phidelia's reviews
446 reviews

 I know I'm half a year late...but-

➋⓿➋➍
Total (in progress): 100

“I can never read all the books I want; I can never be all the people I want and live all the lives I want. I can never train myself in all the skills I want. And why do I want? I want to live and feel all the shades, tones and variations of mental and physical experience possible in my life. And I am horribly limited.”
― Sylvia Path

✨ 🆈🅴🅰🆁 🅸🅽 🅱🅾🅾🅺🆂✨
Having seen vari(o)us review and reflect on "2024 on Goodreads", I thought why not record my thoughts about it too?

꧁༒༺ 🅼🆈 🅶🅾🅰🅻🆂 ༻༒꧂

❉ GR Reading Challenge: 144 books
❉ I want to try writing (well-rounded) reviews for every book.
❉ I want to try reading more books from my TBR this time.
❉ Though, on a second thought, I'd rather wish I don't read unto my doom and quit stress-reading. I want to read in a limited fashion despite how it started this year.
❉ I may have mentioned I'm a mood reader, and, I don't think I'm in a position to make promises, goals, or a fixed TBR, book lists or anything like that. Hence, this is just a record of sorts (I guess), since, I usually go with the flow and pick whatever catches my fancy in the moment.

‿︵‿︵ʚ˚̣̣̣͙ɞ・❉・ ʚ˚̣̣̣͙ɞ‿︵‿︵
🆂🅾 🅵🅰🆁...


❄️❄️❄️January '24:❄️❄️❄️
1. The Sage with Two Horns
2. Lonely Hearts Day
3. Heartstopper Vol. 1
4. Heartstopper Vol. 2
5. Heartstopper Vol. 3
6. Heartstopper Vol. 4
7. The Ethics Of Infatuation Dynamics
8. In The Ring
9. Twisted Love
10. The Soulmate Equation
11. The Unhoneymooners
12. The Bridge Kingdom
13. House of Earth and Blood (DNF)
14. What You Left Behind
15. Mark of Athena
16. The Way I Used To Be
17. The Way I am Now
18. Kismat Connection
19. Hammer of Thor (Re-read)
20. Not Here To Be Liked
21. You Were Here
22. Legend
23. Dominate Jee
24. King of Scars (King of Scars, #1)
25. Rule of Wolves (King of Scars, #2)
26. Instructions for Dancing
27. Queen of Shadows (TOG #4) (Re-read)
28. Clockwork Angel; Clockwork Prince; Clockwork Princess (The Infernal Devices, #1-3)

Books read: 30
Pages read: 12178

🌊🌊🌊February '24:🌊🌊🌊
1.The Traitor Queen (The Bridge Kingdom, #2)
2. The Calm Before the Storm (The Bridge Kingdom, #2.5)
3. Seven Percent of Ro Devereux
4. The Kiss Quotient
5. This Time it's Real
6. If You Could See the Sun
7. Counting Down With You
8. I Hope This Doesn't Find You
9. Spice Road (DNF)
10. Mr. Wrong Number
11. All This Twisted Glory (This Woven Kingdom, #3) (Might try again?)
12. The Spanish Love Deception
13. Instant Karma (Fortuna Beach, #1)
14. Scarlet (The Lunar Chronicles, #2)

Books read: 14
Pages read: 5331

🌸🌸🌸March '24:🌸🌸🌸
1. The Stolen Heir (Might try again?)
2.Pride and Prejudice (DNF)
3. Chain of Iron (TLH #2)
4. Cress (The Lunar Chronicles, #3)
5. Winter (The Lunar Chronicles, #4)
6. Stars Above (The Lunar Chronicles, #4.5)
7. The Lunar Chronicles Box Set (The Lunar Chronicles #1-4.5)
8. So This is Love
9. Warcross
10. Wildcard (Warcross #2)
11. The Cruel Prince / The Wicked King / The Queen of Nothing (The Folk of the Air, #1-3)
12. Under One Roof (The STEMinist Novellas, #1)
13. Stuck with You (The STEMinist Novellas, #2)
14. Below Zero (The STEMinist Novellas, #3)
15. Heartstopper (Vol. 1-4)
16. Heartstopper (Vol. 5)
17. Heartstopper (Vol. 6)
18. Solitaire
19. This Winter (Solitaire #0.5)
20. Heartless
21. Prodigy (Legend #2)
22. Champion (Legend #3)
23. Life After Legend (Legend #3.5)

