Bookstodon

The Passionate Tudor by Alison Weir

Wednesday, July 10, 2024

Historical fiction about Mary I of England. I enjoy reading about this period but haven't read much about Mary Tudor herself. Most of the novel is tedious with uninteresting writing and characters, and though the last part, concerning Mary's final years, was more interesting it was still a stodgy read. Generally, I prefer Weir's nonfiction and this was no exception. Weir does not care for Mary and it clearly shows in both the novel and the afterword.

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Talk Sweetly To Me by Courtney Milan

Tuesday, July 9, 2024

Another in the Brother's Sinister series, but other than being a romance set in Victorian England I failed to see any connection. Rose Sweetly works as a computer for a scientist and has a crush on her rakish neighbourhood writer. All my previous complaints about Milan books are back in force; an overly rushed romance, an implausibly wonderful love interest, and an oh-so-exceptional protagonist. My biggest peeve is that Rose's experiences as a Victorian-era British Black woman seem under-explored but if you like Milan's "

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Clairmont by Lesley McDowell

Friday, June 28, 2024

I eagerly started this highly-rated novel about Clair Clairmont, being very interested in reading about her. After having finished it I can't understand the glowing reviews. I didn't care for it at all, finding it disjointed, tedious and brimming with unlikable, boring characters (Mary Shelley! Byron! Boring?!) wandering around in mind-numbingly dull settings (including the Year Without Summer FFS!) that skip back and forth in time. Not for me! Two stars only because I actually finished it.

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Goblins & Greatcoats by Travis Baldree

Thursday, June 27, 2024

A very short, very sweet story set in the Legends & Latte world. I hope Zyll will show up in more of Baldree's writing. ★★★☆☆

The Tainted Cup by Robert Jackson Bennett

Monday, June 24, 2024

A fantasy murder mystery served with a dollop of Pacific Rim, garnished with a hint of The Goblin Emperor, and a tiny sprig of romance. It was nicely written with interesting world-building and enjoyable characters; Ana, in particular, was a delight. The murder plot and its somewhat deflated resolution kept this at a 3-star rating for me. Though the opportunity is rarely afforded in fantasy whodunits, I like to follow along and solve crimes too!

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The Duchess War by Courtney Milan

Saturday, June 15, 2024

The first novel in the Brother's Sinister series and my second Milan book. Again I found the romance much too rushed, and the male protagonist implausibly perfect. Also implausible is the notion of a peer thinking and acting as the Duke of Clermont does in this book. It just didn't work for me, I could not suspend my disbelief enough to accommodate it. Milan writes nicely and delivers escapism but I don't really enjoy her books.

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The Scandalous Confessions of Lydia Bennet, Witch by Melinda Taub

Tuesday, June 11, 2024

A magical version of Lydia Bennet's story in her own words. I'm no Janeite but do enjoy reading Austen, her sparkling prose and ability to make "dull" romance/marriage plots interesting and funny is always a delight. I'm also fond of fantasy and a good retelling, but I did not enjoy "The Scandalous Confessions..." very much. The magic system was dull, the various subplots tedious, and I didn't care for the writing.

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The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley

Tuesday, June 11, 2024

I was excited to read this as the premise is brilliant. Sadly, I found it a bit of a dud. The story got progressively less engaging and incorporated a “twist” I found trite, and the middling resolution made the whole story weaker. No characters were particularly engaging and I found the arctic chapters and the musings of the main character more of a distraction than an enhancement. I didn't particularly care for the writing style, and also lampshading something doesn't magically make it not bad.

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Dark Fire by C.J Sansom

Thursday, June 6, 2024

Matthew Shardlake, a barrister during Henry VIII's reign, keeps being charged with solving mysteries. In theory, I should adore Sansom’s Matthew Shardlake series, but I just don’t. The history is impeccable as is the ability of Sansom to evoke the Tudor period but the mysteries don't interest me, their solutions are unsatisfying, and the characters seem flat. Matthew should fascinate me, yet I remain indifferent. In conclusion, this series is not for me and I’ll stop trying to make Shardlake happen.

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Geek Love by Katherine Dunn

Tuesday, May 21, 2024

A book about the chicken-biting type of Geek Love. An engineered “freak”, the hunchbacked dwarf protagonist Oly, tells the story of her childhood and teen years living deeply enmeshed with her family in a travelling carnival, interspersed with chapters of her life at 38. It’s a strange but interesting read for the most part, though at times, horrifying. The first third grabbed me, but later in the book my attention waned at times and I found the ending a little unsatisfactory.

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How Lucky by Will Leitch

Sunday, May 12, 2024

A novel reminiscent, in some ways, of “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time”. Diagnosed as a child with spinal muscular atrophy much of the book is preoccupied with the effects this has and continues to have on the protagonist’s life. This was also the aspect I enjoyed the most. Though, overall, a relatively enjoyable and readable book I found the ending too abrupt and quite meh, with the “mystery” driving the plot uninteresting and lacking a satisfactory dénouement.

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Hooked by Emily McIntire

Thursday, May 9, 2024

Touted as a modern-day “Peter Pan”-flavoured dark romance. Definitely not a retelling, more an AU take. The writing was fair but I didn’t enjoy the overly simplistic characterisations. I found the violence tediously cartoonish, the plot paper-thin, the characters bland and the twist not only telegraphed but semaphored, phoned and texted at me. Unrealistically beautiful people falling in “Twue Wuv” practically instantaneously is just not something I can suspend my disbelief for, and don’t enjoy it.

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The Steerswoman by Rosemary Kirstein

Monday, May 6, 2024

This was a re-read to get me ready for the sequels. In 2016 I rather enjoyed it, liking the world building, the Steerswoman conceit and the writing, even if I found the plot a little lacking and the “villains” too reasonable. This time it just didn’t work for me, finding it tedious and meandering. Just goes to show how much my mood influences how I feel about a book. Not sure I like that about me.

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A Lady of Rooksgrave Manor by Kathryn Moon

Sunday, April 28, 2024

Not the book I expected. Thought I was getting a victorian historical novel, turns out it’s actually a monster fucker porn-with-very-little-plot book. This will teach me to actually read dedications and blurb. The writing was fine and it was a quick read. However, I did not like the protagonist, a hyper-sexual “pick me girl”, who is perfect in every way, and the immediate and total lack of any actual tension in her “arrangement” strained all credulity.

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Whalefall by Daniel Kraus

Thursday, April 25, 2024

This short novel, described as a scientifically accurate thriller about a scuba diver swallowed by a sperm whale, was not for me. It seemed to be chapter after chapter of either repetitive daddy issues, long-winded descriptions of diving and diving equipment, or tedious descriptions of escape attempts. The writing was marred by flourishes clearly meant to ramp up tension but which just became extremely annoying. I almost put it down multiple times, but forced my way to the end.

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Unspeakable Shaking Pleasures by Lucy Debussy

Wednesday, April 24, 2024

A selection of short stories billed as a collection of erotica. The stories definitely had erotic elements and overtones, but I’m not sure I’d classify them as erotica per se. However, I found the prose lush and the stories odd and interesting. Erotica that isn’t up your alley can often be rather tedious but I enjoyed these stories quite a lot. ★★★☆☆