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A Crane Among Wolves by June Hur
Iseul (17) has lived a sheltered, privileged life as a yangban aristocrat until the king executes her parents. She is forced to flee with her older sister (Suyeon) to the village where their grandmother lives. Here, she continues to act as if she lives still her previous life while her sister starts to do what is expected of them: to work. Until Suyeon becomes the king's latest victim and gets kidnapped by him. Here, the actual story starts as Iseul leaves her village to save her sister, and becomes entangled in the web of politics. She also meets Daehyun, the king's younger half-brother, who despises his brother and always walks the fine line between surviving and becoming his brother's next victim. Reluctantly, both join forces to beat their common enemy: the king. To successfully save her sister, and overthrow the king, Iseul has also to solve an ongoing murder mystery.
✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*
A Crane Among Wolves is set in South Korea (Joseon, 1506) under the rule of King Yeonsan. It is a historical fiction, so the majority of figures existed and there was someone close enough that functioned as inspiration for the author. Due to this, it is a rather dark YA novel.
As for the plot: the idea for the plot was very alluring but it isn't well executed in my opinion. Everything is very conveniently solved and the murder mystery, which is a side aspect that the book's summary doesn't even mention, didn't leave me guessing. It was obvious who the "Nameless Flower" murderer was from the beginning as the author dealt with the hints rather heavy-handed. Aside from the murders, a lot of plot points were delayed until ~30% into the story, so the first part is extremely boring and I was questioning why I was reading this. Afterwards, the pacing became so fast that it felt rushed as there was no build-up to most points. Iseul rushes from scene to scene, which creates a very unconnected feeling.
The book is a dual POV story that alternates between Iseul (1st person) and Daehyun (3rd person), which became rather annoying. In addition, the author tells the reader everything. For example, it is regularly mentioned that Iseul has a fatherly relationship with Wosnik (a side character) but never shows anything of it. It is a similar issue for Iseul and Daehyun with their romance: everything is told but never shown, which left me very uncaring about all the characters and the romance.
Iseul is a brat. Her character development is minimal although I have to admit that she was an even worse brat in the first chapters. She is a spoilt, petulant and immature teenager who never listens to anyone, instead, she always rushes into situations where she gets into trouble. Towards the end, she became more tolerable but only barely. Daehyun is underdeveloped and one-dimensional. There's no depth to him besides being a self-sacrificial lamb who knows that he will likely die (either by his brother's hand or by someone else). I have no idea why these two fell for each other to the point that they promised each other to find them in the next lifetime. All side characters are equally underdeveloped and partly fulfil some stereotypical rules. E.g., the king is a tyrant but he is always portrayed as someone close to insanity. He felt like the villain in a comic/superhero movie.
✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*
TWs & CWs: rape (mentioned), sexual abuse, misogyny, kidnapping women and girls, sex trafficking, incest (mentioned), general violence, murder, animal cruelty, animal death, suicide (mentioned), infanticide (mentioned), psychological trauma, panic attacks, grief.
Trope(s): enemies to reluctant allies to lovers, forced proximity, slow burn, found family
Genre: YA Historical Fiction + Romance
Heat/Spice: 0
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
There are too many sorrows in life to feel each too deeply.
Iseul (17) has lived a sheltered, privileged life as a yangban aristocrat until the king executes her parents. She is forced to flee with her older sister (Suyeon) to the village where their grandmother lives. Here, she continues to act as if she lives still her previous life while her sister starts to do what is expected of them: to work. Until Suyeon becomes the king's latest victim and gets kidnapped by him. Here, the actual story starts as Iseul leaves her village to save her sister, and becomes entangled in the web of politics. She also meets Daehyun, the king's younger half-brother, who despises his brother and always walks the fine line between surviving and becoming his brother's next victim. Reluctantly, both join forces to beat their common enemy: the king. To successfully save her sister, and overthrow the king, Iseul has also to solve an ongoing murder mystery.
✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*
A Crane Among Wolves is set in South Korea (Joseon, 1506) under the rule of King Yeonsan. It is a historical fiction, so the majority of figures existed and there was someone close enough that functioned as inspiration for the author. Due to this, it is a rather dark YA novel.
As for the plot: the idea for the plot was very alluring but it isn't well executed in my opinion. Everything is very conveniently solved and the murder mystery, which is a side aspect that the book's summary doesn't even mention, didn't leave me guessing. It was obvious who the "Nameless Flower" murderer was from the beginning as the author dealt with the hints rather heavy-handed. Aside from the murders, a lot of plot points were delayed until ~30% into the story, so the first part is extremely boring and I was questioning why I was reading this. Afterwards, the pacing became so fast that it felt rushed as there was no build-up to most points. Iseul rushes from scene to scene, which creates a very unconnected feeling.
The book is a dual POV story that alternates between Iseul (1st person) and Daehyun (3rd person), which became rather annoying. In addition, the author tells the reader everything. For example, it is regularly mentioned that Iseul has a fatherly relationship with Wosnik (a side character) but never shows anything of it. It is a similar issue for Iseul and Daehyun with their romance: everything is told but never shown, which left me very uncaring about all the characters and the romance.
