YAY, it's December! Welcome to my favorite month of the year, fellow bibliophiles.... this month is my 60th birthday (December 12) celebration, and Christmas, the highlight of the holidays. These past few weeks have seen me reading a lot more ebooks, mostly due to cost considerations (they're cheaper than paper books) and the whole COVID 19 resurgence has made getting books from the library, or even shipped from online stores, more difficult. Sadly, we're also losing more writers due to the pandemic, among them, the wonderful Ben Bova, whose stories I read in the late 60s and throughout the 70s in Analog and other science fiction magazines. RIP, Mr Bova.
Obituary Note: Ben Bova
Ben Bova http://www.shelf-awareness.com/ct/uz3642037Biz46579296, scientist, multiple Hugo Award winner, and prolific science fiction author and editor, died on Sunday, November 29, of complications from Covid-19 and a stroke. He was 88. Bova wrote more than a hundred books, edited some of science fiction's best-known publications, and was president of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA) for two terms 1990-1992 and was president of the National Space Society.
He began his career in a way that, Tor.com said, "brought experience to the science fiction genre that few authors could match": he was a technical editor for Project Vanguard, the U.S.'s first effort to launch a satellite into space in 1958. Bova then was a science writer for Avco Everett Research Laboratory, which built the heat shields for the Apollo 11 module.
Bova published his first novel, The Star Conquerors, in 1959, and followed up with dozens of others, as well as numerous short stories that appeared in, among other publications, Amazing Stories, Analog Science Fact and Fiction and Galaxy Magazine, The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction.
In 1971, Bova became editor of Analog following the death of its longtime editor, John W. Campbell Jr. According to the Encyclopedia of Science Fiction, Bova maintained the publication's tendencies towards technological realism and Hard SF, "but considerably broadened its horizons." While there, he published notable stories such as Joe Haldeman's "Hero" (which became The Forever War) and earned the Hugo Award for Best Editor for numerous consecutive years before stepping down in 1977. He then became the first editor of Omni magazine, until leaving in 1982, and consulted on television shows such as The Starlost and Land of the Lost.
Among other honors and awards, as noted by the SFWA Bova was the Author Guest of Honor at Chicon 2000, the 58th Worldcon, was a lifetime achievement recipient from the Arthur C. Clarke Foundation, a Robert A. Heinlein Award winner, a Skylark recipient, and an inductee into the First Fandom Hall of Fame. In 1995, his story "Inspiration" was a Nebula finalist.
Bova's best-known works, Tor.com observed, involved "plausible sciences about humanity's expansion into the universe, looking at how we might adapt to live in space with novels such as 1992's Mars, about the first human expedition to the red planet. He followed that novel up with additional installments, forming the Grand Tour series, which explored all of the solar system's major bodies." The latest installment, Uranus, was published in July, and was scheduled to be the first of a trilogy. The second installment, Neptune, is scheduled for release next year.
Great name for a bookstore, and a wonderful location in Seattle. I wish that I could visit this store, but until I'm vaccinated against COVID 19, I'm not going anywhere.
Oh Hello Again Bookshop Opens in Seattle
Oh Hello Again bookshop, which "specializes in bibliotherapy http://www.shelf-awareness.com/ct/uz3642037Biz46662112, or using books to help with life's various problems," has opened at 324 15th Ave. E #101 in Seattle, Wash.
"You can find the topic you're interested in. Or a book maybe you weren't even looking for," owner Kari Ferguson told Capitol Hill Seattle blog http://www.shelf-awareness.com/ct/uz3642037Biz46662113. She believes in "the notion that novels and reading can help individuals process, work through, and deal with different issues and concerns in their lives."
Oh Hello Again's books are organized "by topics--mental health, everyday problems, bettering yourself, relationships, travel, and many more--but don't expect shelves of self-help books," CHS wrote. "The sections contain a mix of novels, picture books, young adult books and graphic novels that address the themes of the areas a reader might want to explore."
Ferguson hopes that customers will find books that become "part of the decor in your life and have these emotions and feelings connected to them," but knows that others will just be looking for a good read.
Previously the owner of Dickens Children's Books in Vancouver, Wash., Ferguson "is excited to join Capitol Hill's relatively rich book shop scene," including nearby Ada's Technical Books, CHS noted, adding that Ferguson hopes Oh Hello Again complements her new neighbors, "especially technical and sci-fi-forward Ada's as the two shops provide new spins on the bookstore genre."
