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kaadie's reviews
173 reviews
Annihilation by Jeff VanderMeer
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Annihilation was surreal and strange but in an intriguing way. Although the main character wasn't my favorite I found her to be interesting and realistically flawed. The characters in general were well written and Area X was a thrilling combination of terrifying and beautiful. As unique as the premise was I didn't feel particularly compelled to read further. I feel that the story really does lend itself to a one-book read considering that the reader is never going to get any concrete answers about how and what Area X is. I think the value in the book is the very unknowing and the space that leaves for imagination and horror.
Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro
emotional
hopeful
reflective
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? No
3.5
The beginning and end sections of the book are definitely the most interesting.
Klara is so sweet and gentle and following her story could be a little stressful sometimes because I was worried that reality would come swooping in a ruin her heroic efforts to help Josie.
I like the manner in which Ishiguro blends the mystique and beauty of love and sacrifice with the more sombre and bitter reality of loss and grief.
Klara is so sweet and gentle and following her story could be a little stressful sometimes because I was worried that reality would come swooping in a ruin her heroic efforts to help Josie.
I like the manner in which Ishiguro blends the mystique and beauty of love and sacrifice with the more sombre and bitter reality of loss and grief.
Daisy Jones & The Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid
adventurous
emotional
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? Yes
4.0
I did enjoy this book (I mean I read it in half a day so obviously I enjoyed it) but it wasn't amazing. I love the unconventional structure of the book and how it feels like you're watching a documentary or biopic of the band.
I didn't love Daisy Jones as a character. Don't get me wrong she was enigmatic and intriguing and made for an engaging read. However, she was also gorgeous and beloved by all, making her unrelatable. To be a beautiful woman can be an unlucky thing sometimes but I did not find her to be an empowering female character. Yes, she didn't care what people thought and she weaponised her sexual appeal but the point is whether she chose to reclaim her power or not her beauty would always be doing the heavy-lifting anyway. It's easy to feel comfortable being different when people are already half in love with you.
In regards to the plot, I found it nicely paced and interesting but the ending was somewhat of a let down. I felt like the entire story was building up to this massive falling out. The characters all partied hard so you expected the ending to be this flames, brimstone, end of days kind of explosion and it was more like everybody just packed up, switched off the lights and went home. Granted, the ending made sense but I just felt like it was so quiet and sad. All of this passion and intensity amounting to, nothing.
I think honestly that is the biggest reason for the missing last star in my review, the story is a sad one. Ultimately, Daisy and Billy are a bad match but it just makes it all the more tragic. To find somebody that truly understands you and makes you feel seen only to know that they are the worst possible thing for you, it's heartbreaking . The story was exciting and spirited but with a sombre undertone, and The contentment that the characters all discussed in the last chapter didn't really eclipse that sadness.
Overall, it was a good book. I read it at break-neck speed and enjoyed the rich and messy characters but I don't like melancholy and that is what this book left me with.
I didn't love Daisy Jones as a character. Don't get me wrong she was enigmatic and intriguing and made for an engaging read. However, she was also gorgeous and beloved by all, making her unrelatable. To be a beautiful woman can be an unlucky thing sometimes but I did not find her to be an empowering female character. Yes, she didn't care what people thought and she weaponised her sexual appeal but the point is whether she chose to reclaim her power or not her beauty would always be doing the heavy-lifting anyway. It's easy to feel comfortable being different when people are already half in love with you.
In regards to the plot, I found it nicely paced and interesting but the ending was somewhat of a let down. I felt like the entire story was building up to this massive falling out. The characters all partied hard so you expected the ending to be this flames, brimstone, end of days kind of explosion and it was more like everybody just packed up, switched off the lights and went home. Granted, the ending made sense but I just felt like it was so quiet and sad. All of this passion and intensity amounting to, nothing.
I think honestly that is the biggest reason for the missing last star in my review, the story is a sad one.
Overall, it was a good book. I read it at break-neck speed and enjoyed the rich and messy characters but I don't like melancholy and that is what this book left me with.
The Waves (Collins Classics) by Virginia Woolf
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.0
This book was really not to my liking. Turning each page was a monumental effort, which is saying a lot because I read the eBook. It was like one long, never-ending stream of consciousness; super abstract and hard to follow. The whole thing just mooshed together really. I do think that if I had listened to it as an audiobook it might have been more enjoyable. The imagery was vivid, if not a little repetitive and if you are into abstract, artistic poetry that goes on for 200+ pages you're going to love this. I however do not and was relieved when it was over.
