Jump to content

Alexander the Great

Member
  • Posts

    401
  • Joined

  • Last visited

Everything posted by Alexander the Great

  1. American Gods by Neil Gaiman I'd heard so much about this book, and while it was a good read, I had expected more. I'm fairly convinced I read it at the wrong time, though. I had to read it in bits and pieces. Sometimes it drew me back in, but not enough. I started out great, but then I felt like it became a collection of short stories and dream sequences. I'm not a fan of either. I don't regret buying the book though. I will give it another try in the future
  2. Crazy, right? I'm happy I've been able to read 16 books already this year, not easy with a full time job, working overtime and sports four times a week. I'm sure I'll have a great time, I can't wait! I will have to restrain myself and not go into any bookshops at all. I'm traveling with Ryanair so I have to keep my luggage very light, since it's going to be hand luggage only (if that's a word).
  3. After much contemplating, I've decided to leave Wolf Hall for later and start Neil Gaiman's American Gods. Next week (the week starting April 9th), I'll be traveling to Ireland and the UK to see Epica shows. I'll only have time to read in short amounts of time and I want to take my time for Wolf Hall and its sequel, because I get a feeling these are the kinds of books you need to be able to really concentrate on
  4. Saturday Requiem + Sunday Morning Coming Down review I'm bundling these two because at this point in the series, it's too hard to say anything without revealing too much. I can only repeat what I've said in previous reviews of Frieda Klein novels and add it only gets better, more complex. We dive deeper and deeper. I've become severely attached to Frieda Klein. I totally have a huge crush on her even though she's a fictional character. I am suffering from a terrible book hangover at the moment. Next up should be Wolf Hall, but I worry it might be too heavy a read when I'm still so emotionally attached to the last seven books. Anyone read Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel?
  5. I read it and I absolutely loved it - my review's in my topic somewhere. I bought the first two books in paperback, so now I want this one in paperback as well. But I couldn't wait until the release to read it! Odd how paperback is always published so much later than the hardback. I started reading it and couldn't put it down. I frankly (hehe) can't imagine putting it down almost halfway through. It's signficantly shorter than the previous two books, too. I'd start on another book. You never know how slow the reader before you is! Maybe take a light book, or a short one, so that you have enough time for Robichaeux. Is it in French? We can keep library books for four weeks and lengthen that twice (unless someone's made a reservation I believe), first for another two weeks and then for a few days.
  6. It sounds like everything's changing for you, but I'm happy that it's for all the right reasons! Sounds like you're moving forward. Happy reading this year!
  7. We can also suggest books to our library, but I really try to be selective about it as well. I try to think if many people would enjoy it, or if it's too much niche. Our library doesn't notify us, but then I don't usually request them officially A friend of mine works there - I went to London with her in December, talked about a bok there, she said she'd ask her colleague. Sure enough, that same week the book was on the website as being in the process of being ordered! The book I asked for was A Column of Fire And I went ahead and requested the other two books as well, so everyone can read them all
  8. Friday on My Mind review In this instalment, the central crime hits very close to home for Frieda Klein. She quickly becomes the main suspect and has to go on the run. It's interesting to see a character so set in her ways, so attached to the order her world is in, be completely taken out of it. Suddenly, she has to go underground while trying to find the real killer. It's a very interesting and different read from the other books, but I loved the character growth. I also thought it was very realistic to see who stood by her and who didn't, and how people didn't simply take her side or the side against her, but were often caught somewhere in the middle.
  9. Thursday's Children review In this book, we dive deeper into Frieda Klein's past. It was a very interesting journey, which brought a lot of insight into the main character of the series and why she is the way she is. The development of the other characters was very nicely built up as well. Of all the books in the series so far, this was the most personal/psychological one, but I truly loved it.
  10. I'm seeing Kamelot at a festival this Summer and am seeing them in Tilburg in September for the concert where they will record their DVD. I don't know many songs by them, so I'm getting to know them a bit. I really like Citizen Zero, Ravenlight, Liar Liar, The Haunting - and this one, Sacrimony, is my favourite so far.
