Tag: October Daye Page 1 of 2

In Alex Verus, Benedict Jacka, Fiction, General Fiction/Literature, Jo Perry, Mike Chen, News/Misc., Roddy Doyle, Science Fiction, Seanan McGuire, Toby Daye, Urban Fantasy

2021 Favorite Non-Crime
Back when I started this site, I knew the content would be largely “genre”-oriented. I’d have wagered the content would be roughly 1/3 Mystery/Detective fiction, 1/3 Urban Fantasy, and slightly less than 1/3 SFF, with “non-genre” fiction, humor, and non-fiction being enough to make my one-thirds just an approximation (honestly, if you asked me what I read regularly, that’s pretty much how I’d describe it today). Actual numbers show that’s wrong—it’s almost 40% Crime/Thriller Fiction, and Urban Fantasy has only topped 20% once in the last decade—it was 16% the last two years, SFF combined for about 14% in 2021.

Which is just a long-winded way to get to these two points: because Crime Fiction takes such a big chunk of my reading, it gets its own “Favorite” list, but none of the others really garner enough numbers for their own.

As always, re-reads don’t count—only the works that were new to me.

(in alphabetical order by author)

We Could Be Heroes

by Mike Chen

My original post
A super-hero and a super-villain become friends after meeting (as civilians) at a support group meeting and delve into their shared past to figure out how they got their powers and who they used to be. That old story. 🙂 In typical Chen fashion, the SF/super-hero elements are just an excuse to tell a story about friendship, memory, and identity. It’s a story about people, who just happen to be super-powered.

4 Stars

Love

by Roddy Doyle

My original post
This is about as close as you can get to a novel without a plot. You’ve got a pair of old friends, getting together for drinks (many, many drinks) and to catch up on each other’s lives. They end up revisiting their past (as you do), arguing about what really happened then, and seeing how it’s impacted where they are now. There’s more to it, but that’ll do for our purposes. The novel is primarily told through dialogue (although we do get memories and internal commentary from one of the men). As is to be expected from Doyle, that dialogue sings. You can practically hear it jump off of the page–I’m not sure I could conjure up a mental image of anyone in the book, but I know exactly what they’d sound like.

4 Stars

The History of Tom Jones, A Foundling

by Henry Fielding

My wrap-up post for the project
I read most of this in 2020, but didn’t finish it until 2021, so it goes on this list. Just for the (mostly rewarding) time spent on this book, it deserves a spot on this list. It’s not really the kind of book I thought it would be, but it’s so much more interesting. I’ve said enough about this book, I don’t really have it in me for more–it’s a classic, anyway, what can I say that hasn’t been said for hundreds of years?

5 Stars

All the Lonely People

by Mike Gayle

My original post
This is nothing but an all-out attack on the cockles of your heart. I described it to a friend, “Imagine a book by Fredrick Backman–but instead of a crotchety old Swedish man, it’s about a lonely man who left Kingston for London in the 50s.” It’s so heartwarming, so Capra-esque, so…eh, you get the point.

5 Stars

Not Awkward

by Matthew Hanover

My original post
Hanover’s third Wallflowers novel came out last year and shows real growth as a writer, while not losing any of the charm, heart, and likability of his previous novels. Just before his wedding, Scott goes to the funeral for his ex’s father, and somehow ends up spending a few days with the family. Not Awkward is a warm and heart-filled story about revisiting the past, finding healing (whether or not you thought you needed it), and embracing a future that doesn’t look like you expected it would (and is probably better). It’s the kind of book that’ll make you feel a little better about life for a while—and who doesn’t want to read something like that?

4 1/2 Stars

Risen

by Benedict Jacka

My original post
The twelfth and final book in the Alex Verus series blew me away. It’s one of the best series finales I remember reading. It was hard to say good-bye to this world and these characters, but Jacka did such a satisfying job with this novel that it took some of the sting out of it.

5 Stars

When Sorrows Come

by When Sorrows Come

by Seanan McGuire

My original post
If (and that feels like a big “if”) October Day is going to get a Happily Ever After, it’s going to be years down the road. Thankfully, she got a “Happy Right Now” by marrying Tybalt. That’s pretty much what this novel is–a big dollop of happiness (with Toby putting down a palace coup along the way). It was so nice seeing that.

5 Stars

Headphones and Heartaches

by Wesley Parker

My original post
Percy’s a teen who gets put into Foster Care after his mother’s latest OD. While she’s in a treatment program, Percy comes to trust and love his foster mother–a woman with a huge heart, who takes in this boy and gives him a safe place to be for the first time in his life. This is a sweet book, a touching book—an occasionally hilarious book (with some truly cringe-worthy beats)—I guess it’s best summed up as a very human book. Parker got me to feel all sorts of things for these characters, to a degree I didn’t expect or was prepared for.

5 Stars

Pure

by Jo Perry

My original post
(sure, you could make the case that this is Crime Fiction, but I don’t buy it) After Ascher gets quarantined in her late aunt’s retirement condo during the early days of COVID. She sneaks around volunteering for a Jewish Burial Society, and then becomes convinced that one of the women she helped with was the victim of foul play. So Ascher tries to figure out what happened and who is responsible–again, while sneaking around the retirement community’s quarantine. This is a mystery novel about something—it’s more than a whodunit (assuming there was something for a “who” to have “dun”). It, like pretty much everything Perry writes, is about death and how we deal with it as humans (and one neurotic and grieving Mini-Pinscher). THere’s more to chew on, too, but that’d be telling…

This is one that’s going to stay with me for a while.

4 Stars

In Ten Years

by Ian Shane

My original post
A contemporary When Harry Met Sally that makes me just as happy as the movie ever did. Tried and true plotlines that felt fresh thanks to Shane’s light touch and ear for dialogue. It contains what’s probably my favorite chapter of 2021–and more than a couple of my favorite lines. I wanted to race through it to see how it ended, and I wanted to slow down to savor it (the impulse control side lost–what do you expect from someone who tagged himself “Irresponsible”?).

