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vigil's reviews
198 reviews
A Guest in the House by E.M. Carroll
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
when i last read emily carroll i determined that despite their artistic talent and often interesting premises, they were a mediocre storyteller. i have not been moved from that opinion, but i see minor signs of improvement. they seem fundamentally incapable of sticking the landing, or getting out of their own way when it comes to storytelling. the build up was enjoyable, but once david died it went downhill. the ending alone isn't very interesting once the shock wears off, in comparison to what the story had been building up before not to mention the dubious optics of the possible portrayal of psychosis with abby. some very ableist and cliche tropes at play there.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Suicide and Suicide attempt
The Memory Theater by Karin Tidbeck
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
the adept prose and interesting concepts can distract you from the fact that this book is largely a giant nothingburger. there are moments, saved for when we are well past the 80% where a page or two has an interesting idea, but fails apart either on the next page of nothingness, or on its immediate arrival, due to a complete lack of build up or any foundations.
the characters have no interiority, so it becomes rather bizarre by the end when the book stars pretending that it does. you can imagine how difficult this makes for pulling off a character driven plot line.
you can read this book, or don’t, either way you’ll receive absolutely nothing.
the characters have no interiority, so it becomes rather bizarre by the end when the book stars pretending that it does. you can imagine how difficult this makes for pulling off a character driven plot line.
you can read this book, or don’t, either way you’ll receive absolutely nothing.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Gore, Physical abuse, Violence, Blood, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: War
The Moonday Letters by Emmi Itäranta
slow-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
i honestly don't know what to say. there's no such thing as closure in the end i suppose.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Death, Drug use, and Grief
eco-terrorism is a main plot point.
Ancillary Justice by Ann Leckie
4.0
this was a book that i had bounced off of at least 3 times before i actually managed to read it, but i’m glad i finally finished it. i was really impressed with how ann leckie managed to handle the pacing of this book as the two timelines each had their own individual tone, pacing, and lengths. i did notice however that many of the so called “climaxes” occurred when the other timeline slowed down. for some people this may help with feeling overwhelmed, for others it may seem like you’re simply biding time until the other timeline returns. i was fine with both personally. the present timeline was noticeably slower and more “meandering” so to speak. leckie has a tendency to have a rapid pace pick up towards the ends of her stories, preceded by consistent dread.
a lot of this book focused on personhood, what it looks like in the context of culture (both your own or otherwise) and it’s ties to imperialism and “citizenship.” i liked the extra translation notes on the raadchi language, and how the language is also used in a way the specifically empowers the empire. i don’t think we got much, if any at all, answers to this personhood question, so i assume these will carry on into the following books. i also don’t think breq has contemplated it in any sort of meaningful waybut i did like her speaking against the condescending compassion offered to her. what is the life that was stolen from her? and what are the ways she should act and live now, having been given something like that life? unsubtle thematic statements but idgaf subtlety =/ quality.
i found certain parts of the narrative more confusing than they needed to have been within the book, which was made all the more jarring when breq or another character would begin an infodump so to speak. this was less of an issue with breq, as that matches her speech patterns but it was rather apparent with everyone else. the opening especially is so jarring i wouldn’t blame anyone for not reading past it. i didn’t for a while.
a lot of this book focused on personhood, what it looks like in the context of culture (both your own or otherwise) and it’s ties to imperialism and “citizenship.” i liked the extra translation notes on the raadchi language, and how the language is also used in a way the specifically empowers the empire. i don’t think we got much, if any at all, answers to this personhood question, so i assume these will carry on into the following books. i also don’t think breq has contemplated it in any sort of meaningful way
i found certain parts of the narrative more confusing than they needed to have been within the book, which was made all the more jarring when breq or another character would begin an infodump so to speak. this was less of an issue with breq, as that matches her speech patterns but it was rather apparent with everyone else. the opening especially is so jarring i wouldn’t blame anyone for not reading past it. i didn’t for a while.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Death, Gun violence, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Murder, Colonisation, and Injury/Injury detail
Crypt of the Moon Spider by Nathan Ballingrud
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
4.0
I received this as an E-ARC from NetGalley.
This is a shockingly dense novella, one that I think I'll definitely be reading over again once it comes out in August. I did actually like reading this book, which is exceedingly rare for me when reading novella's, though I still do have some small qualms.
Firstly, the praise. I liked how the author wrote the main female character Veronica in here, doing a lot of very excellent character work in such a short time. Also, while I think he could stand to use a few less commas (relatable, but the opening sentences are consistently too long.) the prose style here balanced atmosphere, poetic language, and readability well.One of my favorite aspects of the story was Veronica's dream sequences, and I just loved how skin crawling yet oddly comforting they were.
