Book reviews: The Final Empire | My Year of Rest and Relaxation | The Well of Ascension

Title: The Final Empire
Author: Brandon Sanderson
Original title: The Final Empire
First published: 2006
Genre: High fantasy, Adult
Series: Mistborn #1
Publisher: Gollancz
Format: Paperback
Pages: 643
Finished: 13/01/2020
Summary: In a world where ash falls from the sky, and mist dominates the night, an evil cloaks the land and stifles all life. The future of the empire rests on the shoulders of a troublemaker and his young apprentice. Together, can they fill the world with colour once more?
In Brandon Sanderson's intriguing tale of love, loss, despair and hope, a new kind of magic enters the stage— Allomancy, a magic of the metals.

My thoughts: I'm so glad I believed enough in this series to buy the boxed set, because I need to continue on with this now. I don't care that the sequel is almost 800 pages; I require it in order to live on! I've heard that "The Final Empire" is the weakest in the trilogy, and if that's true... I'm about to go through a lot in the upcoming weeks, let's just say that.
Brandon Sanderson is an author that I've held to extreme standards, even having read "The Reckoners" trilogy and only liking it, but not loving it. I always felt that once I got into his high fantasy stuff, he'd become my favourite author. I just had to get through one of his bricks... And now I have! "The Final Empire", along with the rest of the original "Mistborn" trilogy, has been in my possession for a few years now. I've lived in anticipation for them, but all along felt intimidated by the page count. However, it was for such fears that I made my goals for 2020 (to read more thicc books).
This story offers such depth and character development, twists and turns, plots and schemes, that I was just left flailing in absolute awe (literally). Our protagonists, Kelsier and Vin, were amazingly prominent and expertly carved out in their personalities. The world building has a strong and solid base and leaves a lot to be discovered in future books. The plot itself, built on high fantasy politics, a daring heist, and whispers of rebellion was juiciness itself. Just dripping with action and excitement that will have anyone biting their nails.
As for the downsides that forced the rating down from 5/5 to 4,75/5, well... Many have criticised Sanderson for his simple language in this novel but that wasn't something that bothered me. It didn't need to be flowery and lavish; the plot and characters made up for that quite enough. What I will say, however, were that some fighting scenes were difficult to imagine, at least to me, because of somewhat lacking descriptions. Stuff was certainly happening, but I didn't always grasp exactly how the fighting scenes played out and who flew where etc. My second complaint is about some important sideline characters that I kept getting mixed up because they were just too similar and had roles that were similar to each other. I think those could've been more fleshed out, but maybe that's something that will happen in the next book.
Regardless of these small complaints, I really loved this book, and I want to end this review on a positive note. Brandon Sanderson seems to have been writing excellent fantasy since at least 2006 (when this was released) and I can't wait to read more by him. This novel ended up packing such an emotional punch that I won't be able to stop thinking about it anytime soon.
(PS. I love Kelsier)

Rating: 4,75/5

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Title: My Year of Rest and Relaxation
Author: Ottessa Moshfegh
Narrator: Julia Whelan
Original title: My Year of Rest and Relaxation
First published: 2018
Genre: Adult, Contemporary
Series: --
Publisher: Penguin
Format: Audiobook
Time: 7h 15min
Finished: 13/01/2020
Summary: Our narrator should be happy, shouldn't she? She's young, thin, pretty, a recent Columbia graduate, works an easy job at a hip art gallery, lives in an apartment on the Upper East Side of Manhattan paid for, like the rest of her needs, by her inheritance. But there is a dark and vacuous hole in her heart, and it isn't just the loss of her parents, or the way her Wall Street boyfriend treats her, or her sadomasochistic relationship with her best friend, Reva. It's the year 2000 in a city aglitter with wealth and possibility; what could be so terribly wrong?