5 Stars

My Favorite Audiobooks of 2021

By HCNewton

On January 4, 2022

In Audiobook, Fantasy, Fiction, History, Humor, Kevin Hearne, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller, News/Misc., Non-Fiction, Politics/Current Affairs, Rick Riordan, Science Fiction, Seanan McGuire, Toby Daye, Tufa, Urban Fantasy

My Favorite Audiobooks of 2021
Last year I kicked off my Year-End Retrospective with a look at my favorite audiobooks, I might as well repeat that this year. How do I keep this from being just a rehash of my other year-end lists? By focusing on the audiobook experience over the content. What was it like to listen to it? How engaging was it, how did the narrator do? Was it a good match in terms of tone, content, and performance? All of these books are/were good—but the audiobooks are a bit better because of the narrator and the rest of the people involved in the production.

(in alphabetical order by author)

The Hum and the Shiver

by Alex Bledsoe, Emily Janice Card(Narrator), Stefan Rudnicki (Narrator)

This was my third or fourth trip through this book (maybe, fifth, but I don’t think so). I’m not sure if that means it was easy for me to be impressed—or maybe it was really hard because I had high expectations. Regardless, Rudnicki and Card took me to Cloud County and the land of the Tufa. I could believe that these people lived, breathed, and walked around in this world—and yet were otherworldly, as they ought to be. I knew Rudnicki could make me believe in a Fantasy world—it turns out that he can make me believe in this one, too. Card was right there with him.

4 Stars

Finlay Donovan Is Killing It

by Elle Cosimano, Angela Dawe (Narration)

My original post
This is on the list because of Dawe’s narration. The text was entertaining enough, sure, but her narration is what made sure I remembered the book during the list-making time. The novel was a tricky balancing act between the various tones and characters, and Dawe makes you believe it. She captured the comedic sense of the novel along with the tension and emotional moments. There were a few accents involved and she did a believable job with them, too.

3.5 Stars

A Christmas Carol: A Signature Performance by Tim Curry

by Charles Dickens, Tim Curry (Narrator)

My original post
I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again: all you need to know about this is: Tim Curry. This wasn’t the performance I expected—I figured I was in for something near to over-the-top, with Curry going to town with the text. Instead, we’re treated to a respectful, restrained performance giving Dickens’ classic just the right emotional weight, sentimentality, personality, and life.

5 Stars

In This Bright Future

by Peter Grainger, Gildart Jackson (Narrator)

My original post
Grainger and Jackson together have made this one of my Top 3 audiobook series, period. So my only question was how many of the books would end up on this list. I ended up limiting myself to one, and therefore it had to be this one—we get so little of our typical characters and settings, but Jackson is able to make Belfast as warm and homey as King’s Lake. There are elevated dangers and emotions in this book that we don’t typically get with D.C. Smith, but Jackson doesn’t miss a beat. Grainger puts D.C. through his paces, too. Both are at the top of their game—making D.C. at the top of his, too.

4 Stars

Ink & Sigil

by Kevin Hearne, Luke Daniels (Narrator)

Even though a pro like Luke Daniels is constantly doing voices/accents for his characters and the narration is almost never his “natural” voice (assuming he even has one anymore), I have to think that maintaining a Glaswegian accent for as long as he did for this book (ten hours and change, I think) has to be an added level of difficulty. Not that you can tell from listening to this. I thought the novel was a rollicking good time and just the way you should introduce a new series. The audiobook version just cemented that.

4 1/2 Stars

The Unkindest Tide

by Seanan McGuire, Mary Robinette Kowal (Narrator)

This novel was the payoff (as far as we know so far, I wouldn’t put it past McGuire to turn it upside down later) to a storyline that had been lingering and building for years, I remember being stunned when reading it—just that aspect of The Unkindest Tide brought a great combination of anticipation, grief, suspense, and surprise. The story of the novel—the trip to the Duchy of Ships, the intrigue around Dianda, etc. was as solid as it gets, too. I remembered all this going in, so it was all teed up for Kowal—and she nailed it, it almost felt like I hadn’t read the book before and was discovering it fresh. A narrator who can do that is tops in my book.

4 1/2 Stars

We Had a Little Real Estate Problem: The Unheralded Story of Native Americans and Comedy

by Kliph Nesteroff

My original post
As I was trimming down the list of audiobooks I listened to last year for this list, I didn’t expect that this would stay on the list. A history of Native Americans in Comedy, really? But I kept not deleting it…so I started thinking of it—there’s a social history, an entertainment history, with individual profiles mixed it—it has it all. What’s more, despite a pretty dry (but never boring) narration, and not using clips of original performances, the comedy of these individuals comes through. In the midst of hardship, suffering, prejudice, and hard breaks, there are some solid laughs. It’s hard not to keep thinking about that.

4 Stars

Percy Jackson’s Greek Gods

by Rick Riordan, Jesse Bernstein (Narrator)

I started working on a post last year about contemporary myth retellings (and I intend on finishing it before my unconceived grandkids are ready to read it), and listened to this as part of that. In many ways, the book and the information didn’t fare well compared to things like Gaiman and Fry have recently produced. But this is here and they’re not—because as an audiobook this is a great experience. Bernstein is Percy Jackson here, and it felt like something ol’ Percy was sitting down and relating to future Camp Halfblood residents. It inspired me to listen to the original Percy Jackson series again just so I can listen to Bernstein perform this character.

3 Stars

You’ll Never Believe What Happened to Lacey: Crazy Stories about Racism

by Amber Ruffin, Lacey Lamar

My original post
I’m still telling people about this audiobook/book nine months later. I can’t think of a book that made me angrier, sadder, or made me laugh as much in 2021 (or a few years before it, either). This did all three. Ruffin’s narration, Lamar’s stories, their hurt, and their optimism make this a must-listen.

