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#book log 2023
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Post book brainrot expressed via playlist/art challenge 🙃
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firesalamander · 1 year
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Books 6 & 7!
time for a few more entries~ book 6 is the rulebook for Yazeba’s Bed and Breakfast by the folks at @jdragsky and the other folks at possum creek games! i was waffling on if i should count this since there’s technically a bunch of locked content i haven’t read yet, but also i make the rules for my log and i’m counting it. Yazeba’s is an incredibly darling set up for a game with great mechanics and fun characters. i’ve played two chapters so far and can’t wait to play more soon, once me and my online game group get the virtual version set up book 7 is The Mycocultutral Revolution: Transforming our World with Mushrooms, Lichens, and Other Fungi by Peter McCoy. This book is great, has lots of interesting stuff (i’ll be real, i skipped the chapters on brewing ale with mushrooms and growing them at home b/c i don’t want to do those things). i’m going to be learning to mushroom hunt soon from a coworker at my university, so learning more about edible species and cooking was a real highlight. definitely some claims i would consider spurious and sensationalizing, but what mushroom content isn’t?
i have a few more books i’m halfway through, and a ton on the backlog, as well as a friend who agreed to do a monthly two-person book club with me, so hopefully i’ll have more entries soon!
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chaoticfoxsworld · 11 months
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Book Log 2023 - #5 Achtsam Morden by Karsten Dusse
Ich entschied mich dafür, meine Tochter zu sehen. Wenn ich Emily näher sein konnte, während ich diese ganze Gewalt erfolgreich von ihr fernhielt, dann hatte alles seinen Sinn.
Da Katharina mich sowieso darum gebeten hatte, rief ich Katharina an, um mit ihr über was-auch-immer bezüglich Kindergärten zu sprechen. Nach dem dritten Läuten ging sie ran.
»Hi, Katharina, ich bin's.«
»Ist was passiert?«
Ich horchte in mich hinein, ob ich ihr irgendetwas von »Mandant zerhackt« über »Chefs bedroht« bis hin zu »beinahe am Futterautomaten erschossen worden« sagen wollte. Ich wollte aber nicht. Und da ich nicht tun musste, was ich nicht tun wollte, sagte ich: »Nein, wieso?«
[5/5 ⭐️]
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tomegnome · 1 year
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2023 Book log: Monstrous Regiment by Terry Pratchett
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Monstrous Regiment satirizes themes of gender, war, and religion in the fantastical setting of Terry Pratchett's wonderfully irreverent Discworld. Barmaid Polly Perks lives in the charmless and highly conservative country of Borogravia. Seeking her lost soldier brother, Polly disguises as a "Oliver" and enlists alongside a cast of colorful characters including teenage runaways, a vampire, and a troll...who all have secrets of their own. Wink wink. Hijinks and gender fuckery ensue!
🍄Ratings based on the five core gnomish literary values🍄
Characters - 🌻🌻🌻🌻🌻 Camp - 🌷🌷🌷🌷🌷 Queerness - 🌼🌼🌼 Style - 🌻🌻🌻🌻🌻 Feeling - 🌷🌷🌷🌷
I read this book 10ish years ago and remembered it being an absolute delight, and golly, it really held up. If you haven't read Terry Pratchett before you can totally jump in with Monstrous Regiment since it stands perfectly fine on its own weird little legs (btw anyone who tells you to read discworld chronologically is a teacher's pet and not to be trusted).
I have dog-eared the ever loving shit out of this poor little paperback. First of all this book is so funny, laugh out loud funny. But also has these poignant, beautiful little moments. It gets surprisingly dark in places, but in a way that feels necessary and is really in service to fleshing out the characters. It really grounds the book in the midst of all this absurdity and gives it this real life human quality.
Many writers write characters and then, quite separately, female characters. Pratchett just wrote interesting characters. He saw humans as flawed and weak, but also brave and hopeful and that shows in the way he writes these really silly, lovely characters.
Paul, Polly's brother, is BARELY in the book. He speaks maybe once. But through Polly telling you these little memories about him you become really come to adore him and by extension, learn about and appreciate Polly even more. And the books doesn't even need it! Paul could've just been a call to action, but instead he has his own little arc. Someone please talk to me about Paul and his birds.
And Jackrum. And Maladict. And Lofty and Tonker. Any of them really. Because my heart is so full of love for these characters.
