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erynnotfar's reviews
64 reviews
Tales from the Shadowhunter Academy by Cassandra Clare, Robin Wasserman, Maureen Johnson, Sarah Rees Brennan
5.0
Maybe I'm a biased reviewer for rating Tales from the Shadowhunter Academy highly because it centers around Simon Lewis, and as a Jewish nerd myself, I find his character highly relatable. Oh well. It was also an enjoyable short story collection. Unlike The Bane Chronicles, that was more of a collection of moments across Magnus's life, TFTSA was more like a standalone novel in the Shadowhunters universe. It had a clear beginning, middle, and end, and while each of the stories it was composed of had an individual plot and climax of their own, it was all one fluid story. While it was Simon-centric, I loved the glimpses into the stories of other characters, such as in "Nothing But Shadows" and "Born to Endless Night."
I read The Mortal Instruments series, the Infernal Devices series, and The Bane Chronicles when they came out, but drifted away from the world of the Shadowhunters until 2020 when I picked Clockwork Angel up on a whim and fell back in love. TFTSA was the first
book I read that wasn't a reread, and it was a fitting welcome back to the Shadowhunter Chronicles, reminding me why I love these books and characters.
I read The Mortal Instruments series, the Infernal Devices series, and The Bane Chronicles when they came out, but drifted away from the world of the Shadowhunters until 2020 when I picked Clockwork Angel up on a whim and fell back in love. TFTSA was the first
book I read that wasn't a reread, and it was a fitting welcome back to the Shadowhunter Chronicles, reminding me why I love these books and characters.
Bronte: Wuthering Heights by Hilda D. Spear
3.0
Wuthering Heights often gets misinterpreted as an epic romance between Heathcliff and Cathy. Taken out of context, many of the best known quotes do sound this way, so reading them in their original context made me see them in a whole new light. Almost all (if not all) of the characters commit acts that render them thoroughly unlikeable to both each other and the reader. And yet, the magic of Emily Brontë and the reason it has endured as a classic work is that despite all of the misery of Wuthering Heights, it is impossible to put down.
The Queen of the Night by Alexander Chee
5.0
The Queen of the Night can best be described as a murder mystery where the victim is still alive, and also plays the role of the detective. It is the story of Lilliet Berne, known to the world as a Parisian opera star. Only four people know her true past: that she was born in America and did what she had to do, became who she had to become - a circus star, a courtesan, and a maid to the Empress - in order to rise to stardom. When she is approached with a new role, based on the past she thought she left behind her, Lilliet must go back through her past to figure out which of those four people betrayed her secret.
Many reviews describe various books as "luxurious" to read. This book truly was. The writing was smooth and the plot twists flowed effortlessly while still being surprising. Plenty of famous operas were referenced, but despite having no knowledge of opera, I still found that they added to my enjoyment of the novel. Chee summarized them for the audience's sake in such a way that they fit perfectly and felt like they were written to fit in this book, not that the books was written around them. The formatting was a bit odd, in that quotation marks were not used to denote dialogue, but once I got into the groove of reading it, I barely noticed it anymore. I can't recommend this book enough.
Many reviews describe various books as "luxurious" to read. This book truly was. The writing was smooth and the plot twists flowed effortlessly while still being surprising. Plenty of famous operas were referenced, but despite having no knowledge of opera, I still found that they added to my enjoyment of the novel. Chee summarized them for the audience's sake in such a way that they fit perfectly and felt like they were written to fit in this book, not that the books was written around them. The formatting was a bit odd, in that quotation marks were not used to denote dialogue, but once I got into the groove of reading it, I barely noticed it anymore. I can't recommend this book enough.
The Inheritance Trilogy by N.K. Jemisin
4.0
Outsider perspective to show a different side of things than what the main characters see is one of my favorite devices in writing. However, it can be hard to write in it for extended periods of time and stay relevant to the plot. What makes The Inheritance Trilogy so exceptional is that every character who serves as a narrator serves as both an inside and outside perspective in different books. The perspective character changes every book, and the story flowed better than I could have ever imagined because of that, not in spite of that. Some books stand out for their details. This series stands out for the grand scope that Jemisin is able to capture (and for the details that she uses to do it). There were some things that, looking back, were clearly foreshadowing for major plot twists, but were confusing at the time, so I think this will be one of those works that is better on the second reading so those can be appreciated more knowing what they lead to.
The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger
1.0
Some books deserve the amount of hype they get. Based on what I knew of the premise going in, I thought The Time Traveler's Wife was going to be one of these books. For me, it wasn't. I thought the characters felt flat and so much more could have been done with the plot than what was.
The Martian by Andy Weir
5.0
The Martian is a book about love. Sure, any summary will tell you that it's a book about astronaut Mark Watney getting abandoned on Mars and his struggle to survive, but love permeates every page. Not the way it does in romance novels, because the main love story in this book isn't romantic love; it's the love that Mark Watney has for humanity and the love the world has for him. While stuck on Mars, Mark thinks he has been abandoned by his crewmates, NASA, and the rest of the earth. Really, back on earth, everyone is watching his every move and trying everything to bring him back home. This was the perfect escape novel to read during COVID-19. Not because it takes place on another planet, but because it takes place in a world where people care for one another so much that everyone on earth bands together and does whatever it takes to save one human life.