Books read, May
Jan. 29th, 2020 12:12 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
cyphomandraBest this month was definitely Wed Wabbit, with thanks to rachelmanija, for pointing me at it. I liked both the Westover and Bradbury memoirs but didn't love them.
A Novella Collection, Courtney Milan (title both accurate and completely unhelpful).
Lord of Scoundrels, Loretta Chase.
The Crown of Success, A.L.O.E (re-read).
Whiteout, Thaw, Heatwave, Changing Colors, Elyse Springer (the Seasons of Love series).
The Rúin, Dervla McTiernan.
Firefighter Griffin, Zoe Chant.
For the Good of the School, Doris Pocock.
Educated, Tara Westover.
The Bumblebee Flies Anyway, Kate Bradbury.
Trailer Trash, Marie Sexton.
Wed Wabbit, Lissa Evans.
Shotgun, Marie Sexton.
How to Own the Room: Women and the Art of Brilliantly Speaking, Viv Groskop.
Viscount Vagabond, Loretta Chase.
A Deeper Blue, S.E. Harmon.
Phoebe and Her Unicorn, Dana Simpson.
Becoming, Michelle Obama.
Dogfight, Hot Air, Donovan Bixley.
Roped In, LA Witt.
The Plague and I, Betty MacDonald.
Catch Me When You Fall, Eileen Merriman.
A Novella Collection, Courtney Milan. Includes The Governess Affair, A Kiss for Midwinter, What Happened at Midnight, and The Lady Always Wins. I always find Milan readable but not a lot of these have stuck with me; I remember most of the The Governess Affair, possibly because the characters have more precarious and believable social positions that some of her leads.
Lord of Scoundrels, Loretta Chase. Half-English, half-Italian Dain is the titular Lord, with a difficult and tragic backstory; Jessica Trent is the independent bluestocking determined to extract her rather dim brother (Bertie, naturally) from Dain’s malign influence. Fun, and the plotline around Dain’s illegitimate son elevates this from a standard Beauty and the Beast re-telling.
The Crown of Success, A.L.O.E (re-read). Comfortably didactic tale about the importance of hard work via entertainingly literalised metaphor (the subtitle is “Four Heads to Furnish”; four children are given purses which refill daily with coins of time, and can spend them on practicalities or frivolities, in anticipation of their mother’s return to judge who has done best). I just really like this and I enjoy the fact that the crippled quiet girl gets to win.
Whiteout, Thaw, Heat Wave, Changing Colors, Elyse Springer (Seasons of Love series). Series with m/m and f/f pairings; I reviewed the two middle books earlier for fffriday. Whiteout is a bizarre tonal whiplash of an m/m that starts off as Hitchcock (Noah wakes up in a snowbound cabin with amnesia, a boyfriend prone to sudden fits of anger, and a hidden phone that suggests his name may actually be Nathan and at least one person is lying about his past) and ends up resulting in a happy ending from a Broadway debut and a heartfelt hand-assembled scrapbook of apology. Changing Colors is m/m with an uptight theatre director and a gender-nonconforming southerner; it’s okay. Overall the series didn’t win me over - too many dramatic public gestures, and odd decisions about what to leave out, reinforced by tone and plotting issues.
The Rúin, Dervla McTiernan. First in a detective series. Opens with two young and neglected children waiting in a dilapidated house while their mother lies dead from a drug overdose, one of the first cases Cormac Reilly, a new policeman, must deal with; twenty years later the younger child, now an adult, apparently commits suicide. Great opening, very atmospheric; falls away as the story progresses into a more clunky ticking off of plot points.
Firefighter Griffin, Zoe Chant. Listened to on audiobook as I needed something to get me through the dentist! Narrator heroically attempts all the accents, and while I wasn’t convinced by all of them they were great for distinguishing characters. Excellent tension in the court scene denouement.
For the Good of the School, Doris Pocock. Girls’ boarding school story that I have retained no useful memory of. I liked her Backstage with Peggy, which was school + theatre. I enjoyed this but it hasn’t stuck.
Educated, Tara Westover. Brilliantly written memoir of an abusive and neglectful childhood in a family violently opposed to any state interference, and Tara’s eventual escape (progression?) to academia; first in the US, then at Oxford. I’d seen a number of praising reviews but I hadn’t expected how disturbing and violent the relationship between her and her brother would be; it’s a good book, but painful.
