The Seasonal Reading Challenge discussion
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Mod
3.5 stars - I read this book as a pick from the list - Books that are better than the movie and then watched the movie, itself. The book, written in 1999, takes place in a small French village in the early 1960s. Vianne and her daughter, Anouk, arrive on a north wind at the very beginning of Lent and open a chocolatier, or chocolate shop. This immediately causes friction with the church, for whom Lent is a season of denial. But Vianne is a generous, giving, intuitive woman, who befriends all, and even treats her would-be enemies with kindness and compassion.
I enjoyed reading the book, but it clearly was written as the beginning of a series. It hints at back stories, creates more questions than it answers. The movie, on the other hand, keeps the same characters and setting, but tells the story in a different way, giving the viewers a neat ending. I appreciated that about the movie, and enjoyed it for both the acting (Dame Judi Dench, Johnny Depp, and Juliette Binoche) and the ending.
I feel I would be remiss if I didn't mention the parallels between this book, and Lessons in Chemistry, which I recently finished. The time period in both is mid-twentieth century, and the protagonists are very similar. Each woman is a single mother to a precocious young daughter, who are running from their pasts, while trying to create a loving home for their child. While they may love a man, they are not dependent upon them. Vianne creates her living changing people's lives through chocolat, Elizabeth has a television show called "Supper at Six," that touches and changes lives in much the same way. They are both compassionate, funny, and smart. The books make good companion reads.
Mod
You can count on Mary Roach to both educate and entertain in her pop science books, such as Gulp, Bonk, Stiff and now Fuzz. Fuzz takes a deep dive into various species of both plants and animals, everything from castor beans to seagulls, cougars to brown bears, rats to rabbits, and how humans attempt to either eradicate or learn to live with them, and find a balance between the two. One example of this is the brown bear. With ever more encroachment on their natural habitat, and tasty offerings providing easy pickings, resort areas are one place that humans find themselves coexisting with animals that like to help themselves to restaurant refuse, or your pet dog's food. What happens when a human gets in the way, a pet gets killed or the bear decides to join you in your dining room? When does relocation stop working for an individual animal and a more lethal solution come into play? These are some of the interesting conundrums explored in this book.
Readerboard Name: Michelle in AlaskaReview of Into the Drowning Deep by Mira Grant
I came for the flirtation with killer mermaids on a doomed voyage undergone by a group of scientists, each with their own haunted pasts. I left with a lot of knowledge about what it would be like to work side by side with scientists (spoiler alert: doesn't sound great) and a lot of questions.
What I liked: The promise of the premise really drew me in here. It is a cool story concept just begging for James Cameron's attention. The build up of the first encounter and the journey to the Challenger Deep had me turning pages like I was trying to fan myself. The vast array of scientific specialties represented on the journey was delightful and well executed. I was especially interested in the acoustic and sonar specialties. I even kind of liked Dr. Toth, especially towards the end, where it seems she found her "funny bone."
What didn't work for me: Overall, the book felt repetitive. Just as much time was spent inner monologuing about the odds of survival as was spent actually surviving. The science got in the way of the thrill for me a lot of the time. I admire the amount of research that surely went into this book, and I can imagine this being a big bonus for plenty of readers, but I apparently have a subconscious science:murder ratio that was unmet. It was hard to feel attached to any particular character or any single cause (except Dr. Toth, mentioned earlier). Tory did (view spoiler), but otherwise, I couldn't tell you a thing about her personality or what drives her besides the loss of her sister on the Atargatis. The ending was an interesting reveal, but anticlimactic. By the time I hit 90%, I almost wanted to see (view spoiler). Not sure what that says about me though, haha.
Ok, so I have a question though, and maybe I just missed this while reading, but (view spoiler)
Overall, very cool premise that didn't quite deliver what I was looking for. This felt like a way longer book than it was. The fact that it felt like a chore to pick up and finish makes me sad because I think Mira Grant is a very talented writer. This might be a "me" problem.
I would totally watch an adaptation if James Cameron were involved. I would *probably* still watch an adaptation even if James Cameron weren't involved.
3/5
Mod
★★★
I enjoy reading memoirs, particularly of ordinary people. I find it interesting to get a glimpse into real life in another time or place.
Hilda spend around 5 years as lady’s maid to the Countess of Coventry in the late 1930's. Whilst this is Hilda’s memoir, the co-author Tim Tate has added a significant amount of historical detail/background to put things into context. From a history of the Coventry family, to what was happening in the wider world. I particularly liked the descriptions of the ordinary working class home that Hilda had come from, the everyday items, the small market town of Stamford and the general way of life – even down to how the gas lamps were lit.
The book doesn’t give much in the way of insight into the happenings within the aristocratic house – there aren’t salacious details or gossip here - yet it gives a huge amount of insight into how Hilda felt about different situations. From her first glimpse of the large room that was to be her bedroom, to feeling out of her depth when she was brought a cup of tea in the morning (as an “upper-servant” she was given different privileges) and being overwhelmed at the responsibility she was given, particularly when she was trusted to go and retrieve jewels from the bank safe prior to the 1937 Coronation.
Whilst I liked that the author addressed the reader directly “You can visit Croome Court, it’s now in the hands of the National Trust, and I think you should” or “Now, perhaps you are thinking …” (this worked particularly well in the audiobook when it felt like Hilda was just having a nice chat with you), there are numerous times where she talks about how things were better then or how young people today wouldn’t cope with that … and it felt a bit preachy.
