List: ya

Wow. Easily my favourite book of the series so far.

Die roten Matrosen

by Klaus Kordon · published 1994 · read 2004-05-01

Revolution! This book made me understand, at least a little, what happened in Germany's past. It takes place during the 1918 revolution, and the protagonist is a boy from a worker family in Berlin's Wedding district. It's specific, it's fun, it's well-sourced. It very much stands on the pro-communist side of things (who, after all, did not win the revolution), so he may be responsible for my early dislike of socialists. Regardless, it's an excellent book, and made sure that I could never forget what happened in those days, and who key players like Ebert, Scheidemann and Noske were.

The Cry of the Icemark

by Stuart Hill · published 2005 · read 2009-01-01

One of my favourite fantasy books back in the day. Thirrin, at age 14(?) becomes the warrior queen of the Icemark, and has to find allies and prepare for war and invasion. Thirrin is far from perfect, but ferocious and amazing. Her friends and allies are amazing, both the magical ones (wizards, giant talking snow leopards) and the natural ones. It takes all of her skill to organise a big retreat and then an assault as the ice thaws.

Mimus

by Lilli Thal · published 2003 · last read 2021-01-21

Mimus is the wonderfully cruel tale of Prince Florin. In the struggle of two nations, the baddies use the age-old plot of suggesting peace-talks to come closer to their enemies. They capture the royal family and important court officials. Everybody is imprisoned, except Prince Florin, who is humiliatingly apprenticed to the court jester. That's the short setup. The book follows Florin in his reluctant apprenticeship to Mimus, through hardship, diplomacy, heartbreak and the realisation that life goes on.

Frostfeuer

by Kai Meyer · published 2005 · read 2009-09-01

Snow Queen is a terrifying fairy tale. This adaptation is similarly dark and way more Russian. Our protagonist is a poor orphan who has never left the hotel she was born in. And now she has to help a mysterious guest against a mighty sorceress? All the while discovering a plot on Tsar Alexander's life? Worth a read.

The Water Mirror

by Kai Meyer · published 2001 · last read 2009-07-01

Magical Venice with mermaids (talking, dangerous, rarely helpful, but the exceptions are amazing)! Magical egypt with sphinxes (talking, dangerous, rarely helpful, but the exceptions are amazing)! Magical hell world with demons (dangerous, no exceptions)! Mirror makers, mirror worlds, young orphans, dangerous travels. Betrayal, loyalty. You know the drill. It's not the best and not the most creative YA, and the worldbuilding is a bit iffy in places, but it's creative enough to make it up to me.

The Amulet of Samarkand

by Jonathan Stroud · published 2003 · read 2007-01-01

Even though I was aware that Stroud was using repetetive cheap tricks to get me to enjoy the story, I still enjoyed the story, and that's that.

A Wizard of Mars

by Diane Duane · published 2010 · read 2016-05-17

I loved this one. Even if you're not a space nut, or not a real sci-fi fan, I suspect this book will really work for you. The combination of space, and magic, and physics, and human and alien conflict, sprinkled with a bit of time line technicalities? Yeah, more, please.

A Wizard Alone

by Diane Duane · published 2002 · read 2016-05-12

This one was again much better, and illustrates a lot of the reasons I enjoy this series. I love how Duane deals with autism here, in many ways. I love how she takes care to take it seriously, and doesn't paint it as a defect. Kit has difficulty connecting with it because of his preconceived ideas about how autism works. I also like that we see how we see Nita's grieving in a really realistic way, without pity or anything.

So You Want to Be a Wizard

by Diane Duane · published 1983 · read 2016-05-05

I really loved this book - it reminded me of Harry Potter, naturally, but better written and better thought-out. Magic actually has a system, people have motivations and actions have actual consequences.

Inkheart

by Cornelia Funke · published 2003 · read 2006-08-01

Inkheart understood me. It understood my dorky love for books, and how I wanted to jump into a story. It got feeling alone, and it got nerding out with others. And it made other books come to life – and I loved it for it. Some of it follows YA rules and annoyances: it's slow to develop and the protagonist is sometimes grating. But that's perfectly fine when balancing it against the imaginative story.

Inkdeath

by Cornelia Funke · published 2007 · read 2007-03-01

Concluding the Inkworld series, and concluding it well. Like all the books, it's a bit too long with characters who are just a bit too bland. But this book at least has a good share of action and plotting (possibly too much, looking at its length), and a satisfying ending, and that's more than many authors can manage.

