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TheAromaofBooks
The Hound of Florence | Felix Salten
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Panpan

I actually really love the book Bambi and have read it and its sequel (Bambi's Children) several times. So I was excited to randomly come across another reprint of one of Salten's works. I had never heard of this one, although by reading GR reviews I discovered that it was apparently the (incredibly loose) inspiration for DIsney's The Shaggy Dog. Sadly, this book was a huge disappointment. First off, it's plain boring. Set during the Renaissance ⬇

TheAromaofBooks (cont'd) Lucas, presumably in his late teens, has been left orphaned in Vienna and yearns to get to Florence so he can become an artist. Through a bit of magic/wishing, he ends up being transformed into the dog who belongs to a rich aristocrat who is traveling to Florence. However, he's only the dog every other day. On the other days, he's himself, but the dog just disappears, which literally made no sense to me. In this way he makes his way to ⬇ 3d
TheAromaofBooks (cont'd) Florence in what has to be the most boring road trip to read about ever. On his dog days he's beaten and mistreated. On his human days, he's starving and cold. So it was boring AND depressing. We're told from the beginning how the spell/curse can be broken, but Lucas himself doesn't know and also weirdly doesn't seem to really care or spend a lot of time trying to figure it out. He just goes with the flow. The flow eventually gets him to⬇ 3d
TheAromaofBooks (cont'd) Florence where he becomes an art student (every other day, of course). There, he falls in love with a courtesan. Which brings me to another point - this book is billed as a children's story and it is NOT remotely a children's book. Besides the animal/human cruelty, Lucas has sex a few times and then yes falls in love with a courtesan who is very proud of sleeping with rich and powerful men. In an absolutely BIZARRE scene that had NOTHING⬇ 3d
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TheAromaofBooks (cont'd) to do with the rest of the story, the pimp who “discovered“ the courtesan that Lucas is in love with brings another girl to show off to some men (who are all artists/art students). She's described as “a little girl“ and “a child“ and we're told that she “might have been twelve or thirteen years of age.“ She then proceeds to strip naked and dance for the men while the pimp reminds the men of all the other “Aphrodite's favorites“ he's ⬇ 3d
TheAromaofBooks (cont'd) discovered because he “never descends to common prostitutes.“ He describes her beauties and potential for being an artistic model, including pointing out her “firm little breasts.“ This scene was absolutely appalling and also literally had nothing to do with the rest of the story. I can't imagine handing this book to the middle grader it's supposedly aimed towards!

Lucas never develops as a character and wasn't particularly likable. ⬇
3d
TheAromaofBooks (cont'd) This book felt like it had no point, purpose, or direction. The ending is bizarre and vague. All in all, incredibly disappointing considering how much I've enjoyed a couple of Salten's other books.

#Roll100 #GottaCatchEmAll - Artist central character @PuddleJumper
#Read2025 - 30/100 TBR books read @DieAReader
#ISpyBingo - &, Author in Blue Letters
#BookSpinBingo
3d
DieAReader 👋🏻👋🏻 #Next 3d
AnnCrystal Horribly horrifying 🥺...great review, I would have believed this was a cozy read by the cover alone. 3d
Clare-Dragonfly Wow!!! I wonder why this book was even reprinted. 2d
54 likes9 comments
review
TheSpineView
Under an Endless Moon | A L Jackson
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Mehso-so

Finally finished this book. It had potential but failed in execution. I was so hoping for something of the quality of Birthday Girl or Older but it failed to deliver. Cheesy and predictable. 3⭐️ #SeriesLove2025 @Andrew65
#Read2025 @DieAReader
#JumpStartSummer
#ShelfSweeper @Tove_Reads

DieAReader #Next 👋🏻👋🏻 5d
Andrew65 Well done on finishing it 🎉🎉🎉 2d
63 likes2 comments
review
Gissy
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Mehso-so

February 2025 Book #7

Sorry, unpopular opinion here. I think this book was overhyped for me. That situation at the hotel was so unrealistic to me. Then, we have a character not only with suicidal ideation but also a plan to do it and it was ignored? I have read books with morbid humor like Hagman by Maya Binyam but from the beginning you see the absurd tone. I didn‘t see that in this novel. It was tragic so sad her situation but ignored⬇️

Gissy (Cont.) There were some funny scenes but in general, it didn‘t work for me. At the end we see a growth in some characters which gives hope to the characters.

Maybe the book was so well commented with great reviews and a rating of more that 4 stars in GR that I expected a stronger story🤷🏽‍♀️ 3⭐️
1w
Prairiegirl_reading I finished this recently and was also underwhelmed. 1w
DieAReader #Next 👋🏻👋🏻 1w
TheAromaofBooks Great progress!! 1w
46 likes5 comments
review
OutsmartYourShelf
The Empty Chair | Jeffery Deaver
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Mehso-so

The third case for criminologist Lincoln Rhyme & partner Amelia Sachs sees them heading to North Carolina for Rhyme's upcoming pioneering surgery. Before the surgery takes place, the two are asked to consult on a case where two young women have been abducted by a 16-year-old local boy, Garrett Hanlon, known as the Insect Boy for his fascination with bugs. (continued)

OutsmartYourShelf After a manhunt when the boy is apprehended, one of the women is still missing & Garrett refuses to give up her whereabouts saying he is protecting her. Sachs believes that the locals think the worst of Garrett & that his life could be in danger so she absconds with him from the county jail. Now the student is working against the master, has she learned enough to outfox him?