4 1/2 Stars

The Salvage Crew

by Yudhanjaya Wijeratne, Nathan Fillion (Narrator)

My original post
This is a very strange SF story about a sentient AI (based on the memories and personality of an engineer). I think I’d have enjoyed the story had I read the novel, but it’s Nathan Fillion that brought it to life. That same charm that makes you like Caleb, Mal, Castle, and Nolan shines forth and makes you believe in this malfunctioning (at least eccentrically-functioning) AI and get invested in the AI’s survival and that of his ragtag crew.

4 Stars

10 Reasons You Should Read When Sorrows Come (& And With Reveling) by Seanan McGuire

By HCNewton

On September 23, 2021

In Fiction, Seanan McGuire, Toby Daye, Urban Fantasy

When Sorrows Come

by Seanan McGuire
Series: Toby Daye, #15

Hardcover, 304 pg.
DAW, 2021

Read: September 15-16, 2021
Grab a copy from your local indie bookstore!

“Look, I know we’re a feudal system and everything, but we’re living in a modern world,” I said, exasperated. “My underwear has elastic. I have a phone. We can talk like normal people. No one’s going to take points off the final score if we stop sounding like we gargle with bad BBC dramas.”

“Yes, but where’s the fun in talking like normal people?” asked Aethlin. “Half the time I’m a King of Faerie. The other half, I’m standing in line at Tim Hortons and some asshole in a hockey uniform has just taken the last sour cream glazed. We have to wallow in the aesthetic when we get the chance.”

“I will overthrow your kingdom myself,” I threatened genially. Not genially enough: several of his guard reached for their swords. High King Aethlin sighed and raised a hand for them to stop.

“Your reputation precedes you, Sir Daye. Could you please not make jokes about sedition?”

“Yeah, sorry,” I said.

I am just not capable of doing my typical post about this book, period. Instead, I’m going to give you a list of reasons why you should read When Sorrows Come. But first…

The Dust Jacket Flap

Because it feels wrong to start talking about a book without some sort of description, here’s the information from the flap:

It’s hard to be a hero. There’s always something needing October “Toby” Daye’s attention, and her own desires tend to fall by the wayside in favor of solving the Kingdom’s problems. That includes the desire to marry her long-time suitor and current fiancé, Tybalt, San Francisco’s King of Cats. She doesn’t mean to keep delaying the wedding, it just sort of…happens. And that’s why her closest friends have taken the choice out of her hands, ambushing her with a court wedding at the High Court in Toronto. Once the High King gets involved, there’s not much even Toby can do to delay things…

…except for getting involved in stopping a plot to overthrow the High Throne itself, destabilizing the Westlands entirely, and keeping her from getting married through nothing more than the sheer volume of chaos it would cause. Can Toby save the Westlands and make it to her own wedding on time? Or is she going to have to choose one over the other?
Includes an all-new bonus novella!

The (only?) Reason to Not Read When Sorrows Come

bullet You haven’t read the first fourteen Toby Daye novels—or you didn’t like them. The former I completely understand, the number of supposedly great series that I don’t have time for is large enough that I can sympathize. The latter? I can accept that people like you exist, but I don’t know if I can ever understand it

10 Reasons to Read When Sorrows Come

(In no real order whatsoever)
bullet If you’ve read books 1-14, reading this is a no-brainer, and you probably don’t need to be reading this.
bullet You get to see an incredibly Canadian knowe. How Canadian? Think Alpha Flight, The Kids in the Hall, Bob & Doug McKenzie, poutine, Tim Horton’s coffee, and extraordinarily polite people saying “eh”. That’s how Canadian I’m talking about.
bullet Getting to see the Luidaeg terrify a whole new cast of characters.
bullet The fun in seeing who actually shows up to see the wedding. (Hint: Just about everyone)
bullet The chance to see if Toby can make it through her wedding without bleeding all over her wedding dress.
bullet You can see what you-know-who from A Killing Frost is up to.
bullet You get to see Toby channel Harry Bosch:

Everyone matters. If there’s one thing I’ve learned from how hard Evening and her ilk have tried to convince me I don’t matter it’s that everyone matters. The alternative is a world where no one matters, and since I know that isn’t true, “everyone” is the only option we have left.

bullet Quentin gets a jaw-dropping makeover.
bullet A hint about a new squire…
bullet You need some joy.

And With Reveling

I’ve never talked about one of the bonus novellas that come with a Toby Daye novel, for reasons too complicated to get into (and frankly boring to me). But I have to say something about this one.

First, this is my biggest complaint in this volume—it shouldn’t be a novella. It should be the last chapter (or chapters) of When Sorrows Come. At the very least, an extended epilogue. It should not be read separately from the novel, and the novel shouldn’t be read without out it.

Essentially, it’s about the wedding reception. Toby and Tybalt relaxing, enjoying their friends and loved ones. Receiving gifts, blessings, and well-wishes—including one gift for Toby that made me laugh out loud. And another that

I absolutely loved it. It was the thick, buttercream frosting on the perfect cake of the novel.

A Final Thought about When Sorrows Come

I mentioned joy earlier because, on the eve of its release, Seanan McGuire tweeted:

…the purpose of this book is joy. I wrote it in 2020. I needed joy. Very, very badly.

I need joy even more now. And if I can’t make it for myself, I can damn well give it to my imaginary friend.

So you can pan the book for being simple, but I have no regrets. I needed joy. I think you need joy too.

Hopefully, McGuire got enough joy to keep going from what she gave her Imaginary Friend—I know she provided this fan with some, I imagine I’m not alone.

5 Stars

This post contains an affiliate link. If you purchase from it, I will get a small commission at no additional cost to you. As always, opinions are my own.

