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cescanatalia's reviews
14 reviews
Scythe by Neal Shusterman
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
The Fortunes of Jaded Women by Carolyn Huynh
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
COVER :
It's quite nice and very eye-catching, yet simple enough to describe the kind of content that awaits us inside. I love the color combination of green, blue, and white; the green was pleasing to my eyes. I assume it represents Vietnam's green jungles, mountains, and hills, the homeland of Doung's families, and the small cartoons of Duong's sisters and children add another plus point to another side of these cursed families.
CHAPTER 1 :
My face was literally in shock by the time I read Chapter 1. To open a book with a conversation about revenge and a curse coming down upon an entire generation of family members is wild and bold, I guess.
I personally don't support what Onh Duong's ex-mother-in-law did, nor do I support what Onh Duong did; both of them are at fault in this, and let's just say what happened next is not a curse but karma working its way to Duong's family.
To me, this chapter is slightly emotional, and the thoughts are engaging; it put my curious self in the position of turning the next page to see what happened.
CHARACTERS :
This time, I tried not to make a review of each character because, believe me, Duong's women are unique in their own way, and I fell in love with each and every one of them. Rather than seeing them as one person, I try to see them and their relationship on a deeper level.
Start with three sisters: Mrs. Nguyen, Mrs. Pham, and Mrs. Lam. Right from the start, when I read Mrs. Nguyen's hesitantness to contact her sister, I knew there was family drama going on, and what's a family if they don't have drama? especially Asian families. And by the time the three of them meet, there's nothing but a chaotic, wild, tense situation surrounding them, and somehow, somehow, though I find it a bit uncomfortable, I also find it very familiar and close to home. Being born into an Asian family and seeing every bit of drama, necessary or unnecessary, going on since I was a child, kind of triggering those memories back and allowing you to connect emotionally due to your personal experience with certain scenes, I think, is a plus point for a book and the author itself. Doung's sister is typically your Asian mother in every way; they are stubborn, competitive, not really comfortable expressing their affection and love, nagging at its finest, literally a shell hard to break yet deep inside they just do what's best for their daughters. Through their interaction, I could feel the love and adoration they have for each other, especially when their mother passed away; those scenes really broke me as a person and made me long for a sibling I will never have. I also admire their resilience and instinct to survive; seriously, Asian mothers are the toughest human beings.
The daughters, Mrs. Nguyen's daughter, were basically a copy of her mother's relationship with her sisters: estranged and far from each other. But I do love how they unite immediately when it comes to stuff about Mrs. Nguyen; though they have deep trauma regarding their parents, it doesn't stop them from being there for her and trying to fix things. I love, love, love, and love so much Priscilla, Thuy, and Thoung's sisterhood bonds; they support each other, they don't judge each other's choices (with the exception of Thuy and Thoung's love lives xD), and they basically have this far better interaction compared to the older generation.
Joyce and Mrs. Pham have this relationship based on Mrs. Pham's insecurities about being the middle child, I think. Being the middle child often comes with confusion and thoughts of not being important because parents only take care of the firstborn or the youngest, so that's why Mrs. Pham always called Joyce "special" to remind her daughter that she is, in fact, special.
They don't have much interaction, but when they do later in the book, a feeling of silence, affection, and caring radiates from both of them. Looking at Joyce and her mother, I feel calm, serene, and at peace.
The last one is Mrs. Lam with her daughters, Eliene and Christine. As the youngest, Mrs. Lam deals hard enough with feeling abandoned, especially by her sisters. I think that's why she protects her daughters in a more strict way and keeps them close to avoid becoming like her mother and sisters. I especially love Mrs. Lam's personality; she's competitive, business-minded, secretly anxious, and strong-headed, if I may say so. Being the youngest sometimes isn't the easiest position in the world; often times, you find yourself cast aside by your family just because you're too young to understand etc., and I think that's also happened with Mrs. Lam. Due to her struggling childhood, she doesn't let anyone walk on her. She stands on her two feet, keeps on striving in the cold land of the USA, and she survives.
Her relationship with her daughter isn't really shown much here, though at the end, I'm glad Mrs. Lam overcame her anxiety and fear and finally let her daughter see the world. I'm glad that, despite how stubborn she is, she took the opportunity to become a better mother for Elaine and Chaterine, and that's the kind of character development we're looking for.
Talking about character development, yes, there's some major character development that happened in the book, and it leans towards the positive, especially with Duong's sisters. One of the reasons I fell hard in love with these beautiful and gorgeous mothers is because, despite everything that came their way, they still found ways to fight, not give up, and hold on to each other. And to have characters that make you fall hard and cry a little bit from their stories, I think it's a major plus.
