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[analydime]

Little Fires Everywhere

Seems like only five years ago that everyone was discussing this show, and now it's finally my turn.

This is a hard one here. I can hardly find the right words to describe the feeling I had once finished watching the show: a kind of fleeting moment of realisation that nothing we ever do is right or wrong – really depends on your philosophy more so than on the outlining “goodness” of the world. And anything a person does in their life can be interpreted in such a way that even the most monstrous behaviours can find an excuse in their agent.

The show about motherhood can never be easy. It started so slowly that I almost quit watching several times, but I'm glad I stuck around. It will certainly make you think about the consequences of every small action you take, and how it influences your family.

Who's the monster in this story? Your opinion will probably change a few times while watching the show, but the point is: it’s never easy to be a mother, even to the seemingly “perfect” kids. With motherhood comes responsibility, and it looks like no one is ever really ready for it.

[analydime]

Rivals

Dame Jilly Cooper is very well known in the Isles for her Rutshire Chronicles series, on which this series is based. If you, like me, are not familiar with the novels, the Disney TV series will give you a good introduction to this series. And if the novel is a “beach book”, then the show is a “summer vacation” type, too. But this is no typical brainless romance series: behind a simple and steamy type of narration, there’s also politics, corruption, intrigue, and so much more. It’s funny and sometimes absurd, and the end-of-episode cliffhangers won't leave you unaffected. Perhaps the only distasteful thing about the series is the abundance of intimate scenes, but that is clearly a matter of preference.

The cast is a dream: from David Tennant, Alex Hassell, and Katherine Parkinson to Aidan Turner and Victoria Smurfit, everyone is so brilliant in their roles that it’s impossible to stop watching.

The show is light and joyful, so if you need a break from dramatic or action-fuelled apocalypse-type series (God knows I do), this is one for you.

Let’s see what season 2 brings for us.

[analydime]

The Count of Monte Cristo

As a child or even a teenager, I wasn't much of a reader. Despite having lots of books in the house, I paid very little attention to them because the authors had similar, local-sounding names, and the stories in their books were about the same people I knew in real life. And the greyness and boringness of life were enough for me to experience in reality, so I rarely looked at our bookshelves' contents. Little did I know that at some point later in my childhood, I would discover the great genre of an “adventure” novel, and so much did I love it, that my lovely mother subscribed to an entire adventure classics collection.

I ended up reading stories imagining what it would be like to seek treasure as a pirate roaming the oceans, about the Aztecs and their tribes, about life in Africa or Australia – countries that seemed so far away that I imagined it would take a lifetime to get there on my own. I read about the Amazons and Robinson Crusoe, and Sherlock Holmes, and Jules Verne’s stories were, of course, out of this world for me, sending my imagination out into the galaxy and beyond. I read Maurice Leblanc’s “The Secret Tomb” and wanted to be Dorothy and H. Rider Haggard’s “King Solomon's Mines”, and it seemed like the world was, after all, an interesting place to live in, as long as you find the right story to dwell into. But before I discovered all of that, I found “The Count of Monte Cristo”.

Alexandre Dumas’s story of loss, revenge, and forgiveness has entrapped my imagination and swallowed me whole; it became my bedtime book, and sometimes I refused to go to school without it – I simply worried that something would happen with it while I was gone. A year or two later, I would get my first computer and have my first “accounts” that, of course, required me to come up with a username. Let’s just say, it took some time for my sister to dissuade me from choosing Mercedes as my alias, because according to her, everyone would assume I meant the car, and not the book character. She was, of course, right, but my obsession knew no boundaries.

Because this book is the first I enjoyed reading and finishing to the end, it remains extremely important for me. It’s not just a fun adventure story but something that changed my life entirely and sent me on the course of finding some adventure myself. And of course, with equal importance, I treat new interpretations of this wonderful tale, among which is the 2025 TV series titled “The Count of Monte Cristo”.

