iāve decided to keep track of all the books i read in 2026 and how i feel abt them so here it goes:
three body problem: 8.5/10, really liked the mystery set up and the beginning and the overall narrative structure. at times, felt i was missing out by not knowing much about the cultural revolution. i resolved to learn more about chinese history and checked out some books to read later. original sci-fi thoughts- the description of the creation of the sophons was one of my favorite parts. also enjoyed the world-building through vr. surprised and thrilled me. sometimes a bit slow.
the dark forest: 9.9/10, holy shit what a banger. liu cixin can not only write brilliant, grounded science fiction, but also stunned me with his sociology/anthropological philosophy of the universe. every part of this book was amazing. after finishing the series, the opening scene describing the ant on a tombstone is one of my favorite parts of the work as a whole. liu has a way of catching you into the mindset of the world, which makes his subversion of those expectations even more impactful.
deathās end: 9.7/10. i did not like the opening of this book at all, even when i went back to reread it after finishing the book. it felt too fantastical and incongruous with the rest of the story, even though it was clear what actually was happening by the midway point or so of the book. just a bit distracting. i also thought the āpaintingsā were a bit too obvious for me to believe that nobody ever made the connection. however. every other part of the book was amazing. of course, it was also soul crushing. the ending is optimistic, somewhat, but still left me uncomfortable and with a sense of mourning. i would call this series a tragic epic. the ending of the love story was not surprising (probably especially to audiences who were more familiar with the cultural references) but i still hoped i was wrong. to get so, painfully closeā¦ again, liu makes you believe what his characters believe, which makes it all the more crushing when they are wrong. i loved this book and series overall, but it left me unrelieved. i suppose that speaks to my confidence in altruism at this time.
i who have never known men: 9/10. i chose this book not knowing it was sci-fi and wanting something more grounded after finishing the three body problem. i was very wrong. however, this book was still a perfect next read. i was shocked by how similar the concepts were in these two books. harpman is a brilliant writer and the unnamed narrator was a well-rounded, complex character, a product of her environment, but with a shining humanity that she is unable to recognize. i could feel the horror upon their first discovery while traveling, the dread and the greater realization. i was exhausted by the events of the story, but never bored. instead, by the end, hopes completely crushed again and again, i too felt an acceptance for the inevitable, while also grieving the regrets and missed chances and questions that would be forever unanswered. while gender/sex/capitalism are all obvious themes in the book, i feel that they were secondary to overall themes of community. she lived in bondage and remained unbound to others. initially, she was never and always alone and then just. always alone. a sort of cosmic horror and tragedy. could benefit from many a reread, but i donāt know that i could ever open this book again.
the book of doors (audiobook, dnf): 4/10. this isnāt a book i would necessarily pick out for myself, but an acquaintance iād like to get closer with recommended it, so i gave it a shot. overall, i will tell her positive things, because there are some positive things and she liked it a lot. however, this book was booooring. i usually listen to books at 1.5x speed, then 1.25x if im really enjoying them. i ended up listening to most of this at 2x speed.
it started off strong- fun bookish heroine you can easily project yourself onto and a great hook for an adventure! but, the author really has a habit of telling not showing, and then telling you again. characters were introduced, elaborated upon, and then unceremoniously tossed away. the male protagonist confused me- i pictured an older man, maybe like 45, since he, you know, had friends with advanced degrees and an estate then spent ten years in hiding following this. also, given his name of āfox,ā i did go straight for david duchovny. so the romantic overture with the seemingly early 20s protagonist threw me for a loop even tho he was canonically hot. also. why does like every male romantic lead have a sweet tooth. grow up. the villainess was so unbelievably flat, without any real sense of motivation or character beyond āoo she evil.ā and our protagonist started as a flat, reflective mirror to enable a lil harmless self-insert fun, but as we got to her ādepth,ā many of the details didnāt add up and her single-minded, pure-hearted motivation of ālove my dead grandpaā was eye rolling at points. let me have this incredibly dangerous magical bookā¦ because my dead grandpa never got to travel. and weāre supposed to take this seriously? bitch you already backpacked over europe u know how to buy a plane ticket!
in summation- the author had a knack for expanding the boring parts of the story and squandering every world and character building opportunity. this book could have been both half as long and a trilogy. i will probably finish it when my libby hold hits, but out of a sense of obligation to a friend rather than any real interest.
algospeak (dnf): 2/10. worse filterworld. talks in circles. opens by explaining the metaphor āwhack-a-moleā as if they are the first person who had ever said it.