SUMMARY :
The Fortune of a Jaded Woman was written in multiple POVs, something I think is hard to achieve successfully by an author because you have to be really fair with your own characters. And in this book, Carolyn, in my opinion, really hit the jackpot with it.
She successfully created this point of view from everyone in Doung's family fairly and with enough proportion, and that makes my reading experience so enjoyable and fun. To read this family drama from everyone's eyes kind of gives me an insight into the main problem they have (and also side problems); it makes me feel included in their world, and along the way, as they find solutions, I also feel at peace and really happy.
Besides characters and their unique personalities, the main problem that Carolyn raised in this book—family, identities, and a woman's worth and strength—is a topic that is close to our society and our home as well. That's why when you read this, you probably will feel very familiar and like it belongs to Duong's family and what happened between them, and as I said earlier, to be able to connect emotionally towards a book and dive into it, experiencing every emotion they have, whether it's happiness, sadness, anger, remorse, or even pain, is a privilege to have, and I'm beyond glad that Carolyn, as the author, could give me that kind of experience.
This book is super-duper recommended for all of you who want to read how family, despite every shortcoming they have, finds their way back to each other and is reunited, how mothers worry and show love for their daughters, and otherwise, how love could become the answer to melt every iceberg, and how, in the end, your mother, no matter how much you want to deny it, is the only person who knows you deep inside and will always be there for you.
It's quite nice and very eye-catching, yet simple enough to describe the kind of content that awaits us inside. I love the color combination of green, blue, and white; the green was pleasing to my eyes. I assume it represents Vietnam's green jungles, mountains, and hills, the homeland of Doung's families, and the small cartoons of Duong's sisters and children add another plus point to another side of these cursed families.
CHAPTER 1 :
My face was literally in shock by the time I read Chapter 1. To open a book with a conversation about revenge and a curse coming down upon an entire generation of family members is wild and bold, I guess.
I personally don't support what Onh Duong's ex-mother-in-law did, nor do I support what Onh Duong did; both of them are at fault in this, and let's just say what happened next is not a curse but karma working its way to Duong's family.
To me, this chapter is slightly emotional, and the thoughts are engaging; it put my curious self in the position of turning the next page to see what happened.
CHARACTERS :
This time, I tried not to make a review of each character because, believe me, Duong's women are unique in their own way, and I fell in love with each and every one of them. Rather than seeing them as one person, I try to see them and their relationship on a deeper level.
Start with three sisters: Mrs. Nguyen, Mrs. Pham, and Mrs. Lam. Right from the start, when I read Mrs. Nguyen's hesitantness to contact her sister, I knew there was family drama going on, and what's a family if they don't have drama? especially Asian families. And by the time the three of them meet, there's nothing but a chaotic, wild, tense situation surrounding them, and somehow, somehow, though I find it a bit uncomfortable, I also find it very familiar and close to home. Being born into an Asian family and seeing every bit of drama, necessary or unnecessary, going on since I was a child, kind of triggering those memories back and allowing you to connect emotionally due to your personal experience with certain scenes, I think, is a plus point for a book and the author itself. Doung's sister is typically your Asian mother in every way; they are stubborn, competitive, not really comfortable expressing their affection and love, nagging at its finest, literally a shell hard to break yet deep inside they just do what's best for their daughters. Through their interaction, I could feel the love and adoration they have for each other, especially when their mother passed away; those scenes really broke me as a person and made me long for a sibling I will never have. I also admire their resilience and instinct to survive; seriously, Asian mothers are the toughest human beings.
The daughters, Mrs. Nguyen's daughter, were basically a copy of her mother's relationship with her sisters: estranged and far from each other. But I do love how they unite immediately when it comes to stuff about Mrs. Nguyen; though they have deep trauma regarding their parents, it doesn't stop them from being there for her and trying to fix things. I love, love, love, and love so much Priscilla, Thuy, and Thoung's sisterhood bonds; they support each other, they don't judge each other's choices (with the exception of Thuy and Thoung's love lives xD), and they basically have this far better interaction compared to the older generation.
Joyce and Mrs. Pham have this relationship based on Mrs. Pham's insecurities about being the middle child, I think. Being the middle child often comes with confusion and thoughts of not being important because parents only take care of the firstborn or the youngest, so that's why Mrs. Pham always called Joyce "special" to remind her daughter that she is, in fact, special.
They don't have much interaction, but when they do later in the book, a feeling of silence, affection, and caring radiates from both of them. Looking at Joyce and her mother, I feel calm, serene, and at peace.
