Colin H
Read this due to a meaningful recommendation.
I do not enjoy history. I do not enjoy stories of war. Yet the way they structured the narrative, along with the humanization and portrayal of each person within the Ranger battalion, caught my attention deep enough to finish this book relatively fast.
The stories and horrors this book recounts are truly harrowing – it left me with an intense appreciation for any single Allied soldier who was willing to enter the hellish landscape of WWII.
4.5 stars, rounded up to 5
Incredibly unique book, that encompassed more than I ever could have expected. My recent reviews have been too reliant on spoilers, so I'll keep this one succinct and spoiler free.
It felt like this entire book was one big trick Gaiman was playing. He throws you into a setting of Middle America, as mundane as he can create, tempting you to lose focus or read with haste – yet the reader is rewarded for every tidbit of information they can hold onto, from the first moment they started chapter one. Excellent.
Keeping things generalized to avoid spoilers
This book offered some of the most enthralling plots laid out by Sanderson. While Oathbringer dove into the political world of Roshar, Rhythm of War dove into Roshar itself.
RoW expands on some characters more than a few of the “usual suspects” that you might come to expect, so individuals who love those specific characters from earlier books might find this one a bit lackluster. I enjoyed the new look on these characters, so this wasn't an issue for me.
Along with that, RoW gets pretty technical about the machinations of Roshar – it felt like I was getting as many questions answered as the number of new questions I had, can't wait for book #5!
3.5ish (maybe 3.75) rounded up to 4 stars
If I viewed this book from the perspective of where it stands in the “history of sci-fi”, and how much of a trailblazer it was in that regard, I might have given it the clean 4 – but I'd much rather judge it solely on the merits of the book.
There are two things Herbert seems to greatly enjoy writing – political squabble and biologically accurate world building/planetary elements. Dialogue between characters is unique and well written. Descriptions of the world that is Arrakis are meticulous enough to evoke feelings akin to reading a textbook about a country you've never heard of.
Outside of these two primary concepts, Dune fell slightly short to me. Multiple times, I found myself longing for just... more story? Time would cut, locations would change, perspectives cut short, and I'd walk away deeply curious for everything that actually did happen in between those windows.
The last 70 pages are a shining example of what Dune “could have been” to be a 4.5, or even perfect 5 star book. Without getting into any spoiler territory, I'd honestly argue that the book is worth a read to get through to that point – especially if you pay close attention while reading until that point.
An exceptionally unique book. Herbert gave himself the interesting challenge of telling a story where multiple characters are damn-near omniscient. In order to operate around that (especially in the last 1/3 of the book), things get pretty ... nebulous. Wording and dialogue grows intentionally vague as characters are actively having revelations about what's to come, sometimes revealed to the reader, often obscured.
Worth a read in my opinion if you enjoyed Dune, but I do think I'll take a proper break from the series for a bit before returning for book #3.
It felt like I had to read through the first 400 pages of prologue just to read the actual story in the last 75 pages. If you're in love with the diction the author writes with, or the characters the first novel introduced, then this might be a worthwhile read for you. Otherwise, I suggest you pick up another novel which can tell a story just as riveting in a far more concise format.
I'm still sticking with three stars out of five because the ending cohesion was well written and satisfying, albeit long overdue with the dullness of the first three acts. I believe you could comfortably read the first 50 pages, skip to the Fourth and final section of the book, start reading, and miss almost nothing.
2.5 stars, rounded down to 2.
This book might have fallen prey to misaligned expectations, as I thought it was a standard sci-fi novel – yet it felt so much more like a mediocre (if not, slightly bad) YA novel.
There's a lot to be said about my gripes with the book, so I'll start with the good. The plot was fast paced, and the content was fun enough that I finished the book fairly quickly. If you expect “standard YA novel with some kitschy 80's references”, then you'll probably have a good time.
Now for the bad – I'll keep this spoiler free. This book suffered dramatically from the “single voice curse”. Every character's dialogue sounded the exact same, regardless of who they are supposed to represent. There are a few outliers, but those characters have barely any dialogue. The plot is painfully unrealistic at times, making it difficult to buy into some ideas the author is trying to sell. Similarly, the novel suffers from the failure of “show, don't tell” time and time again – where sections of the plot are brushed by or skipped over in a way that feels disappointing.
There's more to get into about the characters, plot, some borderline racist portrayals, but I'd like to avoid spoilers. I'm not sure how anyone reading this book would be completely enamored, unless their eyes are covered by the rose colored glasses of “hey! I know that thing!... and I know that thing!!”
An eye-opening narrative told by Michael Lewis that brings the reader into the unknown world of what the U.S. Government's Departments actually do. With a new understanding of the influence that the workers in these positions have, I feel a completely new appreciation for electing leaders who are competent and understand the finer details of the government they're going to serve.
