Borne by Jeff VanderMeer review

     I'm not sure where to begin with this review.  I think the book was good??  I know that sounds strange, to not understand whether I actually liked it or not, but the last 50 pages still have my head spinning trying to wrap myself around what happened.
   
*Spoilers ahead and I dunno how to make a spoiler tag so you've been warned!*

     I guess what's confusing me is that I still don't understand WHO the characters were or WHAT they were other than Rachel and Borne.  When it's revealed that Wick isn't human, it's not explained (at least I don't remember an explanation) for what his purpose actually is.  Is he just a piece of biotech built at the Company who's purpose is to be an assistant to the other scientists?  Was he made as a scientist to transcend the capabilities of human thinking in order to complete the "fish project" and therefore Mord?  WHAT ABOUT THE FOXES???? Are they the people who had worked in the Company and then were turned into tech? So many questions!
     Also, what the HECK is up with the Magician?  I thought that who she was would be fully revealed but then she just gets her head bashed in.  Throughout the whole book she didn't really seem that bad; I mean, she was just trying to get allies to kill Mord and bring the city back to life and that's why she wanted Rachel and Wick isn't it?  Why were they so adamant against that?  Why did Rachel kill her?  Because she led the proxies and the weirdo kids to them?  Was it something to do with that portal thing?
    The portal thing is another reason I'm so confused.  I don't know if I was just too tired or what while I was reading last night, but I'm soooo out of the loop when it comes to what that painting/portal thing was supposed to be.  I'm going to go back and re-read that section again tonight once I get home and I'll update if it becomes more clear, but right now I'm just kind of wtf on it.  If anybody can explain that scenario I would be very grateful.
     Maybe I've just been reading Stephen King and YA for too long and this book is too advanced for my little brain or something lol.
     I did love Borne just like he was my own little alien squid pet, but I also understand why Rachel did what she did.
     Say you have a dog who is extremely vicious and bites everyone it sees except for you and even the best trainers can't correct it; you still love that dog with all your heart but you know you have to give it up and get rid of it, that's just how it is.  I think that's what happened to Rachel and Borne.  A terribly sad result but it couldn't be helped and I completely agree with her decision.
     If he had stayed with them he would have eventually "sampled" them or if that didn't happen, then once the rest of the city figured out what he was doing they would have come after him and he would have led them right to Wick and Rachel.
     So anyways, as it sits I give this book about 3.5 stars just because I'm still so confused even after the ending and I feel there could have been less time spent describing Rachel's torn feelings and more time going into detail about the Magician and that portal doohickey.  If I go back and re-read tonight and have a light bulb moment I'll immediately reverse my decision and give it a solid 4 to 4.5.

Rabbit in Red by Joe Chianakas review (or lack thereof)

I'm not one to dnf books most of the time unless I just don't have the time to finish them but that wasn't the case with this book. I was really excited to read this book since it was based on a game and the author was a fan of Ready Player One (one of my faves) and took inspiration from it, but instead I got a very cliche "name-dropper" which mentioned other books/movies/shows/popular media every 5 seconds. I made it to page 46 and that was as far as I can convince myself to read. I have many other books on hand waiting to be read and I won't be wasting any more time on a book that feels more like it was written for a tween than an adult. I give it two stars because the concept seems interesting but I can't handle the writing anymore to be able to find out if the actual "game" is good or not.

The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood review

 WARNING: LOTS OF SPOILERS FOR THE BOOK AND THE TV SHOW AHEAD!


   Yes, I'm going to be one of those people.  You know, the "the book was way better" type of people, except it's in reverse for me.  It was definitely a first for me; I actually liked the show better than the book.  In the show, I related a lot more to Offred, but in the book she just seems weak.  Would I have done the same things if put in the same situations? Probably, but I'm one of those people who also hates myself for my weaknesses so that's to be expected.
     In the show, I was rooting for Offred to succeed in getting away from this horrible place but after reading the story, I felt kind of bitter that she is the one who escaped rather than Ofglen, who was actually taking the initiative to help the women stuck in Gilead while Offred was trying to avoid it and just have her fun with Nick.
     The story with Moira is also much more intricate in the show so I was really disappointed to see that both she and Luke are hardly mentioned in the novel.
     I will say one thing for the book, the world-building is very good.  You feel like you are there with Offred as she walks past what used to be major landmarks but are now reduced to only abandoned or military outpost buildings, and you feel her suffering as she looks at those hanged or forced into servitude.
     I do also appreciate the fact that in the book the Commanders and their wives are painted as older couples.  I understand why the show picked "beautiful people" to play the parts for better ratings, but it did feel more realistic that Offred was forced to be a surrogate for someone she wouldn't willingly be with if things were different.
    Again, if I had read the book before seeing the show I would probably be right there with the others in rating it as a 4 to 5 star book, but having seen how much the show expanded on the idea of Gilead I have to only give it about a 3 now.