Not Just Books: September 2023

While we do love us some books, believe it not, we do have a life outside of reading. So to highlight our other pop culture interests, on the last Monday of each month, we each will highlight three other “happenings” from the last month. Big events on favorite TV shows, new movies we’ve watched, old movies we’ve “discovered,” etc. Pretty much whatever we found of particular interest outside of the book world during the last month. Share your own favorite things in the comments!

Serena’s Picks

Video Game: “Starfield”

I held out for like a week before buying this game. Lots of self control over here, I know. I’ve been playing it fairly regularly and still only feel like I’m scratching the surface. This is both a good thing and a bad thing I’d say. Now that I’m getting more into how everything works, I’m definitely getting more into it. But it also took awhile and there’s a fairly high learning curve. That said, I think it is well worth the effort. The world/universe is huge, at times, intimidatingly so, and there are a bunch of story lines that all seem intriguing on their own. However, I’m still doubtful that this will top my all-time favorite Bethesda game, “Skyrim.” I’m discovering that I’m partially just a sucker for beautiful landscapes, so the barren look of “Fallout” and the many metallic ships and desert landscapes of “Starfield” just don’t compare for me. That said, I’ve only been to a handful of planets so far, so I could still be surprised!

Movie: “Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part I”

If there’s one thing that is reliable in this very tumultuous time of ups and downs within Hollywood, it’s that Tom Cruise is always good for a thrilling ride! If you’ve liked other entries in the long-running “Mission Impossible” series, this is in many ways more of the same. Lots of high energy chase and fight scenes. Tom Cruise pulls off crazy stunts. And the side characters are nicely quippy. The thing is that is different is right there in the title: this is clearly part one of a two part story. Things tie up well enough that you’re not left on the edge of your seat, but the next mission is set up and the ultimate resolution with the big bad is yet to come. I’ll definitely be checking it out when it does (though who knows when that will be now!)

Show: “Jury Duty”

I remember selecting this show with my husband based on nothing but the oddness of the premise: one guy who thinks he’s part of a real trial documentary but in truth is surrounded by actors and its all a set-up. It’s a strange concept and one that really lives and dies on the real life individual at the heart of it. Without knowing how they cast Ronald, it’s hard to know how much of what worked about this was the pure luck that was him being such a stand-up guy or how closely they were able to select towards what they wanted. It’s a quirky, fun show, with one of the highlights being watching James Marsden really play up the obnoxiousness of actors in the real world.

Kate’s Picks

Music: The Chicks

The Minnesota State Fair wrapped up at the beginning of September, but right at the start of it I was lucky enough to see country/Americana band The Chicks play at the Grandstand with my mother, aunt, and cousin. I had seen them at the same venue with the same people in 2016, and going back was a lot of fun, mostly because 1) The Chicks are still pissed as hell about a lot of things, and 2) it gave me a chance to get back into their music, specifically their newest album “Gaslighter”. I love The Chicks sound, as I have always loved the Americana/bluegrass that they tend to delve in, and I LOVE the rage in so many of their songs, whether it’s about the horrific way the country music community treated them back in the early 2000s, or the way our country is so oppressive towards minority groups, or gun violence, or, most recently, cheating gaslighting husbands (“boy, I know exactly what you did on my boat” is AFLAME!!!). So great to get back into these talented ladies.

YouTube Show: “Hot Ones”

Even though I am from the Midwest, I like to think that I have a pretty strong tolerance for spice and heat levels. My husband is the same way, and we really got into the YouTube show “Hot Ones” at the end of summer for a couple of reasons. The first is that Sean Evans, the man who hosts the show and gives his celebrity guests ten hot wings with progressively higher heat levels, has such an engaging and interesting interviewing style that the interviews are almost always unique and fascinating. The second reason is that it’s always funny to see the celebrities freak out over the spice levels. We were so inspired we actually held our own Hot Ones party at our house, where some friends came over and we used actual hot sauces from the show to test our resolve and REALLY test our tolerance. I’m very proud to say that not only was I not that affected by the notorious “Da Bomb”, I did just fine until the very last sauce, which pretty much destroyed me for a good ten minutes. Not bad for a Minnesota girl.

TV Show: “Dark Winds”

I came about my love of reading honestly, with both my parents being avid readers, and I have stark memories of my Dad’s bookshelf being filled with the Tony Hillerman “Leaphorn and Chee” murder mysteries. I read a few, but never got as into it as he did (though I did like the PBS “Mystery!” versions with Wes Studi and Adam Beach!). Enter “Dark Winds”, the AMC neo-western/noir that has adapted the “Leaphorn and Chee” mysteries with a focus on bring in Native perspectives and voices into the stories that were originally written by a white man. Taking place in the early 1970s, an armored truck is robbed with both guards murdered in Gallup, New Mexico. A few weeks later, two Native people are murdered, one of whom had seen the helicopter that the robbers took. Tribal Police Officer Lt. Joe Leaphorn is assigned to the case, and gets a new partner in the young Jim Chee, who has arrived at the reservation with ambition and some secrets of his own. As they investigate, they find dark secrets and dark truths. I love Zahn McClarnon, who plays Leaphorn, and I am very eager to see where this series goes now that I’ve started it.

Rah Rah for RA!: Thriller Titles

Occasionally we here at Library Ladies get an email asking for some Reader’s Advisory. Sometimes it’s a general ‘what should I read next?’, and sometimes it’s a specific genre or theme that the reader is asking for. We do our best to match the reader to some books that they may like based on the question they give us.

Good afternoon!!!

I love thriller/mystery/murder/suspenseful books. 

Books I’ve read and enjoyed:

The Whisper Man – really scared me. 

The Good Lie – had great twists. 

The Family Across the Street – the mystery of the untitled narrator was fun to try and figure out. 

