giorgiawessels's reviews
30 reviews

Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik

adventurous medium-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? Yes

3.0

I loved the beginning of the book but I could not care for the Staryk and it became a little too boring and fantasy for me.

The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho

adventurous hopeful reflective fast-paced

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

3.0

The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma by Bessel van der Kolk

challenging emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

4.0

I loved this book and recommend it to anyone who has experienced trauma, who knows anyone who is dealing with trauma or working with people and children.

Bessel van der Kolk writes in an easy-to-understand manner and feels very compassionate, but also not a light read. If you haven’t begun your healing journey and don’t have any support, I wouldn’t pick up this book just yet. It won’t fix your problems, but it will make you feel seen. It has helped me understand why I act in certain ways and what trauma can do to the brain.

The Richest Man in Babylon by George S. Clason

informative lighthearted medium-paced

3.0

I picked this book up in the beginning of the year and enjoyed about 60% of it. I put it down and didn’t open it again as it was getting redundant and repetitive. Then I saw my reading goal is running behind and I finished the book. Don’t get me wrong, it is a good book with lots to learn while being communicated simply. I would say this is a good book to start with if you’re looking to understand your personal finances.

The Little Shop of Happy Ever After by Jenny Colgan

lighthearted relaxing fast-paced

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

3.25

I bought this book secondhand and didn’t have very high expectations other than wanting something light-hearted, fun and cosy, and The Little Shop of Happily Ever After was just that. Set in Scotland (how could you go wrong with that), Nina tries to fit into the small town while opening a mobile bookstore (again, cannot go wrong with this)! This book was very cute and a quick read.

The Woman in Me by Britney Spears

challenging emotional inspiring sad tense fast-paced

4.0

I’m almost speechless. I was following the Free Britney movement closely and during this book I had goosebumps and forgot to breathe at times. I am so happy to see Britney free, finally. This book was a heavy read, and a lot of details were left out as well. I really hope the people who have done this to her get what they deserve, and I wish her nothing but happiness and healing. What an inspiring woman.

The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab

adventurous dark lighthearted slow-paced

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

1.75

This book has amazing reviews and obviously so many people loved it - but for me it felt too long and could’ve been much shorter. Addie and Henry went on SO MANY dates?? I had to skim through some of them because it was just too cheesy and long winded for my taste. But then I really loved when we went back in time and read about Addie’s past life, the things she’s been through and the people she’s met. For someone who has lived 300 years, Adeline’s personality fell flat for me and I couldn’t connect with any of the other characters. I was about 80% in and I was just too bored to pick it up again so I read the plot summary on the internet. Glad I DNF’d it 🥲

The Storm Sister by Lucinda Riley

adventurous hopeful inspiring mysterious relaxing slow-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? No

3.5

A 3.5 star read for me - I enjoyed the book as well as Ally and Anna’s character, but sometimes the book did drag on a liiitle bit. I enjoyed the incorporation of WW2. Some of the characters were just not deep enough for me and Theo was just a nuisance.

Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett

adventurous funny lighthearted relaxing fast-paced

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

3.5

It’s a really cute book but I don’t think it deserves a 4 star rating. Loved Emily Wilde, the villagers of Hrafnsvik and the atmosphere! Is it my favourite book ever? Am I glad it has a place in my brain now? Yes. A very cozy read!

The Untethered Soul: The Journey Beyond Yourself by Michael A. Singer

reflective slow-paced

1.5

I was gifted this book by someone dear to me (I have already read it - scroll down to read my first review) and wasn’t too eager to reread it. But I decided to give it another go as it is so popular and many people seem to love it. There are definitely some good takeaways from the book, such as:

“You are not your thoughts; you are aware of your thoughts. You are not your emotions; you feel your emotions. You are not your body; you look at it in the mirror and experience this world through its eyes and ears.” -The untethered soul

“…the “I” who is always talking inside will never be content.” “When a problem is disturbing you, don’t ask, “What should I do about it?” Ask, “What part of me is disturbed by this?”

“When you are an aware being, you no longer become completely immersed in the events around you.”

“Remember, your self-concept if just a collection of thoughts about yourself.”

“If you truly want to grow spiritually, you'll realize that keeping your stuff is keeping you trapped. Eventually you'll want out, at any cost. You will then realize that life is actually trying to help you. Life is surrounding you with people and situations that stimulate growth. You don't have to decide who's right or wrong. You don't have to worry about other people's issues. You only have to be willing to open your heart in the face of anything and everything, and permit the purification process to take place.

When you do this, the first thing you'll see is that situations will unfold that hit your stuff. But, in truth, that's exactly what has been happening your entire life. The only difference is that now you see it as a good thing because it's an opportunity to let go.”

“Everything will be okay as soon as you are okay with everything.” In its simplicity, it’s actually a pretty good idea.

“This world will never be able to bother you again because the worst the world can do is to hit the pain stored within you. If you do not care, if you are no longer afraid of your-self, you are free.”

Many of these I already knew and the book didn’t seem to teach me anything new, but it was good reminders. Overall I enjoyed chapter 8.

I did however find myself rolling my eyes a little too often, like when he writes:

“There is a very simple method for staying open. You stay open by never closing.” Yeah thanks. Very helpful.

“To achieve this state, simply allow the experiences of life to come in and pass through your being. If old energies come back up because you were unable to process them before, let go of them now. It's that easy.” Of course!

“Do you think God likes to be around people that are happy or people that are miserable? It's not hard to tell.” Toxic positivity it seems like.

“If they starve you and put you in solitary confinement, just have fun being like Gandhi.” Sir, are you for real?

The main takeaway was: “Just let go, be happy and have fun.” This’ll work amazingly as long as you’re not facing any difficulties. Ps. Do not read this book if you’ve experienced any sort of abuse, discrimination or any severe trauma.

First review: I had mixed feelings about this book…It starts off interesting and it did prompt a few good meditations for me, but I just cannot see why this book is so popular. I feel the concepts being taught in the book could’ve been done with more clarity and so I would not recommend this book to someone just dipping their toes into meditation and spirituality. The majority of the book was inclusive but at the very end it felt more like a Christian book and I would imagine it would be displeasing to people who belong to other religions.
I also would not recommend it to someone who may have experienced trauma or abuse as the author oversimplifies the idea of letting go and does not give clear steps to overcome trauma, struggles and psychological difficulties one might go through as a result.
I found the book very repetitive and during the last few pages I couldn’t wait for it to end.