My Favorite Non-Crime Fiction of 2020

By HCNewton

On January 9, 2021

In News/Misc.

Back when I started this site, I knew the content would be largely “genre”-oriented. I’d have wagered the content would be roughly 1/3 Mystery/Detective fiction, 1/3 Urban Fantasy, and slightly less than 1/3 SFF, with “non-genre” fiction, humor, and non-fiction being enough to make my one-thirds just an approximation (honestly, if you asked me what I read regularly, that’s pretty much how I’d describe it today). Actual numbers show that’s wrong—yes, it’s about 1/3 Crime/Thriller Fiction, but Urban Fantasy has only topped 20% once in the last decade (usually hovering around 15%), SFF combine for about 20%.

Which is just a long-winded way to get to these two points: because Crime Fiction takes such a big chunk of my reading, it gets its own Best-Of list, but none of the others really garner enough numbers for their own. Also? The fact that this list is 50% Urban Fantasy makes me happy. I may not read as much of it as I think that I do, but it clearly resonates with me as much as I think it does.

So much for me 2-3 sentence intro, eh? This might be why it took me 5 days after settling the list to get it posted.

As always, re-reads don’t count (if for no other reason I could just cheat—don’t want to stress out about this list? Easy, each year read 2 Nick Hornby books, a couple of Troppers, Harper Lee, Changes by Butcher…and a couple of other standby’s and recycle the same list every year).

(in alphabetical order by author)

False Value

by Ben Aaronovitch

My original post
After wrapping up the overarching plotline from books 1-7, what do you do for book 8? Something completely different. If you were to draw a Venn diagram with circles for Charles Babbage/Ada Lovelace, Artificial General Intelligence, and Wizardry—the overlap is where you’d False Value. Who wants more? The mix of contemporary cutting-edge technologies and Newtonian magic is just fantastic.

Throw in more Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy references than is healthy and you’ve got yourself a winner.

5 Stars

Amari and the Night Brothers

by B. B. Alston

My original post
I’m a tiny bit worried that recency bias got this one on the list. But, I’m not going to lose sleep over it.

This is a delightful story about a young girl from the “wrong” part of Atlanta being recruited by her missing/presumed dead brother into a Hogwarts/MIB mashup, overcoming odds, making friends, saving the day by doing all the sorts of things that young teen protagonists have to do (with a little support from the grown-ups who are supposed to be stopping her), but mostly through grit. The book is written with a sense of joy and hope, while never losing sight of what Amari has to overcome in terms of her own circumstances as well as the specific villainy.

Also, and I can’t stress this enough, there’s a weredragon. What more do you need?

4 Stars

Peace Talks/Battle Ground

by Jim Butcher

My original Peace Talks post
It wouldn’t be fair to either book to just pick one of the two Dresden Files novels published in 2020, and these were originally written as one book, so this isn’t cheating. I laughed, I giggled, I got scared on behalf of fictional beings (and remain that way), I was awed, I was saddened, and I cried more than once. And I’m not going to think about that last bit anymore, because I have things to today.

They aren’t perfect, I know I’ve said I can’t read these books uncritically, but even I can see a problem or two with these books. But I just don’t care. Those problems don’t even amount to one bean in Rick Blaine’s proverbial hill compared to what I loved about the books.

5 Stars

A Beginning At The End

by Mike Chen

My original post
Chen makes his second appearance on this list in two years (and there’s a pretty good reason to think he’ll return). I’m sure he’d rather have not kicked off 2020 by publishing a novel about a global pandemic in hindsight, but it’s too late for that.

Chen’s trademark appears to be writing non-SF stories in SF settings. As society tries to rebuild itself after most of the world’s population was wiped out, we focus on four people trying to establish some sort of life for themselves. It’s about being trapped and defined by our past, and about making choices to change our present, with hope for the future. Told with heart, wit, and skill—Chen’s characters will grab you and won’t let you go.

I’m not sure these two paragraphs were helpful. Go click the link above and read a few more words about it.

4 1/2 Stars

One Man

by Harry Connolly

My original post
A PI story in a Fantasy world is becoming enough of a common thing to stop readers in their tracks by itself. Now, you have to make it a good PI story in a Fantasy world. This one works as a Fantasy and a noir PI novel.

A man haunted by his horrible past, just trying to get by, is pushed into a gang war by being in the wrong place at the wrong time and befriending the right little girl in need of an adult looking after her. Intricate magic, elaborate world building, horrible villains, tarnished (at best) heroes. This is a novel to chew on and relish.

4 Stars

Not Dressed

by Matthew Hanover

My original post
This is a dollop of sweetness on the other hand. The protagonist (Jake) we have here is in a stagnant (at best) long-term relationship that’s got a couple of pretty big things to work through; and is in a job situation that needs addressing. Then he makes a new friend who quickly becomes the only positive thing in his life. Jake’s life is basically begging to be shaken up, is Kaylee going to help instigate that?

This book is effortless to read. It’s funny, it’s sweet, it’s infectious, it’s engaging as anything I can remember. I cared about these characters and got invested in their lives faster than I typically do. And thinking about them now, over a year after I read the book, still brings a grin to my face.

4 Stars

Ink & Sigil

by Kevin Hearne

My original post
Yes, this is an Iron Druid spinoff and clearly exists in that world. But it’s nothing like an Iron Druid novel. You’ve got a cantakerous, aged, protagonist; fantastically designed and a-typical sidekicks/associates, with a magic system that I don’t has a predecessor in UF. If Aloysius MacBharrais isn’t one of your favorite characters in fiction right now, that’s only because you haven’t met him yet.

And it’s funny. Not to the detriment of action and drama, but filled with laughs. I’m not sure what else to say without going on for another 700+ words, so I’ll just leave it at that (and with the link above).