Iseul is a brat. Her character development is minimal although I have to admit that she was an even worse brat in the first chapters. She is a spoilt, petulant and immature teenager who never listens to anyone, instead, she always rushes into situations where she gets into trouble. Towards the end, she became more tolerable but only barely. Daehyun is underdeveloped and one-dimensional. There's no depth to him besides being a self-sacrificial lamb who knows that he will likely die (either by his brother's hand or by someone else). I have no idea why these two fell for each other to the point that they promised each other to find them in the next lifetime. All side characters are equally underdeveloped and partly fulfil some stereotypical rules. E.g., the king is a tyrant but he is always portrayed as someone close to insanity. He felt like the villain in a comic/superhero movie.
✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*
TWs & CWs: rape (mentioned), sexual abuse, misogyny, kidnapping women and girls, sex trafficking, incest (mentioned), general violence, murder, animal cruelty, animal death, suicide (mentioned), infanticide (mentioned), psychological trauma, panic attacks, grief.
Trope(s): enemies to reluctant allies to lovers, forced proximity, slow burn, found family
Genre: YA Historical Fiction + Romance
Heat/Spice: 0
A Master of Djinn by P. Djèlí Clark
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
A Master of Djinn is set in the same world as The Haunting of Tram Car 015 (which will be shortly mentioned in the book) and follows Agent Fatma on a big case: the murder of the British aristocrat and his guests. A murder that is more than it seems.
The story is set in an alternative Egypt although it plays only in Cairo and Giza. There are mentions and references to other countries and the overall world state (e.g., they are close to World War 1), and which supernatural beings exist in other countries (e.g., Fae in France, Goblins in Germany, beings from Slavic folklore in Russia). Cairo and Giza are extremely fleshed-out cities in this world and it was very easy to imagine how everything looks. No matter if it's the feeling on markets and in the streets, an underground nightclub, or a cemetery/tomb from Pharaoh times that became a ghetto, ... - the author excelled here. Just like the author did extremely well with incorporating various themes like colonialism/imperialism, corruption, police violence, gender in society, foreigners committing theft in colonies/ex-colonies, and poverty/the created distance within a society due to money/heritage.
I think my biggest issue is really that Fatma, our main character, is sometimes so incredibly stupid and fails to notice a lot of clues that would have led her to the real villain much earlier. Her new partner, Hadia, is the typical enthusiastic rookie but sometimes feels like a Mary Sue as well. Whenever she said "I have a cousin ...", I felt reminded of all these movies with Italian-American characters where Giovanni/Tony/... has an unlimited amount of cousins and gives off Mafia vibes. At times, I felt reminded of the old cop movies with the dynamic between Fatma and Hadia. It doesn't help that all the other agents, and the few named policemen, also fit into very stereotypical roles. Concerning Fatma's inability to notice hints at times: I found it rather easy to realise who the villain is because the author isn't very subtle with dropping hints. Yes, he enlarges the plot so much that it feels scattershot because a thousand side pieces pull away the focus from the main story, but I still found parts of it so predictable. It's still a good book to read, and it was fun, but I would have appreciated a tighter story and a more "oh damn, I wouldn't have guessed that!" feeling at the end.
The story is set in an alternative Egypt although it plays only in Cairo and Giza. There are mentions and references to other countries and the overall world state (e.g., they are close to World War 1), and which supernatural beings exist in other countries (e.g., Fae in France, Goblins in Germany, beings from Slavic folklore in Russia). Cairo and Giza are extremely fleshed-out cities in this world and it was very easy to imagine how everything looks. No matter if it's the feeling on markets and in the streets, an underground nightclub, or a cemetery/tomb from Pharaoh times that became a ghetto, ... - the author excelled here. Just like the author did extremely well with incorporating various themes like colonialism/imperialism, corruption, police violence, gender in society, foreigners committing theft in colonies/ex-colonies, and poverty/the created distance within a society due to money/heritage.
I think my biggest issue is really that Fatma, our main character, is sometimes so incredibly stupid and fails to notice a lot of clues that would have led her to the real villain much earlier. Her new partner, Hadia, is the typical enthusiastic rookie but sometimes feels like a Mary Sue as well. Whenever she said "I have a cousin ...", I felt reminded of all these movies with Italian-American characters where Giovanni/Tony/... has an unlimited amount of cousins and gives off Mafia vibes. At times, I felt reminded of the old cop movies with the dynamic between Fatma and Hadia. It doesn't help that all the other agents, and the few named policemen, also fit into very stereotypical roles. Concerning Fatma's inability to notice hints at times: I found it rather easy to realise who the villain is because the author isn't very subtle with dropping hints. Yes, he enlarges the plot so much that it feels scattershot because a thousand side pieces pull away the focus from the main story, but I still found parts of it so predictable. It's still a good book to read, and it was fun, but I would have appreciated a tighter story and a more "oh damn, I wouldn't have guessed that!" feeling at the end.
