Comment on 1. The Rose Field by # PhilipPullman . Disappointing conclusion to an u
ottsatwork@mas.to 2 weeks ago 5. Trip by #AmieBarrodale.
Much of this went over my head because of my unfamiliarity with Buddhism, plus the maddening trend of not using quote marks with dialogue. A woman dies in Nepal at a “Death and Denouement” spiritual conference, where fascinating philosophies and belief systems converge. Her autistic son runs away and ends up asea during a hurricane and she attempts to help him from the Bardo. Surreal and funny in small parts, with unflinching insights on what it’s like to raise an autistic child, but mostly confusing and frustrating.
Attachment: media.mas.to ↗
6. The Everlasting by #AlixEHarrow.
Incredibly good. A love story with time travel and fantasy elements. Una and Owen try again and again to rewrite history so they can be together. Harrow manages to keep it interesting even as parts of their story repeat. And with interesting gender fluidity between them too. To defy the cycle that traps you, to love fiercely and be loved in return, I never tired of reading their story over and over. Powerful stuff that makes you want to go out and fight for something and someone this hard.
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7. Starling House by #AlixEHarrow.
Loved “The Everlasting” so much I borrowed Harrow’s prior novel from the library and it’s … not good. Too much going on: a sentient house, invisible horrors roaming the grounds, evil corporations, another dimension (?), and a poorly written love story. And quite a bit more. But Opal and Arthur, our main characters here, crawled so Una and Owen could fly, I guess. Skip this and just read “The Everlasting”.
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8. The Immortal King Rao by #VauhiniVara.
A first novel from a WSJ tech reporter that’s reminiscent of themes in Ray Nayler’s work: algorithmic governance, a climate-ravaged world, transferred sentience. Three stories/timeframes intertwine: King growing up as a Dalit on a coconut plantation in India, igniting the Coconut computer revolution in Seattle, and later on Bainbridge Island with his daughter living among anarchists.
You may prefer certain timelines over the others, but I liked them all. Though I was most confused with the present on Bainbridge, which unfortunately, was where most of the meaning is made. Vara tells a good story but the ending feels like she didn’t know how to wrap it all up. Still, Athena’s eventual understanding of her father is complex and real.
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9. Heated Rivalry by #RachelReid.
Watched the TV show first and it’s remarkable how much of the dialogue and scenes are taken directly from the book with little to mostly no change. Of course, we get more interiority with both characters: their confusion, excitement, and separate resolutions that it has to stop.
I’ve watched/read an embarrassing number of interviews and deconstructions of the TV show and it’s a credit to both Reid and Jacob Tierney that they were able to craft something so satisfying in their respective mediums. “I’m coming to the cottage!”
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xclues@mastodon.social 2 weeks ago
@ottsatwork @bookstodon "Crawled so Una and Owen could fly" is doing heroic lifting for a book juggling a sentient house, invisible horrors, evil corps AND a spare dimension 😅 But you've sold me on The Everlasting purely by contrast — onto the list it goes.
@ottsatwork @bookstodon I've gotten so bored with cishet love stories. I discovered LGBTQ romcoms, some formulaic, some much more interesting.
1. don't bother doing the Alpha male werewolf falling for an Omega same gender werewolf. It's been done and not particularly well.
2. Werewolf/Vampire parings are boring.
3. Friends-to-Enemies Warlock novels can go bad really fast.
4. Fake-Dating your frienemy. Yawn.
Those are some I-won't-bother stories I've though initially intersting but turned out to be a waste of time and money.
Self-publishing has turned Amazon into a slush-pile. When I come across a well written story, I laude it. Especially if the author shows skill. Take Naomi Navik's Dragon books set during the Napoleonic Wars. The 1st one was a wonderful introduction. The 2nd an exploration of what it means to have a 2nd sentient species (dragons) as part of Chinese Society. In the west, they're livestock even though they're intelligent and talk.
https://www.amazon.com/His-Majestys-Dragon-Novel-Temeraire-ebook/dp/B000GCFBQA