tardis reads in 2024

Happy New Year! I look forward to lots of great reading, and wish the same for everyone here in the Green Dragon and across LibraryThing. I hope to receive many book bullets from you all and also to deliver a few :)

Mount TBR currently stands at 87, not counting whatever's on the e-reader, library books in hand, and my library hold list. This is up about 20 from previous year. I blame library book sales.

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year / Thread!

I become more and more convinced that you are my reader-twin. We have almost the same amount on TBR!!

Happy New Year & Happy New Thread!
(I will be donning Kevlar before reading your posts.)

Happy New Year!

Happy New (Reading) Year!

Happy New Year! May the TBR books all be so delightful that you read them with ease and enjoyment and may you find as many more the same.

1. Kraken Bake by Karen Dudley. Back to Ancient Athens. Chef Pelops can't cook kraken - it always turns out to be inedible - but there's a Bronze Chef competition coming up and everyone knows that's going to be the secret ingredient that all the contestants will have to use. Meanwhile, his arch-rival, Chef Mithaecus, has no such problems, and the visiting hero, Perseus, is "helping" Pelops. Tons of fun. Also, one of the other chefs is called Mediokrates. Snerk.

Happy New Year and Happy Reading to you! I know I will find lots of good recommendations in your thread!

>8 tardis: I have that somewhere on my Nook. I think I'll have to dig it up and read it this year.

>10 Marissa_Doyle: It's #2 in a series - I recommend reading #1 (Food for the Gods) first, if you haven't already.

2. Highland Fling by Katie Fforde. Jenny goes north to evaluate a failing business for a client she's never met and gets involved with the family who own the mill, a hot guy, and the business. Cheerful, romance, fluff, quick read.

3. Best Foot Forward by Celia Lake. Lord Carillon needs to get an old friend, an alchemist, out of Germany in the mid-1930s, and needs the help of Alexander Landry to do it. Quite good.

4. The Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien. Audiobook, but not read by Andy Serkis. Decent reader, though. I've got The Two Towers audiobook on hold at the library, but it'll be a few months before it gets to me.

5. The Withered Boy by Marshall Ryan Maresca. A short chapbook in the Maradaine-verse. An outcast boy finds his destiny. Good.

6. The Sunlit Man by Brandon Sanderson. Nomad is on the run and ends up on a planet where the sun is so strong it boils the land and burns everything. There are factions: a dictator and rebels, and he picks sides. Pretty good.

7. Heart Stings
8. Spider and Frost
both by Jennifer Estep, in the world of her assassin, Gin Blanco. Both novellas, both take place at roughly the same time. In Ashland, Lorelei is lusting after a possibly evil vampire, while a nasty and really persisitent mob boss tries to force her to sell her business. Meanwhile, Gin, Owen, Brie and Finn are on vacation, and get separated. Gin ends up on a train with Gwen, a student from the Mythos Academy, who is escorting a bunch of stolen artifacts back to where they belong. Gin and Gwen have to fight off the reapers trying to steal the artifacts again. Both stories feature the usual high body counts of the series, but they're decent fun.

9. From a Far and Lovely Country by Alexander McCall Smith. No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency. Mma Ramotswe and Mma Makutsi take on a shady singles club and an American woman who wants to find her adopted grandfather's family, among other things. The usual gentle story.

>15 tardis: Nice! I've read quite a few books in this series, up to book 5, I think. I enjoyed them very much.

>15 tardis: & >16 Alexandra_book_life: I was enjoying this series but stopped after 6 of them, and I'm not sure why. Perhaps I should try the audiobooks.

>16 Alexandra_book_life: >17 clamairy: I have mixed feelings about the #1 Ladies' Detective Agency. I enjoy them while I'm reading them but they don't stick with me and I don't buy them. They're all very similar.

10. Dragonsong by Anne McCaffrey. Audiobook. I listened to some of the earlier Dragon books but I haven't counted them because they were severely abridged. Anyway, audio isn't ideal for these as I can't slide lightly over the annoying parts - the gender roles are so ridiculously ironclad, even as McCaffrey breaks them with some of her characters as Pernese society is rebuilt. I still enjoyed it, but maybe I'm ready to let my print copies of McCaffrey's works out to find other readers. Maybe for nostalgia I'll keep the first three and the Harper Hall books but my recollection of the rest is that they got a bit repetetive, revisiting the same time period from different viewpoints. And I could really use some empty shelf space in the "M" section :)

>18 tardis: That might be one of the reasons why I stopped. I had been buying them for my mom, and reading them when she was done. Then we would talk about them. Looks like I read my last one the year after she passed.

>19 clamairy: I had the same experience with those books. They are pleasant, but after the first 6 or 8 I don't feel inclined to jump back in. I also bought them for mom when she was still able to read her Kindle. I think I have several in my account that I haven't read.

>8 tardis: This sounds fun!

Happy reading in 2024!

>18 tardis: I've read most of the Pern books, but the only one I've kept is Dragonsinger. I'm not even sure why, other than her vindication over many doubters and issues.

>21 libraryperilous: Thanks :)
>22 Jim53: Yeah, that's satisfying. I haven't made a decision yet - I think I'll revisit a few more of the series. Or at least skim through them. But they're definitely on the edge of being passed on.

11. The Three Dahlias by Katy Watson. A 2023 book bullet from several directions but took until now for the library to deliver it to me. Three actresses who have played (or in one case will be playing) the same gutsy female amateur detective are invited to a fan conference, and when murder happens they investigate. This was very enjoyable. I liked all three of the actresses, and the supporting characters were fun, too.

12. A Curse of Krakens by Kevin Hearne. Conclusion to his Seven Kennings series. The six kennings take the war to the enemy. Enjoyed it, but unlikely to re-read.

>20 MrsLee: Me too (three? four?) Enjoyable in the moment, but not much to sink one's teeth into. I like my fluff with bones.

13. Demon Daughter by Lois McMaster Bujold. Penric and Desdemona novella. Pen, Des, and Nikys are dispatched to a coastal village where a suspected demon-infected child has washed up. This was so good. I love this series.

14. The Bullet That Missed by Richard Osman. Back with the Thursday Murder Club as they investigate the ten-years-cold murder of a journalist. Always a good time. Must put a hold on the next book in the series!

15. A Man With One Of Those Faces by C.K. McDonnell. Took the library a long time to deliver this one, but worth the wait. Paul is one of those people who looks like a lot of other people, and he uses his "gift" to visit people in care homes, pretending to be whatever relative isn't actually visiting them and keeping them company, in return for volunteer credit. When an old geezer mistakes him for the son of an old friend and then tries to stab him, things get strange fast. In short order he's on the run with a nurse who has read too many crime novels. Murder attempts, bombs, and the inimitable Detective Sergeant Bunny McGarry. Great stuff.

>28 tardis:
If this is your first Dublin Trilogy read, then you are in for a great time.

16. A Lady's Guide to Scandal by Sophie Irwin. Eliza, Lady Somerset, is in mourning for her husband, although she doesn't actually miss him at all. When his will is read, she's left some properties (much to the chagrin of the rest of the family), but there's a morals clause. If she embarrasses the family, she loses all. Removing to Bath with her cousin, Margaret, she starts to spread her wings. Scandal isn't actually that easy to avoid. Regency romance, slightly unbelievable, but still enjoyable.

17. Steeped in Malice by Vicki Delany. Lily buys an antique children's tea set in a basket at an antique sale, and suddenly there are people trying to buy it back from her. Murder ensues. Good cozy mystery fluff.

18. Firefly : Coup de Grâce by Una McCormack. Mal and the crew of Serenity head to a planet called Abel to help a young woman track down her father's murderer. Naturally, the situation is far more complicated than it seems on the surface. Pretty good.

19. Know Your Station by Sarah Gailey, illustrated by Liana Kangas. Graphic novel.

20. Station Six by S. J. Klapecki. Novella.

Interesting sort of symmetry between these two. Both set on space stations, both featuring lower-order workers serving a wealthy elite. The main theme of both is worker revolt. Station Six is the most dystopic, where the workers are indentured and not paid sufficiently to every get out of an economic gravity well. Know Your Station seems cleaner on the surface, but begins with a gruesome murder, and becomes more so throughout. I thought both were interesting, but will not be revisiting them.

21. Salvage Right by Sharon Lee and Steve Miller. Latest in the Liaden series and wraps up a bunch of loose ends related to Tinsori Light. Jen Sin and Lorith are the Light Keepers, now that the evil AI is dead, and the station is opening up and being repaired. But there's something not right, of course. Enjoyed it very much. One of these days I want to do a full Liaden Universe re-read.

22. Dragonsinger
23. Dragondrums
24. The White Dragon

All by Anne McCaffrey. Dragonsinger and Dragondrums were audiobooks. The narrator was a bit too emotive. The White Dragon was print. I've been revisiting Pern as I recently decided that I could let most of my collection of McCaffrey's books go, keeping only the first trilogy and the Harper Hall trilogy, and Moreta because my copy is autographed. There are definitely annoying things about the series - the inbaked cultural sexism, gender roles, stereotypes, etc. I've come to believe that some of this is McCaffrey's own biases. For example, she refers to younger adult females as "girls" annoyingly often. There are also attractive things - who doesn't want a dragon or a firelizard for a friend? And the villains always get what's coming to them. Anyway, I still like these, but if I ever want to read the other books in the series, I will get them from the library.