Which is why this book works when there are more contemporary novels exploring gender much more seriously and doing a worse job, imo. I am probably biased, but ultimately it felt to me like this book was saying: Oh gender? What a funny little notion. What a silly little human invention. Grab onto it with your grubby gnome paws and do with it what you wish.
For more information and detailed content warnings I highly recommend thestorygraph.
🍄Sample passage - may be light spoilers🍄______________________________________________________________
"Bloody Jackrum left me surrounded by armed men!" Polly hissed.
"And?"
"Well, I… knocked two of them out," she said, feeling as she said it that this rather spoilt her case as a victim. "One went over the road, though."
"I think we got that one," said Maladict. "Well, I say 'got'… Tonker nearly gutted him. There's a girl with what I'd call unresolved issues." He turned round. "Let's see… seven horses, seven men. Yep."
"Tonker?" said Polly.
"Oh, yes. Hadn't you spotted her? She went mad when the man charged at Lofty. Now, let's have a look at your gentlemen, shall we?" said Maladict, heading for the inn door.
"But Lofty and Tonker…" Polly began, running to keep up. "I mean, the way they act, they… I thought she was his girl… but I thought Tonker… I mean, I know Lofty is a gi - "
Even in the dark, Maladict's teeth gleamed as he smiled. "The world's certainly unfolding itself for you, eh? Ozzer? Every day, something new. Cross-dressing now, I see."
"What?"
"You are wearing a petticoat, Ozzer," said Maladict, stepping into the bar. Polly looked down guiltily and started to tug it off, and then thought: hang on a moment...
"The captain looks bad," he said. "What did he try to do to poor little you?"
"Patronize me," said Polly, glaring at Maladict.
"Ah," said the vampire.
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thebibliosphere · 1 year
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When I tell you this meme has been living rent-free in my head for the last week, and then having to edit it to include that I won because Tumblr showed up has been nothing short of a mind fuck for the old Imposter Syndrome.
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Thanks, gang. I know it was a fun silly poll, but it means a lot to me 💖
Also, if you’re on Twitter go give Queer Liberation Library a follow. They’re doing good work trying to make it safer and more accessible for LGBTQ+ folks to access queer media across the US.
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ofliterarynature · 8 months
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AUGUST 2023 WRAP UP
[ loved liked okay no thanks DNF (reread) bookclub*]
Witch Week | A Perilous Undertaking | 2 AM At the Cat's Pajamas | The Last Sun | The Lives of Christopher Chant | The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo* | (The Angel of the Crows) | The Enchanted April | The Art of Prophecy | A Curious Beginning | Q's Legacy | The Grimoire of Grave Fates | Charmed Life | Ocean's Echo | (Band Sinister) | (Unfit to Print) | Camp Damascus | Wanted, A Gentleman | Translation State | The Mistress of Bhatia House
I’m late I’m late I’m late! Oops
It’s only a month late, right? ‘Only’ lol, work has been exhausting! Anyways:
At this point I wonder if Ann Leckie can ever do wrong, Translation State was good! I was completely enthralled, which is all I ask, even if I don’t get as passionate about it as the main trilogy.
I continued the KJ Charles reading, with these supposed stand alones that are also kind of related? Honestly it’s no less of a stretch than Society of Gentlemen to Lilywhite Boys, so I don’t know why she can’t officially list them together. Anyways, mostly fine, and Band Sinister is still a delight!
Camp Damascus…I’m thrilled for Chuck, really, and I think he’s a delight to follow, but this one wasn’t for me. Religious trauma is turning out to be a hard no.
Ocean’s Echo was good! In some ways I definitely thought it was better than Winter’s Orbit - miscommunication is the worst I’m sorry, this story was more consistently engaging! I just like the characters from WO a bit more.
Chrestomanci! I’ve been going by the suggested reading order on Goodreads, and while I wasn’t particularly enthused by Charmed Life, once I had a grasp on the world the other books have been fun! Im very sad this might be my last DWJ, as I seem to have exhausted my library’s collection of her audiobooks :(
Grimoire of Grave Fates had a really interesting premise that lured me in, despite my reservations - an anthology where all the stories work together to solve the mystery of a murder at a magic boarding school? I thought it worked fairly well (and could definitely spin itself out into a series of novels), but just ok for me. Maybe one day I’ll finally concede I can’t read YA or boarding school books anymore.
Q’s Legacy was the last (I think) of the 84 Charing Cross Road books, and honestly the worst. It had its interesting moments, but it lacked the cohesion of the other two, speed,-running the before and during of those stories, to then spend the second half on the adaptations. It was not at all what the descriptions led me to expect. Maybe worth a single read but not a revisit.
