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skylarkblue1's reviews
245 reviews
To Strip the Flesh by Oto Toda
emotional
funny
hopeful
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? No
4.0
Representations: https://trello.com/c/KDqPb5YE/126-to-strip-the-flesh-by-oto-toda
I think saying it's a collection of short stories around the same topic is a little misleading. Half of the book is To Strip the Flesh and the other half is a pretty random collection of shorts (a few 2 page mangas too) which are completely different in tone and none of the rest are about queer identities either.
Though, don't get me wrong, honestly I'd say To Strip the Flesh is good enough that you should get this manga JUST for that. And it's worth it as well. This is such a strong story of a trans perspective, and you can really tell it's an important story for the author to tell as well. There's a lovely interview at the back which I highly recommend reading through as well!
Honestly, I don't think I can say too much without just detailing everything that happens in the story so I'll just say, if you're trans yourself, questioning at all, a parent to a child who just came out as trans to you or just generally interested in trans lit - Read it. It's short, but powerful.
For the second half, the short stories. They're a bit of a mixed bag. I did enjoy them, but I wouldn't say it's a good idea to go straight from the end of TSTF right into... people fangirling over idols lol. They're a completely different tone, and completely different topics to TSTF. Maybe just read the first half, take a break, then come back and read the second half perhaps.
There is a right mix in there from the aforementioned idol fans to a living statue to a magical watermelon (that one was depressing and a pretty hard hitting story though weirdly enough!). There's a couple just joke ones which are pretty funny, but again feels really out of place amongst the more serious topics in the other stories.
Certainly well worth recommending, it's incredibly solid on the writing, very powerful and you can really tell the main topics are something close to Oto Toda's heart. Very character focused in an excellent way and really makes use of the few pages to fully convey everything.
This is an absolute must-read for TSTF alone at least!
I think saying it's a collection of short stories around the same topic is a little misleading. Half of the book is To Strip the Flesh and the other half is a pretty random collection of shorts (a few 2 page mangas too) which are completely different in tone and none of the rest are about queer identities either.
Though, don't get me wrong, honestly I'd say To Strip the Flesh is good enough that you should get this manga JUST for that. And it's worth it as well. This is such a strong story of a trans perspective, and you can really tell it's an important story for the author to tell as well. There's a lovely interview at the back which I highly recommend reading through as well!
Honestly, I don't think I can say too much without just detailing everything that happens in the story so I'll just say, if you're trans yourself, questioning at all, a parent to a child who just came out as trans to you or just generally interested in trans lit - Read it. It's short, but powerful.
For the second half, the short stories. They're a bit of a mixed bag. I did enjoy them, but I wouldn't say it's a good idea to go straight from the end of TSTF right into... people fangirling over idols lol. They're a completely different tone, and completely different topics to TSTF. Maybe just read the first half, take a break, then come back and read the second half perhaps.
There is a right mix in there from the aforementioned idol fans to a living statue to a magical watermelon (that one was depressing and a pretty hard hitting story though weirdly enough!). There's a couple just joke ones which are pretty funny, but again feels really out of place amongst the more serious topics in the other stories.
Certainly well worth recommending, it's incredibly solid on the writing, very powerful and you can really tell the main topics are something close to Oto Toda's heart. Very character focused in an excellent way and really makes use of the few pages to fully convey everything.
This is an absolute must-read for TSTF alone at least!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Blood, and Dysphoria
Moderate: Misogyny, Suicidal thoughts, Transphobia, and Death of parent
Minor: Cancer and Medical content
Digger: Dig Or Die! by Deborah Cholette
dark
fast-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
0.25
Thank you Netgalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review!
And hoo boy will this be honest.
This was just bad. It was break-neck pace where things were given a max of a page and then swiftly moved onto the next thing, characters were super flat and had no growth, so many "plot points" introduced and went no where, absolutely no real logic and super inconsistent for the imagined logic presented too.