A Song to Drown Rivers by Ann Liang
emotional
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for sending me an eArc.
A Song to Drown Rivers is my first book by the author and when I requested it, I was rather hyped for it as I used to have a hyperfixation period where I read everything about the Great Beauties of Ancient China, to which Xishi (Or Xi Shi as was her actual name) counted. So finding out that there's a retelling of the story had me hooked!
In the book, as in history, Xishi and another young woman were picked by Fanli to be trained before sending them as tributes to Wu's king Fuchai in the hope that the king would become so infatuated with her that he forgets to rule his kingdom. The biggest difference is the training period for Xishi and Zhengdang. While it took three years to train both to become concubines, Fanli only needed 10 weeks to train both for their roles: Xishi as a concubine and Zhengdang as her palace lady. That's certainly a fantasy to train two young women from a rural village into learned ladies who can bewitch every man.
My biggest issues with the book are:
1) The romance between Xishi and Fanli is so underdeveloped. They have a few scenes together but I don't think that they would be enough to establish any feelings. It might have been better to increase the training period from merely 10 weeks to at least 6 months to give the reader more scenes between both characters. Would have made the end more believable as well.
2) The pacing is so off. It starts rather slow and drags a bit before it suddenly picks up in speed enough to give the reader a moment of "finally". Unfortunately, it sags shortly afterwards with Xishi spending time in Fuchai's palace but nothing really happens there. Yes, she always talks about her acts of cunning behaviour but it's all off-page. Then, the minor climax happens and the rest is just rushed to reach the end in the allotted amount of pages. Despite the weird pacing, the entire book feels rushed and unfinished. There are a lot of things that the author hints at, which could have made for compelling points, but they would have needed more pages to be developed.
3) None of the characters raised any kind of interest in me for them. Xishi's defining traits are her beauty, her love for Fanli and sometimes her cunning (although pretty much everything is handed on a silver platter to her). Fanli is just ✨mysterious✨. Fuchai is a drunken, careless young man who is either cruel or a helpless boy. Zhengdang is driven by her need for vengeance. I would have expected more well-developed characters that make me care for them. Yes, the end is sad but my only thought was "it is finally over", which is never a good thing.
TL;DR: I wish that the book would have gotten 200 pages more, so the author could have developed the characters and the themes that would have made the novel good. Instead, it's a rushed historical fiction (I really don't know where the fantasy label stems from.) that fails to show the importance of Xishi as one of Ancient China's Great Beauties. If you want to gauge how important Xi Shi was actually for China: China has a rating system for their tourist attractions that goes from A to 5A. Xi Shi's hometown is a 4A tourist area and is also considered a cultural heritage site. It's the equivalent of the UNESCO world heritage sites in Western countries.
A Song to Drown Rivers is my first book by the author and when I requested it, I was rather hyped for it as I used to have a hyperfixation period where I read everything about the Great Beauties of Ancient China, to which Xishi (Or Xi Shi as was her actual name) counted. So finding out that there's a retelling of the story had me hooked!
In the book, as in history, Xishi and another young woman were picked by Fanli to be trained before sending them as tributes to Wu's king Fuchai in the hope that the king would become so infatuated with her that he forgets to rule his kingdom. The biggest difference is the training period for Xishi and Zhengdang. While it took three years to train both to become concubines, Fanli only needed 10 weeks to train both for their roles: Xishi as a concubine and Zhengdang as her palace lady. That's certainly a fantasy to train two young women from a rural village into learned ladies who can bewitch every man.
My biggest issues with the book are:
1) The romance between Xishi and Fanli is so underdeveloped. They have a few scenes together but I don't think that they would be enough to establish any feelings. It might have been better to increase the training period from merely 10 weeks to at least 6 months to give the reader more scenes between both characters. Would have made the end more believable as well.
2) The pacing is so off. It starts rather slow and drags a bit before it suddenly picks up in speed enough to give the reader a moment of "finally". Unfortunately, it sags shortly afterwards with Xishi spending time in Fuchai's palace but nothing really happens there. Yes, she always talks about her acts of cunning behaviour but it's all off-page. Then, the minor climax happens and the rest is just rushed to reach the end in the allotted amount of pages. Despite the weird pacing, the entire book feels rushed and unfinished. There are a lot of things that the author hints at, which could have made for compelling points, but they would have needed more pages to be developed.
3) None of the characters raised any kind of interest in me for them. Xishi's defining traits are her beauty, her love for Fanli and sometimes her cunning (although pretty much everything is handed on a silver platter to her). Fanli is just ✨mysterious✨. Fuchai is a drunken, careless young man who is either cruel or a helpless boy. Zhengdang is driven by her need for vengeance. I would have expected more well-developed characters that make me care for them. Yes, the end is sad but my only thought was "it is finally over", which is never a good thing.
