Scan barcode
kirnet's reviews
61 reviews
Ink Blood Sister Scribe by Emma Törzs
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
I would have been able to stomach this book more if the pacing wasn’t so abysmal. The first act ends around the 50% mark, which is when the plot actually starts, which is far too late in the book. The main characters don’t all connect until even farther in the book, which then their dynamics and relationships with each other are just sped up to an unbelievable degree to make up for lost time. (especially the romance between Jo and Collins, which while mostly just a crush, is not something that I would be focusing on in that situation if my sister was in mortal peril. The ending suffers from this too, and everything wraps up incredibly quickly, after a massive exposition dump that explains things that we already figured out. This also ties into the frustrating characters, as all of them start out as incredibly passive and characterized by their inaction. Granted, that is part of their character arcs, but it makes it incredibly boring to read, and they don’t make any active decisions until halfway into the book.
The prose, too, is incredibly overwritten. There are really beautiful sentences and metaphors that are just ruined because the sentence goes on and on and on. Things are explained to us in mini flashbacks and infuriatingly long inner thought trains when they could have been just shown to us on the page in, I don’t know, action and character interactions. I think about 20-30% of the words in this book could be removed and it would be better for it.
The theme of sisters, too, is minimal at best, as we never get to actually see them together until near the end. The reunion is meant to be hard hitting, but I did not really like any of the characters, so I just sped through it. I would say the actual theme is mother/daughter relationships? Or parent/child? Guardian/ward? Which is actually completely independent from the sister’s relationship.I appreciate the depiction of a mixed family, but ultimately if this book is about sisterhood, separating the sisters to just deal with their respective mothers doesn’t give me any reason to actually care about their sisterly bond.
I did like a few things. The Antarctica research base is an interesting setting, though I wish that it was actually tense and isolating rather than a slog. I liked some of the (rare) descriptions of body horror that we got. There was definitely a chance to use some more fucked up magic in this book, which the author didn’t take, but I liked what we got. Collins, Esther, and Nicholas are fine characters, but it sucks that Jo is incredibly boring and passive, as she is one of the sisters. Honestly, Collins and Nicholas being there kind of stole the show, which again, is supposed to be about sisters. I also liked the explicit bisexuality of Esther, that’s always nice.
It doesn’t read like a first draft, but it does read like a debut. It needed a few more drafts to get the pacing down, I think. However, I still would be interested in picking up another book by this author when she writes one, because I do see a lot of potential here.
The prose, too, is incredibly overwritten. There are really beautiful sentences and metaphors that are just ruined because the sentence goes on and on and on. Things are explained to us in mini flashbacks and infuriatingly long inner thought trains when they could have been just shown to us on the page in, I don’t know, action and character interactions. I think about 20-30% of the words in this book could be removed and it would be better for it.
The theme of sisters, too, is minimal at best, as we never get to actually see them together until near the end. The reunion is meant to be hard hitting, but I did not really like any of the characters, so I just sped through it. I would say the actual theme is mother/daughter relationships? Or parent/child? Guardian/ward? Which is actually completely independent from the sister’s relationship.
I did like a few things. The Antarctica research base is an interesting setting, though I wish that it was actually tense and isolating rather than a slog. I liked some of the (rare) descriptions of body horror that we got. There was definitely a chance to use some more fucked up magic in this book, which the author didn’t take, but I liked what we got. Collins, Esther, and Nicholas are fine characters, but it sucks that Jo is incredibly boring and passive, as she is one of the sisters. Honestly, Collins and Nicholas being there kind of stole the show, which again, is supposed to be about sisters. I also liked the explicit bisexuality of Esther, that’s always nice.
It doesn’t read like a first draft, but it does read like a debut. It needed a few more drafts to get the pacing down, I think. However, I still would be interested in picking up another book by this author when she writes one, because I do see a lot of potential here.
Artemis by Andy Weir
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
I don’t really pick up a Weir book to get invested in the characters, I mostly pick them up to learn more about science in an interesting way, and I did have a really good time learning about gasses and vacuums! I did really like Jazz’s character, especially her relationship with her dad, though she really had “women written by a man” syndrome. The humor in the book was also not for me, though I didn’t hate it. The most interesting part was by far the problem solving for the heists and the emailing parts, as well as the father/daughter relationship. It’s an incredibly quick read for its length, so nothing bothered me too much.
Kept waiting for that condom to become plot relevant and save the day but alas. It’s just there for… humor?
