Top Ten Tuesday: Books I’d Like to Re-Read

Hey, wow, it’s been a hot minute since I’ve participated in this post. Almost three months. Geez. Anyway, Happy Tuesday!

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly post currently hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. It celebrates lovely lists, wonderful books and the bookish community. This week’s topic is Books Guaranteed to Put an End to Your Book Slump. But seeing as I am in the midst of my second reading slump this year I’m not really feeling this week’s post, so I decided to go rogue.

I’m going for an easy one since it’s my first time back with this post in a while, a TTT prompt from earlier in the summer: Books I’d Like to Re-Read. Specifically, books that you enjoy re-reading or books that you’d like to re-read again at some point. I’ve decided to split this between the two: so I’ll do five books I like re-reading and five books I’d like to re-read someday.

Anyway, without further ado, let’s get going!

Book Series and Novels That I’ve Read More Than Twice

I read basically all of these back when I was a teenager. I re-read stuff a lot more back then, not only because I had more time, but also because I unfortunately kind of feel out of the habit as an adult.

The Warrior Cats Series by Erin Hunter
The Caster Chronicles by Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl
Percy Jackson and the Olympians by Rick Riordan
The Other by Thomas Tryon
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

Books Series and Novels That I’d Like to Re-Read in the Future

I’d like to get back into re-reading stuff again eventually. Because there are a decent amount of books and series that I would love to revisit again sometime. Here are five of them.

The Seven Realms Series by Cinda Williams Chima
The Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells
This Monstrous Thing by Mackenzi Lee
A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens
Among the Beasts and Briars by Ashley Poston

What are your favorite books/series to re-read? What books/series would you like to re-read but haven’t yet?

As always, thanks so much for reading, and I hope that you have an amazing day/night!

See ya ~Mar

Fantasy Tropes Book Tag

This tag looked awesome and was a ton of fun. I’m so glad that Leslie @ Books Are the New Black tagged everyone. Welp, here I go!

Rules:

📚 Mention the creator (one’s peculiar)
🏷️ Answer the questions
📚 Tag as many people as you like
🏷️ HAVE FUN!

👸 The Lost Princess 👸
A book/series you lost interest in halfway through

So, full disclosure: I went into Serpent & Dove kind of planning to hate-read it. But then I ended up enjoying it quite a bit. Sure I had a lot of problems with it – and it was a bit of a trashy romantasy novel – but I had fun with it. Enough to continue with the sequel, at least. No, Blood & Honey is where the real problems lie. I despised that book, and it completely turned me off from finishing the trilogy.

🛡️ The Knight in Shining Armor 🛡️
A hyped book/series you were swept up by

The Emily Wilde series sank its claws into my with Encyclopaedia and I fell further in love after reading Otherlands. I’m absolutely frothing at the mouth waiting for book three, I’m so excited. I absolutely adore this series.

🧙‍♂️ The Wise Old Wizard 🧙‍♂️
An author who amazes you with his/her writing

V.E. Schwab. Every book I’ve read of hers, from like three separate series and one standalone, has been a book that I enjoyed.

♍ The Maiden in Distress ♍
An undervalued character you wish had a bigger storyline

When reading The Girl With No Reflection and writing its review a couple weeks ago I felt that Prince Zhang was somewhat underutilized as a character, and that the narrative of this novel would have benefited if the POVs were split between him and Ying. I still feel this way now. Also, Ying’s handmaidens may as well have not been there for all their storylines mattered to the plot.

🗡️ The Magical Sword 🗡️
A magical item/ability you wished authors used less

Hmmm… This one is a bit tricky. I can’t really think of any specifically that bother me, but when stuff like time travel isn’t done right or written well, it pisses me off. So I guess magical items and abilities that are written badly.

😈 The Mindless Villain 😈
A phrase you cannot help but roll your eyes at

There are a couple. “Like calls to like” got to me a bit after some time while reading ACOTAR, “a breath she didn’t know she was holding” makes me almost physically angry, and I absolutely cannot stand the phrase/descriptor “pillowy lips.” I. Hate. That. Phrase.

🐉 The Untamed Dragon 🐉
A magical creature you wish you had as a pet

The Flames (Aries, Leo and Sagittarius) from the Charlie Bone series. Three adorable, hyper intelligent, immortal, magical fire cats? I mean come on, who wouldn’t want them? And there’s three of them.

🥠 The Chosen One 🥠
A book/series you will always root for

Murderbot was a character I fell for instantly and was immediately rooting for. I absolutely devoured this series when I first discovered it, and I think it’s something that I’ll continue to follow for a long time.

Sooo… Since I don’t really know anyone or have any blogging connections, everyone who reads this gets tagged! The fantasy tropes book tag was a fun one, so if you’re interested, you should totally do it!

