#2019 books

[miens-reading-nook]

Red, White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston

Pages: 432 Published: 14 May 2019 My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

I received a copy of this book back in 2019 in exchange for an honest review, but I ended up not picking it up until today, so here is my belated review:

I will start by saying that from the description and the cover, I had a completely different idea of what this story was going to be like. Not the major plot points, of course, but I think I misjudged the levity and the tone it would have. I thought it was going to be a wholesome, adorable little story about the first son and the prince falling in love, which is fine, but I was pleasantly surprised to see how much depth the author added to this story.

I cannot imagine how stifling the lives of people like Alex and Henry are, but I think this book probably comes pretty close to what it actually is like, or at least it tries. It doesn't shy away from showing how not glamorous living in the spotlight can be, and the insane amount of pressure that comes with it.

From the beginning, I think the author does a really good job of setting up the story and its characters. You immediately feel like you get who Alex, Nora and June are, and it's pretty clear (and hilarious) what Alex thinks about Henry. Their animosity at the beginning is so fun to read and I actually laughed out loud when they do their first photo op in London. The progression of their relationship feels so natural that you end up falling in love with their love. It's very sweet (and funny). And their dynamic is great.

What I liked:

Alex and Henry's relationship and how they got together.

The secondary characters. Nora, June and Ellen were my favorite.

The ending, I mean, they are so sweet and they deserve a happy ending <3

The accurate description of what it's like to live with anxiety and depressive episodes. Both Alex and Henry struggle, each in their own way, and I liked that it wasn't glossed over.

Things that made me give this 4 stars and not 5 stars:

There were a few "woke" comments throughout the story, calling out both American and English imperialism, but in the end, it felt a bit performative. The author knows her audience, she knows people reading this book aren’t enchanted by royal families like they might’ve been once, or by the lavish lives off the rich in America, so there are comments here and there that reflect that, but in the end, it’s just that. Throwaway comments to appease the more liberal readers but it feels like these characters don’t actually do anything about it. They still fly private jets everywhere, attend ridiculously expensive events and willfully participate in this society they supposedly criticize.

As soon as the main conflict was resolved, I lost interest. I couldn’t care about the rest of the story and actually wanted to skip the last 20 pages or so.

I found Henry a bit boring and the letters… I just wanted to skip the letters tbh.

All the Harry Potter and Star Wars references, but that's just a matter of personal preference haha

#red white and royal blue #book review #book recommendations #2019 books #YA #lgbtqia #romance #fiction

[mylifeinfiction]

My Darkest Prayer by S.A. Cosby

Somebody has to handle the bodies, right? 

S.A. Cosby's  My Darkest Prayer is pretty much exactly what I expected from the debut of the writer who would follow it up with  Blacktop Wasteland and  Razorblade Tears . I really dig Cosby's storytelling. All of his books are well-plotted and boast thrilling use of violence. His scenes flow into one another well while providing interesting developments and effective character work. And the outbursts of violence throughout are graphic and cinematic in their execution, helping to keep the flow of the book engaging. My major problem with both of his subsequent novels, but especially so with this one, is how awkward some of the macho dialogue comes off, and his awkward word choices, in general. It often seems like he's trying to opt for a less humdrum option in each of these cases, and while that's generally fine, in their context here it almost always messes with the flow of the scene. This is still a very enjoyable crime-thriller; action-packed, violent and twisty without ever getting predictable or dull. I could easily see this on the screen as I was reading. In fact, I already cast most of the cast of FX's Atlanta in here, but that's maybe because I just saw the great Brian Tyree Henry in Causeway, and when I think of Paper Boi, Earn and Darius aren't far behind (especially since Donald Glover can do no wrong, in my mind... let's cast him in everything, please).

7/10

-Timothy Patrick Boyer.

#booklr #books #book reviews #my darkest prayer #S.A. COSBY #book review #book photography #reading #readers of tumblr #new books #2022 #2022 books #2019 books #fiction #crime fiction #thriller books

[anxioussailorsoldier]

and even more amazing was the day Link realised he [redacted] him back

#loz #botw #sidon #link #sidlink #comic #you gotta read it the princess bride's grandpa's voice #and yes this is a kissing book #I was just going to put 'I love you' but ... well I'm me #you thought I was dead didn't you #well haHA #like a korok I am annoying and can pop up when you least expect it #guess who is playing the game again #its like 2019 again but with slightly more personal character growth on my part #not too much though or you wouldn't be comics like this

[umbrvx]

a villain’s journey

#scum villain's self saving system #svsss #luo binghe #shen qingqiu #shen yuan #finally read through the official localization.... it sent me right back to where i was when i first got into mxtx in 2019 #back then my art was kind of in a transitional period so even though mxtx had me making art like crazy i didnt like much of it #and nowadays my mxtx tl on twt has all but vanished... but once again these books have rejuvenated me creatively #and i feel like ive progressed enough to do justice for how these stories make me feel. and properly scratch that creative itch #anyways. i hardly ever ramble in tags like this but im so emo about these books and i finally feel creative again #so i hope this is able to spread that joy...! sort of. ehe

[zegalba]

Junji Ito: "Igyosekai" (2019)

#Junji Ito #Igyosekai #art #illustrations #japan #art book #gothic #2019

[m4ndysk4nkovich]

nobody is more delusional than reddie fans. somehow, the ENTIRE fandom decided that eddie kaspbrak is alive and well, despite the fact that his death was written in the novel almost 40 years ago, and i hardly ever see reddie content/it content awknoleging that eddie is dead. we all just pretend that never happened.

