Originally published at I Should Read That

This is a spoiler-free review.

I don’t really know where to start with this review. I picked up Nine Perfect Strangers because I really enjoyed Big Little Lies and trusted Moriarty to write a sharp and compelling book. Where Big Little Lies is a well-structured page turner, Nine Perfect Strangers is a complete and utter mess. I was honestly shocked by the decline in quality!

A lot of my grievances with this book stem from the second half and are therefore filled with spoilers, however I’m going to do my best to make this review spoiler-free. I think the most disappointing thing about this book is the fact that it just feels pointless — I didn’t understand what Moriarty was trying to accomplish. Was it a thriller? A commentary on the fad dieting industry? A commercial fiction romp? It really didn’t accomplish any of these things. The book starts strong with all the characters arriving at the resort and interacting with the totally creepy resort staff — there’s a particular moment that occurs between Frances and a masseuse that’s so eerie and fantastic — however the book just doesn’t go anywhere. All of the plot points and twists fell completely flat and there way no payoff for the plot lines Moriarty was laying down. In a way, this book felt very much like a rough draft that needed a few rounds of solid edits — there was so much lost potential!

The book shifts perspective constantly and I found it tough to really connect with the characters. With nine guests and three members of staff, there are just too many points of view and the book feels disjointed and disconnected. The only redeeming part of this book is Frances — this is probably because we spend the most time in her point of view. She easily has the best characterization, backstory, and motivations and is therefore the most engaging character in the whole cast, despite the fact that others had so much potential to be interesting too. I thought that some of the other were just not compelling or fell into stereotypes that just didn’t work. 11 out of 12 characters were uninteresting, which was just so disappointing.

What I wanted and expected from Nine Perfect Strangers was a thrilling condemnation of our perceptions of others and the dieting/health industry. I wanted stereotypes flipped on their heads and larger-than-life characters, I wanted brilliant twists and turns and revelations. Moriarty did a great job of this in Big Little Lies, but completely missed the mark in Nine Perfect Strangers. Sadly, this is one to skip.

CW: every kind of shaming imaginable, suicide, grief

Originally posted I Should Read That

This is a spoiler-free review for Children of Ruin, however it will contain some spoilers for Children of Time.

Children of Ruin expands well on the story initially told in Children of Time, but still manages to hold onto the things I loved from the first book. I can go on and on about how brilliant the storytelling in Children of Time is, as well as the incredibly intricate way he manages to show an entire culture evolving from primal hunters to a space-faring society. I absolutely loved the way that the spiders were presented and how they evolved in the first book, and was so worried that we wouldn’t get anything as interesting in Children of Ruin. However, he manages to show a similar evolution of a non-human society that doesn’t feel like a rehashing of the Portiid society. I loved the way life was explored, expanded on, and evolved on both Nod and Damascus. I loved that this book had so many horror elements to it. I loved the way the Portiids and humans interacted not only among themselves, but toward a new species. I loved the backstory of the terraformers. Basically, I just loved this book.

We get a good mix of our favourite Portiid descendants -- Fabian, Portia, and Bianca -- as well as human descendants of the Gilgamesh’s crew. It was so interesting to see how humans and Portiids are still getting to know each other and adjusting to each other’s customs, despite the generations between first contact and their present situation. Seeing them, particularly Helena and Portia, attempt to communicate with each other and with the the new species was just fabulous.

If you liked Children of Time, I really think you’ll enjoy Children of Ruin. Although it feels a lot like the first book in terms of general plot and story structure, Children of Ruin introduces so many new elements and continues to expand and explore familiar themes. Children of ruin combines elements of creeping horror with some of my favourite science fiction tropes -- space exploration and first contact. Throw in a healthy dose of linguistics, and you have this absolutely brilliant book.

Originally posted to I Should Read That

I received a digital copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This review is spoiler-free.

I absolutely love Adrian Tchaikovsky’s Children of Time and was curious to see what his other science fiction books were like while I awaited the release of Children of Ruin. Walking to Aldebaran is the perfect way to sample his writing style -- clocking in at right around 140 pages, it’s a short but effective story of an astronaut lost in space. This novella will please his long-time fans and new readers alike.

This story is both incredibly dark and incredibly funny, and it showcases what an amazing writer Tchaikovsky is. Although it took me a little while to get fully into the story, I found myself totally gripped by Rendell's story. Rendell reminds me a little bit of Mark Watney from The Martian -- he uses humor to get through his ordeal and has such a strong and unique voice. However, unlike Watney, Rendell is losing his grip on his sanity has he wanders the cold, dark, physics-defying Crypts -- and he'll be the first to admit it to you. I really loved, if that’s the right word, piecing his story together via flashbacks and the bits of his current situation that he chooses to reveal. As you uncover more and more of Rendell's tale, your understanding and horror grow. The fact that Tchaikovsky pulls such a compelling and complex tale together in 140 pages is pretty incredible.