The characters are just... really flat and feel like just a bullet point list of potential character ideas that have yet to be turned into actual characters. The mother has a phobia or severe anxiety of some sort, but it's treated horrifically badly and is literally one of the points of contention and anger at the end which is NEVER RESOLVED. Don't give this book to any kids that have a form of social anxiety, it's demonised pretty much at the end and it just really doesn't feel great to read.
There's no growth to any of them, they all start how they end. The 2 main characters have a defining trait each (... mostly) and the rest barely have even that. There's way too many characters as well, I kept forgetting the main 2 had a sister and the majority of the side characters just have a couple lines sprinkled throughout. Absolutely no reason to have so many introduced at the start and just more keep being added...
The inconsistencies drove me mad as well. The red line kept dropping a few feet apparently each time, but it barely dropped at all, and seemed to be dropping at different rates across the same street? The "redlining" was mad as well, I'm pretty sure "surface tension" of air doesn't entirely negate gravity.. They tried to give a scientific explanation for that but it doesn't really stick. Everything turns out to mean pretty much nothing in the end as well, and the general timeline of everything - I genuinely couldn't tell you how many days, weeks, this book covers.
Pacing is absolutely wild. Things legit get about a page and that's it. Someone dies, and it takes a page from the kids to learn he's dying, to him being dead and then instantly switches to the next scene/topic/conversation right after. Nothing is given any room to breathe or be actually explained. Nothing is shown, literally everything is only told. A lot is also just not resolved, the main plot ending is very neatly wrapped up and resolved through absolutely no input from the characters, it's just "the book's ending now, situation just happened to be resolved now because *shrugs*", but a lot of the side things are just completely left untouched - like the mothers' anxiety/phobia and the "problem" that caused.
The whole mental health thing in this is also wild. It's just thrown in randomly, random characters have random mental health issues and nothing is explained, resolved, or even has a place. A kid just randomly goes "I have mild depression but it's ok" and it's just, ignored I guess for the rest lmao. Like this is not how you do mental health topics in books at all, or medication around that as well.
I can appreciate trying to teach global warming and such to children, but I think terrifying them about being unable to breathe suddenly maybe isn't the way to do that? This book in the end feels very doomer and "there's really nothing you can do in the end, you're just going to die anyway" unless a complete miracle entirely out of your control happens. There's nothing about what could have been done to prevent it or anything, it's just "the adults screwed up now we're gonna die".
And hoo boy will this be honest.
This was just bad. It was break-neck pace where things were given a max of a page and then swiftly moved onto the next thing, characters were super flat and had no growth, so many "plot points" introduced and went no where, absolutely no real logic and super inconsistent for the imagined logic presented too.
The characters are just... really flat and feel like just a bullet point list of potential character ideas that have yet to be turned into actual characters. The mother has a phobia or severe anxiety of some sort, but it's treated horrifically badly and is literally one of the points of contention and anger at the end which is NEVER RESOLVED. Don't give this book to any kids that have a form of social anxiety, it's demonised pretty much at the end and it just really doesn't feel great to read.
There's no growth to any of them, they all start how they end. The 2 main characters have a defining trait each (... mostly) and the rest barely have even that. There's way too many characters as well, I kept forgetting the main 2 had a sister and the majority of the side characters just have a couple lines sprinkled throughout. Absolutely no reason to have so many introduced at the start and just more keep being added...
The inconsistencies drove me mad as well. The red line kept dropping a few feet apparently each time, but it barely dropped at all, and seemed to be dropping at different rates across the same street? The "redlining" was mad as well, I'm pretty sure "surface tension" of air doesn't entirely negate gravity.. They tried to give a scientific explanation for that but it doesn't really stick. Everything turns out to mean pretty much nothing in the end as well, and the general timeline of everything - I genuinely couldn't tell you how many days, weeks, this book covers.