The last one is Mrs. Lam with her daughters, Eliene and Christine. As the youngest, Mrs. Lam deals hard enough with feeling abandoned, especially by her sisters. I think that's why she protects her daughters in a more strict way and keeps them close to avoid becoming like her mother and sisters. I especially love Mrs. Lam's personality; she's competitive, business-minded, secretly anxious, and strong-headed, if I may say so. Being the youngest sometimes isn't the easiest position in the world; often times, you find yourself cast aside by your family just because you're too young to understand etc., and I think that's also happened with Mrs. Lam. Due to her struggling childhood, she doesn't let anyone walk on her. She stands on her two feet, keeps on striving in the cold land of the USA, and she survives.
Her relationship with her daughter isn't really shown much here, though at the end, I'm glad Mrs. Lam overcame her anxiety and fear and finally let her daughter see the world. I'm glad that, despite how stubborn she is, she took the opportunity to become a better mother for Elaine and Chaterine, and that's the kind of character development we're looking for.
Talking about character development, yes, there's some major character development that happened in the book, and it leans towards the positive, especially with Duong's sisters. One of the reasons I fell hard in love with these beautiful and gorgeous mothers is because, despite everything that came their way, they still found ways to fight, not give up, and hold on to each other. And to have characters that make you fall hard and cry a little bit from their stories, I think it's a major plus.
SUMMARY :
The Fortune of a Jaded Woman was written in multiple POVs, something I think is hard to achieve successfully by an author because you have to be really fair with your own characters. And in this book, Carolyn, in my opinion, really hit the jackpot with it.
She successfully created this point of view from everyone in Doung's family fairly and with enough proportion, and that makes my reading experience so enjoyable and fun. To read this family drama from everyone's eyes kind of gives me an insight into the main problem they have (and also side problems); it makes me feel included in their world, and along the way, as they find solutions, I also feel at peace and really happy.
Besides characters and their unique personalities, the main problem that Carolyn raised in this book—family, identities, and a woman's worth and strength—is a topic that is close to our society and our home as well. That's why when you read this, you probably will feel very familiar and like it belongs to Duong's family and what happened between them, and as I said earlier, to be able to connect emotionally towards a book and dive into it, experiencing every emotion they have, whether it's happiness, sadness, anger, remorse, or even pain, is a privilege to have, and I'm beyond glad that Carolyn, as the author, could give me that kind of experience.
This book is super-duper recommended for all of you who want to read how family, despite every shortcoming they have, finds their way back to each other and is reunited, how mothers worry and show love for their daughters, and otherwise, how love could become the answer to melt every iceberg, and how, in the end, your mother, no matter how much you want to deny it, is the only person who knows you deep inside and will always be there for you.
A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas
First time reading Sarah J Maas's A Court of Thorn & Roses and let's just say, it makes me have this mixed feeling about this book.
BOOK COVER :
Love the red colour; it definitely attention grabbing and I think it allures people to read it. There's also another version of cover; it's a female clad in black dress with red background but my personal preference is for sure, the red cover with intricate painting of wolf in it.
CHAPTER 1 :
Sarah introduces Feyre right away as main character. She has this stubborn, reliable,strong-willed character due to her background as the one who has to provide for her family. In my opinion, Feyre doesn't have this strong "right in your face" moment or charisma to be main character; She provides for her family, yes that's good but she did out of promise to her deceased mother who made her swore to protect them on her death bed. There is this wild thoughts in my head that say, if Feyre doesn't swore or make promise, I bet she'll be the one who left and find adventures out there after her family went poor.
Chapter 1 is bit intriguing though it's easily guessable where the plot is going; Feyre, out of desperation and hatred, accidentally killed a wolf she saw on the forest. Later though, the wolf's friend, which is a Fae, came and demand Feyre to exchange her life in place for his friend. From there, we don't need Einstein to guess what will happened next to Feyre.
CHARACTERS :
Besides Feyre, later we were introduced to Tamlin, the one who demand Feyre to go to Spring Court in place for his deceased friend, later we known as Andras. Tamlin is a High Lord for Spring Court which like governor in real life and he has this mysterious, aloof, cold and rigid aura. His cold and unapproachable aspect kind of create this invisible bridge with Feyre; they have this awkward tension & their stubborness clash with each other.
Now for Tamlin, I do admire his leadership and responsibilities towards his court. He's a man of words, protecting and trying his best to make Feyre feel at home. One thing I don't find interesting in Tamlin is how half of the books, Sarah doesn't explore his expression more; as far as I read, Tamlin, if he's not growling, he's snarling, clenching his teeth or flexing his claws or fangs (which is still absurd to me, 'cause at one point, the claws came from his knuckles and Wolverine's the only thing that came to my mind 'stead of Fairies).
