nigmatillium

By now it is safe to say I can rely on Josh Lanyon to deliver a very cleverly woven mystery plot with just the right amount of romance. Stranger on the Shore sure is a page turner, but I don't think it is for everyone. Actually, the more novels by Josh Lanyon I read and the more I read other reviews, it's clear to me that one either loves Josh Lanyon's books or doesn't. Luckily for me, I am in the 'loves' part of the fence.

The real identity of Brian Arlington is obvious really early. There is no question on who is who, but there still is a nagging 'why?' and 'what happened exactly?' that makes you want to read more and find out how it all played out. While at first it all seems obvious, as you advance reading, the plot gets more complicated, there are new developments and a lot of new questions. I could not figure out exactly what happened and my suspects list was way off. And I really love that. Josh Lanyon managed to beautifully make me look the wrong way more than once so the conclusion was so much more surprising.

I didn't really like any of the Arlingtons, apart from Jarrett; and Brian, I guess. They were definitely the most likeable ones.

And then, of course, I liked Griff a lot, and I liked his reactions to finding out more and more about the subject of his book. He was struggling with it and I liked how natural it felt. His reactions were the exact kind I would expect from a genuine person.

And there's Pierce who I also liked a lot. Hotshot lawyer is my other character weakness and Pierce fit the bill perfectly. He was serious, suspicious, cold, but also kind, and good looking. What else could I ask for? That's the whole package right there.

I liked Griff and Pierce together. Their relationship evolved naturally, the focus was definitely not the romance and I wouldn't have it any other way, but as far as it went, I loved it. There was not too much of it, and not too little, just the perfect amount for this kind of plot.

Although I won't rate it 5/5 because I had trouble to really get into it, Stranger on the Shore is a really good novel. It really kept me guessing and glued to every page.

What a surprising read this was!

I went into it expecting something different, I was not ready for Dylan's struggles, but I am so happy this is the direction this novel went to. Dylan is a kid, he's just trying to make sense of what's happening to his family as well as trying to understand himself, his desires. He's just trying to be.

When he meets Vin, Dylan seems to be getting a lot of answers, but he is still unsure. Luckily, Miss Dolphinia sees all and she is not shy of meddling in other people's lives. Thanks to her, Dylan (formerly known as Dili, yuck) is pushed into Vin's life who is quick to tell Dylan what to expect. Vincenzo (what a great name) is possessive, he gets obsessive and he's not trying to hide that from Dylan. He knows exactly what he's going into. I loved Vin's honesty and warnings so much! He was nothing but honest, aware of his flaws and made Dylan aware of those too.

What I was a little iffy about was the short time span of the novel. Most of the action takes place in around a week. At first I found it a little weird, but after thinking about it for a few seconds, everything is perfectly plausible. Life does get complicated and tricky and a lot can happen in a really short period of time.

Needless to say I liked most of the characters, I was so anxious for Dylan at some points, I was unsure about Vin for a bit, but just a bit, and Miss Dolphinia is an icon.

At first I wasn't sure I would like Rase, but wow, how context can turn things around. I also thought that Rase and Gabriel's meeting was too straightforward, but then I got some context on that too and oh my.

I read a while ago that people are able to tell in the first 3 seconds from meeting someone if they could be with that person (dunno if that's true or not, meh, it's a cool story) and to me it looks like this is what happened to Rase. He saw Gabriel and that was it, he was hooked.

Rase and Gabriel had some sort of understanding of each other that's a tad surreal. I'm not sure things work like that, but well, they are so good together, I won't dwell into it. I loved how careful Gabriel was, even on their second encounter, and I would have liked to get more inside Gabriel's mind. I am so curious about what his deal is, I craved some conversation between him and Rase on it. Needless to say I am shattered that there is no sequel.

The side characters were great too, they weren't there only to fill up space (I would like to read more about Allen too), they really had a purpose and that's awesome!

The sex is brutal. There is no way around it, it is violent, it is raw and it is so damn hot. I loved how Anah Crow wrote the sex scenes, the creativity and the bluntness of it. I have no more words for it, it was pretty darn perfect.

I would love to rate this book 5 stars, but I go one down because I really would have liked some more background on Gabriel. Other than that, awesome read.

Since I liked the first book of the series, I was pretty sure I was going to enjoy the second one just as much. Or almost. Elf Defence features Calarian and Benji who we met in Red Heir, and while I liked Calarian a lot, I was not sold on Benji. I mostly tolerated him in the first book and was glad he wasn't around more, but I was stuck with him here.

The first half of the book was a challenge to go through when it comes to Benji. I did not like him at all. Not a bit. I did not like his attitude towards others, although I did know from the start that he was not completely honest. Benji was alone for so long it was easier to dislike everyone and call everyone stupid (ugh, if he was going to say that one more time...) than to make an effort and see past his prejudice.

