Category: General

Top Ten Tuesday: Brags & Confessions

Posted October 8, 2024 by Nicky in General / 14 Comments

I skipped last week’s Top Ten Tuesday because I wasn’t feeling it, but this week’s theme is bookish brags and/or confessions, which sounds like fun. Let’s have a think…

Five brags:

  1. I read really fast! If you’ve been around here much, you probably know that, but it still catches me by surprise sometimes. In the past, I’ve read around 500 books in a year, though I can’t manage so much now while I have a full-time workload with self-employment, plus a part-time degree: last year I managed 400 books, if I remember rightly. Which is still a lot!
  2. I read a whole range of genres. I’m not sure if this is entirely a brag or just a fact, but it’s something that makes me happy and that I like to show off, so I guess I do think it’s a brag. I’ll never run out of reading material at this rate. (Looks nervously at TBR…)
  3. I have autoapproval from Tor on Netgalley. It’s great, obviously.
  4. My wife is a-okay with “has room for lots of bookcases” being a criteria for any home we rent or buy. I can, theoretically, understand that some people don’t want bookcases to be their primary piece of furniture. Theoretically. But I’m lucky enough that Lisa’s absolutely fine with my ever-expanding collection.
  5. An author I love had actually heard of my blog (and liked it). I just about dissolved on the spot.

Five confessions:

  1. I get jealous about how fast other people can read (or how much time they have to spare for reading). Like there are people who can read for more than 45 hours in 11 days every time Bookly do a readathon, and I don’t get how they fit it in around other obligations and hobbies. And sometimes I think those people are possibly lying about it. Which… kind of sucks of me, to be honest, because there are definitely people who think I’m lying about how much I read — and it really grinds my gears. I try not to give into this suspicion… but in that specific context, they do potentially have a big prize to win by lying, so I don’t think it’s quite the same as when people accuse me of bragging on social media.
  2. Sometimes, I’d rather play FFXIV. I say this as a confession, but I don’t think it’s a bad thing. I think there’s a risk of wrapping one’s whole identity around being bookish, at least for me, so it’s good for me to recognise that sometimes I’d actually rather play a video game… and I definitely know there are readers who think that’s awful of me. I don’t believe in being a purist about how books are always the best. Nope.
  3. I think some book bloggers (and especially people on Bookstagram etc) are more interested in conspicuous consumption than books per se. The book hauls people post sometimes seem to be book hauls just for the sake of showing off. I worry about falling under that heading too, when I have my several-times-yearly trips to buy loads of books, or get spoiled for my birthday/Christmas. I try to keep my motive being sharing excitement, and to always ask myself if I want this book or just any book that I can show off. Sometimes the answer has been that I’m veering toward the latter, and then I put the book back. If I discover I really did want that specific book, it’ll be there another time.
  4. I suck at listening to audiobooks. I get so impatient with the pace. I almost always put them on about 1.5x speed when I can.
  5. I’m super bad at reading books to any kind of time frame. I’m a mood reader, and I stop reading altogether when I feel too much pressure to read something in particular. I always need to be able to just move with my whim.

Okay, it was harder to think of brags than I thought… but that was still fun. Very curious what other people have come up with!

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Stacking the Shelves & The Sunday Post

Posted October 5, 2024 by Nicky in General / 30 Comments

Yaaay, it’s the weekend! Here we go again with the usual weekly roundup…

Books acquired this week

Once more, I’ve been raiding the library this week, with my usual (perhaps weird) mix of choices…

Cover of Nothing But The Truth by The Secret Barrister Cover of The Other Olympians by Michael Waters

Cover of Buried Deep And Other Stories by Naomi Novik Cover of Out of the Drowning Deep by A.C. Wise Cover of Confounding Oaths by Alexis Hall

I had one hold to pick up, and then I checked the new acquistions. Oops?

I did also get a new book this month, which I preordered on a whim a little while ago. It looks like the kind of non-fiction that I always find really fascinating, so I’m looking forward to it.

Cover of The Bookshop, the Draper, The Candlestick Maker: A History of the High Street by Annie Gray

Of course I’m not reading nearly fast enough to keep up with the library books I’m snagging! But that’s okay. They can always be renewed, or returned and borrowed again later. The nice thing is having so many books to choose from.