  11. Last year, I bought Rivers of London, Moon over Soho and Whispers Under Ground by Ben Aaronovitch and I look forward to reading them. Is the book you read part of the same series? The cover looks very similar to that of Rivers of London.
  12. Waiting for Wednesday review The next instalment in the Frieda Klein series. I feel the same about it as I did about Tuesday's Gone, only that it was even better. The characters really grow on you.
  13. Thank you, @bobblybear! I wish you the same I haven't seen the movie yet, but I sure will - I look forward to Kathy Bates' portrayal of Annie. Tuesday's Gone review Unexpectedly even better than its predecessor. I read this book in maybe three days, having had to work the majority of the day. The same characters from Blue Monday return. Their experiences have changed them, but not altered their personalities completely. I like how the story is well-paced - not too slow, not to fast. How the plot keeps going on and how we gain insight into different people's points of view. At the same time, the personal lives of the main characters are more slowly built, making it very realistic. I expect to finish Waiting for Wednesday soon!
  14. Thanks @Athena and @frankie! Blue Monday review I read this book in 2012 and gave it a very low rating then as I didn't enjoy it at all. I'm not entirely sure why I wanted to reread - I think it had to do with the protagonist being a psychologist and me wanting to read the other books in the series. Surprisingly, I'm glad I gave it another go. I almost didn't start, remembering my previous bad experience. Reading my review from six years ago, I can't relate with it at all. But to be honest, at that point in my life, it's what I would have felt about it. So much has changed since then, I have changed so much as a person, and it's life a different person read this book again. I found it much more agreeable. Atypical, maybe - but I enjoyed the main character, the pace, the oddness of it much more. I look forward to reading the rest of the Frieda Klein series and have started on Tuesday's Gone.
  15. I've only done a GOT tour in Northern Ireland (never gone to the other counties) and it was simply great! We even got to dress up with cloaks and longswords.
  16. Sounds like a great experience overall! Was it your first time seeing them? I saw my favourite band Epica 7 times last year. They've been touring ever since the release of their last album in September 2016, put out two EPs in between, so while they usually make an album every two years, the next one will be for 2019. I expected I wouldn't see them live very much if at all in 2018. Then they announced a UK tour, and I immediately got a ticket to the Dublin show - with a meet & greet. Then they announced a special show for their 1000th concert that same week on Saturday, so I got a ticket for that. I met a couple from Manchester while queuing for Epica, and they invited me to the Manchester show that same week and told me I could stay at their place. So got a ticket, and also a meet & greet. Then these people said they're seeing Epica at a festival in Austria in August, invited me along, naturally I said yes. Then last week they announced they're playing a festival 15 minutes from my house the week before that, of course I'm going. So I get to see Epica 5 times in 2018 I'll see the band twice officially, and then at both festivals there'll probably be signing sessions. I'm really excited! I also saw Lacuna Coil in London in January, for their 20th anniversary show. They were amazing. A week later, I saw Arch Enemy in Antwerp for the first time. They were absolutely amazing, and I've won a ticket for their Lille concert in June!
  17. Same for me, I absolutely adored it! At the moment, I'm binge watching Bron/Broen. I'm on the third season now. I've seen the first season of The Tunnel (the British/French version) and the two seasons of The Bridge (the American version). Enjoying it greatly! I never thought I'd like Henrik, and while I do miss Martin at times, Henrik's not so bad!
  18. Epica's my favourite band. Epica's singer, Simone Simons, likes Ghost and has mentioned them at times. I checked out Ghost, found the song "He is" which really spoke to me. I did some research, found out it was written in honour of Selim Lemouchi, who took his life nearly four years ago. That's how I "discovered" his band The Devil's Blood. I really quite like their music and am now listening to:
  19. A Column of Fire review A truly marvellous read. Like its predecessors, The Pillars of the Earth and World Without End, A Column of Fire starts in Kingsbridge. We meet the core characters and through them learn of the changes the town and the country went through since the last novel. This time, however, the story spreads out across the globe as Follett takes us not only to London, but also to France, Spain, The Netherlands, New Spain - and at the end even aboard the Mayflower. Follett is a true master of the genre. He manages to tell a riveting story set in the 16th century, mixing fictional characters with historical ones. This book is a story of ordinary people doing extraordinary things to protect what they believe in, but also of the same ordinary people being flawed and very human. Nobody is perfect, but as Ned says at some point: "Imperfect people can still change the world for the better". I love how we get to spend entire lifetimes with them, going between the human emotions of love, romance, lust and grief to political intrigue, exquisitely written to make it easy to navigate these choppy waters along with the people you learn to care about deeply or despise entirely. No character is flat, though - even the villains aren't one-dimensional. I truly hope there will be more of this, an excellent read I would recommend to every reader out there.