Luckily for everyone involved, especially me, that started to change when Lars entered the scene. Lars is pretty much the definition of a himbo. He was okay. He had his moments and he definitely fits in between Calarian and Benji, he gives them some sort of balance.

Calarian is, well, Calarian. I did like him more in the first book, he was more... elvish there. But then again, I guess that indeed life at the castle made him more comfortable.

Thinking about the characters, I think I liked Hannah the most. Weird, you'd think I would at least say Gretchen, but no, Hannah is the one I liked. Gretchen had her moments too, though.

As I already said, I did not enjoy the first half as much, I did enjoy the later chapters a more, but something was a bit off. This time the comedy didn't hit right. If anything, a few times I felt like it didn't fit the scene, and it tended to be repetitive. Overall the book is just okay. After the first one my expectations were a tad bit higher. I was also expecting it to be hotter, but it's surprisingly subdued. I was curious about what exactly were the double alchemist, the paladin, and whatever other sexual positions are there and with Calarian and Benji (and later Lars) being sex freaks I was disappointed to get none.

I definitely recommend Red Heir, it was funnier and Loth and Quinn make such a great pair, I was glad to have them for a bit here too. When it comes to Elf Defence I guess give it a try, but don't have your expectations too high.

This book isn't bad, but it's pretty bland. I got excited knowing there's some crime mystery going on and I was expecting more. The plot is pretty straightforward and predictable. I saw Clay being attacked a mile away. There is no mystery really, no anticipation and as a result I was far from being excited reading this.

I didn't get to really know any of the characters and the issues with Clay and Mitch's relationship were brushed over. They didn't discuss it, they didn't make any effort to fix whatever was wrong and so they are bound to repeat the cycle over and over again. They did get a dog, added one responsibility meaning to keep them together, same way as some people have kids to 'save the relationship' resulting in the third party just getting hurt for their selfish reasons.

Good dog, bad people.

Mitch going off and kissing someone else is bound to happen again too. If Nick wouldn't have stopped him, he would have gone ahead and had sex with him. He said he never cheated before, but man... That's close, too close. Sadly, Clay would likely forgive him the first few times because he is so used to Mitch, so blinded by whatever he thinks he feels, by the comfort of being in a long relationship that he'd take whatever. All Mitch would have to do is say 'sorry'. He proved that when he instantly decided to stay with no objection when Mitch asked him to. I was expecting him to at least open a conversation, but instead he was happy to stay there, no questions asked.

That is not a good relationship.

The last few pages were a bit annoying. I didn't like the way everything was dealt with, the police work didn't read as realistic to me and I would have liked more about the perpetrator, why he did what he did, what motivated him. The writing is okay, but I wasn't a fan of the editing either, and I am glad it wasn't longer.

My wish came true and in the third and final book of this series I got both Isaac and David's point of views. Having it any differently would have felt wrong and incomplete. Despite this, I liked this book the least of all three.

Again I liked the writing, but I felt like everything went too expectedly and in the smoothest way possible. Of course I like Isaac and David a lot and I want them to be happy, but, I don't know, it was plain, mostly the first half of the book. I don't know how, but so far Keira Andrews managed to almost lose me in the first half of the books, and then pull me in completely in the second half. I can't put my finger on it, but I think the book being divided in 'part one' and 'part two' had something to do with it. The division wasn't justified to me, but it worked wonders.

I expected something else from A Way Home, a different kind of journey, but in the end I got what I expected so I can't really complain. I just wanted a bit more and as a result I can't write a proper review about the book. I liked everyone, they were just as great, I liked Isaac and David finding their way together, I liked Aaron and Jen going along, I liked the accepting, loving characters strewn along (June and Anna were great), but that's about it. A Way Home is a perfect way (ha!) of spending a sunny afternoon, it is a lovely read that's going to leave you feeling content. (It's not the book, it's me, I love angst and worry and storm in books.)

I have mixed feelings about this novel. For the most part I liked it. There are some things that I didn't enjoy, it was a bit hard for me to get into it, but most of all I disliked the chapter titles or sub-chapter title or whatever they were. I'm not sure due to formatting. I tried to ignore them and not read every bolded title looking line as they usually hinted to what was going to happen next and took so much from the joy of reading and discovering by myself what was going on. My rating would have gone way higher if those were not there.

As for the story itself, it was okay. The plot made sense for the most part, a lot is happening and I wouldn't have an issue with it, I like it when a lot is happening, but it was unnecessarily complicated.

I don't feel strongly for any of the characters, but I liked them. I liked how Austin was so open to his newly discovered sexuality, how he objectively thought about it and how he explained his repression. I am tempted to say that he might have accepted it a little too fast given his years of ignoring it, but what do I know.

