Elizabeth Fitzgerald's Blog: Earl Grey Editing, page 7

Women in SF&F Month 2019

Since 2012, Kristen from Fantasy Cafe has been running Women in SF&F Month every April, gathering together guest posts from a wide range of authors and bloggers. This year, she invited me to contribute. You can catch me over there talking about fae YA and why Jodi McAlister’s Valentine series is awesome.

Kristen also maintains a recommendation list of SFF books written by women. I highly recommend heading over to take a look through it. Perhaps there are some recommendations of your own you’d like to make!

Wireless by Alex Acks

Published: April 2019 by Queen of Swords Press

Format reviewed: E-book (epub), 268 pages

Series: The Adventures of Captain Ramos and Her Valiant Crew #2

Genres: Science fiction, alternate history, steampunk

Source: Publisher

Available: Publisher (electronic only) ~ Amazon (AU, CA, UK, US) ~ Barnes & Noble ~ Book Depository ~ Booktopia ~ Indiebound ~ Kobo ~ Smashwords

Disclaimer: I was provided with a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Captain Marta Ramos, the most dangerous pirate in the Duchy of Denver, is back and she and Simms are up to their goggles in trouble. Has General del Toro found a way to use the Infected as an army and can Captain Ramos work with her arch enemy, Colonel Geoffrey Douglas, to stop him? Can Simms join forces with the devious Deliah Nimowitz on a jailbreak, some sewer misadventures AND a high society soiree involving tea, a heist and sausages? And what about the Rail King and his nefarious plans? Can Captain Ramos and her crew stop him before he completes his latest dastardly deed, one that may result in Deliah’s demise? Check out the next installment of the exciting adventures of Captain Ramos and her valiant crew to find out more!

Wireless picks up where Murder on the Titania and Other Steam-Powered Adventures with 3 linked novellas, all set in or near the Duchy of Denver, in an American West that never was.

I was absolutely delighted by Murder on the Titania when I read it last year, so I jumped on the chance to review the sequel Wireless and More Steam-Powered Adventures. This proved to be a wise move because I found Wireless to be equally enthralling.

The book comprises of three novellas, making the structure of the book somewhat different to Murder on the Titania. Where the former was mostly discrete short stories, the novellas in Wireless are more tightly linked. I found this very satisfying because it allowed a deeper dive not only into the characters and their relationships, but also into the world itself and how it may be changing. It does mean that the stories lose a little of the self-contained, Holmes-inspired mystery structure, but I found this a feature rather than a bug, and there remained enough mystery to keep me curious and engaged.

The cast of this series has always been reasonably diverse; one of the things I liked most about Murder on the Titania was its inversion of the racist and sexist stereotypes present in the work of Agatha Christie and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Wireless builds on that by introducing the Native Americans of this alternate America. They play a prominent role in the first story, Blood at Elk Creek, in which it becomes apparent that the nefarious General del Toro is testing out a way to control the mindless Infected by directing them to attack Lakota settlements. While I’m not the best person to judge, the representation of Native Americans seemed to be handled with respect, showing them neither as mystical guides or as ignorant savages (except when they choose to play to that stereotype for their own reasons). Colonel Geoffrey does hold some bigoted views, but he is nicely balanced out by Captain Ramos, who is more open-minded and willing to make friends. This is reinforced in Wireless, where we see a Native American engineer stepping in as a permanent part of the crew.

The first and last stories are more thematically similar, sharing a thread about powerful men abusing their power. Blood at Elk Creek looks at this in a broader way, being more focused the oppression of a group through the lens of racism. Wireless brings it down to a more individual level. There are overtones of sexism that it touches on, but it also recognises men are likewise victims of abuse and toxic relationships. It digs into shame and the ways the victims can be made complicit in the abuse of others. This was handled in a way I felt was sensitive and sympathetic. Both stories touch on issues of justice, looking at where society fails in that regard and whether an individual can step in when the system fails.

The second story, Do Shut Up, Mister Simms, is a light-hearted foil to the more serious stories. Running concurrently with Blood at Elk Creek, it shows how Mister Simms has his hands full keeping the crew out of trouble while Captain Ramos is away. When one of the crew is caught and imprisoned, he’s forced to call upon the help of Deliah Nimowitz, a cunning lady with her own agenda and a soft spot for Captain Ramos. It touches on the unconventional relationship between Deliah and Captain Ramos, a thread that then becomes important to Wireless.

