#the ladies of grace adieu and other stories

[pristina-nomine]

Last witchy read of the month

[cultivating-wildflowers]

2024 Reading - September

Another productive month. Which I know would rub some readers the wrong way, and sometimes that mindset isn't great for me either, but as a girlie who likes her lists? I'm happy getting to check off stuff.

The biggest accomplishment this month was FINALLY finishing The Disorderly Knights. It took me so long that by the end of the story, I'd already forgotten what happened at the beginning. But it's done, and I have the next book on my shelf. For next year. Maybe.

Total books: 10  |  New reads: 9  |   2024 TBR completed: 2 (1 DNF) / 29/36 total   |   2024 Reading Goal: 63/100

August | October

potential reading list from September 1st

#1 - The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics by Daniel James Brown - 5/5 stars

After hearing people rave about the movie and then the book, I snagged a cheap copy from my local used bookstore and decided to check it out.

It was so so worth it. Absolutely breathtaking. All of the assorted narratives--the different characters, the historical background, the technical details--came together so perfectly and resulted in a captivating story. I love every bit of it. I cried.

#2 - In the Forests of Serre by Patricia A. McKillip - 5/5 stars ('24 TBR)

This is exactly the sort of story I was craving. Absolutely spellbinding.

More like this: I had the sense this story reminded me of something else I've read, but I'm blanking on it just now. If I remember, I'll come back here. It might have been a fairy tale kind of story. It's a bit like the first Earthsea book. Perhaps Robin McKinley, Patricia C. Wrede, Madeleine L'Engel, Shannon Hale.... Diana Wynne Jones. It feels like a Ghibli movie.

#3 - The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion, Vol 2 by Beth Brower - 4/5 stars

A fun installment! I am quickly losing track of the cast, but I can totally see the author's vision of this being a delightful period drama.

#4 - The Disorderly Knights by Dorothy Dunnett - 4/5 stars

Note to anyone I've recommended this series to: I unfortunately have to retract that hearty recommendation and replace it with...several caveats.

I finished! Honestly, I don't know why it took so long, because once I made myself sit still and read it was easy-ish going; I just had trouble sitting still.

Ok, so "easy" is not the right word. With this series, the first half of each book tends to be a slow build-up, while the end careens rapidly downhill to the conclusion and the ever-brilliant (and painful) reveal.

And, uh.... This got much darker and more intense than I was prepared for. (If I made a habit of reading more in this line, I might have seen that coming, but epics aren't my usual fare.) Narratively, it all worked very well, but it was right on the edge of what I can tolerate.

Still, with 200 pages left to go, I absolutely planned to keep reading the series, well aware that it would be...an experience. Then I saw a blurb for both Book Four and Book Five, skimmed some super vague reviews for Book Four ("Five Stars. owowowowowowowowowowww") and freaked out. And, against all my usual inclinations, hunted for spoilers. And now I'm scared. (But, weirdly, less stressed about the conclusion? Which is an odd experience.)

#5 - Od Magic by Patricia A. McKillip - 3/5 stars (audio)

This confirms my suspicion that McKillip is one of those hit-or-miss authors for me. The first book of hers that I read was The Changeling Sea, six years ago, and I remember absolutely nothing about it. Then In the Forests of Serre blew me away. Od Magic? Another middling story.

Don't get me wrong; McKillip's writing is gorgeous. It immediately draws you in, connects you to living, breathing characters, and paints the most vivid pictures. But the story here just kind of...wanders along. It's a pleasant journey, but not very exciting.

Note: I didn't dive into "Od Magic" because of how much I loved "In the Forests of Serre". I needed an "O" title, and realized McKillip had a few. 😅

#6 - Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones - 5/5 stars (reread, audio)

We all know I love this. 'Nuff said.

#7 - Yours From the Tower by Sally Nicholls - 4/5 stars

Another Tumblr rec! And a read that had the unfortunate pressure of me getting to it on the heels of 1) a so-so fantasy and 2) a historical fiction adventure that wrung me out. I did my best not to go into it with any expectations outside of being pleasantly charmed, and charmed I was. 90% of it was a fun, light read with just a touch of drama, but my stars, the end had me rolling. There's something so fun about epistolary novels when it comes to twists and big reveals.

#8 - Thornhedge by T. Kingfisher - 5/5 stars (audio)

A gorgeous little story.

#9 - Bryony and Roses by T. Kingfisher - 4/5 stars (audio)

Largely enjoyable, but the ending felt rushed.

