Oh hey, I can do the actual reading post instead of (as well as??) playing catch-up this time...
Just finished A Darker Shade of Magic by V E Schwab, narrated by Steven Crossley
- what a great world/set of worlds
- what a great collection of characters
- what a terrible choice of narration for Lila
- Stephan Crossley does a lot of classical lit, a lot of... ship lit, I guess? Naval adventures?
- he did not do Lila proud
- she can sound scruffy without sounding like... like a comedic cockney urchin
( Spoilers held each other like brothers )
Also just finished (because ADHD)
Tea and Murder: Stories of the Xuya Universe by Aliette de Bodard, voiced by Stefan Rudnicki and Kate Orsini
- oh!
- this is a beautiful universe
- narration is fantastic, voice are lovely, very suited to the world
- the author describes it as ...a timeline where Asia became dominant, and where the space age has Confucian galactic empires of Vietnamese and Chinese inspiration: scholars administrate planets, and sentient spaceships are part of familial lineages.
- I do love me a sentient ship
( Spoilers are sentient and possibly fleshy?? )
- first up is The Citadel of Weeping Pearls
- it's a mystery, with a tiny baby sentient ship (so good! I love the ships!)
- and the Imperial family having regular family issues while a war looms
- It was a good solid story to introduce me to the world
- leaving me free to fully appreciate story #2, The Tea Master and the Detective
- A GENDERFLIPPED HOLMES AU where Watson is a traumatised sentient warship
- Her name is The Shadow's Child and now she makes bespoke tea blends
- IT IS ALL FUCKING MAGNIFICENT
- where are my 5 seasons and a movie
Catching Up on Past Reads
An Unkindness of Ghost by Rivers Solomon, narrated by Cherise Boothe
- Look, this is an amazing book
- I can't overstate how wonderful and creative and amazing
- but it's a generation ship set up like an antebellum plantation society
- the main character is Aster, she's intersex, neurodivergent and brilliant
- I love her
( Spoilers come with all the warnings )
The Last True Poets of the Sea by Julia Drake, narrated by Tavia Gilbert
- got this for free, and downloaded it
- even though it pitches young for YA, the main character has led a wild life
- with lots of sex, drugs and musical theatre
- the language and vibe of the story still felt very adolescent
- but I've watched a whole season of Sex Education
- So I'm getting used to the idea that some teenagers have incredibly wild sex lives
( Spoilers are navigating a teenage storm )
Raybearer by Jordan Ifueko, narrated by Weruche Opia
- oh, wow. This was a wild ride!
- a west African inspired fantasy world
- lots of different nations and cultures
- wonderful narration
- I'm always on board when the reader sings the songs of the story
- magic and spirits and fairies and demons and genies and pretty much everything?
- a fantastic, tropey rulership system
- just a really solid fantasy story
- I will be rolling on to the sequel very soon
Shards of Honor by Lois McMaster Bujold, narrated by Grover Gardner
- finally getting to this
- it's been there on my TBR for literally a decade???
- I think I was hesitant because really smart people love these books
- behold my imposter syndrome
- I really liked it?
- I see those Trek bones
- I have a plan c/o![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
branwyn for reading order
- next is Barrayar, then I'm skipping to Brothers in Arms
- this may be controversial to purists, idk
Catching Teller Crow by Ambelin Kwaymullina and Ezekiel Kwaymullina, narrated by Miranda Tapsell
- retitled in the US as "The Things She's Seen"
- I don't know why, and it doesn't work as well
- so if you buy it in the US, please think of it as "Catching Teller Crow"
- maybe change it with marker
( Not spoilers, just a lot to say about this one )
Fly by Night by Frances Hardinge, narrated by Lesley Sharp
- I didn't want to like this
- I didn't like the voice Lesley Sharp chose for Mosca
- I didn't like Eponymous Clent, he seemed creepy and predatory
- Damn it! She won me over. Or wore me down, which is a better fit for both Mosca and Clent
- In the end, I wouldn't have chosen a different voice for either of them
( Spoilers are dangerously clever )
Wylding Hall by Elizabeth Hand, acted by a bunch of people
- if you read this one, do it in paper, don't audiobook it
- they tried to make it into an audio drama
- but one voice would have been better
- so it didn't break that dreamy, creepy feeling, like Picnic at Hanging Rock
- it's a good and spooky story
- about a folk band
- a perfect afternoon in the seventies
- and why you shouldn't step in fairy rings
Light from Uncommon Stars by Ryka Aoki, narrated by Cindy Kay
- LISTEN UP
- THIS IS THE BEST THING I'VE READ ALL YEAR
- I'M CALLING IT AS MY FAVE FOR 2021
- trans protagonist
- queer characters every-fucking-where
- aliens run the donut store
- there's a Faustian bargain
- there's music theory and instrument making
- there's universal philosophy
- the professional reviews say "Pratchett!!!" and "Becky Chambers!!"
- but they don't need to
- this book is its own wonderful brand of amazing
- give it to everyone
Currently Reading
The Animals at Lockwood Manor by Jane Healey, narrated by Sarah Lambie
- set immediately pre-WWII
- Hetty is overseeing the evacuation of the mammalian collection from the Natural History Museum
- The daughter of the grand house is very mysterious and beguiling
- not sure if this is sapphic or just fraught
- there are lots of gentle touches and smelling of the other woman's skin, you know?
- very gothic
- has big Rebecca vibes so far
Phew. Made it! All caught up! CAN YOU BELIEVE???