When it comes to Peter, he is bold and funny. My initial impression of him didn't quite match the one later in the novel, but that might have been me being influenced by another novel I read a while ago. I'm not complaining, though, he is okay. And I say okay because, I'm not sure what it is, I can't put my finger on it, but I feel their personalities, both Austin and Peter's, kept shifting a little throughout the novel, barely, but enough to make me wonder what's going on.

As for the ending of the book, this might be the worst cliffhanger I ever read. The novel ended so abruptly I thought I had a bad copy, but upon investigating, nope, that was it. It made me mad. I realize this was made so it would make the reader want to pick up the sequel, but it didn't work on me. I am not reading any of the sequels, I'm good.

What an entertaining read! This is my first Lynda La Plante novel, but all the evidence points to it not being the last. To my delight this book can be read as a standalone. There are some references to Jane's past cases (not sure if they are actually from previous books), but nothing to put the reader in the dark. However, this book made me interested in Jane Tennison and I would like to read more about her. I liked her a lot as a detective and as a person.

I didn't really know what I was getting into when I started reading the book (I received it from someone and I didn't ask or look up info about it before reading), but I enjoyed it from the very first pages. The conclusion of the book wasn't mind blowing, but everything leading to it was great. ‘Murder Mile' is an entertaining and informative read, especially for me since I am quite new to the genre and also because I was not familiar with some of the historical facts presented in the book. Speaking of history, I loved everything about it. In a letter addressed to the reader at the end of the book, Lynda La Plante wrote: “I was interested, however, in what effect the three-day week and the many strikes we faced might have on a murder investigation” and I have to admit I am weak for these type of things, real life interlocking with fiction. I also have to thank Lynda La Plante for wondering and deciding to find out how a murder investigation would go in those circumstances so that I, and others, could have the joy of reading about it.

Now that it's clear how I feel about the plot, I'm going to move on to the characters. I loved how real everyone was. Reading about some of them made me think about people I know and how I perceive them. The detectives are the ‘good guys' so it was really fun to read about their mistakes and how they can be shitty people too. At first I thought I might really dislike some of the characters, but reading more it was hard to do so. There's nothing black and white about this book.

Jane was so great, she is a good capable detective who still makes mistakes, but is learning from them. I enjoyed her thought process and seeing her trying to come up with the best course of action. She is not some type of flawless, perfect character, she is a regular person and I think that's why I liked her so much. She is also someone who tries to make herself heard in a sexist environment. She is one tough lady.

Reading some of the other reviews I am glad this is the first book I read since they promise a more confident and straightforward Jane in the other novels. That does make sense since the Jane in ‘Murder Mile' is a just promoted detective and the one in the other books is a well seasoned detective. This is exciting. Knowing that, do I recommend ‘Murder Mile'? Of course I do, it is a really good read!

The first few pages of the book had me hooked. It was really interesting and I was drawn in pretty quick. But then I get to ‘part two' and instead of the detective I get this woman who I don't know and don't even like. Hannah was infuriating at times and every time I thought there's something to make me like her even a bit, she'd (not) say something or think something that would make me dislike her a little bit more.

I liked part one and three and I would have enjoyed the book way more if it would have been all written from Porteous' point of view. I was really interested in the investigation, how they figure it out, who they suspect, why, what does the forensics find, and all that exciting stuff, but instead I got this insecure librarian who's just been through a divorce, and her rebel teenage daughter who thinks she's all grown up. At some point I was so bored and ready to drop it. The only thing keeping me reading was wanting to know who did it.

On a second thought, I might have disliked Porteous too if I would have read more of his thoughts. After all I didn't really like anyone.

The plot was fine. It was interesting at first, but then I got caught up in Hannah's drama and lost focus, too busy being baffled at her. I see some reviews saying that the ending was rushed and thinking about it, yes, it was rushed, and it did rely on coincidence. One thing I like is that I did not expect the murderer to be who it was, although I probably should have seen it coming; also I was myself in a rush to finish the book so I can get to read something more entertaining.

Now that I think about it, there were also a few things left unexplained. Needless to say I do not recommend this book. There are far more interesting detective novels out there.


I don't know who wrote the synopsis, but it got two things wrong:

Michael Grey, an enigmatic and secretive young man who was reported missing by his foster parents in 1972.
Michael was reported missing after his foster parents died in a car crash by the guy who managed their wills. They didn't even know he'd been missing.

Michael had been her [Hannah] boyfriend, and she had been with him the night he disappeared.
Hannah had been with Michael the day before he went missing. He phoned her the next day in the morning, but she refused to meet him.

I still need to recollect myself after reading this, I don't even know how to describe this book. I'm awfully curious as to what stood behind it. I'm sure there must be an explanation.

This was a fantastic read! It's been a while since I read Ryū Murakami and I had this book on my want to read list for a while now. I knew I liked Ryū Murakami, and I knew what type of books I'm getting from him, but I kind of forgot how intense they were.