The Bumblebee Flies Anyway, Kate Bradbury. Not the Robert Cormier YA with the depressing ending (as someone who hated all the Chocolate War books I realise this doesn’t narrow it down). Similar to H is for Hawk, this is about grief and rediscovery through nature; in this case, the wildlife-friendly garden Kate creates from the decked and and concreted over tiny backyard of her new Brighton home. But it’s also a paean to what’s been lost; insects, birds, plants, mammals; all the wildlife we’ve destroyed. It made me make some changes to my garden, in honour of this book as well as the wild places I remember visiting as a child that no longer exist.
Trailer Trash, Marie Sexton. YA/NA; Nate ends up in small town Wyoming after his parents’ divorce, and falls for Cody, poor and from the wrong side of the tracks. It’s set in 1986, and the townspeople behave exactly as you’d expect them to with that sort of set-up; the only way out is out. I prefer older protagonists if I want to really believe in a happy-ever-after ending for a romance; these two still have a lot of growing up to do.
Wed Wabbit, Lissa Evans. Incwedible :D Fidge is the responsible elder sister whose own needs seem to always get pushed aside by her disorganised and widowed mother and her younger sister Minnie, aged four and obsessed with picture book characters the Wimbley Woos and her massive, brooding stuffed bunny, Wed Wabbit. Then a terrible accident (caused by Fidge) catapults herself and her overprotected and neurotic cousin Graham into Wimbley Land, now ruled over by a mysterious tyrant, and they have to work together to find a way back home - extremely funny, with depths of feeling, and the whole thing is deeply satisfying in the way the best sorts of these fantasies are. It's very different from The Crown of Success in tone, content, and morals, but the two of them share that delight in bringing together the real and the fantastic to make something larger than both.
Shotgun, Marie Sexton. Part of her Coda series but not more forgettable; closeted teacher with teenage daughter and depressed teacher had a hook-up as teens, and meet as adults; a rather over-the-top stalking plot tries (and fails) to make up for the rather irritating leads.
How to Own the Room: Women and the Art of Brilliantly Speaking, Viv Groskop. What it says on the tin. Had some useful bits, most of which I have now forgotten, but the monthly meetings I chair are going somewhat better.
Viscount Vagabond, Loretta Chase. Catherine runs away from her dictatorial father and future husband, and ends up hiding in a brothel, from whence the drunk and dissolute Viscount Max decides to save her. One of Chase’s early books and forgettable.
A Deeper Blue, S.E. Harmon. Sequel to the one in which snarky academic Kelly gets together with long-time crush and best friend Blue, an NFL star. In this one Blue wrestles with whether or not to come out; it was engaging, and I liked the team mates, but I don’t think Harmon quite pulls off the transition into long-term relationship.
Phoebe and Her Unicorn, Dana Simpson. First in a series of graphic novels about a nine-year old girl and her not-that-imaginary friend, Marigold Heavenly Nostrils; started as a daily comic strip. Fun (I particularly like Marigold being able to hotspot wi fi with her horn) and great character dynamics, and a refreshing change from all the male-centred newspaper comic strips about imaginative small boys I grew up reading.
Becoming, Michelle Obama. Memoir/bio; it’s well-told, it’s interesting, it’s very careful about what it shows and what it conceals (and it hides just how careful it is; I imagine teams of editors combed through it). I enjoyed reading it and it depressed me about the current state of US politics.
Dogfight, Hot Air, Donovan Bixley. First two in his graphic novel WWII AU with cats & dogs. Fast and funny.
Roped In, LA Witt. Graham is a rodeo competitor who is tiring of the scene, who’s been hiding his feelings for his partner despite a previous drunken hook-up; Kaz is a young, idealistic animal rights protestor, who knocks Graham right out of his comfort zone. Interesting but a bit of a mess.
The Plague and I, Betty MacDonald. Betty spent nine months in a sanatorium being treated for tuberculosis in 1937, when treatment meant absolute physical and mental rest, artificial lung collapses, and Kafkaesque rules. Good, and her character observation is great; one of her roommates, Kimi, is Japanese, and is drawn very much as a person rather than as a caricature. The isolation and pettiness of the treatment conditions is terrifying.
Catch Me When You Fall, Eileen Merriman. Her first - seventeen-year old Alex discovers her leukaemia has relapsed on the same day that she meets Jamie who has bipolar, and falls in love. It’s not a bad book - Alex is a great character, although she might do better without Jamie - but at the time of writing this review I have read all four of Merriman’s books (three YA, one adult) and all her endings, frankly, suck, which makes it hard to look past at the bits I liked. Two of them have real deaths and two of them have fake-out deaths; none of these really work as anything other than a Shocking Twist that is not actually Shocking. For what it's worth this and Invisibly Breathing are my favourites.
rachelmanija, for pointing me at it. I liked both the Westover and Bradbury memoirs but didn't love them.A Novella Collection, Courtney Milan (title both accurate and completely unhelpful).
