Welcome to Litsy!

Next up! #leftonread #battleofthebooks

⭐️3/5
Collection of short stories that all touch on the idea of yearning and wanting more. While I enjoyed most of the stories, they did fall short of what I hope for with a short story. I was left with my own sense of wanting more from them, which is why it‘s only getting 3 stars.

The writing in this strange and wonderful collection blew me away. Spanning multiple genres (science fiction, horror, magical realism, etc), the range Sachdeva showcases here is astounding. Every story felt like an otherworldly experience - unsettling, new, and beautiful. Sachdeva‘s voice is truly unique, and I can‘t wait to read more! A collection that deftly puts the reader on “the knife‘s edge between wonder and terror.” 5⭐️

About half way through and not sure how I‘m feeling about it. The stories are all interesting with some sci-fi/fantasy elements but I‘m always wanting more. And not in the way I want when reading short stories. They‘re missing something. But I like the repeated motif of people not being satisfied. I‘m going to finish it because I feel like there a strong possibility it‘s a book I like more after I‘ve sat with it for a while.

Rainy day reads

The six books I finished in April 2022, all 4-star reads!
4️⃣⭐️📚

I liked every story in this collection. This is coming from someone who doesn‘t usually like short stories very much. I loved the way they mostly felt modern, but with a slight folklore twist.

If you‘ve got a challenge that calls for a short story collection, maybe consider picking this one up.

Thanks Bookclub for making me step out of my comfort zone😊.

Some of the stories I really enjoyed while others fell flat or needed more world building for me.

This terrific debut has a wonderful variety of stories in different genres and time periods where adventures might include a mysterious cave, a mermaid, or an alien invasion to name a few. Similar themes run through the tales: characters are bored by their daily lives and embrace experiences that, while dangerous, shake them out of their malaise. Recommended for those who aren't usually short story fans: a little something for everyone here.

An impressively strong collection, especially for a debut! I appreciate that each story is of reasonable length (hate when a “story” is like 3 pages) & each has a substantive plot, a full exploration. Characters & settings are quite varied, yet the theme of alienation—intentional or forced, painful or restorative—connects them beautifully. Two stories didn‘t quite work for me, but overall this was great & I look forward to more from her. 4/5 ⭐️

The look of despair on Freyn‘s face was not unfamiliar to him. Freyn had clearly believed with all his heart that whatever dream he saved himself for all these years, like a virgin bride, would reward him by promptly coming true. The younger man could be Van Jorgen years back, living in blissful ignorance of the pain of the world, only to have it pour over him in a molten wave.

I‘m not a big short story reader, but I‘ve found a few amazing collections over the years, and this one is beloved by both @Liberty and @thereadingwomen so I have a good feeling about it ☺️ #nowreading

It‘s Day 15 of the @bookriot #Riotgrams Challenge! Today‘s prompt: freebie!
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My favorite book of 2018 is out in paperback on June 18th! I am excited about this for many reasons, the two greatest being that 1) the new cover references my favorite story in the collection and 2) I am quoted inside! It‘s only three of my words, but still, it is an honor because this book is AMAZING. 🧜‍♀️💙📚

What a great collection of stories! I especially loved The Pleiades. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
#readingwomenchallenge - a book from the Reading Women 2018 shortlist

CrossFit gym is closed today so I went to the regular gym instead and listened to All the Names They Used for God. Books + Exercise = Happy Mother's Day for me! #bookfitnesschallenge #BFC

13 books this month:
4 🎧 audio
3 🖥 ebooks
6 📖 physical books
Fiction: 7
Nonfiction/memoir/essays: 6
From my shelf: 1
#aprilstats #monthlywrapup

This short story collection of gripping, soulful tales filled with magical realism is nothing short of wonderful! It didn‘t compete with the fairy tale format, though there were similar tropes. And it wasn‘t as surreal as some other magical-realism type collections I‘ve read, which I think made it more accessible without sacrificing any intrigue. #catsoflitsy

Starting this one next. Captivating title.

I think I‘ve checked this out of the library no less than five times (but never read). Hooray for finally getting to it, because it‘s sublime - a new favorite collection, for sure. The stories are so different, but each one has characters that grab you within a page or two and make the book really painful to put down mid-story! Best of all is her exquisite yet unfussy writing, which I L-O-V-E-D, and I will 100% read anything else she writes.

So proud of myself for only buying 2 books during my NYC pilgrimage to Strand

This collection of short stories is surprising and engrossing. I read a few of the stories over and over. It's going to stay with you, if you read it.

A really diverse book oh short stories, both in terms of genres and characters.

I think I can say that I liked this collection. Some of the stories really grabbed me while others I didn't feel too many ways about. But the longer I sit with it the more I think I enjoyed it. For me, all these stories had something to say about our humanity and our relationship to it. I'm definitely going to be rereading this in my future!

