Tag: Saturday Miscellany Page 1 of 56

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:
Gatsby @ 100: American Classrooms, American Dreams?
Fitzgerald’s Great Gatsby Turns 100. Time To Admit It’s Crime Fiction.—I’m not sure that I buy this, but I can’t argue against it.
Mark Twain Died Famous, Not Happy—this review of a new biography of Twain really makes me want to carve out a couple of weeks to get it
The Joy of Inefficiency: Teaching My Kids How to Read—wish I’d done it in a way more like this. Good read even without the whole “road not taken” vibe.
Why Being the Child of a Crime Writer Made It Inevitable I Would Become One—Abbi Waxman on her new (and very good) crime novel, her first in the genre
Digging Up Sam Spade: What’s the point of writing ‘your take’ on a famous character?—I get his point—and agree with it, but I’ll probably keep buying some books that fall into this category (I’m a sucker for certain characters).
I skipped this week’s Top 10 Tuesday because I didn’t think I could come up with ten Unpopular Bookish Opinions, but after reading the lists that Damppebbles and Carol put together, I really probably could’ve (especially if I’d done the post late in the day and “borrowed” about half of each of theirs). Give ’em a read! (for bonus points*, guess where I agree with them)
I really appreciate Beth Tabler posting this recipe: The Pan-Galactic Gargle Blaster from The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy—I have enough time to assemble ingredients by Towel Day.

* Not redeemable for cash or goods, just the warm glow of self-satisfaction.

A Book-ish Related Podcast episode (or two) you might want to give a listen to:
The Thriller Zone Episode 220: From Celebrity Journalist to Crime Thriller Writer: Meet Nick Kolakowski

To help talk about backlist titles (and just for fun), What Was I Talking About 10 Years Ago Week?
Dead Heat by Patricia Briggs
Dark Digital Sky by Carac Allison—(if Allison is out there using a pen name now, I’d love to find out)
The Commitments by Roddy Doyle—I just love this book, I could probably write a post about it now without picking up a copy
I talked about the releases of Hit by Delilah S. Dawson (a gritty, violent read that’ll stick with you–in a good way) and The Prom Goer’s Interstellar Excursion by Chris McCoy

This Week’s New Releases that I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
One Death at a Time by Abbi Waxman—Think Hacks plus Rebel (the Katey Segal show), and you’ll have the gist of this. “A cranky former actress teams up with her Gen Z sobriety sponsor to solve the murder that threatens to send her back to prison.” I had a blast with this, and hope to tell you more about it soon.
The Fact Checker by Austin Kelly—1. Great cover. 2. Promising premise: “Mirthful, laugh-out-loud funny, and surprisingly philosophical, The Fact Checker is a brilliant debut novel featuring a missing woman who might be perfectly fine, and a single-minded investigator yearning for meaning, morality, and accuracy in an increasingly post-truth world.”
Benny on the Case by Wesley King—”A boy with Mosaic Down syndrome navigates entering a mainstream classroom, making new friends, and standing up to bullies all while trying to catch a thief and save his home in this thrilling middle grade mystery.” I was rather charmed by King’s OCDaniel, betting this will be pretty good, too.

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:
National Library Week wraps up today (something I should’ve said something about earlier), so today is your last chance to take advantage of this. However, if you donate $15+ to a local library, you can get an audiobook credit from libro.fm click the link for details.
Carla Crane Osborne uses her Idaho childhood as a muse—a Literary Local talks to a local news station. Yup, I got her to talk to me before TV did.
The Comic-Book Artist Who Mastered Space and Time—Art Spiegelman on the late Jules Feiffer
Pace Yourself—Molly Templeton makes the case reading slowly
The Magic of Sci-Fi: Exploring the Unknown and Imagining the Future—a nice look at Science Fiction over at Adventures in Lit
INTERVIEW: Voice Artist Jeff Hays—Over at GrimdarkMAGAZINE, Beth Tabler talked to the voice behind Dungeon Crawler Carl and many, many other books.
Thematic music from lauded Game of Thrones composer, Will Musser—Micheal Michel’s The Price of Power gets its first piece of fan art from this guy (pretty good way to start)

