The renewal of the alliance between the small planet of Thea and the larger Iskat Empire is looming, and it is imperative to the lives of so 3.5 stars
The renewal of the alliance between the small planet of Thea and the larger Iskat Empire is looming, and it is imperative to the lives of so many that it goes on without a hitch. Native Thean Jainan and his Iskan husband Prince Taam are meant to be the representatives of their cultures for the renewal, but when Taam dies suddenly, Jainan is hurriedly married to Taam's cousin, Prince Kiem, so they may be the representatives. Sunshiney Kiem and reserved Jainan don't get off on the right foot after their rushed wedding, but will have to work together when it's revealed that Taam's death has been ruled as suspicious.
I buddy read this with my friend Katie (@forevermorepages) which was super fun! Hi Katie :)
My main thought was that there's a lot of good bones here, but that some things needed to be built out a little more to be fully successful - let's get into why. First, this is such an interesting book because it's a genre I don't see that often - a 50/50 blend of scifi and romance. Fantasy romance is so popular now, but scifi and romance are so often antonyms. I'd like to see more of this for sure! I liked this version of a queernorm world (universe), especially because it doesn't eliminate discussions of sexuality or gender. There's cool scenes where we see the differences between how different cultures perform gender. The strongest suit is the relationship itself and the reader's opinion of it will make or break the book for them. There was a lot of miscommunication, which was sometimes a bit frustrating, but it did make some sense given the characters' backstories. The pacing wasn't always consistent throughout the story, some parts being slower than others, but I thought that the ending was an excellent summary of the characters and their arcs. The main thing I would have qualms with is that while we see some worldbuilding, there's not enough context/immersion given to the political intrigue plot, which is a larger part of the book. I think that either the political plot needed to be stronger, or it needed to take a backseat for the romance to take full center stage. I do have faith that this could improve in further books, so I'm interested in picking up the sequels. Also, note that while the author is queer, it is not Own Voices M/M (which is something I try to avoid usually), so do with that what you will.
Overall, this just needed some fleshing out of the scifi aspects to reach its full potential, which I think the sequels are capable of achieving. ...more
Thank you so much to Tor Books and Netgalley for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
Told in three parts, we follow people on tThank you so much to Tor Books and Netgalley for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
Told in three parts, we follow people on the planet of Sask-E in the far-flung future. We have conquered the universe and bioengineering, making it possible to imbue robots, animals, and humanoids with human-level intelligence and consciousness. Anyone with consciousness is considered a "person," though some are created with artificial limiters on their speech, making others view them as less of a person than them. In this story, three generations do their part in making Sask-E a free place to live for all types of people.
Newitz's The Future of Another Timeline is one of my favorite books, so I jumped at the opportunity to read this one early. As with Timeline, I was astonished by the amount of imagination here and how different this society is from our own. Our characters include humans, cows, moose, and even trains, all of which have a natural lifespan of hundreds of years. Cities and buildings can be grown by things called trellises. Life of the current day is so far in the past that it is mythology. However, there are several things that are not new to the reader - video games, fights for autonomy from indigenous communities, clubs, and control of communication lines from those in power. Newitz again brings their expertise as a historian of urban centers to use as they show how this planet develops over time under different corporate regimes. Different sets of characters each have their own battles to fight - literal battles to legal ones - to fight the corruption the world faces. This novel is dedicated to keeping balance in the environment amidst development, ensuring that urban centers are there to serve the public, and being staunchly against eugenics. I would have liked to see more development from our characters, but this story is more about the big ideas. With fun protagonists and a hopeful message, The Terraformers is a great story about our impact on the environment and each other.
Overall, I really enjoyed the themes and worldbuilding in this scifi story. I'd recommend this to fans of Becky Chambers, but who want to see more worldbuilding!...more
The third and final book of the Themis Files, Only Human opens ten years after our protagonists and Themis disappeared onto another planet - this timeThe third and final book of the Themis Files, Only Human opens ten years after our protagonists and Themis disappeared onto another planet - this time, they have reappeared on Earth just as suddenly. Now that humanity has had time to deal with the realization of their connection to Themis and her creators, the world has changed beyond recognition. Rose, Vincent, and Eva have to figure out how to keep themselves and the entire human race alive.
