peter1rose's reviews
53 reviews

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

5.0

Extremely well written.

Record of a Spaceborn Few by Becky Chambers

emotional hopeful inspiring reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75

I found the beginning of the book hard to grasp with all of the characters introduced. There are a lot to keep track of. After a while I got into it and the middle portion of the book is fantastic. Then the very last bit lost my attention again. I love Chambers writing, though. She's great at making people feel real and diverse.

A Closed and Common Orbit by Becky Chambers

emotional hopeful 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? It's complicated

4.75

I don't think I had good circumstances for experiencing every part of this book. I really loved it regardless. I think reading it when I'm less busy as opposed to listening would leave me wanting to give it 5 stars. I will reread it soon.

Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones

adventurous funny lighthearted medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix

3.75

Very entertaining and fun. I actually like Howls and Sophie's dynamic but I wish they had some more scenes alone together to flesh out their dynamic and interest with each other. The end felt a little rushed but still good:)

Paradise Rot by Jenny Hval

dark mysterious slow-paced

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

1.0

This book was odd. I think it's meant to be, but I almost don't know what the author wants me to take away from this. It takes on odd, dark, and grotesque look on sex and bodies that I wasn't really a fan of. I think this can be done well, but here it was just strange. There was a lot more piss than I was expecting and the comments on the Chinese woman were a bit racist. (Comparing her language to forks and other cutlery is pretty classic Asian racism akin to the 2000s humor but not meant to be humorous). I also thought the dialogue was a bit awkward even when it wasn't meant to be.

I also read "Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke" by Eric LaRocca which is similar in some ways to the themes of this book, but done a bit better (imo). Where this book shines through is having very consistent themes and metaphors, as opposed to LaRocca's work which hopped between extremely grotesque rot and violence to themes of divinity.

I liked Francesca and wanted to know more about her. 

Legends & Lattes by Travis Baldree

hopeful lighthearted relaxing

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

4.0

Very sweet book. Fun to read before bed.

Funerals are Fatal by Agatha Christie

mysterious slow-paced

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

3.5

Definitely of it's time. Some aspects of that would pull me out of the story and make me uneasy but it's to be expected.

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz

emotional funny 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

3.75

Overall this was a great YA coming of age story. The characters and fun, likeable, and relatable. I thought of how I was when I was young and trying to understand my gender/sexuality. There's a lot of good to say about the book, and if you're young or into YA this is a great book about the gay experience, but there were some critiques I came away with. (Side note: it is a bit escapist. Not necessarily a bad thing but not wholly realistic in some regards.)

The story is set in 1987-88 and they never bring up AIDS/HIV. Especially during this time, the pain and damage caused by HIV was immense and failing to bring it up felt wrong, like they lived in an alternate reality where HIV never existed. I theorized that one of the main reasons this happened was because the author wanted to write a story where modern technology wasn't accessible to the main cast to set up some plot points

(such as the letter writing, avoidance of social media, no easy access to communication etc.)

, but wanted to have a gay coming of age story where today's young queer readers could still heavily relate. Having the looming fear of HIV might distance current readers from the characters or setting. 

I also felt like the murder committed by the leads older brother was a little messy plot wise. How could Aristotle still want to pursue a relationship with his brother knowing the pain of Dante being nearly killed for similar reasons. I know its not that simple either because when it happened his brother was only 15. It was strange and felt narratively slightly out of place. Why couldn't it have involved a different kind of gay man? Why an adult transvestite? The book also goes out of it's way on many occasions to explain concepts or words to the audience but brushed by transvestite. I think this is kind of damaging to the readers. Transvestite is often mixed up colloquially (especially by older gen or non-queer people) as another word for transgender/transsexual, and many times when it isn't, it's used derogatorily. The audience for this book is young, and an explanation wouldn't have been out of place nor out of character.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia

The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers

adventurous 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? It's complicated

4.75

Moominpappa at Sea by Tove Jansson

3.5