Sakerfalcon reads more in 2024

Happy New Year everyone! I hope it brings good things for us all.

2023 was a notable year for me because I became owned by a cat again. I adopted William from the RSPCA and he is the love of my life now. It was also a good year in reading, though I'm pretty sure I bought more books than I read. This is normal.

Many thanks to everyone who commented and left recommendations on my thread last year. You are all awesome!

My main reading interests are Science fiction and Fantasy, Classic children's books (especially school and pony stories), and 20th century women's writing, particularly titles published by Virago and Persephone. But I'm a bit of a magpie and some odd things do take my fancy every now and then.

I started keeping a reading journal a few years ago when I realised that I was reading so many books so quickly that I didn't remember anything about some of them a few months later. I tend to have 3 or 4 books on the go at any time - one for commuting, one to read in bed, one that I'll dip into while checking email and an alternative if none of the others happen to suit the mood I'm in.

I live in London, UK and like to travel to new places, both in real life and in books. Welcome!

Welcome our new feline overlords!

I ended the year by finishing Fourth Wing, Chaos terminal, Gobbelino London & a contagion of zombies, and Siblings.

Fourth Wing is massively popular and I found it ridiculously addictive despite being very irritating. Violet is clearly a Chosen One with Plot Immunity - despite her extreme physical weakness she survives a very violent world with numerous threats pretty easily. She is destined for a One True Pairing with a man who should be her mortal enemy, whom she spends pages lusting after whenever he makes an appearance. The F word is sprinkled gratuitously throughout the book, not used naturally but thrown in randomly as if to say "This is not a Young Adult book". The worldbuilding is thin and doesn't stand up to prolonged thinking about. However, the dragons are very cool (and a bit underused - there is no such thing as too much dragon), there are some good portrayals of friendship, and the author knows how to get you hooked on the tale she is telling. Of course I have the sequel lined up to read soon, even though I may sprain my eye-rolling muscles.

Contagion of Zombies is the second Gobbelino London book about the titular feline PI and his human sidekick. Gobbelino's narrative is the perfect snarky cat voice. This episode sees Callum and Gobs reluctantly forced to admit that zombies do in fact exist, and are a threat to their world. It introduces some great new characters, especially Gertrude the rather dainty Reaper who bakes wonderful cakes and wields a mean scythe. This is such a fun series!

Siblings portrays the social and political tensions in a divided post WWII Germany. Elisabeth is optimistic about life in East Germany, but her brother sees through the propaganda and wishes to follow their elder brother to the West. It was a good read that seemed to capture the troubled place and time.

I'm still trying to finish The virgin in the garden, which is a reread. I'm also reading What happened in London, which is a prequel to Baking bad, telling of the events that led DI Adams to leave London. I'm enjoying this even more than BB. Adams is a great character. And I'm also reading Such sharp teeth, about a young woman who returns to her small-town home to care for her pregnant sister, but is attacked by a strange beast and finds herself changing in peculiar and frightening ways. So far it's a really good read, as much for the family and return-to-small-town aspects as for the supernatural elements.

>2 Bookmarque: Thank you so much! I have been admiring your wonderful graphics on everyone's threads this year! I hope you had as much fun creating them as we have seeing them.

>1 Sakerfalcon: Happy New Year and New Thread, Claire. May all your 2024 reads be gems.

I'm so glad you and William have found each other!

>4 Sakerfalcon: Oh I did and I'm so glad you guys like them.

Happy New Year! I hope you'll have a wonder reading year.

>1 Sakerfalcon: Happy new year and new reading thread! Look forward to reading your excitements and frustrations as you read this year. Hope there are more excitements than the other!

Good heavens, it's only the second day of the new year and you've already gotten me with Such Sharp Teeth. You're deadly. :)

Happy New Year!

Happy New Thread. I am wearing a flak-jacket to minimise the possibility of injury from all the book bullets you fire. I am sure you will hit me a few times this year.

Have a great 2024. I look forward to this years photo-journals of your trips.

Happy reading in 2024! I'm glad you enjoyed the second Gobbelino. Just wait until the third haha

Happy new thread!

Happy New Year and happy new thread! I hope you have many enjoyable reads this year.

Happy New Year!!

Such Sharp Teeth sounds fun!

Happy New Year, Claire! I hope that 2024 is another great reading year for you.

I hope 2024 is a good vintage for you Claire.

Thanks for stopping by everyone! I look forward to your comments on my thread as the year goes by, and to seeing what you are up to in your own threads.

>9 Marissa_Doyle:, >14 catzteach: I'm just over halfway through Such sharp teeth and am really enjoying it. It's clever and funny but also gives you a lot to think about, exploring the impact that becoming a werewolf would have on one's work, relationships, and daily life. Parallels are drawn between Rory's situation and that of her pregnant sister, both women facing changes to their bodies that they can't control.

>10 pgmcc: You got me to read Eric Ambler and Hopeland last year, so fair's fair!

>11 Narilka: It's coming up soon! I can't wait!

I finished What happened in London which was a terrific urban fantasy prequel to Baking bad. It would work very well as a standalone, except that you'll want to follow more of DI Adams' adventures after reading it! When young children start disappearing from a Christmas market, leaving no traces at all behind, the police are at a loss. Could the strange things that Adams is seeing from the corner of her eye be anything to do with it? Or is she going mad? A very fun read.

Now I've started The house on the strand for this month's Virago challenge, which is to read books by Daphne du Maurier. This one is new to me, but it already has me captivated.

>3 Sakerfalcon: got me with Such Sharp Teeth, it's now on my "to read" list. I'm also looking at Baking Bad and What Happened in London.

>3 Sakerfalcon: I've heard Harrison described as cozy horror. I have Such Sharp Teeth and Cackle on my TBR.

>18 NorthernStar:, >19 libraryperilous: I really enjoyed Such sharp teeth - see below!

I've finished a few books and have fallen behind already this year!

Such sharp teeth was an excellent read, funny and gory but moving and thoughtful too. Rory was the smart girl who overachieved in high school and got out of her small town to achieve her dreams. When she returns to support her pregnant sister a violent attack leaves her permanently changed, and she realises that her way of life is no longer possible - she may lose everything she worked so hard to achieve. Rory's emotional progress as she reacts to her new situation is believable and easy to empathise with. There's also a good cast of supporting characters - her sister Scarlett, old not-quite-flame Ian, friends from high school, her mother and various others, who variously help or hinder Rory and allow us to see other sides to her personality. This book was an impulse buy from the sale shelf and I didn't really know what to expect. But this perceptive story certainly exceeded the expectations I didn't have!

I finally finished my reread of The virgin in the garden! It's not an easy read, as you might guess from how long it has taken me, and I'd say it's a book to admire rather than enjoy, although parts of it are certainly entertaining. It's set in the summer of 1953 as Elizabeth ascends to the throne, it takes place in the north of England where a new play about Elizabeth I is being performed. Alexander Wedderburn is the writer, and also a teacher at the local boys' school, along with Bill Potter whose three children are the protagonists of the book. Stephanie and Frederica both have huge crushes on Alexander, although Stephanie grows out of hers when the local curate sets his sights on her. Frederica is very intelligent but not at all wise, and blunders loudly and headlong through relationships with her family and male acquaintances, frequently missing the obvious. Their brother Marcus is nervous and sensitive, and a teacher takes him under his wing but only encourages Marcus' visions and makes him worse. (These chapters, in which Byatt goes into a lot of detail about the teacher's pseudo-scientific theories and beliefs, were some of the hardest for me to get through.) This is a clever book about clever people, who pursue the intellectual life but can't escape the tangles of the flesh. It brings to life a hot summer and the claustrophobic world of a second-rate public school. It assumes that the reader is as clever as the characters, which is flattering but daunting. I will continue to follow Frederica out of the 1950s and into the 60s in the next volume, Still life.

