river24's reviews
325 reviews

Beach Read by Emily Henry

emotional hopeful lighthearted reflective relaxing medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes

4.25

4.25/5

I am not a romance reader, I have great respect for the genre, but often find myself disliking romance books. However, I saw a lot of my mutuals reading this and enjoying it, people who normally only read sci-fi and fantasy. I've seen so much praise for Emily Henry and so I thought, why not just give it a go? And I am so glad that I did!

I think the main reason why I loved this book is because it's a character story first. So many romances or romance subplots get this wrong; characters are people first, not just vehicles for a romance you want to write. This is what Henry is so adept at, at making her characters so real and emotional and complicated. They're fully fleshed out and have many moving objects in their lives so that they feel real. We see many of their other relationships and all the different ways in which these are difficult to navigate. The romance stems from who the characters are as people, an inevitability that feels satisfying as it grows and comes to fruition, rather than something forced upon them (and us) that feels unnatural or doesn't quite fit. Henry is skilled at writing a very natural evolution of the main characters' relationship.

I also love books that talk about books, I loved the exploration of genres, and the misconceptions and prejudices against romance and other genres primarily consumed by women. I really just loved the entire concept of the book. I think it was a great set up to explore these characters and their budding relationship.

This was such a fun read that I kept coming back to whenever I felt like something light and easy. It felt like the very best kind of fanfiction (the happy kind of great fanfics, not the gut-wrenching kind) because of the way it treated its characters. I'll definitely be reading more Emily Henry in the future! 

King Lear by William Shakespeare

medium-paced

• Strong character development? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

3.5/5

We make guilty of our disasters the sun, the moon, and stars, as if we were villains on necessity, fools by heavenly compulsion. 

In the Shadow of the Fall by Tobi Ogundiran

adventurous mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

4/5

This novella is a promising start to an innovative and intriguing series. I loved the world so incredibly much, I loved every morsel of discovery. I absolutely adored the influences of Yoruba mythology, it has sparked in me a hunger to consume more West African-inspired fantasy.

Because of it's length, I did struggle to connect with the characters as much as I wanted to. However the length wasn't the only factor, the large amount of death in the story also affected this. As soon as I felt myself beginning to connect with a character they were gone. I just would've loved if this were longer so that we could spend more time in each moment.

I'm super excited to continue and to read the sequel once it's out. I hope the author decides to write novels as well, I think I'd absolutely love a longer, slower-paced story by Ogundiran. But this was a great first taste of his writing and storytelling!

Thank you Titan Books for an arc in exchange for an honest review. 

The Blade Itself by Joe Abercrombie

adventurous dark mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

4/5

History is littered with dead good men.

Joe Abercrombie's The Blade Itself is dark and gritty and spectacularly written. I've been eager to read Abercrombie's works for a while, I love grimdark books and so I've always heard great things about this one. I had no idea what an intelligent writer he is as well. Every character's voice is so unique, you can easily tell who's narrating a chapter after just a few sentences. It's such a talent to be able to characterise so instantly and so skilfully.

It's a very slow building book, things only really start to kick off at the very end. I've heard that people who've struggled with this book adore the others in the series, apparently the plot explodes in book two, so keep that in mind! But I love a slow-paced story that focuses on the characters and that's completely what this book is. It's a character study. And, oh boy, are the characters something!

The characters in this story are so unfathomably morally grey/morally bankrupt and they are fascinating to explore the minds of. A factor that I really appreciated was that, for all this moral conflict, it was never stale, the characters are all morally flawed in completely different ways. I loved this as it provided such variety to their flaws and it was interesting to see what aspects of their characterisations I viewed as 'too far'. In other words, how immoral can a character be before you no longer like them?
But another factor that's so brilliant about this book is that you don't have to like them to root for them! It's almost absurd how much we are made to care for characters that we despise. Why do I want this unbearable character to win this fight? For some ineffable reason (it's really just because of how talented Abercrombie is) I can still get behind them. They're all just so captivating, you constantly want to find out more about them.

The main three perspectives we follow are Logen Ninefingers (the Bloody Nine, my favourite character, a warrior in the North desperately trying to escape his ever-encroaching death), Glokta (an ex-soldier tortured and injured in the previous war, now an inquisitor who takes up his own hand at torture), and Jezal (a self-obsessed, misogynistic soldier who desires glory above all). Guess which character I dislike the most (!)
We also follow West (another soldier figure in the city of Adua, more familiar with the brewing war in Angland than any of the others), Ferro (I absolutely adore Ferro, an escaped slave intent on her path of vengeance), and another very interesting band of characters in the North that I won't mention because of spoilers.
I always wanted to know more and more about every single one of them. Some have such intriguing pasts that we've barely got glimpses of, some hold such fascinating thoughts that are incessantly morbid but impossible to look away from. Even those that I disliked were so interesting to follow and were caught up in such mysterious circumstances.

