Isa Lavinia

I'll read anything, even the back of shampoo bottles, if there's nothing else.

lol bye

message 29: by Tyler (new)
TylerAs does your opinion that you clearly spent too much time on...

 
Isa LaviniaTyler wrote: "As does your opinion that you clearly spent too much time on..."

I was going to say something mean, but then I saw that Twilight and Eragon are two of your favourite books, so I figure that having a shitty taste in books is punishment enough.



Stardancer by Ariel MacArran

Stardancer - 

Ariel MacArran
TW: DUBIOUS CONSENT
 
This is such an odd book.
 
The writing is really good, as is the pacing. The trouble is that it seems as if there are three different books in one, and only one of the three is actually good...
 
The first part of the book is about Kinara stupidly risking her whole crew for her own personal revenge, in spite of being repeatedly told that everything she was doing was wrong.
I disliked it immensely. 
Kinara is selfish, wilfully ignorant, and gives no thought to sacrificing her entire crew to bloodthirsty barbarian enslavers just so she can get her revenge.
Not a great start to make your heroine so unlikeable. 
 
One thing I really HATED about this part of the book was how dubious consent was. 
Mind you, this is never presented as a good thing and is discussed throughout the book, but I found it was treated with levity, more as a plot point, to add drama to the whole thing, than as a serious issue. 
I like to read about enthusiastic content, not about drugged beverages and blackmailing someone into going to bed with you by threatening to kill their friends. That's not sexy. That's not romantic. It's sick.
 
Thankfully we move on to the next part of the book which deals with Kinara learning about Az-kye society and how to fit in.
I liked this part better. Kinara was much more likeable, she truly evolved as a character.
 
Then we get to the best part of the book!
I think MacArran should give this genre a rest and start writing political intrigue because she does it marvellously!
It was impossible to dislike Kinara here - she was incredibly, but believably, clever. She plotted, she played the political game, she did her best and her best was great.
 
This books gets 3 stars just for the last part!
 
So, if you can get past the trigger warning, give this book a try.
 
 
Ariel MacArran's official site
 
Buy Stardancer 
@ The Book Depository (with free worldwide delivery!)
 
 




The Martian - 

Andy Weir
Okay, I'm late to the game - this book came out forever ago - but I'd like to add myself to the masses praising Weir's work.
 
I love sci-fi, I love survival stories, but I kept dragging my feet about this book because I always get frustrated with all the artistic licenses taken re.: science (see Life as We Knew It).
As a scientist, that stuff straight up guts me.
 
But this book... You guys, this book!!!
 
Let's start with Mark. Mark has to be the chillest dude in any survival book ever!
He doesn't Rambo his way through problems, he uses science - he's that elusive Science Hero (WARNING: link will take you to tv tropes where you may be trapped for days) that's been so conspicuously absent from our media these days.
 
It's impossible to dislike Mark. Impossible!
Everything he does is backed up with maths, physics, biology, logic, a shitload of thinking through everything, and unfailing hope and good humour. There is no tstl to be found in this book. 
 
Then there is Mars itself: the great adversary.
I love that Mars, in its beauty, is the closest thing to an antagonist in this book. All the humans are doing their best, are doing what they think is right, to bring Mark home. 
 
The plot, which has everything to become dull, never does so. It's always lively and keeps you on the edge of your seat. I suppose, since Weir wrote it in instalments, there was never an opportunity for things to stall. 
It also really helped that whenever Mark solved one problem and thought things might be looking up, some catastrophe would pop up.
 
 
 
I feel like sending a love letter to Andy Weir. 
This is how you do research for a book. 
Apart from the dust storm at the beginning - which I'm letting slide because it's the catalyst for the plot - everything is so beautifully researched!
I know it's stupid to be getting teary-eyed over this, one would thing that it's the bare minimum an author should do for their book - but it's so rare!
 
Another thing that always gets me teary-eyed: the whole of humanity uniting over something that means more that our petty squabbles. 
I love how the entire world was rooting for Mark, how everyone put aside their differences when it comes to this - it's one of the reasons I decided to become a scientist: how it propels mankind forward, how it's greater than us. You know... the whole Sagan ~feel~ of it.
It was my favourite thing about this book, hands-down. 
 
Favourite quote:
«Teddy swiveled his chair and looked out the window to the sky beyond. Night was edging in. “What must it be like?” he pondered. “He’s stuck out there. He thinks he’s totally alone and that we all gave up on him. What kind of effect does that have on a man’s psychology?”
He turned back to Venkat. “I wonder what he’s thinking right now.”
 
