Category: Book review

“Police” By Jo Nesbø Review

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When a police officer is found murdered at the scene of an old unsolved murder case that he was involved in investigating, it can hardly be a coincidence. When the same thing happens to two other officers in a matter of months the pattern is as clear as it is terrifying. None of the old cases were ever solved. The killings are extremely brutal and the police have no leads. What’s more, they’re missing their best investigator.

This book is the 10th book in the “Harry Hole” book series created by no other than Jo Nesbø himself. One of the best crime novel authors I come across so far in my book journey. 

I gotta be honest, this book and the 2 previous once were a big misses for me personally. Because I didn’t like them as much as I liked the book in this series up to book 7. And then after book 7 the whole series started going very downhill for me.

This book has a very generic plot for any police deceptive book in existence. The plot in this book is about a serial killer going solely after cops and the only person who can catch the serial killer is lone main character. 

There are a lot of moments in this book where it foes to hell and just becomes very boring and uninteresting and the situations drag for way too long than they needed to be. I personally think that at least 50 pages could have been removed from this book and it only would have made it better.

The characters in this book all over the place, and even Harry Hole doesn’t feel like Harry Hole in this book. He feels more like a imposter than the Harry Hole we spend 9 books getting to know. But at the same time all the female characters in this book are very manipulative. Like one female character falsely accuses a male character of rape. And the rest of the female characters aren’t better than that.

The writing style is the worst it have been this entire series so far. The writing style didn’t even feel like it was written by Jo Nesbø but rather written by a very newbie ghost writer.

The ending in this book is ridiculous. When you read the end you are left thinking “this cant be the end, my copy must be missing a few pages”. Or at least it was what I was thinking when I read the ending of this book. 

I Give This Book 2 / 5

“From a Certain Point of View: The Empire Strikes Back” By Elizabeth Schaefer Review

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On May 21, 1980, Star Wars became a true saga with the release of The Empire Strikes Back. In honor of the fortieth anniversary, forty storytellers recreate an iconic scene from The Empire Strikes Back, through the eyes of a supporting character, from heroes and villains to droids and creatures. From a Certain Point of View features contributions by bestselling authors and trendsetting artists.

So this book is a collection of 40 short stories which is released what we saw in The Empire Strikes Back.

If you want me to be very honest here, most of those stories in this book were good but they were okay. But surprisingly there were 2-3 very good shorties which really made me be kinder to the stories I didn’t like as much in this book. 

Its important to say that each short stories comes from a less known character from that movie. And we don’t get Luke’s, Leia’s or Han’s perspective but rather from the side characters from the movie. With actually worked very well for this book. Because we get to see the iconic trio through different perspectives rather from their own perspectives. 

To be honest I cant talk about the writing style of this book, because almost all 40 short stories in this book have been written by different authors which of course their own witting styles. 

I think that this book is a nice book to read if you want to expend your star wars knowledge and see the events of The Empire Strikes Back from different perspectives than the iconic trio’s perspectives. But of course this book is very far from being a “must read” in the star wars book universe. 

I Give This Book 3 / 5

“The Count of Monte Cristo” By Alexandre Dumas Review

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Thrown in prison for a crime he has not committed, Edmond Dantès is confined to the grim fortress of If. There he learns of a great hoard of treasure hidden on the Isle of Monte Cristo and he becomes determined not only to escape, but also to use the treasure to plot the destruction of the three men responsible for his incarceration. Dumas’ epic tale of suffering and retribution, inspired by a real-life case of wrongful imprisonment, was a huge popular success when it was first serialized in the 1840s.

I gotta say that I’ve heard a lot of good about this book before getting into. But at the same time I didn’t have any expectations for it personally. And that might be the reason why I liked it so much. 

This book is long let me tell you that. The copy I have of this book has over 1200 pages, and after reading the entire thing I feel like this book should be at least 400 pages shorter and it would have made this book so much better.

The plot is is actually very interesting. But there are a lot of moments in this book where the plot drags for way too long. There were a lot of moments in this book where one situation could go for like 50 or more pages. And when it happened I began so overwhelmed by it since the author would give us way too long descriptions and the characters would randomly go onto 5 pages long monologues. 

