reading update 12/12/2022
Dec. 12th, 2022 02:23 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
penwallawhoops! kinda fell off the wagon there and now the year is almost over :) i did do a lot of reading so let's get into it!
Currently Reading:
Babel by R. F. Kuang
i have cried twice and we're only 1/3 of the way through. i think i was optimistic to think this one was getting done in 2022.
Rereads:
Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen
The Other World's Books Depend On the Bean Counter Vol. 1 and Vol. 2
The Mysterious Earl, A Summons to Greystone Hall, Season of Grace, and Miss Brookdale's Dowry by Perpetua Langley
The Grand Sophy by Georgette Heyer
New Reads:
The Scum Villain's Self-Saving System: Vol. 4 by MXTX
5/5. I mean, what is there to say? I love SVSSS and I love the extras. Like, these are the moshang bits, which of course I love. And I got unexpectedly attached to Shen Jiu, a character I have mostly hated, and there are some great bingqiu moments as well that continue their relationship development. These are called "extras" but they add a lot to the novel, both in terms of filling in the POVs of characters whose POV we don't see in the novel and in continuing on after the story is over.
Into the Riverlands by Nghi Vo
5/5. Another winner. I regret not buying hardcovers of the first two novellas, because now either I have to wait until all 5 are out and buy a box set so that they'll all match. Once again Vo uses the story within a story framework in a fascinating way.
Paris Daillencourt Is About To Crumble by Alexis Hall
3/5. It had to happen...the first Alexis Hall book I really didn't enjoy. Paris is so anxious that he's no fun, personally, and while I appreciate the Muslim rep with Tariq...I didn't really like it? Overall while this is a well-crafted and deliberate novel that I'm sure others will enjoy, I found it kind of a slog.
Sprig Muslin by Georgette Heyer
4/5. Kind of like Something Fabulous, but instead of a romance its entirely about platonic/familial relationships. The romance is so underdeveloped it might as well not be there, honestly, but the rest of it is quite fun.
Love on the Brain by Ali Hazelwood
3/5. Is this a good book? No. Is it a better book than The Love Hypothesis? Yes, actually. You can see that Hazelwood has actually improved at the craft of writing. Not enough to make the book enjoyable, but it's definitely less rage-inducing than previous attempts. I would love to see her try to shake it up a little and try, I don't know, some new tropes, or writing a couple that don't have the identical body types of the last few she wrote, or maybe stop call books where the heroine fumbles around for most of the story only to need the man to come save her STEMinist, because...come on.
How to Marry A Werewolf by Gail Carriger
3/5. Initially rated higher but the longer I thought about it the less I liked it? It's an interesting world that Carriger has crafted, but at the end of the day it's not really to my taste.
Scales and Sensibility by Stephanie Burgis
4/5. A little underbaked in terms of the plot but overall charming and fun.
The Fire in the Glass by Jacquelyn Benson
4/5. Unexpectedly good! It's a paranormal thriller set in the early 1900s. My one complaint is that I solved the mystery fairly early and had to spend the rest of the book waiting for the protag to catch up with me...and frankly it felt like she was a bit stupid for not working it out immediately, because it felt very obvious from the get-go.
Currently Reading:
Babel by R. F. Kuang
i have cried twice and we're only 1/3 of the way through. i think i was optimistic to think this one was getting done in 2022.
Rereads:
Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen
The Other World's Books Depend On the Bean Counter Vol. 1 and Vol. 2
The Mysterious Earl, A Summons to Greystone Hall, Season of Grace, and Miss Brookdale's Dowry by Perpetua Langley
The Grand Sophy by Georgette Heyer
New Reads:
The Scum Villain's Self-Saving System: Vol. 4 by MXTX
5/5. I mean, what is there to say? I love SVSSS and I love the extras. Like, these are the moshang bits, which of course I love. And I got unexpectedly attached to Shen Jiu, a character I have mostly hated, and there are some great bingqiu moments as well that continue their relationship development. These are called "extras" but they add a lot to the novel, both in terms of filling in the POVs of characters whose POV we don't see in the novel and in continuing on after the story is over.
Into the Riverlands by Nghi Vo
5/5. Another winner. I regret not buying hardcovers of the first two novellas, because now either I have to wait until all 5 are out and buy a box set so that they'll all match. Once again Vo uses the story within a story framework in a fascinating way.
Paris Daillencourt Is About To Crumble by Alexis Hall
3/5. It had to happen...the first Alexis Hall book I really didn't enjoy. Paris is so anxious that he's no fun, personally, and while I appreciate the Muslim rep with Tariq...I didn't really like it? Overall while this is a well-crafted and deliberate novel that I'm sure others will enjoy, I found it kind of a slog.
Sprig Muslin by Georgette Heyer
4/5. Kind of like Something Fabulous, but instead of a romance its entirely about platonic/familial relationships. The romance is so underdeveloped it might as well not be there, honestly, but the rest of it is quite fun.
Love on the Brain by Ali Hazelwood
3/5. Is this a good book? No. Is it a better book than The Love Hypothesis? Yes, actually. You can see that Hazelwood has actually improved at the craft of writing. Not enough to make the book enjoyable, but it's definitely less rage-inducing than previous attempts. I would love to see her try to shake it up a little and try, I don't know, some new tropes, or writing a couple that don't have the identical body types of the last few she wrote, or maybe stop call books where the heroine fumbles around for most of the story only to need the man to come save her STEMinist, because...come on.
How to Marry A Werewolf by Gail Carriger
3/5. Initially rated higher but the longer I thought about it the less I liked it? It's an interesting world that Carriger has crafted, but at the end of the day it's not really to my taste.
Scales and Sensibility by Stephanie Burgis
4/5. A little underbaked in terms of the plot but overall charming and fun.
The Fire in the Glass by Jacquelyn Benson
4/5. Unexpectedly good! It's a paranormal thriller set in the early 1900s. My one complaint is that I solved the mystery fairly early and had to spend the rest of the book waiting for the protag to catch up with me...and frankly it felt like she was a bit stupid for not working it out immediately, because it felt very obvious from the get-go.
