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keybladium's reviews
96 reviews
Six Crimson Cranes by Elizabeth Lim
3.0
It was a very easy light read that wasn’t great but wasn’t bad. I enjoy these types of short and light reads from time to time and I like the overall setting however due to its simplicity, there were many elements that made it a little bland.
The overall setting was very nice however it lacked depth and there wasn’t much descriptions of settings or even characters so I had to fill in a lot of the blanks to be immersed. It was also weirdly paced, it felt like a lot of the early chapters were rushed to get the main story within the palace since they went by so fast and mostly served as exposition and then it started to slow down as she got to the castle.
I also found the characters to be a little bland and underutilized. I liked some of them still even with their flaws and I did enjoy lots of the dialogue and interactions and everything, but I couldn’t help but feel like a lot of characters were forgotten or just there to move the plot forward. The dragon especially, he was introduced and seemed like a key character but instead he only showed up when it was convenient and to give exposition then he was forgotten just as quickly.
The setting itself was very generic however I like cosy fantasy settings like that so it wasn’t much of a problem and I did like the curse and a lot of the elements however the story was very predictable in pretty much all of its enigmas which made reveals have no effect. This also makes it hard for any moment to really stand out, there wasn’t anything memorable that really stood more like a climatic end or big moment that made me feel invested but it was just a consistent cosy vibe throughout.
Overall, I still enjoyed the book and how light it was after reading a Sanderson book and I just like these type of simple fantasy stories despite the flaws.
The overall setting was very nice however it lacked depth and there wasn’t much descriptions of settings or even characters so I had to fill in a lot of the blanks to be immersed. It was also weirdly paced, it felt like a lot of the early chapters were rushed to get the main story within the palace since they went by so fast and mostly served as exposition and then it started to slow down as she got to the castle.
I also found the characters to be a little bland and underutilized. I liked some of them still even with their flaws and I did enjoy lots of the dialogue and interactions and everything, but I couldn’t help but feel like a lot of characters were forgotten or just there to move the plot forward. The dragon especially, he was introduced and seemed like a key character but instead he only showed up when it was convenient and to give exposition then he was forgotten just as quickly.
The setting itself was very generic however I like cosy fantasy settings like that so it wasn’t much of a problem and I did like the curse and a lot of the elements however the story was very predictable in pretty much all of its enigmas which made reveals have no effect. This also makes it hard for any moment to really stand out, there wasn’t anything memorable that really stood more like a climatic end or big moment that made me feel invested but it was just a consistent cosy vibe throughout.
Overall, I still enjoyed the book and how light it was after reading a Sanderson book and I just like these type of simple fantasy stories despite the flaws.
A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens
5.0
A Christmas Classic. Even after all these years, it’s still a really enjoyable book that gave birth to the greatest Christmas movie of all time, The Muppet Christmas Carol. But the book was short and just a fun read for Christmas time, there isn’t anything negative to say
The Dragon's Promise by Elizabeth Lim
3.0
A good sequel that felt a lot bigger in scale however there were a lot more flaws imo, whilst the existing flaws from the first book were also still prevalent.
The threat this time felt a lot more present and there was a wider range of threats too from dragons to demons and humans which made the events feel a lot bigger and a lot more happening which the first one lacked in. It was overall a nice story, it wasn’t perfect but there were moments that stood out and overall I enjoyed this one more.
The scale of the world also felt a lot bigger, there were a lot more places and kingdoms and I appreciated the story taking place in different environments rather than mostly a palace like in the first book.
And with everything already being established by the first book, this one was straight into the story and the action and picked up right where it left off which made for a much better start to the story and was easy to invest back into.
Some of the negatives that were present in both books were the lack of an in-depth description of scenery or characters. Lots of the descriptions were vague overall and its hard to visualise the authors vision.
I also still feel like a lot of elements were underutilized, the dragons were a little more important to the plot this time but I wouldn’t say a lot of them were used as effectively as they could’ve been. They were only there for the first part of the story and a lot of the romance triangle at the start just doesn’t make sense in retrospect since the dragon was barely around for the first book and he was barely around for this one too, it just felt forced and awkward when shiori was already in love with Takkan. I feel like the author intended for the dragon to have a bigger role or a bigger affect but I didn’t really feel he served much purpose other than for exposition and as something to move the plot forward.
There were a lot more plot points too and given the bigger scale, I didn’t find many of them to be too satisfying and they felt a little underwhelming. The main threat wasn’t much of a threat and characters that were described as threatening just didn’t feel threatening. I also feel the pacing was a little weird, there were some scenes that dragged on a little longer than they needed to but then there were times it was fast and would pick up a lot. But the main threat was defeated with around 100 pages of story left so it felt like this book had a lot of plot points to conclude so maybe there was too much for one book or could’ve been rearranged a little more.
I also feel like the main character just doesn’t show much growth. She definitely developed a lot in the first book but this time she was mostly the same character from start to end with most of her development coming from the final chapters. And honestly she should’ve died around a million times in this book, the plot armor saved her so many times in situations she just shouldn’t have been able to escape but somehow does. There were a lot of plot conveniences and I also wish shiori developed her magic throughout the story or just for her to grow as a character but I still think the characters were good, maybe a little generic but I liked their dynamic with one another.
