This book has been on my to-read list since I was a child. There are some kids' books that are still fun to read as an adult. Unfortunately, this was not one of them. The world-building was weak and a lot of things didn't make sense (e.g. the basics of the gov't and how the bad guys got into power, why wizards could easily be subjugated by non-MAGYKAL people). The threats didn't seem real and characters didn't feel believable. Wouldn't recommend.

Very enjoyable, but, of course, I was already a fan of the mini-series. The book was very true to the series and I read almost the entire thing in the actors voices. A fun fairy tale based adventure for adults (no spice). Wolf is my favorite character. There are princes, trolls, fairy tale references/easter eggs, magic, nefarious plots, prison breaks, etc. I would definitely recommend both the mini-series and the book.

I enjoyed this book. Historical fiction/romance. The characters were interesting and engaging. Overall I really liked both the leads, though they also both had traits that I found off-putting. Definitely a lot of spicy scenes peppered throughout. Also, some very graphic descriptions of torture (both physical and psychological); I'm not usually squeamish, but even I found it disturbing. But overall, recommend (if you can handle spice and torture).

Not what I was expecting. Much darker than previous books I've read by Georgette Heyer, but very engaging. I guessed some of the twists, but not all of them. I generally prefer the more light-hearted books by Heyer, but I am not disappointed to have read this. Recommend.

Just as fun as the other books. Full of regency spies and romantic misunderstandings. The start of this one was more contrived than the previous two books, but the characters are likable and the story is engaging. Similar in tone to Georgette Heyer novels, though with more overt emphasis on the sexual tension between the main characters. The series has been enjoyable so far. Recommend.

A fun sequel. It managed to capture the same charm as the first book, with distinctly different main characters. I particularly enjoyed the juxtaposition between the Henrietta-Miles story and the Eloise-Colin story. Willig's style is engaging and the characters and their relationships feel believable. Like the first book, there are some spicy scenes (it is a romance novel), but not overdone. Recommend.

I bought this book thinking it was historical fiction about the history of a painting. When I actually started to read it though, I was delighted to find that it is a regency spy romance. The main characters have charming chemistry. I enjoyed the dual storyline between Eloise and Amy. More spicy scenes than I expected (especially considering that I thought it was about a painting to start with). But well written on the whole. Recommend.

I had fairly high expectations for a such a well-regarded sci-fi book. While I appreciated the potential of the world-building, I disliked pretty much all the characters and the plot. Also, why did most people have thematic or space-y names and the main characters were called Paul and Jessica? Paul gave off major "not like the other girls" vibes. None of his victories seemed earned. The religious context was incoherent. Not recommended.

Just as good as the first book, though Mrs. Pollifax is slightly more prepared this time. I've also noticed she seems to have a Bond-esque way of picking up random men throughout her travels. Lol
Lots of action. Lots of spy-related shenanigans. This would make a great movie. Looking forward to the next one. Recommend.

Delightful! A cozy winter read with a very uplifting message! Lots of picturesque, wintery imagery. A well-written protagonist with normal human flaws. I especially enjoyed the Princess-Bride-eqsue asides where the narrator directly addresses the reader. It makes it feel more like you're listening to a story someone is telling, rather than reading a book. Looking forward to the next book in the Chronicles of Wonder series. Recommend!

Entertaining spy novel. The book has more depth and detail than the movie (as is usually the case). Though the Daniel Craig movie is actually a fairly decent adaptation. Much less wholesome than Mrs.Pollifax, but Bond is well-written with nuance and believable character development. The book was written in the 50's so the descriptions of the scenes are an interesting peek back in time. Definitely not to everyone's taste, but I liked it. Recommend.

This showed up in the mail yesterday! I'm very excited to read a book by one of the authors I follow on Litsy. I suspect it will be a wholesome chaser to the James Bond that I'm currently reading. 😊
Also, the art is gorgeous!

Recommended to me by a friend. This was a delightful story! Basically a spy novel, except instead of James Bond it's a 60-something widow who is bored of Garden Club and volunteering at the hospital. It has most of the same elements as a James Bond novel, but is more upbeat/cheerful. Really fun and quick to read. Good for anyone who likes the action/spy/mystery genres. One of my favorite books so far this year. Definitely Recommend.

I have been reading this book off and on for probably almost 15 years (I definitely prefer novels to short stories). That being said, Bradbury's stories are interesting and offer a lot of interesting social commentary that is still applicable today, even though the book was originally published in 1951. Many of the stories have somewhat depressing endings, but the last full story was more upbeat, which was nice.

