Music Monday's originated at The Tattooed Book Geek's fantastic blog and has shown up hither, thither, and yon since then.
Tag: Miscellany Page 5 of 176
I was really happy that I’d finally completed the TBR for March–the first of the year. And then on the first, I realized that I only read 1 of the 3 Picture Books that I’d picked. Ugh. So, sure…let’s follow it up with the most ambitious TBR of the year (to date). Seems like a great plan, right?
Anyhow…here’s the goal for the month.
Book of Spores
edited by Frasier Armitage, Eleni Argyró, Adrian M. Gibson & Ed Crocker
ACROSS DIMENSIONS, IT CREEPS AND CONSUMES. Hidden in the vaults of a world-spanning library lie the records of a mysterious book, one made of mold and magic. Varied accounts of its existence remain scattered throughout the multiverse, but when an archivist attempts to bring its pages together, she will learn how dangerous a book—and her own ambitions—can be . . . A mind-altering fantasy, science fiction, and horror anthology, The Book of Spores collects seventeen strange stories by authors from the FanFiAddict book blog and SFF Addicts Podcast, including M. J. Kuhn, Greta Kelly, Adrian M. Gibson, Krystle Matar, C.M. Caplan, Emma L. Adams, Ryan Kirk, Kaden Love, Adam Bassett, Tom Bookbeard, A.J. Calvin, Harry Chilcott, C.J. Daley, Tori Gross, D.B. Rook, Eleni Argyró, Frasier Armitage, and Will Swardstrom. Prepare for your imagination to be colonized by The Book of Spores. Also features an introduction by the father of fungalpunk, Adrian M. Gibson.
The list of authors grabbed my attention–and while I find the fungalpunk settings inexplicably unnerving. But I’m so eager to start this.
Extra Yarn
by Mac Barnett, illustrated by Jon Klassen
A young girl and her box of magical yarn transform a community in this stunning picture book. With spare, gently humorous illustrations and a palette that moves from black-and-white to a range of color, this modern fairy tale has the feel of a new classic.
This sounds like fun. Hope it lives up to the premise.
Guns of Brixton
by Paul D. Brazill
"A darkly comic crime story where everything that can go wrong does." New Year in London, and everything’s gone straight to hell. Bernie Lugg’s just blown Half-Pint Harry’s brains all over a lock-up floor. Sid Carter, his partner in crime, is helping him clean up the mess. And Charles Goode, middle-aged, middle-class, and mid-hangover, has just taken a wrong turn into their world of gangsters, guns, and chaos. Before long, a suitcase everyone wants goes missing, a corpse no one wants keeps turning up, and the streets of South London turn into a darkly comic carnival of bad timing and worse decisions. Guns of Brixton is a hard-boiled black comedy packed with crooked cops, washed-up crooks, and the kind of dialogue that snaps like a switchblade.
There’s nothing in this premise that makes me think I’m not going to have a blast with this one. Brazill’s been on my “to read” list for too long. Time to cross him off of that.
Paranormal Payback
edited by Jim Butcher and Kerrie L. Hughes
In this short story collection, our heroes get what’s due to them—with a supernatural flair.
But the injustices that have been holding them back might cost them more than they realized. . . .
In “Mister Petty,” a brand-new Dresden Files story from #1 New York Times bestselling author Jim Butcher, a woman hires Goodman Grey to get back at her cheating husband. She’s about to find out that Grey isn’t your ordinary detective—he’s a professional monster. And he’s going to balance the scales.
From #1 New York Times bestselling author Holly Black, “Dying Isn’t Just for the Young” follows an elderly widow reckoning with family scheming to take away her independence in a world infected by a disease of vampirism.
New York Times bestselling author Faith Hunter’s “Razors and Revenge” finds the vampire bounty hunter Shiloh awaiting her judgement at the hands of the Dark Queen, fresh off a brutal werewolf attack and the loss of a dear friend. But Shiloh’s not just a vampire anymore—and the wolfish instincts growing inside her are howling for blood.
