Jess
My mom bought me the CD version of this audiobook when I was a kid and I remember reading along while listening to the narration. I was feeling nostaligic so I relistened to it and loved it just as much as I did when I was small. The humor is dry and witty and the characters are all complex and interesting. For a mid-grade book, it delves into a lot of deep conversations and topics with a grace I appreciated.
I'm giving it an extra star because I actually stuck with it and finished it. Nothing was technically wrong with this book but I put it down so many times and swore I wasn't going to pick it up again. I haven't DNFed a book yet and I think it's only my pride or masochism that left me coming back for more. I like the premise of finding other species with whom to communicate with on Earth and I will be rethinking eating takoyaki for a while. However, the fact that every character in this book was constantly grappling with what it means to be human in the most suffocating way possible took this down a lot of pegs for me. I really wanted more of the research side and while I appreciate Nayler's perspective that the octopi probably see us as monsters, I kept hoping the book would end sooner than it did rather than contemplate our destructive existence on Earth.
A sweet, wholesome, and humorous story. Finished it in two sittings and I'm excited for the release of the second book
Read this while recovering from surgery so I was more distracted than normal but I loved it nonetheless. I adored the characters and the narration style with the asides! There's something about a mom who is just trying to do right by her daughter that hits me in the feels and the way we're reminded that she has her own life and story reminded me so much of my own mom. Really appreciated the chemistry the characters had and I look so forward to the rest of this series.
4.5 ☆
I'm probably not the same person as I was when I started this book. Loved how the stories come together and the resillience of the Weyward women.
It was okay. 3.5 stars. The writing was really dense and none of the characters were really like-able through the perspective of the other characters. The subject was interesting I just had to keep stopping to look up all of the 90s references which pulls you out of your suspension of disbelief.
Devoured in a day. Absolutely dreamy setting and beautiful characters. I fear Xingyin may be part vampire with the number of times she “tasted blood,” however.
I feel like I have such a better understanding of Bourdain as a person now. I love hearing about food from people who love food and I really appreciate his perspective on what it means to so many different people. I laughed and cried with him through the whole book. We lost a national treasure but I'm so glad we still have his stories.
I'm convinced Patel puts actual crack in her books because I'm left craving more from her every time I finish her stories. I had to sit for a while after devouring the last three parts of this in one sitting and really contemplate what it means to be a woman. My biggest fear is having a sense of impending doom and nobody listening to me so I was really feeling it for this one. Kaikeyi was the original girl's girl and I'll stand by that.
As a biologist, I adored the science and attention to detail in this book. It was charming and shockingly gripping for a lab floating in space. It had just the right amount of suspense mixed with daily life and I absolutely loved Rocky.
Few books have such beautiful lines as to make me cry and yet this book exists. Words don't exist to describe how much I adored this novella.
Thoroughly enjoyed this one! I was struggling to finish a different book and it's nice to have one that breaks you out of your slump. I love a morally grey main character that grows over the course of the story and it has just the right amount of romance without pulling away from the plot. Madly impressed that this was the author's debut novel because the worldbuilding is amazing.
I read this years ago and I literally haven't looked at trees the same way since. Every time I'm in the forest all I can think about is this book. It inspired me to broaden my reading horizons and try out other books like Entangled Life which I also thoroughly enjoyed.
heist books are even better than heist movies because you pick your own montage music
Maybe I'm cliche but I love a book with a headstrong and slightly annoying female character. Lila's personality carried the story, I feel like Kell was just kinda There and Conveniently Magic. Not that I'm complaining, I think it worked and I'm sure we'll get more of him later. The worldbuilding was fleshed out well and the story had good pacing to keep me hooked. Looking forward to finishing this series soon.
I enjoyed this much more than the show but watching the show first definitely helped me understand a lot of the context and plot. Very grateful for the translator for including footnotes to help with the historical side of what was happening.
San Diegans will enjoy this book. It feels like a story your neighbor would tell you. The characters are all larger-than-life but still so relatable. Beautiful all-around.