TL;DR: I wish that the book would have gotten 200 pages more, so the author could have developed the characters and the themes that would have made the novel good. Instead, it's a rushed historical fiction (I really don't know where the fantasy label stems from.) that fails to show the importance of Xishi as one of Ancient China's Great Beauties. If you want to gauge how important Xi Shi was actually for China: China has a rating system for their tourist attractions that goes from A to 5A. Xi Shi's hometown is a 4A tourist area and is also considered a cultural heritage site. It's the equivalent of the UNESCO world heritage sites in Western countries.
Cats and Other Calamities by Tarryn Thomas, Alex Wagner, Alex Wagner
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
3.0
A somewhat cosy murder mystery where a dog and a cat are the detectives. Despite the murders, it is rather light-hearted and quick to read. Not the greatest piece of literature in the world but it was fun to read and a nice break for my brain.
If you like books where the animal is the protagonist and the human is a side character, you will enjoy it.
If you like books where the animal is the protagonist and the human is a side character, you will enjoy it.
Taken by the Alien Next Door by Tiffany Roberts
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
Taken by the Alien Next Door is Science Fiction Romance and the first of a series, which has three books so far.
To be honest: it is an utterly bland and generic SFR book. Yes, it is rather light-hearted at times (aside from the kidnapping and the fatphobic comments of the FMC by other men) but it is so generic.
✔️ kidnapping trope
✔️ humanoid alien that is conventionally attractive
✔️ lots of generic sex scenes
✔️ MMC and FMC have whimsical jobs that somehow make a lot of money (soap and candle making & whittling/woodwork)
✔️ male alien values and worships the FMC because his race has a 20:1 ratio for males/females
✔️ one-dimensional and wishy-washy characters
The kidnapping and the questionable consent (partly even the absence of it at all) in combination of the fatphobia is ... eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeh. Seriously, it would have been better to write this as an overall cute, hallmark movie-esque book. It might have been stereotypical then but it wouldn't irk me so much with the dark elements of kidnapping, the dubious consent, the fatphobia, which got paired with the light-hearted elements. Even the comic-esque cover doesn't hint at the dark elements. The cuffs could have been part of a sex scene.
Also, I don't know why we always have fatphobia in a novel where the FMC is a plus-size character. I don't want to read other male characters insulting the FMC or her own disturbed views on her body. I have reality for it, I don't need a romance novel doing it too.
To be honest: it is an utterly bland and generic SFR book. Yes, it is rather light-hearted at times (aside from the kidnapping and the fatphobic comments of the FMC by other men) but it is so generic.
✔️ kidnapping trope
✔️ humanoid alien that is conventionally attractive
✔️ lots of generic sex scenes
✔️ MMC and FMC have whimsical jobs that somehow make a lot of money (soap and candle making & whittling/woodwork)
✔️ male alien values and worships the FMC because his race has a 20:1 ratio for males/females
✔️ one-dimensional and wishy-washy characters
The kidnapping and the questionable consent (partly even the absence of it at all) in combination of the fatphobia is ... eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeh. Seriously, it would have been better to write this as an overall cute, hallmark movie-esque book. It might have been stereotypical then but it wouldn't irk me so much with the dark elements of kidnapping, the dubious consent, the fatphobia, which got paired with the light-hearted elements. Even the comic-esque cover doesn't hint at the dark elements. The cuffs could have been part of a sex scene.
Also, I don't know why we always have fatphobia in a novel where the FMC is a plus-size character. I don't want to read other male characters insulting the FMC or her own disturbed views on her body. I have reality for it, I don't need a romance novel doing it too.
Voyage of the Damned by Frances White
emotional
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Voyage of the Damned was one of those books where I was worried if I would like it (or even finish it) because the first part is rough. I think it mostly stems from the unusual writing style/narrative because it's a very sarcastic first-person narrative but once I got used to it, it was enjoyable to read. It is a fantasy version of "Death on the Nile" with a queer underdog protagonist who doesn't even want to be there.
It's a closed-door murder mystery set on a magical boat that sails towards a (magical) mountain to fulfil some ancient tradition. All passengers aside from Ganymedes (Dee) have a magical ability called Blessing. And while some are rather open about it, most keep their Blessing a secret, which suits Dee due to his lack of it. And while he doesn't even want to be there, and plans to antagonise the others so much that he will lose his title, he didn't expect the murder of ... well, anyone. To survive, he teams up with a 6-year-old girl and a sickly boy to solve the murders. As the book progresses, the bodies start to pile up and Dee uncovers secrets and has to deal with the topic of castes (often within castes), societal and familial expectations, grief for loved ones and prejudices.
The world-building is a high fantasy with urban fantasy influences (e.g., hot dog as a dish, modern chess, ...) and the magic system seems very wild at first but is explained later in the novel why the magic (the Blessings) seems to be so unsorted. The only thing that I would criticise about the world-building is the map and the very different climates in each region, e.g. a desert region is right next to an ice-cold region where mammoths live. (I'm very picky when it comes to such things though.) It doesn't influence the story though as it's more background information for the Blessed who rules/will rule over the region. Plus points for the queerness in the novel though. We have a non-binary character (their entire region is very non-binary coded with their own terms for parents etc), two bisexual characters and one gay character. There's also one character in a wheelchair and while it's revealed that people tend to underestimate the character, no one uses a slur towards them. All arguments and tensions stem from other issues.
