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readingal07's reviews
40 reviews
The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
4.0
The Good:
I genuinely enjoyed the tone of voice in this novel. I liked Patroclus' character and the way he described things.
The love story itself is great and wholesome and I loved many of the characters introduced.
The ending was satisfying and left me feeling happy with the book and what all had transpired. While there were parts where characters questioned other characters' actions, the narrator gave us enough information to piece together their reasoning.
The Bad:
I listened to this as an audiobook and I truly felt a lot was lost. Because I am not super familiar with Greek Mythology and the time period in which this was set, the names and places were difficult to follow, especially without a visual of the spelling of names.
Also, the repetition of "I said", "he said" became slightly annoying in certain parts.
Great novel. Would definitely recommend.
I genuinely enjoyed the tone of voice in this novel. I liked Patroclus' character and the way he described things.
The love story itself is great and wholesome and I loved many of the characters introduced.
The ending was satisfying and left me feeling happy with the book and what all had transpired. While there were parts where characters questioned other characters' actions, the narrator gave us enough information to piece together their reasoning.
The Bad:
I listened to this as an audiobook and I truly felt a lot was lost. Because I am not super familiar with Greek Mythology and the time period in which this was set, the names and places were difficult to follow, especially without a visual of the spelling of names.
Also, the repetition of "I said", "he said" became slightly annoying in certain parts.
Great novel. Would definitely recommend.
The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
5.0
This book was absolutely amazing!
From beginning to end, Coelho never forgot what the message was that he was trying to send. Every single event that happened was important to not only the plot but the character development. I loved the symbolism and meaning behind everything, as little as giving someone a name.
I hadn't heard of it before picking it up for a TBR Challenge: Read a book translated from another language. I had it on my shelf and picked it up, finished it in two days with the audiobook.
I have already recommended it to like five people and I am extremely happy that I got to read it. This will also be a book that I read to my kids one day.
From beginning to end, Coelho never forgot what the message was that he was trying to send. Every single event that happened was important to not only the plot but the character development. I loved the symbolism and meaning behind everything, as little as giving someone a name.
I hadn't heard of it before picking it up for a TBR Challenge: Read a book translated from another language. I had it on my shelf and picked it up, finished it in two days with the audiobook.
I have already recommended it to like five people and I am extremely happy that I got to read it. This will also be a book that I read to my kids one day.
From the Corner of His Eye by Dean Koontz
4.0
Woah, what a read. It took me longer than I would have liked but such a huge book was pretty intimidating. This was a very intense, very emotional and very HEAVY read (Mentally and physically ;) )
I loved reading this. The story was entirely captivating and Koonz has a way of immediately establishing who a character is and making sure you almost immediately decide how you feel about them. Just when he brings in a character that seems unimportant, they show up at critical moments and prove to be vital.
Koonz is brilliant with making you panic and worry for characters. In just the first 100 pages of this book, I was close to tears three times. It's an emotional rollercoaster for sure.
Why not 5 stars:
- I skipped over Edom and Jacob's dialogue most of the time and felt that I missed absolutely nothing. Loved the characters but they were tiresome to read and I found myself a little disappointed whenever we were in their POV
- I felt like sometimes the descriptions went on for a bit longer than necessary. With such a long, heavy read, near to the end of the book I found myself scanning past descriptive paragraphs to get back to the action
- I hesitate to use the word "climax" of the story because there were so many climactic moments but the "FINAL SHOWDOWN" if you will, was slightly lacking for me based on everything we got in the rest of the book. Just unexplained and then super quick resolution is all.
Great read. Would recommend to someone who isn't feint of heart and is up for a taxing, emotional, thought-provoking, heart-pounding, tear-jerking read. :)
I loved reading this. The story was entirely captivating and Koonz has a way of immediately establishing who a character is and making sure you almost immediately decide how you feel about them. Just when he brings in a character that seems unimportant, they show up at critical moments and prove to be vital.
Koonz is brilliant with making you panic and worry for characters. In just the first 100 pages of this book, I was close to tears three times. It's an emotional rollercoaster for sure.
