sorted by year & most recently read

The Secret History Donna Tartt

Honestly .. disappointed. I'd read the first 3 chapters of this book during the pandemic, then recently my friend lent me her copy so I decided to really finish it this time. I was pretty excited since I remembered liking what I had read, but after finishing it I did kinda realize it's a very meh book.

I think Donna Tartt is a very powerful writer, and her prose in this work is so beautiful, but that's about the extent of it. After chapter 4 (where the gang kills bunny) nothing else really happens. Sure there's something to be said about how it's rich kids killing rich kids and all the non-consequence of that, but otherwise there's not as much substance as I was expecting.

Pros: the prose is beautiful, absolutely phenomenal. I can't talk for her other works but in the Secret History Donna Tartt manages to distract you from the fact that nothing's going on by just writing about that nothing so well. The setting is beautiful, the concept intriguing.

Cons: essentially every character is a stereotype of some sort. Richard is the fish-out-of-water protagonist, thrust into this amazing world with so many secrets to discover. Julian is the mysterious, misunderstood genius professor, Henry is his protege, equally mysterious and misunderstood. Charles is the right-hand, the macho-man of the group. Francis is gay. Camilla is the girl. And that's it. Another major con for me is that the book should've been a novella. It should have ended on chapter 4 with Bunny's murder and not gone on longer. The last 2 chapters especially were beautiful to read but agonizing to get through, like watching someone past their prime on a struggling ventilator trying to hold on.

All in all I would only recommend this book if you're interested in Tartt's raw writing ability, otherwise your time would be better spent watching the Hunger Games or something.

Circe Madeline Miller

Oh my god ..

First of all I am actually already a massive fan of Miller exclusively because of The Song of Achilles (highly recommend). I've been planning to read this book for a while and after finishing Babel I figured I was on a roll and might as well. I'm so shit at writing reviews but anyway. I'm such a sucker for "humanity-based" stories and Circe does such a great job at that. TSOA was all about Achilles' godhood and Patroclus' love but imho Circe is entirely just, love for humanity.

No idea what else to say though besides I think Circe should have ended up with Penelope.

This Is How You Lose The Time WarAmal El-Mohtar & Max Gladstone

finished 21.02.2025

This book is really a novella which I can really only describe as sci-fi Grffin & Sabine. This has been on my reading list for quite some time now, and after finishing the Poppy War I just wanted to read something short that wouldn't shatter my soul. Unfortunately this book did shatter me too.

This Is How You Lose The Time War is pretty weird to start reading if you're not entirely familiar with the premise. I had already seen a review of it way before so I knew what I was getting into. For me the greatest strength of this book is really the prose. When being a soldier is all you've ever known and you're fighting a war spanning millenium, then of course once you can truly speak to someone all your words come out as poetry. It's 10 am right now and I'm not really awake but whatever.

Personally though I don't see myself rereading this too much. It was really good on first read because the prose is just so beautiful and really will gut you, but once you know how it ends there's not much more to it. For me it really was a one-hit wonder kind of book. Otherwise though I really do recommend it if just to experience the beauty of the world El-Mohtar and Gladstone created.

The Burning God RF Kuang

started 05.02.25, finished 07.02.2025

ACTUAL SPOILERS AHEAD

So basically ... Rin dies at the end. A friend of mine (who got me into the series in the first place) told me that when I was about to start the Burning God. Halfway through the book it clicked: Rin's death is the only way this story can end. Time and time again the trilogy reinforced this idea that Rin was just a soldier. She wasn't meant to be a leader like Altan was, wasn't a great startegist like Kitay, and could never be noble like Nezha. She was just a weapon, plain and simple. And at the end when Rin realizes the only way for her people to live is for her to die she sacrifices herself, like a good soldier would.

Rin's journey was such a treat to read especially in this book. The world of the Poppy War is so beautiful and coupled with Rin's unreliable storytelling I was entirely hooked. I'm so in love with these books and I'm really looking forward to starting Babel.

The Dragon Republic RF Kuang

started 02.02.25, finished 05.02.2025

Rin and Nezha .. a love story for the ages actually. I feel like I have nothing to say besides gushing about how good this was. Rin's story is just so tragic and yeah she's a horrible person sometimes but she did what she could. Fang Runin my pookie.

Okay but for real, The Dragon Republic was such a gorgeous continuation of the first book. RF Kuang weaves all these storylines so well, every character has such clear motivations and drives and they will all stop at nothing to get what they want. Personally the worldbuilding alone is reason enough to love this trilogy. The way Kuang takes inspiration from real life events and instills the absolute horrors of war is so satisfying to read.

I don't really have much else to say about this book. The whole Poppy War trilogy is just so amazing and I'll definitely be revisiting it soon.

The Poppy War RF Kuang

started 30.01.25, finished 02.02.2025

I'm going to be so fr, I absolutely devoured this book in 3 days. A friend of mine had been talking about it since the start of January, then at some point I got curious while at school, downloaded the pdf, and now I'm obsessed. I haven't read a book this fast in a good two years and it feels so good to be so into something again.

Right now I have wayyy too many thoughts and I'm going a little crazy. It's just too good. The way this book talks about the atrocities of war, as well the desperation of a soldier is just soooo... you know? The writing is quite simple and really easy to read, but some chapters are just so earth-shattering and the entire Golyn Niis part absolutely wrecked me.

Rin's absolute desperation toward the end was written so beatifully, and all the characters are so wonderful. The blend of high fantasy and east asian elements is so refreshing. The Poppy War is essentially a massive war epic full of magic and shamanism, and I cannot wait to read The Dragon Republic

The Truth Machine (1996) James L. Halperin

12.2024

So ... The Truth Machine. I started reading this book around the start of December during tech week for a ballet production. We had long breaks especially while they were still making sets so I asked my dad to recommend a book to keep me occupied.

This book has been very interesting. The concepts and issues it explores are pretty cool, but my main thought while reading was that it was pretty .. soulless. About halfway through when they finally finish building the truth machine, a.k.a the perfect lie detector, humanity basically eradicates all crime and corruption. Children become smarter overall as an average, and the entire population becomes more logical. As in, everyone basically turns into Vulcans. I guess in a way it's pretty cool, but even Vulcans could lie, you know.

The Truth Machine focuses mainly on the political and economic impact of the lie detector, but I can't help but wonder how a perfect lie detector would affect the realms of art. The repurcussions of lying in this world are all man-made, but how does the affect of the truth machine on the world's psyche affect the creation of art, like film or writing, and on culture as a whole?

Writing-wise, it's pretty good. Quite easy to get through even though sometimes the author goes way too in-depth into the specifics of the stock market or the American legal system.