LOG ENTRY: SOL 61
How come Aquaman can control whales? They’re mammals! Makes no sense.»
 
In conclusion:
 
 
 
Andy Weir's amazing site (with a bunch of free stories)
 
Buy The Martian
@ The Book Depository (with free worldwide delivery!)
 
 




Guide to the Crystal Gems by Rebecca Sugar

Guide to the Crystal Gems (Steven Universe) - 

Rebecca Sugar
It's no secret that I'm a rabid fan of Steven Universe - I really think it's the best kids' show (and not just for kids!). I love how it addresses familial relationships, friendship, abusive relationships, loss, lgbta+ issues, and FEELS so many feels!
 
Even if, like me, you're obsessed with Steven Universe you'll still find new information about the Crystal Gems and the Steven Universe world. And if you're not familiar with Steven Universe this is an excellent starting point!
 
It even includes Lion!!!
 
 

Rebecca Sugar's tumblr, twitter, and instagram

Buy Guide to the Crystal Gems 
@ amazon
 
 




When the Duke Was Wicked (Scandalous Gentlemen of St. James #1) by Lorraine Heath

When the Duke Was Wicked  - 

Lorraine Heath
The story itself was absolutely fine, as was the writing, but I never felt any chemistry between Grace and Henry - which is a pity because I had high hopes after having read about them in Falling Into Bed With A Duke.
 
I knew it was hopeless, but I thought Grace would be better off really moving on from her childhood crush on Henry, plus I found it more than a little creepy how much older he was, and how they knew each other when she was a little girl. 
 
Besides, I really disliked how Henry kept compromising her while being so strict when it came to his own sister. That hypocritical attitude never was to my taste, it seems as if a woman is only truly worth protecting and honouring if she is somehow yours in some way, be it as a mother, sister, daughter or wife. It's just... gross. 
And the comparisons between lively Grace and the wishy-washy dead wife were... troubling.
 
Which leads to the dilemma: this is a really well written story, but I hated the romance and how the characters were portrayed. Henry, for all his heartache, should have been less of a creep, and Grace should have been less naïve, considering all she went through.
 
Regarding what Grace went through: I REALLY LOVED that such a subject (can't say what it is, since it's a spoiler!) was addressed in HR and involving such a young girl as well, to help dispel the notion that it'll only happen in your later years. And I truly did love how the whole subject was handled. 
 
I just couldn't get into the rest...
 
So read it and see for yourself because, as always, what doesn't work for me will work for other readers!

 

 
 
Lorraine Heath's official site

 

Buy When the Duke Was Wicked

@ The Book Depository (with free worldwide delivery!)

 

 

 




Snow, Glass, Apples by Neil Gaiman

Snow, Glass, Apples - 

Neil Gaiman, Charles Vess
This is my Halloween spooky read for this year - I was thinking of re-reading Angela Carter's The Bloody Chamber, but I had yet to read this one and I wanted something new. 
 
And I chose well because the tone of this short story is reminiscent of Carter's writing in The Bloody Chamber: the lyrical tone, the vivid descriptions, the dreamy feel of it, the sex, the horror, the bright red blood.
 
This is a retelling of Snow White told from the Wicked Stepmother's point of view. 
It combines the monstrous femininity trope with the creepy child one - and although this story is told, as mentioned above, from a female point of view, the fears shown are very male ones.
That monstrous female who drains men of their life blood - men who trust her, men who want her, men who abuse her. Her sexual organs as a source of death instead of life. 
The interplay of sex and violence. 
 
I never felt the Stepmother's fear acutely, even near the end - and at that point she should have felt things more keenly. So I didn't feel as if this was ever told by a woman. There was a depth and insight lacking to the story - and not because of its short length. 
 
Still, it's a lovely retelling and a nice Halloween read. 
 
 
Neil Gaiman's official site
 
Read Snow, Glass, Apples online for free here
 
 




Falling Into Bed with a Duke (The Hellions of Havisham #1) by Lorraine Heath

Falling Into Bed with a Duke (Hellions of Havisham) - 

Lorraine Heath
I'm the pickiest reader and I can't find fault with this book!
It was so, so delightful!
 
Minerva has had six seasons to catch the attention of a potential suitor and, while she's had many, all of them were fortune hunters. She's not a beauty, and even her money can't make men bear such an opinionated miss who suffers no fools. 
Having decided she'll embrace spinsterhood, Minerva finds it perfectly logical that she should get to know the pleasures of the flesh: gentlemen do it all the time, why should ladies deny themselves the same?
This is where the Nightingale Club comes in: a club where ladies of means and name, masked and anonymous, choose their partner for the night from amongst the gentlemen of society.
 