And Kim Harrison takes us to the #1 New York Times bestselling series of the Hollows in her story “Dog-eared.” The demon Algaliarept makes a bargain with the dangerously insane Newt, the last female demon, to punish an arrogant wizard for abusing his precious magical texts—but how ruthless is Al willing to be to get his petty vengeance?
ALSO INCLUDES STORIES BY Jennifer Blackstream * Maurice Broaddus * Delilah S. Dawson * Kevin Hearne * Tanya Huff * Kerrie L. Hughes * R. L. King * R.R. Virdi
I’m about 1/3 of the way through this collection of revenge tales–and it’s entirely satisfying so far (and not all the stories are going how I expected). I’ve already got one author listed as someone I should look into more–I wonder if my TBR is going to survive the whole book.
This Story Might Save Your Life
by Tiffany Crum
Benny Abbott and Joy Moore host one of the most beloved podcasts in the world. Each week, they delight listeners with a different “against all odds” survival story, gleefully finding the weird, life-affirming humor in near-death experiences. Since their first episode on Joy’s experience with severe narcolepsy, they’ve been the best friends everyone wants to befriend—and thanks to the meticulous management of Joy’s husband, Xander, they’ve built a lucrative empire.
The problem is, their next survival story may be their own. When Benny arrives at Joy and Xander’s one morning to record, he finds shattered glass and an empty house. The one clue shedding light on the couple’s disappearance is the incomplete, previously unseen first draft of Joy’s memoir. Benny is desperate to find them, even when the police soon zero in on him as their prime suspect.
Millions of devoted listeners think they know the “real” Benny and Joy. But as the hours tick by, and the odds seem increasingly stacked against Joy and Xander being found alive, not even the most devoted fans could guess the terrible secrets their favorite famous BFFs have hidden from the world—and from each other.
This is either going to be a blast, or something that leaves me cold. I’m pretty sure that it’s going to be just one or the other. Looking forward to finding out which (or if I’m wrong).
Worse than a Lie
by Ben Crump
It’s the night of November 4, 2008. America’s first Black president has just been elected. And fifty-three-year-old Hollis Montrose—a Black ex–police officer from the suburbs of Chicago—has become the latest victim of a brutal attack. As the result of a traffic stop gone wrong, Hollis is shot ten times in cold blood, by four white men who could have been his colleagues back in his police days.
Beau Lee Cooper was born serious, as if on an urgent mission with little time to waste. Raised in the tumultuous world of 1970s Texas, he always dreamed of becoming a lawyer and fighting for what’s right, ever since he was a little boy reading To Kill a Mockingbird. And now, ten years into running his own law firm with his best friend and partner in crime, Nelson “Nellie” Rivers, and his suave right-hand-man, Brent “Cape” Capers, he feels he’s finally making a difference. When Beau Lee learns about Hollis’s situation, he’s determined to help.
Miraculously, Hollis survives the encounter, but the Chicago police department has already spun the narrative in its favor, and Hollis is given a wrongful prison sentence with an unreasonable bail. What really happened that night the car was pulled over? Was it random or was Hollis targeted? Beau Lee knows he’s treading in dangerous waters, and finding evidence of the truth will be his biggest challenge yet, but with troubling powers at play, one innocent man’s life hangs in the balance.
Crime Fiction that wears its social commentary on its sleeve (I’d contend that 98% of all Crime Fiction contains some social commentary–not all of it comes right out about it like this one). Even if I find the approach problematic (I should stress that I don’t expect Crump to take that approach), or disagree with the commentary, I relish going through it.
The Traitor Baru Cormorant
by Seth Dickinson
Tomorrow, on the beach, Baru Cormorant will look up and see red sails on the horizon.
The Empire of Masks is coming, armed with coin and ink, doctrine and compass, soap and lies. They will conquer Baru’s island, rewrite her culture, criminalize her customs, and dispose of one of her fathers. But Baru is patient. She'll swallow her hate, join the Masquerade, and claw her way high enough up the rungs of power to set her people free.
To test her loyalty, the Masquerade will send Baru to bring order to distant Aurdwynn, a snakepit of rebels, informants, and seditious dukes. But Baru is a savant in games of power, as ruthless in her tactics as she is fixated on her goals. In the calculus of her schemes, all ledgers must be balanced, and the price of liberation paid in full.
