Books read, April
Sep. 3rd, 2025 01:46 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
cyphomandraFavourites for this month were Black Water Sister and The Library at Mount Char, plus for sheer prose quality A Diary without Dates.
A diary without dates, Enid Bagnold
The Lord of Stariel, AJ Lancaster
The library at Mount Char, Scott Hawkins
Home truths, Charity Norman
Fast connection, Megan Erickson
The friend zone experiment, Zen Cho
Careless people, Sarah Wynn-Williams
A month in the country, JL Carr
Cat gamer 7, Water Nadatani
Dinosaurs sanctuary 6, Itaru Kinoshita
My year in the middle, Lila Quintero Weaver
The shots you take, Rachel Reid
A rake of his own, AJ Lancaster
The husband, Dean Koontz
All systems red, Martha Wells
The Venice hotel, Tess Woods
Life among the savages, Shirley Jackson (re-read)
Black water sister, Zen Cho
The song machine, John Seabrook
The body in the blitz, Robin Stevens
A diary without dates, Enid Bagnold. Impressions of her time as a VAD in a London hospital. The rituals of her work, dialogues with the staff and patients, the outside world, the war - it’s all there, in limpid, beautiful prose, and it got her sacked from her role when it was published, despite her ending with an exhortation about the necessity of winning the war. I remember reading Bagnold’s National Velvet for the first time, and being absolutely blown away by the writing, and really it’s difficult for me to get past that here to say anything interesting. I should read more of her work but I feel I should also ration it somewhat to avoid plunging into comparative despair.
The lord of Stariel, AJ Lancaster. I read this largely because a) NZ author and b) I wanted to read the later m/m book and thought I should have some context, but once again gas-lamp cozy het fantasy romance with otherworldly fae and the aristocratic humans who have a deal with them fails to be my thing. The opening is the strongest part of this but it loses tension as it goes on, and I would rather have read a book about Hetta scraping a living as a small scale illusionist at a third-rate theatre in London than yet another inheritance mystery on a country estate.
The library at Mount Char, Scott Hawkins. Gonzo dark fantasy horror - I got this rec fromrachelmanija - and a very good first novel, after which the author has yet to publish anything else (it came out 2015). Carolyn and her adopted siblings were kidnapped in childhood by Father, an immortal with godlike powers who controls the titular library, and who makes each child specialise in one particular magical field. At the start of the book Father is missing and his library is sealed.
This is very violent with a lot of torture, but Carolyn is great and the heart-break and humour worked really well for me. I could have done without the military guy, but otherwise this is a tense, vivid and brutal read that is ultimately worth it, as long as you weren’t too attached to anyone.
Home truths, Charity Norman. Scott’s brother dies in a medical incident for which Scott feels responsible; as a result, he plummets into conspiracy theories, ripping his family apart ,and the book starts with his wife Livia on trial for his attempted murder. Does a good job of using COVID and anti-vax sentiment, and the first half, where Livia is trying to get him out of it, is strong. The thriller bits and the set up for the crime in the second half were too clunky for me, tho.
Fast connection, Megan Erickson. Ex-Army Nicky meets up with divorced dad Luke on a hookup app, but they both want more. A lot of people on Goodreads liked this more than I did.
The friend zone experiment, Zen Cho. Renee’s business is on the up, but she’s just been dumped by her hot popstar boyfriend when her estranged father contacts her to offer her the chance to take over for him as CEO of a mega corp in SE Asia, because his sons have stuffed up. And, on the same night, she encounters Yap Ket Siong, who broke her heart in uni - but who also has his own reasons for wanting to know more about the dubious actions of Renee’s father’s company. I liked this a lot and it’s not Cho’s fault that I’m much more interested in corporate skullduggery than het romance. Title didn’t have a lot to do with the book.
Careless people: a cautionary tale of power, greed, and lost idealism, Sarah Wynn-Williams. Memoir of her terrible experiences at Facebook, from its early scrappy days to its current political power grabbing; also a memoir of how her idealism about what social media could do to bring people together was trampled into the dirt by amoral greed and apathy. Obviously FB hate it and she wasn’t allowed to promote it. It’s an enjoyable read if you want to hate everybody, although it’s hard not to wonder just a tiny bit whether Sarah ever embellishes her own relative moral purity. My particular favourite anecdote is the one where Zuckerberg cannot deal with losing even at a game of Cataan, so everyone wordlessly lets him win.