Books read: 21
Pages read: 11599

⛱️⛱️⛱️April '24:⛱️⛱️⛱️
1. Sadie
2. I Hope This Doesn't Find You (Re-Read)
3. Powerless (Powerless #1)
4. Book Lovers
5. People We Meet on Vacation
6. Monday's Not Coming
7. Binding 13 (Boys of Tommen #1)
8. Keeping 13 (Boys of Tommen #2)

Books read: 8
Pages read: 3635

☀️☀️☀️May '24:☀️☀️☀️
1. Betting on You
2. Better than Before (Better than the Movies #0.5)
3. The 15th of December: A WesLizNickEmilieBaileyCharlie Christmas
4. The Maze Runner (Re-read)
5. The Scorch Trials (The Maze Runner, #2) (Re-read)
6. The Death Cure (The Maze Runner #3) (Re-read)
7. Shuffle, Repeat
8. Letters to the Lost
9. More than We Can Tell (Letters to the Lost #2)
10. The American Roommate Experiment (TSLD #2)
11. Five Survive (My First BR ever on GR)
12. P.S. I Like You
13. Powerful (Powerless #1.5)
14. And Then There Were None (Re-read)
15. Stars and Smoke
16. Out on a Limb

Books read: 16
Pages read: 5706

🌥️🌥️🌥️June '24:🌥️🌥️🌥️
1. Twelfth Knight
2. The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue
3. Atomic Habits
4. The Calculation of You and Me
5. Not In Love (DNF)

Books read: 5
Pages read: 1375

🌧️🌧️🌧️July '24:🌧️🌧️🌧️
1. Written in the Stars
2. Reckless (Powerless #2)
3. A Crane Among Wolves
4. Love Redesigned
...

Books read:
Pages read:

🆄🅿🅲🅾🅼🅸🅽🅶...

🌃🌃🌃August '24:🌃🌃🌃

📚📔📖September '24:📖📔📚

🎃👻🎃October '24:🎃👻🎃

🌨️🌨️🌨️November '24:🌨️🌨️🌨️

⛄⛄⛄December '24:⛄⛄⛄

‿︵‿︵ʚ˚̣̣̣͙ɞ・❉・ ʚ˚̣̣̣͙ɞ‿︵‿︵
Overall year review:
...

‿︵‿︵ʚ˚̣̣̣͙ɞ・❉・ ʚ˚̣̣̣͙ɞ‿︵‿︵
🅼🆈 🆁🅰🆃🅸🅽🅶 🆂🆈🆂🆃🅴🅼

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐IT WAS AMAZING!
Amazing, Extraordinary, Unique, Valuable & Memorable.
⭐⭐⭐⭐Really, really liked it.
Amazing, Creative, Wonderful, Memorable but Not So Unique
⭐⭐⭐Liked it.
Amazing, Fun, Wonderful, but maybe Not So Memorable or Unique either.
⭐⭐Okay.
Not So Unique, although Fun & Interesting. I still wish I'd had a better time reading them, though.
⭐Did not like it.
It was not interesting (It was so terrible and ridiculously bad that I wished I didn't read it.) 

⭐💫
Do yourself a favour and don't read this.

🅟🅞🅢🅣-🅡🅔🅐🅓:
I don't want to talk about it. (Atleast right now. Not immediately.)

I'm speechless at such a reckless attempt in the second book.

