Enno Rehling
This was lovely. Quiet British. Great characters to fall in love with, and a whodunnit with many twists and turns.
I can't say I wasn't warned, and I knew how it had to end, but none of that softened the blow. Well done.
Mona is a young baker with magical talent who suddenly finds herself with the fate of her entire cities (and an animated gingerbread man) on her shoulder. Fun YA fantasy novel from an author I hadn't read before, but definitely will seek out more.
Even though I did not grow up with a VCS, this book triggers in me nostalgia for early computer games and systems. Good to see a reflection on the early days of our industry like this.
For those of us that have devoured all the novels and novellas, this book has some bite-sized encounters with our favorite characters and even some who atarted out as bit players in the main story. It's good to see some more of the magical world of Peter Grant & co.
I started this series at the end, didn't I? If I come across the other books, I might read them, too.
The underlying science fiction plot is well-crafted in the way it twists and turns, but what I appreciated most was the description of the main character's inner thoughts. At times uncomfortably recognizable, she's got a desire to be in control, and has many of the flaws she sees in other people (her husband, lab assistants and parents), but is in perfect denial about that.
This is definitely a good book with an interesting conceit, just not quite my wheelhouse. I'll probably pick up the next one eventually.
A perfect little short story that makes me look at our local little free library in a new way.
Well told personal account of what happened in 2012, and how his life lead up to those events.
Summer reading that the family left at my house. Not doing anything new, either in terms of art or story, I'm afraid.
The author clearly loves wood, and uses it as the red thread to take us on an exciting journey through the history of civilization. I loved this book, and the broad range of things that it taught me about, from architecture to metalworking and historic climate change.
Like one of those Trek stories where an observer had to break the prime directive, because being human means you can't be an impartial bystander. Clad in a story that is smaller, but of like quality to the Children of time books.
I like a good twist on time travel, and this book is definitely that. Oona jumps through the years of her life, and the book never delves too deeply into the questions of how or why it happens. The story raises many questions: can she change her fate, or is any attempt to do so doomed? Are there multiple stories of her life? How did this start - how could there have already been an Oona who lived the previous year when she does her first jump? Is everything predestined? Do we have free will? In the end, it's left to the readers to find our own answers to these questions, and enjoy the story as we go along. Lots of good music gets a nod, too.
Another spin on the magical school, except the inhabitants of this one are actively trying to kill the students. Great opening volume to a series that I'll definitely read more of, and that I'll be recommending to like-minded readers of YA fantasy.
Breaking the no quests rule was absolutely the right thing to do. I think In an Absent Dream is still my favorite of the books, but this one comes close.
This book was amazing. I never managed to get into Jonathan Strange, but this book gripped me from the first pages and still hasn't let go. It's impossible to describe what it's about without spoiling it, but it's safe to say that it's a real puzzle box of a book. The puzzle is not just ours to figure out, it turns out our protagonist has memory problems that means he's almost as clueless as the reader. A masterpiece, and I hope it wish the author wins every award it's bound to be nominated for.
This book is really good for what it sets out to be: A YA novel by the author of The Fault In Your Stars. So if you liked that book, you'll probably like this one. As a matter of fact, I think I liked it more.
I loved this! I found the book through a recommendation after reading all of Jeff Lemire's Black Hammer books, and was lucky enough to get a review copy through #NetGalley
The AI of a colony ship en route to a new planet finds itself in charge of a group of kids who get attached to it as it becomes their surrogate mother. A heart-warming story, kids being kids, adults being jerks, and big emotions.
I like the rustic art style, it works well with the worn, lived-in look of a space ship on a long mission, and the character's expressions are doing a lot of work in the emotional storytelling.
While it's set in the same universe as the Peter Grant stories, this book has a completely different cast of characters. Tobias Winter is not exactly a German version of Peter, he's much too serious for that. I missed Kobna Holdbrook-Smith's narration from the start, and it took me a while to get used to the voice of Peter. Good job affecting a German accent, even if it sounds grating to my ears. I wonder how those reader feel who don't understand the many German word that get thrown in at every opportunity.
Not what I hoped for (I loved Station Eleven and wanted more), but still a compelling read, although it drags on a bit towards the end, wanting to wrap up the story of every one of the many characters.
The story felt poignant to me, because I spent some time in the company of people who were running a very similar scheme. “It's possible to both know and not know something”, absolutely. I also spent a lot of time in my youth in BC, and some time in Toronto, so those locations felt very real.
In the future, when people ask me what it was like working in Silicon Valley, and why I left, I'll be able to point them to this book, which contains a some of the answers. My own time overlaps with the time covered in the book, and I found myself nodding in agreement many times.