dreynoldsbook's reviews
112 reviews

All the White Spaces by Ally Wilkes

adventurous mysterious slow-paced

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

2.5

I actually gave up on this with a bit over 100 pages left. I decided that it wasn’t going anywhere interesting by then. The initially set up was okay if a bit unlikely, but after that it became very ponderous and repetitive. It also had a YA vibe to me but a lot of novels like this seem to nowadays.

Also, I couldn’t help comparing it unfavourably with The Terror throughout, a much more sinister and satisfying read. 

I'm Thinking Of Ending Things by Iain Reid

challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.5

I’ll have to think about this one. Iain Reid writes books you could reread immediately after finishing. I felt the same way about Foe, which I think is the better novel. But I’m not sure. I still have some working out to do.

It’s good when a novel leaves you feeling like this. It’s not a novel you’ll forget as soon as you turn the final page, that’s for certain. 

How they adapted it for tv I don’t know. Not sure I’m interested in watching it. I’d rather reread it!

The Lonely Londoners by Sam Selvon

funny informative sad slow-paced

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

3.0

Although it seems a quite short novel it can be laborious to read. At one point I counted 9 pages without a paragraph break. There’s is no narrative drive to pull you along as it is a series of anecdotes. The strength of the novel are the characters and the way they are evoked. And the quiet humour.

She Died a Lady: A Sir Henry Merrivale Mystery by Carter Dickson

mysterious medium-paced

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

3.75

Sir Henry Merrivale almost ruined this well plotted, old fashioned mystery. As soon as he entered the novel, which up until that point had been quite well written and serious minded, declined into farce. I think he was meant to be funny but he was just annoying and mostly incoherent.

Thankfully he didn’t completely ruin the book. But it would have been better without him. The ending would have been different but it could have worked. The ending could have been better, in fact. If sadder.

Dark Fire by C.J. Sansom

informative mysterious slow-paced

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

3.0

I really enjoyed the first 100 or so pages of this novel. The period detail and political machinations are its strength. As it progressed, however, I felt it was flabby and the plot, which wasn’t the strongest element to the book, meandered. It is very overlong and it overstayed its welcome. I was happy to get it finished in the end.

Why You Like This Photo: The Science of Perception, and How We Understand Photographs by Brian Dilg

informative medium-paced

2.75

Interesting premise but didn’t have that much to say in the end.

Also the text referring to the images was almost unreadable it was so small.

The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch by Philip K. Dick

dark mysterious sad medium-paced

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

3.25

My least favourite of the PKD novels I’ve read recently. The characters were flat and not really sympathetic and it wasn’t as amusing. Also, it didn’t make sense to me that Barney would feel the need to atone for not helping out Leo, especially as Leo’s experience apparently lasted a second of real time so he couldn’t have done anything anyway!

Kindred: A Graphic Novel Adaptation by Octavia E. Butler
Did not finish book. Stopped at 25%.

Did t like the clumsy art style and the time travel didn’t interest me. Maybe should have tried the novel instead.

Saturn's Children by Charles Stross
Did not finish book. Stopped at 20%.

Seems like more of a parody or satire than straight SF. It did have its moments and wss quite amusing  but I wasn’t in the mood for it.

Baumgartner by Paul Auster

funny reflective sad slow-paced

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

3.5

I enjoyed the ‘here and now’ passages about Baumgartner’s current life. They were nicely observed and endearing. I wasn’t so keen on the reminiscing and tangential stuff of which I thought that was too much for a quite short novel.