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chichio's reviews
162 reviews
All Fours by Miranda July
Somehow this was BOOOOOORINGGGGGGGGGGGGGG
Feel like I’ve been pranked by all of the solid five star reviews that I’ve been seeing from people that I trust on all the bookish platforms of the internet. This book gives you a pathetic, unlikeable, horny female protagonist battling with menopause and a slight disdain for motherhood and you spend the first half of the book totally into it, totally down for the messy ride and then you hit the 60% mark and you’re flipping pages upon pages just wondering when the bloody hell the book is going to end. I was bored. Bored out of my mind. The promise of this being funny was just… not met. I don’t even particularly think the prose was interesting enough to keep me going; every now and again July would drop a pretty solid one liner but that wasn’t often and it wasn’t enough for me to hail this as some amazing literary fest. There was nothing meaty to dig your teeth into; every metaphor felt very literal, very on the nose, very (drumroll, please) boring.
reflective
slow-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
2.0
I put my hand to my mouth. Sometimes when a cock was in my mouth or pussy I touched my lips, just to feel how tautly stretched they were, how tight the fit was. This was like that, but with happiness. I knew I was smiling, but how big?
Somehow this was BOOOOOORINGGGGGGGGGGGGGG
Feel like I’ve been pranked by all of the solid five star reviews that I’ve been seeing from people that I trust on all the bookish platforms of the internet. This book gives you a pathetic, unlikeable, horny female protagonist battling with menopause and a slight disdain for motherhood and you spend the first half of the book totally into it, totally down for the messy ride and then you hit the 60% mark and you’re flipping pages upon pages just wondering when the bloody hell the book is going to end. I was bored. Bored out of my mind. The promise of this being funny was just… not met. I don’t even particularly think the prose was interesting enough to keep me going; every now and again July would drop a pretty solid one liner but that wasn’t often and it wasn’t enough for me to hail this as some amazing literary fest. There was nothing meaty to dig your teeth into; every metaphor felt very literal, very on the nose, very (drumroll, please) boring.
Goal for the rest of year: ignore books that are very hyped because you’ll almost always be let down.
Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir
adventurous
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
This is one of those books that I don’t think I would’ve enjoyed outside of the audiobook but, damn, the audiobook was so entertaining. Genuinely had so much fun listening to this while doing my daily chores and I enjoyed everything about the acting done by the voice actor. He really breathed life into the characters (human and otherwise) and the lengthy scientific explanations that my eyes definitely would’ve skimmed over had I been reading the text physically.
The Employees by Olga Ravn
Challenging little read despite it being only a couple pages long. Dense with metaphor and very experimental with its form, so you’re not being handheld at all while reading. Read it in one sitting because I really couldn’t look away — so very obsessed with the tension between the humans and the humanoids, even more obsessed with the fact that the book never specifies who is who until the latter parts of the novel where each category separates because of the conflict. Outside of that, I also really appreciated the relationship explored between the employees (human or otherwise) and management. As the tension on the ship grows and the danger increases, management remains so cold and detached from the situation, only truly stepping in when the workflow is effected. This book offered up such an interesting look at the meaning of humanity, artificial intelligence, and the inhumane nature of corporate management. Somehow, the corporate machine is less feeling than the robots under its employ.
challenging
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
I’ve got nothing against death. Nothing against rotting away. What frightens me is what doesn’t die and never changes form. That’s why I’m proud of being a human, and I carry the certainty of my future death with honour. It’s what sets me apart from certain others here.
Challenging little read despite it being only a couple pages long. Dense with metaphor and very experimental with its form, so you’re not being handheld at all while reading. Read it in one sitting because I really couldn’t look away — so very obsessed with the tension between the humans and the humanoids, even more obsessed with the fact that the book never specifies who is who until the latter parts of the novel where each category separates because of the conflict. Outside of that, I also really appreciated the relationship explored between the employees (human or otherwise) and management. As the tension on the ship grows and the danger increases, management remains so cold and detached from the situation, only truly stepping in when the workflow is effected. This book offered up such an interesting look at the meaning of humanity, artificial intelligence, and the inhumane nature of corporate management. Somehow, the corporate machine is less feeling than the robots under its employ.
I know that I’m living. I live, the way numbers live, and the stars; the way tanned hide ripped from the belly of an animal lives, and nylon rope; the way any object lives, in communion with another. I’m like one of those objects. You made me, you gave me language, and now I see your failings and deficiencies. I see your inadequate plans.
Her Wicked Marquess by Stacy Reid
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
There’s gotta be crack in these books, man.