And we also introduced to Lucien, Tamlin's emissary and act like his second-in-command slash best friend for centuries. Lucien, contradict to Tamlin, has this bright and glowing spirit, approachable, yet sarcastic traits, which make him as my number one lovable character. Especially after I learn more about his past, the urge to protect this ginger haired baby is getting stronger (Sarah was so wrong for putting him in death chair as Amarantha's second challenge for Feyre 😑)
Later, we also introduces to Ryhsand or Rhys, this dark mysterious yet cunning High Lord of Night Court. A literal definition of red flag, that's my first impression of him. Now when I say earlier, that I have this mixed feeling about ACOTAR, Rhysand is on my top five; that man or Fae, even though he's giving this dangerous and full of threat especially towards Thamlin & Feyre's relationship, but he's a loyal and caring inside; he willing to be servant for Amarantha as long as he could protect his court, kind of giving this Slytherin's traits for me (sorry for HP reference there xD).
I admire him for helping Feyre indirectly but also dislikes his meddling with Feyre's love life.
And our villain, Amarantha. Evil, cunning, sinister High Queen who obsessively in lust with Tamlin. She apperead later in the books, torturing Fae left and right while trying to make Tamlin hers. Now, from the introduction of her to discussion of her past and what she is as Fae, I could say, our villain is villaining. She came for blood and gore, she doesn't afraid to kill anyone whose in her path.
But towards the end, when she realize she's lost, there's this tiny bit speck of moment where she's afraid of Tamlin who regains his consciousness and plead for her life. Kind of bit funny to me, cause girl's not as powerful as she tought she is yet she dare to manipulate and keep half of High Fae's magic and when it backfired on her, she's scared. Like why you play gamble for your life, Amarantha? Such a high risk taken for a villain who doesn't think further of the consequences of her action.
Now, Feyre.. Our main character which for me, fail to do her job properly. First of all, I appreciate her for being brave and ready to fight Amarantha to save Tamlin even though there is this unbalance scales of power between them. She's giving hope and optimism and I just love it. The only thing I don't find her interesting is her ability for being stupid and make bad decision. I swear, this girl just testing my patience everytime she's being stubborn specifically when Tamlin had advised her to stay inside his home or Lucien warned her to not look for Suriel. Later, she almost sacrifice Lucien's life due to her slowpoke brain ( I literally holding my breath when this happened; girl just so fuckin' clueless)
Between these four characters, I like Lucien-Feyre's interaction the most; they have this longtime bestfriend kind of chemistry which makes their conversation and banter fun to read. Thamlin-Feyre fall on the second place; they start slow and hard to read but later in the chapters, the ice between them melt down and create this sexual tension which lead us to top notch smut; it's a nice plot development for both of them.
Talking about development, sadly I don't think our MC has prominent character development. What I don't expect is Nesta, Feyre's older sister. She, from a cold, cynical, spoiled girl turn into tough & reliable older sister. It's surprise me, like a lot because you can't see any of these trait from her in the beginning, not even a glimpse and then suddenly, you have this information of Nesta's went to the Wall just to take Feyre's back and she understand what Feyre's going through and makes her realize about her feelings and push her to go back to Spring Court. Like, come thru protecting older sister! Nesta is representation of tough love first children has to give to their siblings and I live for that 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
PLOT :
Now, everyone who's read this could easily guess ACOTAR is literally a re-endition of Beauty and The Beast but with magical being; later though, it's a mixed of Beauty & the Beast meet Twilight with a bit of sprinkle of Hunger Games; and Feyre, instead of being a nerd, she couldn't read to save her life. Tamlin, instead of curse that turn him into Beast, there is this Blight or some kind of curse upon his land which makes him wear mask 24/7.
It's hard for me to say this but ACOTAR has drain my will to read. I even pause it for at least weeks just because the pace is like a roller coaster; in the beginning, it's so slow with no prominent character or events happened (besides Feyre moving to Spring Court) and then it goes fast with Tamlin-Feyre making progress but it slowed down again until mid story almost to the end and it goes fast again in the end. It's torturing to read especially if your main character are Feyre with her inability of thinking logically and making right decision.
Sadly, I don't vibes well with the pace. It's slow, stagnant and unengaging and I think, for opening a series, ACOTAR has done its job properly but not well done. She doesn't have this kick which I thought will make readers curious enough to read the next series. But for me, the possibility exist. I probably will read the second book, A Court of Mist and Fury.
