REVIEW | "The Secret History" by Donna Dartt

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Title: The Secret History
Author: Donna Tartt
Publisher: Penguin
Genre: adult fiction
ISBN: 978-0804111355
Page Number: 640 pages






Blurb
Under the influence of their charismatic classics professor, a group of clever, eccentric misfits at an elite New England college discover a way of thinking and living that is a world away from the humdrum existence of their contemporaries. But when they go beyond the boundaries of normal morality they slip gradually from obsession to corruption and betrayal, and at last - inexorably - into evil.

Execution
This book was utterly dazing - in the best way possible.
It's the kind of book I couldn't read too much of at a time, the kind of book that you have to put aside every other few dozen pages to let it all sink in.
It's the kind of book that is slowly taking over your life until everything else seems petty.
It's not full of twists and turns (at least considering the length of the novel) and it doesn't leave you sitting with your mouth open the entire time but it's got something to it that pulls you into that world and let's you feel like you're part of it.
I've never read anything like it before. It's not that unique and special at first glance, but rather on a very profound, deep level that sets the whole tone for the story.
Donna Tartt has, in my humble opinion, created an absolute masterpiece with this book.

Characters
The funny thing about the characters in this book is that although I didn't like any of them, I still cared for all of them.
Every character serves a very specific purpose - everyone has their own, special role to play and contributes to the story in some way.
All of the characters are incredibly well crafted and although you can't fully comprehend their motivations sometimes, it all comes together in the end.
Again, I've never read about characters like these before (in a way though, they reminded me a bit of the students in How to Get Away With Murder) and although (like I said) I didn't like them, I already miss them (which is very weird, but still)

Emotions
This book wasn't exactly thrilling or keeping me on the edge of my seat the entire time, but still, I was very much emotionally attached to the story.
While reading this book, I had big problems concentrating on other stories at the same time (because I'm reading more than one book at a time) because honestly, I think this book kind of consumed me.
I even find myself wishing there was more to the story but at the same time, I know it's over and there isn't anything more to tell.

Overall
Altogether, this was one of the most unique reading experiences I had in my entire life. It keeps me longing for more books like this and I can truly not wait to read more books by Donna Tartt!

REVIEW | "1Q84 - Books One and Two" by Haruki Murakami

Title: 1Q84 - Books One and Two
Author: Haruki Murakami
Publisher: Vintage (8/2/2012)
Genre: adult fiction
ISBN: 978-0099549062
Page Number: 816 pages






Blurb
The year is 1Q84.
This is the real world, there is no doubt about that.
But in this world, there are two moons in the sky.
In this world, the fates of two people, Tengo and Aomame, are closely intertwined. They are each, in their own way, doing something very dangerous. And in this world, there seems no way to save them both.
Something extraordinary is starting.

Execution
When I first started this book, it was incredibly hard for me to get invested in the story. I could only read one chapter at a time and even that was quite hard to get through. So I put the book down and started it again later and this time, it just clicked with me. I don't know what had happened, but all of a sudden I was very much invested in the story and read it relatively quickly. There is just something about Murakamis writing that makes you fall down the rabbit hole and get you enthralled by the story in a way that you can't really describe. I still don't know what it is that makes me love this book so much because no doubt, this is one of the weirdest books I've ever read, but it just drew me in and hasn't let me go ever since.
Murakami must be a genius for how perfectly everything fits together in this book. It is very detailed but nothing is there by chance and although on first sight it all seems like one big mess, it all falls into place at some point and makes perfectly sense.
This is one of those books you could describe as much as you want and yet never do justice to it. It is a book you have to read yourself in order to understand what it is about.

Characters
Though there are many more characters in the story, I want to concentrate on the two protagonists, Tengo and Aomame. Taking turns, they narrate the story and both contribute to crucial events happening in the book.
Both of them are very well crafted and complex, you can imagine them as real people living a real life just perfectly.
Aomame is a very accounting and accurate, she is a person you imagine never makes any mistakes in her life and she is also very distant from the life around herself. She has problems bonding herself to other people and seems very cold at first sight.
Tengo, on the other hand, seems rather warm and emotional; he is a talented writer and I imagined him as a dreamy and yet somehow thoughtful person (see what I mean when I say this book is very hard to describe?).
In the end, their characters are very different from one another and yet they are connected on a very profound level.

Emotions
I felt a lot reading this book. I can't even pinpoint exactly what it was that I felt (again, hard to describe) but essentially, this book made me feel something, and this something was a lot.
I was (I still am) very invested in the story and more so, the characters, and I desperately want to read the last book to find out what will happen to them.

Overall
Altogether, I think Haruki Murakami has created a masterpiece. This review does not do it justice but I still hope you could kind of grasp how I felt about the book. "1Q84" is definitely one of my favorites now and I can't wait to read more books by Murakami.