I’m just trusting in the taste of the Shared Stories‘ manager for picking this for the Book Club. It sounds interesting, but probably not something I’d have picked for myself.
Winterset Hollow
by Jonathan Edward Durham
Everyone has wanted their favorite book to be real, if only for a moment. Everyone has wished to meet their favorite characters, if only for a day. But be careful in that wish, for even a history laid in ink can be repaid in flesh and blood, and reality is far deadlier than fiction . . . especially on Addington Isle.
Eamon and his two closest friends, Caroline and Mark, journey to the place that inspired their favorite book, Winterset Hollow--a timeless tale about a tribe of animals preparing for their yearly end-of-summer festival. But after a series of shocking discoveries, they find that much of what the world believes to be fiction is actually fact, and that the truth behind their beloved story is darker and more dangerous than they ever imagined.
It's Barley Day . . . and you're invited to the hunt.
I’m really not sure that this is my thing at all. But after appreciating Durham’s social media posts for a couple of years, I figured it was about time to read his fiction.
A Violent Masterpiece
by Jordan Harper
Los Angeles, right now. America with its back up against the wall. This Frankenstein's monster of crimes and lurid dreams sewn together into something like a city.
A city ready to explode: A Hollywood pedophile is arrested, and is ready to tear down the city to get his freedom. A young woman goes missing--and men in black rubber gloves who look like cops clean out her apartment in the middle of the night. And the serial killer known as the LA Ripper is on the loose, leaving tragic/graphic/brutal crime scenes in his wake. Three people trying to keep their heads above the dirty water will find themselves coming together to unite these strands into one enormous, unspeakable crime ...
Jake Deal is a gonzo live-streaming nightcrawler, beaming the city's chaos straight to his audience of blood-hungry subscribers, giving them the view from the top of the mushroom cloud--until a job he can't refuse drags him back into his old life of Hollywood glamour, drugs, sex and sleaze. Armed with cameras and hidden mics, he'll infiltrate private clubs, gather high-class dirt--and stumble onto a conspiracy woven into the center of LA's most powerful men, who call themselves "The Kids in the Candy Store."
Doug Gibson is a street lawyer, who fights for his clients against the army of cops, prosecutors and judges--he is the knife they bring to the gunfight. But when he's hired by a Hollywood pedophile ready to sell out his friends for a chance for freedom, he'll take on a fight bigger than he could have imagined. And when his client "commits suicide" in prison, Gibson will have to stop being a weapon--and become a warrior.
Kara Delgado works for an underground private concierge company--a make-a-wish foundation for the terminally rich. She scores drugs, makes connections, and plans multi-million dollar sex parties.She has learned the secret truth of this world: there are no rules, only prices. Her best friend Phoebe has gone missing, and Kara's the only person who knows that Phoebe's place was wiped clean of evidence by men in black rubber gloves. But when she begins to unravel the mystery of what happened to Phoebe, and its connection to the killer known as the LA Ripper, it will drag her into the dark heart of the city.
As Jake, Doug and Kara all investigate these crimes, they'll encounter ketamine-addled sitcom stars, bloody riots, homeless gangsters, a killer cop on death row, secret vaults in Beverly Hills, tech-bro orgies, medical cannibals, true crime junkies, private security wet-work teams, reality shows, street takeovers, car chases, coyotes, a sadistic Tarzan, and a three day, fifty million dollar wedding, before everything is revealed and they must each make their choice about how to fight back in this violent world before the bloody, blazing conclusion.
I’m going to take the next two weeks steeling myself for how much this book is almost certainly going to leave me reeling.
A Memory Called Empire
by Arkady Martine
Ambassador Mahit Dzmare arrives in the center of the multi-system Teixcalaanli Empire only to discover that her predecessor, the previous ambassador from their small but fiercely independent mining Station, has died. But no one will admit that his death wasn't an accident—or that Mahit might be next to die, during a time of political instability in the highest echelons of the imperial court.
Now, Mahit must discover who is behind the murder, rescue herself, and save her Station from Teixcalaan's unceasing expansion—all while navigating an alien culture that is all too seductive, engaging in intrigues of her own, and hiding a deadly technological secret—one that might spell the end of her Station and her way of life—or rescue it from annihilation.
