Review: Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell

Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell by Susanna Clarke
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

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These fantasy books are always a waste of time. The authors can just make up any new law of physics/miracle/world/alien being to suit their needs, which is why the genre never really attracted me. 

So I have no idea why I had this in my wishlist, and then proceeded to buy it, and then decided to read it. Then I stuck with it (over 1,000 pages) for some reason. 

Anyway, I probably still won't admit it to my friends, but I really enjoyed this. I actually opted for the audiobook, which probably helped with all the footnotes. I imagine turning pages every time there was a new footnote would've been a huge pain (the footnotes are pretty intrinsical to the story). 

It is by no means a quick read. But if you feel like diving into a slightly-fantastical Britain (and Europe) during the Napoleonic Wars, then this is probably the book for you. 

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Review: The Guide to the Flying Island: A Novella

The Guide to the Flying Island: A Novella by Lee Upton
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I bought this at the Book Rack before my flight, pretty much purely because it was a short book, which suited me perfectly for an airplane flight. Anyway, it was rather slow, but the scattered twists and turns kept me interested. I can't really say I liked the sparse tone of the novel, but that's probably just me. Also I think the symbolism was over my head (this happens often. I guess I'm not one for symbolism). Still, it is short enough that the few odd happenings can get you through the rest. 

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Review: The Governesses

The Governesses by Anne Serre
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

A bit too odd for me. The symbolism becomes a little more obvious at the very end. At least that's what I think. Something akin to "if a tree falls in the forest but no one is there to hear, does it still make a sound?", although I may be wrong. 

Otherwise it was still a very odd little book. I didn't not enjoy it, but I'm not really sure if I enjoyed it. I may have to think about it a bit more. Still, interesting I guess. 

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