My toxic reader trait is that I procrastinate on writing reviews for so many books sometimes that I just never end up writing them at all.
I do understand that it is not a thing for everyone, but writing reviews for every single book I read really helps me pace my reading, keeps my "books reviewed' count up in Goodreads and Storygraphs, and also, content!
SO. That is why today I'll be sharing long overdue reviews of 5 books that I've loved recently. Along with that, I've also shared some external links to other blog posts that convinced me to read that particular book, or a link to fanfics about that book that I lived, OR even the link to a Notion page where I noted some of my unfiltered thoughts and Top 10 moments of a book I was reading (kinda like a spoiler discussion).
Table of Contents:
Greywaren (Dreamer trilogy #3) by Maggie Stiefvater
Genre: Fantasy (urban)
Age Group: Young Adult
Rep- queer rep, black MC
My Rating- 4.5/5
Trigger Warnings: death, abduction, starvation, mass shooting, depression, parental death, grief.
Greywaren is the third and last book in the Dreamer trilogy as well as the Raven Cycle, and so if you haven't read a single from either of those, you're welcome to skip this review- or just read it anyway, who am I to tell you what to do.
If you would like to get a glimpse into the incoherent madness that was me documenting my reactions as I was reading this book, you can check out my Notion page (and you don't even need to have Notion for it).
Taking notes and making annotations as I read is a relatively new habit and I've been really enjoying making notes as I read. There's no particular format to it. Mostly it's just me listing all the notable moments and scenes that I like, and taking down any observations as I read so it's helpful when I have to write reviews after.
Now to the central (spoiler-free) review...
I know everyone has very mixed feelings about getting the last book in the Raven Cycle universe. The last time we'll ever get to see something new about Gansey and Blue and Adam and Ronan and Jordan and Hennessy on the page. Just typing this out is making me emotional God wow.
But in full transparency, as much as I loved this book and all the gut-punching scenes that knocked the breath out of my lungs, made me put down my Kindle and pace my bedroom floor, and broke me and healed me in the mere matter of 336 pages- I have complaints.
You heard that right, Maggie.
I have complaints and I will be heard.
Because even though I have it marked as a five-star read on Storygraphs and Goodreads, Greywaren was not flawless. There were some things that I wish we'd gotten, and others that I wish we'd gotten more of. For instance, I'd have really liked some more wholesome, cute, or even just any kind of more page-time with Declan and Jordan as a couple. Or more insight into the post-climax conversations or just even just a bit less... passive Ronan (?? I'm trying not to give anything away).
But in classic Maggie Stiefvater style, there's a lot of subtexts and in-between-the-lines stuff that she leaves to the readers to interpret. And the fandom seems to be having a great time with it, so who am I to whine?
Honestly reading this whole series is like a hallucinogenic? dream-like? experience. Because one bizarre thing after the other happens and there is just no limit to what's possible. At one point one character goes all John Wick with a gun while others are stuck in an astral plane and flaming swords and there's an apocalypse coming and it's all very dramatic and crazy. You can only begin to make sense of it after it ends, but while reading you're just along for the ride.
There are also some incredibly heart-wrenching scenes that made me want to scream. The character's arcs were done really though. In terms of character journeys at least, we have somewhat of a tied-with-a-neat-little-bow kinda ending. The whole plot bit is still pretty up in the air though. If you've read the epilogue, you know what I'm talking about.
The focus on Declan and Matthew's storyline was one of my favorite elements. Finally FINALLY Niall Lynch's true story and how Ronan came to be the Greywaren is all cleared up and it definitely delivered.
(I also really wanna ask Maggie how she came up with the word "Greywaren" because I haven't been able to figure out what it's literally supposed to mean or if it's a combination of two words or smth?)
And that is a great segue to talk about all the incredible fanfics that I straight-up plunged into after finishing Greywaren to soothe the tornado of feelings that it left me with. And GOD they were incredible. There were so many out there written by amazing writers who took up all the missing scenes and conversations that I wanted, as well as one extra special one that is a shorter version of Greywaren from Adam's POV, which is so good that it should be published as a companion novella in the series.
See the link for the complete list of post-Greywaren fics (they're for recovery, it's valid).