Arkady Martine's debut novel A Memory Called Empire is a fascinating space opera and an interstellar mystery adventure.
Oh, this just sounds great. The world is going to take some getting used to, I suspect, but I bet it’ll be worth the work.
Electric City Switches
by M.D. Presley
“Sheena’s running home, and January’s after her.” Not a day after that cryptic message upended his life, and despite not having successfully cast his first spell, Corbin James must disable a deadly enchantment with nothing more than a Sharpie. Sheena’s impossibly sophisticated design has already befuddled the two greatest enchanters, yet his mentor Isaac insists he can crack it over the phone with Corbin doing the dirty work. But as Corbin’s hand trembles, knowing one wrong mark could obliterate him, he’s not so sure. Fortunately for Corbin, Isaac taught Sheena everything she knows. Unfortunately for him, Isaac’s also her ex. With time ticking down, Corbin must diffuse their destructive relationship, dodge the bevy of bounty hunters on her tail, all while uncovering what Sheena stole and why she ran home to the Electric City.
A little more time in this world? Yahoo!
Cat on a Hot Tin Woof
by Spencer Quinn
Chet the dog is less than enthusiastic about the Little Detective Agency’s next case. Chet and his human partner, PI Bernie Little, have been hired to find a missing person—only the missing person is a cat. Miss Kitty, an internet sensation, has disappeared, and Chet and Bernie have been hired to find her before her many followers realize something is wrong.
Miss Kitty belongs to Bitty, a sweet teenage girl who lives with her mom. Bitty and her mother are struggling financially, but the arrival of Miss Kitty and the chance discovery of her social media appeal has changed everything. Bitty now has sponsors, a high-powered agent, and all the tools needed to thrive online, and real money is flowing in. At least, it was. With Miss Kitty gone, the family's income is on the line.
The case presents a slew of challenges for Chet and Bernie. For one thing, a potential witness is a pig named Senor Piggy who may be in possession of an important piece of evidence. For another, it seems like a possible perp has been killed twice—and there's evidence implicating Bernie in the crime.
I will hopefully have finished this book by the time this posts. I’m having a blast with it (as expected).
51%
by Matt Witten
Twenty years from now, the United States is completely privatized. The Big Six syndicates own schools, roads, police departments…even human beings. When a young immigrant woman—51% owned by the syndicates—is brutally murdered, NYPD, Inc. Detective Juke O'Keefe and his partner, Crime Marketing Consultant Haylee Navarro, catch the case. Pregnant and broke, Haylee knows they can’t crowdfund enough from a dead immigrant to pay for basic forensics, let alone their paychecks. But Juke, with his old-school sense of justice, is determined to find the killer. Their search for the truth leads them to Juke’s ex, Safiya Jones, a Resistance leader on the syndicates’ most wanted list. As the three join forces, they stumble onto a conspiracy designed to destroy the last shreds of American freedom. To rescue fifty-one percenters—and everyone else—from syndicate control, they’ll have to defeat the most ruthless, powerful AI in the world. 51% is a gritty, fast-paced thriller about power, justice, and what happens when everything—even people—can be owned.
Like I told Witten when he emailed me about this, I feel like I could write a post on the premise. Based on what I’ve read by Witten, this is going to be dynamite.
Each Kindness
by Jacqueline Woodson, illustrated by E.B. Lewis
Each kindness makes the world a little better
This unforgettable book is written and illustrated by the award-winning team that created The Other Side and the Caldecott Honor winner Coming On Home Soon. With its powerful anti-bullying message and striking art, it will resonate with readers long after they've put it down.
Chloe and her friends won't play with the new girl, Maya. Every time Maya tries to join Chloe and her friends, they reject her. Eventually Maya stops coming to school. When Chloe's teacher gives a lesson about how even small acts of kindness can change the world, Chloe is stung by the lost opportunity for friendship, and thinks about how much better it could have been if she'd shown a little kindness toward Maya.
This seems heavy for a 30 page picture book. Looking forward to seeing how/if they pull this off.