I really enjoyed The house on the strand by Daphne du Maurier. I wasn't sure if I'd like it, given that much of it is historical (set in the 1300s) and the protagonist and narrator is male, along with most of the characters. But I was drawn in within a few pages, just as Richard is drawn into the past. His friend Magnus has lent him his house in Cornwall for the summer, and has asked Richard if he'd mind testing a substance that he's created. This is a drug that allows him to observe past events in his present location. Richard becomes fascinated by the lives of these long-dead people and their world, to the point where the present means less to him. But he is pulled up with a jolt when his wife and stepsons arrive to join him for their holidays. As the past and present merge for Richard he and his family are placed in danger. Du Maurier writes Richard's voice utterly convincingly - not all writers can write well in the voice of the opposite sex. The darkness, dirt and cruelty of the Dark Ages is brought to life, as are the intrigues and passions of its people. Richard's descent into obsession is gripping to observe, as are the growing tensions with his wife. I'm very glad that the Virago group prompted me to read this book. And I'm continuing to explore Du Maurier's work with The Parasites.

I've also started and completed two more books.

Top marks for murder is the 8th book in the Murder Most Unladylike series, set in 1930s Britain with a pair of schoolgirl heroines. Daisy and Hazel are back at Deepdene school after a couple of terms absence, and are disconcerted to find that things have changed and they no longer fit in as before. But when their friend Binnie sees a murder from the dorm window, the Detective Society springs back into action with Daisy at the helm and Hazel her faithful sidekick. This is another enjoyable adventure, with the girls showing signs of new maturity as they've grown from their previous experiences.

And I've read The quiet woman by Christopher Priest, a novel I didn't even know existed until I found it on a library booksale shelf. It opens in 1990s England, but a couple of oddities soon indicate that this may not be the Britain that many of us lived through. Alice is living alone in a village in Wiltshire following the end of her marriage. She makes a precarious living as a writer of biographies, but her latest manuscript has been seized by the Home Office and publication is forbidden. Then Alice hears that an elderly neighbour, her only real friend in the village, has been found dead, almost certainly murdered. The third-person story of Alice is interspersed with first-person narrative by the murder victim's son, a man who is revealed to be extremely unpleasant and a very different experience of reality. Whose experience is real? Or are both, or neither? It's a strange, disturbing and compelling read. And the cat has nothing bad happen to it!

Now I've started The parasites by Du Maurier, and a classic detective novel, Death at the President's lodging which is set in an Oxbridge-type college in the 1930s. I'm also rereading Unconquerable Sun before I read the sequel, and I've started another Christopher Priest on my kindle, Expect me tomorrow.

>20 Sakerfalcon: I read The House on the Strand when I was in my 20s and a new Du Maurier fan. I don't remember much about it except it involved a sort of time travel. Your review brought it back for me. I had forgotten it was so far in the past. Might have to read it again.

I think you said you are new to Du Maurier? If so, realize her books can be hit and miss. When they are a hit, they are fantastic.

>20 Sakerfalcon:
My first Du Maurier was Jamaica Inn. I borrowed it from the school library and really enjoyed it. I re-read it in 2014 and really enjoyed it again. (Before checking my records I could have sworn my re-read was last year.) The other Du Maurier books I have read and thoroughly enjoyed are:
- Rebecca
- My Cousin Rachel
- The Scapegoat
- The Doll (Collection of short stories - really good)

I have also read Frenchman's Creek which was not as good as the others but still readable. Had it been the first Du Maurier I had read it could have been the last. As >21 MrsLee: states, her books can be hit or miss. So far I have only hit one miss, if you know what I mean. :-)

I read several Christopher Priest books years ago. I would have said about ten years ago, but I think the last of his books I read was read around the time I went to WorldCon in Glasgow in...2005. I have several unread books by him and I always mean to catch up with his writing.

The House on the Strand sounds interesting. Given my memory for when I read books I must have taken some of the drug involved in this story.

>21 MrsLee:, >22 pgmcc: I've read some of Du Maurier's most famous novels - Rebecca, Jamaica Inn, Frenchman's Creek and My cousin Rachel, although some years ago. More recently I read the short story Don't look now which was amazing. I enjoyed all the novels mentioned above, so I don't know why I didn't carry on reading her books, so I'm glad the Virago group has prompted me to do so now.

>23 Sakerfalcon: Those are the same four novels by Daphne Du Maurier that I've read. I enjoyed each of them, but haven't really thought to go looking for other titles. I've also enjoyed the Michael Innes books. Far more complex than I'd expected them to be.

>24 jillmwo: I would highly recommend both The house on the strand and The parasites having just read them. Two very different books but both excellent in their own ways.

The parasites is less focused on plot and more on the characters of three siblings, the parasites of the title. Maria, Niall and Celia grew up travelling with their theatrical performer parents, cossetted and indulged when they weren't being ignored. It's easy to see how they grew into selfish, flawed, yet fascinating adults. The novel moves back and forwards in time so we can see the formative experiences and the outcome. I especially liked the theatrical background which pervades the book. I felt this book read more like something by Rumer Godden or Pamela Frankau than the books Du Maurier is best known for - not a complaint at all!

I'm enjoying Death at the President's Lodging quite a lot. The various students and academics are entertaining, and Appleby, the police detective in charge of the case, is insightful but far from infallible in his investigations.

Expect me tomorrow is also a good read so far, the plot revolving around glaciology, volcanology and climatology. I'm not sure where it is going, but I'm enjoying the journey.

I finished my reread of Unconquerable Sun and started Furious Heaven right away. It's a good thing I did because there's no summary to catch you up on events; you are plunged right in.

>25 Sakerfalcon:
The two Du Maurier novels are ones that have not crossed my path to date. You can chalk them up as BBs.

I would not say you can chalk up the Priest as a BB just yet. I have a number of his books that I have yet to read. I fell out of the habit of reading his books, mostly because I have them shelved in a slightly awkward place to get at. I fell out of the habit of buying his books because the number of his new-and-yet-unread books on my shelves was mounting and I could not bring myself to justify the on-going acquisitions. At one time I could rhyme off the publication sequence of his books, but that ability has all but disappeared in the mists of time.

What you can do, however, is take credit for urging me back to Priest's novels.

We have a number of Michael Innes novels. I will have to check if Death in the President's Lodging is amongst them. I bought several of them for my wife as she liked murder mysteries.

>26 pgmcc: I too have a lot of catching up to do with Mr Priest. I shall look forward to you excavating the books that are on your shelves.