The book ends quite abruptly and it would have been nice to have just a little more to round it off, but I can see why this decision was made as she was no longer “in service” at that point, which is what the book is about.
Overall I enjoyed this book from the historical side and it was a lovely glimpse into a very different time and culture with an authentic voice.
Mod
★★★★
Montana Browne is a midwife, expecting her first child but having to deal with it alone after the unexpected death of her husband several months ago. After the unexpected arrival of her daughter on a mountainside on New Year's Day, Montana finds herself not wanting to return to her previous home, but needing somewhere to settle with her new daughter as she adapts to her new life as a widow and a mother.
Dr Andy Buchanan is based at Lyrebird Lake Hospital, and suggests that Montana might find the rest she needs within the small community. With time, he wonders if Montana might like to settle in Lyrebird Lake more permanently and help develop the new maternity department.
Montana and Andy are attracted to each other, but they both have past loss to deal with. Is it too soon for Montana to feel happy? Can she allow herself to love again after the devastating loss of her husband? Will Andy give Montana that space she needs to process her feelings?
The characters are well crafted & develop well as the story unfolds. The storyline doesn't shy away from depicting grief, the feelings of guilt and fear and the conflict between honouring the memories and building a new life.
With the main characters being a midwife & a doctor, there are explorations of childbirth, teenage pregnancy and the pitfalls of rural hospitals but love, friendship and new opportunities help to balance the story well. Andy and Montana's slowly evolving relationship, with a very strong basis of friendship, came across as very real and I liked that the story has nuances and was not "love at first sight, happily ever after".
The book was well paced and overall was a delightful, feel good romance that many readers will enjoy, and it's a great start to the Lyrebird Lake series.
Mod
★★★
I picked this book up as my library “Big Read” for Spring 2024.
As a non-American, I had limited knowledge of the evolution of animals on the continent and I was excited to find out more ... who knew that elephants had once roamed America?
This is an "epic history" of the American continent and its animals, starting with the dinosaurs & their mass extinction, through the Pleistocene with mammoths, wild horses, camels, saber tooth tigers and more, into the Pliocene era when humans started to hunt the animals, decimating some species completely and causing others to migrate to new areas.
I was fascinated to discover how the east and west parts of North America were 2 seperate continents that developed their own flora & fauna, and the even when they rejoined, a significant separation of species remained.
I wanted to love this book, but the writing style didn't work for me. In parts, it was fabulously engaging, full of fact and interspersed with stories, but in other parts I felt as though I was slogging to get through it. It is written to be roughly chronological, but it's hard to follow as it bounces from place to place, species to species, past & present with facts popping up then almost being repeated again a little while later (particularly when discussing some of the scientists/naturalists involved).
Overall, this is a well-researched book that contains some fascinating and important information, but I found it hard to read and a book that seems to be written as a popular science (non-academic) work needs to flow just a little more easily to make is accessible.
trishhartukTranslation State, Ann Leckie
Four stars.
With this book, the author returns to her Radchaai universe, setting of the award-winning Ancillary Justice trilogy. This time, rather than concentrating on the Radchaai Empire itself, we get to learn more about some of the other races in the same universe, and their relations with eachother and the Empire. I'd say you don't need to read the trilogy first, as this is a stand-alone book, but it does help.
Written from the perspectives of three very different characters, each with rotating chapters, it broadens the readers's knowledge of the author's well-drawn Space Opera universe, while at the same time, making you care about the three characters involved, even if one of them has a completely alien mindset. There were one or two points where it dragged slightly - hence four stars not five - but overall, it was a very satisfying book.
Kathy KS
Witchmark by C.L. PolkThis novel was a quickly read combination of several genres: fantasy, romance (LGBTQ), mystery, medical, etc. Set in a world similar to England of the early 20th century, around WWI, it also reads much like historical fiction. Our country here is Aeland, so it's easy to fall in to reading that as England. Dr. Miles Singer is a psychiatrist working at a veterans' hospital; he's also a decorated survivor of the war himself. Many of his patients are suffering with something that appears to be today's PTSD. But here's where things are different: Miles is a mage who grew up in one of the wealthiest and most influential families in the nation. Destined to be "a secondary" (extra battery, as Miles puts it) to his sister, who is being groomed to replace their father as "The Voice," Miles suspects there is something else actually going on. Miles was opposed to his original role in the family's plans and runs away to join the Army, and now practices medicine under an assumed name.
When a patient is brought in and asks for Miles before dying, things begin to get more complicated. Miles attempts to solve the patient's murder, while also suspecting that many of his patients share something even more sinister than their PTSD. Enter allies, enemies, and lovers and the story gathers speed.
While reading, I was most reminded of the Whyborne & Griffin series by Jordan L. Hawk, though those stories lean a little further towards Lovecraftian horror. But I do believe readers that enjoy one of these series might also enjoy the other.
I'll be following up with the next volume in this series.
MAZZA1In Praise of Wasting Time
I am not really a non-fiction reader except perhaps in the health and medical fields that formed my career. I don't really enjoy being forced into reading non-fiction through challenges or reading groups. This little book, however, could truly change my mind. What a powerful case the author makes for spending at least some time every day doing little other than letting the mind wander freely. he advocates for these moments throughout life where even children have most of their time filled with school, sports or other non-vocational classes.
I want to read the other works in this "TED books" group of works. I want to try some of the TED talks and I finally have found some non-fiction work that i won't turn my nose up at.
