Rauwkost - Bart Debbaut

I looked forward to reading this book, because the plot seemed very interesting. A serial killer targeting TV chefs? Count me in! However, I didn't really end up liking the book.

The characters aren't very lovable and I didn't really enjoy reading about them. It feels like Debbaut wanted to make his main character a grumpy but lovable old man, but he didn't really succeed in my opinion. I also got pretty confused because there's one guy called Leyssens and then another one called Reynders and I just couldn't keep them separated in my head.

The writing style is another thing that I didn't like. Some parts of the story feel very unnecessary. I don't care for example about the background of a secretary that doesn't matter to the plot at all and we never meet again. I also don't care about the air conditioning being broken and some random person working on it... It seemed to me as if Debbaut only added these parts to fill the pages, and even then the book only counts 270 of them.

The plot couldn't save this either. It sounded intriguing, but the end was weak and disappointing.

Some more notes I made while reading:

• Dude, just go to HR, she's not gonna give up and this is very inappropriate of her
• "If he was Dumoulin's killer, than why was HE here?" duh, because you're his next victim you idiot!
• These jokes aren't even funny
• This is stereotyping at its best omg

Stars: 2

Period of reading: 05/05 - 19/05

New words I learned: /

TW: /

Writer Bart Debbaut with the book

Family of Liars - e. lockhart

I first heard about Family of Liars somewhere in February and I was incredibly excited. I immediately pre-ordered the book and waited patiently (may be a lie) until it would finally arrive. I finally got it the 7th of May. I reread We Were Liars (6th time I read it since I got it for Christmas in 2017, if you want to know how much I love that book) before I started this one on May 8.

Some parts of the plot were predictable - at least to me (no spoilers here, but if you want to know what I mean, go take a look at my Goodreads review). The last three parts caught me off guard though. Part 6 I didn't expect at all and part 7 is so powerful. I do really like the ending. This book was a bit more thriller-ish than the original, but still mostly mystery. Definitely worth the read!

Stars: 4.5

Period of reading: 08/05 - 11/05

New words I learned: 

• an oar (noun): a long stick used for rowing a boat
• lackadaisical (adjective): doing something in a lazy or careless way that shows that you are not really interested in it

TW: rape / attempted rape (not very explicit)