Die Verschworenen

by Ursula Poznanski · published 2013 · read 2017-01-09

Rias Gruppe wird dezimiert (sogar eher im ursprünglichen Sinn), und nach einigen Nachforschungen in Jordans Chroniken verlassen drei der vier Überlebenden die Wildnis, um mehr in Erfahrung zu bringen. Bringt leider nicht so viel an Fakten, aber bringt Ria auf die richtigen Gedanken und sie beendet das Buch, wo sie es begann.

Die Verratenen

by Ursula Poznanski · published 2012 · read 2017-01-09

by Ursula Poznanski · published 2014 · read 2017-01-11

Mehr, bitte!

Die Vernichteten

Good conclusion to an excellent series.

Erebos

by Ursula Poznanski · published 2010 · read 2018-03-12

Woah. Unendlich viel besser als Ready Player One oder Epic. Richtig richtig gute und gruselige Fassung eines KI-gesteuerten RPGs, das Auswirkungen auf die echte Welt hat. Hnnng.

Der Talisman der Macht

by Licia Troisi · published 2005 · read 2007-10-01

Decent conclusion to a decent series.

Im Land des Windes

by Licia Troisi · published 2004 · last read 2021-01-18

Worldbuilding! I forgot about the worldbuilding of this book. For example, there are tower cities where everything is organised by the tower layers.

Have Space Suit—Will Travel

by Robert A. Heinlein · published 1958 · read 2020-06-01

I usually avoid classic sci-fi: I've had mostly negative run-ins, where books had aged badly and either didn't interest me or felt off-putting. So, like Zelazny and Clarke and a bunch of others, I've been postponing Heinlein.

Krokodil im Nacken

by Klaus Kordon · published 2002 · read 2010-05-01

Literary introduction to the horrors of the GDR and the Stasi. I don't remember the book well enough to say anything about its accuracy. Kordon usually tells well-researched stories that support the current narrative about past events, so that's what I'd expect. It's uncharacteristically long, and I don't remember much to justify the length.

Mit dem Rücken zur Wand

by Klaus Kordon · published 1990 · read 2003-03-01

The second book in this series takes place fifteen years after the revolution, during the fall of the Weimar Republic. It's haunting and gives a face to dissidents, to jews, to communists, and of course to nazis and collaborators. I was already emotionally invested in the series, so I didn't see the big turncoat coming (which my mother spotted from a mile away). The book didn't teach me many new things, if I recall correctly, but it cemented a sense of oppression and violence and the general social situation at the time.

Sabriel

by Garth Nix · published 1995 · read 2017-01-01

I really really liked this book. It's very solid fantasy, it has its own plot, its characters are wonderful and not cliche and I very much want to read more of this. Sabriel as the new Abhorsen was a joy. One point less than perfect because … well, it does not feel quite perfect. Minor inconsistencies in language, some lazy plot points … but still. It's a really, really good fantasy book.

Lirael

by Garth Nix · published 2001 · read 2017-12-25

After the first book was so self-contained and the second is so very separate, I did not expect the cliffhanger in the end. I, again, love the female protagnoist a lot, although her companion is overpowered. Looking forward to the next part.

Binti

by Nnedi Okorafor · published 2015 · read 2018-06-07

I liked Binti a lot more than Akata Witch, which I enjoyed very much. Binti was impressive and creative scifi, and the tha fast pace (du to the <100 pages) was refreshing and very well executed. Binti is a wonderful protagonist, and the culture and belief system sketched out in the book made me hungry for more. (Also: living ships?! Living ships!)

Akata Witch

by Nnedi Okorafor · published 2011 · read 2018-03-04

I definitely fell in love with this book. The only critique I can think of right now is that in the beginning the dialogue (and narration) was off, like it was more meant for the screen than for paper. But it's really really good regardless. This is how I like my fantasy. And also, finally somebody does four teenager teams right. Sunny and her friends are just lovely, and their whole world stands out because it is so vivid and real.

Dealing with Dragons

by Patricia C. Wrede · published 1990 · read 2021-10-31

A sweet, sweet book: Princess Cimorene can't be bothered with pesky princess stuff, because she'd much rather learn Latin, or fencing, or cooking, or bookkeeping, or juggling, or literally anything any profession at court could teach her. Frustrated and running from a terrifyingly boring engagement, she runs away and goes to live with a dragon. She's the first princess to do so without being kidnapped first, but things work out pretty well – her practicality sees her ready to deal with magic and sorting the library (plus, extremely sensibly fireproofing herself), but also with annoying knights with a saviour complex, evil wizards and dragon politics.

