I read Babel and honestly I loved it. I understand why some don’t, but personally I found the footnotes really interesting and the book really got me thinking about things in ways I hadn’t! The only thing I would say is I didn’t connect with the characters as much as I probably would have liked, but the atmosphere made up for it. And the story. I think you could really like it!

LOOK AT THAT EDITION OF BABEL, I WOULD DIE FOR IT

Babel is just one of those books where you really need to be in the right headspace to continue reading. Tbh, I really love the book (Still in the middle of it but I probably won't DNF it) but it has to be read with full attention as it really is so dense. I don't mind the numerous footnotes/info dumps lol as I like researching things in general but it's understandable how it can be off-putting for some.

I, too, DNF'd Babel. It was a well written, deeply moving story. However, I mentally was not up for it, so I understand.

yay im so glad you enjoyed Sorcery of Thorns!! i agree that it was like a predictable plot BUT LIKE it was FUN getting from points A to B and to C. for me i always described it as "Howl's Moving Castle meets Fullmetal Alchemist" lol i do recommend reading the little novella it's a cute little story (almost like an epilogue?) but i recommend reading it on an eReader bc the printed version is SO SMALL it's a waste of physical space on your shelves (TRUST ME.) i don't believe there's plans for a trilogy, but i think it was just left open a bit at the end with some characters as a Just In Case, you know?

Just in case no one has said it, I just want to let you know, your videos that you’ve done over the past month have been really good. You’re doing amazing. ❤

That feeling when your steering wheel starts giving off more Main Character energy than you 😂 I'm so glad you enjoyed Sorcery of Thorns! Definitely a predictable read, but in all the best ways. It quickly became a comfort read book for me (and yes, Silas is best boy).

My comfort channel ♥ Jesse, you come up with such interesting bookish videos ✨

I loved Babel but it is a huge time commitment and you really have to be feeling ambitious to immerse yourself in the story whole heartedly to enjoy it.

The way you shoot your reading process is so aesthetic❤

This vlog was FASCINATING to watch as Sorcery of Thorns, A Marvellous Light, and How To Lose a Time War were all five star reads for me.

Oh, I was so happy to see you pick up Sorcery of Thorns! 🥰🥰 That's my top favorite stand-alone book. And yes, it is a stand-alone with a small (quite literally) companion novella that, if I remember correctly, gives glimpses into everyone's PoV.

For me... I don't think predictability is a knock against the quality of writing at all, honestly, unless you know for a fact the writer was trying to be surprising but failed. It's the whole journey over destination thing, I think-the difference between people who don't mind knowing the destination(i.e = people who are okay knowing the heroes will probably / almost-always/ triumph in the end & or knowing that this particular couple is going to pair-up together by the end and is really only reading/watching specifically to discover when/how/why/whatever) versus those who don't like knowing the destination at all(i.e. = people who actually do mind knowing which characters' ships will sail and dislike resting too easy with knowledge that the heroes will win or survive in the end and hate knowing where things are going because that's too boring and not exciting enough or such). It isn't bad writing, nor necessarily even bad storytelling, just to write in a way that appeals more to one type of preference than to another. But maybe that's just me, quibbling over semantics, or something. 😊 💖💖

As an on-and-off comic book reader, I'll admit, keeping up with a monthly series was so much easier in the 80s, mainly because so many more places sold them, as long as you were looking for a CCA approved title by a big publisher.

Ahhhh you’re reading my favorite! Sorcery or Thorns is such a good book & I love the ode to readers. 😍

I DNFed Babel for exactly the same reason. Pretty sure I'm going to love it, but I was so not in the right headspace when I started it.

I love how reading is such a unique experience! This is How You Lose a Time War was one of my top books a few years ago- but I totally understand why it wouldn't work for some people. Babel is one on my TBR that I am excited for :) I really don't DNF books, usually put them on a "not right now" shelf and come back to them when my mood feels right!!

i honestly think the big issue with babel is that it's dark academia fantasy that is HEAVY on the academia. it's beautiful and has really important things to say, and i think it does that relatively well, but if you're not REALLY into academia then it feels a lot like reading a textbook for large portions of the book.

I loved Sorcery of Thorns - so glad you liked it too! And Silas was definitely a great character! The novella is a fun read as well when you have a moment, and I’m not aware of any additional books planned beyond that.