the hunger games: the ballad of songbirds and snakes: 8/10, surprisingly well done. suzanne collins can WRITE. this book is a character study and a well-done one at that. snowās descent into moral vacancy is believable, yet even knowing where snow ends up, you still root for him. great callbacks (foreshadowing?) of the original trilogy while still having merit as a standalone. there are some characters who verge on caricatures, but dont (imo) cross the line and become unbelievable. in the setting of panem, i actually believe a dr. gaul would exist. really enjoyed this book, fun and engaging and just the right amount of silly nonsense to be entertaining without being unbelievable.
dune messiah: 7.5/10, iām about a week late writing this one oops. i think that the preface of this book did it dirty!! i was expecting a total slog based off of it, but this book was actually very enjoyable and profound?? i love a lil surveillance intrigue. also the determinism of paul, his certainty in himself being his undoing? the twist at the end? the image of paul walking off into the desert, blind? i donāt have any particular complaints, the story was well-crafted. i guess just frank herbertās habit of throw-in-a-sci-fi-word bugs me. still, not the most amazing book iāve ever read. i canāt pin anything, but did feel there was something lacking which is why itās a 7.5. perhaps thatās what the preface was alluding towards?
sunrise on the reaping: 6/10, a good story but really felt like tragedy porn. like you knew exactly what was coming and it was still sad but i was mostly just relieved to know how it ended up happening.
viral: 8/10, well-researched. sometimes a bit repetitive. but this was a compelling exploration of the evidence for a non-natural origin of covid-19, or at the very least, the absolute lack of evidence for a natural origin of a spillover event. scientific data was hidden and manipulated and unfortunately the very possible hypothesis that the virus could have come from a lab or field work accident was discarded early on because of biased voices and the unfortunate association with conservative conspiracies. but also. i wonder how different the pandemic would have been if it was known to be a lab leak. would people have panicked more? would they have taken it more seriously? impossible to know, but terrifying to consider.
no longer human: 7/10, i think dostoevsky-esque is an accurate descriptor for this book. itās an interesting psychological study and i found myself both relating to and repulsed by the narrator. to me, this had an element of critique of ethics systems driven by self-perception, particularly, maybe iām super far off base, existentialism and how it cripples you. the pro/epilogue are brilliant and what sell the novel- otherwise, i think i would find this to be self-indulgent, similar to how i felt abt diary of an oxygen thief. the forward by the translator of my version was appalling tho lol.
the tragedy of liberation: 9/10, learned a lot. a very well written history. good use of personal stories and data to inform.
children of dune: 4/10, i swear the last 25% of this book took me twice as long to get through compared the rest of the book. some interesting things, but overall just too fucking weird. like i understand the thematic choices which drive the weirdness. but i still donāt like the weirdness. also the incest. way too much time spent on male protagonists while women get shafted again and again and again. took me another week to even have the energy to write this post. overall, i see why this one isnāt being made into a movie.
the master and margarita: 7/10, a friend recommended this to me and i enjoyed it a lot. i thought the book started exceptionally strong but found the tail end of book one to be rather slow after the āblack magic actā had finished. i preferred book two for sure. the book was obviously critical of russian communism/literature society, i could understand this even without knowing much of the political context. i found the book to be funny. my favorite part was the tale of pontious pilot and his loyal dog in all its parts, but especially the ending ascendancy upon a moonbeam. what an image!
blue light hours: 3/10, this is really a novella imo. it feels sophomoric, even tho itās mostly about someoneās freshman year. i found the mother/daughter relationship to be creepy and emotionally incestuous rather than heartwarming. both were the type i just want to scream at look!!! look at all the good things!!! stop making yourself miserable!!! if this was much longer, i wouldnāt have bothered to finish it. meh.
