The Ring Goes South
In the continuation of trying (and failing) to read Lord of the Rings slowly throughout the year, The Ring Goes South is the second book of the Fellowship-part (Rivendell ->
Category: Reviews
Book reviews
The Ring Sets Out
It’s been about fifteen years since the last time I read Lord of the Rings all the way through. The plan was for me to, along with my girlfriend, for
Hør her’a!
Hør her’a! is one of those books that has been written about everywhere, and, being a sucker for hype, I had to pick it up. It was worth it. Before
Spice Trader
Disclaimer: I got this book through Reedsy Discovery in exchange for a fair review, and I promise that my review is fair and honest one. Spice Trader is a quick,
Rise of the Alliance
Rise of the Alliance is my favourite book in The Frontiers Saga so far. The other books have, largely, had a defined place in the story as a whole. Some
Min kinesiske farmor
I’m a huge fan of Lars Saabye Christensen’s “Byens Spor” books, and they largely inspired me to go on the Norwegian-reading binge I’ve been on lately. Min kinesiske farmor is
Arv og miljø
It’s been impossible to live in Norway over the last couple of years and not have heard the debate triggered by Arv og miljø when it was released. It challenged
Tollak til Ingeborg
Tollak til Ingeborg is the first book I’ve read by Tore Renberg since I read Mannen som Elsket Yngve back in school. That’s not for a lack of wanting to
Gul bok
Gul Bok is the second book by Zeshan Shakar, and moves from the “Growing up as a second-generation immigrant in Norway”-theme from Tante Ulrikkes vei to “Living as a second-generation
Tante Ulrikkes vei
I was about a year late to the Tante Ulrikkes vei party, but having spent that year reading pieces about how good this book was, I was very happy to
Born of the Ashes
Born of the Ashes continues what is becoming the increasingly epic tale that is The Frontiers Saga, and while this instalment is a bit of a slow burn, the fuse
Between the World and Me
I went into Between the World and Me completely blind. I hadn’t heard about this book until a podcast, Aftenpodden, mentioned that they’d be doing a discussion around this book
Gjenferd
During this journey of completionism I’ve been going on through the Harry Hole books, I’ve been pleasantly surprised at how the books have managed to feel quite different, despite being
Ingen kan hjelpe meg
I knew that Ingen kan hjelpe meg would be a bit of a departure from the rhythm in the regular Elling books, but I wasn’t aware of quite how much
Let the Guilty Pay
Disclaimer: I got this book through Reedsy Discovery in exchange for a fair review, and I promise that my review is fair and honest one. Let the Guilty Pay is
Lanzarote
I went into Lanzarote completely blind, knowing only that it’s the subject of the latest Ingvar Ambjørnsen-book about Elling. I heard a strong recommendation about reading this book before reading
Agent Running in the Field
As with the only other John le Carré-book I’ve got around to reading (Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy) I wish that I would have liked this book just a little more
So You Want to Talk About Race
It’s a pity that I needed a holiday like Juneteenth, as well as the current international movement, as a catalyst for picking up a book on racial issues — but
Liberation
I believe Liberation can be fairly summarized as… ehm… stuff getting real. Stuff getting very real. The series has been coasting for a few books on things generally not going
Ekko av en venn
When this sequel to the Elling series was released out of the blue 20 years after the previous book was released, I was a little nervous. Would it feel forced?
