Jordan

4.5

In this epic sci-fi novel, we follow present day Earth as the moon explodes due to some unknown force. However, the various pieces all loosely keep their same assembly and their same orbit around Earth. Scientists quickly realize that in about 2 years time, all of those pieces will start slamming into each other at such a high velocity that they will start raining down on Earth, raising the temperature and wiping out all life. Therefore, they have 2 years to get as many people into and around the ISS with the proper equipment to survive for thousands of years as they can. The first half of the book follows this 2 year span, as well as about 5 years after the Hard Rain. The second half of the book has a huge, 5000 year time jump, showing what has become of humanity and their endeavor to reinhabit Earth.

I absolutely loved the first half of this book. It is definitely a hard sci-fi, with so much science involved. It was so fascinating to see how Stephenson showcased the human fight for survival, as well as the psyche as they watch their entire home demolished. It was masterfully written. This premise could become incredibly impersonal because of the scale, but Stephenson does a great job of making the characters that have made it into space feel very relatable and human.

However, after the time jump, I felt like the story took a very strange turn. Without going into too many details, there ends up being distinct human races with very different characteristics and mannerisms. To me, this seemed very strange because of the tight quarters they had to live in for thousands of years. I also felt like the plot got boring in this second half. There were obviously all new characters that I had a hard time connecting with. It just didn't work as well for me.

Overall, I felt like this book was a very ambitious story to tell, and Stephenson did a commendable job with it. The second half just fell short for me.

“So yes, I, Adolin Kholin - cousin to the king, heir to the Kholin princedom - have shat myself in my Shardplate. Three times, all on purpose.” - Words of Radiance

In this second book of the Stormlight Archive, Sanderson expands so much further on the world of the Knights Radiant. For most of the book, you follow Shallan and Kaladin, as well as Adolin and Dalinar. The book picks up right around where the last book ended. You follow Shallan and Jasnah as they head for the Shattered Plains, a journey with some dire consequences. You also follow Kaladin as he further explores his powers, and Adolin and Dalinar as they deal with Sadeas' betrayal. The journey these characters take is completely unexpected and full of twists and turns.

I loved this book. I didn't want to put it down at a single point. Sanderson makes me feel so attached to these characters. You care deeply for their wants and desires. Some of my favorite parts of the book were the flashbacks to Shallan's past. You learn so much, and you also see how much she has grown since her childhood. I cannot wait to pick up the novella, Edgedancer, as well as the next novel, Oathbringer.

3.5

This book is a history of the United States that follows the indigenous peoples' that have been here for millennia. It discusses the political and socioeconomic ties indigenous peoples' have had with the United States government and how much of that history is unknown to the general populace. I learned so much in this book that I have never been taught or heard about. I had a baseline knowledge about the genocide and erasure that the US government enacted on the indigenous peoples', but learning the details was truly harrowing. Dunbar-Ortiz walks the reader through many major people in American history who were very anti-Native American and who worked very hard to eradicate their very existence. Some of the people I already knew about, like Andrew Jackson, but many of them I wasn't aware of and it was extremely disheartening, although sadly, not surprising. She then walks us through the additional struggles Native American's still face today, which I knew absolutely nothing about. I'm very glad I now know these things so I can do what I can moving forward to speak out about these injustices and help where I'm able.

This book is an important read for anyone living in the US because it is very important for us to come to terms with our violent, racist background and start to work towards reparations for these groups of people that we have systematically abused for our entire history.

4.5

4.5

4.5 stars

What a satisfying ending to this first part of the saga. There were some parts I found frustrating, but again, Brown pulled through in the last third of the book. It was so fast paced and I felt like it honestly ending so well (besides one part, but that's ok.) Not a new favorite series, but super fun and enjoyable nonetheless.

3.5 stars

Ooof, my heart.

In this book, we follow Ove, an older, cranky man who's wife has recently passed. Without her, he isn't completely sure what to do with himself. He has lived his whole life very cut and dry, with strict self-imposed rules and a no-nonsense attitude, but after Sonia's passing, he's lost. He decides he wants to join her. However, when a new family moves in next door, a series of hilarious events unfolds that keeps him from being able to join his wife.

