Talking Books
Wolf Siren
This novel stands out amongst the others due to its soft fantasy elements and (at least at first glance) the gloomy style of the world it's set in.
Unfortunately, the strongest thing here is the atmosphere, which even still is criminally underused.
The characters are simple and only develop slightly through the heavy events of the plot, but all of it is held back by the fact that it's only lightly fantasy and therefore only lightly uses the intrigue I felt upon seeing the well made cover art.
Overall, decent but with much wasted potential.
Matthew
Popcorn
Fun, silly, and containing a valid message.
For all its simplicity, this book hinges on whether you find its humour charming or annoying. Personally, I think it jumps between the two.
Definitely not excellent, but still entertaining enough to be worth looking into, even if you put it down halfway through because of a bad joke.
Matthew
Not Going To Plan
This one surprised me. Within the first 50 pages, I knew this was a unique book I had to finish.
Thee are real stakes in this novel. All the characters grow from caricature-esque stereotypes into deeply human people with different outlooks on the complex moral issues displayed in the plot. The pacing was so fast it was hard to put down, and paired with its amazingly one-of-a-kind word art format, I loved it.
I think the only problem here is that the ending feels slightly forced and at times (especially at the end) its tight plot got lost in trying to make its message clear. Otherwise, excellent.
Matthew
Ghostlines
A pleasant read, but unfortunately lacked the character and substance to really stand out. The plot was barebones, with little character development and an ending that was almost predictable to the point of annoyance.
However, I'm still glad I read it due to its wholesome atmosphere.
Matthew
Twenty Four Seconds from Now
Charmingly entertaining light read. The order that the plot develops bends a seemingly surface-level romance into a story with stakes that appear out of nowhere and characters that have less time on the page remaining in the mind of the reader, meaning it is easy to feel attached ed when they are later name dropped.
I loved it. Excellently paced with few dull moments and a building sense of a heart warming ending that makes it hard not to read on.
Matthew
Twenty Four Seconds from Now
'Twenty-four Seconds From Now' is an intriguing book based on an unique “reverse storytelling ” where you start at a pivotal moment, 24 seconds before the main character, Neon is about to have sex with his girlfriend. The book expertly sets up the entire premise within the first few pages before taking time to add all the context and backstory to the story, fully fleshing out the characters and motivations and actions that read up to the moment.
Noah
Twenty Four Seconds from Now
An equally enjoyable and powerful read. The narrative structure makes for a romantic story that is different than any other I have seen. The plot develops backwards with multiple interesting characters and a realistically described world. Overall short and sweet fun that is well deserving of a read
Matthew
Not Going To Plan
I really enjoyed this read, it explored some great topics quite well. The writing style and structure also added an interesting and different touch.
Noor