Book Review – Artificial Condition

06 Nov 2026 3 Comments

by Clare in Books, Reviews Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

This week I’m moving on to the second book in The Murderbot Diaries – Artificial Condition – by Martha Wells. There will be some unavoidable spoilers for the previous book. You can read my review of that first book at the link below:

  • All Systems Red (Murderbot #1) – review here / purchase here
Book cover of 'Artificial Condition' by Martha Wells, featuring a robotic figure in a futuristic environment with a spacecraft in the background.
I read the e-book edition.

Here is the blurb:

It has a dark past – one in which a number of humans were killed. A past that caused it to christen itself “Murderbot.” But it has only vague memories of the massacre that spawned that title, and it wants to know more.

Teaming up with a Research Transport vessel named ART (you don’t want to know what the “A” stands for), Murderbot heads to the mining facility where it went rogue.

What it discovers will forever change the way it thinks.

The blurb for this one doesn’t do a good job of explaining what this book is about so I’ll start this review with more of a plot summary than I usually do.

After Murderbot leaves the PresAux team at the end of All Systems Red, he ventures out on his own to try to discover more about his past. He remembers enough to know that he killed many humans at a place named Ganaka Pit. As he travels there, posing as an augmented human, he meets ART – a sentient transport that is curious about him. After some salty interactions, ART (short for Asshole Research Transport) helps Murderbot make some changes to better disguise himself. Even after this, Murderbot fears being discovered by humans who are familiar with SecUnits or by other SecUnits. In order to have a reason to be near Ganaka Pit, Murderbot is hired by a group of young researchers who have been victimized by their corrupt corporate employer. They need protection while they try to get their stolen data back. The rest of the story follows Murderbot’s mission to find out what happened at Ganaka Pit while also protecting the humans who have hired him.

In this book we get to see how Murderbot acts now that he is more free to make his own choices. Despite this new freedom, he still ends up as a protector to humans. Was this a result of some inherent programming that he cannot escape or just a reasonable choice to stick with what he knows how to do? This book lets us watch Murderbot explore his choices as he decides how human he wants to be. I also love how Murderbot takes inspiration from the shows he watches, sometimes taking on a name or other parts of the story from Sanctuary Moon.

The worldbuilding in Artificial Condition also expands to show the reader a larger part of this world and more types of bots, with ART as well as ComfortUnits. Like the previous book, this one includes an anti-corporate theme. Overall I enjoyed the book – it was a quick read that wraps up with action and a satisfying conclusion.

What other books about robots and androids have you enjoyed? Let me know in the comments.

You can find more of my book reviews here.

Book Review – Murmuration

02 Nov 2026 Leave a comment

by Clare in Books, Reviews Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

I just finished reading Murmuration by T.J. Klune after receiving a copy courtesy of Net Galley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review. I looked into this book and discovered that this story is being re-released in print formats by Tor Books on November 17, 2026, but was previously available as an e-book.

My reviews of other books by T.J. Klune:

  • The House in the Cerulean Sea – review here / purchase here
  • Somewhere Beyond the Sea – review here / purchase here
Cover of the book 'Murmuration' by TJ Klune featuring a colorful illustration of a small town scene with various birds in the foreground and a bookshop named 'Bookworm' in the center.
I read the e-book edition.

Here is the blurb:

In the small mountain town of Amorea, it’s stretching toward autumn of 1954. The memories of a world at war are fading in the face of a prosperous future. Doors are left unlocked at night, and neighbors are always there to give each other a helping hand.

The people here know certain things as fact:

Amorea is the best little town there is.

The only good Commie is a dead Commie.

The Women’s Club of Amorea runs the town with an immaculately gloved fist.

And bookstore owner Mike Frazier loves that boy down at the diner, Sean Mellgard. Why they haven’t gotten their acts together is anybody’s guess. It may be the world’s longest courtship, but no one can deny the way they look at each other.

Slow and steady wins the race, or so they say.

But something’s wrong with Mike. He hears voices in his house late at night. There are shadows crawling along the walls, and great clouds of birds overhead that only he can see.

