Threadnsong Reads More in 2023

Hello and Welcome to my 2023 Category Challenge Reading Thread!

With all the well wishes and comments and general engagement through 2022 on that thread, I've started this new thread with some similar and some additional categories.

I find that if I get too many categories going, I either get completely muddled and can't choose (Libra), or I leave out a book that might have fit a cool category challenge from another angle.

So, here goes:

LibraryThing Challenges - CATS and Kits both, in whatever category inspires me to choose a book from my shelf, or if a chosen book from my shelf fits with a category that is hosted here.

Re-reads - old favorites, like old friends, that I miss and want to revisit. I also have to be realistic that some re-reads will not be lasting friendships and those books need to find new homes. This worked well for me last year in de-cluttering my shelves, and sometimes fits in with the Challenges.

General reading - Books that I just choose. At random. Because they called to me, or I've neglected them on a shelf, or a friend gifted them to me.

Book Clubs - I'm adding this category this year for both F2F and on-line book clubs. Books are a great way for me to speak up and stay social about something that is not-work, not-home, not-music.

This Will Take Some Time - Added this category late in the year because there are always one or two (or more) books on my reading stacks that I know are going to take more than a month. Balzac is one; it's a way for me to keep up my French and also immerse myself into his world and his remarkable observations of people.

And to those of you who leave or have left posts that it took me a while to respond to, thank you for engaging on this thread with me! I have not forgotten you, and I will respond. I work FT, play music evenings and some weekends, and tend to unwind with, well, with a good book. And I'm married and like to spend time with DH and our furkids, and cook a good, healthy meal sometimes. I have not forgotten you!!

LibraryThing Challenges



This is a photo of Fair Isle Knitting. It is a technique that requires some practice, as one knits with two colors across the row whilst reading a chart. So into this area will go my books read in the 2023 LibraryThing Challenges, both Kits and CATS.

You will see (like the wide variety of colors on this photo) a wide variety of subjects: CATWoman, GeoCAT, SFFKit, and MysteryKit. Sometimes the Challenge will help me select a book off my shelf, sometimes I'll decide to read a book and it will fit a LT CATegory.

I'll list the titles and monthly Challenge here, and the review will be separate.

1) January SeriesCAT Challenge: The Lantern Men by Elly Griffiths (series new to me)
2) January ClassicsCAT Challenge: Two Years Before the Mast by Richard Dana Henry, Jr.
3) March MysteryKIT Challenge: Children of the Night by Mercedes Lackey (Paranormal Mystery)
4) April ClassicsCAT Challenge: The Boomerang Clue by Agatha Christie (Classic Mysteries/Detective Novels)
5) April SFFKit Challenge: The Prince of Annwn by Evangeline Walton (Historical SFF).
6) May KiddyCAT Challenge:The Black Stallion by Walter Farley (Children's Classics)
7) June SFFKit Challenge: Wintersmith by Terry Pratchett (Humorous SFF)
8) July SFFKit Challenge: Island of the Mighty by Evangeline Walton (SFF Series/Trilogies)
9) July SFFKit Challenge: Controlled Descent by K.M. Herkes
10) July SFFKit Challenge: Flight Plan by K.M. Herkes
11) September MysteryKit: Murder Past Due by Miranda James
12) September SFFKit Challenge: Neverending Story by Michael Ende
13) September MysteryKit: The Maidens by Alex Michaelides

Re-Reads



The photo here is the well-known piano score for "Fur Elise" that anyone who studied classical piano at a young-ish age knows. Probably by heart. Because we practiced it so much with our young fingers.

It is the perfect piece to go and revisit when I feel the need for a lift. Or if I need something simple when I am working on a more difficult piece of music.

Books that I'm re-reading, sometimes because I love them and need to re-join their worlds, sometimes because I need to de-clutter my shelves and want to re-read a book before sending it along, will go here.

1) Burning Water by Mercedes Lackey Completed
2) One for the Morning Glory by John Barnes Completed
3) Children of the Night by Mercedes Lackey Completed
4) The Boomerang Clue by Agatha Christie Completed
5) The Illustrated Man by Ray Bradbury Completed
6) Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll (2 versions) Completed
7) The Black Stallion by Walter Farley Completed
8) Jinx High by Mercedes Lackey Complete
9) Night Train to Mother by Ronit Lentin
10) Neverending Story by Michael Ende

General Reading



These are fabric squares of all different colors and sizes. Some are quilts folded up, some are quilts-to-be. All of them are gorgeous and full of possibilities.

This is where books will go that are just cuz. I picked it up at a yard sale, or a bookstore, or from who-know-where. It is a book I want to read because it interests me. And I'm OK with that.

1) Empire of Pain by Patrick Radden Keefe. Damn good book about a truly horrible topic.
2) The Warrior Queens by Antonia Fraser. She is one of my most favorite authors, and I totally love the subject matter.
3) Bringing Columbia Home by Michael Leinbach. Recommended by rabbitprincess last year.
4) Atlas of Extinct Countries by Gideon Defoe. Also mentioned last year and an easily accessible read.
5) The Unbroken Web by Richard Adams. Because I love him and his ability to bring stories to life.
6) The Hot Zone by Richard Preston. An amazing and timely book.
7) Head On by John Scalzi. Boy, do I love his writing!
8) Roses are Red by James Patterson. Christmas gift and I really love Patterson's books.
9) Maisie Dobbs by Jacqueline Winspear. It's been on my shelves for a while and with all the Great War reading going on on this Group, this book seems to fit the general feeling.
10 War of the Worlds: Global Dispatches ed. by Kevin J. Anderson. I picked it up at DragonCon and decided it was time to read it.
11 The Far Traveller: Voyages of a Viking Woman by Nancy Marie Brown. A book I purchased at the Georgia Renaissance Festival a couple of years back and I'm finding its prose quite lyrical.
12 The Children of Llyr by Evangeline Walton
13 The Song of Rhiannon by Evangeline Walton
14 The Island of the Mighty by Evangeline Walton. It seems that I'm reading them out of order of her publication (she published this one first), but in order of their listing as Branches of the Mabinogion.
15 The Eternal Ones by Kirsten Miller. Completed, and going to a YA local free library.
16 Violets are Blue by James Patterson. Really enjoy this series.
17 Ganymede by Cherie Priest. Set in her alt-history universe with plenty of steampunk elements.

Book Clubs



Because really, whether they are on-line or in-person, book clubs are a great excuse to just go out there and read. More. Books.

1) The Lantern Men by Elly Griffiths is a LT group read
2) The Last Coyote by Michael Connelly is a LT group read
3) The Bishop's Pawn by Steve Berry is a LT group read
4) The Maid by Nita Prose is a F2F group read

This Will Take Some Time



So, having realized that I created this space for a Very Good Reason, I have decided that this space is for books that take some time to read.

Because I have a lot of them on my shelves, and they will take a while to read. (There are some repeats of books I finished earlier this year, too.)

1) The Warrior Queens by Antonia Fraser
2) Dangerous Rhythms by T.J. English
3) Eugenie Grandet by Honoré de Balzac
4) The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux

Great setup! Looking forward to seeing what fills your categories this year.

Stopping by to wish you a wonderful year of reading in 2023.

Good luck with your 2023 reading!

Happy reading!

Happy reading in 2023!

Love those fabrics! Happy reading in 2023.

Good luck with your 2023 reading

Happy reading in 2023!

>7 rabbitprincess: Thank you! As do I.

>8 lkernagh: Thanks, and to you as well.

>9 Tess_W: Thank you. I may need that luck.

>10 pamelad: Thank you!

>11 JayneCM: And thank you as well!

>12 dudes22: Yeah, these are cool fabrics, aren't they? Thanks very much.

>13 lowelibrary: Thank you; all the luck is appreciated!

>14 bookworm3091: Thank you very much!

Hope you have a great year of reading!

>16 thornton37814: Thank you!! Looking forward to posting soon.

Looking forward to your reading finds this year.

Happy New Year and Happy Reading to you! Wanting to follow along. :-)

>18 markon: Thank you!

>19 LibraryCin: Oh how wonderful! Glad to hear it

In fact, I started one yesterday and so I'm posting in the "Challenges" link above for 2023. It's The Lantern Men with a "New to me" series on the January SeriesCAT (Ruth Galloway mysteries).

Have a great reading year in 2023.

Good luck with your 2023 Challenge, hopefully, there will be lots of great books for you to discover!

>20 threadnsong: That is one of my favourite series, although I am reading it in order and haven't gotten to The Lantern Men yet. I hope you enjoy it!

>21 hailelib: Thank you!

>22 DeltaQueen50: Oh, I have a feeling there will be. Your thread will be one of my sources I'm sure!

>23 MissBrangwen: I can see why. I was able to jump into it, as Griffiths does a good job providing information about the ongoing characters without sounding repetitive.

So, here we are the first week of January, and I've already finished one book from a challenge and am starting another!

The Lantern Men by Elly Griffiths was a really, really quick read (helped by having Monday off and heading to a local brewpub with my faithful canine companion) and I consumed it within a couple of days. Review will come later since I'm in the mood tonight to catch up on everyone's threads.

I've added a couple of books to my lists above. One is a challenge, which helped me decide on what to read next, and one is a gift from a friend that I wanted to get into. Plus, I'm still reading the third since it is something of a doorstop. Readable, but a doorstop.

Two Years Before the Mast for the January ClassicsCAT
The Warrior Queens by Antonia Fraser (one of my favorite authors and what a great subject!)
Empire of Pain that is a great piece of reading despite the subject matter.

BTW, has anyone seen the CATWomen category for 2023? I keep looking on the 2023 Challenges page and haven't been able to locate it.

Happy reading in 2023!

>26 MissWatson: Thank you!

Empire of Pain by Patrick Radden Keefe
5*****

Category: 2023 General Reading

The Sackler name adorns the walls of many storied institutions--Harvard, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Oxford, the Louvre. They are one of the richest families in the world, known for their lavish donations to the arts and the sciences. The sources of the family fortune was vague, however, until it emerged that the Sacklers were responsible for making and marketing a blockbuster painkiller that was the catalyst for the opioid crisis.

This is a remarkable book for its scope and its readability about a very dark part of modern life: the opioid crisis. Rather than taking facts and figures, death counts and dysfunction, as his focus, he takes Story. The Story of Mary Jo Howard, defense counsel for the Sacklers during lawsuits. The Story of Arthur Sackler and his two brothers, Raymond and Mortimer. The boundless energy of Arthur Sackler is an interesting Story, as is his decision to create a magazine full of his writings, marketed to doctors. The Story of Valium and the Stories that supported writing prescriptions for it, back in the 60's and 70's.

One very interesting Story for me was that of Richard Sackler, son of Raymond and one of the family members who ran Purdue Pharma, told by his college roommate and friend. How Richard was oblivious to social or emotional or spoken cues from others that resulted in broken ties and hurt feelings. Applying that Story to Richard's leadership in a company that chose to reward doctors for writing more and more prescriptions for an addictive substance, and rewarding company sales reps for finding these doctors who would write more prescriptions because the company would have higher sales. The sense of preserving the company's (and family's) wealth through greater sales, instead of looking at the harm of opioid addiction, was a stark Story of how the opioid crisis has worsened due to one man's emotional abyss.

And on, and on, and on. And it is really, really hard to put down. Or decide to stop at a chapter when another chapter is just one page away. And yet, sometimes I just had to because we all know where this story ends (finished in 2020 and published in 2021, so pending lawsuits). My hat is off to Keefe for writing such a readable and necessary book.

And can I just say? I'm patting myself on the back for finally figuring out how to put my book cover onto this review!! Yay, go me!

Think I'll go eat dinner now ;)

>29 threadnsong: LOL! Congratulations!

Technically, I know how (well, I can look it up... I've done similar before, though I don't remember off the top of my head), I just don't take the time. I copy/paste my reviews, first in GR, then here (in multiple places), so it's easiest to just copy/paste the same thing and not edit to add the cover here.

>29 threadnsong: - A well deserved pat on the back!

>28 threadnsong: Thumbs up for an excellent review!

>28 threadnsong: A good review ... and pictures too!! :)

>30 LibraryCin: Yeah, I had to go back through earlier threads to find the instructions. I figure by December I'll know how to do it without thinking about it!

>31 lkernagh: Thank you!

>32 rabbitprincess: Thanks - it is definitely worth reading.

