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hfjarmer's Reviews (394)
3.75/5
This was almosttt a 4 star read for me, but not for the reasons I am seeing in a lot of the other 3 star reviews.
This is the second book I have read by R.F. Kuang (the first being Babel), and I have to say I love her style. The way Kuang combines fantasy with history is gripping, compelling, and illuminating. Kuang's novels grip my interest from the first. She is an excellent story teller, and I can see every detail of the story as it unfolds. I also appreciate the pacing of her novels, as one of my biggest gripes with fantasy novels is they are either way too long and laborious, or way too short and fragmentary. Kuang wastes no time throwing you into Rin's world, but does so without sacrificing the quality world-building that is a necessary evil (imo) of the fantasy genre.
If you know me, you know I love an imperfect main character. I loved it in Babel and I loved it in The Poppy War - Kuang's main characters are always trying so hard to be good people, and I think the struggle of making the "right" decision while feeling wronged by the world at every turn is so well depicted in her characters. Did Rin make the right decision in the end? Maybe, maybe not, but that is the reality of this world, right and wrong are often not mutually exclusive.
I give The Poppy Wars 3.75/5 starts (if Goodreads would just allow partial stars already that would be F!&@ing amazing) because while I loved the pacing, writing, and historical context of this novel, I'm not sure it is one that I am going to remember 30 years from now past "yeah, I liked that book".
This was almosttt a 4 star read for me, but not for the reasons I am seeing in a lot of the other 3 star reviews.
This is the second book I have read by R.F. Kuang (the first being Babel), and I have to say I love her style. The way Kuang combines fantasy with history is gripping, compelling, and illuminating. Kuang's novels grip my interest from the first. She is an excellent story teller, and I can see every detail of the story as it unfolds. I also appreciate the pacing of her novels, as one of my biggest gripes with fantasy novels is they are either way too long and laborious, or way too short and fragmentary. Kuang wastes no time throwing you into Rin's world, but does so without sacrificing the quality world-building that is a necessary evil (imo) of the fantasy genre.
If you know me, you know I love an imperfect main character. I loved it in Babel and I loved it in The Poppy War - Kuang's main characters are always trying so hard to be good people, and I think the struggle of making the "right" decision while feeling wronged by the world at every turn is so well depicted in her characters. Did Rin make the right decision in the end? Maybe, maybe not, but that is the reality of this world, right and wrong are often not mutually exclusive.
I give The Poppy Wars 3.75/5 starts (if Goodreads would just allow partial stars already that would be F!&@ing amazing) because while I loved the pacing, writing, and historical context of this novel, I'm not sure it is one that I am going to remember 30 years from now past "yeah, I liked that book".
2.5/5 -- Comedy Central Presents: The Roast of Fanny Price
I am a firm believer that just because a book is a classic does not mean that it is truly a good book, and most unfortunately Mansfield Park is a testament to that belief. Lady J, what happened?
I am a big Jane Austen fan and am currently working my way through her collective works, but I have to say this book fell short for me in many ways. I've done some research and yes yes I understand that Mansfield Park is argued to be a societal commentary in contrast to her typical clever romances, but unfortunately that knowledge was not enough to save the book for me. Fanny, while moral and upstanding and the center of everyone's mind by the end of the novel, was simply boring. The plot was completely lackluster and dragged on and on in many places (the play, her time in Portsmouth, etc) and I feel Austen certainly had the skill set to portray this social and moral commentary while maintaining a level of intrigue that accompanies her other novels. The ending felt similar to an episode of Scooby-Doo where the villain is caught and they divulge the entire plot/ending in the last two minutes of the show. Why she decided to roll credits the way she did confounds me.
Lastly, I know that this was a different time period, but I simply could not get behind the whole marrying-your-first-cousin-that-you-were-basically-raised-with-as-a-sibling thing. I could have looked past it had Edmund not so frequently described his love for Fanny as being the same as that of a sister.
I am a firm believer that just because a book is a classic does not mean that it is truly a good book, and most unfortunately Mansfield Park is a testament to that belief. Lady J, what happened?
I am a big Jane Austen fan and am currently working my way through her collective works, but I have to say this book fell short for me in many ways. I've done some research and yes yes I understand that Mansfield Park is argued to be a societal commentary in contrast to her typical clever romances, but unfortunately that knowledge was not enough to save the book for me. Fanny, while moral and upstanding and the center of everyone's mind by the end of the novel, was simply boring. The plot was completely lackluster and dragged on and on in many places (the play, her time in Portsmouth, etc) and I feel Austen certainly had the skill set to portray this social and moral commentary while maintaining a level of intrigue that accompanies her other novels. The ending felt similar to an episode of Scooby-Doo where the villain is caught and they divulge the entire plot/ending in the last two minutes of the show. Why she decided to roll credits the way she did confounds me.
Lastly, I know that this was a different time period, but I simply could not get behind the whole marrying-your-first-cousin-that-you-were-basically-raised-with-as-a-sibling thing. I could have looked past it had Edmund not so frequently described his love for Fanny as being the same as that of a sister.