Very readable and compact sci-fi horror space novella. I can see why people enjoyed this book for the tense atmosphere it creates within a relatively Very readable and compact sci-fi horror space novella. I can see why people enjoyed this book for the tense atmosphere it creates within a relatively short page count. For me, I wanted more character depth – without that it was difficult for me to feel invested in our protagonist and her crew. It was a quick read though and glad I tried it based on my bestie’s favorable review....more
Oof, this one was a big miss for me. I think it’s important to explore the devastating impacts of climate change, and I felt mildly intrigued by the tOof, this one was a big miss for me. I think it’s important to explore the devastating impacts of climate change, and I felt mildly intrigued by the theme of should I stay or should I go from the main character’s perspective. However, I found the writing style pretentious and florid for the sake of it, almost like moody to try and get me to feel something instead of flowing more naturally from the character’s psychology. Each dramatic “reveal” from the main character’s past felt forced and inauthentic to me. Her unreliability came across more as a way to delay readers from knowing things instead of as something more psychologically relevant. I can see what the author was going for in terms of the effects of traumatic events on one’s sense of self, though it all felt heavy-handed to me....more
This book contains interesting and important messages about environmental racism and classism. I can appreciate that Stephen Kearse tried to do somethThis book contains interesting and important messages about environmental racism and classism. I can appreciate that Stephen Kearse tried to do something narratively different by avoiding a more linear or traditional storytelling method. Unfortunately, I found the book a bit difficult to follow plot-wise and at times even character-wise due to the more eclectic and unique writing style. Perhaps those who are more into speculative fiction as well as dark comedy may enjoy this book more than I did....more
Unfortunately I found this book quite underwhelming and disappointing. First, I felt that the prose was bland. The characters, while distinct enough tUnfortunately I found this book quite underwhelming and disappointing. First, I felt that the prose was bland. The characters, while distinct enough that I could tell them apart, all sounded super similar. The writing lacked a vitality or a more original flavor that would have helped me feel more invested in the story.
I also didn’t quite understand the purpose of the strings dystopia setup. Beyond the prose making a potentially interesting premise fall flat, it seemed to me that Nikki Erlick wanted to make the strings stand-in as a metaphor for another form of discrimination, like racism or sexism or homophobia (e.g., discrimination against short stringers is like other forms of oppression). I don’t think this premise added anything new or interesting to the conversation about societal oppression though. Furthermore, I felt that the book did an awful job of addressing how the string situation would actually affect people of color, LGBTQ+ communities, fat people, etc. – it felt like the story glossed over these important junctions for more shallow-level commentary. Wish I had more positive things to say but hopefully I’ll read something worth hyping up soon!...more
I liked the overall message of this novel about the scrutiny and sexist expectations mothers face in contemporary society. Aside from that though, I fI liked the overall message of this novel about the scrutiny and sexist expectations mothers face in contemporary society. Aside from that though, I found The School for Good Mothers a chore to read. First, the plot seemed like such a mess to me. The novel’s synopsis notes that it focuses on upper-middle-class parenting, which is fine, but women of different class backgrounds were lumped in together in this dystopian school system as if their “crimes” or mistakes were the same?? As Samantha writes about cogently in her review, child separation and revoking parental rights does occur especially for Black and brown mothers so it felt odd and underdeveloped for this to serve as the premise of this novel. The plot didn’t make sense; I get that dystopia requires some suspension of disbelief, though so many random things happened that I found myself flipping pages just to get through to the end.
Jessamine Chan’s writing also felt dry and repetitive. The characters came across as one-dimensional. I think Chan made an honest attempt at portraying some of the racial injustices Black and Latinx mothers face as well as the specific microaggressions experienced by Asian American women, though the racial element of the book didn’t feel richly explored and stayed on the surface level. Our main character, Frida, is angry at white people at times (totally understandable) yet predominantly dates white men, and this tension isn’t interrogated in any deep way. Overall, ugh, a lot of promise, and I can see why this book is popular, but it didn’t impress me....more
A book with great heart even though the execution did not wow me. I loved the representation of a young Asian trans girl, Katrina Nguyen, who runs awaA book with great heart even though the execution did not wow me. I loved the representation of a young Asian trans girl, Katrina Nguyen, who runs away from her biological family and finds acceptance, support, and love from her chosen family. Seeing an older person unconditionally accept Katrina felt powerful, and the overall happy ending of this novel is a welcome change from LGBTQ+ stories that often end in tragedy.