To be frank, I'm just surprised by some of the choices made in the second book. The approach taken diverged from what I expected based on the first book. As a reader, I would have appreciated more consideration given to consistency and reducing redundancy of dialogues in the book.
AND...Multi-POVs were a good choice this time, but Kitt's POV felt a bit boring and it could've been done better considering he was the most interesting character in the book. I appreciated that Kai and Pae came to terms that they both did each other wrong, but it could've been done better.

Although, I've got to admit - I'm a bit curious of what the story could evolve further into, but no, thinking of how the author took time, I mean, so much time, like endless time 🙄 to build on bonding, building chemistry, and angst in Kai and Pae's relationship - I could cry with no, not disappointment but at my utter foolishness and ignorance probably for believing it could get better. Maybe I could give this a more generous rating but I couldn't bear it any longer. Maybe it's just me. ...However, all THAT being said, I think the way this book ended was slightly meaningful and I personally think it saved the book.

Overall, let me brief you about it:
World-building 🥴
Plot 🙏
Romance 🥱
Premise 💖
Ending ✅

UPDATE:On a side note, I don't think I'm fearless enough for a third book.

🅣🅗🅞🅤🅖🅗🅣🅢 🅦🅗🅘🅛🅔 🅡🅔🅐🅓🅘🅝🅖:
This book has become so very tiring.

Why did it become so muddled from the middle onwards ?
Was there a plot?
Why are these characters behaving so stupidly, childishly, idiotically and why is their banter is so, so terrible and repetitive?

Everything was so out of place. I felt like I read a hundred of the same books over and over. This may have something original but I'm really failing to see it. I think I may have realized this problem late (lot of people complained of the same in the first book, but I could ignore it then). NOT NOW. Basically, whatever tropes that were not there in powerless landed here. Isn't that wonderful? I'm sorry, but I'm so done with this.

🅟🅡🅔-🅡🅔🅐🅓:
JULY HAS COME!!! After that ending in Powerless, I needed this...Wish me luck!

***
July- That's so far away.

Don't read the ENTIRE synopsis of this book, it gives away too much to the reader.

It feels very hard to review this book because there are a huge number of ways to look at this story, and I've so many contradicting thoughts about it as well.

Characters (3.5/5)
✅ Authentic representation - I think it does do a good job of representing how helpless it can feel for such a young girl in the face of such overwhelming sexism and patriarchy.
⛔FMC sometimes feels like she's way too naïve and poorly drawn for her age, but if thought in a broad perspective, she does represent innocence of a young girl and a hope that things will get better.
❌Saif (our FMC's "hero") especially felt under-developed. He just wanted to be with the FMC. He served nothing but the purpose of being a medium to propagate the message of this book.

Content warnings: (view spoiler)

Plot & Premise (3/5)
✅ Fast-Paced (Short book & chapter length) - Given the premise of the book, I'd definitely appreciate a little more depth.
✅ So, so many feels (Utter despair, Rage, Acceptance, Faith, Happiness) - Not an easy book to read, surely.
✅ A lot of cultures, religions, & other ethnicities have very similar, sometimes worse customs, practices & beliefs - as mentioned in the author's note. The representation is appreciated, well-received & relatable, I think. It's the people and society (of which the parents are part of) to blame who do this to their children, not particularly the religion, ethnicity, culture, etc. is to blame.
✅ Love how the title could be seen from utterly two opposite perspectives
⛔ Typical, yet somehow meaningful - I wish the FMC fought harder, sometimes it feels like the FMC a weak character, resigned to her status until the hero swoops in to save her.
❌Ending- Underwhelming, rushed.

⭐⭐⭐💫 stars

❉ A Crane Among Wolves belongs to the realms of historical fiction (not the fantasy novel which I was looking for unfortunately, nevertheless I'm glad I read it.). The fact that the author included the mystery aspect to it made the cast of characters evermore interesting, but unfortunately, it made me attached to them, and like Iseul (at the beginning), I really didn't want to let anyone deter the objectiveness of this review or myself either. 
 

