elizlizabeth's reviews
176 reviews

Any Way the Wind Blows by Rainbow Rowell

adventurous funny medium-paced

3.5

Of all the books in the trilogy, this one felt the most fanfic-y, I thought the character's plot lines would converge more organically but everyone's pretty much doing their thing. It was a bit frustrating that after so many chapters setting things up, the ending is like ten minutes long and some things don't even get explained/solved.

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The Managed Heart: Commercialization of Human Feeling by Arlie Russell Hochschild

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informative slow-paced

3.5

I don't know who this book is for because it shifts from very technical to self-help anecdotical which makes me doubt the generalizations made in this theory. There are some good points it touches upon and it is an in-depth ethnography, but at times I found it relied on stereotypes or assumed mutual understanding of values to get to the conclusions.
Good for her on raising the issue of commodified emotion tho, I can see how it paved some more modern studies.

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Wayward Son by Rainbow Rowell

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adventurous dark tense medium-paced

4.0

It starts a little slow and oddly with a contemporary lit vibe rather than a fantasy one, but the last two thirds really picked up.

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The Princess Bride by William Goldman

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adventurous funny tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

Conflicting thoughts because the cynical approach of the "annotations" contrasts so heavily with the plot that it made me lowkey hate the annotator and wish Princess Bride were a real unabridged book I could read. As a satire it works really well and ages fantastically, I legit felt that a bitter little twitterman was commenting on an age old classic and ruining it in the process.

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Four Aunties and a Wedding by Jesse Q. Sutanto

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adventurous funny lighthearted

3.5

I think the plot was too convoluted, I would've read the hell out of a low-stakes comedy of errors with the aunties blowing things out of proportion but as it is, I had a hard time suspending my disbelief to truly enjoy the ride.

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Room by Emma Donoghue

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emotional tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes

4.5

Really enjoyed the narrating voice which must have been a feat to write because Jack is both evidently a child but also very mature for his age in a way that's believable given the context he had to grow up in. This could have very easily been a chronicle of an escape only, but the author weaved in some critiques to media and society that felt super poignant. Ending was good, I just felt that the pacing rushed a bit after chapter 4.

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Carry On by Rainbow Rowell

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adventurous funny medium-paced

4.5

Loved the world building for this, and would definitely like to know more about it. I like how the enemies to lovers developed because hilarious. Plus all the characters are so well rounded I fell in love with most by page 20.
Only disliked that the pacing was weird at times, esp when it halted everything to focus on Simon et Baz which were sweet scenes but maybe a better fit as annexes (or dare I say... fanfiction?)

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