I thought that the light novels might add quite a lot, but I always get surprised by how much detail a manga/manhua can pack in. There wasn't much added by reading the original light novel here, but I did enjoy it, and it does give a bit of an extra insight into Seiichirou's thoughts at some points.

In this volume, Aresh's controllingness is... there, but not so bad yet. We'll see I guess. I hear they eventually fight about it.

An indictment of the way we view entertainment as “content“ in general, but especially and specifically Spotify. I'd suggest Glenn McDonald's You Have Not Yet Heard Your Favourite Song had been written specifically to try to counteract it, if that hadn't come out first. Pelly's more conscientious about sources and ensuring what she writes is true and not just vibes, which gives her credibility.

I'm not always a fan of Anthony Berkeley, but this one was fun -- it was explicitly written for the audience to figure out, and the British Library reissue includes Berkeley's reports on the results of the contest. I wouldn't have won either, there was definitely a clue I didn't fully appreciate.

Used some bookshop.org store credit to get the light novels after learning the story isn't complete yet in the manga! And handed all my assignments in, finished last night, so time for a chill weekend and some time with these. 💙

Aresh, gah, Seiichirou is a grown man, you can't do this. I really wish this was seen as a bit more problematic by the story.

I'm still really curious how things are going to turn out, and I'm ordering the light novels, but I'm gonna have to be clear in my full-length reviews that there is definitely ick -- questionable consent (sex to save Seiichirou's life) and Aresh constraining Seiichirou's freedom for his own good.

Never sure if I'm finding the manga or light novel here on Litsy, there don't seem to be separate entries for all of them even if I search further. So this is for the manga!

The plot thickens in this volume. Sometimes it seems to be just about Aresh and Seiichirou, but I think Aresh is living in a romance novel and Seiichirou in an SF/F novel, in terms of how they view the relative importance of events.

Aresh still uncomfortably controlling. 😕

Ah yes, Aresh, such frivolity, so convincing.

I'm enjoying the story, but I do wish Aresh would communicate a bit more with Seiichirou. It's not like they don't talk at all, but I think Aresh should say “I like you“ and “I want to spend time with you“... and maybe be a BIT less controlling, even if it is to save his life.

I was a bit disappointed this month when my British Library Crime Classic subscription book arrived and... the free bookmark was totally bent.

Blessings to the person working for the British Library shop who read my sad “my free bookmark with this month's book was bent... can I pay you to ship me a spare? I collect them“ message and sent me... this many.

I love you, whoever you are. You made my day. 💙💙💙

I forgot to review this when I finished it! I think McDonald's enthusiasm about music, and pride in finding a wide array of music to try, is undeniable. His belief that streaming will be good for music and good for people, too, seems to be in good faith. It's hard to reconcile with the criticisms of services like Spotify -- I'm interested to read Liz Pelly's Mood Machine as a counterpoint.

Regardless, it was interesting.

Yeah, Aresh, that's my face too! (In response to Kundou's workaholism right after he nearly died).

So far it's difficult to know what to make of this series -- I trust no one, except Aresh. I enjoyed the first volume, but it depends where it goes, really!

Picked this up during the long (by British standards) car ride to Wales for my grandmother's funeral, and it definitely kept me occupied. I couldn't quite keep some of the characters straight, but it felt surprisingly like something that someone might write now, parodying the SF pulp era. Surprising small love: the (male) detective being very involved with his wife and child.

This was the #DoubleSpin! And this month's #BookSpinBingo card is made!

I wanted to read this as soon as I finished the first book, but then I didn't have a copy and stuff happened and I didn't get round to it. Taking me a minute to re-pick up some of the threads now, but I'm about 30% of the way through and enjoying it.

Glenn McDonald is one of the people who worked on Spotify's music discovery algorithms, and he has a lot of opinions about music and music discovery, and he has some back-of-the-napkin math about Spotify's payment systems, and right now I'm wishing he'd stick with the music discovery stuff and not try to dazzle me with math trying to justify Spotify's model, since he keeps saying he had nothing to do with the finances anyway.

Needed a break from my assignment, so here's my April list for #BookSpin.

I am starting to think I should provide myself more free spaces somehow, because I read easily enough books for a blackout in March (31 books), but struggled to make so much as a bingo because I am a creature of whim (and I burn out if I don't follow my whims). But I stuck to the normal script for now.

At the last possible second, I got myself a #BookSpinBingo!

This book was okay, but it feels very much the same as Maiklem's other mudlarking book, and sometimes it's really just autobiography -- there are (few, but notable) sections and entries not about mudlarking at all. That wasn't something I clicked with well.

Not too surprisingly, I enjoyed these retellings and stories in the mode of myth quite a bit. I like Marie Brennan's work and I like this genre, so... as expected, pretty much.

This was fascinating. It seems at the start like it's a series of unconnected stories, revolving around some weird sketched pictures. There are some surprising links, though -- I won't say more than that.

