tallangryplanet's reviews
44 reviews

To Be Taught, If Fortunate by Becky Chambers

5.0

We step out of our solar system into the universe seeking only peace and friendship – to teach, if we are called upon; to be taught, if we are fortunate.

I fall in love more and more with every one of Becky's books I read. This one follows a group of astronauts as they explore the planets of the Zhenyi system, many light years away from Earth. Their mission is to explore, not colonize (I loved the focus on this aspect), so they adapt their bodies to the planets' natural conditions, and they try to do as little damage as possible to the environment of the places they explore. 

It's a short but beautiful and impactful story, written for those of us who just want to know more, who ask questions not because it'll get anyone money or fame but because we have a hunger to get to know the universe we inhabit. It makes me long for more, and it's heartbreaking to see that humanity, even in fiction, just can't deal with the scope of life sometimes. The ending somehow made me cry both in despair and hopefulness. 

The characters are amazing, I loved their relationships and how they helped each other through the hardest parts of their mission. The narration is also very evocative and I was absolutely captivated by each of the worlds the characters visited while also feeling like I knew the narrator closely. It had just the right amount of science-y talk (which was awesomely explained) to keep things interesting without annoying people with less expertise. 

All in all, I absolutely recommend this book, especially to those people who, like me, couldn't stop watching documentaries as children, no matter the topic. It's just so tender and hopeful and yet real that I don't think I'll be able to stop thinking about it any time soon.

Other quotes I can't get out of my head:
...sometimes we go, and we try, and we suffer, and despite it all, we learn nothing. Sometimes we are left with more questions than when we started. Sometimes we do harm, despite our best efforts. We are human. We are fragile.

We have found nothing you can sell. We have found nothing you can put to practical use. We have found no worlds that could be easily or ethically settled, were that end desired. We have satisfied nothing but curiosity, gained nothing but knowledge.

Violeta by Isabel Allende

challenging emotional hopeful informative 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

5.0

En los cien años que van del 1920 al 2020, Violeta ha vivido toda clase de situaciones personales y eventos históricos. Son historias que podrían haber sucedido a cualquier mujer que compartiese circunstancias, y sin embargo su combinación particular hacen de la protagonista un personaje dolorosamente humano, con sus altibajos, irracionalidades y errores. 

La historia de Violeta se cruza con una miríada de problemáticas que siguen afectándonos a las personas de hoy - derechos reproductivos o de la mujer, guerra, amor, familia, pérdida. Es una historia a veces desgarradora (me pasé la última hora del audiolibro al borde del llanto), otras veces delicada como la flor que da nombre a su protagonista, y aún a veces increíblemente frustrante. Aprecio mucho que Allende no intentase presentar a Violeta y su familia como seres perfectos, incapaces de cometer un error o arrepentirse, y que no hubiese presión para que el lector estuviese siempre de su parte. 

Si esperáis un libro lleno de acción y aventuras trepidantes este no es el adecuado. La familia de la protagonista vive generalmente aislada del mundo, enterándose de las grandes noticias incluso semanas después de que ocurran, y la historia se centra más en sus problemas personales, en el estilo del realismo mundano. Si os interesan las historias de personas concretas (aunque sean ficticias) no puedo dejar de recomendarlo, especialmente si tenéis la oportunidad de escuchar el audiolibro, ya que la narradora le da vida de una forma maravillosa. 

Heartstopper Volume 3 by Alice Oseman

adventurous challenging emotional funny hopeful informative lighthearted reflective

5.0

This series has finally reached its full potential!! As Higgs and Truham students visit Paris, they continue to develop their shenanigans. 

Nick and Charlie's relationship is stronger and cuter than ever, and their character development is unrivaled in this volume. The side characters add a really interesting level of depth, and I felt truly invested in them too. The plot is obviously very high school-y, but the way Oseman explores some darker topics is very touching and carefully done. 

You should definitely check trigger warnings before reading this, but I absolutely recommend it! It's really sweet and comforting while still being honest about some harsher aspects of life. Truly a cuteness overload. 

Some spoilery thoughts: 

• Charlie standing up for himself and telling Henry that an apology solves nothing? Iconic! I'm glad this kid is finally getting some self confidence.
• Loved seeing happy queer adults!! The teachers are the best characters ever, I especially loved Mr. Farouk and his done with life but still responsible attitude. 
• The kids trying vodka for the first time was so funny and the most teenager thing I've seen in a while. 

The Drowned Woods by Emily Lloyd-Jones

adventurous challenging emotional tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Mer lost her chance at a normal life the day people discovered she was a water diviner. She was taken into the prince's custody and used as a weapon in a war she wanted to have nothing to do with, and now that she has managed to flee all she longs for is a quiet and peaceful life. But when the prince's old spymaster comes to her with the opportunity of a lifetime, to ruin the prince and ensure her own safety, she cannot turn it away. 

