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waytoomanybooks's reviews
138 reviews
And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
What a gripping tale! I can see why this is Christie’s best-loved work. I couldn’t put it down! I don’t often go for mysteries, but this one is excellent. The tension is palpable, and the conceit of following the “Ten Little Soldiers” nursery rhyme was inspired. I loved that each and every character was especially awful in such unique ways. And I absolutely did not see the twist at the end in which we find out the identity of the killer. I also love that this novel involves neither Poirot nor Marple. I strongly dislike mysteries, thrillers, and detective novels that have a lead detective because what’s the fun if a character has a 100% success rate? So that fact alone got it a lot of points from me!
The only reason this is a 4.5 star book and not a 5 star book is that one killer killing off ten people—directly and indirectly—without detection and without suspicion was a bit too farfetched to me. And the way in which the killer obtained his victims was also a bit too far passed my suspension of disbelief. I mean, it just seems a bit too tidy that the killer came by the victims’ profiles so easily and arranged their deaths so quickly and was successful with each murder .
But still, I enjoyed this novel immensely, and I highly recommend it!
The only reason this is a 4.5 star book and not a 5 star book is that
But still, I enjoyed this novel immensely, and I highly recommend it!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, Sexism, Suicide, Violence, Grief, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Drug use
The Lais of Marie de France by Marie de France
adventurous
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
While there isn’t much substance to the character in the lais, there is a lot to learn from the tropes and themes within the lais themselves. From this collection, you get a small look into the values, morals, and interests of the medieval French folk who were reading or listening to the lais being read/performed. But really, the beautiful thing about these lais is how special it is to read stories that people were reading ~800 years ago. I am injecting with this book in a way that would be unimaginable to the original audience, and yet here I am/here we are, talking about them and these stories. It’s moments like these that make me happy I became an English major. It provides me wonderful moments such as these!
Content Warnings
Minor: Animal death, Death, Infidelity, Sexual content, Blood, Grief, Murder, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail
Saint Joan by George Bernard Shaw by George Bernard Shaw
emotional
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
I hate to say it—because Joan of Arc is near and dear to me—but this play is quite silly, bordering on cringey. And for a play titled Saint Joan, we never get to see her in action. All she and everyone else in the play do is talk, which is a shame because Joan known for being a young woman of action. On top of this, the writing leaves a lot to be desired. I expected much more than I got.
Content Warnings
Minor: Death, Grief, and Fire/Fire injury
A Man for All Seasons by Robert Bolt
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
I’ve fully re-embraced my love of Tudor historical fiction since engaging with Wolf Hall—the show and the novels—at the end of last year, and I’ve gone out looking for more works that of the same quality. I have definitely found it within A Man for All Seasons. The play is, by nature, immersive in Thomas’ point of view, and it’s truly heart-breaking to watch his story unfold when one already knows how it ends.
The executions Henry metes out never get any easier to read about or watch, play, book, show, movie, etc. Every time, it makes me feel a bit sick. I think that is why people keep coming back to the people and narratives associated with his reign. It’s like when you lose a tooth, and your tongue keeps going to the sore spot, or when you press on a bruise to see if it still hurts.
Bolt’s prose is sharp, and though his stage directions and set designs are spare, they clearly and easily define the world Thomas is living in, and you can’t help but feel as though you are there with him as it all unfolds and unravels.
The executions Henry metes out never get any easier to read about or watch, play, book, show, movie, etc. Every time, it makes me feel a bit sick. I think that is why people keep coming back to the people and narratives associated with his reign. It’s like when you lose a tooth, and your tongue keeps going to the sore spot, or when you press on a bruise to see if it still hurts.
Bolt’s prose is sharp, and though his stage directions and set designs are spare, they clearly and easily define the world Thomas is living in, and you can’t help but feel as though you are there with him as it all unfolds and unravels.