Overall, it was a good book but not flawless. I enjoyed it more than the first and it definitely had it’s moments this time, lots more was happening there were more distinct threats and more goals to reach. However with a bigger scale, it only made for the flaws to be more amplified which made them even more recognizable for this book imo
The threat this time felt a lot more present and there was a wider range of threats too from dragons to demons and humans which made the events feel a lot bigger and a lot more happening which the first one lacked in. It was overall a nice story, it wasn’t perfect but there were moments that stood out and overall I enjoyed this one more.
The scale of the world also felt a lot bigger, there were a lot more places and kingdoms and I appreciated the story taking place in different environments rather than mostly a palace like in the first book.
And with everything already being established by the first book, this one was straight into the story and the action and picked up right where it left off which made for a much better start to the story and was easy to invest back into.
Some of the negatives that were present in both books were the lack of an in-depth description of scenery or characters. Lots of the descriptions were vague overall and its hard to visualise the authors vision.
I also still feel like a lot of elements were underutilized, the dragons were a little more important to the plot this time but I wouldn’t say a lot of them were used as effectively as they could’ve been. They were only there for the first part of the story and a lot of the romance triangle at the start just doesn’t make sense in retrospect since the dragon was barely around for the first book and he was barely around for this one too, it just felt forced and awkward when shiori was already in love with Takkan. I feel like the author intended for the dragon to have a bigger role or a bigger affect but I didn’t really feel he served much purpose other than for exposition and as something to move the plot forward.
There were a lot more plot points too and given the bigger scale, I didn’t find many of them to be too satisfying and they felt a little underwhelming. The main threat wasn’t much of a threat and characters that were described as threatening just didn’t feel threatening. I also feel the pacing was a little weird, there were some scenes that dragged on a little longer than they needed to but then there were times it was fast and would pick up a lot. But the main threat was defeated with around 100 pages of story left so it felt like this book had a lot of plot points to conclude so maybe there was too much for one book or could’ve been rearranged a little more.
I also feel like the main character just doesn’t show much growth. She definitely developed a lot in the first book but this time she was mostly the same character from start to end with most of her development coming from the final chapters. And honestly she should’ve died around a million times in this book, the plot armor saved her so many times in situations she just shouldn’t have been able to escape but somehow does. There were a lot of plot conveniences and I also wish shiori developed her magic throughout the story or just for her to grow as a character but I still think the characters were good, maybe a little generic but I liked their dynamic with one another.
Overall, it was a good book but not flawless. I enjoyed it more than the first and it definitely had it’s moments this time, lots more was happening there were more distinct threats and more goals to reach. However with a bigger scale, it only made for the flaws to be more amplified which made them even more recognizable for this book imo
The Housemaid Is Watching by Freida McFadden
2.0
A whole load of nothing, a mystery with no enigmas but a couple of sprinkles of what worked in the prior books.
My experience with this series has been very complicated. I loved the first book but found the second to be a more generic replica and now this one has done something new and different but has failed at everything it set up to be.
The biggest problem I had with this book was that the mysteries were not set up nor foreshadowed at all. They were all set up in the flashbacks *after* the murder happened 300 pages into the book. The book was just a series of events that served little purpose and just didn’t feel meaningful in any way. Everything was so underwhelming and predictable, the other books were predictable too but things were happening and building up to the inevitable twist whereas this one was just a mess that didn’t contribute to the story. The sub plot that was the only thing that was set up, yet had such an underwhelming resolve and was mostly happening in the background. It just didn’t feel important and Enzo’s characterization was so different compared to the other books just because of this plot that lasted most of the story that it was so frustrating.
All the characters introduced aside from Millie’s children were all just a waste of ideas and potentials. They serve no purpose outside of 2 of them (just barely) and after finishing the book, I can’t tell why they were even included. To put it in perspective, the person killed who was the big bad villain in this book was rarely even in the book. They had like 5 lines, if that total and was always in the background when he was mentioned. Why should I feel shocked or surprised or any emotion when they die? And every single plot line set up had such an underwhelming conclusion or didn’t make sense with the way the characters reacted and it was all so uninteresting aside from a couple moments.
Not all was bad though, the whole switching pov gimmick is back which makes things a little more interesting to see the other side, although this wasn’t giving insight but just giving exposition and telling the story that wasn’t alluded to at any point in the story. But it was the most interesting part and there were some good character moments between the two children, it was pretty wholesome and I wish the story could’ve centered around them and their relationship more. I also liked some of the ideas brought up and the fake enigmas that weren’t ever utilized, it made the moments more enjoyable even if they didn’t actually lead to anything. Some interactions and dialogue were fun but it was very hit or miss and inconsistent. But there was enough of those moments for not to rate this any lower than 4/10 so that’s something at least.
There’s probably a lot more to say but like this book, I’m lacking the capability to piece it all together right now. It’s not a terrible book though, there’s certainly elements and moments to enjoy but it’s nowhere near as fun or structured as the first book and there’s not enough substance for me to feel any way other than “meh” about my experience as a whole with it.