As always, thanks to everybody so much for reading, and I hope that you have an awesome day/night!

See ya ~Mar

Top Ten Tuesday: Ten Favorite Books from Ten Favorite Series

Hey everybody! Happy Tuesday!

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly post currently hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. It celebrates lovely lists, wonderful books and the bookish community. This week’s topic is actually Books Featuring Travel, but I’m not feeling it this week. So I decided to do last week’s topic – 10 Favorite Books from 10 Favorite Series – since I missed last week.

Without further ado, let’s get started!

(Important Note: This list isn’t in order of my favorites, ironically enough. This list is in order of which book I thought of first. I just felt everyone should know that.)

#1

A Court of Mist and Fury: My mixed feelings about the ACOTAR series aside (aside from the fact that it’s one of my guilty pleasures), I loved A Court of Mist and Fury. Like, so much and so immediately, despite its flaws. I definitely think this is the best ACOTAR book.

#2

The Last Olympian: Not only is it the best PJO book, but I’d hazard to say that this book in particular is one of the greatest middle grade/young adult novels ever written. It’s just an amazing novel in general, and is such a satisfying conclusion to the original series. And since it’s so hard to stick the landing sometimes for authors, especially for a five book series, I’d say it’s a great accomplishment. (BTW, The Battle of the Labyrinth (book four) is also amazing – I honestly have trouble choosing which one I like more.)

#3

A Darker Shade of Magic: Despite being the first book in the Shades of Magic series, it’s still my favorite. Just, the way it’s written, the way it gives you just a taste of what’s coming, the characters, the setting(s) – it’s all just so, so good. I just love this book so much.

#4

The Gray Wolf Throne: I know that book three is a weird choice to pick, but out of the four Seven Realms books, The Gray Wolf Throne is my favorite for some reason. I like the final book, The Crimson Crown, a lot too, but book three is the one I like best.

#5

Once Upon a Broken Heart: I don’t think the OUABH books are the best written – in fact I think that these books have a TON of problems. But I enjoyed Once Upon a Broken Heart when I first read it a few years ago, and I like it more than the others in this trilogy, so it’s here.

#6

Exit Strategy: I love the first four novellas in the Murderbot Diaries pretty much equally, but there’s just something about Exit Strategy, what with everything coming together, that I love.

#7

Beautiful Creatures: Nearly every year in high school, I had this thing where every October, I’d get in the mood to read this book. Sometimes I’d read the second book in this series too (Beautiful Darkness), but there was something about Beautiful Creatures that made me want to come back and read it for years.

#8

Death Masks: Out of the seven Dresden Files books I’ve read, this one is by far my favorite. The pacing, the plot, the characters, the dialogue – the sass – it was all so perfect.

#9

Cress: When I first tried to read this like, six and a half years ago, I wasn’t vibing with it (I had a lot going on in my personal life at the time and it had a bit of a slow start), but reading it again last year… I dunno, it suddenly really clicked with me. Now I like it just about as much I love Scarlet – this was another one where I had trouble picking my favorite book out of two. It’s weird that they were both the two middle books – this series didn’t suffer from Middle Book Syndrome at all!

#10

The Inquisition: Out of the three books in the Summoner Trilogy, book two is the one I like the most. This is another case of a series where I liked the middle book(s) best. Once again, no Middle Book Syndrome here.

Spell the Month in Books: January 2024

Guess who’s been alternately sick and burnt out this month! (Me! I’m right here – it’s me!)

Spell the Month in Books is a monthly post created and hosted by Jana @ Reviews from the Stacks. I started participating in it a few months ago.

January is unfortunately one of my least favorite times of the year, if not my least favorite altogether. It just doesn’t have a lot going for it, in my opinion. It’s obscenely cold 🥶 , gloomy ☁️ , and it’s usually icy 🧊 instead of snowy ☃️. It’s the best time of year for cuddles 🥰 though – and hot chocolate ☕ – and I’ve been cooking 🍳 a lot, so that’s been fun.

Anyway, it’s time to spell January in book titles!

J

Jane Eyre

AUTHOR: Charlotte Brontë

RELEASE DATE: 1847

BOOK DESCRIPTION:

Determined to make her heroine “as poor and plain as myself,” Charlotte Brontë made a daring choice for her 1847 novel. Jane Eyre possesses neither the great beauty nor entrancing charm that her fictional predecessors used to make their way in the world. Instead, Jane relies upon her powers of diligence and perception, conducting herself with dignity animated by passion.

The instant and lasting success of Jane Eyre proved Brontë’s instincts correct. Readers of her era and ever after have taken the impoverished orphan girl into their hearts, following her from the custody of cruel relatives to a dangerously oppressive boarding school and onward through a troubled career as a governess. Jane’s first assignment at Thorn field, where the proud and cynical master of the house harbors a scandalous secret, draws readers ever deeper into a compelling exploration of the mysteries of the human heart.