Pacing is absolutely wild. Things legit get about a page and that's it. Someone dies, and it takes a page from the kids to learn he's dying, to him being dead and then instantly switches to the next scene/topic/conversation right after. Nothing is given any room to breathe or be actually explained. Nothing is shown, literally everything is only told. A lot is also just not resolved, the main plot ending is very neatly wrapped up and resolved through absolutely no input from the characters, it's just "the book's ending now, situation just happened to be resolved now because *shrugs*", but a lot of the side things are just completely left untouched - like the mothers' anxiety/phobia and the "problem" that caused.
The whole mental health thing in this is also wild. It's just thrown in randomly, random characters have random mental health issues and nothing is explained, resolved, or even has a place. A kid just randomly goes "I have mild depression but it's ok" and it's just, ignored I guess for the rest lmao. Like this is not how you do mental health topics in books at all, or medication around that as well.
I can appreciate trying to teach global warming and such to children, but I think terrifying them about being unable to breathe suddenly maybe isn't the way to do that? This book in the end feels very doomer and "there's really nothing you can do in the end, you're just going to die anyway" unless a complete miracle entirely out of your control happens. There's nothing about what could have been done to prevent it or anything, it's just "the adults screwed up now we're gonna die".
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Violence, and Abandonment
Moderate: Domestic abuse
The Nice House on the Lake, Vol. 2 by James Tynion IV
dark
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Violence, Blood, and Murder
Moderate: Sexual content
Minor: Deadnaming
The Women by Kristin Hannah
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
0.25
To start with: There is no named Vietnamese character, Frankie's whole life is dictated by men and she only just follows men around, the book seems to think Vietnamese women only wear áo dàis and completely ignores the Vietnamese women who fought in the war and even supported Americans (in more ways than just serving them Jack Daniels...).
Frankie is a rich, spoilt brat who's main goal is just to have her father proud of her. Her whole life is dictated and saved by men, and there's no point where she breaks out of that. In fact, even at the end of the book, she's still chasing men. She's really not likeable, and despite the book trying SO hard to *tell* you she's strong, she really doesn't feel like that. Veterans have an incredibly high rate of homelessness and are unable to get medical care in any regard. Frankie has 0 issues with any of that, she never has money problems, she's gifted homes, and easily gets medical care.
The rest of the characters feel really 1 dimensional. And there's no even half-way decent man in the story - except one, who's treated really badly by Frankie honestly.
This book seems to pack in every single tragedy it can, it's kind of impressive and if you played a drinking game where you take a shot for every tragedy your liver absolutely wouldn't exist afterwards. The amount of tragedies is about the same as the amount of wild coincidences. What do you mean Frankie just happens to be in the right place at the right time every single time for every situation? What do you mean that some random-ass person gets news about an event with Frankie's family before Frankie does just a couple days after said event (while halfway across the country??)? Even the ending with the love interests gets fucking insane quickly with the sheer coincidences and also overused tropes.
Every single lazy writing trope you can think of, is used here. It's all telling and not showing, everything works out for the protag without much issue at all, so much padding and overused tropes and it's just a mess honestly. I went into this without reading anything about it, or knowing anything about any of her other books, but it seems like a few of the plot beats in this are repeated in multiple of her other books as well..
There is no subtly, no nuance and no proper consideration done towards the country and culture of Vietnam. There's no actual Vietnamese characters, and from what I can tell no Vietnamese people mentioned in the acknowledgements either. Which is kind of wild because it seems like there was actually a decent amount of research done into what the American life was in the army and such over there and coming back home. The PTSD portrayal was also somewhat decent - even if there was more focus on the spiralling and substance abuse than how she got better...
The book doesn't even try and tackle the issue of America being the one fucking over everyone in the war that hard. Yes it does mention that a bit, but it's more in off-hand comments and doesn't really try and *actually* talk about it - instead it just changes topic to romance more often than not.
I think this really sums up what I feel is wrong with "feminist fiction" honestly. Trying far too hard to try and go "look, women strong!" without really saying.. why? Or even just actually writing men like they're a person and not just a sole personification for the patriarchy.
