For a novella titled as such, there’s not much about tea mastery or detective-ing going on in the story. As someone who enjoys both tea and detective For a novella titled as such, there’s not much about tea mastery or detective-ing going on in the story. As someone who enjoys both tea and detective stories, this was disappointing. Plus, the more accurate term used for the drink would be a tisane blend instead of tea, but never mind.
The writing style isn’t for me, and neither were the characters. Then again, this merits an extra star for world-building, if nothing else. ...more
DNF at 31%. Too slow without much plot progression and I don' feel like continuing to read the diary entries of a person who can make the apocalypse sDNF at 31%. Too slow without much plot progression and I don' feel like continuing to read the diary entries of a person who can make the apocalypse sound even more uneventful than the process of paint drying....more
The improbability of having to finish reading Hello! magazine if it included gossipy conversations instead of just photographs of boring high-sociThe improbability of having to finish reading Hello! magazine if it included gossipy conversations instead of just photographs of boring high-society people who venture little beyond their gala dinners and charity lunches.
Technically the writing is sound, though a tad pretentious and very English, but what little charm it had was bogged down by unnecessary characters and lack of a strong central plot.
The voice of the painting came across as a joke, and not a funny one. I personally think giving a smartarse voice to inanimate objects or mythical figures is generally ill-suited beyond children's books.
It's similar to A.S. Byatt's Possession, in that it's a book in love with itself and oblivious to the fact that not everyone might be interested nor impressed with all the frills....more
Wanted to give up halfway due to the borefest of characters, foreshadowing that's obvious to all but the MC (who just A 'thriller' devoid of thrills.
Wanted to give up halfway due to the borefest of characters, foreshadowing that's obvious to all but the MC (who just happened to excel in the tasks required of her, by the way) and convenient plot train.
There is food for thought but it's undermined by the easy coincidences and my inability to empathise with the MC; her feelings were understandable but the plot armour she's wearing just felt like a cop-out most of the time.
I plodded on to the finish line; the ending did redeem the book from being a one-star as the story finally came to a focal point....more
Probably would be a perfect book for teenagers. The extra star is for Libba Bray's amazing reading of her super-long audio book.
The premise is straighProbably would be a perfect book for teenagers. The extra star is for Libba Bray's amazing reading of her super-long audio book.
The premise is straightforward enough - a representative mix of teenage girls are stranded on an island and they have to fend for themselves while awaiting possible rescue, if ever.
By using a group of beauty queens as spokespeople, Libba Bray examines other issues that are often overshadowed by our natural preoccupation with looks. If we put the looks factor aside (something that's difficult to do in real life as of now, let alone for young girls) what are the issues that matter?
It's a semi-educational satire with a generous helping of silly fun. Was amusing in the beginning, but did get bogged down by cliched stereotypes, repetitions and a tad too much hammering of ideas, especially since this jumbo package runs at over something like, 10, 20 hours long. Really for me Libba's superb voice-acting was sometimes the only factor that egged me on to follow through with it.
Plus, there's the Mary Sue-ish and tepid sort of main MC Adina, who in my opinion is the least likeable character of the lot and exists only to move the plot along or for self-projection.
Despite my niggles, I think this could be an important book for teens still exploring their identities, and I'd recommend this heartily to any teen I know. I'd have totally lapped this up in high school.
The audiobook version includes an extra section on how Libba came to writing this book (while discussing over yummy food with David Levithan), a few tidbits on her high school years (she knew a few Taylors in school and was once a cheerleader) and the summer when she had the accident that influenced her ideals significantly, leading her towards her chosen career path. Great fun to listen to, she seemed like such an awesome author and someone you just want to be friends with....more
DNF. I'm in chapter 5 of the audio book and it had all been filler. Maybe there's something of value down the following chapters and if this was a phyDNF. I'm in chapter 5 of the audio book and it had all been filler. Maybe there's something of value down the following chapters and if this was a physical book I'd flip the pages to check the other sections.
The idea that a religion (with an omnipotent Being at the helm) needing overt strategising by humans to become engaging or relevant sounds oxymoronic to me, but maybe the same techniques would apply to non-profit organisations looking to expand their reach and sustainability. Pity I'm not sufficiently enticed to continue listening, even if such practical advice might be present further down.
A Jane Austen novel wannabe masquerading as a Sherlockian novel. Flat characters and no deductive action whatsoever, but the ending was alright, consiA Jane Austen novel wannabe masquerading as a Sherlockian novel. Flat characters and no deductive action whatsoever, but the ending was alright, considering.
Just too many name-dropping and book citations; A S Croyle might have been more suited to a documentary-style historical novel imo. ...more
The premise was interesting but the execution was tedious and the romance plot teetering towards YA without having the fast-paced fun of the genre.
TheThe premise was interesting but the execution was tedious and the romance plot teetering towards YA without having the fast-paced fun of the genre.
The tale started out from the concept of a ghost bride, but soon it meandered into basically an adventure in the underworld as derived from Chinese ancestral beliefs, which was in this story's case an elaborate excuse for a (view spoiler)[paranormal (hide spoiler)] romance.
At no point in the story did Li Lan, the special snowflake MC, actually became a ghost bride, and there were multiple subplots strung together rather than a unifying main plot.
As several reviewers have mentioned, there's also a tad too much telling rather than showing in the story's effort to immerse the reader into the culture.
Plus, many of the underworld tales reeked of an outsider describing a culture they've been studying (even though she's of Malaysian heritage-I'm not talking about her description of old Malacca, but rather the Taoist/Chinese beliefs and customs that formed the basis of the underworld here) but I didn't really mind with the liberties taken, except that the world depicted was not as interesting as I'd been led to believe.
The relationship with the supposed love interest felt questionable at best and distasteful at its worst, at least to me. I did not like the book mainly for the way it handled the main romance pairing and the superficial interpretations of the underworld. However, it was well-written, although again I wasn't too enarmoured with the writing style.
This is still worth reading since there's a dearth of Southeast Asian-based stories out there in English, let alone paranormal ones, and the tale might be of interest to those who are new to or unfamiliar with the culture.
As for me, I'm glad I did not buy the physical book (almost did) but had instead read it off my Scribd subscription service....more
It was mildly intriguing the first couple of pages or so before it unravelled into a dramatized seen-it-before with a cliched cast of characters to boIt was mildly intriguing the first couple of pages or so before it unravelled into a dramatized seen-it-before with a cliched cast of characters to boot.
Putting this in hold till I'm putting on my I-must-finish-this-because-I've-spent-money-on-this hat....more
Like one of the Wilkie Collins books: it's worth reading for its historical significance, perhaps, but its plot and characters were too contrived and Like one of the Wilkie Collins books: it's worth reading for its historical significance, perhaps, but its plot and characters were too contrived and melodramatic for my taste.
At least with Collins the trick was explained plausibly and some of the plot points were interesting, even if they got draggy too. This? Insufferable characters and a damsel in distress painted with glowing colours only through telling and not showing.
I suppose Christine from Leroux' other famous work must be of the same type of character, they seemed pretty much the same save for some tweaks (Even as I enjoyed the musical ).
I would have given this at least a two-star if not for the disappointing reveal at the end; the beginning of the book was promising enough.
I'm not a meticulous mystery reader, I normally don't even mind if the author 'cheated' and withheld information that would've prevented the readers to solve the mystery by themselves. But other mystery greats whose works shot to fame because of this particular device did it well whereas this one just felt like a low blow.
To illustrate, my reaction after the reveal in: A Study in Scarlet: Hmm, cunning, but hats off. The Murder of Roger Ackroyd: Ah, cheeky. The Mystery of the Yellow Room: Geez, seriously.
Maybe something was lost in translation, but from this outing I can tell that I won't be enjoying his other works, due to the characters I'd imagine he had written more than anything. No, not a fan. ...more
The world building was very intricately done and there were some fascinating concepts, but for the most part the writing style was just too boring forThe world building was very intricately done and there were some fascinating concepts, but for the most part the writing style was just too boring for me. I want to dip back into this, but not anytime soon....more
I'm not a trueblue fan of the original Holmes novels, but this fanfic had me seething for the way it pretends to be a detective novel or worse, an altI'm not a trueblue fan of the original Holmes novels, but this fanfic had me seething for the way it pretends to be a detective novel or worse, an alternate world where all the characters are 'superior' versions of the canon.
Snowchild & Blue*: Telepathic Conversations *a.k.a. the ones (in my imagination) roped in to act out the roles of Yukiko and Buruu respectively in Stormdancer.
[image]
::SESSION ONE:: Blue on Buruu, hai.
Snowchild (S): Greetings, Blue-san. Blue (B): Hello again. What a book that had been. --
S: You don't say, sama. B: Just stop with that sama/-hai?/hai, sama blasphemy already. --
S: Apologies, Blue-san. I can't quite yet shrug the habit after being a character in that book for too long. B: Do not assault my ears, please. Is it not enough that I was portrayed as some creature that allows itself to be named by humans? You know, there was this phrase where you were intentionally downplaying our 'connection' by describing me to the enemy as 'no smarter than a dog'. --
S: Oh, what of it? B: Well that was exactly how I felt I was treated, like some pet or 'friend' that humans can control! PAH. It seems K-san does not quite grasp that we, heavenly creatures, do not operate by the codes of Lassie, as they call it in the West. I can see the fantasy here, humans taming some divine beasts by virtue of some special powers. The pet culture is something foreign to one such as myself, if you pardon the pun.
Befriending a special, chosen human being, maybe, but then again I stress, we come with our own names, given by our creators, or elders. Contrary to what others might think, something like Raijin's sons would not be nameless creatures waiting to be named by humans. And after their old pet at that.
Seeing that K-san likes manga, let me show you some reference from Naruto on how a mythical beast thinks: [image]
Another thing. The notion that 'monkey-child' is an insult is absurd if you see it from my point of view. Because you see, our kind would naturally regard both human beings and mere beasts beneath us, the offsprings of Raijin. In the context of the story human beings are even more despicable because of their behaviour with all those lotus fumes. If I were to insult you, I would use human over monkey. Unless, of course, you are taking the point of view of a human being who regards 'monkeys' a species beneath. --
S: I know; do forgive these gaijin authors. Some though might argue that it's okay to tinker around with Japanese culture in these ways because this (Japan-inspired) book is fantasy. B: LOOK. I am not an uptight guardian of Japanese culture (in any case, a griffin is not something out of Asian mythology; surprise, I am a foreigner too! If anything, it is admirable for foreigners to take up other cultures, I think). Some things you can 'tweak', as you say. Some things, you give respect where it belongs. Although, I do admit, respect can be subjective, and that is where it gets murky.
Which leads us back to the hai/sama issue. Say, if sama used singularly can be interpreted as a title instead of an honorific in the story, then consider those who even have a slight inkling of its real-world usage (and this is an existing term in the real world, not something made up; so it does impact people) - whichever character uses it the way you did would come across to such readers as caricaturish, if not ridiculous. If not for us characters, nor the culture, at least give some respect for these readers; just my two kouka. --
::SESSION TWO:: Snowchild (and Blue, again) on Yukiko, and descriptions
S: Speaking of respect...I think I've just about blown it as Yukiko. B: AH. SPEAK NO MORE. A fighting protagonist who cannot do a decent fighting scene without a man or me helping her? A 'strong heroine' who runs to bed with her 'crush' to 'make her forget all the pain'? But you know, for all that, I still like you. You played Yukiko in a way that she is not as annoying as most other YA heroines.
Even though it was still, in essence, how I think most modern teens would behave; admittedly, the setting was 'feudal steampunk Japan(-inspired)'. This Yukiko, she was in the wrong setting and era ahead of her time and no one raised an eyebrow. So, take heart. --
S: It's her, not me. And the male gaze present every time a female character comes into the picture? It makes it a little harder for me to be anything other than a beautiful, alluring vixen (Yukiko's surname is Fox, too. Like Megan Fox, but Japanese). Right, that Hiro. Let me defend myself. Again that's just Yukiko, not me. If it were me, my first instinct on seeing those eyes would've been, 'Huh, a gaijin Iron Samurai?' or 'What weird eyes, he a youkai-kin?' It's not like I've never seen green eyes before, right? The gaijin slaves were all over Kigen City. B: For the record. SEA-GREEN, LIKE JADE. --
S: How could I forget? My gratitudes for reminding me. Oh THE DESCRIPTIONS! I was barely keeping my eyelids open during the early scenes from all the excessive description.
