michaelapr's reviews
87 reviews

White Nights by Fyodor Dostoevsky

reflective sad fast-paced

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

3.0

I honestly don't know how I feel about this short story. I feel like I should like it more than I did. 

On one hand, I feel for our dreamer who is struggling to bring himself to make real connections. But on the other hand the dreamer gets lost in his many contemplations in annoying ways, bringing us along with him. On one hand I feel for Nastenka and her situation. On the other she is very flaky and selfish. The end is inevitable, yet feels unsatisfactory.

I have many conflicting feelings. I could be persuaded to increase the rating or decrease it - but for now it's 3 stars.

The Mythmakers: The Remarkable Fellowship of C.S. Lewis & J.R.R. Tolkien by John Hendrix

emotional hopeful inspiring reflective medium-paced

4.0

This is a lovely, touching telling of the lives of J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis and their friendship. I really enjoyed this story and even got emotional at times. It really shows the importance of creative communities and relationships - something I feel like I'm needing personally. A great read for people who love Lord of the Rings and Narnia and their authors.

Daredevil: Guardian Devil by Kevin Smith

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense fast-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

I always love a Daredevil comic. This is my first audio version of a comicbook and I have to say... I really enjoyed it! The voice actors, the sound effects, all of it made it sound like a radio/podcast production. I will definitely have to try out more like it!

Tokyo Ghoul, Vol. 1 by Sui Ishida

adventurous dark tense fast-paced

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

3.25

A quick read, the story premise is interesting although the art style is a bit dark and hectic. We'll see if I read any more of the series!

We Were the Lucky Ones by Georgia Hunter

dark inspiring sad 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? No

4.25

A great story filled with sadness but also hope. I was rooting for and worried about all of the characters the entire time. It was very eye-opening to see the different experiences that people went through in Europe during WWII through the eyes of this family - I certainly didn't know about things like Siberia or Anderson's Army for instance. The ending also didn't disappoint!
This was also a good reminder about how quickly life can change, how there are so many victims of war, and the devastation that hatred of persecuted groups can bring. It also showed, at least to me right now in the events of 2025, how important it is we see that this can happen again but with different players and that we need to do everything in our power to prevent it from happening again.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Death, Hate crime, Antisemitism, Grief, War, and Deportation

Moderate: Genocide

The Last Thing He Told Me by Laura Dave

emotional mysterious reflective sad fast-paced

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

4.0

It's been a while since I've read a book that was just so easy to read. The writing flowed and was a really nice pace, making it hard to put down at times. The ending was a bit of a bummer, despite it being an inevitable conclusion, but otherwise this was an enjoyable read.

The Stolen Baby by Diney Costeloe
Did not finish book. Stopped at 13%.

I may come back to this one but at this moment I just can't seem to get into the story. 

Never Again Good-Bye by Terri Blackstock

hopeful inspiring lighthearted medium-paced

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

3.0

This is exactly what you would expect out of a Christian Romance: Lighthearted and predictable, but a decent story all the same.

Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus

emotional funny hopeful inspiring medium-paced

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

3.75

I did enjoy this book. I can see why it got a lot of hype when it came out and I wasn't disappointed, even if it's not quite a 4 star read for me. I enjoyed the writing style the most. It's quick and rye with a touch of humor and feeling. I'm also a sucker for "all these characters are connected - watch and see how they're connected AND how they come together and effect each other." When done well it's an enjoyable experience and in this case it was done well. I also enjoyed the characters, particularly the side characters and Six Thirty - the dog who gets one of my favorite POVs in the book.
Certain aspects of the book didn't do it for me. They were far and in between but they still left this book just under the 4 star mark.
Some of Elizabeth's little monologues that established her as ahead of her time felt stilted and unrealistic to me, for instance. Don't get me wrong - women had these thoughts at the time and I've read books that reflected similar ideas, I just know I've read authors that have addressed these views in a less preachy, take you out of the story way (see Celeste Ng's Little Fires Everywhere and Everything I Never Told You for instance).
There were also moments where the "villiany" of some of Elizabeth's colleagues felt... overblown. The sexism and explicit harassment in the workplaces at this time was very real. However, it was often insidious and structural, which was not reflected in this book in a realistic way. It reminded me of the workplace sexism in Season 3 of Stranger Things where the men in Nancy's workplace were depicted as cartoonishly villianous for reasons I never understood. Depicting these experiences in this way, both in this book and a TV show, just doesn't seem very helpful to add to the conversation of sexism or feminism to me.
I also felt like the ending was rushed - like the author had a page limit and had to wrap up the loose ends as quickly as possible to be under that page mark. It made what should have been a satisfying ending lackluster, at least to me, obviously a lot of people really loved it and in a way I can see why. But still, the potential was there and I wish it had been reached.
Like I said, overall I liked this book. I can see why it's so popular because it's a story that many people want and need - a story where we can stick it to the man in less conventional ways. But I can also see it's flaws and missed opportunities, which is why it gets 3.75 stars from me.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape and Sexual harassment

Never by Jessa Hastings
Did not finish book. Stopped at 35%.

I may come back to this later because I like the premise but honestly I'm not a fan of the writing style and I hate seeing a so called "strong independent woman" constantly questioning herself because of a man child.