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geraldine's reviews
319 reviews
Self-Portrait with Nothing by Aimee Pokwatka
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? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
so i did know the premise of this one going in, unlike a ton of books that i added to my kindle and then forgot the plot or why i wanted to read them, and about halfway through i was struck with the thought that like... i didn't want there to be anything supernatural or scifi in it at all. like i get that that's the whole gimmick! that's the whole plot! the entire premise! but i genuinely thought it worked way better without it.
like, literally. you don't even get definitive proof that anything supernatural is going on until like the 60% mark at least and i feel like the supernatural elements really hurt the book!! like this is the story of a woman who is struggling with her feelings towards her birth mother, her family, her loving husband, herself, who tries to think her way out of her feelings, who still feels abandoned even though she has people who love her, and i really liked the way the writing depicted her mental state and her actions and even though watching her blow up her relationship with her husband was very difficult it all made sense.
AND i got her when she wanted to keep secrets from him!! felt like the author walked a very fine line in making it fair that pepper wanted to keep things to herself (and that it was fair to!) but also that ike would genuinely feel hurt by her secrecy and be upset by the irrational and borderline self destructive things she was doing. honestly her relationship with ike was the most compelling part of the book to me by far which, i feel like you have to actually have a good understanding of relationships and nuance to successfully write a conflict like this too (and also where the husband is not a total piece of shit but it's waved away by misogyny and "that's how men are" business and they get forgiven regardless) like! ike was just a normal guy! their text exchanges really sold me on them too like that was some of the most realistic texting i've seen in a book in a long time. very genuine.
but then we get to like... okay suddenly there's like 8 of her birth mother around and it's very difficult to keep track of who is who and the entire thing is less tightly written and basically falls apart. like it's like... fine i guess but it just feels like it loses its way. also the guy pepper has been traveling with just goes home and there's no real resolution to what he was doing (avoiding his girlfriend because he was also stressed) and while i did NOT want him and pepper to hook up at ALL i thought they were an interesting parallel to each other. so then he's gone and now pepper has 8 her biomoms around and i'm trying to remember which one is key and which one is ursula and how this all works.
really liked the scene of her discovering the portrait at the museum/the book title drop but again i feel like the reveal that "oh alternate universes are real this is someone else" kind of weakens the scene!!
didn't feel like it was a waste of time though and maybe what didn't work for me might work for you!
AND i got her when she wanted to keep secrets from him!! felt like the author walked a very fine line in making it fair that pepper wanted to keep things to herself (and that it was fair to!) but also that ike would genuinely feel hurt by her secrecy and be upset by the irrational and borderline self destructive things she was doing. honestly her relationship with ike was the most compelling part of the book to me by far which, i feel like you have to actually have a good understanding of relationships and nuance to successfully write a conflict like this too (and also where the husband is not a total piece of shit but it's waved away by misogyny and "that's how men are" business and they get forgiven regardless) like! ike was just a normal guy! their text exchanges really sold me on them too like that was some of the most realistic texting i've seen in a book in a long time. very genuine.
but then we get to like... okay suddenly there's like 8 of her birth mother around and it's very difficult to keep track of who is who and the entire thing is less tightly written and basically falls apart. like it's like... fine i guess but it just feels like it loses its way. also the guy pepper has been traveling with just goes home and there's no real resolution to what he was doing (avoiding his girlfriend because he was also stressed) and while i did NOT want him and pepper to hook up at ALL i thought they were an interesting parallel to each other. so then he's gone and now pepper has 8 her biomoms around and i'm trying to remember which one is key and which one is ursula and how this all works.
really liked the scene of her discovering the portrait at the museum/the book title drop but again i feel like the reveal that "oh alternate universes are real this is someone else" kind of weakens the scene!!
didn't feel like it was a waste of time though and maybe what didn't work for me might work for you!
Sorrowland by Rivers Solomon
dark
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
i liked their prior book a lot better, it just clicked more with me i guess than this one? which is kind of crazy because the premise of this one seemed to me like it would click more with me than the prior one. i didn't dislike it though, but it's hard to put into words why i didn't like it as much as the last one... felt like it needed more depth somehow?? maybe? i dunno.
definitely spent the entire book wondering what happened to lucy (as i think we as readers are intended to) and the final reveal there was very effective and so, so sad.
