charlottesometimes's Reviews (3.33k)

The Hunger by Alma Katsu

The Hunger

Alma Katsu

2.0
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: No
Loveable characters: No
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes
Very, very boring. 
Partly because I am not as interested in the whole Donner Party thing as people in the US seem to be. It doesn’t seem creepy or fascinating to me. Just a very standard story of people overreaching themselves and suffering the obvious consequences.
A worse problem though is that it’s not very good. There are so many sometimes offensively stereotypical elements - the hero with a dark secret and a weakness for woman whose heart died with the beloved he tragically lost and who believes he can never live again, the dangerous and seductive married woman, the “not like other girls” love interest whose father doesn’t approve, the forbidden love between a young girl and a native, the prissy neurotic who’s secretly a tormented homosexual living a life of shame.
The ultimate product is nearly 400 pages of character templates wandering about referencing history and horror tropes a bit, and then the end. I don’t get the impression that Katsu is particularly interested in either history or horror, so I guess she just thought this would sell well?
When We Cease to Understand the World by Benjamín Labatut

When We Cease to Understand the World

Benjamín Labatut

3.0
challenging dark informative reflective tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: No
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes
In Memory of Memory by Maria Stepanova

In Memory of Memory

Maria Stepanova

4.0
challenging emotional informative reflective slow-paced
Minor Detail by Adania Shibli

Minor Detail

Adania Shibli

3.0
challenging dark informative sad tense slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Complicated
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: No
The Employees: A Workplace Novel of the 22nd Century by Olga Ravn

The Employees: A Workplace Novel of the 22nd Century

Olga Ravn

4.0
challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Complicated
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated
The Pear Field by Nana Ekvtimishvili

The Pear Field

Nana Ekvtimishvili

4.0
dark sad tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated
Wretchedness by Andrzej Tichý

Wretchedness

Andrzej Tichý

4.0
challenging dark reflective sad tense fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes
At Night All Blood is Black by David Diop

At Night All Blood is Black

David Diop

4.0
dark sad tense fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes
The Perfect Nine: The Epic of Gĩkũyũ And Mũmbi by Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o

The Perfect Nine: The Epic of Gĩkũyũ And Mũmbi

Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o

3.0
hopeful relaxing medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: No
Loveable characters: No
Diverse cast of characters: Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus: No
Nightmare Alley by William Lindsay Gresham

Nightmare Alley

William Lindsay Gresham

4.0
dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes