Lapvona by Ottessa Moshfegh REVIEW

Summary:

Little Marek, the abused and delusional son of the village shepherd, believes his mother died giving birth to him. One of Marek's few consolations is his enduring bond with the village midwife, Ina, who suckled him when he was a baby. For some people, Ina's ability to received transmissions of sacred knowledge from the natural world is a godsend. For others, Ina's home in the woods is a godless place.

The people's desperate need to believe that there are powers that be who have their best interests at heart is put to a cruel test by their depraved lord and governor, especially in this year of record drought and famine. But when fate brings Marek into violent proximity to the lord's family, new and occult forces arise to upset the old order. By year's end, the veil between blindness and sight, life and death, and the natural world and the spirit world will prove to be very thin indeed.

My Thoughts:

I'm not sure how to feel about this book. While the characters were well-developed and the writing was good, it was not that interesting and was hard to get through at times. When it started to get interesting, it would soon go back to being boring. The author had some great ideas, but barely explored them at all. Ina is considered a witch by some, as she seems to be the oldest in the village yet doesn't seem to age like everybody else. If the author explored this more, and maybe added some lore, it would be even more intriguing and mystifying. Marek kills Jacob, but the novel barely explores how he felt or how the boy's father felt. The only grief we get is from Jacob's mother. Father Barnabas doesn't actually believe in God or the church, but this is only really used for humor in the book. And to top it off, there's no main storyline, making the unexplored areas even more noticeable. 

My Rating: 2 stars 

Stone Blind by Natalie Haynes REVIEW

Summary:

The only mortal in a family of gods, Medusa is the youngest of the Gorgon sisters. Unlike her siblings, Medusa grows older, experiences change, feels weakness. Her mortal lifespan gives her an urgency that her family will never know.

When the sea god Poseidon assaults Medusa in Athene's temple, the goddess is enraged. Furious at the violation of her sacred space, Athene takes revenge - on the young woman. Punished for Poseidon's actions, Medusa is forever transformed. Writhing snakes replace her hair, and her gaze will turn any living creature to stone. Cursed with the power to destroy all she loves with one look, Medusa condemns herself to a life of solitude. Until Perseus embarks upon a fateful quest to fetch the head of a Gorgon . . .

My Thoughts:

Medusa grows up with her Gorgon sisters, who found her on the beach as a baby and raised her as best they could. Despite their many differences, they all love each other as they would if they were related. Despite the protests of her sisters, Medusa goes to Athene's temple, where she is assaulted by Poseidon. When Athene curses her, she keeps her eyes blindfolded so that she cannot hurt her sisters.

When Perseus's mother seems to be doomed to marry a rather unlikable king, he jumps at the chance to save her by bringing the king a head of a Gorgon.

I really liked that each chapter alternates perspectives. You get the perspective of Medusa along with the perspectives of the gods who are both voluntarily involved and who are unintentionally involved. The world-building was not as intricate as I would like, but it does the job. While the book succeeds in developing most of the main characters, Medusa is noticeably less developed than some of them. This is disappointing as the whole story revolves around her. 

I would recommend reading this, but be warned of the heavy topics involved.

My Rating: 3 stars

Victorian Psycho by Virginia Feito REVIEW

Summary:

Winifred Notty arrives at Ensor House prepared to play the perfect governess - she'll dutifully tutor her charges, Drusilla and Andrew, tell them bedtime stories, and only joke about eating children. But long, listless days spent within the estate's dreary confines come with an intimate knowledge of the perversions and pathetic preoccupations of the Pounds family - Mr. Pounds can't keep his eyes of Winifred's chest, and Mrs. Pounds takes a sickly pleasure in punishing Winifred for her husband's wandering gaze. Compounded with her disdain for the entitled Pounds children, Winifred finds herself struggling at every turn to stifle the violent compulsions of her past. French tutoring and needlework are one way to pass the time, as is admiring the ugly portraits in the gallery . . . and creeping across the moonlit lawns . . . 

Patience. Winifred must have patience, for Christmas is coming, and she has very special gifts planned for the dear souls of Ensor house.

