Books

I finally finished Wind and Truth by Brandon Sanderson (Stormlight book 5). I feel a bit divided about this book. There was a lot that I liked but also a lot that didn't really work for me. I might have enjoyed it more if I had read certain other cosmere books first.

After that I wanted to read something short, so I've been binging The Impossible Times series by Mark Lawrence, which is YA scifi set in the 1980s. Book 1 was awesome, book 2 less so, and so far book 3 is somewhere in between. Overall a good change of pace!

Eye of the World!

I’m about halfway through the first entry in Wheel of Time.

So far it’s been pretty solid - I just got to

It’s been rather slow in explaining lore and the magic system, but it’s at least been interesting. Reading the chase scenes and when Mat and Rand leave Whitebridge had me stressed out.

Just finished Julian: Rome's Last Pagan Emperor. Unfortunately, didn't learn anything I didn't already know.

Starting Greek Fire, Poison Arrows, and Scorpion Bombs: Biological and Chemical Warfare in the Ancient World. Two chapters in and I'm already finding it very enlightening!

Just finished Educated, a memoir from Tara Westover.

Tara Westover was 17 the first time she set foot in a classroom. Born to survivalists in the mountains of Idaho, she prepared for the end of the world by stockpiling home-canned peaches and sleeping with her "head-for-the-hills bag". In the summer she stewed herbs for her mother, a midwife and healer, and in the winter she salvaged in her father's junkyard.

Her father forbade hospitals, so Tara never saw a doctor or nurse. Gashes and concussions, even burns from explosions, were all treated at home with herbalism. The family was so isolated from mainstream society that there was no one to ensure the children received an education and no one to intervene when one of Tara's older brothers became violent.

Then, lacking any formal education, Tara began to educate herself. She taught herself enough mathematics and grammar to be admitted to Brigham Young University, where she studied history, learning for the first time about important world events like the Holocaust and the civil rights movement. Her quest for knowledge transformed her, taking her over oceans and across continents, to Harvard and to Cambridge. Only then would she wonder if she'd traveled too far, if there was still a way home.

Educated is an account of the struggle for self-invention. It is a tale of fierce family loyalty and of the grief that comes with severing the closest of ties. With the acute insight that distinguishes all great writers, Westover has crafted a universal coming-of-age story that gets to the heart of what an education is and what it offers: the perspective to see one's life through new eyes and the will to change it.

It's a genuinely incredible story, and absolutely enraging when you watch this mentally ill father repeatedly force his wife and children into situations that cause them grevious bodily harm, while denying them actual medical aid.

Also just finished Just Like Mother by Anne Heltzel. If you want Rosemary's Baby, but they worship Motherhood instead of the devil, I recommend this one.

And also finished What You Can See From Here by Mariana Leky. It's got the feel of a folklore or a fairy tale even though it's set in modern Germany. Full of likable and quirky characters.

I'm listening to SHROUD by ADRIAN TCHAIKOVSKY (sci-fi). So far so good. He's famous for his trilogy CHILDREN OF TIME, CHILDREN OF RUIN, and CHILDREN OF MEMORY.

I’m most of the way through The Mercy of Gods by James S.A. Corey, before I go back to The Expanse & finish that series.

I'm currently reading Oathbreakers, which is a history book about the Carolingians (Frankish Kings). Very interesting.

Reacher series is quite a nice read, except for a few. I've read the long earth series by Terry Pratchett and Stephen Baxter in the last two weeks. The books start slow, but are great page turners. Yesterday I started "Children of time" by Adrian Tchaikovsky. I had the book on my e-reader for some time, so I decided I should start reading it allready. Normally I'm more for the space opera type of books, so I'll see what I make of it.

The bear and the nightingale over 50% in pretty good but I'm not sure if it's really for me though the writing is of good quality which will at least get me to finish it. Unique setting too.

Bright green lies it is very interesting and the voice of the narrator (Joel Richards I think) is hypnotizing.

Still reading Night Angel Nemesis by Brent Weeks. The story is good, and the method of storytelling is interesting (one character is reading a self-narrated memoir of another character to figure out what happened to that person), but there is too much "I'm not good enough to deserve love" from everyone around. It's a fantasy heist book; make it about the heist and the magic, not the angsty love story.

Just started The Thief by Claire North.

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Finished:

The Dry by Jane Harper (contemporary mystery | bingo squares: other continent, motion picture, award HM)

A detective reluctantly returns to his hometown for the funeral of his childhood friend, who apparently murder-suicided his family. Digging into what happened brings up an incident from their past.

The plot is solid but nothing special, if you're into mysteries. However, I found it well-paced, well-written, and evocative, especially impressive for a debut.

The Empress of Salt and Fortune by Nghi Vo (fantasy | bingo squares: minority author, short, x of y HM, LGBTQIA+, award, political HM maybe)

A former servant of the previous empress tells a history-documenting monk the story of her youth, in relation to the empress's years of exile.

I wasn't in quite the right headspace for this, so it felt longer than it was; I did end up liking it, though. Interesting framing device. Not sure if I'll read the others in the series.

Half a Soul by Olivia Atwater (romantic fantasy of manners | bingo squares: number, cozy, jerk HM)

While in London for the Season, a young woman under a faerie curse finds herself tangled up with a grumpy magician, who's agreed to find a way to help her.

This is pure fluff, but so enjoyable that I sped through it. I found the MC's curse a little inconsistent in places, but that's a minor quibble. Spice-free.