(Image by DaModernDaVinci from Pixabay)
Fantasy with Friends is a weekly meme hosted by the good people over at Pages Unbound. Fantasy with Friends poses questions each Monday about fantasy, either as a genre as a whole or individual works.
This week’s prompt is:
How do you define “fantasy” as a genre?
This is tougher than I’d think—you know it when you see it? Nah, that’s not satisfactory. Well, there’s that old line from Clark about sufficiently advanced science, right? Fantasy is like that—just there’s no science involved (and no interest in it).
It’s a work of fiction with an accepted active supernatural world—magic, creatures like dragons, owlbears, hippogriffs, etc. Usually set in some sort of pre-Industrial world (frequently one where Industrialism isn’t needed—see Abercrombie’s recent The Age of Madness trilogy to see an exception). Even if it’s a work without a lot of evidence of magic or those creatures, and so on Our friends at Merriam-Webster use phrases like, “conceived or seemingly conceived by unrestrained fancy” and “so extreme as to challenge belief” to define “fantastical,” and that’s pretty close to me.
Even the no science thing is slippery, Bennett’s Shadow of the Leviathan books have a science. Just nothing we’d recognize as such. And there’s enough fantastical elements to that science to keep it in the world of Fantasy. Other examples I can think of fall into similar paths (I just can’t think of a more science-y Fantasy…oh, Blood Over Bright Haven, too). Even outside of Urban Fantasy (set in a world much like our own with matching technology), there are plenty of exceptions to the above. So many, in fact, that my definitions are useless. Bringing me back to the “you know it when you see it.”
Okay, it took 200+ words for me to just say, “I dunno, really.” And that’s after two drafts of this post. I don’t have the time or patience for a third–and I’m pretty sure it’d just be adding more words and coming up with the same result. I’m really looking forward to some of the other posts in response to this prompt to help me come up with a definition that I like.
Do you have responses to this? (either for the comment section below or from your own post)
I had a great time at the 4th Annual Treasure Valley Book Fair at the Nampa Public Library–got to chat with a few authors I’ve met before, met a couple of handfuls of new-to-me authors. Walked out with a healthy stack of books (wish it was a few more…but, budget is smaller than my appetite). I hope to be bringing you some more about this soon.
Odds ‘n ends about books and reading that caught my eye this week. You’ve probably seen some/most/all of them, but just in case:
@dlondonwortel posted about this great resource from Harvard—hundreds of recordings of authors reading their poetry. The names alone…
The collapse of literary curiosity—this is so good.
Asteroid Savage – my next book releases June 2026—Thomas Trang starts by giving an update/announcement about his June 2026 release, and ends up saying a lot more. The backstory for this book makes me as eager to read it as the premise does.
AI Can’t (And Never Will) Write Good Books—JCM Berne drops by Stewart Bint’s blog to sound off a bit.
The Art of Interview and Interrogation: A retired police detective discusses his approach to interviews, in fiction and in life.—I’ve never read Swinson, but I’m in the mood to now.
The Specific Experience of Being Stuck on a Book—Once again, Molly Templeton does a fantastic job capturing something we’ve all experienced, but couldn’t put into words
The Indie Author Sci-Fi/Fantasy/Horror New Release List: April 2026—A.J. Calvin brings this month’s batch of Indie Temptation.
The Costume Changes, the Cage Remains – The Four Pillars of Crafting a Dystopia
Book Characters Seldom Engage in Making Restitution—This brushes up against something I’ve been working on for a while. Maybe so close I don’t need to bother…or maybe it’s the kick in the pants I needed to finish. But most importantly, this is something that you should check out.
Funniest (and Craziest) Library Stories!—good stuff
Is the Future of Libraries Screen-Free Children’s Areas?—Speaking of libraries…
Monthly Manga Mania Featuring Firsty Duelist: Blue Lock by Muneyuki Kaneshiro and Yusuke Nomura—Whoops, I missed this last week.
This April 1 had some pretty tame offerings (or lame, if you read mine). This was the best that I saw.
A Book-ish Related Podcast episode (or two) you might want to give a listen to:
Six Elementals Interview #61 with Michael Michel—P.L. James interviews Michael Michel. Looks to be a good ‘un
To help talk about backlist titles (and just for fun), What Was I Talking About 10 Years Ago This Week?
