaton; Louise Amos; Amy Noble did an amazing job with the shared narration. They were all completely distinctive and brought each different aspect of the book to life. The production quality is superb - high quality, clear, well edited and produced. I definitely felt that the aspects that bothered me most (namely Izzy's story) were mitigated by how well her perspective was brought to life in audio form.

Overall this is a fantastic, slow thriller that's highly character driven with a compelling story and structure. I loved the book within a book aspect with the interspersed journal articles and the switching narrative perspectives. It felt modern, fresh and was absolutely intriguing though felt a tad too long for me at points in the middle.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atlantic Books | Corvus Books for a digital review copy of "Scenes From a Tragedy" and W.F. Howes Ltd for a review copy of the Audiobook, both in exchange for my honest and voluntary review. 

Lady Macbeth by Ava Reid

challenging dark reflective tense medium-paced

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

2.5

I need to accept that these kinds of books just aren't for me. I've been left feeling how I did after reading a haunting in the Arctic - that it's pure misery in literary form and it just leaves me feeling hollow and low rather than able to marvel at how good the writing or story is.

Not one for me and should have listened to my first instincts when i took the hardback to the library unread but I scratched the social media inspired itch and the audiobook narrator was excellent so made it a worthwhile listen.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, Violence

The Unworthy by Agustina Bazterrica

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

Dark, and uncompromisingly brutal literary, dystopian horror set in a closed religious order after the collapse of the civilised world.

This is not for the faint hearted, but the bare bones story telling, stark and minimalist world building punctuated with unflinching horror worked for me. 

I’ve truly come to appreciate Bazterrica’s writing style and whilst I put my finger on why, I think those who loved Lucy Rose’s The Lamb will also like this (a feeling solidified by the fact that I discovered after finishing it that she has blurbed the book). Not everyone is going to love this one but it really worked for me.

Thank you to Netgalley and Pushkin Press for this digital review copy of "The Unworthy" in exchange for my honest and voluntary review.

Notes:
Slow, stark, brutal and dark
Gothic dystopian horror set in a closed religious order/cult
Tells the story without telling the story
Broken and fragmented narrative
Barely there world building but what you get and what you witness through the diary entries is enough to envision it
Uncomfortable reading but for different reasons to Tender is the Flesh
Something about it reminded me of The Lamb by Lucy Rose and the fact I discovered after finishing that its blurbed by her just solidifies it in my mind
Won't work for everyone but really worked for me

A Trial in Three Acts by Guy Morpuss

dark mysterious slow-paced

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

2.0

Unfortunately this one didn't work for me. I struggled with the story, narrative voice, and characters. I loved the premise and there was so much potential in the story but right now unfortunately it didn't land for me.

Thank you to Netgalley and Serpent's Tail / Viper / Profile Books | Viper for this digital review copy of "A Trial In Three Acts" in exchange for my honest and voluntary review.

Inheritance by Genevieve Gannon

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

Near future (soft?) dysoptian, science fiction esque story that is much more about the strength of mothers and the things they will do for their children than the more dystopian/scifi elements. Very familiar pandemic setting with a what-if fashioned future.

Overall enjoyed!