New releases: Smart Bitches (romance, queer romance), Book Riot (YA, best out this week)

Linkity from Smart Bitches.

On Edmund and the Turkish delight.

“Ok what next” (the looming edition).

On Harris tweed.

“Knitting is the perfect stim.”

“Scientists built a tiny DNA ‘hand’ that grabs viruses to stop infections“.

Hot cocoa marshmallow sandwich cookies.

Nice MCM.

Decent late MCM, but there’s a living area that desperately needs a railing.

Extremely funky late MCM.

Time capsule late MCM with all the worst bits of the era remaining.

Lovely little houseboat.

I can’t even imagine what this would cost in the Bay area.

Cool, if a bit too ornate for me.

Really nice late Victorian, but the new owner is going to have to refinish all the floors before moving in.

Is it just me, or does this house seem to be having some sort of identity crisis?

Has the most oversized bedroom and a funky tropical bathroom that doesn’t really go with the rest of the place.

I like the house, but the attached bar and restaurant – not so much.

Over the top.

Off the grid earthship.

Don’t think I’ve seen a fish tank like that before. There’s probably a reason for that.

No partially submerged bedrooms for me, thanks.

Converted church comes with its own cemetery.

Yikes.

Ouch.

Not the worst we’ve seen.

Perhaps not.

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Snuggling siblings. (Love the air of faint menace Harry’s managing there.)

What does Polly see outside?!

Harry on the couch, wearing his skully bow tie.

 

• New releases: Smart Bitches (romance), Reactor (YA SFF/horror, SF, fantasy), Book Riot (historical fiction, YA, nonfiction, comics/graphic novels, queer, SFF, romance, mysteries/thrillers/true crime, best out last week)
• Linkity from Smart Bitches.
• Linkity from BookWyrm Knits.
• A lovely ficlet.
• A free wintery Terry Pratchett short story.
• On year-end reading statistics from My Jetpack.
• “‘Enshittification’ is officially the biggest word of the year“.
• “And the universe said…“
• Advent calendar advent calendar (hover cursor/long-press for caption).
• Covid standard time.
• On pigeons.
• Gorgeous quilt with a subtle kitty theme.
• Dragon-themed knitting.
• You could own the castle where part of Game of Thrones was filmed.
• Nice MCM.
• Unique late MCM.
• Groovy late MCM.
• Interesting MCM.
• Hmm. Very odd MCM.
• MCM with an identity crisis.
• Cute.
• It would be best if they took the curtains.
• Weird one in Utah that has some deadly stairs in the loft and needs a lot of work.
• Round house with a strangely located laundry area and puny kitchen.
• Partially remodeled. What’s up with the blue carpet with a drain in the kitchen??
• “Luxury doomsday condos“.
• Have we seen this one before? It’s crazy.
• Brace yourselves – there’s over-the-top and then there’s whatever the heck this is.
• Log cabins shouldn’t be that big.
• At least there’s a handrail??
• I’m not sure I even understand how it’s supposed to work.
• Ridiculous.
• Complicated.
• Why?!
• Yikes.
• Again with the dizzying patterns on stairs.

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Harry cares deeply about all our silly problems.

Polly, asleep on my arm.

No post next week, due to the Thanksgiving holiday in the US. Be well, everyone!

• New releases: Smart Bitches (romance), Book Riot (best out this week, YA)
• Linkity from Smart Bitches.
• I have several of Jan Messent’s books just to look at her amazing knitting.
• What pets mean to us.
• Lovely MCM.
• Round MCM.
• Very fancy firehouse conversion.
• Cozy vibes.
• Nice MCM, although it’s another with the tub right by the bed. And the last shower pictured looks like a cleaning nightmare.
• Disappointing castle esque house.
• Round house with photos of before and after they greyed it down.
• An inexpensive floating house that needs work, so maybe it’s not so inexpensive.
• I have to say, I like houseboats better than floating houses, which don’t look like they can actually go anywhere.
• That’s a lot of money for a house that needs a lot of work.
• That’s a lot of plants.
• That’s a lot of plaid.
• Converting these pole barn type buildings into homes is just so weird to me.
• What a disturbing looking house (just based on the outside).
• Adventures in terrible bathroom design.
• Dizziness inducing carpet patterns have no place on stairs.
• At least they look better than what was there before, based on the cement patching.
• Nope.
• Just say no to glass stairs.