Let me assure you from the beginning: I loved, loved, loved this rendition of the story. The acting, setting, music – everything worked very well for my taste, nothing was over the top, and nothing was missing. Despite the 200 years that had passed since Dumas had written this novel, it couldn’t be more modern. Not only are its political elements never out of style, with Edmund being imprisoned for a crime he did not commit, or Abbé suffering from his wisdom and outspokenness, or Villefort protecting his own career by condemning an honest man to eternal suffering. Love is big here, too, with Edmund and Mercedes being so cruelly and unjustly separated in their youthful, pure love, Fernand blind with his obsession with custom and want of Mercedes, the clearly queer-coded relationship between Eugénie and Louise – not too shabby for a 200-year-old novel.

Edmund’s impossible quest to hold faith and not lose hope is so well transferred to the screen, and Sam Claflin is just so damn good at it that it never stops being entertaining. He also gets to have his Gary Oldman/Sirius Black’s “I did my waiting” moment that he performs with the same intensity and skill as the other genius actor. Speaking of geniuses: Jeremy Irons is in this show, too, and is brilliant and lovely in the role of the abbot. 

Edmund swears vengeance on his enemies and goes on a long path of playing God, giving mercy to no one, only to drop the play and realize what life is really for: attendre et espérer! 

It was lovely, 10 out of 10.

[analydime]

Paradise: season 2

“I learned early on that you gotta hold on to the things that make you feel like you.”

Before finishing the last episode of season 1, I already had a thought of how hard it would be to talk about without spoiling it. But in season 2, so many things happen, and so much is revealed at the very end, that I am confident it is simply impossible to talk about it openly without ruining it for you.

I have to admit: the general dread of starting to watch season 2 of the show you loved so much is comparable to the feeling of starting a dessert after a wonderful meal: what if it spoils everything, and the whole experience is ruined? Fear not: this is not the case with Paradise. If anything, it only gets better.

Season two begins with a new character and her survival in the post-apocalyptic world (Elvis fans like me will be doubly pleased) and, of course, continues the old story of life in “Paradise”. The focus here is more political, from Sinatra’s loss of power to the new president’s ridicule and Jane's foul play. The mirrored reality of real-life politics, with its ass-kissing and money-grabbing, does not at all make you lose focus; again, it just makes it better and more realistic.

The female characters in this season are delightful. They’re interesting, and boring, and simple, and complicated, and fun, and mysterious, and disturbing – everything that men are, too. Annie, the new character played so aptly by Shailene Woodley, is of special interest to me. When it comes to being alone, I consider myself a kind of expert. There’s nothing I enjoy more than spending some time in complete isolation. I believe I can experience life fully with all its textures and senses and smells and flavours only when I get to do it alone. And yet even I can’t imagine what it would be like to spend that much time on your own, without anyone around to keep you company, and not go insane. On other levels, I relate to Annie a lot: the constant distrusting of people, not because she believes they’re all evil, but because she doesn't have much positive experience to rely on to believe otherwise. The feeling of being scared about everyone and everything, and the small steps one takes to confront that feeling and act anyway.

Sinatra’s character is something else here, too: she is just so complicated. When she lays her head in her husband’s lap, you can’t help but wonder what else to expect of her. Her humanity and vulnerability are finally seen, and all the motives become known – you might even end up liking her despite it all. Jane and her sociopathic tendencies are well-written, too, and we get to know a lot more about her past, and perhaps, future?

Teri and Xander’s story! He loved her at her weakest, showed up for her at her worst, and kept showing up for her. No wonder she stays loyal to him, emotionally and physically, even in the most terrible circumstances, after so many years. And if there is anything to be learned from their relationship here, it’s this: keep showing up for each other.

When it comes to the past and future, watch out for the little cues here and there: the mysterious messages, nosebleeds, and other strange events. What can possibly be going on? SPOILER ALERT: The quantum glitches and the understanding that time is being manipulated by someone or something else might shock you, because you didn’t expect the show to turn that much into sci-fi. But it works just fine here.

