Ninefox Gambit by Yoon Ha Lee. A fantastic, weird future — an excellent stand alone that’s also the beginning of a trilogy. Cheris is fascinating, with interesting flaws. (4/5)
Raven Stratagem by Yoon Ha Lee. A skewed sequel, with grave alterations to Cheris. Jedao makes a little more sense as he becomes the focus, though he’s still inscrutably 400 years old, etc. (3/5)
Revenant Gun by Yoon Ha Lee. An interesting conclusion to the trilogy, but it also answers the “If you like X so much, why not more?” question. The calendar leaves the universe in a new ready state. (3/5)
In the Dream House by Carmen Machado (5/5). Not my normal reading vein; it’s somber and real. It feels so much like something that you can’t talk about straight, so you approach it from dozens of directions, shying away when it gets grim.
Station Eleven by Emily Mandel (4/5). An intriguing set of intertwined storylines, both in a current day at the onset of apocalypse, and 20 years after. Long on the practical survival end, rather than gun fantasy — though force is certainly present and a concern.
Trail of Lightning by Rebecca Roanhorse (4/5). An interestingly different post-apocalypse world. Maggie is a monster hunter… a bit like a bounty hunter, but with interesting clan powers. The Navajo grounding makes it a unique world.
Dragon Pearl by Yoon Ha Lee (3/5). A fascinating space opera, grounded in Korean myths and archetypes. For YA it’s very strong (5/5) with a great lead; I’d highly recommend it. Min’s a great young hero.
Child of Fire by Harry Connolly (5/5). A favorite reread; dangerous to sleep because it’s so hard to put down. It’s set today, and magic, but not like anything else– dark and terrible, but not hopeless or grim. Ray Lily is amazing.
Game of Cages by Harry Connolly (4/5). Ray without Annalise is dedicated, ambitious, and seriously screwed up. The enemies of the 20 Palaces Society are as narcissistic as you’d fear… and interestingly unique in their motivations.
Circle of Enemies by Harry Connolly (5/5). Visiting LA and the perspective of 5 years separation really rings true. It kicks off strong and the relations are full of believable gaps and inferences. Wally King turns out to be a nightmare-but the links and byplay work.
Doughnut Economics By Kate Raworth. An interesting “gut check” and step back from the details of economics; an encouragement to identify the void at the center of current economics (GDP), and name replacements and more careful analysis.
Twenty Palaces (prequel) by Harry Connolly – My first time through; enjoyable, but it challenged some of what I’d assumed reading Child of Fire (many times), so there’s some collision of Ray-views to it. Well written and consistent, just a bit uncomfortable so far.
“The Home Made Mask” by Harry Connolly (4/5) – An interesting view of the predation from a new, uniformed viewpoint. Good characterization, slightly askew perceptions, sympathetic victims.
The Twisted Path by Harry Connolly (5/5) – Tautly written, fascinating novella. A fascinating trip abroad from someone who’d never imagined foreign travel, seeing life and differences. Ray’s insight and puzzle solving shine… and the peers are authentic dicks.
The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms by N.K. Jemisin (4/5) – A fascinating world with greek-style gods, passionate and enslaved, with a twisted deepening history revealed onion layer by layer.
