YVONNE’S SHORTIES #345 – Ragdoll // The Library At Mount Char (DNF)

Time for another round of Yvonne’s Shorties! This time around two backlist titles I’ve been meaning to read for ages… One ended up being a fantastic start of the trilogy, while the other was a total fail I ended up DNFing quite early on.

Title: Ragdoll
(Fawkes and Baxter #1)
Author: Daniel Cole
Genre: Mystery, Thriller, Crime
First published: February 16th 2017
Publisher: Trapeze
Finished reading: February 12th 2023
Pages: 384

“There are no ‘good’ people. There are just those who haven’t been pushed far enough yet, and those that have.”

REVIEW

I needed something good after a recent bout of bad luck with my reading choices, and I decided to turn to my favorite genre. I always love a good serial killer thriller, and I’ve been meaning to read Ragdoll for years now. And wow, what a read it turned out to be! I’m definitely kicking myself now for not reading it sooner… This first book of a trilogy turned out to be everything I love in a serial killer thriller and more. Ragdoll has such a cleverly constructed and complex plot, and there is action and danger to be found around every corner. The characters are considerably flawed, but somehow still likeable and I enjoyed spending time with them to get to know them better. The story starts out strong with the first ‘victim’ actually being six stitched into one (WHAT a way to open a story!), and the whole kill list only adds an extra urgency to it all. I did find Wolf’s ex-wife Andrea to be extremely annoying and self-absorbed, but I guess she was ment to be this way… But thankfully there is so much going on that you are easily distracted. There were some twists I never saw coming either, and as a whole Ragdoll turned out to be a fantastic start of a series and just the dose of dark crime thriller I was craving. And with how things ended, I’m definitely more than curious to see how things will continue in the next book!

Title: The Library At Mount Char
Author: Scott Hawkins
Genre: Fantasy, Horror
First published: June 16th 2015
Publisher: Broadway Books
Finished reading: February 16th 2023
Pages: 390
DNF at 11% (43 pages)

“It’s the notion that the universe is structured in such a way that no matter how many mysteries you solve, there is always a deeper mystery behind it.”

REVIEW

WARNING: unpopular opinion ahead!!

I’ve been meaning to read The Library At Mount Char for years now, and I was actually really excited when my TBR jar thought it was about time I finally picked it up. I do love books with a bookish angle, and the blurb sounded intriguing. Add many high ratings and lots of praise, and I fully expected to have a great time as well. I guess I was wrong! Whatever this is, I’m not wasting another minute of my time on it. Especially after reading some of the more negative reviews and realizing what is still to come (rape, misogeny, animal cruelty, more senseless violence and gore etc.). I like a little weird in my stories, but this is just bat shit crazy and without any direction at all… So thank you, but no thank you. Next!