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kaetheluise_nckl's reviews
321 reviews
Harry Potter and the Cursed Child - Parts One and Two by John Tiffany, J.K. Rowling, Jack Thorne
1.0
I did not like Cursed Child at all.
I finished the book in a matter of four hours. It had been sitting on my shelf ever since it came out in September last year and I got it because I was excited, but then procrastinated it, which had me stumble upon various opinions that have always been very controversial.
After finishing the book I had read at the time, I picked up Cursed Child and started reading it with a friend's warning in mind: It would get cringy.
I can say, she was not wrong about it at all. After getting halfway through, I realized that this story was relying too much on visuals. Reading scripts is always a difficult thing, especially with theater. I can see the story, visuals included, being enjoyable, but just reading it, it was not pleasurable experience.
The characters seemed very flat, the only character that was a teeny bit like the original version was Ginny. Harry was extremely annoying and I didn't think that he would be such a sh*tty father after growing up without parents and still being a kind teenager despite the abuse he had gone through. Say what you want about young Harry, adult Harry was a badly developed character.
The friendship between Albus and Scorpius was cute but then again the whole thing with Delphi didn't make much sense because her origin story wasn't executed with enough information. There were many things that could have been executed so much better overall.
But after all, the biggest disappointment of it all was how JKR accepted this as what is esentially the end of Harry Potter's Era. She is doing such a good job with FBaWtFT.
1/5 stars because I enjoyed the thrill of an alternative universe where Voldemort was ruling over the Wizarding World and where Ron and Hermione were part of a secret revolting force.
I finished the book in a matter of four hours. It had been sitting on my shelf ever since it came out in September last year and I got it because I was excited, but then procrastinated it, which had me stumble upon various opinions that have always been very controversial.
After finishing the book I had read at the time, I picked up Cursed Child and started reading it with a friend's warning in mind: It would get cringy.
I can say, she was not wrong about it at all. After getting halfway through, I realized that this story was relying too much on visuals. Reading scripts is always a difficult thing, especially with theater. I can see the story, visuals included, being enjoyable, but just reading it, it was not pleasurable experience.
The characters seemed very flat, the only character that was a teeny bit like the original version was Ginny. Harry was extremely annoying and I didn't think that he would be such a sh*tty father after growing up without parents and still being a kind teenager despite the abuse he had gone through. Say what you want about young Harry, adult Harry was a badly developed character.
The friendship between Albus and Scorpius was cute but then again the whole thing with Delphi didn't make much sense because her origin story wasn't executed with enough information. There were many things that could have been executed so much better overall.
But after all, the biggest disappointment of it all was how JKR accepted this as what is esentially the end of Harry Potter's Era. She is doing such a good job with FBaWtFT.
1/5 stars because I enjoyed the thrill of an alternative universe where Voldemort was ruling over the Wizarding World and where Ron and Hermione were part of a secret revolting force.
A Clash of Kings by George R.R. Martin
3.0
I did not enjoy reading "Clash of Kings" because the storyline revolves mostly on the war between the Starks and the Lannisters which can get really boring really fast and took my motivation to pick that book up faster than I could say the word direwolf. The viewpoint changes in the book switched between Cersei, Tyrion and Catelyn for the most part, only offering Sansa's, Arya's or Daenerys's storyline(s) in the last 300 pages.
The same basic, war focussed plot caused me to roughly skim the chapters at best and towards the end resulted in me skipping any of Cersei's, Tyrion's, Catelyn's and Theon's chapters so I could finish the book faster.
Even though the plot was very dry, I am giving the book the rating it has received for developing the characters (I did end up reading about) in a very relatable sense, even though - again - the war focussed plot distracted from that pretty quickly.
I do hope that all this "setting the scene" stuff that has been happening in "Clash of Kings" will have been worth it for the sake of "Storm of Swords" (the third book in the series), because in case that won't be the case I see myself forced to put the series aside as a whole which I do not really want to do because I would like to watch the TV show while knowing what happens and also because George R. R. Martin is one of the greatest masters of his subject, Medieval Fantasy.