A banquet of food for thought, this many-faceted tale invites a splendid variety of interpretations. The heroine’s insistence upon emotional equality with her lover suggests a feminist viewpoint, while her solitary status invokes a consideration of the problems of growing up as a social outsider. Some regard Jane’s attempts to reconcile her need for love with her search for moral rectitude as the story’s primary message, and lovers of gothic romance find the tale’s social and religious aspects secondary to its gripping elements of mystery and horror. This classic of English literature truly features something for every reader.

A

Among the Beasts and Briars

AUTHOR: Ashley Poston

RELEASE DATE: 20 October 2020

BOOK DESCRIPTION:

Ashley Poston, acclaimed author of Heart of Iron, returns with a dark, lush fairy tale-inspired fantasy for fans of Sara Raasch and Susan Dennard.

Cerys is safe in the Kingdom of Aloriya. Here there are no droughts, disease, or famine, and peace is everlasting. It has been this way for hundreds of years, since the first king made a bargain with the Lady who ruled the forest that borders the kingdom. But as Aloriya prospered, the woods grew dark, cursed, and forbidden.

Cerys knows this all too well: When she was young, she barely escaped as the woods killed her friends and her mother. Now Cerys carries a small bit of the curse–the magic–in her blood, a reminder of the day she lost everything.

As a new queen is crowned, however, things long hidden in the woods descend on the kingdom itself. Cerys is forced on the run, her only companions a small and irritating fox from the royal garden and the magic in her veins. It’s up to her to find the legendary Lady of the Wilds and beg for a way to save her home.

But the road is darker and more dangerous than she knows, and as secrets from the past are uncovered amid the teeth and roots of the forest, it’s going to take everything she has just to survive.

N

Neverwhere

AUTHOR: Neil Gaiman

RELEASE DATE: 1996

BOOK DESCRIPTION:

Under the streets of London there’s a place most people could never even dream of. A city of monsters and saints, murderers and angels, knights in armour and pale girls in black velvet. This is the city of the people who have fallen between the cracks.

Richard Mayhew, a young businessman, is going to find out more than enough about this other London. A single act of kindness catapults him out of his workday existence and into a world that is at once eerily familiar and utterly bizarre. And a strange destiny awaits him down here, beneath his native city: Neverwhere.

U

Unraveller

AUTHOR: Frances Hardinge

RELEASE DATE: 10 January 2023

BOOK DESCRIPTION:

In a world where anyone can create a life-destroying curse, only one person has the power to unravel them.

Kellen does not fully understand his talent, but helps those transformed maliciously – including Nettle. Recovered from entrapment in bird form, she is now his constant companion, and closest ally.

But Kellen has also been cursed, and unless he and Nettle can remove his curse, Kellen is in danger of unravelling everything – and everyone – around him…

My review of Unraveller

A

All Systems Red

AUTHOR: Martha Wells

RELEASE DATE: 2 May 2017

BOOK DESCRIPTION:

In a corporate-dominated spacefaring future, planetary missions must be approved and supplied by the Company. Exploratory teams are accompanied by Company-supplied security androids, for their own safety.

But in a society where contracts are awarded to the lowest bidder, safety isn’t a primary concern.

On a distant planet, a team of scientists are conducting surface tests, shadowed by their Company-supplied ‘droid — a self-aware SecUnit that has hacked its own governor module, and refers to itself (though never out loud) as “Murderbot.” Scornful of humans, all it really wants is to be left alone long enough to figure out who it is.

But when a neighboring mission goes dark, it’s up to the scientists and their Murderbot to get to the truth.

My review of the first six installments of the Murderbot Diaries

R

Red Queen

AUTHOR: Victoria Aveyard

RELEASE DATE: 10 February 2015

BOOK DESCRIPTION:

Start at the beginning with RED QUEEN, the first book in the thrilling #1 New York Times bestselling series

Red Queen, by #1 New York Times bestselling author Victoria Aveyard, is a sweeping tale of power, intrigue, and betrayal, perfect for fans of George R.R. Martin’s Game of Thrones series.

Mare Barrow’s world is divided by blood–those with common, Red blood serve the Silver-blooded elite, who are gifted with superhuman abilities. Mare is a Red, scraping by as a thief in a poor, rural village, until a twist of fate throws her in front of the Silver court. Before the king, princes, and all the nobles, she discovers she has an ability of her own.

To cover up this impossibility, the king forces her to play the role of a lost Silver princess and betroths her to one of his own sons. As Mare is drawn further into the Silver world, she risks everything and uses her new position to help the Scarlet Guard–a growing Red rebellion–even as her heart tugs her in an impossible direction.

One wrong move can lead to her death, but in the dangerous game she plays, the only certainty is betrayal.