To help talk about backlist titles (and just for fun), What Was I Talking About 10 Years Ago Week?
The Hero’s Guide to Being an Outlaw by Christopher Healy
The Stolen Ones by Owen Laukkanen
Vanished by Joseph Finder
I mentioned the releases of The Rebirths of Tao by Wesley Chu; Dark Heir by Faith Hunter; and Scent of Murder by James O. Born

This Week’s New Releases that I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
My Documents by Kevin Nguyen—One of the best things I’ve read this year. I’ll probably be saying that in December, too. In the late twenty-teens, the U.S. Government starts detaining Vietnamese-Americans, and this harrowing-yet-frequently-amusing novel follows four siblings. If I say more than that, we’re going to be here for awhile. Hopefully I can get something together in a day or two.
24-Hour Warlock by Shami Stovall—in the third Chronos Chronicles novel, Finch (and his new team) takes on a demonologist to save his sister-in-law
Big Chief by Jon Hickey—a provocative-looking political thriller set in the days leading up to a reservation’s election

I spent the day at the Nampa Library’s 3rd Annual Treasure Valley Book Fair and dealing with family stuff, so it’s taken me a bit to get the time for this.

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:
The Book Business Prepares for Tariff Turmoil —this is going to hurt
“Reading builds empathy”: The case for saving America’s libraries: America needs “third places” like our libraries more than we ever have, both functionally and philosophically
A Mini Train Just for Books? NYPL’s New System is a Must-See—ohhhh, I wanna watch this in action
Who Killed the Omniscient Narrator? A Brief History of POV
The White Male Writer is Fine, I Promise—a nation breathes a giant sign of relief, I’m sure—we were all so worried.
Narratess Indie April Sale—is this weekend
My Recommendations for Narratess’ Indie Sale April 2025 from JamReads.
The Curious Case of Literary Confusion: Guest Post by Andrew McAleer
Book Worlds We’d Like To Visit—this list from LibraryThing is bringing back a lot of memories for me, and adding a few ideas to my TBR
World Autism Awareness Day: Why Authentic Autistic Representation Matters – a personal perspective—Nunc hoc in marmore non est incisum
Best Amazon Alternatives for Book Lovers

To help talk about backlist titles (and just for fun), What Was I Talking About 10 Years Ago Week?
Pocket Apocalypse by Seanan McGuire
Kindness Goes Unpunished by Craig Johnson—the book that turned me from the occasional reader of Johnson into a devoted fan
Dead to Me by Cath Staincliffe
And I mentioned the release of The Diamond Conspiracy by Pip Ballantine & Tee Morris

This Week’s New Releases that I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
A Drop of Corruption by Robert Jackson Bennett—A fantasic sequel, and an even better mystery in this fantasy series, as I tried to say earlier this week
Vera Wong’s Guide to Snooping (on a Dead Man) by Jesse Q. Sutanto—I was supposed to write about this sequel a week ro so ago, but I couldn’t quite get my act together enough. Short version, this is everything that fans of the first Vera Wong will want.
The Price of Power by Michael Michel—This is the first volume in a fantasy saga that is destined to be fanstastic. I talked about it some on Friday (and am going to have to eat my words on more than one prediction)
Rex Stout: Killer Conversations with Edgar Winner John McAleer by by Andrew McAleer—the son of Rex Stout’s biographer has brought us this collection of interviews between the two. I have to spend some time pouring over this.
Pronoun Trouble: The Story of Us in Seven Little Words by John McWhorter—”With his trademark humor and flair, bestselling linguist John McWhorter busts the myths and shares the history of the most controversial language topic of our times: pronouns”
I See You’ve Called in Dead by John Kenney—”Bud Stanley is an obituary writer who is afraid to live. Yes, his wife recently left him for a ‘far more interesting’ man. Yes, he goes on a particularly awful blind date with a woman who brings her ex. And yes, he has too many glasses of Scotch one night and proceeds to pen and publish his own obituary. The newspaper wants to fire him. But now the company’s system has him listed as dead. And the company can’t fire a dead person. The ensuing fallout forces him to realize that life may be actually worth living.”

