Litsy

I put a number of stalled-out books on my #bookspin list for February - let's see where the luck takes me!
I very much enjoyed the system last month, @TheAromaofBooks you're right! Somehow the dual list with lots of category entries on the bingo board was very freeing.

TheAromaofBooks Yay!! I'm glad it's working for you!! It makes the BookSpin number still feel meaningful to me while allowing me to have fun with the Bingo part 😂 3h

15 likes1 comment

wildwoodreads

Empire of Silence | Christopher Ruocchio

Hi. I bought too many books. That‘s all. 😅

Have you read any of these? What should I start first?

Full haul: https://wildwoodreads.com/2025/01/30/i-bought-too-many-books-a-haul/

Booksblanketsandahotbeverage I‘ve only read Kings of the Wyld, but I really enjoyed it 😊

Kings of the Wyld

julesG Second this @Booksblanketsandahotbeverage 2d

Blueberry Moon of the Crusted Snow 🤍 2d

ShyBookOwl Moon of the Crusted Snow. So great 2d

54 likes4 comments

Robotswithpersonality

The Last Gifts of the Universe | Rory August

so-so

I'm struggling to resist the urge to call this pleasantly packaged fatalism, because it's definitely a reductive way of looking at the story as a whole. I usually enjoy sci-fi stories that are more human-focused, that address the interpersonal, exploring how humans/beings deal with life and each other, but this narrative walks the less trod path of addressing 1/?

Robotswithpersonality 2/? 'even if there is basically no reason to hope, each moment has value, and making the effort to treasure the life left available to you, continuing to live a life, is a worthy thing' rather than the more popular 'it's bad but it can get better, there's always hope'.
I have to wonder if the author has experience with the loss of a loved one through illness or accident, a circumstance that couldn't be fought, had to be accepted, because it's 5d

Robotswithpersonality 3/? very much a grief narrative.
I think in these troubled times, it's instinctual to reject the idea of accepting an impending dark fate, but that doesn't mean the message of cherishing a life in the face of unconquerable death doesn't have value.
Also introduced is the idea of wanting to give your life for someone and needing to accept when someone else makes a decision about their own fate, and the tension between the two sides. (edited) 5d

Robotswithpersonality 4/? Aside from any subjective issue with the messaging, I have to say the overall feel is a bit muddled, the pacing and the tone. I guess it's true to life that there are fun cat moments and missing your mother, exploring alien archaeology and critiquing corporate greed, but something about the writing left me feeling more like the author was attempting an emotional manipulation to deliver the message rather than actually making me feel the 5d

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Robotswithpersonality 5/? the required emotion to deliver the impact. Are all books emotionally manipulative? Well, when it's done well I don't feel like I can see the attempt. There's some complications in the choice to drop the reader in with these characters in the midst of their lives and missions and focusing more on the humans than the world-building. I did end up wishing I had more background on everybody, 5d

Robotswithpersonality 6/? and the plot then required explanation about the worlds and beings and records encountered, and the antagonistic forces at issue...so some passages felt skeletal, some over-stuffed. I feel like this was trying to be Becky Chambers in tone and it didn't quite manage it. Or maybe that's just what I wanted/thought I was getting? 5d

Robotswithpersonality 7/7 Having seen both covers, I can understand why the publisher went with a peppier cover, but the original is definitely truer in tone. If August wants to write a series of short stories about the continuing adventures of Pumpkin and his humans I'll happily pick it up, but I'm not sure I'd try out another novel by this author. 🫤 5d

13 likes6 comments

Robotswithpersonality

The Last Gifts of the Universe | Rory August

I love when sci-fi authors solve language puzzles presented by telling a story with aliens in a language created by humans.
How do you say something's man-made, when it wasn't made by man? [ Yeah, you could say artificial or not natural, but this is more fun 😊].

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Robotswithpersonality

The Last Gifts of the Universe | Rory August

Oof, anybody else having a less-than-pleasant post-grad school unemployment phase flashback? 🫣
Say it with me people: degree ≠ job. 😣
You'll have much less stressful twenties if you can hold onto this truth.

12 likes

Robotswithpersonality

The Last Gifts of the Universe | Rory August