Unlike the first two books in this series, I listened to this installment on audio. In my mind, that is by far the best way to experience this series. There is a full cast giving great performances, which really elevates the story off the page. I cared more about these characters in this book than the others almost surely because of the performances of the cast. Vincent in particular stood out among the cast. I liked that there's not always right answers in this series, particularly so in this alien society the characters find themselves in in this book. I also enjoyed the two different timelines we bounced between as we see what happened on Esat Ekt in the ten-year time jump. I liked the action that we did get, but there was definitely less of it in this book than the others. And Katherine as a villain was definitely lackluster; she did not feel realistic at all.
Overall, I'm glad that I decided to finish this series out since I had considered DNFing it. Listening to the audiobook gave me a greater appreciation for this sci-fi series as a whole....more
Humanity has had to abandon Earth. Aboard the HSS Matilda spaceship, Astrid and her people live in a society rigidly defined by the deck one lives on,Humanity has had to abandon Earth. Aboard the HSS Matilda spaceship, Astrid and her people live in a society rigidly defined by the deck one lives on, a society that has morphed itself to look more like the antebellum South. Black and autistic, Astrid belongs to the lower decks but has managed to rise above her station some with her medical abilities. When she discovers that her deceased mother's journals are not maddened ramblings but in code, Astrid and her family start to learn the truth about their ship's fate.
Rivers Solomon is such a mind. Having finished this, I've now read all of their books, and wow. I've not read any books like theirs. They are constantly coming up with unique speculative premises and worlds while pairing them with important conversations about gender, sexuality, and Blackness and their intersections. First, this setting is fascinating. We're on a generation ship with an artificial sun in it; we see how culture has shifted since humanity left Earth from religion to social customs. Then there's the antebellum aspect that was added to this scifi setting: the decks are divided into alphabetized decks segregated by the white elite down to the destitute Black sharecroppers. Lowerdecks residents can't move freely throughout the ship without severe punishment from the guards, and other such restrictions are put on them that mirror the horrifying lives of enslaved folks. The mysteries in the plot were engaging, with a mysterious illness and Astrid's mother's secret missions. Astrid herself is a fascinating character; she's a genius and a medical prodigy, she has such a fervent love for her family, and she is contantly questioning the status quo she has been born into with guts to do said questioning out loud. I thought the ending of this was the perfect way to conclude this story, with the right tone and amount of questions answered. I will say that I had pacing problems with the earlier sections and it took me a minute to really get into the story.
Overall, Solomon's debut is just as impressive as their more recent novels. I will officially be reading every book they put out! ...more
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
Pepper has never told anyone that she found ouThank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
Pepper has never told anyone that she found out that her biological mother is famous portraitist Ula Frost. Now a forensic biologist, Pepper has lived her life entirely without her famous mother. But now that Ula has gone missing, Pepper has been brought into the spotlight as the sole inheritor of Ula's property. And there seems to be more to the rumors of strange things happening to those who Ula paints...
I love an alternate universe story, so after seeing this awesome title I was so excited to read this story. Unfortunately, this one fell flat for me. It takes over halfway through the book for the plot to pick up both in terms of pace and in the speculative element. I nearly DNF'ed this book even though I was reading it for review because it took so long. It didn't feel like the stakes were well defined once the action picked up; I didn't feel like our characters were in danger. The alternate universe idea is not expanded on very much or in an unexpected way. The only thing that was somewhat interesting to me was that the main character has a healthy home life with a loving husband and attentive parents who are still in her life as an adult.
Overall, this was a let down for me. I was waiting for so long to get to the alternate universe payoffs and when it finally came, it didn't go into that in a way I found to be unique or particularly compelling. ...more
“Tonight, I feel that my love for you has more density in this world than I do myself.”
Clare has known the man she will marry since she was six and he“Tonight, I feel that my love for you has more density in this world than I do myself.”
Clare has known the man she will marry since she was six and he was thirty-six, but Henry won't know her until she's twenty-one and he's twenty-eight. Both impossible, and true. Henry suffers from a rare condition that has him spontaneously time travel against his will. We follow Clare and Henry as their lives are inextricably intertwined throughout the years, trying to live a normal life together.