Quiet week here, too quiet, I know. Here’s hoping the next week will be calmer and more productive. I’ve got some good stuff due/lined up for the next few days. Be sure to come back and check it out.

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:
Flannery at 100—and Forever: O’Connor’s work, fiction and not, is Catholic, gothic, Southern, and timeless.—something tells me that I’m going to be reading, and suggesting, a lot of O’Connor this year. Maybe I should try to squeeze in some re-reads, too.
Why Is Everyone Reading ‘Lonesome Dove,’ an 858-page Western From 1985?—I didn’t realize this was a thing. But it’s pretty cool that it is.
Interview: Miles Joyner—this interview over on Crime Fiction Lover sparked my interst in Joyner. Maybe it will do the same for you.
Every Hunger Games book gets blunter about the messages fans keep missing: Collins’ narrative is also about how the series itself is received—Now I kind of want to go read the new one.
The 50 Best Norwegian Harry Potter Character Names EXPLAINED—Have you, like me, never wondered how the Norwegian translator of Potter changed the names of major characters? This video will convince you that you should’ve.
Considering the cosy turn in SFF: who gets to be comforted?
Narratess’ Indie Sale is back April 5-7. Start counting your pennies now.

To help talk about backlist titles (and just for fun), What Was I Talking About 10 Years Ago Week?
Dorothy Parker Drank Here by Ellen Meister

This Week’s New Releases that I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
When the Moon Hits Your Eye by John Scalzi—It’s hard to describe how much I’m looking forward to this…the Moon suddenly turns into cheese. “For some it’s an opportunity. For others it’s a moment to question their faith: In God, in science, in everything. Still others try to keep the world running in the face of absurdity and uncertainty. And then there are the billions looking to the sky and wondering how a thing that was always just there is now… something absolutely impossible.”
When Shadows Fall by Neil Lancaster—DS Max Craigie wrangles with a serial killer
Bazaar by Miles Joyner—assassins, the Dark Web, Washington D.C., security contractors…sounds like a great ingredient list for a thriller.
Space Brooms! by A.G. Rodriguez—”A fun, sci-fi romp where custodian – or space broom – Johnny Gomez teams up with smugglers and is thrust into an unforgettable adventure.”

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:
EveryLibrary launched SaveIMLS.org—to take action and make your voice heard about the recent Executive Order targeting the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), amongst others.
The Best Villains in Literature Bracket: And The Winner Is…—not really a surprise, but the worst of the worst (or the best of the worst?) has been named.
The Unbelievable Scale of AI’s Pirated-Books Problem: Meta pirated millions of books to train its AI. Search through them here.
How an American Radical Reinvented Back-Yard Gardening: Ruth Stout didn’t plow, dig, water, or weed—and now her “no-work” method is everywhere. But behind her secret to the perfect garden lay other secrets.—this barely qualifies for this post, but they do talk about her books a bit–and there’s discussion of her more famous (at least then) brother, Rex Stout. And you all know I’ll reflexively put anything about Rex Stout here.
Tell Me a Differently Shaped Story: SFF That Plays With Form: If not traditional narrative, why book shaped?—(I’m with Templeton re: House of Leaves)
Tackling the TBR: Strategies for Managing Your “To Be Read” List—It was just a day or two ago that I learned that TBR’s can be managed and not just cowered under. The things Science can do these days…
Why I Like The Term ‘Trad Fantasy’—a quick take from Peat Long
I’m kinda done with being treated like an idiot by authors—I expect a lot of us will agree with the notion behind The Orangutan Librarian’s post. I just wonder how many of us all would agree about the authors who do it?