And as a bonus this one was in my local library, some are available on Kindle unlimited and many are audible - although minute for minute they probably are not the best value for money
Marie (UK) wrote: "MAZZA1In Praise of Wasting Time
I am not really a non-fiction reader except perhaps in the health and medical fields that formed my career. I don't really enjoy being forced into ..."
Thanks for sharing. I have this down to an art form!
Readerboard Name: Michelle in AlaskaReview of Reckless by Lauren Roberts
Oh, darling.
4.5 stars, rounded up.
“I think I would fall on my sword if it meant you mourned me. . . it’s terrifying to think you hold that much power over me.”
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YEEHAW! I had an absolute blast from start to finish here. For someone who accused the first book of the trilogy (Powerless) of being frustratingly mid , I sure did preorder the heck out of this one once I read the premise. I listened to this exclusively on audio, as any self-respecting Powerless fan should. No, really, it's in the fine print. You HAVE to listen to the audio. It totally makes the experience here. All three of the narrators here absolutely knocked it out of the park. Someone give Chase Brown a raise.
Here's a flow chart for whether I think you'll like Reckless more or less than Powerless in 1 easy step:
➼ If you read Powerless and left feeling like the only parts you were interested in were the tension and banter between the two main characters and literally everything else just got in the way of these two people getting together, then you will get what you're after in SPADES here. You are probably going to love Reckless!
➼ If you read Powerless and your favorite parts were the competition piece, the politicking, and the (albeit limited) found family aspect, you will probably prefer Powerless.
Admittedly minimal plot progression here. This is like 90% character-driven, ok? This installment was almost exclusively tension and banter between the two leads, and it served in a way that makes the first book look like child's play. Y'all, tell me why I wept TWICE over sweet scenes?
Lauren Roberts, you absolute QUEEN of banter. Now I have to find room on my book boyfriend shelf for Kai Azer.
Ask me how I know that God isn't a woman.
Does the third book have a name, a release date, anything? Or should I just scream into a void for the foreseeable future?
(Edit: yes to all three - “Fearless”, April 2025, screaming still on the docket)
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Her laugh alone could cure the most corrupted parts of me, and that is exactly what it’s done since the day I met her.
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“It’s the looking pretty part that can be difficult. Well,” he adds sincerely, “not in my experience. But I’m sure others may struggle with that.”
I laugh despite myself. “You think so highly of yourself.”
“Someone has to.”
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There is such beauty in resilience, in the ability to laugh despite it all.
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“Don’t do that,” she huffs, pushing her arms through the sleeves and tugging the shirt down.
“Do what, darling?”
“That. The flirting.” Her eyes sweep over me accusingly. “The dimples.”
I laugh before I’m able to stop myself. “You know, I can’t really help that.”
“Help what?” She crosses her arms. “The flirting or the dimples?”
“Yes."
4.5/5
Mod
Denis MacShane
*****
If you’ve had even a passing awareness of current affairs in Britain in recent years, you’ve probably come across the term Brexit before. It’s been almost impossible to avoid. The referendum on leaving the EU has been one of the UK’s biggest political upheavals in my lifetime, certainly, and even eight years on from the 2016 vote, bitter divisions still rage over the issue.
Originally published in 2015 under the title Brexit: How Britain Will Leave Europe, I made the mistake of initially refusing to read this book on principle when I first came across it. As someone who was firmly in the camp of Remain, the original title rubbed me the wrong way, sounding like little more than Eurosceptic posturing and premature celebration. In a true case of “don’t judge the book by its cover”, the contents are anything but.
What this book is is a forensic breakdown of the turbulent relationship between the UK and the EU, from the signing of the Treaty of Paris in the 1950s, to the UK’s entry to the then-European Economic Community in 1973, to the rise of UKIP (the UK Independence Party) and prominent British Euroscepticism in the 2000s and onwards. MacShane does not glorify this last point: indeed, as a campaigner for the Remain vote at the time, he strives to correct the misconceptions that often permeate British consciousness with regard to the EU (while not shying away from criticising systems where criticism is due). In doing so, he points out the various failings of our domestic politicians and our previous press regulator (the now defunct Press Complaints Commission) – the former for not adequately promoting the benefits of European integration and explaining how it all worked to the wider electorate, and the latter for allowing biased media outlets to present outright falsehoods about European politics as fact with neither sufficient challenge nor punishment for having done so.
As a former MEP and Minister for Europe, MacShane has first-hand experience of the internal workings of EU politics. He often draws on his diaries from his time in office, providing real insight into just how anti-EU sentiment had been building long before Prime Minister David Cameron announced the Brexit referendum. The 2016 edition contains an additional epilogue written in the aftermath of the vote, outlining the difficulties in negotiating the withdrawal (which indeed came to pass), and perhaps even more alarmingly pointing out the early warning signs of the impending governmental chaos that was about to unfold in the wake of Cameron’s resignation.
As eloquent a writer as MacShane is, to call this book easy reading would be a mistake. There were times when I found myself with my head in my hands out of sheer frustration upon realising the depth of the issue. That said, as a snapshot of British political history and how attitudes towards Europe have changed over the course of time, this book is excellent and I would highly recommend it.
Mod
The Backyard Bird Chronicles by Amy TanMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
What a wonderful book. Covering a little over 5 years (from Sept. 2017 - Dec. 2022), author Amy Tan shares a selection from nine natural journals with sketches, reminiscences and observations gathered during hundreds of hours studying the birds in her backyard. In the beginning, she could only identify three birds, but over time and through keen observation, she eventually identified over sixty-three species.
