Stacking the Shelves

Posted June 20, 2015 by Nicky in General / 16 Comments

This week, I got some major goals done — the book I was ghostwriting was finished (well, one of them), I got a lot of transcription work done, and I got an assignment done. So I was allowed some books, and much deserved they were. Also, one of them was bought with a voucher my mother gave me a few weeks(!) ago. Aaand then was Support Tor Day (warning: link to Vox Day’s blog; no, he isn’t supporting Tor, he’s calling for a boycott, which to me is tantamount to asking all reasonable people to support them).

Plus, Susanna Kearsley sent me an Amazon voucher to make up for me getting smacked with a customs charge for a book she sent me. I don’t have that book in my hands yet, but I do have a couple of her others. I had some of these from the library, but…

Cover of Uprooted by Naomi Novik Cover of Across the Wall by Garth Nix 23213811

Cover of Mariana by Susanna Kearsley Cover of The Assassin's Blade by Sarah J. Maas Cover of Heir of Fire by Sarah J. Maas

Cover of Hammered by Elizabeth Bear Cover of The Seventh Bride by T. Kingfisher Cover of The Sin Eater's Daughter by Melinda Salisbury

Cover of The Shadowy Horses by Susanna Kearsley Cover of Stories of Your Life and Others by Ted Chiang Cover of A Companion to Wolves by Elizabeth Bear and Sarah Monette

Excite!

Comics

Ms Marvel

I’m not sure how I feel about this event, but still. Ms Marvel. Yay.

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48 Hour Book Challenge

Posted June 19, 2015 by Nicky in General / 4 Comments

Well, thanks to Ryan (SpecFic Junkie), looks like I’m joining in with MotherReader’s 48 Hour Book Challenge. My 48 hours will run from 6pm Belgian time 11pm on Friday to 6pm 11pm Belgian time on Sunday, and I’m not aiming too high in terms of participation — I know I’ve got a chemistry assignment to finish, prep for a trip to Canada, and also, you know, time to spend with my partner. And sleep. And the bunny. Obviously 12 hours is the minimum bracket, so I’m aiming for at least that.

Watch this space for updates! I have no particular stack, but the books will come from my June TBR, or fill one of my three remaining wildcard spots.

Blogging stuff: 4 hours.
Talking about books: 2 hours.
Reading:
6 hours. Finished Ancillary Justice; started The Philosopher Kings; read a couple of short stories.
Reading for assignment: pretty much 12 hours, no kidding. So much science.

I am hesitant to count the blogging stuff because yeesh, self, that is a lot of time noodling around on blogs. And the assignment stuff also includes doing math and rearranging equations, so it doesn’t count really.

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Review – A Taste of the Nightlife

Posted June 19, 2015 by Nicky in Reviews / 0 Comments

Cover of A Taste of the NightlifeA Taste of the Nightlife, Sarah Zettel
Review from April 1st, 2012

I liked Sarah Zettel’s Camelot quartet a lot on first reading, but it didn’t stand up very well to me writing an essay on it. This… I felt the whole way through how she was manipulating the readers’ thoughts and feelings. I could feel it, and it annoyed the heck out of me… but I still couldn’t put it down. So I’m wavering between two and three stars here. I don’t know if I can explain how ambivalent I feel about it. (I’ve changed the star rating three times so far in typing this paragraph.)

I wasn’t in love with the characters. I was reminded constantly of other books — Robin McKinley’s Sunshine, for one, with the first person female narrator who loves to cook, isn’t conventionally brave, and gets messed up with vampires, and has two men with whom she has sexual attraction, one of whom is a vampire and the other of whom is a warlock… (I don’t remember exactly the details of Mel in Sunshine, but I seem to recall some details which pointed in that direction.) And of other urban fantasy books. The tone really didn’t come across as anything new, and sorry, but I don’t think Zettel is that skilled at writing mysteries. She doesn’t give you the tools to solve it yourself, which makes it confusing and that bit boring.

And yet. I wanted to know which guy she picked. I wanted to know her brother’d be okay and she’d reopen her restaurant. There was enough there to keep me turning the pages. I even think I’ll probably read the sequel, though I’m in no hurry. I’m just… disappointed.