I will also be honest, I didn’t really like the first Veronica Speedwell! The plot felt a bit contrived, and Veronica was so blunt as to almost read as rude or mean. Also very unexpectedly…clinically horny? Does that make sense? I’m not quite sure what prompted me to continue, but I’m now several books in and enjoying it! To be blunt myself, the historic setting is just set dressing, the plots can feel contrived, the mysteries are mediocre, but the real draw is the Veronica and Stoker show once they get themselves settled in and comfortable with each other. It’s a hoot.
I’d heard good things about The Art of Prophecy, but I still didn’t know quite what to expect going in. It was wonderful. Maybe a little long, but if you’re looking for a fantastic fantasy with lots of fight sequences, no romance, and some fascinating characters, this is a great read. The sequel comes out soon and I can only hope it doesn’t take as long for my library to get the audiobook as it did for this one.
I don’t know where I first found An Enchanted April, but it’s been on my TBR for a little bit, and I thought it would be the perfect fit for my classics challenge I gave myself this year! It wasn’t what I expected at all - it’s entirely character driven and very focused on their flaws, and the entire first half I thought I was going to hate it. But the second half, there’s a twist, almost, born of some very  naïve optimism that nonetheless works out. Very improbably, but I was happy for them, you funky little weirdos. 
What can I say about The Angel of the Crows except that it is still very good! It’s maybe lost a little of the shine it held when I got obsessed with it for a few months last year, but it is definitely now one of my comfort books. I really ought to read more canon Holmes though lol.
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo was, to be fair, one of my suggestions for book club. It was OK, but there were definitely parts that really did not work for me, the frame narrative in particular. The other members of the club really liked it but I don’t have any plans to read more of the authors work.
I’m almost tempted to put The Last Sun last just so I can yell more. I’d heard such good things about this series, but turns out my expectations were a bit skewed - it is not historical or secondary fantasy world, oops. So we got off to a bit of a rough start, not to mention all of the Capital Words. Not usually a good sign. And while I still wouldn’t say I love the worldbuilding necessarily, or that these are the next great work of fantasy, the action is really great, and the characters are flipping fantastic. You’ve got a pair of 30 year olds who are bad ass fighters, have a traumatic past, are immature assholes, can be so so kind, and accidentally adopt a posse of troubled teenagers? Sign me up, I love them, this reminds me so much of my days reading tons of Teen Wolf fanfic AUs.
My history with 2 AM At the Cat's Pajamas is that they cannot stop recommending this thing on the Book Riot podcasts. When I found a copy at Goodwill, I thought surely it’s meant to be! Well. It was not bad, but it was not great. I don’t know. It just wasn’t for me and I will not be keeping my copy. I probably should have DNF’d it, but I continued in hope.
Only one actual DNF this month though, The Mistress of Bhatia House - the newest Perveen Mistri book. I was actually fairly excited for it despite my reservations about the earlier books, but I hit a mental roadblock with this one. There was some contrived feeling tension with her sister-in-law, but really, I realized that one of my main problems with this series is that, despite being in a very precarious social position, Perveen is just incredibly reckless - usually in the name of doing good! - but it just hit all the wrong nerves at the moment. I’m hoping there will be a better time to read this, but not right now. 
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readingrobin · 4 months
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Best Books I Read in 2023
Since there was a bit of demand, here, in no particular order, are the best books that I read over the past year. Some I've done full reviews on, some I've given some smaller thoughts on Storygraph, which you can find on my account here. I'll be sure to link the ones that have reviews.
