sara_m_martins's Reviews (334)

The Secret History

Donna Tartt

3.75

dark tense

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

i have no idea what just happened

i like the writing, the atmosphere, the aesthetic.
the twists and turns, of the story, of the characters - that i have no clue how to talk about. i suppose i lingered, all 600 or so pages of the story, in a haziness, much like the fog that assaulted Hampden every now and then, in a limbo of hating it all and loving it all, all while really not knowing what i felt or was going on - which i suppose is the way the book goes, is the way richard feels... successful then, is the logical conclusion i suppose
i did think an awful lot about How To Get Away With Murder too

Cemetery Boys

Aiden Thomas

4.75

adventurous emotional funny hopeful lighthearted mysterious fast-paced

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

On audiobook (narrated by a latinx trans person, so double #ownvoices there too! plus it has a short interview between Aiden Thomas and Avi Roque (narrator) at the end, which i really enjoyed too)
I really enjoyed the characters, the world and the representation. The twist was pretty predictable but the way the climax unfolded took me by surprise; besides the book kept me pretty gripped the whole way through

Patience & Sarah

Isabel Miller

3.0

adventurous funny hopeful informative slow-paced

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: Complicated

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

if Alma (Isabel Miller's real name) could speak to me through ouija board, like she did to write this book, she would say i finished this today on purpose:
tomorrow, october 3rd marks the 24th anniversary of this book opening as a play n London. And the day after, oct 4th , marks the 24th anniversary of Alma's death.

this book had a tremendously strong beginning - as in pride&prejudice starting strong. it's just so gen z humour i was a bit shocked reading it in a novel from the 60´s about the 19th century.

One way Martha wanted me out of her kitchen, but another way she didn’t want me burning wood to keep just myself warm. Best would have been if I’d died, I guess, but there wasn’t much chance of that, not right off anyway, since I lived a healthy country life and was fairly young, and unmarried. Next best was to make me want to die, but I had enough spite in me to want to live, usually.

the book itself didn't grab me throughout. for me the worth of it comes from the stories of who it was based on, who wrote it, where, when and how it was written and published.
i found this edition interesting bc of all the additional information about what is around the book (the REAL LIFE LESBIANS IN 1880'S, the LIFE OF THE AUTHOR, that it has an opera!!!, etc).