The way I started laughing when the camera autofocused on the steering wheel again... it is a VILLAIN! 🤣

yay, so glad you enjoyed sorcery of thorns, it’s such a fun read. give me a magical library and a slightly morally grey (but fiercely loyal) supporting character and i’m happy.

Traitors S1 was AWESOME! I love Alan Cumming, and that setting was beautiful with such scary challenges.

I LOVE MAGARET ROGERSON. Every single one of her books is so fun and with great characters. The mysteries of thorn manor is a connected novella, but it is still a standalone. I love Silas!! Silas is amazing!!I liked this is how you lose a time war for all the reasons why you said someone would really like it :D I love flowery writing style, scifi (especially time travel) and romance. So it was kinda perfect for me.

I was close to DNFing Babel but I'm glad I stuck with it because the second half was amazing.

“It’s not good, but I’m gonna eat it.” Why is that so relatable? Lol

I loved Sorcery of Thorns! Silas reminded me so much of Sebastian from the manga Black Butler so I knew I was going to adore him haha. Loved this video and the limelight hogging steering wheel!

an enchantment of ravens is one of my favorite books, i will not hear any criticism about it 🙉. but i have heard mixed things about her other books

I don't remember if you always did puzzles or legos in your previous reading vlogs, but it's so relaxing, I love it. I plan to read Babel in december. I think I will be in the mood for it.

Hey Jesse! I saw the weight of our sky on your bookshelf in one of the clips and just wanted to say: if you haven't read it yet I definitely recommend it! such a good book!

This Is How You Lose The Time War was a book I read last year and I didn’t enjoy it . I felt the same way confused and I felt like it wasn’t for me . Also I have not read Babel but thank you to those in the comments letting me know your thoughts on Babel so when I read it I’ll definitely be keeping my guard up .

When I DNF a book I’m not feeling in the moment, I call it a soft DNF. Sometimes it means I need to give in to my mood reading, sometimes it turns into a full hard DNF, so the Babel thing makes sense to me

Toxic Summer! It's a fun series so far. Can't wait for issue 3 :) Something that helped me get into single issue comics was getting more involved in the local comic shop. Talk to the employees, see if they have recs, and ask what they're reading and what they like about it. I swear, getting to know your LCS owners will make you soooo excited to go back for every new issue :)

The fact that I clicked right away at the notification just because of the title and a Jesse's video it's crazy 🤣 I can't explain why, but this kinda thematic reads are it for me 😅✨️

The sadness of mid cookies that you know you’ll force yourself to eat despite their disappointing midness is relatable

The idea of Babel being unexciting - like the comment you put in the video - is so alien to me. I absolutely raced through it! I knew it was a divisive book going in so I wasn't sure if I would like it, but I got so much out of it. I understand some people's criticisms, but personally I think it's an incredible piece of writing.

ive read three of the four of these and liked them all !! i felt exactly the same way as you about sorcery of thorns, just a really fun and atmospheric fantasy. i really liked babel, and i strongly considered five starring it, but definitely have issues with it (and i thought the tone teetered just a little too often into being sort of smug and imperious which is an issue i often have with rf kuang). generally i find that i totally agree with both the praises and the criticisms that everyone seems to have about babel. and finally i love love love a marvellous light (and its whole series) though it took a bit for me to really find my groove with it. however im definitely coming at that last binding series from more of a romance reader perspective than a fantasy one (even though i love fantasy), and so (especially throughout the trilogy) my connection is more to the characters and their relationships (the third book was actually my number one favourite read of last year) than the fantasy plot. i could definitely see how someone who wasn't fully into the characters and the romance would be let down by the way the rest of the story fits together !! i haven't read tihylttw but i kind of want to?? apprehensive

I recently finished Babel and loved it BUT I actually temporarily DNF'd it last year because my brain was not ready at the time 😅 The parts I read still stuck with me so I decided to go back to it when I felt ready to read a book a little more slowly as there is definitely a lot to digest! I also felt the same exact way with This is How You Lose the Time War but pushed through because there was so much hype about it 😪

I used to watch your videos in like 2018/2019 and I have been SCOURING KZfaq for your channelllll I forgot ur channel name but I knew it started with a J and I FINALLY found u and i'm soooo happyyyyyyy ❤ time to binge all ur vids 🫣

Shooketh about Babel and TIHYLTTW 😂😂 I love when popular books just don't hit with my fave booktubers because the discussion and insights are so interesting 🎉

I liked Sorcery of Thorns, but as someone who reads a lot of manga, it seemed like a story inspired by Black Butler, (once you see it you can't unsee) so it definitely felt unoriginal. Babel was awesome! A Marvellous Light is on my tbr this week!