I finished Expect me tomorrow and very much enjoyed the journey, but the destination was disappointing. The past and present twins plots linked up and were tidily resolved; however, given the impact that Adolf Beck's case had on English law, I would have thought that once Chad learned his real name he'd have found references to him easily, which could have cut out a lot of his failed attempts to find answers in the past.. But a lot of the other plot material, such as the climate research (which I found fascinating) and the IMC device, seemed to fizzle out. It felt like they'd served their plot purpose so that was it. But as I said at the beginning, I did enjoy the read for most of the book.

Death at the President's lodging was a good read but a bit too procedural for me. I enjoyed the academic setting but found the solving of the mystery to be a bit dry. I suspect fans of the mystery genre will enjoy this one more than I did.

Furious Heaven is proving to be an excellent sequel, developing the characters and continuing the action and intrigue. I am really enjoying this space opera.

On kindle I've started a collection of essays by British Muslim women, It's not about the burqa. They talk about different aspects of being Muslim women in a largely secular, white, country. It's an eye-opening read so far.

I'm also reading Still life, the sequel to The virgin in the garden. I'm getting into this a lot more quickly; thankfully there is none of the pseudoscience that bogged down the previous book for me.

Still reading and enjoying Furious Heaven. My paperback copy is so thick that my reading is limited by how long it is comfortable to hold! Also enjoying Still life, in which Frederica spends a summer as an au pair in France, before going to Cambridge, and Stephanie gives birth to her first child.

I finished It's not about the burqa which was an interesting and varied collection of essays by British Muslim women. I think this was a bookbullet from Lyzzybee. It was especially interesting to hear from women who have read the Quran for themselves and found that it teaches equality between men and women, which is often ignored or contradicted by Islamic culture. As a result most of the writers have had to rebel to some extent in order to achieve their goals.

I've also read a classic mystery by Margery Allingham, The case of the late pig. It's narrated by the detective, Campion, whose voice is lively and entertaining. A hated bully from his schooldays is reportedly dead, and Campion attends his funeral. A few months later, he is asked to attend when a man is killed in mysterious circumstances ... and the body proves to be that of the man he believed he'd seen buried. This is an amusing and twisty story with some great characters - I especially liked Campion's manservant, Lugg, and his old schoolmate Whippet. This is the first of Allingham's books that's I've read; I believe the others are all in 3rd person narration.

On kindle I'm rereading Ninth House before I start the sequel, Hell bent. I'd forgotten how much I enjoyed this dark tale of supernatural events at Yale!

>29 Sakerfalcon: Oh, yes. You're going to enjoy that second Leigh Bardugo. You're smart to reread the first one. I really should have done the same. It had only been a couple of years, but I had forgotten a lot of the particulars, especially about her life in California. Enjoy!

Forgot to say I'm also reading Terminal uprising, the middle part of the trilogy in which space janitors are the heroes. It is great!

>29 Sakerfalcon: I loved the 1990 BBC productions of some of Allingham's Campion stories, both for Peter Davison and for Brian Glover as Lugg in particular.

>30 clamairy: I had forgotten that much of the book was from Darlington's POV, and I didn't remember the details of his backstory.

>32 Marissa_Doyle: Based on the one book I've read so far, Peter Davison would be perfect as Campion!

>32 Marissa_Doyle: and >33 Sakerfalcon: Yes, I agree that he was great as Campion and Brian Glover was excellent as Magersfontein Lugg.

>34 jillmwo: Glover stole every scene he was in. When we're outside gardening and it's hot and humid and buggy or otherwise unpleasant my DH and I often stop and mutter to each other, "I 'ate the country!" after Lugg's memorable line in Sweet Danger, and it makes us laugh and feel better.

>34 jillmwo:, >35 Marissa_Doyle: Lugg is awesome! He pretty much steals the scenes he's in in the book too! I must see if I can access the TV adaptation.

I've finished my Ninth House reread, and also Terminal uprising. I'm really glad I reread NH as I'd forgotten a surprising amount of detail. Now I'm a few chapters into Hell bent and really needed the reminder of what happened previously.

So far Jim Hines' Janitors of the apocalypse series is a delight! Terminal uprising takes our unlikely heroes to Earth, which was devastated by a virus that essentially turned humans into zombies. Mops and her team meet up with a gang of librarians who were somehow immune to the virus and have dedicated themselves to staying under the radar and protecting the legacy of humankind as it was. This is billed as humorous SF and it is, but the stakes are high and Hines takes his plot and characters seriously. I'm looking forward to the final volume, Terminal Peace.

This month in the Virago group we are reading Elizabeth Taylor (the English novelist, not the actress!) I chose to read her final novel, written while she was dying and published posthumously. Blaming is character- rather than plot-driven, focusing on Amy who is suddenly widowed while on holiday with her husband. The eccentric Martha, an American fellow tourist, cuts short her own trip to help Amy and get her back to England. Once home, Amy doesn't really want to continue the acquaintance with Martha, but feels she ought to in thanks for her help. The friendship is grudging on Amy's part; she uses Martha when she needs an escape from her son and daughter-in-law and their precocious children. When the times comes that Martha is the one in need, will Amy step up? Taylor's gift for drawing memorable characters who spring to life from the page is in full force here - the little girls are very realistic, and Amy's general factotum, Ernie, is wonderful. I want an Ernie to run my home! This is a quiet but moving book, ultimately very powerful.

I'm continuing with Taylor's A game of hide and seek, while still enjoying Furious heaven - I'm into the final 100 pages! - and continuing with Still life.

>36 Sakerfalcon: I hope you enjoy Hell Bent! I think when the third one comes out I might try to find a good synopsis of what happened in the first two before I start it.

>37 clamairy: That's a good idea! I will be doing the same when the final part of Kate Elliott's trilogy is published (see below!)

I've finally finished Furious Heaven, the middle part of Kate Elliott's space opera trilogy. It's inspired by Alexander the Great's life and achievements, relocated in time and space, and with the genders swapped. I know almost nothing about A the G, but even without that this is a great read for anyone who loves wide-screen space opera. There is a huge cast of characters, many of whom have point-of-view chapters, enabling us to see events all over the galaxy. As well as Princess Sun, her friends and allies, we also see things from the enemy side, and it is impossible not to empathise with and root for them as well as the "heroes". The balance of action with politics is well managed, and the worldbuilding is excellent. I highly recommend this but maybe wait until book 3 is published though, because I for one am not going to have time to reread this beforehand.

I've also finished A game of hide and seek, which I liked a bit less than some of Taylor's other novels. I had little sympathy with the characters, and indeed took an instant dislike to the male lead, with whom our heroine is infatuated, which meant I couldn't empathise with or root for their relationship. Harriet and Vesey spend their summers together as children and teenagers, Harriet too repressed and shy to admit her feelings, and Vesey hiding his uncertainty behind casual cruelty and indifference. They are separated by their families, and Harriet marries and has a child. But many years later, when Vesey reappears in her life, her obsession with him flares up again. This is very well written and there are many excellent supporting characters (I especially liked the women with whom Harriet works at a dress shop) but as I said, I couldn't warm to the leads or sympathise with their predicament.

Still reading and enjoyed Hell bent and Still life, and have just started Silver Nitrate on kindle.

>38 Sakerfalcon: I read Silver Nitrate just last month. I have read most of Moreno-Garcia's catalog by now, (she is quite prolific), and felt this one is one of her stronger efforts. Hope you enjoy it!