To help talk about backlist titles (and just for fun), What Was I Talking About 10 Years Ago Week?
The Witches of Echo Park by Amber Benson
I mentioned the releases of: The Stolen Ones by Owen Laukkanen; The Deception Artist by Fayette Fox; The Last Days of Video: A Novel by Jeremy Hawkins; and Less Than Hero by S. G. Browne. I only read The Stolen Ones, which remains one of the more chilling books I’ve read in a decade or so.

This Week’s New Releases that I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
The Library by Gigi Pandian—Tempest Raj and her pals are back for another fun locked-room mystery. I talked about it (hopefully enthusiastically) a day or two ago.
Friends Helping Friends by Patrick Hoffman— “A young man must infiltrate his own family’s white nationalist group, or go to prison himself… Part crime novel, part portrait of friendship, extremism, and inherited trauma, celebrated novelist Patrick Hoffman is at his brilliant best in these pages. Bunny never wanted any trouble. So how the hell did he end up at a white supremacist compound in rural Colorado?”
Welcome to the Lands of Luxury by Jon Tilton—escaping from their home on a (literal) trash pile is one thing, but adjusting to life in a super-affluent world brings a whole new set of challenges in this sequel.

Image credit: Grammarly

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:
The Best Villains in Literature Bracket: The Final Showdown—this is not who I expected to see in the final bracket, but it really makes sense. Also, if you haven’t been checking in, all the bracket posts (and other things posted on the theme of literary villains this week) are worth your time.
Terry Brooks announced his “semi-retirement” this week—at one point in my life this would’ve been devasting news. Now I can see it as the smart move it is—I hope he enjoys a long time of not-writing-that-much.
A Lifelong Love of Field Guides: A celebration of field guides, the little books that changed the way we interact with nature
How To Manage Your Reading Habit When You’ve Got No Money- A Book Bloggers Guide to The Cost-Of-Living Crisis
The Art of Reading Aloud
Marching Through MORE Inspirational Books!
The Columbus [Ohio] Metropolitan Library asks, Every 2 seconds, a book is rescued from captivity. Will you be a hero for a library item in need?

A Book-ish Related Podcast episode (or two) you might want to give a listen to:
Crime Time FM NICK KOLAKOWSKI In Person With Paul—was a great conversation about writing in general and Kolakowski’s new book.
SFF Addicts Ep. 145: John Scalzi—was great
The Thriller Zone Episode 217: Marshall Karp’s Killer Secrets: Writing Thrillers that Pack a Punch

To help talk about backlist titles (and just for fun), What Was I Talking About 10 Years Ago Week?
Uneasy Relations; Skull Duggery; Dying on the Vine by Aaron J. Elkins—Nunc hoc in marmore non est incisum
I mentioned the releases of: Anti-Hero by Jonathan Wood; World Gone By by Dennis Lehane; The Mirror World of Melody Black by Gavin Extence; What the Dog Knows: Scent, Science, and the Amazing Ways Dogs Perceive the World by Cat Warren [wonderful read]; and Archie in the Crosshairs by Robert Goldsborough

This Week’s New Releases that I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
Installment Immortality by Seanan McGuire—The war with the Covenant heats up and everyone’s favorite Nanny has to step up again. I had a few things to say about it recently.
Where the Bones Lie by Nick Kolakowski—Kolakowski brings his best for this contemporary L.A. noir about a traumatized ex-fixer trying to solve an old murder. I did a better job of talking about it earlier this week.