The Shootout Solution (Audiobook) by Michael R. Underwood, Mary Robinette Kowal
Heroes and Villains: Pawn in the Game by Tara R
A Devil in Hong Kong by David Harris Lang
And I mentioned the release of Javelin Rain by Myke Cole
This Week’s New Releases that I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
This Kingdom Will Not Kill Me by Ilona Andrews—”When Maggie wakes up cold, filthy, and naked in a gutter, it doesn’t take her long to recognize Kair Toren, a city she knows intimately from the pages of the famously unfinished dark fantasy series she’s been obsessively reading and re-reading while waiting years for the final novel. Her only tools for navigating this gritty world of rival warlords, magic, and mayhem? Her encyclopedic knowledge of the plot, the setting, and the characters’ ambitions and fates.”
Upward Bound by Woody Brown—”A wondrous, deeply affecting portrait of the interlocking lives at an adult day care center in Southern California, depicting an often overlooked community with extraordinary wit and grace”
It’s Wednesday already and I’ve barely written a thing for the week…well, let’s see if I can break the block with this quick look at my reading and listening.
This meme was formerly hosted by MizB at A Daily Rhythm and revived on Taking on a World of Words—and shown to me by Aurore-Anne-Chehoke at Diary-of-a-black-city-girl.
The Three Ws are:
What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?
Seems easy enough, right? Let’s take a peek at this week’s answers:
What are you currently reading?
 |
 |
| ‘Salem’s Lot by Stephen King |
Five Days in Paris by Danielle Steel, read by Victor Garber |
It’s time for me to get over my disinterest, and I’m starting my year-long project of reading all of King’s works. As per my custom, I’m starting with his second novel. I didn’t know what I was missing!
I can’t get enough of Steel, as you all know. I somehow overlooked this 2000 release–I’m having a blast with it. Although I’m not sure Garber’s voice is great for audiobooks (or anything else, really)
Okay…I tried to do a whole phony post in keeping with the day. But all I could think of were horror and romance titles, and I got bored–you would’ve, too. I can’t invoke E. L. James, even as a joke. I thought about throwing in Louis L’Amour (but I actually have enjoyed his stuff–even if I’m not huge on the genre) or beating up Austen or Gabaldon again. But that just seemed mean. So, okay, enough of the April Fool’s nonsense, on with actual answers.
What are you currently reading?
|
|
 |
| Paranormal Payback edited by Jim Butcher and Kerrie L. Hughes |
Cat on a Hot Tin Woof by Spencer Quinn |
Violet Thistlewaite Is Not a Villain Anymore by Emily Krempholtz, read by Emma Ladji |
I’ve enjoyed previous collections edited by Butcher and Hughes. This assortment of revenge tales looks promising, can’t wait to dive in at lunch–and not just because the first story is Butcher’s.
Spencer Quinn, Chet, Bernie…Cat on a Hot Tin Woof almost has to be a winner. Poor Chet has to help Bernie hunt down a missing (Internet-famous) cat.
Krempholtz is really charming me. I had my doubts about starting it, but whatever it was that convinced me to place a hold on it seems to have been right.
What did you recently finish reading?
 |
 |
| Nav’Aria: The Marked Heir by K.J. Backer |
Return to Sender by Craig Johnson, read by George Guidall |
Backer’s debut had some issues (almost all of which could’ve been addressed with an editing pass)–but it’s a good story, well-told, and I’m eager to see what happens next.
Revisiting Return to Sender was a mixed bag–everything I liked when I read it last year, I still liked. The problems I had re: long-term arcs, seem worse. Overall, a rewarding experience, and it definitely primed my curiosity for his May release.
What do you think you’ll read next?
|
 |
| Electric City Switches by M.D. Presley |
Ancillary Sword by Ann Leckie, read by Adjoa Andoh |
Presley’s Inner Circle books are some of the most intriguing UF that I’ve read the last few years. To say that I’m eager to dive into this ARC would be underselling it.