I mentioned in my review of Murder on the Titania that I would have liked to see a bit more of the crew. Wireless in particular delivers on this, diving into the backstory of one of the crew. It was also delightful to see Mister Simms renew his acquaintance with Chippy, Deliah’s dog, and the two make for an adorable comedic duo.

The action sequences throughout the collection are tense and well-paced, keeping me glued to the page.

Overall, Wireless and More Steam-Powered Adventures was as fun and engaging as its predecessor. I will be keeping an eye for more adventures from Captain Ramos and her valiant crew in the future.

2019 Ditmar Award Nominations

The preliminary shortlists for the 2019 Ditmar Awards were announced yesterday afternoon. I’m honoured to be nominated for Best Fan Publication in Any Medium for the Earl Grey Editing blog and Best New Talent for my story New Berth from Mother of Invention. I was also delighted to see Mother of Invention nominated for Best Collected Work.

Thank you so much to everyone who nominated me. It’s an excellent ballot including too many friends to name and I’m so pleased to be standing alongside them.

The Ditmar Awards will be presented in Melbourne at Continuum, which runs 7-10 June. If you’re attending, please come and say hi!

The Raven Tower by Ann Leckie

Published: February 2019 by Orbit

Format reviewed: E-book (mobi), 432 pages

Genres: Fantasy

Source: NetGalley

Available: Abbey’s ~ Amazon (AU, CA, UK, US) ~ Barnes & Noble ~ Book Depository ~ Booktopia ~ Dymocks ~ Indiebound ~ Kobo

Disclaimer: I was provided with a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

For centuries, the kingdom of Iraden has been protected by the god known as the Raven. He watches over his territory from atop a tower in the powerful port of Vastai. His will is enacted through the Raven’s Lease, a human ruler chosen by the god himself. His magic is sustained via the blood sacrifice that every Lease must offer. And under the Raven’s watch, the city flourishes.

But the power of the Raven is weakening. A usurper has claimed the throne. The kingdom borders are tested by invaders who long for the prosperity that Vastai boasts. And they have made their own alliances with other gods.

It is into this unrest that the warrior Eolo–aide to Mawat, the true Lease–arrives. And in seeking to help Mawat reclaim his city, Eolo discovers that the Raven’s Tower holds a secret. Its foundations conceal a dark history that has been waiting to reveal itself…and to set in motion a chain of events that could destroy Iraden forever.

The Raven Tower is an intelligent, well-written book but not one I actually enjoyed. While its ideas are interesting, its characters failed to engage me.

The story alternates between two threads. One is told in first person by a god who has taken the form of a rock. The story starts in the distant past and narrates the god’s journey to the present, telling of how it came to awareness, its growing connection with humans and its role in the war between the gods. The second story is set in the present and tells the story of Eolo, a warrior of Iraden. It is told in second person as the god narrates Eolo’s story back to him.

One of the things I enjoyed most about the book was the gods. It takes a bunch of old elements–such as the gods being active in the world, the idea of big and small gods, and the way they are sustained by the prayers and petitions of worshippers–and pieces them together in a way that feels fresh. The interaction between the gods serves to humanise them in some respects: they have their own petty squabbles but also friendships. They will hang out and discuss philosophy.

A key theme of the story is power and the power of words in particular. The gods’ powers are very much tied to words–what they speak must become truth if it is not already so. That manifestation relies on the god’s power, so they must only speak what they have the power to manifest or else run the risk of wiping themselves out. It’s a clever way of limiting the power of the gods and also leads to the very unique voice of the story. The narrator may not be able to lie, but they can hedge the truth and are quite transparent about doing so at times.

Unfortunately, this also lead to my key issue with the book. Because the god is narrating Eolo’s story, that part of the tale lacks interiority. The god cannot tell us what Eolo is thinking or feeling, else its power will be steadily drained away as the tale goes on. It does occasionally speculate what might have been the case, but elsewise the reader must read between the lines. This isn’t onerous, but it also isn’t satisfying. I found it created a distance that I could never quite bridge, making the experience an intellectual one. The lack of a strong emotional element left me unable to connect with the characters in any meaningful way.

One thing I was pleased to see was the way Leckie continued her tradition of including diverse characters. Most notably, Eolo is a transgender man, but in the background very little of the cast is white. Nor is this lampshaded or made a big deal of in a way that effectively shows this is (or should be) a normal thing.

All in all, while The Raven Tower is a clever tale, it is just not the book for me.

Descendant of the Crane by Joan He

This week I’m over at the Skiffy and Fanty Show with a review of Descendant of the Crane by Joan He. This is a Chinese-inspired YA fantasy novel about politics, leadership and sacrifice. It digs into some meaty themes but I felt the characterisation ultimately let it down.