>33 DeltaQueen50: Yes indeed! And glad you liked my review.

I said at the end of last year's 2022 Category Challenge on my thread how grateful I was that I have LT to help me keep focused on what to read. And now I have a couple of prime examples!

As part of the ClassicsCAT I pulled Two Years Before the Mast out of my shelves to take part in that challenge. And guess what I found there? A bookmark from 1991 when I first started reading it. It was probably during the summer/early fall when I was waiting tables and could read during the day. Especially "classics" where even then I would tend to doze off or get bored. Evidently I put it down and shelved it.

And then! A few days ago, DH came home with books I had asked for at Christmas and was not sure that I was going to get. So off I went on a reading tangent, completely out of order and off of the challenge/reading list: Atlas of Extinct Countries (a lot of fun with quick chapters) and Bringing Columbia Home (sad and beautifully written).

*Because* I have reading challenges, I eventually returned to my lists, including reading some of "Two Years" at a coffee shop yesterday, but it might have been forgotten *again* had I not kept up with LT and my lists and stayed disciplined.

The in-laws are coming in town this week, so I hope to add in some reading times in the evenings if we're not visiting or going out for dinner. Will catch up as I can!

>28 threadnsong: Been on my WL for sometime. Your review, which was excellent, just moved it up the list!

>1 threadnsong: Always enjoy your thread. I'll be picking up some new BBs for sure.

>25 threadnsong: I need to get back to the Elly Griffiths series sometime.

>36 threadnsong: I don't know that I've ever read Dana's work. An Atlas of Extinct Countries sounds like one I'd enjoy.

>37 Tess_W: Awesome! Thank you. And I bet with your job you have a lot of reviews/term papers to read.

>38 beebeereads: Does that mean you have a thread this year??

>39 thornton37814: I did enjoy it and it worked well as a standalone. Plus, made me want to visit the Fens of Norfolk. Seems like there's a lot of history and folklore there.

And "Atlas" presents real, live places in quick, 2-3 page chapters. And the chapters, while a bit tongue-in-cheek sometimes, provide enough information to make a reader want to go read more about a particular place. And some of the reasons for countries to have existed?! Holy cow!

The Lantern Men by Elly Griffiths
4 1/2 ****

Categories: 2023 Category Challenge - January SeriesCAT Challenge, LT Group Read

My first book read by Elly Griffiths and I enjoyed it very, very much. It is a murder mystery with an ongoing cast of characters, set mostly in the marshes of Norfolk and partly in Cambridge. One of the main characters, Ruth Galloway, is now living and teaching archeology in Cambridge and happy with her new life. Her former lover, Harry Nelson, is working a case involving the murder of two women by Ivor March, who is found guilty at the start of the book.

Yet as Ruth is pulled into this case due to her previous work in Forensics in Norfolk, and more intrigue surrounds where the bodies were found (the garden of a former partner of Ivor March), there also comes to light additional bodies and March knows where they are buried. And at the center of all of the intrigue is the house introduced at the beginning, where Ruth finishes the manuscript of her third book at a writing retreat. A cast of characters seems to swirl around this house and its visitors, several of whom have wound up dead.

A very quick read, and easy to dance into this mystery series due to the author's skill at providing bits of the backstory of each character without sounding patronizing or repeating character stories too often told.

So it was a cool, rainy weekend and was a perfect weekend to catch up on Two Years Before the Mast and Warrior Queens.

Surprisingly, "Two Years" is fairly easy to read. The book jacket says it is "edited for younger readers" so I don't know if there are some "naughty bits" that were left out or if the language was simplified. It reads like a book written in the 1830's, both in the style of language and in its descriptions of the life of a seafaring man. And don't even get me started on the ethnocentrism! Holy cow! It was also written when California, where many of the middle chapters take place, had passed from Spanish rule to Mexican rule. He is more sympathetic in his descriptions of the Sandwich Islanders than he is to other groups he meets on his travels.

I did peek at some of the reviews of "Warrior Queens" and I'm still making my mind up whether I agree with them. It has been fascinating to read the limited, historical accounts of Queen Bodicea/Boudica and Fraser's reasons for the different spellings. Plus, Fraser is a good historical storyteller and I learned more about Cleopatra than I did from, say, Shakespeare. Which is a good thing.

Oh, and Bringing Columbia Home. Wow, what an amazing book. It's a quick read and one I really had to be in the mood for to even ask for. But definitely well worth it. Compassionate, detailed, full of engineering tidbits, and maps and photographs. The compassion shown to the searchers, many of them NASA astronauts who had lost friends and colleagues, is well documented here.

>40 threadnsong: Yes, I do. You encouraged me so thank you.

BeebeeReads Keeps on Steppin' Up in 2023.

>41 threadnsong: Glad you enjoyed your first Ruth Galloway. I am waiting for her next one to come out next month. It will take awhile to get it on Libby, but I enjoy following these characters and the different scenarios that come out of the world of archeology.

>43 beebeereads: Awww, that is so very kind! I'm so glad I encouraged you, and I will star your site this weekend.

>44 beebeereads: I've heard there is already quite the buzz about Ruth Galloway's next book, and I do hope you enjoy it. She is a good writer and has good characters with real, modern hopes and dreams and issues.

I was looking over my calendar for February, after a tumultuous last few weekends where I visited with friends, in-laws, attended a multi-media performance, and sadly needed to lay a friend to rest. I am glad to have friends and opportunities to Do Stuff, and now I am looking forward to some unscheduled time over the next few weekends.

There are some sites here on this site where I need to catch up with friends (thinking of you, DeltaQueen, and BeeBee Reads, and RabbitPrincess, and Tess_W!). And also there are the Mexican Petunias that have taken over a small space (as they do) and needs to be culled. So there's the exercise portion of my weekend.

And also, can I just say that modern technology has brought the angst of learning new tunes into something fun and enjoyable? I've downloaded one of those apps that you can play a portion of a tune on, over and over, and slow it down. While iTunes does allow me to stop and re-start, I have to look up, turn my attention to my laptop, restart it, and try to keep up (even though my instructor has played it as slowly as possible). Now, with this new App I downloaded last weekend, I re-learned our new class tune, "Drowsy Maggie," in record time. I could concentrate on learning the pattern, hear his variations, and it locked into my brain. And I enjoyed the learning experience! I'm looking forward to more enjoyable learning time going forward.

Hope everyone has a good day/week and I'll be posting a couple of book reviews as well!

Don't stress about catching up with the threads. I find everyone is very understanding and patient when Real Life needs attention. That said, I am looking forward to your book reviews! ;)

Ooh the app that allows you to replay portions of a song sounds great! Is it for piano or another instrument?

>46 threadnsong: is off to look up Mexican petunias--never heard of them!

>47 DeltaQueen50: Awww, thank you for relieving my guilt!

>48 rabbitprincess: You can use it for any instrument. It's really great - you just set the loop of the part you want to learn, select your speed, and just play that section over and over. A newer model Mac user swears by Anytune, and I use Amazing Slow Downer with my older model Mac. You just set your laptop up while you play and you can play any instrument.

>49 Tess_W: Thank you! Yeah, they are drought-resistant and the hummingbirds love them. They grow quite tall and are annuals. So less planting (but more culling).

Bringing Columbia Home by Michael Leinbach and Jonathan Ward
5*****

Category: 2023 General Reading

An astounding book, written by a former NASA launch commander and an Ambassador connected with the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Both authors combine their skills to create a history of the shuttle Columbia as the backdrop to the awful events of that day. They also include a well-described layout of Kennedy Space Center (and the photos help tie all that in) with brief bios of the crew and their mission. Interspersed were detailed "what-ifs" that show, from the moment of the launch, what went wrong and how. Such as pictures from the launch that were never downloaded; had they been, the ground crew would have seen a large chunk of foam missing from the left-hand side of the rocket.

I also found invaluable the minute-by-minute events of that morning, with both shuttle mission information (what happens normally) and what people saw when. As Columbia began her entry, she was last seen zooming past California towards Nevada and Utah. Then, suddenly, the sensor readings begin to look different and temperatures go up. And then eye-witness accounts from Dallas and eastern Texas, along the path that Columbia broke up and the sonic booms that everyone in east Texas heard. What their reactions were. What caused them. Where debris landed. All of that, answering the "What happened?" questions not just from a mission normal narrative, but also the people who saw it disintegrate. And the reader who remembers the glowing streak across the sky and where I was that day.

The other thing I appreciated was that while there were scientific explanations, the story does not bog down into great scientific formulas. I did have to look up a few flying terms but that was all. And also that authors described the great outpouring of help and support from the people in east Texas who helped with setting up command centers, finding hotels, and feeding everyone who came out. There were as many as 22,000 people who helped with the recovery effort.

Also interesting was the help from all facets of the US Government. The Texas Forest Service brought in wildfire crews: they bring their own camp, tents, cooking, all that gear, and they are used to working on all kinds of tough terrain. And many of them are Native American tribes members. Or the National Transportation and Safety Board, who dispensed the advice, "Let the evidence show the cause of the accident; don't try to make the theory fit the evidence." Much praise is given to these agencies, and conversely sufficient blame is laid where it is deserved.

As with the Challenger disaster, improvements were made to launches, and with one visit to the Hubble Space telescope, all future missions included docking with the International Space Station in order to ensure that the shuttle was safe for the return flight, and to provide future shuttle astronauts safe haven in case the shuttle was not capable of returning back to Earth.

Two Years Before the Mast by Richard Henry Dana, Jr.
4****

Category: 2023 Challenge - January ClassicsCAT Challenge

A very, very good book with such detail about ships and sailing and masts and jibs and what-not. Young Richard Dana find that his life has left him with no choice but to enlist in the Merchant Marines. I've heard that term and never really understood what it meant until now. The ship to which he signed sailed cattle hides from California to Boston. And it sailed out of Boston in 1834, before the railroads were built.

Dana was college-educated and kept a detailed diary on which he based this book. He does not shy away from his first days with sea-sickness, to the quarters where he and his shipmates lived and slept on hammocks, to the times of watches and what was expected, to the perils they encountered bringing hides from one port of California to the other where they were stored prior to shipment. His descriptions as well of how a sailing vessel was laid out, the masts, the work of furling and unfurling sails in all kinds of weather (such as rounding Cape Horn in the Antarctic winter), keeping watch, and how sailors ate were exacting and well-written.

He also goes into great detail about how the hides were "droughed" (carried on the head) to the rowboats from the various ports to the ship, transported to port where they were again off-loaded to be stored until a certain tonnage was achieved. The tonnage was determined by the company to whom Dana and the ship were contracted for the duration of the voyage; hence the "Merchant Marines," as they were sailing from the port of Boston to ports in California, in order to provide goods (in this case, hides) for the company that owned the ship and saw to their pay.

And yes, there is a flogging on board the ship, as is an attempt to force Dana into greater time on board his old ship from his new one, leading to a life of sailing instead of a point in time worked as a sailor. The descriptions of California and its coast, when it was still a Mexican territory, are fantastic and make me a bit sad for what we have lost over the centuries with Development and Progress.

The troubling parts of this book, though, are the ethnocentrism. He refers to the inhabitants of the various coastal cities, both Mexican and Native Americans, as lazy, as half-hearted in their work (which, yes, means the same thing), and as something wholly "other" than his Yankee work ethic. He makes a distinction between the Mexicans and the Spanish, giving a bit higher recognition to the Spanish, who had colonized California originally. Strangely, though, he has good rapport with the Sandwich Islanders (modern Hawa'ii) and even helps save one from the disease that they too often caught from interaction with the White voyagers (the disease is not named but was probably not smallpox by the description).

All in all most deservedly a classic of literature.

So this weekend I didn't get as much reading done as i had hoped (but one never does, I suppose!) but I *did* polish the silver so that's one bit of cleaning done. It's so easy to do and just makes the silver bits pretty and shiny.

I started on The Unbroken Web this morning, just a few of the tales to get started. What a variety! South Sea islands, a re-telling from The Mabinogion, and a nice tale of when all animals could live both in air and in the water. I also just love how he explains the Web from which all storytellers draw as encompassing our world, and yet is also always changing as times change. Kind of like reading books from earlier times and either finding much truth in them or finding them dated. Or a bit of both.

