Holy moly, that was quite the complex soap opera! But gottdam was it excellent! I really must say that I was able to enjoy it to it's fullest because of two things: The audio book read by John Lee was the right choice. I think if I read it myself with my own voice in my head I wouldn't have enjoyed it as much and would have mixed up a lot of the French words in it. Two: Gankutusou is definitely my second favorite anime ever and really does a great job following this story (well, towards the end it starts to lean towards to more dramatic but whatevs. Oh, and Maximilian is secondary while Albert is the main character). Without having seen it many times I would have had all the names mixed up, but with a good grasp on the characters and an image in my head, it really brought much more depth and understanding to the original story, this classic, The Count of Monte Cristo.

In conclusion: SO GOOOOOD!!! I was not disappointed.

ALL THE TRIGGER WARNINGS: CHILD SEX ABUSE, INCEST, DEPRESSION, SUICIDE, MENTAL ILLNESS

If this book wasn't so suspenseful I don't know if I could have gotten through it. It's a good book, well written, the characters, whoosh, plenty of development and deep stuff there. But man, that content. It's ugly stuff and sad to read.

So yeah, if you want a murder mystery that delves into the dark, depressing world of child sex abuse, I guess this book is the one to read.

This was on a list of humorous books. Uh, I guess? I'm glad I wasn't in the frame of mind required to enjoy this book or see it as humorous: depressed, low-self worth, trying to fill the void with meaningless sex, desperate to find meaning in a mess of a life. So yeah, if that describes you, maybe you'll find it funny? Again, luckily that is not me, and this book honestly made me kinda depressed. I get like that with depressing fantasy. In my mind magic and fantasy should be a wondrous and awe inspiring change in your life, not depressing. I read fantasy for the adventure not to be depressed (fuck you very much "The Magicians"). There was also a lot of philosophical rambling that I honestly just kinda grazed over. After a while I was intent on seeing how it ended rather than caring about any of the characters. I guess Theo was fine and I kept reading it for him, it was Lucy who made me feel anxious and depressed. But like a train wreck I had to keep reading and I think the ending was the best part of the whole book. Didn't make the whole experience worth it but still, it was a... better ending than the book was good.

I guess I ran headlong into this trap. I didn't read any of the comments, just saw it was a humorous book on a book list put out by my library involving mermen.

Requiem for a Dream had a threesome with J.K. Rowling and C.S. Lewis, with "The Magicians" as their resulting love-child. "The Magicians" takes everything that is wondrous about magic and adventures and turns it into the most depressing story ever. The Message: "Oh, you got accepted into a school of magic? Here, realize that life is sh*t no matter what powers you have."
I would like my star rating to say, "I didn't LIKE it, but it was good". Yes, this book is good. It's well written, it has strong characters, and an interesting plot. All these characters will never be happy and neither was I the entire time I read this book. I'll stick to my wondrous magic and fantasy books, thankyouverymuch.

This book felt like three parts to me: the dark, depressing beginning (That felt too much like The Magicians for my taste), the absolutely engaging and fast-paced middle-end, and then back to the dark--but inevitable-- ending. Well, dark-ish. But not as bad as the first 200 pages of the book. I broke my 100 page rule for this book because it came VERY highly suggested by my boss but I just don't think it was for me. The middle part I really did like. Once we got back to the world I knew and we weren't

Spoiler

cooking children alive or making Carolyn eat her best friend Bambi and his mom

then I got more into the book and enjoyed it.

It is a really good book, great for this author's first novel, and if you're looking for a dark, adult fantasy novel that is like The Magicians, a little bit V.E. Shwab, and a dash of His Dark Materials then I recommend this book. If you aren't enjoying it after 100 pages, then just put it down. Sigh. Life is too short for books you don't enjoy!

Okay, for a horror book written by a man in 1967 this held up pretty well! It is an easy read, and nothing too terrifying (even for myself, who is terrified of becoming pregnant). But a good (fun?) read about a mother who is with child and is paranoid that something will go wrong. And who can she trust with her fears about the baby's origins?
Yes, definitely a classic for readers of the horror genre.

Holy crap! That was the PERFECT horror story! Everything I wanted: suspense, madness, creepy wooden figures that seem to move, the cat surviving, gothic horror! I can't recommend this book enough, and reading it during the Halloween season made it especially atmospheric.

A great art style full of character, a fun premise and setting aboard a circus train, AND a murder mystery! I can't wait to read more!

OMG, all of the humor and all of the things I love are in this comic book. Can I give it, like, 5 million stars? And a shark? Seriously, this comic... THE BEST.