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fitzbff's reviews
271 reviews
Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman
An enjoyable and readable little primer on Norse myth. I do wish there were more stories, but what it does have is very well told.
A Gesture Life by Chang-rae Lee
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
This is one of those rare books where I don't really know what to say about it. I had to read this for uni, wasn't expecting a whole lot, but as I was reading I found myself more and more entranced by this novel. We follow an elderly Korean man, adopted by a Japanese family, who now lives in a suburban American town. He remembers and narrates his experiences both in the war and as a father. Throughout this interesting non-linear telling, we see how his attitude towards his daughter was shaped by his hard experiences in the war, and how these experiences still affect him to this day. It's a fascinating and rich character study, not willing to forgive anyone of wrongs they've committed, but also deeply human and empathic. The novel toes this line quite skilfully, as it paints a holistic picture of our protagonist, leaving the reader to deliver any judgement. A must-read for any character-driven readers.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abortion, Death, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence
Minor: Sexism
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K. Dick
adventurous
dark
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Homesick for Another World by Ottessa Moshfegh
Did not finish book. Stopped at 26%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 26%.
None of these stories mean anything. Everything seems to be about the same idea of "people are gross and disgusting" and it's just all the same. Why should I read the exact same story 20 times over.
Women, Race & Class by Angela Y. Davis
challenging
informative
Very informative on the histories of the fight for both women's rights and Black rights, and all their various intersection. Must read for anyone politically minded.
Midnight by Derek Landy
adventurous
funny
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Still not reaching the heights of the original series, and it was very messy and muddled. However, it wasn't as directionless as Resurrection, and the last half was quite fun. It still came at the cost of what had been set up in the previous book though. Where the original series had an exciting plot that felt purposeful, this new phase seems to be running on steam already. If this had been edited a bunch it could have been something really good, but as it is it's confused, unsure of itself, and I'm not even sure it needs to exist.
Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
4.0
I absolutely adored this book's prose. I found myself enamoured with the paragraphs where the book would slow down and just describe. The scenery, nature, characters' emotions, they were all written beautifully. I also liked the story, for the most part. It's split into three distinct parts, and I thought the first two were very enjoyable. Reading about Jane's upbringing was essential character background, and interesting to read about. The second part, following Jane and Mr Rochester, was just as good, even if I never liked the two characters as a couple. The third part was considerably less enjoyable, and I almost found myself skimming paragraphs. It was just too long for what it was. That said, it was still decent, and not too much of a damper on a genuinely good experience.
Ship of Destiny by Robin Hobb
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Ship of Destiny brings the Liveship Traders trilogy to a close, and fittingly, it's all about destiny and endings. A more fitting title, perhaps, may have been Ship of Pain, because not only is the book about pain and abuse, but it hurt me to read this. It reminded me of Royal Assassin, whose ending hurt me so much it tainted my view of the book for a little while, and as such my initial reaction to this book was equally pained and conflicted. So I want to start my review from a more zoomed-out, less emotional perspective.
For starters I think this book is the best paced book in the trilogy, maybe even of the whole Elderlings series from what I've read so far. Where books one and two had some dragging and tedium (minor, but still), I felt none of that in this book. The Bingtown politicking was exciting, I really enjoyed Ronica's almost-rivalry with Serilla, and we saw even more of the Rain Wilds which was very interesting. I loved everything to do with the dragon Tintaglia, Hobb writes these creatures with a sense of presence and majesty I've never felt before. Even the serpent POVs were interesting, and I suspect because of this I'll enjoy the previous books' serpent chapters more upon reread. This tighter pacing made me so excited for the ending, where all of our characters would ultimately meet their fates, without rushing and disregarding the work that goes into making these characters ready for the end.
I also want to mention the way Hobb writes about nature. This is one of my favourite things about The Lord of the Rings: Tolkien's clear adoration for the natural world bleeds off the page and infects the reader, and until now I haven't found another author similar. While Hobb isn't writing about flowers and forests, it's the way she writes about the dragons, the serpents, and the Elderlings that conveyed this to me. We see so much more of the wider natural world than we even saw in Assassin's Quest (which was my favourite because of this rich history and lore), and so of course I loved every iota of information I could glean from these sections. Everyone praises Hobb's attention to detail in her character writing, but just as well done is the history of this world. There is a deep respect for the natural world expressed in this novel, without becoming one-note. Tintaglia the dragon is just as deep a character as Keffria or Etta is.
Another part of what makes this book so astounding is, of course, the characters. It wouldn't be a Hobb review without mentioning her stunning character work. I adore what Hobb did with Malta, she changes so much but is still recognisably the same character, it astounds me how real and believable she felt. Freezing cold take, but she's one of my favourite characters in the whole series, and has one of my favourite character arcs in the whole realm of literature. I don't think I've seen someone not have her in their favourites list by the end, and it is so well deserved. Another character who rivals her is Kennit. Right from the beginning of book one, he oozes presence on the page, and never, not once in this entire trilogy, does this sense of presence and raw character wane. Hobb put arguably the most effort into this character, and has created one of the strongest and most compelling antagonists I have ever read. This is particularly impressive coming after Regal, who I thought was a very one-note villain, and easily one of the weakest parts of the Farseer trilogy. Kennit's tragic backstory is explored fully in this entry, but not once is it used to excuse any of the despicable acts he does. I initially found his ending to be a bit too forgiving for my tastes, but ultimately I think it's fitting. It's simultaneously everything he wanted and what he never wanted to happen, which is just perfect.
