aruarian_melody's reviews
468 reviews

It by Stephen King

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Did not finish book. Stopped at 32%.
King is really good at writing kids and their fears but I lost interest eventually. I'm aware of a scene very late in the book that I know would be a hard sell for me, so when I just felt indifferent after over 400 pages I didn't see this book improving for me and decided to move on.
Monstrous Regiment by Terry Pratchett

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Did not finish book. Stopped at 63%.
Didn't keep me engaged. The concept is great but for once I felt like Pratchett's tone didn't work with the serious theme presented. 
To a God Unknown by John Steinbeck

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dark emotional mysterious sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.5

Maybe I should have stuck with Steinbecks later and popular work. Similar to another early work of his, there were some things that I really connected to and others that made me lose interest. Very up and down for me, overall. I don't think this one will stick with me. 
The Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien

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

3.0

First reread since 2009, this time around as an audiobook narrated by Andy Serkis, who did a great job. A classic of the genre, this covers some interesting themes surrounding war, power and corruption. I've enjoyed the exploration of these themes and the character interactions but I still don't care much for all the lore stuff that at times makes this sound like a history book or a religious text. As groundbreaking as this was, it just isn't what tend to enjoy in books. So this was a bit of a mixed bag for me that was enjoyable overall. 

I remember being very smitten by the language when I first read this. Back then I had just (finally) started to feel comfortable with reading books in English and I remember being delighted by learning many new words that I would never get to use in everyday contexts. This time around the language didn't really stand out to me but the themes were much more apparent. I think it will be interesting to return to this series from time to time. As much as I liked the narrator who brought the story to life, I think I actually prefer to read my physical copy to truly immerse myself in the story. Fantasy books rarely work as an audiobook for me. 
Borne by Jeff VanderMeer

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Did not finish book. Stopped at 19%.
Liked the parts with just Rachel and her exploring the dystopian city or learning about her background. Couldn't stand Borne as soon as he started talking. The writing style also didn't quite click with me in general, so I decided to put this down. 
Cup of Gold: A Life of Sir Henry Morgan, Buccaneer, with Occasional Reference to History by John Steinbeck, Susan F. Beegel

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adventurous dark reflective sad medium-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

2.75

My third Steinbeck book and the first of his that has ever been published. As I'm slowly making my way through his bibliography, it was interesting to see where he came from. There were glimpses of the writer he would become but overall this book felt a bit disjointed. The pacing, style and tone changed dramatically numerous times. Still, there were some really good parts, especially in the last third when they
made their way towards Panama and the dissection of Henry Morgan's character began
. I don't think I would have finished it without the incentive of reading everything by Steinbeck, but I'm so glad I stuck with it. 
My Best Friend's Exorcism by Grady Hendrix

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

4.0

Surprisingly fun book that still delivered on the ick factor of horror stories. Really good summer read and I enjoyed the 80s theme. Everything felt quite real and I liked the characters and their relationships. This was just the right mix between serious and funny tones (which is a thin line). 
Shaman's Crossing by Robin Hobb

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Did not finish book. Stopped at 15%.
Loved RotE but somehow couldn't get into this one. 
I Want to Be a Wall, Vol. 3 by Honami Shirono

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emotional hopeful inspiring reflective fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.75

What a lovely end to the series. Personally, I preferred the more serious tone of this over the sometimes very goofy tone in the beginning. The focus on different lifestyles and letting go of other's expectations was great and especially for a manga I really loved the representation and depiction of both an aroace character and gay relationships.
I think Sousuke might also be somewhere under the aromantic umbrella?
Loved the depiction of platonic love. The only thing keeping me from giving 5 stars was that while I definitely connected with many of the themes, I didn't feel super emotionally connected with the story/characters. A great read that I cherish and will definitely recommend though! 
The Clothesline Swing by Danny Ramadan

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

3.75

Overall, this was an impressive debut that really tugged at my heartstrings. I think this book was very ambitious, trying to combine lived experiences of many queer people from Syria, showing life there and in many other neighbouring countries, generational trauma, refugee experiences and a wonderful love story ending in late life. Unfortunately, I often felt like I was given snippets of things I would love to explore further but we never returned to these characters/elements. Most of the time the book felt very disjointed with the constant jumping around. While I absolutely loved aspects of this, I never quite found my footing with this story. Still, I am impressed by how much the author made me feel for the two main characters and their love - considering the very limited time we spend actually developing that relationship. I'll definitely check out more work by the author.