Lord of Scoundrels, Loretta Chase.
The Crown of Success, A.L.O.E (re-read).
Whiteout, Thaw, Heatwave, Changing Colors, Elyse Springer (the Seasons of Love series).
The Rúin, Dervla McTiernan.
Firefighter Griffin, Zoe Chant.
For the Good of the School, Doris Pocock.
Educated, Tara Westover.
The Bumblebee Flies Anyway, Kate Bradbury.
Trailer Trash, Marie Sexton.
Wed Wabbit, Lissa Evans.
Shotgun, Marie Sexton.
How to Own the Room: Women and the Art of Brilliantly Speaking, Viv Groskop.
Viscount Vagabond, Loretta Chase.
A Deeper Blue, S.E. Harmon.
Phoebe and Her Unicorn, Dana Simpson.
Becoming, Michelle Obama.
Dogfight, Hot Air, Donovan Bixley.
Roped In, LA Witt.
The Plague and I, Betty MacDonald.
Catch Me When You Fall, Eileen Merriman.
A Novella Collection, Courtney Milan. Includes The Governess Affair, A Kiss for Midwinter, What Happened at Midnight, and The Lady Always Wins. I always find Milan readable but not a lot of these have stuck with me; I remember most of the The Governess Affair, possibly because the characters have more precarious and believable social positions that some of her leads.
Lord of Scoundrels, Loretta Chase. Half-English, half-Italian Dain is the titular Lord, with a difficult and tragic backstory; Jessica Trent is the independent bluestocking determined to extract her rather dim brother (Bertie, naturally) from Dain’s malign influence. Fun, and the plotline around Dain’s illegitimate son elevates this from a standard Beauty and the Beast re-telling.
The Crown of Success, A.L.O.E (re-read). Comfortably didactic tale about the importance of hard work via entertainingly literalised metaphor (the subtitle is “Four Heads to Furnish”; four children are given purses which refill daily with coins of time, and can spend them on practicalities or frivolities, in anticipation of their mother’s return to judge who has done best). I just really like this and I enjoy the fact that the crippled quiet girl gets to win.
Whiteout, Thaw, Heat Wave, Changing Colors, Elyse Springer (Seasons of Love series). Series with m/m and f/f pairings; I reviewed the two middle books earlier for fffriday. Whiteout is a bizarre tonal whiplash of an m/m that starts off as Hitchcock (Noah wakes up in a snowbound cabin with amnesia, a boyfriend prone to sudden fits of anger, and a hidden phone that suggests his name may actually be Nathan and at least one person is lying about his past) and ends up resulting in a happy ending from a Broadway debut and a heartfelt hand-assembled scrapbook of apology. Changing Colors is m/m with an uptight theatre director and a gender-nonconforming southerner; it’s okay. Overall the series didn’t win me over - too many dramatic public gestures, and odd decisions about what to leave out, reinforced by tone and plotting issues.
The Rúin, Dervla McTiernan. First in a detective series. Opens with two young and neglected children waiting in a dilapidated house while their mother lies dead from a drug overdose, one of the first cases Cormac Reilly, a new policeman, must deal with; twenty years later the younger child, now an adult, apparently commits suicide. Great opening, very atmospheric; falls away as the story progresses into a more clunky ticking off of plot points.
Firefighter Griffin, Zoe Chant. Listened to on audiobook as I needed something to get me through the dentist! Narrator heroically attempts all the accents, and while I wasn’t convinced by all of them they were great for distinguishing characters. Excellent tension in the court scene denouement.
For the Good of the School, Doris Pocock. Girls’ boarding school story that I have retained no useful memory of. I liked her Backstage with Peggy, which was school + theatre. I enjoyed this but it hasn’t stuck.
Educated, Tara Westover. Brilliantly written memoir of an abusive and neglectful childhood in a family violently opposed to any state interference, and Tara’s eventual escape (progression?) to academia; first in the US, then at Oxford. I’d seen a number of praising reviews but I hadn’t expected how disturbing and violent the relationship between her and her brother would be; it’s a good book, but painful.