From the beautiful pencil sketches to full color drawings, each offering is a gift and a labor of love. She wrote of the effects of various wildfires on the local ecosystem, birds that normally wouldn't appear in her area were driven south by the smoke, as well as of the comfort of watching the birds go about their normal lives during COVID, when the world seemed turned upside down for many humans.
I highly recommend this book!
Readerboard Name: Michelle in AlaskaReview of Midnight Sun by Stephenie Meyer
YO, I have had a total perspective change on this book and this series as a whole. Earlier this year, I read a couple pieces of gothic literature, which prompted me to explore the genre. Now, some people will disagree with me on this point because people love to hate on Twilight, but this series hits plenty of marks of what makes gothic fiction: an atmosphere of mystery or fear, ominous setting (forests, constant cover of rain), supernatural/paranormal activity, romance (one that often leads to sorrow or tragedy, especially for our guy here), emotional distress, nightmares, a damsel in distress and the ***anti-hero***.
"For just a second, I saw Persephone, pomegranate in hand. Dooming herself to the underworld. Is that who I was? Hades himself, coveting springtime, stealing it, condemning it to endless night."
Now I could write a whole thesis on the last bit, but I won't. All I will say is that, with my first read in February 2021, I made the bold claim that this story is not meant to be told from this perspective and griped about Edward's incessant inner turmoil. Friends, I was --DEAD WRONG--. This is exactly the perspective this story should be told from.
HERE'S MY THESIS STATEMENT: Edward is the real, truly compelling protagonist of this series.
The anti-hero who must fight against his very nature, his urge to slaughter a room full of students for a taste of the blood of his soulmate, who suffers immensely by guilt and self-loathing and who therefore punishes himself severely in an attempt to feel less bad? Are you *kidding* me? CHEF'S KISS.
"Knowing the battle was already lost, there seemed to be no reason to resist what I wanted."
"This love story she envisioned for me was careening toward tragedy more perceptibly every moment."
"I’d spent more than seven decades trying to be something—anything—other than a killer. Those years of effort could never make me worthy of the girl sitting beside me. And yet, I felt that if I returned to that life for even one night, I would surely put her out of my reach forever. Even if I didn’t drink their blood—even if I didn’t have that evidence blazing red in my eyes—wouldn’t she sense the difference? I was trying to be good enough for her. It was an impossible goal. But I couldn’t bear the thought of giving up."
Bella Swan, who I love just for the sake of her tenderness, does not really possess the requisite complexity to make a compelling protagonist yet. Eventually (later in the series) she comes into her own, I suppose, but the pieces have to be built in with the help of her adoptive vampire family. Edward Cullen, on the other hand, has a century's worth of emotional baggage to unpack, from self-loathing, to guilt, to loneliness, to arrogance, to grappling with the unwavering "truth" (his truth, not anyone else's) that he is a monster. This is the same self-hatred and self-punishment that leads to the core of the plot in the second book (which I shall subtly call Exeunt Edward).
Please save yourself. Please never leave me.
No one had ever had more sympathy for the devil.
This is not meant to be a pure, fluffy romance. This is meant to be dark, and this is meant to be gritty, and it is meant to make you ask questions. Importantly, this is also YA. It is hard to do all of the above together *well* and to impress as wide an audience as this series has reached. Of course Bella and Edward are obsessed with each other to a Shakespearean degree. It's possessive. It's desperate. It's all potentially so tragic. Not your grandmama's romance here, y'all. Whether you like it or not, this series is YA gothic romance, and Midnight Sun actually does it best of all.
I promise you, I cannot believe I'm saying that either after my last review of this book.
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Original Review from February 2021:
I know what you're thinking. I too am shocked that I could possibly give a book from this series a 3-star rating... This series that was the object of my obsession for years in high school and college. The series that inspired many midnight showings at the movie theater. The series whose posters covered my walls.
This story is not meant to be told from this perspective. A perfectly plain, clumsy human who discovers that her love interest is a vampire and, to her utmost surprise, wants to be with her too... now that is the way this story is meant to be told.
I understand the temptation of writing the story from the perspective of the off-limits, brooding, devilishly handsome and all-consuming vampire love interest. But... not Edward. When reading Twilight, you have to give him the benefit of the doubt that there may be more to him than just overprotective obsession and moodiness. When reading Midnight Sun, that idea shatters. There is literally nothing else to Edward but these two things. I'll show you with this summary of the book:
(view spoiler)
When you write a book from this angle and make it over 150 pages longer than the original, there's a certain trust there that this installment will offer something truly new and riveting. Considering this is the exact same story as Twilight but from Edward's perspective, the only thing that can make the concept of this book redeemable is making Edward's internal workings interesting. This book missed the mark for me, unfortunately.
4/5
Readerboard Name: Michelle in AlaskaReview of When the Moon Hatched by Sarah A. Parker
“Who are you protecting, Moonbeam?”
4.5 stars, rounded up to a million.
I read this ENTIRE book listening to the ambient music called "Dead Gods" by Athena IV on a loop on Youtube (it won't let me post the link), and I swear to you, it will only enhance your experience. I mean it. Run, don't walk.
Survival’s funny. Some wear it like a whisper, others like a scream.