The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making

by Catherynne M. Valente · published 2011 · read 2016-10-20

This is a very nice little book, filled with Faerie and language that is exceedingly ornate but never quite pretentious. And it's a modern fairy tale at that - September, the protagonist, didn't grow too close to my heart, but the narrator did, and that is good enough.

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

by J.K. Rowling · published 1999 · read 2001-09-01

There's nothing left to be said about Harry Potter books. This was the first one that felt like Harry was changing, growing up, getting some agency. The whole book felt like autumn, with the smell of wet leaves clinging to everything. Naturally I liked the whole "finding a new home" arc. And, equally naturally, I felt very seen in the plot arc that introduces time travel for the primary purpose of reading more books and learning more things. This might be my favourite part of the series (either this one or the first).

The Lives of Christopher Chant

by Diana Wynne Jones · published 1988 · read 2006-05-01

Chrestomanci was my first encounter with the phenomenon that is Diana Wynne Jones. I liked the books – they seemed to strike the tricky balance between whimsy, absurdity, and having an actual plot. I can still remember how Christopher starts going into other worlds, touching things to make them solid. It's a great image.

The Strange Case of the Alchemist’s Daughter

by Theodora Goss · published 2017 · read 2019-08-06

The Strange Case of the Alchemist's Daughter by Theodora Goss was an absolute delight. It takes place in Victorian London, and we see the daughters of Dr Jekyll, Mr Hyde, Dr Moreau, and other classics of Victorian literature trying to unravel the mystery of their creation (in absence of their creators, who mostly died gruesome deaths, perfectly appropriate). It's a lovely book, perfectly well-written, utterly charming and entertaining, featuring a lot of well-researched facts. References are abound. If this is not the age or type of literature you feel comfortable with, it might not be the book for you, but otherwise, it's the very best of books for a relaxing read.

Catfishing on CatNet

by Naomi Kritzer · published 2019 · read 2021-05-13

Catfishing on CatNet was tons of fun. It's a not-quite-light YA about a helpful AI who just wants to look at cat pictures and also help their friends. In a way it's the YA version of MurderBot. It includes some heavy themes, and they are generally handled well. Kritzer has a really good grip on chatroom language and managed to write all those parts good without "hello, fellow kids" vibes, which I appreciated a lot.

Die rote Zora und ihre Bande

by Kurt Held · published 1941 · read 2007-08-01

Zora is wild and cannot be tamed. Together with her friends, they live on the streets (and in their own hidden secret castle) of Croatia. They steal to survive and have all sorts of adventures with friends, against the autorities, helping some people, hindering others. It even has a truly positive ending, even if it's forced.

Red, White & Royal Blue

by Casey McQuiston · published 2019 · read 2019-07-07

Red, White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston is a rom-com, pure and simple. It's light-hearted, it's witty, it doesn't feel like "Hello, fellow kids" – what more do you want?

The Carnivorous Carnival

by Lemony Snicket · published 2002 · read 2017-02-07

And we finally get some backstory (and a real cliffhanger)

The Reptile Room

by Lemony Snicket · published 1999 · read 2017-02-03

First time's an ~~accident~~ unfortunate event, second time's establishing a theme: Adults are either criminally incompetent or evil, good adults die, everything is terrible, but you get to expand your vocabulary. Somebody warn readers that things are only going to go downhill from here – oh wait.

The Bad Beginning

by Lemony Snicket · published 1999 · read 2017-02-02

I just ate this one up. I don't think there is a thing I dislike about it (and for the record, I think the show is just as good!).

The Slippery Slope

by Lemony Snicket · published 2003 · read 2017-02-08

Great amounts of backstory, action, development, and moral conflict!

The End

by Lemony Snicket · published 2006 · read 2017-02-21

by Lemony Snicket · published 2005 · read 2017-02-14

Yes. <3

The Penultimate Peril

I loved the whole Denounement Hotel, especially having it organized according to the Dewey Decimal System.

The Austere Academy

by Lemony Snicket · published 2000 · read 2017-02-05

School! Evil school, granted, but school with new friends nonetheless!

The Hostile Hospital

by Lemony Snicket · published 2001 · read 2017-02-07

Oh, the first shadows of moral conflict!

