Time travel is confusing. It‘s messy. It‘s run by the British government. This book uses a lot of sci-fi themes—character-out-of-time, time travel for starters—all dressed up as a political thriller and [redacted] twist to boot. While not fast-paced, the pacing certainly wasn‘t slow and allowed for the characters to each grow at their own pace. A definite book worth rereading.
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Apparently, I forgot to post this when I actually finished the book.

Fantastical. But more than fantasy. Lyrical. But more than poetry. Epic. But simple in scope. The circus has come to town. Two children bonded together and pitted against one another in a magical, mystical challenge. The circus is the venue, but the challenge is not about acts of wonder. If only they had known before they fell in love.

Because I don‘t already pay enough to Spotify, I guess.

I will finish “Heavenly Tyrant” next month I guess. And start “The Night Circus” now. One of the first books to be completed as a NaNoWriMo project and then traditionally published.

Finally!!! I started this audiobook on Spotify because my library system in the South is not that eclectic in terms of the variety of genres or BIPOC authors. Unfortunately, I ran out of time credits and have to wait to finish it next month! #ihatespotify

Time travel without a DeLorean? We‘ll see about that. 😉

The high point was definitely “Shawshank” and “Apt Pupil” was infinitely more unsettling than the movie. So I give it 3.5 ⭐️ out of 5.

Been meaning to read this one for a long time—for obvious cinematic reasons.

Who else but the writer of true-life horrors could produce a ghost story built upon historical accuracy, mixed with a dash of macabre and suspense? This audiobook-only story was the perfect end to October, as the author said many times in the forward and credits: ghost stories are best to be heard, not read.

A narrative fiction from Erik Larson?!?! Yes please!

And a ghost story to boot for All Hallow‘s Eve!

It really is as good as Iremember it. Along with Jules Vern or HG Wells, Frank Herbert was one of the OG authors who mashed up sci-fi and fantasy. There is so much packed into this one book: commentary on politics, commentary on society, religion, feminism, toxic masculinity (before that was even a thing), revenge, love. I feel like the grandfather at the beginning of “The Princess Bride” explaining to his grandson why this book is so exciting.

Rereading for the first time since probably high school some 30 years ago. 😳

Autumn vibes

Happy Friday

“(Crowley) rather liked people. It was major failing in a demon. Oh, he did his best to make their short lives miserable, because that was his job, but nothing he could think up was half as bad as the stuff they thought up themselves. They seemed to have a talent for it. It was built into the design, somehow. They were born into a world that was against them in a thousand little ways, and then devoted most of their energies to making it worse.”

I need Litsy to update the app for iOS 18. I can only post words. No pics. It‘s mildly frustrating. #firstworldproblems #litsyissues #ios18

It‘s as if Gaiman and Pratchett wrote the characters specifically for Tennant and Sheen.

When in doubt: read a Neil Gaiman book.

It is a rare feat to capture the human experience in prose, but to do it in a mere 128 pages is nigh impossible. Claire Keegan is a rare literary gift, offering up another distinctly Irish story while simultaneously is a distinctly human story of birth, death, love, loss, anxiety, calm, family, and acceptance.

I didn‘t know what I wanted to read so a novella from the incomparable Claire Keegan is the perfect remedy.

Erik Larson crafts a riveting narrative, blending history and suspense as he chronicles America‘s path to civil war. Through the lens of personal diaries and secret records, Larson vividly portrays key figures like Major Robert Anderson and Mary Boykin Chesnut, along with villain secessionist Edmund Ruffin. This gripping account reminds us how impending disaster often goes unnoticed until it‘s too late. A haunting and captivating political drama.

Only had to wait ~16 weeks for the new Erik Larson release on the lead up to the Civil War after the election of Lincoln. Having been born and raised in the South, I‘m 99.99% sure this book will soon be banned throughout the Southeast!

An enjoyable read, but not paced with the urgency of its predecessor. The plot movement became languid in the middle third, as if a word count was the primary focus rather than plot development. I imagine the primary purpose was to build character tension in between the first third and final third which again utilized a frenetic pace which I so enjoyed in the first installment. ⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

Starting Book 2 of the Gearbreakers series. This is my beach read for the summer, so I‘m gonna need Debby to move on so that Hilton Head is reachable by Thursday.