Something’s happening in Amorea. And Mike will do whatever he can to keep the man he loves.

This book is going to be tough to review without giving spoilers, but I’m going to try. The main story revolves around Mike and his relationship with Sean, both of whom live in the small town of Amorea. It is clear from the beginning of the story that Amorea isn’t a normal town. While the blurb makes it seem that something is wrong with Mike, I was suspicious of the entire perfect town from the outset.

I liked how Amorea was set in a specific era that gave it an anchor, but at the same time this helped the reader to recognize that it wasn’t a real town. As events unfold, Mike begins to doubt his reality but has limited ways to investigate it. It is clear that this is a science fiction tale and that there is an explanation that is more grounded than mystical. He tries to discover what is truly going on, but each time he makes progress, parts of the town and its denizens seem to reset, removing all the evidence he had found.

I enjoyed reading this book, but I felt like a lot of the oddness about Amorea and the strange things that happened to Mike were too repetitive. The plot could have been tighter and the story could have been told in a shorter book. It takes a while for the events to build up to any sort of resolution.

This book did have a strong romance element, and unlike the Cerulean Sea books, there is one quite spicy scene. The book also swerves into some heavy topics toward the end, and I have mixed feelings about how everything was resolved. While I can understand why it ended the way it did, I don’t know that I liked the ending. The ethics of the science were interesting, but also something that could not be fully explored given the framework of the story.

My overall review is that I am glad I read this book, but it isn’t going to be my favorite story by the author. I’m still looking to read more of his work though.

What book by T.J. Klune should I read next? What is your favorite? Let me know in the comments.

You can find more of my book reviews here.

Book Review – All Systems Red

28 Oct 2026 2 Comments

by Clare in Books, Reviews Tags: , , , , , , , ,

For my upcoming book reviews I’m going to try to post one recent read and one older read each week. That brings me to a book series I started in 2025 but never reviewed here – Murderbot!

I started this series for a book club discussion around the time that the Apple TV show aired. You can see the trailer for it below. A second season is expected to air in 2027, although a release date has not been announced.

The first book in The Murderbot Diaries series by Martha Wells is titled All Systems Red (Amazon / Bookshop.org) and is relatively short, at 144 pages. The series currently stretches across eight books, with some of the later installments being longer. I have currently read through the fourth one, Exit Strategy (Amazon / Bookshop.org).

If you’d like to pick up any of the books mentioned in my posts and support my blog at the same time you can click on the highlighted links. You can also find my list of recommended reads (in different categories) over at Bookshop.org.

Cover of 'All Systems Red' by Martha Wells featuring a robotic figure in a futuristic landscape.
I read the e-book edition.

Here is the blurb:

“As a heartless killing machine, I was a complete failure.”

In a corporate-dominated space-faring future, planetary missions must be approved and supplied by the Company. For their own safety, exploratory teams are accompanied by Company-supplied security androids. 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 is 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, Murderbot 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 Murderbot to get to the truth.

One of the best aspects of this book is how the story is told in first person point-of-view, from the perspective of the sarcastic not-really-murderous SecUnit. I’m going to use male pronouns because I can’t help but see the SecUnit as Alexander Skarsgard from the show, even though Murderbot is genderless in the novella. He spends a lot of time in his own head, and while he does have some responsibility for the humans he is hired to protect, he is bored by them and prefers to watch a variety of adventure shows that he streams on his internal systems.

Despite these distractions, Murderbot has to pretend that he is a normal SecUnit so that no one discovers he hacked his governor module. He knows that rogue SecUnits will be captured and destroyed. The heart of the story revolves around Murderbot’s relationship with the crew of scientists who are from a free world outside the Company-controlled colonies. Dr. Mensah and her researchers treat Murderbot more like a person than a robot, and he turns out to be very socially awkward.

The novella contains plenty of dry humor and anti-corporate themes. I don’t want to spoil anything so I’m not going to say more about the plot. Overall this was a fun and quick story to read that served as an introduction to Murderbot more than anything. I’ll be reviewing the next few installments in The Murderbot Diaries soon.