This book isn't without faults, however. Even though many of the personal accounts from incredibly well educated and interesting federal employees add to the book, it can start to become a bit dull at times. Somewhere around the halfway point, you begin to pick up on Michael Lewis' formulaic approach to their narrative - juxtaposing a brilliant Department leader with their incompetent and/or greedy replacement set there by Trump's administration. If you don't have the internal urge to say “let's start electing real politicians as President again” by the that point, you'll certainly feel it by the end.
Regardless, this book is worth the read - and I can only hope that Michael Lewis' best efforts to write a nonpartisan critique on the effects of electing a Reality TV star as president are rewarded by making this book required reading in history and government classes in the years to come.
Captivating book that acts as a sort of sci-fi Canterbury Tales. Overall world building and scene-setting felt a bit stronger in the start of the book than it did in the last quarter (specifically during some of Brawne's story, but I'll leave it at that to avoid spoilers), but that doesn't detract too much from the overall enjoyment.
Would've been a 5/5 starred novel, but I felt that leaving the payoff for the true “ending” for book #2 was unfortunate. I'll still read book #2, but surely I won't be happy about it.
This book, out of all the sci-fi I've read, earns the title of being the most science fiction. At times, the strict adherence to scientific mock “accuracy” was cumbersome to get through, but I appreciated how it all tied together in the end.
My copy of the book was translated by Ken Liu, who did a phenomenal job adding footnotes with cultural and historical context. Without that, I'm not sure if I would've enjoyed the book as much as I had, since it's certainly aimed and intended for a Chinese audience.
Let me start by saying that A Gentleman in Moscow is completely outside the realm of novels that I would usually read. While I usually read Nordic noir, scifi, or fantasy novels, I picked up this book off of a recommendation.
Although the book started a tad slow, as you become more invested in the main character, The Count, the enjoyment out of the story ramps up. His quips, his perspective, and his diction are all so enjoyable that I felt myself wanting to act the same in my own life.
The story builds and rewards those who pay deep attention to detail as it progresses. My only very minor criticism is that you might find yourself Google'ing a niche French dish they talk about in the story, or other small points just to fully appreciate what they're talking about. After all the time investing in each character, the ending comes as a perfect bow to wrap up the story.
5/5.
An expected masterwork from Brandon Sanderson. The build that this book follows as you read through each chapter comes to a perfect ending.
Genuine “it was okay” rating (perhaps 2.5 stars). To me, this book felt like the idiom - “50 feet wide but 2 feet deep”.
I was hoping for a book that dove deeper into the genuine linguistics behind cults, and how they entice and operate. It covered these ideas loosely, but the book was far more filled with first hand accounts from interviewees (who spent time in cults) or anecdotes from the author.
Unfortunately, it felt like the majority of the content was just... obvious? I'm not even a “cult fanatic”, I haven't read other books, I don't watch the documentaries, and I don't even listen to podcasts - but even for me, a lot of the content felt so surface level. Do I really need a general description of the Jonestown massacre, or how a Soulcycle class operates? Isn't this just baseline common knowledge?
The book was well written, and if the previous topics are something you're interested in I think you'll probably enjoy it – I just felt like it was advertised as one thing, and delivered another.
A slow-burn with a heavy emphasis on historical scene setting and establishment for the first 1/3-1/2ish of the book. The back half, however, is worth the payoff. I finished the final third of the book within a day for that exact reason.
Sanderson's ability to weave a tale that pulls you in and leaves you wanting even more is unmatched. Having the opportunity to explore these characters who mainly stay out of the spotlight was a joy.
I'd consider this book a must-read for anyone working through the Stormlight Archive — even more-so than squeezing in Edgedancer while working through the traditional order.
For all the science, engineering, mechanics, math, and physics included within this book – it is staggering to me how easily I was able to fall deeply into the narrative, visualizing each component.
If there are two big things I dislike in a book, it's:
1) Predictable narratives
2) Indistinguishable characters (specifically related to their dialogue)
I can happily report that Project Hail Mary had nothing remotely close to point #1 or #2.
The only way I'd advise someone against reading it is if I knew they had a deep distaste for anything science related.
A quick read – but overall an enjoyable novel with a nice message. The beginning of the book, after what I'd call the “introduction” (being vague to avoid spoilers), starts a bit weak; as it portrayed some themes that felt more bleak than expected. Once you get through that section, I found it rounded itself out by the end to a comfortable ending.
Opting for 3 stars instead of 4 stars as I found the direction the book was headed to be pretty obvious maybe 40% of the way into the book. This wasn't a major flaw, but still pulls back some of the tension and wonder when you realize what's happening and how it's going to end so early.