week 15 check in

[Sheri]

Hi everyone!

Hope everyone is hanging in there. been having a lot of headaches, possibly due to some combination of rapid weather shifts and stress/anxiety. Doesn't help anything though!
This week I finished:

Magic for Liars- I enjoyed this, fun magical noir sort of. I liked the different take of one magic, one non magic sister. Also liked the approach of treating magic as a branch of science, where it's not just a snap fingers and things happen solution. that even if something is POSSIBLE it's not always feasible or a good idea. Counted for popsugar book with a trans/nonbianary author.

Gingerbread - this is my read harder retelling by an author of color, and my popsugar book with a bird on the cover. One of my "support Powells' books" order. I liked it ok, but it didn't quite gel into something amazing for me. There were a lot of references to Hansel and Gretel, and it was billed as a retelling, but it felt weird. The story didn't actually seem to follow the storyline at all, unless it's a version of the tale I'm not familiar with at all. So the references felt really weird and out of place. I had to re-read a lot of parts because it just felt very convoluted. So while i liked pieces of it, it just didn't work as a whole.

Excalibur, Vol. 1 - catching up on comics, this was just ok. THe whole line of new X Men stuff is kinda weird.

Fallen Angels, Vol. 1 - i do like Psylock so it's kinda cool. Still weird.

Spider-Gwen: Ghost-Spider, Vol. 1: Spider-Geddon - having fun with Seanan McGuire writing one of my favorite characters.

King Thor - this was ok. ended up skimming a lot of of it, felt overly convoluted. At least it was a short arc.

Currently reading:

more comics catch up - Marauders by Gerry Duggan, Vol. 1, other comics

The Count of Monte Cristo - still plugging away, got into the 400s now. Depressing that that's only about a third of the way through.

QOTW:

Borrowing from popsugar again,

What literary character would you want to be quarantined with? Anyone who is an absolute no?

I'd pick Luna Lovegood. I think she'd be a good balance of someone to just be quiet and chill with, reading or working on solo projects, but also down for coming up with creative things to do without going out and about. Painting communal murals, games of find the wrackspurts, working through all the Quibbler quizzes etc.

There's far too many that would be terrible for me to name, haha.

[Rebecca]

This week my coworker is on vacation. Usually this leaves me stressed over trying to be two people at once, but now it's meant a nearly normal workload.

I think I forgot to mention last week (what are weeks, right?) that I checked out the graphic novel version of A Study in Emerald. I was curious after reading the short story about how the visuals would work with the, er, central conceit of the story. Now I wonder whether I would have picked up on some things earlier, based on the character designs, but we'll never know.

I finished Milk and Honey. I'm concerned that this one might have suffered a bit from being read on Hoopla. The layout of the words and drawings seems very intentional, and I'm not sure whether it was properly conserved. Ultimately though I think it had a very important message for someone who is not me.

After that, I felt the need to hold an actual paper book, so I delved into the bucket o' French stuff. I came out with a volume of two plays, Les Chaises: Farce Tragique Suivi De L'Impromptu De L'Alma Ou Le Cameleon Du Berger. The first is an absurdist "tragic farce" that is apparently supposed to be about the presence of absence, and the second is a farcical, extremely transparent takedown of theater criticism. I think I just don't get Ionesco? Maybe if I'd read more (any) Barthes it would make more sense.

I'm on to Murder on Black Swan Lane, a free bonus borrow on Hoopla. It's a period mystery that feels similar to the romance novel I read recently, with alchemy substituted for the supernatural. It has the same alternating perspective between the two main characters and a similar contrast in personalities.

QOTW: I'm going to pick Dr Chef from the Wayfarer series. He's very understanding and empathetic, and he can sleep in the guest bathtub so we each get our own space. I'll bet he doesn't get human viruses, so I can send him out to do all the errands. If I do get sick, he can take care of me. Plus, even if all the stores are picked over, he'll make great quarantine cuisine!

[Sheri]

Rebecca,

I felt the same way about Milk and Honey. Could tell it was meaningful to the author, but it just didn’t speak to me.

Also good one on Dr Chef!

[Shel]

I read Clean Sweep last week and I liked, but didn't love it. The writing was as engaging as their Kate Daniels books, but something about the setting just didn't do it for me. I'm a fan of urban fantasy and a fan of sci-fi, but I found the combination really weird - I couldn't quite buy that vampires and werewolves are actually aliens - and I groaned internally at what's clearly the setup of a stereotypical love triangle (one of my favorite things about the Kate Daniels books was CURRAN - he didn't need to have a rival to be fascinating and sexy). That said, I enjoyed the book, I'd read the sequel from the library but I wouldn't spend money on it.

