hfjarmer's reviews
379 reviews

After having read some of the other Goodreads reviews for this book, I am terrified of this fan base and hesitant to even write a review for fear everyone will come for my throat, but alas, I’m going to be brave.

Tolkein seems to take the title of “Father of Fantasy”. I certainly can understand how this book revolutionized or even was the genesis of the fantasy genre, and high fantasy in particular. The characters were detailed, the worldbuilding is (obviously) unmatched, to the point where I think Tolkein may have needed psychiatric evaluation. It is evident he saw this world so clearly in his mind that it would be impossible for it not to be written down and I think I could have read them just wandering through Middle-earth forever. I loved the characters in the Fellowship (largely because those are the only ones of which I could reliably keep track), they were each unique in their origin and in their respective utility to the group’s larger mission.

This was my first time reading a quest-based fantasy, as opposed to the typical, perhaps more modern, style of fantasy where there is clear exposition, rising action, climax, resolution. This proved to be a bit of a problem for me personally (shut up fans, I don’t want to hear it) as I found the lack of defined plot points resulted in a lack of momentum. I loved the first 50-60% of the novel and was happy to be on the journey alongside Frodo, however when we hit the council with Elrond, I was just eager to move on, and really feel that section of the book killed any momentum the story had. It felt like Tolkein had put on the emergency break and I was jolted from “movie in my head” to “words on a page” territory. I wanted more of a defined resolution, they didn't even complete their task and while I know it is a trilogy I still feel there could have been more of a "wrapping up" than we received.

As I mentioned before, it is evident that Tolkein had an unbelievable imagination and clear vision for the world he built, but as a reader I found the ways in which he portrayed this world to occasionally veer more into info-dump territory, and I think there were better ways to portray world building to the reader. He is declared father of fantasy for a reason, but I believe still that he could have benefited from a bit of editing that would have made the world more clear without sacrificing the depth of story. There were several times in my reading where I thought to myself “this feels like it’s more for him than for me”.

Lastly, there is so much sexual tension between Frodo and Sam and I really think the story would benefit from them “living happily ever after together to the end of their days”.

Fellowship of the Ring is a wildly impressive first book and even more so when you remember it is a first of it’s kind. I am extremely grateful to my Fiance for being knowledgeable enough about this series that I could ask him all of my clarifying questions. For that reason, I am excited to see what awaits in Two Towers, I am hoping it is Tolkein just a tad more refined!

Kate don't read this:

My honest review: BOOOOOOOO. Waiting three years for this book was a big disappointment, and honestly, *House of Flame and Shadow* feels like a cheap version of what we know SJM to be capable of. I had three major issues with this book. First, everything in the plot lined up way too perfectly. One page they need something to happen so that ___ can occur; the next page, that exact thing they need to happen somehow magically works out. I know it's a book, and books tend to have idealized plots, but this is not the same writing we see from SJM in *Throne of Glass* or even *ACOTAR*, where she plants the seeds early and often for the big payoff. Second, in addition to the plot lacking depth, I felt the writing was cheesy and rushed. Hunt and Bryce were on my last nerve; I honestly never truly liked them as a couple. I think they lack chemistry and emotional maturity, especially compared to the other main couples we see in SJM's other work. If I had to read that one or the other "swelled with pride" one more time, I was going to throw my Kindle across the room. So many things were just repetitive and old. How many times did we have to read about Perry’s cinnamon and strawberry scent? How many times did we need to be reminded that Ruhn, Hunt, Lidia, Tharion, and Ithan hated themselves or didn’t deserve the life they had or whatever they were complaining about? The book would’ve been 100 pages shorter if she had just stopped writing in circles. My third complaint is all the unnecessary side plots.

Spoiler

Sigrid? Tharion getting married?? Lidia randomly having kids?? Ithan magically becoming Prime???? Hypaxia’s whole thing???

None of it made sense or really had any bearing on the plot whatsoever. If she had cut some of that out, maybe we would’ve seen a better plot and more character development.

This is far from SJM’s best work. I must say I am curious about the next ACOTAR book’s release, seeing as *House of Flame and Shadow*

Spoiler

tees up another potential storyline for Nesta. Given that *ACOSF* was also about Nesta, I will be surprised if she is the main character in a second book.

