It’s the first Thursday of the month, which means it’s time to report!
What is the best book you read in January 2013 and why did you love it? It doesn’t have to be a newly published book, or even SFF. We just want to share some great reading material. Feel free to post a full review of the book here, or a link to the review on your blog, or just write a few sentences about why you thought it was awesome.
(And don’t forget that we always have plenty more reading recommendations on our Fanlit Faves page and our 5-Star SFF page.)
As always, one commenter will choose a book from our stacks.
February 7th, 2013. Posted by John Hulet | Giveaway!, Thoughtful Thursday | 36 comments |
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In the Garden of Iden: Historical science fiction romance
The Difference Engine: Thickly veiled and imperceptible
I did a great deal of re-reading an old favorite series but for new to me books I had two favorites from those I read in January:
The Apothecary by Maile Meloy – YA fantasy that was very well put together…I could have wished for a bit more detail and restrictions on the magic portions but mostly it was a story about the importance of family and friends.
The Warrior’s Apprentice by Lois McMaster Bujold – I’m discovering this series very late but enjoying the heck out of the audiobooks on my morning and afternoon commutes.
I have that Bujold series on audio, too, but have not tried them yet. I’m glad to hear you’re enjoying them. Moving them up on my list!
Grover Gardner does a great job as narrator.
For me, it has to be The Siren Depths, by Martha Wells. This is the third and final book in the Raksura trilogy, and wow, was it a cracker. The whole trilogy is fascinating and original, and Moon is such a great character. I look forward to reading everything that Martha Wells will ever write in the future.
I don’t know if this counts as a book or not. It’s certainly a story, but it’s probably more accurately called an audio production. Anyway, I just have to give a shoutout to Vince Cosmos, Glam Rock Detective, by Bafflegab Productions. It’s about a teenaged girl, Poppy Munday, who gets to meet her idol, an enigmatic glam rock star. Vince Cosmos claims he’s an alien from Venus, using his powers for good to rid the Earth of the Martians and other aliens intent on world domination, and Poppy gets the chance to help when the aliens attack Vince. It takes place in 1972 in a world where H. G. Wells’ War of the Worlds actually happened. Anyway, it was great fun to listen to, and fantastic in every sense of the word.
Where did you find Vince Cosmos? Is it a podcast? Sounds interesting.
I found it here; it’s written by Paul Magrs, who is perhaps best known for his Doctor Who novels and audiobooks.
http://www.bafflegab.co.uk/detail-cosmos.asp
Thanks Melanie. I’ll check it out.
My favorite book of the month was Three Parts Dead by Max Gladstone. It was part fantasy novel, part legal thriller and all fun.
My full review is here (my first ever book review posted online lol) Three Parts Dead Review
Cool, Dave! Thanks for letting us know about your first book review and good luck with your new blog. We always run this feature on the first Thursday of the month, so feel free to link a review of your favorite book. Also, feel free to leave links to your reviews in the comment section of our reviews of the same books. (I hope that last sentence made sense.)
Thanks! I’m sure I’ll continue to be a frequent comment-er here.
Easily Gun Machine by Warren Ellis
http://www.subgeneric.com/2013/02/gun-machine-by-warren-ellis.html
I’ve read several of his comic/graphic novels but never any prose. Sounds good. I’m adding it to my ever growing to-read list.
I read an ARC of Soul Avenged by Keri Lake. It’s a UF with lots of action.
It was a tie between The Elementals by Francesca Lia Block and Ashes of Honor by Seanan McGuire, which are very different but both awesome. I felt like those two books really got me back on a reading kick after a few months of having trouble concentrating on anything I tried to read.
My favorite was David Brin’s The Postman which I read years ago and enjoyed again on audio last month. We haven’t gotten around to posting the review yet, but will do that soon.
Next was the Kurt Vonnegut collection of The Big Trip up Yonder and 2BR02B which I also read in audio format. Review coming soon.
Honorable mentions to The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame and Harlan Ellison’s collection I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream.
Easily, easily Fated by Benedict Jacka. LOVING this series. Here’s my review of Fated:
http://www.bearmountainbooks.com/favorite-reads/maria_book_reviews/book-review-fated-by-benedict-jacka/
I just reviewed the second (Cursed) today at the blog. Guess which book is going to make my favorites when you ask about February???