I'm also enjoying the re-read of Burning Water so much so that I think I'll follow up with the other 2 in the series, and also Sacred Ground. It was an off-shoot of the Diana Tregarde series, if memory serves. Definitely in the urban fantasy vein and I do like that genre.

>53 threadnsong: So this weekend I didn't get as much reading done as i had hoped (but one never does, I suppose!)

Agreed on this! But congrats on the shiny pretty silver! :-)

>53 threadnsong: One never does! You are a brave soul. I sold my silver because I got tired of cleaning it for a 1-2 times per year usage!

>54 LibraryCin: Thank you! And yes, shiny pretty is something to celebrate. It just makes the rooms so nice where it sits and shines and twinkles.

>55 Tess_W: Yes, there is that! I have not used the family silver pieces for serving or entertaining and salute your decision.

I finished one book that was a sit-down, gotta read it all at once called The Red Zone. I am not sure if it came from a friend's stash or from my late mom's stash but there it was, lurking on the bookshelves. I read it in a couple of sittings and finished it Sunday night. Holy cow was it timely and scary and good! One of the book blurbs on the back was by Stephen King and even he attested to its gripping-ness.

I did finish the Diana Tregarde and it was pretty good. One of the early ventures of urban fantasy that involves the supernatural (in this case, a Wiccan who battles in a supernatural division of the Dallas PD) and ancient rituals. I'm still wedded to the idea that I'll re-read the others in this series. They're good looks at where the genre started, and Mercedes Lackey does do good character development. Plus the main characters do their research in a library, with books, instead of the WWW. So that's a step back in time, along with floppy disk drives!

>56 threadnsong: Plus, my son told me he could "taste" the silver--and it was the real thing! He always just went and got a SS fork when I had the good silver out!

I'm finally getting around to your thread!

>15 threadnsong: I loved reading this post because my experience is so similar! I have always loved reading, but since I joined this group I have been much more focused.

>51 threadnsong: Probably not one I would read, but your review was very interesting.

>53 threadnsong: The Unbroken Web sounds like a fascinating book!

>59 MissBrangwen: Oh yay! And thank you for your kind words.

Yeah, "Columbia" was a tough read, and very well-written. I'm glad you liked it.

Yes, "Web" is fantastic and easy to read in bits and bites. Richard Adams even makes an appearance - he's mentioned as living on the Isle of Man by one of the characters in one of the short stories!

Burning Water by Mercedes Lackey
3 1/2 ***

Category: 2023 Re-Read

An early work in the urban fantasy genre, this one includes a Wiccan and the paranormal branch of the Dallas PD as they search for clues to a string of mass sacrificial killings. What stood out for me was the range of people who formed the "extras" in this book, everything from a young girl on her 17th birthday who meets the great evil at the beginning, to the cigar-chomping Chief of Police of Dallas, to a pesky reporter who ventures a little too far into areas he was exploring. And the characters in the extras were a good mix of men and women, something that was burgeoning in the late 80's when this book was written.

The idea was an original one: "something" is woken from a long slumber and it begins its rise to power through its old way of blood sacrifices. We see a few of the victims, dislikable types who wish to harm others or who do not care what harm is done to others as long as they get their way in the world. Detective Mark Valdez is a likable fellow who knows that what he is facing is way out of his league, so he brings in his long-time Wiccan friend, Diana Tregarde, with her paranormal abilities. And having two main characters who are just friends is a relief, and means that the plot is about solving the killings rather than "will they or won't they."

I also enjoyed Diana's networking into different areas of Dallas' paranormal community, and how they confirm that what she is facing is bigger than anything she has experienced before. Many of them have fled or gone into hiding because of the reach of this great evil that is working in the City. And both she and Mark are treated as valued members of the Dallas PD without any hesitation for their paranormal work.

What did not work well for me was the amount of time spent detailing Diana's inability to solve what the Great Evil was. I could have done with less reading about mass killing/ritual sacrifice and more about how they worked to defeat it. It was not until 3/4 of the way through the book that Diana and Mark meet with a professor who states the obvious, and it is only then that the spell of confusion surrounding Diana melts away. Which of course puts them on the right track, and good triumphs over evil. A good re-read and a good venture into this genre for this fantasy author.

And the weather is perfect tonight for an evening with the chiminee (one of those outdoor standing things) and catching up with LT. it's not too hot yet, we finally have an evening without intense rain in Atlanta, and yeah, this is the night for it.

A chance to write some books reviews and catch up with folks on this page and see what everyone has been reading and your various life adventures.

The Hot Zone by Richard Preston
5*****

Category: 2023 General Reading

Wow, what a fantastic book. Maybe because of recent events, maybe because of the writing style, but all things being equal this was one that I read in about 2 days. It was really that gripping.

Stephen King wrote one of the book blurbs on the back and he may have said it best: "The first chapter of "The Hot Zone" is one of the most horrifying things I've read in my whole life . . . and then it gets worse." And really, he's not kidding. Richard Preston details the journey that Charles Monet makes from his home in Western Kenya where he was one of the managers of a sugar factory. A Frenchman by birth, he decided one Christmas week to explore Kitum Cave, an innocent enough adventure. Then he goes home, totally unknowing that he was carrying a very quick and lethal virus called Ebola. What makes the chapter that ends in his death so horrifying, as King writes, is the great amount of suffering he endured, his physical changes, and how quickly he succumbed to it. Preston writes this chapter like a good mystery, providing minute details on the physical suffering Monet endured drawn from victims of Ebola. He speculates on the mental anguish Monet must have suffered, not knowing what was wrong with him but knowing he was horribly sick.

As the Ebola virus is explored, starting with the Marburg strain and moving into the Reston strain that is the bulk of this story, Preston expands his storytelling abilities. He describes in a matter-of-fact manner the use of monkeys in medical research; the horror is in their capture from the wild and their imprisonment into cages to face certain death one way or another. The numbers are staggering. And whether or not their use is justified, theirs is a story that needs to be told.

In late 1989, a shipment of macaques from the Philippines came to a clearing house of research monkeys in Reston, VA, outside of Washington, DC. They were not injected with any virus, as they were destined to various simian research facilities throughout the US. However, a few succumbed to an illness whose virus had the same look under the microscope as the Ebola virus. And through a series of events, the humans who were caring for the monkeys or performing the necropsies carried this virus into the greater DC area by interacting with others over the Thanksgiving weekend. The only reason there was no mass outbreak was that this particular strain of Ebola does not jump from monkeys to humans. The Ebola vaccination was only licensed in November, 2019, ironically enough.

Having emerged from the COVID protocols and lockdown and masks, knowing what words like "super spreader event" mean, and finding out just how quickly a virus can jump from one person to another without either party knowing, adds another layer of realism to events from 30 years ago. It is extremely detailed and well-written and absolutely horrifying.

>63 threadnsong: I loved that book! It inspired me to read several more of Preston's. Although the others were good, this one is still my favorite. A bit of trivia: my very best friend, was "forced" to go to her senior prom with one of the the high ranking officers mentioned in the book. I can't remember which one. By "forced", her mother set up the date! Both she and this guy lived near McConnell Airforce base in Wichita, Kansas. Small world!

>63 threadnsong: This has been on my wishlist for years. Every time we did an epidemic/catastrophe KIT I intended to read it. Another book took over in most cases, but it seems that this is a landmark in that category. I'll push it up the list again based on your review.

>64 Tess_W: Based on this book I am really interested in reading other books that he has written. And what a small world indeed! That's a fascinating bit of trivia, and of course I have to ask, how did your best friend like the prom?? And on that topic, the infighting between the Army and the CDC really threw me for a loop. I mean, like they say about any true crime book, "you can't make this stuff up!"

>65 beebeereads: What a great complement! Yes, I highly recommend it, and I also recommend clearing off your calendar for the day or two it will take you to read it. When I reached the weekend and could really get into it, I just put everything off to the side. Even LT!

One for the Morning Glory by John Barnes
5***** and a ❤️

Category: 2023 Re-read

Yes, this book is definitely in the "favorites" category. The idea of a Kingdom and what it takes to be a Good King to rule it, and the power of friendship and Story. And the Wine of the Gods. While the reviews reference "The Princess Bride," I found the feel of this book more in keeping with "Once and Future King" as well as writings by Neil Gaiman. But I digress.

The story is one of a young boy who drinks the Wine of the Gods, which is never supposed to be tasted until one is an adult, and loses his left side. Barnes describes the work that goes into making the Wine as part of setting the stage for the events of that day and the role of the Companions that come into the young Prince's life shortly afterwards. For Amatus learns from them and from his friends what a Young Prince must do, especially since he is destined to rule the Throne. He learns good lessons and hard ones, and they are described with an appreciation for fantasy as a genre as well as a bit of tongue in cheek humor.

Add in four friends to the four Companions who are with Prince Amatus through nearly every adventure, and the sad reality of what the Companions are there to do in the Prince's life that provides the balance of not just happy endings. The friends and Companions find this out when they undertake the first Quest, while Amatus later learns humility and the value of friendship afterwards.

The mysterious Waldo, who is the nemesis to the orderly Kingdom, becomes less a mention and more and more of a threat, until he invades the Kingdom with an army of Undead and Living and Goblins. And as in any good fantasy battle, there are lessons to be learned, swashes to be buckled, and heroics to be performed. Which they are, and characters come into their own place in the story in the most unexpected of ways.

>67 threadnsong: Lovely review!

>68 MissBrangwen: Thank you! It was a lovely book. For anyone who enjoys fantasy or fairy tales, this book pulls them all in, wraps them in a bow, and sends them into the world.

The Unbroken Web by Richard Adams
5***** and ❤️

Category: 2023 General Reading

What a truly extraordinary collection of tales, from all over the world and with so many different ideas and cultures! All of them involve animals, as one would expect with Richard Adams, and this edition also has beautiful color and black and white illustrations. The exact location of a story is not given, and the time is only hinted at in some of them (holidays in Brighton, a Native force during WWII from Nairobi), which makes the reader find the universality of these stories regardless of how they are written down.

Don't be fooled that this is a tale of sweet bunnies, though; some of the tales have explicit adult themes and any reading aloud to children should be done at the adult's discretion. There is a re-telling of the mice in the field of corn from The Mabinogion; the Moddey Dhoo from the Isle of Man (and with a reference to Adams himself, as he moved there after his writing success); a tale of the Esquimau (ibid) about the Crow who brings back daylight, and the Iron Wolf from Eastern European lands. And yet, change the telling a bit, and any of the tales can be transported to any culture that the teller wishes. The Prince who seeks eternal youth, finds a magic horse, and thereby breaks his parent's heart when he rides off; the Language of Animals that allows a good-hearted man to find comfort and some measure of wealth are all re-told as only Richard Adams can.

Adams says it best in his Introduction: he envisions the earth as the astronauts see it, rotating on its access, yet enclosed in a gossamer-like sphere (what he calls the "unbroken web") in which we live, and to which "the story-teller reaches up, grasps that part of the web which happens to be above his head at the moment and draws it down . . . to touch the earth. When he has told his story--its story-- he releases it and it springs back and continues in rotation."

Well, the Oscars are on tonight. In years past, I would sit with my laptop and Netflix open and add to my Netflix queue while they were going. There's a stream-of-consciousness with that method: I can zero in on a genre or an actor, such as Tilda Swinton, and add a whole bunch of their movies to my queue. Then I can pick and choose what I want to watch when.

Confession here: I've kept my old "2 DVD-at-a-time" subscription to Netflix and intend to keep it, rather than go to streaming-only. This allows me to re-watch a movie I enjoyed, or watch something I always meant to but never did. I may someday add the streaming service since there are a ton of new shows out there, but that time hasn't happened yet.

I'm half tempted to heat up some dinner and head in and watch, going from LT to Oscars to Netflix and back again.

OTH, I've watched "Tar" and "Everything Everywhere" and "Wakanda Forever" and that's about it for this Oscar's season.

>70 threadnsong: A BB for me!

>71 threadnsong: The only Oscar nominee I watched this year was Turning Red, and I didn't even know it was a nominee until someone else mentioned it yesterday! Loved it, though. I think I watched it three times in about two months, which is a very high re-watching rate for me. I really should watch Everything Everywhere All at Once, though, because I do love a multiverse story.

>72 Tess_W: Oh yay! Thank you.

>73 rabbitprincess: Thank you for the recommendation on this movie. I do recommend "Everything Everywhere" and it definitely resides in the multiverse. Would love to know your thoughts.

