caterina's reviews
15 reviews

The House of the Vampire, by George Sylvester Viereck

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dark mysterious medium-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

2.5

I somewhat enjoyed this tale of a vampire who feeds on artistic inspiration and thoughts rather than blood. Some fun melodramatic, gothic, and bisexual vibes, but unfortunately also some racism and sexism. Published in 1907, and if I'd read the author's wiki before reading the book, I wouldn't have read it, since Viereck later became a Nazi propagandist. 🤮
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Interview with the Vampire, by Anne Rice

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dark emotional reflective sad 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? Yes

4.0

For 7 days, I read this book in the dark of night, when sleep is challenging due to chronic pain, and I miss it now that it's over. I didn't expect to enjoy this so much, but the lush imagery and the wrestling with grief that reflects Anne Rice's own (loss of a daughter Claudia's age) drew me in. I'm glad I read this for a reading challenge.
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Dear Justyce, by Nic Stone

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emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad 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? It's complicated

4.0

A strong sequel following a character from the first book who had much less support, and yet this book too is hopeful, full of lovable characters, and even more than the first imagines a better world. If there's ever a surprise book #3, I'm reading it too!
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Dear Martin, by Nic Stone

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emotional hopeful inspiring sad 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? It's complicated

4.0

If you think you'd enjoy a YA novel that tackles racism and police brutality with endearing characters and persevering hope, this one's for you. If you've enjoyed Jason Reynolds and Angie Thomas, this one's for you. I enjoyed listening to this and its sequel!
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The Voice of My Mind, by T.A. Fish

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emotional reflective fast-paced

1.0

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this ARC!

This collection transitions from shallow, sad poetry to trite Christian poetry. It reminds me of creative writing classes in middle school, down to the unnecessary commas and clumsy rhyming. I cannot recommend this book.

1/5 stars.
Galatea, by Madeline Miller

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dark emotional tense fast-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

4.0

This is the feminist retelling that we needed for the myth of Pygmalion and Galatea. Miller shines a light on the disturbing misogyny that always felt like it was seething under the surface of this myth. Take a look at the content warnings before diving in!
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The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, by John Boyne

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sad fast-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

2.5

This heavy-handed book felt like it was written to introduce young non-Jewish white kids to the Holocaust and help them realize that injustice can be happening that they might not see. It was stilted, the main character was overly naive, and the author didn't do justice to writing about the Holocaust. There are many other books out there - such as Art Spiegelman's Maus or Anne Frank's Diary - that I would recommend instead for this reading level.
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The Secret Adversary, by Agatha Christie

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adventurous funny mysterious fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.5

Entertaining, quick read, and I figured out the secret adversary early on, but Christie did have me doubting myself for a second! I was pretty annoyed with the very negative portrayal of labor rights movements in the book (ah, truly the worst thing that could happen is a labor strike!). Slow and steady Tommy and quick and passionate Tuppence were a bit of a fun pairing, so I might read more of their books!
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Respectable: Crossing the Class Divide, by Lynsey Hanley

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Did not finish book. Stopped at 18%.
Another book club book, and I loved the discussion but don't feel like I need to finish the book. I read the beginning and end and skimmed through the rest, and that was enough to get a sense of it - especially since it's pretty repetitive. As the author notes in an interview I watched about this book, if she'd written it today she would've written it differently - I would hope with more structural critique, because this was not so much the leftist memoir that I was expecting (e.g. essentially no analysis of race and gender intersecting with class).
Letter to My Daughter, by Maya Angelou

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hopeful inspiring reflective fast-paced

2.5

Maya Angelou is great, but the best thing about this book is that the audiobook is read by her. I love when she's sharing stories that she learned from, and the coffee story and the rug story will definitely stick with me, but her preachy advice (e.g. all the stuff about patriotism) is not my thing and I often disagreed with her. It's a disjointed collection, and in particular her short essay on rape feels like her just taking the opportunity to throw a take out there without having done research or thought it through. Take what resonates and leave the rest!
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