  20. Books are an addiction, but such a great one. I can understand your inability to resist. But hey, we're all made of flesh and blood, right? Temptation can overwhelm us.
  21. I think I read Going Solo back in secondary school. Dahl is one of my favourite children's authors, if not my favourite. He certainly had a way with words, and a very interesting life!
  22. Thank you on both counts, @Athena All The Light We Cannot See review What a read. This novel set during WWII is predominantly about Werner, a clever orphaned German boy and Marie-Laure and blind, resilient French girl. He lives in Germany, in a mining town, then attends a special school and joins the army. She lives in Paris with her father, who works as the locksmith for the Museum of History. They have to flee to Saint-Malo, where Marie-Laure's great uncle lives with his housekeeper. Saint-Malo is where Werner and Marie's paths eventually cross. To me, the novel was gripping, gutting, gnawing. The writing style is quite detached, yet the characters get so close to the skin they get under, all the way to the heart. Chapters are very short, which moves the story along at a good pace. I do admit I expected there would be more time with the main characters together. I liked how the ending wrapped everything up, without throwing happy or satisfying endings all around. It felt very real.
  23. Thank you @Little Pixie! I seem to have slipped a bit with the TBR pile - a library trip to return a book proved fatal, seeing as I returned with five more books... I'm also behind on my reviews, for which I apologise sincerely! Hanging Hill review Previously, I've read two of Mo Hayder's Jack Caffery novels. They were quite intense and heavy, though, and I told myself I'd go back to them at a point where I would be in a better place to handle them. I want to try them again now, but haven't come around to it yet. Hanging Hill is a stand-alone novel by Mo Hayder. I quite enjoyed this read. While the plot in this thriller is definitely important, there was also a lot of focus on a limited set of characters. Not a light-hearted read, but it isn't as grim and dark as the Jack Caffery novels. Two sisters share a complicated past that has driven a wedge between them and despite both living in Bath, they haven't talked to each other for years. Then a teenage girl is murdered and the consequences lead them to each other. The novel dragged a bit toward the end, but what an end! Made me feel slightly nauseous with fear for the characters. I've only had this feeling once before, with Box 21, though I admit it was much stronger there. De voorspelling review This is a Flemish novel for 12-year-olds. I remember at that age I read this one a lot. I've always had an interest in Russia and its history. This novel is set in 19th century Russia, when a notary and his daughter are forced to take in a Flemish officer, who is a count, under Napoleon after he is injured in battle. Rutger, the soldier, falls in love with Elena, the notary's daughter. They travel back to Flanders, where Elena meets his brother, Rafaël, and they fall in love at first sight. It has bitter consequences for everyone. This is a very short book, only 178 pages, so I read it in a day. As a 12-year-old, I loved this. As a 26-year-old, I can tell it's meant for young teenagers. The story felt very flimsy, but the characters were very complex and multi-faceted, which is rare in books for younger kids. I do wish I could read an "adult" version of it, because the story has a lot of potential. The Silent Girl review This is a Rizzoli & Isles novel by Tess Gerritsen. This story differs greatly from The Bone Garden by the same author. Jane Rizzoli and Maura Isles work a case in Chinatown, with the help of Rizzoli's partner Barry Frost and of Johnny Tam, a rookie detective who hopes to make homicide. Having seen all but the last season of Rizzoli & Isles, it's interesting to read how different the characters and their lives are in the books. Focused mostly on the story/plot, this is a true pageturner. A complex case that never became too complicated, with surprising twists and a satisfying end. I'd recommend it to anyone for a quick relaxing read. That makes seven books read in January 2018. I'm fairly sure that's a record since I started keeping track of the books I'm reading, which was back in 2009. At the moment, I'm reading All The Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr.
  24. Looks like you got your reading mojo back!
×
×
  • Create New...