One such gentleman is the Duke of Ashebury, also known as one of the Hellions of Havisham. Having lost his parents at a young age and being left in the care of an absent minded if kind madman, Ashe lives a hedonistic life. 
 
Soon Minerva and Ashe become entangled, and while Minerva clings to anonymity, Ashe is determined to find out who his clever and no-nonsense lover is, and how he can court her openly in society after having seduced her in bed. 
 
I loved Minerva! She's so practical, so straightforward! She knows what she wants and won't settle for less. She knows how to throw a punch, and she knows how to make profitable investments. 
She sees the world as it is and has no problem speaking her mind. 
I have to admit, I read her parents' book (Between the Devil and Desire) after reading this one, to gain a better understanding of Minerva, and it's no surprise she turned out as wonderful as she is with Olivia and Jack as parents!
 
It's so nice that there was no needless drama in this book! Even towards the end, when things seemed to be taking a turn to the usual dragged out angst/drama, one of the characters just acted sensibly and within a short time the problem was solved with no one languishing in the swamp of miscommunication. 
 
Also, Minerva and Ashe were marvellous together. Their chemistry was amazing, and I was really invested in their relationship - I had a silly grin on my face throughout the whole book!
 
Highly recommend it!
This is how historical romance should be written!
 
 
Lorraine Heath's official site
 
Buy Falling in Bed with a Duke
@ The Book Depository (with free worldwide delivery!)
 
 




The Girl in the Castle Inside the Museum by Kate Bernheimer and Nicoletta Ceccoli (illustrator)

The Girl in the Castle Inside the Museum - 

Kate Bernheimer, Nicoletta Ceccoli
What a disappointment :(
Those 1.5 stars are entirely awarded to the illustrations. Nicoletta Ceccoli deserved to illustrate an actual worthy story, not this... thing.
 
The story is absolutely pointless. 
"Reminiscent of The Lady of Shalott'"? How? Because they were both in a tower? 
"An original fairy tale"? Where? This was artsy fartsy stringed nonsense attempting to be taken as ~deep~. 
 
There was absolutely no writing skill, very little imagination where the story is concerned, with no effort put into the writing, which is an incohesive mess. 
 
I definitely do not recommend this to anyone. Oh, wait, I guess I recommend it to fans of Lang Leav. 
 
Anyone else just flip through the book at a book store to see the illustrations. They were really pretty, Ceccoli has a gift, I hope I see more of her work.
 



Between the Devil and Desire (Scoundrels of St. James #2) by Lorraine Heath

Between the Devil and Desire - 

Lorraine Heath
tw: child abuse, pedophilia
 
I just recently discovered Lorraine Heath and I LOVE her writing style and her characters!
They're all so practical, so devoid of needless drama, it's refreshing!
 
Let me start with what I loved about this story.
The characters were perfectly fleshed out, completely developed. They felt real, they acted like actual people, I was honestly rooting for them. 
 
Very straightforward communication between the characters. There was no drama as you usually see from the characters simply not talking to each other like adults. I wish all books took this route...
 
The relationships, not only the one between Jack and Olivia, but especially the one between Jack and Henry, were lovely. It's so nice to get to read a HR where the 'hero' takes his time to bond with others instead of just ambling about in pursuit of the lady's favour.
 
The writing style: perfect!
 
What I mostly disliked about this story was its implausibility. 
 
Olivia is all that is moral and proper. She wouldn't be seen without mourning attire so soon after her husband's death. Society has its eyes on her, and it's her duty to behave appropriately, not only for her sake but for the sake of her son's future. 
 
Yet a notorious owner of a gaming hell/brothel, who is not only single but also a commoner moves into her house (which became his, to be fair) and we only get one brief mention of how she doesn't need to worry about living with him because she's a widow? 
No. She does need to worry about it! It was simply not done!
 
There was also the mystery, which I deduced as soon as the will was read, even though I kind of hoped my guess wouldn't be right...
 
Don't let my complaints drive you away from this book. I think I'm being overly critical. I've given higher ratings to less deserving books, it's just that Heath is so skilled that when something doesn't work it draws attention next to the brilliance of the rest of her work...
 
Anyway, I do recommend this book, so if you fancy the summary go ahead and read it!
 