Silent Patient – small chapters had me wanting to know what’s next. 

Now I am looking for a new thriller!!

Thank you,

A

Hi A!

With the Halloween season coming up, there really is nothing like a good thriller to send chills up one’s spine and ratchet up the suspense. Based on the titles here, I have some ideas that may fit in with that you may like.

Book: “Chasing the Boogeyman” by Richard Chizmar

If you liked the threat of a small town being terrorized by a serial killer, while also looking at the way such a trauma can affect people in the community, I definitely would recommend “Chasing the Boogeyman” by Richard Chizmar. What I liked the most about this book was that it is written in a way that, while we know it is fictional, reads like an actual true crime tale with the author having a connection to the crimes and the aftermath. Richard Chizmar’s small town was an ideal slice of Americana, until a murderer began targeting young women in the community. As an adult he returns home, and decides to dive into the unsolved case, finding things he never imagined. The mystery of The Boogeyman in small town America not only has twists and turns, it also has a coming of age and personal feel to it because of the meta nature of the book. I found it deeply unsettling and hard to put down when I was reading it, and really loved the lengths that Chizmar goes to to make it feel authentic. And if you like it, I have good news! There is a sequel coming out later this year!

Book: “Dark Places” by Gillian Flynn

I feel like for many people Gillian Flynn’s go to thriller is “Gone Girl”, but for me,”Dark Places” is her best. Libby Day was a little girl and the lone survivor of a family massacre. Her older brother was convicted of the crime, and as an adult she is dealing with the trauma in less than healthy ways. When she is approached by a group of true crime enthusiasts who think her brother is innocent, she isn’t interested in engaging.. but then starts to question what she thinks to be true. You have an unlikable protagonist who may be unreliable, you have the weird specter of true crime culture hanging throughout the tale as armchair detectives try to revisit a notorious crime, and you have a family filled with secrets which ended with a terrible murder scene and a lone survivor who has fallen into a self destruction cycle. And on top of all that, you have a tense and engaging mystery where things may not be as they seem. I loved this book when I first read it, and Flynn’s gift for creating unsettling and eerie stories filled with sinister people is present and makes for a twisty read.

Book: “Falling” by T.J. Newman

If you want a thriller that is really hard to set aside, look no further than “Falling” by T.J. Newman. When I first read this book, I literally stayed up until about 2am just to finish it after telling myself I’d read a chapter or two before bed. When a commercial airline pilot finds his plane hijacked, and the terrorists have told him he has to crash the flight otherwise they will murder his whole family, he has to try and figure out if he can save his family as well as everyone on the plane. Meanwhile, his wife is playing her own game of cat and mouse with her kidnapper, and his close friend and head flight attendant is placed in charge of keeping things in the cabin calm while maybe getting more information to try and help keep everyone alive. I really enjoyed this one because it is relentless in the suspense and the plot twists, and it also has likable characters you cannot help but invest in.

Book: “Jar of Hearts” by Jennifer Hillier

I was completely blown away by this one when I read it, as it was a book I was taking a chance because I’d never heard of it or Jennifer Hillier. But when I started, the hits kept coming and it was just the twisted and suspenseful thriller I needed. Fourteen years after his disappearance, the remains of Angela Wong are found, and her best friend from high school, Georgina, is arrested. Georgina’s boyfriend Calvin at the time killed three other women, but the police think that Georgina was an accomplice in Angela’s death. And Georgina does know what happened that night. And then women in the modern day start disappearing, and are found dead in similar ways to Calvin’s crimes. What does Georgina know? And what is she hoping no one else finds out? “Jar of Hearts” is a rollercoaster with so many good reveals, as well as a complicated protagonist that is hard to trust but easy to root for.

Hopefully these are a good jumping off point! Thrillers are such a large swath, genre wise, but I think that these have some variety and may match what you are looking for!

What thrillers have you enjoyed recently? Let us know in the comments!

Serena’s Review: “A Multitude of Dreams”

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Book: “A Multitude of Dreams” by Mara Rutherford

Publishing Info: Inkyard Press, August 2023

Where Did I Get this Book: ARC from the publisher!

Where Can You Get this Book: WorldCat.org | Amazon | IndieBound

Book Description: Princess Imogen of Goslind has lived a sheltered life for three years at the boarded-up castle—she and the rest of its inhabitants safe from the bloody mori roja plague that’s ravaged the kingdom. But Princess Imogen has a secret, and as King Stuart descends further into madness, it’s at great risk of being revealed. Rations dwindle each day, and unhappy murmurings threaten to crack the facade of the years-long charade being played within the castle walls. Nico Mott once enjoyed a comfortable life of status, but the plague took everyone and everything from him. If not for the generosity of a nearby lord, Nico may not have survived the mori roja’s aftermath. But does owing Lord Crane his life mean he owes him his silence? When Lord Crane sends Nico to search for more plague survivors in the castle, Nico collides with a princess who wants to break out. They will each have to navigate the web of lies they’ve woven if they’re going to survive the nightmares that lie ahead.

Review: I pretty much went and placed a request for this book so quickly that I failed to notice much of anything about it…other than the fact that I loved the cover art! When I slowed down and took the time to actually look into the book I was requesting, I was pleased to realize that it was another book by Mara Rutherford, the author of “The Poison Season,” a book I read last winter and very much enjoyed. I also found it very amusing that this book sounds like a medieval, fantasy version of Covid lockdowns, with one of our main characters having spent many years “sheltering in place” in a castle.