The start was a bit contrived and my expectations were low. However, after the premise was initially set, it got a lot better. There was some good, believable character development. Tolcser also did a good job writing a strong female lead with realistic flaws and strengths. Lots of watery language, but not in a cringey, punny way. The twist was hinted at well, but not completely obvious. A good magical, swashbuckling adventure! Recommend.

When I got this book, I read through it in about a day. Then immediately re-read the entire series. This book has a decidedly different tone than the rest of the series and is by far the most adult of the books. There are many sad parts, but also lots of action and crazy scenarios. We also learn a LOT more about the wizarding world outside of Hogwarts. A well-written end to the series.

In this book, Harry is given more responsibility and starts to act more like an adult than a child. This one is really interesting to re-read knowing the major twists at the end. I remember reading this book at my great grandma's house, completely absorbed and ignoring everyone. It's a shame you can't erase your memory of books and read them again fresh. I remember this one being really suspenseful. Still very compelling even though I know the end

This book is probably my favorite of the series. I know a lot of people find it annoying how whiney Harry is in this book, and the end is a bit depressing. But I think this one has some peak Sassy Harry moments. Plus Harry and the others are finally far enough into their magical studies that their abilities can really start to be showcased. There is quite a lot that hits you right in the justice feels, but also a lot of very satisfying comeuppance

One of my favorites of the series. Rowling does a great job at writing progressively darker books as the series goes on. This is the pivotal book where the series takes a darker turn, but there is still plenty of lighthearted moments, like the awkward teenage social interaction. It's also the first book where we start to get some of the more significant backstory. I particularly like that we get to see characters outside of Hogwarts.

This book is cited by many of my friends as their favorite of the series. It is the least memorable for me, but I always enjoy it more than I think I will. This is also my only book in this set that is broken. It's been like this most of the time I've had it and I can't remember how it initially got torn up like this. The last paragraph in the book is probably one of my favorites. The dark topic with Harry's chipper tone is so funny. Recommend.

Moving on to the next book. I remember reading this one as a kid by nightlight after I was supposed to be asleep and getting freaked out when he started hearing the voices. I don't remember why I thought it was so scary, but I was 8 so I guess it didn't take much to frighten me. Haha
Very enjoyable to reread. Again lots of foreshadowing hidden in plain sight. Recommend.

After the disappointment of the last book, and seeing a bunch of Harry Potter memes on Pinterest, I decided to re-read the Harry Potter series. It's fun reading through again and catching the things that just seem like throw away lines on the first reading, but are actually sneaky foreshadowing. I enjoy all the little details in the book that didn't make it into the movie. I first read this when I was about 8, but it still holds up. Recommened.

This book was all over the place. I picked it up because it seemed like it was going to be based on Arthurian legend. Which it kind of... was, but not well done. The writing was bad with lots of telling not showing, and as a handful of obvious typos (as far as I'm aware "plashed" isn't a word). The author also interjected several speeches that seemed like the book was actively trying to convert Christians to Wiccian, using arguments targeted...

It was interesting and a fairly quick read, but not as funny as I was expecting. I suspect the audio book might be a better medium. It might also be a more meaningful read for someone who struggles with accepting that their work/contributions/leadership is something of value. I might recommend to specific people it could resonate with more than me, but overall my impression of this book was kind of meh.

I've wanted to read this book for many years. Just something about the title that piqued my interest. I did not realize it was a book set during a pandemic. Published in the 90's it was really interesting to see how well the author captured the pandemic mentality. I'm not sure if it was supposed to have a twist, if so, there was a lot of obvious foreshadowing that didn't make the reveal very surprising. Still a very interesting read. Recommend.

Overall, I enjoyed this book, though I think it would benefit from being twice as long. It read a bit like a fever dream in several places with lots of action, but not quite enough backstory. It almost read like a screenplay adapted from a book. A fun, quick read.

After the first few pages I was pretty sure this would not be a pick for me. The main character (Margrit, who prefers to be called "Grit") is an allegedly smart lawyer who likes to run by herself in Central Park near midnight. There are also several editing errors and lots of illogical behavior from characters used to solely to propel the story along or make a point, but completely unrealistic. Interesting enough to finish, but not well-written.

Still entertaining and very readable, like all the other books in this series. But the writing was a little repetitive at times. The ending seemed a bit forced. Even though important things do happen, this felt more like a filler book. Kind of like, there was a pre-determined story arc, but then the series got renewed for another couple seasons and the original arc had to be extended. Hopefully the next two books are back on track.

Different from the first book, but still very interesting. Unlike The Three Body Problem, The Dark Forest gives the reader a lot more information about what's going on. It is about humanity's reaction to the events of the first book. Broken into sections of time rather than chapters makes the timeline of the book very clear (but also makes it even easier than normal to read WAY too late into the night). Definitely recommend.

