ringofkeyz's Reviews (147)

there's a reason why this book is so highly recommended.

donna tartt is able to paint a scene so well with the language that she chooses. the characters feel real - while they could all fall into stereotypes quite easily (henry, the serious, studious boy with a dark nature. bunny, the playboy coasting by on forcing others' hand to generosity. etc.), they never come off as caricatures. their personalities and struggles feel believable and, even though they're all horrible people when it comes down to it, you're able to sympathize with them when need be. and those types of characters make a story.

this rlly brought back my Catholic school trauma 

i want to give this book 5 stars because of nostalgia, buuuuut for retaining the sanctity of my 5 star reads, i won't. but coming back to the world of percy jackson after however many years with a new adventure felt like reuniting with an old friend. and it was exactly what i needed (so +0.25 ⭐️)

my favourite essays (in order of appearance): an NDN boyhood, futuromania,  please keep loving, to hang our grief up to dry

gorgeous prose.

i kept trying to get into this book from sheer power of will (i don't enjoy "dnf-ing" books) but just could not succeed. 

the characters are insufferable in a way that i couldn't bring myself to care about any of their perspectives. it just felt like the two primary male characters were in a dick measuring contest while one tried to get the attention of the one female friend who couldn't care less.

my favourite stories in this collection were "is this you?" and the titular story, "fruiting bodies."

all of the stories were a strongly written blend of magical realism and an unspoken, haunting feeling that makes you squirm out of both unease and morbid interest.