Scan barcode
mmccombs's reviews
582 reviews
Sula by Toni Morrison
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
4.0
While this isn’t my favorite Morrison that I’ve read, it still has everything that I’ve come to love and expect from her work. Layered, complicated characters with layered, complicated relationships with each other, and absolutely beautiful prose. I loved this exploration of girlhood, friendship, sex and sexuality, and the social pressures that bring us together or pull us apart.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Grief
Minor: Racism, Racial slurs, and Sexism
The Tainted Cup by Robert Jackson Bennett
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
3.5
Really interesting ideas and I mostly had a good time, but I found myself losing interest and then getting confused about what was happening, then having to rewind the audio, and mostly being like huh okay I guess. The vibes were great, the fantasy was really imaginative, the main characters were really fun. However, there were maybe too many characters, too many twists, and too much fantastical elements going on. Tbh, I thought this was just a straight Sherlock Holmes retelling (very much misinformed lol), so I was kind of shocked by how fantastical it was! Which was a treat, I just wasn’t mentally ready for all of the new words and concepts and world-building. It was good but not great for me!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Body horror, and Violence
The Angel of Indian Lake by Stephen Graham Jones
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
3.0
Honestly, the only reason I got through this was because I felt I owed it to Jade to finish the trilogy. The first book was an absolute sucker punch wow of a story, the second book was a bit confusing but engaging, and this last book was basically impenetrable.
Last year I went to a book event for Reaper, and SGJ described his writing process of just letting the story unfold from his brain without any kind of plan (even in determining who the slasher is) going into it. I’d say for the first book (and his Only Good Indians) this is a process that works and makes for very compelling horror, but in this book it felt noticeable in a bad way. Meandering, convoluted, unfocused, there were too many characters, too many “big bads,” too many things happening, and not enough clarity to make sense of any of it.
While SGJ can create vivid (and I mean VIVID) descriptions of gore and bodies and actions, his work tends to struggle with establishing a firm sense of place or time. Throughout this entire series but especially this installment, I was never quite clear about where these things were happening, if it was night or day, or what Proofrock even really looks like (where is the lake? Where is the dam? Where is the town? Where are the characters in relation to these places?). Without this kind of grounding, I never quite felt stable enough to understand who was in a given scene or what was happening.
The “Baker Investigations” parts only added more confusion to a story that was already confusing. I did like that this was from Jade’s POV, but her inner ramblings often got too long and lost the plot’s momentum. I think this could have been a 250 page book and still retained Jade’s singular voice while staying a bit clearer on the action. There are some really fun and moving portions of this book, but I felt like they got lost in the sheer volume of Jade’s thoughts (which was the point, I guess, but it didn’t make it any more enjoyable).
Ultimately, I’m glad I finished out Jade’s story, and she will remain one of the most impactful characters I’ve ever read. While I wish I resonated with this final installment a bit more, she will forever remain my final girl.
Last year I went to a book event for Reaper, and SGJ described his writing process of just letting the story unfold from his brain without any kind of plan (even in determining who the slasher is) going into it. I’d say for the first book (and his Only Good Indians) this is a process that works and makes for very compelling horror, but in this book it felt noticeable in a bad way. Meandering, convoluted, unfocused, there were too many characters, too many “big bads,” too many things happening, and not enough clarity to make sense of any of it.
While SGJ can create vivid (and I mean VIVID) descriptions of gore and bodies and actions, his work tends to struggle with establishing a firm sense of place or time. Throughout this entire series but especially this installment, I was never quite clear about where these things were happening, if it was night or day, or what Proofrock even really looks like (where is the lake? Where is the dam? Where is the town? Where are the characters in relation to these places?). Without this kind of grounding, I never quite felt stable enough to understand who was in a given scene or what was happening.
