WWW Wednesdays #183 – August 15th

WWW WEDNESDAYS is a weekly meme hosted by Sam @ Taking On A World Of Words and is all about answering the three questions below.

• WHAT ARE YOU CURRENTLY READING?

I’m close to finishing Ink And Bone by Rachel Caine, a series I’ve been wanting to start for ages and since it worked perfectly for the Magical Readathon I’m finally doing so. I’m not as impressed as I thought it would be though… The idea behind the story is interesting, but I’m just not feeling it. I’m also currently reading The Mysterious Affair At Styles by Agatha Christie… I thought it was about time I read her first book, and it fits a bunch of challenge prompts as well, so that’s a huge bonus. And I’m still reading Rivers Of London by Ben Aaronovitch as well, which I’m really enjoying so far. And I love LOVE the cover art. ❤

• WHAT DID YOU RECENTLY FINISH READING?

1. Harry Potter Y El Prisionero De Azkaban by J.K. Rowling (4,5/5 stars) NO REVIEW
I always love rereading Harry Potter, and book number three is one of my favorites of the bunch. I started my reread in Spanish some time ago and The Prisoner Of Azkaban was up next; it fitted one of the prompts for the Magical Readathon perfectly so it was an easy choice. It was so great rereading this one again! It’s always great rediscovering little details I had completely forgotten about.

2. The Tango War by Mary Jo McConahay (3,5/5 stars) REVIEW 
If you enjoy reading non fiction historical texts and have an interest in the Second World War, The Tango War will without doubt interest you. It’s not the fastest read of the world and the essay-like chapters might slow you down, but this book shines the light upon a wide variety of topics related to the role of Latin America during the war. Would I have liked to see a more neutral point of view instead of a clearly US influenced perspective? Maybe. Would I have liked to see more of Latin America itself? Probably. But there is no doubt The Tango War is still a little goldmine of information.

3. Every Heart A Doorway by Seanan McGuire (4,5/5 stars) REVIEW 19/08
After Ali mentioned this book in one of her posts, I had no other choice but to stop procrastinating and start reading Every Heart A Doorway. I’ve been wanting to read this story ever since I first heard about it, and it looks like first impressions sometimes really hit the right spot. What a wonderful wonderful read! My only complaint would be that I wish the story would have been longer, because there is so much to love and only a limited amount of pages to do so.

4. The 7 Deaths Of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton (5/5 stars) REVIEW 17/08
This was a buddy read with Nicki @ Secret Library… We’ve been taking things slow as to fully savour this little masterpiece. WHAT A BOOK!! Claiming that The 7 Deaths Of Evelyn Hardcastle is absolutely brilliant and a true masterpiece might just be an understatement… I’m not sure how to properly describe my feelings for this book other than the phrase ‘just read the damn book‘, because that actually seems like the right thing to say here. Yes, this debut is THAT good, as you might have guessed from all the other (and most definitely more proper) reviews out there… What are you waiting for? My only complaint would be that this book might have ruined any future books of the same genre for me… How on earth can they still be satisfying after The 7 Deaths Of Evelyn Hardcastle has raised the bar that high?

5. The Impossible Girl by Lydia Kang (4/5 stars) REVIEW 20/08
If you are looking for something different to read, don’t mind disturbing the dead and enjoy a well developed historical setting and a strong main character, The Impossible Girl is just the book for you. The perfect balance of a strong historical setting, a dose of creepy, a mystery, some violence and romance makes this story work like a charm. It was interesting to see the story and the characters evolve and I had a great time reading this one.

• WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU’LL READ NEXT?

I’m trying to read the books for the Magical Readathon in time, so I need to pick up Uprooted by Naomi Novik ASAP (I don’t care about Divination, so I’m probably not picking up that title). I also need to read the ARC Truth And Lies by Caroline Mitchell and The Confession by Jo Spain some time soon since the publish date is coming up. My newest TBR jar pick is still An Officer And A Spy by Robert Harris.

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ARC REVIEW: The Tango War – by Mary Jo Conahay

Title: The Tango War
Author: Mary Jo McConahay
Genre: Non Fiction, History, War
First published: September 18th 2018
Publisher: St. Martin’s Press
Finished reading: August 10th 2018
Pages: 336

“Each side closely shadowed the steps of the other, like dancers in a tango.”

*** A copy of this book was kindly provided to me by Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press in exchange for an honest review. Thank you! ***

My interest in this non fiction read was piqued for three reasons: I’m hugely interested in anything related to WWII, nobody ever talks about the role of Latin America during WWII and last but not least I have a special interest in history related to Latin America especially since I have settled down in Argentina. The Tango War is an eye-catching title and the cover stands out as well, but it is important to not forget this is a non fiction read first, entertaining thriller second. I don’t agree with the blurb that The Tango War can be read as a thriller, because the chapters lack cohesion for that. The chapters jump between countries and point of views of the war, which sometimes is necessary, but turns this book into a collection of essays rather than a single story. I also would have prefered to see more focus on the actual Latin American countries, instead of the clearly US influenced point of view of the different topics discussed. I don’t think I could call this non fiction read 100% neutral as a consequence, but that doesn’t take away that The Tango War was a thoroughly interesting read. There has never been much talk about the role of Latin America during WWII, most people instead focusing on Europe, the United States and Japan as the main contenders. It was fascinating to read about how various countries in Latin America had a big influence in the things that happened during the war. The focus isn’t solely on the years during WWII though, as many events both before and after are put in the spotlight as well. If you are interested in the topic and enjoy non fiction reads, The Tango War is just the book for you.