The Sleepwalker
I went into The Sleepwalker really wanting to like it a lot. After The Smiling Man I was excited to see where the story would go next, or, rather, to see what Aidan Waits would do next. Unfortunately The Sleepwalker didn’t quite satisfy me in the way I hoped it would. … Continue reading…The Sleepwalker
Gwendy’s Button Box
Gwendy’s Button Box is a short story that for me almost epitomizes the expression “perfectly OK”. It’s perfectly fine. Just perfectly fine. We get to meet Gwendy who in turn
Panserhjerte
Panserhjerte (“The Leopard” in English) is a Harry Hole story that once again pushes the boundaries of the extreme, grandiose, and exaggerated, but that, strangely enough, seems more like an
Resistance
Aaaaand we’re back! After the slight feeling of setup-without-action in the previous instalment of the series, The Frontiers Saga is now reaping what it sowed. As usual, I don’t want
Born a Crime
I think it’s probably impossible to dislike Trevor Noah. Perhaps there are people who don’t like him, but I can’t see how anyone could actively dislike him. I’ve seen him
Kilimanjaro
A larger than life, glitzy, family-drama set in an old fashioned Casino on the Las Vegas strip, Kilimanjaro is just as fun as it sounds. … Continue reading…Kilimanjaro
Wings of Deceit
I’m an air-travel geek who likes thrillers, so my interest was well and truly piqued by the synopsis of this book. I was expecting a quick, irreverent story about some drama on an airplane. That’s not what I got. This book is much more than that, and much better for it. … Continue reading…Wings of Deceit
Celestia CV-02
After a run of really good books in this series, Celestia CV-02 is a bit of a breather. After the ending of the previous book (which I’m not going to
My Sister, the Serial Killer
My Sister, the Serial Killer is a wonderful, wonderful, book. After all the hype around The Silent Patient, and the let-down I felt after reading it, I was sceptical toward what could have been another overhyped literary blockbuster (Bookbuster? Is that coined yet?), but My Sister, the Serial Killer really delivers on what everyone seems to be saying about it. … Continue reading…My Sister, the Serial Killer
Auberon
Auberon, another one of the Expanse novellas, is among the good ones, but not the best. … Continue reading…Auberon
Snømannen
After a few books where they kind of needed to find their footing, I’ve come to really like the Harry Hole books. They are predictably fun, while having a predictably unpredictable outcome. They’re a safe refuge of reliably good, gritty, crime. Snømannen was no exception. … Continue reading…Snømannen
The Silent Patient
I had such high hopes for The Silent Patient. I kept seeing good reviews of it everywhere, it kept popping up on “best thriller” lists, and the little I’d heard of the premise sounded interesting. Perhaps my expectations made it unfairly hard for the book to meet them, but it’s been a while since I found a book to be this much of a let-down. … Continue reading…The Silent Patient
Elevation
Like in the other Stephen King short stories I’ve read, Rage and The Long Walk, the pitch for Elevation seems to be a thought-experiment with a story written around it.
American Dirt
I loved American Dirt. I really, really, loved it. It’s one of the most engrossing, emotionally jarring, moving, exciting books I’ve read in a very long time. It’s brutal, sad, and provocative, but it knew exactly what it’s doing, and it struck up all my emotional cords with a precision and relentlessness that, at times, literally took my breath away. … Continue reading…American Dirt
The Conference of the Birds
The Conference of The Birds is a good continuation of the Peculiar Children series. Not great, not bad, but perfectly good. After reading the previous book I hoped that this
Where the Crawdads Sing
I picked up Where the Crawdads Sing without knowing anything about it at all, other than being aware of it’s dominance of the New York Times bestseller list (29 number-one weeks, and counting, at the time of writing). I had no idea this was a historical novel, and I had no idea the extent to which it’s a romance-story. This review might be an unfair one, as I’m not a huge fan of either genre, but hey: surely a good book is a good book, right? Having read it, the book left me with mixed feelings, to say the least. It is, in part, a coming-of-age story that I really, really, liked. In part a perfectly okay legal drama. And, in part, a romance-story which, despite being technically good, felt very problematic and made me angry. … Continue reading…Where the Crawdads Sing
War on Peace
War on Peace is the book it promises to be, but not the book I thought it would be. I picked it up thinking that it would be a real-life
A Map of Days
A Map of Days is a welcome revisiting of the Peculiar Children universe. It’s easy to be sceptical toward the fourth book in what was originally a trilogy, and I was, but this was a good start to a new trilogy, rather than being a forced continuation of the first one. … Continue reading…A Map of Days
Frelseren
Frelseren, or, The Redeemer, is yet another solid Harry Hole book. Frelseren uses the simple, but very effective technique of relating to the inside workings of a mysterious world most
The Stand
I was surprised to find that I hadn’t written a review for The Stand back when I read it early 2017. I feel like I’ve been reviewing this book a
The Institute
There is something about reading the first few chapters of a Stephen King book that invokes a feeling of “Aaaand, we’re back.” The Institute is no exception. In this one