Posts from this week

As usual, here’s a quick roundup! Reviews first:

And just one other post, since I skipped Top Ten Tuesday this week:

What I’m reading

It hasn’t been a bad week for reading, though I did most reading over the weekend last week! I’ve finished reading Heaven Official’s Blessing, which leaves me feeling a bit bereft, really.

I have also been reading a bit of poetry, but I haven’t had a lot to say about the collections I’d read, so I’m probably not going to review them here, so this is just a peek of the books I read this week that I’ll be reviewing sometime soon:

Cover of Yellowface by Rebecca F. Kuang Cover of Heaven Official's Blessing vol 7 by MXTX Cover of Heaven Official's Blessing vol 8 by MXTX Cover of The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie

Cover of The British Museum by James Hamilton Cover of Out of the Drowning Deep by A.C. Wise Cover of Murder by Memory by Olivia Waite

I juuust finished Murder by Memory before working on this post, and liked it a lot. Here’s hoping the rest of my weekend reading goes so well: mostly I’m working my way through the Secret Barrister’s autobiography, and after that… I’m not sure. I have some other novellas that have been waiting my attention, and after enjoying Out of the Drowning Deep and Murder by Memory, maybe I’m in the mood for smallish, self-contained stories like that.

Important note

I know that people from all walks of life make up the bookish community, and I’d like to get along with everyone regardless of our differences. Every so often, though, there’s inevitably someone who crosses a line, with whom I can’t just “agree to disagree”. Last week, someone visited via a linkup and left a comment (somehow getting through my filter that should bin any future comments from them), after I had previously asked them politely to leave me alone given one of their reviews of a queer book, which used derogatory and degrading language toward trans and non-binary people.

Given that I’m non-binary, as are some of the regulars who comment here, and given how often I review queer stories and books by queer authors, I’m just not comfortable with having that person commenting (and leaving links to their blog) in my space. So this is just a gentle reminder to that person that I did ask you to stop commenting here (twice now), just in case you didn’t get notifications about my replies. It would be much appreciated if we could be adults about this and just agree to leave each other well alone.

I apologise to all my other commenters and visitors here for having to bring this up, but I hope you can all understand how uncomfortable it feels for someone who uses abusive language about people like me to keep commenting on my blog after being politely asked to leave me alone.

Now let’s get back to talking about books!

Linking up with Reading Reality’s Stacking the Shelves, Caffeinated Reviewer’s The Sunday Post, and the Sunday Salon over at Readerbuzz, as usual!

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WWW Wednesday

Posted October 2, 2024 by Nicky in General / 1 Comment

Wednesday again, huh? That keeps happening, somehow.

Cover of The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha ChristieWhat have you recently finished reading?

Yesterday I finished up my reread of Agatha Christie’s The Murder of Roger Ackroyd, via Serial Reader. I still liked it a lot, though once I was in the swing of it I remembered a surprising amount of how things came together. It’s a clever one!

I also read The British Museum: Storehouse of Civilizations, by James Hamilton. It’s not very critical about the British Museum, rather being inclined to laud the whole endeavour, though it does mention some of the controversy around the Elgin Marbles. It’s an interesting history of the institution and particularly of the buildings, though.

Cover of The Mountain in the Sea by Ray NaylerWhat are you currently reading?

I’m still partway through The Book at War, by Andrew Pettegree. It’s slower going than I hoped, though I couldn’t put my finger on why — perhaps because I’m not terribly interested in the history of military education per se, which has been the focus so far. We’ll see how things develop, I suppose!

I’ve also started reading The Mountain in the Sea, by Ray Nayler. I’m enjoying it, though I need to find some more time to sit down and read it; I haven’t been able to pick it up for a few days! So far we’ve only got the most tantalising hints at what’s going on, and no actual contact with octopuses.

Cover of Murder by Memory by Olivia WaiteWhat will you read next?

I’m not sure. I’m probably looking for something familiar and soothing, so I might go with rereading the Cemetaries of Amalo books (by Katherine Addison) and segue into reading the new one (which I have as an e-ARC). I could also use some quick reads to help advance my reading goal for the year, though, and I have some novellas lined up for that, like Olivia Waite’s Murder by Memory (also an e-ARC). It promises a Sayers-like mystery, which is encouraging.

What about you?