Maybe if you want to write a petty messy romance, don't use the Vietnam war as just a atmospheric backdrop.
Frankie is a rich, spoilt brat who's main goal is just to have her father proud of her. Her whole life is dictated and saved by men, and there's no point where she breaks out of that. In fact, even at the end of the book, she's still chasing men. She's really not likeable, and despite the book trying SO hard to *tell* you she's strong, she really doesn't feel like that. Veterans have an incredibly high rate of homelessness and are unable to get medical care in any regard. Frankie has 0 issues with any of that, she never has money problems, she's gifted homes, and easily gets medical care.
The rest of the characters feel really 1 dimensional. And there's no even half-way decent man in the story - except one, who's treated really badly by Frankie honestly.
This book seems to pack in every single tragedy it can, it's kind of impressive and if you played a drinking game where you take a shot for every tragedy your liver absolutely wouldn't exist afterwards. The amount of tragedies is about the same as the amount of wild coincidences. What do you mean Frankie just happens to be in the right place at the right time every single time for every situation? What do you mean that some random-ass person gets news about an event with Frankie's family before Frankie does just a couple days after said event (while halfway across the country??)? Even the ending with the love interests gets fucking insane quickly with the sheer coincidences and also overused tropes.
Every single lazy writing trope you can think of, is used here. It's all telling and not showing, everything works out for the protag without much issue at all, so much padding and overused tropes and it's just a mess honestly. I went into this without reading anything about it, or knowing anything about any of her other books, but it seems like a few of the plot beats in this are repeated in multiple of her other books as well..
There is no subtly, no nuance and no proper consideration done towards the country and culture of Vietnam. There's no actual Vietnamese characters, and from what I can tell no Vietnamese people mentioned in the acknowledgements either. Which is kind of wild because it seems like there was actually a decent amount of research done into what the American life was in the army and such over there and coming back home. The PTSD portrayal was also somewhat decent - even if there was more focus on the spiralling and substance abuse than how she got better...
The book doesn't even try and tackle the issue of America being the one fucking over everyone in the war that hard. Yes it does mention that a bit, but it's more in off-hand comments and doesn't really try and *actually* talk about it - instead it just changes topic to romance more often than not.
I think this really sums up what I feel is wrong with "feminist fiction" honestly. Trying far too hard to try and go "look, women strong!" without really saying.. why? Or even just actually writing men like they're a person and not just a sole personification for the patriarchy.
Maybe if you want to write a petty messy romance, don't use the Vietnam war as just a atmospheric backdrop.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Alcohol, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Infidelity, Forced institutionalization, and Pregnancy
Minor: Cancer and Torture
Ghost Station by S.A. Barnes
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-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
4.5
Representations: https://trello.com/c/ZFr6xUnX/125-ghost-station-by-sa-barnes
Spooky body horror mystery that's Alien-esque. Did not disappoint after Dead Silence!
I love how Barnes does the unreliable narrator trope, and especially how different it's been done between her 2 horror books. The main character, Ophelia was strong, stubborn but flawed in a great way. The portrayal of trauma, PTSD and trying to grow through horror is really well written into the story and the characters themselves.
The rest of the cast are quite strong as well. The way they're effected through the book, how their arcs play out and how they work together felt great to read. Ophelia is the outsider of the group and that's shown perfectly without too much telling. The romance feels a little weird though, you can very easily ignore it and there's not much of a focus on it, but it does feel a little rushed and not really that well fleshed out. It's kinda one of those "they feel closer just because they're in a very high stress, dangerous environment" relationships but also doesn't really explore any themes of closeness and what that kind of relationship does in that situation. But I also didn't mind that anyway cause the rest of the story was full enough imo.
The plot is not as mind-fucky as Dead Silence nor as complicated, but that's not a bad thing. The flow is more linear but with a strong mystery threaded through it. I think the epilogue could have been a tad bit stronger with a bit more detail, more how's and why's, but there's enough detail to piece things together decently well throughout. I'd say it's in-between fast and medium paced, it was a quick read.