I have to say though that I find the "adult fantasy" label inaccurate because it is very YA-coded. Yes, you have adult characters in the book but the overall writing and the behaviour of the MC is very YA-esque. Every death is mentioned but not in-depth as it would happen with an adult novel but more in a "he was stabbed 17 times"/"the wounds were deep" kind of way, which is very fitting for a YA too. (I wouldn't categorise it as a thriller either. It's a YA with a murder mystery and that's it. There's no suspension in it that's typical for thrillers.)
My main issue with the book is the fatphobia and the MC's relationship with food. The male MC is a plus-size character (always described with a soft tummy, thick thighs, ...) who is often discarded due to it or reduced to his size. As someone who is plus-size, it made me very uncomfortable at times and I'm an adult in my 30s. Also, Ganymedes' relationship with food is close to an eating disorder. Here, I'm unsure if the author did it on purpose or if it happened accidentally but in combination with the fatphobic comments, I found it troublesome. I find this very troublesome in combination with the YA-esque vibe of the book because it would have influenced me a lot as a teenager. Yes, I grew up in the 90s/early 00s when diet culture was rampant and Kate Moss' was hyped for her "nothing tastes as good as skinny feels", which deeply influenced my relationship with my body and with food, but books tended to be a safe place to leave reality for a while. I think if I had read this book as an older teenager who was struggling with body image and a healthy relationship with food, I would have just cried or felt even worse. Yes, Ganymedes knows that he's fat and accepts himself completely but he's so often reduced to his looks (especially when everyone else in the novel is tall and destroyed as beautiful) that it just ... hurts.
It's a closed-door murder mystery set on a magical boat that sails towards a (magical) mountain to fulfil some ancient tradition. All passengers aside from Ganymedes (Dee) have a magical ability called Blessing. And while some are rather open about it, most keep their Blessing a secret, which suits Dee due to his lack of it. And while he doesn't even want to be there, and plans to antagonise the others so much that he will lose his title, he didn't expect the murder of ... well, anyone. To survive, he teams up with a 6-year-old girl and a sickly boy to solve the murders. As the book progresses, the bodies start to pile up and Dee uncovers secrets and has to deal with the topic of castes (often within castes), societal and familial expectations, grief for loved ones and prejudices.
The world-building is a high fantasy with urban fantasy influences (e.g., hot dog as a dish, modern chess, ...) and the magic system seems very wild at first but is explained later in the novel why the magic (the Blessings) seems to be so unsorted. The only thing that I would criticise about the world-building is the map and the very different climates in each region, e.g. a desert region is right next to an ice-cold region where mammoths live. (I'm very picky when it comes to such things though.) It doesn't influence the story though as it's more background information for the Blessed who rules/will rule over the region. Plus points for the queerness in the novel though. We have a non-binary character (their entire region is very non-binary coded with their own terms for parents etc), two bisexual characters and one gay character. There's also one character in a wheelchair and while it's revealed that people tend to underestimate the character, no one uses a slur towards them. All arguments and tensions stem from other issues.
I have to say though that I find the "adult fantasy" label inaccurate because it is very YA-coded. Yes, you have adult characters in the book but the overall writing and the behaviour of the MC is very YA-esque. Every death is mentioned but not in-depth as it would happen with an adult novel but more in a "he was stabbed 17 times"/"the wounds were deep" kind of way, which is very fitting for a YA too. (I wouldn't categorise it as a thriller either. It's a YA with a murder mystery and that's it. There's no suspension in it that's typical for thrillers.)
My main issue with the book is the fatphobia and the MC's relationship with food. The male MC is a plus-size character (always described with a soft tummy, thick thighs, ...) who is often discarded due to it or reduced to his size. As someone who is plus-size, it made me very uncomfortable at times and I'm an adult in my 30s. Also, Ganymedes' relationship with food is close to an eating disorder. Here, I'm unsure if the author did it on purpose or if it happened accidentally but in combination with the fatphobic comments, I found it troublesome. I find this very troublesome in combination with the YA-esque vibe of the book because it would have influenced me a lot as a teenager. Yes, I grew up in the 90s/early 00s when diet culture was rampant and Kate Moss' was hyped for her "nothing tastes as good as skinny feels", which deeply influenced my relationship with my body and with food, but books tended to be a safe place to leave reality for a while. I think if I had read this book as an older teenager who was struggling with body image and a healthy relationship with food, I would have just cried or felt even worse. Yes, Ganymedes knows that he's fat and accepts himself completely but he's so often reduced to his looks (especially when everyone else in the novel is tall and destroyed as beautiful) that it just ... hurts.
