mero_reads's reviews
86 reviews

In Order to Live: A North Korean Girl's Journey to Freedom by Yeonmi Park

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adventurous dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

4.5

EDIT: sadly discovered author's disgusting transphobic comments after composing this review. There is no need to gatekeep or compare oppression. It is harmful and hurtful to do so. Just because you had it "worse" doesn't mean that other types of oppression are acceptable. How can someone who went through this not empathize with the basic human need for freedom to be one's true self?

Harrowing story, beautifully told with incredible nuance. What Yeon-mi's family went through was monstrous, and to have her explain at the end her relative privilege compared to other NK families was horrific. One very striking aspect of this memoir was her complicated feelings towards those involved with trafficking her, I understood those and even felt them by the end. That's a hard thing to communicate as a writer and she did it. 
Red Dwarf: Infinity Welcomes Careful Drivers by Rob Grant, Douglas Naylor

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adventurous dark funny lighthearted fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I can't count the number of times I've read this book since childhood. It is literally the whole package.
Starlight by Richard Wagamese

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adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Author’s final work, unfinished @ TOD. Abuse survivors learn to trust again in story of incredible depth & honesty. Surprising turns of phrase. Setting its own breathing character. Love it.
Journey of Souls: Case Studies of Life Between Lives by Michael Newton

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Did not finish book. Stopped at 70%.
Couldn't stand his interpretation of the afterlife as a literal community college for souls. 
Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen

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

5.0

Reading JA is like traveling to another planet. I will always heart 35 yo "very old bachelor" Colonel Brandon, the sensible & rheumatic dreamboat. Legendary satire that cuts deep & leaves no prisoners
The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman

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adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful mysterious sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman

Written w awe-inspiring precision, artful dialogue & moody atmos BUT for some reason didn't connect w me. Perhaps a genre thing, maybe POV not deep enough for me.
Signs: The Secret Language of the Universe by Laura Lynne Jackson

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emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

4.0

The Rebel Angels by Robertson Davies

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dark emotional funny informative inspiring mysterious reflective tense 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? Yes

5.0

MASTERFUL performance of divine caustic wit, eccentric characters, and the strangest murder you've ever read.
REC. Enthusiastic 5 stars

CW: published in 1981, some aspects do not pass muster per today's standards
Between Two Worlds by Tyler Henry

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4.0

Kindred by Octavia E. Butler

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challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad tense fast-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
Highly disturbing. Felt sick as events got worse & worse.

Struggled w writing style & narration at first, but in the end it all made sense to me. No rating as it's not my place, but everyone should read this.