Scan barcode
jessicarosee's reviews
241 reviews
My Year of Rest and Relaxation by Ottessa Moshfegh
5.0
this book is so…. unsettling yet hilarious and i cannot explain how i feel about it literally at all. i enjoyed it a lot more than i thought i would. ottessa moshfegh’s writing is so blunt and filled with satire that you cannot help but laugh at every decision the narrator makes in her head. the very small cast of characters and how little you know about everyone, including the narrator puts you into her head and how out of touch with reality she becomes throughout this “year of rest and relaxation”. her undignified pining after a middle-aged man who uses her for sex, a sadomasochistic relationship with her best friend, a relationship of resentment yet nostalgia towards her parents, and a weird postmodern artist who freezes dogs are all some of the things that made this read so confusing yet so enjoyable for me :-)
Bunny by Mona Awad
5.0
absolutely gripping. i completely devoured this and wanted to spit it all out and read it again. it makes no sense yet i understand so much of it yet the only words i can use to describe it is this quote from the book: “and then i felt like screaming JUST SAY IT. TELL ME WHAT HAPPENED. TELL ME WHAT THE FUCK THIS MEANS.” this book is an absolute mindfuck and i loved every second of it… its not a perfect 5 and i was definitely considering giving it a 4/4.5 but so much of this book enamoured me PLEASE READ IT!
Spin the Dawn by Elizabeth Lim
5.0
I received this book on August 1st in this month's OwlCrate box and after starting it on the 2nd, I could not put it down. This book has reinspired my love for reading and I could not be more excited for the sequel. Elizabeth Lim's writing is absolutely stunning and I will definitely be recommending this book to absolutely everyone
Normal People by Sally Rooney
5.0
i adored this, which is kind of obvious considering i read most of it in a single sitting. sally rooney is an incredible writer and can evoke such emotion with what i would classify as blunt writing (thats a good thing i love blunt writing just as much as i love lyrical writing) and im so amazed by this whole story to be honest. i loved connell and marianne and i want to reread this again soon and annotate it… will i hold myself to that? who knows lmao but i loved this book. its somewhere closer to a 4.5 to be honest, but im gonna round it up hehe
Daisy Jones & The Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid
5.0
“People say it’s hard to be away from the people you love but it was so hard to be right next to him.”
hitting especially hard rn
hitting especially hard rn
Red, White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston
5.0
“history, huh?”
god everything about this book was perfect. i couldnt tell you one flaw. ive tried reasoning with myself going “hey jess, you are a lesbian who is interested in politics. please put aside any bias u may have and accurately critique this book.” but my stance isnt changing. this might be my favourite book of the year, if not ever. it’s definitely NOT a young adult book as it contains fairly explicit sexual scenes but god i loved everything about red white and royal blue.
for casey mcquiston’s debut, i am surprised at how utterly in love with this book and these characters i am. i saw a review on here saying that the story was too political.... but like.... it is a story about the son of the PRESIDENT having a SECRET RELATIONSHIP with the PRINCE of england.... i dont know what they were expecting but in my opinion, of course there would be bloody political discourse lol.
anyway 5/5, 10/10, perfect book, perfect couple. henry x alex forever.
god everything about this book was perfect. i couldnt tell you one flaw. ive tried reasoning with myself going “hey jess, you are a lesbian who is interested in politics. please put aside any bias u may have and accurately critique this book.” but my stance isnt changing. this might be my favourite book of the year, if not ever. it’s definitely NOT a young adult book as it contains fairly explicit sexual scenes but god i loved everything about red white and royal blue.
for casey mcquiston’s debut, i am surprised at how utterly in love with this book and these characters i am. i saw a review on here saying that the story was too political.... but like.... it is a story about the son of the PRESIDENT having a SECRET RELATIONSHIP with the PRINCE of england.... i dont know what they were expecting but in my opinion, of course there would be bloody political discourse lol.
anyway 5/5, 10/10, perfect book, perfect couple. henry x alex forever.
