Mini Reviews / Last Quarter(s) Wrap-Up

What’s been cooking for the past few months? Er, past few quarters (since my last mini reviews date back to pre-July)? At least for me, the last 2 months fared way better for my reading than the rest of the year, so I am thankful for that. All in the name of conquering Mount TBR!

The Moorchild by Eloise Jarvis McGraw

What a beautiful book. Full of that strange longing for all the “misfits” who are just looking for a place to belong to. It takes Saaski some time to figure out that she’s a Changeling. As only half-human, she is shunned everywhere. The superstition and cruelty in her village grows, and there is only one way out – she must find a new home for herself. It’s difficult to put an age group on this book, 13-14 years would probably work, but there’s so much otherworldly eeriness and charm in this book that perhaps only adults can appreciate it. 

“She pretended she had never seen heather or sat in a treetop; that she had never been anyone but Saaski. And slowly the door to memory swung shut. The speech around her became mysterious; she began to learn it anew. She waved her tiny arms and legs and as they grew longer and stronger she began to crawl, then stand, then stagger from the cot to Anwara, from Anwara to the cot—and sometimes to Yanno, of whom she was no longer terrified, only wary without quite knowing why. In this way… she buried deep within herself the knowledge that she had once been Moql.”

Whose Body? by Dorothy Sayers

Very lacklustre first book in Peter Wimsey series, but back in 1923, it must have signalled budding detective fiction greatness. A dead body is found in a bathtub in some aristocrat’s home. It’s easy to assume it was the missing aristocrat himself – but when are things that easy? Most of the clues come from the cadaver itself – back then, Sayers’ interpretations had to be heavily edited to make them more palatable to readers. I tried the BBC radio version, which is shorter and a good substitute. The funniest bit was Peter’s motto: “As my Whimsy takes me.” LOLs.

I’ve liked the TV adaptations of Sayers’ best, so I will probably go on with the series. Perhaps, Nine Tailors, but I’m not in a hurry.

A Company of Swans by Eva Ibbotson

A young girl escapes her miserable life in England to run off and join a ballet company performing in South America. That’s not a very catchy premise, to be honest. I liked the ballet references from heydays of 1912. But I also thought it was too melodramatic and far-fetched and so overall I am confused why this book is still so popular. 

Poker Face

If you like Knives Out and The Glass Onion, then you’ll like Poker Face. Lead character is played by Natasha Lyonne (so love her raspy voice!), with an uncanny ability to detect when someone is lying. While on the run, she is forced to take on several odd jobs. But then unfortunately for her – and luckily for us – she encounters crimes at each of those jobs. You’d think she can’t possibly secure justice, so it’s super energizing when she does exactly that!