There are so many irons in the fire in this book that it‘s hard for me to know what was sincere, what was parody, what was a meditation on the inherent unreality of plot structure, and what was just a fantasy novel. There‘s lots of funny lines, there‘s purple writing that I‘m 85% sure is genre aware parody, there‘s reevaluations of problematic fantasy tropes.

The story of a missing indigenous woman from the point of view of her loved ones rather than from the pov of detectives or police was welcome change. This also feels like a very honest portrayal of the messiness and abruptness of grief.

So there‘s this point in the book where the male character mentions men not receiving compliments from women very often and…that‘s probably true. But I have a sinking suspicion that, as the female character doesn‘t think about it, the male author doesn‘t know how often compliments from strange men end with insults, harassment, threats and violence directed at women they‘re “complimenting”.

I like Pargin‘s work. But I think there‘s things he misses about being a woman, and since this book was basically a man and woman in a car together, it comes up. Idk, Trump just won an election and there are guys posting “Your body, my choice” on SM. My patience for a lonely guy‘s pov where he occasionally full on rants about “feminists” is pretty low.

I was very into Charles Xavier reading Sinister to filth.

I have a question. The author of 7 wonders is writing about the temple of Artemis and says that bees were her symbol. Her priestesses were called honeybees. And for a sec that made sense, then I remembered the long history of male scientists (hilariously) thinking the queen bee was a king. Were bees her symbol cause there were lots of bees in the area, cause everyone liked honey, or did ancient people know something later naturalists forgot?

I think comics based on live action tv fail when they attempt art that looks as much as possible like the actors. It leads to static art that hits an uncanny valley and isn‘t very good at telling stories. Farscape was visually stunning tv with a lot of motion. This comic does a better job of being a Farscape comic by using an art style that is less figurative but shows more motion.

I really like this series. It‘s messy and all over the place. But I like the characterizations and complexities of so many of these characters. It‘s big, and top heavy. But I‘ll miss Krakoa.

Parts of this are just straight Hero‘s Journey beats. But other parts are the hero who is explicitly a member of a community. Also, Bruce Wayne, doing his best!

It‘s interesting that in a book about a deadly plague, the economics would still be the dreariest and most annoying part. But I suppose that‘s why economics is the “dismal science”.

The preface starts out by describing Hadrian‘s wall like “Ramparts are attractive..nothing bigger, grander, more masterful. And more impressive …power pulses from Hadrian‘s Wall”. Honestly seems like a 🍆metaphor.

It‘s probably good that the Alt-right don‘t like each other anymore than people outside of their movement like them.

Damn it Corey, I don‘t have time for these doorstoppers! Fine. Okay. I‘ll read this and I‘ll like this. But I won‘t be happy about it.

A solid horror novel. A Christian evangelical cult has the most successful gay conversion camp ever. By which I mean, it‘s not successful at all, but they do open portals to hell.

I‘m about 1/3 of the way through this and I can‘t find a plot. Penny wants a job, gets a job, then experiences her job. And then seems to want nothing. A cypher of a character. There is something dark about the interplay of capitalism and dreaming and that unacknowledged darkness against the coziness of the setting is kinda odd.

A ridiculous cat is ridiculous and beloved.

Lonely 12 year old makes friends with a goth kid. That checks out.

These manuscripts offer a corrective to the popular perception that medieval manuscripts were all written by monks. Our imagination of the past is delineated by patriarchalism infused by prejudice. If we were wrong in imagining that all scribes were men, what else might we be wrong about?

You know I wouldn‘t assume that Constantine would‘ve been in Taylor‘s wheelhouse, but this works. Part of me always expects 1 more horrible thing, 1 more betrayal, 1 more loss of innocence in a Hellblazer story. But I am okay with just Constantine and the devil flirting for panels instead.

I thought that the methodology of this book was interesting, the author took different dialogues and plays and whatnot and used them as sources for little vignettes of moments in different people‘s day in Athens. But almost immediately there was the awkward feeling of male authors (past and present)writing women as utterly fascinated by men. The wedding procession scene in particular had me rolling my eyes.

“He calls his book on Alexander a search, not a story.”

I enjoy this series. Tidal Creatures felt a lot less focused but that could have been by design since one of the points of the book was that rather than there being one very special magic person there can be lots, and that can be a good thing. I do kind of love the concept of an Impossible City and how the yearning for it, as understandable as it is, is used by awful people to justify awful things.

Any book about a movie leaves me with the impression that it is shocking that anything is ever filmed, let alone that anything turns out well.

…author seems invested in the idea that the teenage Grace Kelly was the sexual “aggressor” in a relationship with her 30 year old teacher. And it‘s gross.

I think of this as Aunt Maria (by Diane Wynne Jones) the adult years. Which is to say, there were fun inversions on traditionally “gross” and “girly” things. The mom was a hero. And magic doesn‘t give the right to tell other people how to live.

Leigh Bardugo is excellent at dialogue. She has a gift for writing romantic leads who don‘t look like movie stars in ways that have you nodding along with the idea that they are attractive and have chemistry, because of course they do. I was deeply invested in Valentina‘s redemptive arch.

