The Book Bit: March 2021 Ed.

Hey all! I don't know what the weather's been like wherever you are, but we've had tons and tons of rain. Which on the one hand is very good for all the bulbs I planted in the fall and the new trees we put on our property, but on the other hand I'm a bit tired of vacuuming water out of the basement and my kids dragging mud in the house. So, I think a little less rain would do nicely. I have a bit of a different post for you today because I didn't actually love any of the books I read this month *gasp*! I know! There's usually at least one that I really liked and it's hard for me to write negative reviews, but I really didn't love any of them this month. Let's get started. 

"Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas"- Hunter S. Thompson

We follow a journalist and his lawyer into the underbelly of Las Vegas as they search for the American Dream. At first blush we're told they went to Vegas to cover a car show and then a drug conference but that's hardly the meat of the story. The two load their car up with booze, every drug imaginable, and plan for a roaring good time in Vegas. This is deemed a very classic book to American history but firmly put me down as "didn't get it". We're basically hopping from one drug addled tale to the next and half the time I didn't even know what was going on, where they were going, or what they were doing. It's definitely a trip, but one that's gone horrible wrong. At the end I found myself saying, "Well, ok. I've read that now." And felt there was nothing else to say about it. 

"The Siren"- Tiffany Reisz

Nora, a writer by day, and Dominatrix by night is about to write her best novel yet, if she can get her new editor to read it. Zach is a very demanding British editor with his foot out the door when Nora's manuscript lands on his desk. Will he work with a writer deemed difficult in a genre he thinks is idiotic? As the two begin to work together can they keep from forming a more personal and erotic relationship? Even as more of Nora's past comes to light?

So, this is an S&M book, with a very heavy emphasis on the "S". So, if that's not something you enjoy, do not read this book. I have a lot of issues with this book including the writing style which I found a bit lazy as well as the main cast being a little too big. But my biggest issue with this book is that there is a lot of underage sex, grooming, and predatory behavior. I also think Reisz either cannot or will not write an other relationship model than what's presented in the book. Every relationship (save for Nora and Zach) are a young person falling in love with a much older person (about a 15 year age gap) and I found that extremely repetitive and unrealistic. For a kink book, there was very little sex at all, just a lot of lead up and then what comes after the big show. There was one start to finish sex scene at the very end of the book, but I thought it was poorly written and a bit sloppy. This book has a lot of good reviews, but I just couldn't get on board with it. If you read it and loved it, I would love to chat with you about it. 

"A Discovery of Witches"- Deborah Harkness

Diana has repressed her magic since her parents died when she was seven. She's lived a fairly normal and convincingly human life, until she calls up an old manuscript for her research that is spellbound. Only she manages to open it. Little did she know how much trouble would follow after opening that manuscript. Mathew is centuries old and has been waiting (like every other magical creature) for the manuscript to come to light, but he didn't know the most power witch of all time would be the one to open it. Follow Mathew and Diana as they become friends and eventually more as they navigate the dangerous terrain of creatures looking for the lost manuscript. 

My biggest issue with this book is that is has too many plots. First we're lead to believe this is all about the manuscript, then it turns into a love story (which is extremely misogynistic and borderline stockholm syndrome-esque) and then it becomes about whether two creatures should be allowed to be together, and then we learn about Diana's magical DNA and how she's this magnificent witch if only someone were worthy enough to teach her, and by the end of the book I was having trouble discerning which thread was going to be pulled and what the true direction of the book was. It also needed some heavy editing as about half of the book was just about
what Diana was wearing, what wine Mathew was drinking and them going on various exercise (and not the exciting kind!) activities. I thought the pace was dreadfully slow and it seemed like the book would never end. I was hoping more for a "Davinci Code" angle instead of a "Twilight" one, but we can't always get what we want. I was expecting a much stronger female main character instead of a love struck middle aged woman who needs a man to save her at every corner. This book came highly recommended, so I was a bit disappointed.

That's what I read this month! Like I said, it was a bit of a sad month over here as I usually really like at least one of the books. Well. There's always going to be books we don't love, so I'm moving right along into my April reads. Happy reading!