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Posts by Jane J
In her stellar adult fiction novel debut Veronica Roth explores what happens when a totalitarian, dystopian regime falls and whether or not the society can rebuild without repeating the same patterns and mistakes. And she does all of this through the eyes of someone who was complicit in that regime's behavior.
We've all got them. Books we think will make us smarter but that are just a bit too daunting every time you go to pick them up and read. Mine in recent times has been Yuval Harari's Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind. I placed it on hold, had the hold come in, checked it out and then returned it unread. I think that probably happened a couple of times.
Some books I read and think, "I cannot wait to rave about this book to anyone and everyone." And the next thought is, "how will I do it justice?" The Light Brigade by Kameron Hurley had me thinking both of those as I finished. It's a deceptively straightforward military science fiction novel, that packs a much deeper and thought-provoking punch.
You know you're having a bad day when your suicide attempt is interrupted by a bank robbery. Just the kind of day Nate Overbay is having. He's on an 11th floor ledge - having crawled out of the window of his bank - very carefully choosing his landing spot in a dumpster (so he doesn't squash anyone) when he hears a gunshot and sees the blood splatter on the window next to him. When he realizes that a group of masked gunmen are robbing the bank, Nate is torn.
Garlic, of the title, is one of the vegetables brought to life by a witch named Agnes. They all work with Agnes in her garden and at her market stall. Garlic is happy and eager, but she's also anxious that she gets things right - at which she doesn't always succeed. One day after returning from the market Potato notices that there is smoke rising from the castle in the woods. Since the castle is supposed to be empty, the vegetables are alarmed. When Agnes tells them that it may be a vampire has returned, their alarm turns to panic.
I've mentioned in a few other posts how my reading tastes lately have leaned to stories that take me to other worlds and center on honorable characters. And with that reading quest in mind, a co-worker (thank you Amy S!) suggested T. Kingfisher. And a better balm to the soul, it would be harder to find. In this, the first in the Saint of Steel trilogy, we meet a paladin whose god has died and a perfumer who has escaped an abusive past.
I started this novel with not much information. I thought the title referenced a legal appeal, and there is one on deck here, but it also references an appeal for money in a fundraising campaign for a child with cancer. A couple of junior attorneys are tasked with looking back at the epistolary record of a case (emails, letters, texts, etc) and determine if there is an argument for a legal appeal.
The night before her thirtieth birthday Hollywood publicist Lucy Green is waiting for her boyfriend, again, when the bartender offers to make her a special cocktail. As she takes her first drink Lucy makes a wish for a perfect birthday - perhaps on which her boyfriend will finally propose. Little does she know that that wish will upend her entire life. She wakes the next morning and soon realizes that she's not able to lie. What's a publicist, who lies pretty routinely for her very sensitive and temperamental clients, to do?
Kings of the Wyld has a Band of old, fat and worn out men getting together for one last tour. Only this is a band of mercenaries once known as Saga and the tour is a trek across the realm battling monsters, magicians, crooks and other mercenaries along the way. Their quest? Defeat a horde of thousands of monsters to reach a besieged city and rescue the daughter of one of the members. Easy, peasy, right?
The best science fiction, fantasy and horror novels were picked and announced on June 25th by the Locus Science Fiction Foundation. There are lots of good possibilities for a summer read from the winners and the other nominated titles.
