Book mini-reviews
Mar. 6th, 2019 09:38 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
rainwatersparkPyre at the Eyreholme Trust by Lin Darrow
Genre: 1920s fantasy; M/NB pairing with genderfluid character
This novella was really well-written and the heist was fun...but for some reason, I put it down at the 1/3 mark for half a year and only picked it up again when I had nothing else to read, so I have no idea how to rate this.
Rule of Thirds by Aidan Wayne
(Content warnings: PTSD, implied past torture, implied past sexual assault)
Genre: Science fiction; M/M/M pairing
Aw, I liked this. I've had problems with Wayne's writing style in the past, but it seems much more engaging in this book. This book is straight-up PTSD coping hurt/comfort for about 50k words (with a low-steam M/M/M pairing). If that's not what you're looking for, you're likely to be disappointed, but if that's exactly what you want, I recommend this read.
Adrift by Isabelle Adler
(Content warnings: PTSD, torture)
Genre: Science fiction; M/M pairing (bisexual & demisexual leads)
Hm. I have mixed feelings about this book, so I guess my rating would be about 3/5 stars?
I liked elements of this space sci-fi, but I also felt like there was so much description that, ironically, I couldn't picture a lot of it. I'm the kind of reader who really needs concise description over long and comprehensive in order to be able to picture things vividly.
I...didn't really like the demisexual rep so much in that (1) it was linked to genetically engineered humans, and I'm not sure if I'm overreacting, but I feel a similar kind of discomfort as I would feel for books that connect asexuality to aliens or non-human-ness; (2) the non-ace MC kept obtrusively trying to get into the demi character's pants, including by getting him drunk, which was just all sorts of uncomfortable to read; (3) unnecessary jokes about how dying a virgin is the worst thing ever (sigh).
(Side note: It was really weird that this space sci-fi had zero POC.)
Genre: 1920s fantasy; M/NB pairing with genderfluid character
This novella was really well-written and the heist was fun...but for some reason, I put it down at the 1/3 mark for half a year and only picked it up again when I had nothing else to read, so I have no idea how to rate this.
Rule of Thirds by Aidan Wayne
(Content warnings: PTSD, implied past torture, implied past sexual assault)
Genre: Science fiction; M/M/M pairing
Aw, I liked this. I've had problems with Wayne's writing style in the past, but it seems much more engaging in this book. This book is straight-up PTSD coping hurt/comfort for about 50k words (with a low-steam M/M/M pairing). If that's not what you're looking for, you're likely to be disappointed, but if that's exactly what you want, I recommend this read.
Adrift by Isabelle Adler
(Content warnings: PTSD, torture)
Genre: Science fiction; M/M pairing (bisexual & demisexual leads)
Hm. I have mixed feelings about this book, so I guess my rating would be about 3/5 stars?
I liked elements of this space sci-fi, but I also felt like there was so much description that, ironically, I couldn't picture a lot of it. I'm the kind of reader who really needs concise description over long and comprehensive in order to be able to picture things vividly.
I...didn't really like the demisexual rep so much in that (1) it was linked to genetically engineered humans, and I'm not sure if I'm overreacting, but I feel a similar kind of discomfort as I would feel for books that connect asexuality to aliens or non-human-ness; (2) the non-ace MC kept obtrusively trying to get into the demi character's pants, including by getting him drunk, which was just all sorts of uncomfortable to read; (3) unnecessary jokes about how dying a virgin is the worst thing ever (sigh).
(Side note: It was really weird that this space sci-fi had zero POC.)