#10 - The Ladies of Grace Adieu and Other Stories by Susanna Clarke - 4/5 stars

An impulse pick from the library. I wanted something short and sweet and discovered this after finishing Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell. As is becoming a habit with Clarke's writing, I enjoyed this book. I loved the variety of styles and tones within the collection.

DNF*

The Element of Fire by Martha Wells - Not a bad story, but by the 15% mark I remained bored and vaguely confused and unable to pay attention, so I gave up. I like Wells's writing style (obviously), but this was evidently her debut and is a bit dull around the edges. For some reason it reminded me vaguely of The Curse of Chalion, which I love, so might be worth checking out if you enjoy Lois McMaster Bujold. Goodreads also shows that fans of T. Kingfisher might enjoy this one as well. (Note: Paladin's Grace [below] also had the same general feel as The Element of Fire and The Curse of Chalion)

The Anthropology of Turquoise: Reflections on Desert, Sea, Stone, and Sky by Ellen Meloy ('24 TBR) - I was hoping for a more scientific exploration of color. Instead, this book is a collection of (in my and my friends' opinions) weirdly stuffy, stilted essays. I don't usually mind slow, descriptive/lyrical writing, but this is something else. If you don't mind a deeply personal and conversational writing style and a book you can sit with for several months, definitely check this one out, because it has merit; it's just not for me.

Zao's Tales by J.A. Sommer - I'm still vaguely unclear on how this book arrived on my shelf (it was a gift from my mother and she bought it to support someone?). Decidedly not for me. Also...now I don't have a "Z" title for my alphabet challenge lol.

just kidding, I found another one that was kind of on my radar and ordered it from the library, whoo

Paladin's Grace by T. Kingfisher - I'm learning that Kingfisher really straddles the line on what I'm willing to tolerate content-wise. This one was a "no" based on that.

The Sea at the End of Everything by Emily McCosh - The writing style was not for me. Sorry, Ruby.

*I'm starting to wonder if I should bother recording books I DNF.... They make up fully a third of the books I've picked up this year.

Currently Reading:

The Zombie Survival Guide: Complete Protection from the Living Dead by Max Brooks - just started

[prometheus-ghost]

Dammit I want this power! I would only use it for good, I swear!! 😏

[fauna-a]

Things I've read in 2023: The Ladies of Grace Adieu and other stories by Susanna Clarke (a selection: The Ladies of Grace Adieu, The Duke of Wellington misplaces his horse, Tom Brightwind or How the Fairy Bridge was built at Thoresby, John Uskglass and the Cumbrian charcoal) -> Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell

Now toasted cheese is a temptation few men can resist, be they charcoal burners or kings. John Uskglass reasoned thus: all of Cumbria belonged to him – therefore this wood belonged to him – therefore this toasted cheese belonged to him.

[number63liveblogs]

Thoughts on The Ladies of Grace Adieu and Other Stories

This short story collection was mostly about showing us a point of view of the world that we didn’t get from the book itself, so the bulk of the stories were about either women, who mostly didn’t have a voice in the society that the book depicted, or from the time before England lost its magic, which was purposefully being kept from Jonathan who ended up being the main point of view character.

Except The Duke of Wellington Misplaces His Horse, which was about a character who did have a voice and who we knew a lot about already. I think the author just wanted to write a silly crossover fanfiction and get it published. So, congratulations I guess?

I think this collection used the gimmick of being in-universe text much better than the book itself, there was a lot of playing with the form of the text, and we even got in-universe context for a few of the texts.

I think my favourite of the stories ended up being Mr Simonelli or The Fairy Widower, I think that one told us the most about the world that we didn’t see in the book itself, and I found Mr. Simonelli himself to be an interesting character.