I finally read this now in particular because of my Goodreads cleanse challenge in which I forced myself to either read every book I still had on my Goodreads tbr since before 2018 or delete them off my tbr. This was the last book I managed to finish off that list!
I love time travel. It's my favorite narrative trope for a reason. There are so many different ways you can use such a simple concept. When I was younger, I knew I had to read this someday as it involved time travel, but when I got older, I was hesitant as it is seen as more classic "chick-lit" (which yes is a demeaning term). I wasn't sure if this story was going to be for me because I don't think I'm part of the target audience, but it ended up pleasantly surprising me.
For some reason, I think that knowing that this author is by trade an artist (Clare's art in the book is inspired by her work) is important to the experience of this book. The idea of two people meeting out of order, always trying to catch up with one another, attempting to put aside the forces of nature, is such an artistic idea to me. The idea for this was originally going to be an art piece before it became a story. I absolutely adored the relationship between Henry and Clare - both the romantic part and the doomed out-of-sync part. It took no convincing to sell me on their relationship. Every step of the way, I was rooting for them and for everything to be okay - even when you know for a fact it won't because the timeline can never change. I also think that for a debut, and someone who's not an author by trade, the pacing and structure were fantastic. We see from both of their POVs and bounce around in time, but everything felt purposeful and balanced.
In terms of things that weren't as great - look. You have to get past the thought that Clare might technically have been groomed. This is an immutable timeline and he traveled against his will, and was already was married to her at that point. Otherwise, there was some non-PC language that I did not appreciate and don't think would have printed had it been published today (I recall some ableist and backhandedly homophobic language).
Overall, this reminded me how much I love time travel and a good relationship to root for in stories. I can't wait to watch the show!...more
In the near future, after a catastrophic economic collapse, the US has passed PACT - a law that emphasizes "American culture" and calls for the destruIn the near future, after a catastrophic economic collapse, the US has passed PACT - a law that emphasizes "American culture" and calls for the destruction of Asian influences from affecting children. Bird, a mixed-race twelve year old, has grown up in this fascist state where reporting your neighbors, banning swaths of books, and bribing the police are commonplace. Years ago, his mother, a Chinese-American poet disappeared without a trace. Now, Bird has finally received a message from her and is determined to find her again.
I read this for my book club, Three of Clubs. This quarter, we are reading dystopian books. Join us (link in my bio) for our next two dystopian reads, including How High We Go In The Dark in May!
This was such an impactful read. Fighting fascism will always be an important fight, but this book feels so timely with both the rise of AAPI hate and book bans in America. Laws are being passed across the country that are quietly taking rights away from those who don't fit into the "traditional American family," and this book shows what happens when these steps are furthered just a small amount. Talking against or even questioning the government and its actions puts one under scrutiny and can put one at risk of losing everything - especially one's children. Although this story is different in plot than Ng's other books (which I rated 5 and 4 stars respectively), the writing style and focuses are the same. We see how different members of a family all view things differently because of their life experiences. We see their complicated thoughts and feelings about each other and the heartbreaking ways that their situations have torn them apart. This book is incredibly cathartic as Bird's and Margaret's perspectives weave a complete story of how fascism and their fight against it has impacted them permanently. The ending was realistic in such a heartrending way. Multiple times while reading this, I had to put this book down because of how mad I was, since the horrors of this society are inspired by reality. This book will change people - I know it has influenced me to make change in my local community. Ban fascists, not books.
Overall, this is by far one of my favorite general fiction reads in a long while and one of my favorite books the club has read. I wouldn't be surprised if this made my best books of the year....more
Following the events of Gideon the Ninth, a disoriented Harrow has awoken on the Emperor's ship, having achieved a sort of Lyctorhood and in debt to oFollowing the events of Gideon the Ninth, a disoriented Harrow has awoken on the Emperor's ship, having achieved a sort of Lyctorhood and in debt to one she can't trust, still suffering from massive hallucinations. But during the events of Gideon the Ninth, Harrow experiences something much different from what we saw...