ENDING :
When I say there's bit of Twilight happened, I refer to the ending here. Predictable, that's all I could say.
SUMMARY :
ACOTAR has been put on my list of "BOOKTOK/BOOKSTAGRAM THAT DOESN'T WORTH THE HYPE".
It's good, I love how the world building introduces us to Fairies and their separate Courts also Mortal Realm where human resides. It's not easy to create a fantasy world and I give applause for Sarah J Maas for creating this world building nice and proper. I'm still at first book so I couldn't say much about it, maybe later though when I finish the series.
Though it's good, I find her characterization of Fae is a bit off. It's really different from Fae per usual, it has claws and fangs and it's more animal look alike rather than graceful, elegant, glowing Fae. I think Sarah's Fae is more vampire than what she meant to.
That's why I say I have mixed feeling because at one point, I don't vibes well with what she trying to say through her character but at the same time, I admire her creativity and strong willed to make different characters in a book.
I give ACOTAR three stars out of five 😊
adventurous
challenging
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
First time reading Sarah J Maas's A Court of Thorn & Roses and let's just say, it makes me have this mixed feeling about this book.
BOOK COVER :
Love the red colour; it definitely attention grabbing and I think it allures people to read it. There's also another version of cover; it's a female clad in black dress with red background but my personal preference is for sure, the red cover with intricate painting of wolf in it.
CHAPTER 1 :
Sarah introduces Feyre right away as main character. She has this stubborn, reliable,strong-willed character due to her background as the one who has to provide for her family. In my opinion, Feyre doesn't have this strong "right in your face" moment or charisma to be main character; She provides for her family, yes that's good but she did out of promise to her deceased mother who made her swore to protect them on her death bed. There is this wild thoughts in my head that say, if Feyre doesn't swore or make promise, I bet she'll be the one who left and find adventures out there after her family went poor.
Chapter 1 is bit intriguing though it's easily guessable where the plot is going; Feyre, out of desperation and hatred, accidentally killed a wolf she saw on the forest. Later though, the wolf's friend, which is a Fae, came and demand Feyre to exchange her life in place for his friend. From there, we don't need Einstein to guess what will happened next to Feyre.
CHARACTERS :
Besides Feyre, later we were introduced to Tamlin, the one who demand Feyre to go to Spring Court in place for his deceased friend, later we known as Andras. Tamlin is a High Lord for Spring Court which like governor in real life and he has this mysterious, aloof, cold and rigid aura. His cold and unapproachable aspect kind of create this invisible bridge with Feyre; they have this awkward tension & their stubborness clash with each other.
Now for Tamlin, I do admire his leadership and responsibilities towards his court. He's a man of words, protecting and trying his best to make Feyre feel at home. One thing I don't find interesting in Tamlin is how half of the books, Sarah doesn't explore his expression more; as far as I read, Tamlin, if he's not growling, he's snarling, clenching his teeth or flexing his claws or fangs (which is still absurd to me, 'cause at one point, the claws came from his knuckles and Wolverine's the only thing that came to my mind 'stead of Fairies).
And we also introduced to Lucien, Tamlin's emissary and act like his second-in-command slash best friend for centuries. Lucien, contradict to Tamlin, has this bright and glowing spirit, approachable, yet sarcastic traits, which make him as my number one lovable character. Especially after I learn more about his past, the urge to protect this ginger haired baby is getting stronger (Sarah was so wrong for putting him in death chair as Amarantha's second challenge for Feyre 😑)
Later, we also introduces to Ryhsand or Rhys, this dark mysterious yet cunning High Lord of Night Court. A literal definition of red flag, that's my first impression of him. Now when I say earlier, that I have this mixed feeling about ACOTAR, Rhysand is on my top five; that man or Fae, even though he's giving this dangerous and full of threat especially towards Thamlin & Feyre's relationship, but he's a loyal and caring inside; he willing to be servant for Amarantha as long as he could protect his court, kind of giving this Slytherin's traits for me (sorry for HP reference there xD).
I admire him for helping Feyre indirectly but also dislikes his meddling with Feyre's love life.
And our villain, Amarantha. Evil, cunning, sinister High Queen who obsessively in lust with Tamlin. She apperead later in the books, torturing Fae left and right while trying to make Tamlin hers. Now, from the introduction of her to discussion of her past and what she is as Fae, I could say, our villain is villaining. She came for blood and gore, she doesn't afraid to kill anyone whose in her path.
