I like to complain, learn new things & read. My favorite things to learn are related to the fantasy-genre or to computers/programming. My favorite things to complain about are when I don't understand something I'm learning & when the humidity levels change.
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Science fiction and East Asian myth combine in this dazzling retelling of the rise of …
Interesting subversion of certain tropes and well crafted telegraphing. It didn't hit quite right for me, probably because I'm currently in an argument with the "special boy/girl" model of fantasy.
This is a world divided by blood - red or silver. The Reds are commoners, …
While this one is still a "special boy/girl" sci-fantasy, I did like the constant edging of foreshadowing betrayal immediately followed by descriptions of how nice a character is. In fact, when a significant betrayal did come, I didn't believe it and more than halfway expect to find it reversed later on the series. The ratio of fantasy to sci-fi felt weird to me but I couldn't say why.
This is a world divided by blood - red or silver. The Reds are commoners, ruled by a Silver elite …
Science fiction and East Asian myth combine in this dazzling retelling of the rise of …
Iron Widow is a sci-fantasy story that incorporates various genre tropes, but they are covered in a fresh and interesting skin. I appreciated that certain recognizable beats were, at least so far in the story, subverted or not followed through. Despite that, and probably for personal reasons rather that book-related ones, I was not invested and didn't have that anxiety and delight that I feel with the best stories.
For fans of Code Girls and Hidden Figures, PROVING GROUND is the untold, World War …
I'm glad I read this. The ENIAC 6 deserve more respect and more awareness of how much they brought to programming. I expected the quiet sexism of having their work accepted but not their value as people. I wasn't expecting modern jackasses to try to erase their contributions and deny their importance.
"In the second volume of the Southern Reach Trilogy, questions are answered, stakes are raised, …
Slow creeping weirdness with a hectic ending. I'm looking forward to the next one.
**IN THE BEGINNING, MAN WAS PREY. WITHOUT THE GODS, THEY'LL BE PREY AGAIN **
The …
Nicely different. I hope there will be sequels.
Gods are forbidden in the kingdom of Middren. Formed by human desires and fed by …
4.5 stars.
I really liked the character development and growth. I liked the world, the gods, the mystery, and the fairly smooth way the main characters end up journeying together.
As Grace hides the vast depth of her love for Sam from her parents and Sam struggles to release his …
Keera is a killer. As the King's Blade, she is the most talented spy in …
I'm not sure why I'm "meh" on this one. I usually enjoy the various elements here: a hidden, dying magic (that maybe isn't), mysterious births, female lead (especially with a bad attitude), treachery, and heist-like plot devices.
I didn't like using "halfling" because that word already has a specific meaning for me and it's different from the usage here.
I dunno. It was fine, just maybe not for me.
In all the years she has watched the wolves in the woods behind her house, …
For me, this was a "warm blanket" story. It wasn't too complex and the stakes weren't too high, so I could just... enjoy.
Unfortunately, the male narrator doesn't fit the character and doesn't mesh well with the other narrator. I would have enjoyed the experience more if I didn't flinch every time the POV switched to Sam.
In all the years she has watched the wolves in the woods behind her house, …
A New York Times Bestseller The leading thinker and most visible public advocate of modern …
Addresses many of the obvious nonsense regarding how people talk about government economies. It takes 2 seconds of honest thought to recognize taxes don't fund the government, they encourage behavior. And only 1 second to understand that the power to make money very simply means deficits are a fiction.
Very satisfying conclusion with a few "oh shit" moments of realization moments before Novik whips the curtain back.
Library had an open copy!