Across the Nightingale Floor

by Lian Hearn · published 2002 · last read 2021-01-16

Everybody is extremely dramatic in this book. Very YA. But it stood up to a re-read surprisingly well: Young boy in faux-Japan gets his family murdered, is adopted into a clan and things escalate from there. Oh, and it turns out he's not only adopted by the rightful leader of the clan, he's also born to a long line of secret assassins and has lots of magical gifts. And everybody wants a piece of them.

Grass for his Pillow

by Lian Hearn · published 2003 · last read 2021-01-17

Enjoyable second part of the series: Our heroes encounter adversity and have to make bad choices and live with their decisions. Less comfort read than the first part, different and good. The ending is extremely stupid and sets up the exceedingly stupid cause for the drama causing part three and four.

The Stone Light

by Kai Meyer · published 2002 · read 2008-08-01

The worldbuilding is better, the characters are only slightly worse, and the plot couldn't be worse than the first one, and is possibly slightly better? I don't remember, I was busy being amazed at the worldbuilding.

The Glass Word

by Kai Meyer · published 2002 · read 2007-07-01

Finishing off the series, and not necessarily in a good way: Lots of finishing off characters, too. I thought that was good, because it's somewhat couragous and I never liked plot armour. Not great art, but enjoyable, particularly for teenagers.

Ptolemy’s Gate

by Jonathan Stroud · published 2005 · read 2008-10-01

Stronger than the second part, if only by a bit. A very decent conclusion, without resorting to the cheapest of cheap endings (boy saves world, gets girl).

The Ring of Solomon

by Jonathan Stroud · published 2010 · read 2011-01-01

Prequel. I read it too late after the original series, I think, but it brought back plenty of memories of the trilogy, both good and bad ones.

The Golem’s Eye

by Jonathan Stroud · published 2004 · read 2007-05-01

Repeating the formula that works, this book is a bit more tiresome but still alright.

Wizards at War

by Diane Duane · published 2005 · read 2016-05-15

While there was a lot of action, the book still dragged on and on for me. I liked the recurring characters, and even the resolution, but I didn't care for the pacing, and while the dangers and risks sounded dire, they didn't feel like it. Nice parts, but a bit meh overall.

A Wizard Abroad

by Diane Duane · published 1993 · read 2016-05-09

Nita goes to Ireland - it felt less important, somehow, and just like following a pattern. But since the pattern is good, I still enjoyed reading it.

The Wizard’s Dilemma

by Diane Duane · published 2001 · read 2016-05-09

Nita faces temptation … a lot. Felt like a Hiob story in many ways. She has to deal with her mother dying and learns how to change whole universes to try and deal with it. Reminded me a lot of Buffy in the same situation, only a lot younger (but including the outcome and the younger sister, btw).

Deep Wizardry

by Diane Duane · published 1985 · read 2016-05-07

I liked the first book in the series a bit more, although Duane does a lot of nice world-building here, both regarding the deep ocean and the whales, and Nita's family (Dairine, mom, and dad).

Inkspell

by Cornelia Funke · published 2005 · read 2006-01-01

More Inkworld shenanigans: Meggie now reads herself and others into the story, and also has to deal with the original author, who turns out to be very annoying. The story builds extremely slowly and I enjoyed it mostly for the worldbuilding. The characters are – with one exception – unimpressive and not exactly enjoyable.

Elanus

by Ursula Poznanski · published 2016 · read 2019-04-04

Elanus by Ursula Poznanski is an alright YA thriller/mystery. (Keep in mind that I'm not the intended audience anymore, though). She writes a very good unreliable/unsympathetic protagonist – a way too smart 17-year old boy, who by way of his self-built illicit drone stumbles into a dangerous secret at his new school. Very solid writing. It's very clear from the start that the protagonist is an asshole, but with YA you'd want to make this clear to encourage engagement with the book (and to prevent any kids from finding him too much of a role model). Well-researched in terms of technical capacity, well-written, and while the twist is a bit predictable, the book is still solid.

Der Auftrag des Magiers

by Licia Troisi · published 2004 · read 2009-12-01

Protagonist rides more dragons, is more stubborn, gets a bit of personal growth.

Magician: Apprentice

by Raymond E. Feist · published 1982 · read 2020-07-24

This was a nice read – It's very much a classical fantasy book in the better sense. The arc is generally coming-of-age of the poor underdog boy, but in a sensible (while generic) setting. It was especially refreshing that all people in the book are not generally malevolent, are able to talk about their differences, and that the rags-to-riches part happens early and isn't dangled under the reader's nose forever.

