Reading recap: September

After a dismal August, September turned out to be a slightly better reading month, but only because I cheated. I finished four books, but I read only two of them properly. The other two I had to skim to finish them. I should probably have stuck with my reading list, as that didn’t fail me. Also, technically, I finished one of the books in October, but since it took me most of the month to reach the end, I’ll write it down as one for September.

First of the books I began to read was Railhead by Philip Reeve. It’s a young adult book – sort of, I guess, though I never figured out how old the main character was – with an interesting premise that hooked me from the start. A distant future where interstellar travel is done by sentient trains jumping through gates between worlds, and a petty thief who loves to travel on them. He’s lured into stealing something important and everything goes wrong, plunging the entire system into chaos. With such an interesting story, I should’ve managed to read it, but I got stuck half-way. I skimmed the book to the end – fairly carefully – and the story was good to the end and the characters turned out to be more than what they appeared at first. So I think it was a good book. We just weren’t a good match.

Railhead by Philip Reeve

The first book of the month that I actually finished was a stable in my reading diet: the latest Stephanie Plum by Janet Evanovich. Turbo Twenty-three was, as the title suggests, 23rd book in the series, and better than the previous couple of books in the series have been. The crime story was suitably mysterious, the funny bits weren’t a repetition of the same-old, and the author had finally stopped pretending that Stephanie will ever choose between her two lovers, and just allowed her to enjoy the ride. If this trend continues, the series might return to what it used to be: laugh-out funny.

Turbo Twenty-three by Janet Evanovich

The best book of the month by far was, as always, the latest Nalini Singh paranormal romance. Archangel’s Viper is book ten of her Guild Hunter series and told the love story of Venom, a vampire with the poison of snakes running in his veins, and Holly who has been forcefully made a vampire by an insane archangel. Most of the book dealt with Holly’s trauma and her emergence from it, which gave the love story space to grow. I liked the characters and I liked how they were together. The only complaint I have is that the book was slightly out of balance, as the first two thirds of the book was devoted to hunting down the person who wanted to kidnap Holly, which then was completely discarded in favour of a different plot. But since the book otherwise had a satisfying conclusion, I forgave it.

Archangel's Viper by Nalini Singh

Last, and definitely least, is City of Dark Magic by Magnus Flyte, which is a pseudonym for writers Meg Howrey and Christina Lynch. The premise was so promising that I borrowed the second book in the series with the first: a musicologist, Sarah Weston, is invited to Prague after the death of her mentor, only to be caught up in a time-travel mystery. Only, the book had almost nothing to do with it. There was a mystery story that wasn’t about time travel, or interesting for that matter: a US senator who didn’t want her KGB past to come to light. Presumably everything that took place in the mysterious castle where Sarah was invited to, was done by people working for the senator, but I can’t be sure, because I began to skim after reading about half of the book. Nevertheless, that was the most straightforward of the plots, though it only became clear at the end of the book. Then there was a hunt for everything Beethoven, a hunt for a golden fleece, and a really lame love story. At about half-point the book got to the time travelling, which was done by a drug that caused one to experience the energies of the past as if one were there – though how the people of the past were able to react to the energies of the future, I have no idea. Add to that a cast of characters that weren’t in any way interesting – including a long-living dwarf and a blind child prodigy whose role in the book I really didn’t get – and a travel guide’s worth of historical details of Prague and Beethoven, and you have a mighty mess in your hands. Nothing that was told in the set-up of the book had anything to do with the rest of the book, including the death of Sarah’s father, and only one of the plots got some sort of conclusion. I don’t know why I wasted as much time with the book that I did. Needless to say, I will not read the next book.

City of Dark Magic by Magnus Flyte

And that was my reading. I really hope October will turn out to be better.

Reading recap: August

August was my worst reading month so far and I only managed to finish two books. I have no excuses other than that I was busy working. I did start two more books, but I didn’t manage to finish them in August. And even though I read eight books in July, I’m now two books behind the schedule in my reading challenge of fifty-five books. I’ll have to step up. As has been my habit throughout the year, one book was from my reading list and the other wasn’t.

