rose_griffes (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
rose_griffes) wrote2023-04-30 06:25 pm
rose_griffes) wrote2023-04-30 06:25 pm
Entry tags:
brief book update
Having kept Netflix an extra month after finishing season two of Shadow and Bone, I am slightly embarrassed to report that I watched… basically nothing else. I have a to-watch list on the platform, and a google doc somewhere around here with more things to watch! But apparently I don’t make time to watch stuff unless I really want to watch it.
At least not at this time of year. And with my current schedule. *takes a deep breath*
But I have read some books. There’s an interesting tetralogy or quartet - whatever you prefer, I like both terms - by Jacquelyn Benson. The London Charismatics series features a young woman with visions of the future, a touch-sensitive seer of the past, and several other unusual powers. Starting in 1913 London, the series eventually moves through and beyond World War I.
I liked the female lead, Lily, and her prickly nature. The slow-build romance took the right amount of storyline–not always front-and-center, but still a part of Lily’s evolution in the books.
However, the rest of the story makes up for it. I like the prose, the characters are distinct and well-realized, and the world-building as a whole deserves a solid grade.
I tried reading Matrix, by Lauren Groff. It’s a historical novel about 12th century poet Marie de France and her time as an abbess*. The prose initially intrigued me, but then repelled me. What’s with this no quotation mark style?! I got so frustrated reading it that I gave up. Punctuation such as quotation marks helps with reading comprehension, at least for me.
*Marie de France may or may not have been the Abbess of Shaftesbury. There’s a lot of speculation about her identity; we simply don’t know.
At least not at this time of year. And with my current schedule. *takes a deep breath*
But I have read some books. There’s an interesting tetralogy or quartet - whatever you prefer, I like both terms - by Jacquelyn Benson. The London Charismatics series features a young woman with visions of the future, a touch-sensitive seer of the past, and several other unusual powers. Starting in 1913 London, the series eventually moves through and beyond World War I.
I liked the female lead, Lily, and her prickly nature. The slow-build romance took the right amount of storyline–not always front-and-center, but still a part of Lily’s evolution in the books.
a few spoilery observations
The weakest point for me, and it’s a big one, is Lily’s relationship with Sam. The author doesn’t build a solid enough foundation in book one to justify what we see between them later.However, the rest of the story makes up for it. I like the prose, the characters are distinct and well-realized, and the world-building as a whole deserves a solid grade.
I tried reading Matrix, by Lauren Groff. It’s a historical novel about 12th century poet Marie de France and her time as an abbess*. The prose initially intrigued me, but then repelled me. What’s with this no quotation mark style?! I got so frustrated reading it that I gave up. Punctuation such as quotation marks helps with reading comprehension, at least for me.
*Marie de France may or may not have been the Abbess of Shaftesbury. There’s a lot of speculation about her identity; we simply don’t know.
no subject
Not all the streamers do save everything, as I've had watchlists lost. However given that they are in flux in terms of content and sometimes functionality, that may be more accidental than standard practice.