My thoughts: I'd only heard about this book from two BookTubers (Ariel Bissett and TheBookTuber) and they'd both pitched it as this purely weird book that really left a mark, in an odd way. I became curious, though not enough to purchase the book or find it in a library, but when I eventually found it on the new audiobook app I downloaded, I was too curious to let the opportunity pass. It is, after all, only 7 hours long, and will expire from the app entirely on January 17th (2020).
I must say that this book is truly bizarre. I don't think I've read anything quite like it since "The Wasp Factory" by Iain Banks, which I liked, but was also disturbed by. With this book, I certainly felt disturbed. Our main character has been feeling depressed to say the least, and decides that the best solution to her problem is to hibernate. During an entire year, she does whatever she can to sleep as much as possible. It's not at all healthy, yet she goes to such incredible lengths to fulfil this new idea. It is disturbing to read about, but also captivating in a way. She's not easy to like - in fact I think I'd hate her if I knew her in real life. She appears to lack empathy and compassion, and in some cases acts like a really horrible person. I don't even know for sure if I enjoyed reading about her.
However, here is the catch... I couldn't stop listening. Did I like the book while reading it? Maybe. At times I'd say no, at other times I found it humorous. Could I stop reading? No! It was just too weird. I had to know what would happen to her; would she somehow die from sleeping too much, would she ruin her own life through the "project", would she be able to really go into hibernation?
I do recommend it if you're just looking for a super weird reading experience, and the audiobook was alright. In the end, I'm conflicted about my feelings, but happy that I read it.

Rating: 3,25/5

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Title: The Well of Ascension
Author: Brandon Sanderson
Original title: The Well of Ascension
First published: 2007
Genre: High fantasy, Adult
Series: Mistborn #2
Publisher: Gollancz
Format: Paperback
Pages: 763
Finished: 30/01/2020
Summary: Spoiler alert! Vin, the street urchin who has grown into the most powerful Mistborn in the land, and Elend Venture, the idealistic young nobleman who loves her, must build a healthy new society in the ashes of an empire. Three separate armies attack. As the siege tightens, an ancient legend seems to offer a glimmer of hope. But even if it really exists, no one knows where to find the Well of Ascension or what manner of power it bestows.

My thoughts: As stated in my review for "The Final Empire", I really enjoyed reading the first book in the "Mistborn" series. It was a good mixture of slow and fast paced, setbacks and successes, friendship and betrayal, good times and bad times. It had a good balance, making it easy to stay interested and excited.
I didn't quite find that this was the case with "The Well of Ascension". That balance was somewhat lost, and after hundreds of pages without it, I started to lose interest... I knew, of course, that I wanted to finish the book, and furthermore finish the series, but I was starting to get worn down. A great chunk of this book consists of piles upon piles of setbacks for our main characters. Not only do things start out looking grim; they keep getting grimmer for each page. Now, I can appreciate a story where not everything goes well for the hero, but when everything just goes bad it's not as fun anymore.
That being said, despite how slow this novel was, I enjoyed following Vin's character development, and also seeing the focus shift to characters that were kept mostly in the background of "The Final Empire". The part of the story that contained action were still entertaining, but many of them were too similar to one another. I want each fight to be more original, or else the motivation for so many seems null. I wish this book had been shortened by some hundred pages. I can see why this is the lowest rated book in the trilogy.

Rating: 3,75/5

Book reviews: The Young Elites | Nattens cirkus | This is How You Lose the Time War

Title: The Young Elites

Author: Marie Lu
Original title: The Young Elites
First published: 2014
Genre: YA, Fantasy
Series: The Young Elites #1
Publisher: Putnam
Format: Paperback
Pages: 355
Finished: 22/11/2019
Summary: Adelina Amouteru is a survivor of the blood fever marked by a jagged scar where her left eye once was. Branded as a malfetto - an abomination - she is cast out from all she has ever known and loved. Adelina finds sanctuary with other malfettos and discovers that the disease has left her with more than just a scar - she has a mysterious and powerful gift. She is a Young Elite.
But Adelina's ability is stronger than any Young Elite before her. And unless she can control the vengeful darkness growing inside her heart Adelina could be a danger to them all.

