Reviews and Comments

One night, Tova helps Marcellus, unaware of the ensuing ripple effects.

Though very predictable, this interwoven tale of a group of 70-something women, a shop keep with a crush, an orphan of sorts, and a Giant Pacific Octopus is quite sweet. I liked the characters and enjoyed reading about fundamentally kind people who care about each other. Not Great Literature, but soothing. TL:DR Needs more Marcellus.

Alex Easton, a sworn soldier, hurries to visit kan dying friend Madeline.

I usually love Kingfisher books, but I was quite indifferent to this one. A retelling of “The Fall of the House of Usher”, by Edgar Allan Poe, but Kingfisher gives various characters more depth.

I tend to avoid horror, as I’m either too terrified, or completely unmoved by the various ghastly happenings. “What Moves the Dead” falls into the latter category. I didn’t find it creepy at all, and there was no mystery to solve. However, I did enjoy the Gothic Horror aesthetic, and found the idea of Gallacian having seven sets of personal pronouns interesting, particularly the inclusion of a solider-specific one.

I’ll probably read the sequels eventually, but I’m not rushing off to do so. All in all, it was fine.

A father-daughter duo of “food detectives” sleuth their way to recreating beloved lost meals.

Felt more like tableaus flowing into one another than a novel. Nagare, is almost Holmesian in his ability to infer what clients desire from the interviews conducted by Koishi. Relentlessly cosy, but readers have zero chance at solving any of the “mysteries”. I found it unsatisfying as it’s short on detecting, focusing more on patrons’ often bittersweet stories. Not the book I thought I was getting, and I prefer something with more “meat” on its bones.

In a dystopic, corporate-run world, a trans girl is raised up by the CEO for a single purpose, only to find she is being replaced.

I really enjoyed this and was a bit miffed when it ended, because only then did I realise it was a short story. Great one, though. Excellent world-building and a compelling read. Will be reading more Cameron Reed as soon as possible.

In honour of the Quarter Quell, twice as many tributes will be taken from their homes to compete in the fiftieth annual Hunger Games.

While I quite enjoyed the Hunger Games trilogy back in 2012, “Sunrise on the Reaping” feels like a somewhat unnecessary addition. I found the romance annoying, the arena a dreary slog to get through, and the ending dismal but not enjoyably so. Also, too much song lyrics and poetry for my tastes. Not for me. However, all that is a “me problem”, and Hunger Games fans should thoroughly enjoy this latest entry in the series.

Klara the AF waits patiently in the store to be chosen by her new owner.

I did not care for this. I found the writing frustratingly ambiguous, and I remained utterly disinterested in Klara’s internal life throughout. Everything interesting was quickly hand-waved and rarely mentioned again, Ishiguro instead focusing on interminable paragraphs about patterns or feelings or thoughts that felt like filler. And had I even liked it, I’d have been rather disappointed by the end.

Ishiguro is a good writer but is either hit or miss for me, and this was a huge miss.

Halla’s late husband’s relatives try to force her to marry a clammy cousin in order to secure an inheritance unexpectedly left to her. A lawyer, a Gnole, and a sword set out to make sure it doesn’t happen on their watch.

A re-read. Kingfisher’s protagonists tend to be pragmatic and surrounded by a very believable cast of characters. Swordheart is no exception. I love this unreservedly, probably because I see myself in them.

However, upon re-reading, I realised how much more I prefer the Paladin books. I absolutely enjoyed this, but she writes such utterly perfect Paladins.

Perihelion and its crew try to carry out their mission at a station in the throes of a hostile takeover.

Rapport is a woefully short, but delightful tale that explores more of the relationships between crew and machine intelligences, and is very sweet. I hope we get more of this in future Murderbot books.

Spoiler warning, no SecUnits appear in this short story. Before reading it, I’d have pooh-poohed the idea of Murderbot story without my beloved protagonist. I want MOAR Murderbot! However, now not only do I love Murderbot with all my heart, but Perihelion too.

Annie was created to be the perfect cuddle bunny companion, but after she was switched to autodidact mode, things are changing. She’s learning.

Greer writes well, and deftly brings up a host of issues for the reader to ponder. I found the first 20-30% of this book absolutely breathtaking and genuinely exciting. Though I didn’t find the ending quite as exquisite, I don’t see how Greer could have ended it in a truly satisfying (to me) way.

A very timely novel that deals with really heavy, dark themes but remains extremely readable. I’ll be reading more Greer novels in the future.