The novel builds up beautifully, it makes you wonder what's coming next. You are intrigued about the characters, and, at least for me, it went in an unexpected direction. Of course, about half way through the novel I made the horrible mistake of looking up if there's a movie made after the book and I accidentally read some of the synopsis and that ruined it for me a bit. What can you do. I did manage to read it, though, so it's not a complete loss, I'd say.

And really, regarding the film I could only find some news about being one in the making, but I don't think I would want to watch it. I might, though. Reading this book I got a new understanding of Japanese horror films in general, I understand them better, but at the same time, I think it would be really hard to translate what the characters go through from book to screen. Their reactions are so natural, in a way, but on screen they might come across as bizarre and wouldn't make sense. I don't see how a movie could do justice to In The Miso Soup.

The book is narrated by Kenji and I liked a lot reading what and how he thought, about what was happening and him describing what he was seeing. Fair warning here: at some point things get really graphic. I actually found it disturbing, but in a curious kind of way. I did find myself liking the unusual comparisons and descriptions. Also, how can you even think about some of that stuff in the first place? I was surprised and kind of shocked at the same time.

The ending was brilliant as far as I'm concerned.

I liked the analogy and, weirdly, it made perfect sense. It came as some sort of realisation. I think I understand Kenji, it all feels almost normal. What a weird thing.

There were a few comments and remarks I didn't quite like, but I don't think I should go into them anyway, so I am going to ignore all that and instead just say that In The Miso Soup is a brilliant novel and definitely a good read for any fan of horror or of Ryū Murakami. I recommend reading it in one sitting (although I didn't do that) and, preferably, don't read the synopsis beforehand.

I might have been a little too excited when I started reading this novel, so it didn't work as expected for me. Overall I enjoyed the story, but there are some things that didn't make a whole lot of sense to me.

Before I go into what didn't resonate with me, I liked the writing style so much. Except for the 1st person bits. I see what the intended purpose was there, but it took something away as far as Zach is concerned. Reading those parts I couldn't help but feel a little disappointed and like Zach's struggle wasn't as real, which is the total opposite of what I suppose the intention was. Other than that, I liked the multiple perspective, it makes me wonder why that's not a thing in other novels as well.

For the most part Zach and David were great, they had some issues, which is to be expected from Zach, but I feel like David should have known better. He wasn't really helpful and the "What are you talking about?" (from both of them) line got old so fast. They kept talking, but made very slow progress. And, again, while it is understandable coming from Zach, David has no excuse.

It was also weird how sometimes the dialogue turned into monologue Example: when David mentioned how killing Esteban would have changed Zach, I don't even know what he was on about. I'm not sure what prompted him to talk about it and half of what he said made no sense to me. Or weird timing for full length conversations. Example: who talks to their son about the son's potential boyfriend while said potential boyfriend is half-asleep next to the son? The dialogue often felt unrealistic to me.

I didn't feel like Zach and David really fit together. Everything indicated to that, but something was missing. It's like they had a big "what if" above them and were trying to compensate. What if Zach wouldn't have gone missing? What if David wouldn't have rejected Zach when he kissed him?

At first I though Zach's parents weren't okay with the fact that Zach is gay, but that wasn't the case. They were also very supportive all the time, which, again, doesn't feel too realistic to me. Sure, Richard lost his temper once, but other than that all good.

Despite all that, I still enjoyed this novel. It lacks some things, but it is also really good on others. The writing style is a big plus and I liked that Zach's progress (or some of it) was shown.

I dropped this book so hard. I was not even half-way through the first chapter when I knew this is just a no from me. The first three paragraphs made me wonder why they are there. I don't think I ever read a weaker start of a novel ever, and also one that made me instantly dislike the main character. Cal is a narcissistic brat, he gives off strong vibes of Gary Stu and that just ain't for me. I need real characters, thank you very much.

I found it strange how this amazing journalist (who is a teenager, mind you) is so dedicated and so good at this job he doesn't even seem to like. He reports on the kind of news that makes him 'secretly want to vomit in a bucket than talk about it anymore'. Well, why are you doing it then? Find other subjects, it's not like he had a boss breathing down his neck and telling him what to talk about, he had the freedom to talk about whatever. Later he has a 'dilemma'. Quote: Do I want to report on things people care about? Yes. Do I want more followers and viewers? Also yes. What's the dilemma there? You have two questions with two affirmative answers, no 'but', no 'or', no 'why'. Cal does not know what a dilemma is (also, we encounter a contradiction here). This whole part makes no sense to me. It's okay to not like the subject you are talking about (or writing about like I do right now) and still do it because of your own reasons. Pray tell, where is a dilemma there?

