Sydney Smith > Recent Status Updates

“Sydney, what took you so lon—“ Shut up.

I want a holiday romance. Sue me.

It’s picking up!

Oh but of course I’m gonna read and shout out a Jersey City author. I’m a loyalist

I just got to chapter 46 last night and OH MY GOD!!! The plot twist that wasn’t really a plot twist followed by a misdirect turned into a plot twist had me jaw dropping. If it weren’t for thesis induced exhaustion I would have finished the whole thing last night

I’ve been hooked since chapter 1 and I love it more with every page

"Tis dinner-time,' quoth I; 'My gold,' quoth he
‘You meat doth burn,' quoth I; My gold,’ quoth he
‘Will you come home?' quoth I; 'My gold, quoth he”

I NEED to see this performed

Classic trolley problem: do you kill one person to keep everyone safe? Or do you not kill them and plunge the world into a LITERAL APOCALYPSE? 🤔

Exactly what I needed to get out of my reading slump!

So well researched, so well written. A glorious immersive experience.

What is going on?!?!
(And I mean that in the best way possible)

I can’t stand the main character. And that’s what I’m loving about this book. It’s always fascinating to read through the lens of a narrator whose mindset and values are in such contradiction to my own

This book is so cozy. That’s truly the most accurate adjective that I can think of to describe it.

I’m loving the ability to balance character development while maintaining the core traits of said character. Is Apollo still an arrogant a**hole? Yes. (Am I allowed to curse on Goodreads?) But his motivations are changing. His primary goal has shifted to the protection of his children as opposed to being reinstated as a god.

Rick casually dropping that Apollo fathered one of his kids with another man… happy pride month, everyone

“I’m too self-aware to be egotistical.”
Apollo sucks. I love him.

“I suppose to go on further would be getting ahead of things. And truthfully it seems a bit rude to rush past our dear nakhudha, who was already getting pulled into situations not of her making and which she, as she has told me many a time, ‘would have fucking avoided.’” It is a tragedy that I have so little time to read, because not even halfway through this has easily been my favorite book of the year!

“We used to joke that of the three of us, I could kill you up close, Tinbu could kill you from another ship, and Dalila could kill you from a different city three days later.”

I’m not even a quarter of the way through and I am already enamored with this book! I can tell it’s going to be a new favorite.

I truly feel that my life has been bettered now that I know the story of Dortchen and Wilhelm Grimm

I’ve since been transported to the bazaar’s of Aleppo and the salons of France. I’m loving every second of this

Reading is slow abroad (when in London…) so I’m trying out reviewing as I go:

Can I just say, I am loving this book! Rather than just recount the history of fairytales, Rubber immerses in the world that they were written in. As I read about tale of the Princess Zozella, I am transported to the Venetian ports of 1600s. I am part of the volcanic ash streets, ricotta pastries, Baroque art, and limestone houses.