Ein Trümmersommer

by Klaus Kordon · published 1982 · read 2006-04-01

Honestly, I've always preferred Kordon's other book on 1945, "Der erste Frühling". But if you don't want to read a trilogy, then this is the next best thing. Kordon is reliably good at making teenagers understand what teenagers in other times experienced.

Der erste Frühling

by Klaus Kordon · published 1995 · read 2004-12-01

Concluding the series, we get to see the daughter of the first book's protagonist live through 1945 and deal with everything the world throws at her. Among other things: lies her grandparents told everybody to keep her away from nazi youth organisations, her father returning from the KZ, her whole worldview toppling along with her country, practical post-war problems, and adolescence.

Watership Down

by Richard Adams · published 1972 · read 2022-02-28

Rabbits. One of those children's books that does also work for adults, but only while you make allowances for it being written for kids. I feel like I want to qualify everything with that sentence. Like: I did like the strong characters and how the storytelling managed to build an overarching sense of dread despite the episodic narrative. I liked the legends and myths, and how the rabbits (who would work just as well as aliens, lets be honest) are always being grounded in their behaviour, reflexes and needs. Maybe it's just that by now, 1970s sexism reads as jarring, or that 1970s environmental pessimism reads as factual, but the book never quite drew me in – I always knew I was reading a book, and analysing it as I went. Which isn't the worst thing to happen when you read a kids cult classic way too late. This book is part of the 2022 Backlog Incident.

Abhorsen

by Garth Nix · published 2003 · read 2018-02-18

Very YA. Good YA! But … too YA for me atm for a five star rating. Much better YA than many things I know, though. Doesn't feel like it can keep up with the previous parts of the series.

Cemetery Boys

by Aiden Thomas · published 2020 · read 2021-06-12

Coming-of-age novel set in an urban fantasy: Yadriel is a Latinx trans boy in the US. His whole family are brujx and don't accept him as a brujo. Naturally, he spends the novel proving himself – but with a fair bit of reflection and friendships and non-transition related plot thrown in. Intersectional YA is pretty cool and all (most non-Latinx people here are queer by default, delightfully), and my only issue with this was how predictable the plot is and how YA possibly just isn't for me anymore.

The Wish List

by Eoin Colfer · published 2000 · read 2008-08-01

Meg Finn, 15, is a troublemaker and also dead. Because her good and bad deeds balanced out perfectly, she has to go back and help her last victim go through his bucket list – all while her last partner sabotages the mission.

A Bluer Shade of White

by Alexander Wales · published 2014 · read 2018-06-30

It's rational fiction on Frozen. Cool, but characterisations are very much on the nose and progression is weird. Enjoyable short read though.

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

by J.K. Rowling · published 2000 · read 2001-03-01

This was the first Harry Potter book that I read while it was still new. That was a novel experience for me: Most of my books up to that point had been old, or at least definitely not new. Reading an ongoing series was exciting. I don't remember much speculation about what would happen next, except for some recurring "Is Snape good or evil" debate.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

by J.K. Rowling · published 2007 · read 2007-12-01

Here ends the story – and by the time the ending came, I wasn't all that invested in the world anymore. It was interesting, it was dramatic, but it was far from life-changing. Much of it seemed more of an intellectual exercise to me: How will she wrap things up, who is going to live? And after getting answers, I closed that chapter of my reading life. The excitement had been long gone.

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

by J.K. Rowling · published 2005 · read 2006-06-01

Imagine being 14 when this book comes out, and being just not quite good enough to read it in English. So you have to wait for painful months while your mother (your own mother, the traitor) reads it in English and can then threaten you with spoilers.

The Golden Compass

by Philip Pullman · published 1995 · read 2008-11-01

Widely liked, but didn't do it for me. Though that's not quite right: I adored the setup: Oxford, the river, the journey. But soon, it became preachy the same way the Narnia books did (only, of course, for an opposed cause). I can't stand preachy books for children.

Dark Lord of Derkholm

by Diana Wynne Jones · published 1998 · read 2020-07-30

It has been over a decade since I read my last book by Diana Wynne Jones, but I'd like to think that I would have recognised this as hers by the playful prose and convoluted plot where you will miss half the fun if you blink. I had left this book on my reading list as a guaranteed good book, and after being so disappointed by Romanitas, I needed the palate cleanser badly.