4 1/2 Stars

QualityLand

by Marc-Uwe Kling, Jamie Lee Searle (Translator)

My original post
The most realistic dystopian novel that I can think of. Also the most satiric, which helps you read it without despairing.

The Algorithm runs your life—it gives you what you want and need (even if, especially if, you don’t realize you need/want it), it determines your friends and relationships, it does everything for you but breathe and eat. Please rate it five stars. Or be prepared to suffer the consequences.

And it’s an election year. With an AI-generated candidate facing off against the incumbent. Which proves to be a lot more unpredictable than anyone could guess.

4 Stars

A Killing Frost

by Seanan McGuire

My original post
The number of on-going arcs that are resolved/permanently altered/kicked off in this one novel is mind-boggling. Particularly since at least one of them I didn’t expect to be really explored until McGuire kicked off her end-game for this series (so, clearly, I know nothing). She drops one of the (probably the) biggest bombs in the series—and keeps on going so much so that it’s not the climax of the novel!

It was a fun, thrilling, emotional ride even ignoring everything I just said. McGuire’s a writing monster, it’s just fun to watch her at work.

4 Stars

The Ghosts of Sherwood/The Heirs of Locksley

by Carrie Vaughn

My original posts are here and here
Like the Butcher books, I couldn’t see mentioning one of this duology (which needs expanding!) without the other, making my Top 10 a Top 14. I have a degree in Liberal Arts you can’t bind me with your mathematics!

These stories about Robin and Marian’s three teen-aged kids just filled me with joy. Vaughn gave us a present in these stories—what happens after Robin and the rest win and then settle down to have a normal life? What becomes of a legend after his work is done?

More interestingly, what’s life like for the kids of a legend? What do you believe about your father (who downplays everything)? What do you do with your life to try to live up to the standard?

4 Stars

Books that almost made the list (links to my original posts): Highfire by Eoin Colfer, Last Stand in Lychford by Paul Cornell, and
Annihilation Aria by Michael R. Underwood (I need to finish my post about this one).

A Killing Frost by Seanan McGuire: McGuire’s Latest Will Satisfy—and Shock—All of Toby’s Fans.

By HCNewton

On September 14, 2020

In Fiction, Seanan McGuire, Toby Daye, Urban Fantasy

A Killing Frost

by Seanan McGuire
Series: Toby Daye, #14

Hardcover, 302 pg.
DAW, 2020

Read: September 9-11, 2020
Grab a copy from your local indie bookstore!

…I was about to do something monumentally stupid for the sake of potentially saving Simon.

Simon Torquill. The man I’d once considered to be be my greatest enemy The man I was now willingly risking everything I had for the opportunity to save. Faerie isn’t fair and the world doesn’t make sense.

“You sound scared.” [Danny said]

“I am.”

“If this is somethin’ that scares you…”

What’s A Killing Frost About?

Simon Torquill. Is there any name that promises as much upheaval to Toby Daye’s life as much as his? I’m getting ahead of myself, though. Actually, I could just answer my first question with his name and move on to the next section of this post…

Anyway, Toby takes a break from working with May to find a wedding dress that she a. likes and b. doesn’t mind getting covered in blood—because who are we kidding here, if Toby’s wearing it, it’s going to be covered in blood before the end of the day. She and Tybalt are out on a date, having a perfectly enjoyable time when they’re interrupted by Patrick and Dianda Lorden. The Lordens are worried that Toby’s lack of diplomatic training has opened her up to a problem.

See, if she doesn’t invite Simon Torquill to her wedding—thanks to some silly Faerie custom—she’s liable to create an opportunity for Simon or someone claiming to act on his behalf to attack her in a pretty grievous way. Of course, to invite him, she’s going to have to find him—and after The Brightest Fell, we all know that’s not going to be easy.

So, May, Quentin, Toby and Spike(!) head out to do the nigh-impossible, find Simon and get him to the wedding.

Wither art Thou, Tybalt?

Thanks to a warning from Karen, for everyone to survive, Tybalt can’t accompany Toby on this little quest. This is just about the most Tybalt-free book I can think of (second only to The Brightest Fell). When he’s around, it’s important that he is and he makes a big impact.

It’s strange to have him gone so much, but I think it worked pretty well as a change of pace and heightened the reader’s appreciation for him when he was around.

At one point, [name withheld] describes the relationship between Tybalt and Toby,

It’s clear to anyone with eyes how much he loves you, and I’ve held your blood on my tongue. Your love for him flavors everything you are.

In any other series, that might be disgusting/strange. But in this context? That’s one of the sweetest sentences I can think of.

There’s Just So Much I Can’t Talk About

Because I keep a pretty strict no-spoiler policy to these posts, there’s just so much that I can’t talk about that I really want to. Even if I spoiled things, I couldn’t talk about them too much because we’re going to need a book or five to figure out how things work out. McGuire’s one of the best at planting seeds and then seemingly ignoring them for several books just to have them spring up and bear fruit when you least expect it.

One of those forgotten seeds bears series-altering fruit here while she’s planting seeds relating to Walther and Cassie—but more importantly to Stacy. There’s a shattering scene with Luna and Sylvester. There’s something afoot with Rayseline, too. August does something surprising. Amandine’s furious by the end of the novel (that can’t be good). And we learn something blood-curdling about Eira Rosynhwyr that might make an enraged Amandine seem trivial.

And then there’s…yeah, you know what? I just can’t even hint at the rest. Go read it and we can talk.

So, what did I think about A Killing Frost?

This is not a book designed to welcome new readers to the series. I’m sure there’s enough to draw in someone who’s said to themselves, “I keep hearing about this series, I wonder what it’s about?” But really, it’s not a great entry point. If you’re one of those readers, drop a comment and I’ll try to give you a better entry point.

But for readers of this series? They’re going to be in hog-heaven. Take out all of the spoiler stuff I alluded to/avoided above, and you’ve got yourself a great Toby adventure, full of thrills, twists, grievous wounds, nasty curses, and heroism of all sorts.

