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vaddia99's reviews
373 reviews
Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation: Mo Dao Zu Shi (Novel) Vol. 2 by Mo Xiang Tong Xiu
dark
emotional
funny
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I personally wasn't as interested in this one as I was the first volume. In my defense what really struck me about MXTX's writing was how shocking and grotesque the horror elements were in juxtaposition with how soft the romance was. This one introduces those concepts in a completely different way than the first book does.
This volume presents horror a little bit in the physical sense (Yi city is rough but not as bad as some of the stuff in V1 and nowhere near compares to the beginning of V2), but more so in the horror of humanity and what people can and will do to one another. With that the romance juxtaposition also shifts from playful cat and mouse to ignorance of one another for their own desires. This can go from frivolous (Wei Ying's desire to play with Lan Zhan's headband while forgetting the symbol meaning behind it) to deeply emotional (Lan Zhan's desire to protect Wei Ying and remove him from his own past without Wei Ying's permission to do so). This lead for an overall slower read but one with really compelling stories in it. However since those stories had very little to do with the MCs accept for parallels and arrows to point towards the larger plot, I found my interest wanning in it. It definitely makes up for that with the ending though. That was incredible.
Anyway, I love Wei Ying. He's found himself a spot on the shelf of all time favorite characters
This volume presents horror a little bit in the physical sense (Yi city is rough but not as bad as some of the stuff in V1 and nowhere near compares to the beginning of V2), but more so in the horror of humanity and what people can and will do to one another. With that the romance juxtaposition also shifts from playful cat and mouse to ignorance of one another for their own desires. This can go from frivolous (Wei Ying's desire to play with Lan Zhan's headband while forgetting the symbol meaning behind it) to deeply emotional (Lan Zhan's desire to protect Wei Ying and remove him from his own past without Wei Ying's permission to do so). This lead for an overall slower read but one with really compelling stories in it. However since those stories had very little to do with the MCs accept for parallels and arrows to point towards the larger plot, I found my interest wanning in it. It definitely makes up for that with the ending though. That was incredible.
Anyway, I love Wei Ying. He's found himself a spot on the shelf of all time favorite characters
The Genesis of Misery by Neon Yang
Did not finish book. Stopped at 10%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 10%.
| I'm gonna be honest I DNF'd this exceptionally early into it (less than 100 pages in). My review is just going to reiterate what every other 1 star review says.
The prose was trying to hard to be flowery which left it just clunky and boring.
As well as the pronoun inclusions were weird. I have no issues with gender being a heavily focused topic and I think there are fantastic ways to do that (Such as how T. Kingfisher does it What Moves the Dead ). This however was not how it should be done. You should never have to omnisciently tell your readers a characters pronouns unless you think all of your readers are idiots. Just use the pronouns as pronouns and you'll be fine. For example: If a characters pronouns are they/them, Introducing them as "Character A, who uses them/they pronouns, and has [blank] colored hair" is stupid and redundant. You can simply say "Character A, their [blank] hair falling over their shoulders" and you would know their pronouns are they/them. If you're gonna write a queernorm book write it like its normal instead of holding the audiences hand like they've never seen a queer person before.
The prose was trying to hard to be flowery which left it just clunky and boring.
As well as the pronoun inclusions were weird. I have no issues with gender being a heavily focused topic and I think there are fantastic ways to do that (Such as how T. Kingfisher does it What Moves the Dead ). This however was not how it should be done. You should never have to omnisciently tell your readers a characters pronouns unless you think all of your readers are idiots. Just use the pronouns as pronouns and you'll be fine. For example: If a characters pronouns are they/them, Introducing them as "Character A, who uses them/they pronouns, and has [blank] colored hair" is stupid and redundant. You can simply say "Character A, their [blank] hair falling over their shoulders" and you would know their pronouns are they/them. If you're gonna write a queernorm book write it like its normal instead of holding the audiences hand like they've never seen a queer person before.
