jamestomasino's reviews
1811 reviews

Magic Study by Maria V. Snyder

2.0

This second book in the series really suffered for the lack of planning. It felt aimless throughout. Significant sections were rushed while unimportant ones stretched on. There are still some interesting characters but motivations for several made no sense. I'm pressing onward hoping book 3 shows more promise, otherwise I think I'll be done with the series.

Commerce Emperor by Maxime J. Durand

1.0

I was duped by the really high ratings. This is one of those wish-fulfillment overpowered main character stories. Not only that, the main character is pretty awful.

Wind and Truth by Brandon Sanderson

5.0

AHHHH!!!!!

I love this series and the whole Cosmere so much. I'm really excited to have some friends dragged along in the series with me. Now all of you hurry up and catch up so I can rant about things with you.

Uncle Vanya by Anton Chekhov

3.0

The more Russian lit I get through the more clear that soul of a people becomes. This is a brutal play through small things. I read it at the same time as a novella about small joys and evils in Ireland and the two resonanted well. It's hard to judge the craftsmanship of dialogue or character in a play like this one, made of a different time and place. I think it nails its goals well. I'd like to see it performed sometime. I expect there's a lot more depth I'm missing which would come through in performance.

The Night Guest by Hildur Knútsdóttir

3.0

This is my second or third Icelandic crime/horror story and it really fits the mold well. The author has a very comfortable use of chapter organization to make the story move swiftly. I read this over two evenings leisurely but the second half flies by with many very tiny chapters.

I think there's something nice about the unknown left at the end of the story, but the quick wrap-up also makes this feel a bit like a campfire ghost story designed for a thrill, but no real payoff. There's some bigger things hinted at which aren't explored at all. Would this have been better if it were longer and we spent more time going down those pathways? I'm really not sure. I think my desire for it comes from other fiction and genre works outside of the nordic horror-sphere. From my limited exposure, this choice seems to be a trend here.

Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan

4.0

I read my first Keegan story last year and it was great. This one I bought as a jólabókaflöð gift for my wife. She finished it in a night, so I picked it up after her and did the same. It's such a tight story, filled with small moments and skirting the edge of immense evil. It really sits on your heart at the end. Highly recommended!

Annie Bot by Sierra Greer

5.0

There's obviously connections to be made here to Klara and the Sun. The stories go in two very different directions though. Reading this one I felt at odds with my own questions of sentience and morality and my current disposition toward artificial intelligence. I'm highly satisfied with the ending, though. It really could have gone another way. That way might have left me in a more untethered state and probably would have gotten some praise from a certain literary point of view, but I don't ultimately think it was necessary. The ending we get doesn't preclude us from deep questions, but it does some small justice to the characters.

If you enjoyed Klara, you might enjoy this. There's a lot of sexual activity in the book, though, and of questionable consent. That may be a problem for some readers.

I Am Traitor by Sif Sigmarsdóttir

1.0

DNF. Felt like a mess. The humans weren't well written and the aliens even worse. It also felt like nothing much happened, which is weird considering the plot. The biggest shame for me is that we finally have an Icelandic writer publishing something outside of crime and horror. Sci-fi! Woo! But it fell flat.

I picked this book up on the free pile outside the library, so I guess I see why it was there.

Nevertell by Katharine Orton

2.0

It was okay. I think the historical fiction aspects of the book worked far better than the attempts at fantasy. Those were haphazard and inconsistently used. It felt a bit like an excuse to just throw something else in the mix. None of those elements felt tangibly real in a world that was being otherwise painted with a very precise brush.

Characters were interesting. Lina and Bogdan were incredibly resilient, but without the same sort of Russian pessimistic resilience I see in things like Chekhov (read concurrently). Maybe that was one of the fantasy elements, honestly. It felt out of place. The struggles they faced wash over but don't touch them. Imagine instead the depth of a character who is broken and struggling to heal while moving forward. It's an opportunity for complexity and connection we just don't get.

I'm probably going for forget most of what happened in here by next week, which is sad since the premise is so interesting.

The Hidden People by Alison Littlewood

2.0

Very good scene painting, world building, and vibe creating. Very weak pacing and character development. There's a relationship at the heart of the story I just didn't buy into. It wasn't properly developed and it sat wrong the whole time. I think if we never saw the characters as kids at all it might have been better off than what we witness. Instead of filling in the blanks on a close relationship they used to have, I have to take what I have seen and try to believe Albie's take on it.

I'll also be honest, the title made me think of the Icelandic hidden folk. This changling representation from English folklore didn't fully scratch that itch, and the attitudes of the people in the story felt over the top as well. I guess it added to the gothic feel, but it never quite added up for me.