#it #it stephen king #it 2017 #it 2019 #reddie #eddie kaspbrak #richie tozier #eddie kaspbrak is one of my favorite characters ever tho so i get it #i never talk about it on here even though i love it #i’m gonna reread the book even though its over 1150 pages long #stephen king

[jessdrawz]

smoke break

#decided to finally paint linework i've had done since 2019 #remember that book? yeah im still working on it #it will be done by 2050 i think #art #illustration #artists on tumblr #illustrators on tumblr #bg design #bg paint #sunset

[frizz-bee-2]

dudes being dudes

#richie tozier #eddie kaspbrak #reddie #it 2017 #it movie #losers club #it #it 1986 #it 2019 #artists on tumblr #art #artwork #my art #it book #digital art

[rainreads]

#little women book #little women 2019 #little women #jo march #books and literature #english literature #dark academia literature #dark academia quotes #dark academia #tumblr aesthetic #literature #art aesthetic #books & libraries #booksbooksbooks #literature quotes #classical academia #light academia books #light acadamia aesthetic #light academia movies #book quotes aesthetic #book quotes #films and books

[anderperries]

okay so who’s gonna take one for the team and draw richie tozier drinking from this mug?

#i would but i can’t draw for shit #minors look away #richie tozier #reddie #gay clown movie #gay clown book #it #it 2019 #stephen king’s it #it stephen king #the losers club #losers club

[flonvera]

DEFINITELY A VALID REASON TO HAVE THE BOOK I CANNOT DENY THAT

#eddie kaspbrak #it 2017 #reddie #richie tozier #it 2019 #book it #stephen king it

[grctagerwig]

“There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you.” - Maya Angelou

the snows of kilimanjaro by ernest hemingway // little women (2019) // little women by louisa may alcott // the book thief by markus zusak // emily (2022) // dead poets society (1989) // o me! o life! by walt whitman // tick, tick… boom! (2019)

#a collection that pleases me #web weaving #little women 2019 #little women #dead poets society #ernest hemingway #walt whitman #emily 2022 #tick tick boom #andrew garfield #todd anderson #the book thief

[high-quality-tiktoks]

Swear everyone was like “okay, that’s nice. anyway-” when I was talking about what I was working on💀

#video #tiktok #tiktoks #funny #lmao #wtf #book #books #movie #movies #film #films #xiran jay zhao #iron widow #2019 #2023 #xiranjayzhao

[reddje]

love how we as a fandom just collectively decided that stan and eddie actually didn’t die, and that they’re doing just fine

#i wonder if stephen king ever goes looking for fan works and just sees that we all dgaf what he wrote #idc what that book says! #it 2019 #eddie kaspbrak #it #it chapter two #richie tozier #it movies #it stephen king #reddie #stanley uris #stan uris #like wdym bury your gays? eddie is right here

[goddessofdandelions]

The most relatable Little Women moments

Meg:

* Margaret and John have two kids named… Margaret and John. Iconic. No notes.

* Sprained her ankle wearing impractical shoes cause they just looked too good not to

* Had a emotional meltdown while attempting to make jam from scratch

Jo:

* Literally leaves the state instead of talking about her feelings

* Feminist™️

* Threatened to murder a man for hurting her sister (Amy’s teacher)

Beth:

* Never leaves the house

* Her only friends are her cats

* Obsessed with fictional characters dolls

Amy:

* “I want to be great or nothing”

* Constantly misuses and mispronounces words and doesn’t give a fuck when people try to correct her

* Wrote a whole ass will at age 12

Laurie:

* Pitifully watches the March family from his window wishing he could join them

* Falls in love with someone only after she says “I despise you”

* Writes an opera with himself as the main character

#little women #little women 2019 #little women 1994 #little women book #louisa may alcott #Jo March #Meg March #beth march #Amy March #march sisters

[whatthefuckisasweep]

eddie and stan left first bc they had to take the BIGGEST nap ever. they were tuckered out from being a little too fucking brave for their own good.

#it #it movie #it 2017 #it 2019 #it book #it novel #stan uris #stanley uris #eddie kaspbrak #THEM #THEMMMMMM #they are sleepy guys #EEPY #my favorite boys #my special guys #MY BELOVEDS #IT IS VERY IMPORTANT TO ME THAT THEY ARE BEST FRIENDS #THEY ARE THE BESTEST BOYS EVER #i wail and die everyddaayyy #THINKING OF THEM #and the fact they both d word is unspeakable #a true offense on my character #a terrorization of my life and happiness #HFKDJDKS #thanks rue for literally saying this idea . i died on the spot #I think eddie and stan should hang out everyday without fail #and i thinj richie should kiss both their heads #AHHHHH #okay this is enough tags im done freakin out #my art