❉ If you want a fast-paced, action-packed novel, with an easy, light-hearted air surrounding it, this is NOT for you.

This depicts a dark & emotionally riveting adventure of Iseul & Daehyun, alternating between 1st & 3rd POVs (which I absolutely ate up btw) amidst the tyrannical, heinous, unjust and ruthless rule under the terrible King Yeonsan.

Iseul, had recently suffered a grave loss of her parents, and on top of that - her elder sister Suyeon had been unjustly taken by King Yeonsan to reside indefinitely within the palace. Iseul knew the sinister rumours of the King's depraved appetites all too well, and feared for her safety as each day passed. In her desperation, Iseul could think of but one means to secure her sister's release - she must confront the killer known only as the "Nameless Flower".

This shadowy assassin had sown chaos through relentless attacks on several government officials, King's inner circle and many more. An unknown but priceless bounty had been announced by the king to any who could bring the Nameless Flower to heel. Iseul saw in this as a do-or-die grim opportunity, where she could be successful where all others had failed in rescuing their sisters, wives, and other women, even though she knew that to challenge his rule is to court certain death. Though the task seemed nigh impossible, her love for her sister (despite being burdened by guilt of a misunderstanding), gave her resolve and strength beyond reason. And, thus, she leaves the relative safety of her village and her grandmother, traveling through forbidden territory to reach the capital in hopes of stealing her sister back.

Meanwhile, Prince Daehyun of the royal blood knew that as a bastard, his tenure upon this mortal realm was dependent entirely upon the mercies of his elder brother, King Yeonsan. The King's increasing tyranny and madness had eroded what little goodwill Daehyun retained. He understood his half-brother saw him now not as family, but as a means to justify his own monstrosity. He had tried to numb all the grief at the horrors he'd witnessed of loss of his family and friends, but as an unfortunate-but-required side-effect, he succeeded in numbing all emotion or so he'd thought.

❉ The setting as well as the premise of the book felt absolutely very creative, and pulled me right in. I really appreciated the use of this unusual setting and the fact that readers are not overwhelmed by usage of Korean words and terms, instead, the meanings are made plain through the descriptions and if that doesn’t work - then there’s always Google. And...the writing style was really good (I read every word and I didn't skim at all, which is definitely an achievement in itself), and the overall ambience of ancient Korea (Joseon) made me feel more involved with the book and it felt like I was right back in ancient Korea! (I wish I didn't feel like that- all that brutality 🫥.... not like it doesn't exist any more, but in a way things are much better now.)

❉ Coming back to character development- it was not exactly off the charts, but Iseul, Suyeon, Wonsik and Daehyun and a whole lot of other characters were quite relatable, voicing much relevant thoughts of the present world. (*concerning*) 🫣

And...could there be a better expression of how older siblings (or maybe just me) feel?

❉ The side characters were all kinda well-written. They all had specific roles to play in the story, and were very interesting (meaning I ended up enjoying their bonds with the main characters as well

which I didn't want to and I knew where all that attachment would end up going into the grave that is! I'm glad atleast Suyeon survived, but Wonsik 😭😭😭!!?!!)

 

...The fact that the author mentioned Confucious in the book (several times, in fact)-

❉ I may have wished a lot of times that the author delved into more depth with regard to the character's trust issues, feelings, thought process and development, along with enhancing the many sub-plots & characters within it with more clues, but I was disappointed (I guess.) 🙁

❉ The romance was beautiful although🤩🤩. Both characters were likeable and totally relatable as well.  

❉ I cannot express how much that ending

fulfilled the emptiness within myself at the near-end of the book.

❉ TLDR; Overall, it was a good historical-mystery-fiction book with an amazing cast of characters, plot emphasizing much relevant issues.

‿︵‿︵ʚ˚̣̣̣͙ɞ・❉・ ʚ˚̣̣̣͙ɞ‿︵‿︵

<b>ꅏꃅꀤ꒒ꍟ ꋪꍟꍏꂡꀤꋊꁍ...</b> 

💠I need a good fantasy right now and please, please let this be it. 

