Nominations for September 2020

[Oleksandr]

On Aug 1st we start nominating for our two September reads. Now we can discuss categories. Right now I think we should shift to 2020 works and suggest 1 fantasy 1 SF, but I'm open for alternatives

[Gabi]

I'm very much for 2020 works. I try to find my way through the new releases at the moment.

[Silvana]

I prefer 2020 - already have my nomination The Stone Wētā which was promoted by many during World Con :)

[Kalin]

Yep, with awards season basically done except for World Fantasy, it makes sense to transition to 2020 only. But I don't have any nominations for it right now, so I'll follow where others lead.

[Tony]

Oleksandr wrote: "On Aug 1st we start nominating for our two September reads. Now we can discuss categories. Right now I think we should shift to 2020 works and suggest 1 fantasy 1 SF, but I'm open for alternatives"

I am still new to Goodreads, so I have question...Can we nominate our own works?

[Oleksandr]

Tony wrote: "I am still new to Goodreads, so I have question...Can we nominate our own works?"

Honestly I'd prefer to have more established authors (no offence) but currently we have no rule against that, so nominate

[Plamen]

X:


Lauren Beukes:


Silvia Moreno-Garcia:


Jeremy Szal:



Adrian Tchaikovsky:

+ 2019 Tiptree Award winner:


Akwaeke Emezi:

[Kirsten]

Lauren Beukes has a new book out? Cool!!

[Tony]

Oleksandr wrote: "Tony wrote: "I am still new to Goodreads, so I have question...Can we nominate our own works?"

Honestly I'd prefer to have more established authors (no offence) but currently we have no rule again..."

I nominate As time Narrows

NeoLeaf Press gave my book a Bronze Recommendation - 4 out of 5 stars.

"This present tense novel is filled with beautiful and moving imagery which gives you goose bumps at times."

[Oleksandr]

Plamen wrote: "X:."

Adrian Tchaikovsky's book to be published Aug 20th, and if other members like me use libraries, I'd say better set him for October

[Oleksandr]

Tony wrote: "I nominate As time Narrows"

If you make/offer a giveaway for members (in no way obligatory) I guess the support for it will be higher

[Plamen]

Kirsten wrote: "Lauren Beukes has a new book out? Cool!!"

Controversial reviews so far, but who doesn't have them

[Silvana]

I just chatted with Jeremy Szal yesterday, he'll be a good nominee.

[Oleksandr]

Silvana wrote: "I just chatted with Jeremy Szal yesterday, he'll be a good nominee."

Great, I second his book!

[Tony]

Oleksandr wrote: "Tony wrote: "I nominate As time Narrows"

If you make/offer a giveaway for members (in no way obligatory) I guess the support for it will be higher"

I am willing to offer a giveaway, to all those willing to read it.

Thanks Oleksandr!

[Gabi]

Oleksandr wrote: "Plamen wrote: "X:."

Adrian Tchaikovsky's book to be published Aug 20th, and if other members like me use libraries, I'd say better set him for October"

I'll be reading (listen to) this one anyway the second it is released :D.

[Kaa]

I'm happy to focus on 2020 books, although I don't have any additional nominations to add at this point.

[Kristenelle]

Are we nominating books here or will that be a separate thread? I’m all for picking 2020 books. I want to nominate Lindsay Ellis’s book that just came out, “Axiom’s End.”

[Oleksandr]

Kristen wrote: "Are we nominating books here or will that be a separate thread? I’m all for picking 2020 books. I want to nominate Lindsay Ellis’s book that just came out, “Axiom’s End.”"

Here. Axiom's End is accepted

[Gabi]

I nominate

for Fantasy: Or What You Will by Jo Walton: the premise of a novel's character interacting with an elder author sounds intriguing (and Jo Walton always is a safe one for good writing)

for SF: Devolution: A Firsthand Account of the Rainier Sasquatch Massacre by Max Brooks: a take on the Bigfoot legend.

[Eva]

I second Or What You Will, it sounds intriguing, beautifully written and the cover is BEAUTIFUL.

For SF, I nominate The Last Human by Zack Jordan which has a wonderfully intriguing premise.

[Silvana]

Or what you will is in my TBR but the price makes me want to cry haha

[Eva]

So true, it's very expensive, probably because it just came out a few days ago. Maybe it will have dropped by September, though?

(The Last Human is only 99 Cents right now! At least the amazon.de kindle version is.)

[Silvana]

It is 1.29 usd for me, yay! Intriguing premise too.

[Gabi]

Silvana wrote: "Or what you will is in my TBR but the price makes me want to cry haha"

Damn ...you're right. I didn't check the price before. And there seems to be no audiobook available. :(

[Eva]

Hmm. Perhaps we could postpone this one and read a more affordable fantasy options with audio version and an inexpensive ebook?

Some options I can think of right now:
We Ride the Storm by Devin Madson
Black Stone Heart by Michael R. Fletcher
Wicked As You Wish by Rin Chupeco (this one's YA fantasy)
Along the Razor's Edge by Rob J. Hayes
House of Earth and Blood by Sarah J. Maas (not YA, it's her first adult Urban Fantasy novel)
The Obsidian Tower by Melissa Caruso
Ashes of the Sun by Django Wexler

Anyone have a preference? (This is not yet a nomination, I'm just thinking out loud.)

