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maxturner's reviews
95 reviews
Keanu Reeves is Not in Love With You: The Murky World of Online Romance Fraud by Becky Holmes
2.0
There is some really great information and investigation in here, and I credit Becky Holmes for that.
That's the only good thing I can say and the reason I gave 2 stars instead of 1. Overall, despite her emphasis that this is serious stuff, it feels like Holmes pokes fun at much of it. There's also just a really cruel vibe and bigotry running throughout, especially fatphobia. Unfortunately, I listened to the audiobook, which really highlighted Holmes as the sort of person I wouldn't want to spend more than five minutes in the company of. I give her credit for raising this important topic, but it is very hard to get past Holmes herself, who comes across as some sort of failed stand-up comic who loves the sound of their own voice.
That's the only good thing I can say and the reason I gave 2 stars instead of 1. Overall, despite her emphasis that this is serious stuff, it feels like Holmes pokes fun at much of it. There's also just a really cruel vibe and bigotry running throughout, especially fatphobia. Unfortunately, I listened to the audiobook, which really highlighted Holmes as the sort of person I wouldn't want to spend more than five minutes in the company of. I give her credit for raising this important topic, but it is very hard to get past Holmes herself, who comes across as some sort of failed stand-up comic who loves the sound of their own voice.
Most Ardently: A Pride & Prejudice Remix by Gabe Cole Novoa
1.0
I have rarely been so disappointed in a book. I thought that being an Austen loving trans man, I would be the target audience, but found that to absolutely not be the case. This book feels like such a missed opportunity and has very much put me off reading any of the other remixes. That is to say, I disliked it, most ardently.
I suggest any Austen fans wanting to read this consider it mostly historically inaccurate, very, very, very loosely based on parts of the story and some of the characters in P&P, and lower their expectations before reading.
I will acknowledge that some of my issues with it (juvenile writing, lack of depth) may be down to it being aimed at a YA audience, though it does read more for children in some places than teens. It feels like some of the changes from the original were due to the YA angle, like ageing down the characters - but this gutted the story. Despite there having been some historical research, the modernisms that often crept in, as well as the change in setting to London (which felt extremely lazy), and the change in several character motivations felt like a strange misunderstanding of the social and cultural dynamics at play in Austen's work. Something that should have been as core to this story as it was to all of hers.
In regards to the ageing down, I understand this might have been because of the YA audience, but then write something else, write a pre-P&P story - ageing them down completely changes the social dynamic. which then does not work at all in this book. Not least because the way they are written flails wildly between juvenile and worldly adult (presumably the bits more closely copied from Austen).
The move to London again alters the social dynamic and feels like it was only done to give the author access to more interesting locations to send his characters. Could this not have taken place during the time Lizzy is in London with her aunt and uncle in the original? Which again, speaks to how shallow the story itself is.
The changes to the character standings and motivations of Collins and Wickham again gut the social dynamics at play in the original, in favour of rather crap new storylines that have no real depth. "Wickham is greedy", should not be the beginning and end of his character. It's baffling. It just doesn't feel like this was written by someone who has much experience of, or interest in Austen's writing.
With all these elements I couldn't help getting distracted the whole way through with ideas of how Lizzy could have absolutely been written as a trans man and still kept within the tone and sensibility of the original. Even including a change in Wickham's motivations, to ignore Wickham ending up with Lydia, could have worked if done more skilfully.
I almost didn't finish this, and genuinely struggled with every page, only able to finish it by divorcing it in my mind from Austen and pretending it was an original work, but even then it's just not that good.
Even for a YA novel, the writing is juvenile and the story lacks depth. The tone is all over the place as it goes from embedding Austen alongside way too many modernisms - some of the dialogue actually made me mad. It's too short and shallow, it races from plot point to plot point, abbreviating scenes that might have been interesting to draw out and skipping over entire swaths of the original. That isn't to say I think that it should have been a word for word rewrite, but that in leaving so much out and changing things unnecessarily, it completely misses the point of Austen's novels and P&P especially.
It could also have done with a more rigorous edit - there's quite a bit of repetition between pages, especially at the beginning. They might also have done more to call out/amend the modernisms, and they may have also caught that the woman Darcy was engaged to changes names during the story (called Genevieve on page 132 by Wickham, Darcy refers to her later as Liliana).
I am genuinely gutted. I had been so excited to read this and saying it was disappointing is not strong enough by far.
I suggest any Austen fans wanting to read this consider it mostly historically inaccurate, very, very, very loosely based on parts of the story and some of the characters in P&P, and lower their expectations before reading.