Include the stuff I didn’t talk about? You’ve got a jaw-dropping novel full of so many heart-warming and heart-wrenching moments that it’d be hard to enumerate them. This isn’t McGuire’s best novel in the series, but it’s great. And fans will be discussing, dissecting and reveling in it for years.

4 1/2 Stars

This post contains an affiliate link. If you purchase from it, I will get a small commission at no additional cost to you. As always, opinions are my own.

The Unkindest Tide by Seanan McGuire: The Luidaeg takes Center Stage in this Water-filled Adventure

By HCNewton

On September 18, 2019

In Fiction, Seanan McGuire, Toby Daye

The Unkindest Tide

by Seanan McGuire

Series: Toby Daye, #13

Hardcover, 301 pg.
DAW Books, 2019

Read: September 10-11, 2019

I finally took my eyes off the water, peering at her through the disheveled curtain of my hair. “Are you just babbling at me until I start feeling better?”

“Yup!” Marcia beamed. “Is it working?”

My stomach was no longer roiling. I didn’t trust myself to stand up on my own, but I also didn’t feel like I was about to introduce the barnacles to my breakfast. Again. I blinked. “Actually, yes.”

“Sometimes you need to take peoples’ minds off their problems if you want those problems to resolve themselves,” said Marcia. “Focusing on things can make them worse.”

“Not all problems go away if you ignore them. Most don’t.”

“No, but not all problems can be fixed. Sometimes you have to wait until the situation changes.” She smiled sympathetically. “Like if you’re on a boat and you get seasick.”

Yup. Toby’s on a boat—a sailing ship, to be precise—just the place for someone who hates water. Why is she there? Well, that has something to do with the debt she owes the Luidaeg. The Luidaeg has decided that time is up and it’s now time to pay that mysterious bill she told the Selkies was coming due. And Toby has to come along to help her collect. A couple of months ago, when I listened to the audiobook of One Salt Sea, I wondered what happened to that ominous future event, so that was nice to see. On the other hand, we’re told that this was nearly three years ago, which means it takes only three-ish years for books 6-12 to occur? That’s an eventful life right there.

Because they’re apt to be useful, and because Toby isn’t likely to come nicely without them, the Luidaeg also brings Tybalt and Quentin along on their trip to the Duchy of Ships, where a convocation of Selkies will be held to pay this bill. Due to the significance of this happening, a few other dignitaries come, too—delegations from the Kingdom of the Mists, the Duchy of Saltmist, and Goldengreen—oh, and Gillian (which makes sense for people who’ve read the previous book, Night and Silence).

So we’ve got a group of Toby’s friends, a new Duchy for most of them to visit, a bunch of debts the Luidaeg is collecting, and the fate of an entire race in the balance. What could go wrong?

Naturally, that’s the wrong question. SOmething better to ask is: how many pints of blood will Toby lose while trying to fix what goes wrong and how many others will die? Obviously, I’m not going to answer those, but we need to get our thinking straight.

Something I want to mention before I forget: Before the Sea Witch shows up at her door, Toby’s narration gives a very thorough and succinct recap of the entire series (one of the best of those I’ve read lately, it’s a tricky thing to accomplish) before noting

…there’s a lot of history around here, and sometimes it doesn’t summarize very well.

It’s a small thing, but it made me smile—McGuire excels at those.

The Luidaeg has got to be just about the most popular character in this series, and we really get to know her so much better here than we have before—and it made me so happy to see this. I’d gladly take another Luidaeg-centric book or three any day of the week. Seeing her at this turning point in all her power and all her grief is just stunning. I don’t think I’d ever felt bad for her (at least not for long), but watching her being resolute in carrying out the duty she was bound to here—while clearly not wanting to go through with it—was moving. Early in the book, there’s a scene between her and a little girl that just about broke my heart. At the same time, she has plenty of great lines and made me chuckle a lot, too. Her interactions with Quentin (and vice versa) might be my favorite parts of the book.

The Luidaeg/Selkie story was strong enough that I don’t care so much about the rest of the book, which is good, because I think it’s one of her weakest. There’s an adventure in Saltmist that seemed pretty perfunctory and while the ending is very clever—and gives Toby a chance to embrace the technicalities of Faerie in a way she usually doesn’t (that is, keeping the letter of the law, but doing a tap dance all around the intent)— it seemed anti-climatic. We have a great build-up and then an almost let-down of a conclusion.

A few quick bullet points that I don’t have the time to expand on (nor do I think I could do them justice without talking too much about them):

No one expected, I trust, that things between Toby and Gillian would get better after Night and Silence, but it was tough (yet understandable and believable) to read Gillian’s reactions to Toby here.
There are repeated references to the weakness/susceptibility to harm of one member of Toby’s group—McGuire hit that note so often that I really feared for that character. One that I didn’t realize I liked as much as I did when I feared for their safety and longevity.
We get to meet another Firstborn! She’s just fantastic and I hope we get to see more of her. Also, the reactions of various members of her descendant races to meeting her in the flesh were priceless.
Someone’s blind fosterage is getting harder to maintain. That could prove interesting (and in the Toby-verse, interesting usually is defined as calamitous)
Clearly, Toby’s reputation as someone who topples monarchies has spread far and wide. This isn’t good for her, but will be good for us readers.
Marcia continues to show more depth and ability than I gave her credit for when we met (which surprises me almost every time we see it)
What we’re told about future books here (in terms of Toby’s future obligations) is enough to get long-term readers excited (not that we needed the encouragement, really, but it’s nice to know)

This isn’t one of the best in the series—but it features some of the best moments, scenes, events. It’s not a trade-off I’m entirely pleased with, but I can live with it (and thankfully the good far outweighed the less-good). It’s safe to say that a lot won’t be the same again in this world or for many of these characters. Any time I spend with Toby, Tybalt, Quentin, the Luidaeg, etc. is a good time, and I thoroughly enjoyed the read, I just wanted a bit more from an author who usually brings more than you could realistically ask for.