Time will tell; I hope that it is better than this one.

*The Bluest Eye* is a novel which, supposedly, follows Pecola Breedlove, a self-proclaimed “ugly” black girl, who grows up in a home with her abusive father and a mother who admittedly does not love her, despite her best efforts. All Pecola wants in the whole world are the “beautiful blue eyes” of a white woman. She believes wholeheartedly that blue eyes would cure her of ugliness, and make her somehow “clean”. This brings us to the central theme of Morrison’s novel - internalized racism and the injurious effects of a society which centers and reveres whiteness as good, clean, and beautiful. My favorite character in this novel was Claudia who, at the young age of 9, has already recognized the problematic centering of whiteness and so takes it upon herself to rebel against the idea that white equals beauty by knowing for a fact she is beautiful herself just as she is. We see this again when

Spoiler

Claudia is discussing Pecola’s pregnancy with Frieda, saying “More strongly than my fondness for Pecola, I felt a need for someone to want the black baby to live—just to counteract the universal love of white baby dolls, Shirley Temples, and Maureen Peals.”

Honestly, I am devastated to say I did not really like this book. I enjoyed Morrison’s poetic writing style which flowed together well in spite of the disjointed nature of the narrative itself. By dissecting the novel so the reader has to put the pieces together for themselves, Morrison takes away the reader’s ability to really connect with the characters. This is something Morrison herself points out in the afterward of her novel. I spent so much time trying to understand who was being talked about and why we are talking about them that I was unable to enjoy the story of it all. For a novel about Pecola Breedlove, we know nearly nothing about her, and are never given the opportunity to hear from her directly. While this could be seen as an example of a young woman robbed of her voice, I just think it was a poor narrative decision and I found it overall to be frustrating.

I have heard many wonderful things about Toni Morrison and I certainly don’t doubt them, but this one simply didn’t work for me. I will read another book by Morrison though, rest assured.

"Prophet Song" presents a poetic exploration of dystopian Ireland, embroiled in civil war following a tyrannical government's rise to power. Eilish, a mother of four, finds her life shattered when her husband is abruptly taken by the Irish secret police. As the conflict between government forces and rebels escalates, Eilish struggles to protect her family amidst the chaos. One of the novel's most compelling elements is Eilish's dual struggle: resisting the injustices of war while ensuring her family's safety. Lynch’s writing style is poetic and allegorical. He is descriptive and you come to see this war as a living breathing entity which has wormed it’s way into the lives of Irish citizens.

While I completely see the merit in this novel and understand why it is loved by many, I personally found its pace unbearably slow for a dystopian tale. The formatting, reminiscent of Cormac McCarthy’s *The Road*, with dense blocks of text and minimal page breaks, hindered my reading experience. Additionally, Lynch had many abrupt shifts in narrative direction, I often felt like there were three or four more sentences missing from each page break, we would just end up in an entirely new part of the story in the next “paragraph” leaving things feeling unresolved. While these narrative disruptions may be an attempt to emulate the disruption war brings to everyday life, it just felt like poor story telling to me.

"Prophet Song" may appeal to readers seeking a blend of literary fiction with a dystopian setting, ultimately it wasn’t for me.

This just really wasn’t a good book. It had me in the first third. I was thinking ooOo historical romance, funny character names, a little mystery and intrigue, but then it shit the bed.

Spoiler

Three kidnappings is just entirely too many. The first gets the plot going and heightens the stakes, sure. The second one being the motivating factor for Trevillion to take Phoebe the hell out of dodge. But the third was just frivolous and stupid, beating a dead horse at its finest.

I found the writing to be over simplistic and more in line with fan-fanfic of some kind than a published novel, the dialogue was too simple and the characters felt like they were being forced by the writing to seem more complex than they actually were.

This book does have smut in it, though it’s pretty tame overall. I’m sorry but the names Phoebe and Trevillion are just not sexy and reading them in the context of smut scenes just gave me the ick.

I did like the that Phoebe was blind, which sounds weird, but I thought it was a unique plot motivator and I did enjoy the way it forced the character to interact on a different level than more traditional romances. If nothing else, if you like virgin or one-bed-at-the-inn tropes, you may like this, or at least not hate it. Lesson learned, those books with the sexy covers older women read on the beach are not for me.

