ojtheviking's reviews
116 reviews

There are some books where it almost feels redundant to write a review, because they've become such highly regarded classics over time, that all former feedback sort of speaks for itself. However, I still want to put some of my thoughts into words. It should also be noted that this is my first meeting with Atwood's dystopian scenario, as I have yet to begin watching the TV series. I wanted to read the book first, simply put.

What makes The Handmaid's Tale so terrifying, is the grounded realism within this fictional dystopia. She has borrowed from both real history and from issues that are in fact relevant topics to this day. Atwood has taken inspiration from some of society's worst sides, making The Handmaid's Tale more of a cautionary tale than pure science fiction. Her story gives nods to, as well as touches directly upon, concepts such as theocratic dictatorship (which in and of itself has one foot in cult and sect structure and mentality); oppression, naturally followed by repression; capital punishment; and, of course, the patriarchy's hunger for power and the desire to control women.

This book was originally published in 1985, but as many of these aforementioned concepts have a tendency to re-emerge like a morbid societal cycle, the book is very relevant to where we've ended up these days. Trump's America, "Straight Pride", abortion issues that threaten to deprive women of their rights and control over their own bodies; children being put in concentration camps. And without having seen the TV series yet, I'd be inclined to believe that the decision to make a TV series adaptation of this novel, and the fact that production of this series started in 2016, are no coincidences. As grim certain aspects of The Handmaid's Tale are, reality is beginning to look equally grim in some ways.

As for Atwood's writing style, I loved it. I've seen some commentaries here and there, with some saying it was too slow, or that the main character's first-person narrative used a lot of off-putting descriptions. Naturally, I can't speak for others, and definitely not for their personal taste. However, with that said, I'm a little curious as to what it was that made them feel this way, and how far into the book they made it before realizing this. And I'm left to wonder if some of the people who disliked it might simply be put off by depressing stories in general. Again, though, I don't want to assume too much.

All in all, it was a masterpiece. One that got me thinking, got me frustrated, got me provoked, but I still enjoyed the writing, and admire how a novel can sometimes be powerful enough to affect you on an emotional level.

Now that I've finally read The Handmaid's Tale, I should get started on the TV series soon. I also know that a sequel, The Testaments, will be published in September, so I'll have to read that one eventually as well.

This was a fantastic read. Almost consistently a perfect blend of melancholy, humor, and absurdity. And the aforementioned humor is very much on the black comedy side of things. At its core, you could say that it's a study of the complicated and often dysfunctional relationships within a family, and the absurdity lies within how things that seem completely bizarre for some are perfectly normal, everyday life for one family.

This can be the truth for strange, yet ultimately harmless habits, but it also rings true for family dynamics that include things most people would consider very unhealthy. And in Katherine Dunn's book, some of this absurdity is thrown right in our faces to make some of us realize how strange the concept of family can really be.

Geek Love is such a well-written book, with an ensemble of unique and memorable characters, both within the traveling circus that the family of the main character runs - the Binewskis, to be exact - and the people these characters meet along the way, past and present.

At the beginning of the book, we jump a little bit forth and back between the main character's childhood and her present life, but overall, a large portion of the story involves her life with the traveling circus. And it's the type of circus that's also a freak show, so you have performers with various types of physical disabilities and functionalities, which is why some of the characters involved are as unique and memorable as they are.

Simply put, to avoid spoiling too much of the general plot, this is a book where the most absurd scenarios are presented as the most normal ones, via the Binewski family. Physical abnormalities are a thing of pride for them, as this is something that will attract an audience to their shows. Their investment in this is so strong, that Mama and Papa Binewski deliberately produce children with physical abnormalities. But there is a blinding bias there, which shows how easily the self-centered, jealous arrogance of a hero could turn them into a tyrant, which in return transforms them into a cult leader. And boy, what a unique cult it is! I will not spoil this part in any way, as it has you'll have to read it to fully understand how such a cult can emerge into existence.

Along the way, we also get glimpses into the main character's present time, as mentioned. For a long time, these parts of the book seem very detached from the storyline taking place in the past, but intentionally so, as the past and the present will come together in a logical way eventually; including a fairly explosive turn of events that changes everything in the blink of a moment, like something taken straight out of a Stephen King novel.

The circumstances in the present storyline also have their share of absurdities, such as three characters living in the same apartment building with only one of them being aware that they are all related. And there's also a more modern focus on physical abnormalities, almost in a slightly more fetishized way, with the freak show circus being replaced by a shady strip club.

Ultimately, this book examines the duality of family life. No matter how normal or eccentric a family is, the ties that bind the family members together can also lead to a paradoxical sense of loneliness. Both in the past and the present, the main character is stuck in a pattern of sticking with her family first and foremost, which she in many ways appreciates, mostly because of the aforementioned sense of normalcy within any family's routines; for her, it's always been that way, which is what we all tend to tell ourselves sometimes. But simultaneously, there seems to be a constant longing for something else, something that she doesn't directly give much thought to, but rather just a feeling deep down that things could have been different, like a fleeting "what if."

