You know that saying about buses coming in threes? They’re not trying hard enough. Beware July 22nd, when SFF releases are due in such numbers you may find yourself overwhelmed should you stray into a bookshop unprepared… Time to take a look at what new releases I’ll be considering making some room for next month.
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The Near Earth Orbital Guard handle search and rescue in space, a vital if underfunded mission delivered by small, tight crews determined to save lives. When rookie lieutenant Max Carmichael is unexpectedly assigned to the best Neo-G crew in the service, she has a lot to prove – to her new team, to her estranged family, but mostly to herself.
A year after saving the wakewyrm, the resistance port of Safeharbour is raided by the Bern; more arakeesians are sighted, putting the Hundred Isles back on a war footing; and the toxic cargo of a merchant ship suggests the Thirteenbern has even darker plots afoot. The battle for peace teeters on a knife-edge – and there’s a mutiny brewing aboard the Tide Child...
Hot summer days aren’t the best for settling in to write long, insightful blog posts. But they’re perfect for book tags. Fran Laniado shared The Serial Reader Tag a while back, which was created by Zwartraafje to celebrate the delight and horror of falling in love with a series…
Later than advertised (sorry folks, last weekend got away from me), it’s time for one last affectionate look back at our amazing month of Wyrd and Wonder. A huge hearty THANK YOU to everyone who took part – you make Wyrd and Wonder what it is and we love you for it.
The new Parijatdvipan Emperor is a tyrant and a zealot, fond of ‘purifying’ women with flame. When his rebellious sister refuses to be sacrificed, she is imprisoned. But allies are sometimes found in the strangest places, and Malini is not alone in her fear of the Emperor. Chandra’s cruelty may set the whole Empire alight.
20 Books of Summer is an annual challenge hosted by Cathy of 746 Books. This is all about reading and reviewing your backlog over the summer – just set a target of 10, 15 or 20 books and declare a TBR (you can always change it later). In spite of 2021 being my year of no goals, I’m taking part as usual with an achievable goal of 15 (which is what i said last year, then spent the summer rereading instead, ahem).
Anaiya is a Hero of Otpor, the Peacekeeper who brought a Heterodox traitor to justice. But her time undercover has stripped her of her aptitude – and appetite – for her role. Caught between the Elements of Fire and Air, can she learn to live differently without condemning herself as Heterodox?
The month of May is made of good intentions, followed by a cascade of compromises. That is to say: I started Wyrd & Wonder with a stack of outstanding reviews …and I ended it the same way. Time to clear my conscience – let’s take a look at my last 2 Wyrd & Wonder reads and catch up on the third season of BookBurners.
Better late than never, an abbreviated look at some exciting June releases. I haven’t had a chance to dive as deep as I usually do, so consider this the highly subjective edited highlights package. If There’s Always Room For One More, you know what to do…
May is always a joy because it’s Wyrd and Wonder. I started out with big ambitions, but had to dial back posts and social media activity due to a lingering migraine that bit whenever I spent too much time staring at a screen (dammit). I persevered with tree editions (paper doesn’t glare) for some quiet reading in dim rooms, until my brain shut me down with a reading slump. Tch, I can take a hint brain. Well, sometimes.
It’s the big finale: look around at the faces around you, the light of new worlds shining in their eyes, their hearts full with new characters, their shelves creaking in anticipation of the grand emptying of the book bags at month’s end. Raise a glass to your fellow adventurers and settle in for the tale of the party’s Wyrd and Wonderful adventures over this past week…
It’s the final week of the Wyrd and Wonder read-along, where we’re discussing The Bone Shard Daughter by Andrea Stewart. There’s absolutely no avoiding spoilers now, so proceed at your own risk! Mayri the BookForager is our host for this final week.
The First Man still walks the Earth, but time has taken its toll. Adam finds it hard to relate to his mortal children, hard to engage with the world. When he finds a fragment of Eden, it gives him new purpose. Can Paradise be rebuilt? Who should inherit it?
Juliet McKenna is an author I’d been meaning to read forever. When good bookfriends expressed quiet but fervent enthusiasm for The Green Man’s Heir, I decided it was time to take the plunge. Today I’m here to be your good bookfriend and express my own quiet but fervent enthusiasm for this contemporary folkloric fantasy series. You should take the plunge, the water is fine if full of terrifying naiads and nixes.
