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ambershelf's Reviews (1.3k)
gifted by booksparks
Structured as case studies, MAD is an anti-romance love letter to the women in Lagos as they navigate the dating scenes. From serial cheaters, mama's boys, and sugar daddies to those with commitment issues, MAD demonstrates, through humorous narratives and spicy content, how it's not just the men who are mad but how their trash behaviors drive women mad, too.
I really enjoyed this extremely explicit collection. While the topics covered are all serious, there's a lightheartedness behind the stories. The writing makes me feel like I'm listening to my single friends recount horror dating stories. Some of my favorites from MAD are:
• Cuck-up: a couple strapped for money comes across a rich man with a proposition
• International Relationships: a Nigerian woman tries dating white men because of her unsuccessful past relationships.
• First Times: when a woman decides to take matters into her own hands about her repeatedly cheating husband
• Catfish: a naive girl pretends to be a "baddie" to get celebrities with the help of her friend
• Beard Gang: women in complex marriages form a support group to help each other achieve financial independence
Structured as case studies, MAD is an anti-romance love letter to the women in Lagos as they navigate the dating scenes. From serial cheaters, mama's boys, and sugar daddies to those with commitment issues, MAD demonstrates, through humorous narratives and spicy content, how it's not just the men who are mad but how their trash behaviors drive women mad, too.
I really enjoyed this extremely explicit collection. While the topics covered are all serious, there's a lightheartedness behind the stories. The writing makes me feel like I'm listening to my single friends recount horror dating stories. Some of my favorites from MAD are:
• Cuck-up: a couple strapped for money comes across a rich man with a proposition
• International Relationships: a Nigerian woman tries dating white men because of her unsuccessful past relationships.
• First Times: when a woman decides to take matters into her own hands about her repeatedly cheating husband
• Catfish: a naive girl pretends to be a "baddie" to get celebrities with the help of her friend
• Beard Gang: women in complex marriages form a support group to help each other achieve financial independence
ARC gifted by the publisher
This searing collection tells the stories of madness—the literal type and those private feelings that drive one mad. From familial and societal expectations, the sense of not belonging in one's own family, teenage angst and jealousy, insatiable desire, and the hypocrisy of adults, Okonkwo deftly explores the multitudes of madness via 10 unique stories.
I adored the vivid writing in MADNESS, which, through sparse yet potent prose, provokes a profound sense of grief and helplessness. Each story shares a distinct angle of "madness," and I'm utterly impressed with this collection. My favs are:
• Shadow: a lonely boy finds solace in his childless aunt and plans his "adoption escape"
• Animal: a chasm splits a family in half after a police encounter
• Milk, Blood, Oil: a girl with sickle cell disease, her overprotective caretakers, and her friend who grows jealous of the special treatments
• Eden: two siblings discover their dad's porn video collection
• Burning: a mom takes her daughter to different local shamans to "treat her disease"
This searing collection tells the stories of madness—the literal type and those private feelings that drive one mad. From familial and societal expectations, the sense of not belonging in one's own family, teenage angst and jealousy, insatiable desire, and the hypocrisy of adults, Okonkwo deftly explores the multitudes of madness via 10 unique stories.
I adored the vivid writing in MADNESS, which, through sparse yet potent prose, provokes a profound sense of grief and helplessness. Each story shares a distinct angle of "madness," and I'm utterly impressed with this collection. My favs are:
• Shadow: a lonely boy finds solace in his childless aunt and plans his "adoption escape"
• Animal: a chasm splits a family in half after a police encounter
• Milk, Blood, Oil: a girl with sickle cell disease, her overprotective caretakers, and her friend who grows jealous of the special treatments
• Eden: two siblings discover their dad's porn video collection
• Burning: a mom takes her daughter to different local shamans to "treat her disease"
arc gifted by the publisher
Chung explores Korean American womanhood through sci-fi, folktales, horror, body transformation, and more in this phenomenal and unique short story collection. While the stories vary greatly in length, I find them original and unforgettable, each evoking different emotions that etched themselves into my memory. Here are some of my favorites.
• How to Eat Your Own Heart: a brilliant piece on heartache and a fantastic start that sets the tone of what to expect from this collection
• After the Party: the meaning of being an obedient daughter juxtaposing two marriages. I'm reminded of the Chinese character for tolerance, 忍, a knife on one's heart, and the slow death that comes with "enduring" a marriage
• Rabbit Heart: a girl travels to Seoul and basks in the adoration of her grandmother through rich stories; a beautiful tale of the nurturing love that transcends time
• Presence: a woman invents a technology to erase one's memory selectively. I love this sci-fi exploration of grief and what happens when we run away from loss instead of facing it
• Human Hearts: follows a family of Kumiho, mythological Korean creatures, and their exploration of what it means to be "human." And even fantastic beasts suffer from complex mother-daughter relationsihps lol
• Mantis: the "dating life" of a praying mantis. I secretly think it's about how shitty the dating scenes are, but I might be wrong hahaha
• The Sound of Water: I loved this tender tale about a son giving up his life to treat his father's injury
• Attachment Processes: a mother grieves her daughter's death & one of my favorites from this collection. This story explores the essence of love and the intersection with technology. Can we use tech to "scale" love? I walked away thinking real love is supposed to make us uncomfortable and want to be better
• The Love Song of the Mexican Free-Tailed Bats: a daughter returns home after her dad's passing. This one is for all of us with unresolved daddy issues (jkjk). I adored the exploration of the blurred lines between love and anger. How do we hold both truths that someone we love(d) also hurt us? Are the small moments of tenderness enough to sustain our love? How do we forgive?
