Welcome to Litsy!

3.75⭐. I thought this was great but maybe 50-75 pages too long. I really enjoyed Tesh's writing. I found myself sinking into the story as soon as I picked it up and flying through the pages. The characters were not likable, but they each had believable growth through complex challenges. I have been really craving space reads and this scratched the itch perfectly.

A time bending novel in which I really didn‘t like the main character but still couldn‘t stop reading. Kyr does eventually grow on you throughout the story. It was interesting to experience the radicalized viewpoint and to see the holes in the argument she willfully ignored thanks to years of conditioning.

Another of this year‘s Hugo Award novel nominees.

Just the perfect #URC category for this. Do keep reading... it is so worth it!

#QueerBooks

#SpringSkies @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks @Eggs
#GloryinTitle

Excellent space opera, with an interesting array of characters and a lot of unexpected twists in the plot. Nice to see that the book received a Hugo Best Novel nomination this year. #hugoawards #hugo2024

#MarvellousMarch @Andrew65
#gottacatchemall @PuddleJumper (prompt 32, Perrserker: Warrior or soldier character)

I love teaching the WWI poem "Dulce Et Decorum Est" this book gets its name from for its masterful use of poetic devices to convey a powerful critique of war, and this novel honors that message deftly. It's remarkable to watch Kyr come to terms with the fact that she has been radicalized, and that the world is nothing like she's been taught.

#bookreport another scattered week. On audio I finished Treasure Island (#1001books enjoyed more than I expected) and started Ace (enjoying as expected!)
But for ebooks... I finished a #roll100, read a bit more of my #BookSpin, started a new #1001books, and then my hold on the tagged came in so I started that.

For #weeklyforecast who knows... I have my next audio lined up, that's all.

"The sky lit up with green subreal flashes as a Wisdom cruiser dropped out of shadowspace."

Was craving some sci-fi, and this book is delivering!

#FirstLineFridays
@ShyBookOwl

4.85/5 stars (or planetoids, take your pick)! This is a neat lil‘ sci-fi standalone, and my main complaint is it would‘ve been well served by about 100 more pages dedicated to exploring the motivations of the original rebellion, the mechanics of the Wisdom/shadowspace, and just some little things like that. Lastly, I am madly in love with the clever use of bits from Wilfred Owen‘s Dulce Et Decorum Est.

I‘m only about 20 pages in, and holy heck Batman. Maybe it‘s because the title seems like a clear reference to Owen‘s “Dulce Et Decorum Est” (anyone else love antiwar poetry?) but I just know this one will be a wild ride somehow.

Kyr lives on a station with the remnants of humanity after Earth was destroyed, desperate to fight for her people. But things don‘t go the way she would like. What I really dug about this book is that a couple times it went directions I wasn‘t expecting and I really like when a book does that. I found it fully absorbing.

I would like to write a pithy short review of this book, because it was excellent. I haven‘t read a space opera this good in awhile and I want you to read it too. If you ever read Ender‘s Game and have some thoughts, this might be for you. If you like dynamic characters who are bad at people but eventually figure out found family, this might be for you. If you like stories where humans are basically Klingons, this might be for you.

“But the Wisdom is evil” said Kyr. “Not if it‘s ours,” Avi said. “Nothing‘s evil if it‘s on our side.”

#Two4Tuesday

1. The tagged book was possibly my favorite of November. It was a really strong debut novel.

2. All of them! But I am crossing my fingers I‘ll find time to read another Margaret Drabble. I want to explore her body of work.

Thank you for tagging me @The_Penniless_Author 😊

My first completed book for the #NovelNovember readathon. This was a real page turner and exactly the kind of character driven sci fi that I wanted. Kyr lives a spartan existence, one of the last of a few thousand humans holding out against an alien enemy that would assimilate humanity. She was born to be a soldier in the common cause. But when she gets her first adult assignment, she begins to question everything she‘d ever been taught…

This is my currently reading stack and I‘m going to finish them ALL by the end of this #NovelNovember readathon!

Book Riot's Best Books of 2023 So Far is here! My pick is tagged but I've already been convinced I need to read several others 😅

bookriot.com/best-books-of-2023-so-far/

That, was a LOT. Very different vibes from the Greenwood duology, obviously, but it has solidified my intention to pick up anything Emily Tesh writes in the future. Heavy sci-fi, with as much emphasis on the heavy as on the sci-fi. The author has helpfully provided a list of content warnings in the front of the book: HEED THEM. Did not know where it was going halfway through, loved that it took its time with main character arc. All the EMOTIONS!

I have been *missing* toothy, well-plotted epic sci-fi, and this delivered! Earth has been destroyed, and we follow a teenager who has been trained from birth to fight. The thing that made this book so refreshing? It's so clear she's not a hero. Her people are a radical, hateful cult, and the story is a look at escaping that sort of brainwashing that feels more realistic (yes, even with the aliens) than most child-soldier stories. (1/2)

I loved Emily Tesh‘s novellas- Silver in the Wood and Drowned Country- so I preordered this as soon as I heard about it.

Valkyr grew up in a post-Earth colony where she was raised to be a soldier for humanity. At 17 years old she‘s about to receive her adult assignment, but as her friends find out their fates she begins to see cracks in the perception of perfection her society relies on.

Queer multiverse scifi with deep political shifts. ⬇️

Clearly “taking it easy” is something I don‘t know how to do. My goal for #20in4 is to get through as many of these as possible while working two out of the four readathon days and while having my brother visit😅 My library recently lowered the renewal limit so I need to get through these ASAP. @Andrew65

This sci-fi novel does something I've never seen outside of fanfiction: create an alternate universe of itself. And it does it *well.* Val Kyr has trained all her life to defeat the aliens and their god-like artificial intelligence known as the Wisdom. But when she finally gets the chance, it goes wrong. And everything she thought she knew about humanity and aliens and war is suddenly flipped on its head.

Big TW for suicide, others in comments.

I don‘t need everything I read to be meaningful, thought-provoking works of important literature. This was a fun sci-fi audiobook (yes a bit YA but forgivably so). I didn‘t skip my IC subscription for April on purpose & have been looking forward to the Special Edition delivery for the past month. Cool edges on all 3 sides, unique end papers, quote on front, the jacket glows like metal. I love interesting companions! ♥️♥️

How long does it take to DNF a book? If I'm calculating right it took me 9 pages. Might be a new record...

My guts already told me that this isn't for me, but I've enjoyed Tesh's novellas so I wanted to give this one a try too.

But after mentioning how her MC is the best in the best in this and that, introducing a stereotypical female enemy, and telling us even MORE things the MC is the best at (how old is that girl?) I'm done. Too YA for me.

🎧 This book starts with an entire paragraph of trigger warnings.

A queer, military space opera crossed with a Handmaid‘s Tale Cult.

You don‘t like the MC by design but you see her come to the realization of her reality. There‘s a fun robot sidekick.

This book started my April mood reading journey off on a sci-fi trajectory. It doesn‘t say it‘s YA but the simplicity of the plot & age of the protagonist (etc), I‘d say it was YA/NA.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

An exhilarating, edge-of-your-seat ride, a tender and triumphantly queer journey, and a groundbreaking masterwork of science fiction about fascism, deradicalization, war and peace…Some Desperate Glory is destined for not only the highest heights of Best Of lists and award nominations (or there is no justice in this reality or any other!), but fierce love from fans and frenzied recommendations from readers like this one. 👽🚀🥹

Started the day with a Goodreads win 💪🏽