Reading Round-up
Oct. 4th, 2023 08:44 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
predelectionIt's been a while since I posted about reading- I always have great plans for detailed posts chronicling all my Thoughts about whatever I just read but it's too much work! I might go back to some of these books later if I can't stand not talking about them more.
I'm Glad My Mom Died by Jeanette McCurdy:
I became aware of this book because of the shocking, sensationalist title! The title was so memorable I mentioned it to one of my friends and it turned out she had already read it!! Her commentary on it intrigued me even more, so when I saw the audiobook in the "Skip the Line" section of Libby, I decided to go for it, even though I don't really read memoirs. OMG THIS BOOK WAS SO GRIPPING. The content was terrible though, it was hard to get through some sections and I definitely felt that more intimate details were being withheld in certain parts but it was still shocking and graphic!! I really felt for Jeanette McCurdy and I was happy the book ended on a positive note for her. I finished this book in two days. I would recommend it but only to those who think they can handle the extreme content warning.
Agnes Grey by Anne Brontë:
A satisfying book, I enjoyed it but it didn't have the same aura as the famous Jane Eyre or Wuthering Heights. In the context of the Brontë sisters, I think this makes it stand out as the "conventional" book whose popularity faded with changing tastes and times. I really enjoyed the romance between Agnes Grey and Edward Weston (and their little dog, Snap!). The book takes an obvious moral stance, but not in a way that irritated me. Moralizing is one of the most annoying thing to read, but different people get irritated by it in different ways...some day I will write a post on this topic! The book is also semi-autobiographical which leads to more interesting speculation. Overall I think it was good- I still want to read Anne's poetry one day!
Doctor Aphra By Sarah Kuhn:
Somewhat simplistic story about an evil, lesbian archaeologist becoming BFFs with Darth Vader. There is lots of CRIME and DEATH THREATS. Overall I enjoyed this story, but I don't know if I will continue with the series...it felt a little too below my reading level.
Triple Zero by Karen Traviss:
Another Star Wars series. This book had multiple POVs and some I liked a lot and other made me want to SCREAM (in rage). I can accept annoying POVs but only if I don't feel like the story bends over backwards to validate the annoying character. This is just absolutely intolerable to me. I will not continue with this series, but I didn't hate that I read this book.
Trickster Drift by Eden Robinson:
I read the first book in this series last year when I was sick for a week and I loved it. I can't really say describe what happens in the first novel or in this one, but they were both well-paced and interesting. Jared is a really well-written character and I really enjoy reading about his life and his POV. The books are funny and deal with mature topics without being trite. I laughed, I cried! I am on the wait list for the next (and final!) book in the trilogy, and I'm excited to get it because this one ended on a cliffhanger! Recommended!
Anne of the Island by L.M. Montgomery:
I read Anne of Green Gables in college and I liked it, but never continued with the rest of the series. I knew that Anne and Gilbert get married though (spoilers!) and that this is the book where they get engaged. It was interesting how this book had almost no Gilbert in it though, because Anne rejects his proposal early on in the book. The rest of the book is a speedrun through Anne's college years and she gets something like seven (!?) proposals total. Gilbert gets extremely sick and everyone thinks he's going to die and Anne realizes she actually did love him and Gilbert proposes a second time. In the TV series, Anne romantically goes to him on his deathbed to declare her love....I LOVED THAT AND I WAS SO SAD IT WASN'T IN THE BOOK. I think defying convention for Romance would appeal to Anne's character a lot, since she is a Romantic. I didn't come away from this novel loving Anne and her life, her story was actually a bit dull. I freaking loved Phillipa Gordon and all her subplots interested me. Interestingly, several male characters were humiliated by being forced to dress in women's clothes. First, when Gilbert was being hazed in order to join a fraternity and second when David (orphan living with Marilla) was being punished for misbehaving. This is why homophobia exists lmao. There was another memorable scene where an older character was saying how "young women these days" "love" everything when back in her day women would only use "love" correctly and not in hyperbole. Funny to read this in a book published in 1915. I someone told me that tired old argument when I was in middle school... people never change!
