#the gracekeepers

[aroaessidhe]

2024 reads / storygraph

The Gracekeepers

fantasy/fabulism set in a post-apocalyptic drowned world divided between those who live on land and sea

follows a girl who’s been exiled to a lonely island and oversees shoreside funerals

and a girl in a floating circus, who performs with a bear as they travel from island to island, and is trying to get out of an arranged marriage to the circus director’s son

when a sudden storm causes them to cross paths, and changes the direction of their lives

inspired by Scottish folktales, lightly sapphic

[hjortetunge]

[gennsoup]

"Imagine what we could do if we weren't hungry all the time."

Kirsty Logan, The Gracekeepers

[milliebot-rambles]

January 2023 Reading Wrap Up

Feeling like I was off to a good start with my reading year!

Books read: 8 Pages read: 1,884 Average pages per day: 61

Finally picked up Route of Ice and Salt, which I funded via Indiegogo. Turns out it was not at ~all~ the book for me, but I'm still happy to cross it off my TBR.

I'm getting back into reading some books for review, which is where Pinata comes in. Again, it was not a hit for me - I may do an actual review here on why. In short, I think it would be better suited as a movie.

Spy x Family is bae.

Seanan McGuire's Wayward Children series is bae - Lost in the Moment in Found is a solid entry to the series; I only wish it were longer.

True Grit is a re-read for me, though because I read so much and my brain is soup, I'd forgotten all but the bare-bones plot. I buddy-read it with my partner as well and we were having a great time laughing together over it. I'd forgotten how funny it was, given it's a revenge tale.

In addition to getting back into review books, I'm also making a point to read more non-fiction this yere. I started with Martin Short's memoir, which was funny, and charming, and unexpectedly sad. I loved reading about his genuine friendships with other celebs though, like Eugene Levy and Tom Hanks.

Gracekeepers is another re-read for me, and part of my initiative to pick at least one book a month from my re-read pile. I've given myself a rough TBR for the year, based around wanting to make sure I re-read certain books or series. This is a sort of quietly magical tale of found family and it's fairly grim at times too. Very character-focused and I really enioyed revisiting it.

I did not count The Art of Cult of the Lamb as a book I read, or added to my page count. I just wanted to highlight it because it's wonderful - definitely worth checking out if you like video game art books.

Overall, high enjoyment of what I read this month and I'm hoping to keep up the renewed focus on making time to read!

3-3-23

[joseopher]

hello! i stumbled upon your aftg sapphic summer post on my for you page and though i’d offer some aftg sapphic fic recs:

counting my blessings by quensty (https://archiveofourown.org/works/25203838) - renison in a wild west au

a hundred jewels on throats by poltergeists (https://archiveofourown.org/works/16443548) - renison as gods in a greek mythology au

sore-ring to cope by flybbfly (https://archiveofourown.org/works/8878429) - renison post-canon get back together at nicky and erik’s wedding

count me down, the future’s here by stranglerfig (https://archiveofourown.org/works/24351673) - an amazing transfem!allison character study with bonus renison

vengeance and death by cthulu_sun (https://archiveofourown.org/works/17104415) - hauntingly beautiful renison fic with renee as a guardian angel of vengeance/death and allison as sunshine

The Gracekeepers by wishbonetea (https://archiveofourown.org/works/26237314/chapters/63860944) - to my knowledge this is the longest renison-centric fic in the fandom and it’s a fantastic original post-apocalyptic universe

night and day by reneewvlkers (https://archiveofourown.org/works/11463897) - fic written pre-tsc where laila/alvarez are enemies to lovers

Don't Speak Against the Sun by zeffyamethyst (https://archiveofourown.org/works/898820) - this was the 1st ever aftg fic posted on ao3 and these oc’s were the inspiration for Laila and Cat

and if you’re cool with genderbends, I got a few recs for sapphic!andreil fics:

force of nature/flat affect by badacts (https://archiveofourown.org/works/14274867/chapters/32925354) - brief retelling of the series in an au where the twinyards and neil are cisswapped

who's that clawing your heart out? by lolainslackss (https://archiveofourown.org/works/15064868) - au centering around fem!andrew struggle with lesbian nails™️

in this world alone by mostly_maudlin (https://archiveofourown.org/works/44431072) - introspective college au

i hope you enjoy these! happy reading <3

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR SUCH A GIANT LIST🙏 Will be reading tonight and commenting as much as I can! :D

Thanks again for the recs!! <3 <3 <3

What is sapphic summer?