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:
The Best Villains in Literature Bracket: Ides of March Madness—LitHub is about to crown the ultimate Villain in Lit. Vote now (if you can choose…some of these are brutal choices)
Inside a Collection of ‘Imaginary’ Books
The Digital Packrat Manifesto—the case for building your own digital library (and choosing your digital storefronts with care)
From the Gut: A Literary History of Indigestion—Oddly fascinating piece (and you must read the footnotes)
Harper To Publish New Collection of Stories and Essays by Harper Lee—Huh. Well, might as well, I guess. Probably will be better than that last published book with her name on it
Turns Out, There’s a Sequel to The Westing Game—this is, no doubt, the item from this list that I’m most invested in. It’s possibly the single piece of writing I’m most invested in this month.
Thomas Trang’s “Dark Neon & Dirt”: A Gritty, Twisty Riff on L.A. Noir—Nick Kolakowski talks to Thomas Trang about Tran’s upcoming book (which looks great, incidentally)
Speaking of Nick Kolakowski, The Writer’s Dossier 3/3/2025 – The Nick Kolakowski interview—Kolakowski talks about things like his latest novel (which you really should read), evolving as a writer, and his experience with Craig Ferguson
Tolkien Against the Grain: The Lord of the Rings is a book obsessed with ruins, bloodlines, and the divine right of aristocrats. Why are so many on the left able to love it?—pretty sure I’d have never thought about considering this
A New Harper Lee Book is Being Published: Why Is There No Controversy This Time?—Brianna asks a good question
Three Years of Roars and Echoes—Congrats to Lashaan! The man responsible for at least 70% of the comics/graphic novels I’ve read in the last decade, and almost all of the Tolkien from that period, too.
Carol’s Captivating Character of February Link-Up—a good pick (and a good reminder for me to finalize my choice)
bedsidebibliophile succinctly nails the thinking behind a 5 star rating
If you don’t “awwww” at this bookstore’s story, there’s something broken in you

To help talk about backlist titles (and just for fun), What Was I Talking About 10 Years Ago Week?
Stone Quarry by S. J. Rozan
Pin Action: Small-Time Gangsters, High-Stakes Gambling, and the Teenage Hustler Who Became a Bowling Champion by Gianmarc Manzione (I’d forgotten about this one, not sure I’m glad to be reminded)
The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making by Catherynne M. Valente
I talked about the release of: A Key, an Egg, an Unfortunate Remark by Harry Connolly; Dead Heat by Patricia Briggs; Pocket Apocalypse by Seanan McGuire; Heir to the Jedi by Kevin Hearne; and Live Right and Find Happiness (Although Beer is Much Faster): Life Lessons and Other Ravings from Dave Barry by Dave Barry

This Week’s New Releases that I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
Don’t Tell Me How to Die by Marshall Karp—Domestic thriller, a look at grieving and preparation for death, and a rollicking good time. I raved about it recently (and will do so again at the drop of a hat)
Cold Iron Task by James J. Butcher—I have no idea what this third Unorthox Chronicle is about, because I can’t let myself be tempted, I just have too much to do. I’ve even loaned it to a friend just to get it out of the house so I can focus on some other things.
Guard in the Garden by Z. S. Diamanti—A cozy fantasy about an injured Dwarven soldier finding his second act. If this is half as charming as it looks, you’ll be in for a good time
Thaumaturgic Tapas by Tao Wong—you have to give this a second look for the title alone, right? The Nameless Restaurant struggles with success
Finlay Donovan Digs Her Own Grave by Elle Cosimano—My patience for Finlay’s antics is waning, but these are still guaranteed good times. Bringing in her nosy neighbor? Yeah, this should be fun.
Kills Well With Others by Deanna Rayburn—These senior assassins are called back into action.
I’m a Dumbo Octopus! by Anne Lambelet—this kid-level introduction to cephalopods looks adorable
See Friendship by Jeremy Gordon—A “young man who learns the devastating truth behind his friend’s death, propelling him on an odyssey of discovery into the nature of grief in the digital age, the limits of memory, and the meaning of friendship.”