[juddgeeksout]

Dolmenwood: Bloody Morning in the Jaunty Horn

tl;dr: Tamrin’s Outlaw Friends arrived at the Jaunty Horn and got into a tussle with a trio of shape-shifting fairies who had been in the form of a Breggle Longhorn Knight and a pair of Thieves. On the first night of spring the Jaunty Horn, a well known road-side inn on the Ditchway, was full of human and Breggle shepherds ready to run their herds to market. There was a Longhorn Breggle Knight…

[19burstraat]

I don't really care for a 'soc 3' as a full novel (I consider the duology a very finished narrative, and I'm doubtful it'll ever happen anyway) but I would go fucking crazy for a short story collection, both pre-and-post canon. susanna clarke's the ladies of grace adieu which accompanies jonathan strange and mr norrell, and tamsyn muir's short stories for each of the locked tomb paperbacks are so great, and I'd kill for something like that for soc... I know this is a niche that fanfiction can and does fill, but there's so much stuff that's only alluded to in canon that could make a killer short story. tell me about kaz's heist on the diplomat's wife who loved emeralds. tell me about jesper's time on the novyi zem front with colm. tell me about imogen; what happened to her? what about the other barrel gangs? this could even be a chance for leigh to tell us what kaz's full name actually is lmao

[uskglass-mirror-house]

The Wood at Midwinter: theories

I am yet again thinking about the new Susanna Clarke book and I have some theories about the plot.

A girl encounters John Uskglass and it's all downhill from there: ok this one is pretty straightforward. The dark figure from the woods is Uskglass and what follows is a fairy tale similar in tone to that of The Ladies of Grace-Adieu. I'm kinda hoping for this one because of course I am!

Arabella Strange and Emma Pole help a girl escape a fairy: I know they were not mentioned anywhere in the small amount of plot available on GoodReads, but both of them are related to winter in jsamn and have had grim experiences with fairies. It would be cool to have them team up with another girl who is about to be kidnapped. Also, magical girl squad yay!

Stephen Black is our king: the dark figure turns out to be newbie king Stephen desperate to find a worthy human ally to help him restore Lost Hope. It would be pretty cool to see Stephen acting more like a fae king and then having to come to terms with his detachment from his fellow humans. It would also be cool to have a comedic story about his struggles as a king as seen by a random girl he convinced to help him.

Fake it 'till you make it: similar to the first one, but a fairy/random magician pretends to be Uskglass and the protagonist has to discover the charade and beat them in a battle of magic and wits. This would be great both in the dark fairy tale vibe and comedic folk tale one (although, real Uskglass is still the best Uskglass).

Surprise Childermass cameo: ok, this one has nothing to do with the whole plot, I think it would be really funny if the only reason this was set in the jsamn universe was like Childermass and Vinculus arguing in a tavern in the background while Segundus takes notes at some point in the story. Even funnier if the protagonist never even speaks to them and just passes by.

The unexpected return of the magicians (which is totally expected): I don't think this needs further explanation. However, I do wanna say that I would not like this one as much as the others because something so crucial to jsamn should not be addressed in a short story. If this is played as a fairy impersonating Strange though...10/10

A wood of its own: the story is linked to jsamn through references only while it does its own thing. I think this is the most probable one given the precedent set by The Ladies and I won't mind it... but please, if it's a fae loves a human story, please let it be queer! I'm just... there are so many normie het romances like that already, they are growing stale.

This is all I have for now. I think I will reblog with more ideas as they come. Meanwhile, if a fic writer comes by and wants to take a crack at one of these, by all means, be my guest (pretty sure some of these were already done, but still)!

[rosetintedkaleidoscope]

best books i read in 2023:

- comfort me with apples by catherynne valente. fantasy/horror. this is a creepy, dystopian, fairy tale kind of story. some biblical references. the creepiness builds up slowly through strange little details.

- quest for a maid by frances mary hendry. children's historical fiction / fantasy. 13th century scotland & norway. read as a child, completely forgot, then found in a used bookstore this year. it absolutely lives up to my memories: rich with details, from the foods to the clothes to the activities to all the little things you don't really notice that create a sense of another time & place. the loving attention to detail is a big part of why i like this book so much. also excellent characterization.

- nisa: the life and words of a !kung woman by marjorie shostak. nonfiction. okay, if you're following me you've probably heard of this because of @etirabys, whose posts inspired me to read it, but i had to include it anyway. based on interviews with a hunter-gatherer woman, it tells about her life and worldview. moving and immensely fascinating

- making babies: the science of pregnancy by david bainbridge. nonfiction. also immensely fascinating. my ideal kind of science book: readable yet detailed and in-depth, and full of strange facts. strong contender for the coolest nonfiction book i've ever read

- the ladies of grace adieu and other stories by susanna clarke. fantasy. wonderful eerie fairy stories

- we have always lived in the castle by shirley jackson. classic, horror. sinister and evocative. one thing i really like is that the characters are likeable and often happy despite the weirdness and the horror. it's optimistic and tragic at the same time, and gives you things to think about even after you're done reading

