Nominations for December 2020 Books of the Month

[Kathi, Moderator & Book Lover]

Hi everyone,
I was so busy with our next series nominations (and the first weekend of NFL football), I forgot to open nominations for our December 2020 Books of the Month. Well, nominations are open now! Each group member can make 1 science fiction and/or 1 fantasy nomination. A couple of suggestions to keep in mind:

1. Telling us a little about the book and why you think it would be a good group read can help get other members interested in reading (and voting for) your nomination. If possible, please use a link to the book and author in your nomination post. Click on “add book/author" for an easy way to do that.

2. To see if your nomination has already been read by the group, you can check:

a. The Beyond Reality Google spreadsheet of Previous Books of the Month, available at this link: Previous Books of the Month in Searchable Spreadsheet. To search for a specific title, use the "Find and Replace" option under the EDIT menu. Don't worry, you will be able to find a title but you will not be able to replace it since the spread sheet is in "View Only" mode.

b. the group's bookshelf for Previous Books of the Month
and/or
c. these threads:
Master list of Previous Books of the Month 2018 - Present
Master list of Previous Books of the Month (Apr-Dec 2017)
Master list of Previous Books of the Month 2012 - 2017
Master list of Previous Books of the Month 2006 - 2011

Books the group has read in the past 2 years are not eligible for current consideration. Being chosen as a past BotM prior to that time is not an automatic disqualification, but be aware that it may hinder your nomination’s chances at the polls.

General guidelines:
• Feel free to re-nominate a book that didn’t win in the polls in previous months!
• For questions regarding specifics such as book formats, books in series, self-nomination and various rules for nominations, please see the group FAQ.
• Seconding is NOT necessary in this group.
• Friendly discussion & debate is strongly encouraged, but please keep things civil.

Poll schedule:
• Nominations will remain open through Monday, September 21.
• The first (preliminary) round of polls will open Tuesday, September 22 and will run through Saturday, September 26.
• The final run-off polls go up Sunday, September 27, and will be open through Wednesday, September 30.

Thanks!
Kathi, for the Mods

NOMINATIONS SO FAR:
FANTASY:
The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon
Kings of Paradise by Richard Nell
Piranesi by Susanna Clarke
The Deep by Rivers Solomon
Shades of Milk and Honey by Mary Robinette Kowal
The Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien

SF:
Vagabonds by Hao Jingfang
A Closed and Common Orbit by Becky Chambers
The Book of Koli by M.R. Carey
To Sleep in a Sea of Stars by Christopher Paolini
Autonomous by Annalee Newitz
The January Dancer by Michael Flynn
The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell

[Christopher]

For sci-fi, I would like to nominate Vagabonds by Hao Jingfang. I have suggested this book before and my reason remains the same. This sounds like a fascinating story, I am starting to become a sucker for sci-fi stories about Mars, and I have been dying to read this book in a group setting.

For fantasy, I would like to nominate The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon. I am nominating this because I am thinking about tackling this big, meaty standalone fantasy novel in December and it would be great if I could discuss this book in a group context.

[Eva]

For Fantasy, I'd like to nominate Kings of Paradise by Richard Nell. It won the Indie Readers Discovery Award in 2018, has a great GR rating, and some of my GR friends love it with great passion. "The novel's brilliant world works on so many levels; it has a rich political landscape, moral complexity, and immense environmental challenges, all told in beautiful, thoughtful prose." - Indiereader

For SF, I nominate A Closed and Common Orbit by Becky Chambers. We've read book 1 as a group and I've heard this also works as a standalone: you don't have to know book 1 to enjoy this. My reason for this suggestion: the first book just felt like a warm hug and a fun time spent with friends in a cool universe, and that's exactly what I will want to read when the cold winter and X-Mas time come around.

[Wekoslav]

For Fantasy I nominate Piranesi by Susanna Clarke. I loved and recently bought Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell in Macedonian (finally a translation), and I'm excited that after 16 years, we get another book by the author.

For SF, I second A Closed and Common Orbit, I've already read it, but it's a treat, and I think it's even better than the previous one. It's a shared universe setting, so it can be read independently.

[Kari]

For fantasy: I'll nominate The Deep by Rivers Solomon, a novella which has been nominated for the Hugo, Nebula, Locus, and more.

For sci-fi: I'll nominate The Book of Koli by M.R. Carey, a book that appears to be about killer trees and thus has all my attention.

[Gabi]

Kari wrote: "For sci-fi: I'll nominate The Book of Koli by M.R. Carey, a book that appears to be about killer trees and thus has all my attention...."

Killer trees are only shortly mentioned and don't play a role in the book - but the book nevertheless is very recommendable!

[Kari]

Gabi wrote: "Killer trees are only shortly mentioned and don't play a role in the book - but the book nevertheless is very recommendable! "

Well, I am disappointed about the lack of killer trees but I'm glad to hear you still liked it!

[Gabi]

Kari wrote: Well, I am disappointed about the lack of killer trees but I'm glad to hear you still liked it!..."

:) it has a bit of killer trees, but I was expecting more. Joke aside, I dearly loved the book and will start the second one as soon as I finished my current read.

[Chris, Moderator]

I would like to nominate To Sleep in a Sea of Stars by Christopher Paolini. Paolini is known for his fantasy Inheritance cycle (Eragon, Eldest & Brisingr) but this one is science fiction. It's long, but it sounds really interesting!

[Gabi]

Chris wrote: "I would like to nominate To Sleep in a Sea of Stars by Christopher Paolini. Paolini is known for his fantasy Inheritance cycle ([book:Eragon, Eldest & Brisingr|2479827..."

I'm reading it at the moment. I can't compare it to Eragon, cause I've never read that, but so far "To Sleep in a Sea of Stars" is really good!

[Leticia]

Fantasy nomination: Shades of Milk and Honey by Mary Robinette Kowal

Sci-fi nomination: Autonomous by Annalee Newitz

[Mary]

SF: The January Dancer by Michael Flynn A tale of far-future intrigue, adventure, and philosopy.

Fantasy: The Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien

[Elizabeth]

For SF: I'd like to nominate The Sparrowby Mary Doria Russell. I've always been an easy mark for first contact sci fi, and this one is fantastic. The first inhabited planet discovered is visited by a mission sponsored by the Society of Jesuits. The main characters are human, humane, witty, warm, diverse, and fallible. As readers we only piece together the incredible story of what happened on Rakhat at the same time that the brothers of the order find out after the lone survivor of the mission returns and only slowly reveals what he and the others experienced. Great world-building.

I'll leave the Fantasy nominations to others!

[Kathi, Moderator & Book Lover]

Last night for nominations. Preliminary poll will be set up tomorrow.

[Kathi, Moderator & Book Lover]

Nominations are closed.

Preliminary polls for December Books of the Month are open, and will remain open only through Sept. 26, so please vote now!

Preliminary FANTASY Poll

Preliminary SF Poll

[Kathi, Moderator & Book Lover]

And the final polls to choose our December 2020 Books of the Month are now open, and will remain open through the end of this month. I realize that is only a few days, so please vote soon!

Final Poll for Fantasy BotM

Final Poll for SF BotM

[Kathi, Moderator & Book Lover]

September 30 is the last day to vote. Polls are pretty close, so please add your vote! 🗳