While I did have a few quibbles with this one, overall I thought it was a fun, stand-alone fantasy. I liked both of our main characters, especially Imogen. Her history and experiences in the castle were interesting and lead to a lot of great character dynamics between her, her father the king, and her three sisters. But starting here and throughout the rest of this review, most of my main quibbles were that I wish there was a just a bit more…something to this book. These relationships, built around a shared secret, were all rich and ripe for delving into the complex nature of family relationships, especially when external forces twist them. There were moments when the story tackled these concepts, brief flashes into the complicated feelings that Imogen has towards her father, in particular. But I felt like these brief brushes against deeper wells of emotions often left me feeling frustrated that we weren’t devoting more time and attention to these themes.

Nico’s story is the much more action-oriented of the two. His was also the one that lead to probably the most surprising twist of the story. I was honestly not expecting this book to take the turn that it did, but once it did, I was able to catch up quickly to the type of story we’d be reading. After that, some of the other twists and turns were more expected, but not displeasing in their own right. When Nico and Imogen meet, their relationship progresses fairly quickly. It does verge a bit too closely to “instalove” for my taste, given that the entire book takes place over a few days. But as the love story isn’t the main focus of the story, I wasn’t overly bothered by the fact that it came on so quickly.

I will say, I did struggle a bit with the use of Judaism in this book. The author mentions in her note that she wanted to explore how the Jewish population was often targeted when disasters like plague struck a region. But while I think this exploration on its own is interesting (indeed, I think it’s actually been a topic I’ve seen covered in a handful of other fantasy titles within the the last few years), I wasn’t sure that the execution worked as well here. Mostly because the inclusion of Jews made me question the world-building itself. There were no other recognizable ethnic or religious groups included. Instead, the entire world is clearly second-world fantasy (some of the twists and turns take the story to a truly fantastical place), so it was throw me off to suddenly stray across a reference to the Jewish quarter. It simply read as strange. And beyond that, again, here, this was very much a theme and section of the book that was only touched on briefly here and there. It was never truly central to the story. That being the case, to not really make the treatment of Jewish communities a true central portion of your story, the inclusion felt strange when no other recognizable parts of our world were there alongside it. It almost felt like the author had written the entire book in one draft, and then decided she wanted to cover this topic of history as well and simply went back and just inserted references to Judaism into the completed text. It was strange.

Overall, this was an enjoyable book. I read it very quickly and did enjoy the two main characters especially. However, I was also left wanting more from a lot of the themes that were briefly touched upon in the story.

Rating 7: A good read for those looking for a fresh YA fantasy, though it fails to deeply explore many of the themes it introduces.

Reader’s Advisory:

“A Multitude of Dreams” can be found on this Goodreads list: Raven & Crow

Kate’s Review: “The Stranger Upstairs”

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Book: “The Stranger Upstairs” by Lisa M. Matlin

Publishing Info: Bantam, September 2023

Where Did I Get This Book: I received an eARC from NetGalley.

Where You Can Get This Book: WorldCat.org | Amazon | Indiebound

Book Description: A social media influencer with a secret past buys a murder house to renovate, but finds more than she bargained for behind the peeling wallpaper in this gothic psychological debut.

Sarah Slade is starting over. As the new owner of the infamous Black Wood House—the scene of a grisly murder-suicide—she’s determined that the fixer-upper will help reach a new audience on her successful lifestyle blog, and distract her from her failing marriage.

But as Sarah paints over the house’s horrifying past, she knows better than anyone that a new façade can’t conceal every secret. Then the builders start acting erratically and experiencing bizarre accidents—and Sarah knows there’s only so long she can continue to sleep in the bedroom with the bloodstained floor and suffer the mysterious footsteps she hears from the attic.

When menacing notes start appearing everywhere, Sarah becomes convinced that someone or something is out to kill her—her husband, her neighbors, maybe even the house itself. The more she remodels Black Wood House, the angrier it seems to become.

With every passing moment, Sarah’s life spirals further out of control—and with it, her sense of reality. Though she desperately clings to the lies she’s crafted to conceal her own secrets, Sarah Slade must wonder . . . was it all worth it? Or will this house be her final unraveling?

Review: Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an eARC of this novel!

The first thing that caught by eye about Lisa M. Matlin’s “The Stranger Upstairs” was the cover. I love seeing all these neon brightly colored and somewhat surreal thriller covers as of late! I also love the foreboding silhouette in the window of the house, which makes for a fun and weird dichotomy between the colors and the unease that lays below it. Cover aside, I was interested in this book because of the ‘murder house’ angle, as well as the influencer angle, which I had hoped would combine to make for a tense and fun thriller mystery. And I’m sad to say that we didn’t really get to the levels I was hoping for.

But first, the good! I thought that Matlin really set the scene well, building suspense in a well paced way with lots of good red herrings and misdirections while ratcheting up the tension. I liked the slow burn of the escalating stalking that is aimed squarely at Sarah, our influencer therapist who has bought an infamous murder house for content and the hope of profit. Sure, she’s harboring many secrets and her marriage is falling apart, but if this house flips well she could make money AND go viral. As strange things start happening and she starts to lose a grip on her collectedness, the plot is engaging and filled with lots of intensity. I also really liked the parallels between Black Woods House and the notorious Los Feliz Murder house, from similar crime scenes and murder details to infamy that leaks into local lore. It was a neat easter egg for people who are familiar with the crime.

But there were also things that didn’t really gel with me, which ultimately brought the book down overall. The first thing (and I’m not going to go into spoilers here) was how the entire thing shakes out. There was so much good suspenseful build up that could lead to some interesting solutions, and I was really hoping that it would all pay off. But I felt that by the end, the big reveal just kind of clunked out. It led to a twist that was okay but a bit unsatisfying, and then there was one more moment that happened right at the end that made it feel like the author couldn’t quite make up her mind as to what she wanted the ultimate reveal to be, and what kind of origin she wanted that reveal to be a part of. On top of that, Sarah was a little TOO unlikable. Let me explain that, as I generally think that female protagonists (especially in thrillers) should have the ability to be unlikable. The issue I had with Sarah was that there was a LOT of effort to make her sour, manipulative, snide, and proud of her cruelty, and it felt less like an interesting if flawed protagonist and more like a character that has a lot of checked boxes to make her unpleasant, without adding in layers and complexity to even it out. Generally, I can do with a let down ending if the main character is interesting, or vice versa, but when they are both underwhelming it makes for a disappointing read.