The Amber Spyglass
This book was a strange experience. I was thoroughly bored the first 100 pages. As with The Subtle Knife, I failed to immerse myself in the universe of the book
Marekors
Harry Hole’s adventures continue. As usual he’s in a bad place personally, to the point where his perpetual state of almost getting fired looks like it will finally tip beyond
Catch and Kill
Catch and Kill is a fascinating, disturbing, thrilling book. It’s the story of how Ronan Farrow worked on uncovering the truth behind the Harvey Weinstein story, and the challenges he
The Expanse
The Expanse by Ryk BrownSeries: The Frontiers Saga #7Publisher: Amazon Released: June 17, 2013Pages: 246GoodreadsRating: 4.5/5 A newly repaired ship… A willing and eager crew… A host of new technologies…
The Subtle Knife
As a TV-series based on these books seems to be coming out soon, I figured it would be a good time to pick up my rereading of His Dark Materials. I’m sure I’ve read these books before, but they are filed under the category of books I read so long ago that I can’t remember anything at all about them. … Continue reading…The Subtle Knife
Head of the Dragon
Head of the Dragon by Ryk BrownSeries: The Frontiers Saga #6 Released: February 4, 2013Pages: 378GoodreadsRating: 4.5/5 Time is running out… An ally has all but fallen… Resources are running
Rise of the Corinari
Finally! The Frontier Saga books haven’t been bad up until this point, but I must admit that I’ve been waiting for some reassurance as to whether they’re good enough to justify the amount of time that it will take to read the number of books this series already comprises of, never mind the number of books that will eventually be released. … Continue reading…Rise of the Corinari
Byens Spor: Skyggeboken
Byens Spor: Skyggeboken by Lars Saabye ChristensenSeries: Byens Spor #3 Released: August 5, 2019Pages: 544GoodreadsRating: 5/5 Hva hører vi når vi lytter til byens lyder? Hvilke spor etterlater den i
Elsk Meg i Morgen
Elsk meg i morgen is a brilliant book. I found a lot of it to be uncomfortable, sad, and stressful. I didn’t enjoy much of it. And yet, it’s fantastic.
The Smiling Man
The Smiling Man gave me exactly what I expected from it: some well done, gritty, dark, British, crime – you know, as a feel-good change from what’s going on in
Gratis og uforpliktande verdivurdering
Seeing as every Norwegian “books you should read” list last year seemed to have this one on it, I figured Id give it a try, If anything to get to
Educated
From what I’d heard about it I knew that I would enjoy Educated, but I wasn’t prepared for how hard this book would hit me. The story told is truly
Fugledansen
The wonderful style of the first Elling book continues into the second one, but in this one Elling’s internal monologue and fantasies are, to a much greater extent, guided by
Sorgenfri
I really want to say “I will make no excuses for loving this book”, but I did love this book, and, for some reason, as this is a bit of
Kakerlakkene
I’d describe Kakerlakkene as solid, but unremarkable. Whereas the first Harry Hole book took a while to find it’s feet, this one hit the ground running, and continued in the
Utsikt til paradiset
Utsikt til Paradiset reads a bit like a whimsical, funny, feel-good story with a charming main character, but without you really realising what has happened, you suddenly find yourself at
The Power
Note: in this review I say a bit about the very basic premise of the book, but not any more (and indeed quite a bit less) than literally every description
Flaggermusmannen
Twenty minutes into Flaggermusmannen I was almost feeling sorry for myself – why did I insist on setting out on this mission of being a Jo Nesbø completist? Is it
Tiamat’s Wrath
Wow. So, I’m not writing anything at all about what happens in this book, because doing so would be impossible without possibly spoiling the previous books, but… wow. This book
The Light Fantastic
After reading this I’m getting a little nervous: what if I’m not the kind of person who loves Terry Pratchett books? I want to love Terry Pratchett books! I want
Freedom’s Dawn
This installment of The Frontiers Saga felt different to the others, like a bit of a setup for books to come. I didn’t dislike it – it was enjoyable enough,
Byens Spor: Maj
I loved this book. I really, really, loved it. This second Byens Spor took everything that was good about the first one, made it even better, and then added some
Endelig tirsdag
I learned of the existence of Endelig Tirsdag through a retweet of the author by a stranger on the internet. On the strength of the writing in the author’s bio
Persepolis Rising
Persepolis Rising starts out with a twist (yeah, I know, starting with a twist rather than ending on one? What a twist!) But, almost remarkably considering the framing it sets
Byens Spor: Ewald og Maj
Byens Spor is a bit of a slow burn, but once the flame catches it burns as bright as anyone could ask it to. This isn’t a story about something
Artemis
To start out with the elephant in the room: Artemis is not The Martian. But that’s okay. Very few books can be The Martian. Despite that Artemis is an extremely
Strange Dogs
Another Expanse-novella, this one follows a girl living in a new world that has been made possible by the events in the Exanse-books preceding it. Whereas the other novellas have
Goldfinger
After the downward spiral that was From Russia With Love, Octopussy, and Doctor No, my expectations for Goldfinger were rather low. It’s still not a great book, but I was