A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Really ended up enjoying this, though I found the pacing of the middle to be a bit of a slog, and then at the end it was very fast. Was only really invested in the flashback bits up until the end, and then I was crying lol. It reminds me of the street I grew up on, with a lot of inter-generational friendships and a more found family mentality. I thought this was going to be a more lighthearted read than it was, and while there are many lighthearted moments, it's mostly a story focusing on grief and human connection. TWs for multiple on page suicide attempts, terminal illness, miscarriage, car crashes, and also just a weird amount of fatfobia from the author.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Terminal illness, Ableism, Miscarriage, and Suicide attempt
An Inhabitant of Carcosa by Ambrose Bierce
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Another True Detective deep dive read. I really liked this one! Short and sweet, but still mysterious and unsettling. Cool to see what Robert W Chambers took for his own inspirations.
The King in Yellow by Robert W. Chambers
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
In full honesty I only picked this book up because I am deep in the True Detective brain rot and I wanted to tap into some of the inspirations for the season. I’m also a fan of the Malevolent Podcast, which deals with the King in Yellow mythos, and I’ve read a lot of Lovecraft, so I went in expecting something much different than what is actually in this collection. Only the first 4 of the short stories actually deal with the King in Yellow, the rest are more weird/ fantasy romance fiction. Almost all of them have the through line of artists in Paris, with a lot of the same reoccurring characters and references, which is an interesting idea but I simply do not care about the French lol. Once I got over the hurdle of my own expectations and actually engaged with the stories on their own I started having a better time. The first story is by far the best and most engaging, and the rest of the stories slowly started to lose me, but that’s also due to my lack of experience with this time period, so most of the references went over my head, and I wasn’t engaged enough to research them. I also enjoyed the last story in the collection as well, I liked the humor.
Overall, I think labeling this collection as horror is entirely misleading? The first 4 stories, yes, to some degree, but the rest absolutely not. I was able to draw a lot of connections and possible places that True Detective drew inspiration from, and that’s mainly why I went into this in the first place, so that is a win.
Theres a handful of period-expected racism, and the women in the stories are mostly just wet paper bags, but that’s to be expected.
Overall, I think labeling this collection as horror is entirely misleading? The first 4 stories, yes, to some degree, but the rest absolutely not. I was able to draw a lot of connections and possible places that True Detective drew inspiration from, and that’s mainly why I went into this in the first place, so that is a win.
Theres a handful of period-expected racism, and the women in the stories are mostly just wet paper bags, but that’s to be expected.
Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
MAJOR TWs for SA, CSA, Assault under the influence, other sexual violence, gore, abuse. All of it, really.
I really enjoyed the prose in this, and I ended up really loving Alex's character. I found her really compelling and was happy to follow her thoughts and actions. I love how flawed she is, as well as how she struggles to cope with it. Her relationships with the other characters are also great, mainly Dawes and North. She has a lot of on page chemistry with everyone that keeps things flowing. The story is interesting (though I did predict every twist), and the world building was interesting, but my main gripe with this book was the pacing. A lot of people mention not being invested in the book until very far in, and while I didn't have that exact problem, I did find a lot of the info dumps pretty grating. The book also spends a lot of time jumping back to the past, mostly to set up Darlington's character, or to explain parts of Alex's tragic backstory. In my opinion they happened too often and were too indulgent, really taking me out of the current storyline and investigation. I wonder if it would have been better to have made this book the second in the series, to have the first one actually show Alex and Darlington's growing relationship and ending with the cliffhanger ofDarlington getting yoinked to hell rather than flashing back and expositing. As it stands there's too little Darlington for me to actually care about him as a character and too much Darlington for me to not get annoyed at his interruptions to the story, even if he seems like a fine character. Still, I'm excited to see where this story goes and I plan on picking up the next one.