I unfortunately just didn’t love the writing style of this book. The perspective/narrator often changed in the middle of scenes and conversations and left me wanting a more consistent throughline. The science fiction elements felt both confusing and too convenient for my tastes. I found it difficult to feel invested in these characters beyond my appreciation of how they represented trans and queer liberation and joy. While I didn’t love Light from Uncommon Stars I hope it helps usher in more trans POC narratives....more
Interesting premise and important commentary about anti-Black racism, state violence, and the prison industrial complex in the United States. I felt aInteresting premise and important commentary about anti-Black racism, state violence, and the prison industrial complex in the United States. I felt a bit confused by the narrative because there were so many characters which made the plot difficult to follow. Still, I appreciate Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah for trying something different even with some themes that have been explored previously in social justice-centered fiction and nonfiction....more
The reviews of this book seem polarizing and unfortunately I fall on the negative side. I think one could generally describe the plot as lesbian necroThe reviews of this book seem polarizing and unfortunately I fall on the negative side. I think one could generally describe the plot as lesbian necromancers take on dark foes, featuring eerie politics and lots of sword fighting. Despite how exciting this premise may sound, I found the writing pretty flat and repetitive. Gideon didn’t come across as a dynamic character to me – while she’s energetic and agentic, I don’t think her internal world was described with much depth or nuance. Her dynamic with Harrow, the other main character, felt predictable to me. Finally, I struggled to grasp or care about the worldbuilding, and Tamsyn Muir introduces a ton of characters throughout the book that pop in and out in ways that didn’t leave much of an impression to me. We’ll see how my next read goes!...more
Unfortunately I didn’t vibe with this book. The premise of encountering different beasts throughout the fictional Chinese city of Yong’an was interestUnfortunately I didn’t vibe with this book. The premise of encountering different beasts throughout the fictional Chinese city of Yong’an was interesting, though I felt like the plot’s slow pacing bored me. I also never got a full grasp of the protagonist’s character or the character of her love interest, the professor. Thus, all their interactions made me feel kind of “eh” and unamused throughout the book. Magical realism/science fiction has to be executed in a certain way (e.g., centering character development) for me to enjoy it and Strange Beasts of China and I didn’t fit well together....more
Okay not to be a Mean Mark but I literally don't know what happened in this novel. I got some sense that the prose is pretty, though none of the charaOkay not to be a Mean Mark but I literally don't know what happened in this novel. I got some sense that the prose is pretty, though none of the characters stood out to me, the time travel device didn’t convince me, and the plot didn’t gel together for me at all. I’m not being negative for the sake of it I just didn’t understand, and felt that it would take too much purposeful effort to try and understand.
I think my reviews have been more on the lukewarm to negative side in this latter half of 2022 which is sad. I hope to read more amazing books soon so I can fill my feed with positivity! Anyway, I’ll post my top ten books of 2022 on my blog sometime in the next few days, so stay tuned....more
Yeah I did not enjoy reading this book. I found the characters too difficult to keep track of and the writing over-intellectualized instead of emotionYeah I did not enjoy reading this book. I found the characters too difficult to keep track of and the writing over-intellectualized instead of emotionally resonant. While I think the theme of technology and how it influences our lives is interesting, I felt disconnected from these characters given the many jumps in perspectives which precluded me from investing more deeply in the book’s theme or its characters. Perhaps if I had really slowed down and spent a ton of time on every chapter, I would’ve made more links between the points of view and thus understood the novel more, however, I don’t necessarily think it’s always on the reader to do that heavy lifting. Onto the next!...more
This book started off interesting though I got bored with it over time. How High We Go in the Dark contains several interconnected stories in a world This book started off interesting though I got bored with it over time. How High We Go in the Dark contains several interconnected stories in a world ravaged by a climate change-induced pandemic. We follow protagonists including a man who works at a euthanasia park for terminally ill children, a scientist who finds a second chance at fatherhood when a pig in his lab develops human speech, a father searching for his daughter who prioritized her environmental justice work over her family, and more. Common themes include a search for connection and the decisions people make at the end of the world.
