Loved this, and loved Madeline Miller’s afterword too for this specifically:

As for Pygmalion, I accepted him exactly as Ovid made him. The term “incel” wasn’t in wide circulation when I wrote this, but Pygmalion is certainly a prototype. For millenia there have been men who react with horror and disgust to women’s independence, men who desire women yet hate them, and who take refuge in fantasies of purity and control. What would it be like to live with such a man as your husband? There are too many today who could answer that. But that is the mark of a good source myth; it is water so wide it can reach across centuries.

I really enjoyed the sharpness and satirical response to organized crime and government puppetry in guards! guards! and as a newcomer to discworld, a writer like pratchett seems more like a magician who can get a chuckle or a big grin out of me in every other scene. the characters feel more fleshed out and lovable, and I smiled literally any time the city watch crew had scenes together. I’ll definitely return to the city watch books soon and can’t wait to see what’s in store for captain vimes!

glad I picked this up as an audiobook, because otherwise it would be a bit of a struggle to make it past the first few chapters. when douglas describes the "unsub's" motives, psychology, or the minute details of each case I feel the minutes fly by, but the pace stops dead in its tracks anytime he talks about anything else. if I wasn't already motivated to read this after rewatching netflix's excellent mindhunter series--which is so much more compelling than this particular work--it's very likely I would have DNF'd it.

this series, and especially this final book, is worth every science fiction fan’s time and patience. I’ve never read a series that could effectively leave me a) amazed, b) frightened, or c) totally intrigued by the end of each chapter. the level of imagination and speculative engineering that it must have taken to write the fairytales leaves me in awe. cixin liu's mastery of weaving numerous scientific concepts and ideas throughout this comes together so harmoniously after the climax, I find it hard to fault it.

I was so stunned by the level of catharsis in the last few chapters that when I reread the preface at the beginning of the book I couldn’t help but cry. I knew while reading three body problem last year that the trilogy was going to be a special read for me, but I could never have predicted the imaginative heights liu wanted to take it to. it's absolutely one of the easiest 5 stars I’ve ever had the pleasure to give.

it’s nice to read a fantasy story where the core relationship portrays sisters with its entire range of love and hate, and doesn’t center on a conventionally brave and capable protagonist. you really feel for marra (who is barely recognized as royalty and more of a nun-in-training) who’s as deeply unsure of herself as we are of her. we follow all the lows throughout her journey as she gets flustered, easily discouraged, and exhausted and yet is still driven enough to take on every obstacle thrown her way all for the sake of her sisters. I adored the character relationships and the wholesome team dynamic that supported marra as our atypical heroine. 

 

I love when a story like this immediately reminds me how fun and satisfying a quest storyline can be! for a novel less than 300 pages, this captures the same adult, fairytale-esque energy I’ve been looking for since reading neil gaiman’s stardust years ago. nettle and bone is my first t. kingfisher read (of likely many!), and I have to applaud her for striking a great balance between being lighthearted and emotional. 100% recommend for anyone looking for an entertaining yet cozy fantasy read. 

this is a deceptively simple coming of age story of a young boy transported into a dark, fantasy world. the story carries the same energy and atmospheric quality of the movie pan’s labyrinth (2006) by guillermo del toro but with a less fascistic, war-torn angle. at first I was pretty enchanted by the fairytale-like writing until the crooked man was introduced and I could literally feel my skin trying to crawl off my body. I liked the adult retellings of classic fairytales and fables, along with reading a few others that I had never come across before. I also really enjoyed the woodsman and roland characters who served david as interesting companions! such a solid read for any fantasy fan that needs a stand-alone novel and not an entire series to win them over.