chloe-et-al
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chloe-et-al TBR'd a book
5d
The Art of Making a Forgotten Cup of Tea
Faizah Muhammad
SOON TO BE A MAJOR MOTION PICTURESet against the backdrop of the 1989 Romanian Revolution, The Art of Making a Forgotten Cup of Tea tells a gripping and deeply personal story of survival, trust, and betrayal in a world on the brink of change. The story follows Elena, a devoted mother fighting to protect her children, Ioana and Beriță, as the country erupts into chaos. As Nicolae Ceaușescu's authoritarian regime collapses, the streets of Timișoara turn into battlegrounds where ordinary people must make impossible choices. Elena's brother, Robi, finds himself drawn into the revolution's violent undercurrents when he places his trust in Dragoș, a charismatic yet enigmatic agent of the secret police. Dragoș presents himself as an ally, but as Robi peels back the layers of deception, he discovers that loyalty and truth are far more dangerous than he ever imagined. As the walls of dictatorship crumble, so does Robi's perception of the people around him-forcing him to question his own complicity in a system built on fear.
Meanwhile, two British journalists, Lizzie and Frankie, arrive in Romania, expecting to report on the fall of a dictator from a safe distance. But as they venture deeper into the uprising, they become unwilling participants in a revolution they struggle to fully understand. Through their eyes, the Western world's perception of Romania is confronted with the raw, unfiltered reality of life under an oppressive regime.As Timișoara burns and the people of Romania fight for their future, The Art of Making a Forgotten Cup of Tea weaves together multiple perspectives, showing the cost of revolution-not just in political terms, but in the personal sacrifices made by those who dare to hope for something better. It is a story of love and loss, of trust and betrayal, and of the resilience of those who refuse to be silenced.
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chloe-et-al is interested in reading...
6d
Banana Heart Summer
Merlinda Bobis
In her lush, luminous debut novel, Merlinda Bobis creates a dazzling feast for all the senses. Richly imagined, gloriously written, Banana Heart Summer is an incandescent tale of food, family, and longing—at once a love letter to mothers and daughters and a lively celebration of friendship and community.
Twelve-year-old Nenita is hungry for food, love, life. Growing up with five sisters and brothers, she searches for happiness in the magical smell of the deep-frying bananas of Nana Dora, who first tells Nenita the myth of the banana heart; in the tantalizing scent of Manolito, the heartthrob of Nenita and her friends; in the pungent aromas of the dishes she prepares for the most beautiful woman on Remedios Street. To Nenita, food is synonymous with love—the love she yearns to receive from her disappointed mother. But in this summer of broken hearts, new friendships, secrets, and discoveries, change will be as sudden and explosive as the monsoon that marks the end of the sweltering heat—and transforms Nenita’s young life in ways she could never imagine.
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chloe-et-al wrote a review...
2w
This is, if im not forgetting something from way back, my first full reading of a Stephen King novel. And damn, was his writing good here. From the first chapters I was hooked in, it flowed so smoothly for really long stretches (there were some more sluggish parts but I did this in the audiobook format so it was forgivable). I really liked how the timetravel chaos and impact was resolved in the end, because I really wondered how will he present the world in which JFK survived. My only issue was with the main characters, Jake and Sadie, because they didn't really feel like fully fleshed out characters but more of vessels for the story to carry, especially Jake. I was much more emotionally invested in some of the side characters, like Harry and his family and even Marina.
Overall, great read, will be catching the show eventually!
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chloe-et-al finished a book
2w
11/22/63
Stephen King
On November 22, 1963, three shots rang out in Dallas, President Kennedy died, and the world changed. Unless...
In 2011, Jake Epping, an English teacher from Lisbon Falls, Maine, sets out on an insane — and insanely possible — mission to prevent the Kennedy assassination.
Leaving behind a world of computers and mobile phones, he goes back to a time of big American cars and diners, of Lindy Hopping, the sound of Elvis, and the taste of root beer.
In this haunting world, Jake falls in love with Sadie, a beautiful high school librarian. And, as the ominous date of 11/22/63 approaches, he encounters a troubled loner named Lee Harvey Oswald...
