Kiwiria's February Fictions
Mar. 1st, 2018 03:47 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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christianreaderOnly five books this month, but I've also read 3 novel-length fanfics which took quite a lot of time away from my "normal" reading ;)
We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves - Karen Joy Fowler, 2/5, 308 pages
Unfortunately I was really disappointed by this book. I didn't care for the writing style, the twist seemed pointless and the plot almost non-existing. I thought it was going to go somewhere interesting, but then it just fizzled into an anti-climatic non-ending.
I had had high hopes, as everybody seems to rave about this book, but unfortunately it could only just make it to "okay" for me, and I'll probably end up passing my copy along to someone else.
Tempest - Julia Cross, 3/5, Audiobook ~10hrs
Usually I'm a fan of anything involving time-travel, so after reading the blurb, I was really eager to read this book. Unfortunately it couldn't quite live up to my expectations as the "rules" around the time-travel got really confusing with all the exceptions and variations and what not, and I didn't really warm up to the story until rather late in the book.
I did enjoy the half-jumps Jackson took back to his past once he figured out what he was doing though - especially those where he got to see his sister, and warmed up to 2009 Jackson as well, once things started clearing up and coming to a climax. So at the end, I did like the book, but found it nicely contained, so I have no need to read the rest of the series.
A Gentleman in Moscow - Amor Towles, 4.5/5, 482 pages
What a brilliant book! Not your usual "comfort read", but I'd still characterize it as such. With very few exceptions, I loved all of the characters, finding them charming or interesting or both! It's a fun "Robinson Crusoe"-type book about a man who has to learn how to make a single hotel his entire life. I enjoyed reading how he managed to define a place for himself, and how he made friends - and even family - among the employees and guests of the hotel.
Unlike any book I've ever read before, but I greatly enjoyed it.
Garden Spells - Sarah Addison Allen*, 4.5/5, 306 pages
I enjoyed this just as much the second time around, but I actually think this is one of those rare books that are better when experienced as an audiobook than when read yourself.
I still loved it though :)
Enchantment - Orson Scott Card*, 5/5, 422 pages
Enchantment is a delightful fantasy - mixing a well-known fairytale with time-travel and descriptions of what comes after "happily ever after". It was every bit as good as on my first readthrough. I'd forgotten most of the plot other than the very broad strokes and loved visiting the story again.
Book of the Month: A Gentleman in Moscow. Really brilliant book!
Biggest disappointment: We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves
We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves - Karen Joy Fowler, 2/5, 308 pages
Unfortunately I was really disappointed by this book. I didn't care for the writing style, the twist seemed pointless and the plot almost non-existing. I thought it was going to go somewhere interesting, but then it just fizzled into an anti-climatic non-ending.
I had had high hopes, as everybody seems to rave about this book, but unfortunately it could only just make it to "okay" for me, and I'll probably end up passing my copy along to someone else.
Tempest - Julia Cross, 3/5, Audiobook ~10hrs
Usually I'm a fan of anything involving time-travel, so after reading the blurb, I was really eager to read this book. Unfortunately it couldn't quite live up to my expectations as the "rules" around the time-travel got really confusing with all the exceptions and variations and what not, and I didn't really warm up to the story until rather late in the book.
I did enjoy the half-jumps Jackson took back to his past once he figured out what he was doing though - especially those where he got to see his sister, and warmed up to 2009 Jackson as well, once things started clearing up and coming to a climax. So at the end, I did like the book, but found it nicely contained, so I have no need to read the rest of the series.
A Gentleman in Moscow - Amor Towles, 4.5/5, 482 pages
What a brilliant book! Not your usual "comfort read", but I'd still characterize it as such. With very few exceptions, I loved all of the characters, finding them charming or interesting or both! It's a fun "Robinson Crusoe"-type book about a man who has to learn how to make a single hotel his entire life. I enjoyed reading how he managed to define a place for himself, and how he made friends - and even family - among the employees and guests of the hotel.
Unlike any book I've ever read before, but I greatly enjoyed it.
Garden Spells - Sarah Addison Allen*, 4.5/5, 306 pages
I enjoyed this just as much the second time around, but I actually think this is one of those rare books that are better when experienced as an audiobook than when read yourself.
I still loved it though :)
Enchantment - Orson Scott Card*, 5/5, 422 pages
Enchantment is a delightful fantasy - mixing a well-known fairytale with time-travel and descriptions of what comes after "happily ever after". It was every bit as good as on my first readthrough. I'd forgotten most of the plot other than the very broad strokes and loved visiting the story again.
Book of the Month: A Gentleman in Moscow. Really brilliant book!
Biggest disappointment: We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves
