Litsy

The Broken Road: A Novel | Richard Paul Evans

so-so

Major caveat here: if I didn't have a vague idea of how this trilogy ended, I wouldn't be continuing to the next book. At the moment, I deem it worthwhile to continue, because I think having the full story told in this manner will add to the catharsis/emotional impact of the ending. But, from a 'single book' perspective, Evans has made a bold choice in making the entire work background for the narrative 1/?

Robotswithpersonality 2/? that is hinted at continuing in the next book, in the prologue. You know how I feel about cliffhangers. There are multiple timelines, lead up to an important event, flashbacks, and backstory, but you're not only JUST getting the set up, you're getting ALL of the ways life has been shitty for this character. 1mo

Robotswithpersonality 3/? When this was pitched to me, I thought my biggest issue would be the mistakes, the choices the main character has made and how they've affected other people, but as it turns out, those pale in comparison to all the horrible things that happened to this character growing up. What makes me so damn sad is how much of the experiences related mirror the life story of so many abused and disadvantaged people. 1mo

Robotswithpersonality 4/? It just puts the idea of highlighting one character who found a second chance in a strange fairy tale, chosen one light that I think could be more mocking than escapist to those who've had to deal with real trauma and it's aftermath without that kind of luck. How close do the books as a whole come to the huckster self-help vibes of the sales seminar narrative, live your dreams, change your life, etc? 🤨 1mo

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Robotswithpersonality 5/? I know this author is famous for Christmas books - do they also follow the 'I have wacked your thumb with a hammer (emotionally upsetting background) now here's a chocolate bar (happy/hopeful ending) now don't you feel grateful and joyful (the ache of endorphins and the thrill of sugar)' formula? 1mo

Robotswithpersonality 6/? Skilled emotional manipulation is a cornerstone to a number of different kinds of narratives, but when the story really doesn't have more plot than just everything these people have gone through, it makes the message conveyed that much more crucial, and I worry that I will rate the latter books in this trilogy higher based on how they make me feel, (an accomplishment in itself) even if the story itself is...lacking. 1mo

Robotswithpersonality 7/? By which I mean I'm looking for a message that isn't too tired and I'm not sure I've glimpsed it yet, and if you're going to spend nearly 300 pages making me sad, there really should be a damn good reason, beyond life lessons I figured out a decade ago. 1mo

Robotswithpersonality 8/? I also admit to being on shaky ground with the amount of God/Bible references - it really does feel like those who are lapsed from a religion are in some ways closer to it or at least never fully separated - and the simple moralizing that always seems to follow in its wake. 1mo

Robotswithpersonality 9/? Also feeling a little odd about proposed end goal of the trip - that's a lot of years to suddenly decide on a need to resolve that particular issue - I think a journey for personal growth/redemption/reflection/planning for a different future, without relying on absolution from a particular individual, might be a healthier mindset, but love makes you do the wacky. 🤷🏼‍♂️ 1mo

Robotswithpersonality 10/? So given all that, why would I continue? Because a smart reader who recommended this to me started with the third book in the series and then went back, so I still have hopes for where the story goes. And since I read the first book first, why not read the second book, second? Thanks goodness the full trilogy is out, I'd lose my shit if I had to wait after this ending. 1mo

Robotswithpersonality 11/11 P.S. I don't know if Evans shares the main character's Mexican heritage or OCD, but that rep is in here.
⚠️suicide, child abuse, racism, racist-based violence/hate crime, assault 1mo

8 likes10 comments

Super_Jane

Foxglove | Adalyn Grace

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4.5/5 ?????

"My love for you is not confined to time, nor fate. It is a love that I will hold with me for an eternity, which is why I am not afraid. I swear to you that I will always be yours, even when I am not."

#fantasy #death #fate

14 likes

keithlafo

With a Tangled Skein: Incarnations of Immortality 3 | Piers Anthony

so-so

This is Anthony‘s first female protagonist in the series and much of the book serves to highlight just how shallowly he writes his women. The book is fine, as with the others, but he definitely seems like the type of male author who spends more time describing the women in his stories than actually characterizing them.

8 likes

BarkingMadRead

Villete | Charlotte Bront�

Chapter 7: Lucy decides to travel to Villette to find Madame Beck. She gets there by coach, but it‘s dark when she arrives, her bag is missing, and some losers follow her…. #lucygetslost #whereisthatdarnhotel #findsmadamebeckshouseinstead #fate #meanttobe #sheshouldpeobablylearnfrench #ishouldprobablylearnfrench #gladmyversionistranslated #pemberlittens

BarkingMadRead @bklover @sprainedbrain @kristiahlers @moonwitch94 @librarybelle @debinhawaii @peanutnine @deblovestoread @indoordame @alldebooks @daisey @ruthiella @suvata @julieclair @clare-dragonfly @eeclayton @sarahbookinterrupted @annececilie @rubyslippersreads @rebelreader @deblovestoread @liatrek @sparklemn @jhod @ruthiella @linsy @bookwormjillk @samanne 2y

IndoorDame I‘m so relieved things fell into place for her this chapter. It all had the ability to go so much worse! 2y

Bklover Omg you crack me up! She definitely needs to learn French! It‘s a wonder she isn‘t dead- she does seem to get lucky right when things look hopeless. I‘m really starting to like her! 2y

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Bklover Also, I hate to admit it but I had no idea that Villette was a place. 🙄😳 2y

BarkingMadRead @Bklover me either! I thought it would be a person 🤣 2y

peanutnine @Bklover she is very lucky! What are the odds of her finding Beck her literal first night in town! 2y

BarkingMadRead @peanutnine she finally caught a break! 2y

Bookwormjillk I‘m so glad it worked out! This lady makes me nervous! 2y

Daisey This whole chapter made me nervous as well. There were so many places it could have gone so badly for her! 2y

Clare-Dragonfly I was also nervous! I was SURE that guy was going to steal her money when he took her through the park (he made a point of checking whether she had any!) but nope, whew. I also thought Villette would be a person @Bklover 😆 2y

Bklover @Clare-Dragonfly I did too! 2y

rubyslippersreads Glad I‘m not the only one who thought Villette was a person. 2y

suvata @Bklover You‘re not alone. I thought it was a woman‘s name. D‘uh! 2y

suvata @Daisey It was most definitely a tense chapter. But you know what they say, “All‘s well that ends well”. For now, anyway. 2y

KristiAhlers I must say the Brontë sisters seem pathologically unable to write a chapter that doesn‘t have something bad happening. Their poor heroines 2y

41 likes15 comments

Bookwomble

Number 73304-23-4153-6-96-8 | Thomas Ott

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Thomas Ott's wordless graphic novel is a 'strange tale' about an executioner who finds a slip of paper with a long number written on it next to the electric chair he's just used to judicially murder a prisoner. The numbers on the slip start to have a strange significance, and the story proceeds to its predictable, but nonetheless well-told, end.
I've not come across Ott before, and found his art style well suited to his material. 4⭐

31 likes2 stack adds

TheBee

Everything I Never Told You: A Novel | Celeste Ng

pick

Ominous.
So good.
At times it felt a bit chaotic to me, but overall I loved it and concur with the ravishing reviews! Dysfunctional family dynamics, zeitgeist and fate intertwine.

#everythinginevertoldyou #celesteng #novel #dysfuncionalfamily #fate #chineseamerican