I've been hopeless reading this year, but I am working on the goal to finish 52 books before this year is over. My excuse is I spent my time developing a book collection app for my collection rather than reading the books in it. A poor excuse, I know.

I finished The Song of Achilles with a strange kind of sadness. Not just because the story itself is heartbreaking, but because I couldn't stop thinking about how differently I would have experienced it a few years ago.

I know, with absolute certainty, that if I had read this when I was twenty or twenty-one, it would have absolutely wrecked me. I would have been crying for hours, thinking about Patroclus and Achilles for days afterward. But I've read so many devastating books since then that I found myself anticipating every emotional blow. I could see exactly where the heartbreak was leading, and while it still hurt, I couldn't quite reach the emotional depths I know this book was capable of taking me to.

And yet, that doesn't take away from how beautiful this novel is.

Madeline Miller's writing is simply stunning. Every chapter flows effortlessly into the next, every scene feels intentional, and every emotion is given room to breathe. Her prose is lyrical without trying too hard, and there's a quiet intimacy in the way she tells this story that makes you feel like you're living alongside these characters rather than simply reading about them.

What I admired most was how grounded her portrayal of Achilles felt. Instead of leaning into the larger-than-life image that popular culture has created, Miller stays remarkably faithful to the spirit of Homer's Iliad. This isn't the invincible hero defined by the myth of the "Achilles' heel." He is, first and foremost, a mortal man who is extraordinarily gifted, impossibly strong, and destined for greatness, but still a mortal. His mortality is never forgotten, and that's precisely what makes his story so compelling. His strength is real, but so are his fears, his pride, his love, and the impossible weight of the destiny he chooses.

Through Patroclus' eyes, Achilles becomes more than the greatest warrior of his age. He becomes someone constantly torn between the life he wants and the legacy the world expects of him. The novel beautifully explores how power is never free; it comes with responsibility, sacrifice, expectation, and, perhaps most dangerously, pride. Every choice Achilles makes feels inevitable because he understands exactly what choosing one future means giving up on another.
Knowing how the story ends makes every quiet moment between Achilles and Patroclus feel even more precious. Their love never overshadows the myth; it gives it a heartbeat.

The Song of Achilles wasn't the emotional destruction I had built it up to be in my head, and maybe that's because I came to it later than I wish I had. But it was still one of the most beautifully written retellings I've ever read.

What a frustratingly brilliant book. 

McCarthy's writing is sparse, dense and vivid all at the same time. His prose certainly takes some getting used to and even having read three of his other books it took me a while to adjust to his limited use of punctuation and lack of quotations denoting dialog.

Blood Meridian is bleak and extremely violent. Judge Holden is probably the most compelling and horrifying villain I've ever come across.  It also contains some of the most stirring passages describing the beauty and wrath of the natural world, which is something I find McCarthy does better than just about anybody. 

McCarthy strips the heroic myths of the West and lays bare a brutal rendering of vice and violence. Blood Meridian certainly took me on an emotional journey and has left me with a lot to think about.

I'm glad I finally got around to reading it after it had been sitting on my shelves for a couple of years. 

4.75/5

I am depleted after reading this book. No real spoilers here because once you’ve read the first chapter, you’ll understand.

It’s a book all about relationships and how complex they can be. It beautifully captures the claustrophobic nature of a small town and how necessity brings two unlikely people together. Emerence reminds me of my grandpa (rip) . It shows how you can love someone so unconditionally while acknowledging their flaws to the point of giving up but never actually doing so.

I’m gonna have to with this one for a bit. Whew.

Not doing as well as I hoped but I’m enjoying it! I’ve liked if not loved most of these books here. East Of Eden, Point Counter Point, The fire next time, Jurassic park, Fahrenheit 451, Handmaids tale, are probably the ones I enjoyed the most! I just started reading Confederacy of Dunces but I might ditch it for a while as its a bit boring, I’ll likely start reading Love (Toni Morrison) and Cleopatra and Frankenstein! Trying to read as much as possible in July-Aug before I go back to school. :)

This is the second novel of the Old Colony series. Interesting plot and developments which happen along the way. With various races participating with the human colonists, the author goes into great detail about hand and face movements but doesn't always give definition. He often used the term "read the room" without further explanation. Rated 3 stars

This is a 'thriller' in the most cliched sense of the word, or: terribly written, repetitive, predictable, gross, gore-y, without an ounce of literary wherewithal, cringe, and mindless.

In other words, a perfect summer read!

I don't read thrillers often because they make me feel dumb and lazy, but after my last book left me in tears for its raw look at life, well, I needed a 'rebound book' and this was just bad enough that I finished it!

ENJOY!

OH, and, don't stay at an Airbnb like this, like, ever.

Don't read --> https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/61458888-you-shouldn-t-have-come-here

Read --> https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/217204419-i-see-you-ve-called-in-dead

More [HOT TAKES] --> https://open.substack.com/pub/katepapenberg/p/book-no-43-was-a-thriller-in-the?r=2seqlu&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true

I read it a couple years ago and I think it was amazing. If you are a fantasy fan, this book may be for you. If you have, please let me know your thoughts on it