3/5 stars for character development
The same basic, war focussed plot caused me to roughly skim the chapters at best and towards the end resulted in me skipping any of Cersei's, Tyrion's, Catelyn's and Theon's chapters so I could finish the book faster.
Even though the plot was very dry, I am giving the book the rating it has received for developing the characters (I did end up reading about) in a very relatable sense, even though - again - the war focussed plot distracted from that pretty quickly.
I do hope that all this "setting the scene" stuff that has been happening in "Clash of Kings" will have been worth it for the sake of "Storm of Swords" (the third book in the series), because in case that won't be the case I see myself forced to put the series aside as a whole which I do not really want to do because I would like to watch the TV show while knowing what happens and also because George R. R. Martin is one of the greatest masters of his subject, Medieval Fantasy.
3/5 stars for character development
The Giver by Lois Lowry
3.0
I enjoyed reading "The Giver". I have seen the movie adaptation before and i was thrilled to find out that "The Giver" would be on the list of books I would read in the next three years at school.
I however noticed very quickly that there were many changes made in favour of the movie adaptation to make it suitable as a Sci-Fi movie and I realized that I much preferred the book to the movie. It was less thrilling in a good way and the storyline didn't lack as much explaining.
I enjoyed Lowry's style in writing. It was advanced enough for my taste (I live in Germany where English is a secondary language and is not mastered perfectly by everyone) and so I enjoyed not having to pay too much attention to the fact that the language was too easily phrased for my tastes, which I can be very particular about.
I liked Lowry's characters since they are relateable in a way even though they also seemed distant in their way of living in their seperate world. The community is also a universe or world for itself that I enjoyed reading about. It was coherent and didn't disobey the established traits of a utopian or dystopian society.
The criticism on societies, governmenting and rule policy Lowry adressed in "The Giver" invites the reader to think more about values of rules and freedom.
I however noticed very quickly that there were many changes made in favour of the movie adaptation to make it suitable as a Sci-Fi movie and I realized that I much preferred the book to the movie. It was less thrilling in a good way and the storyline didn't lack as much explaining.
I enjoyed Lowry's style in writing. It was advanced enough for my taste (I live in Germany where English is a secondary language and is not mastered perfectly by everyone) and so I enjoyed not having to pay too much attention to the fact that the language was too easily phrased for my tastes, which I can be very particular about.
I liked Lowry's characters since they are relateable in a way even though they also seemed distant in their way of living in their seperate world. The community is also a universe or world for itself that I enjoyed reading about. It was coherent and didn't disobey the established traits of a utopian or dystopian society.
The criticism on societies, governmenting and rule policy Lowry adressed in "The Giver" invites the reader to think more about values of rules and freedom.
The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
5.0
Plot
The circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not. Within the black-and-white striped canvas tents is an utterly unique experience full of breathtaking amazements. It is called Le Cirque des Rêves, and it is only open at night.
But behind the scenes, a fierce competition is underway—a duel between two young magicians, Celia and Marco, who have been trained since childhood expressly for this purpose by their mercurial instructors. Unbeknownst to them, this is a game in which only one can be left standing, and the circus is but the stage for a remarkable battle of imagination and will. Despite themselves, however, Celia and Marco tumble headfirst into love—a deep, magical love that makes the lights flicker and the room grow warm whenever they so much as brush hands.
True love or not, the game must play out, and the fates of everyone involved, from the cast of extraordinary circus performers to the patrons, hang in the balance, suspended as precariously as the daring acrobats overhead.
Characters
Celia Bowen is my favorite character. Not because she is one of the protgonists and not because she is one of the first characters to be introduced to the reader, but because I relate to her the most. She's suffered, and is still suffering from what her father, Prospero the Enchantor or Hector Bowen has done to her. My generation would refer to Celia as a "cinnamonroll that is pure and needs to be protected" and that is how I feel about her. She doesn't deserve what she's put through, and her powers aren't worth the game she had to play.