[moondal514]

Small Renison fic rec list cuz it’s pride month and I love lesbians

(Also pushing my Allison pov fic rec list which has lots of Renison fic)

vengeance and death by cthulu_sun

legend says you have wax-dipped wings and golden fingernails and knives made of the blood you have spilled. legend says you are not merciful.

-

in which renee is a tired guardian angel, finds the foxes, and falls in love.

Absolutely criminally underrated Renison fic that I will rec to the sun

in this world, there's no such thing as soulmates by kwritten

for the prompt: what disasters we live

Stunning Renison drabble that draws some genius parallels between the girls

The Gracekeepers by wishbonetea/ @wishbonetea

The sea has flooded the earth. Allison lives on a circus boat, floating between the scattered islands that remain and trading dazzling and death-defying feats for food from the islanders. Renee lives alone in a lighthouse in the middle of the ocean, with only the birds and fish for company. As penance for her past, she works as a gracekeeper, tending the graves of those who die at sea. A storm brings them together, but under clear skies they must part. When one of the Foxes goes missing, Renee joins to help. It’s meant to be a temporary escape, but Allison might be a reason to stay.

What is probably the longest Renison fic in the fandom, a really cool universe with some amazing worldbuilding

a hundred jewels on throats by ghvsts

"have you seen the goddess from the seafoam," they whisper, "she is more beautiful than anything."

(in which seth is ares, renee is persephone, and allison has had enough)

Me being a slut for a greek mythology au? more likely than you think

[aconissa]

hi ana do you perhaps have any recs for mother-daughter relationship pieces?

I don't seek out a lot of works on mother-daughter relationships (probably because they're a bit too close to home sometimes), but one I did love a lot when I first read it was Deborah Levy's novel Hot Milk (2016). It's the book which this line comes from:

However, the novel is from the adult daughter's perspective and the mother is pretty awful, so the relationship is more clearly portrayed as toxic. In that vein, if you want a really dysfunctional mother-daughter relationship, read Gillian Flynn's Sharp Objects (2006).

Two books which interrogate mother-daughter relationships from both sides with more empathy are Celeste Ng's standalone novels Everything I Never Told You (2014) and Little Fires Everywhere (2017). I prefer the former over the latter, but both are worth reading (the tv adaptation of the latter is decent enough too).

Jeanette Winterson's novel Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit (1985) and her memoir Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal? (2011) both approach her relationship with religion as a queer woman and with her adoptive mother. Both are fantastic reads.

Rebecca Solnit's The Faraway Nearby (2013) sits somewhere between essays and memoir and everything under the sun, as is her way, but Solnit comes back to her relationship with her ailing mother throughout the book.

The central character in Kazuo Ishiguro's A Pale View of Hills (1982) is a woman reflecting on her daughter's suicide, and it's a beautiful little book, but obviously a difficult read.

Kiran Millwood Hargrave's The Island at the End of Everything (2017) is also beautiful and very sad at times. It's technically a middle grade book but I wouldn't let that stop you, Hargrave's writing is wonderful regardless of the age group she is writing for.

Though I haven't read either book yet, I know that Bernardine Evaristo's Girl, Woman, Other (2019) and Amy Tan's The Joy Luck Club (1989) both feature mothers and daughters (or similar roles) as their core characters.

Finally, there's many beautiful novels which don't focus on mother-daughter relationships but do examine motherhood or other inter-generational relationships between women which are well worth reading: Homegoing (2016) by Yaa Gyasi, The Owl Killers (2009) by Karen Maitland, The Gracekeepers (2015) by Kirsty Logan (who also has an upcoming memoir on queer motherhood called The Unfamiliar), America is Not the Heart (2018) by Elaine Castillo, and The Mercies (2020) by Kiran Millwood Hargrave.

[danasdreams]

The Gracekeepers by Kirsty Logan

Maps in books are the best.

[oiyaoiya-insig]

Oiya's bullshittery (Intro n Accounts???)

AO3: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ozwald_AY

Twitter: twatter.com/imnotsorryig

Instagram: instagorm.com/anoobisyrameas

Hi! I'm Oz/Kaleb/Oiya (whichever you'd like to call me is fine dw!!! Not worried about pronouns too so dw dw) I usually draw OC things and fanarts of things I like! Currently a 3rd year college student tho so things are quite busy on my side.

