@fskornia@bookstodon Predominantly fantasy, with literary and historical fiction thrown in. I do like horror in terms of film, but never actually read any fiction
A GORGEOUS retelling of the historical events of Spanish conquistadors under Hernán Cortés entering Tenochtitlan and the court of emperor Moctezuma.
This novella reimagines a complex world that many of us have some passing familiarity with. It's trippy hallucinogenic; it thrives in court politics and religious variety, color, aroma.
Think multicultural Game of Throes meets Hunter S. Thompson packed into a tight 220 pages. TIP: Don't skip the author's notes to the translator. @bookstodon
Since we are coming up on June, it seems like a good time to check in with everyone here on @bookstodon regarding favorite reads of 2024 so far. Whatcha got?
My top five reads of 2024 so far:
The Criminal series of graphic novels by Ed Brubaker (ten primary works)
I'm doing a book giveaway for QUEEN OF NONE! It's super easy to enter. You just need to sign up for my newsletter, and you're automatically entered to win.
I just re-designed and moved my newsletter, so I'm pretty excited to start sharing my various brain meanderings with y'all more often.
Already a subscriber? No problem! You're automatically entered. @bookstodon
The thing I’m enjoying the most about my Stephen King reading project is the references to characters and events of previous novels, and even cameos by characters we’ve met before. And, AND! I don’t know about you but frequently I’ll finish a book and wonder what happened to the characters, as if they were real people living real lives, into which I caught but a brief glimpse. Sometimes we actually find out, because of some random comment in the current book!
@nik@bookstodon I used to be a huge King fan, though I haven't read him in a while. This was also one of my favorite things about his work, the interconnectedness of it. And it's kind of low-key; you don't HAVE to have read a book that is referenced to enjoy the one you are reading now. BUT, once I clued in to the fact that the references are there, I needed to find ALL of them. It got a little overwhelming.
@herhandsmyhands@romancelandia@bookstodon I don't read romance but heard about that a couple years ago and read Courtney Milan's Twitter posts about it. It's really sad the leadership of that group were so clueless
ICYMI: the RWA is filing for bankruptcy, and because nice white ladies (TM) can't help themselves, they're implying it's Courtney Milan's (and the push for progress and inclusivity in the organization) that ruined the organization.
•••
I know you by heart, and yet —
I don't know you — discovering anew every time
hair — by my lips, lips — by my tongue —
and moving within you, I learn your pupils
contracting in an unfamiliar way...
every fibre of me wants to know every fibre of you
is it as joyous and thankful for you as it is for me
becoming you and collapsing —
that's what the Bible meant: he knew her!
I’ve been paying closer attention to when books were written. Pre-2016 (trump)? Pre-2020 (covid)? Different vibes for sure but I can’t quite put my finger on how to describe it yet. #amreading@bookstodon
Did you ever read a book or two in a long series and they were enjoyable so you’re hooked into the storyline and care about the characters.
But then, the stories get really irritating - this strange need for authors to torture their main characters over and over again is very troubling.
So I finished this series as a spite read. Fortunately the books were short. Compared to a lot of the books I usually read.
No I’m not naming authors. @bookstodon#amreading
@DejahEntendu@CuriousMagpie@bookstodon You're more forgiving than I. If I loose interest after the 1st chapter, I don't go on. If I get 30 minutes into a movie and I'm bored or the plot or characters are rediculous (hello? ARGYLE?), I bale.
Watching at home has made me much more critical of what I watch. It has to be outstanding from reviews and the trailer to spend $20 to see a movie in the theater. MINISTRY OF UNGENTLEMANLY WARFARE did not disappoint, except for that TERRIBLE Winston Churchill.
If an author abuses their characters or does unreasonable violence, I stop immediately and blacklist the author from my life. Vickie Schwabb is on that list.
Oh, sure, I'll stop a stand-alone or first book if the author gets into abuse and all now. I never made it past the intro to The Expanse due to that. But in a series, where I've already gotten a couple of books in? I'll give them more of a chance.
I wasn't always that critical about my reading, and there are scenes I just can't delete out of my brain, even 25 years later. I think it was GRRM and his mid characterization of Daenerys that convinced me.
@wendypalmer@bookstodon Best to ignore the outliers you don't like. Could be anything. Don't waste time guessing, just enjoy the 5 star rating as a person with better taste. That's what I do 😊
We're so close to liftoff...please help us reach our 500 subscriber target so we can launch the new "The Interocitor" sci-fi short story magazine. It's a completely free, all-volunteer effort...no gotchas. Read up, sign up, and strap in!! https://www.theinterocitor.org
@grero@bookstodon It is, Roger! Short stories by the classic sci-fi masters, reformatted for optimal screen reading. New stories by current authors in the classic style. I like to call The Interociter a “digital pulp.” 100% free to readers, a labor of love. An online magazine for all who love sci-fi short stories’ golden era.
I've hit a reading rut and haven't read anything good in months.
Any recommendations? I've read a lot of different things, and will read just about any genre. If I have to rank things, I'd say that for me characters > themes > prose > setting > plot.
You can check out my profile or #AdventOfBooks to see some of the works I've enjoyed
Most of my reading is SFF and I also care most about characters. A few suggestions:
The Hands of the Emperor, Victoria Goddard.
The Rivers of London series by Ben Aaronovich.
Tuyo series, Rachel Neumeier.
anything by Martha Wells. Her Murderbot series is well known but I also like the Raksura series beginning with The Cloud Roads or the standalone Wheel of the Infinite.
Astreiant series by Melissa Scott beginning with Point of Hopes
restarted a book i thought i maybe didn't like, but turns out i was just in an airport experiencing interminable delays when i tried before. @bookstodon
@bourgwick
I might try the same with Slaughterhouse Five someday. I was miserably hot in an apartment with no AC. Made that book particularly hard to enjoy. But I stand by my opinion of White Noise! @bookstodon
In parallel I do read A Tall History of Sugar [2019] by Curdella Forbes that takes place in rural #Jamaica and starts in the late 1950ies. Seems very promising, being already on page 47! #bookstodon@bookstodon
@bookstodon Very strange reading a book with two main characters that both are so heavily coded as #actuallyautistic, but I don't think this was done on purpose...