A fair bit more explicit body-horror in this one, but of the more Alien kind.
The main character being a therapist was a very nice touch, not a common perspective but you can tell a lot of work went into it. Especially in such a horrible situation, with so much trauma and distress, it was a fascinating read from that perspective!
Spooky body horror mystery that's Alien-esque. Did not disappoint after Dead Silence!
I love how Barnes does the unreliable narrator trope, and especially how different it's been done between her 2 horror books. The main character, Ophelia was strong, stubborn but flawed in a great way. The portrayal of trauma, PTSD and trying to grow through horror is really well written into the story and the characters themselves.
The rest of the cast are quite strong as well. The way they're effected through the book, how their arcs play out and how they work together felt great to read. Ophelia is the outsider of the group and that's shown perfectly without too much telling. The romance feels a little weird though, you can very easily ignore it and there's not much of a focus on it, but it does feel a little rushed and not really that well fleshed out. It's kinda one of those "they feel closer just because they're in a very high stress, dangerous environment" relationships but also doesn't really explore any themes of closeness and what that kind of relationship does in that situation. But I also didn't mind that anyway cause the rest of the story was full enough imo.
The plot is not as mind-fucky as Dead Silence nor as complicated, but that's not a bad thing. The flow is more linear but with a strong mystery threaded through it. I think the epilogue could have been a tad bit stronger with a bit more detail, more how's and why's, but there's enough detail to piece things together decently well throughout. I'd say it's in-between fast and medium paced, it was a quick read.
A fair bit more explicit body-horror in this one, but of the more Alien kind.
The main character being a therapist was a very nice touch, not a common perspective but you can tell a lot of work went into it. Especially in such a horrible situation, with so much trauma and distress, it was a fascinating read from that perspective!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Self harm, Violence, Blood, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Suicide, Death of parent, and Murder
Minor: Dementia and Alcohol
We Do Not Welcome Our Ten-Year-Old Overlord by Garth Nix
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75
Representations: https://trello.com/c/59KbB5rv/124-we-do-not-welcome-our-ten-year-old-overlord-by-garth-nix
Tense, surprisingly gory (animal gore, not human) and I genuinely forgot that I think this is actually meant to be a middle grade book lmao.
The characters where a mixed bag for sure, it's hard to get decent character depth in a short time with so much else going on so it's not super character driven (especially with there being so many characters too) but you still get a decent show of their personalities - especially in the D&D sections!
The plot was insane and wild, certainly something that needs a good amount of suspension of disbelief, but also really felt like they were kids which was nice. A weird sci-fi, Stranger Things, D&D mix of things that works quite well. It's fast paced, manages to fit a lot in and while the ending feels a little ehhhhh it still works tbh. Just wish it worked in the ending reveal a bit better into the rest of the book.
D&D was a really nice inclusion, and the hand-made maps and details at the end + the authors note was really sweet honestly, the book really felt like a love-letter to proper "at-home" running with friends kinda style of game and played out a little like one too imo (though, the book's story would probably work better as a call of cthulhu game tbh :P).
Tense, surprisingly gory (animal gore, not human) and I genuinely forgot that I think this is actually meant to be a middle grade book lmao.
The characters where a mixed bag for sure, it's hard to get decent character depth in a short time with so much else going on so it's not super character driven (especially with there being so many characters too) but you still get a decent show of their personalities - especially in the D&D sections!
The plot was insane and wild, certainly something that needs a good amount of suspension of disbelief, but also really felt like they were kids which was nice. A weird sci-fi, Stranger Things, D&D mix of things that works quite well. It's fast paced, manages to fit a lot in and while the ending feels a little ehhhhh it still works tbh. Just wish it worked in the ending reveal a bit better into the rest of the book.
D&D was a really nice inclusion, and the hand-made maps and details at the end + the authors note was really sweet honestly, the book really felt like a love-letter to proper "at-home" running with friends kinda style of game and played out a little like one too imo (though, the book's story would probably work better as a call of cthulhu game tbh :P).
