Book recs: January 2019
Jan. 31st, 2019 07:46 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
Regular posting is apparently not my thing at all, but this is one thing I can probably always reliably go on about, so here are some books that I read and enjoyed recently!
Any Old Diamonds by K. J. Charles: jewellery heist, betrayals, seriously questionable romantic choices, people making themselves vulnerable to someone they want because of ~reasons, and truly horrible people getting their just deserts—this was so much fun, I could barely put it down. I'm a big fan of KJC's work in general, and I probably haven't enjoyed the dynamics between a romantic pair of hers quite this much since A Seditious Affair's Dom and Silas. And if you happened to read and like that one, wait until you see what KJC does with "Lord Alexander" in this one—it gives Silas Mason's "Tory" a run for its money.
Spellswept by Stephanie Burgis: an endearing prequel to Burgis' Snowspelled, this tells the story of how Amy and Jonathan came to be married. As in the book, this showcases the powerful emotional core that holds this family together against a lot of external pressure (and the metaphor here is very much unsubtle). It made me smile a lot.
Five Dares by Eli Easton: this is just about the tropiest scenario imaginable: two best friends injure their hands and, while healing up, wonder what they could possibly do to get off while their hands are unavailable. You can guess where this is going, and it does not disappoint. This has friends to lovers, secret pining and all the feelings <3
If at First You Don't Succeed, Try, Try Again by Zen Cho: this novelette starts out as the tale of an imugi trying to become a dragon, and then it steals your heart away as the imugi meets someone. Before you know it, you're totally invested and wtf, where did all these feelings come from all of a sudden. This story is freely accessible on the B&N website.
The Poppy War by R. F. Kuang: this intricate tale of the horrors of war and myth—what humans can convince themselves of in the name of power, what we can make tools for, what we use lies for, what we use gods for—builds up to its horrors, and it uses them incredibly effectively. It's not a light read by any stretch of the imagination, and I imagine a lot of people won't be able to stomach this. But it is incredibly well-crafted, and it is very clear about its message: this isn't violence porn. For all that this is set in a fantasy world, it couldn't be closer to ours, and this book is doing its level best to get through to even the most desensitised of audiences and remind them of the very real consequences of going to war, on every level.
The Calculating Stars and The Fated Sky by Mary Robinette Kowal: this alt-history was an imperfect but super interesting take on what the US space program could've been if it had been rushed by the threat of impending planetary extinction. There's a lot to love here—messy politics, imaginative but mostly well-grounded alt-history, an amazing personal journey, a loving established relationship—and the novels' occasional bouts of cringey cluelessness don't detract from its wider merits. If you haven't read the novelette that inspired these novels, The Lady Astronaut of Mars, I couldn't rec it more, follow the link and give it a read, it's short—but be warned, it may cause you to tear up.
City of Lies by Sam Hawke: this book spun out its politics like tapestry, and it was so fascinating to read. The plot is centred on two siblings who were trained by their uncle in secret to become poison tasters, one of whom suddenly needs to take over the position suddenly when their uncle is poisoned. This is a story that examines loyalty and duty from multiple angles, none of them straightforward.
Other recs:
What have you been reading lately? Any recs?
Romance
Any Old Diamonds by K. J. Charles: jewellery heist, betrayals, seriously questionable romantic choices, people making themselves vulnerable to someone they want because of ~reasons, and truly horrible people getting their just deserts—this was so much fun, I could barely put it down. I'm a big fan of KJC's work in general, and I probably haven't enjoyed the dynamics between a romantic pair of hers quite this much since A Seditious Affair's Dom and Silas. And if you happened to read and like that one, wait until you see what KJC does with "Lord Alexander" in this one—it gives Silas Mason's "Tory" a run for its money.
Spellswept by Stephanie Burgis: an endearing prequel to Burgis' Snowspelled, this tells the story of how Amy and Jonathan came to be married. As in the book, this showcases the powerful emotional core that holds this family together against a lot of external pressure (and the metaphor here is very much unsubtle). It made me smile a lot.
Five Dares by Eli Easton: this is just about the tropiest scenario imaginable: two best friends injure their hands and, while healing up, wonder what they could possibly do to get off while their hands are unavailable. You can guess where this is going, and it does not disappoint. This has friends to lovers, secret pining and all the feelings <3
SFF
If at First You Don't Succeed, Try, Try Again by Zen Cho: this novelette starts out as the tale of an imugi trying to become a dragon, and then it steals your heart away as the imugi meets someone. Before you know it, you're totally invested and wtf, where did all these feelings come from all of a sudden. This story is freely accessible on the B&N website.
The Poppy War by R. F. Kuang: this intricate tale of the horrors of war and myth—what humans can convince themselves of in the name of power, what we can make tools for, what we use lies for, what we use gods for—builds up to its horrors, and it uses them incredibly effectively. It's not a light read by any stretch of the imagination, and I imagine a lot of people won't be able to stomach this. But it is incredibly well-crafted, and it is very clear about its message: this isn't violence porn. For all that this is set in a fantasy world, it couldn't be closer to ours, and this book is doing its level best to get through to even the most desensitised of audiences and remind them of the very real consequences of going to war, on every level.
The Calculating Stars and The Fated Sky by Mary Robinette Kowal: this alt-history was an imperfect but super interesting take on what the US space program could've been if it had been rushed by the threat of impending planetary extinction. There's a lot to love here—messy politics, imaginative but mostly well-grounded alt-history, an amazing personal journey, a loving established relationship—and the novels' occasional bouts of cringey cluelessness don't detract from its wider merits. If you haven't read the novelette that inspired these novels, The Lady Astronaut of Mars, I couldn't rec it more, follow the link and give it a read, it's short—but be warned, it may cause you to tear up.
City of Lies by Sam Hawke: this book spun out its politics like tapestry, and it was so fascinating to read. The plot is centred on two siblings who were trained by their uncle in secret to become poison tasters, one of whom suddenly needs to take over the position suddenly when their uncle is poisoned. This is a story that examines loyalty and duty from multiple angles, none of them straightforward.
Other recs:
- Lock In by John Scalzi
- Honor Among Thieves by Rachel Caine
- Umbernight by Carolyn Ives Gilman
What have you been reading lately? Any recs?