Look, Tamsyn Muir is smarter than me. If anybody can keep what happens in this series, but especially in this installment, straight, they're smarter than me. I had to keep reading summaries of the book while I was reading to follow what was going on. The first book was disorienting before we followed a main character in this book that suffers from hallucinations among other things - at least there was a reason this time for the disorientation! Listening to the audiobook didn't help keep things straight, and the sound mixing was not great. Regardless, what I did get from this book, I enjoyed. We've got a really unique combination of humor with gothic horror and gore in a scifi-fantasy blended setting. There's random pop culture references even though this takes place way in the future, which are funny in a really jarring way. The ending satisfied what I was so upset about with the ending of Gideon. The developments in the magic system/worldbuilding were cool, when I could decipher them. It was also hard to keep the characters straight when they act very differently from book 1. It's weird to have such mixed feelings about a book. It's definitely one that either works for you or doesn't, and I have to work harder than many people to make it work for me. I'll probably continue since my library has the books, but it won't be a priority.
Overall, this installment was even more disorienting than the first one. There was some stuff that I really liked, but the writing/narrative style made it hard for me to enjoy it fully. ...more
Somewhere in a basement in Japan, there is a special cafe that many a desperate soul flocks to. They come to do the impossible - to travel back to theSomewhere in a basement in Japan, there is a special cafe that many a desperate soul flocks to. They come to do the impossible - to travel back to their past. But there are many rules that govern this hole in space-time, and none more important than this one: you must return before the coffee gets cold.
I really liked this idea of time travel, that it can only happen in a very specific way. I also like that it is very specific in that the present cannot change, but the past and future can; it's an interesting twist on timeline edits. I think I struggled with the tone of the translation. The writing style was very list-like and went into details that to me seemed superfluous over developing more of the characters. Not to mention that half of our characters have names beginning with the same couple of letters so it took nearly the entire book for me to be able to keep all of these employees and customers straight. This was broken into four different stories of people traveling through time, and is pitched that way. However, only the last few pages of any section actually involved the traveling, which I think could have been altered some. Also, two of the stories (the second and the fourth) were much stronger than the other two.
Overall, I get why this time travel story is making traction in the book community. I liked the unique time travel takes and some of the emotional bits worked for me, but the rest felt like they would be more for fans of Matt Haig....more
4.5 stars In 2030, a grieving father takes over his daughter's work in the Arctic to uncover ancient remains and diseases that will be freed from the i4.5 stars In 2030, a grieving father takes over his daughter's work in the Arctic to uncover ancient remains and diseases that will be freed from the ice by climate change. But one of these diseases gets loose - the Arctic Plague will soon ravage the earth's population again, especially its children, and forever shape how humanity interacts with death. Told in 14 heavily interconnected stories, we follow humanity through this tragedy, see its after effects, and witness the coldness of industry juxtaposed with the compassion of people.
This is a highly triggering book so find the TW here if needed: book trigger warnings
Wow, this book was impressive, and in several ways - its portrayal of a pandemic and death, its sci-fi elements, and its interconnectedness. I've read a lot of pandemic fiction since the pandemic, and this one is really going to stay with me. Each of the fourteen chapters follows a different narrator who has a different experience with the pandemic and how the industry of death takes off. Each of these characters (most of whom are Asian or Asian American) has connections to others in the story as well - which makes this book like a giant scavenger hunt of pointing out who's connected where. The first few stories (City of Laughter, Pig Son) are particularly harrowing to read as they are at the height of the pandemic and the volume of deaths of children is horrific. As the story goes on, we see how society has adjusted - death has become an entirely new industry as sending off a loved one has become one of the biggest parts of life (funeral services even have their own cryptocurrency). The planet has begun to see the effects of climate change, which leads some to search for new homes and some to hide away in virtual reality. I thought it was really interesting how genres are mixed in this book. Some are very light on the sci-fi elements and are mostly realistic fiction, some are extremely sci-fi, and a couple even border on magical. Throughout, the unifying theme is those who survive trying their best to honor those they have lost, and those they hope to find again. As with most short story formatted books, some of the stories are going to be stronger than others. In this case, I felt like the front half was more consistently brilliant than the back half, although I was absolutely blown away by the final chapter's sci-fi ending.
Overall, if the content is something that one can handle, this is a book that I recommend far and wide given the current state of the world.
