Wulf's Book Reviews

Der geheimnisvolle Stern von Hergé Meine Bewertung: 3 von 5 Sternen Ich muss gestehen, dass " Der geheimnisvolle Stern " für mich einer der langweiligeren Bände in Hergés Tim-und-Struppi-Reihe ist. Die Geschichte beginnt mit Tims Entdeckung eines neuen, bedrohlichen Sterns, der scheinbar die Zerstörung der Erde bedeutet. Diese Katastrophe bleibt jedoch aus, und das drohende Unheil reduziert sich auf ein großes Bruchstück, das ins Polarmeer stürzt. Hergé versucht, mit einem Wettrennen zwischen einer von einer Bank finanzierten Expedition und Tim, der für die Europäische Forschungsgemeinschaft antritt, die Spannung aufrechtzuerhalten. Leider bleibt die Handlung relativ flach und repetitiv. Der Lichtblick des Bandes ist jedoch der erste Auftritt des grundsätzlich (hier allerdings weniger) unterhaltsamen Kapitän Haddocks, der in zukünftigen Abenteuern eine wichtige Rolle spielen wird. Auch für diesen Band ist es wichtig, die historischen Hintergründe zu kennen:...

Everyone In My Family Has Killed Someone by Benjamin Stevenson My rating: 2 of 5 stars “ Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone ” by Benjamin Stevenson is a novel that, much like an overwrought comedian who never quite finds his audience, fails to strike the right chord with me. It promises a thrilling blend of mystery and dark humour but ultimately falls flat in both realms. From the outset, Stevenson’s attempts to break the fourth wall are incessant and intrusive. The protagonist, Ernest, a novelist writing his own story, constantly reminds us of his authorial presence. This technique, rather than being clever or engaging, becomes a regular source of annoyance. For instance, at one point, he states: » I’ll hold it here to mention that I know some authors are incapable of having a woman throw up without it being a clue to a pregnancy. These same authors seem to think nausea is the only indication of childbearing, not to mention their belief that vomit shoots out the wo...

Funny Story by Emily Henry My rating: 3 of 5 stars A funny story, literally, was promised but what I actually got was a(nother) luke-warm novel by the Emily Henry of “ Beach Read ” or “ Book Lovers ” which were similarly uninspired. After having read “ Happy Place ” and “ People We Meet on Vacation ” before, I approached this one with a sense of anticipation, although perhaps with a slight hint of trepidation, given the mixed experiences I've had with her writing. " Funny Story's " plot is not without its merits; there are moments of genuine wit and insight that had me smiling in recognition. However, I found the overall experience to be somewhat lacking in substance. The characters are a mixed bag: They're not unlikable, by any means, but they lack the depth and complexity that would make them truly compelling. Their interactions are often predictable, and their motivations often feel muddled and unclear. This is particularly true of the main chara...

Marrying Mr. Wrong by Claire Kingsley My rating: 3 of 5 stars Oh, well, from the lofty heights of Obama’s presidential memoirs which I enjoyed , I went on to read this. I needed a short moment of pure escapism and easy-going reading: “Please excuse me for a moment while I disengage my brain!” For that purpose, this novel worked well enough - albeit not perfectly but we’ll come to that. Anyway, this is the third instalment of a loosely connected series about the romantic endeavours of a group of twenty-somethings (I guess). It started out well with Everly’s romance with her boss (Calloway) and now we’re reading about Sophie, Everly’s successor as Calloway’s personal assistant, who meets Camden Cox, a notorious womanizer. Sophie and Cox end up in Vegas where they “accidentally” marry each other in a drunken stupor. The remainder of the book is - expectedly - about how they find out they don’t want a divorce. The ensuing chaos is amusing enough; ok, everything is cliché...

Enchanters' End Game by David Eddings My rating: 1 of 5 stars Finally. I’m done with “The Belgariad” . For life. And I’m so happy about it. This epic fantasy adventure started out well with “ Pawn of Prophecy ”, went slightly downhill in “ Queen of Sorcery ” due to all the travelling, went straight into a wall when “ Magician's Gambit ” turned out to be a lame duck, recovered somewhat during “ Castle of Wizardry ” and, eventually, went down the drain with this last instalment – “ Enchanters' End Game ”. In this final book of the Belgariad, we accompany Ce’Nedra’s army into the land of the Murgos, fighting against them and the Malloreans. Wait a second, though – Ce'Nedra’s army? No, in fact it’s been taken from her by the men around her whom Eddings obviously felt much more competent to handle matters of war: “ Once she was comfortably quartered in the Stronghold, Princess Ce'Nedra found herself even more removed from the day-to-day command of her...

Haven by Claire Kent My rating: 1 of 5 stars Let’s get this review started with the best aspect of this novella: It’s short! And that’s a mercy because it tries to put a romance story into a post-apocalyptic world - and neither of these ideas actually works. The entire story felt forced, probably due to the length of this novella: the story never had a chance to develop and I feel very strongly that romance and apocalypse don’t really fit well together. Especially not when the author, who “ has been writing romance novels since she was twelve years old ”, never progressed beyond that age writing-wise: Our heroine, Faith, shows her maturity by gratuitous use of the word “fuck”. All over the place. I don’t mind vulgarity, but if it’s just introduced for its real or perceived “shock value”, it quickly becomes annoying. Especially if, as is the case here, the writing is on an extremely “plain” level. Simple sentences, driving the mediocre story forward without any linguistic ...

2021 on Goodreads by Various My rating: 4 of 5 stars As I look back on reading in 2021 I find another mixed bag: Just like in 2020 , my average rating was a mere 3.5 Goodreads tells me and that feels about right. The year started on a high and hopeful note when Amanda Gorman recited her poem “ The Hill We Climb: An Inaugural Poem for the Country ” at Biden’s inauguration. If Gorman’s ideas took hold, we’d really “raise this wounded world into a wondrous one.” The older I get the more difficult I find it to adapt to change. At the same time I realise a lack of adaption inevitably leads to obsolescence - in this case, my own. Thus, I was both challenged and delighted when my personal book of the year 2021, the unforgettable “ Girl, Woman, Other ” by Bernardine Evaristo , stormed against my own perceptions and prejudices and while not blowing them away, changing them. Helping me change. Also highly emotionally moving and absolutely brilliant was the revised and updated colle...