Welcome to Litsy!

I am in no way prepared for it to almost be the November #BookSpin draw but here we are. New to the list this month are the tagged and The Prey of Gods. Still slowly working on my backlist as well. I think next year I need to put more audio titles on my list so that I actually get through them in a timely fashion.

An interesting climate & corporate future that is relevant and frightening, and asks if Buddhists would be accepting of artificial life, but the constant rape & torture of the fetishized Japanese character ruins this book for me.
A corporate man tasked with finding unique plants is pulled into a complex plot with refugees, corrupt government officials, and an engineered person who gets raped and tortured constantly.
0/5 stars I don‘t recommend

Thank you so much @Butterfinger for sending me this book! It looks so interesting!!

A dark and depressing book, definitely not for people who want a happy ending. Almost no character gets out of this either alive or unscathed. With the recent UN report on climate change, this book is very relevant. 4 💥💥💥💥
1st book for #AwesomeAugust @Andrew65
#LitsyAtoZ #LetterW @BookishMarginalia
11/20 #bookbuyingdiet

"No! I don't want the mangosteen." Anderson Lake leans forward, pointing.

#FirstLineFridays @ShyBookOwl

This #biopunk has everything - politics, revolution, betrayal, and genetics.

There are some scenes that I could have done without - rape and intense discrimination.

As with all new dystopian sci-fi, it takes awhile to learn new vocabulary.

#Thailand #ReadingAsia @BarbaraBB @Librarybelle #BBRC @LibrarianRyan
Book 3/4 #20in4 @Andrew65

This is, at least to me, a fairly unique book and story. Not recommended for those that only like their books to have a happy ending. It's a frightening look at an all-too-possible future.

1. The tagged, also Their Eyes Were Watching God and The Orchardist.
2. I think most of Philip Roth's books would be great for book club discussion, but no one else seems to think so. I did a nice buddy read of Goodbye, Columbus, but otherwise no one I know wants to read him with me.

I am posting one book per day from my extensive to-be-read collection. No description or reason for wanting to read the book. Some are old and some will be new. Don't judge me - I have a lot of books.
Day 171

#tbrmountain #bookbuyingdiet

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️+ Excellent book although I didn‘t always like it and it is pretty slow at first. You have to want to read it. But it‘s worth it. Brutal book. Deep characterization. Fantastic world building. Harrowing imagery. Very much worth reading. Solid narrator. Listened at regular speed.

Bacigalupi describes a truly terrible environmental dystopia in this book. The world is wracked by climate change, crop failure, pandemics, and malignant corporations. Honestly, much of the setting hits a little close to home. I loved the characters and their struggles; rooting for some and against others. It was a fun and interesting read.

About to start a new journal for the new month and I don't think I'll be able to add anything to this before midnight so I suppose this is my reading total for November and December.

I‘m 25 pages in and it‘s not grabbing me yet. I‘m feeling a bit lost, I‘m caught up with the expanse series and don‘t have any more John scalzi at my immediate disposal. I have so many books on my shelf that need read, but nothing is really screaming at me to be read.

Been waiting awhile for this one.

50 pages in and I cannot get into this at all. Confused, bored, annoyed by the wordiness, did I mention confused?

There are 23 books on my DNF list. Here are just a few. Mostly, I just could NOT get into them after a really good effort. Anyone loved one of these?

#ReadingResolutions #DNFBooks

I had high expectations for this book and sadly it fell short. Setting was great but, I felt there were too many characters and nothing that made me feel any connection to them. Not a fan of the way the author went into detail the abuse of the Windup Girl. Honestly I almost bailed because I fell asleep reading it.

An intricate plot with a realism as compelling as anything big written by William Gibson (at the time). There‘s a lot to unpack here—not too crazy about the sexual dynamics & AI fetishing but that‘s a blanket issue with hard #scifi

Cost of life #scifi

My July #TBR stack. Let‘s hope I can take the time to sit down and enjoy these books!

Another ‘new to me‘ summer read #scifi

I loved the premice of the book (and I love dystopian novels as a rule), I loved the fact that it reminded me of the TV show "Real Humans" which I used to love. I loved the story. But some parts of the book were incredibly boring, it was hard to get into. I think I had read about a third the book before deciding it was actually interesting.

Hock Seng makes himself smile in return, thinking that she does not know how little anyone cares to separate the wheat from the chaff, when all anyone wants to do is burn a field

#firstsentence No! I don‘t want the mangosteen

New thing I‘m starting. Just posting the first sentence when I start a new book. Maybe it will catch on, or maybe everyone will hate it. 🙃

I think this is an #unpopularopinion but I ended up bailing on this one. I honestly think it has more to do with me than the book though.