Scott Shapiro, Yale Professor: “Suppose, however, I want to send some of my writings to my friend at Stanford? (This is hypothetical, of course: I have no friends at Stanford)”.

Sci-fi frequently seems to connect to our concepts of culture and exploration (and colonialism). So I‘ve always wanted access to more international science fiction. But a lot of times when I get it, I feel like I‘m missing something. I liked this. I‘ll read a sequel. I‘d buy a cookbook based on the food descriptions. But, I do feel like there are things I‘m missing.

There‘s an interesting microhistory here, but there is also misogyny, racism, classism and utter cluelessness too. It‘s like being stuck with an older relative who is talking about something interesting and then casually says something terrible. For McPhee and the men he interviews the history of oranges is Florida based and white, and wealthy, and male.

Never change Grayson.

Honestly, this is worth reading just for the title. That‘s a good title.
It‘s also a messy horror/rom-com/cozy fantasy/who done it, with a big heaping serving of generational trauma.

Was…was this book written just for me? Emma Southon just wrote a feminist retelling of Lucretia, the Roman rape victim, with an explanation of Gail Simone‘s Women in Refrigerators comic book trope and I have never felt more seen.

The sheltered girl who thinks she‘s not special is a fantasy trope. But Marlinchen is a lot more Bella Swann in Twilight than Sophie Hatter in Howl‘s Moving Castle. I don‘t think I‘ll finish this.

“No one has ever accused [David] Brooks of being a profound thinker, but one almost feels bad for him that he remains trapped in the ‘morally incoherent‘, socially alienated, and quite posh neighborhood he lives in today.”

Look, I like me some super powered creepy kids with powers on the run from governmental powers. I‘ve read and enjoyed Mai the Physic Girl, The Umbrella Academy, The Girl With Silver Eyes, many iterations of the X-Men, Rising Stars, and more. I‘ve watched many an x-file. But I was unmoved by this. It was a boring, unoriginal, pastiche. Also dudes, when creating your team, consider making more than 1 female character. We‘re 50% of the population.

This was a more in-depth and sensible look at mystery cults then I‘ve found in other sources. By which I mean the answer to what a mystery cult was, wasn‘t simply “mushrooms!”. I have reservations, but, I‘ve read worse books on mystery cults.

I need background info. For example the author writes about rickets, as a medical and dietary issue affecting German speaking troops. Then he goes on to scurvy. Did scurvy affect German militaries in the 1500‘s? Were there boats full of German soldiers so long they got scurvy? During a Crusade? In colonizing attempts? Don‘t make me guess! Don‘t make me research!!!!

This is so good! This is a great little kaiju story with friendship, quickly drawn but believable characters (I see you military guy, whose mask is resolutely under your nose at a biohazard site), and really striking imagery.

This has a unique visual language and sisters who love each other. Two things I enjoy. Reminds me of Repent Harlequin Said The Ticktock Man, in that the world building is more emotive than concrete. I could see someone drawing potentially problematic conclusions from this book, but on the whole I think it‘s sweet and hopeful.

An interesting look at various awful moments in history. And useful addition to any time traveler‘s collection.

I like the Odyssey more than the Iliad. So maybe that‘s part of this, but the author is more trope then man. He tells you that he brings the Iliad with him when he travels and it never fails to move him to tears. I‘m picturing him on Southwest Airlines between a overtired toddler and their parent assuring them “It‘s okay! It‘s just…Achilles!” And sobbing.

Harrow has a way with prose that sinks into you. If you like Gaiman‘s Sandman for the layering of stories and myths, you might like this. If you like House of Leaves cause houses that are really labyrinths are cool, you might like this. If you‘ve ever looked up on a hill to see a light in a window and wished that was home, this is the book for you.

This is a heavy read. The intertwining of racism, patriarchy, ableism, and celebrity makes for a toxic cocktail that echoes through generations. I‘d never really considered the gendered and racial dimensions of the diagnosis of schizophrenia.

This Urban Fantasy is seeped in body horror with shades of dark academia, or the aftermath of dark academia. There‘s a trend I‘ve noticed (if 3 examples are a trend), an Ivy League education is a magic education, which invariably leads to a “job” in finance, evil finance. Idk, the lack of a magical middle class kinda makes me sad.

It feels like the world is trying to tell me something by giving my HBomberguy‘s 4 hour YouTube video on plagiarism AND Yellowface in the same weekend. Yellowface is a good book. But it‘s hard to read, it‘s hard to stay with a character who so consistently does the wrong thing and thinks she‘s righteous.

This was fun! Light in tone but conscientious. It presented a bunch of stories I‘d never heard of before, like the space suit of the first man in space inflating too much for him to move in, until he released some air, or the woman who invented usable dishwashers and sold them to hotels. It‘s not as scatological as Mary Roach‘s work. But I‘d give it a try if you like her.

This book spent way too long insulting its readers and not enough time presenting interesting science. I wonder who it‘s for? The author seems to be convinced that everyone who would read it is deeply stupid and she‘s talking about a statistician who says he‘s unpopular at weddings cause he brings up the statistic that 50% of marriages end in divorce. As if that didn‘t just make him rude and dull.

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.