nixter's reviews
141 reviews

The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller

adventurous emotional 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

4.0

From the beginning, I think Patroclus was an interesting character to be in the mind of. Growing and maturing with him through the years was definitely felt in the way the book was written. The unknown feelings turning to butterflies becoming true angst to love was portrayed beautifully. My only true problem with the book was the pacing lagged in certain areas, and then my expectations were warped from other people’s love of the book — which is only my own fault. I’ve seen so many people bawling at the conclusion of this novel, but I didn’t even think about shedding a tear. I still enjoyed it though and would recommend! 

A Lesson in Vengeance by Victoria Lee

dark emotional mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

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

4.0

I don’t have anything exciting or extensive to say except I just had fun with this book. I like that the FMC is an unreliable narrator, and while some parts were under developed to me (like the romance), the overall story was enjoyable and came together in the end. 

The Sacrifice by Rin Chupeco

dark mysterious reflective 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

Overall I enjoyed this book and feel comfortable recommending it to people that I know are into this genre. The parts I really liked were the lore and mythology woven into the story. I always appreciate a vengeful god and love seeing colonizers / cultural appropriators get what’s coming to them. The parts I wasn’t really a fan of was the romance between two of the characters or anything really dealing with one of the mmcs. His storyline seemed forced, and I just felt nothing for him, despite the authors efforts to make him more sympathetic. The end to me was also a bit of a let down, though still exciting. It just felt like the conclusion to an episode of Scooby Doo with the villain reveal and subsequent monologue. Some parts of it were actually laughable, but I doubt that was the author’s intent. Like I said, fun, easy read that I will likely not think about again, but I wouldn’t think someone was insane for giving this 4-5 stars. 

Babel by R.F. Kuang

challenging emotional informative reflective slow-paced

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

3.0

I wanted to like this more than I did because of how highly revered it is by people whose opinions I value. I think the concept was there, and it had all the tools to be a better story, but my biggest issue was pacing. I was interested in the first two chapters, and then there was a lonnnnnng series of chapters that were tiresome, repetitive, and somewhat inconsequential, and then around the 60% mark, I started to become invested again. I enjoyed two of the characters very much, but unfortunately, it’s told in third person limited, so the character whose eyes we are seeing the events unfold was neither of the characters I liked. In fact, he annoyed me for 94% of the book. 

When picking up a dark academia book, I expect to be in an academic setting, of course, but I have never before felt like I was actually attending class while reading a novel for pleasure. Some parts of this book just seemed as if Kuang wanted to flex her prowess, and while I’m sure many people enjoyed the long lectures about Etymology, I could’ve done without 55% of the paragraphs centering it. I found myself waiting for action beats that didn’t come until the end. A lot of those pages about languages could’ve been dedicated to fleshing the secondary characters out more so the book as a whole, and the events that unfold, have more weight.

Overall, I see why so many people love it, but I am not one of them. This is my first RFK book, and I’m still very interested in checking out her other work.  

The Kraken's Sacrifice by Katee Robert

lighthearted reflective fast-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

Hooked by Emily McIntire

dark tense 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

3.0

Kindred by Octavia E. Butler

dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

I Feed Her to the Beast and the Beast Is Me by Jamison Shea

dark emotional mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

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

3.0

This Is How You Lose the Time War by Max Gladstone, Amal El-Mohtar

adventurous emotional reflective fast-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? Yes

5.0

It took me until the very end to figure out what the actual f*ck was going on. For that reason, I initially gave this 4 ⭐️ but then, I sat with my thoughts and feelings for about 30 minutes after ending it, and the more I contemplated it, the more I felt pushed to change it for 5 ⭐️. I’ve only ever been affected by one other novella the way that this one made me feel. It was romantic, poetic, lyrical, and witty. The characters against the backdrop of a unique world were gorgeous. The fact that my jaw dropped multiple times at how effortlessly beautiful the letters between Red and Blue were is what ultimately made me change my rating. I feel the need to go and get a physical copy of this just so I can annotate, and any book that elicits that response from me deserves my full praise. Finally, it’s just really impressive to me that not just one, but TWO people melded their minds and creative juices to create this work of art, and I can’t imagine how they made it seem so easy. 

She Who Knows by Nnedi Okorafor

adventurous emotional reflective fast-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? Yes

4.0

This novella was very adventurous and well-written. Despite the shortness of it, I believe I got everything out of this world that I needed, and didn’t think anything was left untouched. It was empowering, heartbreaking, mystical, and audacious. Watching Najeeba grow and come into herself over a period of years was fascinating to read, and I look forward to seeing more from the world Nnedi Okorafor has created. The only reason it wasn’t a full 5 star read is because I struggled slightly with the magic of it, and picturing what Najeeba “was”. (If you read it, you’ll know what I’m talking about.) But my inability to imagine some aspects didn’t hinder my enjoyment.