- murderbot series by martha wells. science fiction. it has an interesting plot and setting and all that, but the main appeal is the character and charm of the protagonist, a robot who hacks itself to gain freedom. all it wants to do with that freedom is watch tv, but dangerous stuff keeps getting in the way

[my-deer-friend]

Ohhohohohoho THE GAYS. Okay so Morton meets Rabenmark in the first chapter of the Germany section, at Auerbach's Celler in Leipzig. (If that name sounds familiar, its from Goethe's Faust. Morton was a massive Faust nerd and ripped off a bunch of stuff from it). There's 2 interesting parts of Morton/Motley's description of Rabenmark. (This is the kind of book where the main character is writing it within the story so the descriptions double as Morton's thoughts). The first one is "In precocity of character, in every respect, [Rabenmark] went immeasurably beyond any person I have ever known" This is interesting as well because it shows that even as a teen, people knew Bismarck was special. When describing his appearence, Morton says "I certainly have seldom seen a more unprepossesing [average] person at first sight, though on better acquaintance, after I had become warmly attacked to him, I began to think him rather well-looking" this is interesting when you consider the timeline. Rabenmark was "an intimate friend of a days growth" and in that time period, he went from average to attractive and Morton became warmly attached. Hmmmmmmmmmmm.

The next gay moment comes when Morton is at a nobleman's party and notices a familiar partygoer. "It was, indeed, fox Rabenmark, but instead of the savage, uncouth student, I saw an elegantly dressed young nobleman, of peculiarly graceful manner and distinguished address. His hair was curled and arranged in a becoming manner and his graceful and very handsome figure was displayed to the greatest advantage in a rich and well fashioned suit" Also I should mention that handsome is also used as a descriptor for a beautiful lady so HMMMMMMMM.

And lastly, the beauty that is the Adieu Forever scene. Rabenmark is in jail after killing 2 people (LONG STORY) and Morton finds out about this. He rushes to the jail and joins some of Rabenmark's other friends as Rabenmark explains what he did to get him in prison. After the explanation, Morton and his friends go to leave but Rabenmark calls Morton back. Rabenmark then throws his arms around Morton and kisses him, then says "we shall never meet again, except for a moment in the judgment-hall [courtroom] to-morrow" to which Morton says "I shall visit you afterwards, I can obtain permission easily" NOT KNOWING THAT RABENMARK IS PLANNING ON KILLING HIMSELF DURING THE TRIAL. Then Rabenmark says "Well, well-perhaps" BECAUSE HE DOESN'T WANT TO BREAK MORTON'S HEART YET, HE LETS HIM LIVE IF FANTASY FOR A BIT LONGER and then says "Adieu! - Morton, adieu for ever!" I am not, and will never be okay about that scene. Its the one good scene that Motley wrote. Its the scene that made me ship them in the first place. Its a thing of beauty.

After reading over this and cackling in delight, I went to poke around in the book a bit and... boy, I think there's some more here to unpack 👀

However, I am in the midst of moving house, so give me a few more days! <3

[uovoc]

2023 Media consumption

God tier: media that invoked blorbo-induced euphoria, mini-obsession, or just haunt me

White Cat Legend (大理寺日志, Dali Court Journal) - donghua, seasons 1 and 2. The new vice minister of the imperial court of criminal justice is, unfortunately, a cat demon. Tang Dynasty workplace comedy/political intrigue. Lovely animation, sick fight scenes, and catboys.

Scissor Seven (刺客伍六七) - donghua, seasons 2-3. Netflix summary: "Seeking to recover his memory, a scissor-wielding, hairdressing, bungling quasi-assassin stumbles into a struggle for power among feuding factions." Season 1 was just ok at best, season 2 was great, season 3 was phenomenal, season 4 was meh.

Derkholm duology by Diana Wynne Jones (reread)

God Troubles Me / Hanhua Riji (汉化日记) - donghua. Cringefail loser girl Su Moting, her cringefail smartphone god, and her cringefail cat (demon) have to save the world. But first she has to go to work. And get takeout. And watch dramas. The premise sounds SO cringe but it's well-executed and hilarious. And actually a pretty sharp but good-humored window into the delights and horrors of modern everyday life in china.

The Sisters Brothers by Patrick DeWitt (reread). At the peak of the California gold rush, hitmen Charlie and Eli Sisters are hired for a job that Eli is liking less and less. 1st-person perspective of a stone-cold killer, where it turns out the killer is just Some Guy. Who is kind of awkward. And pathetic. And maybe not very bright.