It’s what I’m reading right now. It’s amazing. DIE FOR ME by Cynthia Eden.
vsloboda(at)gmail(dot)com
Libriomancer by Jim Hines. The concept is pretty much taken straight from my daydreams (you can reach into a book and pull certain things out) and it focuses on a librarian (squee!) who has a friend in the magic biz who is also an archivist (double squee)…it also has a female character of normal-person size/weight and she’s not treated as “plucky sidekick” but “potential romantic interest!”
This sounds like something I want to read! Thanks for the tip.
Blood Song by Anthony Ryan
I have heard a lot of good things about this one… I downloaded the ebook to see what everyone is talking about. Another self-publishing success story?
Best SF/F was The Night Sessions by Ken MacLeod, it’s a mishmash of sci/fi, police procedural and mystery. I highly recommend it, although I will say, it does have a religious angle to the story, (I know that turns some people off) but I didn’t find it “preachy” in any way.
I also really enjoyed Gun Church by Reed Farrel Coleman, it’s sort of “Fight Club” with guns.
Wool Omnibus Edition by Hugh Howey.
I would have to say The Necessary Beggar by Susan Palwick, newly re-released to ebook/audio (I listened to it). It is a sci-fi/fantasy hybrid about a family from another dimension banished to contemporary America, where they become the ultimate “illegal aliens.” It is a very heartfelt story about faith, family and finding your place in the world. Highly, highly recommended.
Maybe I’m just a sucker like everyone else who rushed to buy A Memory of Light, but that was my favorite. After reading the series for nigh on twenty years, it was a satisfying, if bittersweet, ending to the Wheel of Time series.
If I was forced to pick a close second (and you’re not asking for it), I’d pick Laurent Binet’s HHhH, also a very enjoyable read, if for completely different reasons. It’s fiction, but it’s based on real events, and Binet’s novel is almost as much about him as it is about the story he’s trying to tell. It’s a must read.
My favorite January read was Ironskin, by Tina Connolly. It hooked me from the start with its rich language and period details, along with hints about a war with the fey that gave clues about the fantastical nature of the world and its history. Everything in the book is driven by the subtle, menacing presence of the fey, even though you don’t actually see them until near the end: Jane’s physical and emotional injuries, the need to train her five-year-old charge to use her hands instead of her powers, and the relationships between all the major characters. There are memorable themes of ugliness and beauty, accepting your fate or fighting against it, hiding your nature or letting the world see who you are. The fantasy elements (the fey technology, the dwarvven, the cursed injuries) fit so seamlessly into the post-WW1 England period that it feels like it must have really existed. A very satisfying read.
Planesrunner by Ian McDonald.
In fantasy it’d be between Starry River of the Sky by Grace Lin and The Six-Gun Tarot by R.S. Belcher. Non fantasy it would be Pakistan by Anatol Lieven
Ready Player One by Ernest Cline. I couldn’t put it down. And it was read by Wil Wheaton, the cherry on top. Loved it.
I have this on audio and can’t wait to read it. I love Wil Wheaton’s narration.
I’ve read Myke Cole’s “Special Ops: Control Point” which mixes military action with fantasy in an interesting and compelling way. Peter V. Brett hit the nail on the head describing it as “…Black Hawk Down meets X-men” – highly recommendable. The next volume in the series has just been published and i guess I just have to squeeze this in as my next read.
I liked “Special Ops: Frontier Fortress” much better than Control Point. Call it a personality thing, but I hate Oscar Britton. The worldbuilding that Myke Cole does is quite good.
That reminds me of another very good read last month–not my normal fare, but I read one of those comic-book superhero type novels: Confessions of a D-List Supervillain by Jim Berheimer. Again, not my normal fare, but I’ve tried at least two others and this one was very good by comparison. I enjoyed it quite a bit and I think it was self-published.
Whoops, forgot the link to my review in case anyone wants it:
http://www.bearmountainbooks.com/favorite-reads/bargain-reads/review-confessions-of-a-d-list-supervillain/
_The Elementals_ by Francesca Lia Block.
A comforting book. I don’t know how else to describe it. A beautifully comforting book.
Victoria Sloboda, if you live in the USA, you win a book of your choice from our stacks. Please contact me (Tim) with your choice and a US address.