medicineandmetaphors's reviews
249 reviews

The Push by Ashley Audrain

4.0

A Deadly Education by Naomi Novik

adventurous challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

Scattered All Over the Earth by Yōko Tawada

adventurous informative medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

Certain Dark Things by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

adventurous dark emotional funny mysterious tense 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

4.5

Different vampire species set with a backdrop of neo-noir Mexico City with human and vampire gang activity? This was the perfect book pitch for meeeee! 🦇

Atmospheric, spooky, phenomenal prose, and memorable characters to boot! The story of how Certain Dark Things was published is almost as fun as the plot itself! Various vampire species sest in neo-noir Mexico City, where the advancement of technology conflicting with the socioeconomic wealth gap is fascinating. I listed to this on audiobook, and I loved it! This is absolutely the beginning of my embrace with Moreno-Garcia's work. I can't WAIT to read her other work!

The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune

adventurous emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted 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

I SEE YOU, YOU CUTE BOOK. 

While TJ Klune may have perfected the art of writing a heartwarming experience, The House in the Cerulean Sea fell... flat? Some punchlines repeated to incite a sense of nostalgia, some characters unexplored? Some throw away lines throwing me out of the experience, and some contradictions that didn't feel... right? (It felt as if some items were missed by an editor.) Either way, I did love listening to the narrator’s kooky voices for the vast number of characters in this pastel world.

Chain-Gang All-Stars by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad tense medium-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

5.0

Oh. My. God.

What an influential story that I will carry with me for the rest of my days. 

Nana wrote a scathing commentary about the United States' prison system. Through his fictionalized lens, we got to experience harrowing AND TRUE statistics alongside tragedy and triumph his characters faced. Each character is multifaceted, three dimensional, and fascinating to read about. This is a book necessary for our time, and I'm so grateful that I've read it. Thank you for your hard work, Nana. I will never look at the carceral system the same again, and I will be an advocate for the voiceless because of this work.

PS: I started this on audiobook, then switched to an ebook from my library. I believe text is the preferred method of reading Chain-Gang. The stylistic choices Nana made to paint a documentary-feeling environment with the shouting from the stands distracted from my audiobook experience. But it really MADE the text experience!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence

Yellowface by R.F. Kuang

challenging dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

This literary critique had so much going for it. So when I felt like it came short when actually critiquing the publishing industry, my heart broke! Definitely worth the read for all audiences if you have the stomach for it, but it does feel like the publisher may have taken an eraser to the scathing commentary— like it’s been scrubbed clean? So odd. 

The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman

adventurous funny lighthearted mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

I have to say, I haven’t fallen in love with characters like this in a LONG TIME. I believe that’s where the strengths in this book lie, heartily. Perhaps a reread would get me to 5 stars, maybe I was a bit distracted while listening, but I felt like the meandering didn’t add to the atmosphere, but rather distracted. I love being surprised by mystery reveals, and this one partially got me. I’ll definitely continue this series! Honestly, one of my favorite parts was listening to the interview with the author at the end of the audiobook! So great!

Ace of Spades by Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé

adventurous dark mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated

5.0

I was fascinated by this from the get go. Faridah isn’t afraid to explore the dark crevices of the racist experiences in lily white academic institutions. This Gossip Girl vibe, twisting adventure had me guessing THE WHOLE TIME. I LOVED IT. 

I Choose Darkness: A Holiday Essay by Jenny Lawson

funny medium-paced

4.0

Jenny is one of my absolute favorites. When I saw this for free in the kindle store, I jumped! I devoured this really quickly, but I felt like it was missing a little something. I sure loved it, though!