The characters here were okay for the most part. The main character is the best character in the entire book. Since we get to know him the best in this entire book. But the side characters here were way too noble for me. Because of their need to be the most noble in the room they had zero personality and it felt like every single character tried to be more noble than the rest of the room. 

I gotta say that reading this book have taken me 5 months to read it front to back. Because during reading this book I needed to take long breaks because this book would drag for too long and I just couldn’t handle to read this book in a short time. And I didn’t want to end with the biggest reading demotivation over this book. 

The writing style in this book was actually very charming and good. Which is the reason why I gave this book a higher rating than I wanted to at the beginning. 

I Give This Book 3 / 5

“Middlegame” By Seanan McGuire Review

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Meet Roger. Skilled with words, languages come easily to him. He instinctively understands how the world works through the power of story. Meet Dodger, his twin. Numbers are her world, her obsession, her everything. All she understands, she does so through the power of math. Roger and Dodger aren’t exactly human, though they don’t realise it. They aren’t exactly gods, either. Not entirely. Not yet. Meet Reed, skilled in the alchemical arts like his progenitor before him. Reed created Dodger and her brother. He’s not their father. Not quite. But he has a plan: to raise the twins to the highest power, to ascend with them and claim their authority as his own.

I had high expectations for this book because I’ve heard a lot of good things about it. But after trying to read it I quickly DNF-ed this book because it was very boring. But let me explain what I mean.

The plot here was all over the place, we follow way too many characters here and its very hard to get track of everyone. From the moment I started reading this book to the moment I DNF-ed I was confused all the time.

The characters here were very weak, and I just couldn’t find the strength in me to care about them or form any thoughts about them. Because my brain refused to give the characters in this book any brainpower. The characters in this book are very silly which makes this book feel like a book for 10 years old. The way the characters talked with each other in this book really made me cringe AF, because it was like the author was trying to make the characters as cartoon-ish as possible and she succeeded but in a very negative way.

When you read the summary of this book then the premise of it sounds very interesting but the moment you start reading this book you realized that the plot is very nonsensical. The entire plot just seems like it was written by second or third graders trying to write a book for themselves.

The writing style was very bad it felt like again second or third graders have written this book. The writing style gets from being very advanced to being way too simple and again to being very advanced. It was like the author couldn’t decide which writing style she wanted to use in this book, so she just went with multiple. 

I DNF-ed this book after having read around 100 pages of this book, just because this entire book was way to bad for me to handle reading the entire book. 

I Give This Book 1 / 5

“Jane Eyre” By Charlotte Brontë Review

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Charlotte Brontë tells the story of orphaned Jane Eyre, who grows up in the home of her heartless aunt, enduring loneliness and cruelty. This troubled childhood strengthens Jane’s natural independence and spirit – which prove necessary when she finds employment as a governess to the young ward of Byronic, brooding Mr Rochester. As her feelings for Rochester develop, Jane gradually uncovers Thornfield Hall’s terrible secret, forcing her to make a choice. Should she stay with Rochester and live with the consequences, or follow her convictions – even if it means leaving the man she loves? A novel of intense power and intrigue, Jane Eyre dazzled readers with its passionate depiction of a woman’s search for equality and freedom.

I didn’t know much about this book before getting into it. A part of me was expecting me not liking this book, but I actually did like this book. I don’t think it was a master piece but I am glad that I read it. 

This book talks about Jane Eyre who is a orphan, and we follow her journey through her passions, anger, defiance, strength and overwhelming desire. And I gotta say that this book takes us in a lot of places. No matter how it sounds I actually liked in a way.

A lot of people on the internet says its a “cute romance” book, but in my opinion its very far away from actually being a “cute romance” book. She had two romances going on and but of them were train wracks. Its no other way to summarizes her romances. 

I personally liked Jane Eyre as the main character, but the rest of the characters in this book I didn’t like as much. All the characters expect of Jane Eyre were very generic and I had hard time trying to tell them apart. 