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Stacking the Shelves & The Sunday Post

Posted September 28, 2024 by Nicky in General / 34 Comments

Greetings folks! It’s definitely getting autumnal here, and though the sun is bright outside the window, it’s chilly. Probably my favourite sort of weather, really — though if it stays this cold, I’m going to need to acquire some gloves before I next cycle down to the library, ahaha.

Books acquired

Once more, it’s been a busy week for library books, since a couple of holds came in and I found where they keep the recent releases. Here’s the library haul!

Cover of Yellowface by Rebecca F. Kuang Cover of The Stardust Grail, by Yume Kitasei Cover of The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman

Cover of Agatha Christie, by Lucy Worsley Cover of Enchanted Creatures: Our Monsters and Their Meanings, by Natalie Lawrence Cover of The Roads to Rome by Catherine Fletcher

I also got some poetry collections, but I’m not sure whether I’ll end up reviewing those here; so far there’s some I’ve wanted to review, and some where I feel I have nothing useful to say. At least, not enough to fill up a review. So I’ll leave those out of the haul for now.

I did also get an e-ARC for review from Tor, which looks fascinating and promises me a twisty plot like Dorothy L. Sayers. We’ll see!

Cover of Murder by Memory by Olivia Waite

Posts from this week

As usual, let’s start with the reviews!

And the other posts:

What I’m reading

This week I spent a lot of time with library books, since I keep overdoing it and getting loads at once (it’s like my brain refuses to accept that they’ll be there next time). I suspect my weekend will be much the same, as I have a hold waiting for me at the library. Here’s the usual peek at the books I’ve finished this week (at least the ones I plan to review on the blog):

Cover of Heaven Official's Blessing vol 6 by MXTX Cover of Plants: From Roots to Riches by Kathy Willis and Carolyn Fry Cover of Pharos by Alice Thompson

Cover of the Zoologist's Guide to the Galaxy by Dr Arik Kershenbaum Cover of The Lost Words by Robert Macfarlane and Jackie Morris Cover of Sorcery & Cecilia by Patricia C. Wrede and Caroline Stevermer

For right now, I’m reading Yellowface, The Book at War, and of course, volume 7 of Heaven Official’s Blessing. I’ll probably also pick up The Mountain in the Sea in the course of the weekend… or maybe another non-fiction, since The Book at War is rather slow.

Either way, I hope to spend plenty of time reading.

Hope you all have a good weekend too!

Linking up with Reading Reality’s Stacking the Shelves, Caffeinated Reviewer’s The Sunday Post, and the Sunday Salon over at Readerbuzz, as usual!

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WWW Wednesday

Posted September 25, 2024 by Nicky in General / 1 Comment

It’s that time again already?! Well.

Cover of the Zoologist's Guide to the Galaxy by Dr Arik KershenbaumWhat have you recently finished reading?

The last thing I read was Robert Macfarlane’s The Lost Words, illustrated by Jackie Morris, which I had to read in the library rather than take home with me ’cause oof, their edition is big! Like The Lost Spells, it’s a collection of poetry that tries to bring a little magic back to how we relate to wild creatures. Both seem like the poet was having fun, so though I didn’t universally love the poems (sometimes a rhyme is too obvious, or a particular word just stuck out as wrong), it was a fun read. And the illustrations are gorgeous.

Before that, I finished The Zoologist’s Guide to the Galaxy, by Arik Kershenbaum. There weren’t many surprises for me, given I have a biology degree and a pre-existing interest in astrobiology from fiction and non-fiction, and I didn’t always agree with Kershenbaum’s reasoning, but it was interesting. I should think it through more for my review, but suffice it to say that I felt like he was very focused on a belief that everything must have been advantageous in order to be maintained through generations, instead of remembering that neutral traits and behaviours can come along for the ride because they’re not selected against (and negative traits can come along because they’re advantageous in narrow but important circumstances, but he’s a bit better about remembering that).

Cover of Heaven Official's Blessing vol 7 by MXTXWhat are you currently reading?

I’ve made a start on The Book at War, by Andrew Pettegree, which is preeeetty chunky. Looks like the app I use to track reading sessions suggests it’s going to take me five hours to finish; it feels like I’m having to focus to keep the meaning from slipping away from me mid-page, so I guess I’m not finding Pettegree the most engaging writer (though I couldn’t put my finger on why). I’ve barely started, so not much else to say yet. It’s interesting that Pettegree points out that despite the view of writers/writing/books as being enlightened, in many ways writers deliberately egged on the wars at the start of the 20th century. Pacifism came later.

