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verypeculiarpages
This truly went downhill out of nowhere!! I’m sad and won’t be continuing this series
This wasn’t BAD but it’s just forgettable. I really enjoy the artwork and being back in the Ember world, but I feel like these prequels don’t add much to the characters or story, and I’d much prefer if these were adventures taking place after the series.
Laia’s high pony slayed tho
Laia’s high pony slayed tho
3.5– thanks to Wednesday Books for the review copy!
This was addicting, and that’s saying something since I’m currently in a reading slump and this was the first book to break through! I enjoyed how short the chapters were and the writing style really helped me continue to turn pages.
Overall though, the story just wasn’t what I expected and was a bit underwhelming in the end. The main character wasn’t very likable and some of her decision making frustrated me immensely. The plot is also very uncomfortable to read at times, so make sure to check the trigger warnings before diving in!
TW: rape, murder, suicide, death of a parent, physical and sexual assault
This was addicting, and that’s saying something since I’m currently in a reading slump and this was the first book to break through! I enjoyed how short the chapters were and the writing style really helped me continue to turn pages.
Overall though, the story just wasn’t what I expected and was a bit underwhelming in the end. The main character wasn’t very likable and some of her decision making frustrated me immensely. The plot is also very uncomfortable to read at times, so make sure to check the trigger warnings before diving in!
TW: rape, murder, suicide, death of a parent, physical and sexual assault
2.5 rounded up. Firstly, thank you to Wednesday Books for the finished copy!
I really appreciate the focus of this book on Jasmine, a half-Iranian, half-American high school senior in the late 1970s. This book provided some insight into Iranian culture and history (which I’ll admit is lacking in my reading), so I was interested to read and learn about the Iranian Hostage Crisis. I think Jasmine was a great character to write about this topic through and the school election really helped drive home the narrative.
The author does a great job showing the conflict Jasmine has with reconciling her two heritages, especially when faced with constant belittling and racism from her classmates. And while it’s understandable for Jasmine, a high schooler under immense pressure, to make some questionable choices, I found that I could never fully warm to her. Most of her decisions frustrated me and felt selfish and immature. Her friends and classmates were all fairly unlikable and Jasmine’s relationships with them made me like her less, which impacted my enjoyment of the book as a whole.
It was redeemed a little by the ending. I’m glad that Jasmine came clean and I liked her better by the end. Though I was disappointed with other characters’ endings, most notably Gerald, who after spouting racist remarks throughout his entire campaign, still got elected class president?? Huh? Many of the other characters saw no consequences for their gross remarks, but I guess the author was going for a more realistic approach? There was also little resolution with Jasmine’s family and brother, though I did like how her relationship with her aunt shaped up. Overall, I applaud what this book was trying to do and love the push for more Iranian main characters but I just didn’t love this one.
I really appreciate the focus of this book on Jasmine, a half-Iranian, half-American high school senior in the late 1970s. This book provided some insight into Iranian culture and history (which I’ll admit is lacking in my reading), so I was interested to read and learn about the Iranian Hostage Crisis. I think Jasmine was a great character to write about this topic through and the school election really helped drive home the narrative.
The author does a great job showing the conflict Jasmine has with reconciling her two heritages, especially when faced with constant belittling and racism from her classmates. And while it’s understandable for Jasmine, a high schooler under immense pressure, to make some questionable choices, I found that I could never fully warm to her. Most of her decisions frustrated me and felt selfish and immature. Her friends and classmates were all fairly unlikable and Jasmine’s relationships with them made me like her less, which impacted my enjoyment of the book as a whole.
It was redeemed a little by the ending. I’m glad that Jasmine came clean and I liked her better by the end. Though I was disappointed with other characters’ endings, most notably Gerald, who after spouting racist remarks throughout his entire campaign, still got elected class president?? Huh? Many of the other characters saw no consequences for their gross remarks, but I guess the author was going for a more realistic approach? There was also little resolution with Jasmine’s family and brother, though I did like how her relationship with her aunt shaped up. Overall, I applaud what this book was trying to do and love the push for more Iranian main characters but I just didn’t love this one.
Thank you to Sourcebooks for the ARC!
I don’t think I’m gonna be able to express my feelings about this one in a sufficient way, but I’ll try. I was excited to read another take on Clytemnestra after reading Daughters of Sparta by Claire Heywood last year and loving it.
This one just did NOT work for me, though. The second half is a BATTLE to get through, and completely turned me off from ever reading retellings about the Oresteia because I just cannot stand Clytemnestra’s children. I know that Clytemnestra’s stories have never been kind or fun, but this entire book was just brutal to read. I had never heard of her first husband, Tantalus, so I was completely thrown by that particular tragedy from the start. Agamemnon is one of my most hated people in all of Greek myth, so I don’t know why I thought I could enjoy a book that featured him so heavily. He’s somehow worse in this than I even expected.
Honestly, having read so many Greek retellings, this might just be me being super nitpicky, but I found myself annoyed with a lot of the characterizations in this book. I hated characters I’ve never had much of an opinion towards because I felt like the author highlighted every single negative aspect of them. I know that no one in mythology is a saint, but I was just repulsed by everyone. Even my dude Odysseus came out and crushed my entire soul, which was truly a gut punch. There weren’t really new twists to the myth, so nothing super interesting in terms of plot.
However, I did manage to make it to the end (even though I skimmed most of the second half). I will say that Clytemnestra as a character kept me intrigued because she was so dead set on vengeance and I really wanted to see her follow through. Her interactions with Agamemnon, though difficult to stomach, were well written. Unfortunately the other characters and unflinchingly brutal and slow plot just did not make this an enjoyable read for me.
I don’t think I’m gonna be able to express my feelings about this one in a sufficient way, but I’ll try. I was excited to read another take on Clytemnestra after reading Daughters of Sparta by Claire Heywood last year and loving it.
This one just did NOT work for me, though. The second half is a BATTLE to get through, and completely turned me off from ever reading retellings about the Oresteia because I just cannot stand Clytemnestra’s children. I know that Clytemnestra’s stories have never been kind or fun, but this entire book was just brutal to read. I had never heard of her first husband, Tantalus, so I was completely thrown by that particular tragedy from the start. Agamemnon is one of my most hated people in all of Greek myth, so I don’t know why I thought I could enjoy a book that featured him so heavily. He’s somehow worse in this than I even expected.
Honestly, having read so many Greek retellings, this might just be me being super nitpicky, but I found myself annoyed with a lot of the characterizations in this book. I hated characters I’ve never had much of an opinion towards because I felt like the author highlighted every single negative aspect of them. I know that no one in mythology is a saint, but I was just repulsed by everyone. Even my dude Odysseus came out and crushed my entire soul, which was truly a gut punch. There weren’t really new twists to the myth, so nothing super interesting in terms of plot.
However, I did manage to make it to the end (even though I skimmed most of the second half). I will say that Clytemnestra as a character kept me intrigued because she was so dead set on vengeance and I really wanted to see her follow through. Her interactions with Agamemnon, though difficult to stomach, were well written. Unfortunately the other characters and unflinchingly brutal and slow plot just did not make this an enjoyable read for me.
THIS WAS SO MUCH FUN and it broke through the worst book slump of my life so I love that for me