Content Warnings
Minor: Confinement, Death, Grief, and Death of parent
Frankenstein: The 1818 Text by Mary Shelley
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
The first time I read this book, I was a sophomore in high school, and this was one of the few assigned readings that I actually completed. This is my first reread of the novel—fifteen years later—and I can now say that it still ranks highly among my favorite classic novels! I enjoyed following the incredible/unbelievable journeys of the three narrators, and I can now much better appreciate the Romantic, Gothic, and Transcendentalist elements that Shelley uses to weave her narratives. I think I’ll always be blown away by what Shelley accomplished as a woman of her time and how much of herself she puts into her work. I don’t believe I have anything new under the sun to say about Frankenstein. All I can say is that it truly does live up to the bar against which it is set.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Body shaming, Child death, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Incest, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Abandonment, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Dracula by Bram Stoker
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
When I read one of "the classics," I pause and remind myself that I'm about to step into a different time with different people who held different and sometimes/often offensive beliefs. A "classic" may not be a good story with good characters, but instead may be a good window into the time and place it was written and set in. And "classics" are also saddled with the moniker of being "over-hyped." With this in mind, I can firmly say that I thoroughly enjoyed Dracula! I didn't feel like I was stepping into a totally unfamiliar world because Stoker is descriptive without making the reader feel bogged down with details or flowery descriptions. I think the characters, while quite overwrought, were fully fleshed out *rim shot* people, and I'm pleased to say that this includes the women! Dracula is very much worth the hype. I can see why it's maintained cultural relevance and why its tropes and themes remain popular after 127 years. I was waiting for the mythical "right" time to read this book, and I'm glad I got to enjoy it during spooky season!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Trafficking, Grief, and Stalking
Moderate: Body horror, Confinement, Medical content, Medical trauma, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Minor: Animal death, Child death, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, and Antisemitism
Bring Up the Bodies by Hilary Mantel
adventurous
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
In Bring Up the Bodies, Cromwell has decided to ditch Anne Boleyn. His demeanor around her changes completely and irreversibly. It almost feels like a 180°, but if you look back, the bread crumbs become more obvious. I think the book fleshes this out considerably. There were many points that made me stop and have a mini meltdown, (which you can see in my liveblogs lol).
It’s so wild how quickly and seemingly effortlessly he can throw his weight behind someone, be it More, Anne, or Jane. He can so easily flip a switch when he needs to, when it is advantageous to do so. He does show respect to More and not to Anne, but I think it is only because with More, he has these tiny moments from his childhood with him. Moments that weren’t what I’d call happy or positive, but were maybe inspiring to Cromwell? Like More’s life as a young, well-off academic who was clearly going places showed him someone he could aspire to be. Through More, he learns the power of words, of learning them (he asks More if he was at his dictionary when he brought him his bread) and using them to get ahead. I think he feels he owes More something for that, however small and ultimately meaningless.
But he feels he owes Anne nothing. I’m sure he would say, “What did she give me other than headaches?” He would argue Anne didn’t make him, Henry did. Henry made them both, so if Henry wants to unmake Anne, well, he’d better take Henry’s side so that he doesn’t unmake him, too. She’s become a liability to him. By falling from grace in Henry’s eyes, that puts him in danger, so fuck her. Why should she get respect when he’s in danger?
I don’t think he genuinely believes the misogynistic crap Henry spews. When Henry is having a panic attack about “How did she know I’d like sex positions that weren’t just missionary?” Cromwell is mentally rolling his eyes, but physically nodding along because agreeing is expedient. He doesn’t think there’s anything wrong with anyone liking or enjoying sex as a man or a woman, but hating women is convenient and expedient and gets the result he wants, so he goes along with it. Which is it’s own brand of misogyny, but in a somehow more fucked up way. Like he believes in women being educated. He is pained when Jane Rochford tells him about her awful marriage. He admires Meg More’s talents. He mourns his wife and daughters constantly. He is actively betraying his own beliefs and values because it gets him what he wants. He’ll say anything to get himself where he wants to be.
This series is a stunning work of brilliance. I cannot wait to read the final novel, and I am eagerly awaiting the release of the second season of Wolf Hall!
It’s so wild how quickly and seemingly effortlessly he can throw his weight behind someone, be it More, Anne, or Jane. He can so easily flip a switch when he needs to, when it is advantageous to do so. He does show respect to More and not to Anne, but I think it is only because with More, he has these tiny moments from his childhood with him. Moments that weren’t what I’d call happy or positive, but were maybe inspiring to Cromwell? Like More’s life as a young, well-off academic who was clearly going places showed him someone he could aspire to be. Through More, he learns the power of words, of learning them (he asks More if he was at his dictionary when he brought him his bread) and using them to get ahead. I think he feels he owes More something for that, however small and ultimately meaningless.