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Harry and his skully bow tie.

Polly and her Ears of Annoyance.

• New releases: Smart Bitches (romance), Book Riot (best out this week, YA fiction, YA nonfiction and comics)
• Linkity from Smart Bitches.
• Until November 22, you can get ten free books (a “Getting Free” from the current catastrophe pack, basically) from Haymarket Books.
• Ok, I didn’t know page turners existed until now.
• “Advice for Challenging Times“.
• Little Debbie is selling candles.
• Cozy little floating house.
• Just cute.
• It is indeed a fairy tale compound.
• Nice Tudor in Minneapolis with too much mint green.
• Cute cottage in New Orleans.
• Time capsule MCM.
• Very fancy Baroque townhouse in Minneapolis.
• Pretty good church conversion that needs some color and a dishwasher.
• The attic is interesting, but I like the basement the best.
• If you’ve been looking for an ice palace…
• Besides being too close to the ocean, all the 12-degree angles are annoying.
• Supremely delusional real estate ad.
• Another entry in the delusional landlords category.
• I agree about the cursed bit.
• Nooooo.
• D’oh.
• Do not like the left side.
• Invisible stairs of death.
• WTF.
• Yikes.

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Polly kneading (and possibly licking) a fleecy blanket.

Nice air of vague menace, Harry!

• New releases: Smart Bitches (romance, queer), Book Riot (historical fiction, YA, comics/graphic novels, nonfiction, queer, SFF, BIPOC romance, mystery/thriller, romance), Gizmodo (SFF/horror)
• Linkity from BookWyrm Knits.
• “Books Are My Passion” Lego set.
• Very cool mittens.
• “There is hope…“
• Just no.
• Lovely MCM.
• Another lovely MCM.
• This MCM has too much stone for me.
• An MCM with a checkered past.
• Interesting bank conversion, but they sure don’t show much of the kitchen.
• I like the cool tower, but the photos are all at weird angles and there aren’t any interior photos of the tower.
• Big daycare vibes.
• Sorry, I got stuck at the table full of ceramics.
• Really hate the look of this “by the hour” rental.
• That’s the tightest spiral I’ve ever seen on a set of stairs.
• Best for spindly people.
• Hmm.

---

Mayhem, possibly having an existential crisis, as one does.

Harry (looking vaguely menacing) and Polly!

• New releases: Smart Bitches (romance), Book Riot (best out this week, YA epic fantasy, YA)
• Linkity from Smart Bitches.
• Some thoughts on Boromir, Aragorn, and bracers.
• Ficlet.
• Comic that’s a bit sad.
• A twist on Rapunzel.
• Try a walking or biking desk instead, I guess.
• The Oregon Trail video game is being made into a movie.
• Castle-esque Tudor. I like it, although the kitchen definitely needs more storage.
• Interesting Art Deco house that needs something to counterbalance all the brown.
• Very colorful. Put a few of those colors back, actually. (Or pass them on to that Art Deco house.)
• Gigantic statuary and a bathtub shaped like a clay pot.
• Just for the record, there aren’t any mountains in St Paul, MN.
• And no railing.
• The micro-railing is darling but useless.
• Tricky.
• Ack!
• Yikes.

---

Polly!

Harry has a new skully bow tie!

Siblings keeping an eye on us.

• New releases: Smart Bitches (romance, more romance), Book Riot (best out this week, best out last week, YA, YA comics and nonfiction)
• Linkity from Smart Bitches. From last week.
• Spooky ficlet.
• Digging into dubious sounding claims.
• Warning signs.
• Animated needlepoint shooting star.
• A View-Master movie?!
• One-pot creamy chicken soup.
• Pumpkin muffins.
• Soft pumpkin cookies with cream cheese frosting.
• Nice MCM.
• Interesting MCM in Palm Springs.
• Very cheery!
• My favorite part is the tower.
• Surprisingly nice inside.
• Very eclectic.
• I think that’s probably too many murals.
• The redo is definitely an improvement, except for converting some built-in bookshelves to a wet bar.
• “Unusual, not necessarily tasteful” – includes Bathroom of Extreme Dizziness.
• Must really love faux brick and the dusting thereof.
• I like the built-ins in the bedroom.
• I was too traumatized by the scary tall bookshelves to see anything after.
• Guitar-shaped house.
• Only included because I love the phrase “tower of shower”.
• If you need 27 bedrooms and don’t mind a major rehab project…
• How not to convert an old mill.
• Boring house with a secret.
• You wouldn’t think a hobbit-esque house would be boring, but…
• Just gives me that mall vibe.
• Pantry danger.
• They didn’t even try.
• Huh.
• The “Trippy” poster at the bottom is a nice touch.
• So much bad in one photo.
• Chaotic stairs.
• Creepy.
• Eep.
• No.

