celestesbookshelf's reviews
259 reviews

By now we all know our main character is unjustly imprisoned. Once released the Count is driven by the injustices he endured, he thrives on knowing more than anyone else and by exhibiting the same level of hypocrisy that his accusers did.

I read the Penguin Classics edition, its enhanced the reading experience because of the notes explaining important historical facts. 

One of our main villains, Villefort, is frequently compared to the acting king of Babylon. Villefort himself compares his sins coming to light to “mene, mene, tekel, upharsin suddenly appearing in bloody letters on the wall", a quote from Daniel 5 letting King Balthazar know that his days as king are numbered. At the height if Villeforts destruction his wife commits suicide and takes their son with her. When Dantes reveals himself at no point does Villefort express remorse for what he did to Dantes, he never even acknowledges that his misfortunes would have been avoided had he acted with humanity towards Dante’s instead of using him as a stepping stone for his benefit while Dantes rotted away. When Villefort shows his wife and sons corpses to the Count and asks indignantly if he’s satisfied being avenged now, the Count similarly could’ve referenced his fathers dying from starvation and asked if he was satisfied now that he was on his “throne”. 

For much of the novel Dantes is insufferable. He's conniving and has no purpose but to flaunt his wealth and make those who wronged him suffer. As much as I know I shouldn't like him I can't quite do so. I like him, I feel for him and empathize. I think the rancor that has been brewing inside him all these years is justified. The humiliation he feels at recalling the people he trusted and the life that was stolen from him, and by extension, his father. When I think of it that way I don't see a pompous man but a deeply wounded man trying to find a way to heal his wounds.

Not a big fan of how the novel wrapped up with the Count falling for Haydee when she could be his daughter, very typical turn of events for a novel written by a man. Likewise, Mercedes being described as having lost her beauty while Dantes still shone with youth. Very typical of male author to make the woman into an old hag while the man stays young and fit and goes off happily ever after with a girl young enough to be his daughter.

On a more positive note; I'm a hopeless romantic and enjoyed a small subplot of two souls growing up together, my favorite quote of them being:

"Despite this, the two young people had never declared their love to one another. They had grown up side by side like two trees, the roots of which mingle beneath the earth, as their branches above it and their scents in the air. Yet their desire to see one another was the same: this desire had become a need, and they could understand death better than a single day's separation.”

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Thank you to @vintageanchorbooks for my gifted copy of this incredible memoir by Jesse Leon. 

⚠️ not for the faint of heart, Leon bleeds his heart out telling his story. He minces no words. The sexual abuse at the hands of predators he endured, the domestic violence that surrounded him, the discrimination since early childhood, all of it is on the page for readers to judge. 

I’m at a loss on where to start with reviewing this so I’ll attempt at a chronological overview of what to expect.

A young Chicano child living in the “bad” part of San Diego questions his sexuality at an early age. He is ridiculed by his machista Mexican father and he attempts to meet his fathers expectations by acting and dressing like a “cholo” to command respect. 

📝 the Mexican machista man is such a typical villain for children to experience and be damaged by

A day like any other leads him into the den of a predator, he is raped at 11 years old and manipulated by fear he is forced to continue returning, after a while his tormentor begins pimping him out to other pedophiles. 

Understandably, Leon finds an escape in drugs and alcohol. His life is spiraling out of control, his sex work is his way of life and he survives by putting on a “IDGAF” attitude. 

Praise the Lord, a fellow Chicano counselor encourages him to think about his future, he sees right through his façade and doesn’t buy that he doesn’t care. Leon starts at community college, gets clean, transfers to UC Berkeley and graduates, then attends Harvard for his Masters degree. 

Like the counselor who helped him turn his life around he is now a social impact consultant and specializes on providing ways to address issues of substance abuse, affordable housing, and any LGBTQIA+ issues. 

It’s a tough read but truly astonishing. The tenacity this child then man had to summon to climb out of the hole that he was born into then the one he was manipulated into is unbelievable. 

If you know anyone who has felt low, anyone who has felt they don’t belong or have messed up one too many times then this book is for them. I urge you to read it and open your eyes to the life experiences that go on undetected for years. 

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After months of seeing LIC all over bookstagram and after it won best debut novel of 2022 for @goodreads I had to read it!