I liked Leckie’s Ancillary Justice, but wasn’t that interested in going on. But at the Book Club meeting, one person had gone on to finish the trilogy and she said a couple of things that led many of us to rethink that. She also raved about the job that Andoh did, so… I am a little worried that the way Leckie wrote Justice will be hard for me to follow in audio format–but since I’m primed, maybe I can handle it.
What are you starting April with?
Music Monday's originated at The Tattooed Book Geek's fantastic blog and has shown up hither, thither, and yon since then.
The number of artists who can/should cover They Might Be Giants is small–but my personal list grew when an algorithm fed me this song.
Fantasy with Friends is a weekly meme hosted by the good people over at Pages Unbound. Fantasy with Friends poses questions each Monday about fantasy, either as a genre as a whole or individual works.
This week’s prompt is:
What is an underrated fantasy book you would recommend?
When I saw this prompt, one title jumped immediately to mind. “Well, this is going to be an easy post,” I said to myself. And then I felt bad that I didn’t think of another book. Then another came to mind, and when I started actually writing. I will do my best to stop thinking about it so I can actually finish this post.
The Tufa Series by Alex Bledsoe
I’ve never seen anyone else talk about this fantastic series about a small ethnic group in Appalachia who are supernaturally wonderful musicians. And just supernatrual, too. I loved each and every one of these, even if I didn’t write about them all. For more information, check out https://alexbledsoe.com/the-tufa/.
The Art of Prophecy by Wesley Chu
Despite having loved this so much, I’ve yet to read the other two books in the trilogy. There’s Chosen One, who turns out not to have been; there’s a cranky old woman who’s the greatest martial artist alive–who teaches the spoiled brat who turns out not to be that Chosen more than anyone expected; there’s an assassin going around causing trouble and…so much else going on. I was blown away by this wuxia-inspired novel and highly commend it. (as I tried to express here)
The Hero Interviews by Andi Ewington
This is the one that jumped immediately to mind. Ewington’s satire/celebration/commentary on D&D and related fiction/games is ridiculous and thoughtful. In this book, a non-adventurer goes around interviewing all sorts of Fantasy types who are adventurers or are adventurer-adjacent about what it means to be a hero. He finds a lot more than that–and maybe learns a bit about himself. (I gushed about it here)
The Part About the Dragon Was (Mostly) True by Sean Gibson
Speaking of hilarity…this book tells the story of how a group of adventurers vanquish a dragon. It’s a well-known historical account. This book also is a telling of what really happened that didn’t quite make the official account. That’s as succinct as I can put it. Don’t miss it. (I rambled about it a bit more here)
I’m sure some of the other posts in response to this prompt will be more thoughtful and will include titles I need to add to my list. I’m looking forward to reading them. Do you have responses to this? (either for the comment section below or from your own post)
Odds ‘n ends about books and reading that caught my eye this week. You’ve probably seen some/most/all of them, but just in case:
Neverending Stories: On the continuation novel
The Key to Writing Effective Action and Suspense (Part 1): It’s all about answering a question.—Nick Kolakowski follows up on a viral tweet (that I loved), sure, it’s for writers, but we readers can get into it, too.
Modern Retellings for Your Bookshelf
8 Changes I’ve Noticed in Book Blogging in the Past Few Years—now that Briana says it, yeah, I think I’ve noticed that, too.
10 Series I Won’t Finish (And Why I’m Okay With That) —I totally get where Already Overbooked is coming from here.
A Book-ish Related Podcast episode (or two) you might want to give a listen to:
A. R. Witham The Shadow of JCM Berne—Witham chats with the author about the fourth book in the Hybrid Helix series, Shadow of Hyperion. How fun is that?
To help talk about backlist titles (and just for fun), What Was I Talking About 10 Years Ago This Week?
Got Luck by Michael Darling—I’m still annoyed that I didn’t read the sequel.
Elphie and Dad go on an Epic Adventure by Hagit R. Oron, Or Oron
A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving
And I mentioned the releases of: Jane Steele by Lyndsay Faye; Got Luck by Michael Darling; and Transgalactic by James Gunn
This Week’s New Releases that I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
Enemy of My Enemy by Alex Segura—”Matt Murdock defends the Punisher in the trial of the century—the murder of the Kingpin—while by night Daredevil staves off a war of succession for the throne of the criminal underworld.” I can’t wait to dive in.