4 Stars

Night and Silence by Seanan McGuire: Toby Daye’s shattered world gets another blow — can she survive?

By HCNewton

On October 18, 2018

In Fiction, Seanan McGuire, Toby Daye

I was sure I wrote this up already. How did I take over a month to get this up? Something is wrong with me . . .
—

Night and Silence

by Seanan McGuire
Series: Toby Daye, #12

Hardcover, 368 pg.
Daw, 2018
Read: September 6 – 10, 2018

“Um, this IS Toby,” sald Quentin. “We’re always about to die. When we’re not about to die, we’re still about to be about to die. She’s like a Rube Goldberg machine whose only job is generating .life-threatening situations.”

What a difference a book makes — at the beginning of The Brightest Fell, Toby was happy, her life was looking good, she was relaxing — and then trouble struck. At the beginning of this book, she’s probably in the worst straits she’s been in since getting out of the fish pond. Toby and her loved ones are still reeling from and dealing with the repercussions of that last novel (“not dealing with” might be more accurate, but why quibble?). Jazz is messed up in ways that are hard to fathom; her relationship with mentor/champion/sponsor, Sylvester, is in shambles; and worst of all, her fiancé is a shattered version of himself, barely able to be in the same room with her.

And then the other shoe drops (at this point, you might be thinking we’re talking about an Imelda Marcos-sized collection, as many of these have dropped): her very human daughter, Gillian has been kidnapped — and her father and step-mother are accusing Toby.

Yeah, kidnapped again. But this time it’s worse (and the last time was no walk in the dark). If anything is going to prove to be the straw that breaks the camel’s back — this could be it. Toby, May, Quentin — and some other allies band together to find the girl before something happens to her that will make the last kidnapping look pedestrian.

Sylvester is around for a lot of this novel — I was afraid he wouldn’t be. Sylvester has long been one of the — maybe the — best part of the series, and to see him in this state? It took so much away from this book. I know that’s the point, and I want to stress I’m not complaining — but man…it sucked. A lot of the emotional beats to this part of the story seemed to repeat themselves — and I wondered if it was a little filler. I decided that as often as Toby was reassuring Tybalt that they could work through things and get him better, McGuire was reassuring the reader that Sylvester could be recovered. I’m not sure it’s the case, but I’m going with that explanation.

This book has the best use of May since . . . well, probably since we met her in this form. Usually, May is too much in the background for my taste. But not in this novel. She’s strong, she’s emotional — she’s a major player in the events of this novel. We need to see her as active as she is here more often.

The debt that Toby keeps incurring to the Luidaeg is getting huge. Aunt or no, she can’t keep going like this forever, and at some point the sea witch is going to collect. This is going to be horrible.

Along the way, we learn a great deal about Toby’s human family — some of which will make the reader’s jaw drop, all of which will make Toby reconsider things — and like so much of what we’ve learned the last couple of books, what we’ve “known” before wasn’t necessarily right.

This isn’t the strongest Toby Daye novel, but an “iffy” Toby novel is still rocking by other series’ standards. This was a strong, satisfying read — as troubling as it was. And the next one isn’t going to be much easier to read — but I know it’ll be worth it. I don’t know that this is the book to jump on the series with, but it might work. But I can assuring long-term readers that this will scratch that itch just fine.

—–

4 Stars

The Brightest Fell by Seanan McGuire

By HCNewton

On September 12, 2017

In Seanan McGuire, Toby Daye

The Brightest Fell

by Seanan McGuire
Series: Toby Daye, #11

Hardcover, 289 pg.
DAW, 2017

Read: September 6 – 7, 2017

I still couldn’t see anything, which was unusual. Fae have excellent night vision. We’re like cats, able to see in the slightest trace of light. For it to be this dark, there had to be no light at all-that, or something had been done to my eyes. The thought caused a brief spike of panic, until I blinked several times and confirmed that I could still feel my eyes. No one had removed them or sealed my eyelids shut.

It says something about my life that this was a concern.

Surely, at some point, Toby will stop being lulled into a sense that everything is okay with the world — she starts this book by enjoying life, and a night out with her friends. Which is one of the surest signs that things are going to go horribly awry for her. And they do, before she can finish unwinding after the night out, there’s a knock on her door. Amandine, her mother, has stopped by for a visit.

Well, not really a visit. She wants to hire Toby to go find her older daughter, August. Toby’s never met her sister and really doesn’t want to get mixed up with anything involving August (who’s been missing for over a century) or her mother. Amandine has never been one to take no for an answer, instead, she takes hostages.

So, Toby’s off to find her sister August — which makes preventing war (like she’s been doing lately) look positively run-of-the-mill. I’m going to leave the plot summary at that. Because, like others, I don’t know how to talk about this without spoiling things that shouldn’t be. There are a couple of quotations (one from Toby, one from someone else) that illustrate what’s going on beyond this missing person hunt:

All my chickens were coming home to roost, and while I didn’t want them, I had earned them. I had earned them, every one.

“We are the sum of our actions . . . When desperation sets our course, those actions can blacken with remarkable speed.”

If that doesn’t describe the last couple of Iron Druid Chronicles, Dresden Files, and pretty much every Alex Verus book, I don’t know what does. The best of Urban Fantasy ultimately puts their protagonists in this situation — Toby’s been close to it before, but she’s dancing closer to the line here, sacrificing (or at least being prepared to sacrifice) so much to find her sister — and the number of things she won’t sacrifice is pretty small.