I'm now reading some of the food/travel essays from A Moveable Feast: Life-Changing Food Adventures Around the World that I had sitting on my kindle (this whole library closure is making me dip into the hundreds of unread books I have on my kindle, LOL!).

QOTW: Vlad Taltos, as long as we had a fully stocked kitchen, because he would cook for me and protect me and Loiosh would make me laugh. Or Herald Talia, because she'd be like a live-in magical therapist. I don't know where I'd be able to put Rolan, though!

[Megan]

At last check-in, I was reading No One Is Coming to Save Us. I enjoyed it, but it felt a bit unfinished - like the author had intended to tie up a few more of the threads but never got around to it.

Next up was The Emerald Circus, which had literally caught my eye because I liked the cover. It was much better than I expected - I thought it was going to be more of a kids' book based on the cover, but it's really a collection of Jane Yolen's short stories that are based on existing stories or real life people, so you need the context of being familiar with the source material to appreciate the stories. As with any collection like this, the quality varies a bit, but there are some really original concepts, particularly with the stories based on less well-known folktales. The notes on each story are great, too - I wish they were paired with the stories rather than at the end of the book, but definitely worth a read.

After that, I read The Winter Siege. Several people had recommended Ariana Franklin to me over the years, and I decided to read this one because it's a stand-alone and not part of a series. It had a lot of interesting elements, but it didn't really gel into the kind of epic story I was expecting, so I was a bit disappointed - then I got to the author's note at the end and learned that the author had passed away with only the outline of the book in place, and her daughter (a journalist, but not a historian or novelist) had finished the book after her death. Had I bothered to learn that before reading the book, I probably would have selected one written entirely by the original author instead - so I thought I would pass that along here in case anyone else has considered checking out her work.

The disappointment continued with the one I just finished, Mr. Churchill's Secretary. This series sounded so cool - a spy interacting with all the real-life figures of WWII! What I'm about to say sounds terrible - I was a history major, but not focused on WWII (or even the 20th century), and I hardly consider myself an expert on that era - but this book feels like it was written by someone who just learned for the first time that WWII was a thing that happened and was therefore also unaware of any of the major events, people, or philosophies of the time. In the author's note at the end, the author seems very proud of herself for having read and watched a small sampling of popular books and TV shows about the war and working what she learned into the book (which I suppose she did, albeit clunkily). It just seems odd that this made it to publication and popularity when there are so many good writers with great source material that haven't gotten the same attention.

QOTW: Hmmm...if I were mouse-sized, I would want to be quarantined with the Redwall mice - they're practiced at sheltering in place and always have amazing-sounding food. As a full-sized human, though, the Beauty and the Beast library with all of the uninfectable inanimate-object servants seems like a good place to be.

[[deleted user]]

It's been a while since I updated.
I finished Madame Bovary, which was not my favourite. The writing was quite nice but I didn't find the story especially engaging and I was frustrated with a lot of the characters. I'm glad I read it but I won't be pulling it for any re-reads or recs.

I re-read Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch because I was struck the want to base a roleplay character on a certain Angel and I wanted to grab some of the details that didn't come out in the show. I still love it, but a few bits have not aged all that well in retrospect.

I'm now reading Northanger Abbey by Austen. I'm only 20ish pages in and pretty entertained. There's some fourth wall breaking which I'd not expected. I definitely follow and enjoy the humour in Austen better now than I used to, and the social commentary is fun.

QOTW: So many of the characters I read about are far more adventurous and outgoing than I'd want in a quarantine partner. Maybe the grown up Jean Louise 'Scout' Finch? Perhaps the Librarian from Discworld provided we have a steady supply of bananas and I'm allowed to read the books.

Who would be my anti quarantine partner? There are so many. Any character I've ended up wanting to slap or scream at for their poor choices. To pick one let's say Holden Caulfield, or a young Lyra Silvertongue (she would spend far too much time trying to escape).

[Jen W.]

This week I finished Children of Virtue and Vengeance. I didn't like it as well as I liked the first book, and I suspect it's because it's the middle book of the trilogy. I'm still going to read the third one, though, because I do like the characters and worldbuilding overall, but I hope it's as good as the first instead of meandering all over the place like this one.

