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Looking at the previous GoodReads reviews of THE FEAST OF LOVE, this book is a lot like Scorpios: readers either adored it absolutely or disliked it absolutely. After reading it myself, I think I know why.
This book is incredibly uneven. Some sections were brilliant, others were eye rolling. On the one hand, THE FEAST OF LOVE is yet another author pulling a Vonnegut and inserting himself in the story, and for Baxter, it takes long while for this literary move to feel genuine. The descriptions of different settings were wearisome and tedious. I liked that the lesbian storyline was present, but it was cliche. There are some logical plot holes too, like why, if all the characters are telling Baxter their stories in flashback, do their voices and prose style change over the course of the novel? Would the police force AND an expensive private investigator really not be able to find one man bumming it in Hollywood? If all the other neighbors' lives are so closely knit, why haven't Baxter and his partner appeared? Baxter also took a lot of page space to justify the end of the young lovers' storyline, but it still came out as forcibly tragic. I could see Baxter's little typing fingers, making it so.
On the other hand, I cried. I cried a lot. I liked the characters; I felt for them; I felt scared for them. The chapters focused on the older Jewish couple I read through with trepidation and fear. I loved the way the POVs interacted: how they clashed, how they picked up the same things, how they traced the same motif. I'm a huge sucker for dragons, and this book had a dragon. I loved and was saddened by how the young people were dealing with the same things I'm dealing with, even though thirty years separate us.
So, in conclusion: this book is complicated. Sometimes it's awesome; sometimes my eyeballs roll out the door and down the street. If you'd like to pick it up, approach the experience with patience and tissues.
This book is incredibly uneven. Some sections were brilliant, others were eye rolling. On the one hand, THE FEAST OF LOVE is yet another author pulling a Vonnegut and inserting himself in the story, and for Baxter, it takes long while for this literary move to feel genuine. The descriptions of different settings were wearisome and tedious. I liked that the lesbian storyline was present, but it was cliche. There are some logical plot holes too, like why, if all the characters are telling Baxter their stories in flashback, do their voices and prose style change over the course of the novel? Would the police force AND an expensive private investigator really not be able to find one man bumming it in Hollywood? If all the other neighbors' lives are so closely knit, why haven't Baxter and his partner appeared? Baxter also took a lot of page space to justify the end of the young lovers' storyline, but it still came out as forcibly tragic. I could see Baxter's little typing fingers, making it so.
On the other hand, I cried. I cried a lot. I liked the characters; I felt for them; I felt scared for them. The chapters focused on the older Jewish couple I read through with trepidation and fear. I loved the way the POVs interacted: how they clashed, how they picked up the same things, how they traced the same motif. I'm a huge sucker for dragons, and this book had a dragon. I loved and was saddened by how the young people were dealing with the same things I'm dealing with, even though thirty years separate us.
So, in conclusion: this book is complicated. Sometimes it's awesome; sometimes my eyeballs roll out the door and down the street. If you'd like to pick it up, approach the experience with patience and tissues.
After reading this, I fully qualify myself as a Gaiman nerd. A LITTLE GOLD BOOK OF GHASTLY STUFF contains 5 short stories, 8 nonfiction essays, 2 speeches, and one prose-poem, which, instead of being scattered about the internet and literary magazines, are collected in one volume for convenience. While the works are highly varied, they're all united by their author and his classic, topsy humor. I found myself giggling a lot and disturbing my reading partner with paraphrases. That being said, I'm unsure that anyone not totally into Neil Gaiman and his amazingness would enjoy it as much, since the works are so different, and new readers tend to need more persuasion to like anything. The above 5 stars are more personal than others I've given. On the other hand, if you're looking for winter holiday gift for someone who is a fan, this book is a lovely little gem for readers looking to laugh and learn more about their favorite speculative fiction author.
The reviews of this book are right on point. It's heart-wrenching, soul-twisting, and tear-jerking. It's also ridiculously happy, a celebration, and a love letter. Though sometimes the prose verged on purple, I didn't care much because I loved Levithan's masterful use of Greek chorus. The generation of gay men who died of AIDS narrates the intertwining stories of the boys, who, yes, kiss, and honestly it's the best use of this narrative device since the Greeks themselves. My heart went out to each and every character, and I was very pleased with everyone's ending. An awesome, awesome work that I would recommend to everyone and anyone.
This book was just *long sigh of longing* lovely. And strangely addicting. Once I started, it was not only difficult to put down, but also my mind kept coming back to it at odd moments, pondering how the Walkers and the Reynolds would untangle their various interpersonal knots. There's an interesting red thread of abuse and grief pulsing in the pages, and it's existence is unique in the romance genre. Jonah and Quinn can't gain solace in only each other, but also look to themselves. My only criticism, actually, is that I wish the book was longer: there's numerous mentions of working through issues, but the actual heavy emotional lifting happens offscreen. As a reader, I wanted to see what working through the past looked like, not just see the final results and resolutions.
Ooo, and a word about the physicality of the romance. I now know what "steamy" means. See, I thought "steamy" meant like shower steam, where important bits are fogged over, the music swells, and everything fades to black. I was wrong. Very, very happily wrong. A+ on that love scene.
Tl;dr? 10 out of 10 would read again and I'm silly happy that there's more to come in this series. Huzzah!