Have you read any of the Murderbot novellas? Do you prefer this series or one of the author’s other books? Let me know in the comments!

You can find more of my reviews here.

Book Review – Sea of Charms

13 Oct 2026 Leave a comment

by Clare in Books, Reviews Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

After spending time immersed in cozy fantasy at New York Comic-Con, I’m back to writing book reviews. Next up on my backlog for review is Sea of Charms by Sarah Beth Durst. This is the third book in The Spellshop series and I just reviewed the second book, The Enchanted Greenhouse, last week.

You can find my reviews of the previous books and purchase links below:

  • The Spellshop – review here / purchase here
  • The Enchanted Greenhouse – review here / purchase here

And for a disclaimer – I received Sea of Charms courtesy of Net Galley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Book cover for 'Sea of Charms' by Sarah Beth Durst featuring a serene seaside scene with a sailboat, lush greenery, and vibrant flowers framing a wooden gate.
I read the e-book edition.

Here is the blurb:

Marin had always belonged on the great blue sea. When the man she thought was the love of her life schemed to ruin her parents’ business, she did what her heart knew best: she fled to the sea.

Now working as a supply runner on her own boat, Marin sails from island to island, delivering a varied array of goods: letters, flour, stories, and even the occasional enchanted statue. It’s a lonely life, but it’s hers. Besides, she’s got the company of Perri the sea serpent and Ree the sailor shrub. They’re the best crew she could ask for.

On one of her routine trips to the capital of the Crescent Islands Empire, Alyssium, Marin finds the city on fire and a revolution underway—so she offers transportation to Dax, a composer friend who refuses to leave behind his instruments. What starts as a rescue evolves into a deal: Marin will keep Dax on as a (temporary) member of her crew if he becomes her pretend boyfriend at the End-of-Harvest Festival back home.

Against her better judgment, Marin finds herself intrigued by his stubbornness, his passion for stories, his charming smile—and realizes that perhaps she isn’t saving him. Maybe it’s the other way around.

Sea of Charms is a cozy fantasy romance about finding your crew, your family, and moreover, finding yourself.

This book felt different that the earlier ones in this series because it took our characters to multiple islands across the Crescent Islands Empire. While the other books in the series work well as stand-alone novels, this one ties in to the events of those earlier books and would be best read after the other two. Marin is a side character in The Enchanted Greenhouse, so it shouldn’t be a surprise that we see where her adventures overlap with the events of that book.

The timeline in Sea of Charms takes us back to roughly the start of the revolution in the capital city, Alyssium. This book also takes place over a longer time frame than the earlier ones, but with a broader world to explore, that made sense to me. For part of the book Marin sails without any human companions, so the romance aspect of this story takes time to develop as it requires Dax to be around Marin enough for their relationship to develop.

I loved how Marin tried to be a loner and refused to take on a crew or passengers, only to bend her rules as circumstances changed. She was unable to refuse people in a desperate situation and I think she empathized with their desire to flee their homes as she herself had done when she went to sea, even if the reasons were different. Dax was also a wonderful character who starts out naive and sheltered, but he yearns to see the world. His role as a talented composer and musician put him in a different social class than most of the other characters we see in this book, but opposites attract and made him the perfect partner for Marin. Dax is obviously enamored with her throughout the book, but it takes time for Marin to heal from her past experience and to learn that she can fall in love again. Like the earlier books, the romance is sweet and stays simple.

Once again, a talking plant was probably the most endearing character in this book. We first met Ree the wax myrtle in The Enchanted Greenhouse, but in this book we see him learn how to sail. Like Dax, Ree is also naive but eager, and his joy in becoming a sailor helps to soften Marin’s heart.

The places that Marin and crew visit in this book were one of my favorite parts of the book. We get to see Alyssium during the revolution, as well as Marin’s family home with an abundance of winged cats. Together the crew braves a dragon and a magical storm, and even encounters unicorns. Overall this was a delightful and inventive story that tied together some of the pieces of earlier books, while remaining focused on its own central plot.

The next book in the series will be The Magical Cheese Emporium and is expected to be published January 19, 2027.

