turninpages_sippintea's reviews
239 reviews

How To Solve Your Own Murder by Kristen Perrin

adventurous emotional lighthearted mysterious sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

Hey, this was fun! AND I managed to solve it before the characters did, yay! It started rather slow for me, but then suddenly became a page-turner (finished the book at 3 a.m. because I just HAD TO, I couldn't wait till proper hours).

One thing I really didn't like was

how Emily was villanised throughout the whole book, but Ford came out completely unscathed. Ford, who slept with one underage girl (one that we know of...), kept pursuing another one, while staying an absolute creep the whole time. I couldn't like Frances at all, because she seemed a good judge of character, realising that Ford was toying with her and her friends time and time again, yet she kept coming back to him?

This sort of behaviour seemed too irrational to me, even for a teen.

Oh, and there were SO MANY red herrings and repetitions of "Great Aunt Frances" that at some point the book started looking like this:

"Maybe HE killed her?  Great Aunt Frances  Great Aunt Frances  Great Aunt Frances  Great Aunt Frances"
"Yes, but there's also HER! Maybe SHE did?  Great Aunt Frances  Great Aunt Frances  Great Aunt Frances"
"Oh, sure, but then there's HIM! Could HE do it?  Great Aunt Frances  Great Aunt Frances  Great Aunt Frances"
"Probably, but we're forgetting that SHE was there too!  Great Aunt Frances  Great Aunt Frances  Great Aunt Frances"
"Ah, yes, but what about THEM?  Great Aunt Frances  Great Aunt Frances  Great Aunt Frances"

Despite all this, I still enjoyed the book and will be on the lookout for the sequel!

Untypical: How the World Isn't Built for Autistic People and What We Should All Do About it by Pete Wharmby

funny informative reflective fast-paced

3.5

I switched to the audiobook about halfway through, and it instantly became more enjoyable. I suppose the typical British deadpan passive aggressive humor is best understood when actually heard and not read. 

Personally, I think the only neurotypicals who'll find this book eye-opening will be the ones who are already quite accepting and open-minded. The rest (the ones who actually make all those rules that are so unforgiving towards autistic people) might not be persuaded, possibly because of the sarcastic and disgruntled tone of the book. It doesn't mean that the book should never have been written - on the opposite, I found the personal experiences described here very relatable, and it's incredibly validating knowing that I'm not the only one who struggles so much with depression, chronic stress, and the whole social aspect of, well, society. But that's why I think the book shouldn't make even hints of promises of trying to explain autism to neurotypicals. It's just not it. 

There were also a couple things that didn't work for me personally. 

The first is a very contradictory claim in the beginning that the author is by no means trying to speak for all autistic people. And it's contradictory because just a few pages later he takes on a role of an intermediary of sorts between the neurodivergent and neurotypical folks. I found that... weird. It sounded like, "I can't represent interests and experiences of the autistic community because everyone's different, but actually let me represent interests and experiences of the autistic community because I got diagnosed 6 years ago". (Yet another reason why I think the book should've just been marketed as a collection of essays of a late-diagnosed autistic man.) 

And the second one is an astounding lack of academic references. I understand that the whole sphere is severely under-researched, but if you make claims about statistics, the "I asked some people on twitter" won't suffice.

To sum up, it's not a bad book. If you are either already diagnosed or suspecting being on the spectrum, you'll find it quite validating.

How to Build a Boat by Elaine Feeney

challenging emotional sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

Craven Manor by Darcy Coates

adventurous dark mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

2.5

I didn't think it was a bad book (2/3 of it were actually pretty interesting), it just wasn't for me. 

I could empathise with the main character up to a certain point, and then he just kept making really weird choices instead of, I don't know, asking questions directly or buying a phone and at least trying to get the information himself. Daniel was a horrendous judge of character, but the book reminded me of his age on its last pages, so I suppose being so naive would make a bit of sense for him. I also personally didn't like the inconsistencies 

• (when Daniel met Bran for the first time in the dining room, he commented on how Bran couldn't be a ghost because he was making sounds by moving in the armchair, but then how could Annalyse tap on his house every night? 
  he also heard tapping on top of his cottage - was Annalyse... flying? 
  the handprint he discovered on his window was much larger than his own hand's, but Annalyse was 12 when she died, and her abnormally large hands were never mentioned, so who left the print, then? 
  if Eliza was suppressing her powers her whole life and was conscious of it because she didn't allow doctors to examine her, why did she then assume that the famine was her daughter's fault and not hers? she was shy and meek her whole life until THAT moment? the villagers just... persuaded her somehow to sacrifice her daughter whom she doted on? 
  Bran compared Eliza to himself when he said that she was stuck between life and death, but unlike him, she literally died, her skeleton is in the garden, how on earth was she keeping any corporeal form? 
  when Daniel asked what to do with that newfound skeleton before he'd met Bran in person, how did Bran send him the letter so quickly? like, even if he was in his shadow form, where was he keeping the paper and the pen? 
  AND! he just... made rain happen in the end?????? that was by far the most random "oh by the way I have this super convenient power that was never mentioned before lol nbg" moment),

and they overshadowed my enjoyment of the book.