As usual, I’m reading several other books at once. I’m close to finishing up with Heaven Official’s Blessing, since I’m partway through the penultimate volume. I’ve loved it so much. There’s an AO3 tag for this series, “Hua Cheng and Xie Lian invented love”, and I get it. Hua Cheng’s devotion to Xie Lian is lovely, as is Xie Lian’s slow realisation of their feelings for one another. It’s been a really satisfying journey.

Cover of Yellowface by Rebecca F. KuangWhat will you read next?

I got a lot of books out of the library, so I want to focus on reading some of those for a bit. Yellowface, by R.F. Kuang, just came through for me on Libby, and I know there’s someone who has it on hold after me, so I should focus on that. It’s quite likely it’s not really my thing, but I’m curious enough I want to give it a shot.

I also want to start The Mountain in the Sea, by Ray Nayler, since I’ve been curious about it for ages. Of late, I’ve been trying to reduce the number of books I have on the go at the same time, but I’m a little worried that’s part of why I’ve been having difficulty reading at the moment. I do value having the ability to hop from book to book. So I might ease up on that goal, and just go with my whims for a bit.

What about you?

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Top Ten Tuesday: Fall TBR

Posted September 24, 2024 by Nicky in General / 35 Comments

This week’s theme from Top Ten Tuesday is the fall TBR. I don’t particularly theme my reading plans, and I usually go by whim, but I usually have some idea of what’s tempting me… so let’s start there.

Cover of The Book at War by Andrew Pettegree Cover of Yellowface by Rebecca F. Kuang Cover of volume one of Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation by Mo Xiang Tong Xiu Cover of The Mountain in the Sea by Ray Nayler Cover of Deadly Earnest by Joan Cockin

  1. The Book at War, by Andrew Pettegree. Not the most uplifting book, perhaps, but it looks fascinating, discussing readers and libraries and how they’ve interacted (and been manipulated) during conflicts from the American Civil War onwards. I got it out of the library last week, so I should get to this soon.
  2. Yellowface, by R.F. Kuang. I have a library hold on this book, so I’m fairly sure it’ll feature somewhere in my autumn reading. I haven’t actually read anything by R.F. Kuang yet, despite owning The Poppy War and Babel, but I keep getting tempted to give Yellowface a shot (even though it’s a bit outside my usual genres). And oops, now I check the Libby app, looks like it’s my turn!
  3. Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation, by Mò Xiāng Tóng Xiù. Having loved The Scum Villain’s Self-Saving System and being perhaps even more enamoured with Heaven Official’s Blessing (with which I’m nearly finished), it’s inevitable that I’m going to move on to something else by MXTX soon. I’m ready to love Wei Wuxian, but I’ll miss Xie Lian. Technically, Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation was her second webnovel, so I’ve perhaps read things in an odd order. That’s okay, though, they’re not connected.
  4. The Mountain in the Sea, by Ray Nayler. My wife really enjoyed this one, and I enjoyed The Tusks of Extinction, so I’m very curious to give it a shot. I have it out of the library, which will also help move it up my list. Octopuses are fascinating, and after the recent disappointment of Remarkably Bright Creatures (which was fine, but not what I hoped for) I’d love something that grapples with the weirdness of an alien intelligence.
  5. Deadly Earnest, by Joan Cockin. I got this one for my birthday, after I really enjoyed Curiosity Killed the Cat. Time to dig in, I think — I always love a classic mystery, after all.
  6. A River Enchanted, by Rebecca Ross. Technically, I got partway through this earlier in the year, and then got distracted, but I think I’ll have to skim over the opening 100 pages again to get myself back into it. And there’s a sequel too, if I get round to this one.
  7. A Sinister Revenge, by Deanna Raybourn. I didn’t love the last book in the series (because of the total lack of communication between them, mostly), but I’m hopeful that this book will get me back into it. I really hope so, because I enjoy Veronica and Stoker, and I want to enjoy their stories.
  8. Bitter Waters, by Vivian Shaw. I was really excited to see that this novella had come out, and then I forgot about it and only remembered when I started looking through my TBR for this post! I love Greta Helsing and the world Shaw has built, the whole concept of a GP who treats monsters like vampires and ghouls, so I’m excited to dive back in via this novella. I might reread the rest of the series, too, because I adore it.
  9. The Tomb of Dragons, by Katherine Addison. Most likely I’m going to reread all the books in this world, let’s be honest, but I’m so excited to dive into The Tomb of Dragons and see where Thara Celehar is now, after the events of the last book. And let’s face it, I really want to know if Iäna Pel-Thenhior is ever going to give him a hug.
  10. The City in Glass, by Nghi Vo. This is actually due out soon, and I haven’t read my e-ARC yet, arrghh! I’ve got to get round to it as soon as I can — I’ve loved most of Nghi Vo’s work, and this sounds like a fascinating world and story. I’m never very sure about comparisons to Ursula Le Guin (and saying Calvino, Miéville and Le Guin as comparisons just seems like an odd mix), but I do trust that Nghi Vo’s work is good and generally to my taste.