▪️set in 1960s, Elizabeth Zott is a chemist against all odds 
▪️for fans of “The Love Hypothesis” but anyone who enjoys a mature women ahead of her time 
▪️champions women that want kids, kids and a career, no kids and a career,
etc etc 
▪️touches on sexual harassment in work place, sexism in academia
▪️stereotypes of single moms and dads 
▪️”The Female Misogynist” trope is used for a supporting character who later redeems herself
     🔥 Ngozi Adichie said it best -
“We raise girls to see each other as competitors not for jobs or accomplishments, which I think can be a good thing, but for the attention of men.” 

Many of the women in the book are the type who judge our main character for her life choices, because society tells them to, but the redemption arc is when women begin admiring her because of her tv show. Further showing their internal desire to be more independent. 


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Eye-rolled myself through this book, some middle aged man’s wet dreams of a woman looking like a girl, having skin as soft as an infants and having slender hips as a little girl. 

Tons of repetition intended to make the novel melodramatic. Everyone speaks “softly” and “stares into the air” ergo:

“He spoke softly, staring into the air, at things the others couldn't see. “ 

All the women have piercing, unmoving eyes, emotionless, nothing betraying the fact that they are actually real life women and not porcelain dolls. They keep their face a perfect clear canvas, only there for their unwrinkled faces to be admired, no creases must show and break the illusion that they’re not “girls”.

The main character takes his wife for granted and becomes obsessed with a woman (“with the face of a girl”, can’t forget), across the world whom he’s actually never talked to. 

Meanwhile, kat one point he deems his wife worthy of a glance and notices…”she had nothing on, underneath, and that her breasts were small and white like those of a girl.” ….did I make that up? No. That’s verbatim from the translated novel 👍🏼 

I don’t know if something was lost in translation but this novel was pompous, zero idea why this character becomes illogically obsessed with a “woman with the face of a girl” when his wife loves him dearly. 

The whole book gave me the creeps and oh by the way, Japan is at war so it ruins his entire silk business which is apparently what the book was intended to be about. 

If y’all couldn’t tell, no I do not recommend.

November 9

▪️read for first time and it’s now my 2nd  favorite CoHo novel

▪️if you’ve seen the movie “One Day” with Anne Hathaway it’s kind like that

▪️we have Fallon, aspiring actress who survives a horrific fire but not without becoming scarred

▪️we have Ben, really nice guy willing to intervene during a father-daughter conversation when he sees father bringing daughter down

▪️Fallon is about to move across the country so her and Ben make a deal to meet every November 9 for 5 years and then decide if they will stay together

▪️so much young, high-school love with all the perfect angst and expectation ♥️ 

▪️great character development with both of them learning to forgive some significant events 

▪️I think most will enjoy this novel - love a good romance that makes me laugh, cry, and appreciate young, lasting love 💗 

💬 the best quote:

“Why didn't you tell me that the foundation you taught me to stand on is made from quicksand?”

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I have so much to say about this book I don’t know where to start so I’ll begin with a small intro. 

Reader is introduced to Gonzalo and then his girlfriend, Carla. Boy meets girl. Boy loses girl. Man regains woman. 

Carla now has a 6-year old son, Vicente. She and baby daddy, Léon, “co-parent” but really Léon does the bare minimum and even Vicente is confused on why he has to leave his home a weekend a month to spend time with this man. 

The beginning of the novel has the perfect combination of teenage angst, first sexual experiences, and finally first heartbreak. It moves quickly enough in between the teenage to coming-of-age stage to keep the reader hooked.

Gonzalo from the beginning is all in on getting to know Vicente as his own. When he becomes unemployed he quickly becomes the default parent. The parent whom is sought out for all big and small events. The parent that does pick-up and drop-offs, the one who stays up late night helping their child study. He becomes a step-father by name but a real father in every other sense. 

The attraction between Gonzalo & Carla never ceased so the sex scenes between them were steamy yet intimate. It’s the steamy sex between people who’ve know each other well, people who are comfortable in all their moods and whims. It was marital intimacy without the legal marital label. 

The relationship between Gonzalo & Vicente was the most beautiful part of the novel. Vicente adores his cat, Darkness, who blesses the cover of the book. When Darkness is sick and Carla & Gonzalo receive a hefty estimate for her surgery they decide they can’t afford it. A series of events ensues where Vicente is rebelling against them by selling all of his personal belongings in order to raise money for the surgery. He recruits his classmates who help him print out flyers with quotes supposedly said by his mom and stepfather, including “Cats are inferior beings”. The entire scene is so funny because Vicente is a pre-teen wreaking havoc because his parents won’t dish out their monthly wages for his cat. It’s endearing and Gonzalo finds a way to appease Vicente because he cares that much.