 
Lorraine Heath's official site
 
Buy Between the Devil and Desire
@ The Book Depository (with free worldwide delivery!)

 

 




The Little World of Liz Climo

The Little World of Liz Climo - 

Liz Climo
I had seen the work of Liz Climo on tumblr - sadly with no attribution, which makes me so mad, artists deserve recognition for their works!
 
So I was familiar with her work, and I loved every single comic I'd seen of hers: her comics are so sweet, and cute, and funny!
This book was no exception, it was SUPER CUTE, and just absolutely delightful!
There were some comics I had seen before, but there were also quite a few surprises in there, this was one of my favourites:
 
 
I know she has published more books and I hope I'll get to read them all!
Highly recommended for children and adults alike!
 
 
Liz Climo's tumblr
 
Buy The Little World of Liz Climo 
@ The Book Depository (with free worldwide delivery!)
 
 




Interstellar Cinderella by Deborah Underwood and Meg Hunt

Interstellar Cinderella - 

Deborah Underwood, Meg Hunt
The cutest girl power book for children!
Cinderella loves to fix things, but her real dream is to fix fancy ships. 
When the time comes for the Prince's Ball, as the story always goes, Cinderella is forbidden to attend. But with the help of her Fairy Godrobot, and the faithful company of her robotic mouse Murgatroyd, Cinderella saves the day and achieves her dreams!
 
 
Deborah Underwood's official site
Meg Hunt's official site
 
Buy Interstellar Cinderella
@ The Book Depository (with free worldwide delivery!)
 
 




Lock & Mori (Lock & Mori #1) by Heather W. Petty

Lock & Mori - 

Heather W. Petty
TW: VIOLENCE AGAINST CHILDREN AND WOMEN, EMOTIONAL AND PHYSICAL ABUSE, ALCOHOLISM
 
I think many people went into this book expecting more of BBC's Sherlock or the original Arthur Conan Doyle's books, and they weren't happy with the result. 
Sherlock is indeed like BBC's Sherlock but, thankfully, we never have to look at Bennyhill Chasemusic's face throughout the book, so I actually liked the character 100% more than I like BBC's Sherlock (which is 0%, as you can tell by doing the maths). I just pictured him as a young Jeremy Brett, by far my favourite of all Sherlock Holmes.
 
The one I REALLY loved in this book was Mori! She was clever, though not in an alienating way towards her peers (like Sherlock was), she cared and protected her brothers, she cared about her friend Sadie Mae. ...And she cared about little else.
 
We always get these mildly sociopathic male protagonists - House, Sherlock, etc. - but we seldom get the sociopathic female, though when we do... they're the best! Who doesn't like *SUPER SPOILER* from Gone Girl? Who doesn't like Alice from Luther? It's much more intriguing because these female characters are always written as being able to fake their personality and immerse themselves in society with none the wiser, while their male counterparts go out of their way to let everyone know they despise them. 
 
So onto the plot, this isn't a full 5 stars because I believe anyone could guess the whole "whodunnit" from the earlier chapters, but the story was still compelling. 
We have Mori, who has lost her mother and seen her life fall apart when her policeman father turns to drinking and starts beating her and her brothers. 
Mori who is looking for a way out. Mori who has lost any belief in the system after having every attempt to ask for help end up with her father's police friends quieting everything up. Mori who wants to get rid of her father but wants to find a way to do it without negatively impacting her brothers' lives. 
 
Then there's Sherlock. He's basically Sherlock from BBC, only younger, and less rude, and more aware of his social incompetence. And he's all for "the game's afoot!" and turning everything into a competition, as if people's lives are a game that needs solving the whys and hows, but he then loses interest as soon as he's figured them out. 
 
I liked that difference between Sherlock and Mori. I liked how, when he pulled her into the game, she saw everything he saw but also the vulnerability, how the others were human beings worthy of respect and privacy, how their pains weren't a game - even if she felt little for them. 
 
I've seen quite a lot of reviews complaining about insta-love, and I have to say, though rather quick, it seemed natural to me. It's difficult being an outsider, so it's easy to form an attachment to someone who's even a little like you. It's easy to cling to someone who's witnessing you at your most vulnerable. It's normal and human to form bonds while going through adrenaline filled situations. 
The romance itself wasn't the focus, with the story focusing mainly on the plot, so it was okay.  And I loved how they were so happy and proud when the other one was particularly brilliant!
 