>35 tardis: I read Dragonflight a couple of years ago (a book club read and my first Pern book). I liked quite a few things. Dragons! Lessa was awesome! But I bounced off the writing, the sexism, and the gender roles. I am still on the fence about reading other Pern books :)

25. Random in Death by J. D. Robb. A teenage girl dies at a concert, and Eve Dallas and team are on the case. Very much as usual for the series, but i enjoyed it.

26. A Fire Born of Exile by Aliette de Bodard. Revenge, love, redemption. I continue to read this series and it continues to baffle me. Good stories, good characters, but the worldbuilding is just so weird. The mix of real and virtual people and things. Being able to eat/taste virtual food. Virtual people being able to pick stuff up. Just odd.

>26 tardis: I loved The Tea Master and the Detective, but the universe became extra confusing in subsequent stories. I'm looking forward to Navigational Entanglements later this year. It sounds more like a classic space opera, and I don't think it's set in the Xuya universe.

>38 tardis: I've read several Xuya universe stories, and enjoyed all of them. (I haven't read this one.) The Tea Master and the Detective is my favourite, I think.

>39 libraryperilous: >40 Alexandra_book_life: I also loved The Tea Master and the Detective and I have liked the other Xuya stories I've read. The universe just doesn't make a lot of sense, though.

27. The Paris Assignment by Rhys Bowen. Madeleine and her young son go back to England when her French husband joins the Resistance during World War 2. After she loses her son, Madeleine goes back to France as a spy for the British, hoping for revenge. Had a decently satisfying (if improbable) conclusion.

28. The Sign of Four Spirits by Vicki Delany. Sherlock Holmes Bookshop owner Gemma Doyle gets sucked into a new mystery after a murder at a seance. Cozy mystery fluff, but it occupied a few hours pleasantly enough.

29. Deal with the Devil
30. The Devil You Know
31. Dance with the Devil

All by Kit Rocha. Audiobooks. Re-read. I think I prefer to read this series in print. The reader wasn't terrible, but had pronunciation problems (sluiced was slue-iced instead of sloosed) for example and the sex scenes and the romantic couples mooning and admiring each other's muscles got a bit old. Easier to skim over in print :) That said, I still like the people rebuilding in a post-apocalypse: collecting libraries, rebuilding medical infrastruction, growing food and stuff. The fight scenes were okay, too. Good characters.

>43 tardis: Ha! I tend to do the skimming thing, too. Not just sex scenes, but prolonged fighting scenes. Ugh... And you're right. It is so much harder to skim with an audiobook. I think Audible only gives you the option of going 30 seconds ahead or 30 seconds back. I think 15 seconds would be better.

>44 clamairy: I use Libby for audiobooks, because I borrow them from the library, and it does have 15 second advance and reverse. My podcast app has 30 second skip forward but only 15 seconds skip backwards.

32. The Last Devil to Die by Richard Osman. The Thursday Murder Club members step in when an old friend of Elizabeth's husband Stephen is murdered. Missing heroin, drug smugglers, more murders. Plus a sideline in romance fraud and antiquities. Very enjoyable, as always, although what happens to Stephen made me a bit teary. It felt right, though.

>45 tardis: I use Libby sometimes, too. (Especially for shorter books.) It's a huge improvement over the old OverDrive app.

33. The Two Towers
34. The Return of the King
Both by J. R. R. Tolkien, audiobooks read by Andy Serkis. Pretty good. Serkis is a bit gravelly and shouty sometimes.

35. Babel or The Necessity of Violence : an arcane history of the Oxford Translators' Revolution by R. F. Kuang. Robin Swift, plucked from the Cantonese slums as a child and taken to England by an Oxford professor, is raised to become a translator, one of those who use words to enchant silver bars to do work. Oxford seems wonderful, when he gets there. He makes friends for the first time, and the learning is exciting, but there's a black heart to the system. Very good, and highly recommended, although I don't feel I'll ever want to read it again.

>48 tardis: I've been tiptoeing around this book since forever, people are saying such different things about it. Why wouldn't you want to read it again? ;)

>49 Alexandra_book_life: Hm. Trying not to be too spoilery, but the systemic racism, sexism, and colonialism was hard. The core of the book is a debate about the efficacy of violence to force change. Then there was the ending. It wasn't a bad ending - in fact, it was probably the best ending for the story, but it was kind of mixed. Also, high body count.

>50 tardis: I see! It was a good explanation, thank you. I'll probably continue to tiptoe for a while longer.

36. Death by Irish Whiskey by Catie Murphy. Another fun Dublin Driver mystery. Megan is at a whiskey festival with friends when one of the attendees dies suddenly. Of course the "murder driver" can't help nosing about, even though her girlfriend is very unhappy about it. Great characters, plot isn't too silly, and they lampshade Megan's murder magnet status.

>52 tardis:
I have not tried any books from this series but your post encourages me to have a go. I believe I have a couple on my Kindle.

>48 tardis: I borrowed this one from overdrive a while ago, and I returned it after having only read about 10% of it. You mentioned sexism, racism and colonialism, but you forgot about the child abuse. That's what made me drop it. I was fascinated by the story, but it was just not the right time for me to keep going. But I'm glad you liked it.

37. That Self-Same Metal by Brittany N. Williams. 16-year-old Joan Sands is a child of the Orisha, Ogun, and gifted by him with the ability to work metal. As sword mistress of Shakespeare's Kings Men company at the Globe Theatre, she uses her gift to maintain the stage swords and teaches sword-fighting to the actors. When the pact that keeps the Fae under control is broken, Joan must use her skills to fight them. Lots of racism in this time period. Pretty sure there will be a sequel, which I shall read. I enjoyed it.

38. Emily Wilde's Map of the Otherlands by Heather Fawcett. Emily, Wendell, and friends travel to the Austrian Alps to try to find a door to Wendell's former realm. Fun.

>56 tardis: I've been keeping an eye of this series ;) It's nice that you are having fun with it. Recommendable?

>57 Alexandra_book_life: Oh, yes. I can't say I really LOVE it but it's enjoyable.

39. Sir Hereward and Mister Fitz by Garth Nix. A collection of stories, all but one previously published elsewhere, about Sir Hereward, dauntless godslayer, and Mister Fitz, puppet, sorcerer, and friend. Quick reads, all, and quite fun.

40. Finder
41. Driving the Deep
42. The Scavenger Door

All by Suzanne Palmer. All in audiobook (previously read the print). The adventures of space repo man Fergus Ferguson. In the first book, Fergus goes to a space habitat group to retrieve a stolen space ship. In the second, he is on Earth, trying to sort out some old family business, when he gets a distress call from the Shipyard, out by Pluto, and rushes off to save his friends. In the third, while sorting his Earth business, he finds a cool bit of space junk that turns out to be part of a larger and deadly thing, and he has to retrieve all the pieces and save the solar system. All good fun, and the audio reader is good.

>59 tardis: Sounds really nice! I like Suzanne Palmer's Bot 9 stories. I've been thinking I should read more by her.

43. The Last Uncharted Sky by Curtis Craddock. The discovery of a legendary craton prompts the dispatch of an expedition to recover its treasure. Lead by Isabelle des Zephyrs, the expedition battles pirates, weather, and politics. A fitting conclusion to an interesting series.

>61 tardis: I need to read this one! I loved the first two books.

I loved the first two books but the third one frustrated me with people not using their words.

44. The Lantern's Dance by Laurie R. King. Holmes and Russell are stopping to visit Holmes' son, Damian Adler, and his family in France. However, when they arrive the family is gone. Holmes goes to find Damian, while Russell, who has an injured ankle, stays a the house. To alleviate her boredom and keep her mind off worrying about Holmes, Russell translates a diary that she found in some boxes. Old family secrets, revenge, jewels. One of the better of the recent Holmes/Russell books.

45. A Memory Called Empire by Arkady Martine. Re-read because audio version. Still a great book. A diplomat with a faulty version of her predecessor's memory is sent to the centre of an empire to get assistance for her small polity against a greater threat.

>65 tardis: It's one of the best sci-fi books in recent years. Imo, of course.

>64 tardis: Agreed--Lantern Dance is better than most of the more recent stories.

46. The Butcher of the Forest by Premee Mohamed. A gripping novella about a woman who must go into the deep forest to save two lost children. Failure means the death of her friends and family. Success will also come with a cost. Very good, but bleak.

>65 tardis: I keep meaning to put this one on my TBR pile, thanks for the reminder.

47. What Feasts at Night by T. Kingfisher. Another of Kingfisher's horror novellas, in which Alex Easton, former soldier, returns to the family hunting lodge and discovers there's something sucking the life out of people. Enjoyed it.

City workers, including public library staff, are due to go on strike on Thursday, so all the library branches will be closed until the strike is settled. This is NOT a problem - not only do I support the union and the strikers, but I have 5 library books that won't need to be returned until the strike is over, 86 books on my TBR pile, and some Early Reviewer ebooks that desperately need to be reviewed.

48. Consort of Fire by Kit Rocha. A princess becomes the consort of a Dragon in this spicy (even... moist...) epic fantasy about gods and monsters. It's good, but there's a LOT of sex. First in a series.