I ended up reading it all in one go.

This felt very much introductory, like a pilot episode. I liked it well enough so far, would be curious to read more.

I'm beginning to think this might be how my #BookSpinBingo card looks to close out the month. I've been struggling to read much and I don't think forcing myself to read these specific books is a good idea, though I've been certainly trying to bully myself. MADE myself sit down and read something not on the card today, and y'know, that went perfectly well.

Sigh. Brains, right?

I'm not a huge fan of Austen per se (have enjoyed reading her work, but it's not something I return to). But I am a huge fan of “x in y objects“, and I enjoyed it here. The introduction is a bit pretentious or at least scholarly, and can be skipped if you're just interested in the objects. (The introduction, 22 pages long, took me 15 minutes to read; the rest of the book, 167 pages, just 50 minutes.) It was pleasant as such books go.

There, all finished! There are aspects of it that feel like they could be streamlined (a particular mystery feels like it takes forever to solve given it's only a stepping stone on the way, and I'd solved it before the narrative condescended to get there), but I found myself sad when it was over. I'm glad I have a copy of Confounding Oaths (a loose sequel) out of the library ready to follow this. I love the narrative voice.

I stalled out on reading this for a bit because of life stuff, and also it didn't feel like the right mood for me at the time. Enjoying it a lot now; it's interesting how intrusive the narrator is and yet how easily you can forget it for a moment and narrow the focus to the character interactions.

I should have just 20 mins ish left to read (Kobo and Bookly's estimates vary widely)... but not sure if I'll have the time until late this evening. 😱

Argh, why is there no more?? Aiden, speak to Harvard properly! Bobby, get home to Dante, and if you're not dating, start! Seiji, I cannot believe you asked Aiden for that advice, but GO YOU.

I loved a lot about this volume, BUT I had JUST been praising that it was realistic that Nicholas doesn't instantly improve, and then it makes the timeline clear in this book and... that's total wish fulfillment, guys. 👀 No way.

Seiji and Nicholas are getting so close... in their own special way. Really cute.

I'm very curious how/when the secret about Nicholas' father is going to come out to the others, and how he'll react.

I'm gonna be so mad when the story just *stops* at the end of next volume, aren't I.

Ugh, I couldn't resist it, I grabbed the next volume. I LOVED the scenes with Seiji helping Nicholas learn to hit the tennis ball, it was so unexpected and awkward and yet so perfect.

Also, Bobby continues to be adorable, and I love that nothing at all is said about his gender non-conforming.

Still predictable, still love the art, still enjoy these idiots.

And now I've run out of volumes on Kobo Plus and need more. Wailing, gnashing teeth, etc etc.

Basically carries straight on from volume 2, and continues the same themes/trajectory -- if volume 1 didn't work for you, nor will volume 2. Just as I said in the review of the first volume, it's predictable -- I think I know how things will end up.

I did find myself shipping Harvard and Aiden incredibly. I mean they're also good as best friends, and I love that for them too. The way Aiden drops everything for Harvard? Cute.

I read this before but never got chance to move on to the other volumes. They're in Kobo Plus, though, or some of them are, so that prompted me to get back to it... meaning I needed to reread this.

I like the art; reminds me a bit of Jamie McKelvie's style in the cleanness of the lines (I say, as if I have art critic skills/knowledge at all). Plot-wise, it's fairly predictable, which is not necessarily a bad thing.

There! That was fun. Definitely one I'll recommend in future. I think at times it did focus on an individual TB patient to an extent that some might find bothersome (and verging into inspiration porn, right after discussing how that was a weird cultural thing that wasn't great), but I think it does also serve as a good illustration of some of Green's points. The science was accurate.

Loved that, like me, Green is fascinated by TB, and has OCD.

“We cannot address TB only with vaccines and medications We cannot address it only with comprehensive STP programs. We must also address the root cause of tuberculosis, which is injustice. In a world where everyone can eat, and access healthcare, and be treated humanely, tuberculosis has no chance. Ultimately, we are the cause.

We must also be the cure.“

☝️☝️☝️☝️☝️☝️☝️

I'm with Green on a lot of this; he's clearly done his research. Currently up to his chapter criticising DOTS (directly observed therapy short-course) and YES, though I think he's conflating DOTS and DOT wrongly (DOTS was a global strategy to use directly observed therapy, which has long been superseded; DOT is still used as part of wider efforts). Don't agree with him that streptomycin caused the decline in TB infections/mortality though.

“We know how to live in a world without tuberculosis. But we choose not to live in that world.“

Yep. Entirely true. We could drastically reduce the burden of tuberculosis in much less than a decade, if we were willing (even I can tell you how, and I'm just an MSc student who has specialised mildly into TB). We won't do it. That's a choice we've made. A choice we keep making. We're all culpable for this deliberate murder.