Dead Collections by Isaac Fellman
2. The Bloody Chamber and Other Stories by Angela Carter
3. The Narrow Road Between Desires by Patrick Rothfuss
4. The Scapegracers by H.A. Clarke
5. Hellaween by Moss Lawton
6. Such Sharp Teeth by Rachel Harrison
7. Vespertine by Margaret Rogerson
8. Mage and the Endless Unknown by SJ Miller
9. The Firekeeper's Daughter by Angeline Boulley
10. Nettle and Bone by T. Kingfisher
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seathcreed · 10 months
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Found this month's art challenge and decided to try it out cause i just started out and need more practice other than redraws. So here's a fearful little dragon, i don't think he's safe :(
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salvadorbonaparte · 5 months
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2023 in Books
I didn't have a lot of time/energy for leisure reading but here are the books I finished this year
The First Man in Rome - Colleen McCullough - I listened to the audiobook because it was narrated by David Ogden Stiers but the book is really good and now I kinda want to read the whole series (but unfortunately the others aren't narrated by him)
Minificciones - Erica Engeler (eds.) - A collection of very short stories from Latin America which I read in an attempt to get back into reading and improve my Spanish, some of the stories were really good and I'd love to read more Latin American lit next year
Dead Collections - Isaac Fellman - A book that sounds like a fake book someone would make up on tumblr but it's real and I loved it, I bought it in Gay's The Word in London, it's about a trans Jewish vampire archivist who falls in love with the widow of a television writer/producer and they figure out they were in the same fan community in the 90s and vampirism is treated as a chronic illness
Abaddon's Gate - James S.A. Corey - I am still making my way through the Expanse series one audiobook at a time and I liked this one but I kinda miss some of the characters from the second book
11/22/63 - Stephen King - I really loved this one, I listened to the audiobook because it was narrated by David Nathan, I already find the whole JFK assassination thing interesting so this was great because it's part sci-fi and part historical novel but it's also silly in a very Stephen King way (crossover with It, you can only time travel through a diner in Maine), the time travel rules were cool, the ending was silly but I'm used to that from him and it actually worked for me, I kept repeating phrases from the book for days after reading it and binge watched the series too
Poems on the Underground - Benson et al. (eds.) - Found a used copy in a charity shop and you know I love poetry and the London Underground
If I Understood You, Would I have This Look On My Face - Alan Alda - The third Alan Alda book I read, honestly he makes me believe improv theatre can save the world, would recommend this to anyone who wants to be a better communicator
Gideon the Ninth - Tamsyn Muir - Very different from what I expected but I liked it and will read the other ones too
Nutcracker and Mouse King - E.T.A Hoffman - the audiobook was free and I enjoy the ballet based on it so why not, right
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alagaisia · 1 year
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I love when I read a book *after* seeing an adaptation and it gives me a new appreciation for the adaptation. Season one of The Expanse follows the plot and major scenes of Leviathan Wakes remarkably closely, and the characters are exactly the same. I’m replaying scenes from the show in my mind. Conversations that weren’t in the show still read in the actors’ voices. I swear I recognized some dialogue. And the changes I did notice (such as where Miller finds Julie Mao in the end, and how the dead man’s switch comes in) made complete sense in smoothing over the transition from page to screen. Fuck Amazon and all that, but the writers and showrunnners of that show should be lauded for their attention and dedication to the source material.
I’m interested to see how that holds up in the rest of the series. I know that the actor playing Alex Kamal left the show for reasons unrelated to the character’s original arc, and I think I know that the books go on longer than the show, so I have a feeling eventually the two will split, but I’m hoping to meet a few more favorite characters before that happens :)
(other books I've read this year)
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heavenlyyshecomes · 5 months
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wait. 2023 faves while we're here
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Art Commission FAQs
Art commission update (commissions temporarily closed)
Tip Jar ☕️✨️
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firesalamander · 7 months
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#18
can't find my post i made for the Southern Reach trilogy by Jeff Vandermeer, which were books 15 - 17, but i sure did read them
anyway, book 18 is The Wellness Trap: Break Free from Diet Culture, Disinformation, and Dubious Diagnoses - and Find Your True Well-Being by Christy Harrison, MPH, RD. i saw this by chance on a book store display and decided it was worth picking up after skimming through given my deep and unending hatred for diet culture and most other modern permutations of wellness culture.
Harrison gives a good mix of anecdotal/interview evidence, news reporting, and scientific studies to back up her detailed descriptions of wellness trends, anti-vax movements, fake diagnoses loved by alternative health 'specialists' (eg adrenal fatigue and leaky gut syndrome) and gets deep into the weeds of why these things can be so harmful. she cites a good handful of books that are going onto my list, and i do genuinely feel like i'm walking away with at least a solid handful of new information. all in all a very good read written in an accessible voice that debunks a lot of very dangerous misinformation that plagues a lot of people i care about and many online spaces, a good chunk of which has even been directed at me in the past due to my chronic stuff. wild. highly recommend.
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chaoticfoxsworld · 7 months
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Book Log 2023 - #14 Gender Trouble by Judith Butler
Sooo glad I mostly listened to this as an audio book! Absolutely fascinating subject, but it's been written as an academic paper for people who study / have studied philosophy and it shows. Like. This is densely written and requires a lot of focus to at least understand the basic premises, at least for me it did. Still, I'm glad I can cross this one of my tbr.