Apart from Cal's amazing talents, his way of making news so that the 'real ones' get pushed back and he single-handedly makes so that people lose elections, he is also toxic. Here's this quote: The irony of him 'loving' my posts when he couldn't even commit to 'liking' me. Oh MY G! This makes me so angry. That's not how it works, you brat! People can love your content and not feel any kind of attraction to you. No one has to like you just because it makes 'rage burn inside you' if they don't. There is no irony here, you are just being a piece of entitled shit. Holy f!

The second half of the chapter made me see Cal in a kinder light, but not better. He has a tough situation at home, parents shouting and fighting, not paying attention to their kid, okay, yeah, he has some troubles. The end of the chapter made me say 'what?' out loud. I don't get what Cal's aversion towards the Mars mission is, why his dad potentially going on it bothers him so much and, you know what? I don't want to find out. I've seen enough of Cal to know I don't want to deal with him. (Reading the synopsis I am made to believe Cal doesn't want his dad on the mission because he'd be pushed into the spotlight of media. You know, the exact thing he does to others. Now that, Cal, is irony.)

I didn't even reach the other main character, but that's fine, I'm not interested.

I am going to be honest, when I read the synopsis on the back of the book I was intrigued. I was expecting something darker than it is, something that would keep me on the edge. While there is a fair amount of mystery, Those People doesn't really stand out to me. I enjoyed reading it, it's a nice suburban life novel, it is entertaining, but it's not exciting, it's not all that surprising.

I can't say I related to any of the characters, I didn't strongly like or dislike any of them (strongly being the key word here) and my thinking of Darren was conditioned by the characters. Seeing how all of the neighbours were against him and we only get to see their perspective and not Darren's too, it's easy to dislike him.

Despite all that, I rated the book at 4/5 because it's a good read. It's not boring, it didn't feel like a chore reading it and I definitely don't regret it. But it is just that, a suburban life story and if you are not particularly into the genre I don't suppose you'd get much from it.

I feel like the synopsis makes this novel seem way more thrilling than it actually is. I was expecting a mystery story (oh, look, it is in the mystery category, wonder why), something that would make me turn page after page and inhale every single word, but what I got instead was five days (not even exaggerating) of struggling to get over with it already.

It isn't... bad, it's just really uninteresting. I did like the writing, I loved how the characters connected to one another, but I was also slightly confused. There are a lot of characters and I'm not exactly sure what their purpose was in this, apart from being there. In the second part, at some point someone narrates in 1st person and I still don't know who that is. Someone who worked for Alkaitis, I gathered as much, but I have no clue who they are.

At first I thought Paul will be more involved in the plot and I am mildly curious about what ever happened to him. Okay, I know what happened to him in broad lines, but the situation at the start of the book didn't get a resolve, I wanted to know more.

I do appreciate that everyone got some sort of conclusion. Well, not everyone, I have no idea what came of Melissa. Or why she was even there, but yes, most of the characters got some sort of conclusion so we weren't left hanging. I also appreciate that the novel is circular, that was a really nice touch. And this is about all the praise I have for it.

I don't know on what basis I could recommend this to anyone. Maybe if you really like vague books, with a lot of themes put one on top of the other, and slightly dull. I can't say I'm sorry I read this, but it required more effort than it should have.

I knew this book was not going to work out for me when I came across Noah'd. What is that?

But no, that was not the only reason I dropped it. I did not like the writing, the dialogue was weird (I have no idea who talks like that ever) and I didn't like Noah very much (I think he was supposed to be nerdy and quirky, but instead he was all kinds of cringe). I was so confused about his mother too, I didn't understand why she would advertise herself while apparently keeping her job a secret, and I got pretty strong abusive and/or neglectful vibes from her without even actually having her on page.

I absolutely loved reading In the Absence of Light. I can only describe it as a delightful, funny, and awesome novel.

I actually don’t even remember how I came across it (I probably got it in a bunch with others and forgot about it), but there it was so what else to do but reading it?

I liked it from the first few sentences, and I knew I was going to love it.

First, we get Grant, a dubious guy on the run from the FBI. And then we have the gorgeous Morgan who has no time for games. You’d think this is either a recipe for failure or something awesome, and luckily for us, it’s the second option.

In essence, this is a beautiful story about learning to see what’s in front of you plain and simple. Things don’t always go smooth, but then again, they rarely do, and we might get worried along the way, but with perseverance we get to discover a great book.

If you didn’t read this yet, I highly recommend it.

The S series is a very, very special series to me. I'm not 100% sure if it's the first BL novel I ever read, but I have a strong conviction it is. It was recommended to me back when I used to hang out on an anime forum a really long time ago, and I loved it. Since then I re-read it a few times, not sure how many, and recently I had this urge to read it again. I thought I'd also finally write a review for it since, for some reason, it never occurred to me to do that before.

