What else are you reading - January 2021

[Rob, Roberator]

Well now that the awful year of 2020 is behind us, what will you be reading this month in the hopes that 2021 will suck a lot less?

[Trike]

Currently: Falling in Love with Hominids (SFF short stories)

and

The Address Book: What Street Addresses Reveal About Identity, Race, Wealth, and Power (nonfiction, this will be my first 5-star of 2021; it’s that good)

On deck:

Empire of Wild by Cherie Dimaline, this month’s author, but I’ve already read The Marrow Thieves.

[terpkristin]

Still reading Rhythm of War. I'll finish this month unless things fall more apart than usual.

[Jessica]

I’m just about to finish Transcendent Kingdom, which is so far sublime!

[Melina]

Just finished Rogue Protocol by Martha Wells (3rd book in the series) on audio / Scribd. Still entertaining to follow the anti-social Murderbot.

Also finished Woven in Moonlight by Isabel Ibanez. Really enjoyed this fantasy novel set in a magical Bolivian-esque world.

[Jan]

I want to re-read the Sector General novels as I remember them from my childhood as appropriately low stakes (General Hospital in Space - that seems the right thing for a pandemic, right?)

I wonder if they have aged well, I remember that there were some weird gender dynamic and a weird obsession of the protagonist with steak and human non-nudity?!

[Paul]

This month is going to be filled with goodreads group choices again. I've just finished The Humans by Matt Haig and also have his latest book, The Midnight Library queued up.


I'm about halfway through the audiobook of Adrian Tchaikovsky's The Doors of Eden and have just begun Heir of Sea and Fire by Patricia A. McKillip.


Other possibilities are:

The Girl with the Pearl Earring by Tracy Chevalier

The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead

The Portrait of a Lady by Henry James

Gorky Park by Martin Cruz Smith

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou


I very much doubt I'll read all of those, but let's see how it goes!

[Rick]

Finished Hench last night and it was very good. I'm not one to read about superheroes but this is a fun and funny take on them.

Imagine our word just as it is... but with superheroes and supervillains. The latter need help... so they hire temps. Henchs. Our hero starts out as a gig worker that but something happens to drive her deeper into this conflict and she realizes that superheroes might not be all good. Or even good at all.

[Stephen]

I am reading the series The Traitor Son Cycle which started off great with the The Red Knight. If you like the Middle Ages as a setting and loads of well written battle scenes with a bit of magic, this series is for you.

[Iain]

Started the Months Pick.... So far pretty standard YA.

[Jerimy]

Just finished "The Whisper Man" by Alex North. Currently reading:

Lest We Forget: A Ranger Medic's Story by Leo Jenkins,
Demonology by Joseph Young,
and Making Up Your Own Mind by Edward E. Burger.

I plan to read The Girl in the Golden Atom by Ray Cummings soon.

[Seth]

Rick wrote: "Finished Hench last night and it was very good. I'm not one to read about superheroes but this is a fun and funny take on them. "

I liked this one too Rick, I think I may have been in the mood to read a revenge tale.

My first of the year was Cobra Alliance because last month someone mentioned Timothy Zahn, and this was a series I hadn't read back in the mists of time. It was entertaining, even if unexceptional.

[Carrie]

Reading The City of Brass and will be starting Gardens of the Moon sometime this week. I'm doing the Malazan readalong that Mike from Mike's review's is hosting on his booktube/discord.

[Rick]

Seth wrote: "My first of the year was Cobra Alliance because last month someone mentioned Timothy Zahn, and this was a series I hadn't read back in the mists of time. It was entertaining, even if unexceptional.
..."

That was me. I think Zahn might fall into precisely that "...entertaining, even if unexceptional" range for me too and that's fine. Sometimes I just want to read a decent book that entertains me for a few hours.

[elizabeth • paper ghosts]

Starting the year off with some challenge books from another group for the first week of January. I started Strange the Dreamer on January 1st, and am loving it so far. It doesn't read like typical YA fantasy, which (for me) is a plus.

I also sat down and blasted through Fever Dream in one sitting yesterday afternoon, and ho' boy, what a weird and unsettling little book. If you need a quick dose of literary horror, this one definitely fits the bill.

[Louie]

I've been meaning to institute a new tradition of starting out the year with a re-read of an old favorite, so to that end my first read of the year is The Foundation Trilogy by Isaac Asimov. And coincidentally, I happen to start it on what would have been Asimov's 101st birthday.

[Misti]

I finished Ready Player Two last night. I enjoyed but I thought the first book was better.

