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The monsters are real, but they aren’t here now. You’re safe.

I have no idea why I waited so long to start this series. Obviously the wrong choice, because I love it! This first book isn’t without flaws, but it hits so many of my preferences in such good ways. I knew going in there would be lovecraftian horror elements here, but I didn’t realize it’s full-on lovecrafian fiction, down to the MC being a Miskatonic University alumni. Lovecraft made queer happens to be my favorite brand of horror in the world (I’m kinda an eldritch thing at heart), so that alone was enough to make me squee in excitement early on, and the way all the horrors were handled? 10/10! The vibe and the ratio of horrors to investigations to interpersonal hijinks reminded me of some of my favorite Call of Cthulhu campaigns I was in. Just. Exactly the …

There are few things worse than death, but I am capable of most of them.

Wow! I really enjoyed the first book in this series, but this one? This one is where it’s at. Such a stunning and exciting example of everything I love about the fantasy genre. Not a hint of the dreaded middle book syndrome here, just lots of plot development, expanded worldbuilding, and truly fantastic characters.

Where The Perfect Assassin was a contained, city-based mystery, this book takes its characters beyond Ghadid and introduces us to the wider world and the bigger challenges. What starts as an attempt to finish a tricky assassination contract turns into a dark, messy, high-stakes journey through the desert with a visit to the heart of the Empire that wants to absorb Ghadid, and also necromancy, possession, political plotting, and immortality-seeking villains. The way new layers get constantly added to the whole …

You’re as pale as a sea-wraith and not nearly as like to lure a man to his doom, if you catch my meaning.

This was a bit silly, highly cliche, and mostly entertaining. I had a bit of trouble  wrapping my mind around the concept of Goddess-blessed, and I don’t think I’m very comfortable with what I’ve groked of it. I do realize this bit of worldbuilding basically only exists to make gay marriage possible in this Regency-inspired setting and that it’s more self-indulgent fluff than a deep exploration of how this all would affect society. But, idk, I think I wanted just a little more thoroughness or seriousness to the worldbuilding.

The story itself is a bit rushed and revolves around archetypes and tropes that are probably familiar to every m/f historical romance reader, except made queer this time. Owen is the sheltered blushing virgin whose world turns upside …

“I have a plan,” I said.
“A child with a stick of dynamite may have a plan, too. It doesn’t make it a wise plan.”

Wow. This was dark as fuck and twice as awesome. Even more exciting and engrossing than the first book. I absolutely loved how the story's constructed: the stakes and the tension rising steadily from start to finish, the clues planted at exactly the right moments, the build-up to the showdown with the genuinely terrifying villain. Never a dull moment, quite literally.

The characters, again, are where the book absolutely shines. This slowly growing found family has my heart. Brand remains my absolute favorite (in Rune's own words, everybody should have a Brand), and his and Rune's exceptionally close-knit, ride-or-die relationship remains so special. And also the way Addam fits into it! While I really liked his one-on-one boyfriendly scenes with Rune, I loved that one …

Paradoxes are the universe’s reminder that there aren’t any answers. Just questions. And what’s more fascinating than a question?

This is one of those novels that read a lot like a travelogue for a made-up world, combined with a classic coming of age narrative. Despite being set in a high-tech sci-fi world, there's a distinct fantasy vibe. In part, it is because the MC comes from a more "high fantasy" type of longevous elves society. In bigger part, I feel, it's because of the overall structure and vibe of the book.

Sediryl was a pretty good conduit to experience the diverse, intricate Peltedverse. She's very young and inexperienced and sometimes does stupid things, but she's insatiably curious and always willing to learn and grow. That's something that quickly endeared me to her from the first few chapters. Still, for a big part of the book I felt like her function …

I want to be a gentleman but I can’t help feeling like a radical. I want to please my grandfather, but the things he says make me wretched. I want to be loyal to Silas, God knows he was to me, but I don’t want to be dirty and hungry and poor ever again.

I had such a hard time getting into this book, mostly because I couldn't find a single character to like. Harry annoyed me infinitely in the first few chapters; he appeared selfish, indecisive, and sorely lacking a moral backbone. His readiness to accept his sudden inheritance and titlte and his wish to live the shiny, careless, rich life of the oppressors, to leave behind the people who genuinely cared and risked their necks for him... Well, let's just say I couldn't wish for a happy ending for him if I tried! :D He did eventually redeem …

I just don’t want you to wake up one day and realize you’ve given me everything because I’m—whatever you think I am, and then it turns out I’m really not.

For the first time over the course of reading this series, I wasn't completely satisfied with the mystery part. All the moving parts didn't fit together as smoothly and excitingly as I've come to expect, and unlike the very previous books, few of the numerous cast members were super distinct. I kept having to look back a few pages and double-check if I understood correctly which person I was reading about.

However, I absolutely, absolutely loved the continuous development of the relationship between Cooper and Oliver. It made me think that I want to read a lot more romance series focused on the same couple, because seeing two characters move so gradually over all the potential pitfalls and always coming …

The more he rejected him, the more his mind cleared. If only he could get his heart to fall in line.

This story was super thoughtful and entertaining! I'm a sucker for rivals-to-lovers, and both characters here, as well as the dynamic they had throughout the short audio read, were awesome to follow.

The story's about two rivaling true crime podcasters who practice rather different approaches to their craft: one sets out to entertain and systematically draw more listeners, the other to educate and to draw attention to important topics. They have a lot of not-quite-true perceptions of each other, fueled by a studiously ignored mutual attraction, and they'd rather not be in the same room... until the mother of a recently deceased fan approaches them and asks if they'd consider doing a collaboration as that fan used to dream they would, and neither of them can say no. When …

Many things had changed, of course, in the interim years, but in the end, they were what they’d always been.

I'm not familiar with the rest of the series this book belongs to, but it didn't stand in the way of my enjoyment. A Lady's Desire is a sweet little story about two friends reconnecting, finally seeing their mutual pining for what it is after a bit of clashing, and carving a life togeter in spite of the family's and the society's wishes. Both characters are interesting and sympathetic, and the narrative moves back and forth between the timelines, gradually exposing the backstory of their relationship.

Even though the story is pretty short, being a novella, it feels quite complete. I mean, I wouldn't say no to spending a bit more time in Win's and Sarah's company, but I don't feel like I missed out on a single important bit …

A surprisingly engaging book for required reading. Wu begins by detailing the birth of the telecom giants of the 20th century — AT&T's telephone system, the film empires of Hollywood, and the radio and later television networks of NBC and CBS — and how they demolished, and then supplanted, the previous monopolies of Western Union and Edison's movie companies. Wu studies these companies in the light of Joseph Schumpeter's economic theory of "creative destruction". The book finds a number of faults in attempting to apply Schumpeter's theory to the rise of the Internet without modification; while the theory seems to apply superficially, Wu argues, the resurgence of the media empires of the 20th century — this time as octopus-like media conglomerates — shows that Schumpeter's theories require considerable revision.

Wu's choice to begin his book with the David-and-Goliath story of Alexander Graham Bell and his fight with Western Union to …