The City We Became (Great Cities #1) by N.K. Jemisin
Genre: Fantasy (urban)
Age Group: Adult
My Rating- 5/5
Rep- black MC, South-Asian, queer rep, Asian
Trigger Warnings:
Abuse, Alcoholism (referenced), Amnesia /loss of identity, Bigotry Child abuse (referenced), Doxxing, Drowning, Drugs (discussed), Eviction, Homophobia, Nazis (neo), Police brutality (referenced), Profanity, Racism, Rape (paintings of, graphic description), Rape threats, Sexual assault, Suicide baiting, Violence
The N.K. Jemisisn hype is so real.
I never expected to feel such a range of emotions from such a seemingly small book. The City We Became's paperback edition looks a very tame, innocent size, but the gut punch that it packs in those 448 pages is mind-blowing.
It is a book that will make you laugh and chuckle with its humor and widen your eyes with its bizarre and unique magic and make you bristle at the uncomfortable yet realistic depiction of xenophobia in our world.
New York City and its boroughs feel like characters in themselves (and not just because they are actual characters), but because the author talks about them with intimacy and fondness, with the awareness of their flaws and history and streets and alleys and its people.
I won't reveal anything about the characters, since I think that would spoil the fun of discovering them as you go. We have 5 main characters, and sometimes we get to be in the head of the villain too. We get chapters from all of their third-person perspectives. You can trust me when I say that all 5 of them were incredibly unique and diverse and lovable.
“This is the lesson: Great cities are like any other living things, being born and maturing and wearying and dying in their turn.”
It covers a wide array of them themes- from racism to homophobia to microaggressions and capitalism. It is bold and to the point when it tackles those issues. It doesn't hold back- yet somehow manages to make its delivery very digestible. Some of the scenes there were genuinely uncomfortable to read because of racism. But that's only proving how well done it was.
We have five main characters, and one of them in particular is very obviously xenophobic. She grew up in a very controlled and manipulative environment- and even though that doesn't necessarily excuse everything she says or what she does- her perspective is so well-done that you always carry this nickel of sympathy for her. She's supposed to be a little unlikeable and make you confront those ideas, but you somehow still find yourself rooting for her. That, I think, was a real feat.
Then there was the magic system, which was so unique and bizarre, and interesting. You have to suspend your disbelief a little bit because it's not a typical one with spells or runes or natural elements. It's based on the multidimensional theory, where when a city is "born", a person living in that city suddenly becomes their avatar, or basically the city in human form. And since the boroughs of New Yor city have such distinct identities, there are five avatars for each borough plus one person which is all of New York as a whole. And that's not even the beginning of the unique and bizarreness.
From the Blogosphere- Lia @ An Ode to Fiction's Review: The City We Became by N.K. Jemisin
Genre: Fantasy (urban, Asian-inspired)
Age Group: Adult
My Rating- 5/5
Trigger Warnings: violence, death, drug use, drug overdose, mentions of sexual assault, mention of suicide, and self-harm
This was probably the most surprising read of the year, only because I had heard two contradicting reviews from my Top 2 favorite reviewers. I am admittedly someone who really depends on and is influenced by reviews online, so I didn't know which side I would fall on. But... I am so happy to report that I had such a great time reading this book!
It defied all expectations, but in a good way. When you look at the cover for Jade City or read the synopsis and hear the words "clans" and "magical powers", you generally think of great action and fight scenes and fast-paced plots. And granted it does have some of those things- but at its core, it's much more subdued than one would think. It's a lot of build-ups and taut moments that really focus on character relationships.
The way Fonda Lee has written the intricacies of sibling relationships is so realistic and incredible. The characters are flawed in themselves, and their complex history with each other makes it even more so. There are years of love, resentment, frustration, affection, jealousy, and hurt between them- which is all the more heightened because of how high stakes their lives are.
Technically we have three main characters, who are the Kaul siblings, Lan (eldest), Hilo (middle), and Shay (youngest). Most of the chapters are from these three characters' POV, but additionally, we also get many glimpses into the minds of characters like Anden, who is the Kaul siblings' cousin, another character who is a thief on the streets, etc.