I really enjoyed the prose in this, and I ended up really loving Alex's character. I found her really compelling and was happy to follow her thoughts and actions. I love how flawed she is, as well as how she struggles to cope with it. Her relationships with the other characters are also great, mainly Dawes and North. She has a lot of on page chemistry with everyone that keeps things flowing. The story is interesting (though I did predict every twist), and the world building was interesting, but my main gripe with this book was the pacing. A lot of people mention not being invested in the book until very far in, and while I didn't have that exact problem, I did find a lot of the info dumps pretty grating. The book also spends a lot of time jumping back to the past, mostly to set up Darlington's character, or to explain parts of Alex's tragic backstory. In my opinion they happened too often and were too indulgent, really taking me out of the current storyline and investigation. I wonder if it would have been better to have made this book the second in the series, to have the first one actually show Alex and Darlington's growing relationship and ending with the cliffhanger of
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug use, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Injury/Injury detail, Domestic abuse, Rape, Physical abuse, Pedophilia, Murder, and Addiction
Wasteland: The Secret World of Waste and the Urgent Search for a Cleaner Future by Oliver Franklin-Wallis
informative
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
An incredibly informative dive into human waste: how it's created, where we put it, its relationships with colonialism and the environment, and the dangers it poses. Franklin-Wallis dives into landfills, composting, recycling, nuclear waste, mining, sewers, and more, tracking them from their respective industries to his own at-home life with a wife and two young children. It's an eye opening and quite frankly depressing look into relationship between capitalism and our hellish waste landscape (the push towards personal responsibility, greenwashing, waste colonialism, profit margins determining the efficacy of actual change), but is still written in an entertaining and hopeful way. The main take away is consume less, and don't be tricked into thinking we can buy our way out of this.
Ripe by Sarah Rose Etter
dark
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
I admit that this just isn't the book for me, and that many others will connect to it better than I did. I found the black hole metaphor for depression boring and overdone, and I kept waiting for it to go in an interesting direction, though it never did. It is a critique of the way extreme capitalism - specifically the Silicon Valley tech industry - alienates, isolates, and uses and discards its workers, though it mostly read as the author hating the Bay Area and not really grappling with the gentrification being the cause for a lot of the pain and daily struggle. It also doesn't help that my last book before this was about an extremely mentally ill woman with magical physical manifestations of her mental illness who struggled to maintain her life at her corporate job and continue to have the funds to survive while her life unravels around her, and that one was really interesting, so I was mostly just disappointment by this.
A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.75
I have been looking forward to this book for years of it being on my TBR, of hearing booktubers and readers and fantasy enthusiasts rave about this book. It seems like everyone has read this book, so I went into this assuming it would be an easy 4 stars if not 5.
What a disappointment.
I’ll start with the positives, because there are a few. The cover is phenomenal, props to the illustrators (because many of these versions are stunning) for convincing me to pick this piece of shit up. I loved the idea of the world, of all of the different Londons and magic systems. Splitting them up by colors, gray London being our fugly foggy London, white London being desaturated etc were all really cool, and they did feel like distinct locations with their own cultures and histories. I liked the opening with the king and Kel, and I think it did a lot of good character and setting introduction work. I like the ideas of the characters and plot, but not the execution. The prose itself is mediocre but inoffensive, not bad. I have definitely read worse. Yeah… That’s about it.
My issues:
- The Characters: They ranged from boring to unbearable. I wanted to love Delilah so bad. A cutthroat cutpurse with dreams of piracy is on paper, right up my alley. But she, on paper, made me want to drive my head into a wall. You could tell with every word that Schwab thought that she was sooooo cool and sooo edgy and just the coolest, while in reality every fucking sentence made me hate her more. I like complex unlikable flawed female characters, but I can not stand annoying stupid characters whose decisions are framed as genius because the author loves them too much. I did love her motivations and drive for adventure, and some of her lines and actions were cool, but she was just too violent and edgy to be taken seriously. She really read like a 13 year old’s original do not steal self insert oc. Someone who realistically is used to survival will know when to pick fights and when to let things lie, when something is a trap, how to outmaneuver stronger opponents. She doesn’t, yet we are told that she is sooooo cool isn’t she the coolest. Kel was wet toast, he wasn’t awful but he certainly wasn’t interesting. I liked his relationship with Rhy, I liked his complex feelings around his “parents,” and I really liked the fact that he smuggled trinkets and felt a sense of connection to them! Unfortunately he was just really boring when it came to magic? Which is exactly the opposite of what it should be?? I did not feel any chemistry between the two of them. Rhy was fine, he’s a character archetype I really like bisexual royal whore), but I didn’t care for him enough to get invested in the stakes of his character.
-The Villains: I can’t even remember the twin’s names. They were one dimensional mustache twirling nothing. Which is fine, I guess, honestly it would probably be worse if there was more of them. Holland was easily my favorite character in the book. He’s ruthless and efficient but not comically evil. He has motive, backstory, some tragedy, an actual threatening presence. I don’t like him enough to continue the series though.