A month in the country, JL Carr. Tom Birkin, WWI vet dumped by his wife, spends a month in a small Yorkshire village restoring a medieval mural and meeting some of the locals; later in life he remembers this. Nostalgia-painted observations of the work and the wildlife, although his interactions with the locals are less idyllic, both at the time and in retrospect.
My year in the middle, Lila Quintero Weaver. 1970s Alabama; Lu (daughter of Argentinian immigrants) is literally in the middle in her racially segregated class. She just wants to run track, but the best other runner in her class is a black girl, and a segregationist’s campaign in the local elections is stirring up everyone. Solid book, grounded in the author’s own experience, and well done.
The shots you take, Rachel Reid. Second-chance small-town m/m and with that set-up I really only read it because of a fondness for Reid, and it wasn't really worth it. In addition, one of the characters in this (the big shot hockey success who broke the small-town guy’s heart) never really makes up for what he did.
A rake of his own, AJ Lancaster. The m/m one. Lancaster has settled more into her world by this book and the tension is also better handled. Inadvertently telepathic botanist and arrogant fae prince is also a nice combo, but the plot ending is loose and overall the whole book could be tighter.
The husband, Dean Koontz. Landscape gardener Mitch takes a phonecall at work from someone who tells him they’ve abducted his wife and he has 60 hours to find a $2 million ransom, or they’ll kill her - like they’ve just shot the guy across the street in front of him. Readable but not great. I should try one of my old faves of his sometime (probably Watchers or Lightning).
All systems red, Martha Wells. I’m going to put all the Murderbot stories together in one post.
The Venice hotel, Tess Woods. Staff and customers intersect at a boutique Venice hotel. There is a lot crammed into this soap-opera rom-com and it’s all a bit box-ticky as a result - the abusive marriage plot is probably the strongest, and yet it’s also the most contrived in terms of a solution. I didn’t dislike it but if I’m reading for Venice I would want something with more depth.
Life among the savages, Shirley Jackson (re-read). Once again I am re-reading this and once again I have yet to track down its sequel, Raising Demons
Black water sister, Zen Cho. Jessamine is closeted and broke; despite her girlfriend’s advice, she reluctantly moves back to Malaysia to help with her family, but then starts hearing the voice of Ah Mah, her estranged (and dead), who is determined to make Jessamine settle a grudge against a gang who’ve offended the Black Water Sister, a dangerous god. I thought this was fantastic and only wished we actually got Jessamine’s girlfriend there in person, so I’m hoping for a sequel. Great food, characters, culture and family dynamics.
The song machine: inside the hit factory, John Seabrook. The construction of hit songs, in Western pop in the early 2010s and immediately prior; basically, how little singers have to do with the product, and how much everything is shaped and targeted, with hits being constructed rather than inspired. The author is unfortunately terrible at noticing bias against women in the industry & the exploitation of girls even when documenting it, and it became increasingly obvious throughout the book.
The body in the blitz, Robin Stevens. Second in the series; Daisy is overdue on a dangerous mission in France, and Eric, May and Nuala have just found a body in a bombed out house, but it’s obviously been placed there afterwards. Who is it and who killed them? Tight and fair on the mystery elements, but I do miss Daisy and Hazel as protagonists; I wish Stevens was writing from an older pov as well. The next book is out shortly.
Cat gamer 7, Wataru Nadatani. Only one more volume to go, boo, but I guess it’s better to leave on a high note rather than drag things out. I will note here that one of our two cats (we got tabby ex-feral sister kittens just over a year ago) has decided she is going to be a lap cat, but because she is very skittish this means that only once everybody except me is asleep she comes out for smooches, and the other night I was forced to keep playing video games until 12.30am rather than wake her up from her elegant furry lap sphere. Forced, I say.
Dinosaur sanctuary 6, Itaru Kinoshita. Fantastic. Into the pterosaur department!