(edited) 2w
OutsmartYourShelf This one is firmly in the middle of the first two books when it comes to ratings - in my opinion the first book is better but the second book is worse than this one. There were some good twists & turns in the storyline but it did seem to be drawn out a bit too long. 100 pages shorter & it would have been great. 3.25⭐

Full Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4846524624
Read 10th-14th May 2025

2w
See All 7 Comments
DieAReader 🥳🥳🥳 2w
TheSpineView Kudos for finishing a lackluster one! #Next 2w
Andrew65 Well done 🎉🎉🎉 2w
Tove_Reads 🥳💪🏽 2w
34 likes1 stack add7 comments
review
OutsmartYourShelf
I Know You Saw Her | Ann Girdharry
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Mehso-so

Fiona & her sister Amy were always close but when Amy moves away for university they drift apart until Amy suddenly goes missing one day & hasn't been seen or heard of since. Several years later, Fiona rents a room in the same house where Amy had been living & pretends to be a new student all so she can find out what happened to Amy.

The house is shabby & in bad repair & her landlady acts oddly at times. (continued)

OutsmartYourShelf Meanwhile the landlady's son seems annoyed with Fiona for no reason & watches her silently. The only bright spots seem to be a tentative friendship with Amy's BFF, & a burgeoning relationship with her landlady's charming nephew, but someone has a secret they‘ll do anything to protect.

This started off well but the twists quickly became far fetched & yet remained oddly predictable. Fiona, who was supposed to be there to investigate her sister's
2w
OutsmartYourShelf disappearance, saying she'll trust no-one, immediately falls for someone she hardly knows. She was difficult to warm to as an MC & I also felt that the ending was unsatisfactory. Overall this is a slightly disappointing thriller. 3.25⭐

My thanks to #NetGalley & publisher, Inkubator Books, for the opportunity to read an ARC.

Full Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/7552657162
Read 8th-10th May 2025
2w
DieAReader #Next 👋🏻👋🏻 2w
29 likes4 comments
review
BacklistReader
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Bailedbailed

100 pages in and I was confused on why things were happening and how we got there. Felt like we had things happening just to have them happen and not for any reason that was important to plot or character development.

TheSpineView #HailTheBail #Next. Hope the next book is better! 3w
BacklistReader @TheSpineView I hope so too. I‘ve had a lot of meh books this year. Glad to be getting the duds off the TBR though. 3w
TheSpineView @BacklistReader When I read books like this one, I have to question if the publisher even read it before it was published. I know they do, but I still wonder. 3w
BacklistReader @TheSpineView I do that too. 3w
6 likes4 comments
review
TheBookgeekFrau
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Bailedbailed

I thought the story would carry the weird writing style. I thought wrong. #HailTheBail

33/80

May #BookSpin @TheAromaofBooks

#ReadingMyTBRs #Reading2025 @DieAReader

DieAReader #Next 👋🏻👋🏻👋🏻 3w
TheAromaofBooks Great progress!! 3w
38 likes3 comments
review
bookandbedandtea
The Snowbirds: A Novel | Christina Clancy
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Bailedbailed

I can‘t explain my lack of interest but I‘m having to force myself to read this so I‘m giving up #next

BookmarkTavern #hailthebail On to better books! 3w
bookandbedandtea @BookmarkTavern Exactly! No one has time for books that aren't working. 😉 3w
31 likes2 comments
review
TheAromaofBooks
Going Zero | ANTHONY. MCCARTEN
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Mehso-so

This one was okay. The pacing was choppy/slow, and a lot of the character motivations just didn't work for me. I also get annoyed whenever I hear the “if you don't want the government tracking/checking your every move you're obviously a criminal“ argument: it's simply not true. It was a fun concept, but the execution just didn't quite work for me.

julieclair It‘s #offtheshelf ! 👍 3w
DieAReader #Next 👋🏻👋🏻 3w
60 likes3 comments
review
sebrittainclark
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Bailedbailed

2/5

Dacian empath, Malina, is captured in the aftermath of battle where she failed to protect her Celtic adopted family and taken as a slave by the Roman general and dragon shifter, Julianus.

The combination of relationship dynamic and power imbalance between Malina and Julianus with the ancient Roman inspired system of slavery, was too off-putting for me, and I just couldn't get past it. It was also a darker romance than I had expected.

TheSpineView #HailTheBail #Next Hope the next book is 5 stars! 3w
38 likes2 comments