Scan barcode
ollykin's review against another edition
challenging
dark
funny
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Fantastic, introspective and character driven mystery set in the Polish mountains. The MC is a misanthropic vegan among a hunter worshipping culture. This book took me from anger, right through to malicious laughter often and the cutting sarcasm blended seamlessly into a philosophical tone which was a deep delight to read.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal death
kirkspockreads's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Chronic illness, Gun violence, Mental illness, and Murder
Moderate: Fatphobia
ymer's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
i was completely charmed by the writing style of this book, it's one of my favourites that i've read this year & i can't wait to get my hands on Tokarczuk's other work!!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, and Murder
clovetra's review against another edition
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
hmm. i really don’t know what to think about this book. this is one of the rare times where i read other reviews simply because i don’t know how to describe my thoughts on this.
i really think my expectations for this were set incredibly high, and this book didn’t meet them. i mean it’s in NYTs top 100 books of the 21st century (voted by the public) so i expected something….. More. i mean the author won a nobel prize! i expected to be enthralled but instead i was mildly interested.
the main character felt one-note. after a while, her only talking about animals or astrology became frustrating. there felt as though there wasn’t much to her, until the penultimate chapter, but even then it couldn’t save my opinions of her throughout the story.
the plot seems to meander, not really doing too much. there’s a death, then the mc yaps about eccentric topics, a death occurs, and wash rinse repeat. i’m not really too big a fan of stories without a driving force, and it really just felt like i was reading one of those recipes online where the author writes 45 paragraphs before the actual recipe. like homegirl i don’t give a shit about how animals are murdering everyone… i just want you to be solving this shit! i was expecting this to be a real mystery, but it felt like the ‘plot’ of the deaths took a back seat, which was really odd. i did find some things the mc talked about interesting philosophically, but then it was peppered with the words of a mad man. idk i didn’t find i had any feelings towards the mc, therefore i wanted to rip my hair out every time she rambled.
this book felt like it was ‘stream of consciousness’, and sorry i can’t fucking stand books like that!!! i at least need SOMETHING to connect the book. although the deaths were that link, and the book is marketed towards the mystery element, it felt as though they were brushed past instead to focus on the 7th paragraph about how the mc hates animal cruelty. like i’m with u girl but at the same time you have no discernible personality outside of that.
i really tried to like this, and at times i was tangentially intrigued by the book, most of the time i was just like “….meh”. i really hope this is just an issue of this plot and not of the actual writer because if it’s the latter…… girl.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Chronic illness, and Death
Moderate: Medical content and Murder
Minor: Fire/Fire injury
chrysos79's review against another edition
challenging
dark
funny
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal cruelty and Animal death
Minor: Murder
mariebrunelm's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
Dans la froideur de l’hiver polonais, la vieille Mme Doucheyko vit seule, entre ses promenades routinières, son intérêt pour l’astrologie et les traductions de William Blake qu'elle compose avec un ancien élève. Elle croit dur comme fer au pouvoir de la nature, si bien que lorsqu'un chasseur notoire du voisinage est retrouvé mort avec un os de biche coincé en travers de la gorge, elle y voit la main de la justice, voire quelque chose de plus mystérieux encore. Puis c'est un deuxième cadavre qui est découvert.
Munissez-vous d’une boisson chaude pour apprécier ce roman glacé, teinté de gothique. Je m’y suis beaucoup attachée au personnage principal, mais sachant combien j’aime les protagonistes âgées, ce n’est pas si étonnant. Ce livre m’attirait pour son atmosphère fantastique et je n’ai certes pas été déçue de ce côté-là, même si c'est plus une histoire d’ambiance que de faits. En revanche, je ne m'attendais pas à l'humour assez noir qui parcourt le texte, porté par la voix de sa narratrice, et cela m’a beaucoup plus également. J'ai ressenti une légère rigidité de la langue qui est due, je pense, à la traduction, mais cela ne m'a pas empêchée de passer un bon moment entre les pages de ce roman de saison.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death and Death
Minor: Violence
mandibibbs37's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, and Murder
bonnie's review against another edition
dark
funny
mysterious
sad
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal death and Murder
alyssatuininga's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-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
4.25
A beautifully written, quirky meandering book. I absolutely loved the main character (except maybe for her interest in Astrology which I mostly skimmed). The prose is gorgeous and I loved her writing style. The characters are wonderfully weird and the plot is downright crazy. I did find that the plot meandered a bit and it was a slower read for me. Overall a wonderful book and I enjoyed the characters so very much.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, and Murder
tuesday_evening's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty and Animal death