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keybladium's reviews
96 reviews
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow and Other Stories by Washington Irving
2.0
As with every collection of stories, there’s always going to be good and bad ones within the book which makes it harder to rate and review because of the variety but overall I have mixed opinions.
To start with, this book wasn’t really for me. I prefer more fictional books however I like to read a bit of everything and explore new styles and genres but this one didn’t really catch my interest much.
The book was very complex with its old language and writing style so it took me a little longer to read and I often had to read through sentences again to understand what I read and even then I rarely understood much. However, I did enjoy seeing how language had evolved and changed and it was nice reading over a bit of history.
The main problem I had with this book was the focus of the stories never really intrigued me. Sometimes it was just about streets and life during the time which was interesting at times to see what life was like in the past but it felt repetitive and a little dull so I found myself losing focus easily and reading many pages whilst zoning out and that was common for most of the book and I have no recollection of 90% of the stories.
However, there were a couple of really interesting ideologies and stories that I really enjoyed reading. My favourite was the one around the library and history of authors, I found it be a really interesting concept to reflect on and it was really well written too and it felt really immersive which I didn’t really feel for most of the other stories.
Overall, I didn’t find the majority of stories interesting however the ones that I did enjoy were really good but i wouldn’t say they redeemed the book nor made it worth reading so it’s a 4/10 for me.
To start with, this book wasn’t really for me. I prefer more fictional books however I like to read a bit of everything and explore new styles and genres but this one didn’t really catch my interest much.
The book was very complex with its old language and writing style so it took me a little longer to read and I often had to read through sentences again to understand what I read and even then I rarely understood much. However, I did enjoy seeing how language had evolved and changed and it was nice reading over a bit of history.
The main problem I had with this book was the focus of the stories never really intrigued me. Sometimes it was just about streets and life during the time which was interesting at times to see what life was like in the past but it felt repetitive and a little dull so I found myself losing focus easily and reading many pages whilst zoning out and that was common for most of the book and I have no recollection of 90% of the stories.
However, there were a couple of really interesting ideologies and stories that I really enjoyed reading. My favourite was the one around the library and history of authors, I found it be a really interesting concept to reflect on and it was really well written too and it felt really immersive which I didn’t really feel for most of the other stories.
Overall, I didn’t find the majority of stories interesting however the ones that I did enjoy were really good but i wouldn’t say they redeemed the book nor made it worth reading so it’s a 4/10 for me.
Oathbringer Part Two by Brandon Sanderson
3.0
7.5/10 (I wish there were .5 ratings so it doesn’t look so low)
Theoretically, this should’ve been the greatest book in the series with how words of radiance set it up with a vast amount of interesting concepts to explore but this book felt like it rarely made any advancements nor explored much and in comparison to the first books, it’s just really underwhelming.
The biggest problem for me was how all the really interesting things set up mostly happen in the background and behind the scenes, they’ll mostly be exposition in speeches and through conversations that give you an understanding of what’s happening but it’s never really explored much. And when it is explored, the chapters usually last for 4-6 pages before shifting back to the 8272271616th chapter of shallan having an identity crisis.
That’s another main issue for me, it felt like 80% of this book revolved around shallan and her identity. The concept is not bad and I did enjoy it in the previous book as it gives her more character and an arc she can go through, however this was the theme of her chapters in the previous book so it’s nothing new aside from it getting worse progressively and I don’t think it needed as much focus when the entire world has changed and it facing it’s end. I like Shallan as a character and I find her to have some of the most fun interactions and dialogue but this book slowly made me annoyed with her just because of how much it felt it centered around her (which could just be a me problem) but it felt like every other character got so little focus in comparison which made me feel a little annoyed when there was another shallan chapter. I just wish there was a wider focus on the world changing and everything with the radiants instead of what we got.
I also found the whole shadesmare part to be confusing. Maybe I’m misremembering from the prior books but I felt like it was a much different concept and opened up a couple plot holes that didn’t make sense however the book did start to pick up around then so there’s that.
It really did feel like a majority of this book had little focus and moved slowly compared to the other book. I feel like most of the chapters could be cut entirely and I would still have the same understanding of the ending and the characters.
