sarahxify's reviews
691 reviews

The Bee Sting by Paul Murray

4.0

Babel by R.F. Kuang
Did not finish book. Stopped at 15%.

The setting is interesting but this really not pulling me in. It feels too deliberate and self concious, I'm very aware that I'm reading something intentionally written. The footnotes particularly I find really ineffective, I'm not enjoying them. 

Bad Art Mother by Edwina Preston

4.0

James by Percival Everett

adventurous reflective sad fast-paced

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

4.5

Long Island by Colm Tóibín

emotional tense 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

3.0

Greywaren by Maggie Stiefvater

lighthearted slow-paced

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

2.0

Read this in an effort to tidy up the unfinished fantasty series I have laying around. This trilogy feels incredibly stretched out; I feel a duology would have been more than sufficient for the story that's there. This last installment really dragged, and unfortuantely it mostly felt reading this that the series has well and truly run its course. 

The main issues here were too many POVs and the characters are not very deeply drawn, so it ends up feeling quite messy as a story, and unengaging. 

Motherhood by Sheila Heti

challenging informative slow-paced

4.0

An open and intimate examination of the life of a mid-thirties woman thinking about having children, reflecting on her own childhood, her relationship with her own mother, and her relationships with her friends, both parents and child-free. There is some beatiful writing in here with stark observations about motherhood/parenthood in general, the societal pressure to become parents, what we expect of women in the 21st century, and how to balance that strange feeling of both wanting children and not wanting them. Well worth reading, particularly if you are in your thirties. 

The Bluffs by Kyle Perry
Did not finish book. Stopped at 3%.

Clumsy and obvious writing, really not for me 

The Swift Dark Tide by Katia Ariel

5.0

Feast by Emily O'Grady

5.0