mattyfactory's reviews
227 reviews

13 Hours: The Inside Account of What Really Happened In Benghazi by Mitchell Zuckoff

adventurous informative sad tense fast-paced

4.0

Action packed and informative without feeling exploitative. I appreciated Zuckoff’s narrative approach to the events that occurred in Benghazi and his narrow focus.

Patriot Games by Tom Clancy
Did not finish book. Stopped at 40%.

Clancy’s political views bleed into his fiction, but ultimately it was the homophobic slur of “faggots” that made me stop reading. 

Dune by Frank Herbert

adventurous challenging informative mysterious tense slow-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? Yes

4.0

I’m simultaneously confused by it and in awe of it. Overall I really liked it... I think?!? 

How We Fight For Our Lives by Saeed Jones

challenging emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad fast-paced

5.0

A beautiful memoir. Such a gifted writer; I didn’t want it to end. 

More Tales of the City by Armistead Maupin

funny lighthearted fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

More engaging than the first book in the series, but the casual racism played for laughs is annoying and distracting.

Fairyland: A Memoir of My Father by Alysia Abbott

challenging emotional informative inspiring reflective sad slow-paced

4.0

An important book. Alysia Abbott has written a special and unique memoir. It’s not just a story of her father, but a story of an entire community, of an entire city, and a celebration of the ties that bind us.

Who Is Vera Kelly? by Rosalie Knecht

dark informative mysterious reflective tense 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

3.0

A quick but uneventful spy “thriller” that’s ultimately lacking on thrills. 

The Viscount Who Loved Me by Julia Quinn

lighthearted medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

Little more than mildly entertaining drivel. The characters’ contrived motivations never ring true.

The Family Fang by Kevin Wilson

challenging dark emotional funny mysterious sad 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? Yes

4.0

This was a challenging book full of unlikeable characters that tells the story of a dysfunctional family in all its glory. I didn’t love it, but I respected what it was trying to accomplish. And Kevin Wilson is a magnificent storyteller regardless. Annie and Buster are insufferable, their parents are the worst, and somehow—against all the odds—I still cared about what happened to them. 

The Hunt for Red October by Tom Clancy

adventurous informative tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.0

This is by far the most heterosexual book I’ve ever read.