Y

Yumi and the Nightmare Painter

AUTHOR: Brandon Sanderson

RELEASE DATE: 1 July 2023

BOOK DESCRIPTION:

#1 New York Times Bestselling author Brandon Sanderson brings us a gripping story set in the Cosmere universe told by Hoid, where two people from incredibly different worlds must compromise and work together to save their worlds from ruin.

Yumi comes from a land of gardens, meditation, and spirits, while Painter lives in a world of darkness, technology, and nightmares. When their lives suddenly become intertwined in strange ways, can they put aside their differences and work together to uncover the mysteries of their situation and save each other’s communities from certain disaster?

My review of Yumi and the Nightmare Painter

What books have you been reading lately? Have you been reading any with an autumnal theme? What have you thought of them?

Thanks again for reading, and have a wonderful day/night!

See ya ~Mar

Monthly Wrap-Up: November Reading 2023

Here I am. With another monthly wrap-up. As I do every month. This time it’s for my November Reading of 2023, featuring my reading statistics from The StoryGraph from that month. (Say month again, why don’t you?)

I read less, comparatively, than I did in October, but I still read a ton. I feel like ten books is nothing to sneeze at, even though four of them were manga super-volumes and one was a 20 page short story. But November was kind of busy for me at some parts, so cut me some slack? (I think December might have a few of the same problems for a few of the same reasons, ei: holidays.)

Bur yeah, I’ll shut up now. Let’s get into the wrap-up.

November 2023 Reading

I read 10 books and 4195 pages

😐 MOODS: Adventurous was the biggest slice of pie, as it always is. Lighthearted was surprising in being the second biggest piece though – it’s only the second time this has happened, so far. The other ones were: Reflective, Emotional, Dark, and Mysterious.

👢 PACE: I read all three different kinds of paced books: slow, medium and fast. They were mostly fast and medium paced novels, though.

🔢 PAGE NUMBER: Everything I read was between 240 and 600 pages. But the majority of books I read were between 300 and 499 pages.

📖 FICTION/NONFICTION: It was once again all fiction this month.

🎭 GENRES: Fantasy, as usual, was the biggest bar of the graph. Manga, Graphic Novel, YA, Science Fiction and Romance were the second longest bars after Fantasy. The other genres on the graph were Comics, LGBTQIA+, Historical and Short Stories. I think this might be the most genres I’ve read in the same month yet.

📄 FORMAT: This little StoryGraph pie chart is not correct (again). Most of the books I read last month were digital.

⭐ RATING: My median star rating for last month was 4.13. My ratings for November weren’t as varied as in October, but they were about as high. Most of them were 4.0 and above.

📉 PAGES READ DAILY: I read a ton throughout November. The time I read the least was between the 21st and the 28th, and my peak of reading was on the 18th.

The Books I Read in November

★★☆☆☆ • my review

★✬☆☆☆ • my review

★★★★★ • my review

★★★★☆ • my review

★★★★★ • review to be posted

★★★★✯ • my review

★★★★★

★★★★★

★★★★✯

★★★★★

Wrapping Up the Wrap-Up

So yeah, November reading in 2023 was pretty strong. I’m really happy with what I was able to read though I do wish I was able to do a bit more. Ah well, we’ll see how what happens in December.

December doesn’t have any books coming out (that I’m aware of, at least) that I’m super excited about reading. Yeah, I had one on my anticipated reads releasing October through December list, but I’m not all that stoked about it. Just moderately – it looks interesting, but I won’t be upset if I don’t end up reading it. I’m looking forward to reading the rest of The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson, though. (Well, most of it anyway. I find Shallan’s chapters to be kind of boring at the moment.)

I’m also hoping to read some winter themed fantasy books, if I can find some. Tell me your recs in the comments, please! I love reading festively!

And well, I guess we’ll all find out what else I want to read this month together, because I’m honestly not sure now. Oh wait, maybe The Princess Bride by William Goldman. I got a really nice edition last month as a gift, and I’ve wanted to read this book for ages. But we’ll see.

So yeah, thank you so much for reading and I hope you have an excellent day/night!

See ya ~Mar

System Collapse by Martha Wells | Book Review

I gained interesting insights, ART- drone said. You should stop worrying.

Yeah, I’ll just code a patch to stop feeling anxiety, wow, why didn’t I think of that earlier. (That was sarcasm, I have too much organic neural tissue for that to work.) (Of course I’ve already tried it.)

System Collapse by Martha Wells

SERIES: The Murderbot Diaries (Book #7)

LENGTH: 245 pages

GENRES: Science Fiction, Fiction

PUBLISHER: Tor.com

RELEASE DATE: 14 November 2023

BOOK DESCRIPTION:

Am I making it worse? I think I’m making it worse.

Everyone’s favorite lethal SecUnit is back.

