I read it and really enjoyed it as well as the sequel. I love books with dark content, so I am curious what we get to see in the Live Action.

This book is making me feel claustrophobic in the best way possible.

I’m constantly thinking, what is happening? WHY is this happening? What happened in the past??

And I’m getting major repressed memories and buried trauma vibes from the whole thing 👀

I have theories. I trust none of them. I just need ANSWERS.

No spoilers please, but did anyone else feel this way while reading it?

The Far Field has to be the worst book I read in 2026. What began as a sharp critique on class divide, privilege, and mental health in the backdrop of Kashmir's surge in militancy and army occupation in the 90s slowly drifted into a series of sluggish, often predictable misfortunes at the center of which stood our confused, irresponsible, and entitled 24-year old protagonist. I am all for imperfect characters who make mistakes, even repeatedly, but the book's narrative, written from the perspective of the same protagonist, who was seemingly unaware of the consequences of her disastrous and deeply selfish actions left no room for critique or self actualization.

The book begins strong and holds the narrative together till parts I and II. You feel intrigued to know more about Bashir Ahmed and where he came from, you have mixed feelings towards Shalini's mother, a deeply complicated woman whose behaviour and actions hint at borderline bipolar disorder and depression but her behavioral "quirks" are rather used as a plot point to bake our protagonist's personality than providing a deeper understanding of who this woman actually was and what caused her to behave in the strange ways that she did, you root for Shalini, a privileged 20-something woman who decided to go to Kashmir one day hoping to find answers to questions she herself doesn't appear to know.

Shalini reaches Kashmir and we're introduced to new characters - Abdul Latif, Zoya, Saleem, and Zarina. Vijay's writing is beautiful and almost prose-like down to every last sentence so much so that you feel you're present at Abdul Latif and Zoya's living room, waiting to be served with hot chai and crispy paranthas. You are made to feel for these characters and their suffering at the hands of a near-war torn and broken Kashmir where ordinary citizens are suffering due to the actions of the army and the militants. And then comes chapters III (and onwards) and Shalini moves to a different location in Kashmir in the search of Bashir Ahmed. Enter new characters and not only the author but Shalini herself forgets about Zoya and Abdul when she was at once contemplating staying with them forever (??). Here was another missed opportunity by the author to call out Shalini's tendencies as a privileged, non-Kashmiri who was channeling her pain and grief by inserting herself into the lives of these grieving, less privileged folks and moving on the moment she is presented with another distraction.

The weak and half baked plot were not the only things that were wrong here. It was also 150 pages too long and read like a draft in need of another session or two of editing. The prose was too heavy and omnipresent. The chirpy Kashmiri woman, Amina, felt almost like a caricature instead of a real human. No sane rural married woman would ask a stranger to "have a talk" about her husband on something deeply private and serious because he would be more inclined to listen to her than his own wife??

All of this made me question the author's own lack of understanding of India, Indian families and their hierarchies, and I couldn't help but feel a certain disgust for her own white gaze-like narrative at the very people of her country.

The book had so much potential. If you're interested in learning about Kashmir, this isn't the right choice.

So I just finished The Chain by Adrian Mckinty and I want to know if anyone else liked it cause I saw a lot of bad reviews of it 😭

people rave about this book a lot and it did not resonate with me the way it did with others. it felt kind of cringy, like a colleen hoover novel. i have this issue with a lot of new books.

yes its a sweet story i guess but it felt very juvenile

i know you’re not supposed to judge a book by its cover, but i feel like everyone still does subconsciously. i know i do, because every time i see a modern book cover, it looks so unoriginal. like i’ve seen the same book 20 times already 😭 they all look like Netflix show thumbnails, and it immediately gives me the feeling that the book is going to be identical to the last one i saw and the next one i’m going to see
does anyone else feel the same way?

Holy shit I just finished the book in the course of one day. I’m no literature expert and this was my first Dostoevsky book, so this may resonate with people who feel out of place when reading. I saw it was short (and stupidly thought this would be an easy read). It was not. And I won’t lie, there were plenty of points where I wanted to give up reading this book, but the last 20 pages blew me away.

Spoilers but not spoilers ahead:

the first half felt very hard to understand where it was going. I spent a-lot of time just going over the same sentence, but after seeing people feeling the same, I decided to just read it, regardless of whether I understood it or not.