Cover of A River Enchanted by Rebecca Ross Cover of A Sinister Revenge by Deanna Raybourn Cover of Bitter Waters by Vivian Shaw Cover of The Tomb of Dragons by Katherine Addison Cover of The City in Glass by Nghi Vo

And now I’d better hop on my bike and go to the library — books are calling out to me for pickup!

What’s everyone else’s TBR looking like for the autumn?

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Stacking the Shelves & The Sunday Post

Posted September 21, 2024 by Nicky in General / 28 Comments

Oof, feels like it’s been a long week. I’ve been productive and got some important stuff done, at least!

Books acquired this week

I wasn’t really planning a library trip this week as well, but I was in town anyway to sort something out, and I ended up with some free time. So I went to the library again…

Cover of the Zoologist's Guide to the Galaxy by Dr Arik Kershenbaum Cover of The Book at War by Andrew Pettegree Cover of Plants: From Roots to Riches by Kathy Willis and Carolyn Fry

Cover of The Lost Spells, by Robert Macfarlane and Jackie Morris Cover of Undying: A Love Story, by Michel Faber

I picked up some poetry on a whim; I haven’t read much poetry in ages, but I did start reading some again quite recently, and it seemed like a fun idea to dip into whatever the library has to try some poets I haven’t read before. Though I already love the song project based on The Lost Spells; give “The Snow Hare” and “Selkie Boy” a try, if you’re curious.

And checked out a local indie bookshop, The Book Vault. I have a couple more books I want to pick up later, but I settled for just two for now.

Cover of We Could Be Heroes by P.J. Ellis Cover of Rocket to the Morgue by Anthony Boucher

Posts from this week

As usual, time for a bit of a roundup. Here are the reviews first:

And the non-review posts:

What I’m reading

This week I did get back into the groove and start reading a bit more again, though it was mostly short stuff until today, when I tucked into a non-fiction book grabbed from the library and finally got back to reading Heaven Official’s Blessing (vol 6, which I’ve been struggling with due to the flashback interrupting the plot). Here’s a sneak peek of the books I’ve finished since last week (the ones I plan to review, at least):

Cover of Burning Books for Pleasure and Profit by KJ Parker Cover of Poirot Investigates, by Agatha Christie Cover of A Side Character's Love Story vol 19 by Akane Tamura Cover of Undying: A Love Story, by Michel Faber Cover of The Lost Spells, by Robert Macfarlane and Jackie Morris

Hopefully today I’ll finish this volume of Heaven Official’s Blessing, and maybe get a bit more into the swing of reading again.

How’s everyone else doing?

Linking up with Reading Reality’s Stacking the Shelves, Caffeinated Reviewer’s The Sunday Post, and the Sunday Salon over at Readerbuzz, as usual!

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Top Ten Tuesday: Redemption

Posted September 17, 2024 by Nicky in General / 20 Comments

This week’s prompt from Top Ten Tuesday is “The Characters Authors Surprisingly Redeemed”. A lot of people are taking it as characters that had a literal redemption arc within the story, but the prompt notes say that it’s about characters you grew to love — which is sometimes the same thing, but not always.

I admit, I’m struggling with this one, but it’s always easier once I start listing them out. Let’s give it a shot! Given the nature of the prompt, there are some spoilers here, and I’m afraid I’ve written a bit of an essay for point #3. Sorry not sorry!

Cover of Ancillary Justice by Ann Leckie Cover of The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet by Becky Chambers Cover of The Scum Villain's Self-Saving System vol 4 by MXTX Cover of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis Cover of The Ruin of a Rake by Cat Sebastian

  1. Seivarden Vendaai, from Ancillary Justice (Ann Leckie). Seivarden is a difficult character all round, drug-addicted and arrogant and not always ready to help herself. She’s devoted to Breq, though, and devoted to being better than she was: each time I reread it, I find myself going through the same journey where somehow I start rooting for her, and being sad when she’s not part of the action. Every time, it’s hard to pinpoint the exact moment it happens — and Seivarden’s choices can still be completely infuriating even once you’ve passed that tipping point — but every time, I come to the same conclusion. I might not like Seivarden as a person, but as a character she’s great.
  2. Artis Corbin, from A Long Way to a Small Angry Planet (Becky Chambers). He’s never going to be a super-likeable character, but he does go through some character growth. It’s difficult to say I like the character, and I’m always torn whether I agree with his most significant choice (i.e. his choice to give Ohan the antidote against their stated wishes), but I did grow to appreciate him more. It’s possible that’d work even better if he was a more major character and there was more time spent on it, but on the other hand, he’s such an ass most of the time that that’d probably be unbearable.
  3. Shen Qingqiu/Shen Yuan, from The Scum Villain’s Self-Saving System (Mò Xiāng Tóng Xiù). Bear with me here. In SVSSS, Shen Yuan transmigrates into a story called Proud Immortal Demon Way, becoming a character who happens to be the villain of the story. There’s some literal redemption here, as Shen Yuan inhabits the role of Shen Qingqiu, changes the story, treats people well and ultimately becomes the lover of a character that, in the original, Shen Qingqiu abused. But I’m also referring to Shen Yuan’s journey as a person, because he starts out with all kinds of assumptions and refuses to really be a part of the world he’s ended up in, and ultimately we see him accept his place in it, fall in love, and get over some of his internalised self-hate about the fact that he’s gay. It drove me batty the first time I read the series, but I think actually we’re being shown a journey toward self-acceptance, rather than a narrative that’s inherently homophobic from the get-go. (This is confirmed for me by reading MXTX’s Heaven Official’s Blessing, where Xie Lian and Hua Cheng’s love for one another is pretty matter-of-fact, with no sign of Shen Yuan’s constant “no homo”.)
    That’s my interpretation, admittedly, because he never really admits that he’s gay, and the narrative is always limited to his point of view: the only internal thoughts and feelings we get to hear about are his, filtered through the fact that he doesn’t really understand his own feelings. But throughout, he talks a big game about the pretty women in Proud Immortal Demon Way, but shows no actual interest in anyone except Luo Binghe, whom he ends up marrying. The story ends before their marriage (which is covered in the extras), and Shen Yuan clearly has a long way to go still… But he’s getting there, and we see that in his decision to say yes to marrying Luo Binghe, and the fact that after their wedding night, he quietly calls Luo Binghe “husband” just because he wants to try out how it sounds (despite being typically quite cagey about such open affection).
    So yeah, Shen Yuan literally redeems the character of Shen Qingqiu, but he also redeems himself — in a way he might never have managed if he hadn’t died and transmigrated into Proud Immortal Demon Way.
  4. Edmund Pevensie, from The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (C.S. Lewis). Any other time I might not think of this one, but I’ve been doing a bit of a Narnia reread, so he leaped to mind. He has a literal narrative redemption, of course, in that he starts out a traitor and is redeemed by Aslan, but for me I really came to like how he’d grown and changed from that in Prince Caspian. He’s still sometimes disagreeable, but he’s also a bit more self-aware, and wants to ultimately do the right thing.
    In The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, Eustace has a bit of a similar journey to Edmund, though he’s just more of a childish ass compared to Edmund’s out-and-out treachery. Like Edmund, we see the journey of a flawed boy who tries to work on it and become better, and he still has petty little outbreaks at first. I’m not actually a big fan of The Silver Chair or later books, but Eustace’s journey continues there. He never becomes a person I’d unequivocally like, but he does become a person who’s working on himself, and that’s admirable.