💠This fanart I've found is quite something...🤩
<img src="https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FtNq_UWaQAA4QCl?format=jpg" width="320" height="360" />

‿︵‿︵ʚ˚̣̣̣͙ɞ・❉・ ʚ˚̣̣̣͙ɞ‿︵‿︵

<b>ꉣꋪꍟ-ꋪꍟꍏꀸ: </b>
A historical cum- fantasy story about politics, tyranny, along with a touch of mystery while also featuring those characters on the cover (I mean, look at that cover-) — you can totally count me in!!

Post-read:
⭐⭐💫
It wasn't as good as her debut, but it was okay. The names were weird. However, it makes sense - since they were taken from the Shakespearean play of the same title. (I haven't read it. I don't think I will either.)

It's an entertaining, a very non-emotional & a fun read for book lovers who are ready to dive into a charming and socially relevant adventure.
Twelfth Night is not exactly THE book you’ve been waiting for, but it’s like a rom-com on hormones, tackling topics like sexism, self-worth, and more, all while making you laugh and swoon (not so much).

Let’s talk about our main girl, Viola Reyes. She’s a self-proclaimed nerd with a strong feminist streak, and let me tell you, this is something to which, I relate so hard. But here’s the twist: Viola is so confident in her own self-worth that she’s willing to risk her friendships to make sure she’s never stepped on as a girl.
She’s like a walking (sometimes annoying) megaphone for all the frustrations and hidden thoughts that girls experience. Reading from her perspective, I found myself nodding and saying, “Yep, girl, same!” She’s not afraid to assume the worst of people, and you know what? I get it. The struggle is real. BUT, this book did not meet my expectations on this front.

Now, let’s meet our charming hero, Jack Orsino. He’s got the looks, the charm, and everything figured out… until he doesn’t. His inner struggle, of what he is not without football (something he was predestined for was SO relatable). While he may not be the most memorable character, he’s definitely likable, and his growth throughout the book is worth cheering for.

But wait, we can’t forget about the amazing side characters (actually, *not being sarcastic*)!
Olivia is charismatic and deep, the kind of friend and sister we all wish we had. And Viola’s twin brother, Bash, brings the liveliness and surprisingly caring nature to the mix. (This character was done the best. Brothers are EXACTLY like that). They’re a cast of characters that steal the show and make you wish they were your own BFFs.

The character and relationship growth in this book are not quite good, but fine.
We get to witness characters changing their perspectives, society’s garbage getting exposed, and relationships navigating complicated situations. It’s a rollercoaster of emotions, showing both the good and the bad in our world.

But overall, folks, this book is pretty cool. It’s a book that celebrates feminist nerds like us who just want to be seen. It's a book you could read if you're really, really bored or need to cure your reading slump.

Like me- if you want to know what the play is about but don't want to read it:
A short summary of what the play is about:

Viola and her brother Sebastian are sailing and then, they encounter a shipwreck. They both think the other is dead. Viola decides to dress up as a guy named Cesario to avoid being alone in a new place. She ends up working for Duke Orsino, who is in love with a woman named Olivia. Olivia is mourning the deaths of her father and brother and rejects Orsino's advances.
Orsino asks Viola (as Cesario) to woo Olivia on his behalf, but Olivia falls in love with Cesario instead. Viola, disguised as Cesario, actually loves Orsino, creating a one-way love triangle. Meanwhile, some of Olivia's servants plan to humiliate a pompous servant named Malvolio by tricking him into thinking Olivia loves him.
Sebastian, who survived the shipwreck, arrives and is mistaken for Cesario by Olivia. They secretly marry. When Orsino finds out, he thinks Cesario has betrayed him. Eventually, everything is revealed: Sebastian explains his identity, Viola reveals she's a woman, and her true feelings for Orsino.
Sebastian and Olivia get married, Viola and Orsino get married, two of the tricksters get married, Malvolio gets angry and leaves. Everyone else lives happily ever after. The end.