My thoughts: I picked this up after struggling with another book for a solid 2+ weeks and getting no further than 60 pages. That book was "Hollow City" by Ransom Riggs, and I ended up putting it down for now after realising that it just wasn't the sort of book I was in the mood for. Instead, I drew inspiration from the monthly theme of reading a book with a weapon on the cover and chose this.
This story started out good. I honestly had no idea it would be historical high fantasy fiction, but it turned out to be just that. However, for being a mix of genres that I ordinarily enjoy a lot, this didn't deliver. Yes, the story was promising (though perhaps a bit basic), and the main character started out interesting. However, as I kept reading, it quickly became clear what kind of style the story was written in, and that soon turned into an annoyance for me. What was the fault? Over-telling. The author was constantly telling the reader what they should be thinking, rather than letting the reader think and imagine on their own. There was also an abundance of telling rather than showing, which also put me off, as usual. These things alone made this book lose very much potential, which is disappointing since I'd started getting my hopes up.
What's more, Adelina turned out to be a self-pitying, sour, low-intelligent, and downright rude character. I understand that we're seeing the perspective of an "evil character", but I've read such stories before, like "Vicious" by V.E. Schwab, that actually make good work of that idea. "The Young Elites" didn't go in the same direction. I rather felt like the author was the evil character for writing such an awful protagonist. With that said, Adelina is not the worst I've read, but I often became very frustrated with her and had a hard time understanding her reasoning and course of action. I think she could've been written far better, and the same goes for most other characters in the book.
What's positive about this novel is that by actually following the perspective of an evil protagonist, it manages to break some of the YA fantasy norms. I also somewhat enjoyed the setting, especially since I dreaded a futuristic dystopian setting when going into the novel. It was also easy and quick to read, and I never really felt genuine hate for the book. It could still be enjoyed to a certain level, and I might read the rest of the series if I can get my hands on the second novel, and hope I don't forget this one until then.

Rating: 3/5

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Title: Nattens cirkus
Author: Erin Morgenstern
Original title: The Night Circus
First published: 2011
Genre: Fantasy, Historical
Series: --
Publisher: Nordstedts
Format: Hardcover
Pages: 421
Finished: 27/11/2019
Summary: The circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not. Within the black-and-white striped canvas tents is an utterly unique experience full of breathtaking amazements. It is called Le Cirque des Rêves, and it is only open at night.
But behind the scenes, a fierce competition is underway—a duel between two young magicians, Celia and Marco, who have been trained since childhood expressly for this purpose by their mercurial instructors. Unbeknownst to them, this is a game in which only one can be left standing, and the circus is but the stage for a remarkable battle of imagination and will. Despite themselves, however, Celia and Marco tumble headfirst into love—a deep, magical love that makes the lights flicker and the room grow warm whenever they so much as brush hands.

My thoughts: I had the absolutely wonderful pleasure of reading this novel along with two dear friends over the course of two months. It was about time for me to finally get through this book, I think. I've had it for years and I've been meaning to read it for half an eternity (only a slight exaggeration). So now that I've read it, what did I think?
Morgenstern managed to create an atmosphere that felt unique to this novel, and that's something I really liked when reading it. The circus is a mysterious and exciting setting that we get to see through the perspective of several different characters. The historical setting adds to the, almost, eeriness of the environment we find ourselves in as readers. It is this that I enjoyed most about "The Night Circus".
I found some pleasure in following the different characters, though I never really found myself rooting for or against anyone in particular. This was not because the characters were too morally 'grey' to like, but purely because I didn't feel that any character appealed to me much. Most of them were interesting narrators, though, I'll give them that. Otherwise, I find myself indifferent.
The plot could've been stronger. It's a slow burn and feels longer than the book actually is. The narrations teased me into thinking I was headed for a grand finale, but alas, I found the climax a rather anti such. The romance wasn't much for me, either. I wasn't blown away by the writing style. Still, despite that, I didn't dislike the book or the story. I simply found it lacked the elements that could've made this book as great as I thought it would be. I still enjoyed the story to an extent, and I'd recommend it to anyone who wants to read a decent historical fantasy with some engaging intrigue. Just don't expect it to take you on a roller-coaster ride.

Rating: 3,5/5

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Title: This is How You Lose the Time War
Author: Amal El-Mohtar & Max Gladstone
Original title: This is How You Lose the Time War
First published: 2019
Genre: Sci-fi, LGBTQ+, Adult
Series: --
Publisher: Jo Fletcher Books
Format: Paperback
Pages: 198
Finished: 30/11/2019
Summary: Among the ashes of a dying world, an agent of the Commandant finds a letter. It reads: Burn before reading. And thus begins an unlikely correspondence between two rival agents hellbent on securing the best possible future for their warring factions. Now, what began as a taunt, a battlefield boast, grows into something more. Except discovery of their bond would be death for each of them. There’s still a war going on, after all. And someone has to win that war. That’s how war works. Right?

