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holdenwunders_'s reviews
336 reviews
Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn
5.0
Sharp Objects was amazing when it first came out and it holds up today. I did a reread through the audiobook for the first time ever and the narrator did a lovely job. She’s not Amy Adam’s but it’s a hard legacy to live up to.
Gillian Flynn is the master of thrillers and writes women like nobody else. If you’re a fan of the book or show, doing the audiobook is a great time.
Gillian Flynn is the master of thrillers and writes women like nobody else. If you’re a fan of the book or show, doing the audiobook is a great time.
I Cheerfully Refuse by Leif Enger
4.0
I put this book off for the longest time and I’m not completely mad that I did, this is very much a mood read and can see it being a book for the right time.
Absolutely beautifully written literary fiction with small spurts of incredible violence and cruelty I wasn’t expecting. I enjoyed the book but it wasn’t until we were introduced to Sol that I completely fell in love. My only critique is that I wished she was introduced a bit sooner.
Absolutely beautifully written literary fiction with small spurts of incredible violence and cruelty I wasn’t expecting. I enjoyed the book but it wasn’t until we were introduced to Sol that I completely fell in love. My only critique is that I wished she was introduced a bit sooner.
I'll Look So Hot in a Coffin: And Other Thoughts I Used to Have About My Body by Carla Sosenko
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
3.0
Reviewing memoirs can be so difficult because your subjective views on characters are no longer on characters but real people and the choices that they have made in their lives. Why do I get an opinion about this person, their likability, their privilege etc?? But here we are anyway, so let’s dive in.
There were a lot of things that were very enjoyable about this memoir and it starts with the title. The dark sarcasm mirrors Jennette McCurdy’s memoir and had me sold before I even opened the book. The deeper glances into life with a disability and especially one that is not so invisible puts a lense on our society as a whole and Sosenko very clearly has insight and was well articulated about them. The deeper dive into fat phobia and how our society treats fat women was something I wasn’t expecting in this but was looked upon with a lot of poignant examples and became the framework of this book.
With that said, there were times where I wanted the dark sarcasm to fit more with the title. Instead of dark humour, I felt more anger. And I’m all for angry women as we deserve to be angry, it merely wasn’t what I was expecting given the title. A lot of points were harped in so deeply that I wanted to grab the authour and tell her it’s actually all okay and not as bad as it seems, and I know it’s BAD out here.
There were a lot of times Sosenko would just start making actual lists instead of writing and this threw me for a loop. It was overwhelming, exhausting, and I kept thinking “but you’re a writer? Why are you just listing and bullet pointing PAGES at me??” I think she’s better than this and I feel confident in that given other bits of her writing. It felt like a cop out to include points without making the effort of succinctly story telling with them.
My last was gripe was *gasp* the privilege. I DO appreciate entirely that Sosenko continuously tells us that she has it. From her pretty face, to her rich parents bailing her out, to the emotional support and how good of a family she has, etc etc etc. but it got very tiring and made the story hard to carry on after the halfway point. Why do women so often have to be like-able? I struggled with this idea while reading because I kept going “UGH GIRL STOP” so many times. She doesn’t have to be like-able, she doesn’t have to be nice all the time, she doesn’t have to be skinny to have worth but it also felt like she was begging for this while also being incredibly hard to swallow too.
I do wish we had more on her actual disability and how that affected her more in life and not just her younger years and lack of autonomy. Mixing these points with a deeper dive into how fatness and women are affected in the medical community was more what I was anticipating here and seemed to be lacking overall. As a disabled woman it felt like a lot of this was just her young age and looking different to people and then moved on from the ramifications and how disability can and does affect day to day life. Disabilities effect everyone in different ways but the way it was framed had me wondering how it was effecting her outside of just narcissism and how our society sees bodies. So much of this story was about internalized fat phobia and our society on fatness but that wasn’t what I was expecting to get with this book.