I also appreciate that in the everyday world of a group of freak show performers, the outside world is where the true freaks are. Normal people walking around being so disgustingly normal, poking their noses where they don't belong, obliviously displaying their prejudice towards anything that's different and unknown. And there are genuine moments where you are tempted to think that the Binewskis understand family life much better than anyone else out there among the normies. At least with regard to loyalty.

However, there are turns of events that also make it clear that they have very different boundaries than elsewhere in society. And these are the moments where Dunn's writing shines really strong. She can describe a scenario that could be very off-putting in any other context, but describes it in such a matter-of-factly way due to this story being told in first person by one of the Binewskis, that it somehow is a bit more forgivable, at least in the sense that you understand this is no big deal in the life of a Binewski. The biggest moments of betrayal are whenever a Binewski has had any personal interactions with an outsider, a normie.

Basically, it could have been a much more controversial book due to some of the scenarios and elements described, but Katherine Dunn's skilled talent for storytelling, finding humor within the mobid, and beauty within what's otherwise perceived to be ugly, prevents it from being tasteless, and it is instead a very emotionally gripping story, one way or another from one moment to the next.

I've smiled, I've frowned, I've ached for some of the characters, I've cursed at the behavior of others, and ultimately, this book managed to capture me completely. In the description of the edition I was reading, there is a boasting list of name drops, mentioning celebrities who have claimed that this is one of their favorite books. And frankly, after having read it myself, I can understand them. Highly recommended.

This was my first time reading one of the Eden Book Society releases. Since the six titles I found were all from 1972 (albeit not released until 2018), I couldn't ascertain if they were intended to be in a specific order, so I just went by the order in which they were listed on the homepage.

With that said, I honestly think Holt House was a solid first impression of this book series. As I understand it, all the authors in this series wrote their books under pseudonyms, so it's difficult to tell if either one of them is otherwise a known author. Regardless, I feel the person behind the pseudonym L. G. Vey proved themselves to be a very competent writer. The writing style is detailed enough to paint a vivid picture in your mind, and there is a lovely British politeness in its approach, yet it never gets too grandiose, so it's easy to follow along.

Despite this being a fairly short story, it's still a slow burn, but never in a way that seems tedious or drawn out. There are many novels where you could shave off large portions to get to the core story, and Holt House felt like it was all about the core story, and never digressed or went on tangents. And for a story like this, that honestly felt fitting. Straight to the point in many ways, but there was still a noticeable build-up to a greater mystery.

Being a fan of anthology shows like The Twilight Zone, Tales from the Crypt, Tales from the Darkside, and so on, Holt House gave me a similar vibe to shows like that, and both because of the compact length of the book, as well as because of the arc of the story, with things slowly being twisted into something different than they first appear, this could easily have been adapted into an episode of such a show. This leaves me with the hope that reading through all of the Eden Book Society releases will continue to give me that anthology feel.

This is a bittersweet story. A love story smack dab in the middle of the harsh reality of certain aspects of society, especially in the US. Injustice, racial profiling, cops always going after the black man first regardless of the circumstances, and so on. And in the middle of it all, you have a young couple in love - Tish and Fonny - who are trying to keep their love, and their chances to become a family, alive.

The thematic contrasts are in and of themselves beautiful, here. The novel touches upon some fairly brutal topics, to such a degree that it in many ways has the makings of a very bleak and desperate story. But somehow, Baldwin still manages to make a love story work within this setting. Tish and Fonny are so devoted to each other even when it seems like the whole world is against them, which to me makes their connection all the more romantic, but also all the more heartbreaking.

Recently, I've read The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas, and some of the same topics were present there, but presented in a much more brutal, to-the-point, and in-your-face way. However, I think it should be taken into consideration that Baldwin's novel was written over 40 years prior, at a time when touching upon these topics was perhaps even riskier than now, and as such, I still say that Baldwin is far from subtle, and it is very easy to understand why he is considered one of the most influential writers and social critics. As a side note, it's also a very sad fact that the same hatred towards the African-American community is still written about several decades later. If you knew nothing about the years these two novels were published, they both might as well have been written in the same year.

It's just that there's a certain softness and sensibility to his writing that adds to the aforementioned bittersweetness, and adds a very classic sense of romance in his novel compared to something like Thomas' story. In addition to being an anti-imperialist, and black queer advocate, Baldwin was also a feminist, which I'd say gives him an advantage when it comes to male authors writing female characters. He avoids the standard male gaze, and he tells the story through Tish's point of view with such ease and respect, that I might have guessed this was written by a female author if I had been handed this novel with the author's name blotted out.

I've always heard this novel being mentioned as one of the great, timeless classics, and having finally read it, I certainly understand why. And I consider this to be one of those page-turners you'll have trouble putting down once you get started. (The only reason why it took me a while to finish it was because I was preoccupied for several days in between reading sessions; this could have easily taken me just a day or two otherwise)

I enjoyed this book a lot. I find it cool how the narrative pretty much starts in the middle of the plot, right when a significant incident takes place, and the story that unfolds from there is a jump back and forth between the aftermath of the incident and the events leading up to it, making it a non-linear way to piece together what caused what happened and who was responsible for it.