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lilylizard · 9 months
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books I've finished in 2023
Uzumaki by Junji Ito
Smoke Gets In Your Eyes by Caitlin Doughty
Annihilation by Jeff Vandermeer
Authority by Jeff Vandermeer
All The Living And The Dead by Hayley Campbell
Acceptance by Jeff Vandermeer
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ofliterarynature · 5 months
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OCTOBER 2023 WRAP UP
[loved liked ok no thanks (reread) book club* DNF]
The Sunset Years of Agnes Sharp | Conrad’s Fate | Hold Fast Through the Fire | All the White Spaces* | The Game of Courts | (Artificial Condition) | From Below | Creatures of Will and Temper | The Saint of Bright Doors | (All Systems Red) | Over My Dead Body | The Twyford Code | A Conjuring of Light | Small Miracles | A Murderous Relation | Realm of Ash | The Magicians of Caprona | The Hourglass Throne | Raw Dog | Graveminder | The Devil and Winnie Flynn
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
I am getting to this SO LATE, forgive me if I don't say a lot because I have forgotten so much. Work has eaten all of my time and energy against my will (should I get a new job? Probably). Anyways.
The Hourglass Throne - Will definitely need to reread this before the next book comes out (even thought they're all pretty well self contained for a series!) because WHAT? I have only half an idea what's going on, and no idea how to feel about the ending. Do I grieve? Not grieve? ??????? I think book 2 is still my favorite, but these books are addictive and a joy to read.
The Magicians of Caprona - I think at this point it's fair to say that I don't think DWJ could write a book that is uninteresting to read, but this is definitely my least favorite of at least the Chrestomanci books so far.
Realm of Ash - book 2 of the Books of Ambha series; I didn't like the first book in this series, why did I continue? Hope, that it would build on the things in the first book that I actually liked, and bring the sisters back together. It was better, I guess, but not in any way that really made me like it. I wish I'd followed my impulse and returned it to the library without listening.
A Murderous Relation - another Veronica Speedwell mystery, reliably enjoyable as always :)
Small Miracles - This was a DELIGHT. This was a fun romp (I'm told) in the vein of Good Omens, but with small stakes - and small miracles. The fallen angel of petty temptations is hired by an angelic friend to help the most sinless (and miserable) mortal have a little fun. But there's more to it than meets the eye, and the case gets tangled up the mortal woman's niece, pretending to be a school counselor, difficult family relationships, rants about chocolate, and inconsiderate siblings who rudely keep picking the same human gender as you. It's sweet, comforting, very queernorm, and a little romantic (f/gf)
A Conjuring of Light - I finished my Shades of Magic reread! Thank god. I was so thoroughly not impressed with books 2 & 3 this time around - they're just one book, divided in two, and I don't think it was divided in the right spot. It's so disappointing that these did not age with me, but you will also have to pry my copies away from me because they're one of the few books I've ever gotten signed in person (and the original covers are just cool). I fully intend to submit myself to the new spinoff series because hope never really dies lol.
The Twyford Code - This was such a strange and delightful book, that I'm not even sure I'm mad about the twist at the ending, I had such a good time reading it. (past me, listening: wow, this would have made such a cool fiction podcast, right? Joke's on me haha). I did honestly think I'd forgotten what this book was about for a bit, but then I was going through some old kid's books from my grandma that were *exactly* like the series in this book, and I had a big AHAH moment that delighted me.
Over My Dead Body - this was my first/nonfiction attempt at jamming in some spooky-ish books before the end of October. Overall, good. I did learn some new facts and there were some interesting parts; but I didn't always appreciate some of the author's commentary, and when it say's "America's Cemeteries," it really only means its urban cemeteries, which was a bit disappointing.
All Systems Red/Artificial Condition - Murderbot, my Beloved. rereading for the new book, and I'm trying my hardest to NOT do it on audiobook this time - and it's really worth it to read it in text, I promise, even if Kevin R Free's voice still echoes in my mind.
The Saint of Bright Doors - this was such a strange and wonderful read, I am so delighted to have read this, I love an unapologetically weird book. The vibe definitely reminds me a bit of The City & The City, or in some ways The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy; except I had other problems with those books and didn't finish them, but I did like this one. I know this won't be everyone's cup of tea, but maybe give it a shot.
