micareads123's reviews
273 reviews

Bliss Montage by Ling Ma

dark reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

I love a good unhinged short story collection! This one had many stories I found great and a few I found okay. The first story, Los Angeles, has to be my favourite. It drew me in immediately and was everything I could want in a short story. Another highlight was Office Hours. The finally story, Tomorrow, took me a long time to finish and was definitely harder for me to digest. 

I can definitely see myself revisiting at least some of these stories in the future.

The Honey Witch by Sydney J. Shields

medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot

2.5

I really enjoyed the concept and setting of this book, but unfortunately the execution didn’t live up to my expectations. It was cute and engaging enough and I enjoyed some of the characters, but the magic system, the rivalry and the motives were all lacking clear definition. The plot kind of coasts on vibes. 

Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar

dark emotional reflective 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

A lot of really interesting reflections on life, death, mortality and meaning intersected with cultural belonging and vilification. I really enjoyed this read and may even revisit it in the future.

The structure of the book did feel a bit more disjointed than I would have liked, and some parts dragged on longer than they needed to. I think this book tackled some really big topics that don’t have clear answers, and I respect that, but at the same time greater cohesion and direction would have really elevated the book for me. 

Overall I definitely recommend this, especially if you enjoy character-driven novels brimming with philosophical questions. 

Parable of the Sower by Octavia E. Butler

dark reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

This was wonderful! Published in 1993 but just as relevant, if not more so, today. 

I absolutely loved the commentary on religion, poverty, race, climate change, class disparity, etc. It all felt so spot on. Even the president cutting funding so he could stuff more money into the pockets of large corporations. The messaging about late-stage capitalism and the plausibility of a new form of slavery were eerily believable, too. 

On one hand all of this makes me feel that Butler was remarkably prescient, but on the other hand it makes me question whether North America has been feeling this heat for longer than we realize. I can’t wait to read the next book!

The Obelisk Gate by N.K. Jemisin

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

Oh how I love this series. This book is just as good as the first, and I can’t wait to read the final book in the trilogy. 

The pacing of this book is definitely slower than the first to allow for a more in-depth exploration of the world, magic system and lore. It also has a strong focus on the parent-child relationship and does not skimp on the intrigue. 

BRB while I Google theories for the foreseeable future. 

Erasure by Percival Everett

reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

I absolutely love Everett’s writing style in this book.

The story is satire meets family drama and follows Thelonious Ellison, who is an author frustrated over the declining quality of published books. In response, he writes his own poor-quality book, which finds disappointingly great success. At the same time, he is caring for his mother, whose Alzheimer’s grows progressively worse over the course of the novel. 

The messaging in this book about family values is beautifully done, and the plot offers a lot of food for thought about what is considered great literature these days and about how blindly supporting art in the name of inclusivity can be harmful, even amounting to racism.  And I think the ending was perfect. 

However, while the book has a certain self-awareness, it does still manage to come off as being a touch pretentious. 

Moon of the Turning Leaves by Waubgeshig Rice

reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

Just as good as the first! I loved the emphasis in this book of the people’s reliance on and connection with the land. An excellent way to cap off a wonderful duology. 

Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro

dark emotional reflective medium-paced

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

5.0

Black Sun by Rebecca Roanhorse

4.0

really enjoyed this! It was a very fun fantasy with a lovely writing style and very unique, complex and lovable characters. 

It did feel as if this book was all setup and little plot, but the ending really has me needing to pick up the next book ASAP. Will definitely continue with this series. 

The Traitor Baru Cormorant by Seth Dickinson

challenging reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes

4.0

This wasn’t as hard hitting for me as I expected it to be, but I think I have to chalk it up to right book, wrong time. 

I loved the themes of colonialism/colonization, oppression, gender roles, sexuality. I loved the moral grey area. And I annoyingly loved the weird, economics-obsessed traitor herself, Baru. 

But the execution left me feeling unmotivated and at times zoned out. Maybe there were too many battle scenes? Too much accounting? 

I have to hand it to Dickinson for really going for it: taking a topic as outwardly dull as accounting and basing an entire plot/character personality around it. Well done. I hate that I loved that.

I did enjoy this and plan to continue with the series, just not immediately.