49. Contrarian by L. E. Modesitt Jr. A novel in the Grand Illusion series. Civil unrest, attacks by revolutionary groups, politics, corporate corruption. Dekkard and Avraal are navigating the tricksy waters of the Council while trying not to die. These novels are odd. I like them, but they're a curiously slow build, and although there are moments of peril, oddly un-climactic. Still, I always enjoy them.

50. Summon the Keeper
51. The Second Summoning
52. Long Hot Summoning
All by Tanya Huff. Re-reads in audiobook format. Claire, a keeper, accompanied by talking cat, Austin, is summoned to a B&B in Kingston, Ontario, to solve a supernatural problem. Meets Dean, a Newfie with a cleaning fetish. Second book is more supernatural hijinks, including Claire and Dean finally getting together properly with unfortunate results. 3rd starts with Claire's younger sister being called to a mall in Kingston to solve yet another problem. Claire and the cats help, while Dean stays back at the B&B to keep an eye on things. Nobody's safe. Fun stuff.
.
53. Fer-De-Lance by Rex Stout. Audiobook reread. The first Nero Wolfe book and one of my favourites. Wolfe and Archie solve the mystery of a murdered golfer.

>74 tardis: I don't know if you saw my post in the Nero Wolfe group, but if you get a chance, be sure to watch the Italian Nero Wolfe series. It was well done. Enough so that at times I forgot they weren't where they were supposed to be or that they weren't speaking English.

>75 MrsLee: I'll look out for it :)

54. The Dragons of Deepwood Fen by Bradley P. Beaulieu. The colonizers have a plan, the indigenous rebels have a plan, the religious hierarchy has a plan, and they're all trying to play each other, with doublecrosses planned and the world at stake. Pretty good entry to a new series. Could have used some proofreading - misplaced apostrophes and wrong words (e.g. heal instead of heel) annoyed me.

>76 tardis: How would you compare that with his Song of Shattered Sands series, if you've read them?

>77 Karlstar: Haven't read them.

These Burning Stars by Bethany Jacobs was a DNF for me. Got about 40 pages in, wasn't hooked, and didn't like the characters. I may try it again some time, but for now it wasn't working for me.

55. The Mayors of New York by S.J. Rozan. This was much more what I was wanting. Bill Smith and Lydia Chin are hired to find the missing son of the Mayor of New York. On the way, they meet several lesser mayors of various communities within the city. It was excellent.

>76 tardis: I always wonder how a book gets published with mistakes, especially now with so many programs to catch them. The mistakes annoy the heck outa me!

>76 tardis: & >80 catzteach: Same. A lot of new fiction just doesn't get proofread properly, and when publishers use OCR technology on an older book to turn it into an e-book a lot of mistakes slip through the cracks. :o(

56. Aftermarket Afterlife by Seanan McGuire. The latest in the Incryptid series focuses on Mary Dunlavy, the ghost babysitter of the Price-Healy clan. She's longer a crossroads ghost, but she's still The Babysitter, and her charges are at risk due to Covenant attacks. Dealing with unimaginable losses, the clan must take the offensive. Very good. Bonus novella at the end, just to rip my heart out more, well worth it.

57. Ralestone Luck by Andre Norton. Three impoverished siblings return to their old family home near New Orleans to find the missing artifact that's the "luck" of the family. Of course there's a rival heir and dastardly doings. Très gothic. Not bad, but very dated.

>82 tardis: She is a very prolific author. And talented! The only one in this series I've read was one of the Ghost Roads books. I didn't realize just how many she had written. And she has written and recorded music to go with some of them, too.

>82 tardis: I’ve only read the first of the Incryptid series. I really liked it, I have just gotten distracted by other books. I need to re-enter the series onto my TBR list.

58. A Grave Robbery by Deanna Raybourn. Stoker and Speedwell are given a waxwork "sleeping beauty" to restore, but it turns out to be rather more than wax. The usual outlandish hi-jinks. I am always surprised that this series isn't considered fantasy, because it surely is, except for the lack of magic.

59. Meryl McMaster : nikihci-âniskotâpân = Bloodline by Meryl McMaster. I went to the Art Gallery of Alberta on the weekend and saw some photographs by this artist and was entranced. She makes props to create scenes that are just begging to have stories told about them. I came home and ordered this book, which arrived very promptly. She is primarily exploring her indigenous heritage (Red Pheasant Cree Nation), using her own body as part of the work. The picture that grabbed me first was her in a small boat, rowing, blindfolded, and with a large raven in the prow holding a lantern in its beak. I highly recommend googling her and checking out her website.

The Speedwell novels are absolutely in the same slot as fantasy in my brain. I like them at least partly *because* they are ridiculous.

60. Old as the Hills
61. Upon a Summer's Day
Both by Celia Lake. In her Land Mysteries series, set during WW2. Albion (the magical part of the United Kingdom) is doing it's bit for the war effort. Gabe and wife Rathna have separate but equally important missions. In the second book, Gabe must challenge for a spot on the Council.

62. The Tainted Cup by Robert Jackson Bennett. When an imperial officer dies of a plant sprouting out of his body, investigator Ana Dolabra and her new assistant, Dinios Kol, must solve the mystery. They do, but that's only the beginning. With undertones of Wolfe and Goodwin, this twisty fantasy/mystery blends politics, revenge, and corruption in a very entertaining way. Highly recommended!

>88 tardis: The Tainted Cup is in my book queue! I am looking forward to reading it :)

I loved The Tainted Cup. Can't wait for a sequel.

63. Relight My Fire by C.K. McDonnell. Back with the staff of The Stranger Times. When a young man splats on the ground in front of Stella as she walks home from university, it's just the beginning. Twisty, weird, darkly amusing. Ghouls, has-been pop stars, mad scientists, etc. Excellent fun.

>91 tardis: This series is just awesome.

>91 tardis:
I am glad you are enjoying The Stranger Times stories.

I'm really looking forward to The tainted cup!

>91 tardis: Another fan of The Stranger Times books--can't wait to see where it goes next.

95 Me either :)

64. In Sunshine or in Shadow by Rhys Bowen and Clare Broyles. A typhoid epidemic has chased Molly Sullivan and her children out of New York to her mother-in-law's home in Westchester. Leaving the kids with m-in-l for a few days, she goes up to the Catskills to visit her friends Sid and Gus, who are staying at an all-female artist's colony and visiting Sid's family who live nearby. Arranged marriages, Jewish resorts, murder. Pretty good.

65. Three Kinds of Lucky by Kim Harrison. Petra Grady is a sweeper, collecting small bits of leftover magic before they can attract larger dangers. When she's forced to take a job on a research project run by an old flame, she is drawn into a tangle of history, magic, and rebellion. Pretty good.

66. A Starlet's Secret to a Sensational Afterlife by Kendall Kulper. Henrietta "Henny" Newhouse goes from Chicago to LA to become a star. When she helps another actress escape unwanted male attention, she's on the path up. Declan Collins is an indestructable stuntman who is in Hollywood to look for his mother, who disappeared when he was a child. Murder, ghosts, unethical studio executives, etc. Told in alternating first-person chapters by Declan and Henny. I liked it.

67. The Good, The Bad and the History by Jodi Taylor. I'm late reading this one, which arrived months ago, but I've had (still have!) a bit of a backlog. Well worth the wait. Max, still embedded at Insight to get the goods on them and also (with Markham) part of the dodgey artifact retrieval team, bounces around in time like a yoyo, which is apparently not that good for her. I had a bit of a panic towards the end of Chapter 39, but the last word relieved me. I adore St. Mary's and all who work for her. Quite partial to the Time Police, too, although not sure about the team from the British Museum..

>98 tardis: Oh my gosh!! Fourteen installments? I’ve read two and had to take notes on characters and plot lines. I’ve got a lot of catching up.

>99 2wonderY:

And don't forget the spin-off series The Time Police ; I think #5 comes out in June.

Not to mention the short stories. :-)

>99 2wonderY: >100 sqdancer: Some day I'll do a complete re-read of all the St. Mary's books and stories. They do make me laugh, but also sometimes my eyes leak a bit.

68. Lore of the Wilds by Analeigh Sbrana. An enchanted library, a fae lord with a cunning plan to get in, and a human woman who actually does it. I liked this, but the romancy bits were slightly annoying, the chosen one slightly hard to believe, and the cliffhanger ending ticked me off. I'll read book two if I notice when my library acquires it.

69. Stings and Stones by Jennifer Estep. An elemental assassin short story collection. Some prequels, some sequels, some just illuminating parts of the story within one of the books. Quick read.

70. A Desolation Called Peace by Arkady Martine. Audiobook, re-read. Mahit and Three Seagrass go to the edge of Teixcalaanli space to translate an untranslatable alien communication and, perhaps, stop a war. Back in the city, Eight Antidote, heir to the Emperor Nineteen Adze, is finding his way through politics and the city. Very good, still.

>102 tardis: I really like Arkady Martine's writing! I hope there will be more novels.

>103 Alexandra_book_life: Me, too!

71. The Siege of Burning Grass by Premee Mohamed. How far will a pacifist go to stop a war? This was brilliant. Too real in a fantasy sort of way - and engrossing. And for all the darkness, the end is not entirely without hope. Highly recommended for people with tolerance for war, dystopia, and blood.

>104 tardis: Oh! I might have taken a bullet. I do like his writing style. I loved The Annual Migration of Clouds. (Which I'm sure was a BB from you a couple of years ago. I just looked and my library does not have this as an ebook. And I am already on the waiting list for when/if they acquire one.)

