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jess_esa's reviews
512 reviews
Enter Ghost by Isabella Hammad
4.5
This is such a wonderful book. It's so beautifully written that I would be finishing it from page one. Obviously, it was written by a British Arab author and centered around theatre and Shakespeare —there was a lot here that I was going to connect with. But I really admired how sensitive and thoughtful this book was, how maturely it discusses the role of art in political resistance, and how deftly it weaved into political history and the reality in Palestine. It also really spoke to me as a bi-racial person in ways I didn't expect; the specific feelings of guilt and otherness weren't something I thought could be put into words as well as it was done here. I also chuckled at how tech week theatre drama always has the same vibe, no matter the scale of the problem, and the problems are *very* big in scale here. I highly recommend!
Private Rites by Julia Armfield
4.0
Lesbian climate fiction inspired by King Lear was always going to be an easy sell for me.
The fact that it's Julia Armfield meant there were no lengths I wouldn't go to get an arc for this book. I loved Salt Slow and obsessively recommended Our Wives Under the Sea to anyone I met for the first six months after reading it; it's imprinted on my soul.
So, it's safe to say I'm the target audience. That aside, I actually do have mixed feelings about this book.
The world-building is where it really shines; it's masterful. It's creepy, haunting, and very dystopian depictions of our lives once the sea levels rise are so real I imagined looking out the window to find us there already. The chapters from the city's perspective were some of my favourite. When inevitably, there's a post-COVID fiction module on an MA syllabus somewhere, this will undoubtedly be on it. Our protagonists' lives, which carry on as normal in this very unsettling, unfair, and dangerous world, will be immediately familiar to every reader. Julia has a real intimacy when she writes about water; her love and fear for it always comes through in surprising ways, and it's what I love about her writing. This book sinks into your bones like a wet day.
Most of Private Rites follows the three sisters, Irene, Iris, and their younger half-sister Agnes, with whom they have a very difficult relationship. Agnes takes risks to feel something, struggles with intimacy, and is by far the most interesting of the three sisters. There are three scenes emblazoned on my brain from this book, and they all involve Agnes. This is to the detriment of Irene and Iris (our Goneril and Regan for those who love Lear), who just aren't as compelling as individual characters, and more serve to show the lasting impact of their overbearing father after his death.
The novel takes a very sharp narrative turn towards the end. It's heavily signposted throughout, so you know something weird is coming. Nonetheless, it does feel jarring, like another story that's been tacked on suddenly. This disjointed feeling is ever-present and makes this book a little difficult to settle into throughout.
The fact that it's Julia Armfield meant there were no lengths I wouldn't go to get an arc for this book. I loved Salt Slow and obsessively recommended Our Wives Under the Sea to anyone I met for the first six months after reading it; it's imprinted on my soul.
So, it's safe to say I'm the target audience. That aside, I actually do have mixed feelings about this book.
The world-building is where it really shines; it's masterful. It's creepy, haunting, and very dystopian depictions of our lives once the sea levels rise are so real I imagined looking out the window to find us there already. The chapters from the city's perspective were some of my favourite. When inevitably, there's a post-COVID fiction module on an MA syllabus somewhere, this will undoubtedly be on it. Our protagonists' lives, which carry on as normal in this very unsettling, unfair, and dangerous world, will be immediately familiar to every reader. Julia has a real intimacy when she writes about water; her love and fear for it always comes through in surprising ways, and it's what I love about her writing. This book sinks into your bones like a wet day.
Most of Private Rites follows the three sisters, Irene, Iris, and their younger half-sister Agnes, with whom they have a very difficult relationship. Agnes takes risks to feel something, struggles with intimacy, and is by far the most interesting of the three sisters. There are three scenes emblazoned on my brain from this book, and they all involve Agnes. This is to the detriment of Irene and Iris (our Goneril and Regan for those who love Lear), who just aren't as compelling as individual characters, and more serve to show the lasting impact of their overbearing father after his death.
The novel takes a very sharp narrative turn towards the end. It's heavily signposted throughout, so you know something weird is coming. Nonetheless, it does feel jarring, like another story that's been tacked on suddenly. This disjointed feeling is ever-present and makes this book a little difficult to settle into throughout.
The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley
2.25
Based on the premise and mix of genres, I thought this would be one of my books of the year, but unfortunately, there's too much going on here, and even the interesting premise gets lost in it.
It's also clearly a rewrite of a fanfic, which, to be clear, I have no problem with, but it's always a shame when it feels like a story has been patched onto the original fanfic, which is why I think this book doesn't feel cohesive.
The book spends a lot of time explaining things. A character out of time is always difficult for an author to manage; what do they need to know and not know, etc? But it just feels like the story has to pause a lot to do this. It stops it from ever being truly pacy, especially in the first half.
Despite this, I think a lot of people are going to love this book, especially if they connect with the romance, which I did not.
It's also clearly a rewrite of a fanfic, which, to be clear, I have no problem with, but it's always a shame when it feels like a story has been patched onto the original fanfic, which is why I think this book doesn't feel cohesive.
The book spends a lot of time explaining things. A character out of time is always difficult for an author to manage; what do they need to know and not know, etc? But it just feels like the story has to pause a lot to do this. It stops it from ever being truly pacy, especially in the first half.
Despite this, I think a lot of people are going to love this book, especially if they connect with the romance, which I did not.
All the Violet Tiaras: Queering the Greek Myths by Jean Menzies
3.5
This didn't really have much of a direction and spent a lot of time describing the plots of books I've already read. But it did make me add about ten books to my TBR, so there is that!
I Survived Capitalism and All I Got Was This Lousy T-Shirt by Madeline Pendleton
inspiring
fast-paced
5.0
"Don't be afraid to imagine. Creativity is an essential part of imagining a more equitable, just, and fair future."
I knew I was going to love this because I love Madeline, and I love personal finance books (when they're not literally evil), but this book was so much more than I was expecting. Firstly, it's more of a memoir with financial advice laced in rather than the other way around. It also all comes from her very real personal experiences with poverty, loss, and being taken advantage of by predatory employers and educational institutions. This book is just very real, and that's pretty rare for a money book. There was so much I related to in this memoir, and it was honestly just really inspiring to see someone make money and then use that to take care of people instead of hoarding the wealth.
It's fair to say that reading this will make you cry, probably a few times, and honestly, it should.
I knew I was going to love this because I love Madeline, and I love personal finance books (when they're not literally evil), but this book was so much more than I was expecting. Firstly, it's more of a memoir with financial advice laced in rather than the other way around. It also all comes from her very real personal experiences with poverty, loss, and being taken advantage of by predatory employers and educational institutions. This book is just very real, and that's pretty rare for a money book. There was so much I related to in this memoir, and it was honestly just really inspiring to see someone make money and then use that to take care of people instead of hoarding the wealth.
It's fair to say that reading this will make you cry, probably a few times, and honestly, it should.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Suicide and Grief