A Hugo Nomination

I might be wrapping up the Earl Grey Editing blog, but the news isn’t all bad. The shortlists for the Hugo Awards were announced last night and I am delighted to say that The Skiffy and Fanty Show has been nominated for Best Fancast.

It is a huge honour to be part of the team. Not only do they work hard, but they keep their sense of humour. They have taught me a lot about podcasting since I joined.

Along the way, I’ve had the pleasure of interviewing some amazing people, including Celine Kiernan, Rachel Hartman, Steph Matuku, Stephanie Gunn, Tansy Rayner Roberts, Sam Hawke, Thoraiya Dyer, Marlee Jane Ward and Cody Sisco. And that was just in 2018! I’ve recorded a couple of great interviews since then that I can’t wait to share with you.

I’m also not going to forget my first Torture Cinema experience any time soon.

A huge thank you to everyone who nominated us.

And now to crack out the fancy tea.

Mt TBR Report: March 2019

 

With Aurealis judging done and fewer reading and book club commitments, my reading slowed down a little in March… although not as much as I expected it to. Mt TBR is inexplicably continuing to shrink and I find I’m starting to make progress on the oldest part of the ranges.

Mt TBR Status

Mt TBR @ 1 January 2019: 442

Mt TBR @ 28 February 2019: 368

Mt TBR @ 31 March 2019: 362

March Reading Plans

Dragonclaw by Kate Forsyth. March pick for the Lady Vaults book club–DONE!

The Night Circus by Erin Morganstern. Buddy read with Belle of There Are Ink Spots On My Page, Tam of The Fantasy Inn and Travis of The Coffee Archives–DONE!

Grounded by Narrelle M. Harris. For review at EGE–DONE!

Books Read

59. Marcus: Hell Squad by Anna Hackett. Sci-fi romance. First in the Hell Squad series. The communications officer of a ragtag military squad is forced to go into the field when her knowledge of the alien invaders’ language becomes crucial to the mission, but her presence proves distracting for the squad leader.

60. Grounded by Narrelle M. Harris. Reviewed here.

61. Rainbow Inklings by the Kraken Collective. A sampler of the works being published by the Kraken Collective back in 2017. It’s probably cheating a little to count it here, but better late than never. I’d already acquired some of the books, but there were a couple I’d missed that look interesting.

62. The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern. Set at the turn of the 20th Century, two apprentice magicians duel by creating fantastic displays for a circus. I honestly wasn’t sure this book could live up to its hype. Instead, it has become one of my all-time favourites. It has a wonderfully mythopoeic feel which I adored, and the relationships between the characters are captivating. Very imaginative and highly recommended.

63. Tea and Sympathetic Magic by Tansy Rayner Roberts. Fantasy novelette. Mnemosyne would rather be a spinster than marry her cousin, the Duke, but her mother has trapped her into attending one of his house parties. While there, she forms an unlikely friendship with the spellcracker the Duke has hired to keep him safe from unscrupulous love charms. Funny and sweet, though I would have liked it to be a little bit longer.

64. Once Upon A Winter’s Eve by Tessa Dare. Historical romance novella from the Spindle Cove series. When a mysterious stranger crashes a ball and collapses in a bloody heap, only wallflower Violet can speak his language. Surprisingly action-packed. Violet may be a wallflower, but she knows how to stand up for herself.

65. The Calculating Stars by Mary Robinette Kowal. Alternate history science fiction. First book in the Lady Astronaut series.Read for the LDUH book club. When a meteorite wipes out most of the east coast of the US, the nation accelerates its space program. Pilot and mathematician Elma is at the forefront of the push and is determined to journey into space herself. The book does a great job of examining the racism, sexism and bigotry of the time and how it works against Elma. It was also nice to see that Elma herself isn’t immune and even though she works hard to combat her prejudices, she still sometimes trips over her blind spots. However, I did find the relationships–particularly those between the women–suffered a little thanks to the focus on the bigger picture.

66. Dragonclaw by Kate Forsyth. Epic fantasy. First in the Witches of Eileanan series. Read for the Lady Vaults book club. An apprentice witch must leave the sheltered valley in which she grew up in order to meet her destiny and save her fellow witches. I really enjoyed the magic system and the sheer number of women making up the cast. Unfortunately, the constant Scottish accents and the numerous instances of sexual violence means I won’t be pursuing this series any further.

67. The City in the Middle of the Night by Charlie Jane Anders. Science fiction. When Sophie is left to die on the night side of her tidally-locked planet, she is rescued by one of the fearsome creatures native to the planet. A thoughtful but dark exploration of colonialism and toxic relationships.

