Welcome to my post, today I’m going to be torturing myself with 1 star reviews for your enjoyment! There aren’t any spoilers so don’t worry about that. Just as a disclaimer, of course everyone has their own opinion and I’m not trying to hate on anyone, just defending my favourite books!

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Circe

Circe is definitely one that not everyone will like (and one a lot of people won’t), but I’m so glad I didn’t read this review before I read Circe because I might not have picked it up! There is definitely adventure, but not the heart-racing, fast paced kind. There is also romance but I feel like there’s definitely more focus on Circe herself, so I don’t see the problem with that. Madeline Miller’s writing style is beautiful and poetic so maybe not for you if you prefer straightforward language. And yes, there is a lot of herbs, Circe is a badass cottagecore witch!!

Again, this come down to preference I think. I mostly value writing style and character based stories over an action-packed plot, and those are the parts that Circe is really strong in. If you want an emotional story when you really get into someone’s head, then I’m sure you’ll love this. I understand that Circe wasn’t very assertive for most of the book, but that’s the point of her development? Also, the plot is really an account of Circe’s life, which I found so interesting– the incorporation of mythology feels really natural. There is space for more than just Rick Riordan in mythology, trust me!

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Homegoing

These reviews are all very preference-based and the reason for hating it don’t warrant a 1 star rating in my opinion. If you found each separate story enjoyable at least, then how is it a 1 star read? I get if you don’t like short stories, but I feel like each story was resolved nicely and the ending tied everything together so well, so I don’t see how it was shallow.

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Mexican Gothic

Well at least they can appreciate the cover if nothing else! How is there nothing gothic about it? The atmosphere screamed gothic and the descriptions were so beautiful. But Mexican Gothic went beyond the gothic genre with social commentary on race and gender, so are they saying it isn’t gothic because it isn’t by a white author?? I hope not. Also, I’ve read Rebecca and Wuthering Heights. Yes they were gothic and atmospheric but honestly I preferred Mexican Gothic because it was a breath of fresh air from other books like that.

I don’t understand the comment on the 1940s setting, I think there were lots of references to it, like Noemi’s clothing and Social Darwinism for example. Why does it have to be modern? Also, I get the comments on Mexican culture. I think it would have been cool to add in Spanish in the dialogue, but I don’t think that’s a reason to rate it one star.

I think it’s funny how someone hated it because it wasn’t scary and one person hated it because it was really creepy, and someone said it was predictable and the other said the plot was crazy. I wouldn’t go in expecting to be scared out of your mind, but it definitely is spooky, and the book was fairly slow-paced but full of intrigue and twists.

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Crooked Kingdom

These reviews make me so sad! Crooked Kingdom was so much better than Six of Crows for me, and I understand that not everyone will but you explore the characters you grew attached to in Six of Crows in a lot more depth, there’s more great dialogue and group interactions, budding romances, the plot picks up and there’s more twists and turns and the brilliance of Kaz’s plans, what more can I say?

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Thanks for reading, this really hurt me so I hope you enjoyed it!

—ella♥

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