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chloe-et-al started reading...
2w
U jarku
Slađana Nina Perković
Kada junakinji ovog romana, kojoj je istovremeno pripala i uloga naratora, u sobu utrči majka i prekine je u gledanju njene omiljene kriminalističke serije, pred čitaocima počinje da se otkriva gotovo suludi i haotični svijet priče, sačinjen od događaja poput sahrane strine Stane, koja se udavila komadićem piletine te time poljuljala planove oko prodaje porodične kuće i zemljišta, svijet ispunjen neobičnim posjetama policijskim stanicama i ambulantama, junacima koji neuspješno pokušavaju da izvrše samoubistvo, onima koji sebi godinama unaprijed podižu spomenike ili doživljavaju lični preporod nakon odluke da se upuste u svijet šverca. Slađana Nina Perković sa svakom novom stranom sve slikovitije gradi romaneskni svijet koji jeste sazdan na prikazivanju svakodnevice, samo što je ta svakodnevica, izrazito britkim jezikom i uz nezanemarljivu dozu crnog humora, izmještena gotovo do samih granica apsurda i groteske. Jedna sahrana i prodaja porodične kuće i zemlje, ti događaji koje gotovo automatski percipiramo kao tragične ili potresne, u ovom romanu preobraženi su u ono smjehovno koje nam služi ne da bismo tragičnost i stvarnost ignorisali, već da bismo lakše pojmili cjelovitu sliku svijeta čiji smo i sami dio.
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chloe-et-al TBR'd a book
2w
Potop
Damir Karakaš
Novi roman Damira Karakaša Potop nastavak je njegove ličke trilogije sastavljene od Sjećanja šume i Proslave. Ozračje, šumu, mater, oca, suseljane, govor već poznajemo iz prethodnih djela, ali ljubav u Karakaševim romanima rijetko susrećemo. Glavni lik – mladić – u raskoraku je sa svijetom iz kojeg potječe i svijetom kojem stremi, kojemu se istovremeno događaju i ljubav i rat, dva najveća izazova u životu svakog čovjeka. Precizno strukturiran, lišen ikakvih verbalnih viškova, pun poetskih slika krute svakodnevice, ali i nježna romantična snatrenja, Potop iznova potvrđuje Karakaševu iznimnu vještinu pisanja i njegovo visoko mjesto u suvremenoj hrvatskoj književnosti.
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chloe-et-al started reading...
3w
11/22/63
Stephen King
On November 22, 1963, three shots rang out in Dallas, President Kennedy died, and the world changed. Unless...
In 2011, Jake Epping, an English teacher from Lisbon Falls, Maine, sets out on an insane — and insanely possible — mission to prevent the Kennedy assassination.
Leaving behind a world of computers and mobile phones, he goes back to a time of big American cars and diners, of Lindy Hopping, the sound of Elvis, and the taste of root beer.
In this haunting world, Jake falls in love with Sadie, a beautiful high school librarian. And, as the ominous date of 11/22/63 approaches, he encounters a troubled loner named Lee Harvey Oswald...
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chloe-et-al wrote a review...
4w
I liked the final third much more than the rest of the book. I didn't feel like the first two thirds had anything new or compelling to say about the tradwife influencers, we already know these people are morally bankrupt and dont' actually believe what they are selling. The final third and a bit before it actually had my full attention, as we got more into Natalie's head, the big reveal, and the fallout. How all of this impacted the children had more emotional punch than the rest.
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chloe-et-al finished a book
4w
Yesteryear
Caro Claire Burke
A traditional American woman, a beautiful wife and mother who sells her pioneer lifestyle of raw milk and farm-fresh eggs to her millions of social media followers, suddenly awakens cold, filthy, and terrified in the brutal reality of 1805—where she must unravel whether this living nightmare is an elaborate hoax, a twisted reality show, or something far more sinister in this sensational debut novel.
My name was Natalie Heller Mills, and I was perfect at being alive.