This book was so funny, and heartfelt, and full of grief. The dichotomy between these feelings was expertly shown by Backman. He took what could be a depressing, sad story, and made it so heartfelt and fun. This is not to say he glossed over the grief or made it trivial; he just found a way to make it accessible. The characters in this book are so expertly crafted. They are all so different and so unique, and the way they all come together to help each other is beautiful. I loved all of them so, so much. Also, getting to see the little moments here and there where you see Ove really open up or shift his perspective made my heart jump every time. Probably the most poignant for me was when he was teaching Parvaneh to drive. It was this amalgamation of small moments that made the reader really see that Ove may have a brusque exterior, but he really cared for the people around him.

As I was finishing this audiobook, I had just pulled into a Walgreens parking lot to pick up a prescription. However, I ended up sitting in my car to finish the book, and found myself sobbing. The ending was so perfectly executed. I loved everything about this book. I honestly can't think of a single fault. Backman's prose makes the reader never want to stop, and the story was so wonderful. Everyone should read this book.

TW: assault, suicide attempts (multiple)

This is the best book of era 2 so far, and I'm so anxious to read the 7th, which still has no release date! :(

I'm fairly certain I say this in every review of a Sanderson book, but the characters in this novel are superbly written. I felt so much for their relationships between each other. The found family they've created is so meaningful and deep. Because of the banter and camaraderie between this band of misfits I found myself grinning multiple times while listening. The giant twist at the end had me almost to tears, and the ending of the novel had me smiling and giggling. Sanderson has a magical way with characterization in all of his books, and I especially felt for the characters in this series.

The plot was interesting and went in directions I didn't see coming. There were many more callbacks to the previous era, each one adding such a deep richness to the lore of the Cosmere. The ending left me slightly panicked for where this story is going to end in the next installment, and I am so anxious knowing we have no idea when that will be.

I highly recommend this book to Cosmere and Sanderson fans everywhere. I also highly recommend listening to the audiobooks for this series. Michael Kramer brings so much life to these characters. His impression of Wayne is my favorite, but they're all exquisite. I think my love for this series is largely in part to Kramer's narration. He brought so much life to the books.

Dang, every addition to this series just gets better and better. I love all of these characters so much, and this book ripped my heart out at the end. We keep expanding this world and learning more about the political machinations at work and it's all so fascinating. The plot was slower in the beginning, and then really picked up as the war started. I felt the desperation and the helplessness that so many of these characters felt. All of the character development that we got was so well formulated by Sullivan. I truly felt that all of the character arc were superb, and their emotions and decisions they made during these tough times all felt very realistic and devastating. I would recommend this series to all fantasy fans. Sullivan gets how to make you care about a character.

TW: ableism, amputation, anxiety, attempted murder, blood, bones, death, gore, misogyny, racism (fantasy), violence, war

This book picks up a few weeks after the end of the last book. Locke and Jean are approached by a Bondsmagi who wants them to help rig an election in Karthain. They later find out that Sabetha is helping rig the election for the opposing side. I won't get too much further into the plot to avoid spoilers of the previous books.

I really enjoyed this book. There were definitely some drawbacks for me, but this series is still up there in my favorites because the characters in these stories are just so captivating. First, the plot was a little slower than the previous 2 books. There were a lot of political intrigue, which didn't hold many stakes, and then there was the flashbacks that were all of the Gentleman Bastards as teens doing an assignment for Chains. The flashbacks were lovely. I was always excited to get into them. It's the first time the reader gets to see Sabetha interacting with the rest of the crew, and it was very interesting to put their childhood into that context. As for the political stuff, I felt like it was a little lackluster. There weren't many stakes, and we didn't focus too much on this political race. It felt like extraneous information. The present time scenes were mostly focused on the romance of Sabetha and Locke. While I did enjoy their relationship and getting to see the character growth in Locke, Sabetha was not as cool of a character as I thought she would be. Another thing I wish this book had more of was more of Locke and Jean's relationship. That is what made the last book so incredible. Their relationship is one of my favorites in all of fiction. In the beginning of this book, when Jean is feverishly trying to find a cure for Locke, I was constantly just gushing about how genuine and incredible this relationship is.