I’ve barely been online this week, so I’m very glad that A Literary Escape and Pages Unbound posted some highlights from the month for me to glean from—I’d have enjoyed their posts regardless, but they helped bulk up this 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:
The Ascendance of the Book Ladder: The history of a totally necessary invention—We all want one, why not learn a little about them?
Little Free Library Study Reveals Benefits for Book-Impoverished Communities —No one will be (should be) walking away from this study saying, “Who’d have imagined this?” But it’s good to see someone finding evidence.
Face Value: Translating Divergence—”Clare Richards underscores the significance of D/deaf, disabled, and/or neurodivergent writers and translators presenting their community on their own terms.” (as interesting as they are, I need to stop reading pieces from this site, it’s doing unhealthy things for my TBR)
When Books Invade (But Make It Friendly)—This is one many of us can relate to, I expect. Particularly the first paragraph under “Why Read?.” Just from reading her historical book last year, I had the idea that Nadya Williams and I belonged to the same tribe. This is one more bit of proof.
Taking the “Shoulds” Out of Reading—I really don’t auto-post everything Molly Templeton writes, it just feels like it. Worth the read for the last ‘graph alone (but the prior ones are good, too)
Psychological Thrillers Are Finally Giving Middle-Aged Women Their Due—”[N]o one is pushed to the brink like a menopausal woman. And no one can fight for her life like her either.”
Embrace Graphic Novels
The Health Benefits of Reading Every Day
About Community and the Future of the Narratess Indie Sale
How to break up with Amazon as a Book Lover—It ain’t easy, so here’s some help
If you’re not ready to do that yet, What Are Kindle Points & How Do You Use Them?
The Classics: Shakespeare’s The Two Gentlemen in Verona, Love’s Labour’s Lost and Romeo and Juliet

To help talk about backlist titles (and just for fun), What Was I Talking About 10 Years Ago Week?
I didn’t post about any books, but I talked about the releases of: Dorothy Parker Drank Here by Ellen Meister and Canary by Duane Swierczynski

This Week’s New Releases that I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
His Truth Her Truth by Noelle Holten—Unreliable narrators in a domestic psycholigical thriller from one of this reader’s favorites. My March is pretty much planned already, but I’m going to squeeze this one in somehow.
title by soandso—”a podcast producer agrees to host a new series about modern dating—but will the show jeopardize her chance at finding real love?” I don’t know that this would’ve popped up on my radar if Alan Sepinwall hadn’t been talking about it, but If he vouches for it, that’s good enough for me.
The Fourth Consort by Edward Ashton—”Part first contact story, part dark comedy, and part bizarre love triangle, The Fourth Consort asks an important question: how far would you go to survive? And more importantly, how many drinks would you need to go there?” Go read the link for the whole blurb

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:
10 Book Displays I’d Love to See at the Public Library—I’ve honestly never stopped to think about this kind of thing (don’t think I’m going to start, either, but I’m glad someone does)
Golden Rules of Reading—Mind Your Manners in the Bookish World—somehow slipped by me last month
This follow-up/expansion on a point is also worth your time: Don’t Yuck My Yum—Why We Need to Stop Shaming People’s Tastes (also, I’m just enjoying saying “don’t yuck my yum”)
Love Story or Romance: Is There a Difference?
Toxic Love Affairs in Literature—I’ve only read two of these, and (unusually for me) am very glad that’s the case. Good writing really does get us to accept some lousy/creepy/skeevy behavior, doesn’t it? (as if Humbert Humbert alone wasn’t proof of that).
A Few of My Childhood Favorites—A nice stroll down memory lane. I didn’t discover Caddie Woodlawn until my kids read it, but it’s nice to see it getting some love. I’m pretty sure I’d have read that one more than anything about the Ingalls clan if I found it at the right age.
(Some) Indie Book Recommendations—Rebecca Crunden has put together a good-looking list here
The 10 Best Self-Published Books I’ve Ever Read—Seplls and Spaceships has featured a lot of Self-Pub books.
Genre Focus: LitRPG—Witty and Sarcastic Book Club is back with another focus on a Fantasy Sub-Genre, this time, it’s all about LitRPG. I probably know less about this one than any other type of Fantasy, so I really need this.
…Featuring Justin Marks
…Featuring David Dalglish
…Featuring BardLyre
…Featuring SerasStreams
…Featuring CT Phipps
February Reading Challenge: Dive into the World of Thrillers with “This or That”—ew…tough choices