A diary without dates, Enid Bagnold
The Lord of Stariel, AJ Lancaster
The library at Mount Char, Scott Hawkins
Home truths, Charity Norman
Fast connection, Megan Erickson
The friend zone experiment, Zen Cho
Careless people, Sarah Wynn-Williams
A month in the country, JL Carr
Cat gamer 7, Water Nadatani
Dinosaurs sanctuary 6, Itaru Kinoshita
My year in the middle, Lila Quintero Weaver
The shots you take, Rachel Reid
A rake of his own, AJ Lancaster
The husband, Dean Koontz
All systems red, Martha Wells
The Venice hotel, Tess Woods
Life among the savages, Shirley Jackson (re-read)
Black water sister, Zen Cho
The song machine, John Seabrook
The body in the blitz, Robin Stevens
A diary without dates, Enid Bagnold. Impressions of her time as a VAD in a London hospital. The rituals of her work, dialogues with the staff and patients, the outside world, the war - it’s all there, in limpid, beautiful prose, and it got her sacked from her role when it was published, despite her ending with an exhortation about the necessity of winning the war. I remember reading Bagnold’s National Velvet for the first time, and being absolutely blown away by the writing, and really it’s difficult for me to get past that here to say anything interesting. I should read more of her work but I feel I should also ration it somewhat to avoid plunging into comparative despair.
The lord of Stariel, AJ Lancaster. I read this largely because a) NZ author and b) I wanted to read the later m/m book and thought I should have some context, but once again gas-lamp cozy het fantasy romance with otherworldly fae and the aristocratic humans who have a deal with them fails to be my thing. The opening is the strongest part of this but it loses tension as it goes on, and I would rather have read a book about Hetta scraping a living as a small scale illusionist at a third-rate theatre in London than yet another inheritance mystery on a country estate.
The library at Mount Char, Scott Hawkins. Gonzo dark fantasy horror - I got this rec from
rachelmanija - and a very good first novel, after which the author has yet to publish anything else (it came out 2015). Carolyn and her adopted siblings were kidnapped in childhood by Father, an immortal with godlike powers who controls the titular library, and who makes each child specialise in one particular magical field. At the start of the book Father is missing and his library is sealed. This is very violent with a lot of torture, but Carolyn is great and the heart-break and humour worked really well for me. I could have done without the military guy, but otherwise this is a tense, vivid and brutal read that is ultimately worth it, as long as you weren’t too attached to anyone.
Home truths, Charity Norman. Scott’s brother dies in a medical incident for which Scott feels responsible; as a result, he plummets into conspiracy theories, ripping his family apart ,and the book starts with his wife Livia on trial for his attempted murder. Does a good job of using COVID and anti-vax sentiment, and the first half, where Livia is trying to get him out of it, is strong. The thriller bits and the set up for the crime in the second half were too clunky for me, tho.
Fast connection, Megan Erickson. Ex-Army Nicky meets up with divorced dad Luke on a hookup app, but they both want more. A lot of people on Goodreads liked this more than I did.
The friend zone experiment, Zen Cho. Renee’s business is on the up, but she’s just been dumped by her hot popstar boyfriend when her estranged father contacts her to offer her the chance to take over for him as CEO of a mega corp in SE Asia, because his sons have stuffed up. And, on the same night, she encounters Yap Ket Siong, who broke her heart in uni - but who also has his own reasons for wanting to know more about the dubious actions of Renee’s father’s company. I liked this a lot and it’s not Cho’s fault that I’m much more interested in corporate skullduggery than het romance. Title didn’t have a lot to do with the book.
Careless people: a cautionary tale of power, greed, and lost idealism, Sarah Wynn-Williams. Memoir of her terrible experiences at Facebook, from its early scrappy days to its current political power grabbing; also a memoir of how her idealism about what social media could do to bring people together was trampled into the dirt by amoral greed and apathy. Obviously FB hate it and she wasn’t allowed to promote it. It’s an enjoyable read if you want to hate everybody, although it’s hard not to wonder just a tiny bit whether Sarah ever embellishes her own relative moral purity. My particular favourite anecdote is the one where Zuckerberg cannot deal with losing even at a game of Cataan, so everyone wordlessly lets him win.
A month in the country, JL Carr. Tom Birkin, WWI vet dumped by his wife, spends a month in a small Yorkshire village restoring a medieval mural and meeting some of the locals; later in life he remembers this. Nostalgia-painted observations of the work and the wildlife, although his interactions with the locals are less idyllic, both at the time and in retrospect.