Why not 5 stars:
- I skipped over Edom and Jacob's dialogue most of the time and felt that I missed absolutely nothing. Loved the characters but they were tiresome to read and I found myself a little disappointed whenever we were in their POV
- I felt like sometimes the descriptions went on for a bit longer than necessary. With such a long, heavy read, near to the end of the book I found myself scanning past descriptive paragraphs to get back to the action
- I hesitate to use the word "climax" of the story because there were so many climactic moments but the "FINAL SHOWDOWN" if you will, was slightly lacking for me based on everything we got in the rest of the book. Just unexplained and then super quick resolution is all.
Great read. Would recommend to someone who isn't feint of heart and is up for a taxing, emotional, thought-provoking, heart-pounding, tear-jerking read. :)
Lord of the Flies by William Golding
dark
reflective
slow-paced
2.0
First, let's acknowledge the fact that this was first published in 1954, so there is bound to be language and vocabulary used that would not fly in today's society.
I struggled to get through this book, the language was quiet tricky to understand and eventually I could only read along with the audiobook to truly understand what was happening. I didn't read this for school or anything, just simply wanting to read a "classic."
The book only really started to pick up for me around chapter seven and for such cumbersome prose, that was too long. I ended up putting the book down after chapter two and not picking it up for several months.
Also, as a Christian girl, the last section of chapter 8 caught me off-guard and was quite unsettling. So, slight trigger-warning for that as the audiobook doesn't hold back on making it terrifying.
The last few chapters, I would actually classify as a horror as I was scared, in suspense and on the edge of my seat and then all of a sudden...
The ending came out of nowhere. Perhaps a little too convenient.
Also, whoever was responsible for putting this book in High Schools for children to read... I have no words.
I struggled to get through this book, the language was quiet tricky to understand and eventually I could only read along with the audiobook to truly understand what was happening. I didn't read this for school or anything, just simply wanting to read a "classic."
The book only really started to pick up for me around chapter seven and for such cumbersome prose, that was too long. I ended up putting the book down after chapter two and not picking it up for several months.
Also, as a Christian girl, the last section of chapter 8 caught me off-guard and was quite unsettling. So, slight trigger-warning for that as the audiobook doesn't hold back on making it terrifying.
The last few chapters, I would actually classify as a horror as I was scared, in suspense and on the edge of my seat and then all of a sudden...
The ending came out of nowhere. Perhaps a little too convenient.
Also, whoever was responsible for putting this book in High Schools for children to read... I have no words.
The Border Keeper by Kerstin Hall
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
3.0
I jumped between giving this 3⭐ or 4⭐. Ultimately it really came down to having a bit of a disconnect for a majority of the book.
For me, I was left majorly confused for so much of the book and really only started getting into it at Chapter 16, which in my opinion is way too late.
I can tell there was tons of world-building and thought put into this world but without explanation, I was lost like I started watching a movie half-way through and had no idea what was happening. Names were difficult to follow and I wasn't entirely sure what was happening for a while.
The last part of the book intrigued me and had me pining for the next page but then it came to an end abruptly. Eager to read second book to get more story and hopefully more information but in general, until way over halfway in the book, I was super confused and disconnected.
For me, I was left majorly confused for so much of the book and really only started getting into it at Chapter 16, which in my opinion is way too late.
I can tell there was tons of world-building and thought put into this world but without explanation, I was lost like I started watching a movie half-way through and had no idea what was happening. Names were difficult to follow and I wasn't entirely sure what was happening for a while.
The last part of the book intrigued me and had me pining for the next page but then it came to an end abruptly. Eager to read second book to get more story and hopefully more information but in general, until way over halfway in the book, I was super confused and disconnected.
Credence by Penelope Douglas
tense
slow-paced
1.0
I don't want to go on and on about how much I didn't like this book.
Firstly, I have never read Penelope Douglas before and I always go into my books without reading the synopsis, which means I wasn't really prepared for the taboo nature of the romance, HOWEVER, I can adjust pretty quickly and that had nothing to do with why I hated it.
I did enjoy Tiernan's character and her journey and I enjoyed Douglas's writing style. I enjoyed the setting of woodsy, cabin. And I liked Noah's character (besides the fact that he heavily enables his brother's behavior.)
My list stops there of things I liked. And my list of things I didn't like, red flags, abuse and trauma go on for pages. The romance in this book had no back bone.
Firstly, I have never read Penelope Douglas before and I always go into my books without reading the synopsis, which means I wasn't really prepared for the taboo nature of the romance, HOWEVER, I can adjust pretty quickly and that had nothing to do with why I hated it.