But towards the end, when she realize she's lost, there's this tiny bit speck of moment where she's afraid of Tamlin who regains his consciousness and plead for her life. Kind of bit funny to me, cause girl's not as powerful as she tought she is yet she dare to manipulate and keep half of High Fae's magic and when it backfired on her, she's scared. Like why you play gamble for your life, Amarantha? Such a high risk taken for a villain who doesn't think further of the consequences of her action.
Now, Feyre.. Our main character which for me, fail to do her job properly. First of all, I appreciate her for being brave and ready to fight Amarantha to save Tamlin even though there is this unbalance scales of power between them. She's giving hope and optimism and I just love it. The only thing I don't find her interesting is her ability for being stupid and make bad decision. I swear, this girl just testing my patience everytime she's being stubborn specifically when Tamlin had advised her to stay inside his home or Lucien warned her to not look for Suriel. Later, she almost sacrifice Lucien's life due to her slowpoke brain ( I literally holding my breath when this happened; girl just so fuckin' clueless)
Between these four characters, I like Lucien-Feyre's interaction the most; they have this longtime bestfriend kind of chemistry which makes their conversation and banter fun to read. Thamlin-Feyre fall on the second place; they start slow and hard to read but later in the chapters, the ice between them melt down and create this sexual tension which lead us to top notch smut; it's a nice plot development for both of them.
Talking about development, sadly I don't think our MC has prominent character development. What I don't expect is Nesta, Feyre's older sister. She, from a cold, cynical, spoiled girl turn into tough & reliable older sister. It's surprise me, like a lot because you can't see any of these trait from her in the beginning, not even a glimpse and then suddenly, you have this information of Nesta's went to the Wall just to take Feyre's back and she understand what Feyre's going through and makes her realize about her feelings and push her to go back to Spring Court. Like, come thru protecting older sister! Nesta is representation of tough love first children has to give to their siblings and I live for that 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
PLOT :
Now, everyone who's read this could easily guess ACOTAR is literally a re-endition of Beauty and The Beast but with magical being; later though, it's a mixed of Beauty & the Beast meet Twilight with a bit of sprinkle of Hunger Games; and Feyre, instead of being a nerd, she couldn't read to save her life. Tamlin, instead of curse that turn him into Beast, there is this Blight or some kind of curse upon his land which makes him wear mask 24/7.
It's hard for me to say this but ACOTAR has drain my will to read. I even pause it for at least weeks just because the pace is like a roller coaster; in the beginning, it's so slow with no prominent character or events happened (besides Feyre moving to Spring Court) and then it goes fast with Tamlin-Feyre making progress but it slowed down again until mid story almost to the end and it goes fast again in the end. It's torturing to read especially if your main character are Feyre with her inability of thinking logically and making right decision.
Sadly, I don't vibes well with the pace. It's slow, stagnant and unengaging and I think, for opening a series, ACOTAR has done its job properly but not well done. She doesn't have this kick which I thought will make readers curious enough to read the next series. But for me, the possibility exist. I probably will read the second book, A Court of Mist and Fury.
ENDING :
When I say there's bit of Twilight happened, I refer to the ending here. Predictable, that's all I could say.
SUMMARY :
ACOTAR has been put on my list of "BOOKTOK/BOOKSTAGRAM THAT DOESN'T WORTH THE HYPE".
It's good, I love how the world building introduces us to Fairies and their separate Courts also Mortal Realm where human resides. It's not easy to create a fantasy world and I give applause for Sarah J Maas for creating this world building nice and proper. I'm still at first book so I couldn't say much about it, maybe later though when I finish the series.
Though it's good, I find her characterization of Fae is a bit off. It's really different from Fae per usual, it has claws and fangs and it's more animal look alike rather than graceful, elegant, glowing Fae. I think Sarah's Fae is more vampire than what she meant to.
That's why I say I have mixed feeling because at one point, I don't vibes well with what she trying to say through her character but at the same time, I admire her creativity and strong willed to make different characters in a book.
I give ACOTAR three stars out of five 😊
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Slavery, Violence, Blood, Sexual harassment, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Body horror, Confinement, Death, Gore, Slavery, Torture, Blood, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Death and Death of parent
The Sorcerer of Pyongyang: A Novel by Marcel Theroux
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
5.0
Babel by R.F. Kuang
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Home by Leila S. Chudori
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Meet Me in Mumbai by Sabina Khan
emotional
hopeful
sad
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
4.75
The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-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? Yes
5.0
I'm currently letting out the biggest "WHAT.THE.FUCK?" ever.
Usually I take one or two days to write the review, but for The Silent Patient, I chose to write it straight away after closing the last chapter. This baby right here needs a special treatment for successfully making me gasp in surprise, bawl my tears out, let out the biggest sighs ever in 2023, and stare off blankly for a few minutes.