Well, now you know I'm always going to be biased about this series.

S is such a perfect example of what was popular at the time it was published. During that time I had already read quite a few yakuza mangas, it was everywhere, and I was quite a fan of the plot. I still kind of am. S is also a perfect example of the writing style at the time and the most common themes.

Thinking of the plot in this novel, I liked how well put together everything was. Looking it up, it's safe to say that none of it is actually real, but Saki Aida took great inspiration from reality and worked everything into the S universe flawlessly. Thanks to this, the novel has a sense of realism that pulls you in easily.

I liked the two main characters a lot, Shiiba with his sense of revenge, his sense of duty, and his stubbornness, and Munechika with his calmness and his way of being authoritative and commanding without being pushy. I also liked the care that was put into the characters' relationships, especially Shiiba's, with the other characters. We get a real sense of who everyone is and what their role is, no one is overlooked. At the same time I have to point out a flaw in all this where Shiiba was 30 years old at the start of the novel, and 28 years old later in the novel. But given everything else, I can ignore that.

Shiiba and Munechika make such a nice pair. I can't really explain how much I like them together. They are both strong willed men who are drawn to each other. A lot of things can go wrong there, but it can also be so very good. Having read the series before I know what's laying ahead, but I am so excited to rediscovering them.

The illustrations made by Chiharu Nara are so nice too, I like them a lot. And before I forget, I can't not mention that the series as a whole has a few memorable situations, one of them being in this first book regarding a certain Beretta/Magnum exchange.

No matter how I look at it, S is a great novel. It is beautifully written, it shows that a lot of planning went into it, the characters are developed nicely and naturally, and it feels very real.

I had no idea Yuko Tsushima is related to Osamu Dazai, but having found that, it sure puts this book into a different light. Initially I thought I was getting a Yukio Mishima book, but upon re-reading the name on the cover I shrugged and decided to buy it anyway and didn't give it another thought. I wonder how my reading experience would have changed if I would have known Yuko Tsushima and Osamu Dazai are related before reading the book.

The Watery Realm The first of the two short stories didn't catch my attention at first, but I soon became very interested. I liked how the narrative kept switching from one perspective to another. It sure added something and it was fun to figure out how everything connects. Later, after reading that Tsushima is the daughter of Osamu Dazai, I liked the difference in perspective between The Watery Realm and No Longer Human.

Of Dogs and Walls The second story was harder to get into. Like the first one, it caught my attention later on, but it confused me. It's a rather thought provoking story and I'm not sure I'm going to fully get it. It's very possible that I'm missing something or I need more context.

Overall, a nice read, but the stories didn't seem to lead anywhere. I read them as random, disjointed diary entries. Not quite my cup of tea.

Out of all the books in the series I re-read so far, I remembered the most out of this one. Not important plot details, but little things like some key-words and some names. That might be thanks to the fact that unlike the first two, here we have an actual villain.

But before that, I still love it very much. In this third book Shiiba confronts with a new set of challenges and his relationship with Munechika is put under pressure. Shiiba has been trying to sort out his feelings since the start, since he and Munechika started working together, but as expected, he gets even more troubled. I love how Saki Aida displayed his internal struggle, it gets the reader to really understand and relate to Shiiba (not me, but I'm sure there are readers out there who do).

Munechika is mostly as calm as ever, but we also get more emotion from him too, and get to learn a few things about him. Just to be clear I didn't feel like I didn't know him before, au contraire, it's just that now we had a chat and shared a few things, so to say.

The plot this time is more exciting, things get a little more serious in a way and we get closer to whatever is going on with Munechika. In the previous two novels Munechika's brother was mentioned, but here we finally get to meet him. I had mostly forgotten about him, apart from the fact that he existed, so I was expecting a different kind of character, although my expectation didn't differ completely. I mentioned that here we get a villain and that one sure makes things more tense. There are also a lot of leads we get and try and string together (reading I did remember details on the plot so I didn't get to have fun again with that, but it's fine, I still enjoyed it) and the ending of the novel makes me want to start reading the next one immediately.

I am delighted to say that the timeline finally settled, we have a definite age for Shiiba (28 years old, turning 29), a definite passing of time since Yukari's murder (8 years because a year passed since the start of the second book) and I wish that'll be all I have to say about it this time, but I can't, although this is the most minor flaw so far. At one point Shiiba was pondering about Kaname's age and settled to Kaname being older than him, but younger than Munechika. Later in the book when he finally learned that Kaname is older than Munechika by three years, he was surprised as he was expecting Kaname to be much, much older, and I just... sigh.

I liked the illustrations by Chiharu Nara as usual, but this time I felt like they helped get everything together. On the previous book I said I didn't think they were necessary, but nice, whereas here I feel like they are part of the story. There are the same number of illustration in each book so it's not that, but here we have a few illustrations that don't feature one or both main characters every time so that might have something to do with it. Either way, I found it to be very interesting.