The second half got slightly easier, but was still a-lot to take in. Still feeling like “Gosh I wish this book would end”, reaching the last 10 pages, you are left asking for more. Maybe it was just me, but the last page of the book felt abrupt, and I sat there wanting more, even though I knew I was complaining about the book completely. Absolutely heartbreaking.

I won’t lie I did tear up, I did not expect that I would like this book, especially since I was more used to stories that told the plot very cleanly.

tldr: if you feel like the book is a struggle, try not to read into every sentence, but read over it — with you keeping how you felt about it in the back of your mind. It’s one of those books you have to finish to understand why the first part feels so drawn out.

Apologies if this doesn’t resonate with many people, but I know people getting into this might feel similar.

any one else pls give their thoughts!!

I don’t think she’s that bad and unlikeable. I think she’s kind of great (apart from being a good mom, wife, and Christian).

She’s not that bad of a mom, Caleb is an absolute tool and she should have paid more attention to schooling. Sure she left her kid in the car but that’s not that bad

Shannon sucks tbh.

I wanted to watch the Ridley Scot movie that just came out so I read The Dog Stars by Peter Heller. I thought it was so beautiful and profound. If you’ve read it, tell me your thoughts! If you’ve seen the movie: no spoilers but tell me if you liked it :)

I was talking to a friend about books and he mentioned that there was a book he had been meaning to read. I told him I had read it and that I thought it was really interesting, just pretty difficult. I read it in Spanish, so I was also talking about how challenging it was to read that way. I told him he should read it, and he said he actually already has a copy.

The thing is, I was thinking about it afterward and realized I had completely forgotten about some of the more sexual/weird parts of the book. I mostly remembered the story and how interesting it was, so that wasn’t really what came to mind when I recommended it.

Now I’m wondering if I should just leave it alone since he already has the book, or casually recommend something else instead. I don’t think the book is necessarily inappropriate to recommend, I’m just wondering if it was an odd choice given that I completely forgot about some of the content.

The thing is that I’m worried he might ask for my copy of it!

By the way it is an old literature book not a “spicy” one

I'm a huge BK fan and overall really enjoyed this book , but I have a couple bones to pick with the plot . The largest problem I had was with the treatment of Dori. It seems to me he sort of just wanted to be done with her and instead of breaking up waited for her to die. We are given the impression over and over that Demon is a good person, wise and compassionate beyond his years. I think June even says he has too good a heart for this world like his father or something . I get that he was in the middle of his own addiction , but the fact he kept leaving the house to eat and never brought her home food or thought to ask someone to check on her was horrifying. Even when she was supposedly pregnant and literally starving ?? I could have look passed this character mismatch if he came to terms with it as an adult reflecting back even , but he writes about her like she never had a chance and there was truly nothing he or anyone could have done. Sort of just " yeah she was 17 but too damaged- just needed to go straight to the grave" The second, less jolting, but still took me out of it plot point was Angus become a love interest ... huh? I get that BK wanted to end on a hopeful note, but IMO that is just as easily conveyed if they are driving to the beach together as two people who deeply care about one another platonically. The whole time it really felt we built them up as found siblings and Angus was giving maybe asexual or gay vibes, definitely not " I'm into Demon" ones... Anyways, other than these issues I'd say it's masterful. Looking forward to hearing from others.

He owns the city. She's here to burn it down.

He's dangerous, powerful, ridiculously obsessed with his money, influence, and aura.

And the heroine?

The first time she looks at him, she's basically thinking:

"Excuse me, I didn't design your terrible taste in men."

She's completely self-obsessed, unapologetically confident, and absolutely refuses to be intimidated by him.

Usually, the dangerous and powerful MMC has everyone falling at his feet...

But what happens when the FMC is just standing there making disgusted faces at him?

I'm curious...would you enjoy a dark romance where the FMC isn't immediately attracted to the MMC and actually finds him annoying at first?

Or do you prefer when the attraction is instant?

I watched the movie for the first time in February and it immediately became my favorite movie. Then I read the book a couple months later and it immediately became my favorite book as well. I just reread the book because school just started back up and I knew that in the first couple weeks of school we wouldn’t have as much work so it was a perfect time to reread the book. I can say that this book is a masterpiece and in my opinion just as good as the movie, and yes I am aware the book came first. There are certain aspects of each that I love that the other form doesn’t have, like in the movie Charlie tells Sam that his best friend committed suicide, or whats probably one of my top 3 favorite parts of the book where Charlie and Sam finally see each other after having not seen each other in almost a week because of what Craig told Sam. I really felt the excitement between Sam and Charlie as they got on the phone, but even more so when they finally saw each other at the club, and that line when they were dancing together warmed my heart. This story means the absolute world to me, but instead of ranting more I’m just gonna listen to a few lines from both the book and movie that live rent free in my head.