Gosh, it's so good that it makes me so mad because—why? Why does Alex make Theo so cunning yet nice, and why does he make me root for him to help Alicia? I still couldn't quite come back from the amount of surprises I'd found in this book.
In my opinion, Alex did such an incredible job in The Silent Patient, considering this is his first work. The writing, plot, concept, characters, and even the pace of the story had been done beautifully; though there are some flashback scenes back and forth, they didn't disrupt the rythm at all; instead, they gave the story this "sauce" that allowed it to keep going and for every character to do their role perfectly. And the tricky part of making the reader, in this case, me, believe everything is as it seems has also been done superbly (I'm still pretty mad at this fact). I must admit that this book has attracted me from the moment I saw the cover and read the first chapter: Alicia Berenson was thirty-three years old when she killed her husband; that one line, though it's cheesy, is a perfect murder mystery and basically sold me out.
Though there are a few times I kind of question where Alex wants to take this story; Theo acts more like a detective than a psychotherapist; it's still enjoyable to read. With all the twists and turns, The Silent Patient is one of the best psychological thrillers I've ever read, and I recommend this book to you.
Usually I take one or two days to write the review, but for The Silent Patient, I chose to write it straight away after closing the last chapter. This baby right here needs a special treatment for successfully making me gasp in surprise, bawl my tears out, let out the biggest sighs ever in 2023, and stare off blankly for a few minutes.
Gosh, it's so good that it makes me so mad because—why? Why does Alex make Theo so cunning yet nice, and why does he make me root for him to help Alicia? I still couldn't quite come back from the amount of surprises I'd found in this book.
In my opinion, Alex did such an incredible job in The Silent Patient, considering this is his first work. The writing, plot, concept, characters, and even the pace of the story had been done beautifully; though there are some flashback scenes back and forth, they didn't disrupt the rythm at all; instead, they gave the story this "sauce" that allowed it to keep going and for every character to do their role perfectly. And the tricky part of making the reader, in this case, me, believe everything is as it seems has also been done superbly (I'm still pretty mad at this fact). I must admit that this book has attracted me from the moment I saw the cover and read the first chapter: Alicia Berenson was thirty-three years old when she killed her husband; that one line, though it's cheesy, is a perfect murder mystery and basically sold me out.
Though there are a few times I kind of question where Alex wants to take this story; Theo acts more like a detective than a psychotherapist; it's still enjoyable to read. With all the twists and turns, The Silent Patient is one of the best psychological thrillers I've ever read, and I recommend this book to you.
The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue is one huge story filled with heartbreaks. From the first chapter until the end, my heart solely goes to Addie for living centuries of life torn between immortality and loneliness.
My first thought when I open this book is "damn, that's a lotta pages". With 448 pages and being told mainly from Addie's and Henry's (Addie's lover) POV, The Invincible Life of Addie LaRue gives us an insight into immortal life as a result of dealing with the darkness.
I fell in love—and I think it's going to be permanent—with V.E. Schwab's style of writing. It's elegant, mysterious, full of surprises and details, and captivating as you read chapter by chapter. This is my second time reading her work, and honest to God, I am impressed all over again. In my opinion, her idea, even though it has this dark and mysterious aura all over it, is unique and one of a kind. Concept, characterization, and execution are chef kisses. You will find these unexplainable forces that will drown you in the world she created (if you ask me, I voluntereed to get drown).
Talking about characters, Addie, although she's the main in this story, I find her a bit naive and unrealistic (perhaps due to her young age and the fact that she's not mentally prepared to deal with changes); This quality of hers kind of makes me a bit annoyed, 'cause why would she complain about something she asked for? She later deal and accept it though.
Speaking of Addie, of course I won't forget about her partner (or supposedly lover/owner), the Darkness, or Luc, as he prefers to be called. As I've written these, I've tried so hard not to fangirl over him; call me a weak soul or whatever, but Luc is THE man in here (sorry Henry). Unlike Addie, I find Luc a more prominent and strong figure; he's the key point and the one who made it all happen. He's a realistic one with tendency to become a bit possessive -I mean, if someone promised me their soul and didn't give it to me for centuries, of course I'm going to be pissed off- yet charming to the bone.
The ending... Now, I'm team Luc of course, and I do ship Addie and Luc together, but when Henry comes to the picture, I kind of root for them because, as much as I like Luc, I realize his "affection" towards Addie is just mere possessiveness mixed with obsession, while Henry is more pure, innocent, and sincere. Yet in the end, Luc got what he wanted while Addie sacrifices herself for Henry. Kind of dissapointed with it and it's not something I imagined will happened to her.
