The Pandava sisters’ stories are exciting and laugh-out-loud funny.
I just finished listening to Aru Shah and the Nectar of Immortality by Roshani Chokshi (narrated by Soneela Nankani) a few days ago, and I loved it! I sure hope this book series continues in some fashion because I am not ready for this to be the last Pandava adventure. Here are five reasons why I love this series.
Continue reading “Five Reasons Why I Love the Aru Shah Series”A review of the audiobook, The Black God’s Drums by P. Djeli Clark.
by P. Djeli Clark; narrated by Channie Waites
Confession time – I love this author’s stories.
They are fantastic creations filled with both terror and wonder set in places I never knew I wanted to travel to until they were described to me. Alas, I can only travel there in story.
I have only ever read the author’s stories in audiobook format (since that is how I do the majority of my reading these days) and they are phenomenal. The narrators have been excellent and add so much more detail and authenticity to the stories. (My favorite by far is A Master of Djinn. I wrote briefly about it here.) I use the Libby app and check out audiobooks from my library.
This story is set in New Orleans in an alternate history where a slave uprising changed the course of the Civil War and subsequent events. “The magic of the old African gods is a part of this city” (54:48 min).
It’s told in first person narration from the perspective of Creeper, an orphan who prides herself in her ability to care for herself on the streets. She also holds Oye, an African Orisha inside of her. While we don’t know Creeper’s exact age, she may be fourteen. When she comes across some information about The Black God’s Drums, she goes to the person who can do something with it – an airship captain of a smuggling ship.
Like Creeper, the captain, Ann-Marie, also holds an African Orisha – Oshun. Unlike Creeper, the captain is much less comfortable with this experience. This story reminds me of an adult Rick Riordan Presents. While the main character may be a child, she holds an African spirit that is ageless inside of her. One that is capable of displaying jealousy towards an equally ageless spirit. (Oye and Oshun are sisters and both lovers of Shango.) So while this is not a kid’s book, it does have plenty of magic and myth based on Yoruban culture.
This is a highly recommended read. It won an Alex Award and was a finalist for many other awards. It’s an amazing story.
Last week, I spent time working on one of the webpages on my new website. The site is still very much under construction, but I have been blogging from it, while I build it. It’s a big dream website, where I am trying to showcase various skills, abilities, and goals in one place, while preparing for my next endeavor.
The page I finished is called Information wants to be free! and it highlights my work with my most recent employer, Pima County Public Library. In 2022, I wrote three “Three Books on a Theme” blog postings for the library website. (Click through to my website to see all three listed).
The final blog post I wrote, is the one I want to highlight for Women’s History Month. It’s called “Enraged Mothers” and features two fiction and one non-fiction book that offer current perspectives on mothering in the United States.
While women’s history is made up of much more than just mothering, mothering is a huge part of history in general and is often overlooked or ignored by patriarchal historians. Without parents, families, and tribes (women included!), there would be no history. (Although, we really should call it ourstory).
I’ve been busy with life. Too busy to write about books I’ve been reading. I’ve been busy finding and buying my first house, moving, (all while pregnant and working full time), giving birth, and raising my son. He’s a beautiful boy.
And while I’ve been busy with all of this, I’ve still been reading. Just not writing. Hopefully this will change over time and I might start posting more frequently…. or not. Continue reading “It’s been awhile”
Happy Belated New Year!
I started writing this a couple of weeks ago to post in mid-January – and it had been a while since I had finished the books then…. Some parts of my life just feel as though I am wading through quickly drying mud. A couple of weeks ago, I was going to title this posting as un-commonalities. I like procrastination better because it’s actually a word.
What do Pirate Cinema by Cory Doctorow, Cleopatra: a Life by Stacy Schiff, Fair Game by Patricia Briggs, and Alien Proliferation by Gini Koch have in common? Not much – as far as I can tell. Continue reading “Procrastination 2013”
By Patricia Briggs
Place: Publisher & Year: New York: Ace Books, 2010, 1993
Recently at work, I was checking in books and this book passed through my hands. I am mostly familiar with Briggs’s more recent Mercy Thompson and Alpha & Omega series – both of which I love. I did read Dragon Blood a little while ago and enjoyed it quite a bit. (I didn’t even realize that it was the 2nd book of two until I partway through it. Dragon Bones is the first.) So I decided to try Masques. I’m glad I did. Written early in Briggs’s career, she explains in “The Introduction” how the reprint came about and how she was able to rewrite the book. Continue reading “Masques”
By Graham Joyce
Personal notes: I may have found a new favorite author with this book. I loved the gritty feel that this story has – the feel of this story is how I picture Tara’s description of viewing this reality after being away. I loved the characters – especially Ritchie. (Who doesn’t love a musician?) I also loved reading the various characters’ perspectives. And I do still wonder who the narrator of the story is. I also loved how Jack’s learning story is deeply embedded within the larger story and how nothing is explained. How can one truly explain the other? Let’s just leave it at not allowing strangers to pick cherry blossoms from one’s trees. Continue reading “Some Kind of Fairy Tale”
By Tamora Pierce
Place: Publisher & Year: New York: Random House, 2011
Genres: Fantasy, mystery, paranormal
Series: Beka Cooper; 3
ISBN: 9780375814709
Audience: Young adult
Number of pages: 593
Setting: Kingdom of Tortall
Time period: 249 H.E. (medieval)
Plot summary: Beka Cooper and her partner, Mattias Tunstall, are summoned to a hunt by their Lord Gershom in the middle of the night. Beka and her scent hound, Achoo, along with Tunstall, Lord Gershom, Pounce, and a mage named Farmer Cape, travel to the Summer Palace where they discover a royal kidnapping has occurred and the kidnappers had inside help. It’s up to Beka and her colleagues to track down Prince Gareth, who has been sold into slavery, and return him safely to the king and queen. Continue reading “Mastiff”
By Patricia Briggs; narrated by Lorelei King
Place: Publisher & Year: New York: Penguin Audio, 2011
Genres: Fantasy, contemporary fantasy, paranormal, mystery, paranormal mystery, mythic fiction
Series: Mercy Thompson; 6
Format: Audiobook – MP3
ISBN: 9781101436547
Audience: Adult
Length: 8 hours, 54 minutes
Setting: Columbia River Gorge – OR & WA, Tri-cities (Richland, Kennewick, & Pasco), WA
Time period: Contemporary
Plot summary: Mercy and Adam finally get to spend some alone time together for their honeymoon. No vampires, no other werewolves – it’s just the two of them camping along the Columbia River. However, Mercy’s connection to coyotes and Coyote, means that chaos will find her. This time chaos takes the form of a monster that lives in the river. Continue reading “River Marked”
By Neil Gaiman
Place: Publisher & Year: New York: HarperTorch, c2001.
Genres: Fantasy, contemporary fantasy, mythic fiction
ISBN: 9780380789030
Audience: Adult
Number of pages: 592
Setting: USA – Eagle Point, Indiana; Chicago & Cairo, Illinois; House on the Rock & Lakeside, Wisconsin; South Dakota; Lebanon, Kansas; Virginia; Lookout Mountain/ Rock City, Georgia; Fort Pierce, Florida; and many points inbetween.
Time period: Contemporary
Plot summary: A storm is coming. Shadow is let out of prison a few days early because his wife was killed in an accident. On his journey home, Shadow meets Wednesday, who knows more about Shadow than which Shadow is comfortable. A storm is coming and Wednesday needs Shadow’s help. Shadow has been having strange dreams as his life has been turned upside down. A storm is coming and it’s heading for Shadow. Continue reading “American Gods”
Dun and Red 