So yes, I did watch the Oscars with my laptop open to Netflix. And I caught up on my friends' threads here, then knit some threads of my own!

The Oscars for me are one of those cultural touchstones, like Dickens, with references and events that resonate. Like, how many famous actors were left out of this year's "In Memoriam" segment: several surviving family members made mention of their dad or uncle, and the Oscars had to come back and say, "Well, we had a QR code you could scan so you could see everyone" a bit ashamedly. And Lady Gaga's performance was just extraordinary.

I do hope next year, and I checked and re-checked Fandango, that a movie theater will do the "Oscars showing" of the nominated movies again. This year the animated shorts were in several theaters but that was about it. Something from the Before Times that I hope comes back.

Children of the Night by Mercedes Lackey
3 1/2 ***

Categories: 2023 Category Challenge - March MysteryKIT Challenge, Re-Read

This installment of Mercedes Lackey's Diana Tregarde series features a young Diana fresh out of college and covering for her friend's occult shop in the early 70's Manhattan. At least I think that's the timeframe - she references Nixon a couple of times, so either it's pre-Watergate or it's an alternate timeline. I'll go with the former.

Diana is becoming a successful romance writer, lives in a lovely brownstone with dancers of several different genres, and helping out at her friend's store during her friend's final stages of pregnancy. Several visitors enter the store who are not among the normal customers, and one is a young Gypsy boy with the Sight.

The concurrent story involves an ex of Diana's who's in a burgeoning rock and roll band. While at a party he takes one of the proffered pills and wakes up a couple of days later with very little memory of the rest of the party evening and a deep and gnawing hunger that just won't go away.

Add in Diana's good friend Lenny from the apartment, Lenny's new boyfriend Keith, and a rather sexy vampire whom Di has no idea if he's the killer of the Gypsy boy or just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time, and you've got a pretty good cast of characters.

What made this book lose half a star was the constant inner dialogue, in italics, that gets in the way of the storyline or action or events. Just tell the story already, and let the character's actions determine their intent! Diana's right-turn into her panic attack and how Andre is able to talk her through it seemed more like the author's need to self-reveal than a vital plot point. Plus, and I realize I'm talking about a story that involves vampires and other elements of the strange and weird side of things, being 18 months out of college and already an accomplished brown belt in martial arts and already a signed, successful author does not lend itself to the "realistic" side of Diana's story.

So, it still shows, in the early 90's when it was written, a gutsy heroine who has fears and doubts and still faces them and helps those in need. And has friends among the human as well as the not-quite-human race.

The Last Coyote by Michael Connelly
4****

Category: Book Club - LT Group Read

A very well-written police thriller, with the rogue cop Harry Bosch on leave due to assaulting his superior in the department. While on leave he has to undergo therapy with a psychologist trained for working with police and that is where this book starts.

Along the way, we watch Bosch struggle to stay in house house, condemned after a recent earthquake, and make a decision to investigate the death of his mother when he was only 11 and living in a home for troubled boys. This was the early 60's, and Bosch was also drafted to Vietnam. His mother's death had never been solved so he uses his police detecting skills and contacts to start looking.

As one would expect, he finds more than he bargained for: several former cops, a pimp who "ran" his late mother and was later killed in a hit-and-run, a contender for District Attorney who drops out of the race, and all kinds of twists and turns and dead ends and branches leading to more places than the LA Freeway system that Connelly describes.

I recommend this book as a standalone, and a good one to start with on the Harry Bosch series as it gives a lot of detail about his background.

I finished 2 more books in March, Head On by John Scalzi and Roses are Red by James Patterson. I so love Scalzi's snark! And the twists that Patterson puts into his plots are gripping. when I updated them on my books page, they strangely enough both contained "FBI" as a tag. So there you have it!

Reviews coming soon. I'm currently catching up with all my friends on this group.

Also, for April's challenges - I'm not sure if I'm going to participate in both the ClassicCAT challenge (Classic Mystery Authors) or the SFFKit Challenge (Historical SFF).

I have 3 volumes of Agatha Christie collections, a (good) gift from my mom eons ago that I could easily read in a couple of evenings. And a couple of the authors mentioned in the SFFKit I have on my shelves though they are biiiiig books and I really, really want to get into "Maisie Dobbs" and venture into the unknown. I'll see if a smaller book in a series by Evangeline Walton would fit the bill (more myth than fantasy, since they're based on The Mabinogion).

Will definitely update that category when I've made a decision!

>79 threadnsong: Enjoy your April reading, no matter how many CATs/KITs. I'm also unenthusiastic about big books at the moment, so can understand why those big SFF books keep sitting on the shelves. Have you read What Moves the Dead? Historical SFF that's nice and short.

Waving hi and taking note of your Mercedes Lackey reads.

I am constantly buying huge historical fiction books because I would be too rushed to read them from the library, but then I never read them because the size is intimidating. So I get not wanting to read the big SFF books!

>80 pamelad: Thank you! I have not read "What Moves the Dead" but that does sound nice. And short. I am thinking I'll stick with an Agatha Christie (which I pulled from my shelves last weekend) since I am devouring "Maisie Dobbs" and they are both of an era.

>81 markon: Hi back! And to a fellow Mercedes Lackey reader, too. Always nice to see enthusiasm for her books.

>82 rabbitprincess: Oh yes, glad I'm not the only one. I started "Pillars of the Earth" after seeing some of episodes on TV, but it was just sooo very, very long and I never finished it. It was a fascinating premise, but have to draw the line somewhere.

Head On by John Scalzi
5*****

Category: 2023 General Reading

Oh, how I have come to love John Scalzi! There is a view of the world that is something between snarky and brave, hopeful and jaded that I find so compelling in his writing. His take on his futuristic world where threeps are the bodies of those with Haden's Syndrome is almost drawn from the headlines of today's events.

The continuation of his world from "Locked In" now expands into the speculation of what would sport look like, if threeps were the ones who played instead of humans? How much punishment would the robot called a threep take, including having one's head removed to be used as a ball by the opposing team? Yes, that is the speculation which leads to the challenge which leads to the mystery that is the bulk of this book.

Chris Shane is the threep/human who works with Leslie Vann on this FBI case, and during their search the use of different threeps by Chris makes their investigation take some interesting twists. Like, what happens when Chris' threep that he borrows from a different field office is so low on power that it affects his hunt for clues? And the use of the personal space called the Agora that all threeps create and personalize for their inter-threep communication becomes a vital part of what led to several murders that begin this book.

Add to this police procedural the funding of a sports franchise in order to take it global, the corruption of wealth, a rescued cat, and a master storyteller to weave these threads into a fast-paced, intelligent read. That sums up this book. And you will have a hard time putting this book down for any reason!

Roses are Red by James Patterson
4 1/2 ****

Category: 2023 General Reading

A terrific, humanized, police procedural that picks up soon after "Pop Goes the Weasel" leaves off. Christine is traumatized by her ordeal by the Weasel though her little boy with Alex is the apple of everyone's eye. Still, Alex is still a detective and works the streets and his personal life has to pay a price.

The premise is a series of bank robberies where sometimes hostages, sometimes bank employees, are shot. And the reader is in the mind of the robbers as well as The Mastermind, the evil human being who selects the robbers and plans the murders. There is a repetitive counting and exactness for the timing of each robbery that makes the psychological bent of the killers and the Mastermind the forefront of the episodes.

And then shortly after each robbery is a twist. And a woman is attacked by the Mastermind. And still some clues just don't lead to any results. It is one of those mysteries that did not take pity on anyone, hostage or bank robber alike, and just when things couldn't get worse, they do. Till the very end where a clue just leaps off the page and gets the reader ready for the next book!

>41 threadnsong: Noting. I enjoy Scalzi, so I'll get to this one of these days.

>86 markon: Wonderful! It does help to read Lock In first since it sets up the world of those with Haden's Symdrome, but Scalzi is able to add enough background that you could follow it if read as a standalone.

The Boomerang Clue by Agatha Christie
5*****

Category: Category Challenge - April ClassicCat Classic Mysteries/Detective Novels, Re-Reads

To be fair, I read this in 1989, re-read a few stories in 2007, and then read "The Boomerang Clue" this year for a challenge.

That said, these stories are a twist on the usual Agatha Christie reads, in that both Miss Marple and Hercule Poirot only show up in one mystery each. There is even a long-ago Egyptian mystery set in 2000 BCE! I chose to read "Boomerang Clue" as it seemed to present the typical Agatha Christie elements: a twisty, curvy strange set of events that still manage to present elements of the British class structure, the time in which it was written, and a view of the British countryside. Though honestly, the travel by 1920's era Bentley between the coast of Wales and London seemed a bit quicker than I would think possible at the time for the storyline and conversations that ensued.

Young ne'er do well (at least in his Vicar father's eyes) Bobby, and Lady Frances (Frankie) of Marchbolt are two friends keeping strong their friendship from before the Great War. During a golf outing, Bobby loses a golf ball over the side of a particularly nasty cliff in Wales and descends to find a man on the ledge below with a broken back. His companion, the local Doctor, comes and assesses the situation, and they dying man utters his last breath, "Why didn't they ask Evans?"

This mystery evolves to a local manor house with a young family and a father who seems to have an addiction to opioids. His wife takes in young Frankie after her (borrowed) car has a nasty accident against the manor wall, and Frankie becomes the confident of Sylvia, the young wife and mother. There is also the charming Roger Bassington-ffrench, brother-in-law to Sylvia, and the evil-seeming Dr. Nicholson who runs the local nursing home (sanitarium) for the medically addicted. And let's not forget Dr. Nicholson's lovely wife, Moira, who bears a striking resemblance to the photograph found in the deceased's pocket.

Add in several inquests, mistaken identity, a chauffeur's suit and hat, and you have the elements of a quickly moving, always interesting whodunnit that is quickly and easily readable. Great to re-visit Dame Christie's genius!

Maisie Dobbs by Jacqueline Winspear
5***** & ❤️

Category: 2023 General Reading

What a beautiful, heartbreaking, hopeful, amazing book. I have had it on my shelves for a number of years and many times I looked at it, thought about it, then put it back. Until now. And zowie! I am completely blown away by this book. The story covers the post-war years in England, then zips back with stunning clarity into the years just before the outbreak of the Great War, and wraps everything up in stunning fashion.

Maisie Dobbs has begun her own private investigation firm. Her first client is a gentleman of the upper classes who suspects his wife is having an affair, so hires Maisie to follow her. Which she does with great detail to present to her new client. And through the interactions Maisie has with this husband, and the caretaker of her building, and her internal conversations about her ever-cold feet, we begin to see that she has been impacted by the Great War.

When Maisie follows the young wife to a soldier's graveyard, the first hint that this book is different comes fully to light. Here we are in 1929, what America sees as the Roaring Twenties, watching two women tending the graves of the fallen soldiers in England. One no longer has a surname on his grave, and this leads to revelations about The Farm, where wounded and disfigured soldiers can go live in peace. To contemplate a situation wherein the shells were so powerful, faces were mutilated but the soldiers lived only to be shunned or receive "those" looks from their beloveds is heart-wrenching. And told with such compassion as the after-effects of the Great War.

The middle section details Maisie's growing up as a maid in service to a wealthy suffragette who thinks that maybe, just maybe, she can change the life of one person, even if she can't change the world. Well, she does. She recognizes the need Maisie has to read, to study, and enriches her mind by providing her with a tutor as well as the time she needs to study. And added to this idyllic reading time is the prevalent class consciousness of Britain that causes Maisie to doubt her own calling to education.

We do get to the War, and Maisie's service in Britain before finally being called to France, where she deepens her relationship with Simon, a gifted wartime doctor. And her life as a battlefield nurse, with the mud, the sleepless nights, the close quarters, the endless wounded, are so very well described. When they abruptly end and we are back in the modern era, there is still a mystery unfolding about The Farm and the repercussions of the battlefields, at home and abroad.

>89 threadnsong: Definitely seeking this book! You have written a wonderful review!

>90 Tess_W: Thank you Tess! I can't wait to read your own review.