The Henna Wars by Adiba Jaigirdar
emotional
lighthearted
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? It's complicated
2.0
The Henna Wars had been on my tbr for ages and I finally read it as last entry for Sapphic September.
I will keep the review relatively short and separate it into "the good" and "the bad".
The Good
- The representation in the form of a sapphic Muslim Bangladeshi girl (Nishat) and a bisexual Black Brazilian girl (Flávia who I think is bi-racial as her cousin on her father's side is white) who live in Ireland because I think both are relatively rare.
- The themes of cultural appropriation, homophobia (from family & friends but also classmates), Islamophobia and racism. Sometimes, the bullying is extreme but I think it's still an accurate representation and shows what BIPOC people have to deal with.
- The food. (I got hungry when the author wrote about the Bengali dishes.)
The Bad
- There is so much happening in this book, which makes it a very rushed reading experience. There's the issue of Flávia not understanding the cultural appropriation of Nishat's culture because "art is art", which is somewhat resolved but mostly glossed over.
- Flávia's cousin bullied Nishat for years (since primary school when she realised that it isn't cool to be friends with a brown girl) gets away with a light slap on the wrist at the end, gives a pseudo apology and that's it. In a similar vein: the pseudo apology by one of Nishat's best friends. Girl, why are you friends with them?
- The entire conflict surrounding Nishat's unwanted outing at the Catholic Girls School! There's a bit shouting between two parties but that's it.
- The romance. Yes, parts of it are cute but the entire thing is so weird and out of nowhere. It has also a ton of conflict in it but in the end everyone is fine? Even Nishat's parents are getting around her oldest being gay.
- The writing style was sometimes ... eeh at times. It made everyone seem even younger than they are and gives it a Middle-Grade feeling instead of YA. Partly, the narration is also extremely overly dramatic for no reason in some scenes.
- Pop culture references. Sorry, I just hate them.
I think the idea behind the book is a good one but the execution falls extremely flat.
I will keep the review relatively short and separate it into "the good" and "the bad".
The Good
- The representation in the form of a sapphic Muslim Bangladeshi girl (Nishat) and a bisexual Black Brazilian girl (Flávia who I think is bi-racial as her cousin on her father's side is white) who live in Ireland because I think both are relatively rare.
- The themes of cultural appropriation, homophobia (from family & friends but also classmates), Islamophobia and racism. Sometimes, the bullying is extreme but I think it's still an accurate representation and shows what BIPOC people have to deal with.
- The food. (I got hungry when the author wrote about the Bengali dishes.)
The Bad
- There is so much happening in this book, which makes it a very rushed reading experience. There's the issue of Flávia not understanding the cultural appropriation of Nishat's culture because "art is art", which is somewhat resolved but mostly glossed over.
- Flávia's cousin bullied Nishat for years (since primary school when she realised that it isn't cool to be friends with a brown girl) gets away with a light slap on the wrist at the end, gives a pseudo apology and that's it. In a similar vein: the pseudo apology by one of Nishat's best friends. Girl, why are you friends with them?
- The entire conflict surrounding Nishat's unwanted outing at the Catholic Girls School! There's a bit shouting between two parties but that's it.
- The romance. Yes, parts of it are cute but the entire thing is so weird and out of nowhere. It has also a ton of conflict in it but in the end everyone is fine? Even Nishat's parents are getting around her oldest being gay.
- The writing style was sometimes ... eeh at times. It made everyone seem even younger than they are and gives it a Middle-Grade feeling instead of YA. Partly, the narration is also extremely overly dramatic for no reason in some scenes.
- Pop culture references. Sorry, I just hate them.
I think the idea behind the book is a good one but the execution falls extremely flat.
D'Vaughn and Kris Plan a Wedding by Chencia C. Higgins
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
D'Vaughn and Kris Plan a Wedding was another read for Sapphic September and oh dear, did I struggle with it.
While it is relatively light-hearted, the reality TV aspect doesn't really work in a book setting. Or maybe just not in this book setting. All the reader gets is one welcome party, the constant "we have to film two hours content per week" message, a few chapters as 'jitter cam' where D'Vaughn or Kris just ramble, one cameraman who shoots several scenes (and then just vanishes lol) and the feeling that the production company messes a bit with the couple. There's no true sense of elimination or anything because they just find out by a postcard that they advance into the next week. There wasn't enough of the messiness and drama that are typical for reality TV shows, which makes it, with the overall feeling of low stakes, a rather cosy romance read. Even the reveal doesn't result in drama, instead their families and friends are on board and happy for them. The only bits of tension happen with a potential love interest for D'Vaughn and with an ex-girlfriend of Kris but their scenes get pushed away rather quickly. In addition to it, I did struggle with the language. It is due to the Spanish phrases (and I had French at school) and the American English slang that might be typical for Southern states. I learned Oxford English, so I had to re-read phrases to get them.
If you want to read a cosy, fun sapphic romance with two black women (African-American and African-Latinx) and the fake dating trope: go for it. D'Vaughn is also a plus-size woman and loves her body, so there's an additional sprinkle of body positivity in it.
