lavaturtle's 2022 Category Challenge

Hi everyone! This will be my 7th year in the Category Challenge. I live in New York State, I read a lot of science fiction and fantasy, and lately I've been enjoying a mix of new books and catching up on some favorite series.

Here are my 2022 categories, mostly unchanged from 2021:
- 2022 Hugo Nominees
- Short Fiction
- Nonfiction
- Sequels & Series
- Recently Published Fiction
- Recommendations and Impulse Reads
- Long Time on the TBR List
- Grab Bag

I'm also going to participate in group challenges:
- AlphaKIT
- SFFKIT
- RandomKIT
- BingoDOG

To avoid swamping this thread with comics, I keep a separate thread for my comics categories.

2022 Hugo Nominees
Works nominated for the 2022 Hugo Awards

Works read:
1. Light from Uncommon Stars by Ryka Aoki
2. Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir
3. A Master of Djinn by P. Djèlí Clark
4. A Desolation Called Peace by Arkady Martine
5. A Spindle Splintered by Alix E. Harrow
6. Fireheart Tiger by Aliette de Bodard
7. The Past is Red by Catherynne M. Valente
8. Elder Race by Adrian Tchaikovsky
9. Bots of the Lost Ark by Suzanne Palmer
10. Colors of the Immortal Palette by Caroline M. Yoachim
11. L'Esprit de L'Escalier by Catherynne M. Valente
12. Unseelie Brothers, Ltd. by Fran Wilde
13. Mr. Death by Alix E. Harrow
14. Proof by Induction by José Pablo Iriarte
15. The Sin of America by Catherynne M. Valente
16. Tangles by Seanan McGuire
17. Unknown Number by Blue Neustifter
18. Where Oaken Hearts Do Gather by Sarah Pinsker

Short Fiction
Short stories or novelettes (things shorter than novella length)

Stories read:
1. Take the Shot by Seanan McGuire
2. Winter Sunshine by Seanan McGuire
3. Off-Balance by Seanan McGuire
4. All That Glitters by Seanan McGuire
5. What You Pay For by Seanan McGuire
6. What You Build by Seanan McGuire
7. The Hand of the Forest by Seanan McGuire
8. By Any Other Name by Seanan McGuire
9. To Build a Better... by Seanan McGuire
10. The Way Home by Seanan McGuire
11. The Lay of the Land by Seanan McGuire
12. Target Practice by Seanan McGuire
13. School Belles by Seanan McGuire
14. Long Way From Home by Seanan McGuire

Nonfiction

What it says on the tin.

Possibilities:
1. An Indigenous People's History of the United States by Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz

Sequels & Series
Sequels to books I've read, or works in an ongoing series I'm following

Books read:
1. Fugitive Telemetry by Martha Wells
2. Chaos on CatNet by Naomi Kritzer
3. Shift by Hugh Howey
4. Where the Drowned Girls Go by Seanan McGuire
5. Dust by Hugh Howey
6. Halfway Through the Wood by Seanan McGuire
7. Spelunking Through Hell by Seanan McGuire
8. A Prayer for the Crown-Shy by Becky Chambers
9. The World We Make by N.K. Jemisin
10. Nona the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir

Possibilities:
- The Labyrinth Index by Charles Stross
- Defekt by Nino Cipri
- A Second Chance by Jodi Taylor
- Grave Importance by Vivian Shaw
- Feedback by Mira Grant
- A Mirror Mended by Alix E. Harrow
- Lost in the Moment and Found by Seanan McGuire
- The Martian Contingency by Mary Robinette Kowal (2023)

Recently Published Fiction

Any fiction books published in 2021 or 2022.

Books read:
1. You Sexy Thing by Cat Rambo
2. Assassin's Orbit by John Appel
3. The Kaiju Preservation Society by John Scalzi
4. Last Exit by Max Gladstone
5. Blackout by Erin Flanagan
6. A Half-Built Garden by Ruthanna Emrys
7. The All-Consuming World by Cassandra Khaw
8. The Sentence by Louise Erdrich
9. Station Eternity by Mur Lafferty

Possibilities:
- We Have Always Been Here by Lena Nguyen
- Monkey Around by Jadie Jang
- Briar Girls by Rebecca Kim Wells
- Wings of Ebony by J. Elle

Recommendations and Impulse Reads
Books people recommend to me, and books I hear of and think "golly, I've got to read that right now!"