Have you read any of Sarah Beth Durst’s books other than this series? Which would you recommend? Let me know in the comments.

You can find more of my book reviews here.

Book Review – The Enchanted Greenhouse

08 Oct 2026 Leave a comment

by Clare in Books, Reviews Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

I’m looking forward to attending New York Comic-Con (NYCC) this week and started to look through the list of panels and attendees. NYCC is hosting a panel on cozy fantasy, with one of my favorite cozy authors in attendance – Sarah Beth Durst. Since I’m working through my back log of book reviews, I thought this would be a great time to catch up on reviews of a couple of her books that I’ve read this year.

The Enchanted Greenhouse is the second book in the loosely connected Spellshop series. You can find my review of the first book below, as well as one for a stand-alone fantasy novel by Durst that I recently reviewed:

  • The Spellshop – review here / purchase here
  • The Faraway Inn – review here / purchase here
Book cover for 'The Enchanted Greenhouse' by Sarah Beth Durst featuring a magical greenhouse in a snowy landscape, with an intricately designed structure and a cat with wings in the foreground.
I read the e-book edition.

Here is the blurb:

Terlu Perna broke the law because she was lonely. She cast a spell and created a magically sentient spider plant. As punishment, she was turned into a wooden statue and tucked away into an alcove in the North Reading Room of the Great Library of Alyssium.

This should have been the end of her story . . . Yet one day, Terlu wakes in the cold of winter on a nearly-deserted island full of hundreds of magical greenhouses. She’s starving and freezing, and the only other human on the island is a grumpy gardener. To her surprise, he offers Terlu a place to sleep, clean clothes, and freshly baked honey cakes—at least until she’s ready to sail home.

But Terlu can’t return home and doesn’t want to—the greenhouses are a dream come true, each more wondrous than the next. When she learns that the magic that sustains them is failing—causing the death of everything within them—Terlu knows she must help. Even if that means breaking the law again.

This time, though, she isn’t alone. Assisted by the gardener and a sentient rose, Terlu must unravel the secrets of a long-dead sorcerer if she wants to save the island—and have a fresh chance at happiness and love.

Funny, kind, and forgiving, The Enchanted Greenhouse is a story about giving second chances—to others and to yourself.

While readers of The Spellshop will instantly recognize the character of Terlu from a tale told in that first book, no prior knowledge of this series would be necessary to jump into this not-quite-a-sequel second book. When Terlu is reanimated in an unfamiliar forest, she knows as much about her surroundings as the reader does.

As Terlu explores her new environs and meets the denizens of an island filled with a series of enchanted greenhouses, she brings the reader along in that discovery. I found myself completely invested in the mystery of the failing magic. Like The Spellshop, this book is also a light romance, with some nice moments and captivating settings to be found within the magical gardens.

If you enjoyed the sentient spider plant, Caz, from the first book, there are more of his relations to be found in this novel. These non-human denizens were essential to fill out the cast of characters since both Terlu and the gardener, Yarrow, are essentially trapped on the island through their circumstances and choices. This limited setting leaves fewer potential plot complications, but the ongoing failures of the greenhouses provided enough twists and mystery to keep me interested in the book.

Cozy fantasy seems to always involve some level of cuteness in regard to the creatures, and I am all here for this. In this book we have a winged cat and some tiny dragons. The shrub who wants to be a sailor was a particular favorite of mine.

The Enchanted Greenhouse delves more into spells and the practical use of magic that we didn’t see in the first book, and I enjoyed seeing the characters think through their problems, spend time researching, and then learn how to work their own spells. The necessity of this was a nice counterpoint to the prohibition against lay people performing magic.

Overall I enjoyed this book a lot. I can’t decide if I liked it more than The Spellshop or not. Anyway – I’ve already read the next book in the series, Sea of Charms, and should have a review of that out in the next few weeks. It looks like a fourth book will be out in 2027 titled The Magical Cheese Emporium.

Have you read this series? What did you think? What other cozy fantasy books should I read? Let me know in the comments.

You can find more of my book reviews here.