blob, a love story: 9.5/10, sometimes the right book just finds you at the right time. iāve had blob sitting in my library for many months. it wasnāt what i expected- a girl finding a blob and morphing it into her love interest/obsession made me think of chat bots. but it had nothing to do with that lol and this book is so much more. in many ways, i was reminded of ling ma- the themes of love, identity, independence, being asian/mixed in a primarily white area, the pressure of perception, community and friendship and vulnerability. the prose is simple, not distracting. Vi is a very particular kind of mess, with a sort of intrenched emptiness that can only come from being so different and socially inept. Her pathological need for control and fear of abandonment, of being a disappointment that drove her to let go of everything and push away everyone... I related to her and hated her and pitied her and I understood her. God this was an amazing book and more people should be talking about it
cryptonomicon: 9.8/10, okay i loved this book. i read it bc it was recommended by the people who run annaās archive. not only was it wonderfully entertaining (wwii proto-spies! crazy combat scenes which do not shy from the horrors of war! code breakers! early 90s hackers! treasure hunting! alan turing!), it also made a compelling argument for the necessity of freedom of information through a decentralized database. it didnāt feel preachy, but rather was teaching through example. overall, i see why this was a recommendation. it was very 90s in its treatment of women. like. theyāre all sexy baddies who serve as plot devices and itās very gratuitous. the diversity between them is superficial- except i do love randyās aunt and her brief appearance lol. so overall, male centric, but in a way thatās a product of its time where strong woman was a literal strong woman and thatās all.
the hunger games: 8/10, yes i read this in middle school but i also. have not read it since middle school? reading as an adult caused such a shift in perspective. katniss is still a badass, but sheās also a child now instead of a peer. i understand and really like her mother much more- her paralyzing depression is understandable. also katniss. girl u are so autistic. i will admit (embarrassingly) i was team gale in middle school. i liked a brunette! i agreed with some of his more radical takes! i did not see kindness and forgiveness as acts of power but as weakness. now, i not only understand just how much katniss was in love with him, but also how peeta is a rare and admiral character. who i totally should have had a crush on. obviously, this book is about so much more than a love triangle- tho itās unsurprising that it is diluted to such. katnissās act of resistance against the capitol being an act of love makes it even more powerful and reinforces the themes of the book. the people have the power. but it is only though forgiveness and love and acceptance can that power, when claimed, result in peace.
catching fire: 7/10, i feel i summarized a lot of my feelings on the trilogy in my first review, prob because i devoured it less than in a week and am writing all of these at once lol. some other thoughts here- knowing beetee and wiress and mags from haymitchās book makes it all the better. also i didnāt realize we already knew so much about haymitchās game, which makes the fact that his book was really entertaining even more impressive. i love joanna and finn so much more as adults. i hated finn at 13. i did not understand how either presents their trauma. still was very upset when he died both reads, which i remembered going into it.
mockingjay: 8/10, god katniss you deserved better from the adults around you. i am so glad she got to heal and have a happy ending with peeta. i hated the epilogue as a kid- god, i was like āanother woman get married have baby motherhoodā which. i did not want kids AT ALL at the time and it kinda reduced how much i related to katniss as a girl who always felt odd. but now, i understand how her having kids with peeta is her belief in a stable, safe future. how she loved prim so much, how katniss was always acting as a mother. and how she just wanted to protect her kids from going through the hunger games. which. speaking of prim. horrible, tragic, crushing death. but not, i feel, the fault of gale? as everyone says? ultimately it was coin who sent a child to the front lines? probably as a pawn against katniss? it was coin who deployed the weapon? gale was a teenager himself, one who was traumatized just as katniss was. he had watched his entire hometown firebombed to ashes and he, again, a teenager, had led the efforts to escape. that, on its own, is enough to make someone so angry, theyād conceptualize a bomb like that. it was on the adults for using him, as they used katniss, and coin for using the bomb. i donāt think heās completely removed from responsibility and i understand katniss never, ever wanting to hear from him again. but like. he didnāt kill prim lol. glad katniss killed coin- i suppose it was for the plot twistās sake, but i do wish we had a bit more explicit concerns about coin being tyrannical beforehand. plutarch scared me much more- his ability to use katniss and also the line drop where hes lamenting the fact that theres no bioweapons and pre-capitol weapons? thats not somebody who i would want in power. happy haymitch got geese tho.
i see youāve called in dead: 3/10, dnf. i checked this out pretty much at random from the library because i thought it would be funny. it really wasnāt. at all. itās got a sort of boomer flavor throughout, a cardboard manic pixie dream girl, and the worldās most fucking whiny annoying ass protagonist. this book is less a meditation on death and more a meditation on a meditation upon death. which it turns out is just exhausting and only tolerable for about 3hrs before you wanna rip your hair and scream. goes for cheap laughs and cheap tears. might i hate read the last 28%? yah. but just to see if the manic pixie dream girl who goes to random funerals for kicks or the wheelchair-bound sidekick, who refers to himself as ācrippledā bites it first and to see how many kids this guy has because literally every character has told him thatās the meaning of life. wait plot twist is this a japanese-style pronatalist campaign?? /s