This is an interesting take on the theory of multiple universes and chaos theory. Nora loses her job. Her cat dies. The old man in the building no longer needs her to pick up his prescriptions. She thinks no one needs her in this life any longer. Caught between life and death, she is offered a chance to try on the infinite number of lives that could have been at every tiny decision she's ever made.

Dark academia at its finest. Maps have always contained magic for me, maybe that‘s because I‘m Gen X and I grew up with them crammed in my parents‘ station wagon glovebox. Peng Shepherd revives that magic in this incredibly complex, beautiful novel in this age of digital cartography in our pockets. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

But we love ya, Paul!

Gotta stay healthy! ☕️

“Advanced Reader Copy” — whoops. Finally unboxed that stack of books from our move more than a year ago. Better late than never, I suppose.

A Neil Gaiman narration is more than enough to get me to listen to an audiobook, but to throw in the added bonus of Wil Wheaton narrating the World‘s End portion as Brant Tucker? *chef‘s kiss*

I love Gaiman‘s writing, but I particularly love his short-form narrative. The Sandman is a perfect format for Gaiman to intertwine short stories into a long-form narrative. Morpheus takes a short journey with Delirium to find their brother Destruction.

I feel like I make this mistake daily.

Back to Act III.

Happy Monday!

Dystopian YA at its finest. We've got a brutal wasteland ruled by a tyrannical empire, giant mechs called Windups used for oppression, and a badass rebellion called the Gearbreakers fighting back. Not a ton of world-building, but the writing kept the plot moving at a solid pace, and it was just a fun read for the summer. Guess I'll be jumping into the sequel shortly.

Apparently my new book obsession is Asian Military Fantasy novels.

A very enjoyable romp. Obviously, nothing to do with the movie. (Full Disclosure: I have not seen the movie but do know the premise of it)

I saw the plot twist coming but the payoff of the reveal was well-played. I like the characters and the villains were well-written. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

Probably both.

Don‘t normally start two new books in the same week, but my hold came in for this one. What can you do?

I‘m in need of the dulcet tones of Neil Gaiman reading to me.

(It‘s difficult to say whether this is an Audible production 🤣)

#BookMadness #MarchMadness #ReadingBracket2024 #TopRead2024

April: Passing by Nella Larsen
May: A Shadow Intelligence by Oliver Harris

But R.F. Kuang remains undefeated with A Dragon Republic — but it was VERY close.

This was a fascinating mix of sci-fi, horror, and political/spy thriller. The graphic violence was on par with horror. The science was straight sci-fi. Then Maberry threw in a dash of political thriller just for fun. This was my first of his novels, and this is all stuff Maberry is known for. Thoroughly enjoyable and breathtakingly frightening. Not sure if Maberry is a genius or a madman!

But is it a 🚩?

Part political thriller. Part science fiction. Part horror. Color me intrigued, but we shall see.

Sadly as telling now as it was when first published in 1929. Nella Larsen‘s own life as a mixed-race woman informed her writing, making her an important part of the Harlem Renaissance. American author Darryl Pinckney wrote of Larsen: “No matter what situation Larsen found herself in, racial irony of one kind or another invariably wrapped itself around her.”

😳😳😳

Found this one on BookTok and already a quarter of the way through it.

(Also had to convert up the Netflix logo because you know they are gonna ruin this book.)

Having live through and watching the fall of the Berlin Wall while also being scared 💩-less by my older brother of impending nuclear annihilation by the Soviet Union as a child, this book was a fascinating behind-the-(Iron)-Curtain look into just exactly how the West was able to curtail Russian paranoia and ultimately dismantle generations of mistrust. One man sacrificed everything in pursuit of freedom.

So hard for it, honey!

Preferably hot. Save your ice for your Coke.

A little nonfiction to kick off the weekend.

I unknowingly read this series out of sequence. I‘m actually glad I did. I liked the second book but, having really enjoyed this one, I might have been disappointed. “The Shadow Intelligence” was a masterfully plotted espionage thriller. The twists were unexpected and pacing increased as the story moved the reader along toward the chaotic, crescendo ending. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5