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Gore, and Blood
non-pet and very very short lived pet. Deaths not on-page.
The International House of Dereliction by Jacqueline Davies
emotional
mysterious
sad
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
3.75
Representations: https://trello.com/c/QsatyC0J/123-the-international-house-of-dereliction-by-jacqueline-davies
Sort of slow until the end, and not too much happens (also until the end) but still quite worth a read if you want a seasonal feeling book but you don't like actual spooks.
The characters are the main focus, exploring each ghost's lives and trying to solve why they're stuck there. I'd have liked if it went more in-depth with each ghost, more about who each were as I felt that was really lacking. The ghosts were good though, and so was the main character Alice and her parents. Honestly really loved her parents, they were really vibrant and full of character.
There isn't too much plot, like mentioned the story basically just focuses on the ghosts. There is world building though, a surprising amount, which really does flesh out the world around quite nicely within such a short time.
It's just a short read that uses its time pretty well with a nice softer ghost/haunted house story that I would say mostly feels good.
Sort of slow until the end, and not too much happens (also until the end) but still quite worth a read if you want a seasonal feeling book but you don't like actual spooks.
The characters are the main focus, exploring each ghost's lives and trying to solve why they're stuck there. I'd have liked if it went more in-depth with each ghost, more about who each were as I felt that was really lacking. The ghosts were good though, and so was the main character Alice and her parents. Honestly really loved her parents, they were really vibrant and full of character.
There isn't too much plot, like mentioned the story basically just focuses on the ghosts. There is world building though, a surprising amount, which really does flesh out the world around quite nicely within such a short time.
It's just a short read that uses its time pretty well with a nice softer ghost/haunted house story that I would say mostly feels good.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death and Death
Minor: Grief
Cult of the Lamb: The First Verse by Alex Paknadel
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Representations: https://trello.com/c/hEFMilh6/122-cult-of-the-lamb-vol-1-the-first-verse-by-alex-paknadel-troy-little
Thank you Netgalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review!
Well this was a cute and badass surprise! I've never actually played the game even though I really want to (arachnophobia + spider boss doesn't mess well xD) so I did actually go into this mostly blind, and I really enjoyed it! It does have that "video game" feel to it, but not in a bad way at all.
Characters felt suprisingly developed, I loved Nana a lot, and even Lamb themselves I was rooting for. For a character that's meant to be a blank slate for players to make who they want, Lamb really does make for a compelling main character!
The plot was suprisingly fun as well, it did feel a little light on the action specifically, but it was actually quite emotional and I absolutely need to know what happens next!! I really do think this is a good comic for both those that like a cartoony darker story and those that are fans of the game. There's certainly something for everyone here!
Thank you Netgalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review!
Well this was a cute and badass surprise! I've never actually played the game even though I really want to (arachnophobia + spider boss doesn't mess well xD) so I did actually go into this mostly blind, and I really enjoyed it! It does have that "video game" feel to it, but not in a bad way at all.
Characters felt suprisingly developed, I loved Nana a lot, and even Lamb themselves I was rooting for. For a character that's meant to be a blank slate for players to make who they want, Lamb really does make for a compelling main character!
The plot was suprisingly fun as well, it did feel a little light on the action specifically, but it was actually quite emotional and I absolutely need to know what happens next!! I really do think this is a good comic for both those that like a cartoony darker story and those that are fans of the game. There's certainly something for everyone here!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death
Moderate: Gore, Suicide, and Violence
Minor: Genocide
Celestial Monsters by Aiden Thomas
adventurous
funny
slow-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
2.75
I'm conflicted. On one hand, sunbearer trials is one of my favourite ever books. On the other hand.... This really didn't meet expectations.
I loved the characters of course, Niya is still best girl and her dialogue with other characters was still on point. The character growth and their emotions did come through really nicely as well. The new additions didn't feel too much or too overwhelming, they all had their places. Honestly, don't really have much issue with the characters!