Prince of Annwyn by Evangeline Walton
4 1/2 ****

Category: 2023 Category Challenge - April SFFKit Historical SFF

This is a brilliant re-telling of the First Branch of the Mabinogion, that mysterious tale of ancient Wales that has been translated both well and not-so-well over the centuries. Evangeline Walton does a marvelous job building out the drama, the language, and the tension that the bards conveyed. It is a tale as hold as humanity: human Pwyll, Prince of Dyved, meets with Arawn, Lord of Death and the Underworld called Annwn. Here, they switch places and both their aspects are changed. Pwyll even rides the Grey Horse of Arawn while Arawn rides Pwyll's horse. And there are the tasks that only Pwyll can do in place of Arawn in order to save humanity from destruction of warring tribes while Pwyll also gets to take Arawn's seat in his kingdom for a year and a day.

As the tale of Pwyll unfolds into the tale of Rhiannon with her birds, Pwyll brings his Ninety-Nine Companions to the Mound of Gordsedd Arberth where they seek, in charmed slumber, to join the first King of Dyved and his daughter, Rhiannon, so that Pwyll might marry her and thereby gain a Queen and an heir. Three times they climb the Mound, and three times the Old Druid seeks to murder him with his sickle, only to be thwarted in his lust for absolute and continued power and control. Walton's ability to bring ancient tales to a modern audience are most welcome with this volume.

The Illustrated Man by Ray Bradbury
4****

Category: 2023 Re-Read

Original review:

What great stories, what interesting twists, and what true innovation in seeing the world. For anyone wanting to know what the science fiction authors thought "back in the day" in the Golden Age of Science Fiction writing, this is a prime example. Some of the characterizations of women are sadly 1950's, but others are much more elevated. I think my favorite is the priests who discover the real Martians and step down from thinking they need to teach them about God.

2023 review:

Still a great set of short stories, told with compassion for the vagaries of humankind. Yes to the characterization of women as wives or mothers as being part of the 1950's culture, and with greater clarity to the ways in which homes are more likely to be automated to great detriment to the inhabitants, humans try to escape from oppressive regimes with greater or lesser success, and the aspirations of humans are not that much different from what they were (or will be) when we took walking tours of Wisconsin or get cut off from our space ships and are doomed to free fall and endless space wandering until our oxygen runs out.

Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll
5***** and a ❤️

Category: 2023 Re-Reads

This is one of my all time favorite childhood books, and even adulthood books! For this month's reading challenge, I read 2 versions: the version I've had since as far back as I can remember, illustrated by Marjorie Torrey, and a newer version, illustrated by Paolo Barbieri. Both are abridged which made them a good, fast read for April.



1) Illus. by Marjorie Torrey:

An abridged but marvelous re-telling of this story. It shows a smart girl in a green pinafore with an apron who strives to make sense of an uncertain world. She is courageous and undaunted. And the illustrations are soft and sweet, a contrast to the satire and confusing themes in the original.

The little girl face is definitely an original and not influenced by the famous Disney film. There is a feeling of honesty, of what a little girl would think in a confusing place and how would she react to each new situation. Definitely a guidebook for life!



2) Illus. by Paolo Barbieri:

This modern illustrated classic is phenomenal: the genre is "steam-punk" meaning that the sweet little girl with the pinafore is transformed into a modern, 21st century version of the heroine. Her hair is cropped short, her pinafore is a pair of black pants with heavy boots and a leather belt. She wears gauntlets around her wrists - with lace cuffs - and her face shows an intelligence that could only be accepted now.

Oh, and there's a stuffed white rabbit from her childhood attached to her belt. Which makes perfect sense to the White Rabbit in her dreams.

I give 5 stars to the illustrations that bring this heroine of childhood into the time of cars and asphalt and cynicism of the 21st century. But, and this is big, the chopping up of the story itself to fit the illustrations? Only a 3.5. It's far too disjointed to make sense, and additional pages should have been included to tie the storied illustrated pages together. Maybe the second edition of this volume will include those changes.

>93 threadnsong: Will add that one to my list. I just pre-read a short story by Bradbury for a possible school read, August 2026: There Will Come Soft Rains which was very futuristic. I think the students will have to think about it, but I liked it.

>95 Tess_W: Well, that sounds like a plan. And really, any of these stories in this compilation would make students have to think. There is one on book burning/banned books, told from the POV of authors like Poe, Baum, Shakespeare; another on automated homes that get out of hand; and yours sounds like a gem. Your students are lucky to have you as their instructor!

Some ruminations from this Sunday morning knitting:

I've been a bit, not so much stressed, but perhaps thoughtful about practicing music and where to concentrate my after work and weekend energies.

My quandry has been between learning the tunes for class or re-invigorating my public playing set list. I don't want to let my classmates (or myself) down by not being prepared in class, yet I also want to keep in good rotation tunes that I have played for years that are now taking a back seat to practicing classroom music. This has come about because recently, when I've spent practice time on my set list tunes, I suddenly can't remember how they start or what the melody is. And busking season is now!

What I've come to realize is, during the week, I need to re-invigorate my well-known tunes. It's easier to wind down after a long work day with something that comes easy to me, something I've already learned and just need to re-visit. That's when I can feel that joy that comes from knowing a piece of music well and hearing myself play it well. I feel energized, joyful, and my brain gets to wind down as well.

On weekends, which are relaxing times anyway, I can spend part of an afternoon learning what I need for the next class. I have one of these music-playing apps on my laptop that has made learning a new tune by ear (something I'm also having to learn, since I was brought up to read music on classical piano) soooo much easier and quicker. I can set the beginning and ending parameters to the part I need to learn, set the speed, and then loop it over and over again. I learn what the fingering is, what the pattern is, without interruption and also the tune gets stuck in my head. When I wake up the next morning, or am putzing in the garden, or cooking for the week, suddenly the tune pops into my head and playing it before and during class is a breeze.

So, I thought I'd share these ruminations with my LT friends as I get ready to read everyone's threads!

The War of the Worlds: Global Dispatches ed. by Kevin J. Anderson
4****

Category: 2023 General Reading

The premise for this book is simple: the Martians did come to Earth on their spaceships, destroyed many things and places, then died from the bacteria. So as an alternative to Wells' book/timeline, it also is written as a series of dispatches from writers around the world in 1899-1900.

The first dispatch is by Theodore Roosevelt as he sees a mechanical monster in the jungles of Cuba, in 1897-1898. The second in order, both in the book and chronologically, is Percival Lowell, who sees through his astronomy research the series of canals on Mars and duplicates them on the sands of Egypt in order to send a signal to the Martians. Whether they see his signal and that causes the launch, or not, is open for debate.

The remainder of the dispatches are told as though they were written by writers of the era: Joseph Conrad recovering from a fever near the Congo river; Jules Verne walking the streets of Paris as they are destroyed by the Martians coming down; Mark Twain escaping from their destruction on a steamship crossing the Atlantic; and even a Dowager Empress of China trying to withstand the destruction to her people and also her social structure.

Because at the heart of this book is destruction, despatch by despatch, and a few have "postludes" in that they describe how humanity rebuilds itself in the aftermath. While it reads as a series of short stories, each author to the volume writing in the voice of their chosen author, it is much easier to read it a few at a time and letting a couple of days pass. Because really, the destruction, though fictional, overwhelmed me if I read it for long periods of time. Highly recommend this book and its originality, and kudos to Kevin J. Anderson for bringing this set of authors together.

>97 threadnsong: That sounds like a great approach to keeping your music fresh and balanced!

>99 rabbitprincess: Thank you! I think it will also.

>97 threadnsong: That sounds like a good plan!

>94 threadnsong: I enjoyed reading your comments on these illustrated versions! I wish to reread Alice in Wonderland but don't know when I will get to it.

>97 threadnsong: How good that you have found a way that works and meets your different needs! I have just joined a choir so now I need to to practice using YouTube or Spotify. It feels very new to me because when I last sang in a choir it was 2007 and the choirmaster used to give out cassettes (!) for us to practice with. How times have changed!

>101 Tess_W: Thank you also!

>102 MissBrangwen: Oh wow! I'm glad you enjoyed them. Yes, "Alice" is a wonderful book, and the *only* way i was able to finish 2 in May was that they were the abridged versions. I'd like to go back and read the unabridged ones, even ones that have references to the historical figures Carroll was poking fun at.

And yes, OMG, I remember cassette tapes! boy, how times have changed indeed. I remember rewinding and fast forwarding to replay favorite songs, or skip over the ones I just didn't want to hear. Congratulations on joining a choir as well! How has the YouTube/Spotify learning been for you?

As an update, the practice plan has worked well. I've been going through my playing tunes and I finally feel much more comfortable with them. And I'm also finding that the tunes for classes are not as hard as they once were. Definitely some stress lowering now that I made this decision.

Unfortunately I had to postpone busking for last month, though I still hold out hope for June evenings. Work got suddenly very busy unexpectedly, and while I was recognized for my achievements, by the end of each work day I was totally drained. So I read, and my book reviews are coming shortly. Four, count 'em, 4 books read for the month of May!

The Warrior Queens by Antonia Fraser
4****

Category: 2023 General Reading (#2 on the list)

Part of me wants to give 4 stars for the absolute brilliance of Fraser's research into these women's lives, and the other part of me wants to give 3 1/2 stars for the writing style. I think, though, that the importance of the meticulous research she has done merits 4 stars. And I've read other books by Lady Antonia and the research she has done still rattles around in my brain.

She begins with the history of both Cleopatra and Boudica (heroically "Boadicea") as the earliest examples of women who led their nations in wartime, and how they as warriors fulfilled Goddess imagery in their respective cultures. Her research into Boudica forms the main narrative for how warrior queens are remembered and changed by history. Lady Antonia also pulls together Syndromes (archetypes) to show how women who lead are viewed by their contemporaries and by history: Voracity, Shame, Appendage, Figurehead are examples.

What little we do know about the historical Boudica comes from the writings of Tacitus and Dio Cassius and, interestingly enough, from modern era excavations starting in 1915 of a "red layer" attesting to the burning of Londinium from the time of Boudica and the Iceni wars with the Romans. Fraser then continues with her research into Matilda, Maud, Zenobia, Catherine the Great, and the other women warriors with the legend of Boadicea as her backdrop. Which is a good way to tie the history together with a common thread, instead of having a thousand years and a host of countries and disparate lives.

The distracting part of reading this book, again, is the writing style. Lady Antonia can tell a straightforward tale as she does with Cleopatra and Boudica; she seems to fill an inner need by making asides and references within sentences again and again, thus filling in pages with writing but failing to advance Story as a whole. And maps - when will book publishers insist on maps when geographical locations are as varied as they are here?

The Black Stallion by Walter Farley
4 1/2 ****

Categories: 2023 Re-Reads and 2023 Category Challenge: May KiddyCAT Challenge - Children's Classic

It is a classic and deservedly so in so many ways. Once, when life was a bit slower, people traveled the world on ships. And the ships stopped at many ports, and at one of those ports young Alec Ramsey sees a magnificent black stallion that can barely be contained by his handlers. Somehow, he manages to come onboard the ship where a specially-built stall is constructed for him, and Alec manages to befriend him with a cube of sugar, a bit of apple, and the adventure begins.

What captured me as a young, horse-mad girl, at a time when horse pastures were being "zoned" out of existence in and around Atlanta, was the solitude that Alec had with his horse on the desert island. I was so very glad that the movie captured the look and the feel of living there, only the two of them, learning to trust one another, and eventually Alec climbs on The Black's back for that marvelous ride around the island, feeling joy in existence and possibilities.

What I noticed now was the publication date: 1941. This book was written before the US entered World War II, horses were still kept near people's homes, and the return Alec makes to his home is not quite as jarring as it once was. The training that Alec goes through with Henry is intense (how on earth did Alec stay awake in class??) but again, there is that sense that *this* is the most wonderful of horses ever and adds a bit of apprenticeship to the magic of The Black Stallion.

The Bishop's Pawn by Steve Berry
4****

Category: LT Group Read

This book, part of a LT Book Group for May, delved into the murder of an iconic modern hero, Martin Luther King, Jr. from so many angles: his work in the Civil Rights Movement of the 60's, the beginning of the fracturing of that movement, his surveillance by and antagonistic relationship with J. Edgar Hoover's FBI, and the unanswered questions around his death.

While not the first in the series of books about Cotton Mather, this book is the first in Mather's journey into his role as an agent of the Justice Department from being a JAG wondering about his future. He witnesses a friend's murder, draws his weapon on the friend's wife, and finds himself in jail. In comes Stephanie Nelle to take him away from all that and into a fifty-year old mystery.