Gobelins graduation animated shorts: "Chroniques de l'Eau Salée" (2021), "Last Summer" (2022), and "Go Fishboy" (2022). Available to watch on YouTube. Got caught up on 2021 and 2022 and these are the ones that will haunt me.

Ranma 1/2 by Rumiko Takahashi - manga (reread). Teenage martial artist is cursed to transform into a hot girl whenever he's splashed with cold water. Still some of the funniest and most deranged comedy I've ever read.

"Golden Age" - short story by Naomi Novik set in the Temeraire universe. Hilarious and delightful Feral Temeraire AU.

Just ok: media that I didn't hate, and maybe even enjoyed

A Dirty Job by Christopher Moore

Coyote Blue by Christopher Moore

Fluke: Or, I Know Why the Winged Whale Sings by Christopher Moore

Glass Onion (2022) dir. Rian Johnson

Puss in Boots: the Last Wish (2022) dir. Joel Crawford

Liar & Spy by Rebecca Stead

Witch's Business by Diana Wynne Jones (reread)

Chrestomanci series by Diana Wynne Jones (reread) - Charmed Life, The Lives of Christopher Chant, Mixed Magics, The Pinhoe Egg

Firebirds: An Anthology of Original Fantasy and Science Fiction, ed. Sharyn November. Faves: "Beauty" by Sherwood Smith, "Little Dot" by Diana Wynne Jones, and "Remember Me" by Nancy Farmer.

All Systems Red (异星危机) by Martha Wells, Simplified tr. by 黎思敏

All Saints Street (万圣街) - donghua, seasons 1-3

Moira's Pen by Megan Whalen Turner

Enchanted Glass by Diana Wynne Jones (reread)

The Game by Diana Wynne Jones (reread)

Deep Secret by Diana Wynne Jones (reread)

Selected Discworlds: Thief of Time, Unseen Academicals (reread)

The Confessions of Max Tivoli by Andrew Sean Greer (reread)

The Impossible Lives of Greta Wells by Andrew Sean Greer

"Louise", Gobelins 2021 graduation animated short. Pretty good, but not god tier.

The Time of the Ghost by Diana Wynne Jones (reread)

Less by Andrew Sean Greer. Most of it was a slog, but the ending was wonderfully tender.

The Merlin Conspiracy by Diana Wynne Jones (reread)

Secondhand Souls by Christopher Moore

The Ladies of Grace Adieu and Other Stories by Susanna Clarke

Are You Listening? by Tillie Walden

Esperanza Rising by Pam Munoz Ryan

Spinning by Tillie Walden

Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides (reread)

The Mermaid (美人鱼) - movie (2016)

Exhalation by Ted Chiang. Fave: Exhalation

Stories of Your Life and Others by Ted Chiang

Motorcity - cartoon (rewatch)

Sing 2 - movie

Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves - movie

White Cat Legend (大理寺日志) manhua through chapter 186

A Monster in Paris - movie (rewatch)

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse - movie

Lionboy trilogy by Zizou Corder: Lionboy, The Chase, and The Truth (reread)

The Moorchild by Eloise McGraw

Creation of the Gods I: Kingdom of Storms (封神第一部：朝歌风云) - movie

Our Flag Means Death - season 2

Skellig by David Almond (reread). Even more unsettling and magical than I remembered.

The Scum Villain's Self-Saving System (人渣反派自救系统) by Mo Xiang Tong Xiu

Savvy by Ingrid Law (reread)

The Silent Boy by Lois Lowry

Golden Age and Other Stories by Naomi Novik. "Golden Age" alone was amazing. Every thing else: meh.

Wonder by RJ Palacio except that the ending sucked

蓝溪镇 (Lanxi Zhen/Blue Creek Town) - manhua (reread), through chapter 112

Translation State by Ann Leckie

Disliked and often DNF'd

House of Suns by Alastair Reynolds

A Pale View of Hills by Kazuo Ishiguro

Wait Till Helen Comes by Mary Downing Hahn

The Stars are Legion by Kameron Hurley

Phoenix Rising by Karen Hesse

Palimpsest by Catherine Valente

Knives Out (2019) dir. Rian Johnson

The Chosen and the Beautiful by Nhi Vgo

Hench by Natalie Zina Walschots. Genuinely creative concept, enjoyable characters, and horrifying (affectionate) ending! Writing was just very, very bad.

