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kris_mccracken's reviews
2529 reviews
Shadow Over the Fens by Joy Ellis
3.0
A fine thriller that is a marked improvement on Ellis's debut. While the plot is somewhat preposterous, it kept this reader engaged and awaiting the resolution of the book's central mystery.
⭐ ⭐ ⭐
⭐ ⭐ ⭐
The Postman by A. Hazenberg, David Brin
4.0
Just what I want in my apocalyptic fiction: bleak but with heart and an ounce of hope. Although I've never seen the film, I had no trouble imagining Kevin Costner as the titular and grizzled naif protagonist.
⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐
⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson
4.0
After many years and a lot of hype, I have finally read The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. The story is well-constructed, but the emphasis on explicit sexual violence and darkly misogynistic themes make things hard-going.
Nevertheless, I found it a gripping and satisfying exponent of the genre.
☹ ☹ ☹ ☹
Nevertheless, I found it a gripping and satisfying exponent of the genre.
☹ ☹ ☹ ☹
The Winners by Fredrik Backman
4.0
As a keen reader of Backman's work, I was happy to return to Beartown for the trilogy's conclusion. Yes, the constant (and I mean constant) foreshadowing did get on my nerves, and - as in Us Against You - much as some of the character development felt rushed. Nevertheless, revisiting a particular place and group of characters was wonderful.
The World Over by Cassiopeia Fletcher
3.0
Decent dystopian fare featuring your standard genetically-engineered heroine, yet emotionally-flawed protagonist pining for her long lost love (although he is much closer to hand than she knows...).
Although I note many reviewers have criticised the cliffhanger ending, I enjoyed part one enough to line up part two for later in the year.
⭐ ⭐ 1/2
Although I note many reviewers have criticised the cliffhanger ending, I enjoyed part one enough to line up part two for later in the year.
⭐ ⭐ 1/2
The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
5.0
An excellent pair with Pat Barker's [b:The Silence of the Girls|37969723|The Silence of the Girls (Women of Troy, #1)|Pat Barker|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1519448688l/37969723._SY75_.jpg|59693763], [b:The Song of Achilles|13623848|The Song of Achilles|Madeline Miller|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1357177533l/13623848._SY75_.jpg|16176791] is another striking retelling of the myth of Achilles and the Trojan War, this time from the perspective of Patroclus.
Ultimately, we have a dazzling love story between Achilles and Patroclus, with the epic battles and political intrigue of ancient Greece taking a back seat to Achilles and Patroclus' love for each other. Miller reimagines the myth, (re-) humanizing the gods and making the ancient world feel alive and relatable. The result is a book that is both emotionally powerful and intellectually engaging. Miller's prose is lyrical and evocative, bringing to life the stories that can often feel musty and dull to modern readers.
I loved it.
⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐
Ultimately, we have a dazzling love story between Achilles and Patroclus, with the epic battles and political intrigue of ancient Greece taking a back seat to Achilles and Patroclus' love for each other. Miller reimagines the myth, (re-) humanizing the gods and making the ancient world feel alive and relatable. The result is a book that is both emotionally powerful and intellectually engaging. Miller's prose is lyrical and evocative, bringing to life the stories that can often feel musty and dull to modern readers.
I loved it.
⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐
Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus
2.0
I think there is the potential for a very good work of historical fiction here. However, for me, the recurrent anachronisms tended to disrupt the novel's coherence, undermining its historical accuracy and ultimately diminishing its credibility.
Perhaps if Garmus was happy to throw her lot in with a fuller work of farce, the book might have been more successful (to my mind). In choosing to maintain a sternly moralistic crusade on the role of women in science and, by extension, the modern world, the selective reconstruction of a time in many people's living memory becomes too heavy-handed and detracts from the immersive experience and hinders the book's broader cultural and social contexts.
Aside from four characters, every man in the book is an utterly irredeemable scoundrel (and two of these are profoundly weak-minded). If we count the dog, who is twice the man as all the men, we can make it five. Most of these men are vile misogynists who are only ever a hair's breadth away from rape.
While I can handle a bit of gilding the lily to make one's point, the constant shift between heavy-handed didacticism and nuanced evocation of a specific time and place is jarring in the extreme. Throw in yet another book (I am looking at you, [b:The Maid|55196813|The Maid|Nita Prose|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1643228739l/55196813._SY75_.jpg|86048177]) with a main character looking to make a virtue of neurodiversity (while failing to maintain any internal consistency of character), a dog that is more human than the bulk of the humans, a preternaturally intelligent four-year-old reading Norman Mailer and Vladimir Nabakov in 1959 (!), and I am struggling.
Not for me.
⭐ 1/2
Perhaps if Garmus was happy to throw her lot in with a fuller work of farce, the book might have been more successful (to my mind). In choosing to maintain a sternly moralistic crusade on the role of women in science and, by extension, the modern world, the selective reconstruction of a time in many people's living memory becomes too heavy-handed and detracts from the immersive experience and hinders the book's broader cultural and social contexts.
Aside from four characters, every man in the book is an utterly irredeemable scoundrel (and two of these are profoundly weak-minded). If we count the dog, who is twice the man as all the men, we can make it five. Most of these men are vile misogynists who are only ever a hair's breadth away from rape.
