Sarah Mac > Recent Status Updates

Slightly related- I plan to plow through a bunch of 5hr and under listens in March so I can binge read The Expanse all in a row.

Where this books excels is definitely the banter, but I do think the ‘s/he doesn’t really like me’ sentiment is dragging a little.

OMG the dogs get to meet!

I’ve had a sinking feeling since starting this book that Mengele would be in it… I wish I had been wrong.

The narrators are superb!

I’m only listening to this (at 2X speed) because literally none of my unsuspended holds have come in. This is 1 or 2 star territory for me tbh. Also, why does Erin’s diary entries sound like a lovestruck 13 y/o?? She’s in her 30’s.

It’ssssssss kinda boring.

I have.. a lot of mixed feelings about this book. Overall, I think it was too long and had too many characters and the back end of the book was much better than the front. BUT, I actually didn’t piece together who killed who at all, which I have to give it props for.

Starting to wonder if I’m not into mystery/whodunit books? They’re not bad, I just feel very apathetic about them in general it seems.

3.5⭐️ that I’m rounding down. I found the opening, which was essentially 5 friends arguing with each other, to be very annoying and a huge turnoff. I also found the scene where they do mushrooms together to be pretty cringe and it felt super out of place.

I go into most books cold turkey and don’t read samples, but I have to say, I think reading Shark Heart and Interior Chinatown back-to-back was a bad idea. The former is formatted like a theatrical play and the latter like a screenplay and non-traditional storytelling doesn’t always jive with me. (I particularly hated Where’d You Go Bernadette.) All that to say, I can’t stop comparing these two books.

Given the format of this book, I think it would be better to read it physically.

Not sure how I’m rating this yet. Gonna let the story sit with me for awhile.

I think the amazing thing about this book is that it’s an allegory for a lot of heavy, poignant topics. Very unique. Definitely thinking about my late grandparents.

Based on the sample, I thought this wouldn’t interest me, but im pleasantly surprised.

Legitimately, the only reason I’m finishing this book (at 2.0X+ speed mind you) is because I get interrupted so frequently at work that I literally don’t care if I miss anything.

This reads like the author pulled out a thesaurus and changed one word every other sentence to “elevate” the writing. Either that or I’m not buying the time period. Well, I’m not buying a lot of things in this book so far.

There’s a good change this will be a DNF for me. Not vibing with the writing style or the narrator really. 2025 is my year of DNFs.

Here’s the thing… I hate coffee. I don’t even like the smell. But is it really about the coffee? Not really.

If Yabu doesn’t end up dead by the end of this book…

I’m very curious what the implications of the priest’s disobedience will be!

I’m enjoying this book way more than I thought I would. To some extent, long reads exhaust my brain a little bit, but it’s really entertaining to see so many different characters internal thought processes.

“Yes. I prefer the mist that surrounds me. Yes, I don’t like a lot of what I see nowadays.” Pg. 290.