I do think that I would read more books by Matlin, because there was a lot of potential in “The Stranger Upstairs”. I’m bummed that it was a bit unmet.

Rating 5: There were some pretty good references and a build up I liked, but then the reveal fell a bit flat. Add in a main character who is almost too unlikable and it just didn’t hit the way I hoped it would.

Reader’s Advisory:

“The Stranger Upstairs” is included on the Goodreads list “Fiction Featuring Social Media Types: Bloggers, Podcasters, Etc.”.

Serena’s Review: “The Fragile Threads of Power”

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Book: “The Fragile Threads of Power” by V.E. Schwab

Publishing Info: Tor, September 2023

Where Did I Get this Book: Edelweiss+

Where Can You Get this Book: WorldCat.org | Amazon | IndieBound

Book Description: Once, there were four worlds, nestled like pages in a book, each pulsing with fantastical power, and connected by a single city: London. Until the magic grew too fast, and forced the worlds to seal the doors between them in a desperate gamble to protect their own. The few magicians who could still open the doors grew more rare as time passed and now, only three Antari are known in recent memory―Kell Maresh of Red London, Delilah Bard of Grey London, and Holland Vosijk, of White London.

But barely a glimpse of them have been seen in the last seven years―and a new Antari named Kosika has appeared in White London, taking the throne in Holland’s absence. The young queen is willing to feed her city with blood, including her own―but her growing religious fervor has the potential to drown them instead.

And back in Red London, King Rhy Maresh is threatened by a rising rebellion, one determined to correct the balance of power by razing the throne entirely.

Amidst this tapestry of old friends and new enemies, a girl with an unusual magical ability comes into possession of a device that could change the fate of all four worlds.

Her name is Tes, and she’s the only one who can bring them together―or unravel it all.

Review: I can fairly confidently say that this was my most anticipated read of 2023. Not only have I enjoyed every V.E. Schwab book I’ve read, but my favorites by were were the three books that made up her “Shades of Magic” trilogy. And its been years and years and years since those books came out! I wasn’t even expecting a return to this world as the original trilogy ended quite neatly. But not only are we returning to the world, but we’re returning to the same main characters (plus a few extras) several years later! The best of the best.

And yes, there was a lot to like about this book! First and foremost, for fans of the original trilogy, I’m happy to report that our main characters are just as awesome as you remember them, perhaps even more so as they tackle the ever more complex relationships between one another. I was a bit concerned going in that Lila, Kel, Rys and Luc would be relegated to background characters who just flitted in and out of the main storyline. But rest assured, they play vital, central roles to everything that is happening. Per my experience with the first trilogy, Lila is still far and away my favorite character of the four. As the book plays out, the story jumps backwards in time at several points to show how are characters have lived over the last eight or so years. Through these flashbacks, we get to see Lila as a captain, Lila as a reluctant leader, and, best of all, Lila as a support system for Kel as he deals with the loss of his magic. Of course, her “support” comes in the very hard-nosed style that we all would expect from her.

For his part, Kel’s story was heart-breaking as he traverses the various stages of grief over the loss of the central portion of his identity. Schwab doesn’t shy away from the very dark places that this kind of loss can inflict on people. Rys probably gets the least page time, but for this book, at least, his story is the most straight-forward: learning how to become a king at a very young age. Alucard was the one who surprised me the most, however. In the original trilogy, he felt like the least of the four characters (not necessarily in preference, just in page time and the amount of story given to him). But here he is probably the most central character of the four to the main arch and mystery that makes up the plot of this book. I really enjoyed getting to spend more time with this character, and I’m very intrigued to see where he goes from there.

Now, to the new characters. Yes, of course, they are very good as well, especially Tes, the young girl with the extraordinary ability to see and manipulate magic itself. Her history was interesting, with a complicated and, at times, frightening family. And her abilities open a lot of pathways forward (perhaps too many? She definitely has the potential to run the story into the “Superman problem” where a character is so over-powered that essentially any conflict going forward could be solved by that one person simply intervening). I also liked the Antari queen that we meet in White London. There’s an interesting mystery building there, but I have to admit that she was my least favorite of the group. Not because she was a bad character in her own right, but because she had some stiff competition and there were a few mysteries that I feel are leading in a very obvious, dark direction which makes me struggle to truly connect ot her.

So, that’s a lot about characters, and there’s a reason why: Yes, I mostly read for characters, so that’s common of my reviews. But in this case, the characters were truly the heart of the story. As much as I enjoyed this read, and I really, really did, it definitely suffers as being the first book in a trilogy. Almost 90% of the story is devoted to understanding how our familiar characters ended up where they did and introducing the new characters and their history. Beyond that, there’s a rather short, simple mystery that is resolved at the end. But it’s also clear that Schwab is placing much larger pieces on this chessboard, and much of this book is spent properly positioning everything. That alone is why I had to knock this one down from a 10 star rating. But on pure enjoyment, pure joy at seeing beloved characters back on the page again, this is definitely a top tier book!

Rating 9: It’s a rare feat to return to a beloved fantasy trilogy, pick up fan favorite characters and manage to not break anything in the process, but Schwab makes it look easy! A triumphant return that’s nothing less than masterful!

Reader’s Advisory:

“The Fragile Threads of Power” is on this Goodreads list: [ATY 2024] Touch of Magic.