>39 ScoLgo: I'm glad to hear this from you! Many of the reviews on LT are pretty negative, but so far I'm really enjoying the setting of the Mexican low-budget film industry.

Well... I am a bit of a 'weird fiction' reader so the story line of Silver Nitrate is more my thing than most of her other offerings. That's probably why I also really liked Mexican Gothic and Certain Dark Things. I still have two or three collections/anthologies to get to, (She Walks in Shadows is on my shelf and Fungi is currently in the post wending its way here). Have not yet read The Daughter of Doctor Moreau. Looking forward to that one!

>41 ScoLgo: I've enjoyed pretty much all her books that I've read.Certain dark things might be my favourite. Silver nitrate is really good so far!

I finished Still life last night, the sequel to The virgin in the garden. These are dense, clever books about clever people, set in 1950s England. They follow three middle class siblings from North Yorkshire - Stephanie, who graduated from Cambridge but has married and started a family; Frederica, who is starting undergraduate life at Cambridge; and Marcus, recovering from a nervous breakdown and living with Stephanie and Daniel. Stephanie was the character I felt the most sympathy for - pregnant not long after her marriage, adjusting to life as a clergyman's wife, sharing their small house with her brother and mother-in-law. She muses on the lost outlets for her intellectual interests and tries to read Wordsworth as she goes into labour. Frederica is clever but not wise, and we see her make various social mistakes through overconfidence and awkwardness, yet she bounces back unscathed. Throughout the book, Byatt muses on Van Gogh and his use of light and colour, breaking the fourth wall to address the reader directly, sometimes looking into her characters' future. Like its predecessor, this is a demanding but fascinating book. I will try to acquire the next volume, Babel tower to see where the characters go next.

I've finished a few more books this week.

Silver nitrate is a weird/horror novel set in 1990s Mexico City. Montserrat and her best friend Tristan both work in the film industry, she as a sound editor, he as an actor. Tristan discovers that a cult horror film director lives in his building and he and Montserrat form a friendship with the old man. Soon the three of them are caught up with dark forces from the past, which are threatening to emerge again. I didn't find this super scary, but there were some shocks along the way, and I loved the setting and background of the Mexican film industry. Another great read by this (thankfully) prolific author!

I also finished Hell bent which was an excellent follow up to Ninth House. Alex and Dawes spend most of the book trying to free Darlington from hell. We see less of the other societies in this book, but learn more about Alex, Dawes, Mercy, Tripp and Turner, and about the otherworldly history of Yale and New Haven. I had one small quibble - a pet rabbit that Alex and Hellie had at Ground Zero in LA plays a fairly significant role in the book, yet I don't remember it being mentioned at all in the previous volume. It felt like Bardugo had retconned it in. But that is a small point and didn't affect my enjoyment of the book. I'm eagerly awaiting the next instalment.

I also read a middle grade novel that was a book bullet from LibraryPerilous. Cece Rios and the Desert of Souls is a fantasy based on Mexican mythology featuring a determined 12 year old heroine. When Cece's sister is kidnapped by a dark criatura she blames herself, and decides to try and get her sister back. But can she bring herself to embrace dark powers that are in opposition to her very nature? I enjoyed seeing how Cece finds ways to do things that break with tradition, and I liked the setting. However I felt it could have been fleshed out a bit. We are told that there are crowds of people in town, but we don't meet any friends or neighbours, and Cece doesn't seem to go to school or have other daily activities. But overall this was a good read and I'm glad I got hit by that BB!

Now I'm reading Babel and, as others have said, the colonialist attitudes of Victorian Britain are hard to read about. But in spite of that I'm enjoying getting to know Robin and his friends and follow them through their studies in an Oxford powered by magic based on silver. I think Peter would find much of interest in this book because it revolves around translation, which is the key to the silver magic.

I've also delved back into Sherwood Smith's world of Sartorius-Deles with A sword named truth, which is set some centuries after the Inda quartet. This is not a good place to start; it depends on knowledge from previous books (many of which are self-published) and features characters established in those books. But I have read summaries and reviews of these, and Smith provides enough context, that I'm finding my feet and enjoying geting to know this new generation of characters.

>43 Sakerfalcon: I hear you about the rabbit. I just assumed I had forgotten it, but you just read the first book, so I think you would have remembered it.

I'm not sure you meant to place so much of your post behind the spoiler tag!

>43 Sakerfalcon: I just noticed that and fixed it! I'm in the office so was distracted by talking to my colleagues!

I finished reading Babel and don't really have anything new to add to what others here have said. It's a great book but extremely uncomfortable to read as a white British woman. But it's important to be taken out of our comfort zones, and this book certainly does that. Robin's character grows and changes throughout the book, from sympathetic underdog, to questioning student, to radical, single-minded activist. It is true that some of the book has a didactic tone, mainly where Griffin is telling Robin about colonialism and its effects, but Kuang uses other ways to explore these topics, such as the use of languages and translation, and the question of violence vs non-violence. The world of Oxford and its colleges is immersive (there was only one point at which I was thrown out of the book, and that was when a character uses the term "Narco-military state" which felt far too modern), and the book captured the all-consuming nature of student life, and the shock of confronting the reality beyond the ivory tower. I thought the ending of the book was perfect. I'd love to know what Victoire goes on to do with her life, but I very much doubt there will be a sequel.

I visited Oxford last weekend, while I was finishing Babel, and enjoyed imagining Robin and his friends wandering the streets. I found Magpie Lane, where he and Ramy lodge, quite by accident! While I was there I of course went to the Oxfam second-and bookshop, where I found a novel by Elizabeth Taylor that I didn't yet own, A wreath of roses. I started reading it on the train home. It's set in summer, when three female friends spend a month's holiday together. On her way there, Camilla witnesses a shocking suicide, and makes the acquaintance of a fellow traveller who is going to the same destination. When she arrives, she finds her friends changed: Frances has suddenly aged, and Liz is preoccupied with her new baby. Camilla feels an outsider and starts spending time with the man she met, who both attracts and repels her. But is he all that he seems to be? Like all Taylor's novels, this is subtle and beautifully written. The opening scene on a country railway platform in the hot sun, is so evocative you can feel the heat and quietness, so soon to be shattered by horror. She builds tension throughout the novel, yet intersperses it with the inner lives of Liz, Frances and the men in their lives. All the characters are well-rounded and realistic and, as I said earlier, the setting comes to life. Taylor was such a good writer; I don't think there is a single one of her books that I haven't enjoyed.

Still reading A sword named Truth which is very good.

Also reading a Mexican-American psychological novel based on the legend of La Llorona, The haunting of Alejandra. Alejandra seems to have it all - a loving husband, three beautiful children, a big house in the Philadelphia suburbs - yet she can't shake the sadness which covers her like a cloak. She starts to see a woman in white at times when she is most despairing. Matthew can't understand what's wrong - she has everything a woman could want, right? The novel shifts back in time to tell the stories of women in Alejandra's family line, and we see that La Llorona has haunted them for generations. Can Alejandra break the pattern, with the help of her therapist and curandera Melanie? This is a good read so far, although it is hard to read of Matthew's disregard for Alejandra's mental health - she has all the signs of severe depression but they are dismissed.