I will acknowledge that some of my issues with it (juvenile writing, lack of depth) may be down to it being aimed at a YA audience, though it does read more for children in some places than teens. It feels like some of the changes from the original were due to the YA angle, like ageing down the characters - but this gutted the story. Despite there having been some historical research, the modernisms that often crept in, as well as the change in setting to London (which felt extremely lazy), and the change in several character motivations felt like a strange misunderstanding of the social and cultural dynamics at play in Austen's work. Something that should have been as core to this story as it was to all of hers.
In regards to the ageing down, I understand this might have been because of the YA audience, but then write something else, write a pre-P&P story - ageing them down completely changes the social dynamic. which then does not work at all in this book. Not least because the way they are written flails wildly between juvenile and worldly adult (presumably the bits more closely copied from Austen).
The move to London again alters the social dynamic and feels like it was only done to give the author access to more interesting locations to send his characters. Could this not have taken place during the time Lizzy is in London with her aunt and uncle in the original? Which again, speaks to how shallow the story itself is.
The changes to the character standings and motivations of Collins and Wickham again gut the social dynamics at play in the original, in favour of rather crap new storylines that have no real depth. "Wickham is greedy", should not be the beginning and end of his character. It's baffling. It just doesn't feel like this was written by someone who has much experience of, or interest in Austen's writing.
With all these elements I couldn't help getting distracted the whole way through with ideas of how Lizzy could have absolutely been written as a trans man and still kept within the tone and sensibility of the original. Even including a change in Wickham's motivations, to ignore Wickham ending up with Lydia, could have worked if done more skilfully.
I almost didn't finish this, and genuinely struggled with every page, only able to finish it by divorcing it in my mind from Austen and pretending it was an original work, but even then it's just not that good.
Even for a YA novel, the writing is juvenile and the story lacks depth. The tone is all over the place as it goes from embedding Austen alongside way too many modernisms - some of the dialogue actually made me mad. It's too short and shallow, it races from plot point to plot point, abbreviating scenes that might have been interesting to draw out and skipping over entire swaths of the original. That isn't to say I think that it should have been a word for word rewrite, but that in leaving so much out and changing things unnecessarily, it completely misses the point of Austen's novels and P&P especially.
It could also have done with a more rigorous edit - there's quite a bit of repetition between pages, especially at the beginning. They might also have done more to call out/amend the modernisms, and they may have also caught that the woman Darcy was engaged to changes names during the story (called Genevieve on page 132 by Wickham, Darcy refers to her later as Liliana).
I am genuinely gutted. I had been so excited to read this and saying it was disappointing is not strong enough by far.
Gellert's New Job: Gay Fantasy/Crime Short Fiction by Johannes T. Evans, Johannes T. Evans
4.0
This is a fun, quick read that despite the shortness, immerses you into an interesting and dynamic world with a satisfying ending.
Whilst it took me a moment to find my feet in the setting, once there I thoroughly enjoyed myself. The characters are great, and the relationship between them is incredibly well done and perfectly paced. And Evans has an excellent mastery of dialogue, and especially banter.
I really enjoyed the portrayal of the quick-witted Gellert. Again, for the shortness of the piece, there was still a great exploration of who he was and how being trans impacts his life in this world. The idea of Fleshturners and the implications of their existence was thought-provoking and I'd love to read a story which features them more heavily!
On the flip side, I do think that it could have done with a more thorough edit, and despite being well-paced there are some missing scene breaks - I only mention as there were a couple of times where both the edit and lack of scene break tripped me up. And, on a personal note, I don't particularly enjoy reading books formatted for online reading so it took me a bit to get into it (ymmv). All that said, none of it was so egregious, and the story so good, that it didn't massively spoil the experience. I'm looking forward to reading more from this author!
Whilst it took me a moment to find my feet in the setting, once there I thoroughly enjoyed myself. The characters are great, and the relationship between them is incredibly well done and perfectly paced. And Evans has an excellent mastery of dialogue, and especially banter.
I really enjoyed the portrayal of the quick-witted Gellert. Again, for the shortness of the piece, there was still a great exploration of who he was and how being trans impacts his life in this world. The idea of Fleshturners and the implications of their existence was thought-provoking and I'd love to read a story which features them more heavily!
On the flip side, I do think that it could have done with a more thorough edit, and despite being well-paced there are some missing scene breaks - I only mention as there were a couple of times where both the edit and lack of scene break tripped me up. And, on a personal note, I don't particularly enjoy reading books formatted for online reading so it took me a bit to get into it (ymmv). All that said, none of it was so egregious, and the story so good, that it didn't massively spoil the experience. I'm looking forward to reading more from this author!
Summer of Speculation: Catastrophe 2021 by Andrew M. Ferrell
4.0
Disclaimer: I have a story published in this anthology, however I am reviewing based on the other stories only.
This is a really interesting collection of sci-fi, spec fic and fantasy, all with the theme catastrophe. The catastrophes themselves are massively varied, with each story a fresh exploration and no two approaches the same.