I made the mistake of finishing this book on a plane, somewhere over the Atlantic, surrounded by strangers. I wanted to scream and rage and shake anyone who would listen, but I couldn't do that within any sort of socially acceptable parameter, so I was forced to stare vaguely into the ether for whole minutes just existing in the wake of this book.
These pages are going to rip the world to shreds.
How rare the union, a reader with their spirit book, the compendium of all the bits of fabric of your imagination and your soul?
I realize I am on the verge of waxing poetic here, but I swear, this story just brings it out of me. This is an exemplary fantasy-forward romantasy. The spice delivers, but it is not gratuitous; it is intentional, purposeful, bittersweet. The lore, the unique magic system, the moons in the sky, the dragoNS, THE RUNES, SOMEBODY STOP ME, I'm going to start screaming again.
This book will be among my top books ✨of all time✨
Not only all that, but I have been telling anyone who will listen that this book's cover is the most beautiful cover I have seen in a long time. I dragged my husband into a Waterstones while we were on vacation in London and was sure to show him the cover of this book. I can't stop gushing over it.
There’s something poetic about looking up and seeing that which has passed. A soft launch into grief for those who linger below.
I’d rather . . . be listening to her vivid explanations for the colorful clouds draped across The Fade, her words so descriptive my mouth would water—like I could taste the colors, feeling their textures puff against my tongue. She made freedom sound so exquisite with her big, beautiful vocabulary. Made it sound so magical. I couldn’t wait to taste clouds with her. To lie on our backs, side by side, and look upon the real moons.
If you go slow with this story and take your time to read between the lines, to pay attention to the imagery, the themes, the metaphors, you will know exactly what is coming. I have heard more than one person say the entire first half of the book is confusing, but more so, I think it throws you right into the middle of Raeve's world, left to unravel the dissonance as she does. It's blurry at the edges, masterfully veiled until it needs to be revealed, but it's all there for you to find. Look closely and you will see... Even still, though, I was taken by surprise at least three times in the last third of the book.
Can we talk about Kaan Vaegor for a minute? I am going to say something that will shock those of you who follow me. If you know me, you know that my "book boyfriend" is Rhysand, followed by Xaden and Dorian Havilliard.
See, you've got "book boyfriends", and then you have a separate category specifically for MMCs like Kaan Vaegor, an MMC and romantic lead so spectacular that he cannot be touched with a label as puerile as "book boyfriend."
You guys, I am a self-appointed ACOTAR representative. I attend the Starfall balls. I buy the keychains.
When the Moon Hatched is some of the most devastatingly romantic stuff I have ever read.
Sorry, I need a sad girl minute.
Ok, I'm back. But seriously, I cried so many times reading this book. The sadness, the devastation, the tenderness, the hurt, the beauty of it all... I just want to pet a Moonplume. :'(
Eyes wide, I search the sky, chasing the cloud’s mournful tears as they sing their fatal song. Like each tiny raindrop is innately aware they’re caught in a descent that can only end one way. That they will never be more whole than they are right now, plummeting to their doom.
Only feedback I have is that I found myself thinking several times throughout that the book may have benefitted from a neutral, more critical editor to help cut down on some of the repetitive textual constructions found within. It seems like almost every page has something that
Goes.
Like.
This.
And it starts to lose its effectiveness after a while. You also have to be very OK with a stabby FMC because Raeve is as stabby as they come. Take my word on that. She is rough around the edges. Not a delicate bone in her body.
I plan to stare into the ether until the next book in Fall 2025 if anyone cares to join me. :')
4.5/5
Readerboard Name: Michelle in AlaskaReview of The Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco
“Hell will swallow you all, cowards!”
How do you review a book that is over 40 years old, written by someone as genius as the late, great Umberto Eco?
Eco: ”I began writing in March of 1978, prodded by a seminal idea: I felt like poisoning a monk.”
With lots and lots of quotes.
This is my second time reading this book, but enough time had passed between my first and second reads (2017, 2024) that I could not remember how the mystery of the monastery murders played out. I was delighted (is that the right word?) to relive the darkness, the mystery of the murders that befell this quiet abbey in 1327.
”. . .I must know. I must.”
“You must? Who obliges you now?”
“No one ever obliges us to know, Adso. We must, that is all. . .”
A magnificent and masterful blend of mystery, philosophy, medieval history, theology, and semiotics, The Name of the Rose shocks, charms, teaches, and dismays in equal measures.
For these men devoted to writing, the library was at once the celestial Jerusalem and an underground world on the border between terra incognita and Hades.
***
***
“But my dream made no sense, like all dreams!”
“It had another sense like all dreams. It must be read as an allegory, or an analogy. . . .”
“Like Scripture?”
“A dream is a scripture, and many scriptures are nothing but dreams.”
In what has proved itself once again to be one of my very favorite books, Eco introduces us to William of Baskerville, a savvy former inquisitor and master of classics who, alongside his apprentice Adso (also our narrator), has been beseeched to help discover the cause and motive of a string of murders that occur in a 14th century abbey. Brother William uses the logic of several great historical thinkers and fascinating trains of thinking to unravel the mysteries herein. He is cunning, progressive (for a 14th century monk), and always one step ahead of Adso, the other monks and, frankly, you and me.
I never understood when he was jesting. In my country, when you joke you say something and then you laugh very noisily, so everyone shares in the joke. But William laughed only when he said serious things, and remained very serious when he was presumably joking.
***
***
“And what if the abbot finds us?”