And on kindle I'm reading Orbital which was a BB from Caroline. It's a literary novel which covers 24 hours in the lives of the astronauts and cosmonauts on the ISS as it orbits the earth. Meditations on earth, space, time and life combine with practical and physical details to create an immersive portrait of life in this unique environment.

>46 Sakerfalcon: A Sword Named Truth sounds interesting. The description mentions that it is set in the same world as other books - is it important to read the other books first?

>47 Darth-Heather: I would say, very much so, at least the ones that are easily available. Smith has been creating this world since her childhood and there are a ton of self-published books set there which cover a lot of ground. My introduction was the Crown and Court duo, which can stand alone. Then I read the Inda quartet which are set hundreds of years earlier, and Banner of the Damned, set a century or so later than Inda. SNT is set another couple of centuries after that, and this gap is where the self-published books come in, but I have read enough reviews and summaries of them to be able to find my feet and figure out what is going on. Smith also manages to make references that give you an idea of what you have missed, without resorting to info-dumps. If you love fantasy I definitely recommend this series!

>48 Sakerfalcon: All of Sherwood's Sartorias books are available at www.bookviewcafe.com. Just sayin'. :)

Thanks Marissa, that's good to know! I don't want to read all the fill-ins but some of them seem important.

I really need to get back to the Byatt quartet Claire. I think I read the first book years ago, then got distracted. I'm not overly big on series, but love Byatt's work.

>46 Sakerfalcon: I think that is the only Taylor novel I haven't read. My favourite (the one that started me off and was gifted me) is A View of the Harbour. Coincidentally I am rereading In a Summer Season for my RL reading group this month.

>51 Caroline_McElwee: Ironically, A view of the harbour is the only Taylor I haven't read yet! I think A wreath of roses is one of her best. I've really enjoyed getting back into her writing this February. I hope your reading group has a good discussion.

>46 Sakerfalcon: >51 Caroline_McElwee: >52 Sakerfalcon: I have not read nearly as much of Taylor's work as I clearly ought to have done! Maybe I'll push one of the titles you've mentioned towards one of my book groups here. Have either of you read At Mrs. Lippincote's? I'm attracted by the marketing blurb for it.

>53 jillmwo: I think that is her first novel, and it's very good as I recall.

I just realised I didn't star you thread at the start of the year, Claire, sorry.
So nice you have company at home with William :-)

Few familiar titles in your reading, so no comments there.

>55 FAMeulstee: Thanks for visiting, Anita! Yes, William is lovely.

I hope to read Grand Hotel Europa soon. It always makes me think of Zwolle because it was on display in the bookshop there.

I finished The haunting of Alejandra and Orbital, both of which were good reads.

Alejandra uses the tropes of horror to show us a woman's journey of empowerment. Alejandra has a comfortable life with her husband and children in a luxurious home, but she is pursued by an unshakeable sadness and a voice that tells her she is worthless. Her husband doesn't get it - he has given her everything a woman could want, so why is she complaining? Through flashbacks to her ancestors, we can see that this despair is a curse that has afflicted the women in her family for centuries. Can Alejandra, with the help of her mother and her therapist/curandera, be the one to break the curse and save her children from its destructive power? There are some gory scenes in this but the real horror for me was the constant dismissal of Alejandra and her problems by her husband. He has no knowledge of the haunting she is undergoing, but she is clearly severely depressed and he just bullies her (one could critique the fact that he is a pretty unnuanced character). Alejandra's Mexican heritage plays an important role in the book, and added to its appeal for me.

Orbital is a literary novel that portrays the experiences of 6 astronauts on the ISS as it rotates around the earth. They experience 16 sunrises, track the path of a devastating tycoon towards the Phillipines, muse upon home, space, love, death, the earth and many other things, all while carrying out the daily tasks of life in space. It's a short book but one that will stay with me.

This month in the Virago group our author is Patricia Highsmith, and I've just read Those who walk away. I liked it a lot. Ray's wife commited suicide after just a year of marriage, and he is trying to understand why she might have done it. His father-in-law is sure that Ray was to blame, and is determined to exact revenge. What begins with an attempted shooting in Rome becomes a game of cat and mouse in Venice. The sense of place is superb, as is the depiction of Americans' and Venetians' relationships to the city. There are also some surprisingly (for Highsmith) warm portrayals of friendships that develop between Ray and some of the city's working class citizens. There is perhaps not the same level of tension as in some of her better-known books but I certainly enjoyed this one.

I'm still reading A sword named Truth, and I've started The blighted stars which is SF by the author of Velocity weapon which I very much enjoyed. And I've also just started Grey bees by Andrei Kurkov.

Oh, I just took a bullet with Orbital!

Hmm, it's already on my wishlist. Now I have to figure out how it got there.

>58 clamairy: I hope you will like Grey Bees! I thought it was a good read.

>49 Marissa_Doyle: The CJ's Notebooks that have been published so far should be available as e-books. They fall between Banner of the Damned and Senrid in the Sartorias-Deles series.

>58 clamairy: Ha! My wishlist is so long by now that I have completely forgotten the origin of some of the items, and even what attracted me to them!

>59 Alexandra_book_life: I loved it! See below.

>60 humouress: It looks as though pretty much all the series are available on kindle. CJ is one of my least favourite characters so these won't be the first books I seek out. I have the first part of Time of daughters (I know, I should have read that before A sword named Truth), and I will add the sequels to SNT for sure.

I've finished both A sword named Truth and Grey bees. The only other work by Kurkov that I've read is his Penguin duology which I loved, and have been slow to pick up anything else for fear it won't meet that high standard. I needn't have worried. Bees has the same mix of humour and poignancy that I enjoyed before, and an appealing lead character in Sergeyich. He and his former high school enemy, Pashka, are the only two residents remaining in their village, which lies in the "grey zone" between the Russian and Ukrainian fronts in Donbass. His daily routine revolves around keeping warm and making sure his bees are okay. As the winter thaws and bombardment increases, Sergeyich decides he needs to take his bees somewhere where they can forage in peace. He sets out for Crimea, which has been annexed by Russia (the book was written in 2020), but where he knows a fellow beekeeper. Along the way he encounters soldiers and civilians from both sides, seeing good and bad sides of humanity. The horrors of war and injustice are always in the background (and sometimes foreground) but Sergeyich's basic decency and his care for his bees keeps the darkness at bay. This is a fascinating look at life in this contested region, which helps to understand what is happening there today in a way that is warm and engaging.

A sword named Truth was a great re-introduction to the world of Sartorias-Deles. This is a vast and complex universe which Smith has been creating since she was 15. This volume brings together a lot of characters from earlier books, at a time when a number of young people find themselves thrust into leadership of their realms. Along with the everyday responsibilites of leadship, the world is facing the threat of an invasion from the ancient enemy of Norsunder (the same foe as in the Inda quartet, still a threat some centuries later). Slowly the young rulers must overcome their distrust of each other and come together to oppose the enemy. This is a wide-screen fantasy novel, with a large cast of characters set all over the (not included in this book) map. (This book really needs a map.) Smith wove in references to events that preceded the novel, without info-dumping, so I was able to understand the background to the plot, but it's probably not the best place to start with this world. I'm not sure why DAW published this volume but seems not to have picked up the sequels. It's a bit annoying, I'd have liked to have matching print books on my shelf. Never mind.