My thoughts: Along with "Wayward Son" by Rainbow Rowell and "The Priory of the Orange Tree" by Samantha Shannon, this novella was one of my most anticipated 2019 releases. I first found out about this book from Cece at ProblemsofaBookNerd on YouTube, and knew immediately that I wanted to read it. So when Book Depository included it in a campaign, I took my chance and bought it.
"Beautiful" is the word that comes to mind when I think of this story. For it is; beautiful in every way I could wish it to be. It's grand in a way that perhaps other novels aren't. The story of these characters is not written to be exciting, though it's in the setting of a time war. It's not meant to be funny or shocking or action-packed. It's meant to soften your heart when it needs comfort, to wet your eyes when they are dry, to embrace you when your body freezes, and to fill you with wonder at the way words can actually make you feel.
"This is How You Lose the Time War" is written in an utterly stunning way that I did not expect to find in something published in 2019. Reading it felt like being present, but also in the past. I guess it suits the theme of time travel well. I fell in love with the lovers and will do so again when I next read this book once more in the future. Until then, I hope you'll enjoy this novella as much as I did, if you get the chance.

Rating: 5/5

Book reviews: Calamity | Wayward Son | Sent i november

Title: Calamity
Author: Brandon Sanderson
Original title: Calamity
First published: 2016
Genre: Sci-fi, YA, Dystopia
Series: The Reckoners #3
Publisher: Gollancz
Format: Paperback
Pages: 421
Finished: 17/10/2019
Summary: Spoiler alert! When Calamity lit up the sky, the Epics were born. David’s fate has been tied to their villainy ever since that historic night. Steelheart killed his father. Firefight stole his heart. And now Regalia has turned his closest ally into a dangerous enemy. David knew Prof’s secret, and kept it even when the Reckoners’ leader struggled to control the effects of his Epic powers. But facing Obliteration in Babilar was too much. Prof has now embraced his Epic destiny. He’s disappeared into those murky shadows of menace Epics are infamous for the world over, and everyone knows there’s no turning back. . . . But everyone is wrong. Redemption is possible for Epics—Megan proved it. They’re not lost. Not completely. And David is just about crazy enough to face down the most powerful High Epic of all to get his friend back. Or die trying.

My thoughts: I've finally finished this trilogy! This series has been a very solid 4/5 star series, which is not to the looked down upon, because not many series manage with such a consistency in quality until the very end. This conclusion was well thought out and executed in a great way, with a ton of explosions and epic fight scenes. It was all I wanted it to be. I don't have a more to say, but feel free to check out my reviews for previous books in the series, which you'll find on this blog (just search for "Steelheart" and "Firefight" in the search bar). I highly recommend this series if you're looking for exciting action and super hero elements, along with a quirky and fun narrative.

Rating: 4,25/5

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Title: Wayward Son
Author: Rainbow Rowell
Original title: Wayward Son
First published: 2019
Genre: Fantasy, LGBTQ+, YA
Series: Simon Snow #2
Publisher: Pan Macmillan
Format: Hardcover
Pages: 368
Finished: 31/10/2019
Summary: Spoiler alert! The story is supposed to be over. Simon Snow did everything he was supposed to do. He beat the villain. He won the war. He even fell in love. Now comes the good part, right? Now comes the happily ever after…
So why can’t Simon Snow get off the couch?
What he needs, according to his best friend, is a change of scenery. He just needs to see himself in a new light...