Right Ho, Jeeves
The best and the worst thing about the Jeeves-books is exactly the same thing: you know exactly what you’re going to get. Had I picked this book up expecting to
Babylon’s Ashes
Well, this was bound to happen. As much as I’ve liked all of the books in The Expanse so far, I guess it was inevitable that one would come along
Berge
Berge was nothing like what I thought it was going to be like, and I absolutely loved it. I’ve purposefully avoided reading much about this book, but from what I
The Vital Abyss
I enjoyed The Vital Abyss the most of the Expanse-novellas I’ve read so far. We follow one character, and the story alternates between taking place in the past and in
Sirens
If someone were to ask me what I think of Noir as a genre I’d quickly say “I really like it!”, followed by half an hour of thinking “Wait… have
Nemesis Games
Well… Wow. I’ve been through quite a few Expanse books by now, and as much as I’ve really liked them, I’ve been waiting to really love one of them. I
Cibola Burn
I’ve really come to enjoy the universe in which the Expanse books take place, and the main characters from the previous books have really grown on me. Then along comes
The Churn
The Churn (a short novella set in the Expanse universe) is the kind of story where you won’t realise why you like the start until you’ve read the end, and
Abaddon’s Gate
After the first two books of The Expanse, I expected a lot of Abaddon’s Gate. How could this series go on making itself better? How could the third book surpass
Drive
Another entertaining little short story, though this one almost seems too short to justify its own Goodreads-entry. It’s an origin story of the piece of technology making it possible to
Caliban’s War
Caliban’s War is a great book. It has some flaws that might usually have annoyed me, but despite them I just couldn’t help being thoroughly won over. I found it
Gods of Risk
I really liked this short story. A words that comes to mind to describe it is “cute”, which I realise can be a loaded word, but this story is cute
The Master and Margarita
I didn’t get this book. It has been described as one of the best books of the century it was written in, a brilliant piece of biting satire, and a
The Girl on the Train
The Girl on The Train is perfectly ok. Disappointingly and underwhelmingly ok. I haven’t seen the film, but my expectations were set pretty high based on what I’ve heard about
The Butcher of Anderson Station
A companion-piece to the Expanse series, this short story tells the origin story (of sorts) of Fred, the rebel military leader from Leviathan Wakes. It adds some interesting nuance to
Leviathan Wakes
The expanse series has been emphatically recommended to me, and Leviathan Wakes is certainly a very strong start. It’s set against an interesting backdrop in which humans have colonised Mars,
End of Watch
Annoyingly, this book was both good and disappointing. After Mr. Mercedes and Finders Keepers my expectations for this last book of the trilogy were very high. They weren’t met. The
The Legend of Corinair
It’s getting there, it’s getting there… After the somewhat boring second book in this series, the third book shows a lot more promise. The relatively large number of characters, which
Beauty Queens
I really like what this book sets out to do. I really like the idea of this book, I really like the politics of this book, I really like the
The Long Walk
Like Rage, The Long Walk is a concept with a story written around it. A hundred boys are participants in a competition. The rules are simple: walk for as long
The Rings of Haven
The Rings of Haven is the second book of what is going to be a million or so installments of the Frontiers Saga. Apparently the series is supposed to turn
The Trial
The Trial really has the feel of the kind of nightmare you’d have if you were to eat a very large meal and then fall asleep while reading about Alice’s
Rage
Rage seems like a written down thought-experiment, in a good way. Put an angry high-school student in a classroom with a gun and his fellow students. What would happen? What
Aurora: CV-01
Another book that fits comfortably in under the definition of “really good fun”. It’s not deep (at least not yet), probably extremely derivative when seen through the eyes of anyone
The Zimmermann Telegram
I know way, way, less than I should know about the first World War, and I had no idea what the Zimmermann Telegram was, let alone how it fit into
Pride and Prejudice
I know I should have liked this more than I did, and that I’m wrong not to. I also tend to really enjoy classics, which is why it surprised me
Bellweather Rhapsody
I didn’t find this book to be anything like what it’s like. For me it wasn’t really a case of the book being greater than the sum of it’s parts,
Ready Player One
Ah yes! Fast-paced, entertaining, never-boring, just-clever-enough, geeky, video-game-related action! Ready Player One takes place in an extremely bleak vision of the future, but it’s a future in which almost everything
Gone Girl
I apologise in advance, but this is going to be the kind of review that keeps going on about the book having been adapted to a film, and, even worse,
Night Film
It’s hard to be that specific about all the good things I want to say about Night Film. I think part of the strength of it is that it doesn’t
Where’d You Go, Bernadette
I’m generally not the kind of person who struggles to put down a book. Even if I really like it, I’m generally fine with putting it down and coming back