Fear is a good friend to the hunted, it's kept me alive this long. The dead are fearless, and I don't care to join them.

The world itself is also enthralling. We span a few different lands in this book, but are mostly focused on Midderland where the city of Adua rests. I'm so excited to get to see more of the world throughout the series and the following books. I loved the politics we were able to see so far, I loved the tangle of intentions in Adua, the inquisition and the open and closed councils were all caught up in their own particular war. I loved the larger battles of lands, the threats and ever-building tension at play. I loved getting to see more of the North's own politics, Bethod and his sons' defeat of the clans before the book's even started and how that affects and changes the land. I loved how entangled every character was in their particular brand of political machinations.

A factor I loved even more than the ceaseless scheming was the history and lore of the world. Every time we got even a taste of the world's history and the story of its fallen god-like beings, I was ensnared by it. I loved the crumbs that were scattered across the pages and I can't wait to discover even more. There are so many interesting facets to the magic system and laws of the world. We truly are only given a taste of it in this book and I'm so eager to read on to see what else we will discover.

This book was so well-written for all the reasons I mentioned before, because of how well it kept its characters in mind, but there was also another area where Abercrombie's writing really stood out: the fight scenes. His action scenes are so grim and gritty and they have such a realness to them, a sense of urgency, a bloody hunger. His characters don't hold back and so Abercrombie holds no punches, he tells you everything in stark sentences dripping with detail and malice. He doesn't hide their cruelty.

I've been fighting all my life, one enemy or another, one friend or another. I've known little else . . . Life used to be cheap as dirt to me. Cheaper.

It's such a satisfying moment when you finally see how all the different perspectives will intertwine, when you see the larger, looming evil and realise what is to come in the next instalments. I absolutely can't wait for the blood of the book to really get pumping, and have my heart rate increase alongside it!

I really enjoyed my first adventure into Abercrombie's First Law series, I can't wait to read on. I had such a fun time reading it with the First Law World book club on Fable, it was great to hear everyone's thoughts every step of the way! Thank you, Rachel (@lamoralibrary on TikTok), for convincing me to join! 

Running Close to the Wind by Alexandra Rowland

adventurous funny hopeful lighthearted fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

4.5/5

They believe that the stories and histories of the people who live here are valuable and important and worthy of being remembered.

This was an absolute blast! I have never had so much fun or laughed so hard whilst reading a book! Alexandra Rowland is so skilled at writing such a vast array of emotions and such different, yet equally enjoyable and compelling, stories!

I loved A Taste of Gold and Iron unfathomable amounts, which is also set in this world, but Running Close to the Wind takes place in a completely different location and has an incredibly different, more light-hearted, tone. I adore both of these books for wildly different reasons. It is such a talent to be able to write across different subgenres and different tones like Rowland has done across only these two books (I am yet to read their other works).

The first thing I have to say, that I so eloquently wrote down in my notes, is: PIRATES! Literally what more could you ask for than a fun, rambunctious, goofy bunch of queer pirates? I can think of nothing better! The whole cast is so lively and vibrant, every single one of the characters we meet along the way have such bold and memorable personalities. They're all so much fun to read about! (That truly is the word of this review, fun, it perfectly encapsulates every thought I had whilst reading!)

One of its comp titles is Our Flag Means Death and if you like OFMD please read this, I beg you, you will absolutely love it! (And if you don't like OFMD... what's wrong with you?)
There's something so freeing about reading about pirates (or watching a show with pirates) even if it's romanticised for all our viewing pleasure; they're outcasts, criminals, people who cannot exist in society, and so they find escape on the seas. This particularly resonates with people from a whole host of marginalised identities and is why pirate stories like these are so important, pirates stories where the main characters are disabled and BIPOC and queer and genderqueer, and of so many varying situations which make their participation in society so much harder and therefore the pirate's life at sea so much more freeing. And this emotion, even in a story as hilarious and whimsical as this one, still punctuates each movement and really adds to our love and affection for the characters.

It is by far the funniest book I've ever read, I was absolutely crying with laughter. It's just hilarious and so silly in the best possible way! As with anything humour-related in books, it will of course be quite subjective as to whether or not you'll like this type of humour, but I think it's incredibly funny and I think most others will think the same. I just kept bursting out laughing!