This season is 10 out of 10 for me. I can’t wait till season 3.

[analydime]

Think Twice

This is such a thrilling crime story that will make you cry for missing the twist at the end. Especially because the author’s red herrings are so good, you manage to persuade yourself you know exactly what’s going on. But boy oh boy will you be wrong. There’s just no way you won’t fall for it, and hey, it makes it such a fun read, I’m not even upset at being fooled so easily!

Toxic love is a big theme in this novel. Toxicity doesn’t really have one good definition; it’s a scale, and everyone has experienced their share of toxic relations, whether it’s family, romance, or friendship. There are always certain signs that protrude through the white blanket like blood. In this novel, we see the kind of love that’s blinding, painful, the kind that makes you kill for each other. 

The characters in this book didn't interest me much, except perhaps Emily. The author’s ideas on writing, its intentions, and goals are put so skillfully into Emily’s perspective – I really enjoyed reading those. 

For a crime book, this was a good 8 out of 10 for me.

[analydime]

PARADISE

“I’m not a monster. I’m a wife. I’m a mom.” (Or so she says.)

With a slow start that makes you wonder whether it makes sense to continue watching, the show builds such momentum that it takes on an unrecognizable flavour. By episode seven, your apathy will disappear entirely and will quickly grow into obsession.

The authors’ love, or at least knowledge of Lost, is evident, and for people unfamiliar with how the classic show that changed television handled flashbacks and characters’ backstories, it could be confusing and perhaps even boring. The show’s structure is nonlinear, but it does exactly what it needs to do: gives you the right amount of information at the right time and makes you beg for more.

The characters are so well written that you feel you know them in real life. It is almost shocking how well we get to know each one of them in such a short period of screen time: the writing is exquisite.

Xavier is such a genuinely nice guy, but you never get enough of him; you love him more and more with every minute he’s on screen. Sinatra’s equally magnetic, but of course in a completely different way. Everyone else is brilliant, but both Sterling K. Brown and Julianne Nicholson are insanely good in their respective roles.

It’s a 9/10 for me. Season 2 review is coming up (and boy, do I have a lot of good things to say about it).

[analydime]

This Story Might Save Your Life by Tiffany Crum (2026)

This debut is described as a mystery/thriller/romance, but none of the genres really show up here.

If this weren’t an audiobook and if I didn’t enjoy the narrators’ voices so much, there is nothing in this story that could have made me stick to it. It’s not only cliched, it’s at times even infuriating, especially the so-called romance between the two main characters. It just doesn't make any sense, unless, of course, you’re so traumatised by life that you refuse to tell your best friend you’re in love with him for a decade and instead marry and try to have a child with a narcissistic, abusive, controlling, and frankly speaking, psychopathic husband. Perhaps it’s better to get some help? But hey, what do I know? I'm not a therapist.

So, there you are: as a romance, it didn't work for me at all. Their love story was unrealistic from start to finish; more than that, it was extremely boring.

Other characters are even more boring; unless you remember everyone’s name, it's nearly impossible to guess who’s speaking; everyone’s personality is either superficial and flat or non-existent.

What’s next? Thriller? Mystery? It failed there, too. The author’s commitment to the cliches holds until the end, with a resolution that is, again, unoriginal.

The language, however, is something you won’t have an issue with. It’s descriptive enough and does read as natural as it could get.

This was not for me. It’s a 4 out of 10, and mainly thanks to the narrators.

[analydime]

Send Help

"No help is coming, so you'd better start saving yourself."

My rule of thumb is that a movie doesn’t have to make much sense or be realistic as long as it’s fun. And this one sure is a lot of fun. A lot, a lot.

Where the script relies on cliches (and for the most part, it really doesn't; it’s as fresh as it could be), the two main leads make up for it. McAdams, with her unusual foray into the “disgusting”, really goes beyond her normal range and is not afraid to be ugly, socially awkward, and truly villainous, which for any of her fans would be a big surprise here.