A fantastic collection of magical realism and science fiction. Some stories we're downright bizzare but Sachdeva's language kept me interested the entire time. It absolutely disrupted the flow of books I read this year and I'm thankful for that. It's good to try something different every now and then. If you're looking for a break from the norm or excellent short stories, this is it.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5

It's hard to find a collection of stories where every story is memorable and thought provoking... This is one of those rare gems.

Feeling the crunch to meet my end-of-the-year goals, and losing myself in these gorgeous stories. 4:35 PM, kicking horse coffee with coconut cream, and a mermaid. 🧜‍♀️

Today I‘m reading short stories and New Yorker articles. This collection was one of 3 books @Liberty chose for me via @bookriot ‘s TBR service.Tailored book recommendations sent to your inbox(or you can chose to receive the actual books in your mailbox) every quarter. Stitch Fix for Books-check it out here:https://www.google.com/amp/s/bookriot.com/2018/10/02/introducing-tbr-tailored-book-recommendations-from-book-riot/amp/ if you haven‘t already.

Needed this to get me out of my reading slump. I enjoyed all of these with All the Names for God and Manus being my favorites.

I hadn‘t read a compilation of short stories in a long time and I‘m not sure how I felt about this one. I somewhat understood the overall theme that linked these stories together. The only stories that stood out to and stayed with me were Manus (I wish that this was a book all on its own) and a few others.

So, so good. Manus & All the Names for God were my favorites.

It‘s 5 pm and I‘ve only walked 942 steps today.

This is a strange little short story collection. Each story is unique and the audiobook is narrated by different narrators which was fabulous.

Month end Sunday in my Hocus Pocus sweater with my holiday cup and this audiobook.

#accountantproblems

#buyit

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️I love a good short story collection and this one is top notch. Another favorite of 2018.

Just about to finish up the last story in this very strong collection. Excellent storytelling right through the whole collection.👍

Just finished this beautiful collection of stories, and...WOW. Sachdeva has a real knack for telling the story of a life in a few short pages. From sci-fi, to magical realism, to plain ole fiction, the stories cover several genres. And each proves Sachdeva‘s capability as a writer. Stunningly haunting, heartbreakingly beautiful, and unabashedly bold. Every story is a gem.

Gonna start this one today. It‘s one of the 5 I promised myself I‘d read in 2018, so...

Each story was like a mini novel. They were about 20+ or more pages long. In each story the characters are looking for more meaning in their lives and to find something more. And to find a connection to something. They were all very different stories. Some were magical, others scifi, and terror. All were very plot and character driven which I loved. Sanchdeva writes beautifully crafted prose.
#shortstories #bookreview #stories #goodreads

This picture fits the title of this book. 😂 Some of these short stories were soooo good. The emptiness you feel after you swim with a mermaid. The claustrophobia I felt as a woman explores an underground cave during a snowstorm. I still prefer novels to short stories, but I was really happy with this one.

There have been a handful of authors in the last year to change my mind about short stories, and Sachdeva is now one of them. She's uber competent & certainly an author to watch. Her ability knows no limit of genre or period setting. She shows off her skill by flawlessly moving between both throughout her collection (sci-fi, historical, murder, all). And in my eyes, the indicator of a great writer is one who simply can't be held back by labels.

Sachdeva is a skilled writer, but the collection fell flat for me as a whole.

So, the election year has wrecked my reading life, but any day I find some time and some mental energy, I take advantage! Today is a beautiful day, so I‘ve been on my porch for most of it, first catching up on my yoga teacher training reading and now cracking this one open. Short stories, fantasy, and YA have been my best bets this year (as well as audio since I‘m in the car a lot), so if you have any recommendations, let me know!

Not a short story kind of person. Don't know why I thought I might like this one

Mojito cookie + new library book = FINALLY-finished-our-taxes reward.

I picked this collection up on a whim after hearing it mentioned on a @bookriot podcast. I didn‘t expect to read every story as if I were compelled, but I did. There‘s something alchemical about the way Sachdeva combines narrative with prose. At times, I wanted to stop reading, (Manus and Pleiades were especially difficult) but I couldn‘t, and now, having finished them all, I‘m very glad of that.

I typically enjoy surrealist/fabulist stories, but I couldn't quite connect with this book. She's a talented writer, I'll definitely try more of her work in the future.

I liked a couple of these stories very much (Killer of Kings and the title story). I didn‘t hate the rest of them, but many of the “dreamlike” elements felt randomly thrown in, and a lot of the stories seemed to follow the same ending of “And then a thing happened but no one really cared and it didn‘t matter. The end.” I‘m not huge on short story collections anyway, and I think I would rather have just read the couple I liked and left the rest.

Next up! #MountTBR #25infive