Books read:
1. Hell Followed With Us by Andrew Joseph White

Long Time on the TBR List

New category for 2022: Anything that's been on my LibraryThing "To Read" list for more than 2 years. I must have added those books for a reason, time to read them or clean them out of there!

Books read:
1. The Dervish House by Ian McDonald

Possibilities:
- Parasite by Mira Grant

Grab Bag
Anything that doesn't fit in the other categories goes here.

Books read:
1. A Memory Called Empire by Arkady Martine
2. Clean Sweep by Ilona Andrews
3. A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness

AlphaKIT
Main thread: https://www.librarything.com/topic/336242

Year-long
X: TBD
Z: TBD

January
R: You Sexy Thing by Cat Rambo
H: The Dervish House by Ian McDonald

February
A: Assassin's Orbit by John Appel
B: --

March
P: The Kaiju Preservation Society by John Scalzi
S: Halfway Through the Wood by Seanan McGuire

April
L: Last Exit by Max Gladstone
J: --

May
O: --
D: --

June
Q: --
C: A Master of Djinn by P. Djèlí Clark

July
E: Elder Race by Adrian Tchaikovsky
T: Fireheart Tiger by Aliette de Bodard

August
M: --
F: Blackout by Erin Flanagan

September
K: The All-Consuming World by Cassandra Khaw
I: Clean Sweep by Ilona Andrews

October
V: --
N: --

November
G: --
U: --

December
Y: TBD
W: The World We Make by N.K. Jemisin

SFFKIT
Planning thread: https://www.librarything.com/topic/336663

January - A villain or morally grey main character: --
February - Time travel: --
March - Historical Sci Fi and Fantasy: --
April - Lifespans: Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir
May - Invasion!: --
June - Next book in a series: A Desolation Called Peace by Arkady Martine
July - Family, born or found: Hell Followed With Us by Andrew Joseph White
August - SFF by Asian authors: ---
September - Quests & Journeys: A Prayer for the Crown-Shy by Becky Chambers
October - Robots & AI: --
November - Award winners: --
December - Wishes: TBD

RandomKIT
Main thread: https://www.librarything.com/topic/336623

January - Home Sweet Home: The Dervish House by Ian McDonald
February - Includes a cat: Shift by Hugh Howey
March - Hobby Love: --
April - April Showers: --
May - May Flowers: --
June - Cookin' the Books: --
July - Dog Days of Summer: --
August - Canada!: --
September - A time to harvest: --
October - What's in a Name?: --
November - City: --
December - Christmas Sweets: TBD

BingoDOG
Planning thread: https://www.librarything.com/topic/336125



1. Published the year you joined LT
2. A modern retelling of an older story
3. A book you received as a gift
4. A book that features a dog: Clean Sweep by Ilona Andrews
5. A book set in a country other than the one you live: The Dervish House by Ian McDonald
6. A book about sisters or brothers
7. A children's or YA book: Chaos on CatNet by Naomi Kritzer
8. A book with silver or gold on the cover: Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir
9. A work of non-fiction
10. A book where a character shares a name of a friend: A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness
11. Published in a year ending in 2: The Kaiju Preservation Society by John Scalzi
12. A weather word in the title
13. Read a CAT
14. A book club read (real or online): The Sentence by Louise Erdrich
15. A long book (long for you)
16. A book set in a capital city: A Master of Djinn by P. Djèlí Clark
17. A book by an LGBTQ+ author: Light from Uncommon Stars by Ryka Aoki
18. The title contains a month
19. The title contains the letter Z
20. An Award Winning book: A Memory Called Empire by Arkady Martine (2020 Hugo award winner)
21. A book with flowers on the cover: A Spindle Splintered by Alix E. Harrow
22. A book you'd love to see as a movie (maybe starring your favourite actor): Fugitive Telemetry by Martha Wells
23. Contains travel or a journey: You Sexy Thing by Cat Rambo
24. A book by a favourite author: Where the Drowned Girls Go by Seanan McGuire
25. A book in translation

Running totals
Total books read: 32
Total short works read: 24

2022 Hugo Nominees: 18
Short Fiction: 14
Nonfiction: 0
Sequels & Series: 10
Recently Published Fiction: 9
Recommendations and Impulse Reads: 1
Long Time on the TBR List: 1
Grab Bag: 3

This thread is now fully set up and ready for comments!