His initial assignment is to recoup an extremely rare (and illegal) Double Eagle US coin from the deck of a ship. All goes according to plan until unexpected visitors show up underwater, out to either gain the Double Eagle themselves or shoot Mather (or both), and then the boat he rode in on blows up. From there, events begin at a rapid pace.

Realizing that somehow, the rare coin and a set of documents about the FBI's investigation into Martin Luther King, Jr. are connected, Mather meets Coleen Perry, a young cop who is the daughter of one of King's inner circle. The documents shed light onto the FBI's plot to assassinate King and how James Earl Ray comes to be the shooter. While some of the action seems more in the James Bond vein, the desire of retired FBI officials to keep the documents from coming to light are as much a mind-game as they are a thrill ride. Events happen in and around St. Augustine and Disney World, and Berry has done excellent research into the Civil Rights movement and what could maybe have happened all those decades ago.

The Maid by Nita Prose
5*****

Category: F2F Book Club Read

This was the choice for a F2F book group and as with others I've read for this group, I was quite pleasantly surprised. The plot is a locked-room mystery, even though it takes place in a posh hotel, and the who-dunit is told through the eyes of Molly Gray.

Molly is one of the hotel's maids and she struggles with emotions, reading people, and friendship. Her inner life is rich and she has lived her entire life in a small apartment with her grandmother. So for her, a clean and neat place meshes with her view of the world "as it should be" and makes her the ideal employee. Since her grandmother died about a year before the book opens, her life is not as filled with episodes of "Colombo" and "National Geographic" nor is her bank account full as it once was. Interspersed with these observations of her life and thoughts is the murder of a rich tycoon whose second wife befriended Molly.

When Molly becomes a suspect in the murder plot her naivete does her no good with street-wise Detective Stark. Just the opposite - it lends credence to her guilt since she was the person who found and touched the body. Molly knows how to be honest; she does not know how to use guile. And so the locked-room mystery begins: we know that Molly did not kill the tycoon, but who did? And who could have framed this young, trusting, hard-working soul?

This is a good, quick read that has a couple of good spins and plenty of "a-HA!" moments.

Yes! I felt so very accomplished in May with my reading, and now it's time to catch up with all of my friends' threads.

>110 threadnsong: Congrats on the work honors, as well as completing what looks like some very good reads. Taking note of the Fraser book.

>109 threadnsong: I loved The Maid too!

>111 Tess_W: Thank you Tess. They were truly honors, even though the hours were long. I hope you enjoy Fraser's book when you get to it.

>112 VivienneR: Wasn't it so good? I was surprised in my book group how some of the members were not aware of being on the spectrum, and having Molly as a character brought this way of looking at the world into their lives. And the ending of "The Maid!" OMG!

I hope everyone is doing well this week. I did get a slow down at work and it was nice to sign off at a "normal" time. Evenings involved some reading, some practicing as preparation for an event this coming weekend, and even some cooking. It's nice to get back into the work-life balance that we hear so much about but seldom do.

DH had an infected tooth pulled two weeks ago Monday, so he's been existing on soft foods from the deli counter: potato salad, mac and cheese, and the like. But he feels up to eating cooked veggies this week so I was able to help support some local farmers at a Sunday Farmer's Market today. Lots and lots of other stuff that I did *not* buy of course! But the peach vendors were out, I found lots good produce, fresh eggs, and if I were of a mind to make some zucchini bread I would be well-served in the offerings. I've never been a fan of zucchini (or yellow summer squash for that matter) except in bread, but I am experimenting with cooking the other varieties and adding them to a mixed veggie side dish. They are native to the Americas so I feel it is a good way to keep "eating local."

>109 threadnsong: oooh, this is on my TBR. Your review has pushed it up the ladder. Thank you!

I'm sort of with you with the squash thing. However, I have decided I can eat it (summer squash and zucchini) when it's broiled, as in kabobs! I also love spaghetti squash, used in place of spaghetti; although my husband does not. I also like acorn squash fixed like sweet potatoes...but by the time I get butter & brown sugar on it, not so very healthy! Hope your husband's tooth heals quickly!

>115 beebeereads: Wow! Thank you. It's a quick read, so think beach or weekend relaxing read. I hope you enjoy it!

>116 Tess_W: Oh, you know, kabobs - I had never thought about that. With some nice cherry tomatoes? Little bit of Vidalia onion? Mmmm, you've inspired me. And yeah, I get you on the cooked acorn squash. Hard to back off the brown sugar, isn't it?!

I'm shifting a bit on my reading for this month. I had planned to read the final 3 books in Evangeline Walton's "Mabinogion" tetralogy, but the final volume (the first one she wrote) is too big to fit in if I'm going to add the Terry Prachett for this month's SFF challenge. The Island of the Mighty will be a good road trip book instead.

And if you've ever wondered about Vikings, or Iceland, or archeology, or what women accomplished back in the day, I highly recommend The Far Traveler. It is absolutely a lyrical book, written with a style that is not just "here's who Gudrid the Traveler was and what she did," but also interweaving the shipbuilding and seafaring in a part of the world where there is intense fog, or no stars some months of the year, or how women had some sense of their agency in their families. She went to Vinland (Newfoundland) for 3 years, gave birth to a son there, then sailed back home to Iceland with her original companions. And all this during the time period of Leif Ericksson, so while these voyages were not unknown, they were not commonplace. And she is remembered in the sagas which is something good.

OK, off to earn money to pay for more books!

>118 threadnsong: The Far Traveler is going to the top of my WL. I read Cornwell's entire series The Last Kingdom, so I'm into reading about the Viking era at this time.

>119 Tess_W: That is quite a complement! I really think you'll like it.

The Song of Rhiannon by Evangeline Walton
4****

Category: General Reading

This is a much gentler book than its predecessor, and comes from the Third Branch of the Mabinogion. With Walton's ability to look into the personae of myth, she finds a theme within Manawyddan: that of the sole remaining brother who has served his elder brother, Bran all his life. And what is he to do now? It is a good theme for the middle years of one's life.

This is the homecoming that Mandawyddan has when he returns to his old haunts with Pryderi, and Pryderi convinces him to come home to Arbreth where his widowed mother, Rhiannon, lives quietly and alone. Of course there have been looks between Manawyddan and Rhiannon over the years, and as time together passes, and Pryderi and Kigva have their reunion, the older couple realizes they have much to learn from joining their lives together.

The bulk of this re-telling, and it is artfully done, is the seven years after the storm that passes over Arbreth and leaves all the humans and the castle devoid of life. The four main characters find themselves the only people in the land, and while they are certainly able to hunt and fish and they have shelter, they find it all a bit dull. So they set out for far away towns to make their livelihoods.

Again, Walton's storytelling ability takes the lines from the "Mabinogion" of how they lived during this time and creates dialogue, thoughts, actions, and brings both tension and story to this portion. Her details of day-to-day life, as well as the final culmination with the mice in the fields of wheat, are masterful and bring the story to life.

Wintersmith by Terry Pratchett
4 1/2 ****

Category: 2023 Category Challenge: June SFFKit - Humorous SFF

Such a great book and filled with such warmth and humanity and memorable events. There are laughs from the Nac Mac Feegles (helps to have heard at least one audio recording from this series), some eye rolls at the various Granny's and Witching crones (there were so many that it was hard to keep track of, hence the half star), and some great story telling to boot.

Humorous bits include Miss Treason's dialogue with the Nac Mac Feegles when they come in to check on her young ward, Tiffany Aching of The Chalk. Miss Treason is portrayed as the curmudgeonly old blind Witch who can curse with just a finger, yet when she speaks to her unexpected visitors in their language and they jump to mind their manners, hilarity ensues.

And one passage I wish someone had slipped into one of my books during my teen years that occurs after a fight between Tiffany and Miss Treason: "(Miss Treason's) voice was kindly. There had been shouts, there had been things said that might have been better put, there had been temper and defiance. But they were there together, with nowhere else to go. The quiet voice was a peace offering, and Tiffany was glad of it."

So yes, a very good "coming of age" story, or adventure story for a young Witch, or a lot of fun nonsense, or all of the above. Highly recommend to fans of Terry Pratchett, and fortunately one that can be read out of sequence in the Wee Free Men/Tiffany Aching series.

The Far Traveler by Nancy Marie Brown
5*****

Category: General Reading

This book is why I only use 5 stars for an absolutely splendiforous book. This is one of them. Ms. Brown does not try to write a historical fiction novel or a speculative "who she must have been" book. Instead, she takes ways to research a life and puts them all together: Icelandic sagas, Viking history, archeology, and needlework. And creates a rich book that explains how Gudrid, a Viking wife, mother, and daughter, made a voyage across the Northern Atlantic ocean in about the year 1000, gave birth to a son, and made it back to Iceland 3 years later.

Along the way, we learn about Viking ship building techniques, how the forests yielded the particular tree with the particular V-shape to it to serve as the ship's ribs. Several trees, in fact. And a tree with a straight trunk, about 36' high, to serve as the mast. And how the nails were cut off once they were embedded, instead of bent down.

Then there is navigation through the Northern Atlantic, perhaps when the sun barely sets, without astrolabes, through the thick fog and possibly in pitching seas. Much of the archeological evidence about Vikings is from a prosperous farm, inhabited between 1000 and 1400, called "Farm Beneath the Sand" that was discovered in Greenland in 1991. It was later claimed by the Greenland tides 6 years later.

The map that accompanies this book is a brilliant viewpoint of an Icelandic voyage to Vinland, "Wine Land" which could be anywhere along the Eastern US coast. And Ms. Brown provides quotes and papers for all the researchers who claim what they think was *the* place where Vikings settled because, well, grapes. But the best evidence comes from northern Newfoundland in L'Anse aux Meadows where a sharpening stone and other Viking relics from the proper timeframe were found.

And the needlework! Thank the Goddesses of Threads that Ms. Brown put as much research into thread and cloth as she did into all the other discoveries and explanations! For the general public to know the painstaking way to take a shorn fleece, wash it, card it, then using a drop spindle to create thread. And the different whorls (disks) that are used to create the different thicknesses (or weights) of thread in drop spinning lends credence to the excavated homesteads where these whorls are found. They pinpoint the room, usually to the side of the Viking longhouse, where the women sat and spun, And wove. While I don't have a complete visual of a Viking loom, it is not a treadle loom. It's a walking loom. An estimate in the book is that a "hardworking weaver walked 23 miles every day."

What makes this book work on so many levels is the story-telling, the lyricism, of the words on the page. It is carefully crafted to give the history of a woman who lived a thousand years ago, who went on a dangerous voyage, and came home to create a prosperous farm, Glaumbauer, in northern Iceland that was excavated and researched in the early 2000's.

It's a hot, almost-raining Sunday, and I've got a cat on a pillow on my lap along with my laptop. Actually, let me correct the record: cat is on my lap, laptop is to the side and being swished at by the feline tail.

I'm as surprised as anyone that I managed to finish both Wintersmith and The Far Traveler this month. The common thread (no pun intended!) was the writing style. Both authors are masterful in crafting Story: Pratchett manages to interweave the dread of a young girl who catches the eye of Winter with great humor, and Brown makes the difficulty of doing an archeological dig with GPS machines in Iceland's soil as engaging as Gudrid's voyage or spinning wool. Which I still find fascinating though I do not spin. It's a focus thing. As in, I do not wish to lose focus on the cross-stitch, needlepoint, and knitting projects I currently have going to take up spinning. Though it still fascinates me. As does quilting.

Still, I am so glad to catch up with LT friends on this group, see what everyone is reading, adding some stuff to my WishList, and just generally stopping by to say "Hi!"

Waving to everyone from Cyberspace and thank you for stopping by to visit!!

Controlled Descent by K.M. Herkes
5*****

Category: 2023 Category Challenge: July SFFKit - Series/Trilogy

(For some reason, every time I try to include the cover of the book, the system either puts a children's book about trains as the link, or a book on quilting. Neither of which are bad books, but they're not this one! I'll try again in a few days).

I did not know what to expect when I started this book; I had read the knitting-themed tie-in Weaving in the Ends first about a year ago and figured I'd get to this one eventually. So I did, and blown away would be only the start of my reaction to it.