Natalie lives a traditional lifestyle. Her charming farmhouse is rustic, her husband a handsome cowboy, her six children each more delightful than the last. So what if there are nannies and producers behind the scenes, her kitchen hiding industrial-grade fridges and ovens, her husband the Republican equivalent of a Kennedy? What Natalie’s followers—all 8 million of them—don’t know won’t hurt them. And The Angry Women? The privileged, Ivy League, coastal elite haters who call her an antifeminist iconoclast? They’re sick with jealousy. Because Natalie isn’t simply living the good life, she’s living the ideal—and just so happens to be building an empire from it.
Until one morning she wakes up in a life that isn’t hers. Her home, her husband, her children—they’re all familiar, but something’s off. Her kitchen is warmed by a sputtering fire rather than electricity, her children are dirty and strange, and her soft-handed husband is suddenly a competent farmer. Just yesterday Natalie was curating photos of homemade jam for her Instagram, and now she’s expected to haul firewood and handwash clothes until her fingers bleed. Has she become the unwitting star of a brutal reality show? Could it really be time travel? Is she being tested by God? By Satan? When Natalie suffers a brutal injury in the woods, she realizes two things: This is not her beautiful life, and she must escape by any means possible.
A gripping, electrifying novel that is as darkly funny as it is frightening, Yesteryear is a gimlet-eyed look at tradition, fame, faith, and the grand performance of womanhood.
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chloe-et-al is interested in reading...
4w
Duž oštrog noža leti ptica
Tanja Stupar Trifunović
Dobitnica Vitalove nagrade i Evropske nagrade za književnost
„Moglo bi se reći da je ovo roman o odrastanju u vremenima koja su pogodna za sve osim za odrastanje. O ženama koje su prebrzo sazrele, suočavajući se sa svojim strahovima i sudbinama. Tu je i vojska, čudna i crna, ali tu je i more, zavodljivo uvijek onako kako zna da bude. Tu su i prve nesigurne ljubavi, tu su i prva iskušenja i prvi tereti ženskosti, nametnuti u divljim i podmuklim etapama vremena u kojima muškarci pišu istoriju. A ova nepoznata i nevidljiva istorija, važnija od one koju ćemo učiti kasnije u školskim klupama, ispisana je iskreno i čisto, uvjerljivo i potresno, baš onako kakav i sam život jeste.“
– Stevo Grabovac
„Majstorsko pripovijedanje Tanje Stupar Trifunović vodi nas u davno ostavljeni, bajkoviti, mitski svijet djetinjstva, čiji se pejzaž pred nama rastvara u čudesne metafore. Rat i izbjeglištvo ostaju u sjeni života koji se nekada odvijao i utjecao na sudbine likova. U tim sudbinama prepoznajemo vlastite poraze, traume, strasti, ljubavi, smrti i rijetke odbljeske sreće. Kada roman napiše pjesnikinja, još k tomu izvrsna, to bi trebala biti svetkovina za čitatelje jer pred sobom zasigurno imaju dragulj.“
– Magdalena Blažević
„Ovo je roman o Vanji, ali i roman o Mileni s plavim očima u kojima su nebo i sloboda. Ovo je roman za sve one koji znaju da je svaki san ’razderan svirepošću svijeta’. Tanja Stupar Trifunović slika odrastanje koje neprestano boli i vara, koje i ubija i čeliči. Pišući otvoreno o nasilju nad telom i duhom, ona nam se obraća i obzirno i odrešito, ne plašeći se nijednog bezdana, nijednog poriva, nijedne kazne. Redak je u književnosti savez nemira i strasti koji tako dostojanstveno slije u reči radost i gorčinu, užas i stid.“
– Vladislava Gordić Petković
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chloe-et-al started reading...
4w
Yesteryear
Caro Claire Burke
A traditional American woman, a beautiful wife and mother who sells her pioneer lifestyle of raw milk and farm-fresh eggs to her millions of social media followers, suddenly awakens cold, filthy, and terrified in the brutal reality of 1805—where she must unravel whether this living nightmare is an elaborate hoax, a twisted reality show, or something far more sinister in this sensational debut novel.