This book is a completely wild ride. Even if you're acquainted with Welsh lore, the world-building is incredibly rich and filled with surprises, and if you aren't, it's like finding a treasure trove. One of my favorite aspects of it was the magic system. Although we only get to know it through the perspective of a water diviner and a "fae-touched" person, rather than seeing every single kind of magic, I felt like it had clearly defined limits, and it was nice that having magic didn't make Mer omnipotent, though it was frustrating to see it hindered in those moments where I was really rooting for her. 

As for the characters, like with most books, it's impossible to connect with every single one of them, but I found the protagonist to be very well developed and it was heart wrenching to read all she had suffered through. I loved the way she slowly realised she had more in common than she thought with the people she considered ruthless or "less good", and yet she still tried to do better every chance she got. This was a big theme throughout the book, the ways we can still hurt others even when we don't mean to, and how we must strive to be better today than we were yesterday, along with how far we can go for "the greater good", which I thought was really well explored. 

The story itself was really well crafted, with a couple of mind-boggling twists that actually made sense in retrospective. Some of the characters' actions were quite questionable, but I think that just added to their humanity. My only complaint is that I got a bit lost during the fight scenes, which is probably actually my fault as I tend to skim over those because it did get a bit gory for my taste, and that the tension felt a little dragged out in the grand finale. 

All in all, this was a really good read. If you like fantasy with some heist aspects, this book is for you. And if you're still not sold: there's an adorable dog character!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read and review this book. 

Book Lovers by Emily Henry

emotional funny lighthearted 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

Nora Stephens has dealt with enough romantic comedies to know her life cannot be one. She's too ambitious and loves her job as a literary agent in New York too much to even think about moving to a small town and marrying a pig farmer. And yet, she finds herself unable to say no when her little sister asks to go on a summer trip to Sunshine Falls, and her carefully constructed narrative starts to fall down thanks to the presence of Charles Lastra. Maybe she can actually get a happy ending this time. 

I was slightly confused in the beginning of this book, as I could not for the life for me figure out what Charlie and Nora's relationship was supposed to be. Sure, they were coworkers, but their familiarity threw me off. However, as soon as I got through that initial confusion the book was so good! It's not as centred on the romance as I expected in the beginning, which was an awesome surprise. There's secondary characters that actually get development! Nora's relationship with her sister was a big focus of the story, awkward at times and pretty realistic. Their shenanigans were hilarious, though I don't know how Nora managed to put up with Libby's antics sometimes. 

The ending of this book was also incredibly satisfying. I loved how Nora was confident enough in herself to know she shouldn't give up her life and her goals for some dude, despite her having the awful pressure that is often put on women to live for others. Even though she knew people might perceive her as too rigid and "unfun", she was sure of the way she wanted to live her life. It was a big deal throughout the story, the way she had already given up so much in the name of being helpful, and I actually doubted whether the author would give this story the "correct" ending, but I never should have questioned her judgement because she did it in the best way possible.

If you're interested in the things that tend to be relegated to the sidelines of a love story, rather than just having the protagonist think about how in love they are all the time, this is the book for you. It's funny, with sometimes-frustrating characters, and a lead truly worth getting invested in. 

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read and review this book. 

The Atlas Six by Olivie Blake

3.0

Knowledge is carnage. You can't have it without sacrifice.

Every ten years, the Alexandrian Society chooses six of the most powerful medeians in the world to compete for five initiation spots. If they succeed, a life of unimaginable power, knowledge and riches awaits them. Nico, Libby, Reina, Parisa, Callum, and Tristan all have their reasons for accepting, and none of them is willing to stop fighting for this chance, but their fates will reveal themselves more twisted than they could have ever predicted. 

When I imagined a secret Alexandrian Society working to protect and expand the Library's knowledge through the centuries, I did not picture a group of power-hungry magicians, working only in their self-interest. Maybe the hunger for power is part of dark academia books, but this felt more like some Hunger Games-style competition with pretentious philosophical ramblings mixed in than caretaking of knowledge. They can't even access all of the library's contents once they're initiated! What's the fun in having the world's knowledge at your fingertips if there's a glass wall preventing you from actually reaching it? I suppose this is a criticism for the society rather than for the book itself, but I found myself completely agreeing with the rival societies. The Alexandrians didn't feel trustworthy, with their mysterious initiation practices and unwillingness to disclose relevant details with the Six. In this sense, I have to applaud Atlas's arch and the way his plot was developed. The rest of the characters, on the other hand, felt mostly undeveloped; I felt pity for Libby, really wanting her to succeed and get better, and hatred for Callum, but that's about as far as my connection to the initiates went. The story also felt pretty aimless until the last third or so, and the writing in some parts was so dense I struggled to get through it, though some of the reflections were actually really interesting. I also wish we had seen more of the magic system instead of spending so much time in the characters' head (something I never thought I'd say about a book), because their ramblings tended to be almost irrelevant and the world could've done with some more development. 