But he feels he owes Anne nothing. I’m sure he would say, “What did she give me other than headaches?” He would argue Anne didn’t make him, Henry did. Henry made them both, so if Henry wants to unmake Anne, well, he’d better take Henry’s side so that he doesn’t unmake him, too. She’s become a liability to him. By falling from grace in Henry’s eyes, that puts him in danger, so fuck her. Why should she get respect when he’s in danger?
I don’t think he genuinely believes the misogynistic crap Henry spews. When Henry is having a panic attack about “How did she know I’d like sex positions that weren’t just missionary?” Cromwell is mentally rolling his eyes, but physically nodding along because agreeing is expedient. He doesn’t think there’s anything wrong with anyone liking or enjoying sex as a man or a woman, but hating women is convenient and expedient and gets the result he wants, so he goes along with it. Which is it’s own brand of misogyny, but in a somehow more fucked up way. Like he believes in women being educated. He is pained when Jane Rochford tells him about her awful marriage. He admires Meg More’s talents. He mourns his wife and daughters constantly. He is actively betraying his own beliefs and values because it gets him what he wants. He’ll say anything to get himself where he wants to be.
This series is a stunning work of brilliance. I cannot wait to read the final novel, and I am eagerly awaiting the release of the second season of Wolf Hall!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Infertility, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Grief, Murder, and Classism
Moderate: Torture
Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Ooooooo, this book, it’s sequels, and the show have devoured my life! I’m obsessed with it.
This is unequivocally the best novel I have read in the last decade. Rarely does a book like this come along and completely change your brain chemistry, but this is just such a one. I cannot overstate the sumptuous descriptions, the thorough characterization of Cromwell, and the faithfulness to the historical time line of Tudor England.
In this first novel you watch Thomas Cromwell and Anne Boleyn’s meteoric rise, Thomas from peasant to peer, and Anne from Lady to Queen. You get excited for them...until you remember what happens to them both. You know what happens. We all do. And it overshadows *everything*. Can you be truly happy for them when you know the man who has raised them up so high will also bring about their downfall? God, it’ll break your heart in such an achingly good way.
Normally when a book so wonderful comes my way, I cannot put it down and move through it quickly, but for *Wolf Hall*, I couldn’t help but stretch out my reading of it over the course of several months. This is a book to be savored. There is nothing else quite like it, except, perhaps, Hilary Mantel’s other works within this trilogy, though I know the events and prose will utterly devastate me. Even the t.v. show adaptation blows me away! I cannot recommend this book/series/t.v. show enough.
This is unequivocally the best novel I have read in the last decade. Rarely does a book like this come along and completely change your brain chemistry, but this is just such a one. I cannot overstate the sumptuous descriptions, the thorough characterization of Cromwell, and the faithfulness to the historical time line of Tudor England.
In this first novel you watch Thomas Cromwell and Anne Boleyn’s meteoric rise, Thomas from peasant to peer, and Anne from Lady to Queen. You get excited for them...until you remember what happens to them both. You know what happens. We all do. And it overshadows *everything*. Can you be truly happy for them when you know the man who has raised them up so high will also bring about their downfall? God, it’ll break your heart in such an achingly good way.
Normally when a book so wonderful comes my way, I cannot put it down and move through it quickly, but for *Wolf Hall*, I couldn’t help but stretch out my reading of it over the course of several months. This is a book to be savored. There is nothing else quite like it, except, perhaps, Hilary Mantel’s other works within this trilogy, though I know the events and prose will utterly devastate me. Even the t.v. show adaptation blows me away! I cannot recommend this book/series/t.v. show enough.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Violence, Antisemitism, Grief, Murder, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Classism
The Great Alone by Kristin Hannah
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
This a great book. And a long book like this comes with a lengthy review! Despite its length, though, it’s a quick read. I found myself unable to put it down for very long, which is saying something because I’m a slow reader. Now, for my thoughts on the story...
The novel takes place in the 1970s, but you need not worry about unfamiliar settings and references because Hannah makes the world around the Allbright family both richly detailed and extremely accessible.
The main character, Leni, is beautifully written. It’s so rare for an author to get a child/teen’s voice right, but Hannah nails it. Leni is thoughtful, intelligent, and sensitive; she’s a whole person. And we see her struggle and grow up in a turbulent family within a small community in a remote part of Alaska.
