29.03.26
I'm sure the author thought she was writing deep 'n' meaningful lit fic but really it was a plotless story of a weak, self-involved woman who inexplicably attracted two men before her life accidentally came together without much input from her. Writers on writers on writers is never going to be particularly insightful.
25.03.26
The last book I read by Sally Hepworth I reviewed as 'ridiculous in every way', and this was no different. It was very silly in a way I didn't hate - but it could have been so much better and so much more memorable.
23.03.26
An education in overwrought, badly paced, over-adjectification. Yet another book very loosely based on Carmilla (in the sense of there being some vampires, girls in love and a character called Carmilla) but it didn't seem to make any particular point. Although if I'd drunk a shot of blood every time I read the word 'delicate', I'd be immortal by now.
20.03.26
Epistolary stories might be the original novel format (see the amazing Clarissa, 1748) but that doesn't mean they successfully build emotional engagement or a gripping plot. This, to me, did neither. What was it actually about, other than an unrealistic woman writing letters? Yeah, I know it's all in what is not said but it was so introspective - and yet also so performative - that it ultimately didn't reach its destination.
17.03.26
I enjoy Alice Bell's idiosyncratic and effervescent style of storytelling so much that I was uncharacteristically willing to pay more than 99p for the ebook. Yet the little asides and esoteric cultural references, and even the relentless Britishness of it all, quickly become confusing and, ultimately, irritating, to the extent that this reads like a parody of her previous books. Another novel that would have benefited from another edit and proofread before publishing.
12.03.26
Anne Tyler's extensive output can be patchy (or maybe patchworky?) but this is a jewel of a novella, every word carefully placed, every thought and action and memory contributing to the shining whole. Nothing much happens, but it happens so engagingly. If you don't like the best of Tyler's novels, do you really like reading? Or life?
11.03.26
This has a great premise and (slightly) unusual setting but it doesn't explore either enough. The tediously self-involved protagonist can turn invisible - so many possibilities! - but most of what she gets up to is skimmed over. Also not interrogated was the love interest letting her take the fall for something he was also involved in. But it's fine, as long as they're together, right?
08.03.26
This was charming and well characterised, although Austen did most of the hard work. As it's basically fan fiction, it suffers where it departs from Austen's example - being bogged down in endless exposition (so much telling, not much showing) and the occasional distracting head hopping away from the protagonist's point of view. And as for the completely contrived misunderstandings near the end... if even the characters admit they should have just spoken to each other, then the plot simply isn't strong enough.
04.03.26
I tend to avoid translated novels as they're usually sterile and stilted, but this was the opposite - smooth, fast-paced (for an epistolary novel - recounting a police chase by letter is an eccentric choice) and fascinating. Apparently, its cheeky take on Renaissance figures is controversial among those who know the period, but I don't, and it got me looking up most of the characters in Wikipedia. And I laughed out loud when the murderer turned out to be [x] because... of course it was.
51%
01.03.26This read like a first attempt at writing a novel by someone who'd had some guidance but not enough editing. The best thing about it was the almost-accidental fantasy elements - they just happened to be there, in that world. But otherwise it was all a bit awkward, and the drawn-out romantic difficulties could have been resolved after a quick chat (and a development edit).
25.02.26
This is archetypal lit fic, in all senses. It's introspectively character driven with very little actual plot, and the New York setting almost a character in itself. It's vividly and wittily written, just on the edge of pretentiousness. It can be read at surface level or appreciated for its clever narrative device in which the omniscient narrator is a subtly critical friend of the protagonist. And the feminist message is fascinatingly complex. It's a book that can be admired and enjoyed but, while both are true for me, I don't think I'll remember much about it in a month.
19.02.26
This ice-skating drama had all the elements of a really good literary thriller but they don't add up to a place on the podium. Some parts were really interesting - the potential for abuse at the heart of competitive sport, in particular - but it needed a stronger edit to avoid a forgettable performance.
15.02.26
Strange and beautiful, the world and characters drawn with care, and the plot, such as it was, gathering speed like a train on the tracks. This leisurely, intelligent story perhaps needed a little more steam power to really get going.
60%
10.02.26A fun and thoughtful high-school supernatural thriller that leaned into the ridiculous horror tropes while also tackling the universal desire to belong. It could have been developed a little more - there were parts that needed more (and others that needed less) focus, and the protagonist didn't really have enough conflict, but generally it was engaging and mostly unpredictable.
57%
06.02.26You can tell from the title that this is ridiculous in almost every way but Hazelwood is good at what she does and somehow it's still cute and engaging and relatively unpredictable (and quite educational about chess) if you don't think too carefully about the Cinderella fantasy of it all or the disappointingly flat ending.
05.02.26
Well written, vivid, exciting, clever and fun, this story throws you straight into the careful worldbuilding, with strong female characters taking charge and the men mostly just afterthoughts. But it did lack a little something emotionally - neither the romantic nor the maternal love were quite convincing enough.
02.02.26
An interesting premise, poorly executed. The author needed to spend less time thinking about how it would adapt for Netflix and more time improving her writing skills.
28.01.26
I could say exactly what I said about Back Trouble but this was slightly more memorable, with more vivid characters. I didn't like the anti-only-child rhetoric though!
24.01.26
This couldn't be more different to the previous book I read - it's all action and gentle British humour. What it does have in common is the lack of character development and emotional engagement, making it instantly forgettable.
19.01.26
Gosh, but this was boring. Was there even a plot or was it just badly written, pretentious philosophical worldbuilding featuring eight or nine characters with an interchangeable personality?