Which brings me to Hector Bowen aka Prospero the Enchanter, Celia's father and beside Hector, the man in the grey suit.
I get they're vital to the story line and while you cannot really paint them as the antagonists in the story, I despise both of them. They seem to think that they can end their rivalry by having their students play this game. Here's another point: Celia is not just Hector's student but his daughter which makes the situation he put her in even motre cruel. No doubt, Celia is a talented illusionist, but she is still his daughter, and he chose to walk at her side as a ghost and antagonize her.
The man in the grey suit, Mr. A. H., is no better than Hector. He choses his student, teaches him, pushes him away and lets him work out the game by himself.
They both play vital parts, because they started it all, but that doesn't justify their actions.
Moving on, to Marco. Just like Celia, Marco falls into the "cinnamon roll" category. Just like Celia, he didn't deserve this game. I can see that playing the game might be better than staying at the orphanage Mr. A. H. found him at but again, the game can not be justified in any way.
Marco is a gentleman, that's all I can say. He remains, given the circumstances, kind and he is serious about his feelings for Celia. He cares for her enough to be willing to sacrifice herself.
I am going to delve into one more character in this review. I found Tsukiko, the contortionist to be a very interesting character, and right from the beginning, when she is first introduced to the story, I was mesmerized by her. The way she was described as well as the fact that she is a contortionist had me intrigued.
There's not much that we get to know about her, even though the thing we do get to know is as vital to the story as Hector Bowen and Mr. A. H. are - she was Mr. A. H.'s student and she won the last game that was played.
Over all, all the characters were described in such a way they were vividly living inside my head, and I feel that, if I had been a visitor of the Circus, I would have tried to befriend them like Bailey befriended Poppet and Widget.
The Setting
I've never been a fan of Circuses because they have clowns - I hate clowns with a burning passion, but that is why I love Les Cirque des Rêves. It doesn't have clowns but contortionists, an ice garden, an illusionist and so many more whimsical things that you don't get to see at a normal circus.
Again, the describtions, not only of the Circus, but of all the other places in the book add so much.
The reader isn't aware of the fact that Marco and Celia are creating the tents the visitors can see,at least up to a certain point and that is exactly what makes the Circus of Dreams the Circus of Dreams. It's the most whimsical place and it seems almost surreal, just like all the other places.
You want to be there, you want to visit all the tents and eat all the chocolate mice, drink the apple cider and most importantly, you want to forget time and place for a little bit. It is a place that doesn't exist anywhere else, it is unlike anything you've ever seen and yet you don't want to leave.
Final Words
The Night Circus is a must re-read book for me, and while it might be a problem for some people, I didn't mind the mixed plots an descriptiveness of the book.
The book was creating an actual place in my head, and I don't have that very oftten,
It took me a while to push this book aside to free my brain for new stories, but I cannot stop thinking about this book.
The circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not. Within the black-and-white striped canvas tents is an utterly unique experience full of breathtaking amazements. It is called Le Cirque des Rêves, and it is only open at night.
But behind the scenes, a fierce competition is underway—a duel between two young magicians, Celia and Marco, who have been trained since childhood expressly for this purpose by their mercurial instructors. Unbeknownst to them, this is a game in which only one can be left standing, and the circus is but the stage for a remarkable battle of imagination and will. Despite themselves, however, Celia and Marco tumble headfirst into love—a deep, magical love that makes the lights flicker and the room grow warm whenever they so much as brush hands.
True love or not, the game must play out, and the fates of everyone involved, from the cast of extraordinary circus performers to the patrons, hang in the balance, suspended as precariously as the daring acrobats overhead.
Characters
Celia Bowen is my favorite character. Not because she is one of the protgonists and not because she is one of the first characters to be introduced to the reader, but because I relate to her the most. She's suffered, and is still suffering from what her father, Prospero the Enchantor or Hector Bowen has done to her. My generation would refer to Celia as a "cinnamonroll that is pure and needs to be protected" and that is how I feel about her. She doesn't deserve what she's put through, and her powers aren't worth the game she had to play.