My blog (?) Will probably just be random fanarts, fic wips, cosplays, my cats, mediocre song covers, and random thoughts too I guess? (we'll see how it goes)

Main interests and ships rn are: MTSF (三嫁咸鱼), SangCheng (🪭🪷), FengQing (🏹🗡), LingLong, The Gracekeepers (by Kirsty Logan)

(will fix this in the future but this'll do for now!)

[squareofshape]

some queer fiction recs

all of these came from my "queer recs" tag on my librarything account. if you want my LT handle for more, just ask. the rules for making it onto this list were: 1) in my "queer recs" tag 2) i rated it 4.5 stars or 5 stars 3) it set up camp in my brain enough that i could write a mini description on the spot

authors:

Octavia Butler (absolute powerhouse of sci fi; there have been queer people in pretty much everything of hers i've read so far)

Becky Chambers (sci fi with a strong thread of gender diversity running through it all)

Sarah Waters (immaculately researched British historical fiction featuring women who love women in myriad ways)

books:

The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Klay by Michael Chabon, 2000 (a story about family and community and identity which is inextricably also about comic books)

The Chimes by Anna Smaill, 2015 (extremely cool post-apocalyptic world, probably coolest if you Know Some Stuff abt music)

The Gracekeepers by Kristy Logan, 2015 (sort of like Water for Elephants but with gay people, and boats instead of a train, and a house on the border between life and death)

How Long 'Til Black Future Month? by N.K. Jemison, 2018 (sci fi short stories with some fantasy and some ghost stories in there too)

Love After the End: An Anthology of Two-Spirit and Indigiqueer Speculative Fiction, ed. Joshua Whitehead, 2019 (enthralling and filled with hope, love, and joy)

My Real Children by Jo Walton, 2014 (takes "alternate history" and makes it personal)

Our Wives Under the Sea by Julia Armfield, 2022 (deep-sea horror: her wife came back wrong)

Planetfall by Emma Newman, 2015 (space homesteading horror/drama with a queer love story at its heart)

The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller, 2011 (I know, I know, but if you haven't--I really don't think you'll regret it)

Transmutation by Alex DiFrancesco, 2021 (sci fi and fantasy short stories with queer and especially trans themes)

have fun, let me know what you think.

[aroaessidhe]

Read in August

audio favourites

My Throat an Open Grave - 3.25

Flawless Girls - 3.5

The Dark We Know (arc) - 4

Mrs Mix Up - 3

The Gracekeepers - 4

Smile and be a Villain - 3.75

The Dead Cat Tail Assassins - 4.25

Earthflown - 3.25

Welcome, Caller - 3.25

Babel-17 - 4

Rakesfall - 3.5

The Eternal Ones - 3.5

Girls Night - 3.75

This Ravenous Fate - 3.5

So Witches We Became - 3.75

Outdrawn - 3.5

Dragonfruit - 4

And The Sky Bled - 3.5

The Butcher of the Forest - 4.25

Sailing By Gemini’s Star - 4.5

The Maid and The Crocodile - 4.5

The Loudest Silence - 3.5

Lockjaw - 3.75

Asking For A Friend - 3.75

As Born to Rule The Storm - 4.25

The Savior’s Rise - 4

graphic novels

Through The Woods - 4

Bibliomania - 4

Heartwood: Non-binary Tales of Sylvan Fantasy - 4

Prokaryote Season - 5

Shades of Fear - 5

Ready or Not - 4

The Baker & The Bard - 3

Wildful - 4.5

[bluenotemagpie]

hello! Haven't read all of these but wanted to rec the ones I could think of, plus boost in case any of my Scottish pals can think of others:

The Gracekeepers by Kirsty Logan (not exactly set in Scotland, but the author is Scottish & the book is influenced by Scottish folklore)

Young Mungo by Douglas Stuart

The Cutting Room by Louise Welsh

Skin Grows Over by Lucy Elizabeth Allan

Sonny and Me by Ross Sayers

Out There: An Anthology of Scottish LGBT Writing, ed. by Zöe Strachan

Vicky Romeo + Joolz by Ely Percy

Any queer books featuring Scottish main characters, or focusing on Scotland as a setting? Browny points if there’s Scottish gaelic featured!

hmmm… we’ve got The Scottish Boy by Alex de Campi as well as Best Laid Plaids by Ella Stainton.

I’m not sure if we have any others in our collection yet! the ones below are in our wishlists to purchase in the future though

We Were Always Here an anthology of queer scottish poetry

Girl Meets Boy by Ali Smith

Shuggie Bain by Douglas Stuart

[ceaselesslyborne]

Recent Reads

1. Keisha the Sket: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

A very powerful book, and one I enjoyed reading around as much as reading the book itself. Not an easy read by any means, but very much worth it. I won’t say any more; the conversation around this book is far bigger and more important than me.