The story starts with young, rich Justin Wyatt, who's made his fortune in hi-tech, wrapping up his latest adventure and getting on a plane. The dialogue and character development begin easily enough, and Justin's mentor, his corporate lawyer William, hints at a time called Restoration that brought considerable upheaval to the US. So we think we know the characters and the storyline, and then suddenly events turn on a dime.

Concurrent with Justin's storyline is that of a contemporary, Alison Gregorio, who lives a completely different lifestyle: she mentions being on Subsistence and having enough education to almost make it on her own as a by-product of the Restoration. And she lands a corporate Admin job working for Justin's company with several smart lawyers who know they need someone who can hold all the threads of their work and schedules.

Events happen, we are introduced to characters who are as well-formed as one would hope, and brothers Carl and Parker show up both as bodyguards and reality checks for the interplay between the characters. Because not everyone gets along, just like in real life, and sometimes corporate greed results in terrible tragedy.

What helps this be not just a sci-fi futuristic apocalyptic book (which I feared it would be) is that Herkes uses technology that is just a tad more advanced than right now but still relatable. And each character has sections that are their own POV that mesh seamlessly into the action going on. And each character has their own foibles and inner struggle with sparks flying as they do in real life.

I was really, really surprised I enjoyed Controlled Descent as much as I did. I'm not one for post-apocalyptic as my sci-fi genre, but I was at DragonCon and chatted with the author who sold me on the interim book, Weaving in the Ends. It features knitting. Of course, if I read the interim book, I have to be convinced (be enabled??) to read the one preceding it and succeeding it, so of course I bought them all. As you do. I read "Weaving" last year and it was quick and easy, fit into a category challenge, and then done.

So even though I had the marvelous storytelling ability of Evangeline Walton sitting and staring at me, and I really wanted to read the final Diana Tregarde series, I just kind of looked at my pile on the ground and thought, "Well, why not?"

Less than a week later I had finished it and picked up the second one in "Stories of the Restoration" series so that none of the action or characters would escape my memory and because "Controlled" was *so good.*

So that's where I am, and after catching up on folks' threads this evening I might find myself in the world of jazz again. Because boy, is Dangerous Rhythms a good book!

Thanks for visiting my thread! I've left a very long message for you here:
https://www.librarything.com/topic/303114#8189236

And please stop by my Category Challenge thread here:
https://www.librarything.com/topic/347256#

>125 threadnsong: I'm not a sci-fi fan at all, but I think you have tempted me to try this one! I like to try to read something outside my wheelhouse every now and then!

>127 kac522: You are most welcome! I very much enjoyed reading your Category Challenge. What a wide variety, and I really appreciate all of your classics reads.

>128 Tess_W: I do hope you are able to find a copy and that you enjoy it. There is some tech, but it's more the thing that people use to complete their aims. I am so, so grateful that Herkes concentrates on the characters and the motivations, not so much how much tech went into building Widget X.

Today, I went to a friend's moving sale. His wife died a few years ago, and she was an author and an editor and she had a lot of books.

Oh my, did she have a lot of books!

We had some of the same books (which is always a plus), and she had a lot of Lois McMaster Bujold which I see often on the SFF Challenge. If I were to take up this author and her series, I would have been in a prime position to do so.

But instead, I brought home the books in the Temeraire series (after Empire of Ivory) and Jasper Fforde's books after The Eyre Affair because she turned me onto both these authors. Kind of having a bit of her with me when I sit down to read them. There was also a YA novel by Juliett Marrillier (always a thrill to read her words on the page) and a book about Shakespeare and his influence on pretty much everything.

So while I look at the space on my shelves where Evangeline Walton's re-telling of "The Mabinogion" lived until I read them last month and this month, and see that more books have filled it, I rearranged my TBR pile to show me different books to read. Plus, I now have more books with which to complete challenges and that is always a good thing!

>130 threadnsong: I do want to peer-pressure you a bit to try Bujold -- she's become one of my favorite SFF authors! I'm also a fan of Temeraire and Fforde, if that helps. ;)

>131 christina_reads: Awww, thank you Christina! I was tempted to start on Bujold - everything I read about her on this site and on the SFF side speaks highly to her talent and far reaches of fandom.

If I were to start on one of her books or series, which is the best place/series/book to start?

Flight Plan by K.M. Herkes
4 1/2 ****

Category: 2023 SFF Challenge: July SFFKit - Series/Trilogy

This continuation of the Restoration series takes place a little while later and starts with a bang. Literally: a building in San Francisco that houses Subsistence tenants blows up, and we are introduced to two new characters who are both affected by this disaster, Naomi and Serena. Naomi is the Physical Therapist to Parker (from "Controlled Descent") and Serena was released from Active Duty and may have been in the same Neuropsychiatry program as Parker. They have been lifelong friends and Naomi seems to be the only one who can calm Serena's spiraling thoughts.

And familiar characters are back: Justin, Allison, Tyler, along with a bit more about life in the current time period. There is a celebration called Restoration Week with different themes for each day (Remembrance, Faith, Duty, Sacrifice) that include celebrations or observances, depending on the day. The action in this book takes place during this week and each section is named for these observed days.

There is also a lot more corporate intrigue and machinations of the policing force, along with technical gadgets and action. The interplay between characters is still well-done, even as more new characters come into the story including several from the CSB (Citizens Service Bureau, the Restoration's law enforcement arm). There is friction here as well, with CSB agents being called on their condescension towards those not in the Bureau. And there is also pairing up between characters, though physical descriptions are kept to a minimum; instead, it seems to deepen the characters and their thoughts and motivations.

Still, it is a good follow-up, a bit choppier in pacing, but also gives a lot more background to what the Restoration looks like and the universality of humankind no matter the time period.

The Island of the Mighty by Evangeline Walton
4****

Category: 2023 SFF Challenge: July SFFKit - Series/Trilogy

Of the entire Four Branches that Evangeline Walton has re-told, this comes in second behind Prince of Annwyn. It is denser and thicker than the others in this series and deals with the machinations of Gwydion, Prince of Gwynedd, in the waning days of the reign of Math Mathonwy.

Many of the familiar bits of "The Mabinogion" that are more familiar are here. They could almost be a series of fairy tales were it not for the continuum of characters. Told here is the story of the attempt by Arianrhod to become the footholder to Math; how Gwydion took pigs that had been a gift from Annwn from the hero Pryderi; and the son of Arionrhod, raised by Gwydion, called Lleu Llaw Gyffes and his raising.

Once again we have a group of deities who still succumb to the human passions of love and learning and revenge. And the human-ness of the characters, their scheming and their deceit, was still a turn-off for me. Yes, it does show that some attributes transcend the centuries, and it was written down so that the tales could be preserved, but I prefer a bit more compassion and wisdom when reading about the deeds of deities.

So rather than doing my regular Weekend Search for what Challenges lie ahead, what books I'll read off of my shelves or look for recommendations, I think I'm going to log off a bit earlier than I usually do on a Sunday evening and come back to what lies in store for August.

And *that* was a run-on sentence worthy of 18th Century literature!

>135 threadnsong: LOL, I often compose those types of sentences, when not writing professionally. Tis quicker! Have a great week!

I check in regularly to see what you're reading. You've been on a long SFF binge!

>132 threadnsong: For Bujold, if you'd like to dive into a long-running sci-fi series with a big cast of characters, the Vorkosigan saga is the way to go. I'd suggest starting with Shards of Honor and Barrayar; those two should give you a good sense of the style and themes at play. And they are fairly self-contained if you decide you don't want to read further in the series.

If you'd prefer a shorter fantasy series (3 books instead of 15-plus!), I'd recommend The Curse of Chalion, which is the first book in her Five Gods trilogy. It also has a self-contained storyline, though the world expands with each book in the trilogy.

Bujold herself has a suggested reading order, which I've found helpful: https://www.goodreads.com/author_blog_posts/22803928-bujold-reading-order-guide-....

>137 pamelad: Awww! Thank you Pamela! Yes, the SFF has been calling me from the shelves. Plus, they're all series so I figure I'll read them all at once.

>138 christina_reads: Thank you Christina. I see her mentioned so much, and she has so many followers that I know I need to read her. I think the shorter fantasy series is more what I have the bandwidth for right now so I'll keep an eye out for the Chalion series.

Jinx High by Mercedes Lackey
3***

Category: 2023 Re-Read

In this third book in the Diana Tregarde series, the events happen in and around the lives of rich teenagers in Jenks, outside of Tulsa, Oklahoma. Most of the book is told from their point of view: Deke, the son of one of Diana's former college friends; Fay, who is the most popular and the most ruthless girl in school; and Monica, Deke's maybe-girlfriend who is new to the area.

Diana is called in to help teach a class on writing and getting published, and thinking that there is nothing going on in the sleepy bit of the country still sees shielding of Deke and his home courtesy of his dad, Larry. When Diana comes and settles into the family home as a houseguest, the two adults go off into private space leaving Deke wondering if there is an affair in the making (mom being in Japan on business). Deke himself is involved with Fay in a creepy kind of way: every time he mopes to Monica how much he dislikes Fay, the minute Fay comes into his sight he forgets everything and follows her like an obedient puppy.

What surprised me and brought my review down to 3 stars was the lack of awareness that Diana, as a Guardian, has for what is going on in the high school. She senses that something may be amiss, but while the undercurrent of Fay's magic is pretty unmistakeable, Diana is clueless until Monica encounters a something of Fay's and Diana pulls the story out of her. There seems to be more story going on with the teenagers than there does of Diana's involvement, and it almost felt like the author wanted the story to go in one direction, the editors in another. Maybe that's the reason for the disconnect between supernatural events and the Guardian doing very little till the very end.

And the ending has such little build-up throughout the book that it seemed an ending because Lackey had to get the book to the publisher's by the deadline. Plus, the ending left the whole build-up flat, since the great Blow Up of the Evil did not conquer the evil. Not sure if there was supposed to be a sequel, or Lackey was trying to send a message, or she just needed to finish the book to get it out the door.

Part of my reason for jumping so quickly back into Mercedes Lackey's Diana Tregarde series was my goal to re-read books this year that I need to make a decision about, whether to keep or send into the wild.

And this summer, i answered the question about the Diana Tregarde series. I read them and loved them in the 1990 - 1991 timeframe when I was discovering urban fantasy and strong, touch women who could deal with the supernatural beyond being screaming victims. Or swooning after the strong male character but adding nothing to the story.

I found those in Diana Tregarde who studied martial arts (as I did in the mid-90's) and was not cowed by nasty spooky things that went growl in the night. And while studying martial arts was a good thing for me to do both physically and mentally, I became less and less of a horror fan and don't really go hunting spooks. So all these decades later, I find that the fun I had and what I gained from this series is not something I want to keep on my shelves. I incorporated some of it, and it's time for these books to find a good home.

The good thing is, they're in pretty good shape and there is a used bookstore that specializes in vintage books of all types. And the fact that I will give them the entire series intact and pretty much unblemished means that they'll be able to find them a good new home much more easily.

I picked up 2 books last week that each have very different stories: The Bourne Ultimatum that I picked up from a used book store, and Night Train to Mother.

The intrigue of "Bourne" was not something I thought I could get through at the beginning. True, I liked the movie series a lot, but the half-sentences and the references to past events was a bit confusing for a newcomer. Still, I persevered and found that I'm kind of enjoying the story. I'll continue to read it past the 50 pages I had set myself as a "keep or send away" decision point.

The other is an early publication of a book I bought a Feminist Book Festival in the early 90's. I read it then, then picked it up again a few years later, and now I think that I'm finally understanding the story. The author begins with stream of consciousness musings about her history and how she would love to solve the mystery of how her family went from the Bucovina portion of the Austro-Hungarian Empire in the late 1890's, through the concentration camps, to Israel. It's a fascinating premise and it's only now in my later (and married) years that I can fully grasp the why's and the stories presented by generation.

>142 threadnsong: Hi, Thread! I read the first Bourne book and it was too confusing to me; I couldn't keep the characters straight! Hope things are going well for you!

>143 Tess_W: Hello Tess! Thank you for stopping by. I'm glad to know that your experience with the first Bourne book was also confusing. Helps me decide whether I want to continue to muddle out the events or send it to the local Little Free Library. I do like the plotline but not the constant musings and references to David's family as wife and children.

Plus, doing the math, if David (Bourne's human name) is 50, and he's got a two-year old and a kid in diapers, then how old is his wife?? That's the thought that ran through my head on reading a chunk of it yesterday.