I also want to gush about Paragon, probably my favourite character from the whole trilogy. He and Kennit both fit into one of the major themes of this novel: what we do with our pain. I am enamoured with the way Hobb ended both of these characters' arcs, and the way this theme also ties into the Bingtown politics and the serpent story. In this book, pain and trauma are things to learn from, and characters who make the difficult decisions to face up to their pain, and learn from it, those who take it and make something better, are rewarded. Maybe not in the ways that they expect, but they are nonetheless happier for it. The characters who instead hide their pain, or push it off onto someone else, are punished and looked down on. Without spoiling anything, Paragon and Kennit are the two characters that I think exemplify this theme the most, and I'm so glad at how well this was done. In fact, I'll say it. Paragon is the best non-human character in the Realm of the Elderlings (so far, I'm happy to be proven wrong), including Nighteyes. He's in my top three characters in the whole series (Fitz and the Fool are of course the top two).
Everything in this entry builds off the entire trilogy and comes to a satisfying and emotional conclusion. In fact, the ending moved me so much that I was initially harsh and very hurt by certain aspects. While I do think some things about this ending are done poorly,if Reyn was even a few years younger, I would love him and Malta together, and I'm very against Paragon having Kennit's eyes, it makes Althea's bittersweet ending more bitter than sweet in my opinion upon stepping back I can understand what Hobb has done, and why she's done it, and I think there's much more good than bad. It all ties into the other major theme of destiny, and how destiny is rarely what we expect. I like how most, if not all, of our characters have a fulfilling end to their respective arcs, but would make no sense if you judge these based off their introductions in the first book. Things have changed, both for the world as a whole and individual characters, and you can either live with it and move forwards, or hide from it, stay complicit, and rot.
I want to briefly touch on one specific scene that contains sexual assault, and so if you want to skip this section please do so. I won't mention it after this paragraph ends. One of the aspects of this book that hurt me the most was, of course, this rape scene, and certain characters' reactions to it. I was at first unsure why it had happened, and thought it was mostly used in service of the abuser's arc instead of the victim's. I believe this reaction is flawed though. Why should this horrific act be any part of the victim's arc? Character growth and development comes from characters' choices, like Malta's choice to help her family, or Ronica's choice to stay in Bingtown at the end of the previous book. Instead, it shows the true inner self of the abuser, and also the inner selves of others who hear of this act. It brought down my liking of a few different characters, which is what Hobb wanted. It cemented the true being of the abuser, which is what Hobb wanted. She also allows the victim to heal, which I think makes it one of the best instances of rape I have read about. As many video reviews have pointed out, this act has been brushed past in the previous books, and so now Hobb highlights how awful and disgusting it truly is, where previously we have gotten away with not thinking about it. It plays an important part in the book's themes of how we deal with our pain, and so I think it was done very well. I maybe should have taken a moment to recover after reading it though, and I implore others to do the same.
Ship of Destiny brings the Liveship Traders trilogy to a close, and I cannot really think of a better way that it could have ended. Despite a few nitpicks and changes I would have loved to see, ultimately this book is heartrending in a way that only a Hobb book could be, bringing about a deep anguish that only Royal Assassin previously has given me. The themes are rich and explored to their depths, characters are given fitting endings, and the world of the Elderlings is opened up in such a unique way. I find it difficult to explain how much this book means to me. I hope that I can take its teachings and learn from the pain it has inflicted on me, rather than wallowing in my sadness and hurt. I trust that the series will only grow better as I read more of the Realm of the Elderlings and on reread. And most importantly, I hope that Paragon is happy. I love that ship so much.
For starters I think this book is the best paced book in the trilogy, maybe even of the whole Elderlings series from what I've read so far. Where books one and two had some dragging and tedium (minor, but still), I felt none of that in this book. The Bingtown politicking was exciting, I really enjoyed Ronica's almost-rivalry with Serilla, and we saw even more of the Rain Wilds which was very interesting. I loved everything to do with the dragon Tintaglia, Hobb writes these creatures with a sense of presence and majesty I've never felt before. Even the serpent POVs were interesting, and I suspect because of this I'll enjoy the previous books' serpent chapters more upon reread. This tighter pacing made me so excited for the ending, where all of our characters would ultimately meet their fates, without rushing and disregarding the work that goes into making these characters ready for the end.
I also want to mention the way Hobb writes about nature. This is one of my favourite things about The Lord of the Rings: Tolkien's clear adoration for the natural world bleeds off the page and infects the reader, and until now I haven't found another author similar. While Hobb isn't writing about flowers and forests, it's the way she writes about the dragons, the serpents, and the Elderlings that conveyed this to me. We see so much more of the wider natural world than we even saw in Assassin's Quest (which was my favourite because of this rich history and lore), and so of course I loved every iota of information I could glean from these sections. Everyone praises Hobb's attention to detail in her character writing, but just as well done is the history of this world. There is a deep respect for the natural world expressed in this novel, without becoming one-note. Tintaglia the dragon is just as deep a character as Keffria or Etta is.