First book was Ride the Storm by Karen Chance, the long-awaited next chapter in her Cassandra Palmer urban fantasy series of time-travelling Pythia and her entourage of vampires, demons and mages. One vampire and one mage in particular. As always, it was a wild romp through space and time – at times a bit too wild. The first part of the book was constant tumbling from crisis to battle and back with no breathers or plot development in between, as if the author was afraid that the reader will get bored if something earth-shattering isn’t constantly happening. At this point of the series it’s getting exhausting though. I’d like some moments of reflection and recap. At least the plot-line we’ve been following for the past three books came to a conclusion – after an endless battle that took most of the last third of the book – and Ms Chance’s two series finally converged in a fairly meaningful fashion. Still, it was an entertaining book and I’m happy to continue reading the series.

Ride the Storm by Karen Chance

Second book of the month was Our Dark Duet by V.E. Schwab, the second and last book of her Monsters of Verity duology, and third book of hers that I’ve read this year. The duology is set in some post-apocalyptic future where demons come to exist every time humans commit murders. The first book introduced Kate, a daughter of a human monster controlling the demons, who was trying to seek her father’s approval with catastrophic consequences, and August, a demon who was struggling to become as human as possible. In this conclusion of their stories they’ve both changed, August maybe more, as he has embraced his demon side in order to fight demons. Together they prepare for a final confrontation to defeat the greatest demon they’ve yet encountered, one that thrives on human emotions. It was a hefty book, yet nothing much seemed to happen. The plot sort of meandered on until the final battle. It wasn’t as emotionally engaging as the first book either, but the ending was satisfying. And even though it was only a duology, the story has room and characters for more books too. I’d very much like to read those.

Our Dark Duet by V.E. Schwab

And that was my reading. I’m hoping to do better in September, but it’s not looking good so far. There are great books from my reading list published this month that I’m looking forward to reading, but I’m still pressed for time. And when I have free time in my hands I haven’t been reading. I’ve been binge-watching Lucifer on Netflix – and I’m not even ashamed to admit that on a blog post about reading. It’s a great series. And do I sense a demon theme in this month’s post...?

My #worldcon75 experience

Here’s the long overdue report from my day at the WorldCon 75, my first ever time attending. The event was held on August 9-13 in my home country, Finland, so it was a once in a life-time chance to experience it with a minimum trouble. I originally thought to attend the entire five days, but life intervened in the form of work, and so I could only attend on Saturday. I tried to make the most of it by planning a full day.

Storm Trooper welcoming me to WorldCon 75.

I arrived at the conference centre about fifteen minutes after the doors opened at nine in the morning, and the queue was already at least fifty metres long. It caused me a few palpitations until I figured it was the line for people who hadn’t purchased their day passes in advance. I had, so I just walked past, trying not to look gleeful. Half an hour later I felt bad for all those people when it was announced that the day was sold out, which left most of them outside. The queue for pre-purchased passes was three persons long, the shortest line for me the entire day. I should’ve enjoyed it.

My day pass.

The first order of business was to get a cup of coffee, but the nearest café in the lobby had a line so long I wouldn’t have made it to the first panel of the day at ten. I didn’t despair, but located the only other open restaurant, an Indian place that also sold coffee, and had my cup there with a minimum fuss. Thus fortified, I set out to find the room for the first panel.

Now, I’d come prepared. I’d printed out all maps of the conference centre and marked the correct rooms, but I hadn’t taken into account my inability to decipher the maps. It took me twenty minutes to find the correct room. To my shock – even though I knew to expect it – the queue led far away from the room around a couple of corners and then some. Resigned to not getting in, I took my place in it anyway. And it was worth it, as the room turned out to be – well – roomy, and I got a good seat.

Bad Romance panel.

The first panel was called Bad Romance. I’d chosen it because I write romance and I don’t want to write it badly, but also because Max Gladstone was on it. He doesn’t strike me as a romance writer, but I like his Craft Sequence fantasy series and wanted to hear him. He turned out to be worth the queuing.

The panel had a hiccupy start as the chair didn’t show up, but a member of the audience volunteered to moderate. She turned out to be Julia Rios, who had won a Hugo Award the previous night for Uncanny Magazine and had partied till four in the morning, but she still managed to be a great moderator. Not only did she keep the conversation flowing, she also managed to live tweet the panel. As a whole, the panel was good and funny, though I didn’t learn anything I hadn’t known before.