Something needs to be said about Danny Elfman; he’s just perfection when it comes to the music score. Here, the disturbing combines with the comedic–the absurdity and mayhem are highlighted by music.

As the movie progresses and the tension between the two characters decreases, it starts to lose a little momentum, but the finale makes up for it, once again reminding us that everything's under control.

It's a definite 9 out of 10.

[analydime]

The Wondrous Life and Loves of Nella Carter by Brionni Nwosu (2025)

“Give me a book or a boy, and I’ll always choose the book any day.”

Over the years of reading, watching, touching, breathing, engaging in conversations, loving, hating, not feeling anything at all, I’ve been looking for objects or words or feelings that could make sense in this insensible existence and inspire me to be something more than just a collection of particles with the only purpose to form and then disintegrate into something else. And to my astonishment, I always find those small inspirations in the most unexpected places, like this book by Brionni Nwosu, which I came into possession of by accident. But now I wonder: what if? What if I never did, and never learned of her beautifully poetic approach to life, love, and death?

“Something as beautiful as this would not last forever. But does it have to? He knew fabric would fade. The threads would disintegrate, eventually leaving the glorious garment for rags. But is it better? Better to have a beautiful thing for even a short while rather than not at all?”

If you don’t recognise some of your own thoughts in Nella, regardless of your gender, age, or nationality, I would be surprised. To live and love and to lose people is her burden, but who doesn’t? Perhaps, unlike Nella, we don’t have to repeatedly do that for centuries without end, but that doesn’t make it easier. There is an end to all the love and all the suffering, but it’s an extensive journey, with so many years of starting over, finding space for people who come into our lives, and learning to trust them with our hearts and our souls again. And more often than not, we, just like Nella, refuse to let anyone in to relieve that burden and give ourselves a break.

“If I went, he would ask again. And again. I would come to care for him. Something terrible would happen, and I would need to leave the life I’d made.”

But does that constitute a good life? Refusing to feel at all rather than deal with a broken heart after whatever loss we experience: a lover, a friend, a parent, or our children. Would it be better not to have experienced those things and die without the knowledge of what your own heart is capable of?

“And what of you, Carmella? Are you a lover or a fighter?” “I’ve been a lover sometimes, sometimes a fighter, but I suppose it hasn’t mattered until now. What about you?” “A lover, of course. If you must fight for your love, was it even yours?”

The themes of loss are the most bittersweet in this book. It’s Nella's curse to lose everyone she loves, but somehow it makes her even more human and more alive in the eyes of the reader.

“But that’s the deal. That’s humanity. We will all lose the ones we love – either them or us. From birth, we make our way in this world. The gift is the choice of who we spend it with.”

And death, oh death. He’s the partner in crime, both the devil and the creator, the punisher and the pardoner in this story. “Death isn’t always a punishment. Sometimes it is a release.” Death is Nella’s oldest friend and the only one capable of giving her the well-deserved freedom she finally obtains after proving to him that humanity is indeed worth saving.

“That’s the part people miss. They think the worst thing is death. Death is the easy part. What they miss is the loneliness, all-consuming, that occurs as everything and everyone slips away, lost to the sands of time.”

It still surprises me how this book manages to be both light reading and yet contain the multitudes of human experiences and emotions. I am almost convinced that dear Brionni Nwosu has herself travelled through time and convinced death to grant us this living. If so, we thank her kindly.

It’s a 10 out of 10 for me.

[analydime]

Stoner (1965) by John Williams

“Lust and learning,” Katherine once said. “That’s really all there is, isn’t it?”

Academic (campus) novels are beyond my expertise; in fact, The Secret History has to this day been the only one I’ve read in the genre. But Stoner is not just a campus story; it’s a story about a man’s life. There’s something peculiar about novels that follow a person’s life from its start to finish; from the childish appreciation of the world to the dying man’s awareness of the futility of life.