It wasn‘t as though I was actively disliking it, I think I just started getting anxious to read something else at the time and didn‘t end up finishing it.

I have faith I will try again when the mood strikes, I am not considering this a “forever” bail just yet.

The Windup Girl | Set in SE Asia | Published 2009

#currentlyreading 📖
#beatthebacklist 2018
#theunreadshelfproject2018
#aroundtheworldchallenge
#goodreadsreadingchallenge
#bookchallenge

I was going through my #LRCbingo2018 card and realized a lot of the books I want to read (and will have to purchase) also work for my #dystopianblues #bookswap .... maybe I should be on a book buying ban for the next 6 weeks... 😳🤔🤷🏼‍♀️

What are some of your favorite/most wanted #dystopian blues books!?

Wonderful book. He takes the idea of gene ripping agricultural companies and imagines what happens hundreds of years from now when they have taken over and murdered generations with bad crops. Incredible.

The future is a bleak realm of genehacked foods and scarce resources in this masterpiece of speculative fiction. Bacigalupi takes today's concerns about fossil fuel usage and the advent of GMOs to the next level.

With a richly imagined setting, delightfully complete characters, and a unique and compelling plot, this book can carry you away.

I forced myself to review for the trial I supposedly have this week and as a reward I will sit down and finally enjoy some reading while having this chowder I made yesterday.

No, the fact that it is summer does not deter me from making and eating as much soup/chowder as possible.

Returning to my regularly scheduled novel this morning during coffee time.

It is luckily on my Kindle since the rest of my books are now in boxes ! (Multiple additional boxes not pictured 📚😜)

On the one hand I'm glad this is not the start of a series because I don't need to be in the middle of another series! On the other hand there was soooooo much terrific world-building in this book you wish there was more of this world to read about. A very dystopian future view of Thailand. Kept me guessing the whole way through. Almost nothing turned out the way I thought it would, which made this a really great read! 🌟🌟🌟🌟

This book is a terrifying but probably accurate vision of the future.

This is set in a dystopian future Thailand where biological global warfare perpetrated by big agriculture has ravaged the population and food supply. The title character is a genetically engineered lab grown woman who is not legally a person. The world building and story telling were excellent. #setinsoutheastasia #aprilbookshowers

#aprilbookshowers #artificialintelligence

I have a major brain crush on Paolo Bacigalupi. His YA is perfection. Also his name is so much fun to say.

The little free library was a bit empty. I'm going to try to take some stuff to fill it up next week. #littlefreelibrary

#blameitonlitsy In less than a year since I joined this comm, I read amazing novels recommended by my fellow Litsians. Thank you 🍸
#marchintoreading
@RealLifeReading

Very good so far. Thailand is at the top of the global market food chain. Interesting class society and corrupt politics keeps it relevant while the setting is almost surreal realism. Strong, complex characters and well developed cultural and societal conflicts. Let's see where this comes to a head.

Just some of the books I did not finish. The older I get, the easier it is to give up. 😁 #ReadJanuary #dnf

The tagged book is at the top of my #bookishresolutions along with the ever-growing TBR pile. I missed most of the December challenge on #Litsy, so I would like to get back into shape in the New Year. I cherish the warmth and comfort this community provides. Cheers, my dear Litsians 🍸🍹🍷
#readjanuary
@RealLifeReading

Really looking forward to this book. The anticipation is very much like foreplay.

Great read. The image is from the Romanian edition of the novel. Debut sci-fi novel by author back in 2009. 2010 Nebula and Hugo Award winner. Set in 23rd century Thailand. Countries and corporations grapple with climate change and man made plagues. Great setting and interesting characters. Fast paced.

No picture today because I had borrow the book from my college professor. One of the best Sci fi dystopian novels I've ever read. A futuristic setting that doesn't take more than a squint to see as a possibility and a gripping tale. I love how much this book made me think especially because of the focus on food supply and energy. #booksetinasia #somethingforsept

#somethingforsept #setinasia
Or, at least set in some dystopian Asia.

The Windup Girl is my absolute favorite sci fi novel ever. Do you guys have any recommendations for similar books? I'm looking for character driven sci fi that has more of a focus on the characters' inner lives.

Having a hard time getting started with this book. Spending the afternoon in the outdoors reading it so hope it picks up!!!