“We will pretend to be a pair of ghosts.”
To me this did not seem a practical solution, but I kept silent.
Make no mistake — while the murder mystery is the participation prize for readers who dare to brave the erudite The Name of the Rose, this novel is heavily steeped in the historical fiction genre and relies on symbolism/semiotics to get you to the end. For those who are willing to jump in, the reward is rich insight into a time of geopolitical and religious unrest both between the Holy Roman Emperor and the Pope and the various monastic orders. A large portion of the conflict, outside of the obvious, like, murdering, is based around the idea of poverty and whether it is considered “holy”. Some subsets of catholicism went on to pursue a lifestyle of limited earthly possessions in pursuit of holiness but, out of fear of looking unholy with its elaborate… well, everything, Pope John XXII ultimately condemned this lifestyle as heretical, which led then to holy inquisitions, lots of people being burned at the stake for their religious beliefs about owning shoes… It was a wild time, my friends.
“The trouble is,” I said, “I can no longer distinguish the accidental difference among Waldensians, Catharists, the poor of Lyons, the Umiliati, the Beghards, Joachimites, Patarines, Apostles, Poor Lombards, Arnoldists, Williamites, Followers of the Free Spirit, and Luciferines. What am I to do?”
***
***
I did not understand then why the men of the church and of the secular arm were so violent against people who wanted to live in poverty and I said to myself, if anything, they should fear men who wish to live in wealth and take money away from others, and introduce simoniacal practices into the church.
(mic drop)
One of my favorite aspects of this book is its mise en abîme (a term I haven't used unironically since grad school), or its “book within a book” structure. The book opens to what looks like an author’s note regarding the origins of the recovered manuscript that will make it appear that Eco simply translated the work in question; however, the note is the cadre in which the rest of the novel, a mysterious, one-of-a-kind manuscript, is set. *chef's kiss*
And what would we be, we sinful creatures, without fear, perhaps the most foresighted, the most loving of the divine gifts?
I did some pre-reading before picking this book up for my reread, mostly around the geopolitical climate of the time, and I would recommend it to anyone who wishes to jump in with this treat. It wouldn’t hurt to, like, learn Latin, but not totally required.
How ugly! I am losing faith in the human race; I see plots and palace conspiracies on every side. That our abbey should come to this, a nest of vipers risen through occult magic in what had been a triumph of sainted members.
TL;DR: The Name of the Rose is one of my favorite books. I adore it for the complexity of its history, the richness of its many characters, the charm of the protagonists, the joy of the mystery, and for the fact that it makes me just a little bit better at Jeopardy. This is not for the faint of heart, and if you follow me for romantasy reviews, this likely won’t be your cup of tea. However, if you enjoy a deeply scholarly work of fiction (think like The Da Vinci Code, but with a power level over 9,000), I cannot recommend this one enough. Do the pre-reading, or don’t. Learn the latin, or don’t. Take your time with it, ride the ups and downs, climb the mountains of the dense chapters and enjoy the free fall of the fun, quirky, character-driven chapters.
”You want a corpse, and to have it you need me to assume the guilt for other corpses. I will be a corpse soon in any case. And so I will give you what you want.”
***
***
"stat rosa pristina nomine, nomina nuda tenemus."
(Don't look at me; go practice your Latin)
((5 stars))
Readerboard Name: Michelle in AlaskaReview of Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo
Cuando ganeden esta acerrado, guehinam esta siempre abierto.
While the Garden of Eden may be closed, Hell is always open.
—Ladino saying
I managed to scrape by, bloodied and bruised, but I swear this book was actively trying to kill me. "Be careful in the throes..." I have been diving head-first into dark academia, so this one has been shining like a beacon on my TBR for a bit. I have read and loved Leigh Bardugo's Grishaverse (especially the Six of Crows duology xo), so I was looking forward to a foray into her adult dark fantasy.
'There would be some kind of reckoning among the Houses of the Veil.'
***
"This town is a peculiar one. The Veil is thinner here, the flow of magic easier. It eddies in the nexuses, but there is magic in every stone, every bit of soil, every leaf of every old elm. And it is hungry.”
The blurb for this book is vague enough that I didn't have a great idea of what I would find here. I am the type of reader whose brain is constantly working, trying to make predictions, connections, etc. I promise you, I could not predict anything that was coming next. Every other chapter brought something so left field that I was kept on my toes the whole way through. In some ways, I was delighted, and in a couple others, I was put off somewhat.
This book is pretty well divided into thirds, so I will share my thoughts in relation to each.
Possible spoilers from this point forward.
The first third, and my absolute favorite part of this book, is where we get to explore Yale, Lethe, the societies, the Grays, Alex's terribly tragic past, and her failures and successes as Darlington's Dante. This book truly peaked for me at 40%. I thought I was in heaven/hell. I was scared for my life at how much I loved this book.
His Dante, the girl he would gift with the keys to a secret world, was a criminal, a drug user, a dropout who cared about none of the things he did. But he’d tried.
***
At the end of the day, [Darlington] was a rich boy in a nice coat who could capsize her without even meaning to.
The second third, and the part that challenged me the most and brought me back to Earth, gave us a look, equal parts rewarding and disturbing, at Alex's instincts, street smarts, and survival skills that she learned from her hard life in LA as she ventures to solve not one, but two semi-parallel mysteries. To be perfectly honest, this is where I felt let down by the blurb. I am not a big mystery/police procedural person myself, so in addition to the parts that viscerally repulsed me (let's just say, revenge against Blake), I also had to contend with a string of mystery-solving side quests that admittedly started to feel a tad repetitive.