Second panel of the day, Beyond the Dystopia, started right after the first ended. Luckily, the room was easier to find and it was large enough to accommodate everyone who wanted to attend. I didn’t even have to queue, though I had to settle with a less than stellar seat. The topic was interesting and even though the panellists didn’t have anything world-shattering to offer, it gave me some food for thought. And Joe Abercrombie was on it and he’s always funny, despite the gloomy topic.

Beyond Dystopia panel.

Then it was time for a quick lunch – only a short queue as I went for a slightly pricier option to avoid it – and deciding which panel to attend next: Authors and their Cats that would’ve had Robin Hobb on it, or Colonialism and the Space Opera. I chose the latter, mostly to avoid the long queue of the first. My tactic wasn’t entirely successful and the line was as long as at the first panel – it was in the same room – but this time I knew I’d get in and didn’t panic. I even managed to assuage the person queuing behind me that we would get in.

The panel was very interesting, even though it didn’t have a chair and everyone just spoke of what they wanted. Two historians told their view and two authors from colonialized countries, Aliette de Bodard with Vietnamese background and JY Yang from Singapore offered their personal experiences of colonialism. The question of language and narrative, i.e. who controls language controls narrative, was very interesting. And since the collective recommendation of everyone attending was Ninefox Gambit by Yoon Ha Lee, I think I’ll have to read it too. 

Colonialism and the Space Opera panel.

My first true moment of queue came next: I wanted to see a panel that had George R.R. Martin on it and I only had about fifteen minutes to make it to the correct place on the other side of the conference centre. You can guess it: the room was almost full already when I got there and the line that snaked up and down the lobby outside it had almost as many hopefuls still. If I’d been sneaky – and I did consider the option – I would’ve attended the Authors and their Cats panel that was held in the same room and then remained on my seat, but I’d chosen differently. I gave the queue a chance anyway. I didn’t get in. But I wasn’t too sad: I’d had a close-up glimpse of the man himself on my way to the venue when he walked past me. Later I took a photo when he was signing his books.

The queue to see a panel with George R.R. Martin on it.

With some unscheduled free time at my hands, I went to check up the vendors’ area where the book signings took place too. Another long queue waited there for Martin to show up for his signing two hours later, and next to it, a line for those who wanted to have an autograph from Robin Hobb, which was almost as long. I’d thought to attend the latter signing, but gave it up then and there. I know queueing is part of the con fun, but it’s not for me. The line for Max Gladstone’s signing was almost empty, as he was finishing his appointed hour, but I got cold feet and didn’t go to have his autograph either. In my defence, I only have his books on Kindle and had nothing to get the autograph on.

So I checked the wares instead. There weren’t as many vendors as I’d hoped for and no one sold anything I wanted to buy. The greatest disappointment was the booksellers. There weren’t many to begin with and they only sold mainstream bestsellers that everyone there probably already had, regardless of the genre. Only at the second pass later that day I managed to locate three books that I bought, though mostly because I felt I had to have something to remember the con by. I went to have a cup of coffee instead. The café closest to the vendors was almost empty, in contrast with the one in the lobby that had constant queues.

My loot.

And then it was already time for my last event of the day: an interview with Joe Abercrombie. The queue there was long too, but everyone fit easily in and I had a nice seat. The Finnish interviewer seemed dry and humourless at first, especially compared with Abercrombie, but he warmed up later too and the interview turned out to be truly funny. That Abercrombie is funny, always amazes me, as he is the self-appointed Lord Grimdark, which he told started as a joke that everyone took seriously. But I guess you can’t be grim all the time.

The queue to see Joe Abercrombie in the same lobby as in the photo above.

Interview with Joe Abercrombie.

After the inteview, I made a quick visit to the signing area to get a glimpse of Robin Hobb signing, and managed to see George R.R. Martin too. Both handled the long queues with affable routine that was both impressive and swift. For all the queuing, each person got maybe twenty seconds with their idols, if that. I think it was good I didn’t spend my day waiting for that.

People lining for a Robin Hobb signing.