The writing style in this book was very good, which really surprised me because I wasn’t expecting it to be so good as it was. And because of the writing style I gave this book some extra points for this. 

To be very honest I don’t have any strong feelings or thoughts about this book. Im very neutral about this book and I think it was a okay read. I know I am very picky when it comes to books, but thats just how I function as I human being.

I Give This Book 3 / 5

“Hard Times” By Charles Dickens Review

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Without a moral compass to guide them, the children sink into lives of desperation and despair, played out against the grim background of Coketown, a wretched community shadowed by an industrial behemoth. Louisa falls into a loveless marriage with Josiah Bouderby, a vulgar banker, while the unscrupulous Tom, totally lacking in principle, becomes a thief who frames an innocent man for his crime. Witnessing the degradation and downfall of his children, Gradgrind realizes that his own misguided principles have ruined their lives.

I had a lot of expectations for this book since I’ve heard so much good about it. But after reading this book I gotta say that I’m very neutral about this book. I don’t have any strong feelings or thoughts about it. 

This book is one of Charles Dickens shortest books, and I gotta say that that this one is far from being one of his best books. If you want to get into reading Charles Dickens books don’t start with this one choose instead “A Christmas carol” or “a tale of two cities”. Because if you start with this one, it might quickly end your journey with Charles Dickens.

This book is set in a fictional town and it is about the utilitarian and the industrial influence had on the Victorian society. Its for sure a new topic for me since its the first book I’ve read so far about this topic and I gotta say that this book got me interested in this topic in a way. 

The plot as I said above was very unique for me. And I really liked it for the most part but there were times where I found the plot to be dragging at times. I feel like there were some moments in this book which could have been cut short and it would only make this book better.

The characters in this book were amazing, I feel in love with them very quickly. But towards the end I was so tired of them that I started in a way disliking them. Which really disappoint over this. 

The writing style here was okay, but to be very honest after having read other books from Charles Dickens in the past I know that this guy can much better work than what he did in this book.  

I Give This Book 3 / 5

“In a Dark Place” By Lorraine Warren & Ed Warren Review

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The story of the most terrifying case of demonic possession in the United States. It became the basis for the hit film “The Haunting in Connecticut” starring Virginia Madsen. Shortly after moving into their new home, the Snedeker family is assaulted by a sinister presence that preys one-by-one on their family. Exhausting all other resources, they call up the world-renowned demonologists Ed and Lorraine Warren—who have never encountered a case as frightening as this.

Here we are again talking about another book coming from Ed and Lorraine Warren. I gotta say that this book was much better than the previous book from the Warrens I’ve read. But it to be classify as good it has a long way to go.

I gotta admit that I never been a fan of the Warrens since I always thought that they were just scammers, and trying to make bucks telling the world lies. 

This book is pretty much a horror book rather than a nonfiction book. Because it doesn’t give us any evidence or proof that the things talked about in this book actually happened. So this book as the rest of the Warrens’s book are just a very word of mouth books. 

If you expect to hear a lot from the Warrens in this book, then you will get very surprised. Because 70% of this book is just a retellings of cases. And the Warrens only jump into the picture in the last 30% of this book. Which is really weird since this book is about their cases but we get almost nothing from them.

All the Warrens do in this book, is go into the house, say some prayers and then leave. Which is not great to admit to that in your own book. That you basically didn’t do anything to help those people if this case is real and not made up to sell this book. 

The writing style in this book is well, not the greatest. Sure it is easy and simple to understand. And it makes the entire book quick and fun in a way to read. But at the same time its just way too simple. 

The writing style feels like a writing style straight out of “Goosebumps” books which is of course meant for children. 

I Give This Book 2 / 5

“Cari Mora” By Thomas Harris Review

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Twenty-five million dollars in cartel gold lies hidden beneath a mansion on the Miami Beach waterfront. Ruthless men have tracked it for years. Leading the pack is Hans-Peter Schneider. Driven by unspeakable appetites, he makes a living fleshing out the violent fantasies of other, richer men.

So this book was my first book by Thomas Harris and I cant say anything good about it since for me personally this book was bad, so bad that I DNFed it 70 pages into the book.