- The Pacing: Bad. Awful. The plot does not start until over 100 pages in to a 400 page book. I praised the opening scene because I do think it’s well done, and then new opening scenes just kept going. And going. While I understand that this is a world and magic system that requires some explanation, Schwab manages to explain the same fucking concepts over and over. I understand that Kel has one black eye. I understand that the different Londons have different magic. I understand magic has a verbal component. Trust me to follow along. It is such a slog to get to the actual plot, and by then I was so soured that I couldn’t stand the rest of it. The story is not innovative, not exciting, not meaningful, not precious enough to justify such a slow buildup. There were many scenes that could have been edited together to be more economical, but this is a book where you can tell that Schwab is too obsessed with her own creation to kill her darlings. The actual plot is then dragged down by Lila and Kel having to attempt to use any combined brain cells. With their backgrounds, a smuggler and a pickpocket, I was expecting some cool thieving, some rogueish cunning schemes, four dimensional plots and magic and a looming sense of danger! It was mostly them just getting jumped in various locations. Honestly, I can’t even complain about the McGuffin because I don’t remember enough about it even though I just finished the book. I have heard similar criticism of the pacing in A Secret Life so I think this might be an issue with her. Schwab’s writing and sentence structure also doesn’t have that Oomf needed for fights and high stress scenes. Honestly, it reads very politely British.
- The ending (and the stakes): Speaking of killing your darlings!Side characters that we don’t really care about die in this book, but again, I don’t know these people and I don’t want to. The pacing and the characters removed any stakes that I felt in the story, however, there was a moment in the ending that I thought was gonna turn it all around. I sincerely thought that Schwab had planned this all along, that I had fallen into her trap and that I would leave this book being a fan. I really thought she was gonna kill Rhy! I really thought she was going to leave Lila in White London and Kel and black, and then we would have has a brutal dual POV fight in the next book for them to survive and reunite. Not that I trust her to do that well, but it would have got me to pick up the next book just to see what would happen. I would have respected the move to actually hurt her characters. But, no. Rhy lives. Kel and Lila remain in Red London. I’m not sure what the fuck the climax was but the power of friendship I guess? Or the power of cool rock? The power of the spoken word? I could not tell you. It had a nice happy ending with the characters all laughing and chatting and it pissed me off!! Maybe this changes going on in the rest of the series, but as I see it now Schwab is not dedicated enough to her story or her characters to actually take the hard routes.
- Cowboy Bebop : I love Cowboy Bebop. I instantly could tell that Schwab did, too. That, and ATLA. For ATLA, many of the magic fight scenes with the elements read like she was imagining the show, that she wanted it to have this really cool mental image, but all it succeeded in doing me was reminding me that ATLA is a better story. Same with Bebop. Lila has two eyes, one glass and one fake, and they are two subtly different shades of brown. Hmm. Spike Spiegel has two eyes, one cybernetic and one real, both two subtly different shades of brown. This is an obvious set up that Lila is antari, OMG! Isn’t she so special! But it is also an incredibly recognizable and frankly distracting reference to Bebop. Spike’s eye serves a symbolic and narrative purpose, he sees the past in one and the present in the other. Never the future. It perfectly sums up his history and his character flaws, that he’s too obsessed with a past that he can’t let go and revenge to actually work towards a life. It kills him in the end! Lila lacks that depth, that significance, that honestly iconic status. It’s just a reference, which would be fine if it a) had the same amount of narrative AND symbolic weight and b) if Schwab wasn’t already so seemingly obsessed with hearing herself talk. Wear your inspirations on your sleeve, take ideas and make them your own, but your story needs to be able to stand on it’s own legs. I know that this is just mad raving, and that it truly is not that serious, but it wilted any last good grace I had for this book or series. Maybe she should try being original, because when she is it actually works! To sum up, watch the Hbomberguy video about RWBY, as it literally has this exact issue.
Was this book actually awful? No, I have read worse and worse has been written. There are redeeming qualities, but the disappointment I felt, that sinking feeling with every further page, made me hate it more than an awful but ultimately thoughtless read. Perhaps if I had read it when I was younger I would have been more attached to the characters, but as it is now I can’t stand them. I don’t plan on continuing the series, and I’m not sure I’ll give any of her further works a try. I can understand why people would love this, I can see the appeal, I also wanted to enjoy it! But I didn’t. Sigh.
What a disappointment.
I’ll start with the positives, because there are a few. The cover is phenomenal, props to the illustrators (because many of these versions are stunning) for convincing me to pick this piece of shit up. I loved the idea of the world, of all of the different Londons and magic systems. Splitting them up by colors, gray London being our fugly foggy London, white London being desaturated etc were all really cool, and they did feel like distinct locations with their own cultures and histories. I liked the opening with the king and Kel, and I think it did a lot of good character and setting introduction work. I like the ideas of the characters and plot, but not the execution. The prose itself is mediocre but inoffensive, not bad. I have definitely read worse. Yeah… That’s about it.