That’s how Simon and Penny and Baz end up in a vintage convertible, tearing across the American West. They find trouble, of course. (Dragons, vampires, skunk-headed things with shotguns.) And they get lost. They get so lost, they start to wonder whether they ever knew where they were headed in the first place…

My thoughts: Getting through this novel was a long process, despite the average page numbers. While I enjoyed this novel and had looked forward to continue following the characters from the previous book, I didn't get what I'd hoped from "Wayward Son". I believe this feeling is based on a few aspects that I'll be mentioning just quickly, because this is not a book that I disliked, it just wasn't what I'd expected or hoped for.
One thing I'd expected was for this to have more feel good elements to it. I assure you that I didn't expected it to be all lovey-dovey, happy sappy, golly good the entire time, but perhaps a tad more lighthearted. I knew that this novel was going to be about dealing with mental health, depression, and feelings of being lost in life. This novel delivered on those aspects in I way that I think was done well, but the angst wasn't really what I came here for.
The other main thing that actually disappointed me with this book was the setting. I just had a hard time enjoying the rapid road trip through America. I found it blurry and not descriptive enough. With such a fleeting environment, I'd have hoped for a more secure spot (such as the school in the last book of the series) that I could properly imagine in my mind. However, I found that this novel had few such places to offer.
On the more positive note, which I believe this novel actually deserves, I do think Rowell dealt well with the mental health issues in this book. I also feel that Baz's and Simon's relationship developed in a realistic way that can be hard to find in other YA fantasy novels. I also think that Agatha got a nice shot at character development. The plot had some pretty exciting points that I enjoyed, and overall it's a decent fantasy adventure story. It didn't have me loving it like "Carry On" did, but it's still a rather solid book.

Rating: 3,75/5

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Title: Sent i november (Late in November)
Author: Tove Jansson
Original title: Sent i november
First published: 1970
Genre: Fantasy, Classic
Series: Mumintrollen #9
Publisher: Alfabeta
Format: Hardcover
Pages: 161
Finished: 13/11/2019
Summary: 'They can't have moved away without saying a word!'
Winter is coming, and the Fillyjonk, the Hemulen, Toft, Mymble, etc. are all waiting in Moominvalley to see the Moomins return home. Winter doesn't seem right without them...

My thoughts: My love for the Moomin design has grown over the past few years, resulting in a small collection of T-shirts and mugs. This book, however, has been with me for a long time. It was gifted to me on the day of my baptism (19 years ago) and has remained in my possession ever since. However, I have no memory of ever reading it before. Hence is why I decided to do so now, in November. Fitting, since it's obviously titled "Late in November" in Swedish.
I was immediately drawn to the character depth in this novel, and I was surprised to find that it appeals to an older audience than I thought it would. In my mind, the Moomin stories are for children and I had therefore prepared myself for a children's book. Nevertheless, what I got was something more and something unexpected. I found a story that delved into the lives and minds of side characters that I knew very little to nothing about. These characters had surprising depth to them, and also substantial development throughout the story. I felt that the tale offered wisdom on expectations we hold for others and ourselves, and how we can easily be very disappointed when those expectations aren't met, and learning to live with life, one's self, and people as they truly are and appreciating that. All in all, I was pleasantly surprised and will be looking for other Moomin novels to read in the future.

Rating: 4,25/5

Book reviews: Animal Farm | The DUFF | Liftarens guide till galaxen

Title: Animal Farm
Author: George Orwell
Original title: Animal Farm
First published: 1945
Genre: Classic, Dystopian
Series: --
Publisher: Penguin
Format: Paperback
Pages: 95
Finished: 23/07/2019
Summary: A farm is taken over by its overworked, mistreated animals. With flaming idealism and stirring slogans, they set out to create a paradise of progress, justice, and equality. Thus the stage is set for one of the most telling satiric fables ever penned –a razor-edged fairy tale for grown-ups that records the evolution from revolution against tyranny to a totalitarianism just as terrible.

My thoughts: My second read for this year's Reading Rush! "Animal Farm" was read to complete the challenge "read a book with a non-human main character".
Wow! A really good story for its length (95 pages). It manages to fit a surprising amount of character depth, political satire, and storyline into a short tale about animals on a farm. I’d love to reread it sometime at a slower pace, and maybe attempt to write an analysis on it, just to really get into the morals and ideas of the piece. For now, I don’t have a lot more to say.