The blighted stars is a good read so far. It's set in an SFnal future where people's minds can be mapped and saved, so that in the event of a catastrophe, a new body can be printed and the mind downloaded into it. Five families/corporations dominate the universe; we are concerned with Mercator, who are able to mine the valuable mineral relkatite. The book opens as Tarquin, the scholarly son of Mercator, is about to lead his first exploratory mission onto a virgin world where relkatite has been found. However, before they land, something goes horribly wrong, and the spaceships start firing at each other. Tarquin and some crew members are able to crash land on the planet, where they start to find some very strange things ... things that imply that this world has been visited already. With him is his bodyguard, or EX, Lockhart. But little does he know that Lockhart is actually the mind of an anti-Mercator activist, Naira Sharp, downloaded into the EX's body. There is plenty of mystery, suspense and action in the novel so far; the characters are interesting, as is the universe and its technology. I'm enjoying this a lot.

I've also started reading Life ceremony, a short story collection by Sayaka Murata who is best known for Convenience store woman. These stories are weird, with a fair amount of unsettling, even horrific elements, but often with a relatable portrayal of love at their heart. Definitely closer in tone and content to Earthlings than CSW so far. I'm really enjoying the collection so far.

And I've started a cosy fantasy, The house witch and the enchanting of the hearth. It's set in a royal palace, specifically in the kitchen, where newly hired cook Finlay Ashowan is shaking up not just the catering but the whole castle and its denizens. There is also a cat. I've only just started this but it's a lovely read so far.

>61 Sakerfalcon: I'm not sure why DAW published this volume but seems not to have picked up the sequels. It's a bit annoying, I'd have liked to have matching print books on my shelf.

YES!!! (Sorry for shouting. I'm annoyed about it too.)

I get the impression that the CJ Notebooks were the ones she kicked off Sartorias-Deles with when she was 15 and, to be honest, it shows. But I'm a completist and I love S-D (or as far as I've got with it).

I would also have read A Sword Named Truth after having read the others (I'm also a serialist) but I was doing a shared read. I have a lot of the novels in paperback but the Time of Daughters books are expensive plus I have to pay for shipping halfway around the world. I'll get there, sometime ...

>62 humouress: I'm glad it's not just me!

I have this issue with Victoria Goddard's books. I would love to have them in print but they are really expensive. I should just be grateful that ebooks exist and are usually affordable.

>61 Sakerfalcon: Life Ceremony was interesting, but I didn't quite love it (my problem was weirdness for weirdness' sake). I hope you enjoy it, anyway :) Convenience Store Woman is a book I still think about from time to time, and I read it four years ago...

Nice to see that you liked Grey Bees!

>64 Alexandra_book_life: I think I enjoyed Life ceremony more than you did, but I agree that some of the stories just seemed pointless. I thought that Murata put nice portrayals of love and friendship at the heart of the most successful stories.
Yes, Grey bees was very good! I have Jimi Hendrix live in Lviv to read next by Kurkov.

I've finished The blighted stars which was a good start to a new SF trilogy. I don't feel that it's as ambitious as the Protectorate books, which I loved; these are smaller in scope, and there is more focus on a central romance. But the background intrigue is interesting and I will go on to read the next instalment.

I've also read All out, a collection of more-or-less historical stories (I refuse to accept that 2000 is historical!) about LGBTQ+ teens. Many of the stories were excellent, marrying sympathetic characters, a convincing historical setting and an effective plot, within the limits of the form. A couple felt far too rushed, and two of them I actively disliked. This was a good read for my commute to work.

I'm still enjoying The house witch, it's a charming and entertaining fantasy which takes place in a small, peaceful kingdom which is threatened by warlike neighbours. Unassuming cook Finlay may become a key player in his country's defence, despite his magic being strongest for small domestic spells.

On kindle I've been reading The stargazers, a British novel about a woman haunted by her toxic childhood in a crumbling stately home. The narrative is mostly set in 1970s Hampstead and 1950s Sussex, with small sections from the 1920s and the present day. Sarah and her sister Victoria had a horrific upbringing of neglect and cruelty, both eventually escaping in their own ways. But the ramifications of her past threaten Sarah's happiness with her husband and children. I was drawn to this by the gorgeous cover (I have to be honest!) and the Gothic elements of the dilapidated mansion. It has been keeping me enthralled so far. Contains cruelty to children and animals.

I'm also rereading Dune, after enjoying part 2 of the film.

>65 Sakerfalcon:
I read Dune for the first time in 2018. Around the same time I read The Leopard by Guideppe di Lampedusa. I was convinced Frank Herbert had read The Leopard before writing Dune.

I cannot recommend The Leopard strongly enough.

>66 pgmcc: I second The Leopard with pleasure! Excellent and multilayered.

>67 Alexandra_book_life: A book to go back to time and again.

>65 Sakerfalcon: I snagged Dune from Audible a few years ago. I read the first six books in the series during the 1980s before I stopped. I keep forgetting to listen to it, but I should probably do that before I watch the latest film. Thanks for the reminder.

I need to catch up! I've been away for a few days, but the real reason I haven't posted is just tiredness. And maybe laziness. I just can't get my brain in gear to write.

>66 pgmcc:, >67 Alexandra_book_life: I own a copy of The leopard. Now I just need to find it ...

>69 clamairy: Having finished my reread, I would say that the first film sticks closer to the book than the second. The main difference is the timeframe is shorten in the film, from several years to a few months. Unfortunately now I feel an urge to continue to Dune Messiah, in spite of having loathed it when I read it before! But it seems obvious that there will be a third film, which surely must be based on this book.

The house witch was a really nice cosy fantasy, in which bad people learn to do better, good people have happy endings, and a cook can change people's lives through his baking. It is perhaps longer than it needs to be, and some of the humour isn't as funny as it's supposed to be, but this was a charming read and I already have the sequel on my kindle.

I enjoyed The stargazers a lot. It has strong gothic vibes, with a crumbling stately home, obsession, a disputed inheritance, and Jane Eyre-esque cruelty to children. It takes place in Hampstead in the late 1960s, and at Fane Hall after WWII. Sarah hasn't been in touch with her mother or sister for years; the trauma of her childhood has led her to cut all ties with them and the family home. Her mother was not entitled to inherit the house, yet she is obsessed with it being "hers". This is the driving passion of her life, at the expense of her daughters' wellbeing. Older sister Vic finds her own way to cope, leaving Sarah to rely on the kindness of strangers. These scars haunt her years later as an insecure young mother, married to a charming, flamboyant, careless husband. The books moves between the two times, revealing secrets and showing their effects. There was one plot thread that I didn't think was necessary (although it was quite plausible, if melodramatic), but most of the twists were very well done. There is cruelty to children and animals, but in spite of that I found the book extremely compelling.

I've also read a children's book that was lent to me by a choir friend. The last bear is about a 12 year old girl who travels to Bear Island, part of the Svalbard archipelago, with her father, where he will be recording meterological data for 6 months. April is excited to have more time to spend with him, away from their busy lives, but she is disappointed to find that he's just as remote as ever. So she spends her days exploring the island. Despite its name, there are no bears on Bear Island. But she's sure she saw a huge white animal in the distance ... This is a lovely, compelling and moving read about a girl's bond with a wild creature, and her growing understanding of humans' impact on nature. I think LibraryPerilous would enjoy this book.