Anyone who has been born into a non-academic family but later pursued a life of research or teaching sees themselves in young William Stoner: the inevitability of disgracing and disappointing his parents who had no intention of raising an accidental professor of literature. And William, with all his young affection (at least at first) to his wife Edith, his daughter Grace, and later to Katherine, his one true love had always been literature.

“In his forty-third year William Stoner learned what others, much younger, had learned before him: that the person one loves at first is not the person one loves at last, and that love is not an end but a process through which one person attempts to know another.”

But there’s so much more to the novel than just Stoner’s life. There’s love, family, university politics, wars, and more, and if I only could, my entire entry would be comprised simply of quotes from the book. But to do so would do little justice to the book; the best way to appreciate the little wisdoms that Williams was so gracious to share with us would be to read his story from the beginning.

[analydime]

The Modigliani Scandal

The Modigliani Scandal (1976) is my first Ken Follett book, and it did not disappoint. A fast-paced thriller set in the art world of England and Italy. There's chase, ambition, corruption, and true passion for the artistic value all in this one book. Is the price of the artwork a subjective way to judge the author’s skill or lack of such? Does the price tag reflect anything beyond the patronising nature of the art exhibitionists and art collectors who consider themselves experts, without having held a hand over a canvas in their lives? Can anyone learn to appreciate artworks as standalone creations whose authors cease to exist the moment the painting is finished?

There is so much, and at the same time so little, of art in this book that one does not get bored by the details; instead, we are left to ponder the meaning of life and art, and our own place in both. What’s the purpose of life for a painter? What about an art historian? And a collector?

It’s a must-read for any detective/adventure genre lovers; Follett's talent in bringing characters to life will not leave anyone unimpressed.

[analydime]

The Castlemaine Murders by Kerry Greenwood

​This is book 13 of 23, but it's the first I’ve read in this series. The one thing I will say at once: covers are deceptive. I got this book for free, and thought I was about to read a novel for teens – all because of the cover. Man, was I wrong.

It’s a mystery / detective novel set in the late 1920s, with the latter part of the book set in Castlemaine, Australia. Detective work often takes Phryne Fisher, the protagonist, to other places. Phryne is a fascinating investigator, but also a modern woman who refuses to settle down and follow the social protocols when they don't make sense to her. Her lover, Lin Chung, a wealthy Chinese man, and her companions, Dot and her sister Eliza, play a role in the investigation that isn’t hard to solve. But that doesn’t mean this book won’t give you joy on a rainy day.

[analydime]

The Boys (s1-s2)

{This review relates only to the first two seasons of the show}

As a fan of exclusively British black comedies, I find any American attempts at this genre lousy and disappointing, with only a few exceptions (the good old classics like Beetlejuice, American Psycho, American Beauty – interesting how many of them contain the word 'American' – or the recent one, Bodies Bodies Bodies). It’s hard for me to understand why this genre lacks originality in the American market; all it really seems to do is show gut-wrenching murders, spray blood on the screen, and fill the space with a few lackluster jokes. This show (on paper) destroys the cliches but often, in fact, reinforces them.

The idea behind – showing that superheroes can, in fact, be monsters – is brilliant. Its execution? Questionable.

The worst part of the show is, of course, the writing of women. Every single woman you see in this show will most likely infuriate you with her behaviour. Perhaps Eric Kripke hates women – this would explain why every single thing they do or say on screen makes you cringe.

Talking about females: costumes. If doing things differently, why not go all the way? Maeve’s outfit (let’s be honest, it looks incredibly uncomfortable, and the only reason for McElligott to suffer through that awful thing is to make her look hotter) seems to remain the same throughout the show, or at least in the first seasons, and has the same marketing behind it as Starlight’s. Starlight, who rebels against her revealing outfit only to return to it in the same episode, never mentions it again. Yes, the whole point of Starlight having to wear that push-up monstrosity is for us to hate it, but why not make this point in just one episode and let her return to her original, less pornographic superhero outfit?