Robin Hobb.

George R.R. Martin.

That was my con experience. Lots of interesting topics and even more queueing. I didn’t have a chance to socialise with other con-goers – I didn’t even pause to photograph the few cosplayers there were – mostly because I’m not good at small talk, but also because everyone was busy finding their next event and didn’t have time for chats. A few people stopped me to compliment me on my T-shirt though, so that’s something. I’m fairly sure the social side of a con happens at evening parties, but sadly I didn’t have time to stay for any of those. My train home left before the evening was over. Still, I had a great day, if long; twelve hours including the travelling time. I doubt I would’ve had energy for any evening activities anyway. I wish I’d had a chance to attend the whole con, but one day was better than nothing. And who knows, maybe I’ll attend the next time the WorldCon is held in Europe.

My con T-shirt.

Did you attend? Share your experiences in the comments.

Reading recap: July

July was an excellent reading month for me in numbers and mostly in content too. But I pretty much went outside my reading list.

First I finished reading Those Below by Daniel Polansky, a book which I’d started reading already in May, but had put aside for more pressing books. It’s the second and last book in his Empty Throne duology, and I’m not entirely sure why I read it, since I didn’t much like the first book. This wasn’t any better. Like with the first, the episodic chapters seemed pointless. They had little or no character development and only two of the four main characters advanced the plot in any meaningful way; the other two were mere witnesses with ends to match. The culmination of the story felt equally pointless, war and annihilation for the sake of themselves with no hope or redemption for anyone. As a commentary on war it works; as a work of fiction it's a let-down. However, the last two chapters rose a little above the rest, so it wasn’t a complete disappointment.

Those Below by Daniel Polansky

Next up was Dragon Unbound by Katie MacAllister. It was a short and sweet read that would have been less interesting, if it hadn’t been book number four in her Dragon Falls series and about fifteenth book overall in her ongoing saga of dragons. I liked the characters and I liked that most of the old gang made an appearance, but the book should’ve been a tad longer to be properly good.

Dragon Unbound by Katie MacAllister

As a contrast, Romancing the Inventor by Gail Carriger was a more developed love story even though it was similarly short and part of her wider world with returning characters. As a Victorian steampunk-paranormal-lesbian romance it had a lot to live up to, but it managed it admirably. My only complaint is that it was told from one point of view only, leaving the other party of the romance less developed.

Romancing the Inventor by Gail Carriger

Then I went into a Suzanne Enoch binge outside my list. She’s my favourite Regency romance author, but in recent years her books have lost their charm. Scandalous Highlanders, a series of four books, seemed better than what she’s written lately, so I gave it a chance and ended up reading all four books back to back. They weren’t all of them perfect, but for a summer reading they were fine. The first book, The Devil Wears Kilt, was set in London. The Regency world came to its element, but the Highlander aspect was played down. Rogue with a Brogue combined a bit of both, but it wasn’t as good as the first, even though the stakes were higher in the end. Mad, Bad, and Dangerous in Plaid was set in Highlands and the setting worked well. It also saw the heroine’s journey from a London society woman back to a Highland lass. The last book, Some Like it Scot had the best premise and hero, but it took too long to reach a rather abrupt ending. Still, I think I liked it the best of the four.

I wrapped up the month with the best book I’ve read in a while. After Atlas by Emma Newman is part of her Planetfall series, but can be read independently. It’s a sci-fi detective story and a cyber dystopia and all this works perfectly together. The hero is your average detective: middle-aged, solitary and burdened with a past he doesn’t like to share, and the narrative reflects the trope. The murder he’s called to solve is both interesting and personal to him, raising the stakes. The world where large corporations own both countries and individuals is carefully built and believable, and the AIs controlling everything is a believable plot device. And the ending is simply elegant and perfect.

After Atlas by Emma Newman

All in all, I’m happy with my reading month. And the next one is already on its way to being even better. Stay tuned.

Reading recap: June

June was a great reading month for me, mostly because I was on holiday, so I had time to read. Also, because it was cold and raining, and I had nothing else I’d rather have been doing. I ended up finishing five books and the sixth was almost done by the end of the month, so I’ll count it for this month too. Three of the books were from my reading list, three were new ones.