All in all, this was a fun read. Although this book wasn't perfect for me, I can see where the hype came from, and I think the sequel can be so much better thanks to the setup in this book.  

The Seawomen by Chloe Timms

challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective tense 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

5.0

Esta has lived her whole life on Eden's Isle. She knows there is a whole other world across the sea, but she also knows it is ridden with illness and evil, that this is the place God chose for her people, and, most importantly, that the Seawomen are out there, waiting to destroy everyone's souls if they're careless enough to let them in, so why would she ever want to leave? However, her soul aches with curiosity for the sea, even though she knows it might damn her, and she can't help but question everything she's been taught as she grows older and learns more about her world. 

This book is a masterpiece. Like a Greek tragedy, I couldn't stop reading even though I knew there was no way it would end well, that Esta wouldn't magically get everything she wanted by the end. It was bittersweet, and yet the ending was more positive than I could have hoped. I was gripped from the beginning (except for a few chapters around the middle where it suddenly felt slower), and even while not reading I kept thinking about the island and the people living in it. The way Esta slowly realised that things were not as they'd been told, especially that the women were being controlled in the most possibly damaging ways, was heartbreaking. Of course, unlike her I knew that this was a dystopia from the beginning, but the puzzle pieces still clicked in a very satisfying way. I would've loved to know the rest of the characters got their happy (or at least safe) endings, but at the same time it was all cut at the most natural point. 

I don't think this is a book I have the emotional capacity to be re-reading anytime soon, but I still heartily recommend it. Definitely look up trigger warnings before starting, but if you think you can handle it go for it. It's tender and sad and hopeful and disquieting and everything a dystopia should be. 

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read and review this book. 

Heartstopper Volume 2 by Alice Oseman

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

This volume was just as cute as the first part! I enjoyed the exploration of Nick's identity and all the support around him. We really need positive stories like this one, and I love seeing Charlie and Nick's growth! Really excited to see what comes next, as this volume felt like mostly fluff and I suppose the story still needs some tension. 

The Spanish Love Deception by Elena Armas

3.5

Lina's just promised her family she will go to her sister's wedding in Spain with her beloved boyfriend, but there's just one catch: he doesn't exist. Cue fake dating, awkward moments, bed sharing, and the realization that she might actually be in love. 

This book had the potential to be great, I really liked the writing style and the story itself was perfect. However, a few things kept distracting me as I read. The Spanish was a bit annoying because I kept having to read the same thing twice in different languages when the translation appeared right after. One a more serious note, Lina seemed really childish, the way she talked to a colleague she wasn't even friendly with, calling him ridiculous stuff like Mr. Robot to his face, felt really immature and unfair. And Aaron, the love interest, was possessive to the point of making me feel pretty awkward. However, the tension between them was very well achieved, and once their relationship started to progress it was all much better. 

All in all, this is a fun read if you're in the mood for romance. It's not perfect, but it satisfied all my cravings. 

The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood

5.0

Beware spoilers in this review!! I mention tropes and some plot details. 

This book has it all: fake dating, a Very Protective Moment, secret yearning, thinking your love is one-sided... I loved it!!!! It reads like a rom-com and I love how aware the characters are of that, it adds an extra level of fun to the story. Maybe it's because I've encountered a string of not-for-me books lately so I'm easy to please or because I was just really in the mood for something funny and romantic, but this book hit all the right spots for me. 

I was a bit intimidated by the fact that it's set in STEM academia, but that did not turn out to be an issue at all. Sure, some of the terms were totally alien to me, but it didn't really make a difference and I didn't even need to search them up to make sense of the story. Olive's student struggle is absolutely relatable even if the rest of her life isn't, and I love how real she and her friends felt. Their dialogues were super funny, as were Olive's thoughts, and there wasn't an excess of description to take me out of the story. The progression of the main couple's relationship was also *chef's kiss*, and even though I didn't even need to think to figure out who Adam was pining after all that time, it was still delicious to read the reveal. I wasn't even bothered by the third act breakup!! (Probably because it lasted like a chapter lol).

I spent all of my Friday sprawled out in bed, covered in blankets, squealing and laughing and mildly sobbing while reading this book. I cannot recommend it enough if you're in the mood for some lighthearted romance.