With spoilers, a list of the connections that I could find between the fourteen stories: (view spoiler)[ Chapter 1, 30,000 years...: narrator's (cliff) family appears in chap 9. Cliff's daughter Clara has a purple crystal pendant. Chapter 2, City of Laughter: narrator (skip) is likely the COL employee referenced in chapter 3. Donnie appears later in chap 9. Chapter 3, Through the garden...: see chapter 10. skip from chap 2 is likely mentioned, as is a pregnant woman from a chapter I couldn't find again. Chapter 4, Pig Son: narrator (david) is donnie's (chap 2/9) ex-husband. Chapter 5, Elegy Hotel: narrator (dennis) appears in a later chapter (need to find which), and is the brother of bryan from chap 8. Chapter 6, Speak Fetch...: narrator is father of narrator from chapter 11. Chapter 7, Songs of Your Decay: subject of story, laird, is mentioned in chap 9. Chapter 8, Life around the...: narrator (bryan) is brother of dennis from chap 5. bryan's wife teresa has a purple crystal pendant. Chapter 9, A Gallery a Century...: narrator (miki) is cliff's (chap 1) wife. works with donnie from chap 2. laird (chap 7) and bryan (chap 8) are mentioned. it's bryan's technology that is being used in this chapter. miki's paintings of clara and her daughter have been mentioned in previous chapters as well. Chapter 10: Used to be party: most of the characters from chapter 3 are wrapped up/mentioned here. Chapter 11, melancholy nights...: narrator (aki) is son of narrator from chapter 7. VR store owner also has a purple crystal pendant. Chapter 12, Before you melt...: subject of story is mentioned in chapter 10. Chapter 13, grave friends: subject (baba) is baby from chapter 3, and also follows more people from chapter 3/10. pretty sure michihiro is hiro/perv from chapter 3. miki could be miki from chap 9, but idk if timeline works out. Chapter 14: wraps everything up and give a scifi answer to everything! MAJOR SPOILERS: one immortal being was both clara and theresa, and is the mother of annie (neanderthal girl from chap 1). the VR store owner from chapter 11 is her long lost immortal daughter she is trying to get back to. (hide spoiler)]...more
Following the events of Cytonic and Skyward Flight, Spensa has finally been returned to Detritus - even if Detritus isn't where it used to be. The SupFollowing the events of Cytonic and Skyward Flight, Spensa has finally been returned to Detritus - even if Detritus isn't where it used to be. The Superiority is closing in, and humanity and its allies are going to put up a final stand.
Cytonic was the weakest in this series by quite a bit, so I was worried going into this one. Luckily, I think this returned to the quality of the earlier books - I'm partially referring to how isolating Spensa, while it had its purposes, really took away from Cytonic. Getting the gang back together, even in this different capacity, worked really well. I think that possibly the strongest part of the book was the hero's journey arc that Spensa goes on throughout the quartet. I love seeing how Spensa is reflecting on her past and her people given her new life experiences. My favorite conversation that we had was about how Spensa hasn't had the privilege to walk through life cautiously, unlike a lot of other people in her life - something that she's constantly criticized for that isn't really her fault. There was a genuine plot twist I absolutely didn't see coming near the end, but a lot of the plot points along the way hit exactly the beats I expected. Except maybe the g3n0cide (iykyk) ... that was crazy and emotionally rough to read. I liked the new developments that we saw of the world and the "magic", but I could tell that Sanderson was holding back so that more reveals could happen in the next series.
Overall, this was a solid ending to the series; I'm glad I continued on despite not really enjoying Cytonic. This isn't my favorite of Sandersons by a mile, but it's still something I find myself recommending fairly frequently....more
"Because without a name for it, it's just something I am. A part of life. Once it's got a name, I know that means someone has studied it, dissected
"Because without a name for it, it's just something I am. A part of life. Once it's got a name, I know that means someone has studied it, dissected it, pulled it apart. When something has a name, they can say it's bad."
