Category Archives: Reading

Linkity linkity link, Reading, Reviewettes

Not much linkity, but a really cute picture of Mayhem

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I ended up working during my linkity time, so here’s what was done before my linkity time. Oh, and send warm thoughts our way, because it is going to be a wee bit chilly ’round these parts…

Reading Update
Kill the Blues, Aloha from Hell, Devil in the Dollhouse, Devil Said Bang (Sandman Slim, #4)Devil Said Bang, and Kill City Blues (Sandman Slim, #5)Kill City Blues, The Getaway God (Sandman Slim, #6)The Getaway God, Killing Pretty (Sandman Slim, #7)Killing Pretty, The Perdition Score (Sandman Slim, #8)The Perdition Score (Sandman Slim 2, 3, 3.5, 4, 5, 6, 7) by Richard Kadrey. Good additions to this gritty urban fantasy series whose protagonist is a cross between Harry Dresden (Dresden Files) and John Taylor (Nightside).

“…zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz…” -Mayhem

(Yes, she is absolutely asleep with her mouth slightly agape!)

Linkity linkity link, Reading, Reviewettes

In which linkity gives up trying to think of a linkity title

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Bookity

Do, Make, Think, Learn

Cookity

Gluten Free

Artsy Crafty

Cool

Cool or Wha…?

Wha…?

LOL

Teh Cute

Reading Update
Scarlet (The Lunar Chronicles, #2)Scarlet, Cress (The Lunar Chronicles, #3)Cress, and Winter (The Lunar Chronicles, #4)Winter (Lunar Chronicles 2-4) by Marissa Meyer. Scarlet: Young adult futuristic retelling of Little Red Riding Hood. Cress: Rapunzel! Winter: Snow White. Very good series – pretty much stayed up too late reading all week…
Stars Above (The Lunar Chronicles, #4.5)Stars Above (Lunar Chronicles 4.5) by Marissa Meyer. Most of the stories predate the series, but one is a bit of an epilogue. If you enjoyed the series, you should definitely read this!
Sandman Slim (Sandman Slim, Book 1)Sandman Slim (Book #1) by Richard Kadrey. Pretty good urban fantasy about a guy whose “friends” sent him to Hell alive. He’s back 11 years later and he’s a little bit pissed…
Heart of Briar (The Portals #1)Heart of Briar and Soul of Fire (The Portals, #2)Soul of Fire (The Portals 1-2) by Laura Ann Gilman. Pretty good two-book series about a woman who’s boyfriend is stolen by a fairy and her life unravels as she tries to figure out what’s going on. It more or less felt complete at the end of the second book, but I do wonder if it was originally supposed to be a trilogy.

*purring while clinging like a limpet* -Chaos

What the heck IS it with old cats getting clingy and needing to be Very Very Close to your face?!

Linkity linkity link, Reading, Reviewettes

Linkity’s staring blankly at a wall trying to think of a title

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Bookity

Think, Learn, Make, Do

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Cool

Cool or Wha…?

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Reading Update
Trailer Park Fae (Gallow and Ragged, #1)Trailer Park Fae, Roadside Magic (Gallow and Ragged, #2)Roadside Magic, and Wasteland King (Gallow and Ragged, #3)Wasteland King (Gallow & Ragged #1-3) by Lilith Saintcrow. Good trilogy about a war between the Seelie and Unseelie Courts (Summer and Unwinter) and the half-human/half-fae who get caught in the middle.
Night Shift (Jill Kismet, #1)Night Shift (Jill Kismet #1) by Lilith Saintcrow. Reread of this paranormal romance about a demon hunter whose powers are demon-enhanced. No desire to read more of the series. Last time I tried, I think I made it two books in before giving up…
The Do-It-Yourself Guide to Fighting the Big Motherfuckin' SadThe Do-It-Yourself Guide to Fighting the Big Motherfuckin’ Sad by Adam Gnade. What it says on the tin. It was fine. I don’t think the author and I would enjoy hanging out with each other, tho.
Cinder (The Lunar Chronicles, #1)Cinder (The Lunar Chronicles #1) by Marissa Meyer. Good young adult scifi twist on the Cinderella tale – Cinder is a cyborg.
On Looking: Eleven Walks with Expert Eyes by Alexandra Horowitz. Very good book about a woman who goes for walks with various experts (geologist, doctor, architect, etc) and experiences the various lens different people use to see the world.

“My foot is not big! It is perfect!!!” -Mayhem

Linkity linkity link, Reading, Reviewettes

First linkity of 2019

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Bookity

Think, Make, Learn, Do

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Cool

Wha…?

LOL

Teh Cute

Reading Update
The Mortal Word (The Invisible Library #5)The Mortal Word (The Invisible Library #5) by Genevieve Cogman. Another very good addition to this series. I devoured it in a single sitting.
Zero Sum GameZero Sum Game (Russell’s Attic #1) by SL Huang. Ambivalent about this one – I liked it well enough, but the rest of the series isn’t available because it’s being rereleased. By the time they’re all rereleased, I will have forgotten everything about this book.
A Gathering of Shadows (Shades of Magic #2)A Gathering of Magic (Shades of Magic #2) by VE Schwab. I gave up a few chapters in – it just wasn’t holding my interest for some reason.
The Iron Wyrm Affair (Bannon & Clare, #1)The Iron Wyrm Affair, The Red Plague Affair (Bannon & Clare, #2)The Red Plague Affair, The Ripper AffairThe Ripper Affair, and The Damnation Affair (Bannon & Clare, #1.5)The Damnation Affair (Bannon & Clare 1-3, 1.5) by Lilith Saintcrow. Very good magical Holmesian steampunk trilogy. Recommended. While The Damnation Affair is nominally set in the same universe, it’s on another continent and features completely different characters.
Beast of WonderBeast of Wonder by Lilith Saintcrow. I have no idea what happened in this one. Just HUH?!