I'm not in the mood to read the club pick for this month so I'm delving into the S&L archives to listen to The Hum and the Shiver instead. Light of the Jedi is supposed to drop tomorrow so I'm planning to start it then.

[Robert]

I am either reading or listening to a few non-genre books for this month and hope to be finished this month as opposed to just falling off or getting distracted.

A Promised Land by Barack Obama
The Panic Virus: A True Story of Medicine, Science, and Fear by Seth Mnookin
What Unites Us: Reflections on Patriotism by Dan Rather

[Silvana]

Reading Red Dust by Yoss now.

[Minsta]

Living in parallel worlds (sort of) by reading Cibola Burn while watching season 5 of The Expanse.

[Tamahome]

How do they compare?

[Rob, Roberator]

Misti wrote: "I'm not in the mood to read the club pick for this month so I'm delving into the S&L archives to listen to The Hum and the Shiver instead"

I enjoyed that one. Good choice!

[Melina]

Silvana wrote: "Reading Red Dust by Yoss now."

I've had Red Dust on my TBR for a while. Looking forward to hearing your thoughts on this one.

[Robert]

I’ve now read 4 more Leigh Brackett novellas. I started with “Citadel of Lost Ships,” which was okay but not great. Then was “The Jewel of Bas,” which was great. After that was “The Beast-Jewel of Mars,” which was pretty good. And last night I finished “Shannach-The Last.” It was also quite good. All very intriguing planetary romance SF.

[Trike]

Robert wrote: "I’ve now read 4 more Leigh Brackett novellas. I started with “Citadel of Lost Ships,” which was okay but not great. Then was “The Jewel of Bas,” which was great. After that was “The ..."

V. old school.

[Dana]

I just finished Jeff Wheeler’s The Killing Fog. It is a fantasy set in an Asian society about a young girl, Bingmei, who is orphaned, becomes a warrior, and unwittingly sets loose an evil ancient ruler. This book is is the first in a series. I enjoyed this book but I don’t know whether I care enough about what happens to Bingmei to read the next book in the series. I enjoyed Wheeler’s King Fountain series more.

[Minsta]

Tamahome wrote: "How do they compare?"

Cibola Burn matches closely to The Expanse TV show season 4. I just finished reading it today but I might wait to read book 5 until after Season 5 ends (also watched episode 6 today - this show never fails to be amazing! The casting, the writing, the effects - all top-notch). I like being surprised while watching the show. Also, reading the books after watching the shows is a different experience (even though I know the plot ahead of time) since it is so interesting being in characters' heads in their POV chapters.

[Tamahome]

Yeah I like getting more details reading the books after watching the movie or tv adaptions.

[Silvana]

Trying to listen to Ring Shout but audiobook and I are not getting along well lately. Will try the ebook version.

Not sure what to read next, maybe Docile or The Blade Between or another novella like Riot Baby. Let's see which one'll stick.

Melina wrote: "Silvana wrote: "Reading Red Dust by Yoss now."

I've had Red Dust on my TBR for a while. Looking forward to hearing your thoughts on this one."

It's alright.
My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Trike]

Silvana wrote: "Trying to listen to Ring Shout but audiobook and I are not getting along well lately. Will try the ebook version.

Not sure what to read next..."

A couple on my TBR might interest you, although obviously I can’t vouch for them:

The Wolf of Oren-Yaro
Anthropocene Rag

I get similar vibes from both of them and they have intriguing openings. (Ooh, that reminds me, I need to add these to the Great First Lines thread.)

Edit: looks I already did AR. I really should read that book if it’s stuck in my brain for nearly a year.

[Joseph]

Me, I'll vouch for The Wolf of Oren-Yaro and its sequel.

[Silvana]

Trike wrote: "Silvana wrote: "Trying to listen to Ring Shout but audiobook and I are not getting along well lately. Will try the ebook version.

Not sure what to read next..."

A couple on my TBR..."

thanks but I don't have those in my TBR (owned) shelf and I am planning to read only 2020 books (preferably shorter works) until March :)

EDT: I decided to read The Blade Between, just got sucked into it after a few chapters. Well, it is Sam Miller after all, the author of the amazing Blackfish City.

[Colin]

Finished up a couple of reads that didn't quite get done last year.

I found Last Stand in Lychford to be a fairly lacklustre conclusion to the novella series that it belongs to. Events happened one after another to create a plot of sorts, but it didn't seem to make great use of the characters that had been established in the earlier books - they could really have been anybody, so in the end I felt no particular investment in how things turned out for them.