Vern has lived her entire life on the compound of the God of Cain, a religious cult borne from a branch of the Black Power movement of the 60's. She's married to the ever-controlling leader of the cult at 13 to quell her rebellious spirit. Fifteen and heavily pregnant, Vern breaks the bonds that restrain her while she's asleep and runs away, giving birth to twins and raising them in the wild on her own. But something seems to be happening to her body, and she may not be able to handle it on her own.
Rivers Solomon - what is there to say? This book really transported me. Although we don't get the largest picture of this world, the reader is put right alongside Vern's perspective in a way that is extremely effective. There were so many elements I loved to this. The type of story and tone reminded me of what I've read from Toni Morrison and Octavia Butler. I loved the pacing; we had the right amount of backstory at just the right times. The entire cult discussion was done very well, and I thought it was interesting to see a cult that while stifling and harmful to its members, was founded upon something good. I loved seeing Vern raise and love her children, and that she raises them separate from any ideas of gender. Gogo was a character I adored as well. The changes that Vern undergoes physically was also really fascinating and were resonant to the story. The idea of the visions kept me on my toes. Absolutely everything about this book made me want to keep reading it whenever I got the chance.
Overall, this book really struck a chord with me in more ways than one. Particularly if you're a Morrison or Butler fan, you cannot miss this book. ...more
“This is the strange lesson of living in a pandemic: life can be tranquil in the face of death.”
Across the centuries, several strangers find themselv“This is the strange lesson of living in a pandemic: life can be tranquil in the face of death.”
Across the centuries, several strangers find themselves shaken by an inexplicable shared experience. A disgraced son makes his way across the wilderness of Canada at the turn of the century. In the present, a woman finds a connection between her friend's death and a crime she witnessed as a child. A century from now, an author tours her book about a pandemic at the beginnings of a real pandemic. And far into the future, there's a man whose life will become wrapped up in theirs...
I chose this book for my book club, Three of Clubs, for our hand "Time Travel". I had enjoyed Station Eleven, and when I heard this book had similar intersecting perspectives and time travel, I had to pick it - especially since most people didn't know it had time travel, just that it was literary fiction.
This was definitely a slow-burn book. As most people in the book club agreed, it isn't until the halfway point that this short narrative really shows its true colors. Each chapter was more interesting than the last, which is good because the first one didn't seem to have much to say. This book is highly reflective of the author herself, and she doesn't shy away from that fact. One of the characters is an author who was unknown until their strange book about a pandemic broke onto the scene, and she began touring the book again in preparation for an adaptation to be made about that story; little does she know that a seemingly small virus is about to sweep the globe and kill millions. That is the exact situation that Mandel found herself in at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. It was self-referential in a way that didn't seem pretentious, but as if she is confiding in you as the reader. I really enjoyed this take on time travel and the secrecy around it. I think the ending was the perfect balance between neatly wrapping up the specific plot of the book while still leaving large questions up in the air for pondering. Ultimately, this book is about - through the lens of questioning the nature of our reality - holding onto human empathy in spite of it all, which is a message that is extremely relevant to the present time.
Overall, I think that any reader that pushes themselves past the first half will be pleasantly surprised with the artistry of Mandel's most recent release....more
Thank you to Netgalley and Harper Perennial for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
In an alternate 1996, a manuscrip4.5 stars
Thank you to Netgalley and Harper Perennial for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
In an alternate 1996, a manuscript is found after its author passes away that could shake the foundation of The Society. It follows the life of the author, Dr. Miriam Gregory, from her life as a child during the Great Reckoning - a devastating war that lasted from the 1910s to 1940s - through her work as a psychologist helping children work through trauma, to seeing her methods used and potentially corrupted as the newly founded Society bans all familial relationships by making all citizens forget they had them in the first place. Footnotes from the publisher refute her claims, begging the question, who is telling the truth?
This book takes place in the world of the podcast Within The Wires, created by the authors of this book, but it is definitely not a requirement to listen to the podcast before reading the book. I hadn't known anything about the podcast going into this and I still fully enjoyed it, and now want to binge the entire podcast. Since each season of the podcast is its own story within the world, this is simply another entry point to the story and one that does its job amazingly.