>105 clamairy: HER writing style :) and FYI, there's a sequel to The Annual Migration of Clouds coming this year. She lives here in Edmonton, is the writer-in-residence at Edmonton Public Library this year, and I follow her on Bluesky @premeemohamed.com. Also, her cat, Fiasco, has his own account @fiascothecat.bsky.social. It's always so gratifying to be able to recommend a local author.

>106 tardis: LOL My mistake. I never looked up the author info. How cool that is for you that she's local!

72. Under the Smokestrewn Sky by A. Deborah Baker (aka Seanan McGuire). Avery and Zib reach the end of the Impossible Road in the Up-And-Under series. Very much of a piece with the previous volumes. Choices and sacrifices must be made. I liked it, but it's not a series that I'll revisit.

>106 tardis: >107 clamairy: How even cooler that Fiasco has a blog as well!

73. A Stroke of the Pen : The Lost Stories by Terry Pratchett. Twenty short stories from very early in Sir Terry's career, written pseudonymously for various newspapers. Many thanks to the dedicated fans who tracked them all down because they're charming, and often quite funny. Loved them.

74. Mislaid In Parts Half-Known by Seanan McGuire. Antsy is at Eleanor West's School, not exactly fitting in, but well enough. When threatened, though, she has to find a door so she and some other students can escape, and they end up back in the Store. Choices, decisions. Very good, as always.

75. The Raven Thief by Gigi Pandian. Points added for ethnically diverse cast, points removed for recipes at the end. Professional stage magician Tempest Raj now works for her family's secret room building company. When a recent client's ex-husband hits the table (dead) during a seance and Tempest's grandfather is the prime suspect, she begins investigating. Not terrible, but doesn't inspire me to read on in the series.

76. The Assassins of Consequence by Marshall Ryan Maresca. Reread, as I just acquired the paperback. Veranix Calvert is a fourth year student, the college has instituted military training for mages, and, as the vigilante Thorn, Veranix is still aiming to take down drug lord Willem Fenmere. When a plan goes wrong, everyone and everything Veranix cares about is at risk. Non-stop action. Very good.

>113 tardis: Where would you recommend starting with Maresca's books? There look to be several interlinked series.

>114 Sakerfalcon: Go with the Maradaine Chronological Order or the Maradaine Publication Order series, both starting with Thorn of Dentonhill. I set up those series, and I'm probably going to revise them, because Maresca put a recommended reading order in the back of the paperback of Assassins. The subseries end up so overlapping and entangled towards the end that it makes more sense to ignore them.

Thank you! I have ended up with a random copy of Shield of the people, it looks like it will take some time to get that far into the series!

77. Toll of Honor by David Weber. A sort of interstitial novel, taking place during the events of Field of Dishonor (and possibly some others) and although Honor is in it, it's more about the other characters and the toll of war on the people who fight it. It was typical Weber - long infodumps and technobabble, interspersed with decent characters and action. For people who like the earlier Honor Harrington books.

78. The Conductors by Nicole Glover. Audiobook with excellent reader. Hetty and Benjy Rhodes were conductors on the Underground Railroad. Now settled in Philadelphia, they are still helping people and solving mysteries. Very good.

79. The Undertakers by Nicole Glover. Another mystery (or several linked mysteries) for Hetty and Benjy, now living in their own house and trying to get their funeral home business going. Also very good.

80. Cargo of Eagles by Margery Allingham. A later Albert Campion mystery, set in the 1960s. A demon, missing treasure and pirates. Good stuff.

81. A Longer Fall
82. The Russian Cage
83. The Serpent in Heaven
84. All the Dead Shall Weep
All by Charlaine Harris. Gunny Rose series. Audiobooks. Re-reads. Set in the 1930s in an America that has broken apart. Lizbeth Rose is a "Gunny," who shoots things (and people) for a living. Not randomly, but bodyguarding or escorting expensive objects. I like this series.

85. The Grief of Stones by Katherine Addison. Audiobook, re-read. Thera Celehar, Witness for the Dead, takes on an apprentice and a series of new mysteries. Love it. Sad that I have to wait almost a year for the conclusion to this series.

>120 tardis: Oh, the next Addison book will be the last one? I would be happy if she just kept writing these forever.

>121 clamairy: Well, the conclusion to the Cemeteries of Amalo sub-series with Celehar. I do hope she'll do more in this universe, though.

>120 tardis: I loved The Grief of Stones too (and the rest of the books set in that universe, naturally). Yes, I am waiting for the next book...

86. Have Yourself A Deadly Little Christmas by Vicki Delany. Cozy mystery, set in December, about an amateur production of A Christmas Carol and murder. Reading a Christmas book in late April is weird. Not bad for a cozy. I like the characters.

87. Cold Days by Jim Butcher. Audiobook, re-read. Harry is back from the dead and he has an assignment from Mab that he's not too sure about. Meanwhile, the Fomor are trying to invade and there's a threat to Harry's island. Good, as always.

Catch-up post!

88. Relight My Fire by C.K. McDonnell. Re-read, road-trip audiobook. As per >91 tardis: above. Still excellent.

89. Salvage Right by Sharon Lee and Steve Miller. Re-read because I just got the paperback. The wrap-up (mostly) of the Tinsori Light storyline.

90. And Be A Villain by Rex Stout. Wolfe and Goodwin take a job to earn money to support the orchids. Who killed a guest on a radio show? Very good.

91. Triple Jeopardy by Rex Stout. 3 shorter stories in one book. All excellent, of course.

92. Shards of Honor by Lois McMaster Bujold. Road trip audiobook. Cordelia Naismith meets Aral Vorkosigan. War, politics, etc. Very good.

93. Barrayar by Lois McMaster Bujold. Sequel to Shards, in which Aral and Cordelia navigate the tricky political situation on Barrayar. More politics, rebellion, medical science, and of course, the infamous "shopping" scene. Love it.

94. Double Contact by James White. The only Sector General book I had never previously read, finally acquired to complete my collection. Dr. Prilicla and the crew of the ambulance ship Rhabwar respond to a distress call and wind up with a much more complicated situation than even they expected. Very good.

>126 tardis: Some of my favorite books in this list.

>126 tardis: I just bought Salvage right and am now having to catch up on the in-between books that I've missed. Lee and Miller's stories are so satisfying.

I finally broke down and ordered the first omnibus to Sector General.

>127 MrsLee: That's a wonderful catch-up list!
Bujold is great.

95. The Case of the Missing Marquess
96. The Case of the Left-Handed Lady
97. The Case of the Bizarre Bouquets
All by Nancy Springer. The first three books in the Enola Holmes series. Enola is Sherlock and Mycroft's much younger sister, who decides after their mother disappears that she doesn't want to be educated as a lady and runs away to London to become a perditorian (finder of lost things/people). They're fun little stories.

98. The Murder of Mr. Ma by John Shen Yen Nee and S.J. Rozan. A Chinese university lecturer living in London assists Judge Dee in discovering the murderer of a number of Chinese men that served in WW1 in France. Very good.

>131 tardis: I liked the first Enola Holmes movie! Have you seen it, how do the books compare?

>132 Alexandra_book_life: I saw the first movie and liked it, but it had been too long since I first read the books, so it was hard to compare. And now it's been too long since I saw the movie and I still can't compare. I do think Henry Cavill is way too handsome to be Sherlock Holmes as described in Springer's books, but it's hard to object too much LOL. For that matter, Millie Bobby Brown doesn't look much like the book description of Enola. I do want to see the other movies but from the sound of it they depart from the source material quite a bit.

99. Funny Story by Emily Henry. Daphne has been dumped by her fiancé and is sharing an apartment with Miles, the ex-boyfriend of the ex-fiancé's new fiancée. Since they're both broken-hearted over being dumped, this seems to work, until the day that the invitations arrive for the two exes' wedding to each other. This leads to a fake romance, which... well, I'd hate to spoil the surprise. Good hearted fluff.

>131 tardis:. When I was doing the monthly book group at my local library, I remember we did one or two titles by S.J. Rozan, but I haven't been keeping up as much as I used to. The Murder of Mr. Ma sounds seriously intriguing and I may have to go snag myself a copy.

>134 jillmwo: A friend of mine loaned me her complete set of Rozan books (to that date) a couple of years ago and I really enjoyed them. This one, being historical and with a co-author, is different but still good.

100. Lightning Strikes the Silence by Iona Whishaw. When an explosion occurs up the mountainside above her home, Lane Winslow and some of her neighbours investigate, finding a badly injured child whose presence no-one can explain. Meanwhile, Lane's husband, Inspector Darling and his police team are investigating robbery and murder at a jewelry store in Nelson. An engaging entry in a series I like quite a lot.

101. Skin Game by Jim Butcher. Audiobook. Still chugging through my audio re-read of the Dresden Files.

102. The Empress of Salt and Fortune by Nghi Vo. I've heard a lot of good things about this series and it didn't disappoint. A cleric is travelling to an eclipse, and stops to document the contents of a home belonging to the late Empress. While there, they meet and hear stories from Rabbit, a former handmaid to the Empress. Looking forward to the next installment when the library delivers it.

>136 tardis: I am happy that you liked Empress of Salt and Fortune! The rest of the series is excellent too, I might have mentioned it before :)

>136 tardis: I love this series, but it is a little uneven. The second book is the weakest in the series, IMHO.