I loved Sorcery of thorns but I adored An Enchantment of Ravens more. 🥰

Sorcery of Thorns is one of my favorite feel good books. I got so excited as soon as i saw you choose to give it a go

I read Babel but I read it slowly maybe over the course of a few months. I usually have multiple reads going so I don’t mind when I have one that takes a really long time lol I ended up giving it 4 stars. I love RF Kuangs other books so I knew I’d enjoy the writing and the theme, but it is dense and reads like she snuck her masters dissertation into fiction lol but by the end I was sobbing for the characters and managed to connect with them What I hear from POC readers is she holds the readers hand too much through the themes (I agree) but I feel like it’s intentional as I hear a lot of non POC readers say the book opened their eyes to another experience

Thanks for the commitment, Jesse It's hard to stick to reads we don't enjoy, but this is how you show us how compromise you are at us and how much sometimes you just enjoy reading, wich is something I relate a lot Maybe there are some books I shouldn't have finished, but sometimes I just want to read or finish a book ^-^ weird, I know xD

I do understand the Babel DNF tbh! I've been on and off with that book since like February and I am LOVING it! It just is a book that takes a lot of energy to read, at least in my opinion. Not only is it a new type of world to understand that also overlaps with the real world we did have, but it is a also a lot of information to understand. Like in other books I find myself jump a line or two but this book requires so skipping at all. Every detail to the book is something good to remember and I can agree that it can be a bit overwhelming to read if you're not feeling it in the moment! 😄

I love A MARVELLOUS LIGHT (but found myself skimming all the spicy parts because they went on for a bit). I just love the world and characters in that series. (And those side characters do get more spotlight from the sequels.)

Oh my god Cirie is a LEGEND! She was actually on last season of Big Brother too! Her Traitors season is in the reality TV hall of fame for sure. The cast for Traitors season 3 was recently released and it looks amazing!

Currently sorcery and thorn only had a companion novel and it is a fun time but not necessary if you don’t want it. I loved these books though! I did put it down my first time reading it and then *spoilers ahead* -- a friend told me it was howls moving castle and going back with that I had a lot more fun.

The first time I consumed TIHYLTTW I thought “wt-that was lovely, I think? But WHAT??” It’s about a 2 hour audiobook so I listened to it immediately while I worked and it meshed better. It’s abstract and sophisticated so it’s not going to work for everyone. I adore it and reflect on it often.

I LOVED Sorcery of Thorns!

I really liked Sorcery of Thorns. I haven't read her other books yet.

If you've enjoyed watching Cerie on Survivor, have you watched the first season of The Traitors US?

omg sorcery of thorns is one of my faves!!!! and i loved silas too

I recently temporarily DNF'd Priory of the orange tree. I read A Day of Fallen Night first and i really enjoyed it but found it a bit hard to get into the rythm of in the begining; and unfortunately im having the same trouble with priory of the orange tree. Uni is starting back up this week so i just dont have the extra brain capacity to take my time to go through, absorb and get into the flow of the book. So until i go on holiday in a couple months and can dedicate some travel time to really getting into it, im going to go for something simpler.

I love Margert Rogerson’S books. Sorcery is my favorite ( and it I a stand alone with a novella) but Vespertine is great.

Try The Talented Mr. Ripely, by Patricia Highsmith, one of the few that I have not finished. Any psychological thriller, or getting into a disturbed persons mind, can basically scare the living Sh!t out of me. There are other books, that I did not get so far in that I do not finish because the prose , the editing, or the characters or plot did not pull me in, but I do not call those DNFs because I never got far enough in the books, and returned them or passed them on to someone else. As for that Patricia Highsmith book, I wish I could say that I left it my husbands former university student apartment, but I actually made him get rid of it without me seeing it, when we were going to pull the bed away from the wall. I dropped it down and under on purpose, never wanting to even see it again.

I also dnfd Babel, I feel RF Kuang is just not my reading style.

I plan to pick up Babel eventually, but I have heard how heavy of a book it is (topic wise), but Sorcery is fantastic. I did DNF Enchantment of Ravens though. Could not get into it

I wanna read babel so badly! mostly bc of everyones reaction to it. I loved all of R.F. Kuang's books. sorcery of thorns sounds fun, I might add it to my tbr!