Another part of what makes this book so astounding is, of course, the characters. It wouldn't be a Hobb review without mentioning her stunning character work. I adore what Hobb did with Malta, she changes so much but is still recognisably the same character, it astounds me how real and believable she felt. Freezing cold take, but she's one of my favourite characters in the whole series, and has one of my favourite character arcs in the whole realm of literature. I don't think I've seen someone not have her in their favourites list by the end, and it is so well deserved. Another character who rivals her is Kennit. Right from the beginning of book one, he oozes presence on the page, and never, not once in this entire trilogy, does this sense of presence and raw character wane. Hobb put arguably the most effort into this character, and has created one of the strongest and most compelling antagonists I have ever read. This is particularly impressive coming after Regal, who I thought was a very one-note villain, and easily one of the weakest parts of the Farseer trilogy. Kennit's tragic backstory is explored fully in this entry, but not once is it used to excuse any of the despicable acts he does. I initially found his ending to be a bit too forgiving for my tastes, but ultimately I think it's fitting. It's simultaneously everything he wanted and what he never wanted to happen, which is just perfect.
I also want to gush about Paragon, probably my favourite character from the whole trilogy. He and Kennit both fit into one of the major themes of this novel: what we do with our pain. I am enamoured with the way Hobb ended both of these characters' arcs, and the way this theme also ties into the Bingtown politics and the serpent story. In this book, pain and trauma are things to learn from, and characters who make the difficult decisions to face up to their pain, and learn from it, those who take it and make something better, are rewarded. Maybe not in the ways that they expect, but they are nonetheless happier for it. The characters who instead hide their pain, or push it off onto someone else, are punished and looked down on. Without spoiling anything, Paragon and Kennit are the two characters that I think exemplify this theme the most, and I'm so glad at how well this was done. In fact, I'll say it. Paragon is the best non-human character in the Realm of the Elderlings (so far, I'm happy to be proven wrong), including Nighteyes. He's in my top three characters in the whole series (Fitz and the Fool are of course the top two).
Everything in this entry builds off the entire trilogy and comes to a satisfying and emotional conclusion. In fact, the ending moved me so much that I was initially harsh and very hurt by certain aspects. While I do think some things about this ending are done poorly,
I want to briefly touch on one specific scene that contains sexual assault, and so if you want to skip this section please do so. I won't mention it after this paragraph ends. One of the aspects of this book that hurt me the most was, of course, this rape scene, and certain characters' reactions to it. I was at first unsure why it had happened, and thought it was mostly used in service of the abuser's arc instead of the victim's. I believe this reaction is flawed though. Why should this horrific act be any part of the victim's arc? Character growth and development comes from characters' choices, like Malta's choice to help her family, or Ronica's choice to stay in Bingtown at the end of the previous book. Instead, it shows the true inner self of the abuser, and also the inner selves of others who hear of this act. It brought down my liking of a few different characters, which is what Hobb wanted. It cemented the true being of the abuser, which is what Hobb wanted. She also allows the victim to heal, which I think makes it one of the best instances of rape I have read about. As many video reviews have pointed out, this act has been brushed past in the previous books, and so now Hobb highlights how awful and disgusting it truly is, where previously we have gotten away with not thinking about it. It plays an important part in the book's themes of how we deal with our pain, and so I think it was done very well. I maybe should have taken a moment to recover after reading it though, and I implore others to do the same.
Ship of Destiny brings the Liveship Traders trilogy to a close, and I cannot really think of a better way that it could have ended. Despite a few nitpicks and changes I would have loved to see, ultimately this book is heartrending in a way that only a Hobb book could be, bringing about a deep anguish that only Royal Assassin previously has given me. The themes are rich and explored to their depths, characters are given fitting endings, and the world of the Elderlings is opened up in such a unique way. I find it difficult to explain how much this book means to me. I hope that I can take its teachings and learn from the pain it has inflicted on me, rather than wallowing in my sadness and hurt. I trust that the series will only grow better as I read more of the Realm of the Elderlings and on reread. And most importantly, I hope that Paragon is happy. I love that ship so much.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence
Moderate: Child abuse
Minor: Pedophilia and Slavery
A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
If this were written by any other author I probably wouldn't like this, but Backman and his translator have such a way with words that I couldn't help falling in love with this grouchy old man and his annoying neighbours. A very simple story told very well. Admittedly it probably would've been a teensy bit better if Ove was older, I was expecting an elderly person and it turns out he's only 59, which threw me for a bit of a loop. But that's just my biases coming through I suppose.
Summer Sons by Lee Mandelo
Did not finish book. Stopped at 26%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 26%.
Ehhh, maybe I'll try again some other time. I'm just not connecting to it right now, it's giving me car races and "edgy" drug abuse rather than the cool spooky ghost stuff I'm wanting