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jesus christ is this a brutal read.
i knew i’d be in for some depressing stuff, but i didn’t think a book would make me feel as fucked up as a movie did (all quiet on the western front)
excellent use of prose by faulks, i can see why this is propped up by many as one of the all time great war novels.

Nothing special, but it’s simple enough to skirt through without it being actual skimming.

Excellent premise, and it’s easy enough to read while being engaging enough to enjoy without it feeling like chore.

This is actual unfettered boomerslop.
I literally never expected a novel to fit this stereotype but here we are.
I’m struggling to go through 20 pages a day with this shit.

This is absolutely DISMAL.
It's awfully sweet, almost like eating honey by the spoonful, with nothing to supplement it with!
I've had so much difficulty in reading a mere 119 pages and it's driving me nuts.
The way this is going, this might end up in the "did not finish" shelf.

Not a single redeemable character in this novel apart from Edgar Linton and Nelly Dean.
Everyone is selfish, manipulative, cruel and unhinged.
I fucking love it.
It's insane that Brontë wrote this in the 19th century because it could easily pass as something written much later.

I'm actually having a lot of difficulty sticking to this, not because of it's prose, which while being relatively archaic, is still engaging enough for one to believe that it could have been written in the 20th century, but because of how absurdly EVIL everyone is!!??
These are COMICALLY cruel and flawed characters, but it's still so engaging! It's just that it's very emotionally taxing to read continuously!

I feel absolutely miserable reading this but it’s so thrilling at the same time.
i haven’t touched the book since i opened it a few days back but now that i started reading, i didn’t want to put it down!
cathy’s “i am heathcliff” monologue is just as brilliant as i had expected it to be!

Adina is loving, caring, thoughtful, eloquent, intelligent and kind. The way Bertino has written her makes her even more precious and she might be one of my favourite protagonists in a book ever.
Bertino’s intricate yet casual prose makes this even better because I’m burning through it faster than I ever expected to.

I understand now why everyone wrote about this book being strangely sad, because of how vividly it captures the thoughts of someone who goes through adolescence while yearning to feel accepted, someone who struggles to fit in and is given the short end of the stick in terms of their future, and is forced to watch the world move on while they're left behind.
It's hauntingly beautiful because of its unique prose.

What a uniquely written book. I find myself feeling unexplainable sorrowful everytime a section ends because of the very distinct way Bertino ends them, usually with an anecdote that pulls at very specific heartstrings.

Done with 3/4th of the novel, and while the characterisation is stronger, it’s only during the time when Grace and Rocky interact, and the flashbacks remain to be the weaker portions.
The comedic portions fall short as well, but overall it’s still a very enjoyable read.

VERY interesting science bits, and the interactions between Grace and Rocky are great, with the latter being a more stronger character.
It’s so refreshing to experience a Sci-Fi story where humanity allies with aliens to fight a common enemy

Feels like very easy reading, and while the writing may not be the best, the science is still enthralling enough to binge through.

Don’t see the point of this entire section involving the shire being taken over by saruman, especially since a lot of tolkiens more racially biased descriptions are being used - slant eyed villains? bruh

I'm almost at the end, and I think I will finish this magnificent work of art in another day or two, and I will be sad because I have to set it aside for who knows how long.

Finally I have reached the conclusion - Frodo and Sam have completed their quest and all is well again, and it's the most beautiful feeling ever, to know that peace and hope lives again.
I've gotten so engrossed in this work of art that I've started thinking of myself as someone who lived in Gondor!

the closer i get to the end, the more i wish to draw it out because i’m enjoying this book so much, and it will be a shame to shelf it once and for all.

The closer I get to the end, the sadder it makes me because I know I won't ever get to experience something of this scale ever again.
What a wonderful work of art. I only wish I had read it much sooner in my life, I wonder what effect it would have had on me when my frontal lobe was still developing.

The description of the charge of the Rohirrim might just be the greatest thing I’ve ever read oh my god

Exhausted and even more feverish than before, and yet I was completely hooked for almost thirty pages until my body started to give up and my eyes began to droop.
So begins the siege of Minas Tirith!

The final book may just be my favourite out of the three, not just because I enjoy Tolkien’s prose so much, but also because the story has picked up so much pace and I can feel the tension that has been built up for so long coming close to its climax.

and so the last act begins.
tolkien’s prose is absolutely astounding! his description of shelob, of gollum’s inner conflict, of sam’s doubts regarding the choices he’s making, all of it is so well written that you can’t help but keep reading, even though you’re feverish and sick like i was.

i was able to read almost 60 pages today but i did little else apart from that.
nevertheless, i feel it was time well spent because of how much i am enjoying this work of art!

finally got to read peacefully and the battle of helms deep was so exhilarating!
the siege of isengard was great too, but i wish i’d gotten to read it from the POV of one of the hobbits.