Alright, so this week, I thought I’d do something different.
It likely won’t surprise any of you to learn my love of writing stems directly from my love of reading. My love affair with reading stretches way back: it’s one of the first things I was ever really passionate about, apart from culverts, entomology and re-watching the same Winnie the Pooh VHS tapes 50 times a day (yes, I was a weird kid).
And so, even today, when I have writing projects and schoolwork to keep up on, I try to make time to read every day, or at least most days. When I first started this blog, I envisioned writing a mini-review for each book I read, as I read them, giving my brief thoughts and a quick rating to each. Soon, though, I discovered I had neither the time nor motivation to do that: and so, for a while, it looked like the promise of “mini book reviews” on my site’s main page would go unfulfilled.
But then, over the past few weeks, as I was thinking of content I could throw in to add a little variety to the site, I had a thought. Maybe I could still do the mini-reviews, but just do them all gauntlet-style, every two to three months.
And so, loyal readers, here it is: a quick list of the books I’ve read since January, accompanied by my brief thoughts on them.
Winter Moon, by Dean Koontz: A fairly solid sci-fi thriller. Koontz is one of my favourite writers, and he definitely delivers here. Is it his absolute best, his most chilling, his most suspenseful, his most impactful? No. But you definitely feel for Jack and Heather, the two main protagonists of the novel, as they go through their struggles, first with a personal tragedy, and then with a malignant force beyond human comprehension. If you’re a Dean Koontz fan, or you’re into the thriller/suspense genre, definitely check it out. If not, there are others I’d tell you to read before this one. Still, though, I’d give this book a GOOD.
Fire and Blood, by George R.R. Martin: This book is a companion piece to the A Song of Ice and Fire series, detailing part of the history of the Targaryen dynasty. If you’ve never read A Song of Ice and Fire, you likely won’t get much out of it. If you have, though, you’ll almost certainly find it delightful. Martin plays with the concept of historical accuracy in a fun way here, asking the question do we really know the true story of what happened during far-off historical events? Again, this one’s an ASOIAF companion piece: you won’t get much out of it if you haven’t read those books. If you have, though, and you’re even the slightest bit interested in the history of the Targaryen dynasty, you need to check this out. I’d give it a GREAT.
The Best American Science Fiction and Fantasy, 2022, edited by Rebecca Roanhorse: Collections are always tough to talk about. For me, this one had a few good stories in it, and a few more I couldn’t really get into. It didn’t help that many of the ones I couldn’t get into as much were slotted near the beginning; as I pressed on, though, I found some stories I enjoyed. A lot of these stories have a more literary bent: I’d actually recommend this collection if you’re into more modern literary fiction. Overall, I’d rate the collection somewhere between MEH and GOOD, although again, it’s really hard to rate a collection like this one. Other people might have different favourites (and least favourites) from me: my personal favourites, though, were “Broad Dutty Water: A Sunken Story” by Nalo Hopkinson, “Skinder’s Veil” by Kelly Link, and “The Future Library” by Peng Shepherd.
Metamorphosis, by Franz Kafka: Kafka’s dark surrealist masterpiece is a masterpiece for a reason. It’s by far the shortest thing here, and probably the scariest (although I haven’t really read much horror recently. Maybe I should change that soon). The horror in Metamorphosis is more psychological, though, like it is in all of Kafka’s work: the way it’s presented here might seem a bit trite to a modern reader, but you have to remember, this was published in 1915. If you’re a fan of surrealism or psychological horror at all, and you haven’t read this one, you should (and since it’s just a novella it’s not even much of a time commitment!). I’d definitely give it a GREAT.
A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, by George R.R. Martin: This is a collection of three prequel novellas set in the A Song of Ice and Fire universe, which take place roughly 90 years before A Game of Thrones. Unlike with Fire and Blood, you don’t necessarily have to have read A Song of Ice and Fire to be able to enjoy these: in fact, these three novellas stand on their own quite well. They’re much lighter reads than the books in the main series, although this doesn’t detract from the character development or the vivid sense of place at all. If I had to pick a favourite of the three, I’d pick the first novella, “The Mystery Knight.” But collectively, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms still gets a GREAT rating from me.
Jade War, by Fonda Lee: And finally, we get to Jade War, the last book I finished. Jade War is book 2 in the Green Bone Saga, following Jade City: since it’s the middle part of a trilogy, I won’t get too much into plot details, but I will say that the Green Bone saga as a whole is one of the more imaginative and creative takes on the fantasy genre that I’ve seen recently. The characters are compelling, the setting is unique, and the plot is driving and well-paced, although I would say it was probably more so in the first book than in the second. Still, though, that’s not to say Jade War was bad by any means: it still gets a GREAT rating from me. If you’re into fantasy at all, and you haven’t picked up the Green Bone Saga yet, you should.
And that’s it for now. I’ll be back with another one of these in a few months. Until then, have fun, stay safe and keep reading.
P.S. Here’s a quick refresher on my ratings system:
Astounding: One of my new favourites. This rating means I fell head over heels for the book(s), and will likely carry the story with me for the rest of my life.
Great: Not quite pantheon-worthy, but still excellent. This rating means I was thoroughly entertained and would highly recommend the book…it just didn’t quite ascend to the level of astounding.
Good: Enjoyable, but nothing I’ll think about extensively or come back to often. I don’t regret reading it, but it’s not something I’m going to gush about. May still recommend it: after all, others may like it more than me.
Meh: Means I didn’t really feel anything while reading this book. In all honesty, the likelihood of me finishing a “meh” rated book or below is pretty low: we only get so many years on this planet, after all. Life is too short to read books you don’t enjoy.
Below Average: Means there was something I disliked about the book or which annoyed me enough to ruin my experience, but not enough to truly descend to the level of bad. This is the lowest rating where I may still suggest others read the book, in case they like it more than me.
Bad: Means I actively disliked reading this book, or was bored to tears by it.
Awful: Reserved for the truly terrible. To earn an ‘awful’ rating, a book has to either insult me, disgust me, or make me so bored I forget who I even am. It’s relatively rare that a professionally-published book will reach these depths.