To save myself, I let you die. That is the danger in keeping company with survivors.
***
This was the world of quid pro quo. See, Darlington? Alex thought. Even I know a little Latin.
The third third, which pulled me right back in with reveals that had me wanting to yell (but, like, in a good way?), really showcased Bardugo's genius. In fact, I feel that the first and third thirds (there has to be a better way to say these things) are testaments to Bardugo's creativity, intelligence, pure knowledge of the craft, and, frankly, resilience. It takes someone who has known true trauma to write something like Ninth House, and for that, I feel grateful that she cut herself open and revealed all of this to us.
All of that being said, there was a part at precisely 82% that caused a teeny, tiny, very small sliver of me (a non-DNFer) to consider the pros and cons of simply DNFing this book. I am not one who is squeamish about trigger warnings. I can persevere through the discomfort much of the time. But in that moment, I set the book down and said, "No thank you. I think I've had enough heartbreak for one book." This book had even me wondering if I was strong enough to make it to the end.
"The current is strong and inevitably we all succumb.”
***
“There are worse things than death, Miss Stern.”
***
“All you children playing with fire, looking surprised when the house burns down.”
In the end...
I loved it,
I am satisfied,
I am depressed,
I am wounded,
I am simultaneously excited for and dreading the second book,
Darlington is life
I want to survive this world that keeps trying to destroy me.
***
Maybe she just needed a snack and a long nap.
My thoughts exactly, Alex. My thoughts exactly.
The cemetery gates had been built to look like an Egyptian temple, their fat columns carved with lotus blossoms, the plinth emblazoned with giant letters:
THE DEAD SHALL BE RAISED.
Darlington called the period at the end of that sentence the most eloquent piece of punctuation in the English language. Another thing Alex had been forced to look up, another bit of code to decipher. It turned out the quote was from a Bible verse:
Behold, I show you a mystery:
We shall not all sleep;
but we shall all be changed in a moment,
in the twinkling of an eye,
at the last trumpet.
For the trumpet shall sound,
and the dead shall be raised incorruptible,
and we shall be changed.
((4.5 stars))
Readerboard Name: Michelle in AlaskaReview of The Atlas Six by Olivie Blake
“No one here is good. Knowledge is carnage.”
Welcome, babes, to what may just end up being my second favorite book of all time (after all things Sarah J Maas, which cannot be touched). I have read this book twice now in 2024, and as I said in March, this will, without a doubt, be the top book of the year for me. Who are the people giving this a 3.6 star rating average on Goodreads? Come here for a sec, I just wanna talk. ;)
“There is no fate so final as betrayal. Trust, once dead, cannot be resurrected.”
The Alexandrian Society, both secret and ancient, has one primary goal: to protect, care for, and contribute to an unfathomable collection of lost human knowledge amassed from civilizations of antiquity. Who better than the most elite magicians (known as Medeians here) to serve as its protectors? After all, this much knowledge is best left in the competent hands of the elite few rather than spread with reckless abandon to the common masses...
Right?
An empire [can] sit successfully only upon a chair of three legs: subjugation, desperation, and ignorance.
Every ten years, six new potential initiates are recruited to compete for a chance to join the Alexandrian Society, which promises a life of wealth, power, prestige, and knowledge beyond imagining. Members often go on to be political leaders, patrons, CEOs, and laureates.
Only people who exist in three dimensions ever believe history to be sacred.
The drama? While six are recruited, only five will be initiated after a year of competition, and the last will be eliminated.Beware the man who faces you unarmed.
If in his eyes you are not the target,
then you can be sure you are the weapon.
The Atlas Six is first and foremost about these six elite Medeian recruits. They all deserve their own full reviews, but I won't do that. Instead, let me give a little nibble of each of them:
LIBBY
“I mean, what is the point of having so much talent in the room if nobody’s willing to see where that takes us?”
NICO
Nico was very sulky when he was not permitted to be incomprehensibly astounding.
REINA
“For every tyrant, there is a ‘free’ society which destroys itself."
CALLUM
“Me? I never despair. I am only ever patently unsurprised.”
PARISA
Dalton was chess; Tristan was sport. Importantly, though, both were games.
TRISTAN
“I find people to be largely disappointing."
The Atlas Six is seductive. Sultry like the taste of a fine bourbon in a smoky room. It is intentionally vague... sometimes disconcerting like a room full of mirrors, and you are invited to peer inward.
Who is the hero, and who is the villain?
The Atlas Six is smart. It will throw quantum physics in your face in a way that feels accessible enough. It is a character study of six+ intricate, deeply flawed, vain, ambitious characters.
Meander through a garden of philosophical intrigue and watch how it slowly turns to brambles.
If you're not rereading whole paragraphs here, you're not reading closely enough.
The Atlas Six is angry. This trilogy is more than just dark academia. It is a story of corruption, chaos, futility, destiny, morality, and mortality.This trilogy feels like holding the whole of the human experience in your hands. I have cried sad tears, happy tears, tender, heart-swelling tears, and tears of pride for some of these characters.
This may also be the most divisive series I have ever read. You either love it or hate it. Guess which camp I'm in. I truly believe that its marketing landed it in the wrong hands, hence the surprising Goodreads ratings. It is still looking for its perfect audience. Importantly, if you don't enjoy the first book, the second book won't get any better for you, so reader, know thyself.