The plot is where it starts to fall apart though. For such a large book, larger than the first one, there really isn't that much that happens. It's a bit like Tom Cardy's lord of the rings song... Most of the plot happens in the last 15% ish, and the ending is good.. but somehow feels a little rushed at the same time. A lot is told, a lot just seems to work out first try without really any planning and things just go a bit too well. It's all a bit convenient.
As for pacing, it was both very slow, but then in that ending bit super fast. There was odd bits of action thrown in, and a couple interesting character moments, but otherwise they where just walking.
The creativity and brightness from book 1 is gone, and while yes that's partially due to how different the plot is, I still want to get more of a sense of the world. The apocalypse only *just* happened! Society hasn't fully collapsed yet!! Most of what we see is honestly just.... Societies that have existed like that for ages and haven't really changed from the apocalypse.
I think, book 1 is still absolutely worth reading, but don't expect this to be on the same level. The cliffhanger from book 1 is too brutal to just leave on so I guess it's a catch 22 aha..
I loved the characters of course, Niya is still best girl and her dialogue with other characters was still on point. The character growth and their emotions did come through really nicely as well. The new additions didn't feel too much or too overwhelming, they all had their places. Honestly, don't really have much issue with the characters!
The plot is where it starts to fall apart though. For such a large book, larger than the first one, there really isn't that much that happens. It's a bit like Tom Cardy's lord of the rings song... Most of the plot happens in the last 15% ish, and the ending is good.. but somehow feels a little rushed at the same time. A lot is told, a lot just seems to work out first try without really any planning and things just go a bit too well. It's all a bit convenient.
As for pacing, it was both very slow, but then in that ending bit super fast. There was odd bits of action thrown in, and a couple interesting character moments, but otherwise they where just walking.
The creativity and brightness from book 1 is gone, and while yes that's partially due to how different the plot is, I still want to get more of a sense of the world. The apocalypse only *just* happened! Society hasn't fully collapsed yet!! Most of what we see is honestly just.... Societies that have existed like that for ages and haven't really changed from the apocalypse.
I think, book 1 is still absolutely worth reading, but don't expect this to be on the same level. The cliffhanger from book 1 is too brutal to just leave on so I guess it's a catch 22 aha..
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Blood, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Child death, Torture, and War
Minor: Genocide, Slavery, and Suicidal thoughts
The Nice House on the Lake Vol. 1 by James Tynion IV
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Representations: https://trello.com/c/xI1D938Z/121-the-nice-house-on-the-lake-vol-1-by-james-tynion-iv
Wow, just wow! The art is so fluid and detailed and while the story isn't super long, I think it handles its length quite well!
The characters, there's just way too many of them in all honesty. The character guide being at the very very back of the book means you end up reading half of the overall story before realising you have a good guide for it. They are fun characters though and I can't wait to see more about how they're all there and why.
The story feels a little rushed, due to the short length, it's mainly just back stories on the characters and a tiny bit of what's currently happening. Most things are told through montages of sorts and told to us instead of properly shown. But what's there is good, and certainly kept me reading. There's a strong mystery, very interesting cliffhanger and I absolutely cannot wait to see how it's resolved!
Wow, just wow! The art is so fluid and detailed and while the story isn't super long, I think it handles its length quite well!
The characters, there's just way too many of them in all honesty. The character guide being at the very very back of the book means you end up reading half of the overall story before realising you have a good guide for it. They are fun characters though and I can't wait to see more about how they're all there and why.
The story feels a little rushed, due to the short length, it's mainly just back stories on the characters and a tiny bit of what's currently happening. Most things are told through montages of sorts and told to us instead of properly shown. But what's there is good, and certainly kept me reading. There's a strong mystery, very interesting cliffhanger and I absolutely cannot wait to see how it's resolved!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gore, Suicide attempt, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Deadnaming, Suicidal thoughts, and Blood