Love Hate 22:44 | 03-09-2026 | Thursday Hello Dear Readers, I didn't want to leave my blog alone for too long, lest I break the blogging habit. Since the last post, I have finished reading Piranesi and thought it was a lovely book. I don't understand why my other friends did not like it. I would definitely recommend it, especially for people who enjoy alternative fiction. The night I finished Piranesi, some of my friends were watching My Name Is Khan. They invited me to join, but I remembered watching the movie as a teen and being very upset after; so I declined and went reading Piranesi instead. Well, I finished the book before they finished the movie, and I was determined to keep reading instead of joining the movie, so I picked up my old nemesis - The Magus. The Magus by John Fowles is a book about a young English teacher who goes to teach on a tiny island in Greece and befriends an eccentric rich man. This man turns out to be more eccentric than initially apparent, and soon embroils the young man in an intense psychological maze of grand illusions and lies. Sounds good, huh? Well, just last month I marked this book as Did Not Finish on Storygraph, with a scathing review of why this book is just not worth anybody's time. Everything about the book was great, except the damned protagonist's voice. Everytime I begin to get lost on the rainy streets of London, or the dazzling blue beaches of Greece, there's Nicholas Urfe again. Everytime I begin to fall for the charms of the man Conchis or the dream-like occurrances of Bourani, there's Urfe again, trying to figure out how he can make it all about himself. Urfe, Urfe, Urfe. You know how they say, "Wherever you go, there you are"? Wrong, it should be "Wherever you go, there is Urfe". It is like travelling to the most beautiful faraway lands but being stuck with a miserable smartass constantly talking in your ear. Maybe my Storygraph review was a bit harsh? Maybe Urfe is written like that on purpose? (He is). But the fact still stands that it is hard to not feel irritated when someone is describing a woman as "milky and virginal" or something. In any case, I was so bored that I actually decided to read The Magus again, because I missed the imagery of gorgeous island Greece. And I must say, stopping at the 55% mark is why I thought the book was a bit unbearable. Because the book gets far more unbearable after that point. The writing is heights of cleverness, I felt as trapped and beaten in the plot as Nicholas did. It is so unpleasant to read, in a way that is entirely the point of the book. My love-hate relationship with the book intensified as I read and read and read, and next thing I knew, it was 6 am and the birds were chirping outside. I had only made it to 76% at that point and it felt like I had started and finished 10 books that night. I went to bed and dreamt of Minotaurs and rifles. I woke up at 9am for a meeting. I finished work and got right back to reading. As I write this blog, I have managed to reach 88% - it feels like I finished 5 more books. There is no stopping now, me and Nicholas Urfe are chained together until this madness ends. I fucking hate this book, stupid ass book. It's so good. I will see you all soon-ish. Sleeplessly yours, Aeish <3