Following the events in Network Effect, the Barish-Estranza corporation has sent rescue ships to a newly-colonized planet in peril, as well as additional SecUnits. But if there’s an ethical corporation out there, Murderbot has yet to find it, and if Barish-Estranza can’t have the planet, they’re sure as hell not leaving without something. If that something just happens to be an entire colony of humans, well, a free workforce is a decent runner-up prize.

But there’s something wrong with Murderbot; it isn’t running within normal operational parameters. ART’s crew and the humans from Preservation are doing everything they can to protect the colonists, but with Barish-Estranza’s SecUnit-heavy persuasion teams, they’re going to have to hope Murderbot figures out what’s wrong with itself, and fast!

Yeah, this plan is… not going to work.

My Review

I am not meant to function without multiple simultaneous inputs. If this was what being a human was like, it sucked massively.

Sooo… this review is like, extremely late. I had fully intended to post this review sometime early last week, before Thanksgiving, but I just ended up being too busy and stressed out.

But I’m back at the blog, and finally here with my review of System Collapse by Martha Wells. This was probably my most anticipated book of 2023 and it was… fine. Pretty good even. It just turned out a little differently than I expected. Honestly, I’m still on the fence about my rating for this novel – I’m torn between four stars or four and a half.

Let’s just get into it…

• The characters

ART- drone reached out a limb to Iris. My function is impaired, Iris. So is SecUnit’s.

Will you shut the hell up? I said.

You shut up, it replied.

“Let’s everybody shut up and get in the flyer,” Iris said, and shouldered ART- drone’s limb, taking part of its weight.

I’ve always felt that the characters were the strongest part of the Murderbot Diaries, particularly its titular character, and the same is still true here. But this story focused more on an internal conflict that Murderbot is dealing with. So the other characters I love from this series took a backseat in this book.

SecUnit also didn’t seem to be nearly as sassy as it usually is. There weren’t all that many fantastic and funny quotes and dialogue compared to the rest of the series that I noticed. And that’s one of my favorite things about this series – I love how sassy and fun it is. And yeah, I understand that Murderbot was working through something, but everything seemed to matter a lot less than its thoughts on what it was going through. Constantly.

But when other characters did feature, and SecUnit did interact with them, it was fantastic. These were my favorite moments reading and I wish there were more of them. ART actually had more pagetime than I initially gave it credit for, now that I think about it, and its banter with SecUnit is always a treat.

• The plot

“I’ve fucked everything up,” I’d told ART.

ART had said, That’s nothing new.

I didn’t really care about it. It was about saving the descendents of the colonists that were found on the planet in book five. But I never found myself caring about these people, then or now. They just felt like a motivation or a plot device in order for SecUnit and ART and its crew and Preservation to do stuff.

Honestly, the A plot just felt like it was stalling in order for the B plot to happen. Which was Murderbot’s inner conflict – that its organic neural tissue is starting to exhibit signs of PTSD. Which was far more interesting to me than the thing with the colonists.

• Other favorite quotes

I didn’t say anything. (I know I get pissed off when humans don’t acknowledge my work, but why is too much acknowledgment also upsetting? Sentience sucks.)

and

You’re stalling, ART- drone said. I am not. I can stand here and be useless without any ulterior motives, thanks.

and

So the next time I get optimistic about something, I want one of you to punch me in the face.

and

I was not even going to respond to that. ART had told Mensah it wouldn’t push me. Just because its MedSystem was certified for emotional support and trauma recovery it thought it knew everything.

and finally

Wow, you don’t think it can get any worse, and it always does.

• Final Thoughts

This review is a little shorter than usual, but I’m honestly struggling with stuff to say about it. I think that’s another reason why this review took so long. I just don’t have too many opinions on it.

But System Collapse is still a solid addition to the Murderbot Diaries. It was still fun and sassy, even if it was less so than usual. This is a must read for anyone who enjoys the rest of the series, especially since the ending sets up a new arc for the series.

Thank you so much for reading, and have an awesome day/night!

See ya ~Mar

My Links:

Goodreads

Instagram

My review of the first six books in The Murderbot Diaries

My review of the Murderbot Diaries short story Home

Weekly Wrap-Up: 11/6 – 11/12

It’s Monday, so here I am with another weekly wrap-up.

I feel good about last week. I know I said that the week before, too, but I think things have been going well for this little blog. I got two book reviews our, and participated in two weekly posts. November’s been going pretty good so far.

Anyway, let’s get on with it.

Wednesday 11/8: Can’t-Wait Wednesday

Last Wednesday, I posted another Can’t-Wait Wednesday for the first time in a while. Can’t-Wait Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Tressa @ Wishful Endings to spotlight and discuss the books we’re excited about that we have yet to read. For this one, I highlighted System Collapse by Martha Wells.