68. Accidental Abduction by Eve Langlais. Sci-fi romance. When Megan is left to drown by her nefarious fiance, she is accidentally rescued by one of the most notorious mercenaries in the galaxy. Not really my jam. The hero was a bit too alpha-hole and there wasn’t enough emotional development to convince me of the relationship.

69. Creative Wisdom for Writers by Ronald Fishman. A collection of quotes about writing, most of which were of course from white men. The section about editing presented a very uniform view of the process as being about subtraction.

70. Valentine by Jodi McAlister. YA fantasy. First in the Valentine series. Reread. Previously reviewed here.

71. Ironheart by Jodi McAlister. YA fantasy. Second in the Valentine series. Reread. Previously reviewed here.

72. Misrule by Jodi McAlister. YA fantasy. Last in the Valentine series. Review forthcoming.

Books Acquired

The Last Necromancer by C.J. Archer

Tides of the Titans by Thoraiya Dyer

Wireless by Alex Acks

The Calculating Stars by Mary Robinette Kowal

The City in the Middle of the Night by Charlie Jane Anders

Kalpa Imperial by Angelica Gorodischer

Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo

Embers of War by Gareth L. Powell

Online Reading

And Never Been Kissed by the hoyden and twentysomething. Hockey RPF. I’m not generally an RPF person, but I picked this up for the Not Now I’m Reading podcast. I’m also not a hockey person, so I found parts of this hard to follow–more for the fact I had no idea of the significance of people than for any technical hockey aspect. However, I am a fan of slow-burn romance and this was certainly that (and deliciously so). Being RPF, this is locked to members of ao3 only.

a thing that wants by magdaliny. MCU f/f fanfic. Bucky decides to find Natasha a girlfriend. Picked up as part of Kay Taylor Rae’s thread of f/f fics. I particularly enjoyed Nat’s struggle to relate to her dates while keeping what she does a secret.

April Reading Plans

Wireless by Alex Acks–For review at EGE.

Tides of the Titans by Thoraiya Dyer–For review at EGE.

Kalpa Imperial by Angelica Gorodischer–For the Lady Vaults book club.

Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo–For LDUH book club.

The shortlists for the Hugo Awards should be out any day now. Once they are, I will be diving right into those as well.

Tea Break

 

After four and a half wonderful years, I regret to announce that I am winding up the blog here at Earl Grey Editing. This has been a very difficult decision because writing these posts has brought me a great deal of joy. However, it also takes up a good deal of time and energy. Changes in my personal circumstances mean I now need to invest that time and energy elsewhere.

I will be continuing to review and interview for The Skiffy and Fanty Show, so please join me there. I will also continue to be available for editing work.

Change is a constant, so I hope that at some point in the future circumstances will shift again and I will be able to return to blogging at EGE. But for now, I will be concentrating on finishing the reviews I’ve committed to. There will be the occasional announcement post going forward, but I’ll be wrapping up my regular blogging in early May.

Thank you to everyone for all your support over the last four and a half years. It has meant a lot to me and I hope we can have tea together again sometime soon.

Loose-leaf Links #76

Loose-leaf Links is a feature where I gather together the interesting bits and pieces on sci-fi, fantasy and romance I’ve come across and share them with you over tea. Today’s tea is Kumquat tea from Lupicia. This is a way more subtle tea than I was expecting from the smell. The kumquat mostly comes through as a gentle aftertaste. It’s a nice light tea, good for the afternoons.

Awards News

The 2018 Tiptree Award has been won by Gabriela Damian Miravete. The Tiptree honours works of SFF that explore and expand understandings of gender. Particular congratulations also to Lee Cope and Sandra McDonald, whose stories from Mother of Invention made the longlist. Recommendations for the 2019 Award are already open.

The 2019 Nommo Awards are now open for nominations by members of the African Speculative Fiction Society.

The shortlists for the Lambda Literary Awards have been announced. The Lammys honour excellence in LGBTQIA literature.

Community and Conventions

Jane Crowley and Kate Dollarhyde are stepping down as editors-in-chief at Strange Horizons.

Holly Lyn Walrath writes on breaking into the SFF community and the whisper networks that exist around abusive members.

On Equity

Harper Collins have announced the inaugural Commercial Fiction Fellowship for First Nations Writers. It is open to Australian writers of Aboriginal or Torres Strait descent with unpublished manuscripts of at least 70K. Entries close 1 May.