Rating: 4,25/5

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Title: The DUFF: Designated Ugly Fat Friend
Author: Kody Keplinger
Original title: The DUFF: Designated Ugly Fat Friend
First published: 2010
Genre: Contemporary, YA
Series: --
Publisher: Hodder Children's Books
Format: Paperback
Pages: 277
Finished: 24/07/2019
Summary: Seventeen-year-old Bianca Piper is cynical and loyal, and she doesn't think she's the prettiest of her friends by a long shot. She's also way too smart to fall for the charms of man-slut and slimy school hottie Wesley Rush. In fact, Bianca hates him. And when he nicknames her "the Duff," she throws her Coke in his face.  But things aren't so great at home right now, and Bianca is desperate for a distraction. She ends up kissing Wesley. Worse, she likes it. Eager for escape, Bianca throws herself into a closeted enemies-with-benefits relationship with him.  Until it all goes horribly awry. It turns out Wesley isn't such a bad listener, and his life is pretty screwed up, too. Suddenly Bianca realizes with absolute horror that she's falling for the guy she thought she hated more than anyone. And eventually, through this realization, Bianca begins to see how harmful her unhealthy way of dealing with her problems has been, and finds a way to confront them head on.

My thoughts: This is the third book I read for this year's Reading Rush! "The DUFF" was read to complete the challenge "read and watch a book to movie adaption".
Also, lo and behold, this is the 222nd book on my "read" list!

This is a book that receives a (to me) low rating not because it is exceedingly bad, but because it was exceedingly not good. I just can’t think of anything that I particularly liked about it. On the bright side, I didn’t struggle with reading it, which means it wasn’t horrible. I’d compare it to unsalted pasta, perhaps a bit overcooked. Sure, I can eat it, and in the right mindset I won’t outright disapprove of it, but I certainly won’t savour it like actual good pasta.
The character did have different personalities, but none of them really stuck with me, and I was hardly rooting for someone. The storyline was basic af; idk how many times I’ve seen this exact plot in a low budget American high school movie. The not-super-girly girl and the school’s hottest and rudest guy fall for each other and everybody’s minds are blown… not. I can honestly see how this novel tries to twist the cliché tale, but the added elements that hope to achieve this just aren’t enough or miss the mark. I have a hard time appreciating the effort, since coming up with something a little more original would have been a lot more admirable. In the end, I’ve had too much good pasta to like “The DUFF”. Sorry.
(Oh, and the movie seems so different from the book? Why did they change so much about the plot? If possible, they made it more like the cliché story than the book already was.)

Rating: 2,75/5

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Title: Liftarens guide till galaxen
Author: Douglas Adams
Original title: The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
First published: 1979
Genre: Sci-fi
Series: Liftarens guide till galaxen #1
Publisher: Månpocket
Format: Paperback
Pages: 168
Finished: 26/07/2019
Summary: Seconds before the Earth is demolished to make way for a galactic freeway, Arthur Dent is plucked off the planet by his friend Ford Prefect, a researcher for the revised edition of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy who, for the last fifteen years, has been posing as an out-of-work actor. Together this dynamic pair begin a journey through space aided by quotes from The Hitchhiker's Guide ("A towel is about the most massively useful thing an interstellar hitchhiker can have") and a galaxy-full of fellow travelers: Zaphod Beeblebrox—the two-headed, three-armed ex-hippie and totally out-to-lunch president of the galaxy; Trillian, Zaphod's girlfriend (formally Tricia McMillan), whom Arthur tried to pick up at a cocktail party once upon a time zone; Marvin, a paranoid, brilliant, and chronically depressed robot; Veet Voojagig, a former graduate student who is obsessed with the disappearance of all the ballpoint pens he bought over the years.

My thoughts: My fourth read for this year's Reading Rush (AND my fortieth read this year)! This one was read to complete the challenge "read a book in the same spot the entire time". I had some business outside my house the day I read this, so I had to squeeze it into my schedule before and after daily activities. I didn't manage to finish it the day I intended, but luckily I had it finished the day after before noon.

The concept of “random is funny” has seen many failures, but also a few successes. I believe this book is one of those few. At first, I was somewhat put off by the seemingly incoherent plot, but as I continued reading, I found logic and pattern in the madness as the pieces slowly started to come together and become understandable. I was definitely able to appreciate the book’s humour, and I laughed out loud at several points while reading. It would surely seem that in the case of “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy”, random is funny.
My main complaints about the book are that it took me slightly too long to get into it, that I didn’t really find the plot exciting (though it was entertaining still), and that the text was too small for my liking. Other than that, I liked it! I am very likely to continue reading the series (since I have the whole thing in this bind-up edition).