Sacred Hospitality by Olivie Blake

emotional funny lighthearted fast-paced

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

3.5

somehow these short stories made me more interested in the sequel than the entirety of The Atlas Six

The Atlas Six by Olivie Blake

adventurous dark mysterious tense slow-paced

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

3.0

I never thought I'd say this since I'm not into romantasy, but The Atlas Six should've been that instead of dark academia / fantasy. I still don't understand what those brilliant people were racking their dark academic minds for, what exactly they were researching, what they succeeded or failed in. The plot wasn't plotting enough for me, but I did appreciate the rare erotica.

Frankie by Graham Norton

adventurous emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

Unlike every other Graham Norton's novel that I read, Frankie doesn't have a mystery element to it - there are no suspicious deaths, decades-old skeletons in the closets, detectives, or investigations. However, LIKE in every other of his novels that I read, Graham Norton once again succeeds in showing what fascinating lives people around us might be having, and we'd be none the wiser. 

I wouldn't call Frankie a strong independent woman, she was not assertive in any way, she never seemed to be really in control, things just kept happening to her, and for the most part of the novel she actually reminded me of Wladyslaw Szpilman from The Pianist, or at least the way he was portrayed in the film - both being exceptionally talented in their work, but managing to survive solely thanks to other people's help. Despite that, I didn't think that it made her somehow weaker or less interesting as a character. Nor's last line made me very emotional. I wish I'd asked my own grandmother more about her youth. 

The House Witch 2 by Delemhach

adventurous emotional funny lighthearted mysterious sad fast-paced

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

4.0

I thought that the 2nd book in the series, even though still charming, lacked plot-wise and resembled a slightly chaotic soap opera peppered with a few Benny Hill-esque sketches with people running after each other with no particular purpose. The characters were still adorable, even though we didn't have enough of the kitchen staff in this one, and CRIMINALLY not enough of Kraken! The arrival of

Fin's father

was rather underwhelming, although I assume

he

'll play a bigger role in the next book. What I did love was the same thing that we saw in the first book - Fin Merlining his way through life, resolving conflicts with the power of food and friendship :D

Pax by Sara Pennypacker

adventurous emotional hopeful reflective sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

What a book! It was suggested to me by a friend, and I was hesitant at first (I haven't read middle-grade books in a while and didn't know what to expect), but what a treat Pax turned out to be!

At a first glance, this book is about a boy who sets off to search for his pet fox. But I think, ultimately, Pax is about grief, growth, discovering yourself, and learning to let go. I enjoyed how much Peter and Vola affected each other over such a short period. I loved the interactions among foxes, at no point did they seem overhumanised. And I also liked how vague the image of the boy's father was. Perhaps, many kids and adults who come from emotionally volatile households will give the father the face of their own parent. While writing this I'm also coming to a realisation that the origins of Peter's empathy aren't explicitly explained - some things were definitely taught to him by his mom before her sudden death - but we can infer that both raising Pax and practically having been left to his own devices by his father, Peter matured much faster and learnt to care not only for himself but for the needs of a smaller, wilder creature.

And, lastly, I appreciate the very bittersweet decision of Pax' to leave with his new fox family. A golden cage is still a cage. How could he ever go back to living in captivity after getting a taste of freedom?

The only thing that slightly dampened my overall impression of the book was its quite abrupt ending. I would've appreciated an epilogue

with a small time jump, showing us what Peter and Pax were up to after such lifechanging weeks.

I wept anyway.

The Two Towers by J.R.R. Tolkien

adventurous challenging dark funny inspiring slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.75

The last time I read The Two Towers was 10+ years ago, and I can't believe how much I've forgotten! It's understandable, I suppose, the books are massive, but still. As with The Fellowship of the Ring, I've realised that I'm less enamoured with the story than when I was reading it in translation for the first time in my teens. However, while back then I loved the characters (Eomer isn't as well-rounded a character in the films as he is here, and for a long time I couldn't understand why my teeny-weeny self had a massive crush on him. I remember now and... yeah, still same, tbh <3), after this re-read I appreciate the writing and the atmosphere more. 
The only downside is in the narration (not reducing the rating because of this, though - it's not the book's problem). Andy Serkis is a very talented voice actor, but it's precisely because of this talent that some parts were really hard to trudge through - I had to raise the volume just to hear what a character was whispering just to wince a moment later from someone's deafening "NYAAAAH"