In comparison to Fellowship of the Ring, I wouldn't say I preferred The Two Towers, but I did notice a subtle shift in Tolkien's style. The pacing felt quicker, relatively speaking, and the narrative seemed somewhat less dense, enhancing my reading experience. However, I still struggled to keep up with the many, many mentioned lineages, geography, and lore, which sometimes interrupted the flow of the story. Anytime I found myself to really be in a groove, the scenes playing out in my head flicker and come to a halt when I get to the name of some obscure character or place and I am forced to try and back track to remember who/what that is and why it is important. While I think Tolkien’s thoroughness is certainly part of the reason for his popularity, as someone who is a somewhat light fantasy reader I just find all the information to be a bit clunky and indigestible at times.

Nevertheless, I appreciated how each branch of the fellowship had its moment to shine. From Merry and Pippin's time with the Ents to the battles with Gandalf, Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli, as well as the enduring journey of Frodo and Sam, every subplot felt engaging. Sam's newfound assertiveness was a highlight for me, showcasing his unwavering loyalty to Frodo amidst the escalating challenges of their quest. This far in on their journey and Sam knows what he is about and it is Mr. Frodo. Sam’s take no shit attitude just made me love him more. It was interesting to see how carrying the ring has truly begun to take it’s toll on Frodo. The romantic tension between Sam and Frodo only grows in this book, and I will not be taking any arguments to the contrary at this time.

I had a friend warn me of the way the Treebeard chapters can really drag, but I actually LOVED the Ents and learning about them. And certainly in comparison to the Elrond chapter of Book 1 that was nothing. One thing that really stands out to me about Tolkien’s writing is the way he can clearly and beautifully describe any kind of nature scene, whether that is just the landscape that the company is walking through, or something more fantastical like the Ent homes.

On to book 3!

I have to say I’m really happy with how this series wrapped up. I was admittedly frustrated in my initial foray into Middle Earth’s goings-on, primarily due to the unconventional plot structure. The quest aspect of this series was a new reading experience for me. However, having finished "Return of the King," I feel like everything has come full circle.

What I enjoyed most about the end of the series was that we get more of the “what happens after” than is typically provided. Frodo and Sam destroy the Ring and save the realm, but all is not immediately well overnight. Tolkien addresses this—it's not all smooth sailing right away. There is a lot of work to be done to usher in a new age and restore peace to the world. I really enjoyed being able to see what happens after the big climax, something most authors don’t include, or at least not in as much detail. Tolkien took care to tie up any loose ends, avoiding one of my biggest pet peeves in a reading experience. I wanted to hear a little more about Bilbo when all was said and done, but I am happy nonetheless.

My biggest gripe is that Sam should’ve—everyone say it with me—ended up marrying Frodo instead of Rosie and lived happily ever after for the rest of their days. But alas, this was written in the 30s, and so we have to settle for Rosie, I guess.

Overall, I am glad I read this series. I’ve gained some important insight into what many consider the foundation of fantasy writing and it feels like I have participated in a crucial piece of pop culture. The characters were lovable, interesting, and diverse. I have never come across an author who understands the minutiae of the world they’ve created quite like Tolkien. I do plan to continue my journey by reading "The Hobbit" in the future!

As a big fan of the essay genre, I am kind of shocked this is the first time I've read this type of anthology of essays before, but I really enjoyed it. I loved being able to see the way each author approaches their respective essay topic differently, the way they tell their stories, even the tense they write in tells us something. I'd definitely be curious to hear from the editors as to what about each essay stood out to them, as there were a few where I thought "really, this one?"

I didn't give a star rating because I'm not entirely sure how to rate something anthological, but I will definitely be picking up more of these from previous years!

This book was the perfect escape from my pre-wedding panic! I was completely hooked from start to finish, and it far surpassed the first one in the series. The plot moves at a fantastic pace—there wasn’t a single dull moment. I absolutely love Kane and Arwen’s dynamic; it’s a classic romance without ever feeling cheesy or overdone. The ending has left me eagerly anticipating the final book!

That’s all I have the brain space for, but highly recommend for romantasy lovers.