All in all, this book was still incredible. I love this series and these characters, regardless of the few qualms I had with it. If you're looking for a charming, dark, fast paced fantasy series, this is it. Although, word of caution, the 4th book is a mystery as to when it will be published. Scott Lynch is one of the authors infamous for taking a while between books.

TW: body horror (including eye-harm), genital mutilation, loss of loved one, rape, torture

This book was even better than the first. I really enjoyed this addition to the Mistborn universe.

This story follows Wayne, Wax, and Marasi as they try to find out who is causing all of the disruption in their city. We get so many callbacks to the previous era that make this story that much more interesting. The whole time, I was trying to search for Easter eggs. Some of my favorite characters from the first era make an appearance here.

The whodunit plot twist was a little predictable, but the ending for Wax was NOT predictable. I was so emotional by the end and wanted to give Wax a hug. I'm instantly starting the next one because I have to know how this conflict resolves.

Sanderson does it again with his superb characters, making you feel for this trio and their surrounding friends/colleagues. The addition of Milan to the group for part of the book is so fun, and she quickly became one of my favorite characters. The banter between this group is hilarious and makes me want to go get a beer with them.

Overall, I think this book was successful and interesting to read. I recommend to Sanderson fans that might have reservations about era 2 like I did. No need to be hesitant. These are great!

I'm a little late to the game with this series, but better late than never!

This sci-fi dystopian novel follows a society that is segregated into castes based on color; the lowest being the reds and the highest being the golds. The novel starts with Darrow, a red who is working to make Mars habitable for the human race, when his wife sacrifices herself for a cause that he hardly knew anything about. His life irrevocably changes, and we follow him as he joins with rebels and fights back against their oppressors.

The beginning of this book instantly gripped me. I loved the concept and already really like the characters. This book gives off strong “The Hunger Games” vibes, which made me excited. However, when the “test” started, which takes up the majority of the book, I lost some of my interest. The ending was predictable, so I felt that all of the time we spent in this test was boring and pointless. What kept me listening was Darrow as a character. He is an incredibly interesting narrator who I feel has a lot of potential in the future books. While I didn't love this book, I gave it a 3/5 stars because of Darrow and because I believe that this series has a lot of potential. I will be continuing the series and have high hopes.

TW: attempted rape, attempted suicide, bullying, eugenics, misogyny, murder, mutilation, rape (mentioned), sexual assault, slavery, violence

Locke Lamora is a talented young thief when he is picked up by the Thiefmaker. However, after a short amount of time, the Thiefmaker realizes that he is in over his head with this kid, and takes him to Chains, a priest of one of the 13 deities. There, he is raised as a professional, incredible thief along with a few other kids. We flash forward to present day, where Locke now runs this gang of misfits in extraordinary heists that are well crafted and incredibly manipulative. However, when a new guy comes to town and wreaks havoc, Locke isn't sure if him and his found family will make it out alive.

I really enjoyed this book. I definitely think it had a somewhat slow start. It took me a long time to finish this book. (This was partially due to me being busy the past few weeks as well.) However, by the last quarter, I was engrossed and couldn't put the book down. This book has one of my favorite, and often talked about, tropes of a found family. I love this little family that Chains has created in these kids, and watching them grow up to rely on each other and love each other is beautiful. There were multiple plot twists throughout the story that I never saw coming, and was utterly shocked and devastated by. The setting of this world is fantastical and beautiful. It reminded me of the Farseer trilogy in that there are these ancient structures built by a long-dead society that no one currently alive can explain, and magic doesn't play a huge role in the story until towards the end. These structures are beautiful and unbreakable. The setting is based on Venice, with canals and water surrounding the city. The characters are all loveable, complex, and funny. I am very excited to continue this series. I know that Scott Lynch is one of those fantasy authors notorious for not finishing a series, so I'm a little nervous about that, but I can't wait to continue on with Locke and the gang.