I did enjoy Tiernan's character and her journey and I enjoyed Douglas's writing style. I enjoyed the setting of woodsy, cabin. And I liked Noah's character (besides the fact that he heavily enables his brother's behavior.)
My list stops there of things I liked. And my list of things I didn't like, red flags, abuse and trauma go on for pages. The romance in this book had no back bone.
Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas
adventurous
challenging
medium-paced
3.0
I am a huge fan of Sarah J. Maas. I am up to date on her ACOTAR series and honestly am way more in love with that series than this one but it's probably because I am way more invested in those characters.
I did read Assassin's Blade before reading this book if that makes a difference.
I am in love with both Dorian and Nehemia's characters. The charm and the silver-tongue of these two royals was so attractive to me. I shipped Celeana with both of them. As for Chaol, compared to Dorian and Nehemia, he seemed very boring and not as well fleshed out but I am expecting more from him in coming books.
As for Kaltain's characters, I could not stand her or her chapters. Her character is empty. I genuinely hope that if she returns in future books that she has more motivation than just "I want the man and the crown"
Excited for the next in the series though.
I did read Assassin's Blade before reading this book if that makes a difference.
I am in love with both Dorian and Nehemia's characters. The charm and the silver-tongue of these two royals was so attractive to me. I shipped Celeana with both of them. As for Chaol, compared to Dorian and Nehemia, he seemed very boring and not as well fleshed out but I am expecting more from him in coming books.
As for Kaltain's characters, I could not stand her or her chapters. Her character is empty. I genuinely hope that if she returns in future books that she has more motivation than just "I want the man and the crown"
Excited for the next in the series though.
The Assassin's Blade by Sarah J. Maas
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
4.0
Great story. Love the characters and the plot. Be prepared for BETRAYAL! Heart break and anger but that's what makes a great book.
A Court of Silver Flames by Sarah J. Maas
adventurous
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I LOVE THIS SERIES!! Feyre and Rhysand are my everything.
I was genuinely disappointed when we were following Nesta in the book just because of how much I love Feyre and Rhysand. Although I hated Nesta in the other books and at the beginning of this one, she definitely won me over.
All the little moments with Feyre and Rhysand were great and we all LOVE Cassian! W
The only part that fell short for me was the ending. No spoilers but for a book with 750 pages, the ending felt really rushed for me. I didn't get the satisfaction for Nesta and the final "show-off" felt like it ended way too quickly. Not to mention the resolution to a problem throughout the entire book (yes it had me BALLING my eyes out) also felt very quick and convenient.
SUPER EXCITED for the next book and I am very curious to know who's POV we'll be following :D
I was genuinely disappointed when we were following Nesta in the book just because of how much I love Feyre and Rhysand. Although I hated Nesta in the other books and at the beginning of this one, she definitely won me over.
All the little moments with Feyre and Rhysand were great and we all LOVE Cassian! W
The only part that fell short for me was the ending. No spoilers but for a book with 750 pages, the ending felt really rushed for me. I didn't get the satisfaction for Nesta and the final "show-off" felt like it ended way too quickly. Not to mention the resolution to a problem throughout the entire book (yes it had me BALLING my eyes out) also felt very quick and convenient.
SUPER EXCITED for the next book and I am very curious to know who's POV we'll be following :D
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Sexual content, and Medical trauma
Minor: Sexual assault
The Sleeper and the Spindle by Neil Gaiman
mysterious
medium-paced
4.0
This is my first Gaimen novel and I really enjoyed it. I heard the basis of the plot before reading it and was not sure what to expect but I thoroughly enjoyed it.
The art was absolutely beautiful and truly set the tone of the story.
The plot twist really got me and I was living for it. The only reason it did not get 5 stars is because the climax/rresolution of the story was very quick and easy. While I appreciated Snow's calm and confident demeanor but it would have had an even better impact had there been more anxiety or action taking place.
All in all; a great read. Would recommend.
The art was absolutely beautiful and truly set the tone of the story.
The plot twist really got me and I was living for it. The only reason it did not get 5 stars is because the climax/rresolution of the story was very quick and easy. While I appreciated Snow's calm and confident demeanor but it would have had an even better impact had there been more anxiety or action taking place.
All in all; a great read. Would recommend.