Recommended to me by my aunt. This was a really interesting book! Science fiction translated from Chinese. The book starts out during the Cultural Revolution and includes several helpful footnotes for context. The story is very compelling, even though I didn't really understand what was going on or what the overall plot was going to be until about halfway through the book. Definitely looking forward to reading the other two books in the trilogy!

Though it lacked some of the charm of the first book, it was still a delightful read, and the characters are still very endearing. It was fun to revisit the characters "Ten Years After" the events of the first and second book. A fun book about the Austen-style regency period, but with magic. Recommend.

This whole series was pretty meh. It was good enough that I didn't think it deserved to be bailed on, but found it difficult to get motivated enough to read it for more than one or two chapters at a time. I was often frustrated by the characters, who would regularly do stupid things without much reason to do so. Even the "smart" characters often did things that made no sense and lacked foresight. Unclear how this became a "best seller".

A very interesting book. Lots of good information about martial arts history (and Far East history in general). The author has an engaging style of writing where he mixes historical reports, illustrative fictional accounts, and personal anecdotes, which makes for an enjoyable read. I found the start of this chapter particularly amusing.

This book is highly entertaining. Full of the same satirical hilarity one expects from the website. After reading this chapter title, I couldn't help, but take a picture to post here.

It only took 180 pages to start talking about quarks (pronounced "kworks" apparently). But this part is extremely interesting. This is what I was hoping the book would be like when I picked it up.

This book had been interesting so far (even though it didn't start talking about actual physics into about a third of the way through). However, I get the sense that I wouldn't really like the author personally. In this section he compares the observational skills of people who don't understand quantum physics with the observational skills of a chinchilla. The man seems to have a "Smarter-than-thou" sort of complex, which I dislike.

I found this book to be just alright. The first half of the book read like backstory. Granted, I haven't read many of the other Valdemar books, so maybe it would be more interesting if I had that background. After the halfway point in the book, when it seemed like the story was finally starting, the book was actually pretty good.

Really interesting book. It was very readable for a history book. Lots of interesting information and accompanying anecdotes/examples.

The second book the the October Daye series. Just as good, if not more engaging than the first book. I accidentally stayed up until 3am to read "just one more chapter" (i.e. 10-15 not chapters). Looking forward to sharing the next book in the series.

Excellent book. The characters are interesting and likeable; the plot is enhancing and exciting. This book was recommended to me by some friends and did not disappoint.

Excellent read. Adam Ford's comics are entertaining with straightforward and logical messages. They offer eloquent explanations of many basic Christian beliefs.

Very, very interesting. The book is told from several different (often conflicting) points of view. A thoroughly engaging story and unique method of storytelling.

"No matter, I shall edit when I return home. And I shall. But, of course, should I be beaten to death and shoved inside a gangly Earl's travelling trunk and then hacked to pieces and my shreds lazily flipped overboard to peckish sharks, well, then, a pity indeed that I did not edit my work when I had the chance."

I am excited for this book. Only a couple pages in and I'm already intrigued (and amused).

I first read this book in high school. Always a good read, though it feels unfortunately pertinent to the state of the world today in many cases.

Very enjoyable! This is the third book in the series, which takes place a while after the first two books. At first I was a bit disappointed that we didn't see more of the main characters from the first two, but it was easy to become just as attached to the next generation of protagonists in the Darkwoods universe. The author does an excellent job of writing varied and interesting characters.

"There is always a time in a creature's life where everything send dark, and light is but a distant memory. One thing i have learned is that in these times, the good in creatures shines more bright and fair."

[Note: This is actually from Graystone, the 3rd book in the Darkwoods series]
"But she's dead," said Conch blinking.
"Yes, she is," Rainbow agreed, "And her transgressions and heroism, both unpaid for, are passed on to her children."

[This is actually from Graystone, the next book in the series, but it doesn't seem to be in the database Litsy uses]
"She was the closest to Nurida in age [...] and the closest in coloring and personality. Like Nurida she had brilliant amber fur, bright green eyes, and was usually quiet. The difference was that she was like a snake, coiled and waiting to spring; Nurida was more like a fire hidden under a bowl."

Very interesting book so far. Here it is describing how accurate ancient descriptions of snake bites are.

I wasn't terribly fond of this book. The writing tended to be a bit repetitive, particularly in terms of word choice (the phrase "animal magic" is used probably at least once every page on average). Also, it takes a while to even get introduced to the title characters, which seems like an odd choice. Overall, I didn't really care for any of the main characters, so I was less forgiving of the redundancy and predictable plot lines.