Sorry, overthinking it!!

Alright, so, I chose yesterday (after a nice pedicure and a much-needed hair trim) to go to the local bookstore and drop off the Bourne Ultimatum. In fact, it was part way thru my pedicure that I decided there were other books I wanted to read more and it was time to give it away. There was much that I liked about it, how Bourne navigated the twists and turns and always seemed to have his wits about him. And the parts I liked kept me reading for nearly 250 pages. But it was time to move on.

So, there you have it. I finished a book and my review is below, and have started another book that has been on my bookshelf for a long, long time. It's YA, pretty well written but not something I'll read again once I'm done. Fortunately, there is a Little Free Library in my neighborhood that specializes in children's and YA books, so it does have a home when I'm done. Sometime this week, I think.

Night Train to Mother by Ronit Lentin
3 1/2 ***

Category: 2023 Re-Read

This was a decent book that told a story of three generations of Romanian Jewish women from the Bucovina region. It was written in the 1980's, so the perspective is also an interesting moment in time when Bucovina is no longer a place name, and Chernovtsy was the place name for Czernowitz.

The story begins with questions in a stream-of-consciousness manner, where the narrator places bits of her ancestresses' stories in with her rumination during her journey by train. The grandmother's story begins in 1895, with Dora on her wedding day. Then it moves forward to her mother, Rosa, through various points in the 20th century, and also to her aunt Hetti both pre-and post- Soviet occupation.

The threat of war and the rise of fascism are undercurrents in Rosa's later story, and that of her sister Hetti who survived polio but with damage to her leg. Unlike Rosa, who marries and raises a family and helps move the family business along, Hetti lives with her boyfriend who meets her at the local Communist Party gathering. Rosa is the only one of the family to escape the camps by fleeing to Tel Aviv in 1937, and the experiences in both the Nazi and Soviet camps are told in retrospect.

The family reunites after World War II in Tel Aviv, and the final portions are the mid-70's from Hetti's perspective, as well as the narrator's final ruminations. The gem of this book is the different women's voices that are so well-crafted; the part that left me distracted was the lack of a foundation for much of the storyline.

Another thing I did last weekend was to come to the decision (not as easy as it was with Bourne!) to take my Diana Tregarde series to a more specialized bookstore for store credit. It is a more classic-oriented shop, and I figure with an intact series that is a little harder to find, it would be a win-win for both the shop owner (to find a buyer) and for the buyer to have these gems of early 90's urban fantasy. And with a woman sleuth, which was not the norm for the time.

So I'm clearing space in my bookshelves and making room for new acquisitions! Go me!

A cut and a pedi always makes one thing "clearer!" Glad you feel good about clearing some shelves. At first, I felt apprehensive, but the more I cleared the easier it was and I have not yet missed a thing!

>147 threadnsong: Excellent work on clearing your shelves! Good that you're doing it in small chunks and finding the best place to bring each book. Enjoy buying new books to fill the empty spaces ;)

>148 Tess_W: Yes, yes they do! I do feel good, and it only took a few months. Thanks for sharing your apprehension with me!

>149 rabbitprincess: Thank you very much! When I cleared up one set of shelves, I found a few TBR books and thought "Oh yes, I now have space to put them when I finish them."

The Eternal Ones by Kirsten Miller
3 1/2 ***

Category: 2023 General Reading

What started out as a quick, fun read about a teenager who has visions of her past life and love in the first section, became an off-the-rails mess in the second half. Which is a shame, because so much of the teenage angst Haven Moore takes place against modern cultural conflicts. Her overbearing, God-fearing grandmother is only too ready to blame her troubles on Hellfire and brimstone. Her best friend is her classmate Beau, who is both gay and the star of the football team. They are smart kids who don't quite fit into the small-town mentality of their high school.

Haven and Beau have created a successful business for making prom dresses for their schoolmates and they are looking forward to using their earnings to help put themselves through college. But after Haven sees the face of Iain Morrow on TV, and her childhood visions are brought back to her from her late father's notes, things begin to change swiftly for them. And not for the better, so Haven takes her earnings and heads to New York City where she hopes she can solve this mystery once and for all.

In the second half of the book, she meets Iain who has a clearer understanding of their past lives together and that part is fascinating. Instead of continuing a cohesive narrative, however, the book suddenly takes a turn into doubt, then drama, then even more crazy turns when members of the Ouroboros Society play a larger and larger role with Haven and Iain. Characters are introduced who played a role in Constance and Ethan's past lives and rather than dealing with Haven and Iain as competent young adults, Haven goes on the run in NYC for no good reason other than maybe just adding pages.

Great idea and in the same vein as the Twilight and Hunger Games series, but just falls apart with the teenage tour of NYC taking over any semblance of a plot.

Violets are Blue by James Patterson
4****

Category: 2023 General Reading

Another good, solid read in the Alex Cross series that finally, finally solves the MasterMind mystery! Whew!

This slightly creepy thriller delves into the world of vampires, both of the blood-sucking type and the type known as "psychic vampires" when a series of murders occurs. These murders include bite marks and a young pair of brothers who were raised in a Santa Cruz commune and are now out causing mayhem and murder.

There is also a pair of magicians who use a white tiger (along with several other animals) in their magic acts, and they, too, have a vampire cult following. The question comes up time and again: are the two sets of murderers linked, and if so, how?

Detective Cross is putting back his life after Christine has left, with young Alex joining his family with Nana. And he once again is pulled into investigating this series of murders at the expense of time away from his family and broken promises. It's a chorus only too familiar to this smart, driven family man and his son, daughter, and grandmother Nana.

The ending takes some interesting twists and turns, and wow! is how it resolves in the end.

Murder Past Due by Miranda James
4****

Category: 2023 MysteryKit Challenge: College/University Setting

It has been a while since I've read a book in an afternoon, and this was just the book for it. Guess that's why cozy mysteries are such a hit!

In a small college town, Athena, Mississippi, Charlie Harris has moved back to his hometown and now lives in the home he inherited from his beloved Aunt Dottie. He is the new Athena College library archivist and the proud adopter of an abandoned Maine coon cat named Diesel. Charlie takes in boarders from the local college, one of whom is a freshman and the son of a friend who never left the town, Judy.

The action starts with another Athena local, Godfrey Priest, a renowned author of horror novels who is coming in for a book promotion tour. He was also a bully to his classmates. Including Charlie. So when Godfrey comes into Charlie's office, makes a gift of his notes and works, and drops a bombshell of some personal information, Charlie sees a different side of his former nemesis. And then Godfrey is murdered, so the murder mystery and solving begins.

It is a challenge for Charlie to navigate this murder, since he is by nature an inquisitive sort, and he early on runs into challenges with the Deputy assigned to the case, Kanesha. Not only is she a black woman in a predominately white male position, she's also the daughter of Charlie's housekeeper, Azalea. Sparks fly towards the end of the book, and my guess is that Charlie will be a much greater help in the next murder investigation. And besides, how many cats are a help in solving murders?

>152 threadnsong: and >153 threadnsong: are two of my favorite series. I am on #14 Cross Country and # 4 Out Of Circulation respectively.

Good to hear! I find James Patterson's Alex Delaware is always a great read, and I'm making sure I'm reading them in order. And the Cat in the Stacks series is fast becoming a favorite. Thanks again for the feedback and for stopping in.

The Neverending Story by Michael Ende
3***

Category: 2023 SFFKit Challenge - NonAnglophone SFF

I read this in the mid-80's, after the movie and song came out, and again this year for a book challenge. I remember not feeling very connected to it then and I can see why now: there is a piling-on of characters, peoples, and adventures in Fantastica that seems over-done. This may be in part because every chapter begins with a different letter of the alphabet, and Ende has to keep the story moving.

While the first half of the book is Bastien's adventures getting the book, reading the book, and Atreyu's journey, the second half, starting with the letter "M," goes into Bastien's decisions and wishes and his darker side. The idea that a children's book would start by taking the child into the realm of Fantastica, save the Childlike Empress, encounter different beings and lands, then delve into what happens when one makes selfish decisions is a good one.

Probably a book that should be a bed-time read for a young person, pre-Tween years, conveying the wonder of Fantastica and lots of creatures with the teaching of what happens when we wish for bad things and act out of selfishness.

>156 threadnsong: I have not read this book, but I think your estimation that this book might be for pre-Tween years is spot on. My children and grands loved this book as pre-teens. They also watched the movie and the song drove me crazy!

>157 Tess_W: Yes, pre-teens is the age to love it. We more cynical older types are going to look at the number of names, types of characters, and ongoing plot and just say "enough, already!" But a kid whose imagination wanders and wonders? Definitely spot on.

While I was reading it I kept hearing the song going through my mind. I did love it back in the day, but I can see that over-hearing it would drive one crazy.

The Maidens by Alex Michaelides
5*****

Category: 2023 MysteryKit Challenge: College/University Setting

Talk about a book that takes you to unexpected places! Based in Cambridge University and partly in London, the multiple murders are as difficult to figure out as the potential suspects and their motivations. And the landscape is so integral to the fictional St. Christopher's College that it, too, becomes another character.

Mariana is a widow of a year, missing her dear Sebastian, when she gets a call from her adopted niece attending St. Christopher's College. Zoe's close friend has been murdered at the point of a knife and Zoe needs some consolation. Mariana is trained as a group therapist and cancels her sessions for a while to handle her remaining family member. One of the group members does not take it well.

Once Mariana makes it to St. Christopher's she is certain that she knows whom to blame for the murder of this young woman and the others who follow. The problems come when she interferes with the investigation, as one would expect, and mainly from the head constable who takes an immediate dislike to Marianna and her prying questions.

The most obvious choice for a suspect is Professor Fosca, whose class study group is named "The Maidens." It is his students who are being murdered, but then there is the strange Fred who shares her initial train ride, and then maybe her disgruntled former patient could be the murderer. I did become a bit impatient with Mariana for several reasons: she is so stuck, both in the past and in her decision of who the murder suspect has to be. She brings people into her life with no idea where they fit, but her bad choices also make her more human.

So, no more clues. It is a fascinating read, an investigation of dysfunctional family dynamics and how they affect the adult, and a true page turner with a shocking ending.

>159 threadnsong: This sounds like something I would enjoy. Taking a BB.

>159 threadnsong: Taking a BB on that one! I have read Michaelides' The Silent Patient and gave it 5 stars.

>159 threadnsong: - I was planning to read this too but ran out of time this month. It's been on my list, and I'll get to it, so I skipped most of your review, but 5* is a good push.

>160 lowelibrary: That's great and flattered that you would take a BB. Hope you like it and let me know when you've finished it.

>161 Tess_W: And again, I'm flattered on your BB! I have not read Silent Patient - this book was my introduction to Michaelides, and in his Afterword he mentions how "Silent Patient" changed his life. So I guess I better take a BB for it now that I've read "Maidens."

>162 dudes22: Yes, I totally get it. I stayed up late in order to finish it; the way the chapters are laid out helped with that decision. And no worries on skipping my review. It's both here and on the book's page on LT.

The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux
2**

Category: This Will Take Some Time

Oh my gosh. I decided to finish this because it was not too long, but holy cow. It is nothing like any of the movies which is what I had hoped to glean from it. I had seen the silent "Phantom" again over Labor Day weekend and was very intrigued by the origins of the Phantom. The labyrinth under the famous Paris Opera house used as torture chambers? Had to go find out what happened, and how the Phantom became who he was.

But I did not find it, sadly, in the original book.The melodrama! The misogyny! The gasping for breath! The clutching of bosoms and of shedding tears for one's beloved! I mean, I do like me some good Victorian-era literature, and certainly get that it was a much different time for expressing one's views, but wow. This little novel has withstood time because Lon Chaney. And Andrew Lloyd Webber. And a chandelier.

The best part of this book was towards the end when The Persian tells the story of Erik (the Opera Ghost) and how his face was ugly from birth, he was rejected by both his parents, learned ventriloquism as an act in traveling circuses in Europe and Asia, and became a monster famous for mirrored rooms and trap doors. Still, that final expose does not make up for the bulk of the book. Christine and her beloved, Raoul, being discussed as children was really beyond what I could deal with.

Glad I read it, and glad it's going back to the library.

Also, this edition does not list the translator, sadly.

>163 threadnsong: One of my challenges for next year is going to be my BB list.