Ooo, and a word about the physicality of the romance. I now know what "steamy" means. See, I thought "steamy" meant like shower steam, where important bits are fogged over, the music swells, and everything fades to black. I was wrong. Very, very happily wrong. A+ on that love scene.
Tl;dr? 10 out of 10 would read again and I'm silly happy that there's more to come in this series. Huzzah!
A giggling, bite-sized collection of puzzling mysteries! A very quick read, but containing all of the flashes of snarky wonderfulness that is Lord Peter Wimsey. I found the introduction interestingly inflammatory, but I feel like I know a lot more about Sayers than before. There are some unfortunate instances of racism, but I was mostly distracted by the scenes of cute domesticity in the Wimsey household.
Other reviews have mentioned the price, and I found this at a local used bookstore for $1. You needn't spend a great deal on these itty-bitties. Overall, very fun!
Other reviews have mentioned the price, and I found this at a local used bookstore for $1. You needn't spend a great deal on these itty-bitties. Overall, very fun!
While reading this book, it became clear by the first 50 pages why the Goodreads reviews are so divided. RUNNING WITH SCISSORS touches on a lot of the same themes as the other wildly popular memoir, Jeanette Walls' THE GLASS CASTLE: mental illness, non-conformity, class, poverty, and parenting run amok in these books, with we're-older-now-so-let's-escape-the-madness results. But while Walls sewed together a narrative with redemptive meaning and hope at the end, Burroughs relies solely on the sensationalist nature of his childhood to keep the reader going. He wants readers to become fascinated the same way drivers are fascinated with watching other people's car crashes, and it just doesn't work for a full 200 pages. I wanted more of a story. I wanted more feeling and thinking.
But in the end, I wish Burroughs the best. The Finches children and he deserved more love than they got.
But in the end, I wish Burroughs the best. The Finches children and he deserved more love than they got.
My first Star Trek novel was fascinating! Cox does an excellent job bringing Kirk's voice and history to the story. McCoy feels like DeForest Kelley himself with all his grumpy snark. The mystery is a fun jaunt, though the hilarity of the final clue is tempered by the extreme brinksmanship displayed during a supposed peace process. The plot is thorough, hit all the right notes, and feels almost like a solid addition to the original series.
Almost.
The 'almost' is important. While the book advocates diplomacy, peace, and hard science, I hoped it would go further. Spock and Kirk don't have many scenes together, and so the subtextual homoerotica disappears. Most disappointing is the imperialism. While Cox takes pains to paint the war as a simple Capulet versus Montague, one race is literally mounting an imperialist invasion of the other in a scramble for resources. It's the British Empire versus India, not a game of two houses, both alike in dignity. Starfleet does its best to play Prince though, and there's a happy ending for all. I look forward to more novelist Trek!
Almost.
The 'almost' is important. While the book advocates diplomacy, peace, and hard science, I hoped it would go further. Spock and Kirk don't have many scenes together, and so the subtextual homoerotica disappears. Most disappointing is the imperialism. While Cox takes pains to paint the war as a simple Capulet versus Montague, one race is literally mounting an imperialist invasion of the other in a scramble for resources. It's the British Empire versus India, not a game of two houses, both alike in dignity. Starfleet does its best to play Prince though, and there's a happy ending for all. I look forward to more novelist Trek!
There are plenty of reviews remarking on the problems of this book. Dame's Suede's is my favorite one and is honestly better written and more in Austen's style than the entire novel. There's waaaaaay too much telling and summarizing of important events/character interactions; all the characters are tired; Elizabeth doesn't say a single snarky thing; there are glaring plot holes and points of confusion (the corner also has a reputation as, strangely, a lawyer; Mrs. Younge has somehow been a London innkeeper and a lady's companion during the same years); the solution to the mystery is provided through extremely convoluted backstory.
Considering PD James' many awards, I feel like something went horribly wrong with this book. It feels like a first draft that an author rushed through, simply jotting down ideas for scenes and plot points and sending it off. Or maybe P&P's antiquated prose style was too intimidating, and the author focused so much on the sound of the words that they forewent everything else important to story. Honestly, it feels like Knopf was so eager to publish that they didn't let the manuscript go through the full editing process. There ARE a few bright points in the novel, if you squint: the backstory of the Darcy's estate is interesting and Georgiana's suitor, lovely. There's an undercurrent addictive quality, like when you're trying to nail two pieces of wood together and you've already banged your thumb twice, but you're compelled to finish the job. Or when digging out a stubborn splinter, even when it hurts awfully. I want to read James' other works because I feel in my bones that this author is good, but maybe at something else.
Considering PD James' many awards, I feel like something went horribly wrong with this book. It feels like a first draft that an author rushed through, simply jotting down ideas for scenes and plot points and sending it off. Or maybe P&P's antiquated prose style was too intimidating, and the author focused so much on the sound of the words that they forewent everything else important to story. Honestly, it feels like Knopf was so eager to publish that they didn't let the manuscript go through the full editing process. There ARE a few bright points in the novel, if you squint: the backstory of the Darcy's estate is interesting and Georgiana's suitor, lovely. There's an undercurrent addictive quality, like when you're trying to nail two pieces of wood together and you've already banged your thumb twice, but you're compelled to finish the job. Or when digging out a stubborn splinter, even when it hurts awfully. I want to read James' other works because I feel in my bones that this author is good, but maybe at something else.