My name was Natalie Heller Mills, and I was perfect at being alive.
Natalie lives a traditional lifestyle. Her charming farmhouse is rustic, her husband a handsome cowboy, her six children each more delightful than the last. So what if there are nannies and producers behind the scenes, her kitchen hiding industrial-grade fridges and ovens, her husband the Republican equivalent of a Kennedy? What Natalie’s followers—all 8 million of them—don’t know won’t hurt them. And The Angry Women? The privileged, Ivy League, coastal elite haters who call her an antifeminist iconoclast? They’re sick with jealousy. Because Natalie isn’t simply living the good life, she’s living the ideal—and just so happens to be building an empire from it.
Until one morning she wakes up in a life that isn’t hers. Her home, her husband, her children—they’re all familiar, but something’s off. Her kitchen is warmed by a sputtering fire rather than electricity, her children are dirty and strange, and her soft-handed husband is suddenly a competent farmer. Just yesterday Natalie was curating photos of homemade jam for her Instagram, and now she’s expected to haul firewood and handwash clothes until her fingers bleed. Has she become the unwitting star of a brutal reality show? Could it really be time travel? Is she being tested by God? By Satan? When Natalie suffers a brutal injury in the woods, she realizes two things: This is not her beautiful life, and she must escape by any means possible.
A gripping, electrifying novel that is as darkly funny as it is frightening, Yesteryear is a gimlet-eyed look at tradition, fame, faith, and the grand performance of womanhood.
1
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chloe-et-al finished a book
5w
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo
Taylor Jenkins Reid
Aging and reclusive Hollywood movie icon Evelyn Hugo is finally ready to tell the truth about her glamorous and scandalous life. But when she chooses unknown magazine reporter Monique Grant for the job, no one is more astounded than Monique herself. Why her? Why now?
Monique is not exactly on top of the world. Her husband has left her, and her professional life is going nowhere. Regardless of why Evelyn has selected her to write her biography, Monique is determined to use this opportunity to jumpstart her career.
Summoned to Evelyn’s luxurious apartment, Monique listens in fascination as the actress tells her story. From making her way to Los Angeles in the 1950s to her decision to leave show business in the ‘80s, and, of course, the seven husbands along the way, Evelyn unspools a tale of ruthless ambition, unexpected friendship, and a great forbidden love. Monique begins to feel a very real connection to the legendary star, but as Evelyn’s story nears its conclusion, it becomes clear that her life intersects with Monique’s own in tragic and irreversible ways.
2
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chloe-et-al is re-reading...
5w
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo
Taylor Jenkins Reid
Aging and reclusive Hollywood movie icon Evelyn Hugo is finally ready to tell the truth about her glamorous and scandalous life. But when she chooses unknown magazine reporter Monique Grant for the job, no one is more astounded than Monique herself. Why her? Why now?
Monique is not exactly on top of the world. Her husband has left her, and her professional life is going nowhere. Regardless of why Evelyn has selected her to write her biography, Monique is determined to use this opportunity to jumpstart her career.
Summoned to Evelyn’s luxurious apartment, Monique listens in fascination as the actress tells her story. From making her way to Los Angeles in the 1950s to her decision to leave show business in the ‘80s, and, of course, the seven husbands along the way, Evelyn unspools a tale of ruthless ambition, unexpected friendship, and a great forbidden love. Monique begins to feel a very real connection to the legendary star, but as Evelyn’s story nears its conclusion, it becomes clear that her life intersects with Monique’s own in tragic and irreversible ways.
1
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chloe-et-al is interested in reading...
5w
Minority Rule: Adventures in the Culture War
Ash Sarkar
We live under minority rule. But who is the ruling minority?
Most of us are getting screwed over. Our world is defined by inequality, insecurity, lack of community and information overload. As the world burns, mega-corporations are reporting record profits. How are they getting away with it?