---

Harry vs The Leaf, part one.

Harry vs The Leaf, part two.

Polly sniffing the breeze.

Mayhem sniffing the breeze.

No linkity next week due to a scheduling conflict!

---

• New releases: Smart Bitches (romance, queer romance),  Book Riot (best out this week, Nordic mysteries/thrillers, cozy historical fantasy, YA, horror), Reactor (genre benders)
• Linkity from Smart Bitches.
• A sweet and thoughtful comic.
• An amusing LotR post about Aragorn’s height.
• “Utah book banners…want to make Little Free Libraries susceptible to criminal charges“.
• Exorcist ouija board.
• Pumpkin snickerdoodle bars.
• Pumpkin chocolate chip cookies.
• Lovely converted church.
• Nicely done jail conversion.
• Made out of interconnected wine barrels!
• Cool, especially if you need a recording studio.
• Cute little place.
• Nice, but having to climb a ladder to the second floor bedrooms is weird.
• Why are there a table and chairs next to a tub?
• I hope whoever has it under contract has a lot of money for renovations.
• These aren’t so bad.
• Give it a minute.
• Mystery stairs.
• It does look more like a bookcase than stairs. And that “railing” is pathetic.

---

Very Serious Mayhem.

Harry asleep on a fleecy blanket.

Polly asleep on a different fleecy blanket.

• New releases: Smart Bitches (romance), Book Riot (nonfiction, comics/graphic novels, YA, historical fiction, queer, best out in October, SFF, mystery/thriller, romance, cozy comics/graphic novels/manga), Gizmodo (SFF/horror), Reactor (fantasy,  SF, YA SFF)
• Linkity from Smart Bitches.
• Very good ficlet.
• Hanna vs Dracula.
• This is the most 80s apartment ever.
• The wood flooring and paneling are amazing.
• Is it just me or do stone showers look like a nightmare to clean?
• An odd Victorian in St Paul. Have we seen it already?
• Sort of castle-esque, but more notable for the heart-shaped pond.
• Really weird.
• Mysterious.
• Ouch.
• Are these repurposed shelves?
• So much wrong with this.
• I have to hope this is an art installation.

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Polly, apparently looking into the abyss. Or maybe at some of the “stairs that can kill you” entries!

Some side-eye from Harry.

• New releases: Smart Bitches (romance), Book Riot (best out this week, romance comics, queer)
• Linkity from Smart Bitches.
• Cute ficlet.
• Book dragon.
• If you read Terry Pratchett, check out the free Annotated Pratchett File.
• SUCH a cursed beast.
• Complete list of rump’s crimes and such.
• It’s just nice.
• Cute fairy tale-esque house in Berkeley.
• Another cute one.
• Lovely house designed by Frank Lloyd Wright.
• I love all of the storage in the kitchen.
• Have we seen this over-the-top castle house before?
• What a strange MCM – it feels as if it was built without a plan.
• MCM that was featured in Better Homes and Gardens back in the day. In the present, it needs a bit of a facelift and for the gross carpet to be gone.
• Has potential, but needs lots of work.
• I like purple, but this wasn’t really the place for it, especially because they half-assed it.
• This is ridiculous.
• Comparing the realtor’s photoshop with the reality.
• Santa Fe house that is definitely not wheelchair accessible.
• How odd.
• Sigh.
• Whyyyyyyyyy.
• Absolutely not.
• These seem like something Fred Astaire would be carefully dancing down. The rest of us, not so much.
• Agility test.

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Polly staring into our souls.

Serious Harry is serious.

Can you guess where Crawley the robovac is??

How about now??