Rating: 2/5

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Review – Simon vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda

Posted June 18, 2015 by Nicky in Reviews / 0 Comments

Cover of Simon vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky AlbertalliSimon vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda, Becky Albertalli

This is really cute, and made me do this embarrassing grin and clap thing that I probably last did over David Levithan’s Boy Meets Boy or Rainbow Rowell’s Fangirl or Attachments. The email exchange and the way they finally meet, the way they talk to each other and fall for each other via email. The friend stuff, too; that rings true to being seventeen and everything’s a holy freaking huge deal, and everyone’s pairing up and figuring things out and misunderstanding each other.

Mostly, though, I saw myself in Simon in the earlier parts of the book. The threat of being outed at school, the people making little sly comments about it. I mean, I even had that stupid standing-on-stage moment where people started shouting homophobic stupid shit at me. I had the awesome teacher, too, though not so much the friends backing me up. And straight people thinking that being gay isn’t a big deal anymore because they’re okay with it and they’ve never seen anything happen, and being so stupidly surprised when it turns out that hey, actually, people still really freaking suck when it comes to this sort of thing.

So for all that this was silly and cute and full of pop-culture references, it hit a slightly more serious note for me. Even though the silliness and general good will came out on top. Because I’ve been there, ‘do this for me or I’ll tell people you’re gay’. I used to have people saying they’d tell my parents, teachers, sister, anyone they thought they could hit home with. This really did get hold of some of those awkward feelings, the way being outed takes something away from you, the way people can hold it over you. I don’t know if I like that, combined with the happy-silly-fun ending, but I appreciated that it was there. I’m not sure I’ve read anything before that did get what that aspect of it was like.

And in a way, I’m glad it does have that happy-silly-fun ending with the supportive family and friends and a cool boyfriend. Because real life is just too awful, sometimes.

Rating: 3/5

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Review – Cities and Thrones

Posted June 17, 2015 by Nicky in Reviews / 0 Comments

Cover of Cities and Thrones by Carrie PatelCities and Thrones, Carrie Patel
Received to review via Netgalley

Cities and Thrones is a solid follow-up to The Buried Life, expanding the world and giving us a glimpse of the politics at work both in the other cities and the things that motivate the key players of Recoletta. We get a few more glimpses into the Library, and how exactly the underground society of Recoletta came about. If you hadn’t worked it out already, well, this book also gives us more hints about the link between the state of society in Recoletta and the modern day. Some things are not unfamiliar or unusual concepts to us…

Malone continues to be an interesting character, loyal to her city and not bending to politicking. Oh, she’ll take part in an effort to bring the city stability, but ultimately she acts for the good of Recoletta, not to further anyone’s agenda. Not even her own, really: again and again she puts herself at risk. Meanwhile, Jane continues to be a pawn unsure of who exactly is moving her, fighting for autonomy and finding that she only succeeds in getting herself in deeper, and deeper again. I’m not sure about the thing between her and Roman, but I’m reassured by the ambivalence there; it’s certainly not a straightforward romance or an easy relationship.

The last chapter of the book raises the stakes again; I’m curious to see where this is going. I read this book in one go, quite literally in one sitting, and it’s definitely a worthy sequel.

Rating: 3/5

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Review – Days of Blood and Starlight

Posted June 16, 2015 by Nicky in Reviews / 4 Comments

Cover of Days of Blood and Starlight by Laini TaylorDays of Blood and Starlight, Laini Taylor

I practically raced through my reread of this. I’m excited to read the third book, and I’ve also been spoilered a bit for some of the contents, so I spent a lot of time reading very attentively, looking for the hints. It’s not an easy book to read, because you’ve come to care about all these characters and then dreadful things have happened, are happening, will happen. But it’s certainly interesting, bringing together strange alliances and showing us more of the world — this time, Eretz, the world of the angels and chimaera.