There has never been enough focus on the fact that Latin America played a big role during WWII. Both sides have been fighting for the allegiance of the countries of Latin America even long before the war, knowing that their support will play a vital role. Each side is willing to play dirty, doing what is needed to win over the countries and get the support needed…

If you enjoy reading non fiction historical texts and have an interest in the Second World War, The Tango War will without doubt interest you. It’s not the fastest read of the world and the essay-like chapters might slow you down, but this book shines the light upon a wide variety of topics related to the role of Latin America during the war. Would I have liked to see a more neutral point of view instead of a clearly US influenced perspective? Maybe. Would I have liked to see more of Latin America itself? Probably. But there is no doubt The Tango War is still a little goldmine of information.

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WWW Wednesdays #182 – August 8th

WWW WEDNESDAYS is a weekly meme hosted by Sam @ Taking On A World Of Words and is all about answering the three questions below.

• WHAT ARE YOU CURRENTLY READING?

I’m still buddy reading The 7 Deaths Of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton with Nicki @ Secret Library… We’ve been taking things slow as to fully savour this little masterpiece… WHAT A BOOK!! This is definitely going to appear on my list of 2018 favorites. I’ve also picked up The Tango War by Mary Jo McConahay, a non fiction WWII book about the role of Latin America in WWII. I’m not really far into it, but so far it’s interesting. And last but not least, I’ve started another Spanish reread of the Harry Potter series! The third book is one of my favorites and I’m looking forward to spend more time with Sirius and Lupin. Harry Potter Y El Prisionero De Azkaban it is!

• WHAT DID YOU RECENTLY FINISH READING?

1. It’s Okay To Laugh by Nora McInerny Purmort (DNF 66%, 0 stars) REVIEW 16/08
I like reading memoirs every once in a while and when I saw It’s Okay To Laugh being compared to the memoirs of Jenny Lawson, I just HAD to get a copy. Fierce and hysterically funny? Sign me up for that! Sadly, I’m feeling kind of cheated now I have picked it up… Because there is no way It’s Okay To Laugh bares any similarities with the work of that author. Both the writing style and tone were just off for me, and it felt rather repetitive and almost nagging to me.

2. The Echo Room by Parker Peevyhouse (2/5 stars) REVIEW 13/08
If you like science fiction, are looking for something different and don’t mind repetition in the plot, you will probably enjoy The Echo Room a lot better than I did. I still really like the idea behind this story, but unfortunately I wasn’t able to enjoy actually reading it. Between the lack of crucial information, repetitive chapters and lack of connection to the story and characters I had a hard time making it to the final page, although things did improve later on. The story was just too strange and vague for me… But like I said before, the problem might just have been me.

3. Britt-Marie Was Here by Fredrik Backman (4,5/5 stars) REVIEW 16/08
Britt-Marie Was Here is already the fourth book I’ve picked up, and this story has only reconfirmed my love for his stories. Fredrik Backman is a true master in creating unique and flawed characters that you cannot help falling in love with. It was so great seeing more of Britt-Marie! Basically, I loved every single minute of this book, and while nothing can beat Ove, both My Grandmother Asked Me To Tell You She’s Sorry and Britt-Marie Was Here currently share a second place on my list of Backman favorites.

4. The Masked City by Genevieve Cogman (3/5 stars) REVIEW 19/08
I admit I wasn’t completely convinced by the first book when I read it last year, mostly because the whole just felt a bit too chaotic and too many different elements trying to be squeezed into one story. I picked up the sequel anyway, both because I was curious to see how things would continue and because it fitted the Magical Readathon challenge… While things did improve and the story seemed to be more coherent, I still wish more focus would have been on the Library. There is a lot going on, we have werewolves, dragons, fae and magic, the story is partly set in Venice… But somehow the spark is missing? The whole thing actually felt a bit dull and rather slow-paced for a story about magical creatures and a plot to start a war that might destroy an alternate world or two.

• WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU’LL READ NEXT?

As I’m still reading Evelyn Hardcastle, I’ve been posponing other thriller read as to not confuse the two plots. I’m hoping to pick up the NG ARCs The Confession by Jo Spain and Truth And Lies by Caroline Mitchell some time soon though, because the publish dates are coming closer… I also need to read the ARC The Impossible Girl by Lydia Kang soon. My newest TBR jar pick is still An Officer And A Spy by Robert Harris.

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