Book Review – A Sorceress Comes to Call

06 Oct 2026 2 Comments

by Clare in Books, Reviews Tags: , , , , , , , ,

I need to do a better job keeping up with book reviews, so I’ll start by looking at a recent stand-along novel I read, A Sorceress Comes to Call by T. Kingfisher. This is a fantasy novel that is a retelling of a Grimm’s fairy tale.

I have read and enjoyed a couple of other books by this author, but have not had a chance to review them yet. She is someone who my husband met many years ago through his work in online gaming and first came to my attention as Ursula Vernon with her “weird fruit” art that you can still see at her DeviantArt page.

These are the other books by the author that I’ve read:

Book cover for 'A Sorceress Comes to Call' by T. Kingfisher featuring stylized trees and celestial elements on a dark background.
I read the e-book edition.

Here is the blurb:

A dark retelling of the Brothers Grimm’s Goose Girl, rife with secrets, murder, and forbidden magic

Cordelia knows her mother is unusual. Their house doesn’t have any doors between rooms, and her mother doesn’t allow Cordelia to have a single friend—unless you count Falada, her mother’s beautiful white horse. The only time Cordelia feels truly free is on her daily rides with him. But more than simple eccentricity sets her mother apart. Other mothers don’t force their daughters to be silent and motionless for hours, sometimes days, on end. Other mothers aren’t sorcerers.

After a suspicious death in their small town, Cordelia’s mother insists they leave in the middle of the night, riding away on Falada’s sturdy back, leaving behind all Cordelia has ever known. They arrive at the remote country manor of a wealthy older man, the Squire, and his unwed sister, Hester. Cordelia’s mother intends to lure the Squire into marriage, and Cordelia knows this can only be bad news for the bumbling gentleman and his kind, intelligent sister.

Hester sees the way Cordelia shrinks away from her mother, how the young girl sits eerily still at dinner every night. Hester knows that to save her brother from bewitchment and to rescue the terrified Cordelia, she will have to face down a wicked witch of the worst kind.

One of the things that I enjoyed most about this book was that I was not familiar with the fairy tale it was based upon. In the first few chapters, I didn’t know if I should be rooting for Cordelia or her mother, Evangeline, and I had no expectations about where this tale would go. It was set in a generic medievalesque fantasy world which didn’t take anything away from the story because that vaguely European feudal setting is what I’d expect by default for Grimm’s fairy tales.

I enjoyed seeing the character of Cordelia grow as the story unfolded. She was initially meek and defeated (but for good reason as we see after the first few chapters), and her reluctance to act was believable in the first half of the book, rather than frustrating.

Evangeline was a fitting villain and her power to make others “obedient” was a terrifying ability. I did wonder why she hadn’t made better use of her powers, and how she ended up in her current circumstances when it seemed like she could have done so much more with her abilities. Yet there were hints about the limits on her power and how much magic she was capable of working at once.

I loved Hester as a secondary protagonist, particularly since Evangeline discounted her as a threat and wrote her off due to her age and disability. Hester looks out for her brother and immediately saw Evangeline’s ingratiation with their family for what it is, even if she didn’t appreciate the sorcery at work to start with. When events became deadly it was too late for anyone to escape the situation.

I liked the idea that the author planted in regard to sorcery and the perception of magic in this society. People generally saw sorcerers as fraudsters and cheats, rather than serious threats. In the past, those capable of powerful sorcery were hunted down so that those few who remained now keep their powers secret. This explained why little was known about the power of sorcery to the characters in the novel.

I read about the original fairy tale before writing this review, and I would say that this book is only loosely based on that material. Sorcery does not play a role in the fairy tale and the courtship aspect is not featured. Only the character of the horse, Falada, took its name from the fairy tale and followed some of that original plot. The geese made an appearance in this book, but were not central to the story.

While I initially thought of this book as a light read, I think I mean more that it was an easy read. The prose was straight-forward and none of the worldbuilding or setting were complicated, with only a few characters who were central to the story. The plot took a gruesome turn near the end which didn’t bother me, but it might upset some people (animal death, but not really). To be fair, that part of the novel took more direct inspiration from the source material.

