Stacey > Recent Status Updates

The way the narrator reads, a lot of the accents sound very pro-colonialist. It’s unfortunate, a little bit careless, and disappointing that the higher class Radch-ai sounds like posh English, the lower class Radch-ai sounds like Northern English and invaded societies sound like they come from a number of British colonies. keeps throwing me out of the story. Intrinsic biases.

I may have to re-read this on paper.

This book is too long. There are parts that are really really good, but there are also parts that I have to slog through because the pacing has slowed. I'm not a fan generally of split narratives, or rather - narratives split more than twice, at least. Unclear. But this narrative is split in 3. I wasn't prepared for the senseless mass violence the villain perpetrates.

Continuing this with a critical eye cast toward trans inclusion.

I’ve been meaning to finish this for a book club, but practicing Italian, dealing with pandemic life, reading White Fragility, meditating, and writing emails and letters to governors, attorney generals, and politicians has gotten in the way. And mostly I’ve just been dealing.

Dnf

I love the way Davis brings the ancient Roman Empire to life. I like her mysteries and romantic historicals. Her characters are often entertaining and always witty, and if the plots don’t always speed along at breakneck pace, it’s a nice change to focus on character and relationship development.

Oh my god, where did I put this book?!

I was really into this until it started to become the retelling of the story I already know. And I moved. I'm going to try to finish it before the end of the month (and I have to return it or get fined)

It's hard to see the world as it's described with early radio technology. Not quite steampunk, not quite desert historical, magical, non-technological. The romance is a little insta- so far. And the plot just twisted and opened up in a way that reminds me of Alanna the First Adventure, adding to my feeling of being overwhelmed with plot elements.

Feeling this one is all over the map, literally and figuratively. On that note, would love to see a map. I haven't checked the ebook for one, but I don't remember one at the beginning. Figuratively, the plot has many parts. There is a sleeping queen, and a usurper king, and tense relations between bordering nations, and the magic of life vs. the magic of death, and spying. And gods talking to mortals.

Also, the former partner REALLY needs to stop talking about his dick. PLEASE.

There’s a love triangle, which irks me. The protagonist, cop-turned-scavenger for pre-Magicfall goods like peanut butter and chocochips, is at the center (If triangles had centers). Her former partner has just realized he’s in love with her, making him possessive, jealous, and angry. The 3rd player is confident, perceptive, witty, and curious. Only one way this triangle should resolve itself.

Wonderful! The best thing to read on vacation. Or any time. Multiple times. It’s fast-paced, witty, adorable, and made me Feel. I love Ms. Pettigrew and all the characters, the dialogue is great, and it sits nicely during busy times but dives right back in when I come back to it. I’m so glad I found it!

More engrossing than I thought it would be.

Listening to the audiobook version is delightful. The narrator is fantastic, she switches between different accents and dialects with ease. The characters, the plot ... it's all surreal and highly suspenseful. I found myself listening on even after I finished cooking dinner last night.

So far, this bounces back and forth between the early days of Claude's and Blanche's marriage, from Claude's perspective, and the first days following their return to the Ritz after the Nazis have taken it over in 1940. I like that the hints of an unhappy marriage in Blanche's narrative are sort of explained in Claude's narrative.

There's a cameo by Coco Chanel, for the win. Wasn't she supposedly a Nazi spy?

I have about 20 minutes left in this audiobook, and somebody took it from me! I hope I remember everything about the denouement by the time I get it back.

One hour left in my audiobook. I’ve been really enjoying this! No complaints with the narration, and the story is really good. Adelia is a forthright, arrogant, compassionate doctor whose specialty lies in understanding the secrets of the dead. In the twelfth century. Have to say, Henry II is delightful as a cunning, manipulative monarch.

This is not one of those books I have to be patient with at the beginning. The main character and the setting drew me in from the beginning, and now the adventure has begun! There’s enough intrigue and suspense from the hints given about the quest, Casiopea’s history, and the underworld to make it difficult to put it down. I do love quest stories.

It's still fun, although I wish a few mysteries would be further along by now. There are a few details I've noticed haven't matched up between the first and second times they're mentioned. It's weird to have demons and fae in the same world, but I'm going with it.

Ugh, now that there are a dozen narrators and some are in the same place, and all of them are first person, it takes me two pages to figure out which one is narrating each time it changes!

Some holes in the worldbuilding so far, but it’s still an interesting world with interesting characters who have mysterious backgrounds.

It’s fun to check out a KWL book (Joni 👀), thanks to NetGalley. Reminds me a little of the Innkeeper series by Ilona Andrews.

Too many narrators! And now the author’s adding even more. The plot just left the highway for a residential street. I’ve skimmed ahead now to confirm what I suspected, which, oops, is going to make it even more challenging to get through the next bit.

Really enjoying this! It's not as compelling as Uprooted, but still really interesting. I think that's probably because there are three main characters, instead of one.

There's something magical in Connie Willis' stories, beyond that inherent in SFF. These short stories are heartwarming (mostly, so far) and sparkle like holiday fairy lights. Willis' love of the holiday spirit shines. It didn't make Christmas magical this year, but that's on me. Enjoying the Christmas spirt is, I think, ultimately an internal commitment to presence. This book, though, will bring it a little closer.