  5. Lord Courtenay, from The Ruin of a Rake (Cat Sebastian). Technically, Courtenay’s getting redeemed after his appearance in The Lawrence Browne Affair, where we mostly just see him as a dissolute playboy. Cat Sebastian does this really well, though: you’ll see a character from one perspective in a given book, and then in the next, you come to understand what’s going on beneath, and even root for that character. Courtenay’s been genuinely misunderstood, as well as making some serious mistakes, and this book quickly establishes that and works toward a happy ending for him that, when it comes, is extremely satisfying. He also has a literal redemption arc where he becomes a bit more socially acceptable and should be able to see his beloved nephew again.
    From the same book, I think Julian also had a bit of a redemption arc for me: he’s already socially acceptable, super acceptable in fact, but it sometimes makes him act like a bit of an ass. Contact with Courtenay softens him up a bit and begins to show him that he can be acceptable enough to society and also have the things he wants. So while he doesn’t have a literal redemption per se, for me he went from being a bit too stiff and focused on appearances to being warmer and more likeable.
  6. Thomas Wilker, from A Natural History of Dragons (Marie Brennan). Tom starts off pretty unlikeable, because he and Isabella can’t see one another’s value, and each is fighting against different societal barriers against them becoming scientists. Isabella’s a woman, and Tom’s lower class, and neither of them are welcome. At first it’s each of them against the world alone, but gradually (by the end of the first book, and increasingly throughout the remainder of the series), they join forces and become a lot more than they might be alone. We never get to see a lot of Tom’s personal life, now that I think about it, and in a way I regret that — Isabella’s so focused on dragons, it makes sense that she’s comparatively unaware of Tom’s emotional life (except where it relates to her). But now that I’m thinking about it, I’m definitely wondering!
  7. Luke Doomsday, from A Nobleman’s Guide to Seducing a Scoundrel (KJ Charles). Luke’s never quite unlikeable, but you’re very aware of his flaws while reading, for sure. He’s keeping things from Rufus — who would help him if he only asked — and abusing Rufus’ trust. Even if he doesn’t mean to harm Rufus, he definitely causes harm. And it’s not just Rufus, either; Luke is a hurt boy lashing out, in many ways, and he keeps on hurting those around him because of it. Still, through the course of the novel, he comes to terms with it and starts to be a bit more honest with people, and to heal.
  8. Tony Stark, from Civil War: Iron Man (Brian M. Bendis, etc). No, not the movie, but from the original Civil War event in the comics. This particular volume was focused on Iron Man, and his reaction to Steve Rogers’ death. Unlike the movies, it really made me understand Tony Stark’s point of view throughout Civil War, and focused on the deep affection and respect he felt for Steve even while they were at odds. Admittedly, the whole part in Camelot is just weird, but in my view, the movies really needed to adapt this volume as well in order to make Tony’s character gel, and they didn’t.
  9. Ged, from A Wizard of Earthsea (Ursula Le Guin). Ged’s not quite unlikeable, in the early chapters of the story, because it’s kind of above whether you like or dislike the characters. Ged is arrogant and incapable of admitting when he’s wrong or when he doesn’t know something, and we see him painfully and slowly learn humility, and then real courage and real power. In the later books, we see that pushed further, as Le Guin dismantled some of the sexist assumptions she built into the world, and widens everyone’s point of view.
  10. Paul Schafer, from The Summer Tree (Guy Gavriel Kay). It’s been a while since I read these books, but I keep being tempted to revisit, because against all odds, it’s a really good portal fantasy (and I enjoy what it does with Arthurian mythology as well). Paul is a difficult character to like at first, but you quickly understand that his reserve is due to an immense burden of guilt. He never becomes the warmest character, but he does learn to care again, and to forgive himself too. In some ways it’s not an easy read because what Paul suffers — and the other characters too — is immense and sometimes very dark. But it is a lovely trilogy.

Cover of A Natural History of Dragons by Marie Brennan Cover of A Nobleman's Guide to Seducing a Scoundrel by KJ Charles Cover of Civil War: Iron Man by Brian M. Bendis et al Cover of A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula Le Guin Cover of The Summer Tree by Guy Gavriel Kay

Whew, we got there! And I didn’t write too many essays…

I’m sure there are other characters I can’t think of right now, and also obvious characters I missed out somehow, but I always treat Top Ten Tuesday prompts as an opportunity to dig around and maybe come up with something different.