I forgot how much of a game-changer the end of this book is; honestly, in remembering Karou and Akiva’s relationship trajectory, I forgot about the political/racial plot a little. That is very much a part of this book, along with difficult stuff like choosing the lesser of evils, atoning for wrongs done, etc. It’s not just a book about a romance and the angst along the way. It’s also a powerful story about two races, both doing awful things, and how that awfulness begets more awfulness.

You’ve got to love the range of female characters available here, too, though the threat of rape is sadly conjured twice here as something to crush the female characters. Still, Liraz the asexual angel, Zuzana the tiny fierce girl whose love for her friend is her only qualification to be involved at all, Issa’s strength and love for Karou and the trust she puts in her, Ten’s unwavering support of Thiago… And there’s plenty of interesting male characters too: Mik, Hazael, Ziri, Thiago, etc.

Rating: 4/5

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Top Ten Tuesday

Posted June 16, 2015 by Nicky in General / 14 Comments

This week’s theme from The Broke and the Bookish is all about the summer TBR! Because I type this up in advance, I might have had chance to read some of these already, but even so, here goes a list of books I’m highly anticipating reading sometime this summer, particularly with my long flight to Canada to encourage reading time.

  1. Simon and the Homo Sapiens Agenda, Becky Albertalli. It sounds like a lot of fun, and I picked it up recently so… why not?
  2. Dorothy Must Die, Danielle Paige. My sister made me buy this because of Ollie the educated monkey, so I’m going to have to read this soon before she kills me and pries it from my cold dead hands.
  3. The Lions of Al-Rassan, Guy Gavriel Kay. This is a reread, and I really must get round to it, because I do love GGK’s work, and I’m determined to finish rereading all of it in publication order before I finally get to read River of Stars.
  4. An Astronaut’s Guide to Life on Earth, Chris Hadfield. His videos and stuff on the ISS were really cool, and generally he seems like a pretty fun guy. And I’ve had this for ages.
  5. Landline, Rainbow Rowell. Whyyy haven’t I got round to this yet?
  6. Signal to Noise, Silvia Moreno-Garcia. Recommended by someone in the Cardiff SF/F book club, and I just bought it, so hopefully I’ll get to it soon.
  7. Dreams of Gods and Monsters, Laini Taylor. High time I finished reading this trilogy, I know!
  8. The Enchantment Emporium, Tanya Huff. Not only have I got this, it’s on a list of books recommended by friends. So high time I got round to it. Which is a theme on this list, it seems…
  9. Fair Game, Josh Lanyon. Both books in this series, really. They’re fun and I don’t know why I haven’t read them already, especially since I had the second one as an ARC.
  10. The Bards of Bone Plain, Patricia McKillip. I had to pick at least one of her books. <3

What about everybody else? Are you keeping your list full of current books, or are you trying to catch up?

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Review – The Supernatural Enhancements

Posted June 15, 2015 by Nicky in Reviews / 2 Comments

Cover of The Supernatural Enhancements by Edgar CanteroThe Supernatural Enhancements, Edgar Cantero
Received to review via Netgalley

I don’t actually know why I requested this on Netgalley, but since I did, I presume something caught my interest. It didn’t display very well on my ereader, so I waited and grabbed the book when I saw it in the library. The format basically reminds me of House of Leaves, but it does end up making more sense. Some of the supernatural stuff is almost incidental to the plot; there is a supernatural thread in the story, but it’s not really based in the house. It’s not like Weird Fiction in that way where the setting is itself a character.

Overall, I’m not sure what to think. I’m not opposed to epistolary novels, found footage, etc, but it has to come together really well, and it didn’t always work here. Honestly, I found myself skimming some sections because there just wasn’t enough of significance to justify the inclusion of certain scenes. It might work well on the screen, to establish the format firmly, but here… it felt like a waste of space.

It is kind of mesmerising, though. I read it pretty much in one go, and I wasn’t bored while reading it — sometimes confused, a little unsatisfied, but not bored. In the end, I was curious enough to flip back through to look back at hints and see how things came together. It’s not really my thing, and nor would I know who to recommend it for, but there’s a lot of interest here for the right person.