The first few stories in this collection touched my heart. Sequoia Nagamatsu also conveys interesting concepts throughout How High We Go in the Dark. However, over time I felt that the emotional atmosphere of the stories got repetitive – they’re sad and gloomy though they don’t approach sadness and gloominess in particularly striking ways, at least as a whole. I agree with this Goodreads reviewer that several of the characters felt more like concepts than fully fleshed-out protagonists. I liked the majority Asian cast and the themes of environmental devastation, even if I did want more overall....more
I found Jacqueline Harpman’s execution of her dystopian world believable and compelling. 39 women trapped in an underground cage, with no notion of tiI found Jacqueline Harpman’s execution of her dystopian world believable and compelling. 39 women trapped in an underground cage, with no notion of time or how they got there. We follow the 40th prisoner, a young girl who sits outcast in the corner until their group of 40 escapes into the aboveground strange world that awaits them.
Harpman’s writing made the events in this book feel scary and important. Her prose is ominous, sparse yet vivid enough to create a satisfyingly creepy atmosphere. Harpman raises interesting questions here: what would a world without men look like? What makes life meaningful when we strip our day-to-day existence to the bare minimum? To what extent can relationships with others satisfy us even in situations of despair?
My only disappointment of the novel was that I felt like it didn’t make enough of a point for me to feel fully content with how it ended. It’s open-ended, perhaps intentionally so, though I interpreted that open-endedness and lack of a more direct message as a kind of copout. Still, I think this book would be fun to discuss with folks, is thought-provoking, and is assured in its execution on the sentence-level....more
I liked the representation of queer people and people of color in The Space Between Worlds, as well as the themes related to privilege, power, and oppI liked the representation of queer people and people of color in The Space Between Worlds, as well as the themes related to privilege, power, and oppression. Unfortunately, other than that I didn’t find much else to appreciate. The worldbuilding and plot were extremely confusing to me and the writing felt stiff and forced. Keeping this review concise so I can move onto my next read!...more
Ugh, I just didn’t get this one. I found the stories about the separated lovers melodramatic and vague – to me, it felt like reading about two disemboUgh, I just didn’t get this one. I found the stories about the separated lovers melodramatic and vague – to me, it felt like reading about two disembodied souls speaking to one another, without us as readers getting a firmer sense of their environment or the context and history of their relationship. The second story confused the heck out of me. I’m giving this a generous three stars because maybe others who enjoy translated works as well as science fiction would understand these works of fiction more....more
Hanya Yanagihara, queen of writing controversial as f*ck books and also of breaking my heart. When I finished part three of To Paradise 30 minutes agoHanya Yanagihara, queen of writing controversial as f*ck books and also of breaking my heart. When I finished part three of To Paradise 30 minutes ago I literally lied down on the floor of my apartment and stared at the ceiling because I felt so, so amazed by this section of the book. While I found the quality of Yanagihara’s prose incredible throughout all the book’s sections, unfortunately other aspects of part one and part two either fell flat or outright offended me. To assign a rating of each section of To Paradise, I’m thinking: part one: 3 stars, part two: 1 star, part three: 5 stars. I’ll give my reaction to each section below followed by overall thoughts on what I’m confident will be a provocative novel for almost all who read it.
Part one takes place in 1893 America, New York, in an alternate world where gay and lesbian folks are free to love whomever they want, at least on the surface. We follow a wealthy man from a distinguished family resist a suitor of comparable means for a charming and impoverished music teacher. I found this section entertaining and frustrating. I felt the alternative, gay and lesbian-friendly society fascinating to explore and Yanagihara’s writing mesmerizing. However, the characterization of our protagonist, David, annoyed the heck out of me. While Yanagihara writes so well that I did feel some basic sympathy for him, he overall baffled me with his passivity, lack of agency, and inability to find any self-worth without the love of a romantic partner. My main reaction after finishing this section: “okay that was pleasant but what was the point of this.”