That's all I'm going to say -- again, this is quite a short book! If you’re looking for a short sci-fi read or want to sample Tchaikovsky’s writing before committing to one of his many (many) books or series, Walking to Aldebaran is a great place to start.

Originally posted to I Should Read That

It has been a long time since I’ve read historical romance, despite it being a favourite genre of mine, and I've been craving it lately. Pretty much everything that I have read in historical romance has been set in Regency or Victorian England, and I needed to read something different while in a reading slump last month. I thought I’d branch out to Alyssa Cole’s Civil War-era Loyal League series. An Extraordinary Union has high stakes, gripping tension, and fantastic characters and I just loved it.

Romance novels often have stakes, that’s just part of the genre. However, I’ve never read anything with such high stakes and tension as An Extraordinary Union. A huge part of this is the fact that it is set in the Confederacy during the Civil War. Cole does not shy away from the realities that slaves faced at this time -- particularly enslaved women. Although Elle is a free woman, she is posing as a slave in a Confederate senator’s household. The fear for Elle’s safety grips you from the very start of the book, however it is woven in well and doesn’t make it an unpleasant or anxiety-inducing. The differences between herself and Malcolm are made very apparent -- despite the fact that they're both fighting on the same side, their lives and lifestyles will never be the same and their relationship wouldn't be accepted by others on the side of the Union. 

Elle and Malcolm are both fantastic characters. Elle is one of my favourite heroines -- she is so intelligent and fierce and has so much agency. She’s fighting for a higher purpose, to release the US from the grip of slavery, and damn you believe in her every step of the way. She’s so fierce and fantastic and was one of the reasons the book is so compelling. Malcolm is a lovely hero and the perfect fit for Elle, but she was really the star of  the show and the most memorable character for me.

If you're looking for historical fiction or historical romance, I'd highly recommend you pick up An Extraordinary Union. It's not an easy read at times, but it is a fantastic story packed with passion and heart.

A fun romp of a space opera. RTC!

😳

Originally posted to I Should Read That

Although I don’t often read contemporary YA, I was looking for something a little different after reading some hard sci-fi and picked up Royals from the library. I actually had a lot of trouble rating this one, but ultimately settled on what is my first and, so far only, one star rating since I started book blogging in 2017. This is going to be a pretty unpopular opinion, but hear me out.

On the one hand, Royals did exactly what it set out to do — it is a fluffy and fun summery YA read. However, I had some strong negative feelings about the whole approach to the book.

I was 100% here for some charming, Princess Diaries/fish-out-of-water/Meghan-Markle-has-a-little-sister fluff. But ultimately, the book was a big letdown, especially in terms of Daisy, and I think that’s where most of my issues with the book stem from.

One of the big issues I had with the book is that Daisy really fell into the ‘dumb American’ stereotype — something I absolutely despise. As an American who lives permanently in the UK, I really struggle with people making these kinds of assumptions about me and the way I act — you wouldn’t believe some of the things people have said to my face. I felt like Daisy was so incredibly disrespectful of everyone and everything around her — every interaction was an opportunity to show off how supposedly quirky she was, but instead managed to show what a disrespectful jerk she was. She really fell into that stereotype of the American abroad, trampling over customs and culture, speaking loudly and slowly so people will ‘understand’, and expecting everything to be exactly like it is back home — you know?

You know in The Princess Diaries where Mia ends up being totally cool and regal at the end, thus gaining the respect of everyone who didn’t believe in her? Or in What a Girl Wants, when Daphne bumbles through British life, but tries her best and stays true to herself, ending up totally charming everyone who doubted her? Daisy never had this moment. She proved the snooty aristocracy correct at every turn, and that’s what frustrated me. There isn’t a single moment where she redeems herself or her actions, thus robbing us of some serious character growth and excusing a lot of her previous behavior. Daisy gets so close to a turning point in her character when she has those moments of clarity around her sister’s actions, then she goes back to acting like an absolute dick.

I was also really excited for the sister relationship in this book, and I feel like we were robbed of that. Eleanor and Daisy are pretty much polar opposites and butt heads at every turn, so I was really looking forward to seeing them either have a blow-up fight or have a satisfying moment of resolution. However, they barely interacted during the entire book and when they did, it was so incredibly unsatisfying. Despite Daisy seemingly doing her best to be an asshole to her sister throughout the entire book — even while completely understanding why her sister wants her to act a certain way and just generally behave like a civilized human being — they never really do anything. Eleanor is a plot device that gets thrown aside in favour of Daisy’s exploits, despite having a really interesting and compelling story. I’d read the heck out of a novella starring Eleanor and Alex.

