vatsal_was_here's reviews
44 reviews

Piranesi by Susanna Clarke

mysterious reflective relaxing medium-paced

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

4.0

Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury

dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective medium-paced

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

5.0

Ray Bradbury's writing style is absolutely brilliant. The way he constructs sentences is so clever; There's a peculiar incompleteness to his sentences that appears to be intentional. He says just enough to give our minds material to interpret the meaning for ourselves, and that too in the way he wants us to.

And with this, he weaves magic. 

The Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien

adventurous hopeful mysterious fast-paced

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

4.0

The Hobbit: or There and Back Again by J.R.R. Tolkien

adventurous funny hopeful lighthearted

• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde

dark reflective sad

5.0

Calling a book my all-time favourite always felt like a big deal to me. 

There are many books I've loved, that I'd rate 5/5, but something always seemed to be missing — a sense of absolute perfection. 

The Picture of Dorian Gray is the 1st book that has touched me in that way. 

How this book made me feel is what I imagine it must have felt like to look at Dorian Gray's newly painted portrait.

Anxious People by Fredrik Backman

emotional funny hopeful lighthearted mysterious reflective

• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This books is like the Forrest Gump of Literature. That's the best I could come up with, after spending 10 minutes trying to decide where do I begin.

Very early on, you know it's a 5 star read. Fredrick Backman's ability to make you laugh, cry, laugh AND cry, all while maintaining the same lighthearted tone, is phenomenal. 

The Thousandfold Thought by R. Scott Bakker

challenging dark emotional sad

4.0

The Warrior Prophet by R. Scott Bakker

adventurous challenging dark mysterious medium-paced

• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

R. Scott Bakker wrote The War ior Prophet book in under a year—as opposed to the The Darkness That Comes Before, which he took 15 years to write—and it shows. 

But that's not necessarily a bad thing. The first book laid the foundation. It did the job of immersing us into the world of Earwa, and familiarising us with the large cast of characters. 

In this book, Bakker got to finally get the story moving. 
And it was GLORIOUS!

The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka

dark emotional mysterious reflective sad

• Strong character development? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

It was perfect. Perfect! Down to the last minute details 

The Darkness That Comes Before by R. Scott Bakker

challenging dark mysterious reflective tense slow-paced

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

4.25