haalborg's reviews
151 reviews

Globus by Sarah Smith Ogunbona

Go to review page

reflective medium-paced

3.5

Odinsbarn by Siri Pettersen

Go to review page

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

Frøken Island by Auður Ava Ólafsdóttir

Go to review page

dark reflective sad medium-paced

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

3.5

The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin

Go to review page

adventurous challenging dark mysterious reflective slow-paced

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

To Be Taught, If Fortunate by Becky Chambers

Go to review page

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative reflective 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

4.5

Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel

Go to review page

challenging dark informative reflective slow-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

The Bone Houses by Emily Lloyd-Jones

Go to review page

adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful mysterious medium-paced

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

4.0

Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi

Go to review page

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad medium-paced

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

4.5

Once Upon a River by Diane Setterfield

Go to review page

adventurous dark mysterious reflective medium-paced

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

4.0

Suicide Blonde by Darcey Steinke

Go to review page

dark slow-paced

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

2.0

The edition of this book that I bought in a sale had a blurb on the cover saying "THE FEMINIST CULT CLASSIC", so it sounded right up my street and I was pretty excited to read it. Sadly, it disappointed me in almost every way. The central storyline of Jesse's relationship with Bell is soaked in biphobia and fetishisation of bi and gay men; another central relationship is that between Jesse and her part-time employer Pig, whose main characteristics seem to be that she is fat, grotesque, and pathetic. The best moments of the book are when Jesse is given time and space to reflect upon the nature of relations between men and women in society, but these rare moments are most often cut short by some "shocking" and "outrageous" plot device or sexual act. Not for me.

Content Warnings