So I read this book, in its entirety, on my phone while waiting in lines at Disney World. I'm very impressed with myself. Especially because the footnotes were extremely difficult to click on while on my phone (which is no fault of the book's). I definitely stacked the odds of my enjoyment against You Feel It, but the quality of this book shone through. The text of the book follows Miriam describing her own life, which in and of itself leads to some bias in the recounting. She was orphaned and taken in a few times, and eventually found a method of hypnosis that would allow children like her to forget their trauma ever happened. From her perspective, as The Society is founded and its ideals of anti-tribalism more strictly implemented, she starts to see the darker side of these supposedly well-intentioned ideas. But we also have the words of the publisher. They claim to be showing you this text in the interest of free speech, while also pointing out historical inaccuracies and trying to refute the claims of the author, meanwhile telling the reader to keep the book secret and burn it after reading. Do they mean that, or is the reader supposed to read between the lines?
This book left me with a feeling of confusion in the best possible way. As aforementioned, who is telling the truth? Since the reader is meant to be in this world, some large parts of the new society are slowly explained. What is this society really doing? Some details Miriam is not privy to, like the intentions of her business partner. Miriam also leaves some details to herself, such as what happened with Edgar. What really happened? This book is going to have my gears turning for a long time. I'm absolutely listening to the podcast now; I need to know what happens.
Overall, this dystopian surprised me with its layers and the exact right amount of clarity. If you love unreliable narrators as much as I do, this is something you need to pick up. ...more
In the third book in the Skyward series, Spensa has gotten away from the Superiority, who have started a galaxy-wide war and a threatening the life onIn the third book in the Skyward series, Spensa has gotten away from the Superiority, who have started a galaxy-wide war and a threatening the life on Detritus. Spensa wants to go home to fight with her people, but she knows that as a Cytonic she has a way to help that is much more important - she must go to the Nowhere and fight the Delvers from their side.
Brandon Sanderson is one of my favorite authors, if not my favorite. I read four of his books last year alone, and three the year before. Now Skyward is my least favorite of his series that I've read, but I've still thoroughly enjoyed it since he's such a talent. But this is the first time he's truly let me down. This book felt like it had the content of a novella. How this was an entire book, I have no idea. The things that I liked about this book were the things that continued over from and have been consistent in the other books. I like Spensa and her character development, the Delvers, Brandon Sanderson iconic plot twists, the audio narrator, learning about other alien species, and any spaceship fighting scenes. The last two of those were at a bare minimum in this installment. I loved the idea of the Nowhere, but I'm not sure that much of the things we learned about this area will be relevant to the end of the series. I liked the plot twist at the very end and I liked learning about the history of the universe's relationship with the Delvers, but a lot of the rest fell flat. M-bot really got on my nerves in this one. I didn't care for the new characters. Spensa whined about missing Jorgen way too much.
Thank you to NetGalley and Blackstone Publishing for gifting me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
"No woman goes through birth, whatever tThank you to NetGalley and Blackstone Publishing for gifting me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
"No woman goes through birth, whatever the method or outcome, without leaving something of herself behind."
In this near-future dystopian thriller, surveillance of British citizens has significantly increased after the COVID pandemic, under the guise of keeping the nation healthy. Then, the doll babies came - one in every three seemingly healthy pregnancies ends in stillbirth, and only in Great Britain. Now security policies are at an all-time high as every pregnancy is monitored. Not only that, but teen mothers across the country are going missing, and seventeen-year-old Lainey has just found out she's pregnant.
You never know what you're getting into when you're approved for an ARC; this one fortunately was a surprise after the last several I read were low ratings. I read 90% of this fast-paced book in one sitting, albeit a long one as I was determined to finish it in October.
This book warns of the dangers of government surveillance in the name of security at the expense of human rights, particularly reproductive rights. Some of the policies that take place in this world may seem a bit far-fetched, but they go to show how in states of emergency and fear, those in power can use that fear to gain more power and harm those without it. We follow a mother, Emma, who works in the hospital as a midwife amid the doll baby crisis, and her daughter Lainey, who has just found out she is pregnant and has very few options - abortion has been outlawed, all pregnancies are monitored, and it seems that those her age who are pregnant are being kidnapped with no help from the police. Both of these characters were engaging and easy to root for as they are seemingly trapped in this position while their rights are being taken away. The sense of tension was well done and kept me turning the pages with very few interruptions. The very end was a little bit convenient for my taste (but left open-ended enough that it can be forgiven) and there was definitely a couple of instances of stilted, preachy dialogue that would never actually happen, but otherwise this was a very well done book that has a very important message to spread. ...more
Told as an ensemble piece from our main characters and several witnesses, we follow Nia, whose job involves constantly traveling at light speed, makinTold as an ensemble piece from our main characters and several witnesses, we follow Nia, whose job involves constantly traveling at light speed, making everyone she loves age past her. When a strange boy crash lands on a planet with no words of his own but a flute, he's put into her care.