Rating: 3,5/5

Book Reviews: We Were Liars | Call me by your name | Rör mig inte!

Title: We Were Liars
Author: E. Lockhart
Original title: We Were Liars
First published: 2014
Genre: YA, Mystery, Contemporary
Series: --
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Format: Paperback
Pages: 225
Finished: 15/07/2019
Summary: We Were Liars. I will LIE too, as to not spoil your reading. This is a book about a girl, about friendship, about summer. It's a book about money and a wealthy family. It's a book about values and about pretending. It's a book about LIES, those that we tell others and the ones that we tell ourselves. The LIES that are exposed and also, the hidden lies.

My thoughts: “We Were Liars” by E. Lockhart became an object of hype and mystery within the YA reading community upon its release ca. four or five years ago. Its biggest selling point is that the reader should have as little knowledge as possible about the plot when diving into the novel, hence I won’t give a summary of the plot itself in this review. I will, however, discuss my thoughts about it.
We follow the protagonist and teenager Cady Sinclair; the eldest grandchild of a filthy rich old man who, amongst other things, has three daughters and a private island, which the family visits each summer. Cady hardly made a good impression on me. Usually, I tend to favour protagonists that have flaws; it makes a character more relatable. However Cady didn’t offer any other characteristics than spoiled, boring, and slow. Not even the mystery of a rich family’s dirty secret could save her from being plain, and neither was she saved by the attempt of a poetic writing style.
Yes, this is my segue to talking about the writing style. At first, I was annoyed by it, because it reminded me of other disappointing novels with failed tries at unique and poetic language. Nevertheless, it wasn’t too bad, and I got used to it in the end, though I sometimes found that the style of writing clashed with the personality of the protagonist. And though I got used to the style, it never got good.
So what made this novel? Well, in the end this book is held up by its selling point, the mystery. It’s the mystery, unravelling, and reveal that made this book worth the read. And these things are executed well by the author; I could tell that the resolution was thoroughly thought out and plotted by Lockhart, and I’m glad to say the ending made an impact on me. However, I need more than the climax of the novel to affect me for it to be considered good. In the end, I’ll remember this as a book with a grand finale, but not, unfortunately, as anything else.

Rating: 3/5

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Title: Call me by your name
Author: André Aciman
Original title: Call Me By Your Name
First published: 2007
Genre: Contemporary, LGBTQ+
Series: Call Me By Your Name #1
Publisher: Brombergs
Format: Hardback
Pages: 262
Finished: 21/07/2019
Summary: A sudden and powerful romance blossoms between an adolescent boy and a summer guest at his parents' cliff-side mansion on the Italian Riviera. Unprepared for the consequences of their attraction, at first each feigns indifference. But during the restless summer weeks that follow, unrelenting buried currents of obsession and fear, fascination and desire, intensify their passion as they test the charged ground between them. What grows from the depths of their spirits is a romance of scarcely six weeks' duration and an experience that marks them for a lifetime. For what the two discover on the Riviera and during a sultry evening in Rome is the one thing both already fear they may never truly find again: total intimacy.

My thoughts: I watched the movie adaptation of this when it came out in 2017 and pretty much loved it. In February of this year (2019), I finally purchased the novel at the annual Swedish book sale. And now, in July of 2019, I’ve read it.
The movie and book are rather different; since the novel is mostly based on Elio’s thoughts, fantasies, and observations of Oliver, the movie became a compilation of the few actual scenes that the book offers, resulting in a slow paced, silent, and atmospheric film. However, we never realise the full extent of Elios feelings for Oliver in the movie, because we miss out on everything that goes on in his head. This is where the novel fills in.

Elio is beyond taken by Oliver; he’s all he can think about, really. Every page has a paragraph dedicated for Elio’s thoughts on the American, though despite everything being about Oliver, I felt that I rarely got to know him. He’s more the object for Elio’s desires and fantasies, rather than a character that we become familiar with. We truly only see him as Elio sees him. This has a charm to it, because while Oliver remains as some sort of centre for the plot, Elio really takes up all the space in the novel. “Call me by your name” is just Elio, who is just about Oliver, if that makes any sense.