Which brings me to Hector Bowen aka Prospero the Enchanter, Celia's father and beside Hector, the man in the grey suit.
I get they're vital to the story line and while you cannot really paint them as the antagonists in the story, I despise both of them. They seem to think that they can end their rivalry by having their students play this game. Here's another point: Celia is not just Hector's student but his daughter which makes the situation he put her in even motre cruel. No doubt, Celia is a talented illusionist, but she is still his daughter, and he chose to walk at her side as a ghost and antagonize her.
The man in the grey suit, Mr. A. H., is no better than Hector. He choses his student, teaches him, pushes him away and lets him work out the game by himself.
They both play vital parts, because they started it all, but that doesn't justify their actions.
Moving on, to Marco. Just like Celia, Marco falls into the "cinnamon roll" category. Just like Celia, he didn't deserve this game. I can see that playing the game might be better than staying at the orphanage Mr. A. H. found him at but again, the game can not be justified in any way.
Marco is a gentleman, that's all I can say. He remains, given the circumstances, kind and he is serious about his feelings for Celia. He cares for her enough to be willing to sacrifice herself.
I am going to delve into one more character in this review. I found Tsukiko, the contortionist to be a very interesting character, and right from the beginning, when she is first introduced to the story, I was mesmerized by her. The way she was described as well as the fact that she is a contortionist had me intrigued.
There's not much that we get to know about her, even though the thing we do get to know is as vital to the story as Hector Bowen and Mr. A. H. are - she was Mr. A. H.'s student and she won the last game that was played.
Over all, all the characters were described in such a way they were vividly living inside my head, and I feel that, if I had been a visitor of the Circus, I would have tried to befriend them like Bailey befriended Poppet and Widget.
The Setting
I've never been a fan of Circuses because they have clowns - I hate clowns with a burning passion, but that is why I love Les Cirque des Rêves. It doesn't have clowns but contortionists, an ice garden, an illusionist and so many more whimsical things that you don't get to see at a normal circus.
Again, the describtions, not only of the Circus, but of all the other places in the book add so much.
The reader isn't aware of the fact that Marco and Celia are creating the tents the visitors can see,at least up to a certain point and that is exactly what makes the Circus of Dreams the Circus of Dreams. It's the most whimsical place and it seems almost surreal, just like all the other places.
You want to be there, you want to visit all the tents and eat all the chocolate mice, drink the apple cider and most importantly, you want to forget time and place for a little bit. It is a place that doesn't exist anywhere else, it is unlike anything you've ever seen and yet you don't want to leave.
Final Words
The Night Circus is a must re-read book for me, and while it might be a problem for some people, I didn't mind the mixed plots an descriptiveness of the book.
The book was creating an actual place in my head, and I don't have that very oftten,
It took me a while to push this book aside to free my brain for new stories, but I cannot stop thinking about this book.
Will Grayson, Will Grayson by David Levithan, John Green
4.0
Plot
One cold night, in a most unlikely corner of Chicago, Will Grayson crosses paths with . . . Will Grayson. Two guys with the same name, running in two very different circles, suddenly find their lives going in new and unexpected directions, and culminating in epic turns-of-heart and the most fabulous musical ever to grace the high-school stage.
The text on the back of the book doesn't promise much, since it doesn't give much away, except for the most important plot point of the book: Two completely different boys meeting randomly and under the weirdest circumstances.
Both Wills meet in an adult shop in Chicago. Will #1 has been failed by his brand new fake ID and Will #2 wanted to meet his online buddy Isaac, who turns out to be a work of imagination. They meet once, and then they go their seperate ways. Will #1 with Jane, and Will #2 with Will #1's gay friend Tiny Cooper.
They are both caught up in their own miseries until they cross paths again.
Final Words
I liked the story, but it could have been named "Tiny Dancer" (the first name of Tiny's musical) and been about Tiny. The story of both Wills meeting is heartwarming, yes, and I loved it, but Tiny was taking the spotlight - I guess he was born for that.