I have some complaints, which is largely due to the constraints of the novella format. On one hand, I appreciated the haze and mystery in thesections with Veronica, and having the veil pulled back almost completely with Grub's who sees and moves through the world in such a specific manner to her, but I also think we could've done with more worldbuilding in the beginning. To a certain extent, the only reason I was unsurprised by the existence of the moon spiders was because it was in the title. I think the lack of knowledge here actually hindered my potential feelings of dread and horror, because I was mostly a bit confused. This is also part of another problem which is mostly solved in the back half of the book, but the beginning half lacked a certain amount of connective tissue between scenes, making things seem more haphazard than they needed to be. I don't think more plot needs to be added per se, but I would focus on moving things along a little less quickly.
I'm glad to see that this is going to be a series, as I certainly felt there was more story to be explored here. I'll definitely be picking up the rest of the books as they become available.
This is a shockingly dense novella, one that I think I'll definitely be reading over again once it comes out in August. I did actually like reading this book, which is exceedingly rare for me when reading novella's, though I still do have some small qualms.
Firstly, the praise. I liked how the author wrote the main female character Veronica in here, doing a lot of very excellent character work in such a short time. Also, while I think he could stand to use a few less commas (relatable, but the opening sentences are consistently too long.) the prose style here balanced atmosphere, poetic language, and readability well.
I have some complaints, which is largely due to the constraints of the novella format. On one hand, I appreciated the haze and mystery in the
I'm glad to see that this is going to be a series, as I certainly felt there was more story to be explored here. I'll definitely be picking up the rest of the books as they become available.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Mental illness, Misogyny, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Medical content, Medical trauma, and Murder
Dandelion by Sabir Pirzada
challenging
dark
reflective
sad
fast-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
2.75
I received this as an E-ARC from NetGalley.
I had a relatively okay time with this graphic novel, i though that the differing art styles in each story was a fun switch up every so often. My favorite narrative in this collection of essentially short stories was coming from jen nakamuto's interviews / conversation about the dandelion project, especially on how it became so government regulated in the end. I only wish that the dandelions themselves had more presence in narrative, so that it didn't feel so much like our only grounding piece.
Which is the biggest problem with this graphic novel. I feel like there was a lot the author wanted to say about migration, poverty, refugees, etc but didn't have much of a story to tell. There are multiple entries in here which lack both heart and plot, largely consisting of characters simply monologuing at each other like a college class that just read Marx for the first time. I'm certainly interested in the political parts of the book, and I wasn't disagreeing with what they were saying, but the purpose of fiction is to tell a story. It's very telling that I think unarguably the best story in here contains absolutely no words, and has to rely fully on the art to get its themes across.
Because of this lack of plot, many of the stories felt disjointed and unnecessary. There wasn't a central theme or focus to ground the book in, which made it fly in sixteen different directions. I thought we would get more on the worldbuilding of the dandelions (in what universe would the government allow poor people and migrants to live in floating houses for free. the themes of exploitation simply do not work because people aren't actually being exploited in the way the book says they are. they don't have jobs, they have free housing, and the government delivers their food directly to their doors. if that's exploitation of the poor, can i get in on it? the argument of loneliness cannot actually be made, because again, the dandelions have little to no focus in the book) but instead we focus on pretty much everything else.
Also, I'm not overly familiar with the author's experience with disability, and my own is not particularly deep. However, I'm not totally sure how I feel about the disabled woman's story focusing so heavily on her walking again in VR. Is that the only story we have for disabled people? I'm not against showing the struggle people may have after becoming disabled, but why is this the kind of story that keeps appearing over and over again? Like I said, I'm not overly familiar with disability rights, so grain of salt and all that, but I think there were more interesting stories here for her.
I had a relatively okay time with this graphic novel, i though that the differing art styles in each story was a fun switch up every so often. My favorite narrative in this collection of essentially short stories was coming from jen nakamuto's interviews / conversation about the dandelion project, especially on how it became so government regulated in the end. I only wish that the dandelions themselves had more presence in narrative, so that it didn't feel so much like our only grounding piece.
Which is the biggest problem with this graphic novel. I feel like there was a lot the author wanted to say about migration, poverty, refugees, etc but didn't have much of a story to tell. There are multiple entries in here which lack both heart and plot, largely consisting of characters simply monologuing at each other like a college class that just read Marx for the first time. I'm certainly interested in the political parts of the book, and I wasn't disagreeing with what they were saying, but the purpose of fiction is to tell a story. It's very telling that I think unarguably the best story in here contains absolutely no words, and has to rely fully on the art to get its themes across.