My Darling Duke by Stacy Reid
emotional
hopeful
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
The way I devoured this? Yeah… that’s what I’m fucking talking about. That was some real deal yearning and I swear my kindle cover has bite marks in it because of how much I enjoyed the tension between Alexander and Kitty. There’s something so hot about sexual restraint, dude. I don’t know what it is. I’m happy I kept reading past that first chapter (which I found kind of corny, for lack of a better word) because the book genuinely gets so much better after that. I enjoyed all things about the main couples dynamic as well as the relationships each main character had with their respective families (and wider staff, in Alexander’s case). I do wish we got more of them being a couple after the conflict of the novel was resolved. Really wasn’t a fan of the time-skip epilogue but oh well.
I Hope This Finds You Well by Natalie Sue
funny
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Don’t really have anything to say about this but it was definitely entertaining and it’s the only book that I’ve picked up in the last few weeks that kept my attention past the first 5%. Some of the self-reflections Jolene had regarding how she’s let fear stand as an obstacle between her and worth-while relationships (familial, platonic and romantic) were real gut-punchers. She’s unlikeable in the most human way and it was enjoyable being in her perspective. Something about the ending is too neat and Happy Ever After-esque imo and although I’m not saying that a sad ending would’ve been better, I would’ve preferred an ending that wasn’t so… predictable.
Annie Bot by Sierra Greer
I understand that this is a book about a robot and her human owner but if you strip away all the technology it’s really, at its core, a book about an empath and a narcissist. This book in no means presents any new or particularly nuanced feminist views but I’d almost argue that this book doesn’t really need to do that—especially since we soon find out that the robots in this universe are not only female.
Annie breaks my heart. Absolutely breaks my heart. The fact that she’s literally programmed to always be in tune with Doug’s moods works to plague each and every page with this palpable level of anxiety.
A lot of reviews are saying that the ending was a let down but, wow, I really don’t agree. I think it was perfectly somber, perfectly open.
emotional
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
It occurs to her, eventually, that Doug and all the other humans talk about their lives with a myopic intensity, sharing singular, subjective opinions as if they are each the protagonist of their own novel. They take turns listening to each other without ever yielding their own certainty of their star status, and they treat their fellow humans as guest protagonists visiting from their own respective books. None of the humans are satellites the way she is, in her orbit around Doug.[. . .] She doesn’t understand why, when Doug could be in a relationship with a human, he has chosen to have Annie as his girlfriend, unless she provides something that a human can’t. Like undivided attention. He is the only star in their system, she realizes. He has no competition, no need to listen to Annie like she’s her own protagonist because she’s not. She has no outside, separate life beyond his. They have no issue of imbalance between them because they have no question, ever, about who has complete power.
I understand that this is a book about a robot and her human owner but if you strip away all the technology it’s really, at its core, a book about an empath and a narcissist. This book in no means presents any new or particularly nuanced feminist views but I’d almost argue that this book doesn’t really need to do that—especially since we soon find out that the robots in this universe are not only female.
Annie breaks my heart. Absolutely breaks my heart. The fact that she’s literally programmed to always be in tune with Doug’s moods works to plague each and every page with this palpable level of anxiety.
A lot of reviews are saying that the ending was a let down but, wow, I really don’t agree. I think it was perfectly somber, perfectly open.
Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar
God. GOD! I love it when poets turn into novelists… there’s such experimentation with not just the prose but the overall structure of the book. I feel like poets don’t dumb down what they want to present; poetry is and always has been for the people that get it on a visceral level rather than those that need a lot of explanation, a lot of hand-holding.
challenging
emotional
reflective
slow-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? Yes
4.75
Living happened till it didn’t. There was no choice in it. To say no to a new day would be unthinkable. So each morning you said yes, then stepped into the consequence.
God. GOD! I love it when poets turn into novelists… there’s such experimentation with not just the prose but the overall structure of the book. I feel like poets don’t dumb down what they want to present; poetry is and always has been for the people that get it on a visceral level rather than those that need a lot of explanation, a lot of hand-holding.
This Thing Between Us by Gus Moreno
I didn’t dislike this but I will say that the commentary on grief outranked almost every “horror” element of this book for me. The discussions of how death can be warped and used as selling points in media and in politics were especially interesting, and the anger that Thiago felt as a result of that was uncomfortable yet so steeped in the truth of how ugly grief can be when it manifests.
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? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Your grave turned into a bookmark we couldn’t get past. That we kept going back to. You.
I didn’t dislike this but I will say that the commentary on grief outranked almost every “horror” element of this book for me. The discussions of how death can be warped and used as selling points in media and in politics were especially interesting, and the anger that Thiago felt as a result of that was uncomfortable yet so steeped in the truth of how ugly grief can be when it manifests.