finals week really served finals week… wrote a total of 9,000 words this week between school and substack. managed to squeeze some reading in too :)
april 18th
tacos!
the briar club - i finished it!!!
oh my god this book was sooooooo good. everything comes together so well in the end, so satisfying and climactic. the way the historical fiction element of the book becomes increasingly foregrounded through each characters chapters is so well done you almost don’t notice it until the end when everything clicks. such a deeply satisfying read, and characters that are going to stay with me for a long time.
the only thing that stopped this book from being 5 stars for me was that Nora’s character arc was the only one left a little flaccidly finished and she might have been ma favourite character, so that was a little bit disappointing.
april 19th
not pictured: coffee and bagels with a lovely friend of mine
the raven boys - maggie stiefvater
if you read this post of mine from a little while ago, you know that this re read has been on the horizon for me.
this y/a trilogy has such a cult following, but when i read it in 2018 it just didn’t hit, i found it like gibberish levels of confusing lol.
giving this another chance because i really want to like it. only a few chapters in, but as of now it gets points for feeding into my current arthuriana obsession with the whole search for Glendower thing.
if you’ve read this and loved it pls tell me <3
april 20th
sunday bagel singular
not pictured: all you can eat sushi that nearly took me out
earl grey tea, sumo orange, and reading hour with boy
when we were orphans - kazuo ishiguro
finally actually started this lol. really intriguing so far. its set in the early 1900’s, and has a Dickensian, almost Evelyn Waugh sort of prose going on. getting an honestly pip and estella from great expectations sort of vibe from our protagonist christopher banks and sarah hemmings. not much to report yet, ishiguro’s writing is atmospheric and enticing as always.
april 21st
caesar salad!
april 22nd
the raven boys
over 20% in and i’m enjoying myself! the writing is atmospheric and the characters feel very real. i do feel like sometimes the prose is prioritised over clarity, but not to the extent of extreme confusion just yet.
april 23rd
jennis ice cream!
april 24th
when we were orphans
another reading hour with boy! i’m almost 100 pages in now and i feel like i have a good grasp on this story. i love the unreliable ish narrator? since the book is very concerned with memory its interesting to see how the protagonist characterises himself and to what extent he interjects— he is often self aware of when he is distorting the narrative. Other times where he does not seem to notice, its suggested to the reader that he may be misremembering or mischaracterising something.
the mystery element of this book is also starting to get underway a little more which is intriguing. also love the historical backdrop of the Opium Wars in the flashbacks.
salmon and courgette for dinner :)
really pleased with how jammy the lemons got! the rind was fully edible and was really sweet and delicious.
april 25th
no food or reads to report yet, but:
scout, a cat from a cat cafe we went to today 😭