The Bumblebee Flies Anyway, Kate Bradbury. Not the Robert Cormier YA with the depressing ending (as someone who hated all the Chocolate War books I realise this doesn’t narrow it down). Similar to H is for Hawk, this is about grief and rediscovery through nature; in this case, the wildlife-friendly garden Kate creates from the decked and and concreted over tiny backyard of her new Brighton home. But it’s also a paean to what’s been lost; insects, birds, plants, mammals; all the wildlife we’ve destroyed. It made me make some changes to my garden, in honour of this book as well as the wild places I remember visiting as a child that no longer exist.
Trailer Trash, Marie Sexton. YA/NA; Nate ends up in small town Wyoming after his parents’ divorce, and falls for Cody, poor and from the wrong side of the tracks. It’s set in 1986, and the townspeople behave exactly as you’d expect them to with that sort of set-up; the only way out is out. I prefer older protagonists if I want to really believe in a happy-ever-after ending for a romance; these two still have a lot of growing up to do.
Wed Wabbit, Lissa Evans. Incwedible :D Fidge is the responsible elder sister whose own needs seem to always get pushed aside by her disorganised and widowed mother and her younger sister Minnie, aged four and obsessed with picture book characters the Wimbley Woos and her massive, brooding stuffed bunny, Wed Wabbit. Then a terrible accident (caused by Fidge) catapults herself and her overprotected and neurotic cousin Graham into Wimbley Land, now ruled over by a mysterious tyrant, and they have to work together to find a way back home - extremely funny, with depths of feeling, and the whole thing is deeply satisfying in the way the best sorts of these fantasies are. It's very different from The Crown of Success in tone, content, and morals, but the two of them share that delight in bringing together the real and the fantastic to make something larger than both.
Shotgun, Marie Sexton. Part of her Coda series but not more forgettable; closeted teacher with teenage daughter and depressed teacher had a hook-up as teens, and meet as adults; a rather over-the-top stalking plot tries (and fails) to make up for the rather irritating leads.
How to Own the Room: Women and the Art of Brilliantly Speaking, Viv Groskop. What it says on the tin. Had some useful bits, most of which I have now forgotten, but the monthly meetings I chair are going somewhat better.
Viscount Vagabond, Loretta Chase. Catherine runs away from her dictatorial father and future husband, and ends up hiding in a brothel, from whence the drunk and dissolute Viscount Max decides to save her. One of Chase’s early books and forgettable.
A Deeper Blue, S.E. Harmon. Sequel to the one in which snarky academic Kelly gets together with long-time crush and best friend Blue, an NFL star. In this one Blue wrestles with whether or not to come out; it was engaging, and I liked the team mates, but I don’t think Harmon quite pulls off the transition into long-term relationship.
Phoebe and Her Unicorn, Dana Simpson. First in a series of graphic novels about a nine-year old girl and her not-that-imaginary friend, Marigold Heavenly Nostrils; started as a daily comic strip. Fun (I particularly like Marigold being able to hotspot wi fi with her horn) and great character dynamics, and a refreshing change from all the male-centred newspaper comic strips about imaginative small boys I grew up reading.
Becoming, Michelle Obama. Memoir/bio; it’s well-told, it’s interesting, it’s very careful about what it shows and what it conceals (and it hides just how careful it is; I imagine teams of editors combed through it). I enjoyed reading it and it depressed me about the current state of US politics.
Dogfight, Hot Air, Donovan Bixley. First two in his graphic novel WWII AU with cats & dogs. Fast and funny.
Roped In, LA Witt. Graham is a rodeo competitor who is tiring of the scene, who’s been hiding his feelings for his partner despite a previous drunken hook-up; Kaz is a young, idealistic animal rights protestor, who knocks Graham right out of his comfort zone. Interesting but a bit of a mess.
The Plague and I, Betty MacDonald. Betty spent nine months in a sanatorium being treated for tuberculosis in 1937, when treatment meant absolute physical and mental rest, artificial lung collapses, and Kafkaesque rules. Good, and her character observation is great; one of her roommates, Kimi, is Japanese, and is drawn very much as a person rather than as a caricature. The isolation and pettiness of the treatment conditions is terrifying.
Catch Me When You Fall, Eileen Merriman. Her first - seventeen-year old Alex discovers her leukaemia has relapsed on the same day that she meets Jamie who has bipolar, and falls in love. It’s not a bad book - Alex is a great character, although she might do better without Jamie - but at the time of writing this review I have read all four of Merriman’s books (three YA, one adult) and all her endings, frankly, suck, which makes it hard to look past at the bits I liked. Two of them have real deaths and two of them have fake-out deaths; none of these really work as anything other than a Shocking Twist that is not actually Shocking. For what it's worth this and Invisibly Breathing are my favourites.