Part two takes place in 1993 Manhattan besieged by the AIDS pandemic. I’ll be frank: I hated this section of the novel. I almost never give 1 star ratings to books on Goodreads, however if this section of the novel stood on its own I’d give it 1 star without hesitation. The plot follows a young Hawaiian man in a romantic relationship with a rich older white man, and Yanagihara’s construction of their relationship offended me so much. I’m not Hawaiian, so I definitely want to respect actual queer Hawaiian folks’ perspective on this part of the book, though as a queer Vietnamese American man, I felt that she brought to life the worst stereotypes about queer Asian and Pacific Islander men in this section (e.g., we’re passive and submissive, we’re obsessed with white gay men, etc.) Our protagonist in part two is also named David and he turns his back both on his Hawaiian heritage and his female best friend Eden, an Asian woman, for a rich white man who works at the same office as him, for what?? She also includes fatphobic language and an anti-Black description of a Black character in ways that weren’t addressed at all and felt unnecessary. While this section includes some somewhat intriguing reflections on colonization, these themes did not amount to anything substantial enough to merit the oppressive parts. My main reaction after finishing this section: “well that was awful, at least she gave us A Little Life I guess, there’s no way I’m going to give To Paradise more than 2 stars after this mess.”
Part three takes place in 2093 in a world overrun by plagues and governed by totalitarian rule. We witness a renowned scientist’s granddaughter try to navigate life without him, in a society with strict rules about what you can say, think, and feel. This section of To Paradise riveted me, stunned me, and reminded me that Yanagihara is truly the same writer who wrote the tour de force A Little Life. So many amazing elements came together to create magic: this on-the-edge-of-your-seat, I-need-to-turn-the-pages-faster dystopian thriller sense of concern about the granddaughter’s life and wellbeing, the flashbackwards and flashforwards that describe in such rich quality both her life and her grandfather’s life, and the immense love that her grandfather feels for her coupled with his own complicity in oppression and wrongdoing. The epistolary element within this section, in which the grandfather writes to a beloved friend living abroad, worked so freaking well and cemented my love for how Yanagihara cares for and writes about friendship. My main reaction after finishing this section: “I’m going to go lie down on the floor to recover from what just happened to me, also if not for part two I’d give this book four stars as a whole.”
As you can tell from this already 740-word long review, this book elicited so many strong emotions from me. I’m pretty sure Yanagihara can evoke these feelings from me and other readers in large part because of the sheer quality of her prose. She has this way of making you connect so deeply with characters’ feelings and thoughts, such as through noticing the smallest yet most important details about how they interact or speak with other characters, as well as how they feel about themselves. She possesses at top-notch talent for crafting impeccably precise and impeccable sentences that either entrance you to read more or knock the wind out of you (reading the last pages of part three I actually felt like someone had punched me in the stomach in a great way.) There’s a lot of wild stuff that happens in To Paradise, like a reenvisioning of American history and a future envisioning of the world where we’re struck by plague after plague. At the same time she’s still able to center the narrative on the highs and lows of human emotion and relationships: connection and friendship and sex, disconnection and loneliness and death, and how our pasts and systems of power like class and race inextricably affect us.
A lot of books I give 3 stars because I felt that they were fine, like enjoyable though not that riveting or exciting. I give To Paradise 3 stars because I feel so divided by it, like I both loved it and hated it. I wouldn’t necessarily recommend the book, though I also wouldn’t not recommend the book. I loved Yanagihara’s A Little Life because of how Yanagihara captured what it’s like to live with PTSD and to experience both negative and positive relationships. I felt like parts one and two of To Paradise portrayed more of the negative aspects of relationships without much for readers to grab onto and root for, like the characters and their relationships either came across as passive or problematic. However, part three of this book highlighted to me the power and force of human yearning and affection, how these elements of our psyche can do both great harm and great good. As I’m processing while writing this review though, I almost wonder if the structure of this novel represents how maybe sometimes it takes multiple generations of life to pass before someone is able to or at least tries to be able to break cycles of pain and/or trauma. I felt Yanagihara’s repetition of character names effective in proving how emotions of loneliness, longing, and connection persist again and again throughout multiple iterations of the human experience. I do feel like part three built on the momentum of parts one and two and provided richer depth into the burgeoning themes of isolation and interconnection.