I don't even know how to begin summing up my thoughts about this book, I just feel such an overwhelming sense of love for it. I had the best time reading it and eagerly await reading it all over again (you're all so lucky, getting to experience it for the first time)! The characters were phenomenal, they had so much personality and wit and joviality. I also loved that we navigated more complex situations in their relationships and guarded emotions; for all its humour, this book was never one note, it still had a whole lot to say. The plot was so much FUN from beginning to end, it's so hard to put down, I just wanted to read and read and read!
My favourite out of context moment is: glowing blue dogs. Come back to this and tell me your favourite absolutely bonkers moment once you've read it!

I wholeheartedly recommend this story, it is the most fun you will have reading anything! And as I so eloquently already said: PIRATES!

Here we are—for now, for at least today. Here we are, as splendid as we can manage, because we might not be here tomorrow, because we won the right to do what we are doing on the tip of a blade—and because they should know, all those people out there in the world, that we were here and proud and free and that they couldn't and can't do a thing to stop us.

Thank you Tor for an arc in exchange for an honest review. (Seriously, thank you!) 

Goddess of the River by Vaishnavi Patel

reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

4/5

I do not want thrones, or riches, or renown. I want to be where I was loved.

I really enjoyed this book. The first half is very slow and meandering, encapsulating perfectly the river-like flow of the story. Like tributaries, it branches off into the minds of other characters and explores many of those that come to pray at Ganga's river. Every smaller story, every side character, is skillfully placed as everything weaves back into the main plot eventually. It's masterfully crafted and so intelligently executed. I loved the slow but inevitable build into the war we know, from the very first chapters, is coming.

Will you be king of ashes?

Ganga's journey is such an interesting one to be able to witness. She's such a fascinating character to explore as she holds such dichotomy inside of herself; she is a goddess who despises the mortal world, and yet she is a goddess who knows what it is to be human. She can't help but be affected by the mortal world, even as she spurns it.
I felt at times that Ganga's perspective as a goddess was possibly too vast, too pulled back from humanity, but I no longer think that's entirely correct. Ganga has the unique perspective, for a god, of mortality. She knows what it is to be human and to be caught up in their fears and desires and dreams, she is more entangled in humanity than she would ever care to admit. And beyond that, she gives life to humanity from her waters, she washes away pain and tends to those that she can help. Her heart is forever being changed by humanity. This, I think, provides such a spell-binding narrative to explore, such an incredible character to pull our focus.

Through Devavrata, or Bhishma, we follow the folly of mortals, the ever-lasting struggle for power. We see, in all its despair, what has become of the Kuru line and we see the mistakes every person has made at every step for it to have ended up as messy and as complicated as it now is.
I really adored how complex each and every character truly was, by the end of the book there was not a clearly noble and righteous victor, there was not the sharpness of a line drawn between good and evil. It was far more complicated than that. Characters that I hated became tangles of emotion in my mind as they became much more to me than just one evil deed. Characters that at first glance appeared to be only cannon fodder in the battles to come became fractured people woven into the fabric of the politics of the court. Characters that had for most of the book been virtuous and good, muddied themselves in the chasms of war and spoiled their gilded clothing with blood. Every person was more than what they first appeared to be on the surface and I think this was what I most admired about the book.

But gods should not need to enforce that which men should plainly know.

I appreciate the insightful nature of the storytelling even more as I look back upon it. Every element is crafted and placed so intricately, everything is moulded with such craft and care. I loved seeing how characters came back to haunt the narrative, how every person had substance and importance, how every action held repercussions. What I loved most was the cyclical nature of the story; everything came back to the beginning, ended as it began, everything felt whole and one. It was all so incredibly well thought out. I can't wait to read more of Patel's works!

I promise. I will return, and I will sit on your banks once more.

Thank you Orbit for an arc in exchange for an honest review. 

Clockwork Princess by Cassandra Clare

adventurous medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

Mort by Terry Pratchett

adventurous funny hopeful lighthearted reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

4/5

History has a habit of changing the people who think they are changing it.

I loved my first adventure into Terry Pratchett's Discworld! I adore any book that features a personified Death, and the weird, whacky, wonderfulness of this world is so much fun to read about! I can't wait to read more! (Also, the audiobook was absolutely incredible, I'd highly recommend it.) 

The Death Cure by James Dashner

adventurous emotional medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix

3.5

3.5/5

"Please, Tommy. Please." will always haunt me.

(This series is a lot better in my memory than upon reread, nostalgia does so much heavy lifting as well as my memories of how likeable the characters were in the films. I know it's a bookish crime, but I honestly think I prefer the films, sorry!) 

Pandora's Jar: Women in the Greek Myths by Natalie Haynes

informative reflective medium-paced

3.75

3.75/5

It seems that Clytemnestra seals her own fate when she values her daughter’s life equally to the life of a king.

Clytemnestra, they could never make me hate you!