I very clearly have a lot of thoughts on this book and I don’t want to demonize it in any way. There were a lot of great, high points to this but they were also balanced with very annoying and overwrought aspects that had me wanting her to move on already. There were some fall backs and some highlights and by no means am I mad I read it. I enjoyed quite a few moments in reading but they were often smothered by a lot of other rantings that dimmed the overall shine.
There were a lot of things that were very enjoyable about this memoir and it starts with the title. The dark sarcasm mirrors Jennette McCurdy’s memoir and had me sold before I even opened the book. The deeper glances into life with a disability and especially one that is not so invisible puts a lense on our society as a whole and Sosenko very clearly has insight and was well articulated about them. The deeper dive into fat phobia and how our society treats fat women was something I wasn’t expecting in this but was looked upon with a lot of poignant examples and became the framework of this book.
With that said, there were times where I wanted the dark sarcasm to fit more with the title. Instead of dark humour, I felt more anger. And I’m all for angry women as we deserve to be angry, it merely wasn’t what I was expecting given the title. A lot of points were harped in so deeply that I wanted to grab the authour and tell her it’s actually all okay and not as bad as it seems, and I know it’s BAD out here.
There were a lot of times Sosenko would just start making actual lists instead of writing and this threw me for a loop. It was overwhelming, exhausting, and I kept thinking “but you’re a writer? Why are you just listing and bullet pointing PAGES at me??” I think she’s better than this and I feel confident in that given other bits of her writing. It felt like a cop out to include points without making the effort of succinctly story telling with them.
My last was gripe was *gasp* the privilege. I DO appreciate entirely that Sosenko continuously tells us that she has it. From her pretty face, to her rich parents bailing her out, to the emotional support and how good of a family she has, etc etc etc. but it got very tiring and made the story hard to carry on after the halfway point. Why do women so often have to be like-able? I struggled with this idea while reading because I kept going “UGH GIRL STOP” so many times. She doesn’t have to be like-able, she doesn’t have to be nice all the time, she doesn’t have to be skinny to have worth but it also felt like she was begging for this while also being incredibly hard to swallow too.
I do wish we had more on her actual disability and how that affected her more in life and not just her younger years and lack of autonomy. Mixing these points with a deeper dive into how fatness and women are affected in the medical community was more what I was anticipating here and seemed to be lacking overall. As a disabled woman it felt like a lot of this was just her young age and looking different to people and then moved on from the ramifications and how disability can and does affect day to day life. Disabilities effect everyone in different ways but the way it was framed had me wondering how it was effecting her outside of just narcissism and how our society sees bodies. So much of this story was about internalized fat phobia and our society on fatness but that wasn’t what I was expecting to get with this book.
I very clearly have a lot of thoughts on this book and I don’t want to demonize it in any way. There were a lot of great, high points to this but they were also balanced with very annoying and overwrought aspects that had me wanting her to move on already. There were some fall backs and some highlights and by no means am I mad I read it. I enjoyed quite a few moments in reading but they were often smothered by a lot of other rantings that dimmed the overall shine.
All Systems Red by Martha Wells
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Science fiction is one of my favourite genres but it also means I’m entirely picky and very rarely am super impressed by popular scifi. I’ve been told to read this for forever and I wasn’t sure even 10% in, but I quickly learned the error of my ways and am hooked.
And just in time for the show to come out!
And just in time for the show to come out!
Prima Facie by Suzie Miller
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
I’ve been in love with Jodie Comer for quite some time and was desperate to see the play, but knowing that wouldn’t happen, the audiobook was the next best thing. And it truly was, the next best thing.
This was harrowing, disturbing, comforting and I wanted to give (nearly) every woman a hug. 1 in 3 are horrifying statistics that we as a society tend to dismiss. Whereas if that statistic was about anything else or about men, it would be treated as the epidemic it is.
I was baffled and humbled and tortured by the experience of this book and it will always hold a spot in my heart.