Can’t-Wait Wednesday: System Collapse

Thursday 11/9: Nightbane Review

On Thursday, I posted another book review. This one was for Nightbane, the sequel to Lightlark, by Alex Aster. It’s a YA romantasy series. I gave Nightbane ★✬.

My review of Nightbane

Friday 11/10: First Line Friday

Last Friday, I participated in another First Line Fridays for the first time in a long time. First Line Fridays is a weekly feature for book lovers (formerly) hosted by Wandering Words.

First Line Friday: 11/10

Saturday 11/11: Home Review

Ah, a rare Saturday post. On Saturday, I posted a little review for the short story Home: Habitat, Range, Niche, Territory by Martha Wells. It’s part of the Murderbot Diaries, and the only MD thing I hadn’t read until yet. I gave it ★★★★★.

My review of Home

Books I Read Last Week

Home: Habitat, Range, Niche, Territory by Martha Wells

Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett

🎁💖 Wrapping It All Up 🎁💖

So yeah, I read quite a bit last week, and I was pretty decent with my posting. I’m hoping to do even better this coming week, though.

This week, I’m gonna finish Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries, and I’m gonna read System Collapse when it comes out. I’m also planning on continuing with One Piece and starting the first book in Brandon Sanderson’s Stormlight Archive – The Way of Kings.

Concerning non-book stuff and non-blog stuff that I’m gonna be doing this week, well, I’m gonna be cleaning up around the house in preparation for Thanksgiving next week. I’m also going to be making sure that everything is in order for the food and baking and stuff.

But yeah, here’s hoping that I get all I’m planning on done. I’m looking forward to so many things to read, and I don’t want as much work next week. 🤞🍀

As always, thank you to everyone for reading, and I hope that you have an awesome day/night!

See ya ~Mar

Home: A Murderbot Diaries Short Story by Martha Wells | Book Review

As Ephraim gets up and Ayda can finally walk out of this damn room, she replies to SecUnit’s latest requisition form. It’s for a gunship nearly the size PortFreeCommerce’s transit ring: I think you made this one up.

Home: Habitat, Range, Niche, Territory by Martha Wells

SERIES: The Murderbot Diaries

LENGTH: 20 pages

GENRES: Science Fiction, Fiction

PUBLISHER: Tor Books

RELEASE DATE: 19 April 2021

BOOK DESCRIPTION:

Knowing what would happen, she wouldn’t choose a different planet, a different bond company. Because then SecUnit would still be someone’s property, would be waiting for the contract where the negligence or greed or indifference of its clients got it killed.

This short story directly follows the events in Exit Strategy and is told from the point of view of Dr. Mensah, who is still recovering from the events of that novella.

My Review

SecUnit is looking down at her. “You can hug me if you need to.”

“No. No, that’s all right. I know you don’t care for it.” She wipes her face. There are tears in her eyes, because she’s an idiot.

This review is gonna be pretty short, as Home – being a short story – is naturally short. Like, it’s only like 20 pages or so. So none of my section/heading breaks today.

Seeing as System Collapse’s release is imminent, I finally decided to read and review the only Murderbot Diaries thing I hadn’t yet. I don’t know why I never read it when I read the others – I guess that’s just life?

So yeah, this is a little Murderbot story – but instead of our favorite SecUnit narrating it, it was a 3rd person POV from Dr. Ayda Mensah. The story takes place very soon after the fourth novella, Exit Strategy, and is probably best read then.

I rather liked it – Martha Wells always has good prose, and it’s nice to hear from another character in this universe who isn’t SecUnit for once – as much as I love that construct. Mensah is also one of my favorite characters, and I really enjoyed seeing her relationship with Murderbot from her perspective. It was also interesting to see more of the PTSD that we heard about in Network Effect, but didn’t really see – at least Dr. Mensah’s since she wasn’t present much.

“I’ll see what I can do.”

It’s looking down at her still, and she could meet its gaze to make it look away, but that won’t make it retreat. “Is that a bribe?”

She can’t help a smile. It does sound like a bribe, just a little. “Depends. Will it work?”

“I don’t know. I never had a bribe before.”

So my final verdict is: If you have access to ebooks and stuff, and enjoy the other books in The Murderbot Diaries, then definitely pick this one up. It’s a quick and wholesome little read.

Thank you for reading, and I hope that you have a wonderful day/night!

See ya ~Mar

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Can’t-Wait Wednesday: System Collapse

Good morning/afternoon/any other time of day everyone! It’s been a almost a month since the last time I made it for Can’t-Wait Wednesday. But I’m really excited for a novel coming out next week, so I thought it was more than time to do it again.

Can’t-Wait Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Tressa @ Wishful Endings (and was previously hosted by Jill @ Breaking the Spine where it was known as Waiting on Wednesday) to spotlight and discuss the books we’re excited about that we have yet to read. They’re usually books that have not yet been released.