Needless to say I loved this book very much as well, I am embracing my bias, and I am so glad to re-read this series.

And I have reached the last book in the S series. I enjoyed the first three books more. S: Afterglow is a bit darker, which is not a bad thing as far as I'm concerned, but there is less Munechika for the first half of the book which is just cruel (although I did enjoy reading it) and at one point things get a little too dramatic for me. I could have done without stretching a certain encounter.

Despite not having a lot of Shiiba and Munechika time together compared to the first three books, I did enjoy the final one just as much. Every book had something memorable to me, but this one had two things I remembered well and I did like re-reading them.

I did not notice any timeline inconsistencies in the final book! Yay!

I really want to make sure I mention something about this series as a whole. Shiiba and Munechika's relationship didn't start in a healthy way and it was definitely not okay at first. They were both troubled people with heavy backgrounds, but they were right for each other. They were right for each other because they genuinely cared for one another and were willing (in varying degrees, of course) to make it work, to put themselves second for the sake of their lover. So although their relationship didn't have the best start, they nurtured it and worked to make it good.

I loved the character development in the series, especially Shiiba's, since the series mostly follows him. His struggles felt real and it is impossible to not see and understand his point of view if not agreeing with him completely. Saki Aida did a fabulous job in writing this story and no matter the inconsistencies, little errors, maybe some questionable actions, it draws you in. Yes, I still am very biased and this is not the case for everyone, but I just can't not love it and praise it. The sheer amount of thought that went into creating the characters and the plot, the care put in every character, giving them a distinct personality and an important role in the series is enough to make me appreciate it. Pair it with good writing (thanks translators as well!) and I'm a fan.

Chiharu Nara's illustrations were great here too, I enjoyed looking at them. I think I'm going to read some of her mangas and maybe other novels she illustrated if I can find any in English. I took quite a turn there from not thinking much about the illustration to seeking more. What can I say, Chiharu Nara's illustrations are really good.

So yeah, in conclusion I enjoyed my I-have-no-idea-how-many re-read of S and it still is one of my favourite series. Shiiba and Munechika are a great pair and I just might want to re-discover them again at some point. Who knows.

I had completely forgot the plot of this novel (well, not the main plot, but the whole Nagakura deal). Sometimes having a shitty memory really pays off.

Compared to the first book in the series, S: A Love Bite is emotionally charged. All of the characters are so complicated and they do things we don't understand at first. I am not going to try and find excuses, but I am going to say that I understand where everyone comes from and what motivates them. Ultimately everyone does what they think is best and not everyone might agree with their actions.

While Nagakura, the detective Shiiba is tasked with helping, is caught up in his own problems, Shiiba and Munechika's relationship faces its own issues. I cannot stress enough how much I like the way Shiiba and Munechika interact with each other, their relationship is credible, it feels real, and I love the mutual respect they have for each other as well as the genuine feeling of affection. At the same time the reader must not forget that Munechika is a ruthless man, he probably did things that are better left off the page, so his actions didn't feel out of place to me.

To be more precise, I am referring to Munechika sexually assaulting Shiiba. Unlike most pieces of fiction where I encountered sexual assault, here Munechika had a very clear goal. He needed Shiiba to understand what he was getting into, to understand that Munechika will never ever let him go if he chooses to stay. If he would have simply said it to him or if he would have merely tried to scare him, Shiiba would have seen through it and kept being a prisoner of his own doubts, he would have kept beating himself up over the same things. Again, I am not excusing Munechika's actions, but given the context, I can't deny it was probably the only way to free Shiiba of his own restraints.

Nagakura was another complicated character and I felt sad for him. He was very much caught in between two hard places. I find his story to be quite tragic. I also felt sorry for Mao, Nagakura's S, he was first a misguided kid, then a pained kid.

I must say again that I loved the attention Saki Aida put into the characters and how she gave them depth, made every one of them so complex. I also love omniscient narration and she does it flawlessly. This kind of narration is so rare nowadays (I just came across someone asking if omniscient point of view is still used in fiction), especially this well written and that's probably another reason why I love this series so much. I am also very glad I decided to re-read this now when I can look at it from a whole new perspective.

No matter how much I love the series, I also can't ignore the little flaws. It seems like the author struggled a bit with the passing of time. While I am glad she settled on one age for Shiiba, 28 years old, the passing of time since his sister's murder was having trouble settling. At one time it was seven years since then, the next time it was two years since Shiiba met Asakawa, seven years after her murder, then it was outright nine years since then. But again, I am going to overlook it. And since I'm here, I also found it weird that not once, but twice the word melancholy was used instead of melancholic.

