Welcome to Litsy!

I can‘t believe it‘s time to post the last #BookSpin list of 2022! New to the list this month is the tagged and Terra Nullius. Please send all your good vibes my way so that no chonky bois get pick in December because I‘ve only budgeted 1k pages total for them.

Aphra + a group of interesting characters go back to her destroyed home, Innsmouth, & the nearby Miskatonic Uni. She's there to help an FBI agent who suspects a Russian spy has stolen some secret magic from the Uni. Set in 1928, there's lots of talk about race, gender, identity. Very slow book, lots of researching in dank library scenes, but it's so interesting! It puts a cool twist on Lovecraft that probably has him rolling in his grave 😂

I couldn't put it down. I loved every page!

Based on the HP Lovecraft created The Shadow Over Innsmouth, Winter Tide tells the story of Aphra and Caleb Marsh. Siblings and the only survivors of the internment camp where their townspeople were being held. I like how the author took the ideas of Lovecraft, and made them more accessible. The pacing is slow and there is not much action. I enjoyed the book while I was reading it, but was not in a hurry to get back to it the next day.

#adventrecommends day 23! (Yay, all caught up).

Lovecraft, but subverted. This is from the POV of a survivor of the people of Innsmouth, who were shipped off to internment camps during the war. It‘s haunting, and I really suggest it if you like some of Lovecraft‘s themes (outsiders, cosmic horror), but can‘t get past others.

In case you neefed some sci-fi suggestions for summer.
https://www.goodreads.com/blog/show/1551?rto=x_gr_e_nl_general&utm_medium=email&...

A good book that takes the fear and isolation of Lovecraft's cold and uncaring universe and subverts it to what comfort we can find in each other in the face of all that. It does assume reader's knowledge of the mythos but then goes against those assumptions which can be jarring. Squidapus felt that the loss of terror or creepyness was a rough trade off but writing a book full of the people Lovecraft hated in his mythos was a nice middle finger.

I liked this, but not as much as the novella that inspired it. I'm glad Ruthanna Emyrs returned to this world, but maybe another novella would have been a better way to explore it because as a novel it felt like a lot of loosely connected story elements that didn't quite come together. Still, purely as a reimagining Lovecraft's Innsmouth (with references to the Yith and Asenath Waite for good measure) it's a worthy addition to the Cthulhu mythos.

“Most of those who live and die on Earth are not human. Best accustom yourself.”

“It‘s one thing to say that humanity is ultimately unimportant in the face of the cosmos. It‘s another to stand before someone who believes, deep down, that your pain is trivial.”

Finally picked up this book! The short story that introduces the characters and world was fantastic, and I'm always up for a good Cthulhu mythos tale.

1. Female 2. 16 3. Yellow 4. Blue 5. Stephen King 6. Am

Book three done for #24in48 #fantasy
With a library at its center, strong weather magic, and a self-declared “ugly” heroine who is a member of a subspecies of humanity, this unique book will appeal to fans of well-written genre fiction that‘s a little dense but ultimately rewarding.

Thanks to the publisher and netgalley for my original access, but I ran out of time to review the arc. My thoughts are based on the final book.

Over halfway! #24in48
Two books finished
Several in progress

This was a beautifully written book. I‘m not a huge fan of the Lovecraft mythos, but I have dabbled in it with other books and some board games, so this one caught my eye. I‘m glad I read it because this author has a unique voice and I really enjoyed the story. I hope she writes more in this vein.

Happy All Hallows' Eve, my lovely fellow Littens! 🌕💀🎃👻

#bookmail from BookOutlet!

Full review here: http://wp.me/p21txV-BS

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ of 5 ⭐️s

This book doesn't have jump scares or moments of pure terror, but it doesn't need that, because it deals with the historical and still-contemporary horrors of racism, misogyny, and classism - all of which were present in spades in Lovecraft's own work. But also: this story is about homecoming, and found family, and survival against all odds. A wonderful read overall :D.

I've been hankering after this book for a while now, and though I've had it since release I've kind of been in the middle of a major reading slump and so didn't really get to it until recently. Still, I'm very much looking forward to it because I can almost never say no to anything with a Lovecraftian touch to it XD.

My department in grad school is having a book sale, and my supervisor at my internship at a public library showed me the ARC table. 🙀📚👍

I enjoyed all the many little nods to other works from the Cthulhu Mythos in this story. For those of you familiar with the mythos, it‘s like coming home to familiar ground. Emrys treats the mythos with respect and fondness, and has certainly invested her time in crafting a compelling story from a perspective I never expected to sympathize with so utterly. This is my favorite book thus far this year. - Ian

This was amazing! It was a little slow a dense but so worth reading. I love the challenging of traditional 'monsters' and how Lovecraft lore has been reimagined. The characters were the best part, even with a big cast it managed to keep them all unique and memorable. This is definitely Urban Fantasy but very different.

Starting WINTER TIDE, a Lovecraft-inspired fantasy thriller. What are you reading this weekend? #fridayreads #weekendreads