I definitely plan to pick up more books by this author. Have you read any that you really liked? Let me know in the comments!

You can find more of my reviews here.

Book Review – Alien Clay

28 Aug 2026 3 Comments

by Clare in Books, Reviews Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,

While I have a back log of reviews to get to, it’s always easiest to write a review when the book is fresh in my mind. Alien Clay by Adrian Tchaikovsky is a stand-alone science fiction novel that I recently finished in August for a book club discussion (paid link). You can find out what I thought below.

Alien Clay was nominated for the 2025 Hugo Award for Best Novel and the 2025 Locus Award for Best Science Fiction Novel. It also won a Special Citation in 2025 from the Philip K. Dick Award. I wasn’t aware of this award but it is given by the Philadelphia Science Fiction Society together with the Philip K. Dick Trust for the best original paperback published in the U.S. that year. Looking through the list of winners, citations, and nominees, I found that I wasn’t familiar with most of the books on it. Next time I’m looking for new science fiction to read, this list might be a great resource.

I have previously read and reviewed one other book by this author:

  • Elder Race – review here / purchase here

In writing this post, I also just discovered that the author has a sequel to Elder Race coming out on September 1, 2026, called Engines of Reason. You can pre-order it here.

Book cover for 'Alien Clay' by Adrian Tchaikovsky, featuring vibrant yellow and blue colors with alien flora in a surreal landscape.
I read the e-book edition.

Here is the blurb:

The planet of Kiln is where the tyrannical Mandate keeps its prison colony, and for inmates, the journey there is always a one-way trip. One such prisoner is Professor Arton Daghdev, xeno-ecologist and political dissident. Soon after arrival, he discovers that Kiln has a secret. Humanity is not the first intelligent life to set foot there.

In the midst of a ravenous, chaotic ecosystem are the ruins of a civilization, but who were the vanished builders and where did they go? If he can survive both the harsh rule of the camp commandant and the alien horrors of the world around him, then Arton has a chance at making a discovery that might just transform not only Kiln, but distant Earth as well.

I had some trouble starting this book, but that was mostly due to a busy schedule and lack of sleep on my part, rather than due to any problem with the book. The first pages include a Dramatis Personae, but I found that I never needed to flip back to reference this. Once I had more free time to dedicate to reading, this was a stellar book that I (mostly) read in two days.

The opening shows both the protagonist, Arton Daghdev, and the ruthless attitude of the Mandate as Arton arrives on the planet of Kiln. The idea of “acceptable wastage” is introduced, basically acknowledging that some prisoners will die quickly and as long as the numbers aren’t too high, no one back on Earth will care. The prisoners are essentially freeze dried for one-way transport to their alien prison, while the leadership and staff get to ride in a safer ship that allows a return voyage when their period of work is done.

The novel interweaves two main themes: rebellion against an oppressive regime and weird and poorly understood planetary biology. The Mandate wants to force the science to fit their philosophy, so while the main antagonist, Commandant Terolan, is tasked with enforcing order on Kiln, he also needs those prisoners with an academic background in relevant fields to help the stalled research of his regular staff. Arton receives special attention from Terolan and waffles between wanting to study the alien structures and the ecology of Kiln, while also continuing to rebel against the government that sent him here.

His fellow prisoners are not welcoming initially and a minor theme throughout the book is trust. Arton already knows several of the inmates and while he knows that he never snitched on anyone, he both realizes that someone had snitched on him on Earth and fears that the others believe he did the same to them. Arton’s character is believable in how he waffles between his own fear of further punishment and his deep-seated need to continue to fight against the oppression and poor science of the Mandate.

One of the best parts of Alien Clay is the biology of the life on Kiln. Arton is not given full privileges to engage in research because he is still a prisoner, but gradually gleans information from his captors as he is allowed to work for the official scientists. Arton’s past as a well-respected researcher in academia also flavors the story, and I imagine readers who work in academia will appreciate this more than others. No one who is a leader in their field has chosen to come to Kiln to work, but those less successful academics who did join the colony oversee prisoners with more publications and expertise, leading to snarky lines like this one from Arton:

“We know it all. Lay down your guns and I’ll let you and Terolan peer-review my paper on it.”