Good luck with your 2022 reading!

Enjoy your 2022 reads!

Have a great 2022 with lots of good books.

Thanks, everyone!

You Sexy Thing by Cat Rambo
Category: Recently Published Fiction
AlphaKIT: R
BingoDOG: Contains travel or a journey

This book was a lot of fun. I love the group of alien friends/family, who remind me of Becky Chambers's work. The ship is really neat, and there's a great cast of characters. Things are mostly wrapped up at the end, but there are some possible hooks for future plot. I'd be excited to see a sequel to this one.

>20 lavaturtle: Off to a great start! :)

Enjoy your 2022 Challenge!

Have a great reading year!

Thanks!

Fugitive Telemetry by Martha Wells
Category: Sequels & Series
BingoDOG: A book you'd love to see as a movie

This is a fun, short one-off Murderbot adventure. I like the worldbuilding around Preservation and the outside world, and the cast of characters who are often more than they appear.

Chaos on CatNet by Naomi Kritzer
Category: Sequels & Series
BingoDOG: A children's or YA book

I loved this book! All my favorite characters from the previous book return (including a bunch of teenagers who really sound like teenagers), and we also get some new characters who've had very different life experiences. The plot is compelling and the resolution is satisfying. While the premise sounds like it could go in a simplistic "technology is bad!" direction, the actual story is much smarter than that. I also liked the detailed depiction of the Twin Cities, which had a strong sense of place even though I've never been there, and the author's choice of how to imagine the future of Minneapolis.

The Dervish House by Ian McDonald
Category: Long Time on the TBR List
AlphaKIT: H
RandomKIT: Home Sweet Home
BingoDOG: A book set in a country other than the one you live

Unfortunately, this book really wasn't for me. There's a lot of rambling description of the city, and we're hopping between way too many storylines. I couldn't really get invested in any of them, and it all has an air of the narrator saying "check out these freaks" rather than actually being from any character's POV. Since other reviewers say it doesn't really come together in the end, I decided not to stick it out. Quit after 60 pages.

Shift by Hugh Howey
Category: Sequels & Series
RandomKIT: Includes a cat

It was really interesting, and chilling, to gradually understand how the world of the Silos came to be. The gradual reveals, and the protagonist's psychological and moral decline, were very effective. Donald is an alarmingly passive character a lot of the time, but it works. The stories of Mission and Jimmy/Solo weren't quite as compelling, although they did help round out the world. The whole "POV character is a creepy child who doesn't understand the world" thing isn't really my thing. I liked how the end started to tie in with the plot of the first book, and I'm really intrigued to see how the trilogy concludes.

Where the Drowned Girls Go by Seanan McGuire
Category: Sequels & Series
BingoDOG: A book by a favourite author

A story full of kindness, set in a place with little kindness to be found. I loved seeing Cora and Sumi and Ragen again, and we learned some intriguing things about the world. Loved the ending.

Dust by Hugh Howey
Category: Sequels & Series

This was a good, satisfying ending to the trilogy. A well-deserved ending for the world as well as the characters. I'm glad Charlotte got to play more of a role.

My only complaint is just how ridiculously heteronormative the story is, across the entire trilogy. Not only are there no queer characters, but we're repeatedly told that the way Silo 1 is organized relies on men's assumed interest in women (and only women), and no one ever considers that those assumptions might not be universally true.

Assassin's Orbit by John Appel
Category: Recently Published Fiction
AlphaKIT: A

I really liked this book! It's a fun, exciting space thriller with a bunch of interesting characters, high stakes, and intriguing political drama. I love the worldbuilding: the backstory on how/why these humans fled from Earth, the varied circumstances of the different systems, the casual presence of queer and non-binary people everywhere. I'd love to see a sequel; there's plenty left to explore.

Take the Shot by Seanan McGuire
Category: Short Fiction

I've heard a lot about Thomas, but this is the first time I'd "met" him in a story. Interesting situation! Not quite the same as the "he came from the Covenant to hunt us and then Alice seduced him" narrative we'd first heard... but then when is anything quite as it seems?