I recommend this book to fantasy readers everywhere!

TW: alcohol, animal violence (graphic), child slavery (mentioned), death, gore, grief, language, prostitution, rape (mentioned), sexual content, suicide (mentioned), terminal illness, torture, trauma, violence (graphic)

This book broke me in the best way. When I say I was crying, I mean I had a red splotchy face and I couldn't breathe.

This book is the story of Achilles and Patroclus as they grow up together and become men. I went into this story knowing nothing about their tale, so it hit me that much harder. Madeline Miller tells the story from Patroclus' point of view, which makes Achilles seem all the more godlike, while also making Achilles feel so human in their personal interactions. She tells the story as if they were lovers, as they were rumored to be. It is a beautiful story of love and duty and honor.

The love between Achilles and Patroclus is so sweet and beautiful. It's never brought into question. They take on the world together, no matter how hard it gets. The ending gutted me and I was a heap on my bed. Miller stays pretty true to the mythologic story of these 2, while making them feel so human and flawed.

I could read this book over and over and I don't think it would lose it's intensity for me. I highly recommend this book to anyone, especially if you're into mythology.

3.5

This review will be short so as not to spoil anything from the first era of the series.

I've been putting off reading the second era of the Mistborn series, but I'm glad I finally started it. This book was really fun to read. It has a Sherlock Holmes vibe, but with magic. The character interactions were fun and entertaining. The villain in the series was very similar to the hero of era one, which caused an interesting switch in the dynamic. The call backs to the first era were interesting and helped really develop the lore of this world. All in all, this was a fun, interesting book.

Overall, this book was enjoyable to read. It was super interesting to get to see everything from Edward's perspective. It was darker and included a lot more of the Cullen's backstories.

However, this book was incredibly too long. I was bored for most of the first 400 pages. Once the baseball game started, things really picked up and got super interesting to read about. The chase to Phoenix was so fun to read, seeing how all of the Cullen's talents created this unbeatable force of nature. This book was at about a 2 star rating until the last 150 or so pages.

All in all, if you were a twilight fan in your teens, definitely worth the read.

I honestly cannot decide if I liked this book or not. It was not what I was expecting at all. It didn't follow Rhen and Harper, so you have no idea what's going on with them throughout the whole book. I know some people love Grey, but he's just kind of boring for me, so following him was just eh. I think an opportunity was missed as well to develop more relationships between the group, including Noah, Jake, and Tycho.

The ending also made me furious. But it's also what's making me pick up the next book. All in all, I still love the setting and the characters, but not sure I liked this book.

The last book about space I read was all about the history of human space travel. This one was all about the science behind space, including quantum mechanics and astrophysics. This book was exactly what I was looking for. It starts by talking about our solar system, then branches out to the Milky Way galaxy, then to the universe, then to the possibilities of what lies outside of our universe. The book breaks down these complex structures into easily digestible facts and metaphors so the reader is able to get a better understanding. This book is the perfect introduction into the way space works and what we still don't know anything about. I look forward to reading more books regarding the science of space. I'm hooked.

First, I would like to thank NetGalley and the publisher for access to this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book is a historical account of the way women have contributed to science throughout history despite the roadblocks that have been put in their way. I really enjoyed this book and the way it presented information. They author says from the beginning that until fairly recently, you had to really drudge through information to find women associated with science because many times, when there were women involve, their work was diminished or they just flat out weren't given any credit. I think this book did a good job of discussing the different intersections of the lives of different women, including race, class, ethnicity, etc. It didn't deify these women; it made sure to showcase the full picture, including the different priviledges many of this women had.

The main drawback from this book is that it is mainly a Western account of women in science. There are a few mentions of women from China, India, and Japan, but other than that, I believe they were all North American or European. There were no mentions of women scientist from Africa, Australia, or South America. While this could be due to lack of information, I think that is something that the author should have mentioned.

I recommend this book to people everywhere who are interested in learning more about women you may have never heard of that have contributed to the knowledge we have access to today.