The book made me laugh and get out my post its to start annotating, as you can see in the picture above, but again, the story wasn't enough of both Wills meeting.
Because I did like it, though, I am giving it 4/5 stars.
One cold night, in a most unlikely corner of Chicago, Will Grayson crosses paths with . . . Will Grayson. Two guys with the same name, running in two very different circles, suddenly find their lives going in new and unexpected directions, and culminating in epic turns-of-heart and the most fabulous musical ever to grace the high-school stage.
The text on the back of the book doesn't promise much, since it doesn't give much away, except for the most important plot point of the book: Two completely different boys meeting randomly and under the weirdest circumstances.
Both Wills meet in an adult shop in Chicago. Will #1 has been failed by his brand new fake ID and Will #2 wanted to meet his online buddy Isaac, who turns out to be a work of imagination. They meet once, and then they go their seperate ways. Will #1 with Jane, and Will #2 with Will #1's gay friend Tiny Cooper.
They are both caught up in their own miseries until they cross paths again.
Final Words
I liked the story, but it could have been named "Tiny Dancer" (the first name of Tiny's musical) and been about Tiny. The story of both Wills meeting is heartwarming, yes, and I loved it, but Tiny was taking the spotlight - I guess he was born for that.
The book made me laugh and get out my post its to start annotating, as you can see in the picture above, but again, the story wasn't enough of both Wills meeting.
Because I did like it, though, I am giving it 4/5 stars.
Turtles All the Way Down by John Green
5.0
WARNING: This book may trigger you if you have mental health problems.
Plot
Sixteen-year-old Aza never intended to pursue the mystery of fugitive billionaire Russell Pickett, but there’s a hundred-thousand-dollar reward at stake and her Best and Most Fearless Friend, Daisy, is eager to investigate. So together, they navigate the short distance and broad divides that separate them from Russell Pickett’s son, Davis.
Aza is trying. She is trying to be a good daughter, a good friend, a good student, and maybe even a good detective, while also living within the ever-tightening spiral of her own thoughts.
Final Words
John Green, in my opinion, has always had a great way of telling stories on matters that society often ignores or tries to undermine, and while TAtWD has faced a lot of controvery considering the rep it shows, I can say that the book is doing a great job at raising awareness.
Not everyone with OCD and/or anxiety will identify with Aza's story and not everyone will read this story and love it. That's fine, not every book is meant for everyone on this earth.
I read TAtWD because I loved TFIOS and TAtWD did not disappoint because it was real, and John Green is a master at making things real. Did I identify with the story? No. I didn't have to, though, because I have other problems, but as I said, books like this exist to raise awareness.
And for that sake, everyone should try to give this book a chance. Controversy will always exist in the end.
Plot
Sixteen-year-old Aza never intended to pursue the mystery of fugitive billionaire Russell Pickett, but there’s a hundred-thousand-dollar reward at stake and her Best and Most Fearless Friend, Daisy, is eager to investigate. So together, they navigate the short distance and broad divides that separate them from Russell Pickett’s son, Davis.
Aza is trying. She is trying to be a good daughter, a good friend, a good student, and maybe even a good detective, while also living within the ever-tightening spiral of her own thoughts.
Final Words
John Green, in my opinion, has always had a great way of telling stories on matters that society often ignores or tries to undermine, and while TAtWD has faced a lot of controvery considering the rep it shows, I can say that the book is doing a great job at raising awareness.
Not everyone with OCD and/or anxiety will identify with Aza's story and not everyone will read this story and love it. That's fine, not every book is meant for everyone on this earth.
I read TAtWD because I loved TFIOS and TAtWD did not disappoint because it was real, and John Green is a master at making things real. Did I identify with the story? No. I didn't have to, though, because I have other problems, but as I said, books like this exist to raise awareness.
And for that sake, everyone should try to give this book a chance. Controversy will always exist in the end.