This week’s book is:

System Collapse by Martha Wells!

This is my most anticipated book of 2023. Ever since I first read All Systems Red, I’ve been a huge fan of The Murderbot Diaries. It’s probably my favorite sci-fi series. And this one’s another full novel to boot, like Network Effect, as opposed to a novella like the rest of the series.

System Collapse by Martha Wells

SERIES: The Murderbot Diaries (Book #7)

LENGTH: 256 pages

GENRES: Science Fiction, Fiction

PUBLISHER: Tor.com

RELEASE DATE: 14 November 2023

BOOK DESCRIPTION:

Am I making it worse? I think I’m making it worse.

Everyone’s favorite lethal SecUnit is back.

Yeah, this plan is… not going to work.

Are you a fan of The Murderbot Diaries? Do you like any of Martha Wells’ other works? What books are coming out that you’re looking forward to?

Thank you so much for reading and have an excellent day/night!

See ya ~Mar

Spell the Month in Books: November 2023

Guess who crashed again last night?

Spell the Month in Books is a monthly post created and hosted by Jana @ Reviews from the Stacks. I started participating in it a few months ago. It’s typically a Saturday post (as I might have mentioned above), but let’s all agree the Mar had a busy day yesterday and maybe, accidentally fell asleep before they could post.

So yeah, it’s November! Yay! The month where fall intensifies 🍂 and the holiday season begins 🎶 and everyone is cooking 🥘 up a storm whether it’s for Thanksgiving 🦃 or baking something 🥧.

Without further ado, let’s spell November with book titles!

N

Nightbane

AUTHOR: Alex Aster

RELEASE DATE: 7 November 2023

BOOK DESCRIPTION:

The seductive and action-packed follow-up to Alex Aster’s instant #1 New York Times, #1 Wall Street Journal, and internationally bestselling novel, Lightlark.

Isla Crown has secured the love of two powerful rulers and broken the curses that plagued the six realms for centuries, but few know the true origins of her powers. Now, in the wake of a crushing betrayal, Isla finds herself hungry for distraction, preferring to frequent Lightlark’s seductive haunts instead of embracing her duties as the newly crowned leader of two separate realms. Worse, her fellow rulers haven’t ceded victory quietly, and there are others in Isla’s midst who don’t believe her ascent to power was earned. As certain death races toward Lightlark and secrets from the past begin to unravel, Isla must weigh her responsibility to her people against the whims of the most dangerous traitor of all: her heart.

Alex Aster’s intricate world expands after the riveting culmination of the Centennial games, delving more deeply into Isla’s memories of her past, as her future hurtles toward two possible fates.

O

Once Upon a Broken Heart

AUTHOR: Stephanie Garber

RELEASE DATE: 28 September 2021

BOOK DESCRIPTION:

Once Upon a Broken Heart marks the launch of a new series about love, curses, and the lengths that people will go to for happily ever after from Stephanie Garber, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Caraval.

For as long as she can remember, Evangeline Fox has believed in true love and happy endings…until she learns that the love of her life will marry another.

Desperate to stop the wedding and to heal her wounded heart, Evangeline strikes a deal with the charismatic, but wicked, Prince of Hearts. In exchange for his help, he asks for three kisses, to be given at the time and place of his choosing.

But after Evangeline’s first promised kiss, she learns that bargaining with an immortal is a dangerous game — and that the Prince of Hearts wants far more from her than she’d pledged. He has plans for Evangeline, plans that will either end in the greatest happily ever after, or the most exquisite tragedy…

My review of Once Upon a Broken Heart

V

The Village Healer's Book of Cures by Jennifer Sherman Roberts

Village Healer’s Book of Cures, The

AUTHOR: Jennifer Sherman Roberts

RELEASE DATE: 1 November 2023

BOOK DESCRIPTION:

In seventeenth-century England, a female healer enflames the fury of a witchfinder in this propulsive novel about murder, revenge, and the dangerous power of knowledge.

Mary Fawcett refines the healing recipes she’s inherited from generations of women before her―an uncanny and moral calling to empathize with the sick. When witchfinder Matthew Hopkins arrives in her small village, stoking the fires of hate, he sees not healing but the devil at work. Mary’s benevolent skills have now cast her and her young brother under suspicion of witchery.

Soon, the husband of one of Mary’s patients is found murdered, his body carved with strange symbols. For Hopkins, it’s further evidence of dark arts. When the whispering village turns against her, Mary dares to trust a stranger: an enigmatic alchemist, scarred body and soul, who knows the dead man’s secrets.

As Hopkins’s fervor escalates, Mary must outsmart the devil himself to save her life and the lives of those she loves. Unfolding the true potential of her gifts could make Mary a more empowered adversary than a witchfinder ever feared.

