A Memory Called Empire (Teixcalaan, #1) by Arkady Martine

A Memory Called Empire (Teixcalaan, #1) by Arkady Martine

In A Memory Called Empire, a diplomat from an out-of-the-way space station makes her way through the Teixcalaan Empire, a society which is in some ways more advanced than her own, but in other ways not.

The most interesting part of this novel was the world building. Arkady Martin has created an amazing space opera with fascinating technologies and cultures.

On the other hand, her characters didn’t appeal to me at all. I made myself finish the book, but didn’t care much about what happened to anyone.

I wasn’t surprised this book won the Hugo Award – for world building alone.

For a first novel, it is a tremendous effort and I’m certain Arkady will write more fascinating books in the future.

Perhaps I’ll give some of those other books a go. I won’t be continuing on to the other books in this series.

The Midnight Library by Matt Haig

The Midnight Library by Matt Haig

Nora has lived through so much and is so disappointed with reality that she doesn’t want to live anymore.

“Nora shook her head. Wishing it would fall off. Her own head. Onto the floor. So she never had to have a conversation with a stranger ever again.” pg 15, ebook

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A suicide attempt takes her to a special place filled with books that tell life stories that could have been her own – if only she had made a different choice in her current life.

“Between life and death there is a library,” she said. “And within that library, the shelves go on for ever. Every book provides a chance to try another life you could have lived.” pg 29

Through living some of those lives, Nora learns about the power of choices and her own inner strength.

The Midnight Library is a beautiful book about life. I enjoyed learning and growing along with Nora.

“Maybe even the most seemingly perfectly intense or worthwhile lives ultimately felt the same. Acres of disappointment and monotony and hurts and rivalries but with flashes of wonder and beauty.” pg 137 ebook

Maybe they are. And maybe we all need to remember that even the smallest choices we make matter.

Highly recommended for fantasy readers.

Science of the Magical: From the Holy Grail to Love Potions to Superpowers by Matt Kaplan

Science of the Magical: From the Holy Grail to Love Potions to Superpowers by Matt Kaplan

“Does knowing how something magical works make it into something other than magic?” pg 7

In Science of the Magical, science correspondent Matt Kaplan examines phenomena from prophecy to immortality and more, seeking the science behind the magic. The result is a compelling look at life and humanity’s beliefs around such things.

“Our ancestors had a magical worldview. … For the Viking berserkers, no biochemistry was behind their rage; Odin was casting a spell. For pilgrims visiting the oracle at Delhi, no ethylene vapors were creeping up the fault below the temple; the spirit of Apollo was coming to force the priestess to speak with his voice.” pg 212

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You would think these activities would lose their magical feeling under Kaplan’s microscope, but the opposite is true. I felt more wonder learning the studies about Buddhist monks who can sit wrapped in wet sheets and not freeze or the symbiotic relationship between ravens and wolves, which was immortalized in the stories about Odin.

“… Dr. Stahler suspects that because wolf kills are considerably larger than those made by coyotes, the birds have more food to feed on. The ravens seem to have the ability to differentiate between the animals and selectively follow only wolves.” pg 102

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Though I knew some of what Kaplan reports in these pages, other ideas were totally new to me. Highly recommended for readers who enjoy non-fiction.

Thanks for reading!

How to Rule an Empire and Get Away with It (The Siege #2) by K.J. Parker

How to Rule an Empire and Get Away with It (The Siege #2) by K.J. Parker

“… what the people want is something that looks at first sight like real life, but which actually turns out to be a fairy tale with virtue triumphant, evil utterly vanquished, a positive, uplifting message, a gutsy, kick-ass female lead and, if at all possible, unicorns.” pg 11, ebook

K.J. Parker (pen name for Tom Holt) gives readers all of that in this book – sorry, minus the unicorns.

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The city has been under siege for decades. Readers are given the history of all that in the last book.

In this entry in the series, it is all about surviving and keeping hope alive against unbelievable odds. The enemy outside the gates outnumbers the survivors in the city by thousands. What hope can be had?

Enter Notker, a professional actor who, among other things, excels at mimicking city leaders.

“Accordingly, the death of Lysimachus – if true – was a devastating blow to me personally, purely because imitating him accounted for something like forty per cent of my income. Sure, you can still imitate people after they’re dead, but there just isn’t the same demand.” pg 24, ebook

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When Notker gets pulled into government, he shows an unexpected talent for keeping the city’s hopes alive. It is a delight finding out how he does all of it, so I won’t spoil it for you.

You don’t have to have read the first book in the series to appreciate this one. (I read the first months ago and didn’t really remember much of it.) But I imagine if you read them back to back, you’ll find some hidden gems tying the two books together.

“If you stopped to think about it you’d never do it, so don’t stop and think.” pg 98, ebook

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The most interesting character in the book is a tie between Notker and Hodda (the female lead, so to speak). Both develop as the story goes along in predictable and unpredictable ways. I loved every twist as the characters fought for their survival.

I enjoyed this book a lot. It is a cross between historical fiction and something that feels like a Shakespearean play. Highly recommended.