While it is relatively light-hearted, the reality TV aspect doesn't really work in a book setting. Or maybe just not in this book setting. All the reader gets is one welcome party, the constant "we have to film two hours content per week" message, a few chapters as 'jitter cam' where D'Vaughn or Kris just ramble, one cameraman who shoots several scenes (and then just vanishes lol) and the feeling that the production company messes a bit with the couple. There's no true sense of elimination or anything because they just find out by a postcard that they advance into the next week. There wasn't enough of the messiness and drama that are typical for reality TV shows, which makes it, with the overall feeling of low stakes, a rather cosy romance read. Even the reveal doesn't result in drama, instead their families and friends are on board and happy for them. The only bits of tension happen with a potential love interest for D'Vaughn and with an ex-girlfriend of Kris but their scenes get pushed away rather quickly. In addition to it, I did struggle with the language. It is due to the Spanish phrases (and I had French at school) and the American English slang that might be typical for Southern states. I learned Oxford English, so I had to re-read phrases to get them.
If you want to read a cosy, fun sapphic romance with two black women (African-American and African-Latinx) and the fake dating trope: go for it. D'Vaughn is also a plus-size woman and loves her body, so there's an additional sprinkle of body positivity in it.
The Palace of Eros by Caro De Robertis
The paragraph is 13 lines long on my Kindle and technically isn't even a sentence as it ends with a question mark, which makes it a question.
Another example of "The author never learned to use punctuation marks and the editor failed at their job as well" is this:
It's a lot of words to say nothing and reminds me of my essays at university where I would have added non-necessary bullshit to reach the word limit.
As for plot, there's not a lot of it. Of course, the original myth isn't rich with plot either but de Robertis' retelling is mostly sex. Either Psyche and Eros fucking at night or Psyche masturbating during the day (when she doesn't weave, paint or eat). It's pretty half just sex for half of the book and it's ... a lot. Psyche is borderline obsessed with sex and Eros uses it as a tool to avoid questions, which makes it yucky. At the point when something could happen (the trials), the author just told the reader what happened instead of showing it. In the end, the trials are skimped on, so the author can squeeze some dialogue between Eros and Aphrodite into the book, which results in an "everything is wrapped up offscreen" situation.
In addition, to the very flowery prose: Psyche's chapters are written in the first person while Eros' are written in the third person, which is a weird decision and always irritated me while reading. It's a sharp contrast and Psyche feels like an unreliable narrator due to it at some points.
An interesting aspect of the novel is Eros' exploration of gender dynamics but I think it would have been better to discuss this as an academic essay instead of squeezing it into the novel.
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
Thank You to Netgalley and the publisher for sending me an eArc.
I had asked for The Palace of Eros because it is marketed as a queer retelling of the Eros and Psyche myth, which was a great selling hook to me. (I think I'm still deeply influenced by Canova's Psyche Revived by Cupid's Kiss, which was part of my art lessons in the late 2000s.)
Unfortunately, the book isn't it. The myth of Eros and Psyche is considered as one of the greatest love stories/as one of the most beautiful love stories, and the author didn't manage it to keep the vibe. Instead, it is very a sex-heavy retelling with flowery prose. The prose is so flowery that it creates an entire garden and I wish someone told the author to use punctuation marks from time to time because they gifted us with phrases like this:
I had asked for The Palace of Eros because it is marketed as a queer retelling of the Eros and Psyche myth, which was a great selling hook to me. (I think I'm still deeply influenced by Canova's Psyche Revived by Cupid's Kiss, which was part of my art lessons in the late 2000s.)
Unfortunately, the book isn't it. The myth of Eros and Psyche is considered as one of the greatest love stories/as one of the most beautiful love stories, and the author didn't manage it to keep the vibe. Instead, it is very a sex-heavy retelling with flowery prose. The prose is so flowery that it creates an entire garden and I wish someone told the author to use punctuation marks from time to time because they gifted us with phrases like this:
"Over meals, on walks, as I sat at the loom weaving a tapestry out of finer thread than I'd ever used before - a simple design, two alternating colors, for fear of what would happen if I let my imagination merge with the motion of the threads, given the tumult inside my mind - I saw visions of what else I might ask for, what else might be 'your pleasure', things I should not think of and should not want: her hand in my hair as it had been the first night, her body near mine, her body on mine, her hands on me, her hands moving along me, would they be hard or supple, fast or slow or - her mouth on my neck - then what?"
The paragraph is 13 lines long on my Kindle and technically isn't even a sentence as it ends with a question mark, which makes it a question.
Another example of "The author never learned to use punctuation marks and the editor failed at their job as well" is this:
"She came here on some winged creature through the night sky, she is a woman free to roam the sky, a woman with a palace, a woman whose days are hidden from you, a woman who can do outrageous things to another woman’s body, a woman whose power is mountainous, whose strength is vast, whose charm is boundless, you’d never imagined such a woman could be, yet here she is, and far be it from you to anger her when she’s already given you so much, how could you ask for more, when she has chosen you for this adventure for some inscrutable reason you’ll never understand, just as it’s impossible to understand how this adventure can exist or what the scope of it will be, but there it is, the need to clasp it close and not let go because you want this life she’s offered you, want it with every fiber of your being, yet also want to hold on to your own knowing, however tiny it may be compared to hers."
