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Boyfriend Material by Alexis Hall — book review
Boyfriend Material reads less like fiction than fanfiction. No one acts their age, we have an exceedingly angsty protagonist, a plethora of silly side characters who express themselves using a Tumblresque sort of lingo, unlikely interactions, and a lot tropes. The novel’s sitcom-like structure was predictable and often unfunny. Luc O’Donnell’s friends, colleagues, and acquaintances…
1st pov, 2 STARS, Adult, Alexis Hall, arc, BOOK REVIEWS, Boyfriend Material, British author, cheesy, Contemporary, drama, england, fake dating, gay, HUMOR, Hyped new releases, lgbtq+, LGBTQ+ Author, light reads, m/m, male authors, netgalley, published in 2020, read in 2020, rom-coms, ROMANCE, summer reads, why the hype -
The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins — book review
It’s a yikes from me. Did the world really need The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes? I think not. Full of unnecessary exposition and weighed down by self-indulgent fanservice, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes is a train-wreck of a novel. The story lacks rhyme or reason, things happen only to advance the plot (regardless…
1 STAR, 3rd pov, AMERICAN AUTHOR, anti-hero, books i hate, Coriolanus Snow, DEATH, dystopia, female authors, hunger games, Hyped new releases, morality, prequels, published in 2020, read in 2020, SCI-FI, SPECULATIVE FICTION, survival, Suzanne Collins, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, the hunger games, thg, violence, YOUNG ADULT -
Exciting Times by Naoise Dolan — book review
“I felt I had hitherto woefully misdirected my energies in attempting to cultivate a personality. If you didn’t have one then that left more room for everyone else’s.” With so many professional reviewers hailing Exciting Times as one of the best debut novels of 2020, praising Naoise Dolan for her wit and her razor-sharp social…
1st pov, 2.5 STARS, ALIENATION, ambiguous protagonist, BISEXUAL/PANSEXUAL, BOOK REVIEW, Booklr, cheating, Contemporary, contemporary malaise, Dublin, Exciting Times, existentialism, f/f, female authors, hong kong, Hyped new releases, introspective, IRELAND, IRISH AUTHOR, language, lgbtq+, LGBTQ+ Author, millennial, mumblecore, Naoise Dolan, navel gazing, Neurodiversity, published in 2020, queer, read in 2020, reading, REVIEWS, ROMANCE, sapphic, teachers -
The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern — book review
secret libraries + magical doors + stories within stories within stories = my kind of book “A boy at the beginning of a story has no way of knowing that the story has begun.” This is the type of book that readers will either love or hater. Its playful style and recursive storytelling are definitely…
3.75 stars, academia, Adult, adventure, America, American, AMERICAN AUTHOR, big books, BOOK REVIEWS, Booklr, books about books, Erin Morgenstern, FAIRY TALES, FANTASY, female authors, Hyped new releases, lgbtq+, librarians, libraries/bookshops, m/m, MAGIC, MAGICAL DOORS, MAGICAL REALISM, metafiction, New England, NEW YORK, portal fantasy, published in 2019, queer, READ IN 2019, story within a story, The Starless Sea, UNIVERSITY/COLLEGE -
The Man Who Saw Everything by Deborah Levy — book review
For readers in want of an incisive and creative account of life in East Germany, I strongly recommend picking up something by Christa Wolf. I think that from now on I might stick to Deborah Levy‘s non-fiction. While I’m glad to see that many of my friends and other readers were able to enjoy this…
1980s, 1st pov, 3 STARS, bad love, Berlin, BISEXUAL/PANSEXUAL, booker longlist 2019, British author, cheating, cold war, Deborah Levy, east and west germany, england, existentialism, female authors, feverish, Germany, historians, Hyped new releases, illness, introspective, Jewish, lgbtq+, LITERARY FICTION, LONDON, mental health, paranoia, published in 2019, READ IN 2019, SEXUALITY, stylised prose, surreal, The Man Who Saw Everything, why the hype -
Gods of Jade and Shadow by Silvia Moreno-Garcia — book review
In spite of the beautiful attention that Gods of Jade and Shadow pays to the function of myths and deities in our everyday lives…this turned out to be an unexpectedly juvenile read… The swift storytelling found in Gods of Jade and Shadow might not appeal to those readers who prefer slower and more in depth…
1920s, 2.5 STARS, 20th century, 3rd pov, Adult, adventure, Canadian Mexican author, FANTASY, female authors, FOLKLORE, gods, Gods of Jade and Shadow, HISTORICAL FICTION, Hyped new releases, MAGICAL REALISM, Mexico, myths, published in 2019, READ IN 2019, RETELLINGS, ROMANCE, Silvia Moreno-Garcia, why the hype, YOUNG ADULT -
The Body in Question by Jill Ciment — book review
“A flirtation would make the sequestered nights more interesting. ” This was an interesting novella that reminded me of some short stories by Joyce Carol Oates. There is this sense of unease which permeates the narrative as well as a growing sense of foreboding. The writing style is intentionally detached, for instance addressing two of…
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Bunny: A Novel by Mona Awad — book review
There are those bizarre and experimental books that manage to be entertaining, transgressive, and on occasion even thought-provoking. And then, there are books like Bunny whose weirdness largely rests on overusing the word bunny(which appears approximately 350 times, one time too many). An intentionally silly story that owes more to Scream Queens and The Babysitter…
2 STARS, academia, America, BOOK REVIEW, Booklr, books about books, books about writers, BOOKS ON WRITING, bunny, bunny: a novel, campus, canada, canadian author, cliques, Contemporary, dark academia, dark humor, female authors, feverish, heathers, horrible friends, HORROR, Hyped new releases, mona awad, New England, playful style, published in 2019, rant review, READ IN 2019, REVIEW, style over character, stylised prose, UNIVERSITY/COLLEGE, weird fiction, why the hype
luce [is reading] 