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Christina (A Reader of Fictions)

http://readeroffictions.blogspot.com/

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Christina (A Reader of Fictions) is Currently Reading

Christina (A Reader of Fictions) is currently reading

To Sir Phillip, With Love (Bridgertons, #5)

by Julia Quinn (Goodreads Author)

bookshelves: peaches-and-aubergines, currently-reading

Reading for the 2nd time

read in July 2016

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Christina (A Reader of Fictions) said: " 3.5 stars

I’m rather pleasantly surprised how much I enjoyed To Sir Phillip, With Love. The second epilogue of Romancing Mister Bridgerton spoiled how the romance/marriage would happen, and it just did not sound like it would be that great. Though not 3.5 stars

I’m rather pleasantly surprised how much I enjoyed To Sir Phillip, With Love. The second epilogue of Romancing Mister Bridgerton spoiled how the romance/marriage would happen, and it just did not sound like it would be that great. Though not my favorite ship of the bunch, I do appreciate the many unique elements this story had.

Eloise has been pen pals with Sir Phillip since the letter of condolence she sent him following the death of her fourth cousin, his wife Marina. She’s fancied him a romantic prospect, but is shocked to receive an emotionless proposal that she come visit (along with a chaperone) to see if they might suit. What he wants is a mother for his children and someone to run the household, but what she wants is love. Still, in a bit of a crisis because her spinster friend Penelope has now married for love, Eloise impulsively decides to run off to visit Sir Phillip, sans chaperone.

Quinn obviously loves the “forced to wed because of scandal” trope, which I don’t, but she put an interesting spin on it here. This one didn’t bother me as much because: 1) Eloise really was the decider in this. She took a risk, and it was not the manipulation of Sir Phillip. 2) Because no one knows but her family, Eloise actually had an out. After initially trying to strangle Sir Phillip, Anthony’s actually pretty chill about it and, because no one else knows yet, he offers extra time to see if the Bridgertons approve of this guy. 3) They’re kind of forced to marry, but they voluntarily move the wedding up because Phillip and Eloise are willing to give it a go.

As I said, I didn’t have shippy feels about Eloise and Phillip, but I like them well enough. I appreciate the unique nature of their relationship. He was searching for a woman to basically manage him, his children, and the estate. He may look like a big bear of a man and be super strong and muscular, but he’s no controlling “alpha male.” That’s such a nice change from the standard tropes. Seriously, bless it. It’s also very sweet how he loved his children but had no idea how to parent, and he really learns from her so fast. Phillip’s a rather sad figure because he’s never been shown love, and he’s really starting to open up by the end.

The one thing that rubbed me the wrong way here was the way Marina’s treated in this book. Marina clearly suffered from depression, probably all of her life, and it became thoroughly uncontrollable when she got postpartum depression following the birth of the twins. She dies from a lung disease following a suicide attempt in a winter lake. While I think this could have been a really nice addition to the story, I don’t like the treatment of mental health here. Obviously no one knows what depression is, so the point ends up seeming something like “sad people make terrible spouses and parents.” A beautiful treatment of depression this is not.

I’d hoped for something massively shippy for Eloise, who has been such a delight in the other Bridgerton books, but her story was fairly good and fun to read. ...more "

Dec 20, 2018 12:22PM · see review

Christina (A Reader of Fictions) is currently reading

Love from Scratch

by Kaitlyn Hill (Goodreads Author)

bookshelves: egalley, on-my-shelves, owned-ebook-other, currently-reading

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21 hours, 47 min ago

Christina (A Reader of Fictions) rated a book it was amazing

Magic Strikes (Kate Daniels, #3)

by Ilona Andrews (Goodreads Author)

bookshelves: i-will-go-down-with-this-ship, on-my-shelves, owned-ebook-kindle, owned-print-copy, currently-reading

Reading for the 3rd time

read in November 2017

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Christina (A Reader of Fictions) said: " 4.5 maybe?