But there were definitely some strong moments (especially the ending entirely) and there were some really cool and great moments but it felt like those moments were rare and they never last long and it was just frustrating especially considering how balanced the first 2 books were.
But the entire last part was a 10/10. I was really tempted to rate it higher just for that but I still think 200 pages out of 1000 isn’t enough justification. But it was really really really good and it definitely delivered a very large scale battle with lots of very cool things happening and just the entire world felt so alive as they always did in the other books. Sanderson really knows how to write a great ending that sets up a lot and it restored all my faith back into the series even though this was the weakest book.
Overall, I did still enjoy the book despite my mostly negative review, I was just disappointed with how much potential it had and it just didn’t live up to the hype that the prior books had. I love the series and words of radiance is still my all time favourite book and I still like this one, it was just underwhelming in comparison.
Theoretically, this should’ve been the greatest book in the series with how words of radiance set it up with a vast amount of interesting concepts to explore but this book felt like it rarely made any advancements nor explored much and in comparison to the first books, it’s just really underwhelming.
The biggest problem for me was how all the really interesting things set up mostly happen in the background and behind the scenes, they’ll mostly be exposition in speeches and through conversations that give you an understanding of what’s happening but it’s never really explored much. And when it is explored, the chapters usually last for 4-6 pages before shifting back to the 8272271616th chapter of shallan having an identity crisis.
That’s another main issue for me, it felt like 80% of this book revolved around shallan and her identity. The concept is not bad and I did enjoy it in the previous book as it gives her more character and an arc she can go through, however this was the theme of her chapters in the previous book so it’s nothing new aside from it getting worse progressively and I don’t think it needed as much focus when the entire world has changed and it facing it’s end. I like Shallan as a character and I find her to have some of the most fun interactions and dialogue but this book slowly made me annoyed with her just because of how much it felt it centered around her (which could just be a me problem) but it felt like every other character got so little focus in comparison which made me feel a little annoyed when there was another shallan chapter. I just wish there was a wider focus on the world changing and everything with the radiants instead of what we got.
I also found the whole shadesmare part to be confusing. Maybe I’m misremembering from the prior books but I felt like it was a much different concept and opened up a couple plot holes that didn’t make sense however the book did start to pick up around then so there’s that.
It really did feel like a majority of this book had little focus and moved slowly compared to the other book. I feel like most of the chapters could be cut entirely and I would still have the same understanding of the ending and the characters.
But there were definitely some strong moments (especially the ending entirely) and there were some really cool and great moments but it felt like those moments were rare and they never last long and it was just frustrating especially considering how balanced the first 2 books were.
But the entire last part was a 10/10. I was really tempted to rate it higher just for that but I still think 200 pages out of 1000 isn’t enough justification. But it was really really really good and it definitely delivered a very large scale battle with lots of very cool things happening and just the entire world felt so alive as they always did in the other books. Sanderson really knows how to write a great ending that sets up a lot and it restored all my faith back into the series even though this was the weakest book.
Overall, I did still enjoy the book despite my mostly negative review, I was just disappointed with how much potential it had and it just didn’t live up to the hype that the prior books had. I love the series and words of radiance is still my all time favourite book and I still like this one, it was just underwhelming in comparison.
The Eminence in Shadow, Vol. 1 by Daisuke Aizawa
4.0
I loved the anime and surprisingly it was very faithful to the light novel and it was just as enjoyable.
It does a great job at being just an enjoyable read where the plot doesn’t take itself seriously and the comedy is well timed and everything was just fun. I also really liked the perspective changes where the pov of Cid showcases the thought process and his plans as well as the reality of the world and the viewpoint of the other characters shows the perspective of the fantasy and persona that Cid is presenting. It makes for some really cool moments as well as well as comedic moments.
One thing that felt off though was the ecchi, it felt very forced in the light novel. There wasn’t much for the first volume but when there was, it was very random and just happened at an odd timing. One of the chapters ended with some characters buying and trying lingerie after some big and epic fight which felt like a really weird way to end a chapter and it could’ve been added to the next chapter if anything but it felt out of place.