The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern
5.0
This book was so endlessly beautiful that I don’t think I can put it in my own words to describe how stunning jt is. So instead I’m going to share some of my favourite quotes:
“A boy at the beginning of a story has no way of knowing that the story has begun.” pg. 13
“This is their world, starless and sacred. They think it impervious. Impenetrable and eternal. Yet all things change in time.” pg. 64
“He has untangled himself from vines blossoming with story-filled flowers. He has traversed piles of abandoned teacups with text baked into their crackled glaze. He has walked through puddles of ink and left footprints that formed stories in his wake that he did not turn around to read.” pg. 89
“This is a significant moment, he thinks, hearing the words in his head in his mother’s voice. A moment with meaning. A moment that changes the moments that follow.” pg. 102
“‘He told you his name is Dorian? How very Oscar Wilde indulgent of him. I thought he was bad enough with his drama eyebrows and his sulking.’” pg. 144
“‘Poetry.’ Mirabel repeats. ‘The weather. It’s like a poem. Where each word is more than one thing at once and everything’s a metaphor. The meaning condensed into rhythm and sound and the spaces between sentences. It’s all intense and sharp, like the cold and the wind.’” pg. 156
“His face is so much more than hair and eye colour, she wonders why books do not describe the curves of people’s noses or the length of eyelashes. She studies the shape of his lips. Perhaps a face is too complicated to capture in words.” pg. 224
“‘Like I’m losing my mind, but in a slow, achingly beautiful sort of way.’” pg. 288
“‘Strange isn’t it? To love a book. When the words on the pages become so precious that they feel like part of your own history because they are. It’s nice to finally have someone read stores I know so intimately.’” pg. 298
“‘Important things hurt sometimes.’” pg. 352
“‘Do you ever think about how many stories are out there? ... How many dreams are unfolding around us right at this very moment? I wonder how long a book you would need to record them? You’d probably need an entire library to hold a single evening in Manhattan. An hour. A minute.’” pg. 364
“‘We are the stars,’ he answers, as though it is the most obvious of facts afloat in a sea of metaphors and misdirections. ‘We are all stardust and stories.’” pg. 373
This book is so fucking beautiful. At about 450 pages in, I wrote something on a post-it note and stuck it on the page. Looking back now it’s kinda funny...
“so much crossover, paradoxical bullshit — i love it but im feeling super dumb right about now.”
“A boy at the beginning of a story has no way of knowing that the story has begun.” pg. 13
“This is their world, starless and sacred. They think it impervious. Impenetrable and eternal. Yet all things change in time.” pg. 64
“He has untangled himself from vines blossoming with story-filled flowers. He has traversed piles of abandoned teacups with text baked into their crackled glaze. He has walked through puddles of ink and left footprints that formed stories in his wake that he did not turn around to read.” pg. 89
“This is a significant moment, he thinks, hearing the words in his head in his mother’s voice. A moment with meaning. A moment that changes the moments that follow.” pg. 102
“‘He told you his name is Dorian? How very Oscar Wilde indulgent of him. I thought he was bad enough with his drama eyebrows and his sulking.’” pg. 144
“‘Poetry.’ Mirabel repeats. ‘The weather. It’s like a poem. Where each word is more than one thing at once and everything’s a metaphor. The meaning condensed into rhythm and sound and the spaces between sentences. It’s all intense and sharp, like the cold and the wind.’” pg. 156
“His face is so much more than hair and eye colour, she wonders why books do not describe the curves of people’s noses or the length of eyelashes. She studies the shape of his lips. Perhaps a face is too complicated to capture in words.” pg. 224
“‘Like I’m losing my mind, but in a slow, achingly beautiful sort of way.’” pg. 288
“‘Strange isn’t it? To love a book. When the words on the pages become so precious that they feel like part of your own history because they are. It’s nice to finally have someone read stores I know so intimately.’” pg. 298
“‘Important things hurt sometimes.’” pg. 352
“‘Do you ever think about how many stories are out there? ... How many dreams are unfolding around us right at this very moment? I wonder how long a book you would need to record them? You’d probably need an entire library to hold a single evening in Manhattan. An hour. A minute.’” pg. 364
“‘We are the stars,’ he answers, as though it is the most obvious of facts afloat in a sea of metaphors and misdirections. ‘We are all stardust and stories.’” pg. 373
This book is so fucking beautiful. At about 450 pages in, I wrote something on a post-it note and stuck it on the page. Looking back now it’s kinda funny...
“so much crossover, paradoxical bullshit — i love it but im feeling super dumb right about now.”