Lois McMaster Bujold's Penric's Mission
The fourth Penric book picks up a few years later, and finds our hero on a covert mission to another country--where he is immediately imprisoned. Eventually he gets involved with a pretty young widow and her brother, who is being framed for treason. This one doesn't have a super satisfying conclusion, because I think the next book picks up right where this leaves off. Still, I of course enjoyed this, and am glad a little romance is being thrown into the mix. B+.
Thursday, January 30, 2020
2020 book 14
Lois McMaster Bujold's Penric's Fox
The third Penric book finds the young sorcerer teaming up with the shaman and lawman from the previous book to solve a murder--the murder of a sorceress. The plot here is a fairly straightforward mystery--aside from, you know, the magical elements--and I continue to enjoy reading about these characters. Plus this one has BABY FOXES. Good all-around. A-.
The third Penric book finds the young sorcerer teaming up with the shaman and lawman from the previous book to solve a murder--the murder of a sorceress. The plot here is a fairly straightforward mystery--aside from, you know, the magical elements--and I continue to enjoy reading about these characters. Plus this one has BABY FOXES. Good all-around. A-.
Monday, January 27, 2020
2020 book 13
Lois McMaster Bujold's Penric and the Shaman
The second Penric book picks up a few years after the first, with Penric a fully fledged sorcerer, recruited to help track down a shaman who may have committed murder. Journeys, ghosts, and mysterious (and adorable) dogs ensue! I liked this a lot--this series is pretty solid for lighthearted fantasy entertainment (murders aside, of course). A-.
The second Penric book picks up a few years after the first, with Penric a fully fledged sorcerer, recruited to help track down a shaman who may have committed murder. Journeys, ghosts, and mysterious (and adorable) dogs ensue! I liked this a lot--this series is pretty solid for lighthearted fantasy entertainment (murders aside, of course). A-.
Sunday, January 26, 2020
2020 book 12
Jenny Offill's Weather
I really liked Offill's last novel, Dept. of Speculation, but this one didn’t work as well for me. It’s also a sort of stream of consciousness novel, and while I did like the narrative voice a lot—she’s a librarian, dealing with an addict brother, trying to balance her work and kid and husband and side job answering emails for a podcast host, etc—but it’s just kind of all over the place. I appreciate that it was trying to present a hopeful look at the future (while still discussing our current harsh truths), but I just never felt connected to any of it. B.
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A review copy was provided by the publisher. This book will be released on February 11th.
I really liked Offill's last novel, Dept. of Speculation, but this one didn’t work as well for me. It’s also a sort of stream of consciousness novel, and while I did like the narrative voice a lot—she’s a librarian, dealing with an addict brother, trying to balance her work and kid and husband and side job answering emails for a podcast host, etc—but it’s just kind of all over the place. I appreciate that it was trying to present a hopeful look at the future (while still discussing our current harsh truths), but I just never felt connected to any of it. B.
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A review copy was provided by the publisher. This book will be released on February 11th.
Thursday, January 23, 2020
2020 book 11
Magda Szabo's Abigail
Abigail is apparently Szabo's most popular novel in her native Hungary, but it took fifty years for an English translation to appear. Well, I'm glad it did! It's centered on a young Hungarian girl, the daughter of a widowed General, who is sent to a very strict boarding school in the provinces as WWII gets underway. The girls there do their best to make things livable—helped along by the statue in the garden, the titular Abigail, who reads their letters and comes to their aid. But who is behind Abigail, and what will happen as political tensions rise? That is not really a mystery to the reader; this is much more of a coming of age tale, and it’s a powerful and moving one. I was completely engrossed, and can’t wait to read more by Szabo. A.
Abigail is apparently Szabo's most popular novel in her native Hungary, but it took fifty years for an English translation to appear. Well, I'm glad it did! It's centered on a young Hungarian girl, the daughter of a widowed General, who is sent to a very strict boarding school in the provinces as WWII gets underway. The girls there do their best to make things livable—helped along by the statue in the garden, the titular Abigail, who reads their letters and comes to their aid. But who is behind Abigail, and what will happen as political tensions rise? That is not really a mystery to the reader; this is much more of a coming of age tale, and it’s a powerful and moving one. I was completely engrossed, and can’t wait to read more by Szabo. A.
Tuesday, January 21, 2020
2020 book 10
Lois McMaster Bujold's Penric's Demon
This novella is (I think) set in the author's Chalion world, but I don’t remember those well and had no issues following it. It’s a light and mostly funny story about a young man, traveling to his betrothal ceremony, who encounters an ill old women—who promptly dies, leaving him to be possessed by her demon. Whoops. It’s mainly about his relationship with the demon, which I found very interesting and compelling. I’ll definitely read more in this series. A-.
This novella is (I think) set in the author's Chalion world, but I don’t remember those well and had no issues following it. It’s a light and mostly funny story about a young man, traveling to his betrothal ceremony, who encounters an ill old women—who promptly dies, leaving him to be possessed by her demon. Whoops. It’s mainly about his relationship with the demon, which I found very interesting and compelling. I’ll definitely read more in this series. A-.