Other than that, I don’t think there was much else I didn’t enjoy, it’s a satire book that uses a lot of conventions in a clever way to create a fun and comedic world with some really cool moments that aren’t intended to be taken seriously
It does a great job at being just an enjoyable read where the plot doesn’t take itself seriously and the comedy is well timed and everything was just fun. I also really liked the perspective changes where the pov of Cid showcases the thought process and his plans as well as the reality of the world and the viewpoint of the other characters shows the perspective of the fantasy and persona that Cid is presenting. It makes for some really cool moments as well as well as comedic moments.
One thing that felt off though was the ecchi, it felt very forced in the light novel. There wasn’t much for the first volume but when there was, it was very random and just happened at an odd timing. One of the chapters ended with some characters buying and trying lingerie after some big and epic fight which felt like a really weird way to end a chapter and it could’ve been added to the next chapter if anything but it felt out of place.
Other than that, I don’t think there was much else I didn’t enjoy, it’s a satire book that uses a lot of conventions in a clever way to create a fun and comedic world with some really cool moments that aren’t intended to be taken seriously
The Housemaid's Secret by Freida McFadden
3.0
A very disappointing sequel.
I really enjoyed the first book, I found it to be predictable but I loved the setting and the events happening and it was just a fun and addictive light read, so I was really looking forward to reading the second book but it was just disappointing for many reasons.
First of all I found the plot and setting to be very generic including the new characters and the new mysteries too. The characters just felt so 2D and I felt like this story was a mess with trying to balance out the sub plots and the main story. The romance sub plot just didn’t make any sense to me, the characters had no chemistry and Brock was not a interesting character nor was there any reason to be invested in the sub plot but it felt like the majority of the book was revolved around that even though it literally amounted to nothing at all and it served little value to the story.
I found it a lot harder to get gripped into this story, i would admit that the twist wasn’t as foreseeable as the first book, it was still predictable but just not so in your face. But everything just felt so bland and there was little interactions inside the house and around the main plot that I didn’t really care for it as much aside from enjoying a break from the disaster of the whole messy relationship sub plot. Compared to the first book, it didn’t take long for me to be addicted to it and to be immersed and I liked all the interactions and the worldbuilding, but this one lacked all of that and it took significantly longer for the main plot to even start.
One of my biggest frustrations is that this book doesn’t really reward those who read the first book. The mystery around Millie’s past and criminal record is reused again which is just lazy and made me lose interest everytime it was referred to. It could’ve easily been changed to an incident that could’ve happened between the two books or something, but to have the same recurring mystery that was explored in the previous book made it harder to really be invested this time around.
The biggest problem I have with this book is how different Millie is compared to the first book. She’s like a completely new character who is incapable of doing nearly half as much as she could in the first. Millie is very capable of defending herself and I feel like she’s a good example of a strong female character but in this book she’s made to be a lot mentally weaker and doubtful and when it comes down to the more tense situations, she is very scared and unsure if it’s the “right choice”. I’m trying to be vague to not spoil anything but at the end of the first book, she does some very extreme things without a second thought so it’s just odd to see her act so differently and she has an entirely new mindset around everything that aside from her past and name, she could’ve easily been a whole new character.
She was also very inconsistent and her actions would always contradict herself, she was capable of a lot during the early tense interaction in the story, but then she was made to be weak minded in the plot just to be a mastermind at the very end, I just didn’t understand much of what was happening with her character but it was very noticeable and it ruined the immersion whenever she would act out of character.
I mostly found this book to be a mess with trying to handle all the sub plots and the main plots whilst trying to tie them together and it just didn’t feel like it landed as good as it was trying to, especially after just reading the first book and seeing how well structured and balanced that was. There was a lot of things that didn’t make sense and a lot of plot conveniences that happened especially towards the end. The ending just did not feel satisfying and just felt abrupt. Compared to the first book again, it felt satisfying when Millie got her revenge and it was engaging to read, but this one finishes the main plot in like 2 chapters with little of it being Millie’s actions and it just felt very weak.
But whilst my review is very negative, it’s still not a “bad” book but just a very disappointing one for me considering how excited I was to read it after enjoying the first and I felt like there was so much wasted potential and I had higher expectations which soured my outlook on the book when it didn’t meet them.
To list some positives though, the author is very good at structuring the main plot with the first act being the premise and the main plot from Millie’s perspective to then having the explanation of what actually happened through another characters and then having the last parts a mixture of both perspectives. It mixes things up a bit and makes it more fun to see the two different mindsets as well as learn what was actually happening.
