the_jesus_fandom's reviews
354 reviews

I had no idea what was going on most of the time, and I don't understand it. So if someone knows what on Earth this book is about, please tell me. Other than that, it was well-written and exciting, so I can't complain.

A sweet, quick read. The main character's social anxiety frustrated me somewhat, but that's kind of the point of social anxiety. Also, the moon is somewhat deified.

But I liked the friendships and relationships. The way you got backstory gradually was intriguing. The writing was clear, and the emotions stood out. I felt them too.

I loved this book as a kid (still do). I used to imagine living out in the wild by myself, absolutely amazing.

And then last week my brother decided to ruin it for me by saying the older kids were ruining their younger brother's life because they were planning on staying there for ages and not letting him go to school etc.

I didn't get the point of the book. Was there even a point?
It also tried to be mysterious a lot, but sometimes it was just annoying and confusing. Like, we never find out why the four kids were called the liars.

Spoiler

Also, books that have the "they were dead all along" twist are just not my thing at all.

For a longer review of the entire series, go here.

Thanks to Nadine Keels for my free copy! Obviously, this is still an honest review.

I thought it was really cool and interesting that deafness and sign language play such an important role in this story. I've always been interested in it I'm not so sure what I think of Abigaia's backstory, since it doesn't really have any effect on the story. What I did appreciate was how Daun's past experiences actually have effect on the relationship between him and Abigaia. It was a pleasant surprise when it came into play again.

At first I was afraid that the "you are what's in you" message was gonna turn out rather un-Christian, but since Abigaia concludes that what's in her is basically that she's a child of God, that's all good!

I enjoyed this story very much. The entire setting is just very interesting to me, and the romance was cute. I was a bit confused when there were guns, though. I thought it was a bit of an older world, but apparantly not.

Some minor quibbles: "Abigaia felt oddly composed even as sparks of Tarek's hair whipped out and stung her." In my experience, this rarely happens, even during heated discussions. You really gotta throw your head to get your hair to sting. There are more little details like this that feel out of place or don't make much sense, but they're nothing important.

Also, heads-up: this is a fantasy, but there's no fighting. I was expecting fighting, but I still enjoyed the story, which tells you how good it is: if it weren't good, I would have been disappointed in the lack of "excitement".

Eubeltic Descent is a really fun, heartwarming book, and I definitely recommend it!

Spoiler

At the end this loser somehow has two men swooning for her and begging her to love them and she legit just rejects both of them because it makes her feel powerful. The one guy has enough money to buy a ticket on the plane she's about to board and that's why they end up together. So toxic.

Does the premise of this book make no sense whatsoever? Yeah.
Is it exciting tho? Oh yes.

So, basically, if you set aside the absolute ridiculousness of the plot, the story is quite enjoyable.

Brent was hilarious and Emily reacted in a way I would actually expect. In fact, all of the characters were likeable and funny in their own way.

What was a bit disappointing, though, was the climax. Emily didn't really get to do anything: all the shooting happened off-page.

Spoiler

Sure, the car she's in gets exploded, but that's got nothing to do with anything she did.

I also object to that stupid thing where America is the land of the free and that one spy has defected from Russia or something to live a life of freedom and everything... This is 2018, it's not Stalin's reign anymore. This whole "America rocks Russia sux" attitude is not rlly applicable anymore imho.

So yeah, I really enjoyed the story. It felt like a children's book but for teenagers: the plot was impossible, but still fun, just like the books I used to read as a kid. And the main character was a Christian, and that was treated as just a normal thing. I liked it, it was like revisiting childhood favourites.

I enjoyed the story, but the way it was written was very annoying and tiring: it was written like one of those stream-of-consciousness poems.

We also never find out what on earth this great threat is and YES that is disappointing.

I enjoyed this book enough, but not a lot.

Ivan Denisovitch - Vanya or Shukhov for short - is serving his 15-year sentence in the Gulag. His sentence is close to over, but he knows that means nothing to the authorities. During the course of one day, the reader joins him as he makes the most of it, finding satisfaction in the smallest things.

There is a bit of bad language, as that was usual and the author wanted to give an accurate portrayal.

Religion is seen as a rickety crutch for people down and out, but the message of seeing hope in the small blessings is quite Christian.

There are no chapters - it's one continuous story - but there are breaks every now and then.

I'd recommend this to an older audience, especially those interested in the more mundane sides of life in the Gulag.