Oof. A coworker bought this for me with a high recommendation, so I finished it so we could discuss it. Since I loved The Correspondent earlier this year and I loved A Man called Ove, I had high hopes, but boy, this book was not for me. The plot follows a kind, older gentlemen who comes to the town of golden, falls in love with the portrait art in a coffee shop, and then proceeds to buy them all and gift them to their subjects. In the exchange, he learns and listens about their life and tribulations, while a small element of mystery hangs around his own past. I honestly didn’t realize this was Christian fiction when he gave it to me, but the undertones are pretty explicit, and overall, the story comes as very didactic.
If you’re looking for Christian fiction with pretty prose this might be for you, but unfortunately, it was definitely not for me.
I always appreciate a bookish gift, but I feel bad that this one wasn’t for me!
So I read the Odyssey (I can’t remember what translation) my freshman year of high school, but I remembered very little about it. Honestly, the version that sticks with me the most in The Wishbone adaption on PBS. But in the last year, I fell in love with EPIC the musical and with Christopher Nolan’s movie come out, I wanted to educate myself on the hubbub. (Especially with my coworkers spouting questionable ‘facts’ left and right. Did I read this book to win an argument? Well, maybe.)
Anyways, I appreciated the context & criticism Emily Wilson presents before the story. And I can appreciate the reasons behind the pithy word choice (so that it’s the same number of lines as the original poem), the meter (it’s iambic pentameter since that’s the best English rhythm that approximates the way this might have been orally told in ancient Greek), and the common language (because this originated as an oral tradition told by the common people who would’ve used common language.)
But dude, now here on the other side, I understand exactly why I don’t remember reading this in high school. The characters are, well, horrid, and the story is told in a circuitous, nonlinear fashion. The story starts with Penelope & Telemachus after they been waiting 20 years for Odysseus. And then when we eventually run into Odysseus, he’s already been on Calypso’s island for years. We basically get the rest of his story/adventure when he (a renowned liar, the story tells us) relates it to others.
While EPIC reimagines the Odyssey as a romance, dude, this is so far from a romance. This is a man that wants to go home because he wants to be the king again. And this book is less about his adventures and more about him coming home.
Maybe all of this is old news to you, but I remembered none of this (probably because I conflated it with the greatness that is the Wishbone retelling). It is interesting to see all the changes to the modern adaptation that have tried to make the story more palatable.
Which is all to say: Did I enjoy this? No. Was it educational? Yes. Did I win my argument? I won some. I lost some Was it worth it to be able to talk intelligently about it and have an informed opinion? Yes. Did I recommend it to my coworkers? Yes. Will I watch Christopher Nolan’s adaption? Maybe if it happens upon me. Will I care a single iota if Nolan’s adaptation isn’t true to the text? NO. Good lord, if it was, you wouldn’t catch me watching it. Is EPIC: The Musical still my favorite adaption? Absolutely.
Definitely worth the read to understand the conversation.
This felt like a sweet, fun summer romance book, but something about the pacing felt a little off to me. I think I was expecting more development from the main characters, and the end felt like it came too quickly and didn’t quite have the punch I was expecting. But the narration was solid, and the concept was fun, so I’d definitely recommend to anyone looking for a sweet romance with a lower spice level, especially one with a song-writer and a ex-boy-band member. Heads up though, there are deeper themes as the MC processes her mom’s dementia.
I’ve been picking audiobooks randomly to listen to off of Libby without any prior knowledge of them, so this is definitely not my usual read, but, dang, it ensnared me. This book read like an echo of some of my own college experiences and just hits hard in such a poignant way, moving quickly and taking me along with it for the whole heartbreaking ride. There were some plot points that didn’t fit as well for me, and the ending didn’t have as much impact on me as I thought it would, but the writing style was lovely and flowing and the characters felt so utterly real. Definitely makes me want to read more outside my comfort zone.
I think I originally said 4.5, but I’m still thinking about this one, so I’m upping it to 5.
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Honestly, sometimes you don’t even know the type of book you need to read next.
I love T. Kingfisher’s voice, but this one didn’t make the top three for me on her list. It’s a solid read with great narration, but the pacing was a little on the slower side, and I think I was hoping for more character development by the end. I can’t shake the feeling it didn’t quite pack as much punch as it could have. Recommend for readers looking for a solid fairy-tale retelling in class fairy-tale setting.
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Still a huge T. Kingfisher fan and have more of her books on my TBR!
This was an interesting, fast-paced read. I liked the premise and the characters, but I had the distinct feeling it read like a screenplay adapted quickly into a novel. Though everything was easy to visualize, I feel like the characters and their relationships didn’t quite have the depth that I’m used to. And although it was a fun ride and sets up for a sequel, at the end, I just found myself not really satisfied.
At the 90% mark, I felt like I should be approaching the halfway mark rather than the end, and at the end, I feel like the characters’ development hadn’t made the significant strides I would’ve expected. I also felt like the audiobook narration read a little mechanically so I’m not sure how that affected my experience either. But if you’re looking for a plot-driven, fast-paced thriller with a fantastical edge, this might be for you!
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Kept me turning pages, and I think I’d def still recommend it to sci-fi fans. I’m def curious to see what my husband thinks of it.
This was such a fun audiobook listen! It reminded me of a sci-fi version of The Selection. Though the world here firmly carries us into the far future with spaceships and a prince from another planet, the tech and language come off as very accessible with the narrative emphasis on The-Bachelor-style competition and the relationships between the characters. Though it doesn’t read as a stand-alone, the story is fast-paced and ends on a satisfying note. Recommended for fans of the Selection who want to travel to the stars. Thanks to the author for the audiobook copy, and you can grab your own here!
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I’m always here for some gameshow dating shenanigans.
I haven’t finished an unputdownable book in a while so this was so refreshing. I’ve never read a why-choose romance, but the voices & relationships of the characters felt so real, and the background of political intrigue was fantastically woven. I honestly wish we had picked this one for our romantasy book club, but I’ll definitely be recommending it to all of them! Can’t wait for the sequel!
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The sequel comes out this fall and I’m pumped for it!
Loved this read! The voice was fun, the tension was tight throughout, there’s a seed of romance, the narration was amazing, and I honestly didn’t know who did it until the end. Honestly this may be my favorite read of the year so far, and I highly recommend for anyone looking for a fast-paced whodunnit!
My 7-year-old and 9-year-old were having a discussion about why books are banned, so we listened to this audiobook (which is delightfully narrated by Neil Patrick Harris), and which is also banned in an adjacent county. I’d actually read it to them when they were younger and we found it on their daycare shelf, but they don’t remember.
It’s an adorable, charming book with sweet pictures that they enjoyed when they were young. As older children, discussing why someone would want to ban this book (and others) was invaluable. Highly recommend.
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And just in case it needs to be explicitly said, our family stands passionately against book banning.
Hayley Reese Chow 