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Stacking the Shelves & The Sunday Post

Posted September 14, 2024 by Nicky in General / 20 Comments

Happy Saturday! It’s been a quiet week around here, and I haven’t been feeling much like reading — but I did finally sort out my library card, and I got some tempting books out, so there’s hope.

Books acquired this week

First up, my haul from the library:

Cover of The Hunter by Richard Stark Cover of The Mountain in the Sea by Ray Nayler Cover of Sir Hereward and Mister Fritz, by Garth Nix Cover of Pharos by Alice Thompson

Cover of The Unmaking of June Farrow by Adrienne Young Cover of Burning Books for Pleasure and Profit by KJ Parker Cover of Sorcery & Cecilia by Patricia C. Wrede and Caroline Stevermer Cover of Godkiller by Hannah Kaner

As you see, I got quite enthusiastic! The first five are the ones I picked up from a bike trip down to the main library, while the latter three I grabbed on Libby.

I also got a review copy this week, of a book I’ve been very eagerly anticipating. Thanks, Tor!

Cover of The Tomb of Dragons by Katherine Addison

And finally, two that I bought. The latest volume of A Side Character’s Love Story is out, and my British Library Crime Classic book from my subscription arrived for this month.

Cover of A Side Character's Love Story vol 19 by Akane Tamura Cover of Metropolitan Mysteries, ed. Martin Edwards

As you see, there’s a lot to tempt me!

Posts from this week

As usual, let’s do a bit of a roundup. First the reviews:

And other posts:

What I’m reading

As I mentioned above, I haven’t been reading a lot this week. I’m onto a flashback arc again in Heaven Official’s Blessing, and I know it’s also pretty dark, so I’ve not been super drawn to that… and in general, I haven’t been in the mood very much. I think it’s picking up today, though: I finally got back to my long-neglected reread of Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, and I’m quite tempted to pick up one or two of my library books.

Here are the books I’ve finished this week that I plan to review on the blog:

Cover of Heaven Official's Blessing vol 5 by MXTX Cover of Book Lovers by Emily Henry

I did read some poetry collections as well, but I don’t plan to review those on the blog.

So that’s been my week! How’s everyone else doing?

Linking up with Reading Reality’s Stacking the Shelves, Caffeinated Reviewer’s The Sunday Post, and the Sunday Salon over at Readerbuzz, as usual!

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WWW Wednesday

Posted September 11, 2024 by Nicky in General / 2 Comments

Yep, time for the usual check-in!

Cover of Heaven Official's Blessing vol 5 by MXTXWhat have you recently finished reading?

I’ve mostly been reading poetry for a few days, because it was on Serial Reader and it’s been a while since I read any poetry. This involved the conclusion that I’m still not a fan of Robert Frost, but I did like Kahlil Gibran’s “The Prophet”.

Other than that, the last thing I finished was the fifth volume of Heaven Official’s Blessing (MXTX).

Cover of Book Lovers by Emily HenryWhat are you currently reading?

Predictably, I’m onto volume six of Heaven Official’s Blessing, which includes a scene I’ve been waiting for ever so long — finally Xie Lian has acknowledged Hua Cheng’s feelings for him, and seems to be reciprocating! (This is hardly a spoiler: it’s danmei, you know they’re headed there.)

On Serial Reader, I’m working my way through Agatha Christie’s Poirot Investigates, which is short stories. They feature an unfortunate amount of Hastings, and I am not a fan.

Other than that, I got back to reading Emily Henry’s Book Lovers, which I am at times reading while peeking through my fingers because of embarrassment squick.

Cover of The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha ChristieWhat will you be reading next?

It’s a fair bet that I’ll be reading Heaven Official’s Blessing volume 7 in pretty short order, of course, but after that, I’m not sure. I do know that my next choice on Serial Reader is likely to be a reread of The Murder of Roger Ackroyd — I remember enjoying it very much and thinking it very clever, so I’m not going to skip it even though I know whodunnit. I did read it quite a while ago, so the clues and such will be new to me, even though I remember the conclusion.

And what are you reading?

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