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zoeelizabethk's Reviews (642)
The Bartimaeus books are so well done with morally gray characters, a snarky djinni, an alternate magical london, and plenty of fun romps. I always love rereading these and The Golem's Eye is no exception. Super fun for middle grade, YA, and adult readers alike.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Update from 2022 reread:
I enjoyed Foundryside a lot. I think it did help that I understood the magic/tech system better. I really like fantasy/sci-fi mixed books, so that was fun. I still found the pacing a little off at times, but I enjoyed the characters a lot more this time round. I'm looking forward to actually continuing on this time.
I liked the audiobook narrated by Tara Sands pretty well, though I wasn't super fond of her voice for Clef, but overall the audio was pretty easy to listen to.
Original review:
I wish it hadn’t taken me so long to finish this book because it was fascinating - but such is life with a young child. Foundryside has such a cool magic system, world, and thoughts to share about it. I found myself debating whether it’s truly fantasy or whether it’s sci-fi. I think it comes down in fantasy but for fans of both, it has a big sci-fi feel to it in some ways. Scriving is fascinating and I liked Sancia as a character. The ending was fast paced and filled with cool revelations that make me excited to continue on.
For the minuses for me: I thought the story had a heist aspect - and it does - but it doesn’t turn up until halfway through the book which felt a bit odd. It also made the pacing a little off at times. I didn’t care that much about the characters besides Sancia - and sort of Gregor - but that doesn’t really bother me. Finally, the swearing…the fake bad language…but in such an expressive way that the whole book feels kinda foul mouthed…I didn’t like it. I didn’t think it was necessary either. For the record generally I like invented in-world swearing, but the tone of this was wacky.
Overall, really enjoyed it, and looking forward to seeing what comes next. I have a feeling some of my favorite tropes are just around the corner.
I enjoyed Foundryside a lot. I think it did help that I understood the magic/tech system better. I really like fantasy/sci-fi mixed books, so that was fun. I still found the pacing a little off at times, but I enjoyed the characters a lot more this time round. I'm looking forward to actually continuing on this time.
I liked the audiobook narrated by Tara Sands pretty well, though I wasn't super fond of her voice for Clef, but overall the audio was pretty easy to listen to.
Original review:
I wish it hadn’t taken me so long to finish this book because it was fascinating - but such is life with a young child. Foundryside has such a cool magic system, world, and thoughts to share about it. I found myself debating whether it’s truly fantasy or whether it’s sci-fi. I think it comes down in fantasy but for fans of both, it has a big sci-fi feel to it in some ways. Scriving is fascinating and I liked Sancia as a character. The ending was fast paced and filled with cool revelations that make me excited to continue on.
For the minuses for me: I thought the story had a heist aspect - and it does - but it doesn’t turn up until halfway through the book which felt a bit odd. It also made the pacing a little off at times. I didn’t care that much about the characters besides Sancia - and sort of Gregor - but that doesn’t really bother me. Finally, the swearing…the fake bad language…but in such an expressive way that the whole book feels kinda foul mouthed…I didn’t like it. I didn’t think it was necessary either. For the record generally I like invented in-world swearing, but the tone of this was wacky.
Overall, really enjoyed it, and looking forward to seeing what comes next. I have a feeling some of my favorite tropes are just around the corner.
Wow I love these books so much. Sure they might be a little convenient at times, Aly has it a little too easy, but the stakes still feel so real and the twists and turns are so delightful. And made all the better for the quick pacing.
Charming anthology
I really enjoyed this anthology. I love the idea of noblebright and it was really interesting to see it taken in so many directions. As with any anthology, I loved some stories and didn’t like others. There were some real gems here, including the “Dove of Assisi” by Troy Tang. It was great to get acquainted with some new authors and read stories that pushed me outside of my regular genres. I hope to read more from some of these authors and hope that there will be another anthology in the future.
I really enjoyed this anthology. I love the idea of noblebright and it was really interesting to see it taken in so many directions. As with any anthology, I loved some stories and didn’t like others. There were some real gems here, including the “Dove of Assisi” by Troy Tang. It was great to get acquainted with some new authors and read stories that pushed me outside of my regular genres. I hope to read more from some of these authors and hope that there will be another anthology in the future.
I love Lewis but I did not really like this. It was worth reading and there were good insights but it was tiring to finish this book
This is a wonderful little collection of true stories of heroism and sometimes silliness from Russian history. I wish we would have read some things like this is my russian lit or history classes because it really brings the character and color of Russian history.