My stand out favourites were David Castlewitz's intriguing Blood Rain, taking us on a journey in a strange and terrifying future. The Kill Switch by S.C. Burns, a heart aching and gut wrenching look at a 'what if'! And The Weight of Rebellion by Barend Nieuwstraten III, a compelling tale of betrayal, religion and rebellion.
This is a really interesting collection of sci-fi, spec fic and fantasy, all with the theme catastrophe. The catastrophes themselves are massively varied, with each story a fresh exploration and no two approaches the same.
My stand out favourites were David Castlewitz's intriguing Blood Rain, taking us on a journey in a strange and terrifying future. The Kill Switch by S.C. Burns, a heart aching and gut wrenching look at a 'what if'! And The Weight of Rebellion by Barend Nieuwstraten III, a compelling tale of betrayal, religion and rebellion.
Burly Tales by Steve Berman
3.0
I had been really looking forward to this but was sadly disappointed by this collection.
I enjoyed Heft by Mark Ward and El Muerto's Godson by Evey Brett. I especially enjoyed Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed, Something Blue by Jonathan Harper which was more a gothic fiction which is definitely my cup of tea. But overall the majority of the stories just didn't quite hit it for me, some started slow and improved, others started off really well and then petered out for me. Some were just a complete no for me.
I did find that the lack of diversity was palpable. As a trans masc bear who is an admirer of bears, I'd have also loved to have seen a trans masc story in there. So that was disappointing.
As far as I'm aware, the vast majority of the writers in the collection are white, which is a shame in terms of a balance of tales from different perspectives. Further to that there was some very questionable descriptors used in the stories that were uncomfortable. A character of South Asian heritage being described as having warm, spicy breath was awkward to me. A story where black characters are described in culinary detail (coffee, mocha) is something that I don't particular like and find at best outdated and, to many, potentially offensive.
Overall, this could have been better.
I enjoyed Heft by Mark Ward and El Muerto's Godson by Evey Brett. I especially enjoyed Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed, Something Blue by Jonathan Harper which was more a gothic fiction which is definitely my cup of tea. But overall the majority of the stories just didn't quite hit it for me, some started slow and improved, others started off really well and then petered out for me. Some were just a complete no for me.
I did find that the lack of diversity was palpable. As a trans masc bear who is an admirer of bears, I'd have also loved to have seen a trans masc story in there. So that was disappointing.
As far as I'm aware, the vast majority of the writers in the collection are white, which is a shame in terms of a balance of tales from different perspectives. Further to that there was some very questionable descriptors used in the stories that were uncomfortable. A character of South Asian heritage being described as having warm, spicy breath was awkward to me. A story where black characters are described in culinary detail (coffee, mocha) is something that I don't particular like and find at best outdated and, to many, potentially offensive.
Overall, this could have been better.
Comrade Himbo by Cameron DeOrdio, Max Dlabick, Hayden Harwood, Jaime Dear, Maria Carvalho
5.0
This collection is exactly what it sets out to be - community-centric himbos being their best selves. There's a lot of inclusivity, and many a heart-warming tale. Definitely a nice light read on a dark day.
The Cupbearers: The Male Favorite in Antiquity by Linda R. Larson
4.0
The Cupbearers - The Male Favourite in Antiquity, is a beautifully illustrated volume covering gay relationships between men of power and their lovers in the Bible Lands and the Classical World.
As someone with an academic background in archaeology, ancient and classical history this of course piqued my interest! I found there were the occasional generalisations that are always to be expected in a more accessible volume meant for those without that background, and to that end, this is a very accessible work which would be a great read for those with a general interest in queer history.
Over all, this is a great read which is beautifully illustrated throughout by the author. Not only is the art wonderful, but it really adds to the text - giving period accurate illustrations of the histories which brings life to the text compared to other, more dry works. Absolutely recommend read.
On a side note: printed in 2016, there is some outdated language in the text in regards to trans people. However, when I reached out to the author directly she was very friendly and absolutely open to taking concerns on board and will be updating the text in future.
As someone with an academic background in archaeology, ancient and classical history this of course piqued my interest! I found there were the occasional generalisations that are always to be expected in a more accessible volume meant for those without that background, and to that end, this is a very accessible work which would be a great read for those with a general interest in queer history.
Over all, this is a great read which is beautifully illustrated throughout by the author. Not only is the art wonderful, but it really adds to the text - giving period accurate illustrations of the histories which brings life to the text compared to other, more dry works. Absolutely recommend read.
On a side note: printed in 2016, there is some outdated language in the text in regards to trans people. However, when I reached out to the author directly she was very friendly and absolutely open to taking concerns on board and will be updating the text in future.