The Guest List by Lucy Foley
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
it was alright. i got what it was trying to do and everything and honestly it was pretty quick read once i actually like... finished the other books i was reading and focused on only this one. pretty fast moving book despite the entire story being told over a 24 hour period or so. kept me engaged in the story the whole time.
definitely did not see a few of the later twists coming,especially because i mistakenly thought aoife's sibling heavily implied to have passed away was a sister and not a brother. so i fully missed that setup until the end. and while some made sense (aoife's brother, olivia's history with will) i thought some of the twists and connections were a bit contrived. like will also being the one who was harassing hannah's sister. obviously on a character level we KNOW he would easily be capable of it but it just felt like a stretch, even after giving the book the benefit of the doubt and going with the rest.
also speaking of will i really don't think we needed anything from his perspective because it truly did not add anything to the narrative. not saying we needed will to be sympathetic or that i wanted to know his Deep Thoughts about harassing women but what is the point of showing his thoughts if we're not going to get any nuance? he really just comes across like a monster (like he already did!!!) and we don't learn anything new from it
was still glad to see him get stabbed bc if someone else wasn't going to do it i personally would have astral projected into the book and done it myself. how's THAT for a plot twist. get his ass
man i wanna go to a wedding and get free food that lamb and potatoes sounded soooooo good
definitely did not see a few of the later twists coming,
also speaking of will i really don't think we needed anything from his perspective because it truly did not add anything to the narrative. not saying we needed will to be sympathetic or that i wanted to know his Deep Thoughts about harassing women but what is the point of showing his thoughts if we're not going to get any nuance? he really just comes across like a monster (like he already did!!!) and we don't learn anything new from it
was still glad to see him get stabbed bc if someone else wasn't going to do it i personally would have astral projected into the book and done it myself. how's THAT for a plot twist. get his ass
man i wanna go to a wedding and get free food that lamb and potatoes sounded soooooo good
Briefly, A Delicious Life by Nell Stevens
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- 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
2.0
i wonder if this book is any better or worse if you have a prior interest in the personal lives of polish pianist frederic chopin and french novelist george sand.
i was genuinely invested in the life (and afterlife) of our narrator but every time chopin started coughing blood into tissues i wanted it to go back to teen ghosts bullying people
i do think the framing device and writing style worked like, i don't love third person omniscient but "third person omnicient told as first person narrative and she IS omnicient because she is a ghost" came through. just wish i liked the story she was seeing better!!!
hope you had a fun rest of your afterlife, blanca
i was genuinely invested in the life (and afterlife) of our narrator but every time chopin started coughing blood into tissues i wanted it to go back to teen ghosts bullying people
i do think the framing device and writing style worked like, i don't love third person omniscient but "third person omnicient told as first person narrative and she IS omnicient because she is a ghost" came through. just wish i liked the story she was seeing better!!!
hope you had a fun rest of your afterlife, blanca
Lote by Shola von Reinhold
slow-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? It's complicated
t his book stressed me out so much even though the stakes were low like... mathilda living her life one day at a time and surviving... girl.... was just really worried for her. does a really good job of putting you into her headspace while also seeing it as an outsider looking in and getting soooo stressed, every time she slept in to some wild hour and missing things or waking up to someone banging on the door or GOD FORBID in her room.
do like how a lot of it was subtle and i think i'm just so burnt out on books that have no faith in their audience and reach out and shake them like THIS IS WHAT MY BOOK MEANS and lose any nuance in the process.
most striking scene to me waswhen mathilda and erskine-lily find hermia's room, very vivid and emotional scene and i also almost expected them to find her on the bed. in that moment i truly was a third person there with them both laying on her bed just overwhelmed with it all
got this book on interlibrary loan because there is apparently no ebook and also no library had it near me (it came from 1700+ miles away), and also it's due today so i stayed up until midnight finishing it. i am NOT paying a $1/day late fee
do like how a lot of it was subtle and i think i'm just so burnt out on books that have no faith in their audience and reach out and shake them like THIS IS WHAT MY BOOK MEANS and lose any nuance in the process.