As an aside, the life on Kiln reminded me in many ways of the 2023 HBO animated series, Scavenger’s Reign. While this show was unfortunately not renewed for a second season, the first season was incredible and still worth watching for anyone who likes science fiction involving a lot of biology.

I don’t want to spoil anything about the mysteries of Kiln or the ending of this book, so I will only say that the author brings all of these ideas together to a satisfying conclusion that left me thinking for days afterward.

Have you read other science fiction books that lean heavily on biology rather than physics or engineering? Which ones would you recommend? Let me know in the comments.

You can find more of my book reviews here.

July 2026 Reading Wrap Up

26 Aug 2026 Leave a comment

by Clare in Books, Reviews Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

Next up is my summary of my worst reading month of the year so far. July found me struggling to find the time to read, and my focus for listening to audiobooks also faltered. Yet I did still manage to finish one book. This doesn’t tell my full July reading story, because I did read most of another lengthy book. However, I didn’t finish that one until August, so I can’t count it yet.

If you’d like to pick up any of these books and support my blog at the same time you can click on any of the book links in this post.

Book cover of 'Light from Uncommon Stars' by Ryka Aoki featuring a colorful fish swimming in a starry, cosmic background with a quote by Charlie Jane Anders.

Books I read in July (384 pages):

  • Light From Uncommon Stars by Ryka Aoki was a book club selection and is a tale of music, aliens and donuts – ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Book cover for 'Light From Uncommon Stars' by Ryka Aoki, featuring a colorful fish against a starry space background with a quote by Charlie Jane Anders.
Book cover of 'The Best of All Possible Planets' by Alex Shvartsman, featuring a spaceship traveling through space surrounded by planets and stars.
Book cover for 'The Winged Game' by Sophie Kim featuring a purple background, a shield emblem with a winged creature, and the tagline 'When rivals collide, sparks will fly.'

New books acquired in July (1 allowed):

I went over my book allowance by two this month and I know I’m going to fail at this again for August. If I can get back on track with my reading then I should be able to do better with this for the rest of the year. I did recently pull some books off my shelves to donate to help thin out the collection. I don’t often re-read books, but there are favorites that I do like to hold on to, as well as all those still waiting to be read.

Since this is a shorter post than usual, I also wanted to include a few words here about my Bookshop.org shop. This site lets you purchase books through a designated local independent book store. If you follow this link to my shop, I have created a few lists to help you find your next favorite read! Here is one example of my lists:

Are you making progress on your summer reading list? If you could finish only one more book for the summer, which one would it be? Let me know in the comments.

Book Review – Sistersong

08 May 2026 2 Comments

by Clare in Books, Reviews Tags: , , , , , , , ,

I ended up acquiring Sistersong by Lucy Holland when the Science Fiction Book Club closed operations and had amazing deals on books (paid link). I didn’t know much about this story or author before reading it. Find out what I thought below.

Book cover of 'Sistersong' by Lucy Holland featuring stylized hands, a harp, and decorative elements inspired by British folklore.
I read the hardcover edition.

Here is the blurb:

In the ancient kingdom of Dumnonia, there is old magic to be found in the whisper of the wind, the roots of the trees, and the curl of the grass. King Cador knew this once, but now the land has turned from him, calling instead to his three children. Riva can cure others, but can’t seem to heal her own deep scars. Keyne battles to be accepted for who he truly is—the king’s son. And Sinne dreams of seeing the world, of finding adventure.

All three fear a life of confinement within the walls of the hold, their people’s last bastion of strength against the invading Saxons. However, change comes on the day ash falls from the sky. It brings with it Myrdhin, meddler and magician. And Tristan, a warrior whose secrets will tear them apart.

Riva, Keyne and Sinne—three siblings entangled in a web of treachery and heartbreak, who must fight to forge their own paths.

Their story will shape the destiny of Britain.