I’m gonna go work out so I can restore my body’s sense of equilibrium after this whop of a novel, lol. I’m so curious to read what others think of this one, especially because I’ve felt so appreciative of folks’ responses to my review of A Little Life. Also, I know Yanagihara has received criticism about writing so much from gay men’s perspectives from someone who is not a gay man. While I generally agree with these critiques, I won’t write more about it here because this review is already so long. However, for an #ownvoices queer male of color perspective, I’d also highly recommend the superb novel Tell Me How to Be by Neel Patel which came out late in 2021!...more
Enjoyed the queerness throughout this short story collection as well as the Indigenous representation! Also felt fascinated by the themes of nature anEnjoyed the queerness throughout this short story collection as well as the Indigenous representation! Also felt fascinated by the themes of nature and environmental devastation, what constitutes a utopia versus a dystopia, and AI rights. I did find myself lost in several of the stories after the first two, wanting a bit more in-depth exposure to the characters before jumping into some twisty plots. However I would still recommend to those interested in the voices and stories of Indigenous, queer, and Two-Spirit writers and characters....more
Good book though not a great fit for me. Reading Black Sun reminded me a lot of my experience reading The Fifth Season by N.K. Jemisin. While I recognGood book though not a great fit for me. Reading Black Sun reminded me a lot of my experience reading The Fifth Season by N.K. Jemisin. While I recognize the quality of the world-building, this type of epic fantasy rarely appeals to me if the characters are not compelling and well-developed.
I appreciated the novel’s world-building in that it is inspired by the pre-Columbian cultures of the Americas. I also enjoyed the inclusion of LGBTQ+ individuals, in particular characters who are a third gender and use xe/xir pronouns. This representation felt sensitive and smoothly incorporated without drawing undue attention to itself for the sake of it.
I just couldn’t connect with the characters in Black Sun. We follow three main storylines with different characters in varying levels of precarity and danger. Unfortunately I didn’t feel much suspense in any of their situations and these characters’ internal worlds did not draw me in. I felt like a solid amount happened plot-wise yet these characters’ relationships and inner feelings and emotions were not developed as much as I would’ve liked. If you’re a fan of fantasy I’d recommend reading other reviews to assess if this book may be a good fit for you, despite my lack of enthusiasm....more
Ugh I dislike writing negative reviews of books by queer BIPOC authors so I’m gonna try to make this one quick. I appreciated the nonproblematic repreUgh I dislike writing negative reviews of books by queer BIPOC authors so I’m gonna try to make this one quick. I appreciated the nonproblematic representation in The Weight of the Stars, ranging from the Black lesbian romance to the polyamorous parental relationship to the prominent Sikh character. Reading the author’s note, I liked how K. Ancrum cared for characters and how they represented people confronting their issues and overcoming their problems through love, knowing their worth, and connection.
I unfortunately just did not like the writing or the character development in The Weight of the Stars at all. For the first 120 pages, I felt so confused by the plot – why is this group of characters throwing rocks at Alexandria? Then, why would Alexandria’s father allow one of the characters who threw rocks at her daughter into his household so easily, as well as into his daughter’s room? Also, why and how did Alexandria and Ryann become friends after that incident? Beyond the first 120 pages, a lot of the main plot events occurred through telling and not showing, which manifested in long bits of dialogue that explained backstory as well as the current ongoing conflicts. Finally, I felt that Ryann and Alexandria’s characters were lacking in complexity. As another character put it, they both have an angry surface, a nice core, and yet I didn’t feel or see the emotional nuances of their connection with one another, their grief processes, or their evolution throughout the story.
Ancrum’s book The Wicker King looks similarly enticing from its description yet I’m unsure whether to read it after my experience with this novel. Any thoughts on that quandary are appreciated. I hope I can get to a five-star book soon as I haven’t read one for about over a month now....more
This book had an interesting premise and message though the characters left me wanting more. In An Excess Male, Maggie Shen King envisions a China wheThis book had an interesting premise and message though the characters left me wanting more. In An Excess Male, Maggie Shen King envisions a China where due to the One Child Policy, near 40 million men struggle to find wives and women can take multiple husbands. We follow one family where Hann, a gay man, and XX, his disabled brother, are both married to May-ling, who wants to take a third husband, Wei-guo. We follow the fallout that ensues when various members of this arrangement try to resist the oppression enforced upon them by their dictatorial government.
I will start by saying I liked the messages about the heteronormative nuclear family and the pressures related to childbearing in this novel. Are we useful if we aren’t contributing to a nuclear family in some form? Shen King interrogates this question well and explores the consequences of straying from what society expects of us.
That said, I found the characters pretty weakly-drawn in this novel. I felt like they each experienced some form of marginalization, though beyond that lacked richer nuance or depth. An Excess Male also contains an action side plot where I read it and was like… I don’t understand what the point of this is. Also, why was one of the more femme/ostentatious gay men one of the most villainous characters?? Still, I’m looking forward to discussing this book with my Asian American book club....more
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