2013 has gotten off to a great start, reading-wise. Here’s a sampling of some of the books that have kept me up late into the night, turning pages.
An Urban Fantasy of a Different Kind
The Rook by Daniel O’ Malley
Dear You, the body you are wearing used to be mine.
Who can resist an opening like that? Mwfanwy Thomas finds herself in a London park, surrounded by bodies wearing white gloves, and no memories. Following a paper trail left behind by her meticulous former self, Mwfanwy finds herself in a super-secret organization staffed by people of extraordinary abilities–and a deadly conspiracy behind it all…
Fairy Tale Retelling
A Long, Long Sleep by Anna Sheehan
A SF retelling of Sleeping Beauty. Rosalinda wakes up after 62 years in a stasis tube to find that her parents and young love are dead and that the world has fallen into and pulled itself out of the Dark Times. Rosalinda is a fragile young woman, making sense of her past and putting together a future for herself. This poignant story does not offer easy answers for heartache.
I-Really-Should-Read-Something-By-China-Mievelle
Railsea by China Mievelle
And I finally did!
This Moby Dick-inspired yarn is set in a fabulously original world. It slogged in the middle, but the ending and the payoff were soooo worth it.
Middle Grade With Whimsy
Fly By Night by Frances Hardinge
Beautifully-written, with compelling characters and fantastic setting. Reminded me a lot of the Joan Aikin books I read as a kid.
Shakespeare With a Twist
Prospero’s Daughter and sequels by L. Jagi Lamplighter
What if the events in Shakespeare’s The Tempest were only the beginning? What if Prospero didn’t renounce his magic? What if he and his children (yes, plural) had lived into the modern era, shielding humanity from the caprice of elemental spirits? This is the premise of Lamplighter’s ambitious trilogy, which combines Shakespeare, pagan and Catholic mythology, and historical detail in a unique way.
Oldie Comfort Reads
Death in Cyprus and other mysteries by M. M. Kaye
I had a hankering for these atmospheric mysteries set in various British colonies and ex-colonies. I wish Kaye had written more of them!
Indie Reads
Wearing the Cape by Marion G. Harmon
I felt like a superhero story and this hit the spot. A lot of fun characters with a great deal of potential and well-thought-out world.
Terms of Enlistment by Marko Kloos
A fun military SF. There’s not much of a plot, really, until the final third or so of the book, but if you like a story about how warfare would look like in the space-faring age, this is a book for you.
***
Do you have books to recommend? Share them in the comments!
So, I’m scrolling through your blog, and find this post in which you cite MM Kaye’s “Death in …” series. Oh my god, I thought I was the only person in the known universe who still reads them! I have them all and cycle through them every so often. Have you found Mary Stewart’s novels along similar lines? (Not the Merlin books.) If not, you may like them too…
Awesome! I adore them–Kaye does atmosphere SO well! My favorite is DEATH IN KASHMIR. I haven’t read Mary Stewart at all; I didn’t even know she’d written anything else besides Merlin. I’ll have to check them out!
Yeah, Kashmir is my favourite too. đŸ™‚ After that probably Cyprus. And Zanzibar…
I really do think you’ll like Mary Stewart. They’re old fashioned in the same way. Really similar vibe, and she writes travel atmosphere brilliantly well. I’ve travelled the world to destinations shown me by Mary Stewart. They’re set in Delphi, Provence, Corfu, Crete, Austria, UK, the Pyranees… I can’t wait to hear what you think of them.