My issues:
- The Characters: They ranged from boring to unbearable. I wanted to love Delilah so bad. A cutthroat cutpurse with dreams of piracy is on paper, right up my alley. But she, on paper, made me want to drive my head into a wall. You could tell with every word that Schwab thought that she was sooooo cool and sooo edgy and just the coolest, while in reality every fucking sentence made me hate her more. I like complex unlikable flawed female characters, but I can not stand annoying stupid characters whose decisions are framed as genius because the author loves them too much. I did love her motivations and drive for adventure, and some of her lines and actions were cool, but she was just too violent and edgy to be taken seriously. She really read like a 13 year old’s original do not steal self insert oc. Someone who realistically is used to survival will know when to pick fights and when to let things lie, when something is a trap, how to outmaneuver stronger opponents. She doesn’t, yet we are told that she is sooooo cool isn’t she the coolest. Kel was wet toast, he wasn’t awful but he certainly wasn’t interesting. I liked his relationship with Rhy, I liked his complex feelings around his “parents,” and I really liked the fact that he smuggled trinkets and felt a sense of connection to them! Unfortunately he was just really boring when it came to magic? Which is exactly the opposite of what it should be?? I did not feel any chemistry between the two of them. Rhy was fine, he’s a character archetype I really like bisexual royal whore), but I didn’t care for him enough to get invested in the stakes of his character.
-The Villains: I can’t even remember the twin’s names. They were one dimensional mustache twirling nothing. Which is fine, I guess, honestly it would probably be worse if there was more of them. Holland was easily my favorite character in the book. He’s ruthless and efficient but not comically evil. He has motive, backstory, some tragedy, an actual threatening presence. I don’t like him enough to continue the series though.
- The Pacing: Bad. Awful. The plot does not start until over 100 pages in to a 400 page book. I praised the opening scene because I do think it’s well done, and then new opening scenes just kept going. And going. While I understand that this is a world and magic system that requires some explanation, Schwab manages to explain the same fucking concepts over and over. I understand that Kel has one black eye. I understand that the different Londons have different magic. I understand magic has a verbal component. Trust me to follow along. It is such a slog to get to the actual plot, and by then I was so soured that I couldn’t stand the rest of it. The story is not innovative, not exciting, not meaningful, not precious enough to justify such a slow buildup. There were many scenes that could have been edited together to be more economical, but this is a book where you can tell that Schwab is too obsessed with her own creation to kill her darlings. The actual plot is then dragged down by Lila and Kel having to attempt to use any combined brain cells. With their backgrounds, a smuggler and a pickpocket, I was expecting some cool thieving, some rogueish cunning schemes, four dimensional plots and magic and a looming sense of danger! It was mostly them just getting jumped in various locations. Honestly, I can’t even complain about the McGuffin because I don’t remember enough about it even though I just finished the book. I have heard similar criticism of the pacing in A Secret Life so I think this might be an issue with her. Schwab’s writing and sentence structure also doesn’t have that Oomf needed for fights and high stress scenes. Honestly, it reads very politely British.
- The ending (and the stakes): Speaking of killing your darlings!
- Cowboy Bebop : I love Cowboy Bebop. I instantly could tell that Schwab did, too. That, and ATLA. For ATLA, many of the magic fight scenes with the elements read like she was imagining the show, that she wanted it to have this really cool mental image, but all it succeeded in doing me was reminding me that ATLA is a better story. Same with Bebop.
Was this book actually awful? No, I have read worse and worse has been written. There are redeeming qualities, but the disappointment I felt, that sinking feeling with every further page, made me hate it more than an awful but ultimately thoughtless read. Perhaps if I had read it when I was younger I would have been more attached to the characters, but as it is now I can’t stand them. I don’t plan on continuing the series, and I’m not sure I’ll give any of her further works a try. I can understand why people would love this, I can see the appeal, I also wanted to enjoy it! But I didn’t. Sigh.
Liar, Dreamer, Thief by Maria Dong
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I adored this book. It's rare that I read a thriller that I don't figure out, but the use of Katrina's delusions and the mirror world were well done and kept me hooked throughout the book. I had no clue where any of it was going.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide
Minor: Terminal illness, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual harassment, and Homophobia