The “Baker Investigations” parts only added more confusion to a story that was already confusing. I did like that this was from Jade’s POV, but her inner ramblings often got too long and lost the plot’s momentum. I think this could have been a 250 page book and still retained Jade’s singular voice while staying a bit clearer on the action. There are some really fun and moving portions of this book, but I felt like they got lost in the sheer volume of Jade’s thoughts (which was the point, I guess, but it didn’t make it any more enjoyable).
Ultimately, I’m glad I finished out Jade’s story, and she will remain one of the most impactful characters I’ve ever read. While I wish I resonated with this final installment a bit more, she will forever remain my final girl.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Violence, Gore, Death, and Murder
Moderate: Addiction, Grief, and Kidnapping
Anxious People by Fredrik Backman
emotional
funny
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
4.0
This is my first non-Beartown Backman and now I know to always expect sweet, often corny, detailed, and moving accounts of how we belong to and owe each other, even if we are complete strangers. Though I feel like the title of this book makes no sense given the content so I didn’t anticipate what this would be about, I found this to be equally propulsive (ooh a mystery!) and cozy (ooh people hanging out and talking about their stories!). I love Backman’s style of talking about “us” while also talking specifically about a character, stretching the POV into the past, present, and future all at once, I think he is an expert at making a unique experience (and a very strange one at that in this case!) into something that captures universal truths. Everyone we meet has a life full of problems and joys and history, and when we brush up against each other we may be lucky enough to find the little connections that make our lives just a bit fuller, too. Just a pleasure to read!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Grief, and Suicide attempt
Crooked Plow by Itamar Vieira Junior
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
Simple prose that breathed with life and rendered the impacts of colonization in the present tangible. While I did struggle a bit with the pace and organization of it (I kind of wish it was just told chronologically, but it wasn’t bad, either). I loved the characters and the strong sense of place, and it was also a book where you could tell immense care was taken in the translation of it. So glad this book came on my radar, it covered a time and place I’m not familiar with and did so very compellingly!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Violence, Colonisation, Slavery, Death of parent, and Grief
Dear Wendy by Ann Zhao
Did not finish book. Stopped at 32%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 32%.
Unfortunately, this was just not the book for me. I was excited to read this as an ace person, I’m always looking for rep and cute stories! However, the writing was just not something I could get into and the style felt verrrryy YA despite these characters being college students (it is very likely I’m just out of touch with how college freshmen talk but to me it felt much more high-school, which is fine, but not what I expected). The representation was great and incredibly affirming to read, it was nice to see ace-spec people having a normal time and making strong friendships and platonic relationships. I also really loved the chapter titles, which is a small but very fun detail. I think if YA is more your thing this will be a fantastic book to turn to, I personally just found myself disengaged and mildly annoyed by the writing and character “voice,” though I will always cheer good rep on!
Thanks to Netgalley and Macmillan for the eARC!
Us Against You by Fredrik Backman
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
4.0
It’s been a bit since I read the first book, but the 2nd installment did such a complete “previously on…” that I immediately felt right back in it. The specific voice of this series, 2nd person omnipresent POV, is so interesting and really works for the over the top drama that occurs in this story.
Sometimes the look into the future (“and she will regret it” etc etc) felt a little cheesy, but this book is kind of inherently cheesy, so it works. I did have some issues with the future tense constantly teasing something terrible and then nothing would happen (or the thing would happen but to a character we didn’t even know existed), it often felt like cheap emotional manipulation just to provoke a response, but never going so far as to actually reap consequences for the characters/story. I was definitely kept on the edge of my seat, but after crying wolf so many times I eventually felt as if there were no meaningful stakes.
This felt like a very natural continuation from the first book, similar themes and turmoil and small town politics, so in some ways it felt kind of repetitive and unnecessary, but mostly it was nice to come back to Beartown. I will definitely finish out this series and am excited to get to some of Blackman’s other titles.
Sometimes the look into the future (“and she will regret it” etc etc) felt a little cheesy, but this book is kind of inherently cheesy, so it works. I did have some issues with the future tense constantly teasing something terrible and then nothing would happen (or the thing would happen but to a character we didn’t even know existed), it often felt like cheap emotional manipulation just to provoke a response, but never going so far as to actually reap consequences for the characters/story. I was definitely kept on the edge of my seat, but after crying wolf so many times I eventually felt as if there were no meaningful stakes.