My Thoughts:

This was so much fun. There is a lot of time-jumping in the chapters. Winifred is such a fun yet unreliable narrator, even taunting us later on in the book. This has made me wonder how much of the story was either false or told slightly different than the truth. She was raised by her mother and stepfather, as her father was out of the picture. The stepfather is a Reverend, who drilled into Winifred that she has evil inside of her. While I'm not sure how different she would have turned out if he didn't, it does make me think. She makes a lot of dark jokes that I enjoyed, and we are told that her town had a problem with babies being murdered. As the book goes on, it seems likely that Winifred was behind it, as well as the disappearances of some of her previous charges. She becomes more and more unhinged as the book goes on, which is something I love in stories.

I do wish that Winifred was slightly more fleshed out, and it would have been nice to see others perspectives of the events, especially towards the end of the novel.

My Rating: 4 stars

A Game of Hearts and Heists by Ruby Roe REVIEW

Summary:

Scarlett Grey, disgraced assassin, is determined to get revenge. Quinn Adams, medic turned poisoner for hire, is her deadliest rival. For years, they've stolen each other's clients, sabotaged each other's business, and occasionally . . . slept together.

When the Magician Queen offers an irresistible deal, Scarlett and Quinn are forced to work together. But this is not a simple job. With an impossible heist ahead, they're going to have to trust each other . . . and that's not easy when they both have secrets to hide. Harder still when those secrets will betray the ones they love. Now neither woman is sure if it's a heist they want to win or a heart.

My Thoughts:

This book was so fun to read. The chemistry between Scarlett and Quinn is so much that it practically leaps off the page. They have been enemies since before the book starts, and have slept together before the book as well. Scarlett's parents were executed almost a decade ago, and she and her sister were left with nothing. Their status and inheritance was stripped from them, so they are struggling to make ends meet by taking jobs. Ever since Quinn sold a client poison, many of the clients who would have wanted Scarlett now want Quinn, making Scarlett have a deep sense of hatred toward Quinn. Quinn never wanted to make poisons, but after fulfilling a client's request, her list of customers are growing rapidly. Scarlett is reluctant to take on the mission, but after her sister makes a convincing argument, she agrees. But Quinn's secretly the daughter of the man responsible for their parent's deaths, and Scarlett has a secret of her own that would tear them apart.

The book was well-written and easy to read, and I highly enjoyed the experience. However, this is more focused on the romance than the plot or worldbuilding.

My Rating: 4 stars

Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne Collins REVIEW

My Thoughts:

Haymitch Abernathy turns 16 this year on Reaping Day, but he isn't too scared of being picked. He lives with his mother and brother, Sid, in District 12. When the original pick for one of the boys was killed during the ceremony, Haymitch is picked due to his interference with a Peacekeeper who was going after his girlfriend, Lenore. The district kids' mentors are Wiress and Mags, due to the lack of living winners in District 12. While training, he meets Beetee, who shows him how to make electricity with potatoes, and gives him tips on how to potentially destroy the arena when the guards aren't watching. When his ally, Louella, dies before the games, Haymitch starts not to care about pissing off the president. Throughout the games, he doesn't hesitate to try to use Beetee and Plutarch's tips about the arena. When he returns home after winning, Haymitch finds his home ablaze with his family stuck inside. Later on, he witnesses Lenore die from eating poisoned candy that he recognizes must have been from the president. Vowing not to let anyone else be killed because of him, he cuts off all his remaining friends and stays in seclusion in the Victor's Village.

This book gave me so many emotions. At one point, I was smiling, only to shed tears moments later. I like that we finally get the names of Katniss's parents, and the story of Haymitch being friends with her dad prior to the games. The inclusion of Beetee, Plutarch, Wiress, and Mags was incredible. Beetee's story here was tragic, as he was being punished by the president by being forced to mentor his son prior to the games. Plutarch has infiltrated the Capitol and is attempting to figure out ways to start the revolution, although his efforts don't work out yet. At the ending of the games, I wonder if Wiress and Mags were tortured by the Capitol, who thought they helped Haymitch try to sabotage them. I absolutely adore this book and it is a must read.

My Rating: 5 stars