The Kaul siblings, especially the dynamic between Hilo and Shay can be so annoying sometimes, and I think they need to just communicate and hug it out and explore who they are without the weight of the Kaul name.
More than action, the story has maneuvers around politics, economy and trade, and history. It explores the questions of separation of power, the concentration of power with just one organization or individual. I didn't really expect just how much I enjoyed it when instead of just fighting because they had magical powers, Lee chose to show us the inner workings of import, export, and international relations and coalitions and boardroom politics and underground businesses. It all felt so new to me and so, so fascinating.
We all get these snippets of the lore and religion of Kekon, the stories of how Jade came to the world, and why only Kekonese people are able to use it. I really appreciated those additions as well.
Plus I know I'm just repeating things that have already been said before, but the world-building was incredible! The world was vivid and vibrant and almost like watching a Quentin Tarantino movie. I think it would be such a perfect story for an anime adaptation. I think the visuals of the magic would look so cool in an animated format.
From the blogosphere- Jayati @ Just a Coffe Addicted Bibliophile- Reading books based on the characters from the Green Bone Saga!
Behind These Doors (Radical Proposals #1) by Jude Lucens
Genre: Queer Historical Romance
Age Group: Adult
My Rating- 4/5
Behind These Doors is a queer historical romance that dealt one surprise after another. Usually, any of the previous historical romances that I've read (mostly from Cat Sebastian) have been fun and interesting, but always follow a certain pattern of plot and character beats. Even the themes they touch on get boring after a while.
THIS book though was really fresh. It was set in the Edwardian Era for one, rather than the Victorian era.
Even though it also had the theme of class differences between a couple, it touched on many issues through its impeccable character work. One, our protagonist Aubrey, is a noble who's in a polyamorous relationship with his best friend and his wife. The exploration of that relationship, especially with how well-fleshed out the married couple is and how they all love each other, is really good.
Then our other main character, Lucien Saxby, who is a common journalist working for a gossip magazine, has to deal with constantly being around people more privileged, a lot of the times unfairly, than him. His relationship with a noble opens a lot of doors for him, but he has this persistent disdain and resentment (justifiably so) of the noble class that keeps being a hurdle in his and Aubrey's relationship.
It's pretty long for a romance book, and a tad bit repetitive with the argument that our two protagonists keep having. But overall it's such a well-written book. It makes it a point to talk about all the tumultuous events happening in that time of history, including the beginning of the women's suffrage movement.
I really liked this one, and I'm looking forward to more books in this series.
On to the next one!
The Atlas Paradox (Atlas Six #2) by Olivie Blake
Genre: Fantasy (dark academia, urban)
Age Group: Young Adult
My Rating- 4/5
Trigger Warnings: death, depression, emotional abuse, drug use, violence, grief, misogyny, murder, suicidal ideation, toxic relationship, kidnapping.
The Atlas series is another one of the stories you just have to be along the ride for because the magic system and its workings of it are just so bizarre and you're constantly feeling like you are catching up with something new that the characters are discovering. I don't really mind it, but I also maybe would've liked a better grasp on the magic system in this case.
At first, I thought Atlas Six was just Splitsvilla but a magical version. Which, tbh it does seem like that. Everybody competes with each other and makes frail alliances and hooks up. BUT it has some actual substance to the themes it talks about.
Atlas Paradox was a bit underwhelming, as I felt like it just gave us more of the same as what we got in Atlas Six, the first book. Again, I didn't hate it, but this was why it didn't become a five-star read that knocked me off my feet.
It's a very character-driven story and so it would be fair to measure the progress more in terms of character development than plot. At least that I concede was done well. I personally felt the most interesting growth was in the characters of Tristan and Libby because, in the first book, they're both seen as somewhat easily manipulated and non-threatening. But in this book, they really gain that backbone and self-confidence.
Time to chat!
Uggh that felt so good to let out but so hard to write. It's like once I write a review, I'm never satisfied with it because I keep thinking of more and more stuff to add.
I added like a 100 words after I published the first day because I thought of something new to add.
BUT ANYWAY thank you so much for reading this post. I really hope you enjoyed it and you stick around for future posts!
Until next time,
Bye!
I have been meaning to read Jade City for ages, I need to get a move on.