It's a lot of words to say nothing and reminds me of my essays at university where I would have added non-necessary bullshit to reach the word limit.
As for plot, there's not a lot of it. Of course, the original myth isn't rich with plot either but de Robertis' retelling is mostly sex. Either Psyche and Eros fucking at night or Psyche masturbating during the day (when she doesn't weave, paint or eat). It's pretty half just sex for half of the book and it's ... a lot. Psyche is borderline obsessed with sex and Eros uses it as a tool to avoid questions, which makes it yucky. At the point when something could happen (the trials), the author just told the reader what happened instead of showing it. In the end, the trials are skimped on, so the author can squeeze some dialogue between Eros and Aphrodite into the book, which results in an "everything is wrapped up offscreen" situation.
In addition, to the very flowery prose: Psyche's chapters are written in the first person while Eros' are written in the third person, which is a weird decision and always irritated me while reading. It's a sharp contrast and Psyche feels like an unreliable narrator due to it at some points.
An interesting aspect of the novel is Eros' exploration of gender dynamics but I think it would have been better to discuss this as an academic essay instead of squeezing it into the novel.
You're Not Supposed to Die Tonight by Kalynn Bayron
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
You're Not Supposed To Die Tonight is a YA hommage of the slasher movies of the 80s and 90s. I'm not always one for horror movies and novels because I'm easily scared and I do like to sleep through the night without having weird nightmares. (A psychological thriller though? HIT ME UP!) So, I thought that a YA horror novel would be a somewhat better choice for me. Spoiler: It didn't work out as well as I thought.
Well, to start with the book, I have to mention that it feels like the author wrote it at two different points in time and planned to use one part for another book because they are just ... weird.
The first part is slow-paced and builds up the setting. The reader gets introduced to the characters and the entire camp setting with its horror/terror game. It also starts to have the typical creepy elements of a horror movie, e.g. a humanoid shadow at the shoreline, bumps in the night, flickering lights, ..., before it turns into the "leave the campgrounds" and overall, I would have given it 4.5 ⭐. There's an actual sense of fear and foreboding, which made it close the book at night as I do value my sleep. Of course, it could have been faster-paced but it worked well as a set-up.
The second part though? That's the actual horror/mystery part of the book and it really just fell flat for me. So, I would give it 1.5 ⭐, which results in a 3 ⭐ rating as an overall rating. There's a weird cult involved (which still doesn't make sense), there's an occult/paranormal aspect to it, it's very predictable in terms of who is the actual villain, and the ending/epilogue is just ... something. This part feels heavy-handed and stereotypical of horror movies where the characters always do the dumb shit. Splitting up? Yes, of course! Investigating something in the night in a forest? Hell yes! All the things where anyone with a brain would be like "no, we just leave now!" instead of going through with investigating something creepy at night.
TL;DR: A YA horror novel (that's surprisingly gory for the age group) that takes a weird turn after the halfway point of the story, which results in a loss of tension and horror. Instead, I just got left with a lot of question marks and eye-rolling.
On a personal note, I think I will stay away from the author by now because I wasn't happy with Cinderella Is Dead either.
Well, to start with the book, I have to mention that it feels like the author wrote it at two different points in time and planned to use one part for another book because they are just ... weird.
The first part is slow-paced and builds up the setting. The reader gets introduced to the characters and the entire camp setting with its horror/terror game. It also starts to have the typical creepy elements of a horror movie, e.g. a humanoid shadow at the shoreline, bumps in the night, flickering lights, ..., before it turns into the "leave the campgrounds" and overall, I would have given it 4.5 ⭐. There's an actual sense of fear and foreboding, which made it close the book at night as I do value my sleep. Of course, it could have been faster-paced but it worked well as a set-up.
The second part though? That's the actual horror/mystery part of the book and it really just fell flat for me. So, I would give it 1.5 ⭐, which results in a 3 ⭐ rating as an overall rating. There's a weird cult involved (which still doesn't make sense), there's an occult/paranormal aspect to it, it's very predictable in terms of who is the actual villain, and the ending/epilogue is just ... something. This part feels heavy-handed and stereotypical of horror movies where the characters always do the dumb shit. Splitting up? Yes, of course! Investigating something in the night in a forest? Hell yes! All the things where anyone with a brain would be like "no, we just leave now!" instead of going through with investigating something creepy at night.
TL;DR: A YA horror novel (that's surprisingly gory for the age group) that takes a weird turn after the halfway point of the story, which results in a loss of tension and horror. Instead, I just got left with a lot of question marks and eye-rolling.
On a personal note, I think I will stay away from the author by now because I wasn't happy with Cinderella Is Dead either.