Eternal glory. Unparalleled wisdom. Here they would unlock the secrets the world had kept from itself for centuries, for millennia.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Kathy KS
Starter VillainOh, this one was fun! Charlie, a journalist now employed as a substitute teacher, living in his deceased father's home with two cats and, driving his old Nissan, discovers that his estranged maternal uncle has died. Enter an intriguing woman informing him that he is the heir to his uncle's sizable estate. Sizable, indeed. Uncle Jake was a multi-billionaire who owns his own "lair" on a volcanic Caribbean island.
And, so it begins. Charlie discovers so much more is going on after he attends his uncle's funeral and, later, travels to the island with his cats. I'm not even going to say anything else about the story because part of the fun is reading about his adventures in the high-powered world of billionaire businessman (e.g., "villains").
Danger ensues, various species are involved in the machinations, and Charlie brings his business journalism experience and natural common sense and decency to the world of villainy.
And, that cover! One of my all-time favorites because it reminds me of my own kitty (minus the suit; although the suit makes it!).
Scalzi has always entertained me; this one is my favorite, so far. Highly recommended to anyone enjoying espionage (this time it's business), nice guys, and humor.
A Walk In The Woods, Bill BrysonTrishhartuk 4*
This is only the second Bill Bryson book I've read (after Notes from a Small Island, back in 2016). Written with Bryson’s trademark dry humour, it’s his memoir of attempting to hike the Appalachian Trail with his friend Stephen Katz. While they didn’t complete the trail, they did manage about 40% of it, and I really admire that they got that far (albeit in two doses).
It is a little dated - it was published in 1998, so there are a lot of references to acid rain and very few to global warming and climate change - but the writing is descriptive and evocative, and he manages conjure the atmosphere brilliantly. I often found myself Googling pictures of the various places Bryson describes in the book. I’d love to see some of what they experience in their trip in person, but know I’m not fit enough of healthy enough to even try. I know I wouldn’t even get 4%!
Readerboard Name: Michelle in AlaskaReview of Keep by Jenny Haysom
One need not be a chamber—to be Haunted—
One need not be a House—
The Brain—has Corridors surpassing
Material Place—
— Emily Dickinson
There is a quietness that exists in the space between this book and me now that I've finished it. I want to fill it with a cozy blanket and a cup of tea, or maybe a hug. With Keep, you may arrive out of curiosity about the plot of home stagers in an elderly woman's home, but you will stay for its three main characters, each precious and devastating in their own right.
This book is a slow burn, a dabble book. A chapter here and there. You don't burn through this book; in fact, somehow this book burns through you. Quiet and yet so very loud. Keep feels like taking a dip in the pool via the stairs, slowly sinking in, not realizing your head is mostly underwater until your eyes are all watery and burning.
Your hosts are Eleanor, Jacob, and Harriet, the two former of whom are the home stagers, and the latter of whom suffers from dementia and owns the home being staged and sold. Haysom's greatest achievement here is in somehow making each of these characters lovable, if not always likable. I couldn't help but adore the friendships found here.
Eleanor, unfortunately, served as a mirror to my own life so many times that I may have to do a little soul searching.
We must protect Jacob at all costs.
Harriet, frankly, is the character I believe was the most let down by the narrative. Her battle with dementia was depicted poignantly, though I would have liked to see her receiving more compassion from start to finish.
It was as if her mind were unhooked from her body, as if she were trapped on the wrong side of the mirror.
What a beautiful story of opposites. Mass-produced and limited edition. Lonely and connected. Beginnings and ends. Unlikely pairings. Sigh. I would definitely read another novel by Jenny Haysom.
Thank you, Netgalley and the team from House of Anansi Press Inc., for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts are my own.
(4 stars)
The Terraformers, Annalee NewitzTrishhartuk 3*
This was an interesting book, which covered ground I've certainly not seen before in spec fiction. I loved the worldbuilding, and the way it offers a suggested method for Terraforming. It was full of very cool ideas in that respect. It also explored themes such as freedom, indentured servitude, and what is a society, and dipped a toe into the discussions surrounding native and indigenous remains that were dug up and sent to museum.
As for the three parts of the book, my favourite (with my favourite characters) was the first. Next was the third, where the pace picked up in an interesting way, coming to a decent conclusion with room for future development, and the idea of a sentient train character actually worked (for me, anyway).
I found the second part hard going as nothing really seemed to happen until fairly close to the end of it, and I wasn't convinced by the enemies to friends romance in that section. I'm glad I stuck with it to get to the final part, but it's the main reason I've given the book three stars instead of four.
The Seasonal Reading Challenge
Books mentioned in this topic
The Terraformers (other topics)Keep (other topics)
Notes from a Small Island (other topics)
A Walk In The Woods (other topics)
Starter Villain (other topics)
More...
Authors mentioned in this topic
Denis MacShane (other topics)Ann Leckie (other topics)
Mary Roach (other topics)
Joanne Harris (other topics)
We will draw a random name from anyone who posts a review in this thread and they will be given the opportunity to create a task in the Fall 2024 season - the more reviews that you post, the more chance of being drawn!
Reviews must be for books read within the current challenge period. You may link to your review on Goodreads, or type the review in the thread. (Please do not link to a review on a site outside of Goodreads)
Your review does not have to be positive but it should be at least a couple of sentences long - "loved it" or "not for me" is not helpful to other readers!