The Lust Lizard of Melancholy Cove by Christopher Moore

Stowaway by Karen Hesse

Nirvana in Fire (狼牙榜) - ok objectively it was fine. It was just SO long that I started losing patience at multiple points.

Marcel the Shell with Shoes on (2021) dir. Dean Fleischer Camp

Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry by Mildred Taylor

Suzume - anime movie

Fairies Albums (百妖谱) - donghua

Link Click （时光代理人）- donghua

The Strange Tales of Oscar Zahn by Tri Vuong - webcomic

Into the Riverlands by Nghi Vo

Journey to the West: Demons Strike Back (西游伏妖篇) - movie

Labyrinths: Selected Stories and Others Writings by Jorge Luis Borges

The Buried Giant by Kazuo Ishiguro

Frozen 2 - movie

Logan - movie

The Three Sisters of Tenmasou - movie

The Water Dancer by Ta-Nehisi Coates. Nothing new.

Bewilderment by Richard Powers

Nimona (2023) - movie

Prophet by Helen MacDonald and Sin Blache

One Piece - the live action Netflix series

Good Omens season 2

Birdwing by Rafe Martin

Blue Eye Samurai - netflix cartoon

Haven't You Heard I'm Sakamoto - anime

System Collapse by Martha Wells

The Cay by Theodore Taylor (reread)

The Chocolate War by Robert Cormier

Bottoms (2023) - movie

Daily Life of the Immortal King (仙王的日常生活) - donghua

Witch King by Martha Wells. Actually I enjoyed the Kai/Bashasa storyline a lot. The present-day storyline I found extremely boring. Which was unfortunate because it was more than half the book.

The King's Avatar (全职高手) - donghua

The Apothecary Diaries - anime

Assorted nonfiction

The Electricity of Every Living Thing by Katherine May. Bored. DNF

Alone in the Wilderness (2004) - dir. Dick Proenneke. Documentary of Proenneke's year spent living alone in the Alaskan wilderness. Neat look at one dude building a cabin, furniture, and all his accompanying household implements by hand.

A River Lost: The Life and Death of the Columbia by Blaine Harden. The human and environmental significance of the Columbia dam system.

Gifted Earth: The Ethnobotany of the Quinault and Neighboring Tribes by Douglas Deur. Guide to key native species and their traditional uses.

A Swim in a Pond in the Rain: Four Russians Give a Master Class on Writing, Reading, and Life by George Saunders. Four classic Russian short stories with accompanying technical analysis of their narrative construction. Great look at the process of writing and analyzing stories.

Animals Make Us Human by Temple Grandin - animal behavioral psychology

Animals in Translation by Temple Grandin - more animal behavioral psychology

Crying in HMart by Michelle Zauner. DNF. Felt like the book could have been 1/4 of its length. Mostly nothing new.

Wood in American Life: 1776-2076 by WG Youngquist and HO Fleischer. Wood use in America. Really makes you realize just how many things are now made out of plastic but used to be wood. And how much more difficult and expensive it was to make and replace objects.

Authentic Diversity: How to change the workplace for good by Michelle Silverthorn. Concise and nicely concrete. Would be a good starting place for an executive.

Weapons of Math Destruction by Cathy O'Neil - how some big data algorithms reinforce preexisting inequality, and how to improve them.

The Relationship Cure by Joan Declaire and John M. Gottman. The classic originator of the "bids for attention" approach. Pretty good, most helpful was the part where it identifies the styles of responses.

Essential Retirement Planning for Solo Agers: A Retirement and Aging Roadmap for Single and Childless Adults by Sara Zeff Geber

A Wolf at the Table by Augusten Burroughs

the excellent hyperlocal nature guidebook I bought after encountering the author at the mall

Your Money or Your Life: 9 Steps to Transforming Your Relationship with Money and Achieving Financial Independence, by Vicki Robin and Joe Dominguez. 2018 ed.

[pristina-nomine]

Fav reads of 2024

[mirillel]

People you'd like to know better!

