Had I wanted a dry book on etymology and/or British colonialism, I would've picked up a nonfiction. Went into it as a Poppy War fan, and while the authHad I wanted a dry book on etymology and/or British colonialism, I would've picked up a nonfiction. Went into it as a Poppy War fan, and while the author did preach a lot in that series, this one felt like constant beating with a stick. Colonialism bad. Makes people victims. Colonialism bad. I simply wanted an interesting fantasy book. While we do have a magic system here, the characters can not actually use it because for the majority of the whole thing, they're getting the education required for it. And I'm not talking Harry Potter hands-on education. There simply wasn't enough for me to like....more
The story starts off strong, although I wish we got to meet Adeline a bit more. Her fight against the norms and expecta2.5 stars
Let's rant, shall we?
The story starts off strong, although I wish we got to meet Adeline a bit more. Her fight against the norms and expectations was admirable. The writing style was beautiful, befitting a historical fiction. The tone was set, the expectations high, I could already see giving it more than 4 stars. BUT THEN... The love interest was introduced and everything went downhill. My dude, the love interest, would've been more interesting if he were a shovel. Maybe then we'd be able to get out of shit we were heading straight into. Jokes aside, he was as plain as cardboard. Sure, I liked discussions around mental health from his side of the story but when you attach those to such a character, you get me not to care. He had no personality and no drive.
Addie, tho I liked her much more, was pretty much the same. She escapes her terrible life and has the means to explore and learn whatever she wants, but nah. She stays in France majority of her life then visits Italy, Germany, UK and few cities in the USA, most of those cause she was forced to. 3 countries in Europe and few cities in the USA in 300 years! There were some interesting parts of her life mentioned but were quickly cut off because God forbid she develops a personality or depth as a character. I learned 4 things about her:she likes specific tea, art, wants to be loved, and every single person alive noticed her freckles.
I didn't believe the romance between the two for a moment. The initial reaction was great, I admit that. But the more the story moved, the more they looked like two desperate people clinging to eachother cause of their curse. Even the devil was bleak attempt at "bad boy" trope.
So after 450 pages of this I was tired and angry. Also, you CAN'T FUCKING SPEAK SWISS....more
Good but not the greatest. Let's be honest, as soon as I saw the word "gothic", I knew I had to read it. And that part was good to a certain extend, I Good but not the greatest. Let's be honest, as soon as I saw the word "gothic", I knew I had to read it. And that part was good to a certain extend, I think there could be much more of it. It gets a bit lost towards the end and becomes the standard horror story. The other thing I was bothered by was the timing of the reveal. It felt too late or too early, when shit went down I just wanted them go get out safe, I didn't care much about it. Otherwise, the characters, interactions and the drama were fun to follow. If you're not the biggest fan of horrors but like the creepy vibes, I would highly recommend this book. I'm a scaredy cat and I didn't get scared not even once....more
So, this was confusing. When I finish a book, I usually know where I stand with it. Maybe it takes me an hour to decide the rating but otherwise not rSo, this was confusing. When I finish a book, I usually know where I stand with it. Maybe it takes me an hour to decide the rating but otherwise not really. Not the case with this book.
Overall, it was a huge meh. The premise seemed interesting since I find this trope quite amusing but it dragged on for soooooooo long. Some scenes were repeated so many times that I just skipped them, they brought nothing new to the story. And this being a 550 page book which mainly focuses on the characters, I felt so disconnected from them. The main ones were bland, the side ones were even more bland, there was nothing to enjoy. I did like Hugh, Pamela and Izzie to some extend but that was about it.
Another thing that annoyed me was the use of foreign words without explaining them in the footnotes. Luckily, I speak German so I did understand that part of the book, but the French words I can't even pronounce, let alone understand. Also, who the heck uses languages like this? Ach, they're gemütlich. You mean they're cozy, comfortable...? Or... They wore Lederhosen and..... You mean they wore leather pants? I honestly don't understand what the point of this was. Was I supposed to be impressed by her knowledge of languages? I was just annoyed and rolled my eyes.
So, at the end, I wanted to dnf this book so many times. Unfortunately, I needed it for two reading challenges and had to finish it because of the lack of time. It wasn't worth picking up....more
Quite frankly, if it wasn't for the audiobook I don't know if I would've finished it. The story and the narrating remind me a lot of Homer's "Iliad" whQuite frankly, if it wasn't for the audiobook I don't know if I would've finished it. The story and the narrating remind me a lot of Homer's "Iliad" which I didn't personally enjoy and maybe if I had been in a mood for such a read, I'd give it 4 stars max however I don't understand the hype it got. It was nice to see Circe going from a helpless, naive child to a woman who was ready to fight, even if that meant standing up to Gods but the rest of the story left quite a bland impression....more
A decent, interesting story but the amount of unnecessary information is unbearable.
Also, going into this I expected(Blind date with a book challenge)
A decent, interesting story but the amount of unnecessary information is unbearable.