Kate’s Review: “Earthdivers (Vol. 1): Kill Columbus”

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Book: “Earthdivers (Vol. 1): Kill Columbus” by Stephen Graham Jones & Davide Gianfelice (Ill.)

Publishing Info: IDW, September 2023

Where Did I Get This Book: I received an ARC from the publisher at ALAAC23

Where You Can Get This Book: WorldCat.org | Amazon | Indiebound

Book Description: The year is 2112, and it’s the apocalypse exactly as rivers receding, oceans rising, civilization crumbling. Humanity has given up hope, except for a group of Indigenous outcasts who have discovered a time travel portal in a cave in the desert and figured out where everything took a turn for the worst: America.

Convinced that the only way to save the world is to rewrite its past, they send one of their own—a reluctant linguist named Tad—on a bloody, one-way mission to 1492 to kill Christopher Columbus before he reaches the so-called New World. But there are steep costs to disrupting the timeline, and taking down an icon isn’t an easy task for an academic with no tactical training and only a wavering moral compass to guide him. As the horror of the task ahead unfolds and Tad’s commitment is tested, his actions could trigger a devastating new fate for his friends and the future.

Join Stephen Graham Jones and artist Davide Gianfelice for Earthdivers, Vol. 1, the beginning of an unforgettable ongoing sci-fi slasher spanning centuries of America’s Colonial past to explore the staggering forces of history and the individual choices we make to survive it.

Review: Thank you to IDW comics for giving me an ARC of this book, and thank you to Stephen Graham Jones for being SO kind when you signed it!

Back when I had just gotten back from ALA, people were asking me what my highlights were. And one of them was meeting Stephen Graham Jones at a signing at the IDW booth. I was already ecstatic when I saw that he was going to be there, and even more excited when I realized that he was signing ARCs of the first volume of his series “Earthdivers”, a fantasy/speculative fiction/historical fiction series about Indigenous people on a dying earth using a time travel portal to send one of their own back in time to stop America from happening (as America is seen as the main driver of the climate change disaster). I had been eager for this first volume, and getting it WHILE MEETING HIM (and having a lovely conversation!) was just the very best. And “Earthdivers (Vol. 1): Kill Columbus” is everything I had hoped it would be.

The concept alone is so unique and also so, so bold. I mean, it takes serious spunk to frame a story about the assassination of a man that is still, in a number of places, celebrated every year as the supposed ‘discoverer of America’, but whose horrific crimes and direct and indirect actions towards the Indigenous peoples on this continent are impossible to ignore. Even I was like ‘whoa’ when I read the premise of the comic book, but the rage is earned, and it is palpable on the pages as Tad, the man chosen to go back in time and assassinate Columbus, has to take on a mission with high and dangerous stakes. And low odds of success. I loved seeing Tad grapple with the fact he will never see his wife again, that he has to do things that he never thought he could do, and also really enjoyed seeing him slowly start to accept his mission and the bloody business that goes with it. Jones depicts the brutality of life on the ship, whether it’s the dire conditions or the hierarchy that lends itself to violence, and also shows the less acknowledged aspects of the voyage the ships are on (specifically the religious zeal that Columbus has). I also found the tension building and building and building as Tad realizes that his chances to kill Columbus and stop that version of America from happening are slipping through his fingers, and that if he fails, it was all for nothing, and it could mean the end of humankind. The tension is rife, the violence is visceral, and the anger and desperation is well depicted.

But I also liked the ways that Jones depicts the others back on Earth in 2112, as the world is dying due to climate change and they are becoming all the more desperate, especially when they realize that the time portal in the cave may have more dangers than realized. I really liked Sosh, Tad’s wife who is in an uneasy partnership with Yellow Kid, the member of the group who came up with the idea, but has been a little shifty as far as Sosh is concerned. I liked the moral ambiguity that Jones gives a number of his characters, as it raises very difficult questions about the lengths that these characters are willing to go to make this mission a success. And along with that, I really enjoyed how the time travel themes didn’t feel like super hard Sci Fi, and more like fantastical or speculative based in the system in place. We don’t really know what the deal is with this cave, but I have a feeling things are going to be explored as the series goes on.

And I really liked the artwork. I like the use of color and the angles that Davide Gianfelice brings to the page, and I loved the detailed character designs for our main players.

(source: IDW)

What a fantastic start to what is sure to be a fantastic series! “Earthdivers (Vol. 1): Kill Columbus” is another shining star from Stephen Graham Jones. I cannot wait to see what happens next!

Rating 9: Unapologetic, daring, dark, but hopeful, “Earthdivers: Kill Columbus” is a must read in speculative fiction with a visceral message and lots of what ifs.

Reader’s Advisory:

“Earthdivers (Vol. 1): Kill Columbus” isn’t on any Goodreads lists as of now, but it would fit in on “Graphic Novels & Comics by The Aboriginal, Indigenous, and Native Peoples of the World”, and “Best Time Travel Fiction”.

Diving Into Sub-Genres: Military Science Fiction

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We each have our own preferred genres of choice. Kate loves horrors and thrillers, really anything that will keep her up at night! And Serena enjoys escaping through hidden doors into realms of magic and adventure. We also read mysteries, historical fiction, graphic novels, etc. etc. And that’s not even counting the multitude of sub-genres contained within each greater genre. In this series, one of us will present a list of our favorites from within a given sub-genre of one of our greater preferred genres.

There is a “military” sub-genre of most larger genres. I might go as far as covering military fantasy novels in one of these posts in the future. It’s simple enough to see why this would be the case. Military science fiction, like the other military sub-genres, often includes books that are very action-packed, can take place on a grand scale with large battle scenes or focus down to the individual experiences of soldiers, and often tackle very complex moral issues of right and wrong, offense and defense, and the immense cost of warfare in general. Some will glorify battle. Others will strongly critique it.