The Husky & His White Cat Shizun: Erha He Ta De Bai Mao Shizun (Novel) Vol. 2 by Rou Bao Bu Chi Rou
4.0
I adored this volume. It was so nice to see Chu Wanning getting to live a normal life for once and it is a testament to Meatbun's writing that they didn't piss me off with that plot. This entire series makes me so crazy. Meatbun will just throw the worst and weirdest fanfic-esque tropes at the audience and I will physically cringe and then they will go "But wait" and make it connect to the story in a way that is so seamless and meaningful that I can't even get mad about the nonsense I just experienced. AND THE WORDPLAY. I'll never shut up about Meatbun's wordplay. I really want to work on being able to read the original text because if the word play is this breathtaking then I can only imagine how it is without the language barrier. I could go on for days about the writing in this series but I'd just be reiterating what I said on the review of V1.
However I will say the ending to this volume sucked. Ending it ON THE NONSENSE made me want to detox before I read the next volume. I picked up the next one and only read 30 pages before I really decided I needed to detox. I'll be back to it in a bit. I just.... bro... that ending... don't talk to me.
However I will say the ending to this volume sucked. Ending it ON THE NONSENSE made me want to detox before I read the next volume. I picked up the next one and only read 30 pages before I really decided I needed to detox. I'll be back to it in a bit. I just.... bro... that ending... don't talk to me.
Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell by Susanna Clarke
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
I really loved Piranesi and heard from quite a few people that they never read Piranesi because they did not like Strange & Norrell. This shocked me because Piranesi was so good that I struggled to see another of her books to be received so poorly. ...I get it now...
I will be honest I did not give this a fair chance and do not believe I'll ever be able to. I listened to this as an audiobook and zoned out many times while trying to listen to it. Which is why I don't think I gave it a fair chance, however I often listen to audiobooks if I think I would struggle to read the book (Usually books with clunky prose, boring introductions or especially long books such as this one), which means I probably would not have a better chance reading it outright.
Unfortunately, I don't even have any complaints or praise to give. It is simply long and boring. It drones on and on and on and I simply could never bring myself to care no matter how much I wanted to like this book.
I will be honest I did not give this a fair chance and do not believe I'll ever be able to. I listened to this as an audiobook and zoned out many times while trying to listen to it. Which is why I don't think I gave it a fair chance, however I often listen to audiobooks if I think I would struggle to read the book (Usually books with clunky prose, boring introductions or especially long books such as this one), which means I probably would not have a better chance reading it outright.
Unfortunately, I don't even have any complaints or praise to give. It is simply long and boring. It drones on and on and on and I simply could never bring myself to care no matter how much I wanted to like this book.
The Husky & His White Cat Shizun: Erha He Ta De Bai Mao Shizun (Novel) Vol. 1 by Rou Bao Bu Chi Rou
This book is legitimately haunting me.
I mean it when I say that I think Rou Bao Bu Chi Rou is equivalent to modern day Shakespeare, but I could not convince a soul that I'm not clinically deranged for thinking that without writing a full dissertation on their writing.
First I will say this book is honest to god the filthiest thing I've ever read that has been officially published and I am simply astounded by it. Knowing the time period and context in which this has been published I can only deeply applaud Rou Bao Bu Chi Rou for achieving this. Beyond that though the humor and wordplay in this book is frankly absolutely insane. The fact that so much of it lives past the translation is a testament to how clever Rou Bao is. I can only imagine how incredibly smart this book is without the language barrier and hope that one day I can read it again in it's native tongue.
As for this book haunting me; I can't get over how smart the narration is. I finished this first volume and I can confidently say I don't know what happened in Mo Ran's last life. He is lying and keeping from even himself which leaves us with a muddy and confusing narrative which perfectly reflect how he feels confronting his reality. Rou Bao made the reader feel how Mo Ran feels without even forcing them to empathize with him which is INCREDIBLE.
+Chu Wanning's narration makes me eat drywall
+The Chu Wanning from Mo Ran's past life haunting the narrative. (We never get to know how he felt. What he did. What Mo Ran did to him. Yet he appears constantly haunting Mo Ran's thoughts and our perceptions of Chu Wanning, Mo Ran and Shi Mei.)
