neuroqueer's Reviews (442)

Overall: A-

Overall: A 

I can see why this manga is so popular. It still has all the typical tropes found in shounen manga but it was still enjoyable. 

Overall: A

If One Punch Man and Harry Potter had a baby.

Overall: C+

"Ghost Girl" is a spooky middle school novel that could've benefited from more finesse. Zee, an eleven year old girl with a knack for storytelling, discovers that she can talk to ghosts. This coincides with a sinister new principal taking over the school.

The writing style seems engaging for middle schoolers but the paranormal elements are underdeveloped. It felt like more could have been done exploring Zee's ability. 

Zee is a headstrong, compelling lead while her best friend Elijah provides a sympathetic static foil to her. Principal Scratch is a hammy villain that goes into chewing the scenery territory at various points. 

There were few plot contrivances, plot holes and unnecessary elements. It felt a bit rushed and repetitive at points. My biggest gripe is with Nellie's character arc. Nellie's process of going from bully to buddy was jarring and unearned. This little girl said the most heinous crap to Zee. It's the type of heinous stuff that adults get punched in the face for while onlookers just nod in agreement and ask to get a few licks in themselves.

To top it off, there seems to be a budding romance between Elijah and Nellie. Firstly, there is so much going on in the book that this element isn't needed. Secondly, I don't know a person who would date their best friend's bully. This whole idea is just out of place story-wise.

I really liked the initial ideas in this book. With better execution and better character development, it could have been expanded into an amazing series like "Small Spaces." As it stands, it seems destined to be a standalone novel which may be for the best. 

Overall: B+

Full Shift is a good coming-of-age graphic novel that I think anyone can relate to, queer or not. The story revolves around Tessa, a young werewolf struggling to connect with her pack after the death of her father as well as her feelings towards her friend Maddie. The romance and grief aspects are handled quite well. The artwork is lovely. The characters are vividly drawn and their personalities - whether in human, werewolf, or wolf form -  explode through the page. 

My main gripe is while I can resonate with Tessa's emotional journey, she's not particularly likable or memorable. Otherwise, this is a recommendable book for someone looking for great artwork and a story around self-discovery. 

Overall: C

The Viy is a short horror novella from 19th Century Ukranian-born Russian writer Nikolai Gogol. It's an interesting look into Russian folklore and horror literature history but it isn't very memorable in terms of story or characters.

The story follows a young philospher who ends up messing with the wrong woman while venturing into a small village. The novel builds up suspense through escalating nightly encounters with the witch but the characters lack depth. This probably due to it being a novella that is mixing horror with some satirical elements.

For me, looking at the themes and historical context was more compelling than the story itself. For example:

* How Gogol uses satire to comment on blind faith (e.g. the philosopher praying during the nightly attacks even though he knew it wouldn't work).
* The Viy itself having some dubious origins as it's not really part of Ukranian folklore
* How witches (and women in general) are portrayed (here is a short but interesting write up on how witchcraft is used in the story: https://www.byarcadia.org/post/witchcraft-in-literature-101-the-viy-by-nikolai-gogol)

All in all, "The Viy" is interesting in terms of a historical view but not so much an enjoyable one.

Overall: B

Informative book on the language of flower giving created by the Victorians. 

Each blurb about a flower includes:
* scientific name
* flower meaning. 
* origin section
* what to pair the flower with 
* beautifully done hand drawing of the flower

The origin section will either discuss the origin of the flower name, meaning or where it was first discovered. 

What I learned from this:
* Forget-me-not name comes form a tragic but morbidly funny event 
* I can give oleander and azaleas to friends who are making stupid decisions to let them know I am judging them harshly
* I can give holly and snapdragons to my boss when I fuck up at work as an apology (he probably will be confused though)
* Victorians gave wheat - which isn't a flower - a meaning which I assume means they gave wheat to people (and even if I'm wrong...I'm still going to think it)

I think if you want a quick reference for flowers for writing purposes or for just curiosity sake, this is the book for you

Overall: C-

Oh the potential this story had if the main character wasn't a twit.

"Cold Snap" had so much promise - a grieving widow...an isolated winter cabin...chilly atmosphere....

But it just goes downhill thanks to previously mentioned widow, Christine. She is more frustrating than the story is frightening. 

The constant flashbacks to her husband's death every time that she drew a breath became more tiresome and repetitive than actually showcasing genuine grief. I ended up skipping paragraphs every time "Derek" popped up. This attempt was overkill in trying to drive home the trauma theme. If this was a novel instead of a novella with more time to space the flashbacks out and give a sense of who Derek and the family in general are as a whole, it could work. 

Christine's poor decision making skills were ridiculous. What cinched my contempt for this woman was

when Haiku the cat is killed and these lines occur:
"If Haiku died under the hooves of a wild animal, it's tragic, it is in fact Christine's fault for letting her slip through the door -- but it's also natural. She doesn't know why that is better but she decides to believe it"
No Christine, it's your fault for bringing the damn cat. It's your fault for ignoring the no pet warnings. It's your fault for heading blindly to a cabin instead of learning more about the destination. It's your fault for relying on a stupid getaway to help heal you and your son's relationship instead of a damn therapist.

I think the author is trying to justify Christine's negligence as a result of grief but I'm not convinced that Christine had any common sense before this. One could say "She's grieving so it's expected be a bit reckless and make mistakes". No. No she is not. Not mistakes and choices like these.

The atmosphere is good and the premise was genuinely intriguing but ultimately, the story falters because of Christine.

Overall: C-

This is a book that I wanted to like.... 

The story goes from an 80s slasher into an exploration of mental instability. While that's fine to do, I was really hoping that it was about a sentient mannequin out for blood (yes, I know how weird that sentence sounds).

The story, writing and lead character does goes over the top which fits the slasher feel but does come across as unconvincing and irritating a lot. The other characters fill their roles of disposable people in a horror movie but a shitty horror movie that you will watch once then feel like you deserve a refund for  it even though you pirated the movie. I'm honestly not going to remember much about this book other than a feeling of disappointment.

I'm still interested in other books by this author but this wasn't it for me.