To help talk about backlist titles (and just for fun), What Was I Talking About 10 Years Ago Week?
Firefight by Brandon Sanderson
Gemini Cell by Myke Cole
Plus One by Christopher Noxon—Nunc hoc in marmore non est incisum
And I noted the releases of: Half the World by Joe Abercrombie; Department 19: Zero Hour by Will Hill; and Shoot This One by Javier Grillo-Marxuach. Three books I never got around to buying or reading. oops.

This (or last) Week’s New Releases that I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
Not Marriage Material: Not a Romance Anthology edited by Sue Bavey—”In this non-fiction anthology, twenty authors and poets celebrate the ones who got away and the ones they were lucky enough to get away from. These relationships may not have ended in marriage, but they have provided us with entertaining stories.” I can’t believe I forgot to mention this last week, especially as I helped spread the word when she was looking for submissions. It does look like a fun way to spend some time.
Picks and Shovels by Cory Doctorow—”The year is 1986. The city is San Francisco. Here, Martin Hench will invent the forensic accountant–what a bounty hunter is to people, he is to money–but for now he’s an MIT dropout odd-jobbing his way around a city still reeling from the invention of a revolutionary new technology that will change everything about crime forever,” the PC. I really need to start reading Doctorow, he says for (at least) the 13th year running.

It’s not often that I have a theme for these posts (outside of year end wrap ups, but even then…), but boy howdy, no one seemed to talk about anything else this week (outside of a certain SF creep or two).
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:
Is That a Familiar Feeling?—”Rosalind Harvey explores the complex emotional and professional terrain of literary translation, weaving together attachment theory, career precarity, and the unseen labor of bringing words across linguistic borders.” (which feels like a lot to cover, but Harvey does it well)
THE BEST OF THE BEST- My Favourite Books of All Time—How anyone could accomplish a Herculean task like this is beyond my ken. A good list, for sure (including a prodding to get to one book that’s been sitting on my shelf for too long)
Twisted Love: 7 books with vampires (that aren’t Twilight)
Five Signs You Might Be Crushing on a Book—If I had time for fan-fic, I’d likely have experienced all of these. Otherwise, yeah, I’ve had several crushes (every year of my life)
Books with Relationships for People Who Don’t Love Love: 2025 Edition—We don’t get all gushy and swoony this week. Jodie plays the Scrooge to keep us from it.
What Literary Love Story Are You Destined To Have? (A Valentine’s Day Personality Quiz)—I’ve never read my personalisty type, but Mrs. Irresponsible Reader has a well-read edition. Probably a good sign for me.
Dating App Profile For Book Characters—No offense to anyone, but this might be my favorite of the week.
A Few of My Favorite Literary Couples

To help talk about backlist titles (and just for fun), What Was I Talking About 10 Years Ago Week?
I had exactly one post for the week in 2015, in which I mentioned the release of Deadly Spells by Jaye Wells (a book that I never got around to picking up)

This Week’s New Releases that I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
Annihilation Aria by Michael Underwood—has been re-released. I’d call this Underwood’s criminally-underselling space opera, but I tend to describe all of Underwood’s work as “criminally-underselling”, and I hold all of you responsible. This story about space archeologists, found family, and alien cultures is absolutely something you should read.
Emily Wilde’s Compendium of Lost Tales by Heather Fawcett—everyone’s favorite dryadologist gets plunges into the intrigue of a Faerie Kingdom.
Retreat by Krysten Ritter with Lindsay Jamieson—I’m semi-curious about this, becasue of Ritter’s previous novel more than because of this premise. But props to Ritter/the Publisher for crediting the ghostwriter.

(people still say, “props to ___” right? Fellow Kids, tell me that’s still a thing)