This is how the time war has been on my list for a while so this video is convincing me to pick it up soon also I will say since you are getting into Cirie’s seasons of Survivor you are in for a harsh ride when you get to Game Changers

R.F Kuang is one of if not my favorite author. I devoured Babel as I did the Poppy War trilogy. A wonderful mix of beautiful writing, fascinating and gripping plot lines all the while learning. ❤

Oh gooooodddd not the spiders! 😵‍💫

I gave up on Babel almost before it started. I just didn’t vibe with the over-explaining from the authors note at the beginning and I just wasn’t convinced. Still might try it again later

I LOVE SORCERY OF THORNS Edit: OMG AND THIS IS HOW YOU LOSE THE TIME WAR!! 😭😭

babel for me was a 4 stars and yes! u need a specific mind set for It because is dense but sooo interesting (the final part for me was a little bit rush and preachy tho)

I liked Sorcery of Thorns! I wanted to try something outside my comfort zone, which is usually zero romance fantasy and horror. I think the best word for this book is cute.

With This is How You Lose the Time War, I was about 25% of the way through and thought, "this isn't for me" but I carried on and was so glad I did. Yes it was confusing, but only until I got to the last 20 pages or so. Everything that seemed random suddenly clicked into place for me. I actually want to re-read this now I know what happens as I feel I'll notice more on a second read through and appreciate the events a lot more!

I also DNF’d This is How You Lose the Time War. Exactly what you said, I was so confused and found the writing superfluous and annoying and just added to the confusion. I really didn’t get very far cuz I had no clue what was happening and I’m like this is a really cool concept, but it just wasn’t working for me

The last book I DNF'd was "Washington and Caesar", a historical fiction work about George Washington's slave who ran away and joined the Redcoats. I didn't get very far into it but it just didn't grab me.

I just dnfed a book two days ago and as someone who hates dnfing things it was rough lol. The Hazel Wood by Melissa Albert. I got about a third into it, I think? and then figured out the entire plot (my friend confirmed it for me). I wasn't into the writing style or the plot itself or the characters, so it just wasn't for me. The only thing I liked about the book was Finch and that wasn't enough for me to keep going

I didn't DNF Babel, but I really didn't enjoy it as much as I hoped it would. I wanted there to be more fantasy elements. It felt like a historical/political book under the guise of fantasy.

I DNFd two books lately, one right after the other and they were both I had been really excited for. One For All anjd Descendant of the Crane. One For All the character just felt like she wasn't developing. I got to page 200 and just couldn't. Descendant of th Crane I barely got into but I hated the main character. I have too many other books to read, rather than force myself through.

A book I recently DNF'd is How to Sell a Haunted House by Grady Hendrix. I was enjoying the campy horror movie vibes but I stopped when I got to the last 100 pages. I felt that the plot twist was so unnecessary and frustrating :( might pick it back up another time just to see what happens in the end but rn I'm just so mad lol

Guys. I need help. I just finished Laini Taylor’s Strange the Dreamer & Muse of Nightmares. I. Loved. It. I am desperately trying not to read it again immediately. I need book recommendations based on this duology- preferably books with similar atmosphere and.. vibes. Let me know if you have any ideas. Have you read these books Jesse? I can’t find any videos of you talking about them. I’m very curious to know what you’d think.

Man, Ceri was phenominal on Traitors. I'm a fan just from that!

Has anyone who has read This Is How You Lose the Time War get any River Song and The Doctor vibes??? I haven't decided if I want to read it or not but when ppl are talking about it they're what I think about.

I just dnf'd a book this week. It was The Lonely Hearts Book Club by Lucy Gilmore. It was told through the different characters' perspectives, not by chapter, but by parts. So, as you moved along in the story, each part was only told from one perspective. It wasn't for me. I felt like I was missing the other perspectives from what was going on. I enjoy the books that jump character views by chapters. I could see why the author may have done it this way, because it was like 5 different characters, and that would probably be a lot going from chapter to chapter.