The overarching plot is that Gonzalo is an aspiring poet, he publishes, the book flops. Although he, not of his own accord, leaves Vicente’s life, Vicente grows up also wanting to be a poet. There’s tons of literary references including of Roberto Bolaño, a Chilean poet and novelist.  

There’s many themes discussed throughout the book, most importantly the meaning of family. The people who we call family are not necessarily the people who biologically are so. It’s the modern family, the significant role of a step-parent, there’s fetal loss and the aftermath. There’s crushed dreams, unrequited love, competition with “frenemies”, resentment from childhood when children don’t understand the extent of a situation they had no control over.

The novel wraps up beautifully - there’s no neat bow, no final ideal world left. It’s full of possibilities but we’re left with warmth from the reunion of Gonzalo and Vicente’s long ago bond bringing them together again.

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▪️has been compared to “Mexican Gothic” and “Rebecca”, if you’ve seen “Crimsom Peak”, directed by Guillermo del Toro, it gave me similar vibes 
▪️religious themes, witches, haunted houses, mysterious wealthy husbands and evil aunts 
▪️historical fiction taking place during Spanish Inquisition, some gothic supernatural events and a close look at classism and the discrepancy in the Catholic Church’s teachings vs their dedication to the people they claim to help
▪️I enjoyed the superstitious practices that came up in the novel such as “how to banish mal de ojo [evil eye] by passing a chicken’s egg over a child’s feverish body” 🧿 
▪️I read an interview with @isabelcanas_ where she talked about growing up hanging onto any brunette in a book and how she decided to portray Latinx heritage and life. I LOVE this and will likely read all her future works to consume and Latinx representation in literature.


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The Soulmate is my new favorite Hepworth novel by far! It had everything. Marriage, murder, infidelity, betrayal, mental illness, struggles of parenting, social pressure, and more. 

Theres crucial information revealed till the very end and it adds so much more. The POV alternates between the two heroines before and after the momentous moment. This switch in POV’s really made the story what it is - it gave insight into the characters actions and the motives.  

Primarily what I love about Hepworth novels is the domesticity of it. All the characters everyday struggles are relatable - the daily chaos that is having kids, marital bliss (or strife?), finding personal happiness and fulfillment; all characters can be your friend or sister simply going through life. 

Hepworth has outdone herself with this one - I thought The Good Sister couldn’t be topped but here we are!

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▪️Obama’s Favorite Books of 2021

matrix is the imagined life of Marie de France - very little is known about her besides she was a 12th-century poet and likely an abbess at a convent.

In the novel the majority of the plot is fiction. Marie is considered too ~coarse~ for marriage, too ugly, not the refined characteristics of a lady in waiting. She is exiled to a convent on a dilapidated island - nuns are dying left and right from starvation and disease because they lack adequate funding or resources.

Marie at first simply wants to leave. Although soon the reader sees Marie evolve into a powerful leader. She uses the traits that others looked down on for the good of the abbey. She turns it into a flourishing convent, she becomes a pillar for all her sisters. Sexuality and sexual desire are undercurrents in the story which make Marie more personable. Even with all of her accomplishments she has basic human desires that have long gone unmet.

The entire novel is centered around women, it’s a feminist perspective which may be hard to imagine for a book being set in medieval times but Groff puts the reader in these women living in a man’s world and has us rooting for the women to be cutthroat to be allowed basic human rights.

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Angelika Frankenstein Makes Her Match 

This pains me to say but this was a miss for me. I wanted to love it since I loved The Hating Game but couldn’t. I preordered this and was very excited to have it as a Spooktober read. 

It was very repetitive; a lot of desperate begging from Angelika, cringeworthy declarations of love with no build up. The relationship felt extremely rushed so I wasn’t invested in it.

Only part I liked was an author, niece of the longtime servant named Mary, coming to visit and it being implied she would write the original Frankenstein. I love fun spin-offs.

I won’t presume to think my reading choices are the same as everyone so if you’ve been wanting to read it still do and we can discuss!

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