I really liked the whole theme of the views of the privileged being called into question by those at a disadvantage. In fact, this is most definitively my favourite quote from the book:
"Sherlock shrugged. “I don’t understand the need for power, really. There are more important pursuits.”
“Only those who have never felt powerless can afford to think like you.” "
 
I've never done this, but there's how I pictured them (as mentioned above):
 
Jeremy Brett and Ruth Wilson
 
All in all, I loved it! I loved the way we were shown the violent family life - I know these experiences aren't universal, but to me, personally, it rang very true. How Mori would try to make excuses to avoid a worse situation. How Mori never surrendered. 
I liked the plot, the mystery - even easy as it was to solve, because the tension wasn't really on who did it, but on what that meant personally for the characters' lives. 
And I love how Sherlock was basically the love interest, even if a brilliant one, and everything we saw was through Mori's eyes. 
 
I can't wait for the next one, and I truly hope that Mori fully becomes the character Moriarti as we know it from the books. 
 
I recommend this with caution because I LOVED IT, but many didn't, so it's really a question of who's reading it. 
 
 
Heather W. Petty's official site
 
Buy Lock & Mori
@ The Book Depository (with free worldwide delivery!)
And please, please be a dear and if you have a Book Depository account ask to be warned when this edition is available, because that's the one I want, so they might hurry to get it if they see there's interest!
 
  



Game: Judgey - judging books by their covers

 

I got:

 

78% accuracy

 

Pretty Damn Judgey

You may know what you like,
but you sure as hell know what you don't
like. Which is a lot, apparently.

 

What I've learned: Most Goodreads books are rated between 3.5 and 4 stars. Those rated less than that tend to have low-quality covers, although there are the outliers that are great books with crappy covers.

 

via Independent

Source: http://playjudgey.com
Reblogged from Literary Ames



Venomous (Alien Warrior #1) by Penelope Fletcher

Venomous (Alien Warrior Book 1) - 

Penelope Fletcher
Trigger warnings: 
graphic descriptions of rape, rape apologism, sexual coercion, rape culture, sexual violence, sexual slavery, violence against women


I was really excited about this book because many who liked The Last Hour of Gann loved this one too.
This isn't a bad book when it comes to writing, plot, and worldbuilding, but it was way too much:

  • too much drama, and not feasible things, every time they sat down someone was abducting and about to rape Lumen
  • too much of Lumen doing stupid things and never rescuing herself, always needing her lizard lovers to come to her rescue
  • too many rants by everyone, Lumen especially
  • TOO MUCH RAPE, like seriously! It's understandable in some instances as part of worldbuilding, but it lingers, and liiiiiingers, and it's graphic, and overly descriptive
  • too much of making excuses for rape commited by the actual MAIN LOVE INTEREST
  • too many villains: whenever one would go down another would pop up it all became repetitive and trivialised violence against women


I don't know, it was just too much of everything. 

Admittedly the worldbuilding is amazing. Fletcher really has a gift for it! 
And I did like the basic plot, Fletcher knows how to write. It's just that it plods on and on, always repeating the same dangers, merely changing the villain. I was on page 200 of 652 and I was ready for the book to end.

Listen, I don't mind ménage. Sometimes I even like it, if it's well written which, many times, it actually is!
But quite honestly Lumen falls in "love" with Venomous, then she's forced to accept Fiercely, and then Cobra. Bear in mind that Lumen wanted none of them, but ended up falling in "love" with all. 
Why is love in quotation marks, you ask?
Because Lumen's relationship with Venomous begins with him raping her. She begs and pleads, she cries. But he rapes her. It takes a while, by the way. With descriptions of how horribly it hurts her. Of how she'll never, ever forgive him. 
But then, bam! she loves him. 
Later on, closer to the end of the book, she even tells him he never apologised for raping her and he tells her he has no regrets because that made her his. 
Like... 

And Fiercely? And Cobra? 
She was coerced into accepting them as mates. She was forced to be raped in public to be "married" to them. Even though she spent more than just a few chapters begging everyone not to do it, that it was destroying her emotionally. 

I tried to like this book - it has a lot to like - but I don't understand how anyone can excuse all those trigger warnings above, especially when it's all unapologetic and written off as romantic in the end. 

I was horrified and sickened throughout the entire book. I couldn't understand why she wouldn't kill them or refuse to be with them. I understood why she wouldn't run away, since it was always made perfectly clear that without their "protection" everyone else would rape her. 
How romantic.