Because of this lack of plot, many of the stories felt disjointed and unnecessary. There wasn't a central theme or focus to ground the book in, which made it fly in sixteen different directions. I thought we would get more on the worldbuilding of the dandelions (in what universe would the government allow poor people and migrants to live in floating houses for free. the themes of exploitation simply do not work because people aren't actually being exploited in the way the book says they are. they don't have jobs, they have free housing, and the government delivers their food directly to their doors. if that's exploitation of the poor, can i get in on it? the argument of loneliness cannot actually be made, because again, the dandelions have little to no focus in the book) but instead we focus on pretty much everything else.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Blood, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Classism
Moderate: Ableism
Minor: Car accident
Delicious in Dungeon, Vol. 1 by Ryoko Kui
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Death, Blood, and Kidnapping
The Sins on Their Bones by Laura R. Samotin
Did not finish book.
Did not finish book.
DNF unfortunately, E-ARC received from NetGalley.
I meant to add this as a DNF a long time ago, but I got too busy.
This writing style comes across as both smarmy and self conscious in a way I found to be wildly grating. The dialogue didn't match up with time period it was placed in, and sounded awfully juvenile. I'm also very, very sick of being quipped at, or having to read truly terrible flirting. Ultimately, despite the legions of reviewers commenting how dark the novel is, I just simply do not trust the author to tackle the purported themes properly. Both from the shallowness I get from the prose alone, but also trying to reconcile the "queer normative" world building. You can't have no homophobia and imperialism, because that's not how those concepts work on a basic structural level. There was also a lot of telling and not showing, references to past key events and bonding moments between the characters, all of which serve to pad out what is simply a book that cannot seem to allow itself to be that deep.
I meant to add this as a DNF a long time ago, but I got too busy.
This writing style comes across as both smarmy and self conscious in a way I found to be wildly grating. The dialogue didn't match up with time period it was placed in, and sounded awfully juvenile. I'm also very, very sick of being quipped at, or having to read truly terrible flirting. Ultimately, despite the legions of reviewers commenting how dark the novel is, I just simply do not trust the author to tackle the purported themes properly. Both from the shallowness I get from the prose alone, but also trying to reconcile the "queer normative" world building. You can't have no homophobia and imperialism, because that's not how those concepts work on a basic structural level. There was also a lot of telling and not showing, references to past key events and bonding moments between the characters, all of which serve to pad out what is simply a book that cannot seem to allow itself to be that deep.
The Fall of Waterstone by Lilith Saintcrow
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
I received an E-ARC of this book from NetGalley.
This book took me way longer than I would've like to finish (through no fault of its own) but I'm happy to say its finally done, and I enjoyed it! This book is still slow like the first installment, but I think it is also a major improvement for pacing on all fronts. Especially in the final 100 pages, which is definitely the best part of the book as a whole.
I enjoyed the jaunt to waterstones, even if it was fairly obvious how doomed it was. I do however think the author is overly relying on a formula in some aspects. Like the first book, the plot formula follows as perilous travels -> enter city -> tentatively welcomed -> Solvieg is lied to / tormented -> city falls -> rinse and repeat. I don't necessarily dislike this, but I think the book does some of its best work when the author is throwing curveballs at the audience. I hope the next book will step outside of this somewhat, or focus more heavily on whatever the hell is happening to solvieg's body and magic, as well as the mysterious enemy lurking in her dreams.
Because this is an E-ARC copy, I won't dock any stars for this aspect, but I noticed that the repetitiveness in the plot has gotten better, but in the prose, has gotten worse. This was much less of an issue for me in the back half of the novel, but the front half..... how many times does Solvieg need to remind the audience she's a volva? We haven't forgotten in the last 2 minutes since you said it.
For the dynamics, Sol and Arn are still the heart of this story and I sincerely hope it stays that way. In the previous novel I considered Sol and Aeredh, but I can firmly say now he needs to never be in her presence again. Great character, but leave her alone. Sol and Eol on the other hand got some great moments in this book and I hope that continues. They honestly have such a fraught dynamic but also a very tender one. I assume with Arn killing his father in defense of Sol will likely only add to both these aspects in book 3 and I'm excited to see it. I am NOT excited to see Arn and Efain however, which is more of a specter of something than a concrete dynamic, but either way I'm not really fucking with it at all. Woman uninterested in men until she just finds the right one is probably my least favorite dynamic of all time. If Arn wants to be a single misandrist, that's fine!
This book took me way longer than I would've like to finish (through no fault of its own) but I'm happy to say its finally done, and I enjoyed it! This book is still slow like the first installment, but I think it is also a major improvement for pacing on all fronts. Especially in the final 100 pages, which is definitely the best part of the book as a whole.
Because this is an E-ARC copy, I won't dock any stars for this aspect, but I noticed that the repetitiveness in the plot has gotten better, but in the prose, has gotten worse. This was much less of an issue for me in the back half of the novel, but the front half..... how many times does Solvieg need to remind the audience she's a volva? We haven't forgotten in the last 2 minutes since you said it.
For the dynamics, Sol and Arn are still the heart of this story and I sincerely hope it stays that way. In the previous novel
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Gore, Violence, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, War, and Injury/Injury detail