Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo
Started: 8/17/18
Finished: 8/24/18
Sequel to Six of Crows, nice wrap-up to that story. Adventure, heists, magic, plots within plots – good stuff.
physical
The Calculating Stars by Mary Robinette Kowal
Started: 8/13/18
Gave up: 8/16/18
Loved it. Alternate history where an asteroid hits the planet and the space race of the 60s is needed to find a way to save humanity. It’s about the space race, focusing on the role of women and minorities in a fascinating and entertaining look at fake-NASA.
Space Opera by Catherynne Valente
Started: 8/12/18
Gave up: 8/13/18
I was so ready to love this book and then I didn’t. It was written in the Hitchhiker’s Guide style (which I knew going in – that was part of the appeal), but it was too deliberately and obviously and painfully done that way, and it wasn’t fun to read. I gave up.
Bannerless by Carrie Vaughn
Started: 1/23/18
Finished: 1/26/18
The premise was interesting – post-apocalyptic world, society determines that overpopulation was one of the causes of collapse, so people have to earn the right to have kids – but it took a while to get to that explanation, and I never felt like it had a point. Also, the writing was ANNOYING. John was reading another of her books at the same time and had similar issues with the writing. I finished it, but it was difficult not to skim through to the end.