Often readers of military science fiction are looking for another way to look at human nature and human history. Through the lens of an imaginary science fiction landscape, it’s possible to relitigate and re-explore the events of our own past across a theoretical future conflict. By doing this, authors avoid getting bogged down into the facts (or debated facts) of our own history, while still getting at the meat of the issue behind some of the motivations in our own historical wars.

On a character level, many readers of military science fiction are also interested in the various arcs and emotional pathways that those involved heavily in battle face. Obviously, this is hugely relevant to any/all readers who have their own connections to or are current soldiers or veterans. Themes such as grief, brother/sisterhood, honor, regret, PTSD, bravery and many more can be covered in grand, narrative fashion.

Other stories are more focused on the larger movements and conflicts of nations, entire species (humanity vs. some alien group), and the tactical decisions that go on in these large scale battle scenes. There can be detailed depictions regarding movements of space fleets, the inner workings of deciding which conflicts to engage in and which to avoid, etc. And, of course, this being science fiction, these will often include lots of future technology, from the ships and weapons used, to various biotronic enhancements and the like to the human soldiers.

I’ve tried to include a broad range of military science fiction that includes both the types of books that focus more on the character’s story and the types that go into more depth with grand scale battles.

Book: “Ender’s Game” by Orson Scott Card

“Ender’s Game” straddles both the “soldier focused” and the “battle focused” sides of military science fiction. The story follow a young boy, Ender, a military genius who is essentially forcibly recruited and very soon burdened with the task of essentially saving the world through his tactical brilliance. Much of the story follows his own journey through this type of pressure while also exploring the terrible decisions the adults around him are in the process of making. Throughout the book, we see Ender’s own journey as well as many larger battles, both in the military school where he is trained and later in his role as a commander. The book also introduces a lot of complicated themes regarding responsibility, what makes an enemy, and the role of the individual in a greater war.

Book: “Ancillary Justice” by Ann Leckie

I also featured this book in my space opera list. Like most sub-genres, military science fiction can quite easily weave in and out of and blend in alongside other sub-genres of the larger science fiction genre as a whole. Books like this one fit neatly into both categories. It has the grand, wide-spanning storyline that is often found in space operas, but it also has a main character who is the AI system of a massive warship, now placed in the limited body of a human. As such, the story has a lot to say about the role of leadership, sisterhood, and the way that an individual experiences the broader impacts of war. There are also a lot of really cool space battles, especially in the flashbacks to when the main character was still embodied in the actual ship.

Book: “Old Man’s War” by Jon Scalzi

Kate and I both read this one a year or so ago for bookclub. And it’s an obvious pick for this list, following the story of a man who, through technological advances, joins in humanity’s ongoing intergalactic war at the advanced age of 80. So with that premise, of course the book has a lot to say on the way that one would approach a life as a soldier after already living a full life before, how the outlook of age could affect one’s choices and beliefs. The book also tackles larger themes of colonialization and pre-emptive warfare. Beyond that, Scalzi is just a fun writer, so the numerous battle scenes are action-packed and a fun read, even if still gruesome at times.

Book: “Sassinak” by Anne McCaffrey/Elizabeth Moon

While Anne McCaffery is better know for her fantasy/science fiction involving dragons, Elizabeth Moon is a powerhouse of military fiction. Not only that, she comes from a military background herself, having served in the United States Marines as a lieutenant. So, here we have a book written by two incredible women that also follows the story of a woman who escapes to become a Fleet Captain who then chases down pirates across the universe. This is definitely a character-driven story, following Sassy’s exploits through several mini stories that make up the book. And as it’s a shorter book on the hole, this can lead to perhaps a bit of a disjointed read. But I still think it well earns its place on this list, especially the first half of the story that established the main character as an incredibly empathetic and clever individual.

Book: “All You Need is Kill” by Hiroshi Sakurazaka

Many of you will be more familiar with this story by the name of the movie adaptation helmed by Tom Cruise, “Edge of Tomorrow.” Unlike the other books featured on this list so far, this one takes place on Earth as humanity attempts to save itself from invasion. The story follows a soldier who inexplicably finds himself reliving the same battle over and over again, dying only to start the day and fight once again. It’s like a grim version of “Groundhog’s Day.” There’s an instant appeal to the premise itself, but the close look at how the same day can play out in so many ways really emphasizes the chaos of warfare.

Book: “All Systems Red” by Martha Wells

Like “Ancillary Justice,” the protagonist of this book isn’t exactly…human. Instead, this book and the ongoing series follows the exploits of Murderbot, a security bot that is part of a larger Company that essentially controls the galaxy. As such, this book isn’t the classic military fiction with its focus on warfare and soldiers, but its focus on a security bot grappling with large, existential questions regarding violence and its role in conflict makes it a perfect pick to round out the variety of fiction that can be found within this subgenre.

What military science fiction books have you enjoyed? Let us know in the comments!

Serena’s Review: “A Study in Drowning”

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Book: “A Study in Drowning” by Ava Reed

Publishing Info: HarperTeen, September 2023

Where Did I Get this Book: Edelweiss+

Where Can You Get this Book: WorldCat.org | Amazon | IndieBound

Book Description: Effy Sayre has always believed in fairy tales. She’s had no choice. Since childhood, she’s been haunted by visions of the Fairy King. She’s found solace only in the pages of Angharad – author Emrys Myrddin’s beloved epic about a mortal girl who falls in love with the Fairy King, and then destroys him.

Effy’s tattered, dog-eared copy is all that’s keeping her afloat through her stifling first term at Llyr’s prestigious architecture college. So when Myrddin’s family announces a contest to design the late author’s house, Effy feels certain this is her destiny.