She remains positive about the future for indies: "This is why I think there will always be bookstores. There's something so important to seeing and feeling a book."
I'm an avid fan of the Mandalorian on Disney+, and while I've not been the biggest fan of Grogu, or "baby Yoda" as people nicknamed the little green child, (he's a terribly selfish creature who seems to not care about the feelings of others), I do like the Mandalorian himself and the Star Wars world he inhabits and the adventures he goes on in that world. That said, I don't wish Grogu any harm, and I hope that the Mandalorian is able to rescue him from the Empire ASAP.
'Baby Yoda' Stars in ALA's New READ Poster & Bookmark
The American Library Association is featuring The Child (aka Grogu or Baby Yoda), breakout star of the Disney+ series The Mandalorian, in the organization's new READ poster http://www.shelfawareness.com/ct/uz3642037Biz46662154 and bookmark campaign, with all proceeds funding advocacy, awareness and accreditation programs for library professionals worldwide. ALA's READ campaign, supported by ALA Graphics, celebrates the joy of reading and the importance of lifelong learning. Reminiscent of the original Yoda poster ALA Graphics offered in the early 1980s, The Child's poster and bookmark continue the tradition of previous Star Wars READ collaborations.
"Baby Yoda is one of the biggest stars in the galaxy--and we're thrilled to feature such a beloved character in one of ALA's most recognized campaigns," said ALA president Julius Jefferson, Jr. "We hope that library supporters, Star Wars fans, and others will use this poster and bookmark to inspire minds to discover the vast resources libraries offer. Special thanks to Disney-Lucasfilm Press for their continued generous support of libraries."
I'm really looking forward to seeing this show on Netflix, it looks like great fun, and has a wonderful cast.
Movies: The Dig
Netflix U.K. has released a "rousing first trailer" for The Dig http://www.shelf-awareness.com/ct/uz3642037Biz46703317, based on the novel by John Preston, Deadline reported. Directed by Simon Stone, the film's cast includes Carey Mulligan, Ralph Fiennes, Lily James, Johnny Flynn, Ben Chaplin, Ken Stott, Archie Barnes and Monica Dolan. Netflix will release The Dig January 15.
Though I don't normally enjoy audiobooks, I am thrilled that there is an audio version of the wonderful Sandman graphic novel series, with the great James McAvoy voicing a character. This might make an audiobook fan of me yet!
Audiobooks: AudioFile's Best Audio Titles of 2020
Our friends at AudioFile Magazine present the best audiobooks of the year http://www.shelf-awareness.com/ct/uz3642037Biz46703330:
Audiobooks now have eight years of double-digit sales growth, and the average number of books listened to by individuals increased to more than eight per year according to the Audio Publishers Association. This year audiobooks have provided a balm, a diversion, and an escape for countless listeners. Families have found new value and entertainment with shared audiobook listening. Essential workers have put the world aside as they put on their headphones after a long shift. When new data is released, it's likely to show listening at home moving to the top of listening locations, and a jump in the use of home devices. Highlights from the nine subject categories are featured below. All titles are available from Libro.fm.
The Sandman http://www.shelf-awareness.com/ct/uz3642037Biz46703335 by Neil Gaiman, Dirk Maggs, read by Riz Ahmed, Kat Dennings, Taron Egerton, Neil Gaiman, James McAvoy, Samantha Morton, Bebe Neuwirth, Andy Serkis, Michael Sheen, and a Full Cast (Audible) James McAvoy leads an all-star cast in narrating this magnificent audio adaptation of Neil Gaiman's iconic graphic novel series, The Sandman. As listeners are swept up in a saga in which cats talk and nightmares walk, McAvoy's steady characterization reminds them that it's all in a day's work for him. The sound effects are immersive, and there is a wonderful cinematic score. Listeners won't be able to pause once they hit play.