After an enjoyable but also somewhat lackluster book two (listen, I realize I gave it the same rating as book one and I stand by that bc I really like the cast and the world but it wasn’t the most fun plot-wise at all), I wasn’t on a high r 4.5 maybe?

After an enjoyable but also somewhat lackluster book two (listen, I realize I gave it the same rating as book one and I stand by that bc I really like the cast and the world but it wasn’t the most fun plot-wise at all), I wasn’t on a high riding into Magic Strikes. But OMG Magic Strikes is so fucking delightful and I have feelings all of a sudden and the plot got way more bamf and holla basically.

In terms of plot, it’s a tiny bit slow off the starting gates, seeming like it’s going to do another “mystery of the week” thing, but actually Andrews is just lulling you into a false sense of security before starting in seriously on some of the overarching plot threads for real for the first time. With paranormal series like this of long duration, there need to be arcs to each book and threads lying in wait for big series long conflicts, and the first one of those is kicking off, though obviously it most likely won’t come to a head for a while. Also, I’m just really into books about fighting competitions apparently.

There’s a lot of battle that manages to be both a bit concerning and hilarious at the same time. But mostly Andrews really starts hitting those shippy feels. Kate and Curran are fucking fire rn. I ship it soooo hard. I started shipping them in the last book, but I am firmly on board and there’s absolutely no dragging me back to land at this point. They hit so many of shippy buttons and they hit them perfectly. I acknowledge that there’s a lot about the ships in this book that is problematic, but also it really fits the characterization/world building, and I think Andrews for the most part does a great job walking the line between creepy and cute/funny. Ymmv.

This gets a top rating because I loved this book. Yes, there are still some unfortunate lines like you’d expect from a paranormal novel published in 2009, but I am very into this crew. (If you like the sound of a lot of it but want the healthier, less problematic version, go read October Daye because it’s basically flawless (after the first couple books—IT IS WORTH IT). ...more "

Nov 11, 2024 03:36PM · see review

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Christina (A Reader of Fictions)’s Quotes

“they believed that for a thing to exist it had to have a position in time and space. Humanity had arrived as a nasty shock. Humanity practically was things that didn’t have a position in time and space, such as imagination, pity, hope, history, and belief. Take those away and all you had was an ape that fell out of trees a lot.”
― Terry Pratchett, Thief of Time

12 likes

“You deserve all that and more. It made me happy to see you suffer. I would do it all over again if I could." I realized I was shaking as the words tumbled out of me. "I would do it again and again. Every night I would torment you and laugh. Do you understand? You are never safe with me." I drew a shuddering breath, trying to will away the sting of tears.

He opened his eyes and stared up at me as if I were the door out of Arcadia and back to the true sky. "That's what makes you my favorite." He reached up and wiped a tear off my cheek with his thumb. "Every wicked bit of you.”
― Rosamund Hodge, Cruel Beauty

tags: flaws, honesty, love

307 likes

“And if you decide not to read anymore, hey, no problem, because you're not the one I was waiting for anyway. But if you decide to read on, then guess what? You're my kind of time being and together we'll make magic!”
― Ruth Ozeki, A Tale for the Time Being

tags: readers-and-writers

48 likes

“Feelings don't try to kill you, even the painful ones. Anxiety is a feeling grown too large. A feeling grown aggressive and dangerous. You're responsible for its consequences, you're responsible for treating it. But...you're not responsible for causing it. You're not morally at fault for it. No more than you would be for a tumor.”
― Patrick Ness, The Rest of Us Just Live Here

tags: anxiety, mental-health

377 likes

“Awww," I interrupt him with my sweet voice. "You figured that out because you just heard someone say it. And I know your name for the very same reason. Douchebag isn't very nice, though, so I'll just call you D.B."

"I'm--"

"Shhh..." I shake my head. "Don't ruin it.”
― Eric Lindstrom

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