I first read this series of three novels in late 2014, which was the first year that I had my Kindle e-reader. I seem to recall that at first I found the original short story, and then the collection that became the first full novel in Hugh Howey’s self-published Silo series, which at that time…
Tag: fiction
The Broken Queen by Lidiya Foxglove
The Queen of Songs isn’t quite what they were expecting.
The Broken Queen (Court of the Last Dragon, Book 1) by Lidiya Foxglove: Harrai is the dragon king, king of the Miralem people, who are all telepathic. The royal family of the Miralem ride dragons who are also telepathic, and the king is part dragon. He has been king since his parents died when he was a child, and for years only reluctantly filled that role, purely out of a sense of duty. There is some dark mystery surrounding his parents’ deaths. Now, he cannot marry until he finds the reincarnation of a prior queen, the Queen of Songs. It is she who will become his wife and bear his heirs.
The Moonspinners by Mary Stewart
Sometimes, while reading certain passages in The Moonspinners this time around, I got the impression that Mary Stewart was already, in 1961-1962, working on what I consider her masterpiece, The Crystal Cave.
This is the kind of writing that holds me spellbound in that later book, and it’s typically a point of interest in any of her romantic suspense novels, when it occurs.
2023 and the Books I Enjoyed
How much reading is too much? Back at the start of 2022, I deliberately set out to read less than in 2021, because I read at night before sleep, and I have trouble getting enough sleep. And that’s usually the only time I have to read. So I started 2022 with a reading challenge of just…
May-June 2023 favorite reads
The future of my favorite reads posts I’m covering two months of reading with this post. That would cause it to be extra long if I listed all the four or five-star reads as I have in the past, so I’ll place the Jane Austen variations last, and include only those I like so much…
Books to screen: Arrival
I’ve written here before about my love-hate relationship with movies from books, or at least about the dichotomy they present. I found this video about how the story was adapted to film a fascinating look at the process of taking a story from one medium to another, and why certain things are done.
An Affectionate Heart by Heather Moll
An Affectionate Heart by Heather Moll is one of those novels that I thought about immediately rereading as soon as I finished it. It’s a fresh take on Pride and Prejudice that mostly takes place in Meryton. There are so many passages I wanted to linger over, yet I also wanted to find out what happened next, so I frequently moved along too quickly to savor everything I wished to.
April 2023 favorite reads
My 4- to 5-star reads for April 2023. Note, some of these books may only be available from Amazon and/or as Kindle ebooks. April was a busy reading month, and I also pored over a number of yarn craft books. I posted about those on my other blog, Swatches Yarns and Frogs.
March 2023 favorite reads
I can’t believe it’s late April already. This year is speeding by so far. Here — finally — are the books I rated as 4- or 5-star reads in March 2023. Note, these aren’t necessarily new or even new-to-me books. I read lots of older books, and I tend to reread favorites. Some may not…
February 2023 favorite reads
Brief reviews of my favorites of the books I read in February 2023, including some nonfiction book on watercolor and personal transformation, as well as several Jane Austen (Pride and Prejudice) variations.