Dead Man's Ransom by Ellis Peters:
I really enjoyed the TV adaptation of the Brother Cadfael mysteries and I love love triangles so I decided to check this one out...the narrator did a good job and I think overall it was well-written. However, so many authors struggle with female characters and IMO... Peters did not do a great job with Melicent and it cut my enjoyment. Cristina and Sister Magdalen were freaking great though!! If you love murder mystery books you'll probably enjoy this book series.
Majipoor Chronicles by Robert K. Silverberg:
This was a collection of short stories in the world of Majipoor. Hissune, the young boy who helped Lord Valentine in the previous novel is stuck doing boring clerical work and decides to sneak his way into the House of Records and live the lives of Majipoor's past citizens. It was a great way to explore the long history of an ancient world and different aspects of the human experience. Silverberg focused exclusively on internal conflict and each story grappled with a time of moral, emotional, or spiritual struggle for a character. I liked how each past life Hissune connected to became part of him forever and I appreciated that he lived multiple lives of women. In Lord Valentine's memories he even has a threesome with Valentine's brother and a fortune teller int he forest...WHAT!? I don't think I would read something like this in a more recent novel. Silverberg pretty clearly has a type though (slender women with small, high breasts) because that was how literally almost every attractive female character was described. My favorite stories were Calintine Explains, The Soul Painter and the Shapeshifter, and A Thief in Ni-Moya. I love this series and this book was good! Recommended!
Emily Wilde's Encyclopedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett:
THIS BOOK SUCKED!!! AND I'M SO MAD IT SUCKED BECAUSE MY HOLD TOOK FOUR MONTHS!! After I got pissed off at the book and returned it I looked up some reviews and many readers commented that they thought she was "autistic coded" and in a way that portrays it negatively. I was actually thinking along these lines when I was reading it, so I would agree. I don't object to negatively portrayed main characters, but there was very little for me to enjoy about Emily's POV. She was obviously being set-up for a romance with her rival researcher and secret fairy prince, Wendell Bambleby. This also could have been fine except their dynamic was boring!! He was supposed to be a selfish and vain fairy but he just seemed like a run-of-the-mill male romantic lead... Also, the author wrote Emily to be obsessed with "science", but fairyology would be a social science AND EMILY WILDE HAD NO IDEA HOW TO CONDUCT RESEARCH FOR SOCIAL SCIENCE. Deeply frustrating.
Anything you want me to read next? Send me your recommendations!
I'm Glad My Mom Died by Jeanette McCurdy:
I became aware of this book because of the shocking, sensationalist title! The title was so memorable I mentioned it to one of my friends and it turned out she had already read it!! Her commentary on it intrigued me even more, so when I saw the audiobook in the "Skip the Line" section of Libby, I decided to go for it, even though I don't really read memoirs. OMG THIS BOOK WAS SO GRIPPING. The content was terrible though, it was hard to get through some sections and I definitely felt that more intimate details were being withheld in certain parts but it was still shocking and graphic!! I really felt for Jeanette McCurdy and I was happy the book ended on a positive note for her. I finished this book in two days. I would recommend it but only to those who think they can handle the extreme content warning.
Agnes Grey by Anne Brontë:
A satisfying book, I enjoyed it but it didn't have the same aura as the famous Jane Eyre or Wuthering Heights. In the context of the Brontë sisters, I think this makes it stand out as the "conventional" book whose popularity faded with changing tastes and times. I really enjoyed the romance between Agnes Grey and Edward Weston (and their little dog, Snap!). The book takes an obvious moral stance, but not in a way that irritated me. Moralizing is one of the most annoying thing to read, but different people get irritated by it in different ways...some day I will write a post on this topic! The book is also semi-autobiographical which leads to more interesting speculation. Overall I think it was good- I still want to read Anne's poetry one day!