Enjoyed Just One Damned Thing After Another rather more. Based on this first book in the St. Mary's series, it seems like the kind of fairly light-hearted read (or listen) that would sit well as a change of pace between more involved / serious novels. With a fairly dead-pan and very British kind of humour, the tone just sat well with me. Will definitely try a few more from the series.

Moving on to start Phoenix Extravagant by Yoon Ha Lee next.

[Rick]

Read the third in Ari Marmell's Mick Oberon series, Dead to Rites. Mick is a fae who really really doesnt like Elphame and they don't like him. No, he's not THAT Oberon... but is a distant cousin.

So he's currently (in the series) a PI in 1930s Chicago, sometime after Capone has been taken down. Fun series, lots of period jargon.

[Charles]

Dana wrote: "I just finished Jeff Wheeler’s The Killing Fog. It is a fantasy set in an Asian society about a young girl, Bingmei, who is orphaned, becomes a warrior, and unwittingly sets loose an evil ancient r..."
This one is on my list! :) I've enjoyed Jeff Wheeler's other words. I hope this on is as good.

[Charles]

I just finished The Rise and Fall of D.O.D.O. It's a very interesting read. I see that there's a sequel set to be released on February, it's really just a continuation of the story, but I probably won't read it since I didn't enjoy the writing style.

[John (Nevets)]

Charles wrote: "I just finished The Rise and Fall of D.O.D.O. It's a very interesting read. I see that there's a sequel set to be released on February, it's really just a continuation of the story,..."

Yep, that about sounds up how I felt about it as well. The plot and story were interesting, but the writing style and format made it a more difficult read then it needed to be. I typically like Stephenson's writing, but I had a hard time with this. And I'm taking a pause about 60% through Fall; or, Dodge in Hell. I will probably finish at some time, but not right now.

[Calvey]

Light of the Jedi - Very excited to see how this series will be.

[Charles]

John (Nevets) wrote: "Yep, that about sounds up how I felt about it as well. The plot and story were interesting, but the writing style and format made it a more difficult read then it needed to be...."

I wonder how much Stephenson wrote? I get the feeling the background and historical items were his but the rest, including the format, was from the other author. I felt satisfied at the end but the middle was hard.

[Melina]

Reading Kindred by Octavia Butler per several recommendations on the Parable of the Sower discussion thread. Really liking it (about 2/3 of the way in). I would tag it more historical fiction, but the time travel element makes it a bit light sci-fi.

[Seth]

Read The Last Tsar's Dragons, I don't remember why it was on hold for me at the library, but it popped up and I was in the mood for something short. I didn't really like it. If you're going to add dragons to history (in this case the Russian Revolution) it should make it more interesting. It did convince me to pick up His Majesty's Dragon for a reread, however, and that one is still great.

[Geoff]

Finished The Aeneid. A classic, but wow! the reviewers weren't kidding about an abrupt ending!

Next up I'm reading An Ordinary Man: An Autobiography for my non-fiction book club. Next SFF will probably be Ready Player Two.

[Julie]

I'm rereading The Calculating Stars for a local book club and it's such a joy to return to it after reading The Relentless Moon last year.

Also working on Swordheart.

[terpkristin]

I finally finished Rhythm of War so I jumped into Storm Rising on audio and The Marrow Thieves on Kindle. I've finished Storm Rising (non-SFF) and am going to move on to Ready Player Two for audio.

[Rick]

I caught up on the Mick Oberon series with In Truth and Claw.Next up is, I think, Mexican Gothic or perhaps The Empress of Salt and Fortune

[Tassie Dave, S&L Historian]

I just started The Sinister Mystery of the Mesmerizing Girl and finishing up Mexican Gothic

[Seth]

Rick wrote: "... or perhaps The Empress of Salt and Fortune"

I thought this, and the follow-up When the Tiger Came Down the Mountain were really great. Just short novellas, but didn't feel lacking like some novellas do.

Speaking of novellas, I just finished Connie Willis's Take a Look at the Five and Ten which is extremely mild in its sci-fi elements and mostly a Christmas romance, which was good.

[Joseph]

Continuing on from last year, I'm starting The Gathering Storm, fifth in Kate Elliott's Crown of Stars series.

[John (Nevets)]

I just finished listening to The Wee Free Men, and I can completely understand the love for Tiffany Aching. I love me some competent protagonist stories, and she is that in spades. Couple that with a great Terry Pratchett story, and this was great.

[Silvana]

Seth wrote: "Rick wrote: "... or perhaps The Empress of Salt and Fortune"

I thought this, and the follow-up When the Tiger Came Down the Mountain were really great. ..."

Oh, good to know the sequel is great! The Empress of Salt and Fortune hit all the marks for me.