Though this story features many forms of abuse and domestic violence, Hannah uses a sensitive hand in the writing of it. It is believable and heart-breaking to watch Leni and her mother, Cora, both suffer at the hands of Ernt, their father and husband respectively. I love that the rest of the townsfolk stand up to Ernt and call out his behavior. I’m so used to media that features only hand-wringing bystanders. I love seeing people fighting back on behalf of Leni and Cora.
The (too many) twists of fate in the last third are terribly hard to read, partly because they’re so excruciating and partly because they require a lot of suspended disbelief. I would argue that the events in the last third take the plot outside the realm of what I see as plausible, especially considering the first two-thirds is written like a “slice of life” story.
I believe that makingMatthew and Leni fall off the cliff and making Matthew completely brain-dead after finally successfully escaping Ernt was overkill. The pregnancy plot line did not need to be exacerbated by Matthew’s accident when the pregnancy is huge enough as it is . Also, while I’m happy that Cora kills Ernt, which Leni helps cover up, it is more than my suspended disbelief can handle. And don’t get me started on Leni’s confession scene at the police station . I almost said, “Oh, brother” out loud. Like, come on...
My rating on the first 66.6% of the book is 4 out of 5, but it just goes off the rails in the final 33.3%. These out-there events that feel forced/crammed in is what ultimately made me decide to rate this novel a 3.5 out of 5.
It’s a weird book, but it’s packed with action and heartache in a captivating, soap opera kind of way. You can’t help but feel for the characters, even if some of the events are quite farfetched. I can’t help but want what is best Leni, and that is my litmus test for what makes for a good book.
The novel takes place in the 1970s, but you need not worry about unfamiliar settings and references because Hannah makes the world around the Allbright family both richly detailed and extremely accessible.
The main character, Leni, is beautifully written. It’s so rare for an author to get a child/teen’s voice right, but Hannah nails it. Leni is thoughtful, intelligent, and sensitive; she’s a whole person. And we see her struggle and grow up in a turbulent family within a small community in a remote part of Alaska.
Though this story features many forms of abuse and domestic violence, Hannah uses a sensitive hand in the writing of it. It is believable and heart-breaking to watch Leni and her mother, Cora, both suffer at the hands of Ernt, their father and husband respectively. I love that the rest of the townsfolk stand up to Ernt and call out his behavior. I’m so used to media that features only hand-wringing bystanders. I love seeing people fighting back on behalf of Leni and Cora.
The (too many) twists of fate in the last third are terribly hard to read, partly because they’re so excruciating and partly because they require a lot of suspended disbelief. I would argue that the events in the last third take the plot outside the realm of what I see as plausible, especially considering the first two-thirds is written like a “slice of life” story.
I believe that making
My rating on the first 66.6% of the book is 4 out of 5, but it just goes off the rails in the final 33.3%. These out-there events that feel forced/crammed in is what ultimately made me decide to rate this novel a 3.5 out of 5.
It’s a weird book, but it’s packed with action and heartache in a captivating, soap opera kind of way. You can’t help but feel for the characters, even if some of the events are quite farfetched. I can’t help but want what is best Leni, and that is my litmus test for what makes for a good book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexism, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Xenophobia, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Stalking, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Baby, I Don't Care by Chelsey Minnis
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
While I enjoy the subtle references to Old Hollywood, I find this book to be very boring. The author just says the same things over and over. If you take a shot every time the author uses the words diamonds, champagne, tears, darling, baby, and money, you’ll be dead from alcohol poisoning before you get to the end. The world of Old Hollywood is rich and deep, and I find this book to be very shallow. Nothing happens, nothing is revealed, nothing is reflected upon, and nothing is learned by either the narrator or reader. You could pick any star from 1929-1965 and find at least one fascinating tale. Even Kay Francis, known for being both shallow and glamorous, was a party girl with a troubled past, which is full of interesting stories. The fact that these poems are supposedly inspired by Old Hollywood is the only reason I finished the book because I wanted to see how many more references I could find. At least the book is short. I was able to finish it in a few hours, and I’m a slow reader.
Content Warnings
Minor: Alcoholism, Emotional abuse, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Alcohol, and Classism