First up was a book outside my list and the most extraordinary book I’ve read in a while. The Library at Mount Char by Scott Hawkins is a story of children abducted from their parents by a strange, heartless, and strict man. He wants to bring them up to make them unique and perfect in their skills, be it languages or killing, by basically torturing them. They grow up to be psychopaths with little or no connection to the real world. But then their teacher – Father – goes missing and the group has to enter the normal world to get him back. Little by little, elements of fantasy are added to the narrative until in the end it becomes divorced from the real world completely. The main character, Carolyn, is twisted yet sympathetic. No matter the bizarre or sick stunts she pulls, I ended up rooting for her. The gory details made me cringe quite a few times, but they weren’t dwelled on. The world was truly unique and the story read like a suspense novel to its bizarre and satisfying end.

Library at Mount Char by Scott Hawkins

Next up was the latest from one of my all-time favourite paranormal romance writers, Nalini Singh. Silver Silence is the book sixteen in her brilliant Psy-Changeling series that also begins a new story-cycle and is therefore book one of the Psy-Changeling Trinity series. It shifts the setting from California to Russia and from leopard and wolf changelings to bears. Only a superficial change, in the end, because despite the new characters and settings, the people are equally great, fun, and loveable, and there are enough appearances from the story stables to keep it feeling familiar. As always, love doesn’t come easy for the emotionless psy heroine, but the affable bear changeling manages to win her out in the end. My only complaint is that the end was slightly abrupt and felt like it should’ve had something more.

Silver Silence by Nalini Singh

Release by Patrick Ness was an addition to my list too. It was a relatively short novel about a very bad day of the protagonist, Adam. From morning to night things get progressively worse for him with a dreaded going-away party of his ex-boyfriend to look forward to at its end. These include being harassed by his boss to fighting with his Christian fundamentalist parents who cannot accept that their son is gay. The story would’ve been great as it was, but along it ran a supernatural story of a goddess trapped in a body of a dead girl going about the town. Since it was Adam who accidentally made it happen, I would’ve wished the two stories met better or with more meaning throughout the narrative, but as it was, when they do come together in the end, a release takes place for all parties.

Release by Patrick Ness

Lover’s Knot by Karen Chance is a novella set on the Dorina Basarab storyline of her urban fantasy world. I read it chapter by chapter as she published it on her website, which wasn’t necessarily the best way of doing it, but I enjoyed the story nonetheless. Set in two timelines, 15th century Venice and modern time, it took a while for the story to make sense, but when it did, the usual mayhem ensued that happens in all Karen Chance’s books. A fun story. It’s since been published as a free e-book too, so I might read it again.

Lover's Knot by Karen Chance

Carve the Mark by Veronica Roth was outside my list too. I hadn’t really thought to read it, the premise didn’t interest me in the least, but I picked it up from the local library and gave it a try. It wasn’t really worth it. It was basically fantasy set in a sci-fi world, i.e. world where space travel is possible, but the story didn’t use it in a worth-while manner. I never really got into the two main characters that I think were supposed to be some sort of Romeo and Juliet pair. Their emotions never felt anything other than stamped on, be it love or hate. I certainly didn't feel them, though the latter came through better and worked as a believable character motivation, but the inevitable love story wasn’t believable. Pain played a great role, but even that failed to make an impact. Switching between first and third person narratives wasn't a good choice either. The world never became anything than a prop. I read it to the end though, mainly to see what would happen, and the ending was good enough. But I don’t have a compelling need to continue with the series.

Carve the Mark by Veronica Roth

The last book of the month was the one I’d anticipated the most. Assassin’s Fate by Robin Hobb ended her longstanding series of trilogies featuring Fitz and Fool, and I both wanted to devour it and dreaded the ending. I still remember the disappointment I felt at the end of the previous trilogy, the worst ending ever. The book was long and featured many storylines, finding Bee and releasing her from captivity, Bee’s journey told from her point of view, Fool’s quest for revenge, and the liveships’ yearn to become real dragons. And through it all, Fitz’s and Fool’s friendship. As far as endings go, this book delivered the perfect one: a closure with a hope for the future. It was sad, as it should be, but I loved it. And I remain hopeful that there will be more books to come with Bee in the lead.

