theelliad's reviews
195 reviews

Notes on Grief by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

3.5

It’s rather ironic that my hold on Adichies book commemorating the grief of losing her father came in the day before I bury my own grandad… I feel like this was a definite case of divine timing. In all seriousness I could genuinely listen to Adichie’s words and voice forever, and this was such a lovely exploration of human emotion and experience especially during the covid 19 pandemic when everything- even grief- became harder 

The Tyrant's Tomb by Rick Riordan

3.0

These books are still fun and immaculate escapism- they definitely (like the other two series) get darker as they go on. This book also saw the return of characters and a bunch of call backs so was really good :))

Beartown by Fredrik Backman

5.0

Never would I have expected to find a book so triggering and love it so dearly- this was so specific in its traumas it became somewhat healing and I fell in love with the parts of me I saw reflected in these characters. This story of a small town and it’s hockey obsessed people branches into accountability, power, social norms, grief, the exploitation of children in competitive sports, sex and assault politics, homophobia (internalised and external), secrecy, systematic and institutional failures and family dynamics without ever feeling too full. Backmans writing is so easy to love and I will be thinking about this book for a long time 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Blood, Addiction, Death, Homophobia, Drug use, Sexual violence, Body shaming, Child death, Suicide, Alcoholism, Dysphoria, Sexual harassment, Suicidal thoughts, Rape, Sexual assault, Bullying, Grief, Murder, Gaslighting, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Hate crime, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, and Violence

Cleopatra and Frankenstein by Coco Mellors

3.0

This book made me both deeply uncomfortable and left me speechless from its misplaced philosophical takes on love, trauma, learning, addiction and aging- if we ignore the wattpad level sex scenes which were both much too frequent and too little in purpose, this book really was quite good. It’s very ‘Normal People’ in its lack of plot and its two badly matched people with many many issues who you continue to route for despite it! There was both relatable and hateable elements to every character which is always fun for me. However- READ THE TRIGGER WARNINGS AND DO NOT READ/AUDIOBOOK THIS IN PUBLIC

Bacchai by

3.5

I love Euripides- while this lacks the beauty and power of medea, this translation of Bacchae conveyed the importance of power and disillusionment very well and was easy to understand and analyse 

Brave New World by Aldous Huxley

4.0

Despite the slight over-dystopian week I have had it was very interesting to read this and 1984 simultaneously- the differences and yet terrifying similarities were overwhelming and if I wasn’t afraid enough of the future before I must be now… In contrast to Orwell, Huxley focused a lot more on the scientific and genetic elements of his imagined future with an open attitude towards sex and eroticism and an abhorrence surrounding familial values which was very interesting as someone who thoroughly missed A level biology (the occasional biological/genetic spirals were honestly so good)! Despite Ed’s warning I liked the ending of this one just as much as the beginning and so for now Orwell and Huxley can share the rating :))

Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell

4.0

Safe to say it’s THE dystopian for a reason… this book is far from perfect and I can and probably will rant about the parts I didn’t like and could have been removed in the coming months however overall it’s an engaging, terrifying and brainwashing experience. As a reader you are continually confused and questioning systems, trust loses all its meaning and you catch a glimpse of just how terrifying it would have been for this to have been a prediction of your livable future! I especially loved the 1940s psychology elements- Freudian and post war psychological methods dominate the latter half of this book and these are the elements that had me most engaged and raised the overall book by about a star! The ending is predictable and mundane and yet awfully fitting - i do love a theory of cyclicality within literature so will likely ramble about that element of this as well! Is this book revolutionary to me? No, however I completely see its appeal and how revolutionary it would have been within its context🕺

The Maidens by Alex Michaelides

3.0

Well that was a wild ride!? While this book played into tropes i enjoyed and sported a twist which i didn’t fully guess, i feel like it was unsure of what it wanted to be- flitting uncomfortably between a murder mystery, a cult novel, a psychological/therapy book and a dark academia?! There was elements i enjoyed however I feel like the campus nature and maidens/mythology elements were almost entirely irrelevant in the long run.

Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir

3.5

Nécromancers in space? This was actually a really interesting plot and had a lot of twists as well as a look at the complexities of guilt and gay people… I definitely need to reread this as a paper copy before I read the next one though as I am so confused 

Castle Rackrent by Maria Edgeworth

2.0

I like the narration but why is the plot various people just complaining with a sprinkle of racism?