Fiction: 5
Non-fiction: 0
Short stories: 0
Graphic novels: 0
Total: 5
Page count: 1 915
Average rating: 3.9
3 Favourite Covers:
- Carpe Jugulum
- Dark and Deepest Red
- The Kingdom of Copper
3 Favourite Books:
- Dark and Deepest Red
- The Kingdom of Copper
- Carpe Jugulum
3 Favourite Characters :
- Lala (Dark and Deepest Red)
- Nahri (The Kingdom of Copper)
- Alizayd (The Kingdom of Copper)
3 Favourite Relationships (Romantic):
- Lala & Alifair (Dark and Deepest Red)
- Rosella & Emil (Dark and Deepest Red)
- Muntadhir & Jamshid (The Kingdom of Copper)
3 Favourite Relationships (Platonic):
- Nahri & Alizayd (The Kingdom of Copper)
- The Qahtani siblings (The Kingdom of Copper)
- The witches (Carpe Jugulum)
To Be Brief…
The Kingdom of Copper (The Daevabad Trilogy #2): To my surprise (and delight), I actually prefered this one over The City of Brass, which I enjoyed but had some issues with. Sure, it was sort of slow at times and I still had some difficulties keeping up with the intricate politics of Daevabad, but I think that might be more on me than the book. Thankfully, I felt a lot more invested in the characters this time around (except for Dara, who somehow managed to both bore and piss me off at the same time), and I loved the dynamic between them all. The last fifth of the book was one hell of a ride that kept me on the edge of my seat, and it definitely ended on a high note. I’m actually quite excited for the conclusion. 4.25/5 stars
“I should have been more aggressive in my dowry demands, she suddenly thought. Because she had not been paid enough to marry into this family.”
Dark and Deepest Red: This is a story inspired by the Strasbourg dancing plague of 1518 and H. C. Andersen’s tale The Red Shoes, told in two different timelines and with three alternating PoVs. It’s a lovely little book full of magical realism elements that centers greatly around Romani culture, the persecution of Romani people, prejudice, and embracing your own heritage. I’ve become quite a big fan of McLemore’s these last few years, much thanks to their beautiful writing style, the magical atmosphere of their novels, and their soft characters, and this book was no exception. In fact, it’s probably my favourite of theirs, closely followed by Wild Beauty. It’s also quite possibly the least heterosexual book I’ve read by this author (which is saying something), and I loved it. 4.5/5 stars
“I’ll save you the trouble.
I’ll make myself dance.”Carpe Jugulum (Discworld #23): In this one, vampires have set their sights on Lancre, and they won’t let silly things like garlic and sunlight stop them. Shenanigans ensue etc etc. Sadly, this was the last book about Granny Weatherwax and the witches of Lancre, but I thought it was a nice little goodbye, and I’m glad I finally got around to reading it. Also, while I’ll miss the witches, I sure have a lot left to discover of the Discworld. 4/5 stars
“It’s most unfair. Once people find out you’re a vampire they act as if you’re some kind of monster.”
Fahrenheit 451: Fahrenheit 451 depicts a dystopian future where instead of putting out fires, firemen are tasked with burning forbidden books. Throughout the novel we follow Montag, a fireman who’s starting to question his job, his own life and happiness, as well as the very society he lives in. I really enjoyed reading this book, and I’m happy I finally decided to pick it up. 4/5 stars
“It was a pleasure to burn.”
The Music of What Happens: This is a YA contemporary about two boys bonding over lemonade and chicken while working a food truck together. Konigsberg tackles several serious issues in this novel, like mental health, racism, rape, gambling addiction, and toxic masculinity, to only mention a few. He definitely handled some more successfully than others, but ultimately I’d say he did a pretty ok job, and while there were things that rubbed me the wrong way, at least some of them were adressed later on in the book. That being said, there were some aspects of The Music of What Happens that just wasn’t for me, the first being the writing style. Konigsberg uses quite a few colloquial expressions in an attempt to immitate what teenagers sound like, and while I don’t always mind that and think it can add a feeling of authenticity to the characters, I found it pretty awkward and cringy in this case. Also, I’m sorry and this is entirely a matter of personal preference, but I didn’t like Jordan. I’m not suggesting all characters have to be likeable to be considered good, but I also prefer not to be rolling my eyes non-stop while reading a book. Now, I can definitely feel for Jordan and the shitty situation he’s in, but I soon grew tired of him making everything about himself, whining, and constantly needing reassurance. I also couldn’t stand Max and Jordan’s friends, and though they had their moments, it didn’t make up for how awful they were the rest of the time. Overall, I’d say this was a pretty ok read with both good and…less good qualities. I think Konigsberg dealt with the sexual assault storyline really well for example, and some of the scenes between Max and Jordan were great, but all in all there were too many things about it that grated on my nerves for me to be able to give it a higher rating. 2.75/5 stars
“Man, I could get used to this thing where I don’t think I’m a total piece of shit all the time.”
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