Assassin's Fate by Robin Hobb

***

There’s a site-wide sale on Smashwords till the end of July and I’ve a few books there, both free and discounted. Take a look.

Reading recap: April and May

It’s already June and I realise I’ve completely forgotten to update you on my reading in April, so this is a double feature for May too. April and May weren’t particularly good reading months in terms of numbers read, partly because I read a couple of longer books that took longer to finish, partly because other engagements kept me from reading – I know, right – and partly because I started and then discarded a number of books that I just couldn’t get into. But those books that I ended up reading and finishing, five in all, were all absolutely brilliant. Four of the books were from my reading list, and the last one was an absolutely necessary addition.

The Chosen by J.R. Ward

First up was one of my favourite series, Black Dagger Brotherhood by J.R. Ward. Book number fifteen, The Chosen, was as good as any in the series, which hasn’t had a weak book yet. I really like Ms Ward’s style of edgy writing, and especially how she introduces characters and their backstories throughout the series, and follows them after the happily ever after too, showing that there never is love so great that the happy couple couldn’t mess things up. This book combined all those sides: Layla has been an important character for many books already, as has Xcor. But their love threatened not only the Black Dagger Brotherhood, but the marriage of Qhuinn and Blay too. The solutions weren’t easy, but they were satisfying. The book also introduced new characters and opened new storylines, promising many books to come, which made this one feel a bit like an in-between book, or a start of a new era, especially with the revelation concerning Lassiter. But it didn’t diminish my enjoyment of it at all. On the contrary.

Made for Sin by Stacia Kane

Next up was an enjoyable standalone novel by Stacia Kane whose Downside Ghosts series is one of my absolute favourite urban fantasies. Made for Sin is a detective novel set in modern Las Vegas with elements of supernatural. Speare, a foster son of a mafia boss, has a demon inside him, which makes him valuable for his foster father, who asks him to solve a series of gruesome murders for him. While Speare wasn’t as broken as Chess and Terrible in Downside Ghosts, he wasn’t exactly a whole character either, which made him interesting and easy to sympathise with. It wasn’t a long novel, but the characters and the story were well-formed and nothing felt hasty. The ending wasn’t quite what I expected, but it was in line with Ms Kane’s other books, and it made me wish there was an entire series with Speare.

A Conjuring of Light by V.E. Schwab

A Conjuring of Light by V.E. Schwab ended her brilliant Shades of Magic trilogy. It was about twice as long as the first book, and while I felt at times that it could’ve been shorter, it at least made it clear that conquering the great evil wasn’t easy and the price the characters had to pay for it was steep. The ending was satisfying, managing the right balance between sad and hopeful, which doesn’t happen as often in fantasy trilogies as I would hope. All in all, a great ending.

Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo

My perfect reading streak ended with Six of Crows duology by Leigh Bardugo, which I read back to back. Wonderful mix of heist-story and fantasy, set in a world that combines medieval, magic, and modern weaponry, the two books hit my fancy exactly. In the first book, Six of Crows, we meet a ragtag group of thieves, con-artists, and former slaves who all are more than they seem, who none of them are perfect and whole, and who all have personal stories to tell. For various reasons, they agree to try an impossible heist, only to be swindled of their price in the end. The second book, Crooked Kingdom, is about their payback. In both books, nothing goes as easily as it should, forcing the mastermind Kaz to come up with new plans on the go. As is typical with heist stories, movies at least, the characters always know more than the reader, so even the most upsetting disappointments often turn out to be exactly what they were meant to be. And throughout, the characters work their way to personal redemptions with more or less success. The end is hopeful and open enough that I can’t help hoping there will be more books to come.

Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo

On top of these books, I started but haven’t – yet – finished The Glorious Angels by Justina Robson, Those Below by Daniel Polansky, The Copper Promise by Jen Williams, The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness, and a number of self-published romances I got on a cheap. Some of them I will finish, but not all, and not in June, because I have more great books lined up: I have Assassin’s Fate by Robin Hobb already waiting, and there are new books from my favourite authors coming out in June, like Silver Silence by Nalini Singh, and Our Dark Duet by V.E. Schwab. Looking forward to reading all of them.