Rating: 3/5

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Review – The Lie Tree

Posted June 14, 2015 by Nicky in Reviews / 0 Comments

Cover of The Lie Tree by Frances HardingeThe Lie Tree, Frances Hardinge
Received to review via Netgalley

I didn’t even need to read the description of this one to know I wanted it. I’ve only read A Face Like Glass and Cuckoo Song, and I know that I’m willing to try anything Frances Hardinge writes. I love that she focuses on young female characters who are beginning to come into their own. In this book, Faith moves from a quiet girl who think she’s wrong for not fitting the mould to a girl who acts for herself with courage, who isn’t afraid to claim a new place for herself. I love all the natural history stuff here in the background, Faith’s involvement in her father’s work and fascination with it, the way she genuinely has a scientific interest of her own beyond her devotion to her father.

I didn’t love the plot as much as I have Hardinge’s other books; it has some of those simple but brilliant ideas (like the expressions in A Face Like Glass) which drive the plot, but then there’s the murder mystery, and that aspect I found… well, less magical. Which is not surprising, but I can’t help it: I like magic. I do like the way the plot resolves, though, and the fact that there are still mysteries that Faith will never solve about the Lie Tree — like how quickly it grew, fed on her lies; the maliciousness that seems to hang around it. I like that complication: the thing that Faith is using to investigate what happened, a good motive, may not be good in itself — may even be something dark and evil.

I like the slow understanding of Myrtle’s character, too. It’s easy to write a woman who has machinations, wants to marry someone rich, etc, etc. It’s harder to see through that to a woman trying to protect her family, trying to hold things together with the powers she has, what power she’s managed to scrounge from a system that doesn’t give her much credit.

All in all, though it’s not my favourite, this is very good. Most of the characters are subtle, good and bad and pitiable and pitiless. There are shades of grey just like life. It doesn’t present a fake world where everything is easy, which ranks it amongst the best YA.

Rating: 4/5

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Review – Dark Triumph

Posted June 13, 2015 by Nicky in Reviews / 9 Comments

Cover of Dark Triumph by Robin LaFeversDark Triumph, Robin LaFevers
Received to review via Netgalley

I was worried that my liking for the first book, Grave Mercywas a fluke. After all, other bloggers I know were unenthusiastic about this series, the romance element is not my favourite thing, etc. But I continue to really enjoy the books. This one focuses on Sybella, the girl who went to the convent escaping something clearly so horrible that it traumatised her to breaking point. And we find out exactly what that was, not all at once but piece by piece, as she comes to trust the main male character of the book and begins to reveal herself to him.

And I seriously, seriously love that the main male character is Beast from the first book, and Robin LaFevers doesn’t make some big song and dance about how he’s actually physically attractive somehow, having said he wasn’t before. He still isn’t. He just has a lust for and a love of life, a core of decency, that means that doesn’t matter — and which makes him exactly what Sybella needs.

I really enjoy the historical fantasy setting here. I don’t know how close it is to the actual history, because French history of that period is really not my thing, but I like the way it’s woven together with historical alliances and rivalries, the political motivations behind the characters’ movements. This is a more personal book than Ismae’s, really dealing with Sybella’s trauma and bringing her some peace, but it does continue the political storyline as well, and brings out other aspects of serving their dark god, Mortain. It’s an interesting, though not entirely surprising, portrayal of a god of death — a multi-faceted one which takes in mercy, justice, love.

That multi-faceted treatment also comes in when talking about Sybella’s family. While at times both she and others treat simply being a member of that family as proof that they’re somehow terrible people, that clearly isn’t 100% the case, even when a character has done things they shouldn’t. There is a possibility of redemption, of a person who has done bad things also doing good things.

We do see characters recurring from the first book, but only Beast and Sybella are really dealt with in detail. We do see Ismae interacting with Sybella, though, sharing what she’s learned and how she’s changed. Those scenes are also very sweet, giving Sybella forgiveness — so that she’s not magically healed just by falling in love, but by revealing herself and then having that self be accepted, not just by Beast but by Ismae as well, by the people who matter to her.

I can’t wait to read Mortal Heart, now. When I looked at the page counts on these books I was a bit daunted, but it genuinely flies by!

Rating: 4/5

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