Cart and Cwidder

by Diana Wynne Jones · published 1975 · read 2021-08-07

Neat YA book. Read this as comfort read and because you can't go wrong with Diana Wynne Jones, really. A group of teenagers thrust into political conflict, with a side of magic, by way of mythical music, handled by them as a wandering troupe. I didn't find the story particularly compelling (authoritarian countries bad, liberal countries good blah), but as always, Diana Wynne Jones absolutely delivers on characters and group dynamics.

The Magicians of Caprona

by Diana Wynne Jones · published 1980 · read 2007-03-01

Romeo and Juliet: magic edition! Feuding Italian families, throwing magic at each other and being delightfully temperamental. Add in nosy kids, moody teenagers, snarky cats and almighty matriarchs … yes, I really like this book. It's among my top books by Diana Wynne Jones, and that's saying something.

Conrad’s Fate

by Diana Wynne Jones · published 2005 · read 2008-05-01

Young Chrestomanci, as seen by outside eyes. Fun, but mostly fun if you have read any other book of the series. Gave me Doctor Who vibes, funnily enough.

Witch Week

by Diana Wynne Jones · published 1982 · read 2008-09-01

Parallel England, where a teacher at a boarding school is accused of witchcraft. The inquisition is called and a terrified pupil has to look for a way out … It gets very dark very fast.

Into the Labyrinth

by John Bierce · published 2018 · read 2020-10-20

Magic school fantasy, including a sentient library, actual magic with actual learning, and a misfit band of three friends, standing up to the bullies. It's post-Harry-Potter and it shows, but that's not necessarily a bad thing.

Little Brother

by Cory Doctorow · published 2008 · read 2013-05-01

Cory is always preaching. I don't like preachy books (look at all my Narnia hate). Even when I like the message, as I do here, I'd like to be taken more seriously as a reader.

Catching Fire

by Suzanne Collins · published 2009 · read 2012-08-01

Less hungry, more games, bits of revolutioning.

The Hunger Games

by Suzanne Collins · published 2008 · read 2012-09-01

Preferable when compared to Twilight. Can hardly be blamed for starting the whole YA dystopia trend, but I'm blaming it nevertheless.

Mockingjay

by Suzanne Collins · published 2010 · read 2013-03-01

Only read this book to complete the trilogy.

Lycidas

by Christoph Marzi · published 2004 · read 2011-07-01

Young Adult intrigue in a magical London with heaven and hell, nobility and tube rats playing their roles. Fun, but a bit on the long side.

Red Rising

by Pierce Brown · published 2014 · read 2017-07-13

Wooop! Sci-Fi version of Hunger Games with real characters (Mary Sue-ish, but still fun). Also, touches of Brave New World in terms of castes.

The Ersatz Elevator

by Lemony Snicket · published 2001 · read 2017-02-06

Ehh. Hating on trendy people is boring, but it wasn't too bad.

The Wide Window

by Lemony Snicket · published 2000 · read 2017-01-01

There will be a day when I don't accidentally read the book title as "The Wide Widow".

The Miserable Mill

by Lemony Snicket · published 2000 · read 2017-01-01

In which a mill is rather miserable. A word which here means …

The Grim Grotto

by Lemony Snicket · published 2004 · read 2017-02-08

Slightly less development, but for the first time a truly unexpected twist.

The Vile Village

by Lemony Snicket · published 2001 · read 2017-02-07

There are always some small hints about Mr Snicket, which is the worst thing about the whole thing.

Das Pentomino-Orakel

by Blue Balliett · published 2004 · read 2004-09-01

Dan Brown, kids edition: Children have to solve weird puzzles where the correct solution is far from obvious unless you're the author. Better than Brown in that there's a better reason for the obscurity and also there are no illuminati.

The Harsh Cry of the Heron

by Lian Hearn · published 2006 · read 2006-03-01

Concluding the series, we get the "15 years later" book we never wanted. Things fall apart. Then they fall apart some more. There's a lot of death to go around, much of it by backstabbing.

Wizard’s Holiday

by Diane Duane · published 2003 · read 2016-05-13

This was a very generic book in the series. Didn't dislike it, but... yeah

Pala und die seltsame Verflüchtigung der Worte

by Ralf Isau · published 2002 · read 2004-11-01

Pala is a book about language, about literature, about poetry – and yet, I didn't really like it. Maybe it's that I had high expectations from Franz Fühmann's masterwork, or that it just felt like it was trying too hard. Whatever it was, despite all the reasons I should love it, I don't.