Old Man’s War (Old Man’s War, #1) by John Scalzi

Old Man’s War (Old Man’s War, #1) by John Scalzi

In Old Man’s War, humanity has gone to the stars, and it’s a jungle out there. For the people on Earth, life and death continues as it always has. Out in space, it’s a whole different story…

I really enjoyed this book. After recently reading and being disappointed by John Scalzi’s The Kaiju Preservation Society, a friend recommended I give this series a try.

It is a fast-moving, action-packed book full of fascinating aliens and small (sometimes large) windows into the human condition.

I read it in two days – that’s how good it is.

A couple times, I felt like the narration was bogged down by scientific jargon. But for the most part, I loved it.

Highly recommended for science fiction readers.

WebMage (Webmage #1, Ravirn #1) by Kelly McCullough

WebMage (Webmage #1, Ravirn #1) by Kelly McCullough

“I’m a thoroughly modern sorcerer, a code-warrior, a programmer. I’m not a classical magician. I hate the old ways. They’re painful, inefficient, and hideously dangerous.” pg 81, ebook

Ravirn uses magic like programmers use code- it’s a unique magic system and author Kelly McCullough should be very proud for coming up with it. I loved that part of the story.

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The wizard’s minions act like computer programs and execute directives given to them. They’re curious creatures, full of attitude and spunk. The closest comparison that immediately pops into my mind is Harry Dresden’s skull- Bob.

But unlike Dresden, Ravirn’s magic is coded and can be bugged. So when one of the Fates comes to him with an idea of how to change reality through a particularly nasty computer program, his adventure truly begins.

“Life with you is always interesting. I don’t know what I’d do for entertainment without the chaos that follows in your wake.” pg 196, ebook

This story is action from the beginning. One event after another spins our hero in circles. I could have used a few breaks from the action myself, but readers who crave that sort of thing may really like this one.

I keep going back to the Dresden Files as a comparison for this story and I think it’s apt. We have a love interest, minions (as I mentioned), magic and a dry sense of humor that seeps out of the story. Recommended for fans of those books as well as general fantasy readers.

Thanks for reading!

Lore Olympus: Volume One (Lore Olympus, #1) by Rachel Smythe

Lore Olympus: Volume One (Lore Olympus, #1) by Rachel Smythe

Rachel Smythe has created a cotton-candy colored, contemporary re-telling of Hades and Persephone. It is a very pretty creation but, like the start of most graphic novel series, lacks a little in the storytelling.

I also had trouble telling some of the characters apart. In some panels their features were so blurred that it was impossible to tell who was who.

That being said, I’m not sure that I am the intended audience for this work. The bright colors and quick pacing make me think this may be more appropriate for young adults.

It is shelved with the adult selections at my library, but nothing in the story is inappropriate for teens 14+.

I enjoyed the artwork more than the story itself. It is very pretty and stylized with flourishes and smooth edges.

Recommended for readers who enjoy their mythology being told with a fresh new voice and perspective.

Thanks for reading!

The Kaiju Preservation Society by John Scalzi

The Kaiju Preservation Society by John Scalzi

It’s like the foreign legion for nerds,” I said, and laughed. “With polar bears.” “Or seals,” Aparna added.” pg 32, ebook

Master author John Scalzi penned a lovely book about large creatures in an alternate dimension. That ending though… no spoilers in this review so I won’t say much more about it other than it was a huge disappointment.

“We think we’re smart,” Niamh repeated. “And because we think we’re smart, we only looked at what we wanted to look at and didn’t think to look past it.” pg 165

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I was looking for a light-hearted fiction read, which this book is. The characters are diverse and it was quite fun to discover the world Scalzi created for them.

The kaiju themselves are fascinating. Again, I don’t want to say too much and ruin the best part of this book- the creatures.

I liked the humor in the story even though the same gag is used multiple times. It lends a sense of familiarity in the middle of an alien world.

Though it does get a bit repetitive after a little while.

All that being said, I only recommend this book to Scalzi fans. I could not get over that ending.

Thanks for reading!

Electric Idol (Dark Olympus, #2) by Katee Robert

Electric Idol (Dark Olympus, #2) by Katee Robert

“Star-crossed lovers! What will Demeter and Aphrodite think of their children’s secret relationship?” pg 20

The blurb for Electric Idol is what drew me in to this romance novel. I have not read the first book of “Dark Olympus” so I may have missed a ton of world building, which was missing from this entry in the series.

“Psyche Dimitriou might actually be what passes for a unicorn in Olympus – a good person.” pg 32

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Welcome to Olympus, where the gods and goddesses walk among us, wielding their power not through magical powers, but through armed soldiers, assassins and social media.

All of which could have been very fun, but I felt this novel fell flat.

Most of the tension was in back-and-forth conversations between the two main characters that went something like – I love him/her so much. He/she could never love me. Oh no, people want to kill us.

It went on and on like that for more than 350 pages.

“I want Psyche for my own. A desire that was kindled that first night has grown beyond control in the last twenty-four hours. I don’t care if she deserves someone just as sweet as she is.” pg 123

There’s some erotic interludes in here so librarians please classify it correctly. Not young adult.

Only recommended for serious romance/erotica fans. Others may want to give it a pass.