I also read some comics, The Hidden Witch and The Midwinter Witch, books two and three of the series that started with The Witch Boy. I really love this series, although I thought the third book was a little weaker than the first two.

I'm not currently reading anything right now, as I just finished the last of my current library holds. Depending on if anything new comes up, I'll probably dip into my owned library for my next read and decide based on my mood.

QOTW:
I don't know who I'd pick, although I love the answers of Vlad Taltos and Dr Chef. Maybe Murderbot, who could protect me and would probably also be immune from the virus. We could watch TV all day, and since they're also an introvert, would be very understanding of wanting space, too.

I would not want be in quarantine with Harry Dresden, due to his tendency to blow up buildings and wreak havoc on computers. Or Miles Vorkosigan, because as much as I love the novels, the man himself would probably drive me insane.

[Daniele]

Two short reads to report:

The Ravenmaster: My Life with the Ravens at the Tower of London, a lovely quick look at some of my favourite birds. Used for the Ravenclaw/Eagle/bird on the cover prompt.

Common Sense, a call to American independence from Britain, just a few months before it actually happened. I read it because Elizabeth Schuyler told me to ;) Used for the Hufflepuff/Ilvermorny/American author prompt, because although he was British born, his mindset is firmly that of the founding fathers of the USA.

28/60

I'm with Sheri and Rebecca about Milk and Honey - didn't resonate with me at all.

QOTW:
Thanks to Jennifer, I can avoid saying I'd enjoy confinement with Harry Dresden, because although I would, I need my computer. I think I'd go with a wise old storyteller, like Belgarath. For the anyone but, Cindy Lou Who. Actually, Grinch and Max on a mountaintop sounds pretty sweet, as long as there's coffee, wi-fi, and books.

[Susan]

This week I actually finished The Starless Sea. It is now making the rounds in the family because it is a library book and the library is closed and wants patrons to hold on to materials at home until this is over.

I am still listening to Leviathan Wakes. This is a really long audiobook. I think I am about 40% through, over 8 hours in. I am glad I watched the series before. I don't think I would be enjoying the book as much if I wasn't already into the show.

I have picked up my filler book, Math with Bad Drawings that we own. I am in the last major section so eventually I'll finish that.

QOTW: Since I mostly read non-fiction, I'm going to for stretch the meaning of literary character into actual reality. I'd go for Alton Brown. I reference the many books of his that I own and yeah, he could come cook for me. Although I'm an excellent cook, I'd let him take over.

[Sarah]

What week of hunker down are we on again? I'm reasonably certain that I've lost all track of time!

This week I polished off The Way of Kings and most of Words of Radiance. This series is exactly why I love to do rereads! There are so many layers to dissect in it: hidden characters to find, foreshadowing that I'd missed, and subtle relationships of events and characters that I'm finding. Hubs and I have had numerous long discussions this week about themes and subtle commentaries that run through these books. I'm loving it!

I'm sort of debating if I want to grab book 3 in the series (Oathbringer), or wait until we're a little closer to book 4 of The Stormlight Archive being released in November. I also just discovered a treasure trove of graphic novels on Hoopla that my library doesn't have, so I may start working through those, too.

QOTW: I've been chewing on this all week, and I can't come up with a better answer than Megan's, with the Beauty and the Beast's castle. Massive library? check. Well hidden and provisioned for exile? check. Fun, interesting and un-infectable servants and company? check. And can we keep the restaurant that Disney World has in there, just for good measure? Although her idea of hiding in Redwall Abby would be 100% delightful as well! I've always wanted to meet the GUOSIM crew!

People I want not want to shelter with: pretty much ANYONE from my current book series. Interesting on paper (as there is a ton of mental illness and PTSD that is beautifully portrayed), but they are all people who would not take well to being cooped up for long. Kaladin, in particular, experiences a lockdown period in Words of Radiance, and pretty well cracks by day 3.

[Megan]

Sarah wrote: "People I want not want to shelter with: pretty much ANYONE from my current book series. Interesting on paper (as there is a ton of mental illness and PTSD that is beautifully portrayed), but they are all people who would not take well to being cooped up for long. Kaladin, in particular, experiences a lockdown period in Words of Radiance, and pretty well cracks by day 3."

I think there is almost 100% overlap between "characters with interesting and dramatic personalities" and "characters I would not like to be trapped in an enclosed space with." LOL