The Ten Thousand Doors of January

by Alix E. Harrow · published 2019 · read 2021-05-13

Coming-of-age stories are possibly just not for me anymore. The book-driven portal fantasy is nice enough, and the helping of "remember how bad turn-of-the-century racism is" is not bad if a bit forced, but … I just didn't care about the predictable story. If only there had been a bigger focus on the portals, or the portal writing, or the portal worlds … I can appreciate why this book is popular, but it felt more generic than it should have to me.

City of Bones

by Cassandra Clare · published 2007 · read 2016-11-20

YA fantasy. Clary loses her mother, finds her father Valentine and meets her brother Jace. Vampires, werewolves, fay, the works. Short, and enjoyable just like fast food is occasionally enjoyable. Twilight level with less thought and more action.

Ender’s Shadow

by Orson Scott Card · published 1999 · read 2020-08-04

Re-reading Ender's Game before reading Ender's Shadow – the book that tells the same story, only from the perspective of Bean – was not the best idea. I think I would have liked this book better if I had had only a hazy memory of Ender's Game.

The City of Brass

by S.A. Chakraborty · published 2017 · read 2021-09-04

Set in Napoleonic Egypt, this is the story of Djinn, Daeva and related beings. Didn't do much for me – the concept of a hidden city of supernatural beings with tons of infighting sounded intriguing, and the stagesetting very promising, but. The protagonist is kind of flat and predictably Chosen (doesn't remember her childhood, knows magic language, has special powers, is very poor), and the dynamic between her and her semi-romantic sidekick fell extremely flat.

The Eternity Code

by Eoin Colfer · published 2003 · read 2005-12-01

Artemis gets more growth and a mind wipe, both completely deserved. Holly gets less growth and more voice, which is also nice. All in all an enjoyable book, up to the standard set by Arctic Incident, and better than the first book.

Artemis Fowl

by Eoin Colfer · published 2001 · read 2004-02-01

Artemis Fowl was fun at the time – I particularly enjoyed decoding the secret message in the decoration on every page. It was a good thing to read at the time, but nothing I'm going to revisit any time soon – I don't think it would stand up to a re-read.

The Arctic Incident

by Eoin Colfer · published 2002 · read 2004-06-01

Arguably an instance of the second book being better than the first book: We see more of Holly, Artemis is forced to cooperate. There's more banter, there's more depth to both our heroes, and the plot is more intriguing.

The Opal Deception

by Eoin Colfer · published 2005 · read 2005-10-01

Artemis does some more Artemis things. I don't have any memories of this book at all.

Ready Player One

by Ernest Cline · published 2011 · read 2015-08-05

I liked Ready Player One (and remember, three stars means 'liked it', not 'meh').

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

by J.K. Rowling · published 2003 · read 2003-01-01

My low point of the series. I remember getting this book, at a midnight release party, and then reading it within the next day. I wasn't immediately disappointed, but I hated the whole "teenager yells at cloud" thing, and while Umbridge was delightfully evil, I just wasn't on board with the weird plot shape and the growing pains.

The Cruel Prince

by Holly Black · published 2018 · read 2021-08-16

Teenagers are pulled from their normal life to grow up with their half-sibling in Faerie. All the tropes included: no lies but lots of politics, cruel magic, muggle-baiting, beauty with sharp edges. The characters are pretty one-dimensional, and every twist is visible from half a book away. I liked how the protagonist made use of her ability to lie and the fae's tendency to not even suspect lies, but it's not enough to carry a book.

Dragonflight

by Anne McCaffrey · published 1968 · read 2022-03-13

Okay look. Dragonriders? A whole social group structured around dragons?!! A whole society slowly losing their belief in the ancient threat that made them support and accept the dragon riders? It sounds so, so good. But. The book, first part in the intimidatingly long Pern series, was a decent read, but shows its age in some meh ways and in some other actively uncomfortable ways. I know the 60s were a different time, but also, Babel-17 was published two years before this book, so I'm not inclined to be too understanding. The gender roles are beyond lazy and verge into terrible (I kept expecting subversion because this could not possibly be serious). All the women kinda suck, including the protagonist, and I don't even want to go into the way sex is handled. Yikes. Y i k e s. The worldbuilding is great and fun, and I want more. The harpers? The ancient traditions showing that spacefaring humans came to Pern and engineered dragons to protect against the extraterrestrial treat? All that slaps. But then there's the plot. It's a bit all over the place, I believe because the book was made up from different stories, which is fine. But why, why the time travel? I'm not sure I'm willing to suspend my disbelief about the arbitrary rules of time travel for 23 more books. This book is part of the 2022 Backlog Incident.