This was harrowing, disturbing, comforting and I wanted to give (nearly) every woman a hug. 1 in 3 are horrifying statistics that we as a society tend to dismiss. Whereas if that statistic was about anything else or about men, it would be treated as the epidemic it is.
I was baffled and humbled and tortured by the experience of this book and it will always hold a spot in my heart.
Eleven Percent: A Novel by Maren Uthaug
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
3.0
I’ve been into reading a lot more translated works and am glad to have added Eleven Percent to the list as well. It’s always a curious thing to think about how much a translation can change the core of the book but given how distinct the storytelling is, I don’t see a lot being changed here.
I am a bit baffled by people’s reviews and the hang up on period blood cakes and find it a bit immature. Period blood and blood rituals have been used for centuries, especially by women and witches and loved the symbolism of the blood spells, rituals, snakes and all the very distinct imagery we got.
My only hang up was the time period of this book. From the comparisons of books like A Handmaids Tale, I expected more of a modern story but this was told in a way that felt very old, mythological and as a period piece. This wasn’t bad in any way but definitely changed a lot of my perspective going in to what I was going to get versus what I got.
I am a bit baffled by people’s reviews and the hang up on period blood cakes and find it a bit immature. Period blood and blood rituals have been used for centuries, especially by women and witches and loved the symbolism of the blood spells, rituals, snakes and all the very distinct imagery we got.
My only hang up was the time period of this book. From the comparisons of books like A Handmaids Tale, I expected more of a modern story but this was told in a way that felt very old, mythological and as a period piece. This wasn’t bad in any way but definitely changed a lot of my perspective going in to what I was going to get versus what I got.
Dead Money by Jakob Kerr
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
Wow what a debut!! This was continuously labeled as the Succession of books but I never got into the show, but if it’s as good as this, maybe I’ll give it another chance.
This was full of mystery, thrills, backstabbing, clever writing and I had such a good time. Plus as someone who has grown up in Reno, it was clear it wasn’t used as a random place plot point but the authour KNOWS Reno.
This was full of mystery, thrills, backstabbing, clever writing and I had such a good time. Plus as someone who has grown up in Reno, it was clear it wasn’t used as a random place plot point but the authour KNOWS Reno.
Midnight in Soap Lake by Matthew Sullivan
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Matthew Sullivan is so underrated and I have no idea why and every time I read something by him, I leave baffled by his lack of following! This man should be known as one of the best thriller writers around, what gives??
Sullivan is constantly pushing boundaries in the genre by expertly weaving genres together to make an amalgamation of something new while also retaining what makes the thriller genre so good. He leads you into a curiousity as a reader which makes the entire experience so enjoyable and participatory. Is it supernatural? Is it just bad people? Who are the main players? What’s the outcome? What’s the secret that everyone else seems to know? These are all questions you will have reading any of his books but especially Midnight in Soap Lake.
I love that Sullivan spent time living in this town and it sparked the creative juices to create a whole story based on it and created a mythological, cult-esc urban legend that many small towns seem to collect. I was intrigued by the characters and their motives and also so curious about the actual scientific properties of the lake that brought our characters to the town. I loved that this was also imperative to the overall storytelling instead of a simple backdrop.
Every single aspect of this story was met with so much care and detail that everything mattered. No bit of dialogue, setting, or character was thrown away or there for the sake of being there. With a well rounded cast, mystery lurking around every corner, and an overarching villainous boogeyman lingering over you while reading, it begs the question, does TreeTop kill or do we need to band together to kill TreeTop??
Sullivan is constantly pushing boundaries in the genre by expertly weaving genres together to make an amalgamation of something new while also retaining what makes the thriller genre so good. He leads you into a curiousity as a reader which makes the entire experience so enjoyable and participatory. Is it supernatural? Is it just bad people? Who are the main players? What’s the outcome? What’s the secret that everyone else seems to know? These are all questions you will have reading any of his books but especially Midnight in Soap Lake.