Also, going into this I expected something completely different so don't let the title and the book description fool you. Magdalena, the Hangman's daughter, is only a minor character. The story revolves around her father, Jakob, and the mystery happening in their city....more
Another case of a white writer desperately trying to convince their readers they're familiar with the culture they're writing about.Another case of a white writer desperately trying to convince their readers they're familiar with the culture they're writing about....more
Instead of bashing this book, I'm simply going to quote a post I saw because it put my thoughts into words:
"Japanese woman tells white American man aInstead of bashing this book, I'm simply going to quote a post I saw because it put my thoughts into words:
"Japanese woman tells white American man about her past life as a geisha. White man then writes a novel that sells itself as an accurate memoir of Japanese woman's life, but instead falsifies a number of her life events, misrepresents her trade, and exoticises her culture. He also names her as a source even though she specifically asked him to keep her anonymous. Japanese woman gets death threats. White American man becomes bestselling author.
Then Japanese woman gets fed up and writes her own memoir to set the record straight. Meanwhile, white American man's book gets adapted into a film that grosses $162 million and wins three Oscars." ...more
DNF-ing at 51%. I just couldn't care less. The story is very character focused and I can honestly say I didn't care about single one of them so what's DNF-ing at 51%. I just couldn't care less. The story is very character focused and I can honestly say I didn't care about single one of them so what's the point of continuing? Miller's Homer-like writing style just doesn't work in this one. I felt nothing for the characters cause of it....more
3.5 Since I'm a huge fan of mythology I cannot give this book less than 3.5 stars for its mythological aspects. However, the book was boring at times an3.5 Since I'm a huge fan of mythology I cannot give this book less than 3.5 stars for its mythological aspects. However, the book was boring at times and some parts were honestly sickening but nothing else is to be expected from the Greek gods....more
DNF after 60%. I tried to give it a chance, I really did. But the book is marketed as a thriller so imagine my disappointment when I realised it's jusDNF after 60%. I tried to give it a chance, I really did. But the book is marketed as a thriller so imagine my disappointment when I realised it's just bland action and a ridiculous love story....more
"Learn this now and learn well. Like a compass facing north, a man's accusing finger always finds a woman. Always. You remember that, Mariam."
4.5 In "Learn this now and learn well. Like a compass facing north, a man's accusing finger always finds a woman. Always. You remember that, Mariam."
4.5 In all honesty, I had issues with some characters. Behind the story we're following, there's not really much to them. However, I haven't read such a great story in a long time so I'm more than willing to look past it....more
After 2 years I can finally remove this from my tbr.
Lets be honest for a moment, this was a cover buy. Like, just look at it. Other than that, the stoAfter 2 years I can finally remove this from my tbr.
Lets be honest for a moment, this was a cover buy. Like, just look at it. Other than that, the story didn't wow me. I stopped paying much attention when the author told us Hana, the protagonist, had a bone fracture but didn't notice it for days cause she was sad. To make the things even worse, she's a midwife. Yeah, no thanks....more
It took me six months to finish this book. I just didn't see a point and it wasn't even interesting to read.It took me six months to finish this book. I just didn't see a point and it wasn't even interesting to read....more
2.5 Iskreno, knjiga me nije bas nesto privlacila ali s obzirom da je imam u svojoj kolekciji odlucila sam da joj dam sansu. Sam opis knjige je donekle 2.5 Iskreno, knjiga me nije bas nesto privlacila ali s obzirom da je imam u svojoj kolekciji odlucila sam da joj dam sansu. Sam opis knjige je donekle interesantan, zivot dvojice velikih naucnika u 19. veku. Ipak, iz vise razloga mi se nije svidela, prvenstveno zbog toga sto sam ja ocekivala nesto sasvim drugacije.
Prvo, stil pisanja mi se nimalo nije svideo. Jeste u pitanju istorijska fikcija ("biografija") ali sam malo vise ocekivala.
Drugo, vecina knjige je cisto nagadjanje. Nagadjanje o njihovim karakterima, njihovim zivotima, njihovim licnim vezama. Retke cinjenice se poklapaju. Ako vec citam "biografiju", ocekujem vise od spekulacija.
Moj najveci problem je sto su za neke od njihovih najvecih i najintrigantnijih dostignuca iskoriscena po dva reda u knjizi. Karlu Fridrihu Gausu je odjednom kliknulo u glavi i razvio je formulu za izracunavanje datuma katolickog Uskrsa SVAKE GODINE (vazi i dan danas) s obzirom na varijacije. Formula je na oko izuzetno prosta i veoma laka za koriscenje ali niko ni dan danas ne zna logiku iza te formule. Deo knjige posvecen toj formuli? JEDNA BEDNA RECENICA. Isti slucaj je i sa njihovim ostalim delima. Vise vremena je potroseno na rasisticke misli, koje su, navodno, trebale da ucine knjigu realisticnijom s obzirom da je 19. vek u pitanju, nego na ono bitno.
Neki delovi su bili interesantni ali nedovoljno da bih knjizi dala visu ocenu....more
This book hit my feels hard. I enjoyed the development at the beginning, didn't even mind the rushing of the love story. There were things I'd most liThis book hit my feels hard. I enjoyed the development at the beginning, didn't even mind the rushing of the love story. There were things I'd most likely critique in other books but I just enjoyed them here, God knows why....more
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