There’s not a whole lot of character growth and development here, there’s no time. We do see many of our old friends and acquaintances being themselves — maybe turned up to 11. One character, who will remain nameless, displays a degree of depth that we haven’t seen before. Toby grows a bit through this experience, if only to find out what extremes she’ll go to. She finds herself capable of changing her mind about someone –not easy for her to do (like most of us).

People are complicated. That’s the problem with people. lt would be so much easier if they could all be put into easy little boxes and left there, never changing, never challenging the things I decided about them.

This was a great read — in more than just the story, or characters — there are just some books where the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. This is one of them (though the sum of its parts was pretty good) — everything just clicked. McGuire drew me in and kept me there between the voice, the fact that we have 10 books of history with these characters, and the drama (and little bit of comedy). There was one point, where Toby does something brave, reckless and potentially stupid (especially if it came back to bite her), where I found myself muttering, “Oh, oak and ash! No!” I figure any book that has you under its spell enough that you end up borrowing oaths and curses from the protagonist is a pretty engrossing read. She didn’t listen to me, and she sure should have.

From the fun as all get out opening scene, to the ominous final sentence that should fill every Toby fan with dread (although it promises some great books), McGuire was firing on all cylinders here. Yeah, plenty came home to roost in The Brightest Fell, and it meant that those closest to Toby suffered, but she found a way to be Toby throughout — she didn’t surrender who she was, and she got things done the best she could. All the while bringing the reader along through her highs and lows with her. Can’t ask for more than that. (well..I guess you could, but why?)

—–

5 Stars

Once Broken Faith by Seanan McGuire

By HCNewton

On January 20, 2017

In Fiction, Seanan McGuire, Toby Daye

Once Broken Faith

by Seanan McGuire
Series: Toby Daye, 10

Mass Market Paperback, 350 pg.
Daw, 2016

Read: January 14 – 17, 2017

My name is October Daye. My father was a human; my mother was, and is, a Firstborn daughter of Oberon, making her one of the more powerful people among the fae, and a definite pain in my still-mortal changeling ass. I was born and raised in San Francisco, which explains my willingness to stay in a city that’s historically been full of people who insist on trying to kill me at the slightest provocation. Faeries are real. Magic is real. My tendency to greet dangerous situations by plunging headfirst and seeing how long it takes to get myself covered head to toe in blood is also real.

I live an interesting life.

It drove me crazy to not be able to get to this for four months — and now having read it, I think I’m even more mad that I put it off. But the important thing is that I got to read it. Now I have to try to do something more than sound like raving, mindless fanboy here. Which will be difficult, because when it comes to Toby Day, that’s what I’ve been since book 3 (and was pretty close to it since halfway through book 1).

It’s been a few weeks since Toby overthrew the King in the Mists and things are pretty calm — she, her Fetch, her Squire, her fiancée and the rest of her friends are happy and comfortable. Which we all know can’t last for long.

What ruins this state this time is a giant conclave of North American Fae royalty being held in Queen Arden Windermere’s knowe — overseen by the High King and Queen. Kings, Queens and other nobles that we’ve met and/or heard of already — and many others — are meeting to discuss and decide what to do with the cure for elf-shot. The political and legal ramifications of the new cure are far bigger than anyone — including readers — thought. The discussion will prove to be a clash of traditionalists, reform-minded people, class-conscious rulers, those in favor of helping Changelings, and those who can’t be bothered to care about Changelings.

As this is a Toby Daye book, it doesn’t take too long for dead bodies to start to show up — and the blood (much of it Toby’s) starts to flow. As the hero of the realm, it’s Toby’s job to find out who’s responsible and stop them from shedding any more blood.

So there’s political intrigue, a closed room (well, knowe) murder mystery — but that’s not where the heart of the book is. It’s in Toby and her family. Toby and her liege are still on the outs, Arden’s brother and closest friend were elf-shot, Quentin’s parents are in town and watching him closely, Tybalt has to keep her at arm’s length to preserve his independence as King of the Cats in this setting, and so many other things. There’s plenty of drama in each area of the book, enough to satisfy any reader, but when you add them all together — it’s that special blend of magic that only someone as good as Seanan McGuire can conjure.

This one ticked every emotional check box for me — including the ones that made me very aware of all the dust in my immediate vicinity. I can’t think of a problem with this one — I’m not so much of a fanboy that I can’t see problems with McGuire’s work, but the last few in this series have been so great. There are few books this year that I’m looking forward to as much as/more than the next Toby Daye, and books like Once Broken Faith are the reason way. It doesn’t get much better than this.

—–

5 Stars

Full of Briars by Seanan McGuire

By HCNewton

On August 3, 2016

In Fiction, K-O, Seanan McGuire, Toby Daye

Full of Briars

by Seanan McGuire
Series: Toby Daye, #9.3 (but it takes place before The Winter Long)

Kindle Edition, 44 pg.
DAW, 2016

Read: August 8, 2016

I’m pretty torn about this one, to tell you the truth. Toby’s squire, Quentin, is our narrator this time out — and it’s worth reading just to see Toby, May, and Tybalt from his perspective. His parents have come to make everything official with the new Queen of the Mists — and while they’re around, they might as well check in on him and maybe bring him home.

There’s no action, no violence, Toby doesn’t come close to dying — it was so weird. There was a lot of talking — which was fun. Toby was Toby, being irreverent and nigh-disrespectful to Quentin’s parents, as she argued for them to leave him where he is. Tybalt was more Tybalt-y than usual, making sure that Quentin’s folks knew how little he cared about their status. Quentin’s growth as a character, as a person — his maturation, thanks to age and his service to Toby — is what’s on display here.

It was fun to read, and I wouldn’t discourage anyone from it — but I’m not sure it added a lot to my understanding of Toby or anyone else (including the central character). This is the first non-full length story I’ve read in this universe, and it doesn’t really make me think about trying another one. Still, it was entertaining enough — and had one killer line (and a few that were really good) — so I might.

—–

3 Stars