2. The Gloaming: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I was pleased to find not one but two of Logan’s books on my latest library visit! This was a beautiful, eerie story with all the pull and magic of fairytales. I sometimes felt a little too lost in the prose, which tended towards slow and repetitive, but there were some sharp and poignant moments that truly made an impact and the short chapters made this a feverishly fast read.

3. The Constant Rabbit: ⭐️

Just not for me, I guess. Well written, with a dark and dry wit to offset the absurd/surreal aspects of the book, but... heavy handed. The world building felt forced and difficult to follow, and whilst I can normally appreciate a neat allegory, this lacked subtlety, and just came across as forced.

4. The Wolf and the Woodsman: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

I enjoyed this book, which was rich and dark in terms of tone and world building. I’d certainly be interested in reading more of Reid’s books. I think I’ve read too many similar books recently, though; the characters didn’t feel especially memorable, and considering the length of the book, little in terms of plot has stuck with me. The emphasis was definitely on world building rather than character development/dynamics or action, which at times felt too heavy. All of the right elements were there, but something about this book just didn’t stand out for me. Still worth a read for anyone who loves fairytales and dark fantasy.

5. The Heavens: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

It’s difficult to explain exactly why I liked this book, especially as I’m not entirely sure I understood it, but I did. The multiple perspectives/timeframes and constantly shifting narrative really engage the reader and make the emotions and struggles of the characters very vivid and easy to empathise with. It was dreamy and fragile and yet certain moments grounded you with a jolt. Perhaps I would’ve preferred a more conclusive ending, something concrete to anchor me as I read, but you could argue that the ambiguity added to the atmosphere and tone of the book.

6. Male Tears: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

I wasn’t sure what to expect from this book, and I’m not quite sure what I got from it, either. It was bleak, emotional, occasionally ironic. Most of the stories felt very similar in terms of content or tone or both, which I was surprised by as the collection was written over 15 years. It didn’t provide the epiphany I hoped for, but in truth this book was probably not written for me.

7. Here is the Beehive: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

An interesting premise, somewhat spoiled by the ‘poetic’ prose (I was reminded forcibly and not pleasantly of the trendy/artsy/tumblr/insta/rupi-kuar-wannabe kitsch that’s EVERYWHERE, STILL) but once I relaxed into the story and focused on the characters/plot it became easier to enjoy. An intriguing cast of characters (note: intriguing, not likeable), and once you get past the slightly gimmick-y style, the book does strike a genuine emotional chord.

8. The Gracekeepers: ⭐️⭐️

This book was disappointment considering how much I enjoyed Logan’s other books! It all felt very flat and vague and just didn’t grab me the way her other stories have. The characters came across as caricatures, and the lovely writing style did little to conceal the lack of, well, anything else.

- CJ

[treesofreverie]

She remembered her mistake, and she would continue to remember it even if she could be forgiven.

The Gracekeepers by Kirsty Logan

[nevinslibrary]

Weird & Wonderful Wednesday

The world where this takes place is one of islands and water. A lot of water. There are two types of people, damplings (they are born, raised, live, and die on the water) or landlockers. The two people do not interact much. Sometimes when there’s a religious event or when a floating circus comes on land. And, they don’t trust each other at all. The one time that they most definitely interact is when someone dies.

A gracekeeper is the one who buries the dead, which involves the body being put out to sea with a captive bird marking the body’s spot until that bird dies (I know… yeesh… that hit me in a weird way when I read it). In this case, Callandish is a gracekeeper who meets North when a member of North's Excalibur circus troupe dies. Callandish goes to look for her mother and for North, but then, there’s a storm that changes both their lives.

I liked that it didn’t spend too long on the ‘where are we, why, how exactly did this dystopia happen’ and that sort of thing. It brought much more focus on the story itself, and less about the technical details. The world building was amazing. It was so good that I felt like I was on that planet (Earth, or not-Earth if you want, you decide) and then I was just in the story, getting swept away with the plot lines.

You may like this book If you Liked: Black Ships by Jo Graham, Blackfish City by Sam J. Miller, or Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel

The Gracekeepers by Kirsty Logan

[jenjenphotography]

Of the Ocean  Blue TBR

The Visitors by Simon Sylvester Passenger by Alexandra Bracken The Gracekeepers by Kirsty Logan © Jen-Jen Photography