I thought it might be necessary for good world building, but the style of the writing was not helping the cause, I'd say. A pity, because I really like Kigen's overall oriental-ish steampunk look and feel. It might've been better if more perspectives, or plot-linked events, were used to describe Shima rather than just turning into words what seemed like the handycam recordings of a ninja stalker. Wait, ninjas would've recorded more interesting stuff like how to spot hiding ninjas instead of how people's eyes look like polished steel or a gazillion ways in which sea-green eyes could be described visually.
In short, the visual concept is worthy of praise, we just need to train the cameraman and the storyboard director well. --
::SESSION THREE:: Snowchild & Blue discuss Plot and Characters
B: A tighter storyboard would do much good. Had already memorised all my lines while counting the pages before my first appearance. In my mind: GET ON WITH THE PLOT. GET TO THE STORY! (I was in fact dozing when the ship crew spotted me, which was why they managed to hit me with the tranquilizers and caught me) S: I'd say though, the plot itself, although largely predictable, was quite engaging when trimmed of the superfluous documentary. The characters, too, although a tad cliche and simplified, weren't irritating once you get past their 'Aiya' and 'Hai, sama'; their personalities had distinct, if underdeveloped, flavours (Yoritomo in particular, could've been a villain with a purpose instead of a villain with a goal).
The Lotus War itself was mostly brushed over, but perhaps for YA, this would suffice. --
B: I see. To be frank, I am fond of the character Masaru, even taking into account what he did to me (a scene that was written well, in my opinion). He was always there during the important events (me too, but I cannot pick myself) and the scenes, if a little too melodramatic (HUMANS, TYPICAL), always revealed a little something about the man and his personality. His parts at least did not come across as cumbersome, in that sense. S: Thank you, Blue-san. You're always acting mean, but aren't you the softie. --
B: I AM AS I ALWAYS AM. YOU MERELY THOUGHT I WAS MEAN BEFORE YOU REALISED I AM NOT. S: In a way, isn't it so with this book? I'd thought it's Japanese steampunk before I realised it's not quite so. The author must've thought he'd done his best before we realised he could do better.
That is why, even though I don't find the seeming lack of due respect from the author OK, there is also the chance that he is merely unaware of people's opinions, and expectations.
But if he is to earn respect, from detractors or not, I am of the opinion that he'd do well to learn from his own characters.
From Yoritomo:, not to live in one's own world and not consider the dissent of the masses. From Aisha: expose yourself to the realities of the world, and be able to discern the good from the bad of the world you create; and have her courage, even if it meant going against your most dear, to say 'no' to what is not alright.
And from Masaru, learn that, sacrifices have to be made, so that it will all be worth it 'FOR SOMETHING GREATER'.
B: AS SAID FROM MY VERY BEAK.
======================================
OMAKE ++EXTRAS++ You-know-what-I-mean (Images from Naruto)
*Sharingan Punishments fit for Stormdancer *For the benefit of those who don't have an idea of what Sharingan is and don't want to be bombarded with images, I've hidden them. The technique names here should be familiar to those who've read Stormdancer.... (view spoiler)[
1. For all those torturous Asian mash-up accents and culture whatnots: The 'purifying' light that burns all, Amaterasu [image][image]
2. For putting us through the slow plot: Traps target in infinite loop, Izanami [image]
3. For stereotyping characters and warping cultural context with abandon: Re-warp reality into the misinformed illusions in Stormdancer with Izanagi [image]
4. For all those who recognise what real chocolate ice cream is: Fend off any pretentious poseurs (careful, you might get burnt too) with Susano'o [image]
5. For those who cannot wait for the next (improved) book: Control all who are involved in the production with Tsukuyomi [image] (hide spoiler)]...more
Loading...
