What have I read this week?

Everless by Sara Holland

This is a fantasy novel about a young woman called Jules who lives in a kingdom where people can sell or buy time by giving or taking blood. I quite enjoyed this, although it was fairly obvious that Jules was trusting all the wrong people and jumping to all the wrong conclusions quite early on. I do want to read the next one, though.

Small World by Matt Beaumont

This is a novel following many different people who are all connected in some way. I didn’t like it and didn’t finish it. I found all the characters pretty unpleasant and didn’t really care about them.

Junkyard (a Fractured Stars novella) by Lindsay Buroker

This is a science fiction novella about a woman named McCall who is a ship’s captain and skip tracer. I enjoyed this: the characters are interesting and the story was good. I’d definitely read more in this series.

Run by Kody Keplinger

This is a YA novel about Bo and Agnes, two teenage girls who become friends. I enjoyed this: I liked the characters, and the fact that the story is about friendship rather than romance.

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What have I read this week?

Lincoln’s Dreams/Passage by Connie Willis

This is a two-novel collection consisting of Lincoln’s Dreams and Passage. Lincoln’s Dreams is about a man called Jeff who is a researcher for an author who writes books set during the American Civil War. I found it pretty slow, and didn’t really enjoy it.

Passage is about a woman named Dr Joanna Lander who is researching near-death experiences. I found it interesting; I really liked the characters although not much really happens considering the length of the book.

A Map of Days by Ransom Riggs

This is a fantasy novel, the fourth in the Miss Peregrine’s Peculiar Children series. It follows Jacob Portman, a peculiar as he reunites with his friends and tries to follow in his grandfather’s footsteps. I quite enjoyed this, apart from the ending, which I found a little annoying. I’ll probably read the next one, however.

Magpie Murders by Anthony Horowitz

This is a whodunnit in a book within a book format. It follows a woman named Susan Ryeland who is the editor for an author of detective novels. I found this a little irritating, to be honest – it felt like it was trying too hard to be clever. I’ve enjoyed some of Horowitz’s other books, but I wouldn’t recommend this one.

© bardofupton 2019

What have I read this week? Sorry about the late posting!

Grey Sister (Book Two of Books of the Ancestor) by Mark Lawrence

This is a fantasy novel about a girl called Nona who is training to be a martial nun. It is the sequel to Red Sister. I enjoyed this. It flagged a little for me at the beginning, but then picked up the pace. I am looking forward to reading the next in the series.

Road Brothers: Tales from the Broken Empire by Mark Lawrence

This is a collection of short stories set in the world of the Broken Empire. I enjoyed this. It was good to find out more about some of the characters from the series. I would definitely read more of these.

Meddling Kids by Edgar Cantero

This novel is a cross between the Famous Five, Scooby Doo and HP Lovecraft. I enjoyed it – the humour didn’t work for me all the time, but it was a lot of fun.

The Fowl Proposal Bonus Scenes (Dragon Blood) by Lindsay Buroker

This is four scenes relating to the proposal of Ridge to Sardelle. You definitely need to have read some of the books in the Dragon Blood series for it to make sense, but they’re enjoyable if you have.

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What have I read this week?

Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik

This is a fantasy novel about three young women: a moneylender’s daughter, a peasant and the daughter of a duke. It’s a retelling of the miller’s daughter fairy tale (spinning straw into gold) and I think a couple of other fairy tales mixed in. I really enjoyed this.

Relative Fortunes (A Julia Kydd Novel Book 1) by Marlowe Benn

This is a novel set in the 1920s about a woman named Julia Kydd who is trying to find the truth behind the death of her friend’s sister. I quite enjoyed this and would probably read more in this series.

What You Did by Claire McGowan

This is a thriller about a woman called Ali whose best friend accuses her husband of rape. I didn’t really like it, because I didn’t particularly care about the characters.

The Black Unicorn by Audre Lorde

This is a book of poetry. This is the first book of hers I’ve read, and I liked it a lot. It really spoke to me.

Favourite poems:

The Black Unicorn; From the House of Yemanjá; Portrait; A Song for Many Movements; Brother Alvin; School Note; Therapy; Parting; Fog Report; Ghost; Artisan.

Favourite lines:

I have died too many deaths
that were not mine.
(Sequelae)

So it is better to speak
remembering
we were never meant to survive.
(A Litany for Survival)

secret and patient
as the amused and ponderous elephants
catering to Hannibal’s ambition
as they swayed on their own way
home.
(Portrait)

Our labor has become
more important
than our silence.
(A Song for Many Movements)

I am bent
forever
wiping up blood
that should be
you.
(A Woman/Dirge for Wasted Children)

And out of the ashes
and her range of vision
the executioners advance.
(Death Dance for a Poet)

I do not know how many years I spent
trying to forget you
but I am afraid to think
how many years I will spend
trying to remember.
(Ghost)

Running Blind by M. J. Arlidge

This is a novella about new WPC Helen Grace, who gets involved in her first big case regarding the death of a young man. I didn’t particularly like this; it just didn’t work for me.

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What have I read this week?

A Highly Unlikely Scenario, or a Neetsa Pizza Employee’s Guide to Saving the World by Rachel Cantor

This is a science fiction novel about Leonard, an employee of Neetsa Pizza in a future version of Earth. I thought this was okay. It was interesting, but I kept feeling like it was meant to be funny, but I didn’t find it amusing.

Steampunk! an Anthology of Fantastically Rich and Strange Stories edited by Kelly Link and Gavin J. Grant

This is an anthology of steampunk stories. I liked this a lot. There was a good variety in the different stories.

Not a Drop to Drink by Mindy McGinnis

This is a post-apocalyptic science fiction novel about a girl called Lynn who lives with her mother next to a pond which they need to defend against all comers. I thought this was okay; it didn’t quite work for me, but I did finish it.

Before the Broken Star (The Evermore Chronicles Book 1) by Emily R. King

This is a fantasy novel about a young woman called Everley who has a clockwork heart and is seeking revenge for her family’s murder. I quite enjoyed this, and might read the next one.

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What have I read this week?

The Will to Change: Men, Masculinity, and Love by bell hooks

This is a feminist nonfiction book about masculinity and how men need to learn to love themselves and others in order to become fully realised humans and counteract patriarchal expectations and structures. I found this very interesting, and I definitely want to read more of hooks’ work.

Why I’m No Longer Talking to White People About Race by Reni Eddo-Lodge

This is a nonfiction book about race and feminism in Britain. I found it really interesting and it definitely resonated with me. It’s also a little depressing, because it shows how much work needs to be done in regards to combating racism here in the UK.

© bardofupton 2019