Winter Sunshine by Seanan McGuire
Category: Short Fiction

A sweet little adventure with young Alice and her best friend Laura. I like the character development here, and the focus on their intense friendship.

Off-Balance by Seanan McGuire
Category: Short Fiction

I liked the additional insights into Thomas's past life with the Covenant, and Alice's home life. Still not sold their relationship with the huge age gap, even if the mice are in favor...

All That Glitters by Seanan McGuire
Category: Short Fiction

This was an interesting encounter where all was not as it seemed. A good glimpse into some of the sort of work the Healys do, and their complicated relationship with Thomas Price, as well as Thomas's relationship with the Covenant.

What You Pay For by Seanan McGuire
Category: Short Fiction

Two interesting/troubling new threats, and a real cliffhanger ending...

What You Build by Seanan McGuire
Category: Short Fiction

This is really a continuation of the same story as What You Pay For. Some bad stuff happens, and our heroes have to make several difficult choices. In the end, everything is... not okay, but sort of partially managed ish?

The Hand of the Forest by Seanan McGuire
Category: Short Fiction

A good resolution -- for now -- to both problems in this story arc. I never expected Gwendolyn to return home alive! Liked the complexities of everyone's relationship with sorcery.

By Any Other Name by Seanan McGuire
Category: Short Fiction

Rose! So excited to see her and Alice meet. There's also some followup here on the fallout of the previous story arc.

To Build a Better... by Seanan McGuire
Category: Short Fiction

What a cute Alice/Thomas story. Mouse-directed adventures, horrible things in the woods... nothing not to like!

Halfway Through the Wood by Seanan McGuire
Category: Sequels & Series
AlphaKIT: S

This is a necessary story in many ways -- it fills in important connections in the timeline, and explains why characters made some important choices -- but it's a hard, harrowing one. The story starts and ends in a pretty dark place. At least we know Alice and Thomas must get together eventually... and at least Gwendolyn gets what she deserves!

The Way Home by Seanan McGuire
Category: Short Fiction

Back at the beginning of Alice & Thomas's story. This is a nice introduction to teenage Alice, Thomas, the Old Parrish Place, swamp bromeliads, and the Healy family of 1954.

The Lay of the Land by Seanan McGuire
Category: Short Fiction

Another early Alice & Thomas story. The origin of the tailypo!

Target Practice by Seanan McGuire
Category: Short Fiction

And this is the one with the dire boar! It's perhaps the clearest picture of how Alice's grandparents know Jonathan is being an ass. All the characters are very distinctly themselves here.

School Belles by Seanan McGuire
Category: Short Fiction

The aftermath of what happened in Halfway Through the Wood. Alice is still getting herself into the most ridiculous situations. It's nice to see Laura again. And Jonathan Healy continues to be the actual worst.

Long Way From Home by Seanan McGuire
Category: Short Fiction

The last of the Alice & Thomas shorts, for now at least. I'm glad the whole Jonathan messing with the mail situation got resolved. Alice and her affinity for miscellaneous animals = so much fun. And some ominous warnings about Laura...

The Kaiju Preservation Society by John Scalzi
Category: Recently Published Fiction
AlphaKIT: P
BingoDOG: Published in a year ending in 2

This was a whole lot of fun! Love the premise, love the feel of the tight-knit organization populated by quirky, devoted scientists. The plot was exciting, the villain was the actual worst, and the level of snark about the state of the world was just about right. Also, great to see a non-binary major character!

Last Exit by Max Gladstone
Category: Recently Published Fiction
AlphaKIT: L

This was a hard read. Especially the first half or so, it's a long slog through a whole lot of real-world awful, with a tone of complete despair and exhaustion. Eventually, there starts being more to the plot, and the ending is ultimately satisfying, but the setting is very definitely "after everything went to shit and the heroes lost". I'm glad I finished it... but I'm not sure I would have started it if I knew how dark it is. I do like the characters, though, their tangled relationships and the different ways they see the world. And the magic system is interesting.

