booksonadventures's reviews
396 reviews

I’m really glad to be done with this book. There were some passages that made me cry with how raw and real Majka’s approach to motherhood was, especially as a professional… but then others where she frustrated me so much I wanted to walk away from the read. I hope this author has found some peace and figured out how to communicate with her husband & mother... especially because she so brazenly shares her mother’s traumas with the world. The acknowledgments at the end seem promising. 

I honestly felt like this was a totally different vibe than the first book. Highly political, but Zetian seems to lack drive and purpose as she juggles a handful of different goals. Also, the polyamory I found so fun was dropped completely, setting the stage for an enemies-to-lovers love triangle instead. Overall, it lacked the creativity, passion, and fun of Iron Widow. 

 Hello, hello, I'm bringing you a review of the apparent "book of the summer" THE GOD OF THE WOODS by Liz Moore. The wild thing about this book is the range of people I've seen post about it. This book truly seems to span an audience from genre fiction to literary lovers... and that's not something you see often! 

THE GOD OF THE WOODS introduces readers to a fairly insular summer camp hosted by the affluent Van Laar family that owns the Adirondack property. When the Van Laar's teenage daughter, Barbara, goes missing, it ignites a frantic search that parallels the events of fourteen years earlier, when the Van Laar's firstborn son, Bear, also disappeared without a trace. 

I love Moore's approach to writing thrillers, not only for the fast pace and brief chapters but also because she incorporates depth into the narrative, highlighting issues of historical inequities and the misuse of power. This multi-POV mystery unravels across timelines, as readers learn more about what the two cases have in common. Each character has a distinct voice that gives life to the story and illustrates how everyone involved is haunted, not only by Bear but also by the sins of the wealthy. 

However, I wouldn't say this novel "wowed" me from a literary perspective. THE GOD OF THE WOODS certainly extends beyond tropes to explore social issues, but not in a way I found especially unique or impactful. (I also haven't had the mental space for super literary books lately so this could be reader-error.) That said, I honestly wouldn't even include this criticism except to balance some of the rave reviews I've seen on here. I want to give you realistic expectations! Again, this was a fantastic thriller and exactly what my brain needed right now! 

Final thoughts: ❤️ Loved 

Let me start by saying that I really enjoyed The Poppy War. This novel is riveting and fast-paced, raising excellent questions about good vs evil. I regret waiting so long to pick it up.

As we all know, R.F. Kuang is a genius who wrote this book at the age of 19 so please take any criticism with a massive side of knowing that this novel is way better than anything I could have written at that age (or ever). However, as someone who already had (a fairly minimal) knowledge of the Second Sino-Japanese War prior to reading this, I found the parallels to be a bit “in your face” for me personally. I also think this book faced a few issues with pacing and character development.

I’ve always been a huge fan of reading fiction as a way to learn more about history around the world, but for some reason merging this with fantasy raises some questions. Does Kuang’s inclusion of these events appropriately bring awareness to the severity of this invasion? How, if at all, does the suspension of belief required of fantasy soften the “reality” of this history?

There may be no issue here, as this book did serve as the first introduction to the Second Sino-Japanese War for many of those in my book club and helped initiate a discussion about the oft-forgotten genocide that occurred in China during WWII. Furthermore, many fantasy novels by white men also pull inspiration from medieval Europe and I don’t hear anyone criticizing them. 🤷🏻‍♀️

If you’ve made it this far into my ramble, I appreciate you. I love the way that reading gets me thinking differently about history and storytelling. This book prompted a great discussion at book club and I can’t wait to dive further into this series and see where Kuang goes from here.