Monday, January 20, 2020
2020 book 9
Quan Barry's We Ride Upon Sticks
Y’all. This book. Is about. FIELD HOCKEY WITCHES.
FIELD HOCKEY WITCHES!!!!!
Has there ever been a book more geared toward ME? (See below pic for reference.)
Anyway, this story is set in 1989, where the much-losing varsity field hockey team at Danvers High takes a little inspiration from their town's history—Danvers, of course, being where most of the witch trials actually took place. I loved everything about this book—the first person plural narrative voice that nonetheless lets all the girls (and one boy) shine, their camaraderie and rivalries, how funny parts of this are and how satisfying all of it is, how it speaks to truth about the teen girl experience. Seriously, this book is GREAT and I recommend it highly, even if you didn’t play high school field hockey. A.
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A review copy was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in March.
Y’all. This book. Is about. FIELD HOCKEY WITCHES.
FIELD HOCKEY WITCHES!!!!!
Has there ever been a book more geared toward ME? (See below pic for reference.)
Anyway, this story is set in 1989, where the much-losing varsity field hockey team at Danvers High takes a little inspiration from their town's history—Danvers, of course, being where most of the witch trials actually took place. I loved everything about this book—the first person plural narrative voice that nonetheless lets all the girls (and one boy) shine, their camaraderie and rivalries, how funny parts of this are and how satisfying all of it is, how it speaks to truth about the teen girl experience. Seriously, this book is GREAT and I recommend it highly, even if you didn’t play high school field hockey. A.
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A review copy was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in March.
Saturday, January 18, 2020
2020 book 8
Diana Wynne Jones' Howl's Moving Castle
My brain needed a palate cleanser after those last couple of books, and what better way to wash away dense and sordid philosophical novels than with a story of sisters, magic, romance, and mystery? This book is so funny and sweet and a little bit sly. Sophie, the eldest of three, knows how stories go, so she isn’t even surprised when a witch curses her and her misadventures begin, as she becomes housekeeper to the heartless wizard Howl. I love this book more every time I read it.
My brain needed a palate cleanser after those last couple of books, and what better way to wash away dense and sordid philosophical novels than with a story of sisters, magic, romance, and mystery? This book is so funny and sweet and a little bit sly. Sophie, the eldest of three, knows how stories go, so she isn’t even surprised when a witch curses her and her misadventures begin, as she becomes housekeeper to the heartless wizard Howl. I love this book more every time I read it.
Wednesday, January 15, 2020
2020 book 7
Ada Palmer's Seven Surrenders
The second Terra Ignota book goes all in on philosophical/theological debates and (deliberately unpleasant) debauchery, but eventually plot does come into it and things pick up a bit. I think I like these books, but they also really bum me out. They do feel more like thought experiments than novels at times, which is not really my jam. I am /thinking/ about them a lot, so I guess they are effective in that way? I am curious enough to read the third, at least. B/B+.
The second Terra Ignota book goes all in on philosophical/theological debates and (deliberately unpleasant) debauchery, but eventually plot does come into it and things pick up a bit. I think I like these books, but they also really bum me out. They do feel more like thought experiments than novels at times, which is not really my jam. I am /thinking/ about them a lot, so I guess they are effective in that way? I am curious enough to read the third, at least. B/B+.
Tuesday, January 14, 2020
2020 book 6
Ada Palmer's Too Like the Lightning
The first book in Palmer's Terra Ignota series is a doozy! It's a sci fi story set several hundred years in the future, and it also has a couple of different mysteries going on, and a LOT of political intrigue. The narrator is a man (though gender is hidden in this world and pronouns are used based more on societal role) who immediately confesses that he's a criminal, but his sentence was to be part of the servant class. He works for many of the world's leaders and so is witness to all sorts of politics. Also, there was a weird newspaper break-in, but who broke in, and why? And what did the narrator DO, exactly? Also, there's a mysterious little boy. ALSO, the narrator engages in a lot of conversations about 18th century Enlightenment thinkers (I personally could have done with less of this, as well as with less of the weird lewdness in the back half). OK, there is no good way for me to explain this book: it's very dense, and intense, and fascinating, and I can't wait to read the next one. A-.
The first book in Palmer's Terra Ignota series is a doozy! It's a sci fi story set several hundred years in the future, and it also has a couple of different mysteries going on, and a LOT of political intrigue. The narrator is a man (though gender is hidden in this world and pronouns are used based more on societal role) who immediately confesses that he's a criminal, but his sentence was to be part of the servant class. He works for many of the world's leaders and so is witness to all sorts of politics. Also, there was a weird newspaper break-in, but who broke in, and why? And what did the narrator DO, exactly? Also, there's a mysterious little boy. ALSO, the narrator engages in a lot of conversations about 18th century Enlightenment thinkers (I personally could have done with less of this, as well as with less of the weird lewdness in the back half). OK, there is no good way for me to explain this book: it's very dense, and intense, and fascinating, and I can't wait to read the next one. A-.