As in the first novel, I liked Chiharu Nara's illustrations here too. I don't think they are essential to the novel, but it's a very nice addition and I appreciate the work that went behind it. I also like the cover art on all of the books.

Bottom line, I am still very biased about this series and I seem to find even more aspects of it to like with every re-read.

This is my first steampunk novel ever and I must say it was a really interesting read. I felt a bit overwhelmed at first, but soon I got to really enjoy it, the contraptions and everything that went on. At the same time I must admit that I am glad this is not my first Lyn Gala novel, I might have been put off, but since it is the second, now I know that Lyn Gala is a versatile author and I look forward to discovering what else is there.

In this novel I didn't like any character more than the other, I liked all of them equally. Well, with a few obvious exceptions, but all the important characters are well set in the liked area. I liked how Lyn Gala managed to make them all so distinct and how nicely the contradictory personalities of Alex and Beche were displayed.

One thing, and the only one, I found odd was the way the time setting was introduced. It felt so weird to me and also kind of unnecessary. The writing is so masterful it would have been obvious rather quick what year the plot was set in. And speaking of the writing, I am in awe. Although I only read one more novel by Lyn Gala before, the difference is obvious and that is a fantastic skill!

Moving along, the novel is simply great. The plot flows smoothly, I loved the whole of pirate life, Alex's capture and everything that followed. I especially liked that there is no sugar coating, piracy is not wrapped in something shiny and soft, it is delivered bluntly. Whatever you think piracy is about, you get it.

I also liked a lot Alex and Beche's conversations. (Speaking of Beche, he can be such an idiot, he's great) At some point I was almost pissed at Beche, but as I read further I came to understand where he was coming from and everything made perfect sense. This being pretty much a new territory to me, I might have been a bit jumpy at times, but I was thoroughly put back into my place.

The novel rises some very serious issues too such as slavery and the position of woman in society, as well as religion. This was hardly unexpected given the setting, but I liked how the author dealt with them. It made me wonder about some things too and that's always a big plus from me.

Alex's first meeting with pleasure was delightful. It was so well written and I liked Alex's reactions so much. He, but Beche as well, have so much to learn and explore, I really love that for them. It's going to be such an interesting journey, it makes me all giddy.

What else is there to say?
Pirates? Check.
Steampunk? Check.
Two clashing main characters? Check.
Awesome supporting characters? Check.
Good plot? Check.
All that's left is giving it a try.

Right from the start, this book didn't quite catch me. My reason for dropping this happens somewhere right at the beginning of the book so I didn't read more than two chapters. I'm not sure I did finish the second chapter.

What did it—or not—for me and Family of Lies, are the following events: Sebastian and some of his siblings drugged their father and their other siblings by putting something in their soup, then went to search for an item in their father's office upstairs. It was mentioned that it wasn't until a few hours later (might have been around 5-7h) that they went back downstairs in the kitchen and, upon seeing one of his siblings with their head in the bowl of soup, Sebastian carefully lifted their head so they wouldn't drown. I don't know how to break it to you, bud, but a few hours passed out with your whole face in soup...

Plus the writing style was really hard to follow, it jumped from one thing to another and it made me so confused about what was going on while being painfully obvious at the same time. I don't even know how it managed to do that.

If I would have read this novel during high school, I would probably have loved it. As I am way past high school, I definitely don't love it, but I somehow can't say I don't like it at all either.

The characters are weirdly self aware, they have an explanation for everything, they know where every single behaviour (and otherwise) issue originates from and that is just not how things work. These are 19-21 year olds, and yet they are able to psychoanalyse everyone, including themselves, while acting like 15 year olds at the same time.

They do stuff like regular 19-21 year olds too and the combination was so odd. While on one side they were more than well grounded, there was this childish and immature air all around. It's a really weird combination, but one that somehow made me keep reading. If only because it made no sense.

The internal monologues were tedious at times. I usually don't have an issue with those, but here, it was just more self psychoanalysis and often they didn't add anything to the story, nor to the characters, and it was a lot of them. The most internal monologues I ever read in a book that's not written in 1st person. In terms of character characterisation, not looking spectacular.

Another thing I found to be odd was that when two characters were talking to each other, sometimes their lines and actions felt reversed. I mean one of the character saying or doing something, but making more sense for the other one in the interaction to do or say it.

The plot was so predictable. There was only one thing I couldn't figure out until it was revealed (that also had a big part in me continuing reading this, I was just so curious), but all the rest, everything regarding the bet, each of the individual characters, their actions and feelings, had no amount of mystery whatsoever.

As odd as this was, I still had fun reading it. I did laugh out loud a couple of times, and I must say it does tick some boxes I like. Can't say which ones because spoilers, but there were enough good points as to not make me throw the novel into the sun. It just feels off. That being said, not the worse, definitely not the greatest and if you're reading this in your teens, chances are you are going to love it.