⭐⭐⭐⭐

This novel is based on the British folk ballad, The Twa Sisters, which has been retold in several other pieces of fiction, as well as a variety of musical styles, and even a quest in The Witcher video game. I was able to easily find a folk version to listen to by searching on Spotify.

This novel feels like historical fiction because it is set in a version of the Saxon realms before England existed, but it also incorporates a good amount of myth and magic. Yet this magic is fading as the new religion of Christianity spreads through the land, and this idea of competing religions is a major theme throughout the book.

This book is also about the relationships between the three sisters. Each one is a distinct person, and the novel explores gender roles and gender identity in this patriarchal society. The sisters all have limitations to their power and goals and each faces this as the story evolves.

I enjoyed this book and found that the story slowly built tension and I was not sure who to cheer for or who to trust. The book has a satisfying, if not altogether happy, ending. It’s a novel that is built to clearly be a stand-alone novel, so the plot threads are all brought together by the end and character arcs are resolved. I’m happy I chose to read this one and I’d consider reading another novel by this author.

What historical fantasy books have you read and enjoyed? Let me know in the comments.

You can find more of my book reviews here.

Book Review – The Kaiju Preservation Society

05 May 2026 Leave a comment

by Clare in Books, Reviews Tags: , , , , , , , ,

I have enjoyed a couple of other books by John Scalzi, so I was excited to start The Kaiju Preservation Society last year (paid link). I didn’t know much about the premise so I went into this read blind. I listened to the audiobook which was narrated by Wil Wheaton.

I previously reviewed Starter Villain by the author and you can find my review of it here, and a purchase link here.

A close-up image of a weathered identification tag displaying the title 'The Kaiju Preservation Society' by John Scalzi, with a quote from Joe Hill, set against a background of green foliage and pine needles.
I listened to the audiobook edition.

Here is the blurb:

When COVID-19 sweeps through New York City, Jamie Gray is stuck as a dead-end driver for food delivery apps. That is, until Jamie makes a delivery to an old acquaintance, Tom, who works at what he calls “an animal rights organization.” Tom’s team needs a last-minute grunt to handle things on their next field visit. Jamie, eager to do anything, immediately signs on.

What Tom doesn’t tell Jamie is that the animals his team cares for are not here on Earth. Not our Earth, at least. In an alternate dimension, massive dinosaur-like creatures named Kaiju roam a warm and human-free world. They’re the universe’s largest and most dangerous panda and they’re in trouble.

It’s not just the Kaiju Preservation Society that’s found its way to the alternate world. Others have, too–and their carelessness could cause millions back on our Earth to die.

⭐⭐⭐

Like other books by John Scalzi, this was an easy read (and listen) and started quickly by putting the protagonist in a tough situation and throwing him into a series of surprising events.

Jamie learns that the Kaiju Preservation Society (or KPS) takes care of gigantic Godzilla-esque creatures on an alternate Earth. His experience as a food delivery driver is ironically being put to use in his new role as a messenger with the KPS. He works hard and is excited to be able to help. Most of the story in the first part of this book shows Jamie experiencing the reveal of the secrets of Kaiju-Earth.

The biology of the kaiju was inventive and surprising, but also features in an important way as the plot develops. Even weapons training is a fun (which is synonymous with dangerous) excursion, at least for the trainers.

One of the weaknesses of this book was that all of the young scientists felt like the same character to me. Scalzi tries to give them quirks to set them apart, but this didn’t help enough. My favorite character was Martin, the helicopter pilot who takes Jamie and crew out to see one of the local kaiju, Bella. He becomes a pivotal character and his daring and skilled piloting is critical to the story.

While I enjoyed the ideas in this book, for most of the story it lacked conflict. Jamie visits Kaiju-Earth and sees the sights, but nothing goes wrong until very close to the end of the novel. The story generally lacks an antagonist and then rushes to fill that gap with a flurry of action in the final quarter of the book. I wish that the story had been more evenly paced.

Wil Wheaton as narrator is a hit, of course. He does the narration on many of Scalzi’s books, but I have also listened to him on Ready Player One by Ernest Cline (paid link).

Have you read other books that feature kaiju? Let me know about them in the comments.

You can find more of my reviews here.

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