Welcome to Litsy!

I had higher hopes. Interesting beginning, but I found the middle to drag. But that ENDING! Worth it for the end alone, which totally took me by surprise. Now I want to watch the movie.

I‘m glad #FoodAndLit #Ireland got me to finally read this book that‘s been on my TBR forever. It takes place in Ireland around Christmas time in the 1980‘s. It‘s short, but impactful as the main character wrestles with what his life means and what he owes to others.

This is a beautiful short story that takes place in Ireland in the 80‘s. I don‘t want to say much as it would spoil things. Lovely writing, I just wished for more. 4.5⭐️

Mom went in for another amputation today, all went well just waiting to see her. Continuing my Vatican fiction binge. This is also a #readordonate as it‘s been on my shelf for years…. 😂

For me, this is one of the rare instances when the film was better than the book. The film was more intense from minute 1 and you can‘t beat the gorgeous cinematography & acting which made it so visually appealing and compelling.

watched the movie and then read the book. very enjoyable and quick read.

One common theme I‘ve noticed is fighting the pope to divorce our wives. Sound familiar? Yes, but what makes Henry VIII different is Henry actually split from the church. Leaders at this point typically threatened to leave but never actually took that step, but the point is Henry VIII was not creative. He just crossed that line that we haven‘t seen before.#history of Byzantium #byzantineempire #catholicchurch #henryviii #pope #patriarch

Finally well enough to read again. Bought this one at Christmas, when I saw a trailer for the movie. I really enjoyed the book, the intrigue, the setting. The end was absolutely ludicrous and felt contrived.

I wanted so bad to like this book! I waited for literal months to get it from my library. BUT I felt like I missed something when reading it. Everyone seems touched, moved or in tears while reading this, but I was bored. I couldn‘t relate to the characters, found bits confusing sometimes, and felt as if there was no plot at all. It felt lackluster. Or maybe I wasn‘t in the Christmas spirit? It is February after all.