Reading Wednesday
Jun. 26th, 2019 07:28 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
cinaedSo between a friend visiting and us touring a million museums, work being a hellish nightmare (every time I think my manager can't get worse, she exceeds my expectations), and just writing a ton of fic in my free time on top of playing multiple D&D sessions, I didn't read much of anything this month, whoops. So let's catch up!
Probably the other ebooks I have checked out, so either Three Parts Dead by Max Gladstone or The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon!
Just Finished
I've read a whopping five books in June. A Prince on Paper by Alyssa Cole, Revenant Gun by Yoon Ha Lee, and three Royal Diaries books in expectation of writing a royalty AU with a friend for RvB fandom.
A Prince on Paper is the latest in Alyssa Cole's Reluctant Royals romances. I enjoyed the relationship a lot in this one, and while the execution of one of the side plots didn't entirely work for me, I appreciate that Alyssa Cole is writing the exact romance she wants to write. I also enjoyed the entire meta game Nya was playing during the story. Honestly I would play that game. Dear Ms. Cole: you should get someone to make that dating simulation game!
I've read a whopping five books in June. A Prince on Paper by Alyssa Cole, Revenant Gun by Yoon Ha Lee, and three Royal Diaries books in expectation of writing a royalty AU with a friend for RvB fandom.
A Prince on Paper is the latest in Alyssa Cole's Reluctant Royals romances. I enjoyed the relationship a lot in this one, and while the execution of one of the side plots didn't entirely work for me, I appreciate that Alyssa Cole is writing the exact romance she wants to write. I also enjoyed the entire meta game Nya was playing during the story. Honestly I would play that game. Dear Ms. Cole: you should get someone to make that dating simulation game!
Revenant Gun was the concluding book in the Machineries of Empire series. I thought it was an excellent end to the series, and most of the story worked for me! I am just mostly sad because I was enjoying this background ship and horrible things happened to them and I wanted them to get a happy ending. But I still really love the world created here, and the characters and all the complicated, messy politics.
And then I read three books in the Royal Diaries series, which was a spin-off of the Dear America series. As you may have guessed, the Royal Diaries series are fictional diaries of female royalty throughout history. I ended up reading Cleopatra VII: Daughter of the Nile by Kristiana Gregory, Catherine: The Great Journey by Kristiana Gregory, and Elizabeth I: Red Rose of the House of Tudor by Kathryn Lasky.
Of the three, the book about Catherine the Great was the weakest by far. It felt like nothing happened despite all the dangerous politics and the fraught relationship the future Catherine had with her power-hungry mother, which is funny because Gregory's book about Cleopatra is fraught with politics as Cleopatra deals with her usurper for a sister, her alcoholic father, and both the power schemes within Egypt and Rome. And Cleopatra's book had my favorite side characters, who I'm glad got a happy ending! So not sure what happened between those two books.
Meanwhile, Lasky's Elizabeth I book was also great, full of messy politics and Elizabeth's fraught relationship with her power-mad father! I am sensing a trend here. I think of the three, Elizabeth was my favorite book, with Cleopatra a very close second.
And then I read three books in the Royal Diaries series, which was a spin-off of the Dear America series. As you may have guessed, the Royal Diaries series are fictional diaries of female royalty throughout history. I ended up reading Cleopatra VII: Daughter of the Nile by Kristiana Gregory, Catherine: The Great Journey by Kristiana Gregory, and Elizabeth I: Red Rose of the House of Tudor by Kathryn Lasky.
Of the three, the book about Catherine the Great was the weakest by far. It felt like nothing happened despite all the dangerous politics and the fraught relationship the future Catherine had with her power-hungry mother, which is funny because Gregory's book about Cleopatra is fraught with politics as Cleopatra deals with her usurper for a sister, her alcoholic father, and both the power schemes within Egypt and Rome. And Cleopatra's book had my favorite side characters, who I'm glad got a happy ending! So not sure what happened between those two books.