>137 Alexandra_book_life: I'm pretty sure you and clamairy are the ones who finally tipped me over to reading Empress, but it has been lauded many places.

103. Three Twins at the Crater School
104. Dust Up at the Crater School
both by Chaz Brenchley. OMG, these were fun. I'm a longtime fan of the Chalet School and others of it's ilk, and these really caught the spirit while also mixing in Burroughsian Mars, weird aliens, and alt-history. I've already ordered the print of the third book. Thanks to pgmcc and others who recommended them.

>139 tardis: It only took those two books to elevate Chaz Brenchley in my estimation. His alternate reality of Mars really does provide a good background for adventures!

105. Ghost Station by S.A. Barnes. Psychological/body horror in space. Psychologist Ophelia Barry travels out to join a crew to try to identify the cause and prevention of a psychological problem common in spacers. Everyone has a horrific or tragic backstory, but the characters are good and it's fairly gripping.

106. The Bartered Brides by Mercedes Lackey. An Elemental Masters book featuring Nan and Sarah, their familiar birds, and John and Mary Watson. A necromancer is marrying and killing girls to power a magical battery. I quite like this series.

107. I'm Afraid You've Got Dragons by Peter S. Beagle. A charming story about a dragon exterminator who wants to be a valet, a princess, and a handsome prince. Also a wizard, 2 kings, a queen, 2 assistant dragon catchers, and (of course) dragons. Loved it.

>143 tardis: Nice to know! I've been wanting to read it :)

>144 Alexandra_book_life: I mean, it's Peter S. Beagle - you expect a good story from him :)

108. Summers at the Saint by Mary Kay Andrews. Traci married into the Eddings family business, the Saint Cecilia Resort. 20 years later, she's widowed, but still running the place, trying to recover from the pandemic and a big construction loan. Nasty in-laws, a mixed bag of new employees, and her oldest, estranged friend complicate things. I enjoyed this - it's chick-lit/beach read territory, but easy on the brain :)

109. Death Behind Every Door by Heather Graham. A new spinoff series from her other FBI series. 2 FBI agents working in UK, tracking down the person behind a serial killer society. Graham has a formula, but it's palatable if not taken too close together. Brain candy.

110. When the Tiger Came Down The Mountain by Nghi Vo. Cleric Chih, their guide, and the guide's mammoth are trapped by tigers and while waiting for rescue Chih must tell the tigers a story of one of their own. The tigers say the story didn't happen quite the way Chih was taught and tell the version they learned. I enjoyed this.

111. The Seven Brides-To-Be of Generalissimo Vlad by Victoria Goddard. Very short story of a courier, Portia, who has to fulfill a promise to be at Vlad's wedding, at which he must choose a bride from among 7 women from different families. Did not happen exactly as I expected it would and almost none of it was about the actual 7 potential brides, but it was fun.

>147 tardis: Very happy to see you enjoyed these stories :)))

112. The Case of the Gypsy Good-Bye
113. Enola Holmes and the Boy in Buttons
114. Enola Holmes and the Black Barouche
All by Nancy Springer. Audiobooks. More adventures of Sherlock Holmes' younger sister. I enjoyed these.

115. Into the Riverlands by Nghi Vo. Cleric Chih travels through the Riverlands, they listen to the stories of immortal martial artists from their travelling companions and find themself involved in the legends or the Riverlands.

116. The Hands of the Emperor by Victoria Goddard. A bookbullet from Alexandra_book_life, I think, although possibly also others. Really liked this, for all that the story is very... almost gentle? Family (blood and found), a south-pacific type culture, "peace, order and good government" and service. Would like to read more in the series but the library doesn't have many. I'm going to have to request they purchase them.

>150 tardis: The Hands of the Emperor might have been me, but in any case, I am happy that you liked it! :)))
Nghi Vo's series about Chih is wonderful.

>150 tardis: A lot of people here in the Pub have enjoyed and recommended The Hands of the Emperor and your description of gentle is absolutely apropo.

And that whole series by Nghi Vo is equally enjoyable.

117. To Gaze Upon Wicked Gods by Molly X. Chang. A young woman whose world has been invaded goes to work for a persuasive member of the enemy's royal family. She uses her power over death in his cause, in return for her family's safety. Not bad, but I didn't love it. Haven't decided if I'll pick up the inevitable sequel.

118. Mammoths at the Gates by Nghi Vo. Cleric Chih is finally returning home to the Singing Hills Monastery, but when they arrive there are warriors and mammoths outside the gates. Who could be besieging their home? So good.

119. Enola Holmes and the Elegant Escapade by Nancy Springer.
120. Enola Holmes and the Mark of the Mongoose by Nancy Springer. Two more audiobooks, and more fun with the spunky and determined Enola Holmes, sometimes helped by (or helping) her big brother. Well read and fun, if improbable.

>153 tardis: Mammoths is my favorite one. Stunning depth to the story for a novella.

Edited: html

121. Winter Lost by Patricia Briggs. Mercy's half-brother turns up unable to communicate, and she and Adam venture into the teeth of a blizzard to find the being responsible. Marooned at a resort, they must find a powerful artifact to save the world. Excellent as always.

122. Penric and the Bandit by Lois McMaster Bujold. Roz can't believe his luck when he happens on a gullible traveler with a treasure map. Little does he know, the traveler is Penric, and the treasure is not what Roz expects. Loved it.

>155 tardis: I haven’t read Winter Lost yet. I’ll have to get it and read it this summer. I’m sure I can read it in a day if I do nothing else. I enjoy those books enough to do just that!

>156 catzteach: It was absolutely a one-day book :)

123. Shards of Glass by Michelle Sagara. Raven has been protecting Robin in the warrens since his mother's death. When danger threatens, she can always find and hide him. When Robin disappears, Raven eventually goes to the one person in the warrens who might know where he is. Another in the Elantra series, but only adjacent to the main Kaylin narrative.

>155 tardis: Thanks for the heads-up on the new Penric. I read those in fits and spurts, with gaps of time in between so I tend to miss new titles in the series.

>158 jillmwo: I belong to a Lois McMaster Bujold list serv, which Lois also hangs out in occasionally. She gives us a heads up about anything new.

124. Mary Ellen, Craterean! by Chaz Brenchley. Another fun romp with the irrepressible Middles of the Crater School. Mary Ellen is a new girl, on a scholarship given by a famous author. Settling in, finding her feet, and standing up for what's right. Loved it.

125. The Perils of Lady Catherine de Bourgh by Claudia Gray. Third in a series I find quite charming, if a little far-fetched. Someone has attempted the life of Lady Catherine de Bourgh, and she imperiously summons her great-nephew, Jonathan Darcy, and Juliet Tilney, to detect the perpetrator. Enjoyable.

>160 tardis: Sounds like a lot of fun!

>159 tardis: I'm really looking forward to this one!

126. An Art Lover's Guide to Paris and Murder by Dianne Freeman. Frances and George Hazelton go to Paris to help his aunt investigate the possible murder of a former lover. Lightweight, fast read. Not especially memorable.

127. We Speak Through the Mountain by Premee Mohamed. At the end of The Annual Migration of Clouds, Reid is on her way to university and a new life. University both is and isn't what she expected. Very good, but NOT the end of the story. Buy it so Premee writes the next one!

>164 tardis: That's a gorgeous cover.

>164 tardis: Looking forward to this one.

128. Ptarmageddon by Karen Dudley. Biologist Robyn Devara is looking forward to some time with her boyfriend, Kelt, at his field camp in the Yukon. When another scientist is murdered and bequeaths Robyn (who doesn't even know her) all her field notes on ptarmigan research, Robyn gets involved. Good mystery, fun scientific
facts :)

129. If Death Ever Slept by Rex Stout. Archie goes undercover as the secretary of a rich businessman who suspects his daughter-in-law of stealing his secrets. The ususal Wolfe/Goodwin snark and fun.

130. Can't Spell Treason Without Tea by Rebecca Thorne. A sweet story of a queen's bodyguard (Reyna) and an arch-wizard (Kianthe) who fall in love and run away to open a tea and book shop. Owes a lot to Travis Baldree's Legends and Lattes, which the author freely acknowleges. I will read more in the series, but I didn't love it enough to buy it.

131. The Downloaded by Robert J. Sawyer. A bunch of astronauts wake up after cryosleep to discover that they never left Earth. A bunch of convicts are also defrosted at the same time. Not only are they still at home, but nothing is how they left it. Pretty good and very science-y, but characterization has never been Sawyer's strong suit.

132. Peace Talks by Jim Butcher. Peace talks between the Fomor and the rest of the supernatural world. What could go wrong?

133. The Terraformers by Annalee Newitz. Environmental SF, following the terraformers and protectors of a world called Sask-E through the centuries. A lot about what makes people, and a lot of engineered people who are not human. Bit heavy-handed on the evils of corporations, but then, so is Murderbot. I really liked this.

>170 tardis: I loved The Terraformers, especially the kitty.

>171 libraryperilous: Yes, Moose was great. I also loved the trains.

134. Tidal Creatures by Seanan McGuire. This arrived ages ago and I've only just cleared my pile of library books so I could read it. There are lunar gods that manifest in our world and take turns travelling to the Invisible City to shine down on it every night, and one of them has been murdered. An alchemist is killed and her lab assistant escapes. It's really good (assuming you've read the earlier books in the series) but I really wanted ALL the alchemists to be yeeted into the sun.