I would have bet a million dollars this was going to be a three star - then, I had to binge read 75% of this in one day so I could finish it in time, and I couldn't put it down despite the long chapters. I thought that this was constructed so well, with the ensemble working together to give a unique view of the story of Nia and the child. It's used to bring worldbuilding and a different perspective that wouldn't have happened if it was just from their eyes. It still is very emotional when it could have felt distant because of that decision. I loved the found family aspect, and that Jimenez didn't pull punches for the tragic things that happened - it went into a direction I didn't expect that way! I thought this had the right amount of worldbuilding for the story.
Overall, I was blown away with how invested I was in this story. It may not be for everyone, but it was exactly for me....more
On a remote planet, a team of scientists is conducting tests alongside their security android. Little do they know of their droid's apathy towards humOn a remote planet, a team of scientists is conducting tests alongside their security android. Little do they know of their droid's apathy towards humans, and its tendency to call itself Murderbot. When communications are severed to the other team on the planet, Murderbot will have to help protect its team.
This was a really short and enjoyable read. Murderbot is a really cool protagonist; I really enjoyed the fake apathy that it has for it's team. It's super shy and doesn't really know how to be around people. The others are just trying to be kind and it's not admitting to itself it's scared! The plot was pretty cool and I liked the sense of danger. I'd be interested in continuing, and much more so in reading novels in the series since novellas aren't usually my thing....more
Normally, I fully review a book. However, with this one, I wasn't able to focus while listening to this audiobook. I really don't have anything to sayNormally, I fully review a book. However, with this one, I wasn't able to focus while listening to this audiobook. I really don't have anything to say about it. I did like the ending though. I recommend this series to people who are interested in Black fantasy & environmental fantasy & climate justice....more
In a scifi/fantasy world inspired by Chinese history, humanity fights against the invading alien forces by using giant mechs called Chrysalises, each In a scifi/fantasy world inspired by Chinese history, humanity fights against the invading alien forces by using giant mechs called Chrysalises, each powered by the qi of one man and one woman. However, the male qi often dominates that of the women, killing them. Wu Zetian's sister is one of these women taken as concubines and is killed in her first fight. Zetian, enraged by this senseless slaughter of women, volunteers herself as a concubine to the boy who killed her sister with one goal - to kill him, regardless of the consequences.
Wow. This book really exceeded my expectations. This, I think, is partially because of the true darkness of the plot. If the characters weren't teens, this easily could have been shelved as adult. What did I love about this? Just about everything. The audiobook narration is fantastic and I'm glad I picked it because my pronunciation of Mandarin is garbage. Zetian is a fascinating character, and she's based on China's only female emperor. She will not stand for the misogyny her society is built on, refuses to accept their definitions of "masculine" and "feminine", and will do anything to get what she deserves. She is honestly a bit of an antihero, to a degree which is rarely seen in female characters. Yizhi and Shimin are both the absolute best and I'm sorry that I ever doubted either one of them. Especially together, they show that there's not one way to perform masculinity. The representation is so solid as well: Asian, disabled, queer/bi/polyamorous (and I think it's likely that book 2 will include genderqueer, as the author identifies as such). The lengths to which our characters will go to do the right thing is so fantastic and I need an anime of this show yesterday. The ending of this holds such interesting potential for the next book that I have no idea what direction it's going to take. The magic system, the worldbuilding, and the action are great and I honestly wish there was more of all of it. I wish I knew more about the different types of qi! If I could change anything about this book I would make it so much longer.
Overall, I'm going to be thinking about this one for a while and cannot possibly wait for book 2!...more
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