The Evening and the Morning by Ken Follett
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
informative
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
I really did enjoy the book and it's the third one I have read of the Kingsbridge series, however I will say that (for this series at least) Ken Follet has a formula and if you are too familiar with the other novels it may become tedious and repetitive. I personally enjoy the formula: young and intelligent male main character falls in love with impossibly beautiful and equally intelligent female character whom is however, not an option for marriage, typically due to social status. Our entrepid main characters then age through the years and face many hardships at the hands of evil clergymen, despot noblemen and mother nature herself. However, at the end of the book the tables turn and their noble behaviour throughout their trials earns them a happy ending.
Despite the books being a bit repetitive I do enjoy Ken Follet's characters and the way he builds a rich and believable environment, making the reader feel as if they are there among the characters. His villains are truly awful and I do hate how much the protagonists suffer throughout. The final act is satisfying because you do witness the downfall of said awful villains but I wish we spent more time with our heroes thereafter. Finally, our protagonists are happy and free and I would find it more fulfilling to read more about that, especially because they often experience seemingly endless misery during the body of the book.
Despite the books being a bit repetitive I do enjoy Ken Follet's characters and the way he builds a rich and believable environment, making the reader feel as if they are there among the characters. His villains are truly awful and I do hate how much the protagonists suffer throughout. The final act is satisfying because you do witness the downfall of said awful villains but I wish we spent more time with our heroes thereafter. Finally, our protagonists are happy and free and I would find it more fulfilling to read more about that, especially because they often experience seemingly endless misery during the body of the book.
Nude Men: A Novel by Amanda Filipacchi, Amanda Filipacchi
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
0.0
'Nude Men' is by far one of the strangest and most unpleasant books I have ever read. It definitely mimics the book's concept of an O.I.M. (optical illusion man) in regards to the fact that it is simultaneously underwhelming and very unsettling. It is very abstract and I did not enjoy the interactions between any of the characters. Jeremy is pathetic and annoying. Sara is a caricature and feels as if she has been written from a male viewpoint (a gross, hyper-sexualized viewpoint). Personally, there were no redeemable qualities of this book and I struggle to see how anyone could enjoy it. I know that art and societal norms often part at a crossroads in the aim of encouraging sincere and truthful reflection but this book was just disturbing. Utterly bizarre.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship
The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse: The Animated Story by Charlie Mackesy
adventurous
hopeful
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
It was sweet. A little clichéd but very effective. The art was gorgeous.
Stations by Nick Mulgrew
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
I have never read a short story collection before so I was unsure of what to expect. It was nice to read a book set in South Africa (where I live) but I didn't love the stories. The narration was a little confusing and I found it hard to follow sometimes. Also, I was sometimes left wanting with certain stories and I didn't feel as if they were given enough time to develop. They really were just like peering through a keyhole in order to view each character's life, which may have been the point but I wasn't a fan.
Good Girl by Anna Fitzpatrick
emotional
funny
lighthearted
medium-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
3.5
I have so many feelings about this book. The first impression is definitely one of entertainment. Lucy is funny and sarcastic in a way that you wish you could be all the time but know would only be possible if you had 24 hours to come up with a response. She is also a painfully real character and thus following along with her story is equal parts comforting and confronting. Comforting because you know that at least you aren't the only 20-something-year-old who is so completely lost and overwhelmed with their own mediocrity in the midst of the "best years of their life". Confronting because every clearly bad decision that Lucy is making is admittedly something you have already done or thought of doing. Anna Fitzpatrick's writing was bold and raw and I loved that Lucy wasn't a fixer-upper character that started single, anxious, insecure and still figuring it out and magically ended with the perfect life in just 300 pages.
One caveat I will add is that this book was only so enjoyable because I could relate to it so personally.
One caveat I will add is that this book was only so enjoyable because I could relate to it so personally.
Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
If I am being honest I don't really have anything to say about Never Let Me Go; I was largely unaffected by the book. One detractor for me was the fact that the narrator would meander through the story and tell it in a somewhat disjointed manner; it became confusing at times. However, that being said, I was really pleased at the depiction of the main character Kathy H. She narrated the story for us and was a completely believable female character. I think this is quite an accomplished from a male author seeing as most female characters written by men are just clumsy and ill-thought out.