books, everywhere
This is probably not going to be one of the more coherent ones; I’m in a bit of a foul mood, and was considering skipping this week’s newsletter entirely.
But mood aside, a visual representation of my mind right now would probably be just books piled on books and more books, on shelves, tables, chairs, the floor. Books I want to read, books I need to read, books I can’t get out of my head, books I’m looking for, books I want to talk about, books I need to order, books I want to promote… it really leaves little room for anything else.
So I guess this will be kind of a WWW Wednesday post, except on a Saturday.
BOOKS RECENTLY READ
Like I mentioned in the previous issue, I’ve been picking up the October Daye series again. It’s been years since I last read this series, so I had eight books to catch up with. Not to mention all the short stories and novellas… I’m not even a casual reader of urban fantasy (is urban fantasy, the sort written by Ilona Andrews and Charlaine Harris and Kim Harrison, etc., even still a thing?) so I don’t know if the October Daye books are a good example of the genre.
I guess certain elements are the same - main character is a PI/solves paranormal/supernatural/in this case, fae problems, is a Strong Female Character, and has a pretty hot romantic interest and surrounded by a pretty awesome cast of supporting characters. I’m just not sure if other urban fantasies are also slowly built up to bigger overarching plots, and huge changes in status quo. Maybe this is normal. Like I said, I’m not that familiar with the genre. I guess I assumed that they were more like franchise comics, or the Buffy tv series, where occasional big changes happen, but things generally snap back to the series’ “normal.”
Anyway, now that I’m reading these books again, I don’t know why I stopped. And I apologise for all the spam.
BOOKS CURRENTLY READING
If you’re on the Discord, you’ll know that I’m on a Tam Lin (Pamela Dean) buddy read with Daphne, Iffah and Patricia. I’m very amused at how very Dark Academia this book is, and how it’s never listed in any DA book lists I’ve come across. I’ve seen (before DA was a thing) people say this book is “like The Secret History” before, which was what made me interested in The Secret History in the first place. This amuses me NOW because The Secret History is often credited as the start of the whole DA aesthetic, and Tam Lin predates it by about a year. Anyway, I still somewhat disdain DA as an aesthetic, if not as a way of life (it would be hypocritical for me, the quintessential Ravenclaw, to say I hate the DA lifestyle) because most of the DA instagrams/tumblrs/twitters I’ve seen seem to neglect the “pursuit of knowledge” bit of the aesthetic. And the reason why I love Tam Lin so fucking much isn’t even because it’s a good Tam Lin retelling, which it is, but because it’s also really just a book about pretentious college students talking about literature all the time. And that means this is a book that will make you want to read hundreds of other books, which is probably my favourite kind of book.
I’m also reading Seanan McGuire’s The Brightest Fell on ebook, which is currently on pause because (1) Tam Lin, and (2) I get the feeling that this book will make me sad and I’m not ready for it yet. But also because (3), I’m reading:
Out of Character by Annabeth Albert which is a sequel to Conventionally Yours, as much as a romance book can have a sequel, anyway. I’m only a few chapters in, but I am already so hooked, because I’m a sucker for good character growth and relationship dynamics, and I can already tell that this book will serve that in spades. I like that instead of just going with an enemies-to-lovers story (and this is my fave romance/friendship trope so I’m not dissing it ok) this book is going with a best-friends-to-enemies-to-maybe-friends-again-to-lovers dynamic.
BOOKS I PLAN TO READ
I have a couple of rereads planned for my TBR - Diana Wynne Jones’ straightforward retelling of Puss in Boots, and Susan Cooper’s The Dark Is Rising, but I also have new books I’m looking forward to reading. One of them is Eto Mori’s Colorful which really I should have read ages ago but somehow have not? Someone on the WitchBaby group recommended it for fans of Francesca Lia Block, way back in the 00s, and it’s been in my wishlist ever since. So when I saw that an English translation is finally coming out this year, I immediately pre-ordered a copy. Now, I’m a bit apprehensive because what if I’ve been building this book up in my head for so long that it’s disappointing? What if the translation isn’t very good? (I should’ve just found myself a Japanese edition, really. I did buy other Eto Mori books in Japanese, after all. Anyway, this book is technically a YA (not a Japanese marketing thing, but it was targeted towards teens/young adults) but the English ed is being pubbed as adult fiction.
I also feel like I need to finally finish up reading Oaths of Legacy (Emily Skrutskie), now that I’m getting used to reading ebooks again. I had stopped because I was in a mood where I could only listen to audiobooks, and I have to admit, because the situation the MCs were in was stressing me out. What with imminent interplanetary war with your best friend/lover/sworn enemy, and all.
Oh, and the thing about reading Tam Lin is that it makes me want to read/reread so many other things. Like Fire and Hemlock, although I probably won’t, because of all the other books I already planned to read. But I might go and reread my favourite bits. I also feel like reading some of my fairy tale collections from cover to cover, which I think isn’t a thing I’ve done, with the exception of the 5 colour fairy books I own. I don’t normally read short story and fairy tale/folklore collections that way, only reading a story every now and then instead. Essays, though, I can read them straight through. I wonder why.
(If anyone wants to buy me colour fairy books, I welcome that XD - I own the green, yellow, red, pink and blue. I used to have the brown one, but someone never returned it. Tale as old as time! Someone also never returned my original copy of the Blue Fairy Book, but thankfully I managed to find a replacement on sale.)
- No other updates. If the nearby PKPD is lifted I get to go to the office again next week, which both makes me apprehensive (because public transport and crowds) and excited (to see the books, as if I am not surrounded by books at home, lol.)
- STAY SAFE!