Spelunking Through Hell by Seanan McGuire
Category: Sequels & Series

So exciting to finally get the rest of Alice's story (and Thomas's story) after we last saw them in the 1950s. This fills in a lot of the missing pieces, but it's also a good story in its own right. I'm really happy with the ending and what this could mean for the Healy/Price family.

Light from Uncommon Stars by Ryka Aoki
Category: 2022 Hugo Nominees
BingoDOG: A book by an LGBTQ+ author

I loved this book! It's a beautiful story about relationships and art and prejudice and charting your own course, and also about aliens and donuts and cursed violins. The characters are amazing, the plot is compelling, and the ending is just lovely.

Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir
Category: 2022 Hugo Nominees
SFFKIT: Lifespans
BingoDOG: A book with silver or gold on the cover

This was a really fun read. It's exactly as science-y as you'd expect from the author of The Martian. There's also a gradual reveal of the events that led to where the main character starts the story, and it's intriguingly twisty. Loved the ending.

>50 lavaturtle: Nice to see someone else working through the Hugo nominees this year. I just finished Aoki's book and enjoyed it very much.

I've only read the first book in McGuire's InCryptid series, but I really like her October Daye series, and last year, I did a binge read of the Tybalt short stories.

>52 mathgirl40: Cool! I've been meaning to give October Daye another try.

A Master of Djinn by P. Djèlí Clark
Category: 2022 Hugo Nominees
AlphaKIT: C
BingoDOG: A book set in a capital city

It took me a little while to get into this one, but once I did, it was a wild ride! I loved the diverse cast of characters and the intriguing setting. Fatma's love of suits! Abagail's secret villainry! Siti riding a steampunk motorcycle! That crocodile guy! Hadia was also a great character. And the ending was perfect.

>54 lavaturtle:, Did you read the novellas in the same universe? I absolutely fell in love with The Haunting of Tram Car 015 when I read it, and that's what led me to the novel. I loved A Master of Djinn, but funny enough, I think that novella made more of an impression on me!

>55 whitewavedarling: I've read The Haunting of Tram Car 015, but not the other novellas yet. Unfortunately I don't remember much about it, but LibraryThing says I liked it!

A Memory Called Empire by Arkady Martine
Category: Grab Bag
BingoDOG: Award Winner

I absolutely loved this book! Mahit's complicated feelings about the empire and her role are well done. All the characters are great (but Mahit, Three Seagrass, and Nineteen Adze are my favorites). Palace intrigue isn't usually my thing, but this story made it compelling via both personal and society-level stakes for the protagonist. And the world-building is amazing, with the contrast between Empire and Station life. I'm excited to read the next one in the series right away!

A Desolation Called Peace by Arkady Martine
Category: 2022 Hugo Nominees
SFFKIT: Next book in a series

An excellent continuation of the series, this book does a great job both expanding on the world-building from the first book, and adding some intriguing new elements. The aliens are compellingly alien. There's some added nuance about minority cultures within the empire. And my favorite protagonists are back, getting into exciting new kinds of trouble.

A Spindle Splintered by Alix Harrow
Category: 2022 Hugo Nominees
BingoDOG: A book with flowers on the cover

I loved this! The story does a great job subverting where you expect it to go, and then subverting it again. There's a great cast of characters, several of whom are queer. The protagonist is utterly compelling. Wonderful!

Hell Followed With Us by Andrew Joseph White
Category: Recommendations and Impulse Reads
SFFKIT: Family, born or found

This is a brilliant, cathartic story about community and religious abuse and trying to free yourself from the past. I loved the wide diversity of characters, the messy complicated relationships, and the journey the protagonists go on. The cult is just believable enough to be really scary. The world-building with the Flood is gruesome, but effective. I knew as soon as I heard of this book that I had to read it, and I'm glad I did!

Fireheart Tiger by Aliette de Bodard
Category: 2022 Hugo Nominees
AlphaKIT: T

There are some interesting characters and story elements here, and I like the idea of the protagonist, but the story itself didn't really grab me. It seemed like the one interesting thing that had happened (the palace fire) was all backstory, and there was just some vague court intrigue to sort out for the front-story until the very ending. It felt like I was supposed to care about the geopolitics of it all, but it was all more abstract than really relevant to the protagonist.