Doctor Aphra By Sarah Kuhn:
Somewhat simplistic story about an evil, lesbian archaeologist becoming BFFs with Darth Vader. There is lots of CRIME and DEATH THREATS. Overall I enjoyed this story, but I don't know if I will continue with the series...it felt a little too below my reading level.
Triple Zero by Karen Traviss:
Another Star Wars series. This book had multiple POVs and some I liked a lot and other made me want to SCREAM (in rage). I can accept annoying POVs but only if I don't feel like the story bends over backwards to validate the annoying character. This is just absolutely intolerable to me. I will not continue with this series, but I didn't hate that I read this book.
Trickster Drift by Eden Robinson:
I read the first book in this series last year when I was sick for a week and I loved it. I can't really say describe what happens in the first novel or in this one, but they were both well-paced and interesting. Jared is a really well-written character and I really enjoy reading about his life and his POV. The books are funny and deal with mature topics without being trite. I laughed, I cried! I am on the wait list for the next (and final!) book in the trilogy, and I'm excited to get it because this one ended on a cliffhanger! Recommended!
Anne of the Island by L.M. Montgomery:
I read Anne of Green Gables in college and I liked it, but never continued with the rest of the series. I knew that Anne and Gilbert get married though (spoilers!) and that this is the book where they get engaged. It was interesting how this book had almost no Gilbert in it though, because Anne rejects his proposal early on in the book. The rest of the book is a speedrun through Anne's college years and she gets something like seven (!?) proposals total. Gilbert gets extremely sick and everyone thinks he's going to die and Anne realizes she actually did love him and Gilbert proposes a second time. In the TV series, Anne romantically goes to him on his deathbed to declare her love....I LOVED THAT AND I WAS SO SAD IT WASN'T IN THE BOOK. I think defying convention for Romance would appeal to Anne's character a lot, since she is a Romantic. I didn't come away from this novel loving Anne and her life, her story was actually a bit dull. I freaking loved Phillipa Gordon and all her subplots interested me. Interestingly, several male characters were humiliated by being forced to dress in women's clothes. First, when Gilbert was being hazed in order to join a fraternity and second when David (orphan living with Marilla) was being punished for misbehaving. This is why homophobia exists lmao. There was another memorable scene where an older character was saying how "young women these days" "love" everything when back in her day women would only use "love" correctly and not in hyperbole. Funny to read this in a book published in 1915. I someone told me that tired old argument when I was in middle school... people never change!
Dead Man's Ransom by Ellis Peters:
I really enjoyed the TV adaptation of the Brother Cadfael mysteries and I love love triangles so I decided to check this one out...the narrator did a good job and I think overall it was well-written. However, so many authors struggle with female characters and IMO... Peters did not do a great job with Melicent and it cut my enjoyment. Cristina and Sister Magdalen were freaking great though!! If you love murder mystery books you'll probably enjoy this book series.
Majipoor Chronicles by Robert K. Silverberg:
This was a collection of short stories in the world of Majipoor. Hissune, the young boy who helped Lord Valentine in the previous novel is stuck doing boring clerical work and decides to sneak his way into the House of Records and live the lives of Majipoor's past citizens. It was a great way to explore the long history of an ancient world and different aspects of the human experience. Silverberg focused exclusively on internal conflict and each story grappled with a time of moral, emotional, or spiritual struggle for a character. I liked how each past life Hissune connected to became part of him forever and I appreciated that he lived multiple lives of women. In Lord Valentine's memories he even has a threesome with Valentine's brother and a fortune teller int he forest...WHAT!? I don't think I would read something like this in a more recent novel. Silverberg pretty clearly has a type though (slender women with small, high breasts) because that was how literally almost every attractive female character was described. My favorite stories were Calintine Explains, The Soul Painter and the Shapeshifter, and A Thief in Ni-Moya. I love this series and this book was good! Recommended!
