Light-hearted, feel-good fantasy. Like some others have mentioned, the first few chapters were a little slow to get going but then it really took off
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CodeByJeff reviewed The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune (Cerulean Chronicles, #1)
CodeByJeff reviewed The Gate to Women's Country by Sheri S. Tepper
a short novel with wonderful character development
5 stars
My first time reading Sepúlveda - this is a short novel with wonderful character development & description of the Amazon of Ecuador, with a not very subtle environmental message underneath
Greatly enjoyed and will read his other works!
CodeByJeff reviewed The River of Doubt by Candice Millard
Wonderful adventure story that focuses as much on the nature as the men
5 stars
"After his humiliating election defeat in 1912, Roosevelt set his sights on the most punishing physical challenge he could find, the first descent of an unmapped, rapids-choked tributary of the Amazon. Together with his son Kermit and Brazil's most famous explorer, Cândido Mariano da Silva Rondon, Roosevelt accomplished a feat so great that many at the time refused to believe it."
Teddy Roosevelt is a controversial figure, but Millard - a former National Geographic writer and editor - does a wonderful job of telling us the story of an extraordinary journey while never avoiding his faults or acknowledging the contributions of everyone around him.
While the book starts out telling Roosevelt's personal story for wanting to make the trip, it spends as much time telling the story of the river as it does the men who championed it.
If you like adventure stories that focus on the natural surroundings being …
"After his humiliating election defeat in 1912, Roosevelt set his sights on the most punishing physical challenge he could find, the first descent of an unmapped, rapids-choked tributary of the Amazon. Together with his son Kermit and Brazil's most famous explorer, Cândido Mariano da Silva Rondon, Roosevelt accomplished a feat so great that many at the time refused to believe it."
Teddy Roosevelt is a controversial figure, but Millard - a former National Geographic writer and editor - does a wonderful job of telling us the story of an extraordinary journey while never avoiding his faults or acknowledging the contributions of everyone around him.
While the book starts out telling Roosevelt's personal story for wanting to make the trip, it spends as much time telling the story of the river as it does the men who championed it.
If you like adventure stories that focus on the natural surroundings being overcome, you'll love this
CodeByJeff reviewed Hotel Lucky Seven by Kotaro Isaka (Hitman)
Leonard Elmore meets "Kill Bill, Volume 2"
4 stars
I absolutely loved Isaka's "The Mantis" from the same series, and this book was no disappointment either.
A bit lighter, a LOT more chaotic, but once again a terse page turner. I was disgusted by the bad guys, I was rooting for the hapless hero, and I loved how a bunch of seemingly unrelated people and stories all tied together in the end!
CodeByJeff reviewed The Sympathizer by Viet Thanh Nguyen
An excellent, very difficult book to read
5 stars
The narrator is a North Vietnamese mole in the South Vietnamese army who later becomes a refugee in the United States
Sympathetic to the bravery of his adversaries that he has infiltrated; neither fully comfortable as a Vietnamese or European through his father; committed to his communist ideologies but privately preferring the relative comforts of California... he struggles to understand where he fits in, and what he believes
Nguyen is quite open about the ugly undersides of everyone involved in the "American War", as it was called in Viet Nam. There is a lot of heavy sarcasm on these pages, but don't be misled that this is a "funny" book
CodeByJeff reviewed Burn: A Novel by Peter Heller
Wondeful mix of suspense and character backstory-story telling
5 stars
There's really no way to add spoilers to this one - the description blurb tells you most of what actually happens in the story.
But it doesn't explain the near-perfect build up of confusion from the two main characters as they try to make sense of what is happening around them, the outdoorsmanship they display that isn't full of author mistakes, and the timed blending of back story about how they became the best friends we see now as they navigate their crisis together
CodeByJeff reviewed The Magnificent Ruins by Nayantara Roy
A family saga that keeps pulling you along
5 stars
There are so many things I liked about the writing, aside from the story itself.
The main character, Lila, is realistic in the decisions and issues she faces and how she handles them.
The characters are believable and well-developed.
The story is about Indians living in India - but it doesn't let the "exotic location" take over. No purple prose or irrelevant detail. The story stays sharp and focused.
All of this pulls a long-ish novel (448pp) along at a steady pace and never lets you grow bored with the story.
An amazing first novel!
CodeByJeff reviewed Double Barrel Bluff by Lou Berney
CodeByJeff reviewed The Shadow Line by Joseph Conrad
Short & enjoyable Conrad "South Pacific" story of coming of age
4 stars
The blurb above really tells most of what the story is about - a young man given his first command, and coming of age by learning to deal with disaster
Anyone who likes Conrad will enjoy this.
As a side note - this story avoids any of the "that's how they thought back then" issues that some of his other books contain.
CodeByJeff reviewed Garden of Monsters by Crystal King
3.5 Stars. Interesting fantastical idea, but didn't fully deliver
3 stars
Set in Italy, in a remote private estate. The protagonist, Julia, is a model hired by Dali and his wife for a week of posing. Classical Greek mythology and ghosts are woven through the garden & story.
There is something very definitely not right, perhaps even dangerous for Julia, as she tries to work out what it is among the eccentric Dali and mysterious Ignazio.
The story was enough that I continued to want to know what was going on, but I felt the writing and the story-telling were not quite up to the story itself. There was a lot going on that left me a bit confused about what the main line of the story was, as well as some mysterious elements added just for the sake of mystery that never were adequately explained.
The post-ending "wrap up" was a bit of a cringe, to be honest.
Don't feel …
Set in Italy, in a remote private estate. The protagonist, Julia, is a model hired by Dali and his wife for a week of posing. Classical Greek mythology and ghosts are woven through the garden & story.
There is something very definitely not right, perhaps even dangerous for Julia, as she tries to work out what it is among the eccentric Dali and mysterious Ignazio.
The story was enough that I continued to want to know what was going on, but I felt the writing and the story-telling were not quite up to the story itself. There was a lot going on that left me a bit confused about what the main line of the story was, as well as some mysterious elements added just for the sake of mystery that never were adequately explained.
The post-ending "wrap up" was a bit of a cringe, to be honest.
Don't feel like I wasted my time reading it, but I don't think I would really recommend it.
CodeByJeff reviewed The Folding Knife by K. J. Parker
Long, but well-told "empire building" story
4 stars
Based on Roman-era times & empire building, a long, "family saga" style story (except it really focuses on one main character)
Interesting in that it focused not so much on the military but rather the way money makes the world go round, and oversees the rise and fall of nations
I enjoyed the characters, I enjoyed the story and the twists. I thought it could have been edited down a little bit; I was starting to wonder in the middle if I should finish, but was well rewarded for doing so.
I'm not sure I found his sister's deep-hatred completely believable, and wonder if it was a part that could have been left out and not change the story too deeply, but perhaps I nitpick
CodeByJeff reviewed Men Without Women by Haruki Murakami
CodeByJeff reviewed The Fifth Season by N. K. Jemisin (The Broken Earth, #1)
Good world building, long and leaves you hanging
4 stars
Without spoiling, I would mention that this is 512 pages long...and then just sort of stops and doesn't really give you a feel for what the "big problem" is that you'll want to see battled against in the next volume. So a little dissatisfaction with that.
I did enjoy the way the author played with the timeline, the different voices used, and the pairing of characters that kept me from being confused about who was who
The world-building was great - it supplied just enough "weird land" to be unusual, but really it was focused on the different groups of people and how they viewed and interacted with one another.
If this is your favorite genre and you don't mind feeling the need to finish the series, you'll enjoy.