On kindle I read an "urban" fantasy (it's set in our world with magic, but takes place in a village), Accidental magic. Rosemary and her daughter Athena are surprised to learn that they have inherited a manor house from Rosemary's grandmother. They are even more shocked when they realise that the old woman was a witch, and that magic may run in the family. How Rosemary and Athena find their feet in a village where the local policeman suspects them of murder, the cafe owner puts strange ingrediants in the tea, and the house is attracting unwelcome visitors, makes for an entertaining read. Rosemary tends to be fluttery and incompetent, chattering too much when she's nervous and having to be kept in check by Athena. This is amusing at first but gets old quickly. She does develop more confidence and ability as the book progresses, so I'm hoping this will be sustained in futher books.

I've also read a historical novel, For thy great pain have mercy on my little pain, which is told in the alternating voices of Margery Kempe and Julian of Norwich. The text is based on their writings, and paints a picture of the lives and spirituality of two very different mediaeval women. It's a short novel but I found it engaging. I know something of both women, but this would be good if you had no knowledge of them at all. If you know a lot about them, or have read their books, then it may be too simple.

I'm currently reading The will to battle, which is the third in Ada Palmer's complicated future history quartet. I have to be honest and say this is a struggle. There are many, many characters, a lot of philosophy, and it's told almost entirely through dialogue. But I am determined to finish this series.

Also reading Bad feminist by Roxane Gay. I started this ages ago and I'm not sure why I didn't read it all at the time. But I've started again from the beginning. Gay is a honest, funny and critical writer, looking incisively at race, gender and sexuality. Some of the essays are a little dated, in terms of pop culture references and certain people's reputations, but sadly the key issues are still all too relevant.

>70 Sakerfalcon:
I hope you enjoy The Leopard, assuming you find it.
:-)

>70 Sakerfalcon: I loved Ada Palmer's Terra Ignota series! They are asking a lot of the reader, though, that's true. I struggled with the first book, but once I was in, I was hooked. It was a book club pick, and some people hated the book, and some loved it. The discussion was wonderful and grew heated. It was several years ago, but we still talk about it sometimes - "do you remember Too Like the Lightning?" I hope you will find things to enjoy, despite the struggle :)

>70 Sakerfalcon: The historical novel with St. Julian and Margery Kempe really sounds quite interesting. How on earth did it cross your radar? You manage to pick up some of the most intriguing titles and I'd love to know how you manage to discover them.

Sakerfalcon, be careful not to give away any secrets to >73 jillmwo:. Remember the security protocols regarding apparently innocuous questions from seemingly innocent sources.

>70 Sakerfalcon: Sorry to hear you are struggling with Terra Ignota. I read all four books in print last year while also listening to the audio. Hearing the dialogue really helped my enjoyment as the voice acting was, in my opinion, incredibly well done. The first book is narrated by a different person than the rest of the quartet but I had trouble discerning a difference as the 2nd narrator used nearly the same voices for any characters that carried over from Too Like the Lightning. Upon completion of this re-imagining of ancient mythos set in our future, it ended up being my top read of 2023. Perhaps the Stars is the heftiest tome in the tetralogy so I hope the experience improves for you as you soldier on.

>72 Alexandra_book_life:, >75 ScoLgo: I have enjoyed the first two books but I think I'm just a bit tired at the moment and am missing some of the nuances of this one. I don't have much knowledge of (or interest in) philosophy, so that is a bit of a struggle too. I love what Palmer is doing in the series though, creating a future that is so unlike anything else I've read. I'm about 2/3 through now and it's building up well.

>73 jillmwo:, >74 pgmcc: At risk of compromising my sources, here goes! I get most of my F&SF book recommendations from tor.com, which has monthly posts that list forthcoming titles. I also read fantasyliterature.com, whose reviewers I like. More mainstream literature comes from The Guardian (which is where I first read about For thy great pain). (They also have a monthly SF column where Lisa Tuttle reviews 3 or 4 recent releases.) I look at Literary Hub too, although I can no longer keep up with their daily emails. And then I go into brick and mortar stores to browse, frequently finding titles I know nothing about but which look intriguing. Hence my ever-growing book piles!

>76 Sakerfalcon: Thank you for providing this service for the rest of us! ❤️

I look at the NY Times Book Review (not every week) and read their "Read like the wind!" email, which promotes older books. Most of the rest of my recommendations come from reading LibraryThing threads.

>77 clamairy: Yes! LT is the biggest source of book recs for me too!

>78 Sakerfalcon: Definitely. I am very thankful for this, as I am much more likely to find books that suit my taste in here than anywhere else.

>70 Sakerfalcon: Thank you. It sounds like a lovely story.

>76 Sakerfalcon: Thank you for the pointers. I do check Tor (or Reactor as it's now called) periodically but I realize as I'm typing this that I only do so sporadically so lately what my personalized Google news feed serves up rather than visiting on my own such places as The Guardian and LitHub. It's really your reviews that keep me eyeing many of the Virago titles and authors.

Oops, I only just realised I was missing this for this year. Hello! Yes, the Burqa book was me (did I read it yet myself, though, hm ...) and I don't think you're going to love Babel Tower as it's got all another book inside it which is HORRIBLE. Maybe you've decided that yourself by now!

>82 LyzzyBee: I haven't yet got to Babel Tower! The book-within-a-book thing isn't necessarily a deal breaker for me, if it's done well (I loved The blind assassin by Margaret Atwood) but I will bear your warning in mind!

I've finished The will to battle and Bad feminist. As I said above, The will to battle was a struggle at times, a book to admire rather than love IMO. The worldbuilding is amazing, but there is less of it in this volume, and more philosophy. I haven't read Hobbes at all, which seems a disadvantage. It did pick up in the second half, but I'm glad it's done and I can move on to the next volume when I have a bit more mental energy.

The Roxane Gay essays were perfect for reading the train, as I could get through a couple on each journey. I most enjoyed the ones where she talked about her experiences as a Black woman in academia, and the bits about Scrabble. Some of the ones on pop culture have dated a little - mostly in terms of people who are now persona non grata - but the issues raised are still very relevant. Sigh.

I've been reading Starling House by Alix Harrow which is excellent. I can hardly tear myself away from it. Opal has grown up poor in a small Kentucky town that both relies on and resents the rich Gravely family who made their money from mining. The eponymous house is a place of mystery, feared by the locals, with dark stories swirling around it. It appears in Opal's dreams, and one day she finds herself drawn to the gates, where she is confronted by Arthur, the current resident. What Opal finds behind its doors, and implications this has for herself, her beloved younger brother, and the whole town, kept me enthralled. A scary classic children's book, beasts that appear out of the fog, a house that responds to its inhabitants, a haunting past, a deprived town - this contemporary fantasy has lots of gothic elements that mesh well with the plot and characters. Opal is tough and scrappy, unwilling to trust others, but she learns that she has supporters she never expected. This is my favourite of the three novels I've read by Harrow so far, and I highly recommend it.

I've also started A strange and stubborn endurance, which is a fantasy/romance (hopefully more the former than the latter) and Full immersion a psychological horror novel based on the author's own experience of post-natal depression and its treatment. And I'm reading a vintage girls' school story that I found used while on holiday recently, Challenge to Caroline.