Emily Wilde's Encyclopedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett:
THIS BOOK SUCKED!!! AND I'M SO MAD IT SUCKED BECAUSE MY HOLD TOOK FOUR MONTHS!! After I got pissed off at the book and returned it I looked up some reviews and many readers commented that they thought she was "autistic coded" and in a way that portrays it negatively. I was actually thinking along these lines when I was reading it, so I would agree. I don't object to negatively portrayed main characters, but there was very little for me to enjoy about Emily's POV. She was obviously being set-up for a romance with her rival researcher and secret fairy prince, Wendell Bambleby. This also could have been fine except their dynamic was boring!! He was supposed to be a selfish and vain fairy but he just seemed like a run-of-the-mill male romantic lead... Also, the author wrote Emily to be obsessed with "science", but fairyology would be a social science AND EMILY WILDE HAD NO IDEA HOW TO CONDUCT RESEARCH FOR SOCIAL SCIENCE. Deeply frustrating.
Anything you want me to read next? Send me your recommendations!
no subject
Date: 2023-10-08 11:22 am (UTC)I've been intrigued by this book for a while!! Your review is basically exactly what I'd hope it to be, so I can say I'm even more intrigued now. You know my to-read list is crazy right now... but I'll go for this next time I'm ready for something gripping!
Agnes Grey by Anne Brontë
I've been meaning to write a post on this too!!! I'm interested to see how our thoughts compare 👀
I get what you mean about the reading level... but this finally got me to put the book on hold at the library! Hopefully it'll be a quick and easy read!
Interesting! I don't think I've heard of this series before.
I'm a sucker for this kind of thing lmao. Love that reverse harem content...
Ohh, what a fun change they made in the TV series! Big brained of them...
I just looked her up and 😆 she does seem like exactly your kind of character!!
Interesting....
Lmaooo.. I love hearing about this kind of historic thing.
These days it takes a lot for me to read something with subpar women characters... I'd rather just have no women characters.
😳
📝 Another series I don't think I'd heard about!
TERRIBLE!!!! Thank you for warning about it.. WILL AVOID!
As you know I have been SWAMPED and have sadly not been reading much at all recently. I like to think my life will calm down soon and I can get back to my ongoing readings! (You'll hear about them here!!)
The main exception has been 2ha, which has been compelling me with its yaoi power. The third book came out recently and I got it but I'm actually waiting for ebaths to get there so we can read together... the other day we spent quite a while reading book 2 to each other. It's been very fun. I don't remember how far you got in 2ha? But I've been enjoying rereading it all as a book (despite my complaints you may have seen in my postie) and am very eager to get to where I'd left off (where the translation was unreadable).
Other exceptions:
LOVE THE POST AS USUAL!! ❤️
no subject
Date: 2023-10-11 02:50 am (UTC)HERE, LET'S WATCH THE ANNE/GILBERT SCENE TOGETHER!!!!
This made me laugh! Yaoi power... I got to the part in 2ha where Chu Wanning got turned into a child. That broke me, I can't stand that variety of trope-y nonsense! Not in my yaoi!!! Are you going to watch the live action show (Immortality)?
📝 THANK YOU FOR THE REC!!!
no subject
Date: 2023-10-17 03:01 am (UTC)WHAT A ROMANTIC SCENE!! THANK YOU FOR SHARING!
😊
OMG!!! What about it don't you like? I wasn't sure where it was going but I thought the author made it work really well. She made some huge brain use out of it. It doesn't come back after the time skip though, so I could spoil you and you can read starting from where it goes away 👀
I definitely wanna check it out.. I have been really behind on most shows so we'll see if I manage it. If I get to it at all, keeping it up will probably depend on the actors and whatnot!
no subject
Date: 2023-10-21 02:49 pm (UTC)