Books and comics read in September 2019
Tuesday, 1 October 2019 15:34![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
usuallyhatsThe Girl with the Dragon Heart - Stephanie Burgis
The Raven Tower - Ann Leckie
The Unkindest Tide - Seanan McGuire
The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry - Rachel Joyce
The Adventure Zone: Here There Be Gerblins
How Long 'til Black Future Month? - NK Jemisin
The Mabinogion trans. Sioned Davies
Jingo - Terry Pratchett
The Thirteenth Doctor: A New Beginning
Lumberjanes: The Infernal Compass
Circe - Madeline Miller
The Wicked + The Divine: Mothering Invention
The Priory of the Orange Tree - Samantha Shannon
The Wicked + The Divine: Old is the New New
Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe - Benjamin Alire Sáenz
The Raven Tower
I don't know how I feel about this book. I enjoyed most of the reading experience very much, aside from some slight doldrums in the middle - I liked the worldbuilding, and felt very invested in both the protagonists - but I found the ending very unsatisfying. Maybe I was missing something, but I didn't really feel the meaningful connection between the two protagonists that I was hoping for, and I also felt that Eolo's story rather fizzled out. And most of the way through it felt to me like it was a story about fixing or replacing a corrupt system, but it turned out that... not so much.
The Adventure Zone: Here There Be Gerblins
This was a delight: pacy, warm, funny and charming. I really need to give the podcast another try. (UPDATE: I did give the podcast another try and am enjoying it a lot - I'm currently partway through "Petals to the Metal".)
The Mabinogion
This is a fantastic, energetic translation that brings these stories to life. Highly recommended.
The Priory of the Orange Tree
I enjoyed this fantasy doorstop very much, but I do wish it had been a trilogy, or even a series, rather than trying to pack everything into one novel. I felt like quite a few things got wrapped up too quickly, or skated over, especially towards the end where parts of it almost began to feel like a plot summary, to the detriment of some of the characterisation. (Also at one point I thought Loth was going to be aroace, but then there were hints otherwise? I mean, I'm so used to disappointment on that front that this barely registered, but still.)
But that aside, loved the characters, loved the world, loved the writing. I even quite enjoyed the romance! (It was f/f, which helped.)
Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe
It took me a while to get into the style of this book, but once I did I just kept loving it more and more... almost all the way to the end, when I was sadly knocked off course by a) a lazy backstory reveal that did not sit well with me and b) the use of a trope to resolve the romance plot that I personally dislike, and that I also found very unsatisfying in this context. But up until that it was wonderful: I loved Ari delicately learning how to deal with his own emotions, as well as the (unresolved, and I think this is a strength) thread about what it means to be Mexican, and how it feels to be treated as not Mexican enough. I also really appreciated how the author managed to make all the secondary characters feel rounded and true without breaking out of Ari's point of view, and how the adults in particular were all just good people trying their best (and not always getting it right). So, overall... both recommended and not? Five stars and three stars but somehow not four stars?
The Raven Tower - Ann Leckie
The Unkindest Tide - Seanan McGuire
The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry - Rachel Joyce
The Adventure Zone: Here There Be Gerblins
How Long 'til Black Future Month? - NK Jemisin
The Mabinogion trans. Sioned Davies
Jingo - Terry Pratchett
The Thirteenth Doctor: A New Beginning
Lumberjanes: The Infernal Compass
Circe - Madeline Miller
The Wicked + The Divine: Mothering Invention
The Priory of the Orange Tree - Samantha Shannon
The Wicked + The Divine: Old is the New New
Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe - Benjamin Alire Sáenz
The Raven Tower
I don't know how I feel about this book. I enjoyed most of the reading experience very much, aside from some slight doldrums in the middle - I liked the worldbuilding, and felt very invested in both the protagonists - but I found the ending very unsatisfying. Maybe I was missing something, but I didn't really feel the meaningful connection between the two protagonists that I was hoping for, and I also felt that Eolo's story rather fizzled out. And most of the way through it felt to me like it was a story about fixing or replacing a corrupt system, but it turned out that... not so much.
The Adventure Zone: Here There Be Gerblins
This was a delight: pacy, warm, funny and charming. I really need to give the podcast another try. (UPDATE: I did give the podcast another try and am enjoying it a lot - I'm currently partway through "Petals to the Metal".)
The Mabinogion
This is a fantastic, energetic translation that brings these stories to life. Highly recommended.
The Priory of the Orange Tree
I enjoyed this fantasy doorstop very much, but I do wish it had been a trilogy, or even a series, rather than trying to pack everything into one novel. I felt like quite a few things got wrapped up too quickly, or skated over, especially towards the end where parts of it almost began to feel like a plot summary, to the detriment of some of the characterisation. (Also at one point I thought Loth was going to be aroace, but then there were hints otherwise? I mean, I'm so used to disappointment on that front that this barely registered, but still.)
But that aside, loved the characters, loved the world, loved the writing. I even quite enjoyed the romance! (It was f/f, which helped.)
Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe
It took me a while to get into the style of this book, but once I did I just kept loving it more and more... almost all the way to the end, when I was sadly knocked off course by a) a lazy backstory reveal that did not sit well with me and b) the use of a trope to resolve the romance plot that I personally dislike, and that I also found very unsatisfying in this context. But up until that it was wonderful: I loved Ari delicately learning how to deal with his own emotions, as well as the (unresolved, and I think this is a strength) thread about what it means to be Mexican, and how it feels to be treated as not Mexican enough. I also really appreciated how the author managed to make all the secondary characters feel rounded and true without breaking out of Ari's point of view, and how the adults in particular were all just good people trying their best (and not always getting it right). So, overall... both recommended and not? Five stars and three stars but somehow not four stars?
no subject
Date: 1 Oct 2019 14:41 (UTC)I must read Priory - it's sitting on my Kindle, looking accusingly at me!
no subject
Date: 1 Oct 2019 17:18 (UTC)no subject
Date: 2 Oct 2019 10:14 (UTC)It's such a good time, I recommend it. (And reading it in ebook is definitely a good call, the hardback was very heavy!)
no subject
Date: 2 Oct 2019 10:16 (UTC)no subject
Date: 2 Oct 2019 16:14 (UTC)Well I rarely read physical books any more - with my crappy knee carrying them around is a big no-no - ebooks are far more manageable.