But Hiraeth Manor is an impossible task: a musty, decrepit estate on the brink of crumbling into a hungry sea. And when Effy arrives, she finds she isn’t the only one who’s made a temporary home there. Preston Héloury, a stodgy young literature scholar, is studying Myrddin’s papers and is determined to prove her favorite author is a fraud.

As the two rival students investigate the reclusive author’s legacy, piecing together clues through his letters, books, and diaries, they discover that the house’s foundation isn’t the only thing that can’t be trusted. There are dark forces, both mortal and magical, conspiring against them – and the truth may bring them both to ruin.

Review: First off, what a fantastic cover! I think this one is my favorite of the year, so far. It sets the tone for the novel and is just interesting in its own right, with little details that pop out the longer you look at it. Other than that, this book was an obvious choice to read this month. I struggled a bit with Reid’s most recent book, but I really enjoyed her first. And even in the more recent one, my struggles came down to some personal preferences, as her writing and world-building is beyond reproach, as far as I’m concerned. And man, am I glad I got to this one! This is now my favorite book by this author, overtaking “The Wolf and the Woodsman.”

Per the usual for Reid at this point, she tackles some dark, complicated themes in this book. Specifically, this one deals with the challenges that women historically have faced when daring to venture into realms previously dominated by men. After being denied entrance to the most prestigious, and her preferred, college, Effy must settle for being the only woman in the second, lesser choice. Her experience goes wrong from the very start, and while the majority of this book doesn’t take place at the college itself, her inner journey is largely based around the events that occurred there.

But beyond real world dangers, Effy’s life has been one of constant vigilance against the dark beings that haunt her, beings that she believes are signs of her own mental weakening. This book is promoted as a gothic fantasy, and I can’t think of a better example of the subgenre. You can feel the atmosphere dripping from the pages, with descriptions of crumbling staircases, flooded basements, and a landscape that is unsteady beneath the feet. The side characters only add to this pervasive sense of building doom. The man who runs the house is mercurial and cryptic, his family history full of cobwebs and deceptions. And their are other beings, lurking around corners, with Effy never quite sure how much is real and how much is in her head.

The book is also marketed as an academic rival romance, which I think is less on point. Effy and Preston are rivals for a hot second before quickly coming to a mutually beneficial agreement of cooperation. And, really, I don’t have a problem with that in this case. There are so many other mysteries on hand that I was happy to see the romance play out in a fairly straightforward manner. Effy has enough on her plate without long bouts of snark and delayed understanding between the two. Instead, their romance follows a slow, steady progression, serving as a solid backbone to all of the uncertainty around them.

There is clearly a lot of thought that has went into building this world. Effy and Preston’s nations are at war, there is a religious system built up around folklore and the deification of great artists, there’s a tragic history of large swaths of the countryside suddenly being swallowed by the sea. While I liked all of it in its own right, I was left wanting a bit more from all of these arenas, at the same time. I’m not quite sure what purpose was served by the nations at war, as this never plays into the story in any meaningful way? And while the religion and folklore received more attention, I was still left with some questions by the end.

However, wanting more is probably one of the best problems to have with a book! As I said above, this book is all about the atmosphere. Effy and Preston are good characters, but now after reading three books by this author, I think I can say that the strengths of her writing lie more with her world-building and dark fantasy elements. Fans of gothic fantasy should definitely check this one out!

Rating 9: Reid presents a master class on how to write a gothic fantasy, delivering a story where the sense of place is just as much a character as any of the human (or not!) variety.

Reader’s Advisory:

“A Study in Drowning” can be found on these Goodreads lists: 2023 Dark Academia Releases and 2023 Gothic.

Kate’s Review: “Your Lonely Nights Are Over”

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Book: “Your Lonely Nights Are Over” by Adam Sass

Publishing Info: Viking Books for Young Readers, September 2023

Where Did I Get This Book: I received an eARC from NetGalley.

Where You Can Get This Book: WorldCat.org | Amazon | Indiebound

Book Description: Scream meets Clueless in this YA horror from Adam Sass in which two gay teen BFFs find their friendship tested when a serial killer starts targeting their school’s Queer Club.

Dearie and Cole are inseparable, unlikeable, and (in bad luck for them) totally unbelievable. From the day they met, Dearie and Cole have been two against the world. But whenever something bad happens at Stone Grove High School, they get blamed. Why? They’re beautiful, flirtatious, dangerously clever queen bees, and they’re always ready to call out their fellow students. But they’ve never faced a bigger threat than surviving senior year, when Mr. Sandman, a famous, never-caught serial killer emerges from a long retirement—and his hunting ground is their school Queer Club.

As evidence and bodies begin piling up and suspicion points at Dearie and Cole, they will need to do whatever it takes to unmask the real killer before they and the rest of Queer Club are taken down. But they’re not getting away from the killer without a fight.

Along the way, they must confront dark truths hidden beneath the surface of their small desert community. When the world is stacked against them and every flop they know is a suspect, can Dearie and Cole stop Mr. Sandman’s rampage? Or will their lonely nights soon be over . . .

Review: Thank you to NetGalley for sending me an eARC of this novel!

If there is a surefire way to catch my attention when it comes to a book’s description, it’s to compare it to a piece of media or other book that I absolutely adore. It can be a bit of a gamble! The more I love the referenced TV show/movie/book, the higher hopes I have for the book at hand, and if it doesn’t live up to my expectations, I am going to probably ding the book at hand a bit more than I might otherwise. So talk about a huge gamble for “Your Lonely Nights Are Over” by Adam Sass. Not only does it reference one of my most formative horror movies, “Scream”, it also references one of my all time favorite movies, “Clueless”. And the thought of mashing them up? OH MY GOSH. GIVE IT TO ME. I definitely went in wary that the comparison would fall flat and therein influence my feelings. And while “Your Lonely Nights Are Over” didn’t quite meet the potential that I had hoped for it, it had other unexpected things within that really did work for me.