[Silvana]

Maybe We Ride the Storm though the page number is quite daunting since I already have six BRs in September (forgot to check LOL)

[Gabi]

Aren't there any fantasy books that are not part 1 of yet another series?

[Silvana]

Gabi wrote: "Aren't there any fantasy books that are not part 1 of yet another series?"

or better, a stand alone novella. Often cheaper, less commitment, easier to squeeze in between schedules ^^

[Kristenelle]

For fantasy I nominate A Wizard’s Guide to Defensive Baking

This list may have some inspiration: https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/1...

The Order of the Pure Moon Reflected in Water caught my eye from the list.

[Kristenelle]

I just noticed that The Order of the Pure Moon Reflected in Water is only 176 pages. Does this fit the bill, Silvana? ;)

[Silvana]

Kristen wrote: "I just noticed that The Order of the Pure Moon Reflected in Water is only 176 pages. Does this fit the bill, Silvana? ;)"

Yes, but I read that one already (it was kinda disappointing). I'll keep looking but I am probably going to stick with my one SF nomination.

[Eva]

The Empress of Salt and Fortune is only 112 pages long, and I'm guessing it might be nominated in the novelette category in 2021.

While it's the first part of a duology, the second part is also only novella length and will come out in December, so no big commitment is involved.

[Silvana]

It is already a BOTM this month I think

[Eva]

Silvana wrote: "It is already a BOTM this month I think"

Oops, thank you for reminding me! In that case maybe we could continue/finish a series. I'd love to read Harrow the Ninth... or The Mistress of Illusions by Mike Resnick, who died this year.

[Oleksandr]

Eva wrote: "I'd love to read Harrow the Ninth... or The Mistress of Illusions by Mike Resnick, who died this year."

While currently we have no restriction for nomination mid-series books (do we need one?) I think that it is better to nominate standalone of first in the series. And if there is a popular series you can start a buddy read

[Kateblue]

Kirsten wrote: "Lauren Beukes has a new book out? Cool!!"

Yes, it is VERY expensive and our library never even listed it as upcoming, so I was unable to get on the list. YES I want to read it, but I can't get it for months.

So I am nominating House of Earth and Blood (Crescent City) for fantasy and The Stone Wētā, which looked so good I already bought it for $4, for SF.

I may not be able to get that new Adrian Tchaikovsky for quite a while. Not on the pre-publishing hold list.

[Kalin]

Lots of great ideas shared in this thread, but I'm wondering if we should limit to one nomination per category per person, just so we don't overwhelm ourselves with options? We can always save our second and third choices for coming months. What do you think?

[Kateblue]

I was assuming it was only one per type. I looked at both the books I picked to decide if they were F or SF. Sometimes it is hard to tell

And yes. I think one per type per person or we will have too many to choose from. We all only get one vote in each category, remember.

[Kristenelle]

That makes sense. I think people (myself included) were throwing around ideas for discussion rather than official nomination. My official nominations are:

Sci-fi: Axiom's End
Fantasy: A Wizard’s Guide to Defensive Baking

[Cordelia]

SF VanWest The Past by Kenneth Thomas

[Eva]

Yes, we were just discussing, not nominating the books mentioned.

But if we're going to just do nominations without exchange of ideas, that's fine, too. Then I change my second to
House of Earth and Blood by Sarah J. Maas
(since Jo Walton's book is too expensive and not yet on audio) and repeat my original nomination of
The Last Human by Zack Jordan.
:-)

[Cordelia]

Fantasy: Drowned Country by Emily Tesh

[Kateblue]

Oleksandr wrote: "On Aug 1st we start nominating for our two September reads. Now we can discuss categories. Right now I think we should shift to 2020 works and suggest 1 fantasy 1 SF, but I'm open for alternatives"

Because Z said this, but no one said anything about choosing other categories but just tossing out book names, I thought we were nominating. Sorry if I jumped the gun. I see it is Aug 1 here now, so I stand by my nominations above.

[Kalin]

I also didn't intend to cut off the conversation -- I'm really enjoying the enthusiasm! -- I just wanted to suggest ahead of time to be prepared to choose only two of all the ones being floated.

[Kateblue]

I'm really enjoying the enthusiasm myself. I just thought I was nominating before, so now I am :-)

[Gabi]

Kalin wrote: "I also didn't intend to cut off the conversation -- I'm really enjoying the enthusiasm! -- I just wanted to suggest ahead of time to be prepared to choose only two of all the ones being floated."

LOL, no you're right, Kalin. It gets a bit cluttered if nominations and musings are in the same thread.

I stand by my nomination (msg #20), even though I understand that Jo Walton is extremely expensive for those of us who don't rely on libraries to get the books.

[Cordelia]

My two are both nominations. - messages 41 and 43

[Kateblue]

Z, until when are the nominations open?

[Oleksandr]

Kateblue wrote: "Z, until when are the nominations open?"

Today and yes, limit is one nomination per category per member, so 1 fantasy, 1 SF