Modern day Shakespeare I fear.
I'll edit this to a better review when I get my bearings. That cliff hanger made me want to puke. I'm haunted
dark
funny
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This book is legitimately haunting me.
I mean it when I say that I think Rou Bao Bu Chi Rou is equivalent to modern day Shakespeare, but I could not convince a soul that I'm not clinically deranged for thinking that without writing a full dissertation on their writing.
First I will say this book is honest to god the filthiest thing I've ever read that has been officially published and I am simply astounded by it. Knowing the time period and context in which this has been published I can only deeply applaud Rou Bao Bu Chi Rou for achieving this. Beyond that though the humor and wordplay in this book is frankly absolutely insane. The fact that so much of it lives past the translation is a testament to how clever Rou Bao is. I can only imagine how incredibly smart this book is without the language barrier and hope that one day I can read it again in it's native tongue.
As for this book haunting me; I can't get over how smart the narration is. I finished this first volume and I can confidently say I don't know what happened in Mo Ran's last life. He is lying and keeping from even himself which leaves us with a muddy and confusing narrative which perfectly reflect how he feels confronting his reality. Rou Bao made the reader feel how Mo Ran feels without even forcing them to empathize with him which is INCREDIBLE.
+Chu Wanning's narration makes me eat drywall
+The Chu Wanning from Mo Ran's past life haunting the narrative. (We never get to know how he felt. What he did. What Mo Ran did to him. Yet he appears constantly haunting Mo Ran's thoughts and our perceptions of Chu Wanning, Mo Ran and Shi Mei.)
Modern day Shakespeare I fear.
I'll edit this to a better review when I get my bearings. That cliff hanger made me want to puke. I'm haunted
Hawkeye: Bishop Takes King by Ashley Poston
0.25
I'd like to thank this book for reminding me why I don't read young adult novels.
Unfortunately, this book starts with a low rating because it is victim to the extremely clunky, short, and choppy writing of a good half of young adult novels I've read have. Which is fault of the genre not of the writer. As for the content of this book; It's obviously based on Kelly Thompson's West Coast Avengers (2018), and her Hawkeye run. I did not manger to finish either of these runs because I hated them so much. Kelly Thompson's Kate takes what really made Matt Fraction's Hawkeye sparkle, bastardized it and stripped it of all it's depth. Her run contribute to, if not caused, to the major character assassination of SEVERAL characters (Quentin Quire, Noh-Varr, Kate Bishop and sadly America was a little on the way anyway). The Kate in this is "hot girl from a CW show" and "Best Archer" not the deeply complex martial artist that Allan Heinberg originally created. (Which I can't blame Poston or Thompson too much for since Kieron Gillien did a good amount to start that character assassination.) So, taking both an unfavored genre and the one dimensional interpretation of one of my favorite characters into account, this book had to crawl out of hell to get any stars. A feat which it did not accomplish.
A good amount of the content annoyed me in this book but I will be fully clear and say I do not know if it is the doing of Thompson or Poston. Kelly Thompson stripped Kate of her character and made her a pathetic and #relatable #girlboss #girlfailure, a complete CW caricature of a cool girl instead of the complex character she was in Fraction's Hawkeye and Hiensberg's original Young Avengers run. This book takes that caricature and runs with it, including all of the niche hits and plotlines from both Thompson series. All of which have me sitting mildly agape questioning why in what world would any of this happen and why wasn't it viewed as cliche as hell when it was published.
Aside from that I was frustrated by
-The fact that this is a Kate Bishop book completely revolve around a love interest because that's just a cliche I personally hate.
-Lucky. I don't understand why the dog go SO MUCH screentime. He was borderline the main character and she kept putting him in dangerous situations. AND ITS NOT. EVEN. HER. DOG.
- "Noh-Varr is too emotionally available" ??? Noh-Varr... The alien cockroach who has a revolving door of relationships because he doesn't understand human emotions or intimacy? That Noh-Varr? Okay.