Thoughts while reading...
34% in:
Viola & Jack are quite relatable in their own ways. While they ARE a bit unbearable, people like that do exist!
This rivalry between Jack & Viola seems quite fun, lol. I really want to see how the author weaves the story further.

98% in:
These book certainly prompted some new thoughts. While, it deals with some important social topics as well, it was not exactly written in a very "impactful manner". It was a fun & entertaining book although.

30 May 2024:
I'm going to start reading it...
9 May 2024:
I've...read the excerpt of this book...and now, this has rekindled my curiosity in it- and this is one of my most anticipated books for May. I'm kind of excited to read this one. And, I really, really hope this doesn't disappoint!
21 more days to go 🔥

LONG PAUSE after 51%...And picked up later on.

The start was decent. The rest dragged on for way too long. It could've been shorter and also, I might've liked it better if it was less cliché maybe?

This might be the case of: "it's me, not the book". It was a slow burn romance between two childhood enemies.
So, what was all of this about: Two rich young adults adults have this rivalry going on since childhood, but they have to work on a project together and their constant bickering while doing so finally got to me. The end.

Hahaha. I'm SO amused.

 Enchanting, Eerie, Mysterious, Thought-provoking
This is a book which made me want to read the acknowledgments as well. And, I never read the acknowledgements.

It's a literary masterpiece that displays the potential concept of immortality while alternating the story between past and present of the journey of a girl, Addie Larue. The author's prose exudes a distinctive amalgamation of rhetorical devices, adeptly employing artistic allusions, symbolic motifs, and more, to create a tapestry that artfully encapsulates the essence of Addie Larue's tale.

While I may have had some issues with the way the story progressed and with a few instances of monotony, hypocrisy &...snobbery- is that a word?, how the characters interacted, and what it potentially could have been, overall, the writing made me eat it up whole.
I agree it was slow-paced, abstract, and nothing much significant happened almost throughout the book - which I usually dislike - but...it could be ignored easily, which made me - in fact- like the book more. The ending was done well. Really?

If I have to talk about the characters individually, I liked Henry the most, he was the most relatable character, while on the other hand, Addie was also pretty fine, while I didn't particularly like or dislike her - I definitely rooted for her endurance throughout the book. I have mixed feelings about Luc, but to be frank, he was a good anti-villain, which enhanced the story, and made me eagerly look out for reading the past part of the story. Overall, I really did like all the characters of this story.

I think I'm going to have a lot of quotes to remember by in this story...
And, well, I definitely am looking forward to read more books by her! 

light. warm. breezy. endearing. refreshing. unreal.

 

Marie Lu doesn't disappoint in writing action-packed thrillers...
Spies? Missions? Near-death experiences?

Progress:
It's a bit like a YA version of Mission Impossible.
***
It begins so damn slowly that made me consider DNF-ing it, but Marie Lu's books have, so far been fun to read, so I decided to go for it. Alas, it took me a month to actually continue the book.
***
Eventually, this book got so, so much better...
***
TBH, it would have been better if the author had shortened the first nine chapters as much as possible because the rest is absolutely mind-boggling and so fun!
***
The ending was a bit boring. It wasn't enough to carry the entire novel. I'd have loved if it was left open-ended.
***
Post-read:
Character development wasn't exactly "great" per se, neither the chemistry between the characters. The romance was very superficial.
The dialogues felt so juvenile and mediocre, if their age wasn’t mentioned I’d guess that it’s around 14-16 y/o.
The writing was unbearably descriptive, especially, with lots of flashbacks, thus overshadowing the action scenes.
This book lacked a significant amount of its world-building and plot, as compared to the other two series I've read of this author's —Warcross duology and Legend Trilogy .
***
Overall, it was fun, somewhat okay and a light action-packed novel.
***
Stunning covers by the way!