The Last Starfighter

by Alan Dean Foster · published 1984 · read 2018-04-29

I'm sure the movie is much better than this, but the book is just a cheap version of Ender's Game.

Der Trotzkopf

by Emmy von Rhoden · published 1883 · read 2004-03-01

Luckily you cannot read this book in earnest anymore – times have changed too much. So if you read of the far-too-wild, far-too-stubborn young Ilse, who has to go to a boarding school to learn manners, and who is slowly "tamed" by her new friends and teachers until she turns into a young lady, you can feel amused or offended (depending on your temperament) instead of feeling pressured to do the same.

Romanitas

by Sophia McDougall · published 2005 · read 2020-07-29

After reading The Dragon Waiting, I wanted more Alternate History, and Romanitas seemed like an obvious choice. It's, to say it with the recommendation, Fatherland but with Rome. In a world with current-time tech, the Roman Empire has never fallen, it never even moved to Byzantium. All of society is just as in the Rome of Tiberius, only with tech. So we have no emancipation, an Imperial family with an Emperor choosing his successor, and of course: slavery and crucifiction, with high-tech iron crosses along major roads.

Stravaganza: City of Masks

by Mary Hoffman · published 2002 · read 2007-09-01

Intrigue in magical Venice that our protagonist can dream himself into. Not terrible, not great. I liked the premise more than the execution.

Golden Son

by Pierce Brown · published 2015 · read 2018-08-07

Golden Son was a worthy successor to Red Rising. It, too, had a slow start, only here te start extends to the 50% mark of the book. After that, a slow and generic story picks up speed, originality, and its past characteristics. Even at its best though it's still forced in a way that's hard to describe: As if everything happened just because the author willed it that way, and may as well have happened completely differently without breaking any internal logic. The wooden language doesn't help either. I felt there was a lot of unfulfilled potential in this book, and I'm not sure if I'm going to continue the series.

Knightley Academy

by Violet Haberdasher · published 2010 · read 2020-06-04

Knightly Academy is, in a sentence, a conservative Harry Potter knockoff without magic.

Alcatraz Versus the Scrivener’s Bones

by Brandon Sanderson · published 2008 · read 2015-05-01

People kept telling me how good the Alcatraz books are. I gave the second part a chance and I just don't see it.

Brilliance of the Moon

by Lian Hearn · published 2004 · read 2006-05-01

As set up by the previous book, everybody is being stupid and then there is a lot of battling and death. Not a fan.

Captive Prince

by C.S. Pacat · published 2013 · read 2022-01-25

Word to the wise: this is not an "m/m fantasy romance". It's m/m, and it's fantasy, but mostly it's … slavery harem smut? I don't even know. Wouldn't have thought twice if this had been on AO3, but billed as fantasy, the lack of any serious reflection on the horrors or downsides of slavery, rape and oppression is a bit stunning. I'm guessing this is like a small-scale Fifty Shades thing, where people enjoy the horny parts and forget to also use their brain when later recommending the story to people.

Die Träume des Jonathan Jabbok

by Ralf Isau · published 1995 · read 2007-10-01

Too much christian undertones, overtones, and everything in between. Very Narnia style.

City of Ashes

by Cassandra Clare · published 2008 · read 2016-11-20

Works as a second volume. Clary is still an annoying teenager and gains powers. Nobody really dies, but that's ok. The evil father Valentine is very generic in his evilness.

City of Glass

by Cassandra Clare · published 2009 · read 2016-11-22

Very generic, predictable YA. Yawn.

Divergent

by Veronica Roth · published 2011 · read 2016-10-11

Horrid generic post-Hunger-Games YA with no redeeming features.

Battle Royale

by Koushun Takami · published 1999 · read 2018-09-27

Battle Royale is a badly written Hunger Games in a fictional contemporary totalitarian Asian state. The writing was truly bad, and the characters too. Do not recommend.

Alcatraz Versus the Evil Librarians

by Brandon Sanderson · published 2007 · read 2015-05-01