The Shape of My Name by Nino Cipri
Started: 1/19/19
Finished: 1/19/19
A short story about identity and acceptance and time travel. I’d like to see it expanded into a novel so I can get more.
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The Queen of Blood by Sarah Beth Durst
Started: 1/17/19
Finished: 1/18/19
For some reason, I thought there were dragons in this series, but there are not. Figured you should know that up front. However, I REALLY liked this book, and I’m eager to read the next one.
Updraft by Fran Wilde
Started: 1/14/19
Finished: 1/17/19
Cool fantasy, steampunk-ish, and it’s the start of a series, thank goodness, because I need to know more about the world. The main character is a teenage girl who matures as the book continues (also thank goodness), but I’m less invested in her than I am in finding out what on earth the city actually IS.
Wintersong by S. Jae-Jones
Started: 1/13/19
Finished: 1/14/19
The Goblin King in this book is SO very David Bowie, which is great. I think the characterization of the main character shifts halfway through, and not for the better. Her motivations aren’t consistent, and she gets all worked up about things that could be resolved if she would just TALK to the guy. Same goes for him, of course. On the other hand, she’s a teenager, and she’s acting like a teenager, so maybe I should be praising the author for her realism instead.
Seraphina by Rachel Hartman
Started: 1/11/19
Finished: 1/12/19
Music and humans and dragons and secrets and love and a plucky heroine. There’s a sequel!
Points of Impact by Marko Kloos
Started: 1/8/19
Finished: 1/11/19
Book 6 in the Frontlines series. It’s book 6 of 6, but it clearly isn’t the end. I’m happy to believe there will be more. I’ve been enjoying this series.
Fields of Fire by Marko Kloos
Started: 1/7/19
Finished: 1/8/19
Book 5 in the Frontlines series. Have I mentioned that these are all written in the present tense? I always notice when the book starts and then stop noticing because I’m in the story.
Sorcery & Cecilia or The Enchanted Chocolate Pot by Patricia C. Wrede and Caroline Stevermer
Started: 1/5/19
Finished: 1/7/19
Delightful! A story told in letters between two cousins/best friends, set in Regency England with a bit of magic.
The Oracle Year by Charles Soule
Started: 1/4/19
Finished: 1/5/19
Fun story, couldn’t put it down. I feel like I haven’t read one of those in a while.
Revenger by Alistair Reynolds
Started: 1/3/19
Gave up: 1/4/19
The dialogue killed me. The story could be good – combination of magic (special abilities, anyway) and space adventures – but the dialogue between every character in the first few chapters is PAINFUL. I quit.
In The Stacks by Scott Lynch
Started: 1/3/19
Finished: 1/3/19
Short story about a wizard university where to pass your fifth year, you have to return a library book. Harder than it seems. Cute story.
One Way by S.J. Morden
Started: 12/30/18
Finished: 1/3/19
The Mars base has to be built, but it’s risky and dangerous, so let’s get convicts with life sentences to do it. Pretty good, but the main character has this lack of curiosity (that gets lampshaded in the story) that means I was frustrated when he wouldn’t take the next logical step. A built-in character flaw is one thing, but when that character is the reader stand-in, it’s hard not to see it as a clumsy attempt to keep the reader from figuring out what’s going on. There’s a sequel. I might read it.
The Poppy War by R.F. Kuang
Started: 12/27/18
Finished: 12/30/18
It got rave reviews, but now that I’ve read it, I’m not sure why. The story jumps from section to section, there are parts that don’t fit at all, and we’re inside the main character’s head, but the character’s not fully developed. There’s too much telling instead of showing, and at the same time not enough telling to understand her motivations.
The Enchanted Life of Adam Hope by Rhonda Riley
Started: 12/19/18
Finished: 12/27/18
This was an odd one, and I’m not sure I liked it. I didn’t dislike it, and I was interested enough to finish it, but I’m feeling kind of meh about it.
Exit West by Mohsin Hamid
Started: 12/17/18
Finished: 12/19/18
A couple meet, fall in love, and flee their Middle Eastern city via a magic door. The writing keeps you at a remove from the characters and the story, so you know how the characters are feeling, but you don’t feel how they’re feeling, but it’s well-done. There have been several sentences I’ve read out loud to John because I liked the phrasing so much.
Mother of Invention by Caeli Wolfson Widger
Started: 12/14/18
Finished: 12/17/18
Set in the near future, it’s about a biotech company looking for ways to improve pregnancy and early motherhood. It took a weird turn at the end, had one big block of exposition that I found irritating, and wrapped too neatly and quickly. The ending didn’t make sense for two of the male characters.
One Day in December by Josie Silver
Started: 12/12/18
Finished: 12/14/18
A British love story that references Love Actually and Bridget Jones liberally. The beginning was difficult, but it got better largely because the friendship between the two women was well-written. The man was two-dimensional, boring, and not worth the angst thrown in his direction.
Fledgling by Octavia Butler
Started: 12/11/18
Gave up: 12/12/18
I have loved (or really liked) everything I’ve read by Octavia Butler, so it pains me to say I gave up on this book. SF vampires = all good, but the main character presents as an 11-year-old. I don’t care that she’s actually in her 50s or whatever (because vampires) – that makes the sex icky and weird. I tried to get past that and kept reading, but then it turned into all exposition, all the time, and I couldn’t care enough to get to the plot.
Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein
Started: 12/2/18
Finished: 12/11/18
Female spy captured in Nazi-occupied France tells her story via written confession. Fascinating, funny, sweet. Ultimately the story of a friendship.
Beneath the Sugar Sky by Seanan McGuire
Started: 12/1/18
Finished: 12/2/18
Third in the Wayward Children series. The first book set up the premise (which is great). The second and third explore some of the worlds and follow some of the first book’s characters. I still love these books, both for the ideas and the characters. These are some real teenagers going through some real emotional issues.