Tales in the Midst: A Collection of Short Stories from the World of Jane Yellowrock by Faith Hunter—6 tales from the Yellowrock-verse
Trace Elements: Conversations on the Project of Science Fiction and Fantasy by Jo Walton, Ada Palmer—”From two of the most acclaimed writers in the field today, a groundbreaking look at how SF and fantasy writing—and reading!—work.”
We all know we’re not supposed to judge a book by its cover (yet, publishing companies spend big bucks on cover design/art and we all do judge them that way). But, the opening sentence(s)/paragraph(s) are fair game. So, when I stumble on a good opening (or remember one and pull it off the shelves), I like to throw it up here (especially if I’m out of time to come up with a post that involves writing on my part).
from Murder by Memory by Olivia Waite:
Near the topmost deck, in a small lift with glass walls and flickering buttons, I, Dorothy Gentleman, ship’s detective, opened a pair of eyes and licked a pair of lips and awoke in a body that wasn’t mine.
It was the nails that first tipped me off. Blank bodies were just that: blank. My nails ought to have been the same color as the skin beneath—in my case, somewhere in a range of pinks, tending to florid.
Not silver, and not shaped.
This body was already inhabited.
My skin—someone’s skin—broke out in gooseflesh. Of course every human body was a horrifying collection of juices and tissues, acids and effluvia poured into a bag with a bunch of long rocks, a shambling accident of biology that made its own mysterious and often frustrating decisions without reference to the mind. They were disgusting miracles, every one. It was always a bit unsettling to wake up in a fresh form, until habit made a home of it.
But someone else’s home, and my self inside it! A nightmare. Imagine going to the washroom to be sick and having someone else’s sick come out.
I came very close to making this more than a metaphor. It took many deep, deliberate breaths for the squeamish feeling to subside.
It wasn’t supposed to be like this.
It’s the last Friday of the month, so it’s time for my Most Captivating Character of the Month post. This month, I’ve decided to go with Ruslav, a thug from Adrian Tchaikovsky’s City of Last Chances.
When we meet Ruslav, he’s a despicable person. Truly. And by the close of the novel… he’s still a despicable person, but we’ve discovered a vein of decency in him, and he’s prevented from acting on most of his despicability.
Ruslav makes his money by beating people up for a pair of crime lords–well, doing more than beating people up, but let’s just leave it at that. It’s not just his profession–it’s his passion; he really enjoys inflicting pain. Off the clock, Ruslav falls for women–hard. Once he “has his way with them” (a phrase that makes my skin crawl, but it’s the best I’ve got), he falls out of love with them and really doesn’t give them another thought. He doesn’t love and leave them, because leaving seems to indicate a lot more active distancing from the women than I think he’s capable of.
This is spoilery, so feel free to skip down to the final paragraph, but I don’t think it’s that bad. In the pursuit of his latest “true love,” Ruslav goes to an art show put on by some college students. One painting there catches his eye–he buys it, and is later seen in his quarters staring at it. I don’t think we’re supposed to get the idea that this is great art–maybe not even good art. But it speaks to Ruslav in a way that I don’t think he knew art could. It doesn’t change him–but it reminds him of a younger version of himself and what motivated him then.
What does change him–at least his actions, but not his core–is a deal he unwittingly entered into with a deity. I won’t get into the details, but he literally has to change careers permanently. There’s no change of heart, no road to Damascus moment, nothing like that at all–he just has to stop hurting people if he wants to live.
While remaining a vile person, there’s a moment when he has a heart-to-heart conversation with the man who made that painting. Ruslav opens up to him in a way I doubt he has to anyone in years–if ever. He’s able to talk to the artist about what that painting meant to him and to remind the painter what of him was represented there. It’s probably the best version of himself that Ruslav has been in years, if ever.
And it’s all possible because of the way a piece of art–likely a kitschy painting–struck him in just the right way. In a way that nothing else could. A way that reminded him of something more than being a brute. I find that captivating.
What character would you name for last month?