The second part where everything was revealed was pretty addicting like the first one, I was curious to see what was actually happening and I didn’t see the twist coming as clearly as the previous book, it wasn’t so in your face with the hints and clues and I felt like it picked up the pacing during part 2
Overall, I still it’s an alright book but I just wish it done more and I didn’t feel like it was anywhere close to the first book but I also don’t think it’s a bad book so for me it’s around 2.5-3/5
I really enjoyed the first book, I found it to be predictable but I loved the setting and the events happening and it was just a fun and addictive light read, so I was really looking forward to reading the second book but it was just disappointing for many reasons.
First of all I found the plot and setting to be very generic including the new characters and the new mysteries too. The characters just felt so 2D and I felt like this story was a mess with trying to balance out the sub plots and the main story. The romance sub plot just didn’t make any sense to me, the characters had no chemistry and Brock was not a interesting character nor was there any reason to be invested in the sub plot but it felt like the majority of the book was revolved around that even though it literally amounted to nothing at all and it served little value to the story.
I found it a lot harder to get gripped into this story, i would admit that the twist wasn’t as foreseeable as the first book, it was still predictable but just not so in your face. But everything just felt so bland and there was little interactions inside the house and around the main plot that I didn’t really care for it as much aside from enjoying a break from the disaster of the whole messy relationship sub plot. Compared to the first book, it didn’t take long for me to be addicted to it and to be immersed and I liked all the interactions and the worldbuilding, but this one lacked all of that and it took significantly longer for the main plot to even start.
One of my biggest frustrations is that this book doesn’t really reward those who read the first book. The mystery around Millie’s past and criminal record is reused again which is just lazy and made me lose interest everytime it was referred to. It could’ve easily been changed to an incident that could’ve happened between the two books or something, but to have the same recurring mystery that was explored in the previous book made it harder to really be invested this time around.
The biggest problem I have with this book is how different Millie is compared to the first book. She’s like a completely new character who is incapable of doing nearly half as much as she could in the first. Millie is very capable of defending herself and I feel like she’s a good example of a strong female character but in this book she’s made to be a lot mentally weaker and doubtful and when it comes down to the more tense situations, she is very scared and unsure if it’s the “right choice”. I’m trying to be vague to not spoil anything but at the end of the first book, she does some very extreme things without a second thought so it’s just odd to see her act so differently and she has an entirely new mindset around everything that aside from her past and name, she could’ve easily been a whole new character.
She was also very inconsistent and her actions would always contradict herself, she was capable of a lot during the early tense interaction in the story, but then she was made to be weak minded in the plot just to be a mastermind at the very end, I just didn’t understand much of what was happening with her character but it was very noticeable and it ruined the immersion whenever she would act out of character.
I mostly found this book to be a mess with trying to handle all the sub plots and the main plots whilst trying to tie them together and it just didn’t feel like it landed as good as it was trying to, especially after just reading the first book and seeing how well structured and balanced that was. There was a lot of things that didn’t make sense and a lot of plot conveniences that happened especially towards the end. The ending just did not feel satisfying and just felt abrupt. Compared to the first book again, it felt satisfying when Millie got her revenge and it was engaging to read, but this one finishes the main plot in like 2 chapters with little of it being Millie’s actions and it just felt very weak.
But whilst my review is very negative, it’s still not a “bad” book but just a very disappointing one for me considering how excited I was to read it after enjoying the first and I felt like there was so much wasted potential and I had higher expectations which soured my outlook on the book when it didn’t meet them.
To list some positives though, the author is very good at structuring the main plot with the first act being the premise and the main plot from Millie’s perspective to then having the explanation of what actually happened through another characters and then having the last parts a mixture of both perspectives. It mixes things up a bit and makes it more fun to see the two different mindsets as well as learn what was actually happening.
The second part where everything was revealed was pretty addicting like the first one, I was curious to see what was actually happening and I didn’t see the twist coming as clearly as the previous book, it wasn’t so in your face with the hints and clues and I felt like it picked up the pacing during part 2
Overall, I still it’s an alright book but I just wish it done more and I didn’t feel like it was anywhere close to the first book but I also don’t think it’s a bad book so for me it’s around 2.5-3/5