I love that Sullivan spent time living in this town and it sparked the creative juices to create a whole story based on it and created a mythological, cult-esc urban legend that many small towns seem to collect. I was intrigued by the characters and their motives and also so curious about the actual scientific properties of the lake that brought our characters to the town. I loved that this was also imperative to the overall storytelling instead of a simple backdrop.
Every single aspect of this story was met with so much care and detail that everything mattered. No bit of dialogue, setting, or character was thrown away or there for the sake of being there. With a well rounded cast, mystery lurking around every corner, and an overarching villainous boogeyman lingering over you while reading, it begs the question, does TreeTop kill or do we need to band together to kill TreeTop??
The Poppy Fields by Nikki Erlick
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
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? It's complicated
5.0
Nikki Erlick is officially 2 for 2! It’s impossible to mention Erlick without bringing up the brilliance of The Measure and I am delighted to discover that The Poppy Fields holds the same amount of substance and dare I say, an even better addition to her works. Erlick is a master of coming up with unique, well rounded, and substantial stories while executing the idea with precision.
We follow multiple characters who all have some sort of relation to a new treatment at The Poppy Fields and we get the pleasure of fleshing out their individual responses, behaviours, and points of view. But don’t worry, this isn’t philosophizing the moral ambiguity of a treatment as radical as The Poppy Fields, but it does hit on the reasons as to why people would want to risk something so monumental. We see the calamities of human failure and our society as a whole and how it could push one already teetering on the edge.
I was so pleasantly surprised by so many aspects of this book from the little Wizard of Oz nods to the interweaving of multifaceted characters of all ages and genders. So many characters were linked in ways I had never expected and the poignant nature of Erlick’s honed talent and skill really pushed a brilliant idea to a genius piece of work. It’s safe to say that I was interested in Erlick before, but I also think she outdid herself from The Measure and I am now truly enamored.
We follow multiple characters who all have some sort of relation to a new treatment at The Poppy Fields and we get the pleasure of fleshing out their individual responses, behaviours, and points of view. But don’t worry, this isn’t philosophizing the moral ambiguity of a treatment as radical as The Poppy Fields, but it does hit on the reasons as to why people would want to risk something so monumental. We see the calamities of human failure and our society as a whole and how it could push one already teetering on the edge.
I was so pleasantly surprised by so many aspects of this book from the little Wizard of Oz nods to the interweaving of multifaceted characters of all ages and genders. So many characters were linked in ways I had never expected and the poignant nature of Erlick’s honed talent and skill really pushed a brilliant idea to a genius piece of work. It’s safe to say that I was interested in Erlick before, but I also think she outdid herself from The Measure and I am now truly enamored.
Useless Etymology: Offbeat Word Origins for Curious Minds by Jess Zafarris
adventurous
challenging
funny
informative
medium-paced
4.0
Perhaps it’s being touted as “useless” but it’s anything but, especially for an etymology lover!!
I learned a lot of cool’ things about favourite words and gained a deeper understanding of words I hated and didn’t necessarily realize why. Hint- they’re often rooted in bigotry.
My only critique was that it was dense and often felt like having a conversation with someone who is excited about something and goes on a tangent and hops through 5 different topics. I think it could’ve been shortened a bit or even lessened with the amount of words used so that it would be easier to retain the knowledge. But that was my only nitpicky critique and this was just a fun time.
I learned a lot of cool’ things about favourite words and gained a deeper understanding of words I hated and didn’t necessarily realize why. Hint- they’re often rooted in bigotry.
My only critique was that it was dense and often felt like having a conversation with someone who is excited about something and goes on a tangent and hops through 5 different topics. I think it could’ve been shortened a bit or even lessened with the amount of words used so that it would be easier to retain the knowledge. But that was my only nitpicky critique and this was just a fun time.