Chung explores Korean American womanhood through sci-fi, folktales, horror, body transformation, and more in this phenomenal and unique short story collection. While the stories vary greatly in length, I find them original and unforgettable, each evoking different emotions that etched themselves into my memory. Here are some of my favorites.
• How to Eat Your Own Heart: a brilliant piece on heartache and a fantastic start that sets the tone of what to expect from this collection
• After the Party: the meaning of being an obedient daughter juxtaposing two marriages. I'm reminded of the Chinese character for tolerance, 忍, a knife on one's heart, and the slow death that comes with "enduring" a marriage
• Rabbit Heart: a girl travels to Seoul and basks in the adoration of her grandmother through rich stories; a beautiful tale of the nurturing love that transcends time
• Presence: a woman invents a technology to erase one's memory selectively. I love this sci-fi exploration of grief and what happens when we run away from loss instead of facing it
• Human Hearts: follows a family of Kumiho, mythological Korean creatures, and their exploration of what it means to be "human." And even fantastic beasts suffer from complex mother-daughter relationsihps lol
• Mantis: the "dating life" of a praying mantis. I secretly think it's about how shitty the dating scenes are, but I might be wrong hahaha
• The Sound of Water: I loved this tender tale about a son giving up his life to treat his father's injury
• Attachment Processes: a mother grieves her daughter's death & one of my favorites from this collection. This story explores the essence of love and the intersection with technology. Can we use tech to "scale" love? I walked away thinking real love is supposed to make us uncomfortable and want to be better
• The Love Song of the Mexican Free-Tailed Bats: a daughter returns home after her dad's passing. This one is for all of us with unresolved daddy issues (jkjk). I adored the exploration of the blurred lines between love and anger. How do we hold both truths that someone we love(d) also hurt us? Are the small moments of tenderness enough to sustain our love? How do we forgive?
ARC gifted by the publisher
I THINK THE BLURB GAVE TOO MUCH AWAY!!!!!
What I liked
- the father-son relationship 🥹
- i always love the music elements of Slocumb’s novels, and this one is no exception
- fast paced and lots of twists with the story
What didn’t quite work for me
- of the 3 novels I’ve read from Slocumb, you really have to suspend your disbelief. It got very wild in the bit
- the superhero aspect wasn’t as interesting to me, and I wish the story would’ve focused more on music
In reading the author’s notes, I think writing this book is more of a healing journey for him. So while the elements didn’t quite work well together, I still appreciate reading this book, and I can’t wait to read Slocumb’s future novels!
I THINK THE BLURB GAVE TOO MUCH AWAY!!!!!
What I liked
- the father-son relationship 🥹
- i always love the music elements of Slocumb’s novels, and this one is no exception
- fast paced and lots of twists with the story
What didn’t quite work for me
- of the 3 novels I’ve read from Slocumb, you really have to suspend your disbelief. It got very wild in the bit
- the superhero aspect wasn’t as interesting to me, and I wish the story would’ve focused more on music
In reading the author’s notes, I think writing this book is more of a healing journey for him. So while the elements didn’t quite work well together, I still appreciate reading this book, and I can’t wait to read Slocumb’s future novels!
ARC gifted by the publisher
The idea of never knowing one’s mom and retracing her steps to learn about family history is intriguing. Yet, the prose hinders more profound development and investigation into this theme and prevents the emotional connection one would usually read in complex mother-daughter stories.
In a way, ROSARITA is a very Booker-like book, where I often feel like the emphasis on writing craft overshadows the development of actual characters and plots. Readers who love purple prose might enjoy this more
The idea of never knowing one’s mom and retracing her steps to learn about family history is intriguing. Yet, the prose hinders more profound development and investigation into this theme and prevents the emotional connection one would usually read in complex mother-daughter stories.
In a way, ROSARITA is a very Booker-like book, where I often feel like the emphasis on writing craft overshadows the development of actual characters and plots. Readers who love purple prose might enjoy this more
4.25/5 ARC gifted by the publisher
I wasn’t sure if this ride will be worth it until after 500 pages, things turned around for me and I ended up really enjoying this one!