The Past is Red by Catherynne M. Valente
Category: 2022 Hugo Nominees

This is a really weird, kind of goofy setting. In some ways it's fun! But in other ways the absurdity takes over the story, and all of the "haha modern people are stupid and everything we care about is stupid" gets to be a bit much. And the protagonist's journey is interesting... until it turns out she's a pretty unreliable narrator, various things get retconned, and it's very unclear what (if any!) of this actually happened. It's all not really my thing, I'm afraid.

Elder Race by Adrian Tchaikovsky
Category: 2022 Hugo Nominees
AlphaKIT: E

I really enjoyed this story and its creative, evocative setting. It could have been gimmicky, but instead it was compelling, showing two very different views on the same situation in a way that respected all the characters involved. Also, contains one of the best depictions of depression that I've seen in a work of fiction.

Bots of the Lost Ark by Suzanne Palmer
Category: 2022 Hugo Nominees

This was really fun! Great use of some silly Trek-style tropes, and the bot gloms replacing human crew members was a different twist.

Colors of the Immortal Palette by Caroline M. Yoachim
Category: 2022 Hugo Nominees

I loved how this story used color and evocative description so effectively to paint the scene and mood across a series of vignettes. By the end, we've skipped through time with the protagonist, into a world both changed and familiar. The dynamic with the arrogant artist is painfully recognizable; the moments of happiness with Joshua and others are so sweet. Lovely!

L'Esprit de L'Escalier by Catherynne M. Valente
Category: 2022 Hugo Nominees

Wow, this is a creepy, insidious story. It's sort of a spin on a mythological story we think we know... but it's really about emotional abuse and self-absorbed men and the slow obliteration of a person in the name of love.

Unseelie Brothers, Ltd. by Fran Wilde
Category: 2022 Hugo Nominees

I loved this magical story about class and fairy magic and finding your own path.

Mr. Death by Alix E. Harrow
Category: 2022 Hugo Nominees

A heart-breaking story with a surprising ending. I liked it more than I thought I would.

Proof by Induction by José Pablo Iriarte
Category: 2022 Hugo Nominees

I liked how this story used a fantastical technology and a mathematics plot to explore the protagonist's relationships.

Blackout by Erin Flanagan
Category: Recently Published Fiction
AlphaKIT: F

Such a compelling story, I raced through it in two days. The fantastical elements are fairly light for a while; it's mostly about sexism and academic politics and drinking and rape culture. That said, it does a great job weaving things together with a flawed-but-relatable protagonist and a great supporting cast of people with their own backstories and motivations who are forced to work together. And it had a good, satisfying ending.

The Sin of America by Catherynne M. Valente
Category: 2022 Hugo Nominees

It's kind of a weird story. More of a poetic scream of rage and despair, wrapped around a violent fairytale kind of idea. I don't think it's really for me, but it does do a very effective job building the mood of exhaustion and hopelessness before the inevitable end.

Tangles by Seanan McGuire
Category: 2022 Hugo Nominees

I enjoyed this little vignette of two people on different journeys that intersect for a time.

Unknown Number by Blue Neustifter
Category: 2022 Hugo Nominees

This was just lovely. Great use of the format to frame the situation and give us just enough information. Loved the development of the characters over the course of the conversation.

Where Oaken Hearts Do Gather by Sarah Pinsker
Category: 2022 Hugo Nominees

I just love everything about this. The creative format, the slow-burn horror, the realistically messy nature of online forums... and of course, the murder ballad itself.

A Half-Built Garden by Ruthanna Emrys
Category: Recently Published Fiction

This is my new favorite book! I want to recommend it to a bunch of people right now. I love the thoughtful picture of what a future for humanity could look like, the cultural differences and communication challenges with the aliens, the wonderfully diverse cast of human characters, the ideas about technology for building/maintaining community... There's just a whole lot here that's brilliant and well-done and desperately needed. And I love how the protagonist's values and decisions are rooted in her family, background, and community.

The All-Consuming World by Cassandra Khaw
Category: Recently Published Fiction
AlphaKIT: K

I really wanted to like this book. Angry queer cyborgs vs. AIs in space? Sounded right up my alley! But the mix of over-the-top violence and excessive use of obscure words (seriously, there was a word I had to look up on every page) really didn't work for me. There's a compelling plot thread with Maya and her not-really-consensual relationship to Rita, and I liked some of the supporting characters. But the pacing of the "A plot" was very odd; it felt like we spent 80% of the book getting the band together and then rushed perfunctorily through whatever it was they were supposed to do. And with all the hinting about their last mission, it never quite became clear exactly what happened, before the ending sort of abruptly crashed in. Pimento was fun, though.