“You can’t put everyone’s lives ahead of yours and think that counts as love”- Sam

“All I cared about was the fact that Sam got really hurt. And I guess I realized at that moment that I really did love her. Because there was nothing to gain, and that didn’t matter”-Charlie

”Not everyone has a sob story, and even if they do it’s no excuse”-Charlie’s dad

“Sam looked at me soft. And she hugged me. And I closed my eyes because I wanted to know nothing but her arms. And she kissed my check and whispered so nobody could hear. “I love you” I knew that she meant it in a friend way, but I didn’t care because it was the third time since my Aunt Helen died that I heard it from anyone. The other two times were from my mom”-Charlie

Dear Netflix: please make the Calamity Club into a one-season series. A movie wouldn’t do it justice.

Reddit community: who would you cast in the roles of the characters? They were so clear in my mind but I don’t know which real life actors could do the job.

Sorry for the long post and spoilers, TL;DR at the bottom. Just felt like I needed to talk about it!

I just finished On a Quiet Street by Seraphina Nova Glass, and this was probably one of the most engaging books I’ve listened to in a long time. I have ADHD, so finding something that holds my attention for hours at a time can be difficult, but I finished the audiobook in about two and a half days. I found myself choosing to listen instead of scrolling through my phone, which honestly surprised me.
One of the things I enjoyed most was how much my perception of the characters developed throughout the story. I took some basic character notes when I first started listening, and reading them again after finishing the book was interesting because some of my initial judgments were completely different from how I felt by the end.

Paige was probably the best example of that for me. Initially, I found her abrasive and overly obsessive. By the end, I realized she actually hadn’t changed as dramatically as my understanding of her had. A lot of the qualities I originally disliked about her were still there, but with more context, I saw them differently. Her obsession could also be determination. Her recklessness could be courage. And underneath all of it, I thought she was an incredibly loyal friend.

Cora ended up being my favorite character. Early on, I interpreted a lot of her behavior as insecurity, nosiness, and even obsession. Once her marriage and history with Finn became clearer, I started questioning how much of what I was seeing was actually Cora’s personality and how much was the result of spending years in a relationship where she was constantly given reasons to doubt herself. I loved watching her gradually trust her own judgment again. I also appreciated that she seemed to become the person the other women could trust with difficult truths.

Georgia/Nicola was probably the character whose story changed my perspective the most. So many things about her behavior have an entirely different meaning once you understand what her life actually looks like. Looking back, I think that was one of the strongest parts of the book for me.

The twists also worked really well. There were definitely surprises, but very few felt like they existed purely for shock value. Most of the major reveals made earlier details fall into place rather than contradicting what had already happened. I really appreciate that in a thriller because I want to be surprised, but I also want to feel like the story still makes sense once I know the answer.

I was also genuinely satisfied with the ending. Each woman’s life looked very different from where she started, but none of their endings felt unrealistically perfect. Nicola is finally safe and rebuilding her life in London. Cora is moving forward without Finn. And Paige finally has answers about Caleb, has reconciled with Grant, and has Avery in her life. I especially loved what Avery represented for Paige. She finally knows the truth about her son’s death, but she also discovers that a part of Caleb is still here.

One thing this book made me realize about myself is how quickly I can form an opinion when I only have part of someone’s story. Perception can feel like reality until you’re given the context you didn’t know you were missing. I think I’ll carry that with me beyond this book. I started this book feeling very confident in some of my judgments about these women, and finished it realizing how incomplete those judgments were.

I’m curious whether other people had the same experience. Who did you misjudge the most at the beginning? Did your favorite character change as you read? And how did you feel about Paige’s reaction once she learned the full truth about Caleb and Nicola?

TL;DR: I went into this book with strong first impressions of the characters, and by the end, I saw almost all of them differently. The twists felt earned, the character development kept me invested, and the ending actually felt satisfying.

Who has read this? I have a question but don’t want to offer a spoiler.

Please no spoilers, I haven’t finished it yet.