This felt like a very natural continuation from the first book, similar themes and turmoil and small town politics, so in some ways it felt kind of repetitive and unnecessary, but mostly it was nice to come back to Beartown. I will definitely finish out this series and am excited to get to some of Blackman’s other titles.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Homophobia, Death, Rape, and Suicide
Moderate: Car accident and Gun violence
Henry Henry by Allen Bratton
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
3.5
While the writing and developed themes were incredibly compelling, I mostly found reading this to be a chore. I had a difficult time getting into this, I was not really into Hal as a character so I never quite felt motivated to pick the book up.
However, once we got to the incident with Harry Percy, I suddenly felt invested. I loved the charm between these characters, the way their differences and similarities bounced off one another.
But then the energy and momentum of the story kind of fizzled out for me, a lot of the action felt repetitive and I was waiting for a bit more development from these characters.
I did love the connection between Catholicism (and a lot of guilt), Hal’s relationship with his father (complicated, to say the least), the long line of history that tethered this family together, and the Shakespearian-ness of it all. The sentence-level craft of it was well done, so even though the story didn’t totally work for me, the structure of it did.
I have a feeling that this will be a polarizing book people will have opinions about, but if you are a reader that prefers (messy) character-driven novels, enjoyed the Henriad (or maybe even Succession), and are down for some privileged white boy drama, I think this will be a book for you.
Thanks to NetGalley and Unnamed Press for the eARC!
However, once we got to the incident with Harry Percy, I suddenly felt invested. I loved the charm between these characters, the way their differences and similarities bounced off one another.
But then the energy and momentum of the story kind of fizzled out for me, a lot of the action felt repetitive and I was waiting for a bit more development from these characters.
I did love the connection between Catholicism (and a lot of guilt), Hal’s relationship with his father (complicated, to say the least), the long line of history that tethered this family together, and the Shakespearian-ness of it all. The sentence-level craft of it was well done, so even though the story didn’t totally work for me, the structure of it did.
I have a feeling that this will be a polarizing book people will have opinions about, but if you are a reader that prefers (messy) character-driven novels, enjoyed the Henriad (or maybe even Succession), and are down for some privileged white boy drama, I think this will be a book for you.
Thanks to NetGalley and Unnamed Press for the eARC!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Incest, Sexual content, Child abuse, Death, Rape, Domestic abuse, and Drug use
Moderate: Medical content and Injury/Injury detail
Filterworld: How Algorithms Flattened Culture by Kyle Chayka
hopeful
informative
reflective
medium-paced
4.5
A book that put words and context to my overwhelming feelings of bleak anxiety whenever going on the internet over the past few years. I found this book accessible and mind blowing, though I do feel like it was very much an intro overview that could have gone deeper in some areas. Especially coming at this from a bookstagram perspective, I leave this book with many ideas about how to improve my connection with the reason I joined in the first place: building community and finding great books to read. How can I curate my feed to better represent my interests? How can I curate my posts to be more meaningful, rather than just throwing posts out there in a desperate attempt to gain likes? Could I leave the platform altogether to achieve something slower, something outside the algorithm? This is a book that truly made me step back and begin to reassess my own habits, while also thinking more broadly about our culture at large, and I had a great time thinking about those things!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Mental illness and Suicide
Beautyland by Marie-Helene Bertino
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
medium-paced
5.0
This was absolutely a revelation for me! Such compelling character work and beautiful things to say about loneliness, belonging, memory, and love. Adina will be a character that stays with me for a long time, she’s a person I see myself in and also deeply felt for as she navigated her love and her grief. I loved that we followed her for her entire life chronologically which made for a very poignant journey, where things would come full circle in ways that felt so real and devastating. This was weird and charming and smart, absolutely adored this reading experience!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Cancer, Death, and Animal death