A Prayer for the Crown-Shy by Becky Chambers
Category: Sequels & Series
SFFKIT: Quests & Journeys

What a kind, gentle story! I liked getting to see more of the human world and how it works. Mosscap is delightful as always, and Dex's journey to figuring themselves out continues to be compelling. The ending was unexpected, but good.

Clean Sweep by Ilona Andrews
Category: Grab Bag
AlphaKIT: I
BingoDOG: A book that features a dog

This was a lot of fun! I loved the original setting, with its system of Inns and unconventional ideas about the origins of mythical creatures. The romance was a little predictable, but it worked well enough. Looking forward to reading more in this series!

The Sentence by Louise Erdrich
Category: Recently Published Fiction
BingoDOG: A book club read

So, this is way outside the sort of genres I normally read; I picked it up because my local bookstore is doing a group read of it. I'm still not quite sure what I think of it. The premise sounds kind of cozy -- "a bookstore is haunted by the ghost of an annoying customer!" -- but the story is much heavier than that. We start right off with the main character's substance abuse problems, betrayal by friends, the surreal horror of being wrongly accused, and the crushing inhumanity of incarceration. Racism against Native Americans is a major theme, and a lot of the middle of the book relives the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic.

I don't think I was ready to read a pandemic book. (The memory of what we lived through in 2020 is too fresh, it's too soon, the pandemic isn't even over!) Aside from that, the story wanders all over the place; it's a real "slice of life" of a year in Tookie's world. I think this might be more common in literary fiction than in the SFF I usually read? It's not really my thing. The ending is pretty satisfying, at least, and by the time we get there it makes perfect sense.

A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness
Category: Grab Bag
BingoDOG: A book where a character shares a name of a friend

I have really mixed feelings about this book. The protagonist is interesting -- a serious academic with a complicated relationship with magic -- and there's an intriguing world full of magic and creatures and complex social dynamics. But I just couldn't get on board with the main romance, which is completely central to the plot.

I know we're supposed to be rooting for Matthew and Diana and their forbidden love, but he's a walking pile of red flags! He's possessive and controlling from the moment they meet, always orders Diana around like he knows what's best, has a terrifying temper, and kills people on Diana's behalf. More than once. And the thing is, not only does everyone around Diana act like they know better than her... but they're actually right. She's never allowed to be an authority on her own life, and she never gets to finish the paper she's working on! From the moment the love interest appears, Diana's normal life that she's worked so hard for is stripped away from her. It just bothers me.

On the other hand, I love a lot of the supporting cast. Ysabeau is great, and Sarah and Em are the best. And their house! I would happily read more about the Bishop family and their witchy business.

Station Eternity by Mur Lafferty
Category: Recently Published Fiction

This was so much fun! I loved the colorful cast of characters and the gradually revealed connections between them. There's a good balance of silly and serious, and pretty much every character gets a satisfying ending. Looking forward to the next one!

>81 lavaturtle: I'm taking a BB for Station Eternity. I loved Six Wakes and have been wanting to read more of Mur Lafferty's work.

>82 mathgirl40: I hope you like it!

The World We Make by N.K. Jemisin
Category: Sequels & Series
AlphaKIT: W

This is an awesome followup to The City We Became. We get more plot for all our protagonists, and things come to a good satisfying conclusion. The setting continues to be really cool, and even expands the world-building a bit. And it's a love letter to New York that is unapologetically political and real about the forces at work in the world. I love it!

Nona the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir
Category: Sequels & Series

I have really mixed feelings about this book. Nona is a fun character, and I really liked the relationships she has with the people who care for her and her school friends. But much like the previous book, when it comes to necromancer intrigue and the rebellion vs. the Houses, I was constantly confused. Maybe it would be easier to follow if I had re-read the previous books first? Or maybe we're supposed to be confused, because Nona is also unclear on what's going on?

>7 lavaturtle: that one is really good