Meanwhile, Lasky's Elizabeth I book was also great, full of messy politics and Elizabeth's fraught relationship with her power-mad father! I am sensing a trend here. I think of the three, Elizabeth was my favorite book, with Cleopatra a very close second.
Currently Reading
Storm of Locusts by Rebecca Roanhorse, the second book in The Sixth World series. I whined to myself for the first chapter about how I wanted Maggie to have more female friends, and Roanhorse was like, "How would you like her to accidentally adopt a grieving, angry bisexual teenage girl?" so I am enjoying the book a lot so far!
That's the ebook I've been reading when things are slow on the desk. At my apartment, I'm making my way through Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life by Anne Lamott, which is part memoir, part writing advice and an all-around fascinating book. It's also got some very useful advice. I'm tempted to actually buy a copy for myself to use as I tackle my original works, because a lot of the mental struggles she addresses really resonates with me.
Storm of Locusts by Rebecca Roanhorse, the second book in The Sixth World series. I whined to myself for the first chapter about how I wanted Maggie to have more female friends, and Roanhorse was like, "How would you like her to accidentally adopt a grieving, angry bisexual teenage girl?" so I am enjoying the book a lot so far!
That's the ebook I've been reading when things are slow on the desk. At my apartment, I'm making my way through Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life by Anne Lamott, which is part memoir, part writing advice and an all-around fascinating book. It's also got some very useful advice. I'm tempted to actually buy a copy for myself to use as I tackle my original works, because a lot of the mental struggles she addresses really resonates with me.
Up Next:
Probably the other ebooks I have checked out, so either Three Parts Dead by Max Gladstone or The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon!
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Date: 2019-06-27 01:44 am (UTC)That description is definitely making me want to read Storm of Locusts! And I guess whatever the first book in the series is. I have been absolutely miserable about reading books lately, too, though... unless you count a quick binge-reread of the Murderbot Diaries...
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Date: 2019-06-27 02:36 am (UTC)Fair warning, the first book is called Trail of Lightning and it's a post-apocalyptic urban fantasy. It's really good but also grim, and the awesome bisexual teen I already love doesn't show up until the second book. Like I enjoyed the first one, but like if you're looking for light reading, this series isn't it, heh.
The Murderbot Diaries are so good! I love Martha Wells so much. Her other stuff is great too!
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Date: 2019-06-27 02:58 am (UTC)I thought that was the title but wasn't sure enough to use it, so thanks! I can probably handle the grim, depending on mood - I just have to make time to stop by the library and see if it's available there...
I LOVE THEM TO BITS, they're just 100% MY JAM. I really want to check out more of her books, especially the Raksura ones, but alas, my local library does not have the Raksura books and I haven't tried the ones they do have yet. But maybe next time!
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Date: 2019-06-27 03:08 am (UTC)It should hopefully be available! It was nominated for a few awards so I think most libraries should have it.
Oh no, the Raksura ones are my other favorite of hers. I actually own them in hardback, that's how much I like them. What are the ones of hers your library has?
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Date: 2019-06-27 12:08 pm (UTC)Oof, I can't remember off the top of my head - it might be the Ile-Rien books? All I'm sure of is that they weren't Raksura but were fantasy.
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Date: 2019-06-27 12:46 pm (UTC)Though if you also read Death of the Necromancer, be aware that it's a prequel to that series and you WILL get attached and sad about characters who are dead by the time the Ile-Rien books start. I was not, and got sad....
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Date: 2019-06-27 03:49 am (UTC)I seem to remember really enjoying one about Jahanara, a Mughal princess, and I think one about a Korean astronomer princess? Fond memories.
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Date: 2019-06-27 12:47 pm (UTC)DCPL doesn't have all of them, but I think we do have the Korean princess one, I'll have to check!
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Date: 2019-06-27 04:13 pm (UTC)