In conclusion, this book makes you contemplate more about living your life, appreciate your family, partner, friend or just anyone that appears and circled around you, every detail happened, every moment, savor it deeply and let it become memories to remember later.
I do recommend this book for all of you to read. Trust me, you won't be dissappointed
All those who want to admire Luc together, please leave comment or likes
My first thought when I open this book is "damn, that's a lotta pages". With 448 pages and being told mainly from Addie's and Henry's (Addie's lover) POV, The Invincible Life of Addie LaRue gives us an insight into immortal life as a result of dealing with the darkness.
I fell in love—and I think it's going to be permanent—with V.E. Schwab's style of writing. It's elegant, mysterious, full of surprises and details, and captivating as you read chapter by chapter. This is my second time reading her work, and honest to God, I am impressed all over again. In my opinion, her idea, even though it has this dark and mysterious aura all over it, is unique and one of a kind. Concept, characterization, and execution are chef kisses. You will find these unexplainable forces that will drown you in the world she created (if you ask me, I voluntereed to get drown).
Talking about characters, Addie, although she's the main in this story, I find her a bit naive and unrealistic (perhaps due to her young age and the fact that she's not mentally prepared to deal with changes); This quality of hers kind of makes me a bit annoyed, 'cause why would she complain about something she asked for? She later deal and accept it though.
Speaking of Addie, of course I won't forget about her partner (or supposedly lover/owner), the Darkness, or Luc, as he prefers to be called. As I've written these, I've tried so hard not to fangirl over him; call me a weak soul or whatever, but Luc is THE man in here (sorry Henry). Unlike Addie, I find Luc a more prominent and strong figure; he's the key point and the one who made it all happen. He's a realistic one with tendency to become a bit possessive -I mean, if someone promised me their soul and didn't give it to me for centuries, of course I'm going to be pissed off- yet charming to the bone.
The ending... Now, I'm team Luc of course, and I do ship Addie and Luc together, but when Henry comes to the picture, I kind of root for them because, as much as I like Luc, I realize his "affection" towards Addie is just mere possessiveness mixed with obsession, while Henry is more pure, innocent, and sincere. Yet in the end, Luc got what he wanted while Addie sacrifices herself for Henry. Kind of dissapointed with it and it's not something I imagined will happened to her.
In conclusion, this book makes you contemplate more about living your life, appreciate your family, partner, friend or just anyone that appears and circled around you, every detail happened, every moment, savor it deeply and let it become memories to remember later.
I do recommend this book for all of you to read. Trust me, you won't be dissappointed
All those who want to admire Luc together, please leave comment or likes
The Seventh Sun by Lani Forbes
adventurous
dark
emotional
informative
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Reading The Seventh Sun, I constantly admire Lani Forbes’s style of writing; it’s detailed and descriptive to the point of being imaginable. I'd never had such a good time reading a book as The Seventh Sun. I can't help but imagine Ahkin played by Tenoch Huerta in the battle scene between Chicome and Miquitz where Ahkin is showing off his light-bending power (age-wise, I know he doesn't match, but a girl can dream, though..). Also, the princesses' brawling with each other and flaunting their powers are very Avatar-like; basically, bits of the story are similar to Avatar. Aside from the cover, which has a mysterious and eerie feel to it, the element bending felt familiar and added to my reading experience.
Ahkin and Mayana also have such strong chemistry with each other (their make-out session is fire, I told you); I can’t help but giggle and blush with every interaction from them. Yet unfortunately, the sparks stop there. They're fantastic when combined, but on their own, they're as boring as blank white paper. There is no discernible growth; from the beginning to the end, nothing particularly interesting comes from them in terms of personality. I just hope that in the second book, either Ahkin or Mayana can grow more and give us a new perspective on their world.
All things considered, The Seventh Sun is a pleasant way to open a trilogy, and I do recommend you guys read it.
Ahkin and Mayana also have such strong chemistry with each other (their make-out session is fire, I told you); I can’t help but giggle and blush with every interaction from them. Yet unfortunately, the sparks stop there. They're fantastic when combined, but on their own, they're as boring as blank white paper. There is no discernible growth; from the beginning to the end, nothing particularly interesting comes from them in terms of personality. I just hope that in the second book, either Ahkin or Mayana can grow more and give us a new perspective on their world.
All things considered, The Seventh Sun is a pleasant way to open a trilogy, and I do recommend you guys read it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Violence, and War
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, and Death of parent