Will I watch the other seasons? Most likely. Will I enjoy it? Most likely not, at least, not in the way the creators would want me to enjoy it. But perhaps it’s just one of those things I have to watch despite not liking it, like the perpetrated deed of some sort of voyeurism.

It’s a 5 out of 10 for me.

[analydime]

The Order (2024)

Ever since I was a girl, my rule of thumb when choosing a film to see has been: if Jude Law is in it, I’m watching it. This movie, I dare to say, is in the top ten of his best acting roles. He plays an FBI agent and starts out slow and careful, almost as if he’s saving up the energy for later. But as the plot develops, his obsession clears up, and the focus is pointed: there’s no more quiet in him, no more slow; now it’s pure anger and compulsion.

Nicholas Hoult is just as brilliant in his role as the Order leader: in the film, he convinces people to join his group, and us, the viewers, of his adaptability and focus.

The film is based on a real story, and it’s a great way to learn more about it by swimming headfirst into the real events. It’s an aptly told story that makes sure it doesn’t romanticise the events or characters, but at the same time makes you understand the motives, the obsessions, and the intensity of the minds behind it.

It’s an 8 out of 10 for me (in my completely unqualified and unprofessional taste, there was some awkward acting present with the non-lead actors, and the script could use a tiny bit of hurrying up).

[analydime]

New Boy: William Shakespeare's Othello Retold (2017) by Tracy Chavelier

Having spent a significant time trying to finish this book on the bus, on my way from work, I had only three pages left when the bus (unexpectedly to me) arrived at my stop. Unable to wait to get home, I dropped my backpack on the ground like a schoolgirl and continued with the following pages. Then I reached the terrifying ending and felt goosebumps on my skin – although the spring temperature would prove it had nothing to do with it.

This book disturbed me way more than “Lord of the Flies” did at the time I had first read it, although the brutality and graphics are on very different levels here. Perhaps it's the modern tone that hooked me differently, or the fast-paced style that Chevalier employed, or Shakespeare's plot that is so familiar and so grounding, but this novel makes a point. A very distinct and powerful point.

I haven't been impressed by a novel in such a way for quite some time, and the best word I could use to describe the aftertaste is: metallic. Like the taste of blood in your mouth or the cold rail you touch in winter, you will not be able to forget this read, even if you try. 10/10, a strong novel.

[analydime]

Heartsick (2007) by Chelsea Cain

Heartsick is an easy read but an exciting one, too. A psychotic female serial killer whose beauty and mind could outpower the whole police department looking for her, a distressed detective whose life was one day turned upside down, a young journalist with a troubled past, and a new serial killer targeting high school girls.

Is Susan a stock character with her pink hair and daddy issues? Maybe. But it doesn't make her any less interesting. The same goes for Archie, whose pill addiction gets a little too much graphic detail but remains just believable enough for us to keep reading.

Considering how short the story is (my small paperback is just 420 pages), it truly takes talent to write believable, well-developed characters. Cain does it with heart and soul and leaves nothing useless behind. It’s one of those books that has exactly what it needs without excruciatingly painful internal monologues of characters you couldn’t care less about.

For thriller/crime genre fanatics, this is a must-read.

[analydime]

The Shape of Water

I am ten years late to this, but here I am.

Guillermo del Toro is a master of visual metaphors. Water, with its elasticity and clarity, becomes a perfect medium for understanding queerness and disenfranchisement. Every shot makes a point, every line in the script shows the unfairness in the way we treat those who do not conform to the so-called “norms”; norms that are adapted to benefit only those in power.

In many ways, the film exploits boilerplate stock characters: A cruel, literally rotting military officer whose savagery knows no borders, a closeted gay man who is not accepted by society, and a mute woman who literally has no voice. But they all represent such deep ideas of the difference between the monster and the human, queerness, the construction of identity, society's perceptions of minority groups…

It’s a 9 out of 10 (with one point taken for the atrocity that is the spoken “native” Russian language in a movie; I will never believe it was a conscious director’s choice to do that).