I’m being really hard on this book, and dear lord I hope the author never, ever sees this review, but for me it was just that disappointing. Although it’s a fast read for the summer, and I did finish it, I feel like Royals was such an incredible disappointment. I’m a little baffled, especially from an author who, to my understanding, is really interested in the British Royal Family and British culture in general.

Originally posted to I Should Read That

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This review is spoiler-free for Muse of Nightmares, but will contain mega, earth-shattering spoilers for [b: Strange the Dreamer|28449207|Strange the Dreamer (Strange the Dreamer, #1)|Laini Taylor|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1519915549s/28449207.jpg|48158509].

I absolutely adored Strange the Dreamer when I read it in 2017, but I read it when I was in the exact, perfect mood. I’ve been waiting for the right time to read Muse of Nightmares so I could recapture the magic of Taylor’s prose, and it was worth the wait. Taylor’s writing is absolutely stunning and fairy tale-esque, and the story flows seamlessly from Strange the Dreamer into Muse of Nightmares. When I pick up a sequel a year or more after reading the first book, I often find a disconnect that I sometimes struggle to overcome - it often feels like I've been away from the story for too long. However, this wasn’t the case in Muse of Nightmares. It felt like I had never left the world of Weep, and that fact shows just how skilled Taylor is as a writer. Although the story has a very different feeling from Strange the Dreamer, I tumbled right in and absolutely adored it.

I’m so happy this book focuses on Sarai, the Muse of Nightmares herself. I like Lazlo Strange well enough, although I find him a little underwhelming, but I absolutely fell in love with Sarai in the first book -- she’s so complex, big-hearted,and spirited (no pun intended). For me, she’s the shining star of this duology and one of the best characters in YA fantasy. With her horrifying death and subsequent resurrection as one of Minya’s ghosts, as well as the complications that come with being held by Minya's power, she becomes even more conflicted and therefore even more interesting. I love the fact that, despite everything, Sarai clings to her compassion and understanding and wants to help ease suffering.

In addition to Sarai, every other character goes through incredible growth in this book. Again, I think it’s a testament to Taylor’s incredibly skill as a writer to build even the most subtle shifts in character into huge overarching changes. Each and every character, no matter who they are and how important they are to the plot, gets so much care and consideration from Taylor. Because of that, the cast of characters in this duology is so incredibly rich and wonderful.

I adored Muse of Nightmares, and this series is one of  my absolute favourite YA fantasy series. I am so glad I picked up Strange the Dreamer on a whim back in 2017 because I fell in love with the magic of Laini Taylor’s words.

Originally posted to I Should Read That

This is a spoiler-free review for Atlas Alone, but will contain huge spoilers for After Atlas.

Some of you probably know how much I absolutely love Emma Newman’s Planetfall books, so there’s no surprise that I was eagerly awaiting, and ultimately ended up loving, Atlas Alone. The first sequel in the Planetfall series, Atlas Alone picks up six months after the events of After Atlas and deals with the consequences of those events in deep, thought-provoking, and totally horrifying way that only Emma Newman can achieve.

Atlas Alone is all about the question of sacrificing a few to save millions. I love the morality of this issue in fiction, and I think Newman has really nailed the difficulty of the decision and the resulting repercussions. What makes this particular story work so well is the groundwork she has laid out for us in previous books. Everything she has written in Planetfall, After Atlas, and Before Mars has led to our deep understanding of Dee’s decision making and the reason she makes the choices she does -- from the hothousing and contract slavery, the crushing power of the GovCorps, the restricted freedoms of the average citizen, and the integration of AI and neural chips all come together to give us a full picture of Dee’s world and what the destruction of Earth truly means for her and for humanity.

One of my favorite elements of Atlas Alone is the way that mersives and gaming is integrated into the story. Dee is, as we know, a gamer and mersives were always going to play a major role in her story. However, I was so impressed by the way Newman used them as a tool to not only tell us the story of Dee’s past, but also to explore recent history and the rise of the GovCorps, something I’ve been interested in learning more about since Planetfall. The reader doesn’t get stuck in a single environment -- in this case, the Altas 2 -- and the mersives give a chance for more world building and exploration.

Newman is the author to go to for interesting, complex, and unique female characters and Dee is no exception. Her characterization is a perfect balance of strength and vulnerability and I just feel like I got her. Her decisions and actions are not always one I agree with, but I totally understand where she is coming from and never had a moment of questioning or doubting where she was coming from. I especially loved exploring her backstory via mersives and gaming, all the while gaining more and more insight into who she is at her core. Dee, like all of Newman's female characters, is a fully fleshed-out, complex, and unusual character and I loved reading her story.

Atlas Alone is probably my favourite book in the series so far, which says a lot because I absolutely love all of these books. The twists and turns of this story kept me on my toes (and staring out in the the distance long after I had finished). For me, Newman is at the top of her game and is easily one of the best and most talented science fiction authors writing today.