- Kate mentions seeing her friends die in front of her but doesn't dare utter Jonas or Cassie's names.
- This is yet another Modern Kate/Young Avengers novel that forgets anyone but Billy, Teddy and America exist.
- Fisk complaining about Kate talking too much as if he hasn't experienced that with every single marksman he knows (Bullseye and Clint also do not shut up).
-Fisk just really being a random insert of a villain that has nothing whatsoever to do with the plot.
-Did Riordan pay you to write this?? Why the hell did you talk about Percy Jackson more than 3 times in this book.
- Random Ms. Marvel insert. (only mad about this because no Young Avengers existed in this book but a random hero like 6 years younger than Kate is there).
- Calling Kate a teen? Kate has been canonically over 21 since like 2012 why is she a teen here. Beyond that, way gross to have her plot completely center on how sexy she finds the minor antagonist if she is a teen.
- Don't say "spicy book" in a novel. I'm getting a migraine.
I think that's about it.
Unfortunately, this book starts with a low rating because it is victim to the extremely clunky, short, and choppy writing of a good half of young adult novels I've read have. Which is fault of the genre not of the writer. As for the content of this book; It's obviously based on Kelly Thompson's West Coast Avengers (2018), and her Hawkeye run. I did not manger to finish either of these runs because I hated them so much. Kelly Thompson's Kate takes what really made Matt Fraction's Hawkeye sparkle, bastardized it and stripped it of all it's depth. Her run contribute to, if not caused, to the major character assassination of SEVERAL characters (Quentin Quire, Noh-Varr, Kate Bishop and sadly America was a little on the way anyway). The Kate in this is "hot girl from a CW show" and "Best Archer" not the deeply complex martial artist that Allan Heinberg originally created. (Which I can't blame Poston or Thompson too much for since Kieron Gillien did a good amount to start that character assassination.) So, taking both an unfavored genre and the one dimensional interpretation of one of my favorite characters into account, this book had to crawl out of hell to get any stars. A feat which it did not accomplish.
A good amount of the content annoyed me in this book but I will be fully clear and say I do not know if it is the doing of Thompson or Poston. Kelly Thompson stripped Kate of her character and made her a pathetic and #relatable #girlboss #girlfailure, a complete CW caricature of a cool girl instead of the complex character she was in Fraction's Hawkeye and Hiensberg's original Young Avengers run. This book takes that caricature and runs with it, including all of the niche hits and plotlines from both Thompson series. All of which have me sitting mildly agape questioning why in what world would any of this happen and why wasn't it viewed as cliche as hell when it was published.
Aside from that I was frustrated by
-The fact that this is a Kate Bishop book completely revolve around a love interest because that's just a cliche I personally hate.
-Lucky. I don't understand why the dog go SO MUCH screentime. He was borderline the main character and she kept putting him in dangerous situations. AND ITS NOT. EVEN. HER. DOG.
- "Noh-Varr is too emotionally available" ??? Noh-Varr... The alien cockroach who has a revolving door of relationships because he doesn't understand human emotions or intimacy? That Noh-Varr? Okay.
- Kate mentions seeing her friends die in front of her but doesn't dare utter Jonas or Cassie's names.
- This is yet another Modern Kate/Young Avengers novel that forgets anyone but Billy, Teddy and America exist.
- Fisk complaining about Kate talking too much as if he hasn't experienced that with every single marksman he knows (Bullseye and Clint also do not shut up).
-Fisk just really being a random insert of a villain that has nothing whatsoever to do with the plot.
-Did Riordan pay you to write this?? Why the hell did you talk about Percy Jackson more than 3 times in this book.
- Random Ms. Marvel insert. (only mad about this because no Young Avengers existed in this book but a random hero like 6 years younger than Kate is there).
- Calling Kate a teen? Kate has been canonically over 21 since like 2012 why is she a teen here. Beyond that, way gross to have her plot completely center on how sexy she finds the minor antagonist if she is a teen.
- Don't say "spicy book" in a novel. I'm getting a migraine.
I think that's about it.