Tagged by @meadowlarkx - thank youuu 🫶🏻💕

1. Three ships: Silvergifting (the gift that keeps on giving), Oromë/Celegorm (it's about the devotion and fall from grace), Celebrían/Elrond/Gil-Galad

2. First ship: well my first ever ship was Buffy/Angel in elementary school haha. First ship of the 3 years and ongoing Tolkien phase was Gigolas and later Russingon when I got into the Silm

3. Last song: The Frost by Mitski - new album let's goooo! I think my fave might be The Deal

4. Last movie: Castle in the Sky comfort watch

5. Currently reading: just finished The Thief of Always by Clive Barker this evening! Gonna start reading Susanna Clarke's The Ladies of Grace Adieu and Other Stories tomorrow <3

6. Currently watching: got stuck on my X-Files rewatch rip. Finally started watching The Terror and I have a friend coming over on Sunday to start watching Pushing Daisies :)

7. Last thing you wrote: I don't write fic so it's just what I'm working on for uni rip. If I reinterpret this as fandom stuff I'm working on then I'm reaaalllllly trying to draw stuff for silm smut weeks. Fingers crossed i get that done and actually post ✌🏻 Really been wanting to get back into art but with how long I haven't really done anything it's kind of intimidating

Low pressure tags for @zealouswerewolfcollector @jockbots @armenelols :)

[gaslightgallows]

2024 TBR Pile of Good Intentions

(crossposted to Patreon)

This year’s TBR pile looks very much like last year’s (hence the reused banner image) but last year was also a shitshow so I’m giving myself a do-over. Although looking back, I did actually manage to read two (2) of the books on last year’s list! I even wrote about How to Live Like a Monk for my patrons! The other one was Mexican Gothic… Y’know, I should really write about Mexican Gothic…

Lion’s Paw Reads: (aka books I’m planning to do patron content about)

Orlando, by Virginia Woolf

A Haunted History of Invisible Women: True Stories of America’s Ghosts, by Leanna Renee Hieber and Andrea Janes

The Haunting of Alma Fielding, by Kate Summerscale

The Octagon House: A Home for All, by Orson Squire Fowler

Other Reads (Fiction):

Our Wives Under the Sea, by Julia Armfield

The Ladies of Grace Adieu and Other Stories, by Susana Clarke

Radiance, by Catherynne M. Valente

Gideon the Ninth, by Tamsin Muir

Piranesi, by Susanna Clarke

The City We Became, by N.K. Jemison

Nothing but Blackened Teeth, by Cassandra Khaw

The Story of Silence, Alex Myers

A Psalm for the Wild-Built, by Becky Chambers

Viriconium, by M. John Harrison

Queer Little Nightmares: An Anthology of Monstrous Fiction and Poetry, Edited by David Ly & Daniel Zomparelli

What Moves the Dead, by T. Kingfisher *I actually finished this last week!

Phantastes: A Faerie Romance, by George MacDonald

Other Reads (Non-Fiction):

City of Sin, by Catherine Arnold

The Mutual Admiration Society, by Mo Moulton

Monster, She Wrote, by Lisa Kröger and Melanie R. Anderson

The Gilded Edge, by Catherine Prendergast

Dickensland, by Lee Jackson

I might also do posts on some of these other books, provided I get to/through them. If you’re at all interested in my thoughts on this assemblage of horror, fantasy, scifi, and very niche historical non-fiction, I hope you’ll consider subscribing and telling me what else I should be reading!

[magpiefngrl]

May + June Books

Photo Credit (original): Ed Robertson

May + June 2023

I read 17 books in the past two months and filled 8 categories of my Reading Challenge. I managed 6 books from my piles of unread physical books and I completed a few series I'd started ages ago. Overall, I'm plodding along OK as regards my 2023 reading goals.

3 books that stood out were:

Ocean's Echo by Everina Maxwell (sci-fi with romantic subplot)

I didn't love Maxwell's debut novel but this one!! I couldn't put it down! Loved the characters, how different to each other but also complementary they were; their telepathic powers and the worldbuilding; the excellent pacing; the complicated space politics. Keep in mind that it's not heavy on the romance; things between the pairing develop very, very gradually.

Scum Villain's Self-Saving System by MXTX (danmei/ BL)

Are these books perfect? No. Do I care? Also no. 5 stars and 10000 satisfaction points.

The Ladies of Grace Adieu by Susanna Clarke (short stories, historical fantasy)

Really charming and engaging stories set in the world of Clarke's Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell novel.

What's next?

I'm finally on summer hols and officially unemployed so more time to read. I'll focus on romance novels as I'd like to write one myself. I expect a lot of rereads of my fave KJ Charles and, hopefully, a book or two from my piles of physical unread novels.

What about you? What is everyone reading?

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