135. Trouble is Brewing by Vicki Delany. A Tea by the Sea mystery. Lily and her friends and grandmother help find the killer of the groom's father during a fraught wedding weekend. Decent fluff.

136. Cece Rios and the Queen of Brujas by Kaela Rivera. A fitting conclusion to the Cece Rios trilogy. Cece, her familia, and her criatura friends must do battle against her Tia Catrina, who has made herself Queen of Devil's Alley. Cece is very human - she is afraid, she screws up, but she gets up and tries again. I loved the Spanish sprinkled through the text, and the culture and world that Rivera built. Recommended.

137. Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones. Reread, audiobook. Sophie Hatter is cursed by an evil witch and leaves home to avoid her family finding out. She invites herself into the mobile castle of the dreaded wizard Howl, and the rest is history. I adore this book, and have re-read it many times. The audio version is quite good.

138. Ribbon Dance by Sharon Lee and Steve Miller. On Colemeno, Tree and Dragon traders are investigating setting up a trade office. Politics, prejudice, and murder. Very good. I do hope Sharon will be able to continue writing in the wake of Steve's death.

>175 tardis: I've been interested in the Liaden Universe books for a number of years, especially because it deals with trade. I can't commit to the whole series. Is there a subseries that stands well on its own? Thank you!

>176 libraryperilous: It's a lot richer if you start at the beginning, but Trade Secret and Fair Trade come as close to a standalone subseries as there is.

139. A Sorceress Comes To Call by T. Kingfisher. Cordelia's mother is a sorceress. When mommy dearest connives to get them invited to stay at the manor house of a bachelor squire, his keen-eyed sister, Hester, is suspicious of the lovely "widow" and her scared-mouse daughter. Cordelia is terrified and doesn't know how to protect these new friends from her mother's machinations. I loved this. Hester and her friends are awesome. Cordelia's situation is horrific. Hits a creepy/amusing/satisfying balance and I'll want to re-read. Probably going on my top-ten list for 2024.

A Sorceress Comes to Call was so fantastic, I loved it, but also: content warning for psychological abuse that creeped me all the way out. Skin-crawling. Vernon is a master of what she does!

>177 tardis: I am looking forward to reading A Sorceress Comes to Call very very much :)))

140. Inside Job by Connie Willis. A fun novella about skeptics investigating fake psychics and spiritualists.

I bought it tonight at Value Village for $5.99 (CAD) and it's published by Subterranean Press and in practically mint condition; a major score! Sub Press book are not cheap.

>180 tardis: That's a great find! I have a few SubPress editions that weren't *too* expensive, which I treasure.

>180 tardis: What a nice find! This novella is fun, I agree :)

>180 tardis: Thanks for reminding me of Willis. I was looking for an audio to listen to. I didn’t find that one, but succeeded to download Bellwether.

>181 Sakerfalcon: I find the cost of postage is almost as much as the book itself :(

141. Saving Susy Sweetchild by Barbara Hambly. Another in her Silver Screen Historical Mysteries series. Emma Blackstone is still script-doctoring for Foremost Productions and living with her silent movie star sister-in-law, Camille de la Rose (aka Kitty Flint, nee Chava Blechstein) when a child star is kidnapped. Silent movie history, studio politics, mystery and murder. I enjoyed this very much.

142. Between a Flock and a Hard Place by Donna Andrews. There's a "reality" tv home makeover show filming in Caerphilly, and it's making the neighbours crazy. In her role as the Mayor's special assistant, Meg gets to smooth the waters, which gets harder when a hundred or so feral turkeys are encouraged to move into the neighbourhood where the movie is being filmed. The usual fun.

143. West Heart Kill by Dann McDorman. I have mixed feelings about this one. Some of the breaking the fourth wall (the "scholarly" stuff about mysteries) was interesting, but it switched between points of view in odd ways and most of the characters were unlikeable. Not, I think, my cup of tea.

144. The Cautious Traveller's Guide to the Wastelands by Sarah Brooks. There's a big wasteland area between Beijing and Moscow, and one train that crosses it, carefully not allowing the wastelands to contaminate anywhere outside. The cast of characters (both crew and passengers) on the latest voyage is interesting, but the overall feel of the story is creepy horror. Very odd story, but I did enjoy it.

>185 tardis: I DNFed the Brooks. It was too Lovecraftian for me, and I wanted more of the actual train, or more of a train adventure. I'm still not sure why I bounced off it, because I thought I would really love it.

>184 tardis: The Hambly series sounds fun!

>186 libraryperilous: The Hambly series IS fun!

145. The Ornithologist's Field Guide to Love by India Holton. Another daft confection from Holton. Beth is a PhD and a professor of ornithology at Oxford. Devon is the same, except at Cambridge. When the International Ornithological Society announces a competition to find a special bird in England, the two are rivals... at first... I liked the names of all the thaumatolurgical birds and the overall effect was quite cute.

>187 tardis: Hmm, I love birds and birding. But I read one of her Wisteria Society books and thought Holton tried too hard to be whimsical.

>188 libraryperilous: You may find the same with this one.

146. The Brides of High Hill by Nghi Vo. Cleric Chih travels with a young woman and her family who are off to negotiate a marriage for the girl. The results are unexpected. I enjoyed this but it seemed slighter than previous entries in the series. Still, always glad to be with Cleric Chih.

>189 tardis: Chih is always good company :)

>190 Alexandra_book_life: Indeed.

147. Peach Tea Smash by Laura Childs. I keep coming back to this Tea Shop Mystery series, hoping that it will get better. It doesn't. It's not terrible (I mean, I did finish it!) but it has most of the drawbacks of all the amateur sleuth genre, plus recipes.

>185 tardis: I picked up the Traveler’s Guide at the library yesterday. It was in the “literature” section. It didn’t strike me as belonging in that category.

148. Sanctuary by Ilona Andrews. A wounded boy requests sanctuary from Roman, who then has to fight off the mercenaries trying to retrieve the kid. Kate Daniels world. Enjoyed it.

149. Garden Wonderland by Leslie Bennet and Julie Chai. I borrow a lot of gardening books from the library but seldom record them here because I don't READ them - I just skim and look at the photos. I actually read most of this one, which combines beautiful photos with interesting garden profiles highlighting the concepts the authors want to feature. Very nice book.

150. The Dead Cat Tail Assassins by P. Djeli Clark. Eveen the Eviscerator is one of the most talented assassins in Tal Abisi, but when her past seems to catch up with her even all her rules can't help. Very good!

>193 tardis: I have The Dead Cat Tail Assassins on my kindle, I am looking forward to it. I liked the novellas in his Dead Djinn series.

>194 Alexandra_book_life: I liked the Djinn books, too, and also Ring Shout. This one is dark but satisfying.

151. The Rose Arbor by Rhys Bowen. Switching back and forth between the wartime 1940s and 1968 as an ambitious reporter tries to make a name for herself and solve a current child kidnapping and three decades-old disappearances. Very good, but some of the coincidences stretch belief.

152. Ghostdrift by Suzanne Palmer. The fourth book of the Finder Chronicles, in which Fergus is kidnapped from his comfortable beach retreat and traded to a pirate who has lost his twin sister and wants Fergus to find her. Aliens, Alliance forces, pirates, space battles, crashing starships, and, of course, Mister Feefs.

153. A Lesson in Dying by Ann Cleeves. First in her Inspector Ramsay series, originally published in 1990. An unpleasant headmaster is murdered, and there's scandal brewing in the village. Decent mystery. A bit more angst than I usually like.

154. The Expert System's Brother by Adrien Tchaikovsky. A boy is accidentally outcast from his village, and learns more about how the world is than he ever would have guessed. Really liked this.

155. Still Knife Painting by Cheryl Hollon. Cozy mystery about a woman who inherits her uncle's house, on condition she has a moonshine still up and running within a year. To make ends meet until she gets all the moonshine permits, she starts a cultural tourism business combining hiking, local scenery, painting instruction, and moonshine tasting (hence the "Paint & Shine Mystery"). On her first outing with clients, her cook is found dead and she has to sleuth to save her business. It wasn't unreadable, but it had pretty much all the cozy cliches, including recipes at the back.

156. Goodnight Moo by Mollie Cox Bryan. Another adventure in cozy mystery tropes - big breakup, woman moves to a rural area to make cheese, trips over murders, recipes in the back. This is the second book in the series (haven't read the first) and the heroine hasn't yet found a new guy, which is somewhat refreshing. I liked it better than #155.

157. A Family Affair by Rex Stout. A bomb goes off in Wolfe's guest room, killing the occupant. A twisty mystery with an unexpected solution.

-1 off the TBR pile.

Just de-lurking to let you know that there are people stopping by periodically. My husband thoroughly enjoys the Nero Wolfe mysteries.

As jillmwo says, there are lurkers.

>202 jillmwo: >203 pgmcc: I like lurkers :) I'm mostly a lurker myself on reading threads.

158. Relative Magic by Tanya Huff. A collection of very fine stories by a favourite author. Some are in established series (Blood Ties), others are unlinked, or link to each other. I liked them all although the gargoyle one least.

-1 off Mt. TBR

Just popping in to recommend a middle grade fantasy that might suit your tastes, tardis: Steven Banbury's new cozily spooky (spookily cozy?) The Pumpkin Princess and the Forever Night. I loved it!