The world-building is wonderful. This novel falls under the historical fiction category, yes, but this has in no way limited the author. It truly does feel like we are taking a journey back in time, to the summer of 1876 when San Francisco was a Wild West town and you can truly sense the summer heat, and experience first-hand the epidemic and the anti-immigrant uproar (although, I suppose you don't really have to be a time traveler to experience such things nowadays)

The friendship between the two main characters is both beautiful and tragic; tragic not just because of what happens during the aforementioned incident, but also due to how this era's society deals with topics such as LGBTQIA+ and female rights. Although, once again, we haven't necessarily seen that many changes in the past 145 years. That's really one of the clever things about stories like this; it paints a picture of society as it was in a specific era and inspires us to look at how things are today, making it all the more clear that some societal problems are still ongoing. And on top of that message, the story is sprinkled with other timeless topics such as love, lust, jealousy, parenthood, and the longing for autonomy.

We also get some humor and lightness to counterbalance the underlying murder mystery. Especially in the flashbacks; there is laughter, song, and the playful nature between the two friends slowly turns into something more intimate. It feels like the seemingly random and sudden way the two main characters meet is a stroke of fate in disguise, that they've crossed paths for the purpose of self-discovery and growth. Even though tragedy strikes along the way, there is still something to hold on to from there on out.

This was a pretty cool read. An interesting idea, first of all, that I think the author executed well. The overall feel of the story reminded me of an urban Western of sorts, except instead of cowboys preparing for a duel at dawn, we have a number of distinct characters - albeit sometimes borderline caricature-like, but I believe intentionally so - preparing for a card game that's literally a matter of life and death. I can imagine it would be in the vein of a grindhouse flick if it was ever adapted into a movie.

The way the story is divided into 52 chapters to complete a full deck of cards is also clever, and it never really feels like the author is padding the story just to churn out enough chapters. There is a constant energy in the story, driving the plot forward, building suspense, raising the stakes, serving up a healthy dose of violence and brutality along the way, but Arntzen still evens it out with moments that allow us to become familiar with all the players involved, so that we get more emotionally invested in them.

As mentioned, though, the characters are in danger of being a bit like caricatures - a good example of that is the Preacher, constantly yelling or mumbling about sinners and damnation, temptation and forgiveness, etc. - but in the context of this novel, it sort of fits. They become archetypical, as if they themselves are cards belonging to an even larger game. The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, except they are card players instead of gunslingers.

In short, it's a story that doesn't try to be anything other than what it is, and sometimes that's exactly how it should be.

This was such an excellent read. A very well-written story from beginning to end. One of those page-turners that you simply cannot put down.

I try not to research novels too much before reading them, to avoid spoilers, and I'm extremely glad about that in this case, as this is one of the finest examples of a pleasant surprise. I initially bought this book because it was on some sort of list of current bestsellers, and I expected an above-average/decent crime story. I got that, but also so much more.

Two mysteries across time, bound together by a third, preceding mystery. And the way one storyline ultimately affects the other one is very cleverly put together. All the characters are so fleshed-out, and St. James' writing style is captivating. I mean it in a good way when I say that the overall mystery sometimes comes in second after the character development. It makes you truly care for them all, and the things that have happened to them therefore feel more tragic. Because there is a recurring sense of bittersweet tragedy throughout this story, with people being very much haunted by their past, quite literally so at times. But it's not done in a way that is draining; the writing is still compelling enough for you to thoroughly enjoy the experience.

This is my first time reading any of her work, but I'm definitely interested in reading more after this.

This was a nice, quick read! I believe it was while I was once searching for novels that featured some good, old-fashioned gothic horror that I stumbled upon this title, and the blurb I read had me intrigued enough to give it a chance. Sometimes taking a chance on authors one is not familiar with pays off!

The immediate way that comes to mind to describe this story, is if Sherlock Holmes had magical powers; Midnight Gunn is such an investigator (albeit not officially a detective). And since this is the first novel in a series, I suspect that each case Gunn is working on also has a supernatural twist to it. This first installment made me think of a Jack-the-Ripper-but-with-that-something-extra style scenario. Sherlock Holmes meets The X-Files, if you will.

While the story is well-written, it's also quite fast-paced and sticks closely to the narration throughout. The upside to that is that you're left with an action-packed thrill ride, complete with plot twists, double-crossings, kidnappings, as well as summoning and superstition-turned-reality. However, although this is, as mentioned, just the first installment of a series, and I'm sure we will learn more about Midnight Gunn in the following books, I mean it more as a compliment to the author than a criticism when I say I wish she'd take more moments to do a little more world-building every now and then, as the premise itself was very promising.

With that said, as the story takes place in Victorian-era England, the pacing feels appropriate in other ways; more in line with the way suspense novels were written at the time. That's another thing I have to give Monaghan credit for; it does in many ways feel like a novel that could have been published back then, only with that aforementioned "little extra" (meaning the supernatural elements).

Ultimately, my thirst for just a little bit more backstory and fleshed-out scenarios will hopefully be quenched by reading the next installments one day - and I think I'll do just that!