Reading recap: March

I had a good reading month last month. Everything I read was delightful and entertaining, on top of which they were good books too. Again, I didn’t quite stick to my reading list; two out of five books were outside it.

First up was A Gathering of Shadows by V. E. Schwab. It’s the second book in her Shades of Magic trilogy set in a world of parallel Londons that have different levels of magic and which can be travelled between by a special person with enough magic and right words. Grey London is in the Regency England of the ‘real’ world with little or no magic, Red London is abundant with magic, and White London is in permanent winter and constantly struggles to regain its magic by any means necessary. In the first book, Lila gets accidentally drawn from Grey to Red London by Kell who can travel between the worlds, and decides to stay. In this second book, she enters the stage as a pirate and ends up taking part in a tournament of magic. Most of the book is taken by the tournament, and only in the background, unknown to the main characters, are events building towards the final confrontation between Red and White London. Despite this fairly ‘static’ story, I liked the book, maybe even more than I did the first one. The characters were familiar and the emotional baggage between them, from guilt to love and betrayal and everything in between, felt real. And the ending ensures that I absolutely have to read the last book as soon as possible.

A Gathering of Shadows by V.E. Schwab

The Hanging Tree by Ben Aaronovitch is the sixth book in his Peter Grant series. Peter is a PC at the special magic branch of the Metropolitan Police in London, and the books are a combination of realistic police procedure, magic and deities; more specifically the river deities that occupy the many rivers of London in their human form, Tyburn in this case. A seemingly accidental death from a drug overdose sends Peter after his long-time adversary, the faceless man, and as always, weird tangents that don’t appear to have anything to do with the case turn out to be the key to it. In his usual manner, Peter manages to create havoc where ever he goes, and the damage he causes to private property will give his bosses nightmares – again. I enjoyed the book greatly, especially after the previous book that was a bit of a let-down with its country setting. Peter is at his best in London with his endless snarky commentary on architecture, and countryside doesn’t suit him at all.

The Hanging Tree by Ben Aaronovitch

The first book outside my list is a collection of Regency romances by the master of the genre, Georgette Heyer. Snowdrift is a new publication of Heyer’s short stories. It’s essentially the same collection as Pistols for Two, with an addition of three recently discovered stories. Most of the stories were romances and many of them took place in carriages and inns, and while they were rather short, they nonetheless managed to convey both the setting and the birth of the romance perfectly. In modern stories, more would probably be needed for a believable romance, but with Heyer, it’s enough that the mighty lordship finds the heroine delightful for the love to spark. I loved every story.

Snowdrift by Georgette Heyer

Next up was an entirely different book: White Trash Zombie Gone Wild by Diana Rowland. It’s the fifth book in her UF series about Angel, a Louisiana trailer park girl turned zombie who works at a morgue for an easy access to brains. In this book, Angel returns to her days as a drug addict with inevitable consequences. Hiding from her zombie friends in shame, she ends up solving a murder on her own. The events were a bit more personal to her this time round and once again it was up to her to save the day. It was a good book, if not as exciting as the previous one. I will continue with the series.

White Trash Zombie Gone Wild by Diana Rowland

The last book of the month was again not on my list. The Coldest Girl in Coldtown by Holly Black is a young adult urban fantasy set in a world where the sudden emergence of vampires has thrown the world into chaos. Vampires, their food (i.e. humans), and victims infected with vampirism are sequestered into ghettos from which it’s pretty much impossible to get out. The book follows Tana, who wakes up after a party to find that all her friends, save one, have been killed by vampires. Since her friend is infected, she heads to the nearest Coldtown with him and a vampire that needs saving from other vampires. The rules of the civilised world don’t apply in Coldtown and she has to learn the hard way who her friends are, but she’s a resourceful heroine and rises to the occasion. I really liked this book. It was a return to the earlier days of vampire books where vampires are violent, deadly, and inhumane. For a YA book, there was quite a lot of death and gory details, but only a little romance and it wasn’t the main focus of the story in any way. It’s a standalone book, but I wouldn’t mind reading more.

The Coldest Girl in Coldtown by Holly Black