Edited: corrected spelling of author's first name

>205 libraryperilous: Thanks! I've put a hold on it.

159. Valor's Choice
160. The Better Part of Valor
161. The Heart of Valor
162. Valor's Trial
163. The Truth of Valor

All by Tanya Huff. Re-read, audiobooks. Staff Sgt (later Gunnery Sgt) Torin Kerr likes being in the Confederation Marine Corps. She's damned good at her job, and she takes no shit. I love this series.

>206 tardis: Oh, this series is so nice! I enjoyed all the books :)

For some reason I never got around to reading The Privilege of Peace - the final book of Peacekeeper.

>207 Alexandra_book_life: It's a great series. I wish she'd written a few more :)

Catch-up post!

164. The Masquerades of Spring by Ben Aaronovitch. A neat little novella about a member of the Folly, Augustus Berrycloth-Young, who emigrates to the US and is maybe not too thrilled when old pal Thomas Nightingale turns up looking for the person (?) who infused a saxophone with magic. A little mystery, a little magic, a little jazz age New York. Enjoyed it.

165. An Ancient Peace
166. A Peace Divided
167. The Privilege of Peace
All by Tanya Huff. The Peacekeeper series, which follows on from the Valor series. Torin and company are now Wardens, working for Justice instead of the military, taking down pirates and other undesireables, with less killing and more paperwork than before. I really love this series.

168. Passions in Death by J.D. Robb. The latest Eve Dallas mystery. When a joyful hen night turns into a murder scene, Dallas and the team must solve the case. It's pretty standard for the series, but I always enjoy these books.

169. What Time the Sexton's Spade Doth Rust by Alan Bradley. The return of the intrepid Flavia De Luce. When a retired hangman is poisoned and Mrs. Mullet is suspected, Flavia and Dogger spring into action. Very good, as always.

170. The Pumpkin Princess and the Forever Night by Steven Banbury. Many thanks to libraryperilous for this BB! A fun story of a girl who runs away from the orphanage and is saved by the fabled Pumpkin King. He adopts her and takes her home to be his daughter and the Pumpkin Princess, but not everyone in town is pleased to have one of the living among them.

171. Battle Ground by Jim Butcher. Audiobook. Non-stop fighting as Harry and allies battle a Titan to save Chicago and the world. Loss, sacrifice, blood.

172. The Royal First irregulars by Marshall Ryan Maresca. A novella featuring the Royal First Irregulars, a show pony troupe of women who demonstrate weapons skill in revealing "uniforms" to boost soldiers' morale. Several want to be real soldiers, and to use their impressive skills and training for real but this is their current role. They get their chance, though. Good story, although a bit of tragedy.

173. The Saint of Bright Doors by Vajra Chandrasekera. Much hyped, and I can tell that it's very good (the writing is beautiful), but I just didn't love it. It took me a long time to get into it, and I had it from the library twice: first as an ebook, which I didn't finish before it was returned and second in print, which I finally finished today, and it's two days overdue to go back.

it's like you're me. Everybody loves this book but I've already bounced off the writing once. I'll have another go later.

>213 tardis: This book is on my list, but I've seen very different review of it. I'll see what happens...

>215 Alexandra_book_life: I hope you like it. A lot of people whose opinions I respect loved it, so in this case it's probably me, not the book :)

174. The Garden Against Time : in Search of a Common Paradise by Olivia Laing. A rumination on garden making, against the background of the Covid epidemic and wandering from Paradise Lost to William Morris to the Blitz and more. I enjoyed it.

175. The Grand Sophy by Georgette Heyer. Audiobook, re-read. Sophie arrives like a hurricane, managing everyone's lives. Such fun.

176. The Library of the Dead by T.L Huchu. Audiobook, re-read. Ropa, 14 year old ghost talker in post some kind of apocalypse Edinburgh, gets dragged into a missing persons case. I love her love for her family, and her pragmatism.

>218 tardis: Over on her thread, Marissa_Doyle was just talking about that series by T.L. Huchu. Between the two of you, I decided to give one of the books a try.

177. Navigational Entanglements by Aliette de Bodard. A team of expendable apprentices must track and capture a monster from another dimension. Very good.

178. The Ballad of Smallhope and Pennyroyal by Jodi Taylor. Another spinoff of St. Mary's, chronicling the origin of the mysterious team that worked with Max and Markham to bring down Insight. Some of the events in earlier books, but from another POV or just alluded to. As enjoyable as all Taylor's books.

179. Woe: A housecat's story of despair by Lucy Knisley. A series of cartoons about Knisley's cat, Linney. Very relatable, very cute, bit sad at the end.

180. The Twelve Books of Christmas by Kate Carlisle. A bookbinder and her dishy ex-spy husband go to Scotland for a wedding and to find 12 missing Christmas-related books from the castle library. Slightly saccharine fluff.

181. Death by Misadventure by Tasha Alexander. A Lady Emily mystery. Lady Emily and husband Colin are attending a house party in Bavaria, near Mad King Ludwig's fancy castle. Repeated attacks on the hostess's son-in-law and then murder ensue. Lady Emily and Colin investigate. It was okay.

182. Rockin' Around the Chickadee by Donna Andrews. Meg's grandmother, Cordelia, is hosting a conference on exonerating the unjustly convicted. Meg, for a change, isn't organizing it, but she's helping out and when one of the attendees is murdered, she gets involved again. The resolution is always a bit formulaic, but I always enjoy these, more for Meg and her family and friends than the actual murder.

>223 tardis: "Slightly saccharine fluff." So essentially like reading cotton candy?

>225 jillmwo: Yeah, with a side of toothache or indigestion :)

183. Long Live Evil by Sara Rees Brennan. A dying girl accepts an opportunity to enter the world of her favourite book series, discovers she's the villain, and decides to embrace it. Quite fun, although there's a cliffhanger ending.

>183 2wonderY: I picked that up on sale recently. It's now moved up the to-read list. :)

184. The Spellshop by Sarah Beth Durst. Found family, books, a sentient spider plant, jam, starting over, and finding love. I really enjoyed this gentle cozy fantasy.

>228 tardis: - I have that out from the library!

>228 tardis: Thank you. This kind of book is medicinal, or therapeutic at the very least. Going on the Libby wishlist.

185. So You Want To Be a Wizard by Diane Duane. Audiobook, re-read (although it's been a really long time since I first read it). Teenagers Nita and Kit find books that lead them to become wizards and undergo a harrowing trial. Still very good. I have too many other books in the queue to read the rest of the series now, though.

185. A Pirate's Life for Tea by Rebecca Thorne. Cozy romantic fantasy with pirates and griffins. Also, although she doesn't acknowledge it, a debt to the Arrogant Worms' song "The Last Saskatchewan Pirate." "Stealing wheat and barley and all the other grains". Reyna and Kianthe are off looking for the missing dragon eggs and team up with pirates and a constable to find them and.

186. Cast in Atonement by Michelle Sagara. Latest in her Elantra series. I still like these but am finding them increasingly a bit slow. Dragons, ghosts, giant talking spiders.

187. Adulthood is a Gift: A Celebration of "Sarah's Scribbles" by Sarah Andersen. A very quick read - compilation of many of Sarah's comics, with some commentary at the end. Enjoyed it.

188. The Great Hippopotamus Hotel by Alexander McCall Smith. Mma Ramotswe and Mma Makutsi must determine who is sabotaging a hotel and help a man who wants to buy a sports car without telling his wife. The usual, but I enjoyed it.

189. The Vampire of Kings Street by Asha Greyling. Late one night, a young lawyer receives a visit from a distressed vampire who retains her to represent him. A twisty and interesting mystery.

>232 tardis: I am looking at A Pirate's Life for Tea but am not yet fully persuaded. (Even by the marketing ploy of the paperback with its inked pages. Tempting, but am not quite sure.) Is it just a quick kind of one-and-done read? Have you read the subsequent titles in the series?

>236 jillmwo: That's why I have a wishlist on Barnes & Noble and keep watch for when books like this go on sale.

>236 jillmwo: There are no subsequent books - it's the second in a series that started with Can't Spell Treason Without Tea (see message #168, above). The first book worked fine as a stand-alone - I would say the second does not. I enjoyed both but I also borrowed them from the library and I will not be purchasing them for my collection.

190. Candle & Crow by Kevin Hearne. Wrap up to the Ink & Sigil series. Al has to figure out why yachts are being sunk in the Minch, who cursed him, and who the heck Gladys-who-has-seen-some-shite is. Fun, although the resolution is perhaps overly-tidy.

191. Daughter of the Merciful Deep by Leslye Penelope. A thriving black town in the US south is to be flooded by a new dam. The way forward is magical. Racism, violence, hope.

Well, I'm excited! There's a bid to hold the 2030 Worldcon in Edmonton! I know most of the committee members either personally or by reputation, and will undoubtedly be volunteering myself at some point. It's 6 years away, assuming the bid is successful, but assuming no major life changes it's even possible I could billet an extra GD member who wants to attend. The convention venue is just across the river - walking distance for those who prefer that, and excellent transit connections.

>240 tardis:
All the best with the bid. I understand Dublin is the only bid for 2029 at this stage. I have attended three Worldcon events, 2005 in Glasgow, 2019 in Dublin, and 2024 in Glasgow. I had a good time at them.