I have a hard time finding things to say about this novel. I enjoyed the writing style and the depiction of Elio’s total obsession. It was a nice summer read, and I’m glad I’ve finally read it. Though I think I liked the movie a bit more, I want to say that the two really compliment each other well. I warmly recommend them both.

Rating: 4/5

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Title: Rör mig inte!
Author: Tahereh Mafi
Original title: Shatter Me
First published: 2011
Genre: Fantasy, YA, Dystopia
Series: Shatter Me #1
Publisher: B. Wahlströms
Format: Hardback
Pages: 302
Finished: 22/07/2019
Summary: Juliette hasn’t touched anyone in exactly 264 days. The last time she did, it was an accident, but The Reestablishment locked her up for murder. No one knows why Juliette’s touch is fatal. As long as she doesn’t hurt anyone else, no one really cares. The world is too busy crumbling to pieces to pay attention to a 17-year-old girl. Diseases are destroying the population, food is hard to find, birds don’t fly anymore, and the clouds are the wrong color. The Reestablishment said their way was the only way to fix things, so they threw Juliette in a cell. Now so many people are dead that the survivors are whispering war – and The Reestablishment has changed its mind. Maybe Juliette is more than a tortured soul stuffed into a poisonous body. Maybe she’s exactly what they need right now.

My thoughts: First book read for "The Reading Rush" 2019! This one was read for the challenge "read an authors debut novel". I completed it within my schedule, which means I read and finished it within the first day of the week.
I have a few scattered thoughts about this novel that I took notes on with my phone, so this review will be a sort of coherent compilation of those notes.
The best part of the book was the beginning. I felt compelled by the writing style, which I’d heard a lot about from the time when this novel blew up back when it was first released. Yes, the style is worth noting, and yes, I liked it at first, though I felt that what I enjoyed about it (which is mostly the crossed out parts of the text) ebbed out as the story progressed. Hence, what I liked most about the writing style sort of went away the more I read, which was really too bad, though I can understand it was used as a tool to note the character development of the protagonist and improvement of her mental state/health. 
I quickly noticed that Adam, the main love interest of the book, seemed to be built on rather weak and ambiguous descriptions. That’s a nicer way of saying his character lacks depth, and this is a problem basically from the moment he’s introduced and for the rest of the novel. I actually found that this was the case with pretty much every character besides Juliette, but even she wasn’t a striking exception. I’d hoped Adam would grow with time, but unfortunately that didn’t happen. Nevertheless, it’s very possible that we see a greater change with him in future novels of the trilogy, hopefully along with all the other characters.

Furthermore, speaking of Adam, I found the main romance pretty boring… It started off as sort of intriguing, but their falling for each other went way too quick and didn’t feel motivated enough, despite the author’s attempts.

Another thing that annoyed me were the shallow descriptions. It seems this novel is overflowing with metaphors, yet I rarely got any elaborate or imaginative descriptions on the environments that Juliette finds herself in. Perhaps that’s something that was lost in translation, but I honestly doubt it. The shallowness also affected character descriptions overall; new characters were introduced clumsily, mainly because Juliette was annoyingly quick to judge them as good or bad. Because of that, I as a reader felt that the author was trying to tell me outright to think a certain way about a character, rather than actually showing me the nature of their character with actions and interactions. For example, Juliette is at one point introduced to a new character, and she has legit not known him for more than an hour before she starts making statements like “I could never imagine This Character ever being surprised at anything!”, which I found highly unrealistic and clumsy. Really, this book would have needed an extra 100 pages or so to delve deeper into characters, relationships, and world building in order to truly convince me that this is a decent/good book.

I sound negative, I know. But despite my many remarks, I did enjoy reading this a bit. Maybe not as much as I’d hoped, and the faults of it were a tad too many, but I think I would consider reading at least one of the sequels. The plot was rather fast paced (maybe too fast, actually), and I can see the potential. Overall, it’s not a book that I struggled with completing because of its flaws, but I didn’t really fly through it because I enjoyed it a lot.

Spoiler thoughts (mark white text in order to read it): Adam’s motivation of risking so much for Juliette is very weak! Why would he risk the safety of this younger brother, which should be his main priority since he’s his brother’s only guardian, in order to save Juliette? I didn’t buy that their love was strong or deep enough at that point in the plot for him to be so reckless.

Rating: 3/5