Penelope Fletcher's official site

Buy Venomous (Alien Warrior #1) 
@ Kobo




Poorly Drawn Lines by Reza Farazmand

Poorly Drawn Lines: Good Ideas and Amazing Stories - 

Reza Farazmand
arc provided by PENGUIN GROUP Blue Rider Press through Netgalley
 
 
I've been a fan of Poorly Drawn Lines for a while now, I like the art's simplicity and I like Farazmand's gift for the weird, the funny, and the endless void of morbid introspection.
 
However, while this book did have a few of my favourite (and most popular) comics:
 
The way it was put together wasn't balanced. You'd get pages of sadness and self-doubt, then you'd get pages of funny comics - it didn't follow a theme or narrative line, there was no progression, it seemed aleatory, which made reading it an uneven experience.
 
So, good comics but a disorganised book.
 
Also, this comic wasn't in it, but I have to share it, since it's one of my favourites!
 
 
Buy Poorly Drawn Lines
@ The Book Depository (with free worldwide delivery|)
 




SPOILER ALERT!

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

Gone Girl - 

Gillian Flynn
It's Amy and Nick Dunne's fifth wedding anniversary
As always, Amy has a treasure hunt prepared for Nick: scattered clues leading him to places where they shared special moments in their relationship, ending in a lovely present. 
Nick has nothing prepared, not reservations at a restaurant, not even a gift, not even flowers. 
While Nick is at the bar shittalking his wife with his twin sister and then spending some time where no one knows where he's been, his wife goes missing. 
There are signs of a struggle in the living room and clumsily mopped blood in the kitchen, blood which turns out to be Amy's. 
Nick swears he didn't do it, but the clock is ticking for Amy, the longer she's missing the harder it'll be to get her back alive.
 
I myself went into this book a bit spoilered. 
All my friends who had seen the film (which I haven't seen) would reply to most inquiries with "I'M THE CUNT YOU MARRIED!" This provided a big clue from the beginning. 
 
I'm not sad about being somewhat "in the know" because that allowed me to pick up all the hints that Flynn so masterfully sprinkled along the story. And I just have to say, DAMN that takes TALENT!
 
Knowing Amy's self definition obviously made the plot twists obvious, but it kept the "how" obscured.
I thought it would make me go, "Oh, poor Nick..." But no. 
 
One thing I loved about Gone Girl is that both Nick and Amy are sociopaths. 
 
Both lack empathy, both lack remorse, both have to fake emotions - Nick goes for instant gratification with no care for consequences while Amy is manipulative and exploitative. 
 
Both are incapable of going through life without lying about everything even who they are. In fact both are different people depending whom they're with. None of them form true long-lasting relationships: they present a persona and are friendly with people, then they grow disinterested in whomever they befriended, or get tired of constantly pretending to be that persona, and they discard those people without a second thought. 
 
All they care about is themselves. 
 
At first Nick seems incredibly stupid - and it's no pretence. 
While Amy spent over a year preparing to ruin Nick's life, Nick was self-centeredly hating his wife and doing nothing with his life besides fucking a young student of his (how cliché, how disgusting...).
 
It never even occurred to him, besides hating her, to truly try to understand her. Oh, he says stuff like, how he wants to bash her brains in to know what she's thinking, but he never really does any effort to understand her. And it's not for a lack of clues or a lack of capacity on his part, since he quickly rises to her level later on - it's sheer laziness, and stupidity, and a lack of care for anything and anyone but him.
 
He refuses to end up like his misogynistic father but spends his time thinking of Amy as a bitch and even his devoted sister, whenever she shows any vacillation in catering to him, receives the same epithet along with the thought that all women are the same.
 
Meanwhile, Amy has spent her life hating her parents, manipulating friendships, destroying people's lives for minor offences... Even doing herself harm to implicate those she dislikes. 
 
It would have been very easy to paint Amy as this supreme mastermind - and I'm not going to lie, I was initially disappointed that this wasn't the case - but she became that much more real when it was shown that she too was capable of being manipulated because she was mentally ill - her desire to live the life she wants makes the fact that it'll all be a lie known by both her and Nick a bit of a forgotten post script. 
 
The difference between Nick and Amy is the fact that Amy is a type A personality and actively does shit, and Nick is not, so he just hates people and hurts them without any effort.
 
So we have these irredeemable, fucked up, destructive sociopaths tethered to each other, constantly on the lookout for the other one to murder them, but both realizing that they could not be with anyone else. 
AND I LOVED IT!!!
 
 
Gillian Flynn's official site
 
Buy Gone Girl 
@ The Book Depository (with free worldwide delivery!)