My experience with this series has been very complicated. I loved the first book but found the second to be a more generic replica and now this one has done something new and different but has failed at everything it set up to be.
The biggest problem I had with this book was that the mysteries were not set up nor foreshadowed at all. They were all set up in the flashbacks *after* the murder happened 300 pages into the book. The book was just a series of events that served little purpose and just didn’t feel meaningful in any way. Everything was so underwhelming and predictable, the other books were predictable too but things were happening and building up to the inevitable twist whereas this one was just a mess that didn’t contribute to the story. The sub plot that was the only thing that was set up, yet had such an underwhelming resolve and was mostly happening in the background. It just didn’t feel important and Enzo’s characterization was so different compared to the other books just because of this plot that lasted most of the story that it was so frustrating.
All the characters introduced aside from Millie’s children were all just a waste of ideas and potentials. They serve no purpose outside of 2 of them (just barely) and after finishing the book, I can’t tell why they were even included. To put it in perspective, the person killed who was the big bad villain in this book was rarely even in the book. They had like 5 lines, if that total and was always in the background when he was mentioned. Why should I feel shocked or surprised or any emotion when they die? And every single plot line set up had such an underwhelming conclusion or didn’t make sense with the way the characters reacted and it was all so uninteresting aside from a couple moments.
Not all was bad though, the whole switching pov gimmick is back which makes things a little more interesting to see the other side, although this wasn’t giving insight but just giving exposition and telling the story that wasn’t alluded to at any point in the story. But it was the most interesting part and there were some good character moments between the two children, it was pretty wholesome and I wish the story could’ve centered around them and their relationship more. I also liked some of the ideas brought up and the fake enigmas that weren’t ever utilized, it made the moments more enjoyable even if they didn’t actually lead to anything. Some interactions and dialogue were fun but it was very hit or miss and inconsistent. But there was enough of those moments for not to rate this any lower than 4/10 so that’s something at least.
There’s probably a lot more to say but like this book, I’m lacking the capability to piece it all together right now. It’s not a terrible book though, there’s certainly elements and moments to enjoy but it’s nowhere near as fun or structured as the first book and there’s not enough substance for me to feel any way other than “meh” about my experience as a whole with it.
Solo Leveling, Vol. 1 by Chugong
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Island by Aldous Huxley
2.0
2.5/5
I have quite a mixed feeling towards this book, similar to Brave New World. I really like learning the author’s ideology and beliefs and those moments invest me however I didn’t like much else. I also felt like the theme doesn’t really stand out as much nowadays as it’s covered countless times in media. If I was reading this in the time it was released, I feel like I would’ve got a much more fulfilled experience learning about the subject, but unfortunately it’s a common thing in society and there’s many different films and books that cover this topic that I’ve already seen most of the views presented in this book. There were still a few thought provoking subjects and interesting perspectives that I did enjoy but not enough for me to rate the book any higher.
As for the narrative, it’s mostly just standing and talking which isn’t bad as the dialogue is the best part, but you have to be interested in the topic discussed to be invested otherwise it drags a lot. It took me a while to get through some and I was zoning out a lot so the pacing had a pretty substantial affect on my experience.
I also didn’t really remember much about the narrative such as characters and relations due to it just not being a priority which is always a weird feeling when the story of a book is secondary. But any time it would go into characters and talking about pasts and whatnot, I had 0 clue what was happening or who was who which really took me out of the moment and made it confusing to piece everything together. I just find it to be a little messy and leaves me not caring for anything related to the narrative.
I don’t really know what more to say about the book, I feel very neutral about it. It’s got some interesting perspectives and ideas but it’s not the most interesting and it can be very slow.
I have quite a mixed feeling towards this book, similar to Brave New World. I really like learning the author’s ideology and beliefs and those moments invest me however I didn’t like much else. I also felt like the theme doesn’t really stand out as much nowadays as it’s covered countless times in media. If I was reading this in the time it was released, I feel like I would’ve got a much more fulfilled experience learning about the subject, but unfortunately it’s a common thing in society and there’s many different films and books that cover this topic that I’ve already seen most of the views presented in this book. There were still a few thought provoking subjects and interesting perspectives that I did enjoy but not enough for me to rate the book any higher.
As for the narrative, it’s mostly just standing and talking which isn’t bad as the dialogue is the best part, but you have to be interested in the topic discussed to be invested otherwise it drags a lot. It took me a while to get through some and I was zoning out a lot so the pacing had a pretty substantial affect on my experience.
I also didn’t really remember much about the narrative such as characters and relations due to it just not being a priority which is always a weird feeling when the story of a book is secondary. But any time it would go into characters and talking about pasts and whatnot, I had 0 clue what was happening or who was who which really took me out of the moment and made it confusing to piece everything together. I just find it to be a little messy and leaves me not caring for anything related to the narrative.
I don’t really know what more to say about the book, I feel very neutral about it. It’s got some interesting perspectives and ideas but it’s not the most interesting and it can be very slow.
Dandadan, Vol. 9 by Yukinobu Tatsu
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
fast-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
4.0