>83 Sakerfalcon: Oooh! I have Starling House on my Libby wishlist. I love the way she writes! I will have to bump this one up the stack.

I've had the nasty chesty cough which seems to be making its way around the UK, which has meant less energy for posting, and a lot of time sleeping. But I have some books to report back on.

Starling House finished as strongly as it started. Scrappy Opal's life in a small Kentucky town ravaged by mining put me in mind of Demon Copperhead, but the gothic elements put the book firmly in the fantasy realm. I want to read The Underland!

Full immersion was an odd read, but a powerful look at post-natal depression and the destructive effects it can have on the sufferer and her family. Magpie opts for a controversial experimental treatment when everything else has failed, and finds herself in an other world that is both strange and familiar. She is watched over by two scientists, who may not have the control over the experiment that they think they do. Slowly, things begin to go wrong both in and out of the simulation. This was a slow burn which came to a dramatic peak.

By chance I read another book which also relates in part to PND, this time written by a Canadian First Nations author. I would class And then she fell as domestic horror, as the real and the supernatural combine to haunt Alice after she has her first baby. Alice has married a white husband and left the rez to try and fit in with his middle class life in the Toronto suburbs. But as a Native person she finds herself the subject of suspicious looks and judgemental attitudes. She feels persecuted and is afraid that she'll be seen as an unfit mother and her child taken away from her. The visions she sees and voices she hears add to her fear, although the reader wonders whether they are real or figments of her imagination. At about 80% in, the book suddenly changes to a different viewpoint, disorienting the reader, but eventually tying the past to the present and unveiling the mystery behind Alice's visions. There are some heavy themes here, dealt with effectively through a protagonist whom it was easy to empathise with. It's an excellent, unsettling read.

I'm catching up on the Liaden books as I've fallen a few books behind. I finished Accepting the lance, which brought several plotlines to a head, and have just started Trader's leap. I need to check which book last centred this particular storyline, as I don't remember it well. But it's good to be back with Clan Korval and their allies.

I've also read a YA fantasy/UF, Legendborn, set on the UNC-Chapel Hill campus and featuring a Black heroine who is still bruised by her mother's recent death. Briana is sure that the mysterious Order has something to do with it, and decides to infiltrate its portals to find the truth. The exclusive Order is based on Arthurian legends and I found the details of it overcomplicated so I skimmed over the minutiae, which I don't think mattered too much. Racism is present in both Briana's own experiences and in the past events she uncovers; the legacy of slavery turns out to be the basis of a major plot twist. The strongest theme in the story is Briana's grief over the loss of her mother, and this permeates all her actions and sets the book apart from being just another YA fantasy. I have the sequel on kindle so I shall read it at some point.

I'm still reading A strange and stubborn endurance. It's an M/M fantasy/romance, which so far has a good balance of both genres. The first few chapters are focused on the relationship between Velasin and Cae, but both characters communicate clearly with each other so there isn't a prolonged period of misunderstanding and crossed purposes, thank goodness. And soon, violent events put the romance on the backburner as both men seek to find out who is responsible and why. Both the protagonists and the supporting characters are interesting people whom I care about already, and I'm firmly invested in the story now.

I've also started Biography of X, which is a widow's exploration of her artist wife's past, in a world where the US was split into Northern Western and the walled-off Southern territories. The narrative includes ephemera and images, which I always enjoy. It's a good read so far.

And I've started another YA UF book, Mina and the slayers, which is a sequel to Mina and the undead. Following the events of the first book, Mina is now attending school in New Orleans and dealing with the fact that her boyfriend is now a vampire. She's also started a work experience placement with the police department - just as there's a rash of mysterious killings in the city. These books are published by a small UK Press and are physically really nice quality items, with black-sprayed page edges and good quality paper. I'm happy to support this kind of enterprise, especially when the book are fun and well-written.

Ooh! I'm in the middle of Starling House, and love it! I do like the house itself as a character. :)

I'd also put A Strange and Stubborn Endurance on my wishlist.

>85 Sakerfalcon: & >86 Marissa_Doyle: I just finished Starling House about 20 minutes ago. I had not thought about the Demon Copperhead comparison, but you are spot on. (And it's not just the red hair.) I loved this one.

>86 Marissa_Doyle: I just finished Starling House about a week ago and loved the way the house was portrayed, (not your average spooky haunted house at all).

>85 Sakerfalcon: I too want to read The Underland!, (funny how the touchstone goes back to Starling House ;).

>85 Sakerfalcon:
That nasty cough is doing the rounds in Ireland too. I brought it to France with me and after five weeks I appear to be getting rid of it. I hope you get rid of yours soon. It is quite depressing.

>89 pgmcc: & >85 Sakerfalcon: Yikes. I hope you're both in full health, soon. It's not RSV, is it?

>86 Marissa_Doyle: I hope you enjoy Starling House as much as I did!

>87 clamairy:, >88 ScoLgo: It is such a good book!

>89 pgmcc: I hope the cough goes away soon. Mine seems to go for a while before surging back, usually when I am in a crowded train or the silent area at work ....

>90 clamairy: I don't think so. It's spreading widely at the moment, and people are calling it "the 100 day cough" for its persistence.

I've finished reading Biography of X and Mina and the slayers. X wasn't as good as I'd hoped it would be. The alternative history of the US, in which the South seceded in 1945, is used as a background and is effective, but I would have enjoyed the book more if it had been in the foreground. The parody of the art scene is good, but X herself is so banal and annoying that I can't understand anyone wanting to spend more than a few minutes with her, let alone becoming obsessed or infatuated. I know that's part of the satire, but i'm not convinced by X as either a person or an artist. Still, I like the inclusion of visual ephemera, and the hints of the alternative history are good.

Mina is the second in a series about a British teenager who moves to New Orleans to be with her sister. In the first book, Mina discovers that vampires are real and dangerous. This second book continues her adventures as she discovers and joins the slayers, a group dedicated to killing vampires who break the Code i.e. start killing humans. Vampires are on the rise, and Mina needs to find out why before mass carnage occurs. The books are set in the 1990s and contain lots of references to the pop culture and horror films of that decade (Mina is a huge fan of horror). There's a good mix of humour with a genuine sense of seriousness at the deaths which occur. I'm really enjoying this YA series and will look out for the next book.

I'm still reading A strange and stubborn endurance and Trader's leap, both of. which are very good. On kindle I've started Vespertine, a YA fantasy novel which contains elements of Red sister and Sabriel. I'm loving it so far!

Happy Birthday, Claire! 🎈

Thank you! I've had a busy few days celebrating!

I finished Vespertine and loved it. To the elements of Red sister and Sabriel, add a hefty dose of Penric to create a humorous, exciting and moving book. Artemisia is happy with her life as a Gray Sister, cleansing the bodies of the dead to prevent them from being possessed by dark spirits. When her convent is attacked, she finds herself awakening a revenant to defend it. She is flung into religious and political intrigue, while trying to keep the revenant from possessing her. Their bond develops into something unexpected as the danger increases. Artemisia is an engaging protagonist, spiky and anti-social (with many traits of autism), and her world is well developed and plausible. The plot moves fast and twists and turns, drawing the reader in quickly. I liked Sorcery of thorns by this author a lot, but Vespertine is even better, IMO.