E

Exit Strategy

AUTHOR: Martha Wells

RELEASE DATE: 2 October 2018

BOOK DESCRIPTION:

Murderbot wasn’t programmed to care. So, its decision to help the only human who ever showed it respect must be a system glitch, right?

Having traveled the width of the galaxy to unearth details of its own murderous transgressions, as well as those of the GrayCris Corporation, Murderbot is heading home to help Dr. Mensah—its former owner (protector? friend?)—submit evidence that could prevent GrayCris from destroying more colonists in its never-ending quest for profit.

But who’s going to believe a SecUnit gone rogue?

And what will become of it when it’s caught?

My review of The Murderbot Diaries

M

Masters of Death

AUTHOR: Olivie Blake

RELEASE DATE: 8 August 2023

BOOK DESCRIPTION:

From Olivie Blake, the New York Times bestselling author of The Atlas Six comes Masters of Death, a story about vampires, ghosts, and death itself!

Viola Marek is a struggling real estate agent, and a vampire. But her biggest problem currently is that the house she needs to sell is haunted. The ghost haunting the house has been murdered, and until he can solve the mystery of how he died, he refuses to move on.

Fox D’Mora is a medium, and though is also most-definitely a shameless fraud, he isn’t entirely without his uses—seeing as he’s actually the godson of Death.

When Viola seeks out Fox to help her with her ghost-infested mansion, he becomes inextricably involved in a quest that neither he nor Vi expects (or wants). But with the help of an unruly poltergeist, a demonic personal trainer, a sharp-voiced angel, a love-stricken reaper, and a few high-functioning creatures, Vi and Fox soon discover the difference between a mysterious lost love and an annoying dead body isn’t nearly as distinct as they thought.

My review of Masters of Death

B

Blood & Honey

AUTHOR: Shelby Mahurin

RELEASE DATE: 1 September 2020

BOOK DESCRIPTION:

The hotly anticipated sequel to the New York Times and IndieBound bestseller Serpent & Dove—packed with even steamier romance and darker magic—is perfect for fans of Sarah J. Maas.

After narrowly escaping death at the hands of the Dames Blanches, Lou, Reid, Coco, and Ansel are on the run from coven, kingdom, and church—fugitives with nowhere to hide.

To elude the scores of witches and throngs of chasseurs at their heels, Lou and Reid need allies. Strong ones. But protection comes at a price, and the group is forced to embark on separate quests to build their forces. As Lou and Reid try to close the widening rift between them, the dastardly Morgane baits them in a lethal game of cat and mouse that threatens to destroy something worth more than any coven.

My review of Blood & Honey

E

Ella Enchanted

AUTHOR: Gail Carson Levine

RELEASE DATE: 30 April 1997

BOOK DESCRIPTION:

This beloved Newbery Honor-winning story about a feisty heroine is sure to enchant readers new and old.

At her birth, Ella of Frell receives a foolish fairy’s gift—the “gift” of obedience. Ella must obey any order, whether it’s to hop on one foot for a day and a half, or to chop off her own head! But strong-willed Ella does not accept her fate…

Against a bold backdrop of princes, ogres, giants, wicked stepsisters, and fairy godmothers, Ella goes on a quest to break the curse forever.

A tween favorite for 25 years—now shared with today’s young readers by moms, teachers, and other adults who remember the pleasure of discovering this fun fairy-tale retelling themselves!

R

The Ruthless Lady's Guide the Wizardry by C.M. Waggoner

Ruthless Lady’s Guide to Wizardry, The

AUTHOR: C.M. Waggoner

RELEASE DATE: 12 January 2021

BOOK DESCRIPTION:

Sparks fly in this enchanting fantasy novel from the author of Unnatural Magic when a down-and-out fire witch and a young gentlewoman join forces against a deadly conspiracy.

Dellaria Wells, petty con artist, occasional thief, and partly educated fire witch, is behind on her rent in the city of Leiscourt–again. Then she sees the “wanted” sign, seeking Female Persons, of Martial or Magical ability, to guard a Lady of some Importance, prior to the celebration of her Marriage. Delly fast-talks her way into the job and joins a team of highly peculiar women tasked with protecting their wealthy charge from unknown assassins.

Delly quickly sets her sights on one of her companions, the confident and well-bred Winn Cynallum. The job looks like nothing but romance and easy money until things take a deadly (and undead) turn. With the help of a bird-loving necromancer, a shapeshifting schoolgirl, and an ill-tempered reanimated mouse named Buttons, Delly and Winn are determined to get the best of an adversary who wields a twisted magic and has friends in the highest of places.

What books have you been reading lately? Have you been reading any with an autumnal theme? What have you thought of them?

Thanks again for reading, and have an amazing day/night!

See ya ~Mar