The plot in this book is very slowly and very boring. The book starts at a mansion owner years ago Pablo Escobar, and now its abandoned full of horror movie stuff, mannequins etc. And after that the plot went a lot of different directions, there was talking about ““sex furniture” which really got me thinking “WTF is sex furniture?”. The plot in this book was all over the map, and I never knew what was happening in this book so thats probably the main reason why I DNF-ed this book.

The characters in this book are I don’t know. I don’t have any strong feelings towards the characters in this book, probably because I didn’t care enough about them to actually form a opinion about them.

The main character in this book was okay for the most part as long as you don’t start thing over all the questionable things he is doing. 

The writing style in this book was bad, of course it could be just me being very picky as normally. But I didn’t like it, my thoughts about are that it was very weak and very poorly done. Almost as if the author cared more about the paycheck he will get from publishing this book than rather give us a good book. 

I Give This Book 1 / 5

“You Are a Badass: How to Stop Doubting Your Greatness and Start Living an Awesome Life” By Jen Sincero Review

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In this refreshingly entertaining how-to guide, #1 New York Times Bestselling Author and world-traveling success coach, Jen Sincero, serves up 27 bite-sized chapters full of hilariously inspiring stories, sage advice, easy exercises, and the occasional swear word. If you’re ready to make some serious changes around here, You Are a Badass will help you: Identify and change the self-sabotaging beliefs and behaviors that stop you from getting what you want, blast past your fears so you can take big exciting risks, figure out how to make some damn money already, learn to love yourself and others, set big goals and reach them – it will basically show you how to create a life you totally love, and how to create it now.

I gotta say that this book is probably the best self help book Ive read this year. This talks about some pretty useful things which I personally found to be helpful. At the same time this book offers you some great techniques to make your life better.

The writing style in this book was very good, because it was like the author knew exactly what words to use too completely grab your attention and to not let it go until the very end of the book.

If you been following this website for a while then you will know that I’ve reviewed my fair share of self-help books in the past, but this one is unique because it talks about things which weren’t mentioned in the books I read in the best which really made me give this book some extra points for.

At the same time this book motivates you to actually put to use al the things which this book talks about. Which for me it rarely happens when a self-help book actually motives me rather than throw some mental health tactics down my throat.

At the same time this book is very easy and fun to read. Which really surprised me because most self help books turns out to be very uninteresting for me to read. But this one was different. I actually enjoyed reading this one.

This book is very hard to put down, because its so interesting and fun to read. I personally read this book in one day because I was so sucked into it and I just couldn’t put it down. 

I Give This Book 5 / 5

“The Haunted: One Family’s Nightmare” By Robert Curran & Ed Warren & Lorraine Warren Review

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Jack and Janet Smurl and their family have been victims of abuse – both mental and physical – by inhuman entities that threaten their sanity, and even their lives. Over several years, the Smurls together with numerous other people – neighbours, police, priests, researchers – have witnessed scores of supernatural events at the family house: the ripping out of ceiling fixtures, the levitation and beating of the family dog, Janet’s strangling by unseen hands, the repeated appearance of a black hooded figure – and more. And they can’t escape – the demon even follows them when they leave their house.

To be very honest here my thoughts are all over the place when it comes to this book because I don’t believe in the things in this book is talking about and I treated it like a spooky story you tell over a fire place. 

The beginning of this book was actually pretty good but as you continue to read the book it quickly turns into a big mess and it becomes all over the place. 

I don’t know if it is just me but this entire book is written as a fiction book rather than a nonfiction book of haunting / possessions which allegedly happened in real life. Which really didn’t help me to like this book a lot more.

The writing style in this book wasn’t the greatest I’ve seen in the Ed and Lorraine Warren’s books. If you want me to be really honest I feel like the writing style in this book is the weakest than in any other book written by the Warrens.

This book has some few scary moments here and there, but most of the allegedly ghost / demon / whatever moments which happened in this book doesn’t have any evidence shown and more or less seem like just a tall tale told by someone who wants to cash in on book deals, interviews, movie deals etc.

I Give This Book 2 / 5