most striking scene to me was
got this book on interlibrary loan because there is apparently no ebook and also no library had it near me (it came from 1700+ miles away), and also it's due today so i stayed up until midnight finishing it. i am NOT paying a $1/day late fee
Boy Parts by Eliza Clark
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
had this one as an ebook library hold, realized i'd checked it out for a week and only had a week left to read it and went "ok i'll start it" and finished it in a day
incredibly compelling and deeply unsettling and upsetting book. truly could not put it down. not sure if i would recommend it to anyone and absolutely cannot give it a star rating because i think i both liked and hated it but it really got to me.
irina reading her friend's "secret" blog where she talks about her is like........ oh girl. i get you. i truly get you. stop doing that but also i literally get you.
anyway. really great use of unreliable narrator
incredibly compelling and deeply unsettling and upsetting book. truly could not put it down. not sure if i would recommend it to anyone and absolutely cannot give it a star rating because i think i both liked and hated it but it really got to me.
anyway. really great use of unreliable narrator
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Toxic relationship, Vomit, and Toxic friendship
Eileen by Ottessa Moshfegh
challenging
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
not sure how i felt about this one fully but i liked the writing style a lot, very vivid imagery, felt like i could almost smell each location she describes. really effective storytelling and narrative tension despite me disliking every major character.
Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood by Marjane Satrapi
5.0
I helped pick this book for book club.
I saw the movie like... in 2010? and read a little of the book afterwards but finally read it this time, mostly in one night. Have you ever read a graphic novel on a kindle fire???? Would not necessarily recommend.
The book is great though, and her simple yet very clean illustrations add a lot of character to the story. Very thought provoking and moving.
(Book club read the second part for the next meeting, but I skipped because I had my work christmas party that day.)
rating: would definitely reread. literally the opposite of a waste of time to read. good book. v good book. i kind of wish I went to the meeting for the second part!!
I saw the movie like... in 2010? and read a little of the book afterwards but finally read it this time, mostly in one night. Have you ever read a graphic novel on a kindle fire???? Would not necessarily recommend.
The book is great though, and her simple yet very clean illustrations add a lot of character to the story. Very thought provoking and moving.
(Book club read the second part for the next meeting, but I skipped because I had my work christmas party that day.)
rating: would definitely reread. literally the opposite of a waste of time to read. good book. v good book. i kind of wish I went to the meeting for the second part!!
The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
2.0
this book was picked for book club during the one meeting I skipped.........
My main deal with this book is Augustus reminds me of a former friend of mine who, at the time, I had recently found out was a completely piece of garbage, so my feelings on Gus as a character were completely colored by this. Spoiler: I hated him. he was absolutely insufferable to me.
I knew the end of the book before I read the book. It was... a super common spoiler to see. I didn't really mind knowing it though because I super was not that invested in the book.
I liked Hazel and Isaac was cool too, I heard he got almost completely cut from the movie?? What a shame.
The hands-down best part of the book was [SPOILERS] when she found out her mom was secretly going to college. Most important part of the book by far and worth reading just for that honestly.
rating: would not re-read. i find john green's writing a little too self-congratulatory for me. was not an entire waste of time to read bc of the aforementioned scene with her mom.
My main deal with this book is Augustus reminds me of a former friend of mine who, at the time, I had recently found out was a completely piece of garbage, so my feelings on Gus as a character were completely colored by this. Spoiler: I hated him. he was absolutely insufferable to me.
I knew the end of the book before I read the book. It was... a super common spoiler to see. I didn't really mind knowing it though because I super was not that invested in the book.
I liked Hazel and Isaac was cool too, I heard he got almost completely cut from the movie?? What a shame.
The hands-down best part of the book was [SPOILERS] when she found out her mom was secretly going to college. Most important part of the book by far and worth reading just for that honestly.
rating: would not re-read. i find john green's writing a little too self-congratulatory for me. was not an entire waste of time to read bc of the aforementioned scene with her mom.
Uglies by Scott Westerfeld
3.0
This book had been floating around in the "possible books for book club" pot for a while and we finally picked it for our Feb/March meeting.
I read this when I was 18 and reread (most of) it...
I honestly don't have a lot to say about it except the entire time I was rereading it I was trying to remember the later books and what happens to Tally and Shay. the entire time.
rating: i mean I would re-read it because I was re-reading it. not a waste of time.
I read this when I was 18 and reread (most of) it...
I honestly don't have a lot to say about it except the entire time I was rereading it I was trying to remember the later books and what happens to Tally and Shay. the entire time.
rating: i mean I would re-read it because I was re-reading it. not a waste of time.