A Royal Affair by Allison Montclair is the second "Sparks and Bainbridge" mystery that I've read and loved. These books are great fun, with two female sleuths, the fiery Irish Sparks and the aristocratic Gwendolyn Bainbridge, who run a matchmaking service, once again get caught up in a mystery that only they can solve. Here's the blurb: More goes wrong than could be imagined when Iris Sparks and Gwendolyn
Bainbridge of The Right Sort Marriage Bureau are unexpectedly engaged
to dig into the past of a suitor of a royal princess in Allison
Montclair’s delightful second novel, A Royal Affair.
In London 1946, The Right Sort Marriage Bureau is just beginning to take
off and the proprietors, Miss Iris Sparks and Mrs. Gwendolyn
Bainbridge, are in need of a bigger office and a secretary to handle the
growing demand. Unfortunately, they don't yet have the necessary means.
So when a woman arrives―a cousin of Gwen's―with an interesting and
quite remunerative proposition, they two of them are all ears.
The cousin, one Lady Matheson, works for the Queen in "some capacity"
and is in need of some discreet investigation. It seems that the
Princess Elizabeth has developed feelings for a dashing Greek prince and
a blackmail note has arrived, alluding to some potentially damaging
information about said prince. Wanting to keep this out of the palace
gossip circles, but also needing to find out what skeletons might lurk
in the prince's closet, the palace has quietly turned to Gwen and Iris.
Without causing a stir, the two of them must now find out what secrets
lurk in the prince's past, before his engagement to the future Queen of
England is announced. And there's more at stake than the future of the
Empire ―there is their potential new office that lies in the balance.
Montclair's prose is light and bright and as full of zest as her characters, and the plot sizzles and zaps readers like a live wire, as pages are turned compulsively until we find out whodunnit at the end, and not a minute before. I loved this book not just for it's tantalizing and gossipy storyline, but also for its ability to engross me in another world, and distract me from the daily worries and fears of the COVID epidemic. If you enjoy British wit and humor and mysteries, you'll love this one, which I'd give an A to, and recommend to anyone who likes the above.
Roommaid by Sariah Wilson is a paint-by numbers romance that reads as if it were written by a teenager who is obsessed with Harlequin Romances. It's formulaic prose and plot are full of cliches and tropes, and the whole mess barely holds together until the traditional ending, which anyone could see coming a mile away. Here's the blurb:
From bestselling author Sariah Wilson comes a charming romance about living your life one dream at a time.
Madison Huntington is determined to live her dreams. That means getting out from under her family’s wealth and influence by saying no to the family business, her allowance, and her home. But on a teacher’s salary, the real world comes as a rude awakening—especially when she wakes up every morning on a colleague’s couch. To get a place of her own (without cockroaches, mold, or crime scene tape), Madison accepts a position as a roommaid. In exchange for free room and board, all she needs to do is keep her busy roommate’s penthouse clean and his dog company. So what if she’s never washed a dish in her life. She can figure this out, right?
Madison is pretty confident she can fake it well enough that Tyler Roth will never know the difference. The finance whiz is rich and privileged and navigates the same social circles as her parents—but to him she’s just a teacher in need of an apartment. He’s everything Madison has run from, but his kindhearted nature, stomach-fluttering smile, and unexpected insecurities only make her want to get closer. And Tyler is warming to the move.
Rewarding job. Perfect guy. Great future. With everything so right, what could go wrong? Madison is about to find out.
First of all, Madison is a complete idiot. She can't even run a dishwasher, boil water or clean a bathroom or do anything that "normal" people can do, because supposedly rich people grow up incapable of reading and following directions or having any common sense whatsoever. The fact that she's a teacher, supposedly in charge of the education of small children (when most of them could easily run a dishwasher or do any of the myriad of things that Madison fails to accomplish) makes her character even more ridiculous and unbelievable. Add to that her Disney-esque EVIL mother and sisters and her constant and idiotic drooling over Tyler, her room mate, and you've got a stupid book that is unsatisfying and not worthy of the paltry amount that I paid for it as an e-book. I'd give this book a D-, and not recommend it to anyone with a brain. I know you can find something better to spend money on than this kind of twaddle.
Inappropriate by Vi Keeland is the second (or third? I don't remember) of her sizzling hot romance novels that I've read in ebook format. Unlike the above romance novel, Keeland's books always have lots of snappy and realistic dialog, fun and imaginative set ups, zippy plots, and plenty of steamy love scenes that will keep readers glued to their Kindle screens into the wee hours. I was riveted from page one right through to the final chapter. Here's the blurb:
Terminated for inappropriate behavior.