This is one of those odd times where I’m going to talk about what didn’t work for me before I go into what absolutely worked, because I want to end on a high note because there were things that REALLY clicked. But I WILL say that as someone who has consumed horror for years and years, I pretty much called almost all of the twists and called the killer long before any of these things were revealed. This very well may be just because I have seen and read so many horror things that I can spot twists and turns, but it definitely pulled some of the suspense from the story. I was invested in both Cole and Dearie, and liked how Sass wrote both of them and gave them unique voices that really got their experiences and perspectives across. I think they read less like the “Clueless” comparisons, however, and more like “Mean Girls” in some ways, but they did have me laughing a bit with their bantering and snark.

But what really, really shines in this book is how Sass tackles and explores the theme of loneliness, especially when it comes to the unique loneliness that can come with being a queer person. Dearie and Cole are both VERY close and have a relationship that transcends romantic and platonic, but there are still aspects about each of them during this book that does isolate themselves from each other. On top of that we also get the loneliness of being closeted for some characters, or the loneliness of gay people from generations where coming out came later in life, or just the loneliness of being a queer teenager trying to navigate through life. I loved how Sass dissected this idea and unabashedly puts forth that solidarity between queer people is a way to combat that loneliness and the horrors that it can bring, whether it’s a slasher killer in a story like this, or the real life horrors of bigotry, self loathing, and isolation.

“Your Lonely Nights Are Over” may have been a little predictable for this longtime horror fan, but I really enjoyed other parts of it. It will surely thrill its target demographic, and it should be on YA Halloween book lists this October.

Rating 7: The characters are fun but the mystery is a bit predictable. But I loved the message about loneliness in the queer community and how finding your people can combat it.

Reader’s Advisory:

“Your Lonely Nights Are Over” is included on the Goodreads lists “Queer Horror”, and “YA Serial Killers”.

Serena’s Review: “Witch of Wild Things”

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Book: “Witch of Wild Things” by Raquel Vasquez Gilliland

Publishing Info: Berkley, September 2023

Where Did I Get this Book: ARC from the publisher!

Where Can You Get this Book: WorldCat.org | Amazon | IndieBound

Book Description: Legend goes that long ago a Flores woman offended the old gods, and their family was cursed as a result. Now, every woman born to the family has a touch of magic.

Sage Flores has been running from her family—and their “gifts”—ever since her younger sister Sky died. Eight years later, Sage reluctantly returns to her hometown. Like slipping into an old, comforting sweater, Sage takes back her job at Cranberry Rose Company and uses her ability to communicate with plants to discover unusual heritage specimens in the surrounding lands.

What should be a simple task is complicated by her partner in botany sleuthing: Tennessee Reyes. He broke her heart in high school, and she never fully recovered. Working together is reminding her of all their past tender, genuine moments—and new feelings for this mature sexy man are starting to take root in her heart.

With rare plants to find, a dead sister who keeps bringing her coffee, and another sister whose anger fills the sky with lightning, Sage doesn’t have time for romance. But being with Tenn is like standing in the middle of a field on the cusp of a summer thunderstorm—supercharged and inevitable.

Review: Cozy fantasy is a term that I both am a bit skeptical of (it seems like another way of differentiating “serious” SFF from “that woman stuff” which I don’t think benefits anyone) and a subgenre that I’ve struggled to enjoy. But I do like romances and I do like sister drama and I do like low-level family magic, so I thought this one was definitely worth a shot. However, in the end, I don’t think this is the best example of any of these themes.

But I’ll start with what I did like. For the most part, the main character was a good lead. I enjoyed her voice, and in particular, her relationships with a few of the women in her life were very interesting and explored a level of complexity that I hadn’t expected. For example, Sage has a close friend who has a struggling marriage, and I appreciated the care that went into the balancing act that is supporting a friend in this situation where, to an outsider, the problem and solution seems easy, but to the friend whose life is in the balance, things are much more complicated. I also really appreciated the exploration of Sage’s relationship with the woman who took over the care of Sage and her sisters when they were young. There were some very nice points about grief and the burdens we can place on those around us when caught up in devastating positions. But, even here, there were moments where the depiction of this relationship took a bit of jarring turn towards the simplistic, with Sage taking on a rather “perfect victim” persona that left me wanting.

And this speaks to many of my problems with the other relationships in this books. Many of the characters, including Sage herself at times, came across as simple and without any real depth of character. The romantic hero is the most bland example of handsome perfection that I’ve come across in a long time. Pick out some romance hero tropes, and he checks them all of neatly, right in a row. And then the relationship between Sage and her angry younger sister, Teal, verged on the ridiculous at times, with Teal coming across as an unbelievable caricature of irrational anger.

Beyond this, I struggled with the overall tone of the novel. At times, Sage definitely took on a more YA sounding voice, testing my ability to believe her to be a 29 year old woman who has actually lived in the world. This isn’t helped by the inclusion of some truly cringe-worthy AOL conversations from her teenage years. And, unfortunately, these blasts from the internet-past can’t be simply skipped as they are key to understanding the unfolding relationship between Tenn and Sage in the present day.

There were bits and pieces of the story that I liked, which did help me get through it. But I often found myself struggling to really invest in any of these characters or care about the romance at the heart of it. I do think there are readers who will enjoy this, but I think the biggest failure lies with its inability to depict adult characters who…well…behave and think like adults.

Rating 6: Not for me, though I do think the depictions of the beautiful location and some of the lyrical moments had merit.

Reader’s Advisory:

“Witch of Wild Things” can be found on these Goodreads lists: Mushrooms, Toadstools, Fungus and The Witches.