Hello all! Yesterday was “patch day” in FFXIV, with a new raid wing released — which might mean nothing to most of you, but mostly it means “ouch, busy time with a hobby!” So I haven’t been reading a whole lot, but I’m hoping to fix that somewhat tomorrow.

What have you recently finished reading?

The last thing I finished was Mortal Follies, by Alexis Hall. I went into it really not sure if I’d get along with the prominent non-involved narrator’s voice, and ended up loving it. I feel like maybe it could’ve been trimmed and tightened here and there, but mostly when it was over I was annoyed there wasn’t just a bit more.

I’ve also been mainlining the Fence graphic novels by C.S. Pacat and Johanna the Mad, and I’m also annoyed there wasn’t more! I love Seiji and Nicholas, and the supporting cast too.

What are you currently reading?

Actually… nothing, which is kind of the problem. If I had something I was partway through, I’d probably be doing a better job at picking something up… but nothing’s really grabbing me. Or the books I want to read are not the ones I think I “should” be reading (in order to make progress on the book spin bingo challenge on Litsy).

Which strikes me as very silly now I write it out — who cares if this isn’t a book I put on this month’s card? Gaah, brain.

What will you read next?

I don’t know! Same problem applies. I’m currently tempted by a book on Jane Austen I got recently (Jane Austen in 41 Objects, by Kathryn Sunderland), or Molly O’Neill’s Greenteeth. I’m not a huge fan of Jane Austen, but I love that kind of format for non-fiction… and Greenteeth sounds really good too.

So I guess it depends whether my brain keeps on insisting on the bingo card books!

How about you?

What have you recently finished reading?

The last thing I finished was Emily Wilde’s Compendium of Lost Tales, which I’d stalled on for a bit due to life stuff. It took a bit to nudge me back into it, since I was halfway through and had stopped at a weird spot — but not that much, ahaha. I read the last 150 pages or so in two big gulps. I really liked it; I’m not sure if it’s actually the conclusion or there are thoughts about more, but it makes a good potential conclusion.

What are you currently reading?

Most of my other current reads are stalled for similar reasons, but yesterday I started reading Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones’ The Cleopatras, which I’m fascinated by so far — it’s really interesting to see “the” Cleopatra as part of a dynasty of remarkable women.

I’m also reading Scarhaven Keep by J.S. Fletcher, via Serial Reader. So far it’s… well, it feels like a classic mystery, which it is, and that sort of familiar structure is very comforting to me. I’m enjoying it, although so far it’s not particularly remarkable.

What will you be reading next?

As soon as I’m done with my tasks for the day, I want to make a start on Everything is Tuberculosis (John Green). Tuberculosis is a bit of a special interest for me, and it sounds like for him too (based on the blurb on the back), and I’d love to have a pop-science book about TB to recommend people.

(If you take one thing away from my blog, please let it be that TB is still a very important disease, and in some ways a growing — not diminishing! — threat. It’s the biggest cause of death by a single infectious disease in the world.)

Other than that, I want to start on the third volume of The Apothecary Diaries light novels soon, especially since finishing that would get me a bingo in the Litsy book bingo game I play.

How about you?

What have you recently finished reading?

The last thing I finished was Fighting Fit, by Laura Dawes, which was all about the multi-level effort to keep Britain healthy during WWII. Some of it I knew already, but a lot of the details I didn’t. I found it really readable and enjoyable, except maybe the chapter on scabies (really made me feel itchy, gah).

On the same day I also finished The Roads to Rome, which I ultimately found a really annoying read where I struggled to retain anything no matter how carefully I tried to pay attention. Probably a bit too much of a travelogue for me.

What are you currently reading?

I’m most of the way through The Virtues of Underwear, by Nina Edwards, which I’m enjoying — even if it introduced me to the concept of the, I kid you not, “corset hoodie”. Which sounds like a travesty to me, I’ll be honest.

Other than that, I’m partway through Emily Wilde’s Compendium of Lost Tales, by Heather Fawcett, which I paused for really not fitting the mood. I might be ready to get back to it now.

What will you read next?

As usual, that’s hard to answer. More rereads of A Gentle Noble’s Vacation Recommendation, for sure, and I should start on reading more of my library books, so maybe Zen Cho’s Spirits Abroad.

What are you reading?

Hello all. Trying to get back to normal after a rough week with a bereavement, so here’s a little pinch of routine for me.

What have you recently finished reading?

Feels like a lifetime ago, but I actually started rereading A Gentle Noble’s Vacation Recommendation. I really only just read it, but a reread has already proved useful, reminding me where Lizel found the map that is only finally fully explained in volume 10, and some of the circumstances around meeting Ray (and then Shadow). Odd some of the details my brain didn’t hang onto, but a comforting reread is really just the ticket right now anyway.

What are you currently reading?

Most actively, I’ve started on A Brief History of the Countryside in 100 Objects, by Sally Coulthard. In format and topic, it’s pretty much guaranteed to be soothing to me, and indeed it is. As often happens with non-fiction aimed at a very broad audience, I wanna stick “citation needed” all over it, because there’s no way to track a particular assertion in the text to a source, argh! But it is more or less what I expected it to be, and that’s nice.

I’m also partway through a few other books, including The Rainfall Market (You Yeong-Gwang) and Emily Wilde’s Compendium of Lost Tales (Heather Fawcett), but I’m not in a fiction mood and never am in this kind of situation, so knowing myself well, I’ve laid those aside for a few days.

What will you be reading next?

I’m probably going to continue my reread of A Gentle Noble’s Vacation Recommendation, as a volume of that works well with my bedside light’s sleep timer to put me in a good mood for sleep. But since I’m generally focusing on non-fiction for now, the next non-manga I read will likely be The Virtues of Underwear (Nina Edwards) or Fighting Fit (Laura Dawes).

What are you reading?

What have you recently finished reading?

I think the last two books I finished were A Pirate’s Life for Tea (Rebecca Thorne) and my advance copy of The Tomb of Dragons (Katherine Addison). The complexity and richness of the worldbuilding in Addison’s work was cruel to A Pirate’s Life for Tea, though also I just found that the tone didn’t suit my mood and it all felt… kind of juvenile.

As for The Tomb of Dragons, I won’t talk in terms of spoilers (unless someone wants to send a private message and ask me something specific), but I was disappointed about a particular development in a way that makes me feel betrayed as a reader. There were lovely things about it, but there was a major thing that just… didn’t make sense to me as a choice.

What are you currently reading?

I’ve started a bunch of hares at once, hoping to get a blackout on my BookSpinBingo card on Litsy. Most notably, I’m diving into Emily Wilde’s Compendium of Lost Tales (Heather Fawcett), and am honestly impressed with myself for actually starting on it so quickly. So far I can’t really comment on the plot.

I’ve also started Joan Cockin’s Villainy at Vespers, which I’m enjoying — classic crime seemed to be indicated for my current mood. In the same vein, though a very different genre, I picked up some more non-fiction to suit my mood: Close Encounters of the Fungal Kind (Richard Fortey), though I think I prefer his books on palaeontology, actually (his actual subject).

What will you be reading next?

That’s a mystery to everyone, including myself. But I think volume three of The Apothecary Diaries (light novel) might be indicated — or a mass-reread of the manga A Gentle Noble’s Vacation Recommendation. It hasn’t been long at all since I read them, but I don’t always feel I understand the characters yet, and reading them again quite quickly might actually help connect some dots.

Plus, the antics of Lizel, Gil and Eleven are just entertaining, even if the author persists in claiming they’re all just friends, despite the hair-stroking, face-touching, nibbling-on-fingers-type behaviour they indulge in.

What about you?