I couldn't believe the letter in my hands.
Nine years. Nine damn years
I'd worked my butt off for one of the largest companies in America, and
I was fired with a form letter when I returned home from a week in
Aruba.
All because of a video taken when I was on vacation with my friends--a private video made on my private time. Or so I thought...
Pissed
off, I cracked open a bottle of wine and wrote my own letter to the
gazillionaire CEO telling him what I thought of his company and its
practices.
I didn't think he'd actually respond.
I certainly never thought I'd suddenly become pen pals with the rich jerk.
Eventually, he realized I'd been wronged and made sure I got my job back.
Only...it wasn't the only thing Grant Lexington wanted to do for me.
But
there was no way I was getting involved with my boss's boss's boss.
Even if he was ridiculously gorgeous, confident, and charming.
It would be completely wrong, inappropriate even.
Sort of like the video that got me into trouble to begin with.
Two wrongs don't make a right.
But sometimes it's twice as fun.
Keeland's characters are relatable and real, especially her main character Ireland, who does what many women long to do, telling off their boss about wrongful termination and sexual harassment and discrimination at the office. The difference here is that the hottie CEO likes her feisty spirit and replies, and ends up having an affair with Ireland and falling in love with her. While that last part is less believable, somehow Keeland makes it seem possible, if not probable, and the delicious prose lends itself to lots of thrilling love scenes and sexual escapades. Though I'm normally not a reader of straight romance novels (I prefer hybrids, like paranormal romance or science fiction/romance), Keeland's books are always a good time and just fun and engrossing enough to keep you distracted from the distraught news of the day. I'd give this book an A, and recommend it to anyone who likes imaginative and contemporary romance novels.
Spellbreaker by Charlie N Holmberg (who is a woman), is a creative steampunkish fantasy novel that I read in ebook format.
I was a fan of Holmberg's Paper Magician series, and then I read another of her novels that I didn't like, but now with Spellbreaker, which was a delight to read, I feel I am back on track with reading and enjoying her fiction. The prose is serious but not too dense, and the plot is intricate but moves along gracefully at a brisk pace. Here's the blurb:
A world of enchanted injustice needs a disenchanting woman in an all-new fantasy series by the Wall Street Journal bestselling author of The Paper Magician.
The orphaned Elsie Camden learned as a girl that there were two kinds of wizards in the world: those who pay for the power to cast spells and those, like her, born with the ability to break them. But as an unlicensed magic user, her gift is a crime. Commissioned by an underground group known as the Cowls, Elsie uses her spellbreaking to push back against the aristocrats and help the common man. She always did love the tale of Robin Hood.
Elite magic user Bacchus Kelsey is one elusive spell away from his mastership when he catches Elsie breaking an enchantment. To protect her secret, Elsie strikes a bargain. She’ll help Bacchus fix unruly spells around his estate if he doesn’t turn her in. Working together, Elsie’s trust in—and fondness for—the handsome stranger grows. So does her trepidation about the rise in the murders of wizards and the theft of the spellbooks their bodies leave behind.
For a rogue spellbreaker like Elsie, there’s so much to learn about her powers, her family, the intriguing Bacchus, and the untold dangers shadowing every step of a journey she’s destined to complete. But will she uncover the mystery before it’s too late to save everything she loves?
Elsie and Bacchus are two great characters who bring much needed diversity and fun to this fascinating English fantasy/mystery. I will say, without spoilers, that I didn't see the ending coming at all, and that I found it very satisfying. I liked the fact that they delved into the rank classism, racism and sexism that English society is known for in this book, which takes place in the steampunk-Victorian era in an alternate universe where magic is the norm, though it is tightly controlled and regulated. Elsie, to put it bluntly, has balls/ovaries of steel, and is one of those rare protagonists who not only has a moral code, but recognizes that if mistakes are made, you have to take responsibility and fix those mistakes and clean up your own mess. Bacchus also kicks butt, and is a handsome character whose origin story in Barbados left me curious to find out more in the next volume of their adventures. A well earned A goes out to Spellbreaker, with a recommendation to those who have read steampunk books by Gail Carriger and Lilith Saintcrow and Devon Monk. It's definitely worth your time to check it out.
No comments:
Post a Comment