Happy thanksgiving, my USian friends. Travel safe, be safe.
Just finished A Darker Shade of Magic by V E Schwab, narrated by Steven Crossley
- what a great world/set of worlds
- what a great collection of characters
- what a terrible choice of narration for Lila
- Stephan Crossley does a lot of classical lit, a lot of... ship lit, I guess? Naval adventures?
- he did not do Lila proud
- she can sound scruffy without sounding like... like a comedic cockney urchin
( Spoilers held each other like brothers )
Also just finished (because ADHD)
Tea and Murder: Stories of the Xuya Universe by Aliette de Bodard, voiced by Stefan Rudnicki and Kate Orsini
- oh!
- this is a beautiful universe
- narration is fantastic, voice are lovely, very suited to the world
- the author describes it as ...a timeline where Asia became dominant, and where the space age has Confucian galactic empires of Vietnamese and Chinese inspiration: scholars administrate planets, and sentient spaceships are part of familial lineages.
- I do love me a sentient ship
( Spoilers are sentient and possibly fleshy?? )
- first up is The Citadel of Weeping Pearls
- it's a mystery, with a tiny baby sentient ship (so good! I love the ships!)
- and the Imperial family having regular family issues while a war looms
- It was a good solid story to introduce me to the world
- leaving me free to fully appreciate story #2, The Tea Master and the Detective
- A GENDERFLIPPED HOLMES AU where Watson is a traumatised sentient warship
- Her name is The Shadow's Child and now she makes bespoke tea blends
- IT IS ALL FUCKING MAGNIFICENT
- where are my 5 seasons and a movie
Catching Up on Past Reads
An Unkindness of Ghost by Rivers Solomon, narrated by Cherise Boothe
- Look, this is an amazing book
- I can't overstate how wonderful and creative and amazing
- but it's a generation ship set up like an antebellum plantation society
- the main character is Aster, she's intersex, neurodivergent and brilliant
- I love her
( Spoilers come with all the warnings )
The Last True Poets of the Sea by Julia Drake, narrated by Tavia Gilbert
- got this for free, and downloaded it
- even though it pitches young for YA, the main character has led a wild life
- with lots of sex, drugs and musical theatre
- the language and vibe of the story still felt very adolescent
- but I've watched a whole season of Sex Education
- So I'm getting used to the idea that some teenagers have incredibly wild sex lives
( Spoilers are navigating a teenage storm )
Raybearer by Jordan Ifueko, narrated by Weruche Opia
- oh, wow. This was a wild ride!
- a west African inspired fantasy world
- lots of different nations and cultures
- wonderful narration
- I'm always on board when the reader sings the songs of the story
- magic and spirits and fairies and demons and genies and pretty much everything?
- a fantastic, tropey rulership system
- just a really solid fantasy story
- I will be rolling on to the sequel very soon
Shards of Honor by Lois McMaster Bujold, narrated by Grover Gardner
- finally getting to this
- it's been there on my TBR for literally a decade???
- I think I was hesitant because really smart people love these books
- behold my imposter syndrome
- I really liked it?
- I see those Trek bones
- I have a plan c/o
branwyn for reading order - next is Barrayar, then I'm skipping to Brothers in Arms
- this may be controversial to purists, idk
Catching Teller Crow by Ambelin Kwaymullina and Ezekiel Kwaymullina, narrated by Miranda Tapsell
- retitled in the US as "The Things She's Seen"
- I don't know why, and it doesn't work as well
- so if you buy it in the US, please think of it as "Catching Teller Crow"
- maybe change it with marker
( Not spoilers, just a lot to say about this one )
Fly by Night by Frances Hardinge, narrated by Lesley Sharp
- I didn't want to like this
- I didn't like the voice Lesley Sharp chose for Mosca
- I didn't like Eponymous Clent, he seemed creepy and predatory
- Damn it! She won me over. Or wore me down, which is a better fit for both Mosca and Clent
- In the end, I wouldn't have chosen a different voice for either of them
( Spoilers are dangerously clever )
Wylding Hall by Elizabeth Hand, acted by a bunch of people
- if you read this one, do it in paper, don't audiobook it
- they tried to make it into an audio drama
- but one voice would have been better
- so it didn't break that dreamy, creepy feeling, like Picnic at Hanging Rock
- it's a good and spooky story
- about a folk band
- a perfect afternoon in the seventies
- and why you shouldn't step in fairy rings
Light from Uncommon Stars by Ryka Aoki, narrated by Cindy Kay
- LISTEN UP
- THIS IS THE BEST THING I'VE READ ALL YEAR
- I'M CALLING IT AS MY FAVE FOR 2021
- trans protagonist
- queer characters every-fucking-where
- aliens run the donut store
- there's a Faustian bargain
- there's music theory and instrument making
- there's universal philosophy
- the professional reviews say "Pratchett!!!" and "Becky Chambers!!"
- but they don't need to
- this book is its own wonderful brand of amazing
- give it to everyone
Currently Reading
The Animals at Lockwood Manor by Jane Healey, narrated by Sarah Lambie
- set immediately pre-WWII
- Hetty is overseeing the evacuation of the mammalian collection from the Natural History Museum
- The daughter of the grand house is very mysterious and beguiling
- not sure if this is sapphic or just fraught
- there are lots of gentle touches and smelling of the other woman's skin, you know?
- very gothic
- has big Rebecca vibes so far
Phew. Made it! All caught up! CAN YOU BELIEVE???
Happy thanksgiving, my USian friends. Travel safe, be safe.