Richie

I went into this novel after already having watched the movie about 2 years ago. I thought that because of this I wouldn't enjoy it as much, considering I knew the entire plot and ending but I was pleasantly surprised .
This book follows a first person narrative, the narrator being a woman named Kathy H. Without spoiling too much, I'll say that the book is about Kathy and her memories of her life through childhood in a suspicious boarding school called Hailsham to her adult years and we learn about her relationship with her two friends Ruth and Tommy. I know that says hardly anything about the plot of the book but it's almost impossible to say anything about the book without spoiling it. Some people categorize it under the genre science fiction but if you're going into it solely for the scifi aspect you will be majorly disappointed. This is more literary fiction and it's definitely more character driven than plot driven.
I loved this book so so much! The characters were so real to me and so fleshed out; all of them had their flaws and I could see them as real people that I could meet in real life. Kazuo Ishiguro has such a beautiful writing style. Throughout the whole book, you can feel an air of sadness and nostalgia just through reading his words. Ishiguro is not scared to delve into some dark topics in this text like the imminence of death and how little time we have on this earth. But he does it so well, this is definitely a book that will make you think for days after reading it. I would recommend it to anyone who is into literary fiction and enjoys strong character driven novels.
5/5

Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel is a historic novel based around the life of Thomas Cromwell. It shows Cromwell's rise in power in the royal court, the formation of the Anglican Church, and Anne Boleyn's rise to the Queen of England.
I'll start with the negative aspects of the book, which there are few of. These things did not bother me, but I'm just putting them out there so people who are considering reading the book will be aware of them. First of all, this book is quite dense and slow paced so if you're looking for a quick read this will definitely not be for you. Also, this book is better suited for people who have some background knowledge of 16th century Europe because it doesn't really give you explanations of every little conflict going on outside of England. For example, there are a lot of references to the Protestant Reformation and Martin Luther and if you don't know what those things are it won't be explained to you and you will probably be very confused. Again, these aren't really ‘cons' but things I think future readers should be aware of. Lastly, it can be confusing as Mantel never uses Thomas Cromwell's name in the narrative, only the pronoun ‘he'. So if there's a scene involving Cromwell and another man you might be confused. It didn't bother me after the first couple of pages but I've read others saying it hindered their reading experience so I thought I'd mention it.
Okay, now I'll mention what I LOVED about this book. :-)
First of all, this book is written so beautifully!!!!!!!!!! The writing style was magnificent I can't wait to read more from this author! Secondly, she writes characters so well. They were all so well rounded and, unlike other historical novels I've read, the characters had their strong points AND their flaws not just one or the other. I really appreciated the way she made them seem like real people (I know they are real people but you know what I mean) and I cared about almost every one of them and what happened to them. As I said before, this book is slow paced but it worked so well for me, I was never bored and I was okay with taking longer than usual to finish it because the writing was so enjoyable and I didn't want to put it down.
I gave this book 5/5 stars because it's the best historical novel I've ever read and you can tell Hilary Mantel has a great understanding of these historic figures and it shows in the novel. This book reminded me of why I love history so much and made me want to learn even more about Tudor England and I'm so excited to read the sequel. I'd recommend this to anyone who loves English history and doesn't mind long, slow paced novels.

The writing style reads more like a teenager's tumblr fanfiction. Not my cup of tea.

Ever since reading As I Lay Dying last year, I've been excited to read another of Faulkner's books. I love his style of writing so much. The characters were written so well, I loved the characters of Lena and Joe Christmas. The stream of consciousness style of writing helps you really get into the mindset of the characters and really connect with them and their problems. This book was so far ahead of its time, addressing themes such as race, class and gender; topics which were taboo in the 1930s. Faulkner has such a great talent for setting an atmosphere and mood for his stories, something I noticed reading both this and As I Lay Dying. My only problem was the slow pacing (I think that might be my fault for reading this immediately after reading a few fast paced horror novels) which made it sometimes boring to read. Other than that, I think it's worth a read for anyone who is a fan of Southern Gothic or character- driven stories and I will definitely be checking out more from William Faulkner in the future.

5 out of 5 stars
I had been looking forward to reading this book for a while and when I saw it was available to borrow as an ebook from the library, I got it right away! A lot of the people I follow on here only thought the book was mediocre, so while I thought the premise sounded great I kept my expectations low. I was blown away. From the first chapter this book had me hooked! It took me about a week to finish, but it was interesting the entire way through.
Let me give a brief summary for those who have never heard of this book: It is about a family who breed their own freakshow. Crystal Lil, the mother, takes various drugs and other substances in order to give birth to deformed children who will be raised to become acts in the show. The narrator, Olympia, is an albino hunchbacked dwarf and we follow her story through two narratives: one in the present and one during the past where we learn about her and her siblings life in the circus. Both narratives were very well done and I do not think I would have changed the book in any other way.
The writing style was great, the characters were incredibly written and developed, and the plot was fascinating. Although the characters and story were so bizarre, the author had a way of writing that made you feel incredible emotion for the characters and the problems they faced. This is definitely a book that you either love or hate, and I loved it to pieces. I wouldnèt recommend it to anyone because it is very gross and disturbing at times but I think that many people will enjoy it. I think it's safe to say that this is my favourite book of 2016, maybe of all time. I can't remember a book that I've enjoyed this much in a very long time.