DARKMOTHERLAND is definitely for the niche audience who like weird books with super on the nose political satire that will prepare you for the incoming US administration 😂 I had a lot of fun reading about the absolutely outrageous yet totally imaginable political scenarios
There’s a very interesting juxtaposition between two woman, one a daughter of a famous political dissenter who marries into a wealthy family with deep ties to the current dictator, and another a trans woman who endured a lot of homophobia/transphobia yet found her way into the inner circles of the dictator prime minister. It is these two intertwined storylines that pushed me to finishing this 700+ page chonkers
I thought the author, albeit a man, did a great job examining femininity in authoritarian regimes. Not just for physical attraction, but how one’s femininity as considered through the lens of motherhood (mother to family, to citizens, etc) is fascinatingly described via the two FMC
That said, i wonder if the book could’ve been 400 pages to be a bit more focused on the two main storylines. I appreciate the various side characters to give more context into Nepali culture, but find the story loses its momentum in the middle
I wasn’t sure if this ride will be worth it until after 500 pages, things turned around for me and I ended up really enjoying this one!
DARKMOTHERLAND is definitely for the niche audience who like weird books with super on the nose political satire that will prepare you for the incoming US administration 😂 I had a lot of fun reading about the absolutely outrageous yet totally imaginable political scenarios
There’s a very interesting juxtaposition between two woman, one a daughter of a famous political dissenter who marries into a wealthy family with deep ties to the current dictator, and another a trans woman who endured a lot of homophobia/transphobia yet found her way into the inner circles of the dictator prime minister. It is these two intertwined storylines that pushed me to finishing this 700+ page chonkers
I thought the author, albeit a man, did a great job examining femininity in authoritarian regimes. Not just for physical attraction, but how one’s femininity as considered through the lens of motherhood (mother to family, to citizens, etc) is fascinatingly described via the two FMC
That said, i wonder if the book could’ve been 400 pages to be a bit more focused on the two main storylines. I appreciate the various side characters to give more context into Nepali culture, but find the story loses its momentum in the middle
3.5/5 alc gifted by librofm
This is a great read for those who love gossip girl x ice skating, messy relationships, DAISY JONES AND THE SIX, are trying to get back into reading, and want to try out audiobook (amazing full-cast production). I can see this being the book of the winter/spring and getting lots of commercial successes
It’s very readable and the characters come to life. The story about ice skating will be fun for fans of the sport. And the oral history/documentary format is quite refreshing and keeps readers’ attention well
The characters are just all so immature to the point I sped up the audiobook wanting it to be over. I was left emotionally spent after reading this. And it’s not even been a week in January yet lol
This is a great read for those who love gossip girl x ice skating, messy relationships, DAISY JONES AND THE SIX, are trying to get back into reading, and want to try out audiobook (amazing full-cast production). I can see this being the book of the winter/spring and getting lots of commercial successes
It’s very readable and the characters come to life. The story about ice skating will be fun for fans of the sport. And the oral history/documentary format is quite refreshing and keeps readers’ attention well
The characters are just all so immature to the point I sped up the audiobook wanting it to be over. I was left emotionally spent after reading this. And it’s not even been a week in January yet lol
finished copy gifted by the publisher and ALC from libro.fm
What I liked
- the deadpan humor made me laugh
- the mixture of literary mystery, great character development, fascinating plot, and humor
- the author is really good at sprinkling details throughout the story and putting everything together in the end in a mind-blowing way. I never know where the story is going and the author continues to surprise me with this series
- the discussions of online dating focusing on the tech is quite unique and I love the themes about how love, tech, and capitalism intertwines
What didn’t quite work for me
- this is definitely a me problem but this book picks up right after book 1 and I already forgot a lot of what happened 😆 I highly recommend readers to review book 1 before jumping in
- I wish there were more focus on her family dynamics or just remove that altogether. It seems a bit disjointed with this book since so much is going on, and I’m not sure if there is resolution or development from Claudia towards her complex family dynamics
- the middle lost me a bit. I wonder if the book could’ve benefited from more intense editing to quicken the pace
- maybe because there has been a proliferation of AI-related books in the last year, all the tech talks didn’t feel as fun/original as book 1
What I liked
- the deadpan humor made me laugh
- the mixture of literary mystery, great character development, fascinating plot, and humor
- the author is really good at sprinkling details throughout the story and putting everything together in the end in a mind-blowing way. I never know where the story is going and the author continues to surprise me with this series
- the discussions of online dating focusing on the tech is quite unique and I love the themes about how love, tech, and capitalism intertwines
What didn’t quite work for me
- this is definitely a me problem but this book picks up right after book 1 and I already forgot a lot of what happened 😆 I highly recommend readers to review book 1 before jumping in
- I wish there were more focus on her family dynamics or just remove that altogether. It seems a bit disjointed with this book since so much is going on, and I’m not sure if there is resolution or development from Claudia towards her complex family dynamics
- the middle lost me a bit. I wonder if the book could’ve benefited from more intense editing to quicken the pace
- maybe because there has been a proliferation of AI-related books in the last year, all the tech talks didn’t feel as fun/original as book 1
Phenomenal historical background and character development. The writing is lyrical, at times abstract. I appreciate this approach because the topics are very heavy, yet the author does an excellent job not making the story read like trauma porn.
It’s a heart breaking and extremely heavy read about the little known history of “vagrant” houses that abused children established first during Japanese colonization and perpetuated during the early years of South Korea.
It’s a heart breaking and extremely heavy read about the little known history of “vagrant” houses that abused children established first during Japanese colonization and perpetuated during the early years of South Korea.