July 2023 – My Book Reviews

Dr. Zhivago

Dr. Zhivago

Boris Pasternak

Published November 1, 1957

Read July 23-26, 2023

2.5 out of 5 stars

Summary: Dr. Yury Zhivago, Pasternak’s alter ego, is a poet, philosopher, and physician whose life is disrupted by the war and by his love for Lara, the wife of a revolutionary. His artistic nature makes him vulnerable to the brutality and harshness of the Bolsheviks. The poems he writes constitute some of the most beautiful writing featured in the novel.

My Review: This book was beautifully written and the story was very heartwarming. Overall though this is going to be a short review. I loved the character development, all our characters saw some development from what I read. The plot progressed well and I loved the way the author wrote this book. The reason I say from what I read was because I couldn’t finish this book. I kept waiting for something interesting to happen that would grab my attention but it never came. I found it to be a very boring story though artistically written. If I was looking for a book to read just for vivid imagery this would be it. But for a story, I can’t enjoy it.

Additional Comments: I thought for a while about what section to put this book in and I thought it deserved to be considered both a good and a bad book. For this reason, I have started another section called ‘Gray-Area Books.’ These are just books that could be stuck in both categories and I can’t decide which one. It probably won’t be a very used section but it was the best solution I had.

-Nina

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Ariadne

Jennifer Saint

Published March 30, 2021

Read July 11-22, 2023

4 out of 5

Summary: Ariadne, Princess of Crete, grows up greeting the dawn from her beautiful dancing floor and listening to her nursemaid’s stories of gods and heroes. But beneath her golden palace echo the ever-present hoofbeats of her brother, the Minotaur, a monster who demands blood sacrifice.

When Theseus, the Prince of Athens, arrives to vanquish the beast, Ariadne sees in his green eyes not a threat but an escape. Defying the gods, betraying her family and country, and risking everything for love, Ariadne helps Theseus kill the Minotaur. But will Ariadne’s decision ensure her happy ending? And what of Phaedra, the beloved younger sister she leaves behind?

My Review: I really loved how Saint took an old story and added her twist to it. There are quite a lot of books that try and do this that I don’t particularly enjoy, but this one was very well done. I loved how three myths got put into one book but it made perfect sense why it was done like that. My only complaint about the story was the end of the book. The ending does not match with the myth and I am such a huge fan of it that I really would have liked to see a different ending.

The character development was very well done. I enjoyed how we were able to see certain characters grow over the years. Every main character started in one place and grew into another. And the growth of each character and how they made each big decision was shown very well.

The plot was very true to the myth. You start in Crete, then Naxos and Athens. I especially enjoyed that as other characters, like children, were introduced they never became the main attention but you never forgot that they were there either.

I truly enjoyed the writing style. The first part had only one POV but by the time you got to the second part, it became a two-part POV. I love books with both a one and two-part POV, so seeing these put together was done well. It was also introduced at just the right time when it made sense.

Overall, this was an amazing twist on an old classic that I highly recommend.

-Nina

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Allegiant (Book three of Divergent)

Allegiant

Veronica Roth

Published October 22, 2013

Read June 28 – July 5, 2023

5 out of 5 stars

Summary: The faction-based society that Tris Prior once believed in is shattered – fractured by violence and power struggles and scarred by loss and betrayal. So when offered a chance to explore the world past the limits she’s known, Tris is ready. Perhaps beyond the fence, she and Tobias will find a simple new life together, free from complicated lies, tangled loyalties, and painful memories.

But Tris’s new reality is even more alarming than the one she left behind. Old discoveries are quickly rendered meaningless. Explosive new truths change the hearts of those she loves. And once again, Tris must battle to comprehend to complexities of human nature – and of herself – while facing impossible choices about courage, allegiance, sacrifice, and love.

My Review: This book was a great way to end the series, but also the worst way to end the series. No spoilers here but that ending is gonna throw you for a loop.

The character development was well done. For Tris, Four, Christina, Evelyn, Johanna, and Peter (at the end.) Tris, Four, and Christina learned to move on from the past. Evelyn stopped thinking it such a narrow mind and opened herself up. Johanna stopped hiding parts of her, and Peter admitted to his faults. It was a really well-done thing, huge props to Roth for that.

The plot was a very good addition to the series. Roth introduced new information, characters, and places. Though, she still kept in mind everything else that had happened in the city and grew that story. It was an exciting and heart-wrenching ending to the series.

The writing style was different in this book. First of all the chapters in this one have flipping points of view between Tris and Four. I really enjoyed that this time, because in the last few books, we didn’t really know what Four was thinking or feeling we kind of had to guess. But this time we knew exactly what was happening to him. At certain points in the book, the two POVs broke down how everyone was thinking in some places where big decisions had to be made. It was really interesting to see how Four made different choices than Tris and why.

Overall, this was an amazing book and an amazing series. Definitely in my top four for book series.

-Nina

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