I genuinely got too excited thinking about this last night and couldn't fall asleep, so that is why, Your Honour, I did not get the seven+ hours of sleep my doctor has very firmly told me I should get...

And now it has arrived and I'm off work and can start reading it (and potentially arguing with it). Can you tell I have a Special Interest (TM)?

(I wrote my undergraduate dissertation on drug resistant TB and am now studying it during my MSc.)

I stalled in reading this because of personal stuff, but today seemed like the right day to get back to it. I read 150 pages of it in two big gulps, as usual with these books. It feels like a good place to leave the series, though I'm actually not sure if it's meant as a conclusion or not.

It was my #DoubleSpin book, though it still leaves me in search of a #BookSpinBingo. I really am not doing it on purpose this time...!

I'm really not doing it on purpose this time, but I remain bingoless... #BookSpinBingo

This one was OK, a light read. I'm not sure I'd continue with the series, and if I hadn't read a review I'd have been surprised by the light fantasy element (the main character experiences other people's memories). It didn't stick out to me a whole lot. Sort of “OK, and I finished it, but... 🤷“

Oh, infuriating, as usual with Carter Dickson/John Dickson Carr. Not a favourite, very over-engineered, though I found the footnotes pointing back to the clues an interesting touch.

When I first read books by Carter Dickon (John Dickson Carr), I really couldn't stand them. I don't know what clicked, but I quite enjoyed the last few I read, even though they're very much over-engineered. The mystery in this one so far is definitely intriguing. 👀

In retrospect, this sometimes felt like somewhat random information jumbled together, but I had an interesting time reading it, all the same.

Today I learned that “corset hoodies“ are a thing, and boggled.

I knew about some of the efforts to keep the public fit in WWII, but not the experimental basis behind them, and not all of the stuff discussed here. I found this very readable and interesting.

Warning: if you're phobic about insects (or at least biting ones), be careful. There's a whole chapter on them, and I definitely had some intrusive thoughts and a nightmare because of it.

I'm not entirely sure why I stuck with this one to the end, because I found it really boring. I just couldn't retain the information. I think it's the travelogue style, rather than any kind of focus on history. Just bits of information thrown in a blender as an excuse to write off travel to Italy on one's taxes, one suspects, cynically.

And that's my #BookSpin finished! It was a fairly cute romance, though the numerous mistakes and misunderstandings of Quimby (not to mention Nattie and Clem) were pretty embarrassment-squicky.

And here's a #BookSpinBingo update, too. I hadn't planned to use manga this month, but it's been an awful time so far, and I don't see it suddenly becoming a lot easier, so I might as well.

This volume actually gives us a glimpse of Lizel's “most precious person“... and of course it's his king. Except mostly Lizel's dad takes up the time they can talk together.

It also features Gil reading again, and a trip to the hot springs... from which both Eleven and Lizel need to be carried home. I feel that in my soul: a hot bath is wondrous, but I always have to sit down for quite a while afterwards.

Viscount Ray: “If Mr Lizel were a woman, I'm sure I'd be passionately seducing him right about now!“
Butler: “How is that different from your attitude toward him now?“

Say the quiet part out louder, why don't you?

Once again, cannot understand why people are so vehement that this isn't queer, just because there's no kissing. I can understand deciding to read it as healthy intimacy between men, sure, though I think it goes beyond that -- but why shout down the people who read it as gay? Look at it. It's not an unfair reading.

Eleven's a lot of fun and a good foil for both Gil and Lizel, with his impulsiveness. He's very young compared to them.

Totally lacking in any kind of bibliography or sources, unfortunately, so definitely one to take with a heaping of salt.

However, it's an entertaining enough read for the purpose as far as I'm concerned. 100 short entries about various objects, sometimes tenuous, but nonetheless, an interesting survey.

It's hard picking a screenshot for this volume, because there's so much good stuff with Eleven. But there's this whole scene where Lizel shows how scary he can be, and then pets Eleven's hair and comforts him after...

Again, really don't understand how anyone reads this series as straight. (And also, how anyone reads Lizel as a fundamentally good person. He is *likeable*, but amoral as fuck.)

Trying to get back to normal a bit, so I've planned myself a lot of reading time today. Finished this off at last -- it's a very quick read, and does feel kinda middle-grade/YAish, though I think the translation is doing some of that.

Mostly, the plot itself is a little simplistic and the conclusion more or less inevitable.

I forgot how early Eleven starts trying to join the party! And I really don't understand how Judge and Studd's behaviour isn't supposed to be indicating crushes on Lizel... And I don't understand how this isn't a love declaration.

Getting back to my reread for comfort after bereavement -- Grandma passed a little after dawn on Tuesday, with me and Mum at her side. I miss her.

See, this is why it's interesting reading again right away -- here in volume 2 we get the first hint of a mystery that the reader won't see fully solved until volume ten.

Fewer standout moments between them in vol 2, but I love that Gil seems to get into reading because of Lizel!