While I can handle a bit of gilding the lily to make one's point, the constant shift between heavy-handed didacticism and nuanced evocation of a specific time and place is jarring in the extreme. Throw in yet another book (I am looking at you, [b:The Maid|55196813|The Maid|Nita Prose|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1643228739l/55196813._SY75_.jpg|86048177]) with a main character looking to make a virtue of neurodiversity (while failing to maintain any internal consistency of character), a dog that is more human than the bulk of the humans, a preternaturally intelligent four-year-old reading Norman Mailer and Vladimir Nabakov in 1959 (!), and I am struggling.
Not for me.
⭐ 1/2
I'm Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy
3.0
I went into reading "I'm Glad My Mom Died" despite having no idea who the author was or anything about her previous work as a child actor. The positive reviews, coupled with an interesting title and cover, drew me in.
We get a tale of growing up with a narcissistic and abusive mother who pushed her daughter into acting at a young age and controlled every aspect of her life. There is some seriously triggering material here, with a lot of detail on eating disorders, addiction, self-hatred, toxic relationships, and the pressure and loneliness of being famous.
Written in a light, witty, candid and engaging style, McCurdy doesn't shy away from the ugly truths of her life and the conflicted nature of her feelings about her mother. She manages to find enough pathos, humour and optimism in them. Indeed, she frankly explores the difficulty of recovery and how she learned to accept herself, work towards healing and the pursuit of new dreams.
⭐ ⭐ ⭐ 1/2
We get a tale of growing up with a narcissistic and abusive mother who pushed her daughter into acting at a young age and controlled every aspect of her life. There is some seriously triggering material here, with a lot of detail on eating disorders, addiction, self-hatred, toxic relationships, and the pressure and loneliness of being famous.
Written in a light, witty, candid and engaging style, McCurdy doesn't shy away from the ugly truths of her life and the conflicted nature of her feelings about her mother. She manages to find enough pathos, humour and optimism in them. Indeed, she frankly explores the difficulty of recovery and how she learned to accept herself, work towards healing and the pursuit of new dreams.
⭐ ⭐ ⭐ 1/2
Counterfeit by Kirstin Chen
3.0
If you had told me I'd be drawn into a mystery focusing on the morally complicated world of high-end counterfeit handbags, I'd have likely laughed in your face.
Still, Counterfeit by Kirstin Chen is an entertaining and insightful look at the counterfeit purse market. While I remain to be convinced that this is as effective a deconstruction of the American dream and the myth of the model minority, it moves along quickly enough, and Chen is up to something innovative and subversive here.
Quite how subversive one can be when you've still got a live-in nanny to look after your mind-numbingly annoying brat of a child, I do wonder.
⭐ ⭐ ⭐
Still, Counterfeit by Kirstin Chen is an entertaining and insightful look at the counterfeit purse market. While I remain to be convinced that this is as effective a deconstruction of the American dream and the myth of the model minority, it moves along quickly enough, and Chen is up to something innovative and subversive here.
Quite how subversive one can be when you've still got a live-in nanny to look after your mind-numbingly annoying brat of a child, I do wonder.
⭐ ⭐ ⭐
A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles
2.0
A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles
I confess that while I found A Gentleman in Moscow to be beautifully written, its charms strike me as shallow as our central character, (former) Count Alexander Ilyich Rostov. Positive reviews of the book stress the gentility, the manners, and the appeal that such a 'gentleman’ can survive amidst the boorish barbarism of the Soviet Union. I was more struck by his laziness and immense sense of entitlement.
In that regard, the luxurious life of the Count makes an excellent case for revolution.
In this fashion, I found using an omniscient narrative device frustrating rather than charming. I found the seriousness to the frivolity of Rostov annoying and may well have equally been turned to the life of servants, serfs and the rest of the country. Still, the purpose of these background characters is little more than providing Alexander Ilyich with another scrap of witty repartee (and to fetch his boots).
Perhaps I’m too caught up in my own class consciousness to find affinity with the verbal excess, mock-epic digressions, colourful hijinks and the cast of lively characters sent in to tickle my fancy.
I was quite happy to leave this particular suave dinner companion behind by the novel's end.
⭐ ⭐ ½
I confess that while I found A Gentleman in Moscow to be beautifully written, its charms strike me as shallow as our central character, (former) Count Alexander Ilyich Rostov. Positive reviews of the book stress the gentility, the manners, and the appeal that such a 'gentleman’ can survive amidst the boorish barbarism of the Soviet Union. I was more struck by his laziness and immense sense of entitlement.
In that regard, the luxurious life of the Count makes an excellent case for revolution.
In this fashion, I found using an omniscient narrative device frustrating rather than charming. I found the seriousness to the frivolity of Rostov annoying and may well have equally been turned to the life of servants, serfs and the rest of the country. Still, the purpose of these background characters is little more than providing Alexander Ilyich with another scrap of witty repartee (and to fetch his boots).
Perhaps I’m too caught up in my own class consciousness to find affinity with the verbal excess, mock-epic digressions, colourful hijinks and the cast of lively characters sent in to tickle my fancy.
I was quite happy to leave this particular suave dinner companion behind by the novel's end.
⭐ ⭐ ½