Sunday, January 12, 2020
2020 book 5
Gish Jen's The Resisters
All I knew going into this book was a) I like Gish Jen, and b) that is a badass cover and title. So I almost don’t want to say anything else about it so you too can be surprised about where it starts, and where it ends up. Here are some tidbits: a near-future dystopia, race and class struggles, a father watching his daughter grow up . . . and baseball. (I am not a person particularly interested in sports, but Jen makes the baseball pretty compelling.) It's great. A/A-.
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A review copy was provided by the publisher. This book will be released on February 4th.
Wednesday, January 08, 2020
2020 book 4
Kate Racculia's Tuesday Mooney Talks to Ghosts
I loved this book so much when I read it that I made my book club read it so I would have more people to discuss it with, but for some reason I had a little bit of a hard time rereading it. I think I was sort of cringing in anticipation of a couple of things I knew were coming, even though I knew awesome things were ALSO coming! (And knowing one of the twists means Tuesday is bad at her job is cringeworthy for sure.) But soon enough I was caught up in the adventures; following a dead man's treasure hunt with a wild cast of characters is bound to do that. This is heartfelt and bittersweet and full of adventures and sadness and joy. Just great.
I loved this book so much when I read it that I made my book club read it so I would have more people to discuss it with, but for some reason I had a little bit of a hard time rereading it. I think I was sort of cringing in anticipation of a couple of things I knew were coming, even though I knew awesome things were ALSO coming! (And knowing one of the twists means Tuesday is bad at her job is cringeworthy for sure.) But soon enough I was caught up in the adventures; following a dead man's treasure hunt with a wild cast of characters is bound to do that. This is heartfelt and bittersweet and full of adventures and sadness and joy. Just great.
Sunday, January 05, 2020
2020 book 3
Kate Milford's The Thief Knot
The latest book in Milford's Greenglass House universe features a great mix of old and new characters (but works fine as a standalone, since I don’t remember all of them very well). Two girls live in the MOST boring town—because it’s a sanctuary for retired ne'er-do-wells—so of course when they hear about a kidnapping, they decide to investigate, and put a crew together. This makes it sound like a silly romp but Milford and her characters take all this very seriously, and it’s a really satisfying adventure story/mystery. Great friendships, great kids, great depiction of dealing with social anxiety. A/A-.
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A review copy was provided by the publisher. This book will be released on January 14th.
The latest book in Milford's Greenglass House universe features a great mix of old and new characters (but works fine as a standalone, since I don’t remember all of them very well). Two girls live in the MOST boring town—because it’s a sanctuary for retired ne'er-do-wells—so of course when they hear about a kidnapping, they decide to investigate, and put a crew together. This makes it sound like a silly romp but Milford and her characters take all this very seriously, and it’s a really satisfying adventure story/mystery. Great friendships, great kids, great depiction of dealing with social anxiety. A/A-.
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A review copy was provided by the publisher. This book will be released on January 14th.
Friday, January 03, 2020
2020 book 2
Margaret Dumas' Murder in the Balcony
The second Murder in the Palace mystery, about a woman who runs a classic movie theater (which has a helpful and friendly ghost!) and deals with theater stuff, her maybe ex husband the movie star, her employees and friends, and also a little bit of murder-solvin'. This time, the boyfriend of one of her employees is MURDERED! Also, a shady real estate tycoon is trying to buy all the buildings on the block! Can she figure things out and save the day? The mystery here is solid, but it’s definitely the characters I’m most into here. And all the cute fake blog entries about classic movies. There were some annoying typos but otherwise this was a lot of fun. B+.
The second Murder in the Palace mystery, about a woman who runs a classic movie theater (which has a helpful and friendly ghost!) and deals with theater stuff, her maybe ex husband the movie star, her employees and friends, and also a little bit of murder-solvin'. This time, the boyfriend of one of her employees is MURDERED! Also, a shady real estate tycoon is trying to buy all the buildings on the block! Can she figure things out and save the day? The mystery here is solid, but it’s definitely the characters I’m most into here. And all the cute fake blog entries about classic movies. There were some annoying typos but otherwise this was a lot of fun. B+.
Thursday, January 02, 2020
2020 book 1
Lina Rather's Sisters of the Vast Black
Nuns! In! Space!!!!!!!!
I mean, do I really need to write more? You already know if you want to read a book about nuns in space, on a living ship, in the far corners of the galaxy. Nuns of a practical nature.
But if you're on the fence about it--I recommend it HIGHLY. Especially if you're into the Becky Chambers Wayfarers books. Definitely that sort of vibe. And I will be eagerly awaiting whatever Rather writes next. A.
Nuns! In! Space!!!!!!!!
I mean, do I really need to write more? You already know if you want to read a book about nuns in space, on a living ship, in the far corners of the galaxy. Nuns of a practical nature.
But if you're on the fence about it--I recommend it HIGHLY. Especially if you're into the Becky Chambers Wayfarers books. Definitely that sort of vibe. And I will be eagerly awaiting whatever Rather writes next. A.
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