For Writers

Kaleidotrope have announced they will be closing for submission at the end of the month and will not be reopening until 2021.

The Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America’s Self Publishing Committee are looking for self-published works to include in their next StoryBundle. They are opening this up to non-SFWA authors for the first time.

Don’t forget to check out SFWA’s March Market Report or the Facebook page for the Australian Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers’ Association for more publishing opportunities.

Seanan McGuire is running a course on the art of writing a long series.

Vicky of Vicky Who Reads has released some info she gathered from a survey on blogger and author interaction.

For Readers

The countdown is now on until Dewey’s 24-hour Readathon! A reminder that the event takes place on 6 April (or mostly on 7 April for those of us in Australia). You can now sign up to participate in the event itself and to host a mini-challenge.

Rachel Cordasco has released the results of her poll on favourite speculative fiction in translation from 2018.

In case you somehow managed to miss the news, Martha Wells has a full-length Murderbot novel coming out from Tor.com. Network Effect will be released in May 2020.

Grounded by Narrelle M. Harris

Published: March 2019 by Escape Publishing

Format reviewed: E-book (mobi), 150 pages

Genres: Paranormal romance

Source: NetGalley

Available: Amazon (AU, CA, UK, US) ~ Barnes & Noble~ Kobo

Disclaimer: I was provided with a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

In a world where flight is life, will two grounded people find other ways to fly?

When Benedick Sasaki’s wings are wounded in the line of duty, the former policeman doesn’t know if he has a place in a world where he can no longer fly.

Then he meets Clementine Torres, an artist born without wings and a vocal advocate for the flightless who has been subjected to recent hate mail and vandalism ahead of her new exhibition. As Clementine starts to teach Benedick new ways to appreciate the world on the ground, the threats against her art and possibly her life begin to escalate.

To survive, they will need to teach each other that not all beauty is in the air, and that both of them can soar without wings…

Grounded is one of the best paranormal romances I’ve read. It is smart and sweet, with some fantastic worldbuilding and genuine warmth between the characters.

The book is set in an alternate world where humans have evolved from birds rather than monkeys. While this world looks much like our own, (and is, in fact, set in an alternate version of my home town) it is clear the author has put a lot of thought into the differences that manifest. Some of these are big things, like architecture and furniture–there’s not much call for elevators or chairs with backs. And some of these are small, like the jokes people tell and the slightly different turns of phrase. Then Harris goes a step further and imagines the challenges facing someone born without wings. This is not the same as being born a human as we would think of it. Instead, we’re shown what it would be like to live as a being evolved to have wings but doesn’t due to genetic defect. How does this body keep warm and protect its kidneys? How does one keep back musculature in shape? This is quite aside from the difficulties in getting around and finding clothes that fit.

These are the challenges that face Clementine. At first she comes across as quite an angry person–and this is certainly the impression she leaves Benedick with after their first encounter as neighbours. And there would be some justification for this, if it were true. After all, Clementine is forced to spend a lot of time fighting for the space to even exist. However, there’s so much more to her than that. Unsurprisingly, she has a strong sense of justice, fighting not only for herself, but for others as well. This is paired with an eye for wonder and beauty. Her disability means she sees the world from a different angle to most and she’s quick to share that with Benedick. She sees his suffering and generously steps in to help.

Benedick starts out as a bit of a mess. Having permanently injured one wing, he can no longer fly and is struggling to adjust to his new life–to the point where suicide has crossed his mind. However, he’s quick to seize the lifeline Clementine offers him, intrigued by his new neighbour and the joy she sees in this world. Like her, Benedick also has a strong sense of justice. When Clementine starts receiving death threats and her artwork is vandalised, he follows the particulars of her case and advocates for her when his former co-workers are quick to dismiss her.

One of the things I loved most about Benedick was the ways in which he works against ideas of toxic masculinity. He cries several times–on his own and in front of others–as he adjusts to this situation. This is never made a big deal of, but simply shown as a natural reaction. His relationship with his brother Peri is warm and supportive; their scenes together were some of my favourite (and I really hope that one day there might be a book about Peri meeting the man of his dreams).

This book really packs a lot into such a small space, examining disability and microaggressions… and sometimes straight-up discrimination and lack of consideration. However, the pacing never feels too slow and there’s a nice synergy between the development of Clementine and Benedick’s relationship and the bigger issues. If I had one quibble, it’s that the resolution of Clementine’s case was a bit predictable, but that did not in any way detract from my enjoyment of the book.

I’d really like to read more paranormal romance of this calibre and to see more of this world, so I shall be hoping for future books from this author.