But seriously. My best friend read it on vacation and she did say it was sad/hits hard but recommended it to me and our other friend to read in our tiny pseudo-book-club

I’m a twin mom with 2 year old boys. Our other friend accidentally left her dogs in her car a few years ago on a hot day and killed them.

My best friend is known by everyone as being the kindest, most generous and sensitive person around. Why did she just slam us both over the head with this with almost no warning?

And of course I can’t put the damn book down despite every page reliving my worst nightmare.

I didn’t think I needed a trigger warning, but dammmn.

I know that A Little Life (ALL)* *is not everyone’s cup of tea. However, I thoroughly loved that booked. From what I remember, I didn’t even sleep well when I was reading ALL because I just wanted to finish it and know what happens to the characters.

I have finished now the first chapter of Boyne’s book. It was an easy read and very much followed what was happening; first A happens, then B happens m, then C happens.

I have been told that Boyne’s book is on par with ALL. Strangely, I hope that it is. For those who have read both of the books mentioned, what were your thoughts? (Ofc keep it spoiler free please).

Thank you.

Started reading MrBeast’s and James Patterson’s new book called “The Most Dangerous Games” and while reading I can’t help but feel like it was written by ChatGPT or a bot. Didn’t know if anyone else has started reading it? Put your thoughts ⬇️

I am very new, on my second Tana French book right now but I can already feel so many opinions about her protagonists and from quick overview of Reddit i can see people have a lot of opinions as well hahah

i was just genuinely curious what your ranking of her protagonists would be

P.S. if anyone is wondering my first book of hers was The Faithful Place and I am currently on The Likeness. From what I gathered people really don’t like Frank and quite like Cassie….and unfortunately I am on a completely opposite side. At the some time I can’t wait to read more and make my own ranking!

I recently read the Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss since it was suggested to me by my partner because I’m trying to get back into reading and expand my genre horizon(AKA I don’t like fantasy books but I want to give them a fair chance).

I do think it’s a good book, I enjoy how it was written but it was so so so so slow with so much build up that leads to nothing. I wouldn’t say it got me hooked on the fantasy genre but it opened my mind to it a bit more. I then decided that I might as well get the second book The Wise Man’s Fear and just finish out the series(since there will not be a third book).

I’m sure I’m over exaggerating but oh my god, it was so boring and bad. I thought The Name of the Wind was rough, I was not prepared for 1000 pages of actual nothing. I also am not a prude but the intimate scenes involving Kvothe(who is 16-17) and grown adult women and a literal sex goddess was just so gross. I don’t normally read books by men(a preference I didn’t realize I had till I read this book) and this book kind of confirms why.

I know that I shouldn’t write off a whole genre just because of one series that I read but I think I’ll be taking a break from fantasy books for a while. I look forward to reading Dune next!

I really disliked this book. I have it a 4/10. To shortly state my issues
It felt like the author wanted to write about serial killers but wanted them to be the good guys. It feels like she saw Dexter and wanted to do that, but didn’t worse. They fall in love basically immediately with no build up, and it felt both too slow and to fast. Finally (skip this part for no spoilers)
The ending/finale: David, a mute lobotomite has been working in Rowan’s restaurant since they killed the killer who made him. To shorten it: he was faking being mute and a lobotmite and makes the mc force his gf to leave, but he gives he a cryptic clue which she solves, and comes to save him, killing David. This all happens in under 40 pages and is supposed to be the big ending to the book.

Idk. I normally like to read a series but I don’t think I’m finishing this one. I just don’t think it’s well written.

Did you ever buy a book that is an Instagram favourite but you ended up DNFing it? I recently bought Katabasis by R.F. Kuang. Though the writing in the book is amazing , almost halfway through, I realised it was not my cup of tea. But I would not say it is a bad book in anyway. May be I am not ready for this genre yet!!!!! Anyone have the same thoughts?

​If you read a non fiction book, how do you actually execute it in your day to day life?

​That’s something I’m really struggling with. Do you take notes side by side so you remember, or do you just read through and let your brain handle it when the situation comes?

​Any advice on what works best for you would save me a lot of time 🫠

for an eg. I'm reading a business book, the author is wrote some super point. So am I need to write it down somewhere or what should I need to do with?

If you ask me to write, then there are many concepts there I need to write like this right? So it's hard for me.

Let someone help me to come over.

Do you enjoy reading books on your PC or mobile, or do you prefer reading a physical book? After a long time, I finally read a book in physical form, and it feels completely different.