Catghan activated!

Linkity linkity link, Reading, Reviewettes

In which organization returns to linkity

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Bookity

Think, Learn, Make, Do

Gift Ideas

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Cool or Wha…?

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Reading Update
Hilda and the Hidden PeopleHilda and the Hidden People (Book 1) by Luke Pearson & Stephen Davis. It was an ok kids fantasy story about a blue-haired girl named Hilda who discovers there’s an awful lot of she wasn’t aware of right outside her own house. It felt a little flat to me – from perusing the other reviews, I wonder if I’d find the original graphic novel more appealing?

“Did you hear that, Mom?!!” -Mayhem

Linkity linkity link, Reading, Reviewettes

Linkity breezing by again because work is very workity

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For the second week in a row, I’m working through my linkity time, so the below mess of links is what I managed to put together during an afternoon conference call… 😉

Reading Update
The Lost Days (Emily the Strange Novels, #1)The Lost Days, Emily the Strange: Stranger and StrangerStranger and Stranger, Emily the Strange: Dark TimesDark Times, and Emily the Strange: Piece of MindPiece of Mind (Emily the Strange 1-4) by Rob Reger & Jessica Gruner. Good four-book young adult series about the strange adventures of Emily the Strange, as told by Emily in her journal.

“You may admire how cute I am, yes.” -Mayhem

Linkity linkity link, Reading, Reviewettes

Linkity rushing by in a blur

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Things are just crazy this week! I have to work during my usual linkity time, so I’m going to slap a couple of links down and call it good for the week. Hope all of you are well! 🙂

Reading Update
No Plot? No Problem!: A Low-Stress, High-Velocity Guide to Writing a Novel in 30 DaysNo Plot? No Problem! A Low-Stress, High-Velocity Guide to Writing a Novel in 30 Days by Chris Baty. This book was absolutely perfect for me to start reading a week or so before starting my very first NaNoWriMo – it had a great balance of reassurance, reality checks, and humor. I read each section of the book at the time recommended in the book and found that to be really helpful – it prepared me for each week without overwhelming me any more than I was already. And hey – I hit my 50k on 25 Nov 2018!
How to Be a Heroine: Or, What I’ve Learned from Reading Too Much by Samantha Ellis. Very good autobiographical look back at some of the author’s favorite heroines from when she was growing up – I really liked how she explained what each heroine had meant to her as a kid and what she saw now, upon rereading.

*radiating malevolence* -Chaos

Linkity linkity link, Reading, Reviewettes

At least there’s linkity, even if it’s a mess?

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This is going to be one of those mess of not really sorted linkities because it’s been a little crazy around here this week…

Reading Update
Hawkeye, Volume 1: My Life as a WeaponHawkeye 1: My Life As A Weapon by Matt Fraction. Reread.
Hawkeye, Volume 2: Little HitsHawkeye 2: Little Hits by Matt Fraction. It’s really hard to be Clint Barton.
Hawkeye, Volume 3: L.A. WomanHawkeye 3: LA Woman by Matt Fraction. Not a fan of Kate Bishop, but in the interest of reading the entire story arc…
Hawkeye, Volume 4: Rio BravoHawkeye 4: Rio Bravo by Matt Fraction. Is the narrative kind of incoherent or is it me? Hmm.

*smoldering sleepily* -Mayhem

Linkity linkity link, Reading, Reviewettes

Linkity can’t come up with a title less lame than this

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  • Still chugging along, even slightly ahead on my word count, for NaNoWriMo.
  • No linkity next week, November 23, due to the Thanksgiving holiday here in the US.
  • Not sure if there will be linkity on the 30th – it really depends on how NaNo is going at that point! 🙂

Bookity

Learn, Do, Make, Think

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Gluten Free

Artsy Crafty

Cool

Wha…?

LOL

Teh Cute

Reading Update
The Labyrinth Index (Laundry Files, #9)The Labyrinth Index (Laundry Files #9) by Charles Stross. Ack. These are so complex now that I almost need to reread the entire series when each new book comes out. Mental note to do that before the next one… This one was mainly from Mhari’s POV after the shocking developments of book 8 have had a chance to sink in a little bit.

“Back off, Mom! Sheesh!” -Mayhem

Linkity linkity link, Reading, Reviewettes

Linkity hopes everyone gets out to vote on Tuesday (if you’re in the US)

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Bookity

Think, Learn, Make, Do, VOTE

Cookity

Gluten Free

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Cool

Cool or Wha…?

Wha…?

  • Most of the news has been “Wha…?” during this past week. 🙁

Reading Update
Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore (Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore, #1)Mr Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore by Robin Sloan. Very good story about a guy in San Francisco who loses his marketing and design job in the Great Recession, then ends up working in a very, very odd bookstore.
The Rook (The Checquy Files, #1)The Rook and Stiletto (The Checquy Files, #2)Stiletto (Checquy Files 1-2) by Daniel O’Malley. A woman wakes to find she’s standing in the rain, she’s surrounded by a circle of dead bodies, and she has no memories prior to that moment. Very good urban fantasy suspense! Looking forward to more books in this series.
Notes from a Public TypewriterNotes from a Public Typewriter by Michael Gustafson & Oliver Uberti. Very good collection of thoughts and other bits of writing from the publicly available typewriter in an Ann Arbor, Michigan, indie bookstore.
An Interrupted Cry (Sylvan Investigations, #4)An Interrupted Cry (Sylvan Investigations 4) by Laura Ann Gilman. Good paranormal suspense series about half faun former cop and current private investigator Danny, who suddenly finds he has an employee – a powerful seer with self-esteem issues.

*blank* -Chaos