Creatures of Will and Temper - another spooky book, and ooh boy could I go on an entire rant, I didn't want to finish this one but felt I had to for reasons. I'll let you look up the plot yourselves, but picture this: Victorian London, two sisters (one who likes swords!), and a whole lot of queer characters I wasn't expecting. I was delighted! Except you gradually learn every single queer character is involved with this club that has made a pact with a demon. What exactly does that mean? Who knows, because the book does not tell you until at least 3/4 of the way through, and we only have the word of the jacket copy and our sainted demon slayer, who is sketchy af the moment we get him alone. Turns out it's a chill demon who doesn't want blood sacrifice, cool cool, but maybe it should have been thought through a little more? Also the main/only successful romance in the book is between a 17 year old girl and a woman who is at minimum in her 30's, explicitly encouraged in part by the demon. hmm. Overall the writing and rest of the story was just ok, and the ending was disgustingly saccharine and just bad. Would strongly not recommend, but if someone wants my copy you're welcome to it. 2 stars.
From Below - another spooky book, and somehow still the most successful even though I didn't like it much. I almost DNF'd this in the first half, and while I wouldn't say I wish i had, I think my time could have been better spent. But really - if you are diving at an untouched ship wreck, that went missing with hundreds of unaccounted passengers and crew, in an area of the ocean entirely inhospitable to life, shouldn't one of the things you expect to find be human bodies??????? I got so worked up, lol, but once the spooky stuff started I had a better time.
The Game of Courts - new Nine World's novella! I love that Victoria takes the time to explore the various characters in her books outside of the main narrative. Getting to learn more about Conju ourside the current story was much appreciated, even if getting to see an outsider POV of earlier Kip was maybe the main draw. Probably not my favorite of the Lays novellas, but worth reading - and maybe a good starting place for those who are new to the series? Now if only I could get myself to read Derring-Do...
All the White Spaces - bookclub pick that got rescheduled to Nov (more time to reread Murderbot tho, so yay me). The description of this - trans guy on an antarctic exploration that goes wrong - sounded interesting, but it was kind of meh for me in the end. For one I was expecting more horror, but the description of "polar gothic" I've seen since really fits better. I also wasn't a fan of the supernatural explanation, and the whole thing felt hopeless from the beginning, once we got a grasp on the *actual* details of the situation, so I didn't quite know what we were here for. Not my cup of tea.
Hold Fast Through the Fire - NeoG book two!!!! This series is turning out to be very akin to the Tarot sequence in that they not perfect books or 5 stars by any means, but are so fun and addictive to read. This series is space opera, post-post-apocalypse where Earth has two colonies, and the series is about a team in the space!coast guard. Getting into the specific plot of this book isn't actually important, but there's a good 50/50 split on plot vs talking about our emotions!!! I love it, it definitely shows some improvement over book 1, even though I don't know that the author has got the POV's quite balanced out. Jenks is lucky I love her because her drama sure does keep taking over (and I cried so hard for her in this one you guys). Would recommend. Did I mention that almost everyone is queer?
Conrad’s Fate - a good book, but this is also the point where I really started questioning the recommended Chrestomanci reading order. I think chronologically it's book 2? And I'd already forgotten so much from The Lives of Christopher Chant, I do not understand and wish I'd read them chronologically. Much more fun than the Magicians of Caprona.
The Sunset Years of Agnes Sharp - I was SO excited when I saw there was a new Leonie Swann being published in english, even if it wasn't the sequel to Three Bags Full (which I read last year and loved). I was even MORE excited when the book opened and was being narrated by the pet tortoise!!! Alas, it was not to last, I did not get another murder novel narrated by an animal. That being said, still pretty good, it reminded me of the Thursday Murder Club (which I liked less), but probably won't be a favorite.
DNF'S - Graveminder and The Devil and Winnie Flynn were both books I own that I tried to fit in for spooky month that did not work out. Winnie Flynn I admit I dropped almost immediately, the vibes were peak bad YA and I wasn't going to torture myself. Graveminder I tried, because I liked the idea, and it wasn't bad per-se, but something about the way it was executed (and the many many POV's) just wasn't working for me. Might fit someone else better though.
Raw Dog I really wanted to like, because the history of hot dogs and a description/ranking of hot dogs are both extremely up my alley - and I did make it 40% in! But there were just a number of factors building up against this - the author's sometimes very (overly?) sharp commentary, my lack of interest in her dysfunctional life, the lack of any comparative rating system for the hot dogs, the food waste, and the sheer number of bodily excretions used as descriptors for the food finally tipped me over the edge. I could have kept listening but I didn't really want to. Perhaps for someone, but not for me.
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