Shocked that you gave TIHYLTTW (jeez that’s long) 2 stars! I haven’t read it yet, but I’ve heard nothing but amazing reviews. I’m even more curious to pick it up now. A Marvelous Light was… okay. It was written like fanfiction in my opinion. And I enjoy and read fan fic, but it’s just not what I want from published books, you know? It was also more romance than I wanted, but that’s on me. It’s pretty clearly a fantasy/romance book. But the fantasy ended up feeling really under developed because of the focus on the romance and the sex in my opinion. I still haven’t read Babel 🙈 I’m waiting for the mood to strike and I’m kind of intimidated

I really liked Babel, but I knew before going in how heavy it was and that definitely helped. If I had not been expecting that ahead of time it definitely would have affected my enjoyment of it.

I love the movie Lawless, I can listen to the audiobook, but for some reason I cannot finish the book. I lose interest every time.

I too LOVED sorcery of thorns

I loved Sorcery of Thorns and despised This is How You Lose the Time War.

I liked Sorcery of thorns (ish). Unpopular opinion, I think, but I like Enchantment of Ravens more. My biggest issue with Sorcery is that are three times I thought the book was over, and still has over a 1/3 of the book left, and after the false endings, the actual ending fell flat for me.

I really need to give Sorcery of thorns another chance. I just don’t think I was in the mood for it last time I tried.

I loved sorcery of thorns so much 😭

Every time I see your shelves I wish for a tour 😅 DNF’ing books has become more common for me, but I haven’t read any of the ones you did in the video.

I totally agree with A Marvellous Light! The story was interesting but too overly descriptive with a lack of side character development to really enjoy it… also 3 stared it in the end 😅

Sorcery of thorns is demon slayer meets black butler meets fullmetal alchemist, it explains why i really enjoyed it

Finally a video where I have read a majority of the books, and of course it has to be a video of books people have DNFed😂

I think Babel is a great book but I didn't love my reading experience, in part because the footnotes in the ebook are super annoying to read. The plot shifts dramatically in each part, so if you're not vibing with it in the first part, don't lose hope. My most recent DNF was Delilah Green Doesn't Care, which almost everybody loved. I just felt like nothing was happening and the titular character was petulant and childish imo.

I DNFed Babel-no regrets. But I do regret not DNFing This is How You Lose the Time War. That book tried WAY TOO HARD. Probably one of my least favorite books I've ever read.

I’ve been dnfing so many books because nothing is grabbing my attention or making me invested in the story and like I need to be invested to care about the book 😂 I need good recommendations for books where you get attached to the characters of the plot is just really fast paced

I really enjoy this vlog series where you read someone's DNFs. Side note: The music inserts in-between the talking parts are a bit too loud.

I didnt hate This is How you Lose the Time War, and i liked trying something so different in writing style, but it was a 2 star for me. Because i like sci-fi I was happy to stick with it even when it wasn't making sense to me and when I knew i didn't care for it much. I also just felt like i was way too Asexual/Aromantic to actually get anything from it in the end as well as when it's broken down, it is ultimately just a love story. I see why some people love it, but it honestly was the biggest meh for me and I unhauled the book as soon as I finished it, which is a shame because I like the cover and the title, but you can't hold onto books for that reason alone. I also find it strange how despite the characters being agender/gender non-conforming, in many bookshops i see this put under lesbian fiction. I again do see why this is done, but it feels a bit incorrect imo 😅

When you were sat on the bed it took me way too long to work out that was a ghost on the nightstand and not 3 random holes in the wall 🙈👻

literally finished babel today after starting it at the end of may. the first half of the book just felt way too long and boring to me as i felt like nothing really happened 😭 (maybe i just had a hard time getting into it since i read it in english (which is not my native language)) the second half was amazing tho and i read the last 250ish pages in like four days because i couldn’t put the book away anymore

I read A Marvelous Light and This is How You Lose a Time War. I found both to be meh. I haven't read the second book after a Marvelous Light because the main characters shift, and the two main characters were the best part. I found it choppy. Something interesting would happen but then it take awhile to get to the next interesting thing. If it hadn't been for the romance I would have DNF the book.

I DNF'd This Is How You Lose the Time War, while a lot of people like the writing style I hated it 🙈 And I was so hyped to read it because so many people loved it but I just couldn't do it lol I also DNF'd A Marvellous Light but that was a 'for now' dnf because I wasn't in a head space to learn the whole magic system and other worldbuilding stuff

I also DNF'd Babel, but is was a very soft DNF. It was just too heavy and wordy for me. I was enjoying it though.

I would rather have seven spiders in my house than flies, moths or moskitos.