Review: A Gentleman in Moscow

A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

This review is also found on Goodreads! :)
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I belong to that distinct minority who did not absolutely love this book.

I find myself conflicted. I didn't enjoy this book as much as I had expected. After sleeping on it, I can say with actuality that I did not enjoy this book like everyone else seemed to have done so. It was long and tedious for the most part. The sociopolitical commentary flew right over my head, made my eyes glaze over, and my attention wander. It wasn't a bad book per se, it just didn't...hold my interest. The Count's philosophical musings are pockets of wisdom, but it often felt like I needed to have quite a bit of a background on Russia's history to be able to understand half of what's written on this book. It also felt like reading a lengthy, pretentious, and pompous essay--one that feels like I was forced to read in class--instead of a story.

There were various nuances of the story I wish were focused on: the relationship of the characters, parenthood, and even the unique circumstances of a house arrest. But instead, I got a long-winded meditation that honestly, made me want to abandon the book multiple times. I didn't hate the book. I just don't think the amount of time I spent reading it and trying to understand it was really worth it.

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Review: Dune

Dune by Frank Herbert
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

This review is also found on Goodreads! :)
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This felt like an absolute chore to read. :( The entire time I was reading it, I would catch myself considering on DNF-ing it. But I felt the need to give it multiple chances and to see it through. I did and I can now honestly, and without bias, say: Nope.

I've enjoyed the first part where their characters and world were introduced--the move to Arrakis and a glimpse of the Atreides dynamics. But the political turmoil being introduced on a very new political system (new in a first-time-reader's mind) became very hard to digest and follow. It became a headache to follow through who is betraying who, and the motives behind the betrayals.

Review: Goth

Goth by Otsuichi
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

This review is also found on Goodreads! :)
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Creepy, but still feels so....disconnected. The stories didn't draw me in. Most times it was just boring. This isn't as engaging as Battle RoyaleBattle Royale, nor as interesting as ConfessionsConfessions. I had high expectations for this book simply because I regard Japanese literature as uniquely crafted, but Goth just didn't work out for me. The characters were too devoid of emotions, which I know is the point of the novel, but it drew no sense of believability. Without it being believable, every story just sounded ridiculous. I guess the problem I had with this is how the chapters are just short stories of Morino and her classmate's interactions with killers. But these killers were not built with the same development as the main characters. These killer just seem so abrupt and absurd. I detected a sinister character development with the two main characters (more with the boy than with Morino, which is another source of disappointment), but even that was rushed. The rest of the characters were just treated as background noise. I would have enjoyed this book if it focused on one or two killers, and narrated the story around them.

The only reason I'm not giving this a one-star rating is because of the chapter entitled Memory/Twins. That was the only chapter that provided me with the right blend of horror, mystery, and emotion from the book. Despite the twists, the other stories were narrated with a monotonous feel, and I just wanted to get it over with.

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Review: Blindness

Blindness by José Saramago
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

This review is also found on Goodreads! :)
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Reading this gave me the WORST headaches. I am simply not smart enough for this book. It is most certainly jarring and disturbing, but not in a way I've enjoyed. Saramago's style is so complicated. There are probably a thousand nuggets of wisdom within this book, but most of them went over my head, or they simply did not make any impression on me because I was too confused and distracted with the "non-dialogue". It was a serious struggle for me to finish this book. I went on because I was genuinely curious about the epidemic and what will happen to the main characters, but I did not absorb nor appreciate the countless poorly punctuated philosophical ramblings. I think I would enjoy this more if it was written into a more conventional style.

Review: Zero K

Zero K by Don DeLillo
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Review can also be read on my Goodreads profile here.

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This book...is weird. I did not find it creepy, but I did find it disturbing (and not in a good way). I found it very strange and incomprehensible. I did not understand what was happening half the time. All the characters keep spouting random thoughts in rote monotone and always off on tangents that it kept me wondering whether they were high, heavily medicated, or just...crazy.