My year in the middle, Lila Quintero Weaver. 1970s Alabama; Lu (daughter of Argentinian immigrants) is literally in the middle in her racially segregated class. She just wants to run track, but the best other runner in her class is a black girl, and a segregationist’s campaign in the local elections is stirring up everyone. Solid book, grounded in the author’s own experience, and well done.
The shots you take, Rachel Reid. Second-chance small-town m/m and with that set-up I really only read it because of a fondness for Reid, and it wasn't really worth it. In addition, one of the characters in this (the big shot hockey success who broke the small-town guy’s heart) never really makes up for what he did.
A rake of his own, AJ Lancaster. The m/m one. Lancaster has settled more into her world by this book and the tension is also better handled. Inadvertently telepathic botanist and arrogant fae prince is also a nice combo, but the plot ending is loose and overall the whole book could be tighter.
The husband, Dean Koontz. Landscape gardener Mitch takes a phonecall at work from someone who tells him they’ve abducted his wife and he has 60 hours to find a $2 million ransom, or they’ll kill her - like they’ve just shot the guy across the street in front of him. Readable but not great. I should try one of my old faves of his sometime (probably Watchers or Lightning).
All systems red, Martha Wells. I’m going to put all the Murderbot stories together in one post.
The Venice hotel, Tess Woods. Staff and customers intersect at a boutique Venice hotel. There is a lot crammed into this soap-opera rom-com and it’s all a bit box-ticky as a result - the abusive marriage plot is probably the strongest, and yet it’s also the most contrived in terms of a solution. I didn’t dislike it but if I’m reading for Venice I would want something with more depth.
Life among the savages, Shirley Jackson (re-read). Once again I am re-reading this and once again I have yet to track down its sequel, Raising Demons
Black water sister, Zen Cho. Jessamine is closeted and broke; despite her girlfriend’s advice, she reluctantly moves back to Malaysia to help with her family, but then starts hearing the voice of Ah Mah, her estranged (and dead), who is determined to make Jessamine settle a grudge against a gang who’ve offended the Black Water Sister, a dangerous god. I thought this was fantastic and only wished we actually got Jessamine’s girlfriend there in person, so I’m hoping for a sequel. Great food, characters, culture and family dynamics.
The song machine: inside the hit factory, John Seabrook. The construction of hit songs, in Western pop in the early 2010s and immediately prior; basically, how little singers have to do with the product, and how much everything is shaped and targeted, with hits being constructed rather than inspired. The author is unfortunately terrible at noticing bias against women in the industry & the exploitation of girls even when documenting it, and it became increasingly obvious throughout the book.
The body in the blitz, Robin Stevens. Second in the series; Daisy is overdue on a dangerous mission in France, and Eric, May and Nuala have just found a body in a bombed out house, but it’s obviously been placed there afterwards. Who is it and who killed them? Tight and fair on the mystery elements, but I do miss Daisy and Hazel as protagonists; I wish Stevens was writing from an older pov as well. The next book is out shortly.
Cat gamer 7, Wataru Nadatani. Only one more volume to go, boo, but I guess it’s better to leave on a high note rather than drag things out. I will note here that one of our two cats (we got tabby ex-feral sister kittens just over a year ago) has decided she is going to be a lap cat, but because she is very skittish this means that only once everybody except me is asleep she comes out for smooches, and the other night I was forced to keep playing video games until 12.30am rather than wake her up from her elegant furry lap sphere. Forced, I say.
Dinosaur sanctuary 6, Itaru Kinoshita. Fantastic. Into the pterosaur department!
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Date: 2025-09-03 03:08 am (UTC)Yes, I definitely felt the same! Grateful to her for publishing the book and sharing the atmosphere at FB with the wider world in a way which gets attention to the thoroughly rotted corporate structure. If the price we pay for that is letting her pretend she was not fully a part of that structure… I guess that’s fine. :/
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Date: 2025-09-03 11:02 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2025-09-03 03:11 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2025-09-03 11:06 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2025-09-03 10:22 pm (UTC)I really should catch up on the Zen Chos. I didn't like the audiobook narrator for the one I tried in audio, and then I lost focus...
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Date: 2025-09-03 11:07 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2025-09-05 12:13 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2025-09-09 11:43 am (UTC)