>240 tardis: What fun! I have attended two Worldcons in Baltimore and one in Boston. Haven't attended one in quite a while, but Edmonton might be a fun locale!!

>240 tardis: Best of luck!

>240 tardis: How exciting! I hope the bid succeeds!

>240 tardis: Oh, I hope it’s successful! That would be fun to attend.

192. Of Tangible Ghosts
193. The Ghost of the Revelator
by L.E. Modesitt, Jr. The first two books in his Ghosts of Columbia series. Alt-history where the presence of ghosts of people who died violently has drastically changed the course of history. Johan and Llysette are professors at a small university but also much more. Not bad, but like most of Modesitt's books, not keepers.

194. The Knife Before Christmas by Kate Carlisle. Cozy mystery in her Fixer-Upper Mystery series. Contractor Shannon Hammer and her team are building a special Christmas attraction. Pretty clear early on who needs killing, and I guessed who did it, too. Not because there were so many clues - just based on who I wanted to be guilty. Anyway, an enjoyable series and good brain candy at a time when I very much need it.

195. The Improvisers: A Murder and Magic Novel by Nicole Glover. It's 1931. Barnstorming pilot Velma Frye is an agent of the Magnolia Muses, who investigate magic problems. She's also a granddaughter of Hetty and Benjy Rhodes, who featured in Glover's earlier Murder and Magic novels. When cursed magical objects start finding their way into society and causing trouble, Velma and her nemesis, reporter Dillon, must fly across the US, tracking them down. Very good.

196. Thief of Time by Terry Pratchett. Re-read, audiobook. A glass clock, the four (or 5) horsemen of the apocalypse, Susan Sto Helit, and the history monks. Always a fun time.

>248 tardis: Overall, I think Thief of Time is my favourite Discworld.

>248 tardis:. Now that's one I do not think I have encountered. I must go rummage about on the Kindle.

>250 jillmwo: Same! I believe I have to read Soul Music first.

I would have a lot of trouble picking a favourite Discworld book, but Thief of Time is definitely up there :)

197. The Gardener's Plot by Deborah J. Benoit. Maggie Walker is back in her home town, living in her grandmother's house and rebuilding her life. When the prime mover of a new community garden disappears and a corpse is found buried in a plot, Maggie is pitched into sleuthing. Brain candy type cozy mystery. I liked it.

>239 tardis: I have Candle & Crow on my wish list, should have it in the next month or so.

198. We Three Queens by Rhys Bowen. A Royal Spyness mystery. Georgie O'Mara (nee Rannoch) is enjoying life at home with her husband, Darcy, and baby son, James. When her cousin, David, asks a favour, that they host his paramour, Mrs. Simpson, while he tries to talk Parliament into approving his marriage to an American divorcee, they reluctantly agree. Then Georgie's brother and his family invite themselves to stay while scouting potential schools for their son. To top it off, Georgie's godfather, Hubert (who actually owns the house they're living in), comes back from a trip with a Hollywood film cast and crew in tow to film at the house. Fun stuff.

199. Murder on a Midsummer Night by Kerry Greenwood. Phryne Fisher investigates two mysteries: the death of a young man whose mother doesn't believe he committed suicide and a missing illegitimate child who needs to be found because of the mother's will. I do enjoy this series. This is an older (2008) installment, but I don't recall having read it before.

>254 tardis:. I enjoyed that particular installment of Phryne Fisher as well.

>254 tardis:, >255 jillmwo: My only experience of Phryne Fisher has been the first television episode, which did not impress. Are the books for enjoyable than the television adaptions?

>256 Marissa_Doyle: I love the TV show (wardrobe porn, someone called it!) and prefer it over the books. I think you might have the opposite experience. The Phryne of the books is younger and more careless, and also a little more organically outré, imo.

Edited to add word organically

>257 libraryperilous: Oh, I am all over wardrobe porn (the only saving grace of Downton Abbey, IMO.) I seem to remember being underwhelmed by the plotting in the first television episode, and wasn't sure if it was the fault of the script writers or the author.

>256 Marissa_Doyle: Like >257 libraryperilous: I enjoyed the TV show, especially for the clothes, cars, and sets. The casting was decent aside from Essie Davis being much older than book Phryne.

However, I do prefer the books. I appreciate that the police inspector and Phryne are just friends, never romantically involved. There are more recurring characters in the books, making them (IMO) richer. I recommend trying the first couple of books to see if you like them better.

200. Killing Time by Jodi Taylor. Team Weird (aka Team 236) are back, although not getting on. Two teenagers have built a pod and gone off to see a disappearing steam engine in 1911, and the Time Police have to get them back. Jane and Luke are part of the team, and of course things go wrong. I loved this, and want more.

201. Raising Steam by Terry Pratchett. Re-read. Audiobook. This is the new version, narrated beautifully by Richard Coyle. Enjoyed it very much.

202. Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik. Re-read, audiobook. I still like the story a lot, but the reader didn't distinguish the various narrator's voices very well (except the demon - that was distinctive :) ).

>261 tardis: The newer versions of Pratchett's books are such fun! One of the ones I listened to recently had Bill Nye reading all of the footnotes.

>262 clamairy: Yes, as did this one. Although it's actor Bill Nighy, not science educator Bill Nye :) And Peter Serafinowitz (sp?) as the voice of Death.

>263 tardis: Ha ha... I dictated the post before the caffeine kicked in, and I did think it looked weird but I posted it anyway. I'm not going to fix it now because then your reply won't make sense.

203. The Village Library Demon-Hunting Society by C. M. Waggoner. Sixty-something librarian Sherry Pinkwhistle is an ace at solving local murders, but nobody ever really looks at why a small place like Winesap, NY has a body count worthy of New York City. Until, one day, Sherry realizes that it's not... natural... This was quite fun.

>263 tardis:
Bill Nighy’s voice would be perfect for footnotes.

204. Wheel of the Infinite by Martha Wells. An older book, revised and republished. Maskelle is the Voice of the Adversary, one of the gods of her world, but she's been exiled after her interpretation of a message from the Adversary went wrong. She's summoned back to help put right the Wheel of the Infinite, which has been corrupted. Very good.

>267 tardis: Ooh. Sounds very good.

>267 tardis: Nice! I'd like to read more of Martha Wells' older fantasy. It's on my never-ending list :)

205. The Silverblood Promise by James Logan. A prodigal son comes back to find out why his father died. Magic, larceny, artifacts. Not bad, but I didn't love it.

206. Demon's Bluff by Kim Harrison. Rachel Morgan goes back in time to find an Atlantean Mirror to break a curse. Rachel is still the queen of bad decisions, and kind of annoying. I'll probably have forgotten by the time the next book in the series comes out and request it from the library anyway.

>267 tardis: Oh,I bought this one a few weeks ago. I almost pulled it off the pile when I needed a new read the other day. Good to hear it’s good.

207. Rest You Merry by Charlotte MacLeod. I felt in the mood for a Christmas-themed book, and this is an old favourite that still holds up well. Professor Peter Shandy, fed up with being nagged to decorate his house for Balaclava College's annual Illuminations festival, spitefully hires a company to over-decorate his house and leaves town for the holidays. Having second thoughts, he comes home early and discovers the body of the biggest nag in his front room. Witty and charming.

>272 tardis: Oh, that sounds delightful.

Today has been my "do nothing but read" day, and it's been lovely. I wore comfy clothes, drank tea, ate goodies, and finished off two books. Both library books that need to go back very soon.

208. Aim to Misbehave: Firefly by Roslee Thor. One of the better Firefly tie-in novels I've read. Serenity is down on an inhabited moon, very short on fuel and full of geese. An old "friend" of Shepherd Book's asks them to find some missing people, and of course it's not straightforward. Lovely to be back in the 'Verse :)

209. Voyage of the Damned by Frances White. A bunch of "blesseds" travel to a sacred mountain together on a ship. When murders begin, Dee, who is secretly not really blessed with any gift, must solve them. Bi main character, M/M pairing, high body count. Not bad, though.

>208 tardis: "full of geese"??

>274 tardis:
Sounds like a lovely way to spend a day.

>274 tardis: A DNBR day is always a treat! But just a heads up that I think your touchstone for Voyage of the Damned is going to the non-fiction title rather than the fantasy / mystery title you describe.

>277 jillmwo: Fixed - thanks! It was right, but then I edited the post and it must have switched again.

210. Death by Dumpling by Vivien Chien. Audiobook. Lana Lee is working in her parents' restaurant after walking away from her job and boyfriend. When the owner of the complex where the restaurant is located dies, Lana and her room mate start sleuthing. Typical amateur sleuth BS (not telling the police things they need to know, going on risky late-night snooping expeditions, etc.) but the characters are engaging and I enjoyed it.

211. The God and the Gumiho by Sophie Kim. Kim Hani, gumiho, is taking a break from eating livers and souls. Once called the Scarlet Fox, she sated herself in the 1800s in London and hasn't developed an appetite since then. Seokga is a fallen god, having led a failed rebellion against his brother. Enemies to lovers, demons, South Korea. Enjoyable.

212. This Will Be Fun by E. B. Asher. Three heroes reunite for the first time since they quarrelled after saving the realm and losing their fourth and "greatest" member. The queen is getting married, and wants them all there. Journeys, drinking, pining, cosplay, and surprisingly (to them) quite a bit of fun.

>274 tardis: What a lovely way to spend a day!