'Minority rule' is the term Ash Sarkar uses to describe the irrational fear that minorities are trying to overturn and oppress majority populations. In her eye-opening debut, she reveals how minority elites rule majorities by creating the culture wars that have taken over our politics, stoking fear and panic in our media landscape. Because despite what they'll have you believe, anti-racist campaigners aren't actually silencing the 'forgotten' working class, immigrants aren't eating your pets, trans-activists aren't corrupting your children, and cancel culture isn't crushing free speech.
In Minority Rule, Sarkar exposes how a strategic misdirection of blame over who is really screwing everything up is keeping the majority divided, while the real ruling minority of hedge fund managers, press barons, landlords and corporations remain on top. And it's facilitating one of the biggest power grabs in history. Most crucially, she shows us how what we really have in common is being concealed by a deafening culture of distraction – and that the first step towards a better future is understanding what is happening now, and how we got here.
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chloe-et-al wrote a review...
5w
I wasn't annoyed by this book which is the highest form of compliment I can give to a romance novel!
I loved how messy the leads were, lowkey not good people at times, but I like that. I like when characters have actual flaws that come from something very human, instead of plot convenience. The enemies part of it all was juicy, but the love was still there and it was so obvious in retrospect.
I did feel like the ending was rushed, I would have been fine if they didn't jump to getting married immediately, but hey, you can't win them all.
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chloe-et-al finished a book
5w
You Deserve Each Other
Sarah Hogle
When your nemesis also happens to be your fiancé, happily ever after becomes a lot more complicated in this wickedly funny, lovers-to-enemies-to-lovers romantic comedy debut.
Naomi Westfield has the perfect fiancé: Nicholas Rose holds doors open for her, remembers her restaurant orders, and comes from the kind of upstanding society family any bride would love to be a part of. They never fight. They're preparing for their lavish wedding that's three months away. And she is miserably and utterly sick of him.
Naomi wants out, but there's a catch: whoever ends the engagement will have to foot the nonrefundable wedding bill. When Naomi discovers that Nicholas, too, has been feigning contentment, the two of them go head-to-head in a battle of pranks, sabotage, and all-out emotional warfare.
But with the countdown looming to the wedding that may or may not come to pass, Naomi finds her resolve slipping. Because now that they have nothing to lose, they're finally being themselves--and having fun with the last person they expect: each other.
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Post from the You Deserve Each Other forum
6w
Thoughts from 2% (page 6)
the feeling of "he's so hot I feel like I somehow tricked him into being into me" hell yeah been there done that living it currently
4
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chloe-et-al started reading...
6w
You Deserve Each Other
Sarah Hogle
When your nemesis also happens to be your fiancé, happily ever after becomes a lot more complicated in this wickedly funny, lovers-to-enemies-to-lovers romantic comedy debut.
Naomi Westfield has the perfect fiancé: Nicholas Rose holds doors open for her, remembers her restaurant orders, and comes from the kind of upstanding society family any bride would love to be a part of. They never fight. They're preparing for their lavish wedding that's three months away. And she is miserably and utterly sick of him.
Naomi wants out, but there's a catch: whoever ends the engagement will have to foot the nonrefundable wedding bill. When Naomi discovers that Nicholas, too, has been feigning contentment, the two of them go head-to-head in a battle of pranks, sabotage, and all-out emotional warfare.
But with the countdown looming to the wedding that may or may not come to pass, Naomi finds her resolve slipping. Because now that they have nothing to lose, they're finally being themselves--and having fun with the last person they expect: each other.
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chloe-et-al wrote a review...
6w
This is a completely, unashamedly biased review of this book. I've read my first Barnes novel over a decade ago, when I was 20 or 21, studying English literature. "Flaubert's Parrot" completely changed the way I approach reading, it made me realise how much I have grown as a reader in the years of study literature. He means a great deal to me both academically and personally. Reading this felt like I was sitting across from one of my favorite authors ever over a cup of coffee, and having him share, uninterruptedly. About life, memory, aging, missed and second chances, regrets, loss, leaving. The fact that this is exactly how he ends up describing this novel in the last pages turned me into a sobbing mess. Mr Barnes, thank you for everything you've given the literary world 🩷
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